May 23, 2011
~*~ Olivia ~*~
"Harlan? Are you okay?"
Olivia sets the box down on the worktable in the infirmary. She brought some supplies from today's supply run. Most of it was for building materials to take to Alexandria, but they cleared out a small chiropractic office in the out parcel strip center.
Her fellow council member is sitting at the desk that holds the infirmary radio, along with the computer added during the installation of a rudimentary network at Hilltop. He looks upset, running a hand through his blond hair.
"I received some unsettling news."
"From another community or here?" She feels a frisson of alarm at the words.
"Nothing that big. This is personal." He sighs and straightens the already tidy desk.
"At the risk of being nosy, is it something you need to discuss with someone?" His brother is still at Alexandria, and Harlan, while well-liked among their residents, doesn't seem to have close friends other than Emmett.
"You've spent time at Homestead. Do you think their medical is truly up to obstetrics?"
"I know they've delivered several healthy babies, including the premature one you consulted on."
"And how is she doing, based on your observation?"
"I'm not expert on infant development, but she seems to be thriving. They have more resources and more medical staff than we do."
She takes a seat in the chair across from the desk before she continues. "Are you considering going to Homestead?"
He shakes his head. "Not like that. Although I may need to plan for a visit in late October."
"To be honest, I think it would be a good idea for exchanges among our medical staff. Like the loaner doctors to Alexandria."
"A residency program of sorts." He's mulling it over, she can tell.
She nods. "Is there a high risk pregnancy at Homestead?"
"Not exactly." He moves out of the chair to go stare out the window. "Apparently, there's the possibility I might be a father."
Her mind races over the earlier visit. There's no way it's Honey, and the only other woman on that trip was Andrea.
"Only a possibility?"
"There's another potential father from the Kingdom."
"And which way are you hoping it goes?"
"I'm forty-two and never married. Honestly, I figured fatherhood wasn't likely, especially in this world."
"But?"
"But I am hoping it's true, despite the complexity I'll have to plan for. We don't exactly have a daycare system here, and formula will be an issue."
"The baby would come here?" She guesses without Andrea, if he's worried about formula.
'Andrea isn't interested in raising the baby, even as a co-parent."
"Thea's due in September, right?" It's the first, and currently only, pregnancy for Hilltop. The mother-to-be is one of Tammy's gardeners.
"She is, and hopefully she'll be willing and able to nurse another baby, but I don't want to count on it."
"We'll figure something out." She reviews her own daily schedule. "I could help out on child care. Put a few baby things in my office."
The grateful look she gets from Harlan makes her smile shyly. They'll figure it out.
~*~ SW ~*~
The first shot fired misses Shane by a bare enough margin that he isn't going to think about as he dodges behind an abandoned vehicle. His team took cover equally as fast.
With Rick and Danny, he knows that's by instinct. He's glad to see it's equally as honed with T-Dog. No matter how much they train, it's never a sure thing until it's live ammo coming at you.
He activates the radio. "Abraham? Amanda?" With Karen voluntarily stepping back from the search teams, she suggested Abraham from her team to take over.
Amanda radios in that all's well, followed by Abraham.
The big man continues. "Sasha can see the shooter. Slim build, probably female or young male. Up on the Dollar General roof."
He glances at Rick, crouches behind the truck with him. "Either a warning shot or low on ammo," he notes and his partner nods. There's been no more shots since they took cover.
He's hesitant to just order Sasha to shoot. With as many predators as they've encountered, this shooter could just be rightfully terrified of any large group.
"Sasha. Any movement out of the shooter?"
"Just waiting. Patient as hell."
"Can you maneuver behind the store?"
"Yeah. Licari and I have cover to get to the back without being seen."
"Be careful, but if you can get to the roof, do it."
He hates being where he can't see where he just sent two of his people. At least Sasha and Licari shouldn't have any issues even if it's a new partnership.
"Think we can get over behind that building," Rick mutters, eyeing the strip center with the restaurant in it.
He relays the addition to the plan over the throat radio and lets Rick take the first crabwalk into the shadow of the building. No gunshots sound out, even as he follows.
Rick checks that all's clear behind the strip center and as soon as he signals the all clear, Shane unstraps his grapple hook. Once it's set on the roof edge on the empty storefront next to the restaurant in the center unit, he hauls himself up.
At the roof edge, he peers carefully to see if he'll be raising up into the shooter's line of sight. There's an A/C unit that gives him cover, so he signals Rick and then rolls to the tar paper rooftop.
The belly crawl to cover makes the day's heat seem even worse. It's hot enough to smell the tar used to seal the roof where the ninety degree day has it heated up.
