CHAPTER ELEVEN - AAR
"Never confuse a single failure for a final defeat."
-F. Scott Fitzgerald
My clothes were torn. That was the first thing I'd noticed when the shock and numbness had worn off. A whole strip of the bottom of my shirt had been ripped right off, and my jeans were shredded from the knees down like I'd walked backwards and forwards through a rose bush.
Then there was the blood. It splattered my clothes, my arms, my hands, my face; dark red, almost black, blood just seemed to be all over me. Since we decided that we would bury our dead when dawn came, I took Amy and Andrea down to the quarry, since we were covered in the most gunge, to clean up. The two blondes still seemed in a state of shock, so I helped them clean up, while Lori brought us all some clean clothes to wear.
I dropped to my knees and dunked my hair into the cold lake water, scrubbing it with some soap to get the blood out of it, and then helped Amy and Andrea do the same, before I checked them over for scratches or bites. Finding nothing, we got dressed, and headed back to what was left of the camp, a blonde walking on either side of me, gripping my hands like I was their last life line.
It was White Knight syndrome, I guess. They had latched onto me since the walkers attacked, because I had saved Amy. They hadn't left my side, clinging to each other, and to me, not letting me out of their sight. Not even when I went around to check how bad our casualties were, but we couldn't be sure until we had done a full count of the survivors, had they let go of me.
Once everyone was all grouped around, Shane and I did a head count. Morales and his family had survived, Lori, Carl, Carol and Sophia were all grouped around the fire, the kids in their mothers' laps, Jacqui, T-Dog and Glenn stood together and Jacqui seemed to be comforting the young Korean. Daryl was going round to all the dead, making sure they really were. Amy and Andrea stuck to Dale like glue once we'd gotten back, finally leaving my side, and he had an arm wrapped around both of them, while Jim watched on. Which left just Shane, Rick and I to be included in the final tally. Just nineteen people out of a group of thirty people had survived.
"We've lost eleven people and there's at least twenty eight walkers that got into camp. We lost one third of the group; eight men, three women. It was a massacre."
Rick, distressed at my words, ran his hands through his hair almost frantically, and I could see everyone looking at him, wondering what plan he was going to come up with. Even I was. When we were kids, Shane was the idea man, but Rick always came up with the plan, while I picked it apart until it was perfect. I felt like I needed orders, I needed someone to follow, because right now, everything was falling apart, and I needed something from my old life to cling onto. Rick was more than capable of becoming a leader, which was what I, and the group, sorely needed. Shane did a good job but, after beating Ed to a bloody pulp, the group was wary of him.
Rick could get us out of this. I know he could.
"Okay, okay…until dawn breaks, we need people on watch, rotating shifts every three hours. No one takes watch alone. First sign of daylight, we deal with the dead and make our plans."
We all nodded at Rick's instructions, everyone to emotionally distraught and wrung out to argue with him.
"Who gets first watch?" Shane questioned, and I immediately raised my hand.
"I'd like to stay on watch through the night actually. Everybody else can decide what shifts they want to take with me."
"I'll take first watch. Shane, can you take second?" Rick questioned, and Shane nodded, and then Rick turned his attention to Daryl. "You get third?"
Daryl scowled, but nodded, eyeing me as I loaded my rifle, wanting to be prepared in case more walkers attacked.
"Lori, is there room in your tent for two more people? Carol and Sophia haven't got anywhere to sleep. Their tent…Ed…" I trailed off, seeing Carol start to cry at the implication of my words, and Lori nodded, moving to comfort her friend. I looked at Sophia, who, other than her eyes welling up, didn't seem as distressed as I thought she'd be at the death of her father. I guess this was confirmation that Carol wasn't the only one who Ed abused, considering the small relief I could see in the young girl's face. "Everybody…rest up. It's going to be a long day tomorrow."
The group dispersed, going to hide away in their tents if they were still standing or in the cars if they weren't. The kids would fall asleep, the emotional turmoil of the night would knock them right out, and the adults would be on edge, but would force themselves to sleep, if only to have some energy to deal with the dead the next day.
