"Ow!"
Clementine shook her hand from the shock; she got up and muttered how it hurt under her breath.
"Are you alright?" Carl asked.
"Yeah I'm fine."
"I told you, you're going to fuck up." Daryl chuckled under his breath as he scratched his chin when Clementine came out of the car.
"It still hurts." Clementine sucked on her burnt finger and shook it again, there was no damage but it still hurt like hell. "Can you show me again?"
"Ok one more time. Carl you pay attention too." The children agreed and hovered over Daryl as he got into the car again, to lay underneath the steering wheel. Incase anything would happen, the children asked him if Daryl could teach them to hotwire a car like he did a few weeks ago. "When you open this part here, you're going to find a few wires. Always grab the white one and the red one, grab any other wire you're going to end up like what you just did Clem."
He grabbed the two proper wires to show them, he started to gently touch them together to make the engine sputter every few seconds. "You're going to be doing this every so often, if you hear the engine sputtering you have some luck since there's still some juice. If it doesn't turn on in…I say between 5 to 10 minutes. Move on, less chances you'll be eaten by a walker."
Red with white, red with white, red with white; Clementine repeated in her head to remember in the future. "Ok I wanna try next."
Daryl came out of the car and allowed Carl to have a turn at it. Just down the road a few yards away, the group was looking on a map in the surrounding area. There were many red X's in certain areas, many were up north and many were south. They felt trapped.
"We can try a head up route 88, make it out of the Atlanta region."
"We can't." T-Dog added. "That herd of walkers we saw last month invaded the high way, we barely have any ammo as it is."
"We'll never make it." Said Maggie. "What about up this trail?" She pointed at an empty part of the map. "We haven't checked this part yet."
"If we have the gas." Rick corrected. "It's too far."
"And Lori is due any day, we can't keep moving like this. We need shelter." Hershel looked at Lori who was napping in the car with her hand on her belly. Rick sighed at the topic; sometimes he forgot Lori was pregnant. But Hershel was right, everyone was especially tired. Barely any food and water, he wouldn't be surprised if Lori lost the baby due to starvation and she didn't know it yet.
He ran a head through his sweaty head and tried to think of a plan, it was so frustrating of everyone counting on him all the time. Robin and Andrea came out of the woods, bow, arrows and gun in hand, their faces red from running in the woods to catch up with the group. They seemed to be excited as if they had good news.
"Rick!" Robin rushed ahead of Andrea to catch up with the group. "We-we found-we found a place!"
Everyone turned their heads towards them, even Daryl, Clementine and Carl heard them and rushed over.
"A place?" Rick was the first one on alert. "Is it secure? How far is it?"
"If we cut through the forest, you'll be able to see it. It might be just a few more miles up the road." Andrea guessed.
"Clem!" Robin called for her, gesturing her to come over and she ran. "Clem, grab your binoculars we're going to need them." Clementine rushed to the car with her bag to take out her binoculars she forgot to return to Glenn.
"Everyone stay here." Rick commanded. "Daryl, you're in charge! We'll be right back." Rick and Clementine followed Andrea and Robin back into the forest. They ran down the path the two women found until they found some train tracks that led them to a clear opening.
They saw a prison.
A clean prison.
A fence surrounded the area, the walkers were leaning on the metal wire, failing to bring it down. In the middle there was a clear green field with a dirt path leading up to the abandoned building with no sight of life or of the dead.
"Holy shit." Rick couldn't believe it, but at the same time, it looked too clear. The field was clear of walkers, they were all kept on the outside. Someone was running the place, someone had to be. Robin helped Clementine reached the high branch and hoisted herself up. She then peered through the binoculars to get a closer look of the prison.
"This is too good to be true." Rick said.
"I say let's go for it." Andrea panted, being tired of running.
"I second that motion." Robin added. "But it does seem a little bit too clean for something that's abandoned."
"Maybe they had to leave? Found a better place?" Andrea questioned, Rick wiped his mouth from the sweat. He looked up to see Clementine still looking at the prison.
"Clem, what do you see?"
