Happy New Year's Eve all! I'm at work but hoping to get out soon for a little partying. I know you are all excited about both the Walking Dead and Twilight Zone marathons. If you switch back and forth between them, you may feel like you are in this story!
Chapter 9 – Peakesville
Amelia sat in the backseat with her door open while her parents searched along the street for a mechanics. She was glaring at the map. It was wrong, all wrong. They hadn't been driving that long. Based on her calculations according to the scale of the map and how fast her dad had been driving, they shouldn't have been further than central Tennessee. Her finger touched the empty place in the far northwest corner of the state and wondered if any of the others had made it there.
She especially hoped that Judith Grimes had survived the attack. Judy was her best friend, being only a year older than her. She and Judy were always together, even shared a room when Amelia got too old to be in the same room with her twin brother. Judy was a great listener, and would never seem bothered when Amelia would ramble on to her about one subject or another. In fact, Judy rarely talked herself. It wasn't like she was mute or anything but she only spoke up when necessary. She was quieter than Michonne, who tended to choose her words carefully.
Amelia felt like she knew why Judy was so quiet. A couple of years ago, her friend had come to her in tears with a story that had never been shared with any of the children. Judy had been reading in the library, snuggled down into one of the overstuffed armchairs turned so nobody would see her from outside the room. Maggie and Carl were just about to go on watch duty, one going up to the balcony and the other out the door for patrol. They had stopped in the foyer just outside to talk and Judy could hear everything.
"I swear that the anniversary of her death is today," Carl said, his voice distressed. "Even though we haven't been following the calendar, the season is right." He paused and looked Maggie in the eye. "I can't stop thinking about that day. Last night I dreamed about it. It was in exact detail, like I was reliving it."
Maggie put her hand on Carl's arm. "It was a long time ago, Carl."
He sighed. "I know. It's just…last night in my sleep I could hear my mom screaming when we cut into her to pull Judith out. Then, when I had to put my mom down before she turned, I felt like I could hear the gun echoing in my ears even after I woke up. And lately, every time I look at Judith, all I can do is see my mother's face and it brings me back to that day all over again. I think I'm losing it."
"No, you're not." Maggie's hand gripped his bicep reassuringly. "Carl, nobody else here understands what we went through with your mother's death. It was a horrible situation but it was the best outcome. She wasn't going to make it and we all knew it. All she wanted was for her baby to make it. And Judith did! She is alive and thriving, the best little gardener in this place. Just remember that."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. It's just…"
Maggie frowned. "Just what?"
"She's so quiet. I feel like maybe she was permanently scarred from the trauma of her birth and then all the stuff that went down at the prison," Carl told her.
"That's ridiculous, Carl," Maggie huffed. "She doesn't remember any of that. She's naturally quiet, like your father. But I think she's strong like him too."
"If he really is," Carl muttered, attempting to start up the stairs.
Maggie quickly grabbed his arm again to halt him. "What did you say? It better not be what I think you just said."
Carl turned around. "Sometimes she does things that instantly make me think of Shane. Like when she runs her hand over her head, especially when she's upset or frustrated. Shane did that all the time. And one time she got really mad at me and I swear she sounded just like Shane, except her voice was more high-pitched. She looks so much like my mom that there is no real way to know who her father really is, Shane or my dad."
"That's bullshit, Carl. Rick Grimes is that girl's father. He loves her and she loves him and that's all that matters. Shane is dead and gone. There aren't any paternity tests or Maury Show in this world anymore so it doesn't matter one bit what her genetics are. Rick is her dad. Got it?" Maggie asked forcefully. Carl gave her a wary smile and nodded. "Good, because if you plan on marrying my sister, you're going to have to put the past behind you. That's for all our sakes."
He nodded again and then hugged her before bounding up the stairs for watch duty.
Judith had learned about how she came into the world along with the question of her parentage all at the same time at the tender age of ten. She'd poured her heart out to Amelia, who of course had never heard this story either. Much of the dark days when the group was at the prison had been glossed over and never told in full detail. Amelia had never heard Judith speak so much at one time and never has since then. Unable to handle all of it herself, she'd brought Hunter in for assistance. Together, they all decided that Rick truly did love Judy and he was going to be her father no matter what they heard from Carl.
Amelia was brought back to reality as Hunter shifted on to the seat next to her. He was engrossed in reading that journal he'd found. The things that man was talking about in this crazy town were very intriguing. Meeting yourself as a child? What if she met herself as an adult? How cool would that be? She hoped that he would lose interest soon and then she'd be able to grab the book off him.
