Carol and Bailey went into the biggest cabin there, eating apples. Carol set the basket on the table then set the vegetables on the table, handing a knife to the young girl and letting her cut them and add them to the soup. Carol heard Charlie rousing from his room, and she tended to the soup. She was was about to her plan to escape into action. She had to get her, Remy and Bailey out of this place. Charlie had taken her gun and knife when he found her bleeding against the trees just by the crash site. She'd been crafting a knife out of wood whenever he slept and hid it in the garden.
She'd only been here for about two days, and he'd given her a life that made no sense. The woman he wanted her to be was either insane or very, very open to change. This man had no idea what happened to the world—not technology or the dead rising. He'd been living here like this for years, kidnapping women who fit the profile of the woman he'd lost. Carol'd only survived the crash because Bailey found her and brought Charlie to get her. She wasn't going to let this man keep her here, chained and starved. She wasn't reliving her marriage to Ed.
"Carol." Bailey slid a knife over to her slowly and grabbed the one that was tucked into her shirt before Charlie came out of the bedroom.
He wasn't a large man, only a little bigger than Ed, with a shaggy hair and a lot of issues with a lot of things. He was almost a decent person, if it wasn't for the kidnapping or the chains or the way he watches her. It made her skin crawl. She had to get out of there. She had someone very important to get back to.
Carol prepared the rest of dinner then left the moment he sat down to tend to "other chores". She waited until nightfall before removing the hideous dress she was forced into and using the makeshift key to remove the shackles on her ankles. She had to get back to the road and see if that car was still there. If it was, she would come back and get Bailey and Remy. They would all leave this place together, even if the car wasn't there. Carol left Bailey in charge of getting the supplies ready, and Remy was to make sure Charlie was too drunk to move. Charlie didn't even know about walkers, and Carol was confident that he wouldn't come after them. He loved to be stuck in that camp.
Carol slipped out of the gate, listening for any movement, and she slipped off the rock. She headed for the road, keeping the real knife tight in her hand. Her heart was pounding in her chest from fear of being caught by walkers. She couldn't see very well, even though her eyes had adjusted, and her knife wasn't made for this. It wasn't all that sharp anymore. She didn't hear walkers, so she wasn't as worried. She would hear them before she saw them. She knew that. Someone had told her that, but she didn't know how.
She noticed smoke and crouched down by a tree, silently moving toward it. If there was a group out here, they might be able to help. And if they weren't the helping type, Carol needed to know. She wouldn't kill them unless it was absolutely necessary.
As she got close to the camp, she saw a black man tending to the fire while a teenage girl rocked a baby. She looked closer and saw that girl was Beth Greene and that baby was Judith Grimes. She smiled and ran out.
Beth grabbed her gun at the movement in the darkness, holding Judy close, but she saw Carol and nearly dropped the gun. Beth felt weak at the sight of her. She was skinner, paler, and she was alive. "Carol?" Beth's voice broke. "Carol." She walked over to her and hugged her tightly, heeding Judith in her arms. "You're okay."
"You're okay." Carol smoothed her hair down. "How did you find me?" Carol pulled back after several minutes. "Your face. What happened?"
"I'm fine, just a little bruised." Beth sniffed and smiled. "We just followed the blood."
"We?"
"Yeah, me, Mika, Ty and Daryl."
"Mika? Is she okay? Where is she?" Carol was concerned. She wouldn't lose Mika.
"She's fine. Mika's with Daryl."
"And they are where?"
"They've been gone for a while now," Ty answered. "Probably found something."
Carol walked over to him. "Tyreese." She smiled. "It's nice to meet you. I'm Carol."
Beth stared and Ty blinked, both of them confused, but the scary part was...Carol was genuine in her greeting. She had never met this man before in her life. She had honestly never seen Tyreese before today. And if Carol didn't remember Tyreese, did she not remember killing Karen and David? Who else, what else had she forgotten? Beth felt sick. If she didn't remember Daryl, that would destroy him.
"Thank you for taking care of Beth and Judith."
He gave a slight nod then returned to the fire before him.
"The car." Carol saw it in the dim light. "Does it work?"
