As Andy, Danny, Lee, Mark, Doug, Carley, and Ben got closer to the dairy, Andy spoke up. "Here it is; St. Johns' Family Dairy." The group saw several trees, the electric fence, and a big, white house upon a hill. "Y'all can see how we kept this place so safe." He added as he motioned to the fence, before continuing the walk.
Doug approached the fence and crouched in front of it, grinning with pleasure.
"The fence keeps 'em out?" Asked Mark.
"You betcha!" Andy replied, before Doug got back up and followed them. "They fry like bugs in a zapper! We're pushin' four-thousand volts through that thing, with generators an' amps." Andy informed.
"I'm going to assume that's a lot…" Said Carley.
"Oh WOW; you guys must know a thing or two about running wire." Doug assumed.
"Had a guy who did, yeah." Danny clarified. As they approached the house, an older overweight woman, possibly in her sixties, was seen in an upstairs window, before walking out of sight.
"This is a really brilliant set-up." Lee complimented.
"Suits us just fine." Said Andy, with a proud smile.
"This place looks untouched!" Said Carley, shocked. "You'd never know the rest of the world is in ruins…" She added.
"Ever have any accidents?" Asked Lee.
"Nah." Answered Danny.
"It's safer here than out there." Andy added.
"Oh wow, you've got enough electricity to run the whole place!" Doug noted.
"It's worth protecting, hence all the juice." Said Andy.
The woman from the window then came out the house's front door and approached the group, holding a picnic basket. "I thought I saw y'all with company comin' down the drive!" She said to the brothers.
"Guys, this is our momma." Andy said with a smile of pride.
"I'm Brenda St. John, and welcome to the St' John Dairy!" She greeted them sweetly.
"This here's Lee." Andy said to Brenda. "He moves around a lot, but… with things the way they are, maybe can convince him to stick around for a while. He's from Macon!"
"A couple of our old farm hands were from Macon! They grow 'em good there." She noted.
"They got a few more friends stayin' at the old motel." Danny told Brenda.
"Oh my goodness, that place is pretty vulnerable." She commented, concerned. "Have you got someone with survival experience to lead your group?" She asked Lee.
"I've got things under control over there." Lee answered.
"Well, I hope you know what you're doin'. That place isn't safe like it is here."
"We all work together. Plus, we've got plenty of people with military experience."
"Well, that's good to hear; that motel ain't the safest place. Now that y'all are here, we'll make sure you're safe and comfortable." Said Brenda.
"Thanks for havin' us. We brought some gasoline on good faith." Lee told Brenda, holding up his jerry can slightly.
"We're all incredibly hungry!" Carley urged.
"We're starved." Doug added.
"These are for y'all." Brenda held up her basket slightly. "Baked fresh this mornin'." In the basket were several rolls of bread.
"AMAZING." Said Carley, in awe.
"Holy moly!" Doug said excitedly. Brenda then handed the basket to Doug, who then immediately scoffed one of the pieces of bread, whole. Doug's loud and vigorous chewing made Lee and Mark turn their heads to look at him.
Doug then looked at them and slowed his chewing in realisation that he was being a bit more gluttonous than the others. "Sorry…" Said Doug, still with half a chewed-up bread roll in his mouth.
Carley looked away from Doug, shaking her head and rolling her eyes with a smirk, and faced the St. Johns.
"Can't get stuff like that, anymore." Said Danny, happy that Doug was enjoying his family's food. "Not without a cow for milk and butter, that's for sure." He added, with a proud smirk
"That's right." Brenda spoke up. "Hopefully, Maybelle will make it through this bout of… whatever she's got, and be with us for a good, long while."
"Your cow is sick?" Asked Lee. "What's she-"
"We have a vet!" Said Mark. "We could bring her here. We could help you folks out."
"A vet? Oh, my!" Said Brenda. "Our prayers have been answered!"
"Maybe our whole group could come. For the day." Mark suggested.
"Well… how about THIS." Brenda said with joy. "Y'all go get your veterinary friend, and I'll prepare some dinner. A BIG feast for all you hungry souls." She added with a gleeful smirk. "It'll be nice to have some folks to help out 'round here again." Brenda then turned to her younger son. "Danny? Why don't you come help me out in the kitchen?"
Brenda and Danny then walked to the house.
"Why don't I head back with the food and round up everyone for the trip over here." Doug offered.
"Might wanna take someone with ya. Remember; those roads can be dangerous." Andy suggested.
"No problem." Said Doug, before turning his head back to face Ben. "Ben can come with me." He said, before turning to his side. "And Carley." He said, smiling at her, prompting her to smile back.
Mark then handed his rifle to Doug. "Take this." He said.
"All right. See ya later." Said Doug, turning around and leaving the premises, with Ben beside him.
"Why don't you go ahead and take Ben along anyway." Mark suggested to Carley.
"Take care of yourself, Lee." Said Carley. "See ya in a while." She said as she turned to follow Doug.