She noticed his slingshot sticking out of his pants and it reminded her of her bow. She cursed herself again for forgetting it. How could she have been so stupid? It had been leaning against the wall right next to her bed. All she had to do was grab it with the quiver of arrows as she ran from the room. She had just been so frantic with grabbing her bag and then smelling the smoke as her mom rushed them along. The gun was good but she wasn't quite as accurate with it.
Suddenly, a strong gust of wind swept through the backseat and lifted the map off her lap. The paper was pulled out of the car and wafted through the air. Amelia leapt out after it, knowing there was a very good chance they were going to need to get back to their group. She ran after it, almost catching it when it hit a trashcan. Her fingertips touched it but before she could close her hand over it, the wind caught it again. It danced down the street and around a corner. Darting after it, she knew she almost was on top of it.
XXXXXXX
"Amelia! Stop!" Carol cried out, seeing her daughter disappear around a building.
"I got her," Daryl threw over his shoulder since he was closer. Carol watched as he jogged around the corner.
Carol could feel her stomach clenching with them out of sight. To stay calm, she counted slowly, trying to control her breathing. They'd be right back. They probably just had to catch the run-away map. Before she realized what she was doing, she was taking steps towards the intersection. At first they were tentative steps but when they didn't appear, she started running.
When she rounded the corner, it felt like her heart stopped. The street was completely empty. Not a soul was in sight, including the two who should have been there. It was like they were just gone.
"Daryl!" she yelled. "Amelia!" No answer, just blaring silence pounding in her ears. She tried yelling for them again, louder this time. "Daryl! Amelia! Where are you?" Tears were starting to run down her face as she screamed. She ran further down the road, looking in alleyways and trying to pull open doors they might have gone through. All of them were empty.
It felt like she was flashing back to that awful day when Sophia ran into the woods and never came back. Bile rose in her throat at the thought of losing another child. She couldn't lose another child, not like this. Carol had cursed herself for being too weak to go after her daughter that day and the terrible consequences of that action. She wasn't going to let that happen again, not to either of them.
Movement caught her eye in the alleyway across from her. For a moment, she thought it was them coming back this way and she almost smiled as she panted from anxiety. Then she saw it wasn't them. No, it was something much worse.
Walkers.
Her breathing picked up. She slapped her hand over her mouth in an effort to cover the sound of her gasping. It had been years since she'd faced a herd of walkers, even a smaller one like this. Almost unconsciously, she pulled her machete from her belt. Even now, she never went anywhere without it. As soon as the handle was gripped firmly in her hand, she relaxed. It was like her training was kicking in and she knew she could handle this. Hunter was still back at the car and he was vulnerable. One of her children needed to be protected and she wasn't going to fail him.
The walkers had not spotted her yet. They were just moving aimlessly down the alley but still headed in her direction. It was only a matter of seconds before they noticed her. She sent out a silent wish that Daryl find their daughter and protect her from this threat. There was no question in her mind that he would. His tireless search for Sophia when he didn't even know her was what had initially stirred up her feelings for him.
Carol slipped past the building and out of the line of vision of the walkers. Quickly, she headed back to the intersection. For just a moment before she turned the corner, she had this horrible premonition that Hunter would be gone, missing from the car. She had left him alone and it would be her fault if something happened to him. Her throat felt like it was going to close up at the thought.
Yet, there he was. He was still in the backseat, his legs hanging out of the car as he read the journal intently. His body was relaxed, completely unaware of the danger coming towards them as well as the absence of half his family to this god-forsaken town.
"Hunter!" she whispered loudly as she rushed towards the car.
His head came up and he frowned when he looked at her, noting the machete out and ready. The expression on his face reminded her so much of Daryl, it made her heart hurt just thinking about him.
"What happened? Where are they?" he asked as she came up to the car.
Ignoring his question about Daryl and Amelia, she earnestly told him, "Walkers are headed this way. We gotta go now."
Hunter gawked at her, his eyes wide with fright. Then he jumped up as she grabbed his hand. Without thinking, he closed the car door. The sound of it echoed off the empty town, bouncing down the street. The two of them froze, holding their breaths and hoping that it didn't carry down the intersection.
Unfortunately, they were not so lucky. The first one came hurrying around the corner as fast as its broken body could carry it, focusing right on them. Then more and more emerged onto their street, all headed right for them.
"Hunter, run!" she said, her voice urgent as she clutched his arm. He didn't need to be told twice and together, they ran for their lives.