"It's…looks clear. I can't see in the prison but in those tall buildings, I don't see anybody." Clementine waited for any kind of movement, but no one came out…or limping about. "I think it's clear. There's a gate over there, I don't think it's locked."
"Ok we'll send a group out first." Rick started his plan. "Make sure it's safe. Make sure there's no walkers or any surprises. It should be a little more up the road, not that far. If we can make sure of that, we can make a little camp in the field before heading up to the prison."
Robin giggled with excitement, they may have finally found a safe haven to call a home since the farm. Clementine climbed down and jumped in Robin's arms as they head back to the group. But their hearts stopped when they heard a scream of pain nearby.
It was Lori.
They rushed back to the ground and saw them crowding the van, they could hear groaning and crying form Lori. Hershel was by her side, trying to keep her calm and telling her to breathe. Glenn was holding Carl back, who was worried for his mother who was in pain.
"What happened!?" Rick demanded to know as he rushed to them with his adrenaline rush.
"Lori went into labor." T-Dog announced. "The baby is not supposed to be due for another month, man."
"Damn it." Rick cursed under his breath, he hated it every time the plan changes in a heartbeat. "We have to go to the prison now, it's our only shot. Lori can't give birth here."
"But you said it yourself, you don't know what's in there."
"We have no choice! Move out! Now! Daryl, you go ahead, Robin tell him where to go. Andrea, you're with me!" Rick yelled out his orders, jumping into the car and starting it up. Glenn took Carl into the car, explaining him that his mother was going to be ok. Robin swung her bow on her shoulder and jumped behind Daryl on his motorcycle, taking off ahead of the group. Robin pointed out the way, saying that the prison isn't far. Daryl sped up, the motorcycle engine ringing throughout the trees until the fence was in view. He slowed down enough for Robin to jump off and rushed to the gate only to find it locked with a chains and a padlock.
"It's locked."
"Open the damn gate!" Daryl turned off the bike and grabbed his crossbow to shoot at a nearby walker.
"It's fucking lock"-A gun shot was shot at her feet, making her shriek and fall to the ground, dropping her bow.
"Robin!" Daryl came by her side to grab her arm, bring her up to her feet when another gunshot was followed.
"Stay right where you are!" A woman shouted. They looked up to see a woman on top of the guard tower, pointing a sniper rifle at them. They raised their arms to show they were friendly and meant to harm.
"Please! We need help!" Robin pleaded. "We have a group, they're coming this way. We have a pregnant woman! She's in labor!"
"How many are in your group?!"
"11!" Daryl shouted; he pulled down his crossbow again to shoot other walkers coming towards them.
Robin turned around to see their group headed their way, she rushed quickly to stop them and Rick stomped on the brakes to stop in time. "Go back! Be careful!"
"Robin!" He jumped out of the car and went towards her. "What's going on? Why are those gates"-Another bullet came flying towards them, almost hitting Rick as it ricochet off the car door. They both ducked in order to avoid being shot but Rick came back up and pulled out his revolver to shoot at the stranger. Andrea and T-Dog jumped out with their guns and followed Rick's example.
"Stop! Don't shoot!" Robin tried to stop them before it ended in a massacre.
"Turn back!" The stranger shouted. "There's no room here! Go somewhere else!"
Rick put away his revolver and lifted up his hands. "We mean no harm! We need help!"
"There's no room for all of you!"
"Walkers!" Robin shouted as she pulled an arrow out of her quiver and pulled it back on her string to shoot a walker. The dead were coming from all around them, all the noise they were attracting them. It was like ringing the dinner bell.
"Rick we have to go!" T-Dog pulled out his knife to kill a walker that was coming out of the forest.
"My wife is in labor, we can't stay out here! Please! We're not going to hurt anyone!" Rick implored the stranger.
The stranger woman peered through the rifle scope, thoughts rushing through her head to make a choice. With her finger on the trigger and her scope on Rick, she muttered under her breath; "Shit."
TO BE CONTINUED...
DUHN DUHN...DUHN!
