Author's Note:
I am so sorry it took so long to update, especially after promising a new chapter so soon after the last one. Things go crazy with school and I had some issue to attend to. I have all the chapters laid out to the end of season two and I'm trying to spread things out as much as possible to keep it going during the time we all have to wait for season 5. Since I'm home for the summer and only working part-time, I will be sure to update more and on a more regular schedule.
Enjoy!
Chapter 7
The Dixon brothers led Kida, Shane, Glenn, T-Dog, Morales, and Ed through the rest of the woods to meet up with their camp. Glenn and T-Dog stayed close to Kida, one at each side, while Shane and Morales followed closely behind. Ed was lagging behind and making the occasional complaint about bugs and the heat. Every time he opened his mouth Shane took it upon himself to hit him in the knee with the butt of his rifle, which added a little bit of humor in this horrible and tense situation. Leave it to Ed to be obnoxious and ungrateful when people come to help them. None of them were all too thrilled about the Dixon brothers being present, but no one else complained.
After a while, everyone began to see the flickers of light coming from what looked, and smelled, like a campfire. Daryl turned his flashlight toward Kida, Glenn, and T-Dog before nodding his head toward the trees, urging them forward. The group eyed each other, hesitant to go toward the campfire. It was Kida who decided to step forward first. She emerged from the trees, Shane following closely behind her, and was greeted with silent stares from the smaller group sitting around the fire. She immediately recognized Dale and few others from their first meeting and felt relieved. They all made it. Shane tugged gently on her arm to stop her from going any further and stepped up in front of her. Typical Shane always trying to play the alpha male role.
Daryl and Merle went to the others and made some food for themselves while Dale's bright and smiling face greeted them. Andrea and Amy, the sisters they had met that day in town, followed Dale to where Shane, Kida, Glenn, T-Dog, Ed, and Morales were standing. A sense of relief filled everyone, except Ed of course, that both groups had made it safe and sound thus far. Dale shook Shane's hand and Amy greeted Kida and Glenn with hugs, clearly remembering their little conversation from over a week ago.
"I'm glad to see you all made it out of there," Glenn told Dale, Amy, and Andrea. Andrea gave him a soft smile and placed her hand on his shoulder briefly.
"As are we, son. We had no idea there were others out here. Just arrived three days ago and set up camp. Haven't seen a walker since," Dale told them. Glenn grinned at Kida, excited his word was catching on.
"Ain't none of those things here?" Ed asked from behind Shane and Morales.
"Not that we have seen. Have you had any trouble with them?" Andrea asked, a worried tone taking over her voice.
"We haven't been staying here. Just got up here no more than an hour ago," Kida told them. Shane glanced at her and tightened his grip on his gun, a move that didn't go unnoticed.
"It's a miracle we all found each other again. Where is the rest of your group?" Dale asked.
"Out in the woods, waiting for us to come back. Been out scouting the area for safe land," Shane told him. His words were greeted with an excited squeal from Amy.
"Isn't this perfect? We have plenty of room here and we can all stick together. I'd be nice to have new people," she said excitedly. Dale smiled and placed his hand on Amy's shoulder.
"We do have plenty of room. With more of us together, the safer we are," he told Shane. He looked to his side at Kida, who gave a quick and approving nod. Morales, Glenn, and T-Dog showed their approval with nods as well. Ed grunted at Dale's suggestion, but it went unnoticed.
"We don't wanna put you guys out-" Shane started. Dale quickly interrupted.
"Oh don't be absurd, we'd be glad to have you all."
"We will pull our weight around here," Kida chimed in. Dale smiled at her and nodded.
"We need to go back and get the rest of our people. We have a lot of supplies and a couple cars. There room for those?" Shane asked.
"Of course. Jim will show you where to park them and tell you how to get them here… JIM! We need your assistance," Dale called out. A man, fairly tall and lanky, appeared at his side.
Shane and Morales had a quick discussion with Jim on how to get to their part of the hills and where all cars need to be parked. It was decided that T-Dog, Glenn, and Kida would stay behind with Dale and the rest of his group and get to know the people there. The three of them were excited to have found the group they had been worrying about for so long and to find them somewhere safe. They were so kind and inviting, with the small exception of the Dixon brothers, and it filled them with hope. They could have their own little community. There was a small lake nearby, they had an RV where someone took watch at all times, they had more than enough room for tents, and they were safe. Kida had promised herself she'd keep Adrienne and Charlie safe at all costs and this was their chance to survive.
After an hour or so, Shane, Morales, and Ed returned with the rest of the group. Everyone, with the help of Dale, Andrea, Amy, Jim, and a couple others, unloaded their camping gear, food supply, and other supplies. It was decided that the two groups would merge everything together, including food and other supplies. What was Dale's group's was now theirs and what was theirs was now Dale's group's. A few people weren't too happy about it, but to others it was a blessing. Kida had spent so much time making sure that everyone had all of their things set up and were alright that's he had forgotten her own stuff. Luckily Charlie and Glenn put up her tent between Adrienne and Charlie's tents and all of her stuff was there inside.
