Chapter 38
Eve pulled back the string on her new bow, her fingers biting into the course wire, her hand gripping the handle. She let out a breath and watched the arrow fly, hitting it's mark squarely. It had taken her a few tries, but she was finally getting used to the new archery bow. Having left her own hunting bow stashed under her bed at the sanctuary, it was likely she'd never see it again.
"There you go," Diane said from Eve's left. "I think you're getting the hang of it."
Eve nodded and turned to face the woman. She was much taller than Eve. Strong and muscled, wearing the peculiar armor the knights of the Kingdom all wore.
When Jesus had brought them all to the Kingdom, Eve had been nervous at first. It was always a thrill to find other survivors, but obviously a risk. To find survivors that didn't want to kill them or torture them was like winning the lottery. Almost too good to be true. But King Ezekiel seemed okay. Morgan seemed to think so anyway and Eve trusted Morgan. Then there was the fact that Ezekiel had offered her and Daryl sanctuary from the saviors.
"The saviors do not enter the kingdom," King Ezekiel had said. "Eve and Daryl may remain here without fear of being discovered."
Eve had been grateful. She'd been wondering what she and Daryl were going to do. Negan wasn't the kind of guy to just let them go. He'd hunt them and the first place he'd check would be Alexandria. For a while she thought she and Daryl would have to go live in the woods, possibly even take a car drive as far away as they could go. But King Ezekiel's offer was generous. Eve was happy to stay there, to do as Rick said and try and convince the king to fight. But Daryl...not so much.
"I ain't staying here," he'd stormed last night. He was pacing around the tiny room they were now sharing. The energy coming off him was toxic. He was radiating rage and the inactivity of just hiding was making him crazy. Whatever had happened to him in the sanctuary had given him a murderous purpose. Or maybe it was whatever had happened to her... Whatever the reason, Eve couldn't talk him down.
"Rick told us to stay," she'd reasoned. "To try and talk Ezekiel into fighting. Have you seen their fighters? They're strong, and they have weapons. They know what they're doing. We need them."
But Daryl wouldn't listen. "We don't need them," he growled. "These cowards? They're happy to just keep living with their heads in the sand. The only way they'll fight is if they have to. We don't need them. We got us. And we got the Hilltop. They at least want to fight."
But did they have the Hilltop? The meeting with Gregory didn't exactly go well. Eve had stood quietly in the corner watching as Rick and Maggie tried to convince the man to fight the Saviors. It was obvious he was afraid and Eve couldn't really blame him. "We're all afraid," Eve had spoken up during the meeting. "But we don't have a choice anymore."
Gregory had dismissed her with a wave of his hand. "I don't need the opinion of one of Negan's… well I won't say whores, but there it is."
Eve had had to grab Daryl to keep him from killing the bastard.
But it became quite obvious that Gregory's rule wasn't exactly stable. They were met outside by a large group of people wanting and willing to fight the saviors. Eve saw it in their eyes. They were done being terrorized by the saviors… and by the way they looked at Maggie, they were done with Gregory.
But it wasn't enough. Even with the Hilltop on board...there just weren't enough of them. That's when Jesus told them about the Kingdom.
And now here they were.
The Kingdom was really just the campus of a small liberal arts college that had been fortified against the dead and turned into a large community. It was filled with people ranging from elderly to school aged kids and a couple of babies and toddlers. It was thriving, with crops and livestock, a black smith, an arsenal of not just guns, but other weapons. Axes, swords, knives, and best of all, bows. There was a huge selection of bows. Diane had told Eve that the college was big into archery and all the equipment was just waiting for them.
The first night Ezekiel insisted they all stay the night. He said he'd give his 'decree' in the morning. They'd been shown to several vacant rooms in what appeared to be old dorms. Each room had a set of twin beds either bunked or on either side of the room. Down the hall was a bathroom with working utilities. Eve and Daryl had slept together on the bottom bunk while Jesus slept above them. Without much privacy, they'd simply held each other quietly while they slept. But Eve could feel Daryl's desperation in the way he kept a hand pressed against her at all times. Not that it was hard in such a small bed.