I climbed the ladder of the RV, Rick right behind me, and walked until I was at the far end of it, leaving the chair for the cop who ran from Atlanta to get back here. I dropped down onto my ass, my legs hanging off one side, dangling almost dangerously off the edge of the RV.
If a walker got close enough, somehow managing to get the drop on me, it could probably pull me right off the roof of the RV. I'd be so stunned when I hit the ground, it would probably get the chance to eat me before I could recover.
I brought my legs back up after that thought, scooting backwards so they were just pulled up to my chest instead. I rummaged through my backpack until I found my military issued binoculars. Pushing a tiny button on the side, I switched the lens type to night, squinting slightly until my eyes got used to the sudden green glow to everything.
I scanned the landscape in front of me. My body tensed at every strange noise until I was able to place it. A lone owl hooting at the moon. The rustle of leaves as the night chill blew through them. The sounds of quiet sobs coming from inside tents. Rick tapping his finger against his temple as he tried not to look over at me.
"Out with it, before you give yourself a brain aneurysm." I said, not turning round to look at him, glassing the surroundings still.
It was all too quiet. After all the chaos that had happened, it was the silence in the aftermath that was now bothering me.
"Shane thinks this is on me. He thinks that we left the camp vulnerable by going after Merle, and that's why we lost those people. He didn't come right out and say it, but I know he was thinking it," Rick whispered, just loud enough for me to hear him, and I finally turned round to gaze at him, hearing the emotion thick in his throat; guilt. He felt guilty. "You blame me too?"
"I don't blame you and I don't not blame you," I answered honestly, and even in the dark I saw Rick's face fall so I hurried to explain myself. "I blame you because I'm trying to find somebody to blame and it's easier to blame you, rather than accept responsibility. We let our guards down, and we paid the price for it. I'm not saying that we wouldn't have fared better with the extra muscle; our losses would have been significantly less if you were here, but…we're all to blame. Shane shouldn't try to put it all on you. It's not fair."
"Why'd you volunteer to stay up all night? You need to sleep as much as the rest of us." Rick questioned, his voice still low, and I turned away from him, lifting my binoculars back to my eyes for another scan.
"All day…I had a bad feeling. There was sign after sign that something was going to happen; the walker near camp, Shane beating Ed's face black and blue, Jim digging those damn holes…but I ignored my gut and people died. I don't want to make that mistake again." I can't make that mistake again, I thought. I made Rick a promise that I would protect the group, and I didn't. People died and I broke my promise.
"There's nothing you could have done to prevent those people from dying, T. You didn't know that's what your gut was saying. You didn't know that it was walkers. No one even thinks it's your fault." Rick insisted, and I smiled a grim smile, not turning round to let him see it.
It didn't really matter what he said. I knew that part of the blame for the night's massacre was on me. I had never not listened to a gut instinct. It was what made me a good soldier. I listened to that gut feeling, and I acted on it if it felt right, and then I got the job done.
The one time I ignored it, put it down as paranoia brought about by this new, terrifying world, people died.
How could I not blame myself for my part?
Rick and the other three guys who headed into Atlanta…they played their part. They did leave us more vulnerable, more susceptible to attacks as we were four able bodied members down. The rest of us…we were stupid to think that because we felt safe, because we had a warm fire and a hot meal that things would be okay, that we could let our guards down for one night.
Out of everyone, I thought I had already learned that lesson, fighting against terrorists who would strike whenever they felt we would least expect it, but I guess I'm still learning.
"It doesn't even matter who's to blame. People died and there's nothing we can do to bring them back. We just have to move on, find somewhere new, somewhere safe. We can't stay here," I informed him, turning my whole body around this time, catching his eye, hoping he understood the seriousness, the gravity behind my words. "Staying out in the open like this…it's fucking stupid. Tonight has only helped to prove that. We need somewhere with strong fences, something defendable. Somewhere safe. The kids need a place like that, we all need a place like that. Here…this quarry, it ain't it. We need to move on."