"Yeah, it works." Beth set Judith down in the car seat and strapped her in gently as she slept. "Why?"
"Because I need to get out of here. There's a man back there who has kidnapped two kids and myself. I need to get them out of there." Carol noticed a weapons bag. "Could I borrow a knife? He took mine and my gun. I have to help them. He doesn't know about the walkers, and they don't either. Please."
"I'll do more than give you a knife," Beth replied, taking a knife from the bag and holding it out to her. "I'll go with you and help."
Carol took the knife. "Thank you. They ought to be ready now."
"I'll take care of Judith," Ty assured Beth.
"Good." Beth followed Carol back to her kidnapper's place. They moved swiftly and silently, Beth wanted to ask Carol who and what she remembered, but this wasn't the time or place. They had to help those kids. Beth wouldn't let anything happen to them. They didn't deserve to die, just because some creep wanted to play house.
As they neared the camp, Carol felt someone following them. She stopped at the gate and turned, searching the darkness, and she told Beth to wait. She gripped the knife Beth had gotten for her and approached the one moving thing in the darkness and tackled it.
Daryl let out a groan and Mika ran over to help, but once she saw it was Carol, she stopped and put her gun away. Carol held the knife to the man's throat, but it wasn't biting into his skin or anything. She couldn't see his face very well, just hard muscle underneath her and the scent of leather. She moved her knife and slipped it into her boot and stood up, not sensing a threat from this man.
"Carol!" Mika threw her arms around Carol, glad Daryl had given up on stalking her and just let her see them.
"Mika." Carol stopped her. "We can celebrate later. Right now, there's something very important I—we need to do."
"And that is?" Daryl asked.
"Save Bailey and Remy." Carol turned back to the gate and saw Bailey hiding where Carol had told her to, and Carol slipped through. "Bailey?"
The girl stood up and ran over to Carol. "Remy's late. I don't know where he is."
"I'm here." He rushed over to them. "Let's go. He's out cold."
They left the camp quickly and returned to Ty. They would move at daybreak. Bailey and Remy needed to rest from all the chores they'd done, Beth was limping on the way back, and Carol didn't want to push any of them. She made sure they all had food before she ate her own dinner. Charlie only gave them enough to live, and that was a very small amount of food. Carol wasn't sure if she could finish her bowl. She was able to, and she felt so full for the first time in days.
"Carol." Remy held out a holster with a gun in it. "I got this from him."
It was her gun. "Thanks." Carol set her empty bowl down beside and took the holster. She sat with Bailey and Remy to eat and to observe the group. Daryl and Tyreese were looking over the weapons, Beth and Mika were eating across the fire, and Carol knew Mika wanted to talk to her. Carol wanted to talk to her too, but she needed to eat first. Carol was slightly unsettled by the looks Daryl and Beth shared.
Daryl sat down by a tree away from everyone, watching Carol and Mika and Bailey talk. Ty had told him how Carol didn't know who he was, and she was serious. Daryl wasn't surprised that Carol had forgotten them. That blood was probably from a head wound. That question was: how much did Carol remember? Who did she forget? Daryl knew Carol remembered him. She had a look in her eye that told him she remembered him. She knew Mika and Beth and Judith, so maybe she only forgot Ty.
Daryl looked up when Carol sat beside him. It was getting late. He could tell by now that the sun would be rise soon. They would leave then, and they would head for Terminus. They didn't need to go back to the pecan groove. They didn't have enough room to go back to the pecan groove or the gas. Daryl wasn't sure how they were all going to fit into the car. They would find a way. Bailey was about the same size as Sophia, and if Remy got any smaller, he would fit in a suitcase.
"I thought you were over being distant." Carol drew her legs in and rested her elbows on her knees.
"I am," he mumbled, "just wanted to be alone."
"I see." She looked over at the kids that were sleeping. "Where is everyone else?"
"What do you remember?" His heart slowed down. It felt like his heart was in this throat, and swallowing was impossible.
"The prison's gone." She crossed her arms. "Beth twisted her ankle. Lizzie...died."
"Anything else? How 'bout Ty?"
"Why would I remember a stranger?" Carol looked at him. "Where did we find him?"
