Thanks to gaara king of the sand for the help.
Todd led the two down the hall. Molly held Clementine's hand, while keeping her guard up in case any prisoners decided to try to attack.
They stayed quiet, knowing to expect the unexpected.
Eventually they arrived at the cafeteria. Among opening the door, the trio was face with several guns.
"Todd!" A woman exclaimed, sighing in relief. She had strawberry blonde hair that fell to about shoulder length. She was a carrying a wistful blue-eyed toddler in her arms, she approached the man and hugged him.
Molly assumed that was his wife.
"I was so worried." The woman said.
"I'm fine, honey. I told you there was nothing to worry about." Todd said, returning the embrace.
"I hate when you go out there." The woman said.
"I know, Shelby…" Todd said.
"Who's she?" Came a man's voice. He still had his weapon aimed at Molly. He was an older man, maybe in his late forties. He was tall, solidly built and had black hair with grey streaks in it. He was in police uniform.
"I found her outside in the yard." Todd said. "She has a kid."
"That doesn't mean anything." Another woman spoke.
Molly looked to the woman, who was shooting her a glare. The woman had straight, brown hair, piercing green eyes. Two young boys sat beside the woman, both had dark, curly hair, their skin color a bit darker than their mother's. They were completely identical except for their eye color. One of the boys had green eyes, while the other had a chocolate brown color.
"You know those people are dangerous. We promised we wouldn't let anyone else in remember?" The woman grumbled.
"They could've died out there, Lynette." Todd said. "Garrett, lower your weapon."
"How do we know we can trust her?" Lynette shot back.
"She has a kid." Todd pointed out.
"Maybe the child's in on this?" Lynette replied, still glaring to Molly.
Molly felt Clementine clutch onto her shirt, practically hiding behind her from the woman's glare.
"Regardless…" The officer piped up, lowering his weapon. "I'm not willing to throw a woman and a young child out."
"You guys are complete idiots." Lynette said.
"Look, I'm not looking for any trouble." Molly said. "My girl and I are just looking for a safe place to stay."
"Well you came to the wrong place." The officer said. "This place is far from safe."
"I am well aware of that now." Molly said. "We almost got our heads blown off by those assholes out there."
"Yeah, it's probably be smart of you to leave." Todd's wife said, also sending Molly a suspicious look.
"We can't. There's too many bad guys out there… They were shooting at us for no reason." Clementine said.
"Well, they're criminals, sweetie. They have no morals." The officer said.
"You're a police officer?" Clementine innocently inquired.
"That's right." The man said. "I'm officer Garrett. What's your name?"
"I'm Clementine." Clementine said.
"So what exactly is going on here?" Molly asked. "I got the gist of the story from Todd…"
"We thought this place would be a safe ground…" Shelby spoke up. "But we were obviously wrong."
"Well, it's a prison… Did you really think the people were going to be nice?" Molly asked.
"We're not stupid, we just have humanity. We thought leaving people locked up when all this shit is going on is inhumane." Lynette said.
"Maybe it is, but they were locked up for a reason. Because they are dangerous." Molly said.
"And they're getting worse…" Todd said.
"They took most of the food and water, more than half of the weapons…" A teen boy spoke. Molly looked to him quickly noting that he must have been Todd's son. He bore a striking resemblance to the man. Same dark wavy hair, fair complexion, and the blue eyes.
A girl stood beside him, maybe fourteen or fifteen years old, hair similar to Shelby's, but longer and once again Molly saw those bright blue eyes.
"They don't care about anything but themselves." The girl added.
"Ian, Avery…" Shelby called. "That's enough."
"It's true…" Ian said.
Todd let out a sigh, "Allow me to properly introduce everyone…."
Molly nodded in response.
"This is my wife, Shelby." Todd motioned to the woman. "Our children… My son Ian, my Avery. And the little one here is Harper." He motioned to them as he spoke.
"Nice to meet you all." Molly said. "I'm Molly. The girl is Clementine."
"Next we have Lynette, and her two boys." Todd said, gesturing to the woman with the twins. "Jason and Jackson."
Molly looked to the family of three who said nothing. She sighed. This was why she didn't do groups.
"Finally we have officer Garrett. He's been looking after Hayley, and Yadiel. They both lost their folks a while back."
