Chapter Fourteen:
"I saw him go that way," Shane said, pointing to his left as they entered the woods. Rosanna sniffed, but there was no scent of Randall's left behind. She was sure he hadn't gone that way, and began looking for clues as to where Randall might have actually gone. Her nose picked up a scent heading northeast, away from where Shane had pointed, but she didn't say anything. She had no evidence besides her sense of smell, and she couldn't tell the others that was how she knew they were going the wrong way. She stopped and looked at Rick.
"I think we should split up," she said. Rick nodded.
"Good idea," he answered. To Rosanna's surprise, Shane didn't argue. In fact, he looked quite happy.
"Right, Rick and I will go this way," he said, pointing in the direction he had before. "You and Glenn and Daryl go that way." He pointed in the opposite direction, his eyes looking surprisingly intense. Rosanna hesitated.
Something's not right. I don't like this, she thought.
"Come on, let's go!" Shane commanded. Daryl glanced at him.
"You're tellin' me that skinny little kid got the jump on you?" he asked Shane. Shane glared at him.
"Don't you tell me what happened and what didn't!" Shane yelled. "Do you not see the blood on my face?"
"Okay, knock it off," Rick told them. "Let's get going. Come on, Shane."
Rosanna took one more look at Shane as his expression flashed with triumph, changing quickly when he noticed her looking. He scowled and followed Rick in the opposite direction. She rushed to catch up with Rick. "Be careful," she said, glancing at Shane meaningfully. Rick nodded and walked off, Shane behind him. She watched until they crossed the creek. "Can you see any tracks?" she asked Daryl when the others were out of hearing distance.
"Nope," Daryl said, shaking his head. "He couldn't have come this way."
"Let's go this way," Rosanna said, pointing in the direction of Randall's scent.
"Everyone keep your eyes open," Glenn said. "Randall's not the only threat out here." Rosanna and Daryl nodded and Daryl took point, keeping his crossbow ready as he surveyed the woods around them. Rosanna followed her nose, looking for tracks, and Glenn warily kept an eye on their backs.
"Look here," Rosanna said, pointing to a print. "We're going the right way." She saw nothing else, however, Randall's scent grew stronger. To her surprise, she could also smell Shane's rotten stench. She mashed her lips together in worry and kept going. It grew dark quickly, and Glenn pulled out a flashlight, but Daryl made him put it away. Rosanna kept her eyes on the surrounding area. Suddenly, an owl flew out of a tree, startling them.
"Shit," Glenn said, watching the grey shape of the bird fly away through the trees. Daryl gave the owl a fleeting look before turning his attention to the ground.
"This is pointless," Daryl said. "Let me see your light, Glenn." Rosanna went ahead while the men fiddled with the flashlight.
"Look!" she cried, pointing at the ground. "Someone's been here recently!"
"There's two sets of tracks," Daryl agreed as Glenn looked on curiously. "They're almost right on top of each other." Rosanna nodded.
"It's suspicious. What the hell went on here?" She sniffed and looked behind her, On a tree trunk was a splash of fresh blood, and it was Shane's. It smelled rotten, just like him. "Look, guys," she said, pointing to the tree. Daryl flashed the light on it and drew in his breath. His puzzled gaze met Rosanna's.
"Why would there be blood on a tree?" Glenn asked, his brow furrowed.
"Maybe Randall slammed Shane's face into it?" Rosanna mused. "But why would Shane be standing with his face so close to the tree?"
"Was he takin' a piss?" Daryl asked. She shook her head.
"There's no wet spot here, no smell of pee."
"This is weird, guys," Glenn said.
"There's more tracks," Daryl announced, moving away from the tree.
"They're walking together," Rosanna pointed out. "What the hell?" She motioned towards the ground, where it looked like a scuffle took place.
"Somethin' went down here," Daryl shone the light slowly over the area.
