A/N: Sorry for the extra long hiatus. Between my last update and now, I had to deal with graduation, getting addicted to Skyrim again, and the start of my new job. Btw, updating is going to be extra slow from now on.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead. All rights reserved to their respective owners.
Clementine's POV
Clementine huffed as she looked down to her arms. She was forced to remove the denim jacket and the sleeves of her dress were pulled up. She resisted the urge to cry as blood dripped down her arms. Carver had been cutting her with his knife. As he put it, 'pain is the best teacher'. He was using the pain to teach her to be more like him. Anytime she gave him an answer that he didn't like, he would cut her with the knife.
In front of her was someone that was her age. It was a boy who seemed terrified. Carver had already beaten him quite a bit.
Carver paced around in the office. He looked to Clementine with an angry look on his face. "Clementine, you're making this harder than it needs to be. We need information from this boy. Being nice isn't going to cut it. Use the tools that I've provided. This is your last chance."
Clementine huffed as she looked down to the weapons and tools in front of her. She didn't even know what half of them were meant for. However, that didn't matter. Carver had the intent that every tool and weapon in front of her were meant to torture the young boy. "Clementine… I don't want you to bleed out and die… but it's time that you gave me a return on my investment. I went through a lot to get you back. I'd hate for it to come to nothing.
"I'm not going to hurt someone." Clementine said as she fought through the tears.
Carver sighed before he proceeded to grab the knife from his desk. He was going to cut her again, and she knew it. She started to cry to herself.
"I don't know what you want me to tell you." The boy said. "I told you everything. I got separated from my mom and dad and that's when your people found me."
"Silence!" Carver said. He took the girl's arm and was about to slash a new wound until he heard a new voice.
"What the f*** are you doing?" The new voice exclaimed. Clementine recognized the voice despite the limited time interacting with him. It was Vince.
Carver released Clementine's arm. She was relieved that he didn't cut her, but her relief was masked by the pain of her previous cuts.
"I do believe that my door was closed." Carver said as he walked over to Vince. Clementine looked over and watched the two men. "I didn't want any interruptions."
"Bill… this is going too far. First, you killed that man out in the yard, and now, you're cutting up Clementine. What is this?" Vince said with a horrified look on his face.
"This is necessary. If this community is to continue, it'll need a strong leader." Carver said. "There can't be any room for weakness."
"Bill, please, Clementine doesn't want this. You're hurting her. For her sake, please, just stop." Vince said.
There was a minute of silence between the two men. Carver released a sigh before he said, "You know what, Vince? I think you're right. This does need to stop."
Vince breathed a sigh. "Good. I'm glad-" Vince said but he was cut off when Carver shoved the knife into Vince's throat.
The boy gasped while Clementine exclaimed, "No!"
Carver pulled out the blade and Vince fell onto the ground. He choked on his own blood momentarily before Carver knelt to the ground and proceeded to stab him in the neck. Clementine shuttered and looked away as the sound of skin and bone being ripped apart echoed within the room.
After a couple of minutes went by, she opened her eyes and immediately regretted in doing so. Carver had beheaded Vince. Carver huffed as he held Vince's head. He stood back up and looked to Clementine. "It is time to stop… I've been too nice. I let too many people question my authority when it should not have gone this far."
"W…Why…" Clementine said. She was more afraid of the man than she had ever been.
Carver looked over to the child and he said, "You see, Clementine, Vince has been an outspoken opponent to my methods for a long time. Instead of appreciating what I provided for him, he questioned and challenged me. That is the seed of treachery. It is time that we ushered in a new era here at Howe's." He went over to his desk and took out some bandages. He tossed them over to Clementine. The young girl proceeded to bandage her wounds while Carver announced into the PA system. "Attention all. Attendance is mandatory in the center within ten minutes. That is all." Carver said. The supposed center that Carver mentioned was the center of the hardware store, free of aisles and checkout lanes; it was a prime spot for meetings and announcements that were not meant for everyone in the hardware store. The surprising thing was that Carver wanted everyone to be there.