"I know. It's just convincing the others."
"It won't take much. They're all pretty shaken up, and with all the people that died, I doubt they'll want to stick around. Plus, they listen to you. Tomorrow morning, they'll be looking to you for answers."
"I don't have any answers."
"Well…we'll wing it then. You, me and Shane…like the old days. We'll put our heads together and think this thing through, and then we'll take the plausible options to the group and we'll all decide what's best." I suggested, smiling slightly at him, though I'm half certain that it ended up as a grimace. It was hard to smile especially after everything we had just gone through. It didn't feel right.
"Yeah…you're right, T. There's a place out there for us somewhere, somewhere safe and secure, but this camp ain't it. I know we'll find it. We have to."
"With a little bit of that Grimes determination, I don't doubt that you'll find it for us."
"You've got so much faith in me. Why?" Rick questioned, and I blinked at him. Because I love you, is what I wanted to say, but when I opened my mouth, those weren't the words that left it. I couldn't tell him anyway. Everything was still confused with him and Lori, and after the deaths of eleven members of our new group…it wouldn't be right. So I chose four different, but no less true, words instead.
"Because I trust you."
"Always have, always will?" Rick pushed, using my own words to help him uncover just how far my loyalty to him went. It went deeper than he'd ever know, but I just finished off what was slowly becoming my catchphrase when it came to Rick Grimes.
"Whatever happens."
I kept myself awake the rest of the night, only taking a brief half hour nap when Shane insisted I get some sleep on our watch together, but I made sure that I stayed awake for my watch with Daryl. It wasn't that I didn't trust him not to mess up or kill me if I fell asleep…I just didn't know him. Morales had painted him as a loose cannon, just like his brother, so I didn't want to take any chances with him.
Dawn broke soon enough, the light helping me stay awake, and people started emerging from their tents. Lori and Carol and Miranda ushered the four kids to the RV as soon as its occupants were no longer inside, ordering them inside so they wouldn't see the adults deal with the dead. Dale took over watch, so I hurried away to find Rick.
I muttered good mornings back to anybody who murmured them to me, while my eyes searched for my best friend. I spotted him, emerging from our tent with the walkie-talkie he had risked life and limb for in his hand, still dressed in his police uniform but without the shirt. When he walked past me, a grim smile on his face, he gripped my wrist with his spare hand and tugged me along after him.
Though I knew that the others could use my help collecting and moving the bodies spotted around camp, I could almost feel desperation in Rick's grip, so I let him pull me along behind him, past everybody and onto the green field that gave us an almost picturesque view of the Atlanta skyline. A view like this was still untainted. Gazing at it, you could pretend that there were no walkers, that there were no fallen group members at our backs, that it was just us and the horizon. It was beautiful.
Rick stopped us when he felt that we would have enough privacy to make the call to Morgan. We dropped to our asses, the vibrant green grass dry as a bone underneath us, and Rick pulled me into his side and pressed down on the mike.
"Morgan…I don't know if you're out there. I don't know if you can hear me. Maybe you're listening right now. We hope so. I found others – my family, if you can believe it. My son and my ex-wife, they're alive. Thea's still with me, don't know where I'd be if she weren't. I wanted you to know that," Rick informed our mutual friend, squeezing me slightly as he talked about me. I rested my head on his shoulder, squeezing my eyes closed. I hated not knowing if they were alive; Morgan and Duane had kept me sane the month they had been with me, we were close. I wish they had come with us, instead of staying behind, but I understood Morgan's reasons. They had been, at the time, the same as mine. "There's something else you need to know. Atlanta isn't what we thought. It's not what they promised. The city is…"
Rick cut off suddenly, a look of panic on his face, and I gently tugged the walkie out of his hand, deciding to take over. I took a deep breath, before I pushed down on the mike.