Something crackled in the trees behind them, and Rosanna turned quickly, holding her swords in a defensive position. She smelled the rot of a walker, but to her surprise, the rot smell was nowhere near as pungent as it should be. Daryl pulled her behind a tree. The shuffling sound of a walker coming closer got louder. Rosanna looked at Daryl and Glenn, mouthing 'I'll do it,' and before they could react, she leaped from behind the tree and beheaded the walker with one sword while slamming the other sword's blade into its temple as the head bounced off the ground. She took a deep breath and looked, really looked at the walker.
"Holy shit, it's Randall!" she cried. They all stood around the corpse, stunned.
"It can't be . . . was he bitten?" asked Glenn before he glanced around with a terrified look. Daryl knelt beside Randall and checked him over.
"Not bitten. Got his neck broke."
"Impossible," Rosanna said. "You only turn once you get bitten . . ."
"Look for yourself," said Daryl soberly. She knelt beside him and checked Randall for wounds, finding none. She leaned back on her heels. "See what I mean?" he said, nudging the corpse's head with his crossbow.
"How is that possible?" Glenn cut in quietly. "No bites, but he's a walker?" The three exchanged glances. "This is too weird."
"Let's get back to the house and tell the others," Rosanna said, getting up. They hurried away, saying nothing to each other on the way back to the house.
"What did you find?" Andrea asked worriedly as the others surrounded them when they entered the living room.
"Where's Rick?" Lori's eyes were filled with fear.
"Rick and Shane went another direction. But we found Randall," said Rosanna, looking at Glenn, who was hugging Maggie. He pulled away from his girlfriend and looked at her.
"He's a walker," Daryl told everyone, his face an impassive mask.
"Did you find the walker that bit him?" asked Hershel, his hands in his pockets.
"There was no other walker," Rosanna answered. "There were no bite marks or scratches on Randall's body. We checked."
"His neck was broke," Daryl affirmed. "No bites." He explained every strange thing they had found in the woods, from the blood on the tree to Randall and Shane's tracks being right on top of each other. Lori stepped forward, putting her hands on Daryl's shoulders.
"Will you please, please find my husband and find out what's going on?" she asked, her expression terrified. Daryl nodded and started out the back door. Rosanna followed him, along with T-Dog and Andrea. The second they went outside, a gunshot echoed out from one of the furthest pastures.
"What the hell was that?" she asked. Daryl shrugged.
"I don't know, but it can't be good," he murmured.
"Maybe they found the walker that bit Randall," Andrea said. Rosanna shook her head.
"I told you, there were no bite marks. Randall wasn't bitten."
Andrea crossed her arms. "That's impossible. You have to be bit to turn. I've seen it before."
"So have I, Andrea. I'm not claiming to know the answers, but it is what it is. There were no wounds of any kind, except for the broken neck."
"She's right," Daryl said. "Somethin' strange is goin' on here." He looked at Rosanna.
"How do you want to do this?"
"I think you and I should head towards the gunshot. T-Dog, Andrea and Glenn should stay here and protect the others."
"I can come with you," Andrea insisted. "I'm a good shot, and you might need backup."
"Not gonna argue with that," said Daryl. Rosanna nodded.
"Okay . . ." She started to agree, but she froze. The rancid smell of a herd of walkers filled her nostrils. "Be quiet, everyone!" she hissed. Everyone looked at her. She closed her eyes and listened, hearing the sound of moans and growls out in the pasture, coming from the direction of the gunshot. "Shit!" she whispered, looking out across the grass.
"What?" Daryl asked quietly, coming to stand beside her.
"Walkers. A herd, coming straight at us!" she murmured. The others looked shocked.
"How can you tell?" Andrea asked, looking worried. "I don't see anything."
"Look!" Rosanna almost snarled, pointing out by the barn, where hundreds of walkers appeared in the moonlight. Andrea squeaked, her hands on her mouth. Hershel and the others came outside.
"Oh my God!" Lori cried as she saw the walkers.
"Patricia, kill the lights!" Hershel ordered.
"We have to get out of here!" Carol whispered.
