Midnightrebellion86- The Governor got exactly what was coming to him.
Blaszczu2500- Michonne was always a complicated character, regardless of what The Governor did to her, she was horrified in her actions. Sadly, actions always have consequences.
Darkfire1220- So I have big plans for Lilly coming up but it'll take a little time to get to her now that the others have escaped Woodbury. As for Oberson, I have his entire arc planned out and I'm hoping that everyone will like where it goes. With Lee, he is slowly starting to adjust to the darker world, but at the moment he still wants to try and be the good guy, especially to honor Glenn's memory. However, with Oberson, Lee would kill him first chance he'd get.
Jestalnaker94000- I have some ideas for Carver, and it'll take some time for him to show up, but yes he will eventually show up in the story with his group.
TWD Jacob 11- I'm excited to have a vote for everyone too, it should be attached to the end of the next chapter.
Gooffy- Yes, in upcoming chapters Maggie will of course be told about Glenn and we'll see how she deals with his death at this early point.
Rodan1920- Sadly Glenn is indeed dead, and while I agree the most iconic scene in the canon story is Negan beating Glenn to death. However, with an inflated cast of characters on both Rick's and The Governor's side I wanted to look at the situation realistically. No one is protected, everyone can die and Glenn was unfortunately used as a pawn by Oberson. Not only that, now this leaves the question open, who will Negan kill?
SuperSonicHeroes- The upcoming vote is for two things, one it'll show me which characters my fans are becoming a bit more attached to, but more importantly I want to gauge how many people will actively vote and want to get involved so I can plan out how my future votes will change.
Enjoy
Chapter 27: Homecoming
"Michonne, wait," Rick called out causing the woman to stop and glance back, "You left us at the fence to go and confront The Governor, the man who tortured you, took Kenny's eye and my hand."
"And?" Michonne sharply asked back,
"And is he fucking dead?!" Kenny exclaimed with a toss of his hands, "For fucksake, what is your issue?"
"Kenny, take it easy," Lee said in an easing tone while putting a hand on the fisherman's shoulder,
"I...I don't know. He might be," Michonne hardly answered while turning forward and walking away once more, "I'm just not sure. Now, c'mon, I don't want to spend another night out in the open. We need to get moving,"
"I'm with her, we should get to this prison," Jeff shrugged while grabbing his rifle, resting it on his shoulder while he began to follow the woman,
"I hope we can keep up, she's been walking all night and she's still going. She must be a machine," Alice noted almost with admiration in her voice,
"Yeah, no kidding," Martinez agreed, "Doc, think you'll be able to keep up?"
"Absolutely, the sooner we're somewhere safe, the better," Stevens replied as he quickly adjusted his satchel bag over his neck.
"Let's get going then," Kenny gruffly replied while leading the trio up the trail as well,
"Lee," Rick softly said while grabbing the man's right shoulder and holding him back for a moment. Leaning in closer to his ear the sheriff whispered, "Something is not right here, keep an eye on her,"
"I see it too. Will do," Lee instantly replied with a nod. The duo then headed off, leaving the husk of the helicopter in the dry riverbed.
A few hours passed by as the group of eight walked through the woods, Michonne led the team a few feet ahead consistently. As they kept up a steady pace Martinez lightly shook his head causing Alice to look over at him, "You alright?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Martinez instantly replied, keeping his eyes off the woman,
"Caesar, if something is wrong, it's best you tell one of us sooner rather than later," Stevens added on with a firm glare,
"I'm just feeling a little dizzy from Larry, he got a few good hits in me," Martinez said with a sigh, "The old man was a prick, but he thought he was doing the right thing to protect his daughter, now he's dead,"
"Had to be done," Kenny interjected, his tone hard and cold, "He was gonna break Lee's fucking neck,"
"I know, I know, you made the right call," Martinez assured the redneck, "It's tough though, I lived in that town with those two for months, Lilly is gonna be crushed by this,"
"I understand Caesar," Stevens agreed in a calm tone, "I was close to Lilly as well, and hopefully one day we might be able to see her again, but for now, we are on our own path and we need to not focus on the ones we left behind,"
"Yeah," Martinez nodded, letting out a sharp exhale through his nose, returning his attention back to what was ahead of him,
Silence returned, lingering between the group but only for a few minutes. Lee looked over to the biker marching next to him, "So Jeff, we're you...in a gang or something?" He asked causing the man to look over and let out a short laugh,
"Not exactly, I was in an M.C. sure, but it wasn't like I was pulling drive-bys. I'll admit it, we weren't completely clean either, I sold dope but at the end of the day, we weren't trying to hurt anyone," Jeff explained causing a few raised brows, "Guess it's poetic I'm going to prison, eh?" The man finished with a smile,
"What about you Martinez? National Guard? Army?" Kenny then asked looking at the man with a bit of interest,
"I was a gym teacher," Martinez replied, his words coming off hollow,
"Bullshit," Kenny said with a chuckle, "We got a gym teacher and a fucking biker with us. What a fucking world," The fisherman finished with a short shake of disbelief.