"It's T. Morgan, do not enter the city. It belongs to the dead now. We're camped a few miles north-west, up by a big, abandoned rock quarry. You can see it on the map I left you in the house. I hope you come find us. But, be careful," I warned him, taking another breath before launching into the tale of last night. "Last night, walkers came out of the woods. We lost people. Watch yourself, Morgan. Take care of Duane. Always check your six and keep your eyes open. We'll try you again tomorrow at dawn. Be safe."
I let go of the call button, and we sat there for a moment, just listening to the static of the walkie before I turned it off and passed it back to him. Rick pushed himself up onto his feet first, holding out his hand to help me up. I took it, and was quickly on my feet, but when he went to walk back, I gripped his hand and stopped him.
Rick gazed at me, those usually twinkling blue eyes dulled with concern, and I sighed.
"You think they're okay?" You think they're still alive?
"We can only hope. Morgan's a good man, strong, and you taught Duane all you could. Hope's all we got." Rick answered, and I nodded, my eyes falling to the ground. Hope. After last night…hope seemed a little out of reach for me to fully accept his words. After last night, everything seemed a little hopeless.
"I guess if that's all we have…it will have to be enough," I replied, lifting my eyes back to his and holding his gaze for a moment. Blue on green, a sort of charge seemed to past between our eyes, until I reluctantly turned my head away, looking back into the direction of camp. "We should get back. They'll need our help up there."
Rick nodded, and we set off, trekking back up the dirt path.
I winced, as we trudged back to camp, as I watched Daryl bury a pick-axe into the brain of one of the felled walkers, hearing the squelch as he ripped it out again. Glenn and T-Dog each moved to pick up an end, dragging the walker over to a large bonfire and throwing the body down, the flames flickering higher at the extra fuel burning.
I squeezed my eyes closed, and swallowed the lump in my throat, before opening my eyes to find two blondes suddenly in the front of me and Rick was no longer at my side. Andrea and Amy looked to be in a similar condition as they were last night; shook up and strung out, but thankful to both be alive.
I opened my mouth to ask them if they needed anything, when, without warning, I was struggling to stay upright with my arms full of a sobbing Amy. Once I'd gotten my balance, I rubbed circles on her back, trying to sooth and stop whatever emotional breakdown she was going through.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Amy cried, and when I looked to Andrea for help, she simply stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the two of us, only confusing me further. "You saved me."
"It's my job. GI Jane, remember?" I joked weakly, as the two blondes finally let me go.
"We realized that we didn't actually thank you last night for protecting us," Andrea stated, her voice strong, though her ice blue eyes were tearing up with emotion. Gratitude. Fear. Happiness. I saw all of it in her eyes. "If you hadn't been here…I'd have lost my sister."
"We don't know that. All we know is…you didn't lose her." I smiled slightly, as Amy curled herself into her sister's side, Andrea's arm slung around her waist. I doubted that Andrea was going to let the younger girl out of her sight from now on.
"We just wanted to say thanks and anything you need…come to us." Andrea smiled, taking my hand and squeezing it, and I felt a sense of comradery had formed between us, something I was grateful for. Lori had really been the only other woman I'd ever been friends with, so I was thankful now that I could add Andrea and Amy to that list. It was nice.
"Actually, there is something that I need to talk to you about," Andrea looked at me inquisitively, and I just jerked my thumb over my shoulder. "In private? Amy, why don't you go see if Lori, Miranda and Carol need help with anything?"
Amy nodded, pulling me into another hug, brief though it was, before walking away in the direction of the three mothers.
"What do you need to talk to me about?"
"Today's Amy's birthday, right?" I questioned, and surprise fell across Andrea's face, then guilt.
"After last night, I completely forgot."
"Understandable. I'm just hoping that she'll understand why we can't make that big of a deal about it," I said, before I searched my pockets for the object I was looking for. I finally found it, digging it out and holding it between us. It was a black onyx and tiger's eye bracelet. "My mother gave it to me when I joined the army. She was bit of a hippie and believed in healing crystals and all that stuff. It's real onyx and tiger's eye. The onyx is supposed to enhance determination and perseverance while the tiger's eye is supposed to promote balance and strength in difficult times. I mean, it's not as great or as pretty as that mermaid necklace you lifted from the department store, but she should have more than one gift on her birthday."