Clementine finished wrapping the bandages around her wounds and pulled her sleeves down. "Put this on." Carver said as he tossed the denim jacket to Clementine. Clementine did as she was told while cringing a bit from the pain. "Good… now, come on." She noticed that he was carrying a bag with the same hand that had clutched Vince's decapitated head. He dragged Clementine to her feet with his free hand and took her out of the office. While he dragged her outside, Clementine looked to Vince's body. She felt horrible for what happened to him. He always seemed like a really nice person. She was afraid that the same might also happen to her.
Zeke's POV
Zeke and Sarah walked over and joined the group of guards and fellow prisoners. He noticed Becca giving him a glare. He did his best to ignore her. From what he could tell, she seemed to be nothing more than a troubled teen. "Sarah." They heard Carlos said. Zeke and Sarah looked over to see her father approaching them. Zeke noticed a pair of glasses in his hand.
"Dad." Sarah said.
"Hey sweetie." Carlos said as he knelt down to his daughter's eye-level. "Shel told me what happened. Here you go. These were your mother's glasses. I held onto them to make sure I would never forget her." He placed the glasses on the girl. Her mother's glasses seemed rather eloquent compared to Sarah's old red-rimmed glasses.
She seemed more mature with them on. "I… Thank you, dad." Sarah said before she proceeded to hug the man.
Carlos returned the hug. The moment between them was very nice, but it didn't last long. Everyone became quiet as soon as Carver appeared with Clementine by his side. Something didn't look right. For one, Clementine looked horrified, and for another, carver was carrying a bag. In fact, having this meeting was already unsettling since Carver could have made announcements through the PA system. For Zeke, the bag indicated that Carver was going to show them something.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your cooperation. As a community, we have come far, but… there are a few here who have opposed us… who stand in the way of our long-term survival. Most of you know them as the people out in the yard who help us with the menial tasks, but there was one more amongst us." Carver proceeded to dump the bag's contents on the ground. It was the head of a man which had since reanimated. Zeke's eyes widened. It was Vince!
There were gasps around the room. "Vince!" A couple of men exclaimed.
"No!" Bonnie exclaimed.
Zeke also noticed some crying. He looked over to see Shel crying. Her hands were over her face while Becca looked horrified. She was left speechless.
"My gosh…" Carlos muttered.
There whispers and murmurs from everyone within the group until Carver cleared his voice. "Vince was a good man… but he posed a threat to this community. I hope you all will aspire to not follow his example." His eyes were locked on the two men that had yelled out his name earlier, Bonnie, Shel, and Becca.
Panic alarms were going off in Zeke's head. Something like this screamed for him to make a run for it. But he couldn't. If he tried to run off, Carver would have him killed. "Thank you for your time. Now, you may all go back to work." With that said, Carver left with Clementine.
Everyone else dispersed and went back to work. However, the two men, Bonnie, Shel, and Becca stayed and went to Vince's reanimated head.
"Coming here was a mistake…" One of the men said. He appeared to be in his late teens and possibly his early twenties.
"I… I can't believe…. Why…?" Shel muttered out. She sounded very upset.
"I…I'm sorry, Shel…" Becca said as she hugged her older sister in an attempt to comfort her. Zeke was surprised by the change in attitude. Seeing Vince's death must have traumatized her. He remembered how he almost acted the same way when Decker died. When his little brother died, he was filled with remorse. He took Decker for granted, or at least, it felt that way.
He started to walk away with Sarah who seemed very shaken up by the whole experience. "Are you alright?" Zeke asked. The girl didn't respond. She must have been scared out of her mind. The rest of the day was uneventful, but Zeke could tell that mostly everyone was on edge about Carver. Even some of his own people seemed nervous and were looking around occasionally.
Once their chores were done, Zeke and Sarah made their way out into the yard. However, along the way to the yard, they saw Bonnie walk up to them. "Hey… I'm sorry about everything. I truly thought that we were helping you all out…" Bonnie said. Zeke and Sarah stopped and looked to the woman. "I realize now that I was wrong… so wrong. I'm so sorry… and I want to make it up to you and your group."
"Okay… What do you have in mind?" Zeke whispered. The whole scenario with Vince would make him ally with almost anyone to get him and his group away from Carver.
