So glad you guys have joined me for another installment of this story :) I hope everyone is doing well! I went back to work this week so I apologize for the lack of updates – just remember that reviews and things motivate me! Enjoy!
Molly held her hand to her lips and felt the chapped skin as she looked out at the mass of biters threatening to destroy the metal fence. Her breathing quickened as she listened to the heated conversations between Rick, Glenn, and Daryl. Daryl insisted they start taking out the fuckers one by one but Rick wanted to more methodically attack. They argued aggressively back and forth for a few minutes, Daryl grabbing at his hair and Rick making pointed gestures toward the zombies at the fence.
"Maybe if you could finish in the next day or two we could get these assholes out of here before they rip down our barriers." Glenn inserted, pushing the two men apart. Daryl nodded and spat at the ground and Rick put his hands in his belt loops. He breathed in deeply and exhaled, considering the options that were available.
"Because we don't wanna run the risk of attracting more walkers, I think it's best if we just attack one-by-one." he conceded to Daryl's tactic, looking less than pleased with the solution he'd had to choose. Molly could tell he didn't want anyone getting hurt, and close combat wasn't going to help those odds. Rick kicked dust up with his boots and looked up at the group. "I'm gonna go on in and get the others – don't know how much longer that fence is gonna hold up." he breathed, looking warily at the wobbling wall of metal.
Molly's mind churned with the heat of the moment. There had to be a better way to do this than putting people up by the fence where they could readily be grabbed or bitten by a stray geek. She looked around the yard for something to use to combat the living dead. She gnawed on her bottom lip as Rick hurriedly discussed with Glenn and Maggie what to do while he was inside. Her eyes fell on Daryl, who was walking toward the fence, looking at the fuckers outside. She then looked over at the guard towers, through the yard outside, and then at the cars... That was it! The cars!
"Rick, I think I have a better idea." she interrupted, Rick's head snapping around in surprise. Glenn and Maggie looked at her expectantly, and she gestured toward the vehicles. "If I can get someone to let me out of the first gate driving one of the cars, I bet I could lure at least half of the sick freaks out of here. I'm sure I could find a CD hanging around, turn it up real loud, and drive through. Stop close enough to get 'em near the vehicle then go on some more. I might even get the balls to yell at 'em. That'd really get 'em riled up." she spoke excitedly. Her palms were sweaty and her mind was racing at a hundred miles an hour. Rick looked especially receptive to the idea – risking one instead of many of his own boded better with him than she'd realized it would.
"You ain't goin' nowhere!" Daryl argued, dust flying from his trail as he walked back toward her. She looked at him in distaste before looking back at Rick. He seemed to be mulling it over in his head and appraising the situation for what it was worth.
"You think you can get out of here and do this without gettin' yourself killed?" he asked, genuinely concerned for her being. She nodded fervently. Daryl scoffed and was visibly protesting with every ounce of his being. What was his problem? She'd made it on her own through a billion things that were worse than this. She wasn't gonna let a couple of biters tear down her newfound safe haven.
"You gimme the keys to your green SUV, a walkie, and I'll try to cut your problem in half." she bargained, sticking her hand out and waiting for Rick to grasp it. He looked at it for a second, his eyes briefly running over Daryl's angry figure. He was visibly shaking and this made the fire in her burn even hotter. She could do this – he didn't have enough faith in her.
Rick shook her hand and responded, his blue eyes glinting. "Thank you. You got yourself a deal, miss."
Half an hour later, all of the able-bodied persons in the prison were standing in the yard with guns or melee weapons in their hands. Rick hoped that it didn't have to come down to that and silently prayed to whomever was up there that the situation would be taken care of with the least resistance possible. The Georgia heat was almost stifling as Molly made her way toward the green SUV she'd been in earlier. She could now see that it was a Hyundai Tuscon and ran her hand absentmindedly over the metal brand tag. Her finger stung immediately and she pulled it away, trying to ignore the dull ache it left behind. She looked back at the small army of survivors and Rick waved, encouraging her. He walked toward the gate with Glenn and Daryl as they had discussed and got ready to let her out.
Getting in the car, she placed the walkie in the cupholder and gathered her thoughts. Daryl still hadn't looked at her when she started the car and pulled around to the front gate. She pulled up and gave the three men an extremely nervous smile. Rick was to pull the first gate open and Glenn was to run and open the second gate so that she could get out. Daryl was supposed to be a distraction by the fence so that none of the fucks got inside or too close to her while she was exiting. She breathed deeply and grasped the steering wheel so tightly that her knuckles turned white. She could hear the moans of the dead outside and the situation was becoming more surreal than she had expected.