When I finished rambling, Andrea had already taken the bracelet and was smiling widely at me, something that I returned. I had always loved birthdays, even in the army, because they sucked as sometimes you couldn't be with your family or loved ones, but your brothers would make them special for you in some way, even if it was just handing over their daily cigarette rations. So I was hoping that Amy would appreciate the gift, even if it wasn't something that she would normally pick for herself at a store. It wasn't ugly. It was lovely, especially the tiger's eye pieces. I just didn't know if Amy would like it.
"If she doesn't like it…I've got a few more pieces like that in my Jeep. My mom would always stuff them into the glove box when I wasn't looking. It was her own kooky way of trying to protect me with her hippie voodoo."
"She'll love it. Thank you," Andrea replied, tugging me into her arms, squeezing me tightly in her embrace, before releasing me. "You've done so much for us already. I'll never be able to repay you for everything you've done."
"I don't want repayment, Andrea. Just stay alive and stay with us and that's all the repayment I'll accept."
Andrea nodded and headed off to find her sister, while I moved to start helping Morales and Daryl with the bodies. It was only fair that I assisted them since I helped drop most of them the night before. As I advanced on them, I briefly glanced at Jim. He didn't look so hot and seemed to be in a world of his own until Jacqui came over to help him.
"Jim? You okay?" I questioned, heading towards him, but he didn't get to answer as a suddenly angry redneck started to run his mouth off loudly.
"You reap what you sow!" Daryl said, as he and Morales dropped one of the group's fatalities on to the 'bury' pile.
"You know what? Shut up, man." Morales grunted, stepping away from the hunter, glaring at him.
"Y'all left my brother for dead! You had this coming!" Daryl shouted, getting himself everyone's attention before he stormed away, probably going to pick up his pick axe to finish destroying brains.
I rolled my eyes at his display, before I turned back to Jim, who looked a whole lot worse and I saw fresh blood seeping through his shirt. Jacqui, having crouched down to start heaving a body, also spotted it, though she was a lot more panicky than I was. Having already decided to approach this in a calm manner so I didn't spook him, I spoke in a much softer voice than the one Jacqui had adopted.
"Are you bleeding?" Jacqui asked, eyes still narrowed on the dark red blood drops seeping through the sweat stained material of his pale red shirt.
"I just got some on me from the bodies." Jim replied, as he bent over to help Jacqui move the body, his haggard breathing and his stiff movements gave away his pain.
"Jim, that blood is fresh. Were you bit?" Jim's eyes flickered over to me, and I saw how panicked and afraid he was.
"No. I got scratched during the attack." Jim protested, and Jacqui stood up.
"You got bit." Jacqui accused again, glaring down at the man who was still trying to go on as though he was perfectly fine and normal.
"I'm fine." Jim argued, but Jacqui still wouldn't let it go.
"Then show me!" Jacqui raised her voice, attracting the attention of T-Dog and Carol, who were the closest to us. I shook my head and decided to really intervene now.
"Do not cause a panic," I hissed at her, motioning for her to take a couple steps away. "Let me deal with this, okay?"
Jacqui seemed to sense that I wasn't really asking, so she stepped back, though I could see that she was tensed and practically vibrating with the need to shout about Jim's condition.
"Please don't tell." Jim begged me, and I smiled softly at him.
"Just let me see it first, and I'll decide what we should do, okay? I need to see how bad it is, Jim, alright?" I questioned and he nodded, before slowly lifting up his shirt for me. I held back my gasp as I saw the large bite wound on his upper stomach. I ran my finger underneath the wound, and he winced at the pain of it. Leaning in to get a closer look at it, I could already see that it was infected. The skin around the actual bite was puckered and red and clearly painful to the touch. I straightened up, and motioned for him to lower his shirt. "I'm sorry, Jim. I'm so sorry."
"Don't tell, please?" Jim repeated, but it seemed Jacqui couldn't contain herself any longer.