The next morning Eve and the rest had walked around the community. People had risen with the sun and everyone was hard at work. There were men and women picking vegetables, watering crops, digging trenches. Knights were out on a morning jog, their strange armor sticking to their sweat soaked t-shirts. They found Ezekiel with a group of school aged children practicing with bows. It was there that he'd told them his decision. He wouldn't fight. He wanted to keep the peace with the saviors. He gestured at the people practicing behind him. Eve had to look twice, but several of them were missing limbs. Ezekiel didn't want to put his people at risk again. As Rick tried again to convince the man, Eve was eying the bows with interest… and with more than a little envy. She felt naked unarmed without her bow. She'd had it since the beginning. She didn't know what to do without it.
Later, after the others had left for Alexandria and Daryl had stormed away, angry that he and Eve had been left behind, Eve had gone back to the archery field. The kids and their instructors had gone but the bows and arrows were there for the taking. Eve glanced around. She wasn't exactly alone, but no one was watching her. The people of the Kingdom were focused on their own tasks. No one gave her any mind.
The archery bow was a lot different than her hunting bow. Less advanced, harder to pull. She strung it and took a few shots that barely hit the target.
"You a bowman?"
The voice had startled Eve, but she wasn't completely surprised to find that she was being watched by the tall woman. Diane offered to spend the afternoon teaching Eve how to properly use the bow. Eve was a quick learner and Diane was a good teacher. The women took to each other right away, and they had made plans to meet again the following day to continue practicing.
Now Eve stood in front of the target, her arrow sticking out of the center and Diane was nodding in approval.
"You're pretty good," said a new voice. Eve looked around and saw Richard. He was the first knight they met out on the road. He was a gruff man, serious.
The early morning sun was peaking over the campus and Eve saw that Richard was carrying a bow of his own. "We could use a few good shots around here. I have to admit, I'm not the best with a bow, more of a gun guy. But it won't be long and we'll all be out of ammo. Using a bow is a good skill to have. Are you both bowman?" he asked her.
"You mean me and Daryl?" Eve asked. Richard nodded. Eve studied the man. She could tell he was trying to keep the conversation nonchalant, but Eve could see the interest in Daryl burning behind his calm face. He seemed as eager to fight the saviors as Rick was.
Eve finally nodded. "He's good with a crossbow," she said. "But it was taken by the saviors a while ago."
Richard's eyes lit up, but he didn't say anything more. He picked up a bow and settled at the next target. Eve looked at Diane curiously, but the woman just shook her head as if to say, don't ask.
After lunch Eve went to look for Daryl. He'd disappeared from their room before she woke up but Eve wasn't worried. She'd caught a glimpse of him prowling the upper balconies, scoping out the place. Her search came up empty, but then, he could be any number of places Eve had yet to explore.
She found Diane suiting up near the front gates. "I'm going on a quest with Ezekiel," she explained. "I'd invite you to come but… seeing as your being actively hunted by the saviors...it might not be the best idea."
Eve agreed grumpily. "Diane," Eve started. "How do you feel about taking on the saviors?"
Diane shrugged. "It doesn't really matter what I think. It's what Ezekiel thinks."
"It does matter," Eve insisted.
"Look," Diane said. "I know he kept you as some kind of sex slave and that has to be terrible. I can't imagine what you-" She shook her head. "I know you want revenge for that. Hell, who wouldn't? And I want to help. I do. A sick prick like that? I'd like to cut his dick off and make him eat it, alright? But, I gotta do what I'm told. That's how this place works. And I trust Ezekiel. He's not wrong. The peace with the saviors isn't much, but it's something. We have to try to keep that."
Eve wanted to protest, but the remaining knights were gathering to head out. Ezekiel nodded at Eve as he passed, his face gentle and kind. It wasn't hard to see how these people saw him as a king.
Eve watched them go, a lump in her throat. She was already feeling like she'd failed Rick and the rest of the group. Maybe Daryl was right. The only way to these people would fight is if they had to. There was nothing she could say that would change that.