"Mark, Lee…" Andy began. "Why don't ya take a look around. Once ya get settled in, I could use some help securin' the perimeter." He suggested.
"Is there a problem?" Lee asked Andy.
"Sometimes, the dead get tangled up in the fence before they fry, and… end up knockin' over a post." Andy explained. "It'd be a BIG help if you could walk the perimeter. You can learn a lil' somethin' about our fence. I'm gonna go top-off the generators before they run dry." Andy then began to walk off. "Come get me when you're ready."
"You betcha." Mark said with a smile, then turned to Lee. "This place is INCREDIBLE. It's got food! And that fence? Oh man, that fence! If we play our cards right, this might turn out to be a place we can stay. So, how d'ya wanna play this?"
"Before we can THINK about bringin' our whole group here to stay, we need to figure out if this place is as safe as they're tellin' us." Lee replied with a stern expression.
"Right. Obviously, THEY think it's safe. But, is it safe enough for the kids?" Mark then looked over at a broken swing hanging off a tree in the front garden. "I noticed a broken swing, over there. Not a big deal, but… maybe there's other things not working that we just can't see yet."
"And checkin' the fence perimeter sounds like a decent way to get a good look at their defences." Lee added.
"All right." Said Mark. "I'll keep my eyes open, and you find out what you can from Andy."
Lee then walked over to the broken swing; a broken plank with one rope attached. "Too bad it's broken. I'll bet Clementine and Duck would've loved somethin' like this to play on." Lee called over to Andy, who was sitting on a bench.
"Kids used to like that old swing even more than the tour sometimes." Andy responded.
"I'll bet!" Lee replied with a smile. "How'd it break?"
"Got busted the first day those… THINGS showed up. Thank God no one was on it at the time." Said Andy.
"Mind if I fix it?" Asked Lee.
"Sure! That'd be great. Momma sure does appreciate y'all helpin' out."
"Looks like it just needs a new board for the seat… and some rope." Lee said to himself, looking at the broken swing. "Make it safe for Clem and Duck… and let the St. Johns know we can pull our weight around here."
Lee then walked through the house's gate, up the steps, and to the front door. He knocked on the door, and Brenda answered.
"Well, hi there, Lee." She greeted him with a smile. "What can I do for ya, sweetie?"
"Can I help you with anything around the house?" He offered.
"I think with Danny's help, I've got things pretty well-squared away in the kitchen, but feel free to check with Andy; he's got a lot of weight on his shoulders these days, so I'm sure he'd love any help he can get." She informed.
"Your family's done an amazing job of keeping this place up." He complimented.
"Well…" She chuckled, flattered. "Now, aren't you sweet. Thank you, Lee. The boys and I have tried to adapt as best we can, but we still keep some of our old routines to help remind us of better times."
"What happened to the rest of your staff?" Lee inquired.
"Oh, we've had our share of tragedy here. Just like everyone else, I'm sure. Some of our staff took off to find their families, soon as they heard the news. The few that stuck around, well… we lost most of 'em the first night those… things showed up here." She explained. "It was… a tough night." Brenda frowned.
"How many rooms does this house have?" Asked Lee.
"Rooms? Why do you ask?" She looked confused.
"It looks custom-built." He told her with a smile.
"Nice of you to notice." She smiled. "My husband put a lot of work into this old house."
"Well, he did a fantastic job." He complimented.
"I believe in makin' a house a home." She noted.
"When will dinner be ready?" He asked politely.
"It'll be a while still, but it'll be worth it, trust me." She assured Lee.
"How's your family been holdin' up since, um… you know…?" He asked awkwardly.
"Oh, my boys have been my savin' grace." She answered. "They both left their jobs and came home to help out after the attacks started happening." She elaborated. "I think it was hardest on Andy; Dan was always more of a momma's boy. But, don't tell him I said that." She giggled.
"Well, if anything comes up that I can help with, feel free to let me know." He said with a smile.
"Well, Lee, I sure appreciate it." She said with a smile, before closing the door.
Lee then examined the porch, and saw several awards on the wall beside the front door. "This dairy won a lotta ribbons in its day, huh." Lee said to himself, before Andy spoke up from behind him.
"This place was my daddy's life. Meant everything to him. Y'know, when he first bought this place, it was a single-storey house." Andy explained.
"Is that right." Lee said with amusement.
"After us kids was born, he insisted on addin' a second floor; said they had to have room for as many babies as they could have. Heh. Momma? She was done after Dan." Andy elaborated.
"My folks stopped after two, as well." Said Lee.
"Then, one day, the world changed. Now, this place is all we have left of daddy. That's why we take such good care of it, and why we wanna share it with good folks like yourselves." Said Andy.
Lee nodded, and Andy went back down the steps. Lee then went to the end of the porch and opened a chest, which had some rope inside. "This rope is perfect for the swing." Lee said to himself with a small smile, collecting the rope.
