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-Chapter 29-
Captain Lapidus
Sydney Australia
2004
Inside a smoke filled bar in downtown Sydney, a husky bearded man with bushy grey eyebrows tilts his head back and finishes off his fifth glass of whiskey. He contemplates having a sixth, although he'll need a cab back to the hotel if he keeps up the binge.
The bartender cleans the spills on the beer tap while eyeing him in the mirror. He's suspicious, and hopes he's not some homeless bum off the streets that doesn't have the money to pay the tab.
The bearded man taps the glass on the bar top then slides it forward. "Bring me another," he requests nonchalantly.
The bartender rolls his eyes and takes the glass. "One more and you'll need to pay up."
"My friend has had enough for tonight," calls a voice from a dark corner of the bar. He steps out of the shadows and approaches the bar; he's a tall thin black man, nicely dressed with suit and tie, and looking very out of place for a downtown pub. "I will cover his tab," he says, placing a stack of cash on the bar.
The bearded man turns his stool and watches the bartender count the cash. He's upset that his night out drinking is interrupted but also thankful a stranger covered the bill. He looks to the suited man and gives him a one eyed piercing stare. "You're not from around here, are you?" he asks with a raspy voice.
"Oh, I've been around," the suited man replies, taking a seat next to him at the bar. "I've been all over the world and I've come all the way here just for you, Mr. Lapidus." He pronounces each word with short heavily emphasized syllables. His jaw movement while speaking flexes the muscles along his temples. The lighting from the bar reflects off his shiny shaven head.
Lapidus exchanges a quizzical look with the bartender then looks back to the suited man. "And what is it that I can do for you, Mister?"
"Abaddon. Matthew Abaddon," he says, introducing himself with intense eye contact absent of any kind of friendly bar handshake. "And right now, it's what I can do for you. I can take you back to your hotel so you can rest and sober up for your flight tomorrow."
Lapidus rotates his stool to face him, cocking one eyebrow up and closing the other. "You one of the guys from corporate checking on me?
"No." Abaddon doesn't flinch from his perfectly robotic demeanor. "I'm someone that gets people where they need to go. And you, Captain Lapidus, must fly Oceanic 815 tomorrow morning."
"Oh ya, I almost forgot; 8-1-5," replies Lapidus, with a facetious smirk. "Gimmee a break, would you? I've got 10 hours before I hit the runway. I figured I'd have a night out before I autopilot across the Pacific."
Abaddon stands up from the bar stool and straightens his tie. "Your night here is finished. Trust me; you will need all the rest you can get tonight."
"You want to tell me why you're so interested in flight 815?"
Abaddon finally reveals a sliver of emotion with a subtle smirk. "Because you're taking a special group of passengers to a unique destination. And that destination is not Los Angeles."
Ah sorry this was so short, I needed to give one of my all time favorite Lost characters Matthew Abaddon a special showing! -bobt