Eve spent the rest of the day wondering the campus. She talked to a few people, chatted about the weather, introduced herself, but she didn't dare mention the saviors and she didn't go to far into detail about where she was from or who she was. Ezekiel made it clear to her and Daryl that only a select few were aware of the savior's presence. Still, Eve was impressed with what she saw. The people were strong and capable, and smart. There were doctors here, and farmers, and craftsman.
Eve found herself in a large library where she was scouring the shelves for anything on child birth. She hadn't forgotten about the mothers. Rick had assured her that they were all fine but no births had occurred since she'd been gone. Eve took the time to visit Harlan during their short visit to the Hilltop but he'd reluctantly told her that he hadn't gotten the chance to go to Alexandria. He'd been too busy caring for Maggie, so Eve couldn't really blame him. Plus there was the saviors to worry about. Still, Eve was desperate for news on the mothers and the babies. She could only hope that Manuella would be taking care of them.
Eve didn't see Daryl until well after nightfall. He'd come back to their room where Eve was laying on the bottom bunk reading a medical volume. She looked up when he came in. His hair was windswept and he was dirty...he'd obviously been outside the Kingdom and judging by his worried expression, something was wrong.
"I found Carol," he said by explanation.
"Is she okay?" Eve asked putting down her book. Morgan had told them that Carol had taken off on her own.
"Yeah, she's alright." He explained how he'd gone out with Richard, how Richard had wanted to blow up a couple of savior trucks and blame it on Carol to try and scare Ezekiel into action. "Once I found out it was Carol, I lost it. I'll kill that guy if anything happens to her."
"But you found her?"
"Yeah, I followed Ezekiel and some of his knights. They been bringing her food and stuff. Keeping an eye on her."
"Why..." Eve paused. "Why did she leave?"
Daryl looked away but Eve caught the hurt look in his eyes. "She doesn't want to do this anymore. All this killing. She said she just can't."
"But surely after you told her about Glenn, about Abraham… She's got to come back and help us.'
"I didn't tell her."
Eve stared.
"I couldn't," Daryl said looking at the wall. "She just wants to be left alone. She doesn't want to care about us anymore, even though she does. I did her a favor."
"Daryl," Eve said. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn't keep the accusation out of her voice. "We need her. We need all the help we can get. You have to tell her."
Daryl shook his head. "You weren't there. You didn't see her. She's done. She has to be. I want to kill all those pricks. For what they did...to Abraham, to Glenn...to you." He paused and took a steadying breath. "But we'll do it without her."
Eve still wasn't convinced but didn't press. After a few strained moments Daryl stood up. "I'm gonna get some air," he said, and left.
He came back later, after Eve had fallen asleep but she woke to feel him settling next to her. He smelled oddly of a wet animal, and Eve was soon dreaming of Daryl stroking the wild tiger while Negan laughed from a golden throne.
In the morning she woke to him packing a bag. "We should go," Daryl said. "We ain't no use here. Better off at the Hilltop making plans."
Eve yawned and stretched. The sun was barely up but she could hear voices of people rising and getting to work. She looked at Daryl. She wasn't surprised he wanted to leave. She thought back to her conversation with Diane yesterday… There would be no convincing the knights without Ezekiel's approval...and Ezekiel wouldn't budge until he had to. She nodded. "I've sort of been thinking the same thing."
So an hour later she and Daryl met at the gates. Daryl carried a crossbow. Eve wasn't sure where he got it.
Diane was there waiting for them. She handed Eve a bow. "Take it," she'd said. "And remember to follow through." She mimed releasing an arrow. "And here, take this." She handed Eve a large crudely made knife. It was about a foot long and a bit crooked...but wickedly sharp. "I made it myself," Diane explained. "It's not the best, but it's sharp. Maybe you'll get your revenge on that sick bastard afterall. Good luck."
Eve was touched by this, and more than a little sad to leave. She hoped they'd see each other again soon. She owed the woman a lot.
As Eve and Daryl set out, Eve took one last look at the community. From a lofted balcony Eve spotted Ezekiel watching them go. He waved his hand in farewell and as they walked away Eve felt his clever eyes on her back the whole way.