Chapter twenty: Flight from the Farm.
"One run can change the course of your life."
It had been at least two hours since the four men had left us, it was pitch black outside and I was starting to worry, but at least I wasn't the only one who was; a gunshot ringing from the distance had us all on edge.
"I'm going after them." T-Dog decided and I shook my head.
"Don't, they could be anywhere and if Randall comes back, we're gonna need you here." I said firmly and after a breath he nodded, raising his gun along with Andrea as the dark swam and revealed two figures.
"Rick and Shane ain't back?" Daryl asked and we all relaxed a fraction.
"No, but we heard a shot. Maybe they found Randall." Andrea replied tensely, but Daryl shook his head.
"We found him." He began as Lori sighed and put her hand over her heart.
"Is he back in the shed?" She inquired and another head shake ensued.
"He's a walker." Glenn admitted and a new sense of panic enveloped the group.
"Did you find the walker that bit him?"
"No, the weird thing is he wasn't bit, his neck was broke."
"So he fought back." Maggie guessed and Glenn shrugged.
"The thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other and Shane ain't a tracker, so he didn't come up behind him. They were together." My theory seemed more and more likely when a second gunshot followed the first and Lori started to piece it together as well, building off what Dale had told her.
"Would you please get back out there, find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?" Lori requested and Daryl nodded.
"You got it."
"I'm comin' with you." He shook his head, retrieving his bike from camp before speeding away. I threw my hands up as Carol patted my shoulder comfortingly.
Moments later, Daryl returned, looking pale and uncertain as he hurried up the porch steps, the house lights illuminating the approaching herd.
"Patricia, kill the lights." Hershel whispered and the woman hurried to do it as Andrea followed.
"I'll get the guns." She explained, as Glenn licked his lips.
"Maybe they're just passing, like the herd on the highway. Should we just go inside?" He asked and Daryl shook his head, eyes fixed on the Walkers.
"Not unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about, a herd that size would rip the house down." He muttered, standing at my side as we stared.
"Carl's gone." Lori panted, Carol taking her by the elbow.
"What?" Daryl hissed but Lori shook her head, fear all over her face.
"He...he was upstairs and I can't find him anymore."
"Maybe he's hiding." Glenn suggested, worry colouring his voice.
"He's supposed to be upstairs. I'm not leaving without my boy." Lori swore and Carol nodded, taking Sophia with her as they went back inside.
"We're not, we're gonna look again. We're gonna find him." She promised and they disappeared.
"What do we do?" I breathed, looking up into Daryl's eyes, hands balling up in the arms of my hoodie. Daryl blinked and then looked back out over the impending herd. Maggie and Andrea returned with the bag of guns a few seconds later and began to hand them out; this time, I took one and familiarised myself with it.
"Maggie."
"You grow up country you pick up a thing or two." She replied gruffly, handing Glenn a shotgun and taking one for herself.
"I got the number...It's no use." Daryl argued, almost hopelessly at this point as Hershel shook his head.
"You can go if you want." He said calmly as he loaded rounds into his shotgun.
"You gonna take 'em all on?" I asked doubtfully and he nodded, looking around at us.
"We have guns and we have cars. Kill as many as we can and use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm." His plan was sound enough.
"Are you serious?" Glenn stammered and the old man nodded once.
"This is my farm. I'll die here."
"All right, it's as good a night as any." Daryl started towards his bike as I rubbed my face and sighed angrily.
I stayed with Hershel on the porch as Carol and Lori came back trailing Beth, Sophia and Patricia, we were stood for a few minutes, waiting for the dead to get closer before we could start to shoot; as we waited, I checked that my knife was still in reach and easy to retrieve, a great roar a flash of light briefly blinded us.
"The barn's on fire. They're headed for it. Maybe Rick set it to draw 'em in." Carol observed while Lori panicked again.
"I can't find him anywhere." She sobbed and with a deep breath I looked around.
"So maybe he snuck outside." Patricia said tersely, fidgeting nervously.
"What do I do?" Lori shouted with her hands fisted in her hair.
"He was here. He must've run off, maybe looking for Rick or went after Randall himself."
"Maybe he set the fire." I muttered, the cars returning with breathless passengers, Daryl stayed perched on his bike.
"They're all over the place. There's no corralling them. We're gonna run out of ammo before we even make a dent. We need a new game plan." Andrea panted, swallowing hard as she caught her breath.
"I checked the shed. I can't find him anywhere. Not in the cellar or the attic. Why can't he listen for once?" Lori took a deep breath and looked around before pointing to the East. "Ok okay, if he followed his daddy, he went that way." She made to leave before Carol grabbed her arm.
"No, you'll lead 'em right to him. We can't stay here!"
"That's my boy!"
"You're gonna have to trust. If we find him, he's gonna need his mother. We've gotta go." Carol argued and Lori finally caved, knowing that Carol knew what she was going through.
"Get the others." People started to rush around as she looked out over the field again. "Carl!" She screamed, attracting more of the dead.
"Beth, Patricia, come on. We've gotta go now. Lori." Carol grabbed Lori's arm and started to drag her away.
"Hershel, it's time to go! Come on! We gotta get out of here. We gotta go, come on, girls. Come on, stay behind me." Lori chanted and I stayed with Hershel on the porch as the others disappeared; he seemed well committed to dying on the farm as I made my way to him.
"Hershel man, Hershel, we gotta go," he ignored me, "what are your girls gonna do without you huh? How're they gonna feel knowin' their daddy died for nothin'?" He turned and shook his head as I sighed and pulled at my hair, Rick's hand slapping my back as he dragged Hershel away; running towards Hershel's car, I climbed into the back seat beside Hershel, who was staring out the back window sadly as the barn collapsed into the flames.
