TWD: What It Takes (OC)

Chapter One

Whistles***…

''I simply cannot decide!'' Negan laughed as his eyes contemplated the line of people kneeling at his feet. ''Wait, I've got an idea!'' A devilish smile appeared on his face as he stepped closer to Rick, his barbed-wired bat ready to strike. Rick lowered his head, ready to take the first hit.

''Eenie…meenie…miney…moe. Catch a tiger by his toe…If he howlers let him go…My mother told me to pick the very best one and you…are…it!''

As the end of the bat aimed directly at her, Maggie literally stopped breathing. Her heart was beating so fast that her pulse echoed in her head like a deafening drum. She couldn't think straight, images of her father,sister and Glenn filled her mind but the first thing she thought was the baby. I have to save the baby.

At this moment, Glenn stood up in one quick motion and went to punch Negan

''Nooo, don't!'' he shouted. Unfortunately, Negan's men were quicker and outnumbered him. They handled him fast and started to beat him as he fell to the ground.

''NO!…No, get him back in line'' Negan ordered, an inch of annoyment audible in his voice.

''Please, don't'' Glenn begged as he struggled to get back up, in vain.

Another grin appeared on Negan's face, rather mocking this time.

''All right, listen. Don't any of you do that again, I will shut that shit down, no exceptions!'' He turned his gaze back to Glenn ''First one's free, it's an emotional moment, I get it'' he winked.

''Please, please don't do that, I'm begging you…'' Glenn tried one last time

''Shh, shhh. Well fuck me, I feel you boy. I can see this is hard on you people but you guys, have killed a shitload of my men the other day. Now, you gotta understand, there are rules. One of you has to go and the rest just fucking walks free! I don't know about you but the way I see it, the amount of generousness I'm showing you guys is way too fucking fuckity high!''

He went back to Maggie who was still under shock. Glenn had his tearful eyes fixed on her but her gaze wouldn't meet his. It was empty, vacant, anywhere but here.

''I started something, gotta finish it. So…Anybody moves, anybody says anything, cut the boy's other eye out and feed it to his father and then we'll start!'' He tightly gripped his bat with both hands ''You can breathe, you can blink, you can fucking cry. Hell, you're all gonna be doing that''. Glenn's last whimpers echoed in the dark quiet night as Negan lifted Lucille above his head, ready to strike…

''Wait!'' a female voice broke the heavy silence, taking the Savior's leader by surprise ''wait''.

Negan shut his eyes and held back a scream of rage. He looked at the disturbing protagonist, curious of what she had to say that was worth interrupting him in his twisted ritual. As he stepped closer he could tell that she was scared by her heavy breathing. Negan figured her out, he hadn't really noticed her before, probably because he had been too busy trying to teach Rick who was now in charge.

As much as he wanted to teach her a lesson for challenging him in front of his men, he had to admit that this woman was the proud owner of a huge pair of balls.

''Kill me…not her.'' She did not look at him and her eyes were glued to the ground. There was fear in her voice, it was trembling a little but she sounded sure. Negan had to process her words for a second. ''Sweetheart…If you're gonna talk to me, you need to raise your pretty head a little.'' He said, really hoping that it would make her think twice about her proposal.

It took her everything she had left in her to look him right in the eye but she wouldn't backdown just now, she couldn't, not after everything they had been through.

Her hazel irises met his darker ones and unexpectedly, he was the one to feel a cold shiver run down his spine.

''Kill me'' she repeated.

Negan was a little troubled by this sudden change of plans and he tried his best to maintain his grin.

''Jesus fucking Christ, well fuck me, I might have underestimated y'all.'' He bent down to be at the woman's level and realized that she was a bit younger than he had thought.

''What's your name, darlin?'' He smiled.

''Gil-'' she cleared her throat, she didn't expect to have more talking to do. ''Gillian''

''Mmmh, all right, all right, Gillian. Now, tell me why I would do that whereas my Lucille has already picked her lucky winner of the day? Are you two sisters or something ?''

Gillian wasn't sure if telling him the truth was going to have the expected result but she had to try. Sacrifice was not something she was afraid of, she had seen too many things to fear death at this point. However, she wouldn't forgive herself if her attempt to save people ended up in a bloodbath.

''If you kill her…You kill two people.''

At that, Negan made a face, he didn't understand right away. Just when she thought she needed to explain him the situation, he got up.

''Holy fucking shit…And you guys try to have a hit on me because I'm, apparently, not running a civilized community?! Your words, not mine, huh. Well, Rick, I gotta say I'm pretty disa-fucking-pointed. You guys were seriously gonna let Lucille have her way with a pregnant one ?!'' He didn't expect any answers. ''Now, I've seen some goddamn motherfuckers in my life but hell, your little crew has just hit the top of that big fat pile of shit!''.