"A walker got him. A walker bit Jim!" Jacqui hollered, and it was like last night all over again in terms of the chaos that was trying to ensue.
The men had all rushed over, trying to box Jim in so they could grab him and see the wound themselves, and the women were all huddling together like he was a real threat. He wouldn't be a threat until he turned. Seeing how frightened Jim was, especially with them all shouting at him, I sighed, un-holstered my Glock and fired a round into the sky to shut everybody up.
It worked quite well.
"Now that I have your attention…I've already seen the bite." I announced to them, and was going to explain Jim's condition but before I could, Dixon had already cut me off.
"And you weren't gonna say nothin'? You stupid?" He snarled, and I smirked at him.
"Need I remind you which of us is holding a loaded weapon right now, Dixon…one of us should be careful about handing out insults, shouldn't they? Anyway, before I was so rudely interrupted…I was going to say that Jim is bitten, but he's sick, and he's scared. Let's all give him some space, and figure out what we're going to do from here," I stated, leaving no room for argument. "Jim, honey, go take a seat over there by the RV, while the others and I calmly discuss how we're going to help you."
Jim nodded, following my instructions, trying not to wince or grimace as everyone hurried out of his way, like Moses parting the Red Sea. I stepped a little further in the opposite direction with everybody following me, until we were just out of earshot from the sick man.
"I say we put a pick axe in his head and be done with it." Daryl suggested, and I glared at him, angry at his callousness. Jim was still human, still alive, and he deserved to be treated that way.
"Is that what you'd want if it were you?" Shane questioned, incredulous at the hunter's lack of compassion. Jim was a member of our group, he was a friend, and Daryl was talking about killing him as though he were talking about changes in the weather.
"Yeah. I'd thank you while you did it."
"I hate to say it, I never thought I would, but maybe Daryl's right." Dale stated, and I stared at him with wide eyes. How could he say that?
"Jim's not a monster, Dale, or some rabid dog," Rick practically snarled, continuing over Dale's protests. "He's a sick man. We start down that road, where do we draw the line?"
"The line's pretty clear. Zero tolerance for walkers or them to be." Daryl voiced, and I shook my head.
"What if we can get him help?" I inputted, looking over at Jim, who was watching us all intently. I tried to muster a smile for him, but I don't think it helped calm his fears none.
"We heard the CDC was working on a cure." Rick added, backing me up, resting his hand on the small of my back as he tried to comfort me.
In the army, on the front line, things similar to this would happen all the time. I'd seen so many men begging for death, having lost limbs to bombs, or were so badly shot up and injured that there was nothing anyone could do for them but wait for them to die...Jim wasn't those men. He was clinging to life, he wanted to live still, and here we were, allowing a discussion to be had over ending that life.
"I heard that too. I heard a lot of things before the world went to hell." Shane dismissed, but Rick kept on with his train of thought.
"What if the CDC's still up and running?" Rick questioned, his eyes on Shane. I tore my gaze from Jim to look at our best friend as well, seeing the disbelief there. He thought there was no hope for Jim. I could see it in his eyes, and, looking around, he wasn't the only one.
"That is a stretch right there."
"Why? The CDC, along with the army, they have protocols for disasters like this. If there's any government left, any structure at all, the CDC would be the first thing they'd protect. It's our best shot at getting Jim some help." I informed them, crossing my arms over my chest, strumming my fingers against my lips, almost defensive at the look in Shane's eyes.
"Think of it, Shane. Shelter, protection…" Rick trailed off, and Shane quickly interjected.
"You want those things, all right. I do too, okay? Now, if they exist, they're at the army base, Fort Benning. T's a soldier. She can get us there and she can get us in." Shane explained, pointing at me as though I could help him make his point.
"That's true. I trained at Benning, I knew guys stationed at Benning. If, and I mean if, we could get there…I have the connections and the rank to get in. It's just getting there. That's the problem."
"It is 100 miles in the opposite direction." Lori agreed with me. The roads, while being mostly empty now, would be a lot harder to travel. There could be traffic snarls or walker herds or any number of things that could cut us off on the way to Benning, and we wouldn't have enough gas to travel back to the CDC if it failed.
