Chapter One: Saviors
"To often do we look at people for safety when we should be looking to ourselves for salvation from the terror of the world."-Anonymous.
I watch the way the dust dances in the shaft of light that has made its way through the makeshift boarded window, and for a second I can just drift between dreaming and reality, a place where I can make myself believe that this is just another morning, and I'm home in the tiny two bedroom apartment that I shared with Kamy, and Him.
Shifting my hand causes little sparkles of light to bounce along the wall, remembering a simpler time when I held the childhood belief that any and all glittering lights were Tinker Bell in flight and searching for Peter. The pretty ring on my finger seems out of place against the layers of dirt and blood that cake my hands, and just like that I'm sucked out of the in between and plucked back into harsh reality.
Kamy stirs and I don't even have to lift my head off the pack serving as a makeshift pillow to know that Nessa has been up for hours, keeping a steady watch on the road just beyond our somewhat secure sanctuary. It has all sadly become routine. So much time has passed. Too much. I didn't bother trying to keep count in the beginning, holding on to the desperate hope of "any day now."
Any day now the government will come in. Any day now the world will be put to right, and this, whatever this was, would be nothing but a bad memory, something written about in history books. But soon days started melting together, one into another, into another, and before any of us knew it, too many days had passed and it was impossible to face anything but the harsh truth that nobody was coming for us. Yet we survived. The four of us.
Somehow we made it through the madness of the beginning days. The pillaging and scrambling. The hot tempers and easy to ignite fires of passion and fear propelled us into the bitter cold winter. Even when sickness struck three of the four we managed to pull through it all.
Until six months and ten days ago. In hindsight I know that making a go for the veterinary college was stupid, but the hope for medicine and sanctuary was so strong and our desperation too high. We should have taken into account the ability of four people, and realized that it was a task just too big for us to handle.
But He insisted, and we listened. Convinced that since we had made it that far and that long we could do anything. As if we were somehow untouchable, unbreakable, and unchangeable. How arrogant the human spirit can be at times.
"We should go. A storms rolling in and from the looks of the sky it's going to be loud and draw walkers from miles around," Nessa's voice breaks into my head and in answer I sit up forgetting the sun and my thoughts.
"The sun is shining Nessa, I think we'll be okay for one more day," Kamy says her voice thick with sleep, and if I could, I'd smile, knowing that this is just Kamy's way of rebelling against her older sister.
"The sun won't be shining for long," Nessa murmurs, and silently I stand, shoving my blanket into my pack before slinging it over my shoulders. I take one small drink from my water bottle before making my way to the door, my hand on the knife on my hip.
"Harper," Kamy's voice lilts through the air and I turn my head looking at my sleepy best friend, "Another day right?"
I nod silently unable to bring myself to speak.
Nessa was right, like she often is, and I can't help but find some relief in the rain that falls. It's the closest thing to a shower that any of us has had in longer than we care to think about, and I enjoy the water that soaks through my shirt making my blonde hair stick to my face and bare shoulders. We walk close to each other, our footsteps light not that they would be heard under the pounding rain anyways. And like a unit we duck under the overhang of a row of shops and with a silent nod we climb through a broken window.
We disperse, searching for anything that might be of some use to us. There isn't much, a few dented cans of fruit, a box of matches, and a can of lighter fluid, but it's something. I set my findings on the counter and watch idly while Kamy continues on her search as Nessa's footsteps are steady over our heads.
That's when I hear it, the sound of feet crunching on glass, and my heart begins to hammer against my ribs as I drop to the floor scrambling behind the counter my knife heavy in one hand as I try to regulate my breathing and not make any sound. Movement flashes in the corner of my eye and I turn my head slowly finding that Kamy is on the other end of the counter, her back pressed tightly against the wood, her finger held up to her lips and I nod slowly.
I worry for Nessa, but to be honest; out of the three of us she's the most capable of getting herself out of a tight situation. The footsteps are slow and methodical and I twitch just slightly when I hear a soft whistle, and another set of footsteps comes closer, stopping just on the other side of the counter.
"This is good, we can use this," the voice is rough but soft, barely above a whisper, and part of me wants to scramble up and tell whoever it is to go find their own shit, but I don't. The minimal supplies are not worth my life, or my friends. I pray for them to just take the meager findings and leave. Let us get through this unscathed.
"Well, well, well what do we have here?" a sarcastic voice drawls out and I can't react as a strong hand grips my wet hair pulling me up from my hiding spot, "She'll be fun."
"Let her go!" Kamy screams and my eyes flash over as Kamy struggles against her captor, and I plead with her silently, fear of what I know is going to happen filling me.
"Mmm, feisty, I like the ones who have some fight in them," the other man says, his greasy black hair swinging in his eyes, and then a shot rings loud and his head explodes dropping him and sending Kamy sprawling onto the ground. I sob beginning to struggle feverishly against the man holding me but he doesn't let go. Instead he turns me so that I'm standing between him and the person holding a gun.
"Drop the fucking knife," Nessa spits her eyes lit with fiery rage and the knife being held against my throat bites into my skin and I feel the blood roll slowly down my throat. An all new fear fills me as I see two more men approaching and I know it's going to be the end for us.
This is how we'd meet our demise. Not because of the walkers, or illness, but at the cruelty of the hands of fellow human beings.
Then something surprising happens. One of the men holds his fingers up to his lips, and the other lifts a crossbow and I don't think. I react driving my elbow back forcing my captor to turn just enough to get me out of the line of fire, and then the weight of his arms are gone, his knife bouncing at my feet, and I feel for one dreadful second that I'm going to be sick.
"Ya'll okay?" A gravelly voice asks and I can't respond as Kamy's arms come around me her tears hot as they soak through my shirt.
"Who are you?" The answer is lost to me as I collapse.
Author's Note
There you have it, the first chapter of Haunted. I sincerely hope that anyone who stumbles across this story enjoys it. I am going to try and stay close to the storyline of season four. It will probably veer off course towards the end of this story, and really become my own wild imagination with the future stories. I should say now that I do not legally own TWD or any of it's Characters, but the OC's are my own.
If you liked what you've read so far, leave me a review, favorite, and follow.
Much love,
Emerson :)