Once all of the commotion had died down, it was decided Dale would take first watch of the night and Shane would relieve him in the middle of the night. Everyone else, clearly exhausted from the day's events, turned in for the night. Everyone from Kida's group fell asleep that night in their own tents. There was no need to stuff multiple people in a tent anymore, they were safe.
Everyone was awake bright and early the next day. Kida emerged from her tent the same time Charlie did and they exchanged a quick grin. They made it through the night with no issues. The entire group met to discuss the day's events and it was decided that Lori, Carol, and Miranda, would help Andrea, Amy, and Jacqui with laundry and other cleaning. Jacqui introduced herself to everyone, having kept to herself the night before, before showing everyone where to go and what to do. Daryl and Merle were to hunt for food while Morales and T-Dog would fish. Shane, having been up all night, decided he needed to get a few hours of sleep before he could be any help. Adrienne volunteered to teach the kids instead of their mother's having to worry about it and Charlie took over watch duty. Everyone else was free to go where they wanted or thought they could help. While Jim headed over to work on the RV, Dale informed Kida and Glenn that he needed them to go on a quick run to a small town nearby.
To Kida's surprise, it was Shane who suggested they would be the best pairing to go into town. After the last incident and not telling him what really happened, she didn't think he'd allow her to go on runs again. At least, not this soon. She and Glenn packed up what they needed and grabbed their weapons before loading Kida's jeep liberty and getting a map from Dale. The town wasn't too far away, but it was close enough to some other areas that had the potential to be overrun and dangerous by now. They both pushed that thought to the back of their mind and set out to find the town with the list Dale had given them. Merle had asked them repeatedly to bring back some whiskey and cigarettes, but they had both shrugged that off.
The ride was short and filled mainly with Glenn talking about how excited he was to how found Dale and everyone else. He claimed he had gotten the best night of sleep he's had since the world went to shit and Kida could help but agree. For once since their group first formed, they didn't have to sleep with one eye open and wait for one of the walkers to stumble upon them. Their biggest worry now was which Dixon brother was going to be the most offensive or if Ed was going to lash out on his wife, daughter, or anyone else. Though neither situation was particularly enjoyable, they were manageable. It was clear no one really liked Ed Peletier or the Dixons, but they weren't too hard to deal with.
When arriving in the town, Kida and Glenn were greeted by two walkers. They took them out silently with their knives and proceeded down the main street until they found a small market place. The doors were chained shut and they were forced to find another way in. After searching in circles around the place, Glenn had the idea to use the ladder on the next building to check if the market had a way to get in from the ceiling. Much to Kida's dismay, it did. They were going to have to jump from building to building. She wasn't afraid of much, but heights was one thing that terrified her. Maybe not so much the fact she was up somewhere high, but the aftermath of what would happen if she fell off of that high place. Glenn, however, jumped with no hesitation and no problem. Kida tossed her bag and gun over him before taking a quick glance down at the ground between the buildings. She immediately regretted it and felt sick and her stomach turned.
"Oh come on fearless cop lady, what are you afraid of?" Glenn called across the buildings to her. She rolled her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Well, on the bright side, it will be the fall that kills me," she yelled back. Glenn smirked and gestured for her to run and jump.
She closed her eyes and took a few breaths before mentally preparing herself for the jump. She opened her eyes and stared across the rooftops at Glenn. She walked to edge and peeked down one more time. A couple of walkers were beginning to stumble into the clearing between the two buildings, their growls very audible. She flung her backpack across and Glenn caught it with ease. Show off. She exhaled a breath she didn't know she was holding and slowly began to back up. She'd have to jump eventually, and it was now or never. She closed her eyes one more time and ran to the edge of the building, opening them as soon as she reached ledge to jump. She didn't land as gracefully as Glenn had, she rolled a few times before stopping and getting up. When she stopped, she felt the pain immediately course through her right arm.
"Shit Kida, are you alright?!" Glenn asked as he sprinted over to her. He helped her to her feet and his eyes widened at the sight of her arm.
"What? What happened to-" she looked down and saw the blood running down her arms quickly checked for the wound. She had a giant gash above her elbow. "Well… fuck."
Glenn pulled a rag out of his own backpack and held it to the gash on her arm. She winced in pain while she rummaged through her bag to find a bottle of water Adrienne had packed for her. When she did, she poured it down her arm and the blood steamed down to the concrete. Glenn wiped up the excess blood and handed her bandages that he kept on him at all times. It took three to cover the wound. Once she was bandaged up, Glenn helped her up and she dusted herself off. She felt stupid for being so clumsy; she was never this clumsy in the field. Every fitness test she took she passed with flying colors and she couldn't even jump across the rooftops correctly or without hurting herself.