"Should we just go inside?" Glenn asked. Daryl shook his head.
"There's too many. They'll tear down the house. There'd be no way out if we get stuck in there."
Rosanna eyed the herd. "We can't fight this many. We have to leave."
"We can't leave the farm behind, how will we live?" Maggie asked. Rosanna put her hand on her friend's shoulder.
"We'll make it, you'll see," Rosanna answered.
"Oh my God, Carl's gone!" Lori hurried up to them. "I can't find him anywhere!"
"What, I thought he was upstairs!" Rosanna cried before rushing inside. She hurried through every room in the house, sniffing for Carl's scent, but the smell was faint in the room he had been waiting in earlier. Carl was definitely not in the house. She rushed back outside, where the others were still talking of leaving.
"I'm not going without my son!" Lori declared. Carol took her arm.
"Let's go look again. Maybe he's hiding."
Rosanna shook her head. "He's not in the house." She scanned the area around the farmhouse, noticing that a group of walkers were pushing at the door of the barn. "Look!" she said, pointing. "There's got to be someone in the barn! Maybe it's Carl." Lori's hands flew to her mouth and she looked like she was going to hyperventilate. Maggie and Hershel strode out of the house with a bag of guns that Maggie immediately began to pass out.
"What's all this?" Glenn asked. "We need to get out of here!"
"I was born here, and I'm going to die here," Hershel said calmly. "Whoever wants to leave should do it now. I'm staying to protect the farm."
"They've got too many," Daryl said, waving a hand at the herd.
"We've got guns, and we've got cars," Hershel replied, loading his shotgun.
"We'll kill as many as we can from a distance," Andrea put in as she made sure her own gun was loaded and ready. "Hopefully we can thin them out and then we'll go at them hand to hand, or lead the rest off the farm."
Daryl and Rosanna shared a concerned glance. She knew what he was thinking. There are too many. They'll kill us all. She found herself thinking of what Beth thought during her depression. That they would all die being eaten alive by walkers. Rosanna knew she healed fast, but she didn't think she'd be able to heal a bunch of walker bites at once, especially if they were eating her flesh. We should get in the cars and get the hell out of here the moment we find Carl and Rick. But at the same time, Rosanna knew she couldn't leave Hershel. She could tell from his expression that he was absolutely set on staying. Staring back at Daryl, she gave him a nod. He shrugged a shoulder and looked at Hershel.
"If you're stayin', we're stayin'. It's a good night to die." He met Rosanna's gaze and she smiled at him.
"Let's get this over with," she said to the group. They looked back at her with expressions of determination and fear as they rushed for the vehicles and pulled them out into the pasture. Rosanna stood in the back of the blue pickup, sniffing the air as T-Dog drove her and Andrea towards the walkers. She was amazed to smell smoke, and noticed the barn was on fire. Daryl pulled up to the fence in his motorcycle and drew his gun, shooting walkers with deadly efficiency. T-Dog began driving along the fenceline and Andrea and Rosanna began to shoot.
Rosanna relied on her superb sense of balance to keep upright in the truck and be able to shoot with accuracy. She took down walker after walker, pausing only to reload her revolvers as T-Dog drove them up and down the fenceline. Maggie drove her SUV as well, with Glenn shooting. Rosanna could hear nothing but the adrenaline rushing in her ears and the sound of gunshots, could smell nothing but the rot of the walkers and the acrid smoke in the air. Many of the walkers were heading towards the barn, but most were coming after the vehicles. She noticed Daryl drive off to Jimmy in the RV, just as the fence he was parked by was knocked down by walkers.
"Shit!" T-Dog shouted as he hit a walker with the truck, swerving around in a U-turn. Rosanna quickly adjusted her balance to keep from being thrown out. "Rose, you okay?"
"Fine. Keep going!" she shouted back, raising her weapons again. She noticed the RV heading towards the barn. Her guns started clicking, letting her know she was out of ammo. "Shit! Guys I'm all out!" Andrea leaned out of the window.