Martinez glanced over to Jeff, "You remember back when this all started, I know you do. It feels like fucking decades, but it's only been like what, seven months? I haven't been keeping track anymore,"
"Yeah, I do," Jeff solemnly agreed, "I tried to meet up with my boys early on, thought we could just bring our old ladies and hold up in our club, toss back a few drinks until all this shit got sorted out." Jeff's jaw tightened and he angrily shook his head, "Half of 'em were dead by the time I got to the club, the place was burning to the ground. A few of them we're out front, turned...it took a lot to break that pact and shoot my brothers down, but after that, I felt like there was no going back. I took off after that, I don't know where I was going, I just needed to be far away from where I was. The first person I ran into that wasn't one of these flesh eaters was Crawford. Seemed like he had his head on straight, and Woodbury felt like something I could fight for, you know?"
"Yeah, I do," Martinez nodded back, "Remember early on all the televisions and all the radios were talking about the "Safe Havens"? Churches, Hospitals, Schools...they told everyone to go there, said it was the easiest way to protect everyone. This was before they abandoned that idea and told us to go to the major cities instead. They had police officers, firefighters, some soldiers, all protecting these places from the biters. Even if you weren't at one, you guys had to know about these places, and just how unsafe these safe havens really were," Martinez explained while looking around at the others,
"Yeah, my college dorm was turned into one, I barely got out alive," Alice nodded back,
"So you know it all went to shit, really fast," Martinez sighed while dropping his head, "People came from all over to our school, all my students came with their parents. The place was packed. I tried to calm my boys by telling them stories and played games of basketball, kept our minds off of what was going on. Then the biters overtook the cops, they tore into the building, it was ugly."
"My god," Lee softly gasped,
Martinez looked over to the man with wet eyes, "There was a time I thought if something like this were to happen I'd be suited for it, I could handle the world. I never married, never had kids, didn't speak to my parents, I was all alone. I had nothing to lose, and I thought that meant I couldn't be hurt by this shit. Last night, you guys didn't sleep well because we were all crammed into that helicopter, that didn't bother me. The thing that stops me from sleeping...I can't close my eyes without seeing my students being gored in front of me. I can still hear their screams, begging for me to save them and every time I have to remember that I just...ran." Martinez finished, shame hanging off of every word.
Each of the survivors couldn't help but look at Martinez, some in sympathy, others in shock, even a few in disappointment. Suddenly they heard Michonne yell out, the woman swung her blade at lightning speed, severing the top of a walker's skull that stumbled towards her. "Keep alert, don't forget where we are, we could be surrounded in these woods in seconds, anything can happen." Michonne chastised the group.
Just as Michonne finished speaking the bushes rattled right next to Martinez, a walker stumbled out of the wooden blend, surprising the man who stumbled back with a yell, his gun clattering to the ground. "God! Shit!" Martinez yelled while the walker loomed over him. Without thinking the teacher shoved his glove covered hand into the walkers mouth, grabbing hold of its lower jaw, "No! Not today!" Martinez screamed out in fury while ripping the lower jaw straight off the walker's body.
"Back off!" Jeff shouted as he rushed towards his friend, kicking the walker in the stomach, sending it to the ground.
Alice, with no hesitation, ran to the rifle on the ground and picked it up. The blonde woman aimed the gun at the walker who struggled to stand and immediately pulled the trigger three times sending two rounds into its upper chest and one directly through the brain. "We need to go now! The noise will just bring more!" Michonne commanded.
"Doc!" Kenny yelled out and tackled the man to the ground as two walkers stumbled out towards him.
"Kenny!" Rick screamed out, pulling out a sidearm and quickly pulling the trigger at one walker before another one charged him. With a short yell he shoved the walker back and Michonne chopped the walkers head clean off, "Lee, take it!" Rick cried out while tossing the man his pistol.
The prisoner caught the sidearm and leveled it with the two walkers closing in on Doctor Stevens and Kenny, "Shit, I can't get a clean shot, I'll hit one of them!" Lee shouted out while he watched Kenny desperately shield the doctor while retreating backwards,
"I can," Michonne hissed while storming towards the walkers, enjoying the continued release of her anger,
"Wait!" Lee shot back while rushing forward and pressing the barrel of his gun to one of the walkers skulls and pulling the trigger, blowing out the walkers brains, a majority blasting back onto his chest. He stumbled back in disgust and glanced over only to see Michonne glaring at him, her eyes digging straight into his core, "Jesus, just fucking kill that one!" Lee snapped out causing the woman to quickly execute the final walker, free Kenny and Stevens from their doom.