"Nothing solid yet. Just be ready to act… tonight." Bonnie said. She turned and walked away.
Zeke sighed and he said, "Do you think we can trust her?"
Sarah nodded her head and she said, "Vince was the leader of her group. They showed up here at Howe's at the same time."
"Those two guys, Shel, Becca, and Bonnie… they were part of Vince's group?" Zeke said.
"They were his group." Sarah said. "We should get back to the yard."
Zeke nodded, and the two teenagers made their way to the yard.
Once out in the yard, Zeke and Sarah went over to a lawn chair. Zeke sat down and allowed his girlfriend to sit on his lap. "Because we all know what happened today. I don't know what that sonuvabitch has in store for us tomorrow." Kenny said. It seems the group was in a heated debate on what they should do next.
"So you want to bring in a bunch of walkers? That is not smart… That's suicide." Reggie said.
"I really hate to say it, but I think I'd rather take my chances with the walkers than to stay here one more day. Carver is completely off his rocker." Mike said.
Reggie didn't have a response to this. He looked as if he was ready to argue, but nothing ever came out.
"I have to get Clementine away from him. Who knows what he's doing to her." Rebecca said.
"But it's risky to go out there. There's no guarantees… especially for me…" Reggie said.
"This whole damn thing is risky." Kenny said.
"Look, we do need a plan." Luke said. "We can't just get a bunch of walkers come this way and attack this place without a plan especially when Clem is in there."
"We figure it out when the time comes. We improvise." Kenny said.
"That's not a plan. You don't plan to improvise." Mike said.
"Bonnie and her group might be able to help us." Sarah said.
"What? That bitch who put us in this mess?" Kenny said. "I ain't trustin her."
"We might not have a choice." Alvin said. "Think about it. They're inside, they have access to everything in Howe's, and they can ensure that Clementine will stay safe."
"Vince was the leader of their group before they came to Howe's." Luke said. "They all still looked up to him. I'm sure they aren't happy about his death."
Kenny grumbled to himself before he finally muttered, "Fine… but they do one thing I don't like, and they're dead."
"Fine… whatever." Mike muttered as he rolled his eyes. He must be getting used to the fact that Kenny was, for the most part, all talk.
"Well… what did Bonnie say?" Luke asked Zeke and Sarah.
"Just be ready to act. They're still figuring out the entire plan." Zeke said.
"Great…" Kenny muttered. "They don't even know what they're doing."
"They're just making sure that everything will work out for the best." Sarita said as she placed a hand on Kenny's shoulder. "Don't worry."
Kenny shook his head in response. Zeke looked over to see Jane approaching the group. It seemed that she was ready to move on as well. "Nice glasses." Jane said as she walked past Zeke and Sarah.
"Thanks." Sarah said with a smile.
"You're able to see alright?" Zeke asked.
"Yeah. I guess I got lucky. My mom must have had the same prescription as me." Sarah said.
"Well… they look really nice on you." Zeke said.
Sarah blushed and she said, "Thanks."
All the group could do was engage in small talk. They had to wait for Bonnie and her group to do something.
Soon enough, there was a commotion where the garage door was. Everyone stood up and watched the garage door. They hoped it was Bonnie and her group. After a few seconds, the garage door opened. The two men from earlier stood there with a duffel bag.
"Come on… We got to get out of here." The stocky man said. Most of the group ran over to the two men. The stocky man handed out the few firearms that they had in the duffel bag while the younger man kept a look-out.
Zeke was hesitant to take a gun. He still preferred his bow and arrow, but beggars couldn't be choosers. "We still need to get Clem." Alvin said.
"We need to regroup with Bonnie, Becca, and Shel, first." The stocky man said. He and the younger man led the way inside. The rest of the group followed behind them.
Sarah stopped and looked over to Jane when she noticed that the woman was going in a different direction. "Where are you going?" Sarah asked.
Jane stopped and looked to the girl. "Sorry kid… I don't travel with people." Before Sarah could say another word, Jane walked away.
"Come on. We can't worry about her now. She'll find her own way out." Zeke said. Sarah appeared to be reluctant, but she did follow her boyfriend and the group.
…To be continued.