He then noticed some herbs growing on the outer shelves of the windows. "Mmm, fresh herbs. I can hardly wait for dinner." Lee said to himself with a smile.
Lee then walked down the steps, along the garden, and towards a yellow generator, where Andy was crouched. Andy then noticed Lee and stood to face him. "Hi!" Said Andy.
"Hi." Said Lee. "What's that?" He asked.
"Generator. You guys come along with gas just in time." Lee then crouched to look closer at the generator. "Hey, uh, don't mess with that, okay? The thing's a little tricky, and… I don't wanna spend half a day tryna fix it again." Andy said politely.
"I'm glad you guys decided to help us out." Said Andy. "I noticed back at the motel that you folks are pretty well-armed. Ya been stock-pilin', huh?"
"Yeah, if ya need some extra people to protect the dairy, you can count on us." Lee offered.
"Hopefully, it'll never come to that, but… thanks." Andy said with a grateful smile.
"Yeah. If anyone tries to fuck with us… they'll regret it." Lee said firmly.
"Well, protectin' your people is important, but in my experience, havin' that many guns around is when people get dangerous." Andy informed.
"That electric fence is enough to keep out walkers?" Asked Lee.
"Walkers?" Asked Andy, amused. "Is that what you call 'em? Heh, that's good... The old one wouldn't have, but… Mac - he's our foreman - he figured out how to amp it up with generators." He explained.
"We used to sit out here some nights and watch the sons o' bitches sizzle an' pop when they got too close. Closest thing to entertainment these days, I guess." Andy added.
"These generators are enough to power the whole dairy?" Asked Lee.
We got lots, and we gotta keep tradin' for fuel as much as we can, but… they all work together to do the trick. Like us!" Said Andy.
"We can't be the first people you've invited up to the dairy." Said Lee.
"Well, no, we've made similar deals with other folks, uh, tradin' for gas and food, but ultimately, they moved on, lookin' for the people they lost contact with." Andy replied.
"I'm gonna get to know the place for a minute." Said Lee.
"Okay, well, we gotta secure the perimeter, so don't take too long." Said Andy.
Lee then walked over to a cutting bench, where he found a long plank resting against a picket fence. "This is too big right now, but if I can find somethin' to cut it down to size… this might make a good seat for the swing." Lee then found a saw beside the plank, and he then turned back to face Andy.
"Mind if I use one o' these boards?" Asked Lee.
"Already makin' some repairs, huh?" Andy asked. "I like a guy who takes some initiative. Yeah! Go right ahead." Lee then went over to the broken swing and fixed it, when Andy looked over. "Well, I'll be damned…" He said to himself. "Momma's gonna be thrilled to see that old swing all fixed up!" He shouted over to Lee.
"Hopefully, our kids will like it, too!" Lee called back.
Brenda then walked out the front door. "Did you say somethin', darlin'?" She then saw Lee beside the newly-repaired swing. "Oh, my goodness… Did you do that?" She asked Lee.
"Just… tryin' to help out a bit around here." He answered.
"You know, I used to push Andy and his brother out here on that swing every night when they were kids… Seems like such a long time ago, now." She said.
"Yeah, it does." Lee said to himself. "All fixed. That should make everyone happy." Lee then walked to the wooden gate beside Andy that led to the barn.
"Hey, uh, what're ya fixin' to do around the barn?" Andy asked suspiciously, standing up.
"Just tryion' to find more ways to help out!" Lee said with a friendly smile.
"Well, I appreciate that! Tell ya what; we'll find ya somethin' to do over there after we get back from securin' the perimeter." Andy told Lee, getting back down to the generator.
"Sounds good!" Lee said with an understanding smile. He then walked to Mark, who was standing by the front fence, several metres in front of Andy.
"So, what've ya found out? Is this lookin' like a good place to stay?" Mark asked Lee quietly.
"I didn't get a chance to check out the barn area, yet." Said Lee. "I'll do that after helpin' Andy get the perimeter secured… The generator might be a problem; Andy said it's 'tricky', and repairing it takes hima while. Still, it's a hell of a lot more secure than the motor-inn. I'll keep lookin' around."
"All right. Keep me posted."
Lee looked over at the house. "Wonder how much food they've got in there. Hopefully, we'll find out." He said to himself. "Hi. Mark and I can help you with that perimeter, now."
"Oh, good." Said Andy. "The fence'll stop a walker in about three or four second, but... it gets overloaded if we leave the husks out there."
"You know, Mark an' I can clear the fence ourselves if you wanna stay here an' finish up with the generators." Lee offered.
"Well, that'd be great! I'll turn off the northwest section, and, uh… if you guys could strip 'em off, and… look for any weak points, that'd be a big help."
"Sounds easy enough." Lee nodded.
"Stay attentive! You never know." Andy warned. Lee and Mark then left to go deeper in the field within the property, with Lee's axe still sheathed in one of the belt holes of his jeans.