"Ready?" Rick asked, interrupting her thoughts and poising himself to push the gate open. She met his eyes and did the same with Glenn, who was trying his best to give her an encouraging smile. Instead, it looked more like a boy that was trying to smile at someone who'd kicked his favorite dog. She smiled softly back anyway. She ran her gaze over to Daryl sheepishly. The scowl on his face was unmistakeable, but there was also a hint of fear. He was nervous for her, and as much as she didn't want it to, it made her heart ache for him. He'd lost enough. She wasn't going to be something else he could put in that category.
Sense of confidence renewed, she realigned her eyes to Rick's and nodded. "Be careful out there. Let me know if you run into any trouble." he said, before tapping his own walkie and looking back at Daryl and Glenn. "On my count, Glenn! Daryl, start making some noise!" he yelled, his voice cracking with anticipation. Daryl immediately began whooping and hollering and banging a crowbar against the fence in an attempt to distract all of the corpses that waited outside.
"One... two... three!" Rick yelled, and pushed the fence open with all of his might. Glenn darted out the gate before Molly could even press on the gas, and had the second gate open before she was halfway there. Daryl was doing a great job inciting bloodlust from the herd and for that she was thankful. She got out of the gate and slowed to a halt. She waited on Glenn to shut the second gate and run back inside the main one before she slipped a CD she'd found into the player.
"Please work..." she pleaded, her hands clenched together as the player in the car attempted to read the disk. A couple of minutes earlier she'd rummaged through all of the CDs she could locate in the car before she had selected an old Aerosmith CD. As the first notes of the first song rang out, she let out a sigh of relief. She looked around at the sorry fucks that were starting to take notice of the car and wander over curiously. About ten strays were slowly dragging themselves in her direction, and she smiled wickedly. She locked all of the windows and opened the sunroof before turning the volume up as far as it would go without bursting her eardrums. She watched as more of the creatures became aroused by her presence and hobbled over, unrelenting in their search for food.
It looked as if it was all on her now. She pulled the car forward about 15 feet before stopping again, a cloud of dust erupting around the biters who were following her in chaotic shambles. She watched carefully as, little by little, the dead fucks got closer to her. In her rearview she saw the people of the prison near the fence, some staring in horror, some with their eyes covered, and some with their hands clenched tightly in hope of a positive outcome for her. Focusing on the task at hand, she changed the song on the CD so as to keep the walkers distracted. She knew that if she kept this up, she could take him as far out as the old farm and then cut off on a back road, leaving them in her metaphorical (and probably physical) dust. She bit her lip and pressed the gas, propelling the car forward another 20 feet or so. She was surprised that the majority of them had torn themselves away from the fence and were now gaining on her car. Pressing the gas more steadily, she led the horde slowly down the entrance road to the prison as the actual prison shrunk in size and fell far behind her.
Letting a sigh escape her lips, she pressed onward still, the zombies still shambling behind. Their disjointed movements disturbed her much more now than ever previously because they were chasing her and her alone – nearly a hundred bloodthirsty ghouls.
Daryl's Point-of-View
"Sorry girl's gonna get her ass bit." he shrugged, standing beside Rick and Glenn who were watching anxiously. He wouldn't admit it, but he was sweating bullets inside. Molly had always overstepped her boundaries when it came to having balls, but this took the fucking cake. He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head as he watched the green SUV fade from view, more than three-quarters of the walkers in tow.
As much as he hated to admit it, her stupid idea had worked pretty damn well. Better than his ever would have. They probably would have lost a couple of people that day. He thought about it, and although he was glad everyone was safe, he would have rather lost a few then than have her surround herself by a herd of walkers – voluntarily. Dumb bitch.
Daryl watched as Rick pinched the bridge of his nose and dug in his pocket. He pulled out the old, beat-up walkie and turned it up before pressing the button down. "Molly – how's it lookin' out there?" he asked. The people around them hushed themselves so that they could hear what was going on. That's one thing Daryl had always hated about people – couldn't mind they own damn business.
After a minute of no answer, Daryl was put more on edge. He was immediately sweating and his pulse was racing. He fidgeted with his vest nervously, willing her to answer with every second that passed by. Daryl appraised the look on Rick's face. He looked pained, desperate – this made Daryl flinch inwardly. After another brief pause – during which worries of the worst pervaded his mind – the small walkie finally crackled, and a sweet voice answered Rick.
"I'm almost to the old farm. I lost a few on the way and some of 'em are a lot faster than others, but I think the prison is in the clear on this one." she spoke softly. Daryl couldn't hear the music anymore and thanked whatever holy being that was that she was smart and realized that loud music would attract walkers from all over – the last thing they needed. Hearing her voice put to rest a lot of the nerves in his body, but he could still feel bile creeping up the back of his throat. What if she didn't come back?
To be continued...