Kida was the first to spot an opening on the roof that led down into the store. She opened it and looked down into the hole. It was dark inside and she could hear the moans of the undead, but she couldn't tell if it was coming from inside or if it was from the walkers in the alley. Glenn shined a flashlight down and whistled to draw attention to anything that was roaming around inside. After a few moments one walker came. They waited a little longer for any other walkers to appear but it was just the one snarling and disgusting looking walker. They moved away from the entrance and waited nearly twenty minutes before looking down into the hole again. The walker had moved somewhere else in the building and they now had the opportunity to drop down to get supplies. Glenn went in first since he wasn't injured and flashed his flashlight around to check for the lone walker. Unfortunately, he was alone and it was coming toward him.
"GLENN!" Kida shouted. She watched as the walker came at Glenn. He wasn't armed and ready for it.
She dropped down into the hole and landed on her feet, much to her surprise. She saw Glenn struggling to keep the walker far enough away to keep it from biting him as he tried to retrieve his knife. Kida quickly pulled her pocket knife from her pocket and ran toward the walker. She slammed the knife into the back of the walker's skull and it went limp as it fell on top of Glenn. Panting, he pushed the walker off of himself and backed away from its dead body. He looked up at Kida and noticed the smirk she had on her face and she cleaned her knife on a towel resting on the nearby shelf and shoving it in her pocket.
"Looks like we're even," she told him. A smile crept up on his face too.
"Looks like it. We make a good team, Reed."
They split up and began shoving whatever they find that would be useful in their bags, careful to not miss anything on the list Dale had given them. Glenn had found a walker so deteriorated and without legs, only bones. He put it out of his misery and sadly continued searching for supplies. The place was nearly full, and after noticing they had killed one female walker and one male they realized they must have been the owners that locked themselves in the store before their deaths. No one else had gotten the chance to get it and loot the place. It was sad, really. A couple locking themselves up in a store to try and survive and one turned and feasted on the other. All they could really do is thank whatever higher power they believed in that they hadn't suffered that fate.
Kida and Glenn arrived back at camp safe and sound. They had gotten extremely lucky in town because most of the walkers had wandered into the small alley between the two buildings they had jumped between. They were able to sneak out and get to the car before any of the walkers could notice them making their getaway. Dale and Jacqui helped them get all of the supplies unloaded and put into their rightful spots. Of course, Merle took that opportunity to approach them and ask for the cigarettes and booze he requested.
"Ay girlie, where's my shit?" he asked Kida.
"We didn't get anything you wanted Merle. Didn't have time," she told him.
"Excuse me? You think your own stuff is so important you couldn't get ol' Merle the things he wants? You'll get all these jackasses what they want but none for me? Well well lady cop, I'm starting to think you don't like us Dixons. Thought all you pigs were suppose to treat everyone fairly," he said with that same toothy grin on his face. He struck a nerve with Kida, exactly what he wanted.
She slammed down the can of beans she was about to hand to Jacqui and turned to face the oldest Dixon brother. Everyone had gotten quiet and was now watching them. She inched closer to Merle and his grin grew even wider.
"You know what Merle Dixon? I don't like you. Every single time we come into contact you insult me in some way. That's harassment, buddy. I'm not going to deal with your rude, arrogant, and offensive comments. I didn't get your shit because I was too worried about getting enough food and other supplies that will help the whole group. Not you. Back the hell off from now on," she told him. His grin disappeared.
"You shut your fucking mouth you selfish bitch! You think your prissy ass can waltz up in here and take over and make decisions of who gets what? Not how this works princess, you might want to consider watching your mouth and start listening to the men around here. You ain't no hot shot cop screwing her way to the top no more," he told her.
Without thinking, she slapped him across the face. That was enough to piss him off even more. "You wanna know why I hate you Dixon? Because you're everything I hate in a person. I arrested plenty of shit-brains like you during my time on the force."
He raised his hand to smack her and was stopped by Shane and Glenn jumping between them. T-Dog pulled Merle away from Kida and Daryl rushed to his brother's side to keep everyone else off of him. It was a giant mess. Daryl pulled Merle away toward their tents while Merle cussed up a storm at Kida and Shane pulled her aside for a few choice words.
"You can't be causing a commotion like this Kida," Shane whispered to her, trying to remain out of earshot from everyone else.
"I know, I know. But you heard him," she told him. She was never one to let people talk down to her and Shane knew that.
"We just got here. Ain't been here for more than 24 hours, we can't be risking getting kicked out already."
"I'm sorry. I will keep my distance from Dixon. It won't happen again."
"I know. Come on girl, let's go get some lunch, I'm sure Merle will be over it by dinner. Saved you can of those nasty ass spaghetti-o's you love so much," he told her.
A small smile formed on her face and Shane put his arm around her shoulder. He put her into a headlock jokingly and led her toward the rest of the group. Everyone was a bit tense after the altercation between her and Merle, but quickly got over it and shared a lunch together. Merle and Daryl disappeared into the woods to do some hunting and everyone moved on to their chores once they were finished eating. It was like the world hadn't gone to shit, like they were all in a community that worked and lived together in harmony. With the exclusion of Merle Dixon, of course.
Maybe the situation was going to work out after all… as long as the Dixons stayed away from her.
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