He does have the advantage here to see what Sasha indicated. The shooter is crouched, not lying prone, and slightly built. He gets binoculars on them as Sasha asks for a distraction to cover deploying her grapple hook.
Abraham provides it by banging against the vehicle he's behind.
The shooter flinches at the noise, but doesn't aim their rifle. Beyond them, on the far side of the roof, Shane sees the grapple hook wedge into place.
From there, it's just a matter of time until Sasha and Licari are on the roof. The former Atlanta cop clears his throat before booming out the order to drop the weapon.
The shooter carefully eases the rifle to the rooftop and raises their hands, turning slowly on Licari's orders.
Then across the radio, "Jesus Christ, how old are you, kid?"
Shane can't hear the reply, but Sasha's repetition of thirteen carries on the radio.
Sasha goes forward to pat down the youth. "Clear. Kid's just up here with a beat up backpack and the rifle."
"Got a name, kid?" Licari coaxes, his Glock holstered.
It gets a reply and the kid bunches their shoulders defensively.
"You alone, Jeff?"
The kid nods his head.
"Get him off that roof, you two," Shane orders.
They hustle the teenager to the ground, while Shane and Rick rejoin their teams.
The kid's silently weeping, but eyeing them stoically all the same. He's got to admire the backbone it takes to stand there.
He offers a hand to the kid. "Shane Walsh, former deputy from King County."
Jeff's wary, like anyone would be in this world, but Shane can see he hasn't lost the old world trust of law enforcement. "You aren't dressed like a cop."
"More military, or militia, these days than a cop. How long have you been on your own?"
"Coupla months. Was out fishing when someone took down our camp and killed everyone."
The kid's telling him just enough of the truth to hide most of his tells, but he's spent too much time with Carl. He could be an exception, but the teen's far too clean than a boy on his own would bother with.
"You get any look at the ones that did it?"
"Yeah. Heard the shots and when I got back, they were hauling our stuff off and laughing like it was the funniest thing in the world. Hid til they were gone, made sure no one rose, and left."
"Anything about them stand out?"
"Not really. Just normal looking guys. Leader was a big guy with dreads."
Could be their elusive town leader, but could also be a random group.
"Where was your camp?"
"Over near Columbus. Refugee camps fell, but some of us made it to an old school with a good fence."
He's nervous, trying very hard to not look toward the Dollar General store.
To test his theory, Shane jerks his chin toward the store. "Abraham, take your team and clear the store."
Jeff stiffens, although he tries valiantly to hide it.
"We aren't going to hurt whoever is hiding in the store, Jeff. I've got a nephew about your age at our safe haven. If you are trying to keep other kids safe, we can help."
Abraham's team is nearing the entrance. Jeff swallows hard. "You promise you won't hurt them? You gotta promise."
"I swear to you. We don't hurt kids."
"They will stay hidden if I don't call them."
"Go over to Abraham then."
To his credit, Jeff doesn't hesitate to approach the burly Army sergeant. He swings the door open. "I think it's safe," he calls out.
It takes five minutes for the skinny, wary group to emerge, and Shane pushes down on the rage and despair he feels. Seven children, only one looking older than Jeff, all looking both terrified and hopeful at the same time. The youngest is still small enough to be carried on the hip of a girl who looks maybe Anaya's age.
God, he hopes they find whoever left these children to face the world alone. Their deaths won't be quick if they do.
~*~ CP ~*~
Carol can't tear her eyes away from the children Shane brought back. They're too quiet, even the toddler, staring in wary wonder at the community center. Several women bustle about, fetching them food and drinks, even as the council gathers at the other end of the room. Denise sits with them, speaking quietly to explain Homestead.
Hershel beginning to speak draws her attention, despite being familiar with his report from working alongside the doctors. He looks and sounds his age for once.
"Ages sixteen, thirteen, twelve, ten, seven, six, and two. Two sets of siblings and the teens are cousins. The sixteen-year-old and the ten-year-old have clumsily treated and healed gunshot wounds."
Merle's shaking from the effort to keep his voice even. "Do they know where their camp was? Maybe we can find evidence of who did this."
"The oldest boy says their people killed two of their attackers, but by now, the bodies would be decayed." Shane looks as unsettled as Merle. "But yeah, the oldest girl remembers."
"She's their driver?" Merle asks.
"Yeah, although she's taught the next two oldest to drive. They didn't want to leave their minivan behind, so we brought it with us."
Considering the battered old vehicle was their home for the last few months, Carol can't blame them.
"I would recommend they be housed together, perhaps in one of the bunkhouses. Separating them isn't in their best interest while the older children learn to rely on adults again."