"Found us. Him and Sasha."
"Who?"
Daryl looked at her now. "Who do you remember?"
"Beth. Mika. Lizzie. Lori. Shane. Andrea. Carl. Hershel. Patrick..." She trailed off, her eyes going blank, and he frowned. "...walkers. Walker!" Carol shouted, standing up as they came out of the darkness.
Daryl shot up, grabbing his crossbow, and everyone woke up. Beth pushed Bailey and Mika into the car and she grabbed her knife and killed the ones that were coming at her. Remy grabbed a log from the fire and swung it like a baseball bat, Daryl kept Carol safe since he wasn't sure she knew how to aim her gun, and Tyreese bashed their skulls in with his hammer.
Carol heard a twig snap behind her. She saw the knife in Daryl's belt and grabbed it, spinning around and plunging the knife deep into the frontal lobe of the walker that crept up on her. She ripped the knife out as another one came at her, and she repeated the action. Her body seemed to remember what her mind didn't. She knew she had killed walkers before, but usually behind the gates of the prison. This was so different, but she didn't feel afraid. She was consumed by it, to be more accurate. She knew how to do this. Rather, her body did. How?
Beth was being overwhelmed by the walkers coming at her, Mika wanted to help her, Bailey was staring in horror on the floor of the car, and the baby was sleeping like a rock. Beth felt a pinch in her ankle after she lunged at a walker. She winced and stumbled back. She needed to rest her ankle more. It was really hurting. She plunged her knife into the nearest walker, and she fell to her knees when her ankle burned. It felt like the first time she twisted it. Her knees were shaking.
Remy saw the girl named Beth on her knees and grabbed another log and bashed in the head of the walker that came at them. He didn't tell Carol he knew about walkers. He'd sneak out all the time, and he would see them. He knew they weren't human anymore. He saw a pack of the attack a man in the woods with glasses, and he knew then it was kill or be killed. He wouldn't let them be killed. If Carol knew them, he would protect them. He owed her that.
He tossed the log down and picked Beth off. "Move back," he told the little girl in the car. Mika move to the other side of the car, he opened the door and set Beth inside, and he closed the door. He picked up the knife she dropped and Ty helped him as killed off the mass of walkers Beth had faced alone.
"Daryl!" Ty grunted. "Get over here!"
"We gotta go." Daryl grabbed the bolt from the walker he just killed. He'd gotten all of the bolts back just barely. There were too many walkers here. They had to leave. "Carol, get in the car."
"Not without you." Her back came right up against his. She was panting.
"Carol, go. I ain't kiddin'."
"Neither am I." She kicked a walker back.
Daryl stabbed the bolt through the walker nearest to him. "Ty, get the car started!"
"Okay!" he called back, running around to grab the bag off the truck. He climbed into the car and started it.
"Daryl, Carol, c'mon!" Ty shouted as Remy got into the passenger seat.
Carol and Daryl kicked away the walkers closet to them and ran for the car, Beth had moved the car seat into the truck through the seat that lowered, Bailey was still on the floor, and Mika moved onto Carol's lap when she climbed into the car, and Daryl squeezed in and slammed the door. Tyreese mashed the gas, and they sped off.
"Oh, my God," Bailey kept muttering, eyes wide and full of tears.
"Mika, are you okay?" Carol looked her over.
"I'm fine."
"Beth?" Carol saw the pain in her face. "Let me see your ankle." Beth turned so that her back was against the door, Judith was staring to cry at being woken up, and Beth tried to sooth her. "Daryl, take Judy."
Daryl took Ass Kicker, Mika sat half on Carol's lap, half on Daryl's lap, and Carol removed Beth's boot. Beth winced, sucking in air through her clenched teeth, and Carol gently touched her ankle. Beth bit her lip to keep from crying out.
"You need to keep off your feet," Carol told her. "It's swollen and bruised. I'm surprised your boot still fits."
"It hurts real bad," Beth breathed.
"We have medicine, but it's in the truck." Carol felt horrible. "We'll get it when we stop."
Beth nodded. She hoped they stopped soon.
