Hi Readers!

I know this chapter is slightly shorter than what I have been posting but I haven't had much time these last few days since the 4th of July is upon us. I probably wont update over the weekend; also because of the holiday. But I wanted to give you guys something, and I think you shall be surprised. Let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except my characters and plot

Comment Feedback:

ADDBaby: Haha! No that isn't the Govenor; still some time before we run into that devil spawned son of a whore!

Shadow knight1121: We shall see if the bs is kicked out of them.

gumybear1825: Yeah, I love the game to death so I had to include it.

Please remember to leave a review after reading.

Enjoy!


Imagine there is no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky

Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion, too

Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you will join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You, you may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you will join us
And the world will live as one

"Imagine" by John Lennon


The Choices We Make

"Who the fuck are these people?!" Kenny slammed his hand down on the table, causing Katjaa to pull Duck close and give her husband a look of warning, "Kenny!"

He looked down at his wife and held out his arms in defense, "What, Kat?"

"You're scaring the children," she said, placing her hand on top of Duck's head, who leaned in closer to his mother. Clementine was looking at him unsurely from where she stood in front of Lee.

Kenny looked at his son and signed. Rubbing his eyes, he turned to the others standing in the room, "Look, whoever these people are made it pretty clear what they want."

Lee, who had been looking out the window of the RV, looked at him sharply, "Are you serious?"

Penelope and Ben had been excluded from the conversation, having being placed in one of the hotel rooms while the group discussed what to do with them. According to Penelope, these people had raided their camp and had barely escaped. The raiders had given them one hour to decide.

"This is bullshit!" Larry hollered, looking at the occupants of the RV, "Let's just give these assholes what they want!"

Lilly looked at her father apprehensively before crossing her arms and nodding, "Dad's right; we don't know these people."

Lee shook his head, his brow furrowing as he looked at his group in disbelief, "I don't believe this! Have you looked at Penelope? She's a wreck; because of these people. We can't just let them take her and Ben!"

Mark, standing next to him, looked at him with trust and understanding, "Lee's right, this isn't the way."

Kenny rolled his eyes and leaned against the sink behind him, "Excuse me while I put the safety of my family before two complete strangers!"

Mark looked at him with contempt, "They're people, Kenny! Just like us!"

"But they aren't a part of our group, Mark." Lilly said, her voice becoming sterner, "They brought this on us! Those strangers you brought here!"

Mark bit his tongue and looked at Lee, "I'm with you man."

Lee didn't say anything to Mark but gave him a nod before looking at Lilly, almost glaring, "We can't do this."

Lilly sighed harshly and stood, "Look Lee, I know it may seem like a shitty thing to do, but we don't owe Penelope or Ben anything. We don't even know why these people want them! What if they're bad people?"

"They're not,"

Everyone was surprised that Clementine had objected. Her soft voice had pierced the conversation, causing everyone to look at her. She held her hands behind her back as she fidgeted under the weight of their stares, "They're nice. Penelope and Ben need our help."

Lee laid his hand on the eight year old's head and smiled softly down at her, "You're right, Clementine."

Carley, who had been silent stepped in, "Why don't we take a vote?"

"I think it should be unanimous," Lilly said, looking at Lee, "What do you think?"

Lee crossed his arms and looked at her with a frown, "I think we should help them."

Lilly rolled her eyes, "Fine! We'll vote then since you've already made your choice!"

Turning to the group, she said, "All those in favor of sending Penelope and Ben to these people, raise your hand."

Her hand, along with Larry's shot right up. After a few moments, Kenny's hand raised as well. Katjaa's mouth fell open and she looked at her husband, astonished, "Kenny!"

Lee's brow shot up when he saw Carley raise her hand, "But'"

"I'm sorry, Lee," she said with remorse, looking away from him.

Lilly glared at Lee, "All those who want to help?"

Lee raised his hand, along with Clementine, Mark, Katjaa, and Duck. Lilly nearly grinned when she said, "That's four to three; looks like we're giving these people Penelope and Ben."

"WHAT?!" Lee yelled, taking a step towards her, "That's bull! It's five to four!"

Lilly' placed her hands on her hips, "You can't possibly believe we'd count two kids, did you?! They can't make a decision like this!"

"We're a part of the group, too, "Clementine complained, frowning at Lilly.

"What makes you think any of us can make a decision like this?" Mark suddenly asked, placing his hand comfortingly on Clementine's shoulder, looking at Lilly defiantly.