Merle nods at Hershel's words. "Treat it like we did the Terminus orphans. Let the kids take the lead."
"Maybe see if Denise is willing to stand in as sort of a dorm mother temporarily?" Tyreese suggests.
The psychiatrist seems to be building a rapport with the older kids. The oldest girl, Natalie, is almost animated as she responds to Denise's questions.
Everyone agrees on that option for now. Shane shifts in his seat. "We'll head back out in the morning to find their old camp."
"I want everyone to wear their body armor from now on. We've gotten a little lax." Scout's expression doesn't leave any room for objection, so Carol is glad that Shane easily agrees.
"I'm going to go let the kids know they're bunking in the building across from Denise's."
The other council members agree and they break up the impromptu meeting.
When she takes a seat at the table, she gets wary looks from all but the youngest. They already know who she is from their infirmary check-ups, so she just smiles reassuringly.
"Once everyone's eaten their fill, we will go to storage to find clothing and other necessities. You'll all be staying together in one of our bunkhouses for now."
"Even Riley?" That comes from Claudia, the twelve-year-old who seems to feel most responsible for the younger children. With one of them being her seven-year-old sister, Carol understands.
"Even Riley, as long as you all feel confident in taking care of her."
"But we'll be separated eventually." It's a question and not a statement from Natalie.
"The end goal is to place everyone with a family, but which family will be as much up to you as any adults here. Siblings will not be separated."
"Not fair to separate Claudia from Riley, either." Jeff's expression has the beginnings of defiance.
"Then we'll see who can take in four children instead of two." She'll do it herself if need be. They have an entire bedroom sitting open at the house, and Jazz is unlikely to ever move back into it.
"I'm too old to be adopted," Natalie says.
At sixteen, she's mostly right in their current world. They did similar with Troy from Grady. "Follow the community guidelines and get in training, and we'll consider treating you as an independent young adult."
She slides a trio of notebooks toward the oldest three. Based on their assessments, she and Hershel think these three need to be treated as the young leaders they are.
"These contain all the information about how we do things at Homestead. Rules, schedules, and so forth. If you have any questions, I'm happy to answer them, or Denise will."
The younger woman smiles readily. The kids know she's a psychiatrist, but don't seem wary of the fact that such a professional would be sent to them.
Natalie already has hers open. "Teenagers don't go to school?"
She explains the routine, and while she expected a little rebellion from Claudia, the girl only looks relieved. It occurs to her then that being kept back with the school children lets Claudia continue to keep an eye on her self-assigned charges.
"Who will watch Riley during school? She's too little for a classroom."
Thankful that Claudia acknowledged it first, Carol smiles. "We have an informal daycare system here. One of our ladies has a small baby, and she'll watch Riley along with another child during school hours."
Since Michonne's moved to working on the farm as her pregnancy advances, she's been taking Andre with her, to the boy's delight. That means Miranda Morales can handle an additional toddler right now. The interaction with Alicia, whose father works on the building crew, will be good for her.
"Riley would like seeing a baby," Claudia admits.
Carol glances around to where all the children are mostly finished eating. "Let's get you all settled. You can rest and check out your quarters until supper."
She spots Jazz bringing in produce for supper preparations and signals the teenager. "Go get enough to stock the mini-fridge in bunkhouse one, plus a supply of snacks."
He's been sent to food storage so often that he's got his own keys now. He looks over the group and nods, calling out for Carl to come help as he leaves. The younger boy had breakfast duty today, so she suspects he's hanging around his friends.
She's glad to see the kids are gathering their dishes, the older ones taking the younger ones'. Without being asked, they take the dishes to the big wash sink. Ron Anderson directs them to stack them on the sideboard, while he's running dishwater.
"Everyone's ready, so let's go shopping."
The smiles from the children give her hope that they'll recover in time.
~*~ DD ~*~
Daryl leans against the wall in the meeting room, a little too uneasy to sit. The team leaders that have been part of the search are debating that seeking out the destroyed camp merits all of them.
"You're all going about it wrong."
He's got everyone's attention now.
He clears his throat and straightens, moving away from the wall. "We are going about it all wrong."
"How so?" Scout's curious, her tenseness bleeding away with the confidence she usually has in him.
"I'm not disparaging the skills you all have, but none of you were trained for this kind of work. Tracking old clues, wooded areas, old trails."
He can see when it dawns on the others. In protecting the new fathers and Ryan as a single father, they've excluded the three men trained for rough country work.
Scout sighs. She doesn't really like the idea, he knows. "Y'all willing to rotate onto the teams?"
He exchanges a solemn look with Quinton and Ryan, and both men nod. "Maybe not take our whole team, just us. Let others get some practice leading a team."