Molly noticed another teen girl, about sixteen, with blonde hair swept into a loose braid. Beside her was a young boy, maybe a year or so older than Clementine.
Garrett spoke up, drawing Molly's attention to him. "Considering what's going on out there, it's probably your best bet to stay with us for a while.
"Oh, I have no intentions on going back out there anytime soon." Molly responded.
"What now?" Clementine wondered.
"We wait them out..." Todd said.
"Is that what you usually do?" Molly asked.
"Yeah." Todd replied. "We usually stay in here most the day..."
Molly frowned at that.
"We keep what supplies we have left stashed with us." Garrett said.
"That's smart." Molly said. "I might have a plan…"
"Is that so?" Garrett asked.
"You said they took a bunch of stuff?" Molly said.
"Right." Todd confirmed.
"Well I say we take it back." Molly said.
Lynette scoffed, "How do you purpose we do that?"
"That's the part that still needs to be figured out." Molly said.
Lynette rolled her eyes.
"What do you have in mind…?" Todd asked.
"For starters, we need to figure out their schedule, or at least where they stock the supplies they've been stealing." Molly said.
"That's risky, if we get caught they'll shoot us…" Shelby said.
"So we don't get caught." Molly said. "There has to be a way, we can sneak into to the other side of the prison."
"Actually… I think there is a way…" Garrett commented. "There's a ventilation system in the hallway."
"That's good… It could be useful, but we still need to know where they stock the supplies." Molly said.
"And I think I have a plan to find that out…" Todd said.
"Go on." Molly urged.
"I say, you, me, and Garrett do some scouting. You're pretty quick on your feet." Todd said.
Shelby shook her head. "Todd, no. That's too dangerous."
"They won't be able to see us. Not if it's dark." Todd said.
"The downside is we can't see them either…" Garrett pointed out.
Todd frowned at that, scratching his head. "Oh, yeah… you're right."
"Wait… We could make it work." Molly said.
"You sure?" Garrett asked.
"Yeah. You know your way around the prison." Molly said. "Is there a way we can monitor the prisoners from outside?"
Garrett said. "Yeah. If we can get close enough."
"No good. They have someone up in the surveillance tower twenty-four hours a day." Lynette pointed out.
"One guy's not a problem." Molly said. "We can be careful. Get me a layout of the prison?"
"Got it." Garrett said, he left the room to get the layout.
"Can I help?" Clementine asked.
Molly shook her head. "You're going to stay here."
Clementine frowned, "But-"
"I mean it, Clementine." Molly replied.
The child sighed. "Okay…"
"Good." Molly said.
"What about us?" Ian looked to Todd, who let out a sigh.
"Yeah." Hayley piped up. "You know we can help."
"Dad, let us do something." Ian said.
Todd shook his head. "This is dangerous… You guys stay here and help with the kids."
"So we're babysitting." Hayley groaned.
It wasn't long before Garrett returned, he handed the woman the layout, which Molly accepted.
She looked at the layout of the building. "Any ideas where they might keep the supplies?"
"Most likely in one of the stockrooms." Garrett said.
"Alright. There's two over there…" Molly said.
"So, we really can't help with anything?" Hayley asked.
Garrett looked to the teen. "I want you to stay here, where it's safe." The officer said.
"But Garrett, you know I can handle myself." Hayley said.
"Stay with Yadiel. Keep an eye on him for me." Garrett said.
Hayley let out a sigh. "Fine."
"What do you want to do?" Todd asked Molly.
"We do like you said. Head out when it gets dark." Molly replied.
"Sounds like a plan." Todd said.
The trio made sure to be careful, using the light of a single flashlight, they made their way through the yard as quietly as possible.
Getting pass the prisoner on guard in the watch toward was easier than Molly had anticipated it to be. She assumed he wasn't paying much attention.
Officer Garrett led the way, having the most knowledge about the prison. While Todd took up the rear.
Molly kept on her guard, as they proceeded to walk around the yard.
"What if we run into prisoners?" Todd whispered.
"Then we will do what we have to do." Molly stated plainly.
Garrett nodded in agreement. "I'll do what I have to, to protect our people."
"Me too..." Todd said.
"Don't shoot, unless you have to." Molly said.
The area was devoid of people. Molly assumed many of the prisoners were asleep. People had to count every minute of sleep they could get as a gift.