As he walked among Rick's people again, he was still thinking about what he was going to do. Obviously, he wasn't going to kill Maggie, that would be against his principles. First, she was pregnant and second, he indeed said that he would only kill one person for the time being. He scratched his beard for a good 20 seconds while his eyes wandered from the ground to the people in front of him, and finally to Gillian.

''But not you.'' The almost sweet smile he gave her made her really uncomfortable. ''You do realize what comes next ?'' he asked as he straightened his bat between them, raising his eyebrows in a funny way.

Gillian's first reflex was to lower her head as she thought about being beaten to death. A bullet in the head was something but it was quick and very likely painless. She had the feeling that a barbed-wired bat would be very different…

''Nonono, my eyes are up here, Sweetheart.'' He motioned for her to straighten up ''Do you know what comes next ?'' He repeated.

''Yes'' was the only thing she could say.

''Good. Only, the way you stood up for your friend few minutes ago, that never happens…That makes you special and I like special! The problem is, that troubles me now, because I don't know what the fuck to do with you!''

Negan ran his tongue along his white teeth and passed his bat from his left to right hand, right to left, again and again during what seemed like hours. Finally, he slightly turned to his right hand man. ''Simon, what do you think? I'm in a bit of an impass here…''

Simon reflected a moment, brushing his thick mustache with his fingers and giving Gillian an exaggerated dubious look.

''Well, she's got balls…'' he paused

''She does'' Negan agreed

''That's always valuable'' Simon continued

''Balls are, indeed, rare nowadays.'' Negan looked down and took in the curves of her body with hungry eyes. ''And a sweet piece of meat on top of it all'' he laughed.

As much as Negan liked to joke in front of Rick's group and his own, he took the decision he was about to make very seriously. His methods were questionable, so was the way he ran his community but behind this dangerous façade, his primary goal was to keep his people alive, as much as possible. Recruting new persons permitted him to extend his empire but also to assure his Sanctuary safety. Deep down he knew he wanted to take Gillian in but he wasn't sure what to expect from someone who, apparently, wasn't afraid of him in a situation like that. He was so often in control of everything that he never needed to take any risks with anyone, especially the soon-to-be new recruits. But he had this feeling about this girl, sexual thoughts aside, has he had said: she was special.

Negan got up and twirled his bat in the air before holding his gloved hand out to Gillian.

''Okay Sweetheart, you're coming with me and that's not an invitation you're gonna decline.'' She didn't dare make a move and her eyes were now questioning his. He tilted his head but his smile was gone.

''Do not make me have to ask you again'' he warned, his arm still towards her.

She bit hard on her jaw as she grabbed his hand and was strongly pulled up against Negan's chest. The irritation was clear on her face, she tried to escape from his grasp but he held tight on her, decided to keep her really close. He hummed her hair.

''Now, don't you try anything stupid, darlin', or I guarantee you will be sorry'' he said, barely louder than a whisper. Gillian could smell his strong masculine scent and suspected a cologne. She wondered how the hell people had time to take care of that sort of things during a fucking zombie apocalypse, it was literally beyond her.

Negan made eye contact with Rick as he pressed Gillian harder against him.

''I got a feeling you wanna say something, Rick. Please, do tell us !'' He smiled.

Rick cleared his throat, at this point even speaking seemed to be the hardest thing in the world. ''You don't have to do this, there has to be another way, I swear. We can make it up to you''. He pleaded.

Negan suddenly let go of Gillian and hungrily walked towards Rick. He bent down and grabbed him roughly by the collar to bring him closer.

''This is exactly how you make it up to me! 27 men, Rick. 27 of my people killed by your hand, I take one of yours and you dare to fucking whine?! I'm even fucking surprised at my-fucking-self on this one, showing mercy? That's never happened before! The thing is, you guys look like you understand the real meaning of community, and that's something I haven't seen for a very long fucking time. Now, I know you can provide, a lot! I don't wanna have you against me, I want you to work for me, it's really that simple.''

He took his hand off Rick's shoulder and got up.

''I take Gillian home today but next time…I won't be that merciful, believe me.'' He mentioned for Rick to look up at him with Lucille. ''I'm going to say that one more fucking time for you, Rick, to make sure you got this right. You so much as even try to fuck me over, there will be so much fucking blood that you won't be able to fucking see. Is that clear ?''

It took Rick at least 15 seconds to just nod and that didn't suit Negan.

''Speak when you're spoken to !'' he shouted ''You, your all crew, you work for me, you answer to me, you provide for me, you belong to me! Yes or no ?!''

''Y-yes, yes'' Rick stammered.

''God dammit'' Negan breathed before straightening up.