"This isn't getting any easier," Michonne growled while flicking off her blade,
"Uh guys, not to rush you but we're getting fucking surrounded!" Jeff exclaimed while pulling out his rifle and starting to fire at the horde of walkers that began to surround them,
"Let's go, we gotta run! They're too many!" Rick shouted out,
"Alice, quickly!" Stevens ushered the woman while following Rick and the others.
The group sprinted up the trail, dozens of walkers emerging from all around them as they went. Minutes later they finally reached the edge of the woods and saw the station wagon Glenn had stolen and drove earlier that week. "Doc, get in the driver seat of that car, start it, we'll push it out!" Kenny yelled over to the elder surgeon,
"I-I'm not sure I can-" Stevens stammered back,
"Doc, get it done or we're all fucked!" Jeff shot back causing the doctor to gulp and nod.
"Michonne, Martinez, cover us!" Lee added on as the group reached the car. The duo turned around, instantly attacking the small horde that was nipping at their tails. As Doctor Stevens jumped into the old station wagon Rick, Lee, Kenny, Alice, and Jeff slammed against the back of the car, pushing it with all their might. Doctor Stevens pressed his foot on the gas and the car began to rock forward, "A little more guys, it's almost out!" Lee grunted while digging his heels deep into the mud.
Finally the station wagon came loose, driving forward a few feet before Stevens slammed on the brakes. The surgeon wasted no time in climbing over the front and back seats and opening up the large open trunk of the vehicle. "Quickly, get in and get us out of here!" Stevens exclaimed, his eyes wide with fear.
Kenny sprinted towards the driver seat while Rick took shotgun. Lee, Alice, and Jeff all squeezed into the back seats while Martinez and Michonne jumped into the trunk just as the car began to roll forward. Stevens pulled the trunk closed and Kenny fully slammed on the gas, dodging the walkers that were closing in and getting back onto the road back to the prison. "Jesus, fuck!" Jeff exclaimed with an exasperated exhale,
"That was far too much excitement for someone my age," Doctor Stevens panted while holding his chest,
"Never a dull moment with you folks, how much further are we from this prison?" Martinez asked while letting his head rest against the trunk window,
"Just a few more minutes, as long as nothing else slows us down," Rick replied while looking back at the others,
"That would be a miracle," Alice sarcastically replied,
Just then the whole car bounced and swerved as Kenny drove directly into a walker, "Kenny!" Lee exclaimed while Rick spun around, clutching the dash,
"Sorry, sorry, its a lot fucking harder driving with one eye than it looks, alright?!" Kenny barked back causing Rick to immediately reach over and buckle his seatbelt.
The group went silent as everyone began to relax, Kenny kept his complete attention on the road and Rick made sure to keep a weathered eye out for the man. Alice glanced over to Lee and cleared her throat, "So this prison, it's safe right? You've lived there long?"
"Longer than everyone else," Lee replied absentmindedly,
"What does that mean?" Alice asked with a cocked head causing Rick to glance back,
"Lee…" The sheriff softly stated while giving him an unsure look,
"Might as well know," Lee merely replied, "To be honest with all of you, I was an inmate there. Survived the fall inside the cafeteria with a few other prisoners, there's only three of us left now. Rick, Kenny, and the others we live with saved our lives, not just from the cafe but also from this world."
"After who we were just living with, I hardly think that matters anymore," Doctor Stevens instantly replied while fixing his glasses, "What would be more important to me right now is knowing that this place is safe from attacks,"
"There Are three fences that surround the place, none of the walkers have been able to get past the first fence, not to mention there has to be two dozen guard towers around the fences too. Plus, the buildings themselves are strong, with heavy metal doors and if that's not enough, we could easily let you lock your cell door at night," Lee explained the others,
"That makes me feel very relieved," Alice sighed in contentment.
"Hang on y'all, I see it!" Kenny suddenly exclaimed causing the others in the car to quickly look out the windshield, "Ain't much to look at but-What The Fuck?!" Kenny screamed while slamming on the gas just as they got a few yards from the prison gates.