"Me too!" she yelled. "We gotta go back."
"There's too many, and they're going for the house! We need to get everyone and get the hell out of here while we still can!" Rosanna answered. Andrea nodded and pulled back into the truck as it swerved towards the house. Hershel stood in front of it, shooting the walkers with his shotgun, but he wasn't making hardly any leeway. They were still coming. Rosanna jumped off the back of the truck and drew her swords, killing the few walkers that had come close to the house.
Carol and Lori were arguing on the porch. "We have to leave!" Carol was saying.
"I can't leave without my boy!" Lori screamed.
"We can't stay here!" Carol said quietly. Lori pulled at her hair.
"Okay. Okay. Get the others." Carol ran into the house, coming out quickly with Beth and Patricia.
"Lori, Carol's right!" Rosanna said, touching Lori's arm. "Get in the truck, I'll take another sweep of the house and I'll check the closest outbuildings for Carl." Lori sobbed and took off. Rosanna ran for Hershel. "Hershel, we've got to go! Get in the cars with the others!" He ignored her. Rosanna gritted her teeth and ran as quickly as she could through the house, searching for Carl. The only thing she stopped for was her backpack, simply because it held more ammo. She ran back outside, flying at the walkers with her swords as she killed one, then another, and another, until she felt like a blur of motion. Walkers fell all around her as she searched the shed, the chicken coop, and any other place Carl could be. As she came back around the house, screams filled her ears.
Patricia was on the ground, surrounded by walkers ripping chunks out of her flesh. Rosanna ran toward her, glancing up as the blue truck sped out of the driveway. She saw Beth's tear filled eyes and Lori's horrified gaze staring at Patricia as T-Dog drove them away, spraying gravel everywhere. There was only one thing to be done and Rosanna did it. She quickly put a bullet in one of her revolvers and shot Patricia in the head. Andrea ran up beside her, shooting walkers as quickly as she could. "Lori said Carol was still here!" she yelled.
"I'll find her! You get the hell out of here!"
"I'm going to get Hershel first!" said Andrea as she took off. Rosanna ran in the direction Andrea had pointed and found Carol surrounded by walkers. Rosanna leaped into them, brandishing her swords in a macabre dance of death as she cut through the walkers heads. Carol stared at her with tears in her eyes.
"Go get in the Suburban, Andrea's going to get Hershel and we're going to get the hell out of here!" Rosanna said, grabbing Carol by the arm and practically dragging her there. Once Carol was inside the vehicle, Rosanna slammed the door and turned around. To her surprise and relief, Rick appeared pulling Hershel along, with Carl running right behind. "Where's Andrea? She was supposed to get Hershel. And where's Daryl and Maggie and Glenn?" Rosanna asked.
"I don't know. Where's Lori?" he asked hurriedly as he pushed Hershel into the Suburban.
"Gone. You guys get out of here, I'm going to look for Andrea!"
"Get in the fucking truck, Rosanna!" Rick yelled as Carl got in and was immediately hugged by Carol.
"Not without Andrea!" she said, running off. She heard the Suburban start up and head for the road. "Andrea! Andrea!" she cried, looking around as she killed the walkers that stood in her way. "Andrea!" She smelled the stench of rot behind her and flipped around, but to her utter shock, the walker passed by her without interest. She froze as other walkers surrounded her, but kept on going like she wasn't there. Suddenly remembering herself, she started to run, calling out for Andrea. But there was no answer. She's either dead or gone. And Daryl . . . God, where is he? Rosanna drew in a deep breath and decided to get the hell out of there herself. She headed for the driveway, swords drawn, killing each walker she came across.
"Rosanna!" came a male voice from the driveway. Rosanna looked up to see Daryl on his motorcycle, headed her way. She began to run, weaving around walkers, straight to Daryl as he pulled up in front of her. "Get on!" he yelled, and she leaped up behind him. She took one last glance at the farm as they sped down the driveway, away from the carnage.