Lilly growled and pointed at Mark, "We don't have time to have a philosophical debate, Mark! We have to protect ourselves!"

"You don't speak for me, Lilly!" Mark screamed, "This isn't a dictatorship, I'm not going to just stand here and let two innocent people be handed over to be murdered! Can you live with that? Can you live with being a murderer?!"

Lilly stiffened and blinked, "That's not what this is."

"Yes it is," Lee said, agreeing with Mark, "You do this, that blood is on your hands."

Silence fell over the RV. The occupants looked around at each other with a mix of frustration and confusion, having no idea of what to do. Lee looked down at his watch and pinched the bridge of his nose.

They had thirty minutes.

"Enough of this!" Kenny growled, looking at Lee with anger, "We're gonna do this, Lee! It's us or them!"

Lee took a step towards Kenny and glared at him, "What happened to you, Kenny? What happened to the man who helped me and Clem get to Macon?"

Kenny was silent and looked away. Katjaa looked at Lee apologetically but said nothing as she looked down at Duck. Lee looked over at Carley, who walked further back into the RV. Lee shook his head before turning to Lilly, "You do what you have to, Lilly. But don't expect me to help you do it."

Lee looked over at Clementine and Mark, "Let's go see Penelope and Ben."

Mark nodded and Clementine took Lee's hand as they exited the RV, heading towards the hotel room they had left Penelope and Ben in.


PENELOPE POV

"What are they doing in there?" Ben asked her from where he sat on the bed beside her.

She looked out the window and could see the group arguing inside the RV. She looked back at Ben and said, "I can't tell."

Ben sighed almost hopelessly, "They're gonna do it, aren't they? They're gonna hand us over."

Penelope laid her good hand on his and squeezed gently, "Don't think that."

"But they are!" Ben said loudly, "We're nobodies to them!"

She looked back out the window and saw Lee storm out of the RV, followed by Clementine and Mark. They were heading towards the room. The door opened and Lee walked in with a look of anger on his face.

Mark closed the door behind him and leaned against it while Clementine sat down next to Penelope. Lee stood in front of her and Ben and looked down at his feet. He didn't have to say anything for Penelope to know what the decision was.

"How long?" she asked sadly.

Ben covered his face with his hands and bent forward to rest his elbows on his knees, mumbling under his breath in despair. She laid her hand on his back gently.

Lee crossed his arms and looked down at her, "The others may have made their choice but we're going to try and help you."

"That's right, we got your back guys," Mark said as he smiled at them.

Ben raised his head and looked at Lee in surprise, "Really?!"

Lee nodded.

Penelope looked down at Clementine who was looking up at her with a smile of confidence, "We'll be okay."

She couldn't help but return her smile. She reached over with her good hand and ruffled her hair, "Thanks, Clementine."

Mark stepped towards Lee and said, "So, what are we gonna do? We only got thirty minutes before those people come back."

Penelope sighed, "They probably never left. If they were able to track us, I doubt they'd just leave."

"She's right," Lee agreed, looking at Mark with worry.

"That's just grea-"

BANG!

Everyone jumped at the sudden sound of a gunshot. Mark and Lee got to the ground, Mark crawling over to the window. He peeked outside, moving the curtain aside gently. He dropped back down almost instantly, cursing, "Shit!"

"What?! What's happening?!" Ben asked in panic, covering his head with his hands as he lowered himself from the bed, along with Penelope and Clementine.

Mark looked back at them, "It's them."

"But we still have thirty minutes!" Ben said, trying to deny what Mark was saying.

"Well they lied!" Mark hissed back.

"What are they doing?" Lee asked Mark, trying to break the tension from escalating into an argument. They had to remain calm.

Mark looked back out the window, "Oh God! They're breaking down the gate!"

Clementine whimpered and laid her head against Penelope's side. Penelope's voice lowered gently as she whispered, "We have to be brave, okay? Be brave for Lee."

Clementine wiped her eyes before nodding, "Okay."

Penelope lifted her head as Mark said, "Damn, there's a lot of them! They're going for the RV!"

Lee crawled over to the other window and peered outside. He watched as the RV door was yanked opened and one by one, the occupants were forced to get out at gunpoint. They were all lined up and forced to their knees.