Like Abraham, in today's meeting alongside Karen.
Shane and Scout exchange one of those looks that make the others joke they're becoming psychic.
"Sounds like a plan," Shane says. "I'm guessing you want to go tomorrow?"
Daryl nods. Lori's got enough help that he's not leaving her stranded. He's sure Scout will probably just shift residences until they're back.
"Alright. We'll give it a try and see what turns up."
"Don't take any chances. We still don't know how many men he can put in the field," Scout cautions. "But I'm going to guess it's far more than twelve."
"Can we ask how so many children escaped?" Karen asks.
"One was outside the camp. Two were wounded and played dead. The other four were hidden beneath one of the houses by an adult who didn't survive."
"Do they need anything?" Karen and Tyreese are both nodding at her words. After adopting two of the Terminus orphans, their concern makes sense.
"For now, Carol's got them in one of the bunkhouses and Denise agreed to act as dorm mother for a while. Check in to see where they might need help."
"Alright. Supper's probably starting," Shane says. "Daryl, who's leading your team this week?"
"Brady. Take Elaine in for the fourth." The firmer Guardsmen has some leadership experience from the Guard, so being bumped up unexpectedly shouldn't throw him off. And Elaine's been training hard to join a supply team since Shane brought her group in.
The other team leaders trail out, leaving Daryl alone with Scout and Shane.
"You gonna tell Lori or do I have to?" Scout asks. She's smiling, teasing him, so he returns the favor.
He smirks at her. "You are the boss here. May be best coming from you."
Having to duck the playful punch is entirely expected.
~*~ Ezekiel ~*~
"You've been disturbed since the private message from Homestead earlier, your majesty."
Ezekiel's sitting on the edge of the stage in the auditorium, Shiva beside him. She's as settled as the big cat ever gets, seeming to respond to his need for her company.
Jerry's standing in the aisle, a respectful distance like always with Shiva unleashed. The big man looks as concerned as he sounds.
He shouldn't be surprised that his steward and bodyguard is aware of the origin of the message even though he wasn't there when Ezekiel was summoned to the radio room.
"I received some unsettling news."
"Is everyone okay?"
He wonders which friendships Jerry struck up similar to his own with Carol and Merle.
"It seems that I was less than circumspect in a moment of temptation."
Jerry arches a brow, but ventures closer to take a seat beside Ezekiel on the stage. It's the closest to normal, friendly behavior that Jerry's allowed around the man he deems his king.
"Temptation of the womanly sort?"
Ezekiel sighs and nods. The news lays heavily on him due to the uncertainty involved.
"The Kingdom could use a queen," Jerry says when he doesn't speak.
"If only it were that simple, my friend. It would be such an elegant solution to my dilemma."
"What's the complication? She's not looking for anything serious even now?"
"That's the easier part of the issue. She's not interested in leaving her family behind in Georgia, and I would be a foolish man to wheedle her into a relationship based on our particular liaison."
"I don't think I could imagine being so far away from my child."
Ezekiel can't either. With his family gone and only Shiva left of his original life, there's nothing that would stop him from being a daily part of his child's life. He won't state it to Jerry, but before he learned of the true complication, abdicating leadership here was a strong possibility.
"If the child is my child, he or she will be coming to live here."
"If it's your child?" It's enough for Jerry to drop out of his own persona. "Damn. I'm sorry."
"Now you see the dilemma. If paternity were certain, we could prepare for a joyous new arrival. The baby will never lack for motherly care here."
"But you don't want to get people's hopes up."
They've both seen the reactions to Carol Dixon's pregnancy among the women here. It's a sense of the potential that life will go on.
"No, I do not."
"Maybe it's a dumb question, but how are they going to be able to know?"
"I honestly have no idea. For all the brilliant things we do have running, I doubt anyone's managed a DNA lab. Or has the knowledge to successfully use one."
"Would it matter? If you were not one hundred percent certain?"
Ezekiel's been thinking that over ever since he heard the news. He smiles at Jerry. "No, it wouldn't matter at all."
"How long do we have?"
We, not you. Carol's assessment of Jerry's familial attachment shines through in most of his statements now that Ezekiel's paying attention and not feeling uncomfortable with the charade in the back of his mind.
"Late October or early November."
Jerry hums softly before sliding off the edge of the stage so he can face Ezekiel. It's one of the few ways they're on eye level due to Jerry's height.
"I suppose we'll just need to make a diplomatic trip to Georgia then, won't we?"
Ezekiel can't help but respond to the mischief in his friend's expression with a smile. Jerry's uncomplicated the complex problem so easily.
It'll be alright in the end.