With tears in both Kenny's and Rick's eyes, the group slowly got out of the vehicle, looking at the overrun prison. "N-No...It can't be," Rick stammered while pressing his hand over his wet eyes, "Carl...Lori…"
"Guys, just hang on, relax. T-This doesn't mean…" Lee attempted to say before stepping back and moving his hands to the top of his head, looking at the place in horror,
"Duck! Oh fucking god, Duck!" Kenny screamed while jumping back into the driver's seat and slamming on the gas, tearing right into the prison,
"Kenny, no!" Rick screamed out while the others watched the car in shock,
"Come on!" Lee exclaimed causing the entire group to run forward after the man,
"He's gonna get himself killed!" Michonne berated while slicing through walkers as they passed through the gates.
Kenny squeezed the wheel as the station wagon slammed into walker after walker, blood splattered over his windshield and soon he felt his tires starting to spin over the blood of the dead. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" Kenny shouted as he tried to cut the wheel but the car only spun out in the opposite direction. The car finally came to a halt when it came smashing into the wall of B-Block.
"Kenny!" Rick and Lee screamed out while the group charged the car,
"Jeff, help me clear a path!" Martinez ordered while the pair mounted the wrecked car, standing on top of it and opening fire at the dead closing in on them. "Doc, get him out!"
"I'm coming!" Doctor Stevens barked back as he and Alice ran over and began to pry open the driver door. Kenny rolled out on his side, hitting the ground with a thud, "He's alive!" Doctor Stevens called out as he saw the redneck cough a few times and shake his head, "Kenneth don't move,"
"Duck...D-Duck," Kenny mumbled out,
"Is he alright?!" Lee called out while he and Rick stepped forward taking a few shots,
"Gah!" Rick screamed out as he felt something grab his ankle, he looked down and saw the snapping jaws of Otis. Without hesitation he pulled the trigger before cupping his mouth in shock,
"Rick?" Michonne asked while moving to his side and killing a pair of walkers,
"T-That was Otis," Rick stammered back,
"No time to dwell on that!" Lee shot back while firing at a few more walkers,
"We need to get out of here, take Kenny somewhere safe!" Stevens yelled out,
"The safest place is the car!" Lee replied,
"We need to get the hell out of here, this place is fucked!" Jeff fired back,
"No! We can't give up on this place, we need to clear it out and get the gates closed, it's too valuable to just leave behind!" Rick immediately denied,
"Rick?" A voice suddenly said causing the man to turn around and see both Dale and Andrea coming out of the RV, "Holy shit son, it is you!"
"Rick, Lee! You're alive!" Andrea exclaimed while rushing towards the pair, rifle in hand, "Jesus what happened to your hand!? Where's Glenn?! What are these people?! Is Kenny okay?!" The blonde woman rapidly asked
"We can answer all that later, I promise. Where is everyone else?!" Lee replied while Andrea looked down at Rick's stump in horror,
"We don't really know, we didn't see too much. Otis got swarmed, I know that. Hershel was bitten, Chuck got swallowed whole by a swarm of these things and the rest I think I heard they were going to C-Block. Andrea and I got cut off, so we went into the RV, I can only hope the others made it," Dale explained,
Just then a rifle shot was heard from the nearest guard tower, "Who the hell is that?!" Lee exclaimed as another shot fired and took out a nearby walker,
"We'll find out, the rest of my ammo is up there, if you get me and Dale up there, we'll just pick these things off for the rest of the day!" Andrea said with an assured smile,
Just then a walker that nearly got to Andrea was shot in the head, she looked over and saw Jeff holding a smirk on his face, "Name's Jeff, hope you're as good as you say with that rifle, you got yourselves a damn mess down here,"
"I see you brought friends," Andrea grinned,
"Jeff, get 'em to the tower, I'll stay with Rick!" Martinez called back,
"Doc, Alice, get Kenny up, we're getting to C-Block!" Lee called out, causing the pair to lift the man up to his feet. Kenny half stumbled along with the pair while Michonne, Martinez, Rick, and Lee all cleared the way to the doors of C-Block. The group shot and slashed their way through the herd or walkers that were closing in around them. All but Martinez were beginning to run low on ammo just as they reached the doors.
Lee used the last of his rounds to defend Rick as he charged up to the door, "Open the fucking door! Open the door it's Rick!" The sheriff screamed in panic,
The cell block door slowly pulled open, "My word, Rick!" Hershel exclaimed as he stared at the man in shock, "Get in here!"
"Get your asses inside, I'll cover you!" Martinez said while taking a step forward and unloading his gun at the group of walkers shambling towards him. The others quickly filtered into the building and Martinez's gun finally ran dry, the latino turned back and slipped into the prison just before Rick and Hershel shut the door once more.