A man stepped in front of them, looking down at them. He wore no mask, unlike the rest of intruders, and looked enraged. He had shaggy blonde hair and cold blue eyes. He suddenly reached down and yanked Carley to her feet. He held her by the back of her hair and pulled out a pistol. Facing the hotel room, he called out, "Send me that bitch who killed my brother! I want her now!"

He pushed Carley to the ground and aimed the pistol at her head, "You have till three or I'll blow her head off!"

Penelope, hearing the man's claim, jumped to her feet as quickly as her damaged body would allow and hobbled towards the door. Mark's eyes widened and grabbed her good arm, yanking her back, "You can't!"

She rounded on him and said through clenched teeth, "I have to! He'll kill her!"

"She was gonna let them kill you!" Mark tried to rationalize but she shook her head and pulled away.

She reached for the door only for Lee to cover her hand with his. Lee sighed before opening the door himself, "We'll go together."

She shook her head, "No!"

Lee didn't give her a chance to say anything else as he opened the door fully and looked over at Clementine, "Stay close."

The little girl nodded, trying to be brave like Penelope had said before grabbing his hand. Penelope looked on helplessly as Lee stepped outside, holding up a hand in surrender, "Don't shoot! We're coming out!"

The man removed his gun from Carley's head motioned to his men to move in. Penelope, along with the others were forced on their knees, joining the rest of the group. The leader of the intruders stood in front of Penelope, looking down at her, his nostrils flaring, "So you're the bitch who killed Owen."

She didn't' say anything and looked away from him. She was yanked up by her broken arm and she cried out in pain.

"Hey!" Mark protested.

The man dragged her towards the RV and pushed her inside before shutting the door. He turned to one of the masked men and said, "Put 'em in a room, make it on the upper floor."

He grinned, "We're gonna have some fun before we kill 'em."

The masked man nodded, "Sure thing, Quinton."


NED POV

He had heard the gunshot while scavenging in town. He had reached the cabin only to discover the propane tank was empty. He had no supplies or food stocked up either. First thing in the morning, he headed into Macon to find supplies.

Ned had just found a propane tank when the shot rang out. It was followed by a series of gunshots before there was nothing but quiet. He filled up the truck before driving towards the gunfire. Maybe some people ran into some walkers.

He may have wanted to help, but he wasn't just going to drive up and announce himself. He parked the truck in the woods and made the rest of the trip on foot, the sniper rifle over his shoulder and his hunting knife in his hand.

When he arrived at the fortified motel, he was glad he did.

"Well shit," he muttered, looking through the scope on his new rifle.

He watched as a tall, shaggy-haired blonde man push somebody into an RV before turning to one of the many masked men. The masked man turned and began screaming at the people being held against their will.

There were nine of them. They held their hands up as they were forced to the second floor, and were locked in one of the hotel rooms together. He cursed when he saw that two of them were kids. He always did have a soft spot for kids.

"What am I doing?" he asked himself, lowering the rifle. He shook his head, "Walk away, Ned. Ain't your problem."

He rose to his feet and made to leave when he heard a woman scream from the motel. Ned stopped and turned back. He heard another scream and lowered himself back to his knees, readjusting the rifle to see through the scope.

Looking through, he searched the motel grounds until he found the source of the screams. It was coming from inside the RV. The blonde-haired man had walked into the RV and he could see movement through one of the windows.

He watched as the man struck a woman, sending her flying back. Ned glared through the scope. If there was one thing Ned hated, it was a man who beat on a woman. The man reached down and pulled the woman against him. She was facing away from him, giving Ned a view of the woman's face, and the blonde-haired man.

He recognized him instantly. It was Quinton. The so called leader of the group of men he had left days ago. Where was that stupid brother of his?

Ned focused on the young woman's face and stared. He pulled away from the scope sharply and blinked.

Peering back through the scope, Ned watched as Quinton wrapped his hand around the woman's neck. She struggled against him, reached up with her hand and pulled on his hair. His face contorted into one of pain and let go of her throat, trying to remove her hand from his hair.

She pushed his face back, trying to reach for his eyes. Quinton leaned back, putting distance between them. Growing angrier, he lashed out and kicked her back with such force, it sent her flying to the ground and out of Ned's view.

His hand had pulled the trigger before he realized it. The shot was silent, just as Brian had said it would be. The bullet pierced the window of the RV and hit its mark; right in the bastard's skull. He watched as Quinton fell back from the force of the bullet and hit the wall behind him. A trail of blood fell down the wall as he slumped to the floor.