"Right, but it's away from the hot zone. Listen to me, if it's operational, it'll be heavily armed. We'd be safe there."
"The military were on the front lines of this thing. They got overrun. We've all seen that." Rick protested against Shane's idea, and I felt a little sting of hurt at Rick's underlying point. The military were incapable of stopping this outbreak or containing it, according to him. Yet he hadn't seen what it had been like. We were fighting against an enemy that we hadn't really known how to kill, and when we did…their numbers were too great and ours had dwindled down too low to really defend anything.
"Ouch. Brushing that stinger off…Benning is a great idea, but the CDC is Jim's only shot at staying alive, but on the other hand, Benning could be our one shot for survival. There are too many variables to consider, and not enough time."
"You go looking for aspirin, do what you need to do," Dixon said, and everyone turned to look at him. My gut flared up and I took a step towards Jim, my hand on my gun in its holster, preparing myself for anything. Dixon paced backwards, before gripping his pick axe in both hands and charged at Jim. "Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!"
I ran in front of him, as Rick held the redneck at gunpoint from behind. I stared him down, not blinking, as I stood between him and Jim. He still had the pick axe raised, but he made no move to swing it. The gun behind him, and me in front of him, seemed to make him pause.
"We don't kill the living." Rick declared, his voice unwavering, even though I saw the slight panic in his eyes because of the danger I had put myself in. Shane was standing at my side now, shotgun in hand and his police cap resting low in his head, and I felt a little safer, for myself and for Jim.
"That's funny coming from a man who just put a gun to my head." Daryl quipped.
"We may disagree on some things, but not on this," Shane jerked his head, motioning to the weapon still in Daryl's hands. "You put it down. Go on."
Huffing, Daryl threw down the pick axe, before storming off. I let out a sigh of relief, before turning to Jim and gesturing for him to follow at the same time Rick told him to get up and follow him.
"Where are you taking me?" Jim questioned, as I took his left hand and Rick took his right arm, both of us steering him and supporting him.
"Somewhere safe."
A/N:
Hey, guys!
Here's an update for you and I'm on time! A miracle!
So in this chapter, we're dealing with the aftermath of the walker ambush from the previous chapter. The direct aftermath and the events that take place for the beginning of the next morning. So Thea feels responsible for the amount of people in the group who had died, because, being a soldier and having served in Afghanistan and Iraq she knows that in hostile territory she always has to be aware, and she feels like she let her guard down. Obviously, those people would have died anyway, because the whole group as a whole were woefully unprepared for a walker attack, but she's kind of a martyr - she has a lot of survivor's guilt that I'm gonna reveal in a later chapter, but when people die in proximity to her, she takes it on herself.
And it's Amy's birthday! Happy 24th to Amy! I'm honestly glad I kept her alive in this one. In each of my Walking Dead series, I'm going to be keeping a select couple of the deceased Team Family members alive to change the TV plot up. And in this one, Amy is the lucky duck who I saved from being chomped. I'm so excited because I've got big plans for sweet Amy and I can't wait for you guys to read them!
Oh, and Jim's bit! Which sucks, obviously, because I quite liked Jim. The poor guy suffered so much, but Thea and Rick have his back. Thea's kinda a sucker for the 'weak' and 'vulnerable', which was another reason she took on Ed for Carol. Thea and Carol will be quite close as the story goes on, so I'm trying to sew the seeds now.
Anyway I want to thank all of my favoriters, followers and reviewers! You guys are why I keep updating, seriously, because it gives me that little kick up the arse I need to do it when I know someone is reading :)
So thanks to the reviewers;
ChibiAiko1987, XLady-ZoZo-The-Pict-PrincessX, lovinurbuks, klandgraf2007, Morrowsong, yggdrasil001, and Guest.
The next update will be February 13th so mark it down on your calendars!
I hope you enjoyed this new chapter and thanks for reading, guys!
S. A. L. Stratton