"That was close," Rick said huffing hard,
"Yeah, no kidding," Hershel replied,
"Hershel, Dale said you were bitten?" Lee lowly said while looking at the farmers wounded arm,
"Hell no," The elder chuckled, "I just got some friendly fire, must have saw the blood and assumed is all,"
"Oh thank christ," Rick sighed in relief,
"Dad!" Carl suddenly screamed out as he, Lori, Tyreese, and Mark came rushing over,
"Carl!" Rick exclaimed and ran to embrace his son who jumped back in fear as he saw his stump, "It's okay, Carl, I'm okay," Rick quickly reassured his son who hesitated for just a moment before jumping into his arms,
"Rick, my god what happened?" Lori whimpered while wiping her eyes,
"An accident," Rick replied while getting up and pulling his wife into a hug as well,
"Duck?! Duck!" Kenny suddenly shouted out while pushing Stevens and Alice off him,
"He's alright, he's with Julie and Ben in their cell," Tyreese quickly told the redneck, "Christ Ken, what happened to your eye?" He asked while looking at the man's bloodied bandage. Kenny ignored him, and instead took off running,
"Lee, Clem is there too, and Carly is on the roof with Billy and Doug," Mark added on with a smile, "Glad you're alright, where's Glenn?"
"We can talk about all that later," Rick interjected, "Tyreese, Mark gather everyone up, we need to go back outside and clear out the yard of these walkers. Lee, go see Carly and Clem but then, we'll need you outside, the both of you,"
"I got it," Lee nodded while turning and heading quickly up the hallway after Clementine,
"Yeah, we'll get it done, but you're sitting this one out," Tyreese firmly said to the sheriff,
"What?" Rick snapped back, "I can help, just because I lost my hand doesn't mean-"
"Rick, you're disabled, it's a miracle you got back here at all and I'm not going to let you go right back out there just to get bitten," Tyreese interrupted, "Not to mention what hell your wife and son have just been through, now you go over there and sit down before I knock you down,"
Rick looked over to Lori who was silently pleading with her eyes, causing Rick to reluctantly nod in acceptance, "Mark you go up top, tell Carly to get down to Lee and Billy to get ready to shoot. He can join us in the yard once he is out, and see if Doug can muster some of that courage he found to help us as well."
"On it," Mark quickly replied before rushing off,
"Now we're gonna have to go out another door, this ones all blocked off by now, you, come with me," Tyreese said while pointing over to Martinez, "We need to gather up the rest on this floor to help,"
Meanwhile Kenny came sprinting into Julie's cell taking the girl by shock, "Dad!" Duck exclaimed without hesitation while jumping up into his arms,
"I gotcha kiddo, I gotcha," Kenny softly said while picking up son up and squeezing him tight, "God I missed you,"
"I missed you too dad, w-what happened/" Duck asked as he finally noticed his father's bandaged eye,
"Just an accident, a stupid accident, but I'm okay now and I ain't going nowhere," Kenny warmly replied,
"Is Lee here?!" Clementine's voice finally interjected on the father and son reunion,
"Yeah darling, he's here too," Kenny said with a smile causing the girl to instantly get up and sprint out of the cell,
Clementine ran up the cell block heading towards the hallway when she saw Lee jogging into the cell block, "Lee!" Clementine said with a joyous scream,
"Clem!" Lee called back with a smile and finished his run to embrace the little girl. Clementine pressed her face into his neck while Lee squeezed her tight, "I missed you too," Lee lightly chuckled,
"I was so scared you were gone, I thought you'd left like-like my parents," Clementine cried out,
"Oh honey, you don't need to worry about that, I promise I'm not going anywhere," Lee soothingly said while pulling Clementine back so he could look her in the eye, "I told you, I'm gonna take care of you. You believe me don't you?" Clementine nodded while sniffling a few times, "Good, I'll always come back to you sweet pea," Lee finished before pulling the girl back into another hug.
"Lee!" The man suddenly heard yell out from behind him, turning around he saw Carly heading directly towards him, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Lee let go of Clementine and got to his feet turning to face Carly just as he reached her. With a loud angry shout Carly suddenly slapped him across the face.
Lee whirled back holding his stinging cheek in shock, "Whoa, I, uh, missed you too, Carly," Lee awkwardly replied as he saw the woman staring at him, clenched fist, face red and teeth clenched,
"I thought you were fucking dead!" Carly shouted out at him, her breathing picking up and her eyes starting to turn wet,
"Carly…" Lee softly said, causing the woman to look away from him, "I'm sorry, I never wanted to put you through something like that, I just...I'm sorry," Lee continued while closing the gap between them and gently putting his hands on her shoulders.