– – –
Rick and Michonne patrolled the yard that night, it was pretty boring, but it was better safe than sorry. Carl was probably snoozing in his bed right now. They'd cleaned out the warehouses, but Michonne didn't want to be put in with a group of strangers. She didn't take to strangers well. She had a bad feeling about some of the people in this place. She didn't want to listen to it, but she was starting to feel like she had at Woodbury. She hadn't told anyone yet. Carl was happy here, with or without kids, and Rick had relaxed a bit. Michonne wanted to know why he was so tense to begin with.
"Another uneventful night." Rick rubbed his eyes.
"Would you rather someone tear down these gates?" Michonne crossed her arms.
"No." He met her eyes. "I just wish there was some noise. It's so quiet here, puts me to sleep."
"You'll adjust."
"I might."
"Might?" Michonne repeated.
He stood up and walked over to her. "I just...got this feelin'. I don't know. Maybe I'm just paranoid."
"Feeling?"
"Somethin's off here."
She nodded. "Me too."
"They got no kids, no elderly. The Governor had kids and elderly," Rick whispered. "How does that happen?"
Michonne moved closer. "I've noticed they have an area that's blocked off. Only Gareth and Mary go in there. Usually before dinner."
"I don't think sneakin' around's a good idea, but somethin' ain't right here. I wanna know what."
"Am I interrupting?" Mary asked as she entered the yard.
Michonne and Rick both stepped away from each other, and Michonne let Rick deal with her. "No, ma'am." He smiled a little. "Just talkin'. Not much goes on around here."
"We consider ourselves lucky that way." She wrapped her shawl tighter around herself. "I came to see if you two needed anything."
Rick glanced at Michonne, but she shook her head. "No, we're good, but thank you."
She nodded and smiled. "Well, if you do need anything, let me know. All you have to do is ask." She turned around and left, returning to her room.
"We'll talk more later," Michonne said, walking to the other side of the yard to keep watch.
Rick set his hand over his gun and tapped his ring finger against it, his wedding band clang with each hit. He didn't want this place to be bad, but after a few days, things—little things—were staring to eat at him. It wasn't possible to have no elderly, to have no children. It made no sense to him. Why have so many empty warehouses if there haven't been more new people? There hadn't been any new arrivals since Rick came, and the people who were here now weren't moving into those new rooms. So, what were they using them for? Why were they so open yet so secretive. It didn't sit well with him. He had to know what they were hiding.
At breakfast, Rick and Michonne didn't eat. They headed back to their room—or so it seemed. They went to check out the building no one ever went into. Everyone was at breakfast right now, and they would see if there was anything suspicious. They would only go inside if there was something off with the building. Rick and Michonne both felt in their guts that something was not right there.
Rick saw flickering lights inside, and Michonne noticed writing on the
wall through the window. The only way inside was through that window or the front door, but that seemed to easy. They would try the window tonight when Gareth and Andy were on watch.
They turned to leave and found Gareth behind them, arms crossed over his chest, looking at them with confusion, and they both prepared for the worst.
"What are you doing?" He divided a look between them.
"What's in this building?" Michonne demanded.
"This building?" Gareth pointed to it. "You could've just asked."
"Quit stallin'." Rick narrowed his eyes.
Gareth reached into his pocket and dug out a set of keys. He unlocked the door and opened it, Rick and Michonne stepped inside, and he waved his arms around, showing them the room with names on the floor and candles lit everywhere. "We call it the Church." He lowered his arms. "We put the names of those we've lost on the floor in white paint and light a candle for them. This is how we mourn."
Rick looked at the floor, all the names, all the candles, and he felt bad. He was going to break into someone's mourning place.
"Why's it locked?" Michonne didn't move from the doorway.
"We only come in here once a month or so. Me and Mary keep it from burning down." He shrugged. "Shoulda told y'all. I didn't mean to make you suspicious of us."
Rick nodded. "We're real sorry."
"It's okay. I get it. There are a lot of sickos out there. You have to keep your boy safe." He looked around the room. "This is all it is."
"We'll just go then." Michonne stepped out. "Carl's waiting."
