Walking Dead: Fragile Bonds
Chapter 1 of a new Walking Dead story, enjoy.
Disclaimer: I don't own Walking Dead or its characters.
Side note: All characters in this are based on their comic versions.
Chapter 1
It was strange, sometimes funny, sometimes devastating, but strange none the less. All it ever took was one moment, one thing done slightly differently even once, to change your life forever and not always for the better. Reflecting bitterly on that was a tall fair skinned man of thirty-nine, unshaven with short light brown hair and blue eyes. He was clad in a Police Sheriff's Deputy uniform and was sat in the police cruiser, watching out the window at the house across the street.
"Rick?"
He started and turned to his companion, another Sheriff's Deputy, broader shouldered than Rick with short black hair and eyes, square jawed and more powerfully built.
Rick nodded. "Sorry Shane, was thinking."
Shane shook his head. "Rick Grimes, there's only one to be thinking about right now."
"I know, and that's what I was thinking about." Rick replied, his voice taking on a dark edge. "He's right in there, he…"
"Rick." Shane warned him.
Rick caught himself and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Sorry Shane, I, I just…"
Shane gently reached out, squeezing Rick's shoulder. "I get it partner, it's not easy. Not after what he's done. But we have to do this right, we have to bring him in, lethal force is authorised, but only as a last resort."
Rick nodded, he knew Shane was right, but that didn't make the situation any easier.
Rick Grimes was the golden boy of the force, a loving wife, Lori and a caring son Carl. Despite hitting the 'troublesome' age of fourteen, Carl remained seemingly resistant to the typical teenage phase. Rick was even set for promotion, life seemed good. Until one terrifying case of a serial killer, Brian Blake, the man in the house across the street from where they sat. There was no doubt the man was a complete psychopath, his crimes beyond belief, not just murder but necrophilia and, if the evidence that had been uncovered about his first victim was confirmed, incest too, for his first victim had been his young niece Penny Blake.
Despite their best efforts, Blake always managed to somehow elude police. Then Rick began trying a different tactic and went back over the old cases, he had found himself drawing rather close to finding Blake. A fact sadly confirmed when Blake responded to this threat, by making Lori his next victim. Carl had only survived through a desperate struggle and escape, despite being traumatised he was able to describe his attacker and it matched the photos they had of Blake, with one key difference, due to how Carl's struggles had affected him. Blake was now missing his left eye.
He was again jolted from his thoughts by Shane.
"Rick, we just got the word, we're to go in, ready?" Shane asked.
Taking a deep breath and trying to push thoughts of Lori from his mind, he nodded.
"Ready."
Together they exited the car.
Cautiously approaching the house they paused by the door, the lateness of the night and the faulty porch light did not do anything to ease their nerves.
"Backup in position?" Rick asked.
Shane nodded. "Just got the call, they're ready to go in the back."
Rick grimaced. "God knows what this fucker has in there, could be a goddamn museum of death."
"Or filled with traps, stay alert."
Rick agreed and, giving the word over the radio to their backup, they tried the front door, it was unlocked. Rick and Shane shared a worried look, it seemed he knew they were coming. Still, they knew they had no choice and entered cautiously. The hallway gave no immediate signs of anyone or anything being present, it led through to a kitchen where the back door was and their backup was entering.
They quickly verified the rooms they were in were clear and Rick signalled for them to check upstairs while he and Shane checked downstairs. Carefully they began to make their way up the stairs, while Rick approached the first door on his left. He began to open the door while Shane looked down and his eyes widened.
"RICK!"
Before Rick could react Shane dived into him, knocking him aside, opening the door and a thunderous bang sounded, the report of a shotgun. Rick scrambled, trying to regain his feet, but froze at what he saw, Shane lay on the ground, the large gaping wound in his side evidence the trap had struck him, he was dead, killed saving Rick.
Rick barely had time to react to this before a tall thirty-five year old muscular vicious looking one-eyed man with long black hair and eye emerged, clutching a cleaver. It was Brian Blake.
"You, you're dead bitch, then I'll get your brat for what he did to me!" Blake yelled, clearly having gone off the deep end.
Rick could hear the sounds of the backup officers hurrying to get back downstairs, but they'd never make it time. No matter how enraged he was, Rick always tried to do the right thing, but now it was clear, there was no other choice. As Blake stepped over him, blocking him from rising and raising the cleaver, Rick reacted at once, the sound of his sidearm echoed around the home and then, just as the other officers reached the bottom of the stairs, all was still.
All except for Rick Grimes, breaking down at the sight of his wife's murderer lying dead right next to the body of his best friend who had died to save his life. A single action that would change his life forever, and not in a good way.
End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.