At Stake is part two of the continuing saga The Dead Heart. If you haven't yet done so please read part one. I hope you enjoy the story and please review!

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to The Walking Dead, AMC or any of their affiliates. This is purely for entertainment purposes and is a fan created fiction. This story does not reflect the actual Walking Dead series and doesn't claim to be anything but a fan (me) expressing my appreciation for the characters and the wonder that is The Walking Dead. All OFC's (Original Fictional Characters) are a product of my own imagination. Any resemblance to anyone living or dead is purely coincidental.


Chapter 1

Slowly the haze lifted and she was awake. The weather was cool enough that she could see her breath. It was early morning, and she was outside. "How did I get here?" The question seemed to echo inside her drugged filled mind. Knowing she shouldn't be there made her panic, erasing the last effects of the drugs. At once she realized her situation. Her ankles were tied to a thick wooden stake. Her arms, secured at the wrist, were tied behind her, around the pole. Where was he? Did they do this to him too? As quietly as she could manage she struggled with the ropes. The cool air stung the irritated skin around her wrist as she pulled on the ties. The sun was coming up and she would soon be able to see what waited for her out in the cornfield. Silently she prayed. "Please let me get out of here!"

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xXx

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The frail looking woman stood on the plank flooring of the porch. The house wasn't fancy in the least bit. But once upon a time it had sparkled. The yellow panel siding was always pristine. The white carved wood of the spindle railing gleamed. And the floor of the porch was painted a light shade of grey. Flowers had once filled the now empty boxes and the paint was peeling. Dust covered the windows, most of which were broken. The front door was gone and the interior of the house had been picked through, vandals smashed everything that was left. Rude words were spray painted along the side of the house and graffiti littered the interior walls. She doubted her family would ever live here again. The anger she felt inside boiled over as she walked to the steps. She stood on the lower rung of the railing and slid the knocker into the eye hook, allowing it to dangle inside of the iron bell. Carefully she climbed back down and brushed the dust from her hands and dress. She took the steps quickly, careful to leave enough slack in the rope so the bell wouldn't make a sound until she wanted it to.

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She scanned the area once more. The man and woman were tired to the stakes just outside of the cornfield. She could see the girl struggling. "Foolish girl you are going to call them to you before I'm ready." Liddy glanced at the hatch. Bobby was climbing down the ladder and Jake stood waiting for her. He nodded towards her letting her know they were ready. Liddy pulled hard on the bell, the sound shattering the silence.

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xXx

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Her hand slipped free and then the other. She was grateful that the knots weren't that tight after all. She was working the knot around her ankles when the sound of a bell broke the predawn silence. There was enough light now that she could see clearly the edge of the cornfield. And then her eyes settled on them, a group of dead moving towards her. A scream rose in her throat. She couldn't stop herself moments later when she felt a cold spindly hand touch her.

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xXx

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Liddy ran to her son. She stopped momentarily to watch the dead swarm around the woman. Her screams snuffed out shortly after they began. The howl of the man made her stomach flip flop and Liddy emptied its contents onto the ground.

Jake helped his mother get into the storm cellar. "Mother we have to do this. It is a necessity. Next time I'll ring the dinner bell and you can stay inside."