"Lee," Carly whispered out, finally looking up at him with tears rolling down her cheeks. Without another moment's wait the pair pressed forward locking lips in an intense passion filled kiss. "I love you," Carly whispered out as the kiss broke,
Lee's eyes went slightly wide at the remark but he smoothly put his hands on her cheeks, wiping away a tear with his thumb and said, "I love you too, Carly," The pair embraced one another and quickly felt the tiny arms of Clementine wrapping around their legs as well. After a few moments of enjoying the embrace Lee pulled back, "Tyreese said he needs our help outside, you up for it?" Lee asked Carly with a warm smile,
"If you can keep up with," Carly said with a short relieving laugh,
"I think I can do that," Lee replied before looking down at Clementine, "Carly and I are going outside, we're going to get rid of all the monsters so we're safe again alright? Will you be okay while I'm gone?" He gently asked the girl,
"You said you'll come back, so yes," Clementine said as bravely as she could. Lee smiled back at her and stood up, following Carly towards the exit of the block, "Please come back quicker than last time!" Clementine called out to the man as he walked out of the cell block and into the hallway.
Hours later the prison survivors were all outside in the now empty yard surrounded by hundreds of dead walkers. Each was covered in the muck and grime of the battle, though all were happier than they had been in nearly a week. Tyreese pulled everyone on the ground together to start planning out burning locations for the bodies though Axel made his way to Lee, "Lee, didn't get to say it earlier with all the fun, but I'm happy you're back. Was getting mighty worried, you follow me?" Axel said with a chuckle,
"Trust me, I was getting worried too when I saw the place," Lee joked back,
Axel hung his head for a moment and rubbed the back of his neck, "Probably noticed you ain't seen Chuck," The older man muttered,
"Yeah, I haven't…" Lee replied feeling a ping of sadness in his chest, "How'd he go?" Lee asked the fellow inmate,
"Not too good, he saved that boy and girl...Tyreese's kid, you know? Still, saw him get swarmed," Axel explained,
"God damn, poor old man," Lee lowly replied,
"Who you fella's talking about?" A southern voice suddenly asked causing the pair to look over. Heading over from the guard tower with Andrea and Dale behind him was Chuck, rifle slung over his shoulder and bloodied shovel in hand,
"Chuck!" Axel and Lee exclaimed to their friend,
"I thought you were dead!" Lee said in a joyous laugh while giving the man a quick hug,
"Yeah, I saw you turn into walker chow, you follow me?!" Axel replied in disbelief,
"Sorry to disappoint you boys but takes a bit more than that to kill me," Chuck easily replied, "Besides, someone had to be out here waiting for ya to come on home," The old hobo added on while glancing back to Lee, "Missed you son,"
"Missed you too old man," Lee returned,
"Sorry, but you gotta explain this again, how ain't you dead?!" Axel asked with a toss of his hands,
"It weren't hard, with all the commotion I was able to push my way outta that little group that got to me. Thought I'd hide in the RV with Dale and Andrea but they locked the doors, next best option was the tower, doors were strong as all hell, nothing gonna get through." Chuck explained, "Might just have to relocate my bunk to one of 'em,"
"Chuck!" Tyreese suddenly called out in surprise, "God damn, Dale and Andrea just told us you're okay, thank god. You three want to come over, we've got a lot of work to do!"
"Man's gotta point," Chuck replied while sniffing and wiping his nose, "You boys coming?" The elder finished while heading towards Tyreese and the others which Lee and Axel quickly followed suit in.
As the group all gathered around Tyreese, Rick made his way out into the yard, "Damn guys, this is amazing, you already got them all?" The sheriff said with an impressed look,
"If it wasn't for the help of those new guys you brought, what we're their names again?" Tyreese asked back,
"Jeff and Martinez," Jeff called back with a short chuckle,
"Wait, Mister Martinez?" Ben suddenly asked causing the former gym teacher to look over at the teen in shock,
"Ben?!" Martinez exclaimed in shock, "W-What are you...I thought you were dead,"
"I almost was...I thought you had died too," Ben replied with a look of disbelief of his own, "Tyreese got me, his daughter and...another student out of the school safely,"
"Jesus," Martinez said under his breath before walking over and pulling the teen into a quick hug, "I'm glad that you're okay kid,"
"Y-Yeah, yeah me too," Ben returned with a short smile, "Sorry, Tyreese, continue," Martinez said after a moment,
"Right as I was saying, they were a huge fucking help," Tyreese explained while giving the pair a thankful nod,
"Rick, where's Glenn?" Billy suddenly called out, "My sister has been looking all over for him,"
Rick drifted his eyes over to Lee who hung his head for a moment, "Billy, why don't you take Lee to see your father and sister, he...he can explain," Rick said in a slow exhale, "Everyone else, I think it's best that we focus directly on what we need to get done right now. I promise Kenny, Lee, and I will all sit down and explain everything that happened to us soon. We just...need a minute and we need this place back to proper shape,"
A murmur of discontent was heard from the others as Billy walked over to Lee and led the man out of the crowd with an unsure, worried look on his face. "Everyone, please, listen to Rick," Tyreese suddenly said to Rick's surprise, "He's right, first we need to focus on our home then we can learn about these newcomers and...and whatever happened to Glenn. So come on, let's just focus, huh?"
