We spent the next few weeks securing the barn as best we could. We siphoned the gas from other cars into the car and our new truck. It took all nine of us to lift Daryl's motorcycle into the back of the truck, but he agreed he wouldn't want to take it out unless we needed it.

The doors of the barn were barricaded at night, and we rarely went outside. There was a buddy system for going to the bathroom so that no one was taken by surprise if another herd were to pass through. If anyone saw a walker, they were to kill it quickly and quietly. In the event of more than twenty of them, everyone would go into the barn and be silent until they passed. We had had no problem fighting off the zombies that would pass through, since everyone in the group was able bodied.

Whenever other survivors passed and asked to come into the group, we would let them stay in a car for a few days until we decided if they were dangerous or not. By the end of the month (Sasha had been trying to keep a calendar of sorts), we had taken in T-Dog, Amy, and Shane, who seemed like good people. We had welcomed the weary looking Beth and Hershel back into the group, but never saw signs of Rick.

On the day that marked the third week since we had found the barn, Daryl wanted to talk to us. Tyreese, Sasha, Jimmy, Tyra, Beth, and I were invited, while the others stayed back. Shane was on watch, so we knew we were safe.

"I've been thinking of mentioning to the group that we should move on," Daryl suggested. "When we came here, we said it wouldn't be permanent, and now that we have fourteen of us, it'd be nice to have a few real houses. I just wanted to mention it before we secure the barn more, and then end up leaving it."

Everyone else seemed to agree, until Beth said, "But how will we find a place? With fourteen of us out on the road, it's dangerous."

"We could send a scouting group out to go find and clear out some homes before we move out people in," I mentioned.

"That sounds like a good idea," Tyra nodded.

We all went into the barn to let the group know. Shane was relieved of watch, and we closed and locked the doors.

With everyone listening, Tyreese announced, "We all know that the barn has gotten kind of cramped after taking in new people. Some of us have talked and we want to send a few people out to go look for houses. They would clear the places out and make sure they didn't have any entry points for walkers, like broken windows or doors that don't shut. Having a fenced in area would be nice, too."

"We want to know if you all agree with this idea," Jimmy added, "And if you do, we'll need to know who is willing to help with watch here and who will come with us. We don't need more than five people on the scouting trip."

"I like it," Amy piped.

"Me too," Hershel seconded.

"Does anyone disagree?" Beth asked.

Shane stood in the corner, shaking his head.

"Is there a problem, Shane?" Jimmy challenged.

"I just don't think it's a good idea to break up the group," Shane muttered.

"What else are we going to do? Sit in this barn forever?" I countered.

"This barn is safe, okay?"

"Not for long. Not when we take in more people."

"Look, Annie, it's obvious that there will be a new addition to the group eventually. We all know that you and Daryl sneak off together at night," Shane snapped.

"Shane, if you've got something to say to me, say it," I fired back. "Don't pussy out."

"I'm just saying that there are other things to do with your time than fuck your redneck monkey when the world is ending. Now I don't know about everyone else, but that fits my definition of a dirty whore."

Daryl lunged toward Shane, but Jimmy grabbed him and pulled him back. Tyreese helped Jimmy take Daryl outside.

I walked calmly up to Shane and tried to get my face close to his, but he was a good foot and couple inches taller than me. I settled for giving him a stone cold look and taking a deep breath.

"Listen, Shane, I don't know who you think you are, but if you couldn't tell, the people in this group appreciate the way we run things here. So if you have a problem with me, you can let Daryl fuck your face up or you can leave. I'll leave it up to you," I told him sweetly.

I started to walk away, but turned on my heel and marched back to Shane.

"And one more thing."

I brought my right arm back and my hand connected with his face with a loud slap.

"Now, do we have any volunteers for the group?" Sasha asked once I rejoined her and the others.

Daryl, Tyreese, and Jimmy came back into the barn just in time to hear Sasha's question.

"I'll go," Daryl volunteered, trying his best to not look at Shane.

"Anyone who wants to come, please raise your hand," Beth addressed everyone.

Daryl, Sasha, Jimmy, Tyra, and I all raised our hands.

"Tyreese and Beth? You guys aren't coming?" Sasha said, surprised.

"I'll stay here and help keep order," Beth told Sasha.

"And someone will need to keep an eye on Shane," Tyreese whispered. He raised his voice so everyone could hear and said, "Beth and I are staying here. Five of us will go out and everyone else will stay back."

"We still have enough daylight today if we leave now," Tyra observed.

"That'll be enough time to find a few places and clear them out," Jimmy agreed.

"Let's go," I said. "We'll take a car."

After leaving the barn, the five of us looked for a bigger car. We found a minivan, so Sasha drove with Jimmy next to her. Tyra and I sat in the two middle seats while Daryl took the seat way in the back. He was watching for walkers or people, who we had learned were the worst of the two evils.

"Sasha, look out!" Jimmy yelled suddenly.

All of us looked toward the road just in time to see a herd passing by. Sasha slammed on the brakes, but the car plunged straight into the middle of the herd. I looked over at Tyra a second before we crashed and saw her body lunge with the sudden stop of the car. Sasha tried to turn the car, but she had no success. I was getting some pretty bad whiplash, and just when I thought it was over, the van did a jolting 360. My head hit the window with a thump and everything went black.