He was glad inside, almost relieved, even if he would never admit it out loud. Recruiting groups and making them work for you wasn't always a piece of cake and Negan was more than satisfied with his new acquirement. Rick had the numbers, the ressources and the walls of Alexandria to protect the Saviors' supplies. Negan was no fool, he knew that the zero risk didn't exist and that he had no assurance that the people of Alexandria wouldn't riot or start a fight against him, bald as they seemed. However, he was convinced that, at least for now, he had made his point. Rick trembling, and all sweaty, almost shitting his pants, he could tell, confirmed that. This new collaboration promised to be very fruitful and full of surprises…

Gillian wasn't sure as to why Negan had decided to take her in but having scavenged for more than a year alone, she had come to understand what men wanted. She took a quick look around and noticed that among the Savior's crew, a least ninety-nine percent were men. Her eyes stopped on Maggie and the look she gave her broke her heart. Gillian couldn't quite define every emotions passing through her eyes: there was gratitude, so much gratitude, and guilt, like if she was seeking forgiveness. Gillian wanted to tell her that she expected no apologies, that she was willing to make that sacrifice for her and that it was her own decision. She didn't say anything as the atmosphere was tensed enough right now.

Her attention went back to Negan as he approached her once more.

''Oh, don't worry'' he smiled ''I didn't forget about you.'' He gently grabbed her arm to guide her towards the RV, opened the door and stepped aside ''After you, Gillian.'' Her name rolled on his tongue like a sweet candy and he checked her ass, of course, as she got in the vehicle. In truth, it was also to enjoy the look of anger on Rick's face than anything else…

''I'm taking the RV too, Rick, in case you didn't notice. We'll pay you a visit in a week or so, make sure to have our supplies ready by that time. Remember: half your shit, I mean it. Otherwise…''

Negan clapped his hands twice to gather his men ''Okay, folks, time to head back ! C'mon, there's work to do !'' They didn't need to be told twice, they grabbed their weapons, stuffed their things in the trucks and in a second at least a dozen engines started in a crushing sound, breaking the silence of the cold night.

Just before Negan could jump in the RV, Rick asked ''When will she come back ?'' Negan's laugh made him realize that 'will she come back' was the more appropriate question.

''I don't think I can answer that…Focus on your job for now, then we can start talking business, huh ? Don't forget that she's supposed to be dead.'' He said, giving him a dead-serious look. Rick nodded.

Negan turned his back on him, closing the RV's door behind him. And then, they were alone.

Silence. It was all that was left to Rick and his group, along with tears to mourn the uncertain fate of Gillian. They looked at each other with blank expressions all over their faces, still shaken by what happened. Everything they fought for, everything they had built in Alexandria and long before was gone in a bunch of minutes because of one man. Half their stuff…how the hell were they supposed to live with that ? They were dozens in the community and already short on food. Not to mention the ammos which would be missed soon enough. Rick blamed himself for what happened. He had been bold, too bold to think that he could beat Negan as easily as that when he attacked the outpost. That's true, they had beaten the Governor at the prison, Joe and the people of Terminus but they knew nothing of the Sanctuary, of the Saviors, not their numbers, not their operations…Yet they attacked blindly, without any information or clue about what was waiting for them. They thought they had seen it all, that it couldn't get any worse, whereas they didn't know shit. Negan had summed that up perfectly well a few minutes ago. They had become too confident and now they were paying for it. Gillian was paying the hefty price.

Back then she and Morgan had been the ones to ask them to reconsider about attacking the outpost. Tonight she accepted to come, out of pure loyalty and respect, she could have stayed in Alexandria but she came and was now paying for their mistakes. Thinking about all this made Rick's stomach turn, if she didn't come back, he would not forgive himself.

Carl walked to him and laid a hand on his shoulder ''Dad, she'll make it'' he assured ''She's strong.''

Rick wasn't too worried about her being able to defend herself, he knew she was a excellent fighter. It was the looks Negan repeatedly gave her, the way his men watched her that didn't escape him. It didn't take a genius to understand what men like them wanted from a woman, not to mention, and Rick had noticed that too, Gillian was an attractive woman.

''Yeah, I know'' he managed without really trusting his own words.

''I shouldn't have let her'' Maggie's trembling voice rose ''It's my fault she's out there now''

''No it's not, Maggie. She wanted to help you'' Rick tried to reassure her.

''We have to get her back, we have to get ready to fight them, Rick'' she grabbed his arm ''She can't stay out there !''

''I know, I know but we can't do it now, they have the numbers and we don't, it would be like signing our death warrant. We will get her back, I promise you that but for now we have to keep our heads down and do what he asks. We'll make a plan, an elaborated one this time.'' He took her head in his palms and kissed her forehead ''I promise''.

''We have to get you to the Hilltop'' he added.

''Those bastards took the stretcher'' Sasha said

''I'll carry her'' Glenn said firmly

''Okay'' Rick agreed ''It's not too far now. If you need to take a break you tell us and Abraham will take over. I'll look after Daryl, his gunshot wound seems…messy.''

Silently, they all did what they had to do and progressed slowly towards the Hilltop. There was no walkers tonight, or just a few. As he watched them, Rick wondered if that was how life was going to be now, no joy, no laugh, no sadness either, only survival.