"He's dead isn't he?" Carly merely asked back causing Rick to lower his head unable to deny it.
Meanwhile back inside the prison Lee was led by Billy to Hershel's cell where he sat with Maggie, The girl with a worried wreck, pacing around the room ranting to her father, "I can't find him, daddy, I keep asking everyone and no one knows where he is!"
"I...I do," Lee weakly said as he and Billy entered the cell,
"Where! Where is he?!" Maggie almost cried out to the man who swallowed hard and searched for the words,
"Son, come out and say it, please," Hershel gently urged,
"He...He's dead, Maggie, I'm sorry," Lee hardly said, pushing the very words from his mouth like a brick,
"No!" Maggie cried out in anguish while collapsing to her knees. Billy and Hershel immediately ran over to console the girl.
Lee squeezed his eyes shut, the regret for his choice never being as strong as this moment. "I...I'm sorry for your loss," He softly added on while turning and slinking out of the cell, Maggie's loud sobs continuing to fill his ears.
Four days later…
Lee awoke to the feeling of Carly climbing out of their small bunk, the short reporter let out a long yawn and stretched for a moment before reaching down and grabbing her shirt. Lee looked over and watched with a dreamy expression on his face as she buttoned it up, "You've been looking at me like that for the last four days, when are you going to stop?"
"Probably never," Lee replied with a soft laugh, "With all the cleanup and Clementine, we haven't gotten a chance to have any time alone until last night. I missed you Carly, you and Clem were the only things on my mind while I was gone, and I desperately wanted to get back to you,"
"Good to know that I wasn't the only one of us who was thinking that way," Carly said with a sheepish grin, "I know it sounds fast but I was having trouble imagining living in this place without you," Carly admitted while taking a seat on the edge of the bunk, "Is that too clingy?"
"Not at all," Lee replied while pushing up and planting a deep kiss on Carly's lips only to abruptly pull back, "You smell smoke?" He quickly asked,
"Yeah, Tyreese and Mark were starting to burn the body piles this morning, hopefully a few days time those things with be a thing of the past," Carly replied,
"Shit, they already started?" Lee grunted while jumping out of bed and grabbing his shirt, "I'll be back," He tacked on while rushing out of the room,
"Lee?" Carly called out in confusion.
Lee reached the outside within minutes and made a b-line directly to Mark and Tyreese who finished tossing a few torches on the first pile of walker corpses, "Guys, hey guys!" Lee yelled out to the pair who turned back,
"Lee? What's up man?" Mark asked back as the professor reached them, bending over to take a few deep breaths,
"Do me a favor, just, don't burn all the female bodies okay?" Lee said with a few huffs,
"Uh, sure, whatever you say man," Mark replied with a bit uncertainty,
"Honestly, you've been through so much shit the last few days, I'm not even gonna ask," Tyreese added on with a quick shake of his head,
Meanwhile in Rick's cell, Doctor Stevens and Alice sat in front of Lori, the former with a stethoscope pressed to the woman's belly. After a moment the doctor took the equipment off and handed it to Alice and stood up, "Well, the good news is your baby sounds perfectly fine," Stevens explained with a smile, "The heartbeat is very strong, and everything else I can check with is good as well. Unfortunately, the bad news is that's all I can do with my current equipment," The surgeon continued,
"So, you can't say for sure everything is alright?" Rick nervously asked,
"Don't worry Rick, as I said your baby is fine, what I'm referring to is the actual birth. Without any type of real infirmary we're looking for an idea situation of a perfect natural birth. While I have some experience that can account for some issue, I won't be able to do much if things go terribly wrong," The doctor replied, doing little for the parents peace of mind,
"Doctor Stevens," Alice hissed out, frowning at the older man's candidness,
"B-But of course never forget, women having been giving birth for thousands of years just fine so I wouldn't worry too much on this either," Doctor Stevens quickly added on, glancing over to Alice with a bit of concern on his face,
"Thank you so much for coming with us," Rick said while looking at the pair with a smile, "You have no idea how much it means to all three of us,"
"I should be thanking you," Stevens replied with an easy smile,
"I'm happy to be here, and I am glad to be of help," Alice added on,
Back out in the yard Molly sat alone, the blonde woman muttered while hugging her knees, "I knew I couldn't have just escaped those fuckers. I told you it was a stupid idea to follow Michonne, I should have gotten at least a state away," Molly continued to say before shaking her head angrily, "No, I've made sure to stay away from them, Jeff hasn't seen me and Martinez is sticking close to that kid and his girlfriend, I'm being safe,"
"Molly?" Billy suddenly said causing Molly to jump up in shock, staring at the teen with wide eyes, "Who are you talking to?"