Rick gave an apologetic nod to Gareth, Gareth gave him a reassuring smile, and they left. Gareth's smile fell instantly, and he went over to the clipboard that listed names of who was next in line. He wrote down names then set it down and walked over to the door. He gave the room one last look, slowly smirking then exited, closing and locking the door.
The names he'd written down here Rick (Grimes) and Michonne (Samurai). He'd made a small note: Convert the boy.
––
Carl saw his dad and Michonne, and they looked like something had happened. Carl noticed they were acting differently, but he didn't say anything. He didn't want to ruin what they had. They were finally getting back to normal, and they were doing well here. He didn't want them to get all suspicious and get them kicked out. They needed to relax.
"Hey, Dad." Carl set his cup down. "Where were you?"
"Just talkin' to Gareth." He sat down. "Did you sleep good?"
"Yeah."
"Good." Rick saw Maggie and Sasha going to the yard with baskets. They were still picking vegetables and planting them. Maggie did it, because she grew up on a farm and worked on it too. They let her keep watch, but mostly her job was to tend to the gardens. Sasha only went to help Maggie. They'd gotten really close on the way here. Rick wasn't surprised. He and Michonne had gotten closer as well. Carl and she were always close.
"Are you keeping watch again tonight?" Carl ate his breakfast.
"No, tonight's Glenn and Abraham." Rick felt tired all of a sudden.
"You okay?" Glenn asked, seeing exhaustion cross Rick's face.
"Tired." He rubbed his eyes.
"Go to bed," Glenn suggested. "You've been for nearly two days. Get some sleep."
He nodded. "If you need anything, Carl—"
"I'll ask you or Michonne." Carl nodded. "Night, Dad."
Rick rose and headed back to the room, he heard someone behind him, but he knew it was Michonne. She had the key, after all. They entered the room and didn't even remove their shoes or weapons, just fell asleep on the beds the minute they sat down. They were both so tired. They had let their gut-feeling control them, but Michonne knew she was right about this place. She just knew it, and she knew that Rick knew it too. They would get to the bottom of it.
– – –
They found a resting spot, Daryl let Mika have Judith as he climbed out of the car and went to help Beth out of the backseat. Carol and Bailey got out of the car and stretched, Remy pulled Carol and Bailey aside as Ty and Daryl saw to Beth's ankle.
"Where are we going?" Remy asked her.
"With them," Carol replied, "to Terminus. We don't have any other choice."
"Can we trust them?" Bailey was still shaking.
"Yes, of course." Carol set her hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. "Those things aren't people anymore, Bailey. They're dead—walkers."
"How are they moving?" Bailey whispered. "I—I don't understand."
"Bay." Remy pulled her into a hug as she sobbed. "Let me."
Carol nodded and checked on Beth. Daryl was wrapping her ankle, Carol offered her a smile and sat down beside her. "How are you?"
"Better." She winced when Daryl tightened. "I'll get used to it."
"You'll have to keep it elevated," Carol told her.
"I know."
Carol watched Daryl wrap her ankle, and she wondered when he became this way. From what she remembered, he was distant all the time. She tried to get him to join the group, but he never did. She felt like he did something really amazing for her, but she couldn't remember. All she knew was he yelled at her to get out of his camp and he almost hit her and he slammed a door in her face. Beth must have brought him out. She was glad. She was starting to like this new Daryl. He was really great.
Daryl picked Beth up and set her down in the shade then left with Ty to get some water. Carol stayed by the car and Mika joined her with baby Judith, and Carol took the baby from her. Carol always loved children. She just never had any of her own. If she had, she would've done anything to protect them from this world.
"Hey, there." Carol smiled at Judith then Mika. "How are you holding up?"
"Better now. I'm so glad you're okay." Mika was beaming. "We can go find the others, and everything will be okay."
Carol nodded in agreement. "When we get there, I'm sure you're friends will be waiting."
"Friends?" Mika shook her head. "Family. Our family's waiting."
Carol just smiled, though inside she felt pain. Carol didn't have a family waiting for her. Mika was important to her, and Mika was the only family Carol had. Whether or not they made it to Terminus, Carol had her family. She didn't need anyone else, and she was happy.