Chapter 2 - "Desperate Proof"

Kate woke in the morning to find no one around. The doctor was gone, and so was the IV that had been in her arm. On the end of the hospital bed was her ID badge, jacket, and shoes. She started to put the boots on when the door flew open.

"Well, well. Look here. Someone is feeling better."

Kate sat frozen on the side of the bed as a tall man in a leather jacket walked in. He had a baseball bat wrapped with barbed wire in his hand, and the most disturbing smile on his lips. Behind him, Simon came in, sitting down on the desk by the door.

"What's your name, sweetheart?"

"Kate."

"Well, Kate. I'm Negan. And I'm sorta a big deal around here. You've already met Simon. Tell me, how good of a nurse are you?"

"What?"

"You're a nurse. We have one old ass doctor, two shit ass medics, and a veterinarian. How good are you?"

"Pretty good." She didn't know how else to respond.

"Well, let's see just how good 'pretty good' is." Negan whistled and Simon left the room.

He returned shortly with a skinny guy; greasy hair, and no shoes. He shoved the man at Negan, who grabbed him by the back of the neck.

"This is Marty. Marty fucked up. He thought that he could steal from me. He was wrong. Now Lucille is going to teach him a lesson."

Before Kate could blink, Simon was holding Marty's arm down on the bed. Negan slammed his baseball bat down on Marty's hand, breaking it instantly. Screams erupted and blood flew back over Negan's face.

"Fix him. NOW! And we'll see how good you really are." Negan pointed to Marty, who was writhing in pain on the floor.

Kate stood motionless, still in shock of what had just happened in front of her. She had no idea what was going on, or what this helpless man did to deserve what just happened. But she knew that this was probably going to be her only chance to show these men what kind of a nurse she was. Her fight or flight instinct kicked in, and she got to work.

Quickly, she managed to pull Marty on to the bed before he passed out from shock. She surveyed the room and found a cabinet full of gauze, water bottles, and other medications. Digging a bit until she found a suture kit, she grabbed what she needed. Pulling a chair up to the bed, she turned to Simon.

"Make sure he doesn't move. He's out from the shock, but I don't need him to wake up in the middle of this." Kate commanded.

Simon smiled to Negan, and walked over, bracing the poor injured man to the bed. Negan stood behind them, whistling.

It took Kate about an hour, but she was able to reset three of the broken fingers, and stitch up the large gash in his arm. The other two fingers were shattered, so she braced Marty's entire hand in a splint. Finally, when she was done, she leaned back and wiped the sweat from her forehead.

"Damn. That was some serious shit. I'd say you're even better than the good ol' doc we have. Well, Kate. It's your lucky day. You've just been promoted. Simon, take care of the new doctor, will you?"

Negan left Simon and Kate alone with a sleeping Marty. Simon held out his hand to her, and she slowly rose from the chair and took it. He wrapped her arm around his, and led her down a long hallway. There were several doors on each side, all looking exactly the same. Finally, they came to the last door on the hallway. Simon pulled out a key from his pocket and unlocked the gray steel door.

Inside, Kate couldn't believe her eyes. There was a bed, an armchair and table. Books on a bookshelf. A small bathroom with a real shower. Clothes were folded up on the bed and there was also a fresh, white, lab coat to go along with it all. This was the most comfort she had seen since the beginning of the 'end of the world', as she called it. This was almost paradise. But she knew that there had to be a catch.

"Now, since you're the new doctor, this is where you'll sleep. Clean clothes, a bathroom. All for you. And all you need to do, is do what He wants. Take care of people. Don't ask questions. Can you do that?" Simon watched as she walked the room and looked around.

He couldn't help but notice how the light of the window made her black hair almost shine. The way she was pulling on her lip as she thought about her new situation. Her frame was small, but strong. He liked the way her jeans hugged her hips, but not too tight.

"Your shift starts at 5. Don't be late." Simon shut the door behind him, leaving Kate to take in her new life, and all that that entailed.

Kate knew that these weren't good people. She knew that anyone who would break someone's hand just to prove a point wasn't to be crossed. She wondered just exactly how Negan managed to keep everyone in check with that amount of violence. He had to be cruel, she told herself, and calculated. She tried to make sense of it all in her head as she walked over to the small window and looked down over the compound. Negan was evil, that much was clear to her. Simon was probably not much better. But what could she do? This was her life now. This was it.