"No one!" Molly blurted back, "I was just...taking a break, I gotta go," She quickly added while attempting to storm away,
"Hang on," Billy quickly said while reaching out and quickly grabbing her arm, "I've barely seen you these last four days, it's like you've been hiding from me,"
"Not you," Molly replied with a short shake of her head,
"Look, you don't have to lie, if you don't want to see me I understand, you don't need to avoid me, you can say it," Billy continued,
"No, it's not like that Billy," Molly instantly replied, her cheeks turning a light shade of red,
"Well...then what is it? Last time we talked was the day those things broke in and you were going off on all this weird stuff, talking about people coming here, now you're staying away from us all and...talking to yourself, what's going on Molly?"
"I...nothing," Molly once again tried to deny answering,
"Molly, you can trust me," Billy wholeheartedly said while looking the woman directly in the eyes,
Molly looked back at Billy for a long minute before letting out a long exhale, "Those new guys, I know them, I know where they're from," Molly explained, "I...I used to be part of their town, Woodbury." Molly explained to Billy's shock, "Look, I got a lotta fucking baggage Billy, and maybe it's best I leave,"
"What?" Billy said in almost a scoff,
"You said it yourself, I talk to myself, I'm nuts, and with these guys coming here maybe I should just go. I'm better on my own," Molly explained with a small shrug,
Billy suddenly pushed in and pressed his lips against Molly who let out a hum of surprise before easily melting into the kiss, "I've...I've wanted to do that for the last few weeks," Billy softly said as the kiss broke, "After hearing what happened to Glenn, I knew I couldn't wait any longer. I don't care if you talk to yourself, or whatever baggage you have with these other people. I just care about you, and I don't want you to go, alright?" Billy said, mustering all his courage,
Molly looked up at Billy for a long moment but couldn't help but smile, "Well...taking me to your cell is a good way to stop me," Molly finally said with a little glint in her eye causing Billy to take her hand and quickly head back towards the cell block.
Further down the yard Rick and Carl made their way out into the yard, stepping past the piles of walker bodies as well as the other survivors all working together to deal with the problem. "Relax Carl, I promise you're safe, we double checked every body, they're dead," Rick assured his son as he stared at the bodies in fear,
"Okay dad, I believe you," Carl gulped back,
Rick reached Kenny, Tyreese, Doug, and Axel who were all standing around, chugging a few bottles of water, "You guys quitting for the day?" Rick asked,
"Nah, we're just taking a break," Kenny replied, "Doug and I got our pile lit up finally,"
"This is definitely something I hope to never do again," Doug added on, his cheeks looking a bit green,
"Guys, now that we got a chance," Tyreese spoke up, "I just want to say, I'm glad you're both back and if you're willing to put all that shit behind us now, I am too," The athlete said with a semi hopeful tone while looking between Kenny and Rick,
"Fine, ain't worth getting worked up over anymore," Kenny reluctantly replied,
"I agree Tyreese, we just need to put it to rest," Rick added on, "How has Martinez and Jeff been doing?"
"Martinez is a machine," Tyreese smirked while pointing over to the man who worked with Chuck, Ben, and Julie, "I swear he made two of these piles alone. Jeff too, but I think he went inside haven't seen him in hours,"
"What?" Kenny sharply asked back,
"Hours? He couldn't have been inside, I was in there all day," Rick replied his eyes vigilantly starting to look around the yard,
"Maybe he's off taking a nap, guy has been working his fucking ass off," Tyreese merely shrugged,
Rick looked over to Kenny who's eyes were just as wide, "Fuck!" The pair yelled out in unison, "I'm getting my fucking Rv!" Kenny shouted while taking off running,
"Right behind you," Rick agreed while turning to follow him,
"Whoa, what are you two freaking out about?!" Tyresse asked in confusion,
"Jeff is gone! He's gone to tell them where we are, he's going to lead those psycho's in Woodbury right to us!" Rick shouted back as he quickly took off following Kenny into the garage.
Alright, here we are a huge chapter to be sure but I enjoyed it a lot! We had development on a lot of characters, found out new connections with some of the older ones, and even started a new relationship. Next chapter we'll dive further into the group finding out about Woodbury, we'll see a bit more on how Maggie is dealing as well as much more, plus a vote at the end! Hope you all enjoyed it, and I'll see you in the next one!