Ned lowered the rifle and started assessing the motel. There were maybe ten of Quinton's men who had taken the people hostage. He nearly laughed as he realized he was about to do what he had done before prison.

He had been a cop. A sheriff's deputy after retiring from the marines. Then he had been sent to prison for murder. Murder…ha! It had been justified.

Focusing back at the situation at hand, Ned's eyes scoured over the motel grounds and noticed that the room holding the hostages were being guarded by only one man. He snorted at the stupidity of one man guarding nine individuals.

The remainder of the group had been split up, probably searching the rest of the motel for supplies they could help themselves too. He shook his head. This was why he had left; he knew they were no good.

Looking up at the sky, Ned calculated that the sun would be setting in an hour or so. If he thought he knew the group as well as he thought, they probably thought Quinton was having his…fun with…

He shook his head, not wanting to finish the thought. Anger boiled under his skin as he saw her face flash before his eyes. Her face….

Ned forced himself to remain calm; he had to keep his cool if he was going to do this. The group probably thought Quinton was still inside the RV, and would probably remain inside for hours. The group was used to this, so wouldn't question his absence.

Sighing, Ned looked through his scope and looked towards the RV. He could see her leaning over Quinton's body, looking at it in shock. She wasn't stupid; she wouldn't leave the RV anytime soon.

She did however look out the window, seeing the bullet hole there. He felt his chest constrict as he lifted his hand for her to see. His eyes burned as his eyes caught hers. He swallowed the lump in his throat as the little girl he thought he had lost saw him for the first time in years.


PENELOPE POV

"Daddy…"

She shook her head in disbelief as she saw the man who looked like her father staring back at her from the trees across the motel. It couldn't be him. It couldn't. He was…no….

She let out a gasp as her body shook from the sudden burst of emotion take over. A moment ago she had thought she would be dead, beaten to death by the brother of the man she had killed, and then a bullet had pierced his head.

She lifted her hand and pressed it against the glass of the broken window, staring at her father. He placed a finger against his lips and she nodding, unable to control the wide smile that took over her face, her eyes shining.

She watched as her father disappeared into the trees, making his way further down before running across the street until he was hidden from view by the barricade.

Penelope looked down at the body of the man who had tried to beat her to death and knelt down next to him. She couldn't help but lash out and strike the corpse across the face, "Asshole."

Reaching into his coat, she found his pistol. She pushed into in the back of her shorts and continued searching the body. He didn't' have anything useful other than the gun. She returned to the window and looked outside.

Her father was peering through one of the holes in the barricade and nodded. He was able to crawl through the hole and ran silently towards the window she was pressed up against. She quickly opened it and began crying as she wrapped her arms around her father's neck, burying her face in his chest, his familiar scent filling her nose; cedar and dirt.

He crawled into the RV and wrapped his arms around her tightly, "I got you. I got you baby."

She shook her head against his chest, "You can't be here."

Ned chuckled softly, brushing her hair away from her face, relishing in the warmth of her skin. He hadn't been able to touch her, let alone see her since she was twelve. He just stared at her, shaking his head unable to believe he had found his daughter.

"Where's Jake?" he asked, holding her by the shoulders.

She shook her head, her eyes shining with unwept tears, "I don't know."

Ned closed his eyes as the hope of finding both his children vanished. He pushed it aside, focusing on his daughter and the current situation, "We'll find him, hummingbird."

She suddenly smiled and then laughed, "You haven't called me that since I was a kid."

"You still are a kid," he said as he held her close.

Penelope suddenly stiffened and said, "The others. Dad there are other people here."

He nodded, "I know. I saw 'em being put in a room on the second floor. We got to wait til its dark. Maybe we can get them out then."

"Maybe?" she asked.

He scratched at his beard and sighed, "Baby, you're my first priority."

Not wanting to argue after just finding her father, Penelope remained silent and sat down at the small table. Ned joined her, holding her hand. He eyed her sling and asked, "What the hell happened to you?"

She grimaced, "I was in a car accident, and then this whole mess. That man…"

She stopped speaking and looked over at the dead man lying on the floor. Ned growled as he stared at the body of Quinton, "Asshole."

"That's what I said," Penelope said, looking back at her father.

Ned patted her hand gently, "We'll make our move in a few hours."

Penelope bit her lip but nodded, trusting her father completely.


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Chapter Ten - On Borrowed Time