"Over here..." Garrett called in a hushed voice. "Stockroom's this way."
The window was barred, but they had a clear view inside. Much to their dismay, the room was cleared out.
"Shit..." Garrett swore.
"Any other ideas?" Todd asked.
"Maybe the armory... or one of the offices?" Garrett said.
Molly shook her head. "No... Some place less obvious."
Garrett thought for a moment. "Maybe the infirmary?" He suggested. "They could stock some stuff pretty good in there."
"Lead the way." Molly said.
They followed the officer as he walked around the building.
They eased their way to a window of a room, Garrett said to be the infirmary.
The three took a look inside, and sure enough they had found what they were looking for.
"Bingo." Garrett smirked.
"Great. Now what?" Todd looked to Molly.
"We get the hell out of here, before anyone shows up." Molly replied.
There was no way they could get in. The windows were also barred up. Besides, Molly knew it would be too risky.
"So that's it?" Todd asked. "We're not going to do anything else?"
"No. We got what we came here for, now we go." Molly replied.
Todd raised a brow, "But-"
"We can't do anything more now." Molly said. "Now that we know where they keep the supplies, we need to start planning."
She turned and started walk away. The two men followed after her.
"They really aren't letting us do anything." Avery huffed. "It's so annoying."
"I know. This is complete and utter bullshit." Hayley said. "All we ever do is watch the kids."
Clementine gasped, drawing the attention to her. "Swear..."
"What?" Hayley raised a brow at the child.
"You said a swear..." Clementine said.
"So what?" Hayley rolled her eyes.
"I don't like bad words..."
Avery chuckled, "Why not? Soon enough you'll be saying them yourself."
"Nu-uh." Clementine said.
The teens just snickered at the child.
"Why don't you go play or something?" Hayley asked.
"I don't know anyone..." Clementine shyly replied.
Hayley tapped her chin, "Yadiel will play with you. Tell him Garrett says he has to."
Clementine took the hint that the teens didn't want her around.
She decided she might as well try to get to know the other children.
She asked Yadiel and the twins if she could draw with them. The boys agreed.
It was a bit awkward, being the only girl. The boys were talking about boring stuff. The kind of things Duck would yammer on and on about... Clementine couldn't help but miss her old friend.
She continued to play with the boys until Shelby and Lynette came over, telling them it was time for bed.
Clementine laid on one of the prison bunks, waiting for Molly to return. She felt anxious. She just hoped her guardian would be okay.
Molly had figured things couldn't stay as simple as they had been. She wasn't too surprised when they found themselves surrounded by four prisoners.
They managed to take them out pretty easily. Molly had a much easier time taking out targets at close range. The two men were shocked by her fighting skills.
Molly knew they had to book it fast before anymore showed up.
They ran as fast as they could, back to their side of the prison.
The next morning, the group gathered back in the cafeteria.
Molly informed the others about having successfully found where the supplies was stash, leaving out the part of being shot at.
"What's the plan?" Shelby asked.
"Now that we know where they keep the supplies, we find a way to take back the food and water. As much as we can anyway." Molly said.
"We should get the weapons, the ammunition." Lynette said.
Molly shook her head. "No."
"Why not?" Todd asked. "We get the weapons and they're less dangerous."
"Some of those guys don't need a weapon to kill." Molly reminded.
"Molly's right. We need the food more anyway. We won't last long with the stock we have." Garrett added.
"Exactly." Molly said. "Hear me out. We focus on getting the food and water. If we take that back, little by little we have a better chance at winning this."
"How?" Lynette asked.
"For one, they won't know where the supplies are going. They're the ones who have access to it, meaning that they'll start to get suspicious of each other. The more they lose, the more they'll turn on one another. As long as we don't take too much at a time, they won't figure out what's going on before it's too late." Molly explained.
"That's smart." Todd commented.
"So how do we get in there?" Shelby asked.
"That's what I have to figure out." Molly replied.
Molly spent the next few days trying to come up with a plan. They needed a way to get into the stockroom, undetected.
She had looked at the vent system multiple times, but she had quickly realized much to her dismay that it wouldn't fit any of the adults or teens and she honestly didn't want to risk sending children through.
The only child she would trust to do something like that was Clementine, who knew how to stay hidden. But Molly didn't know if she wanted to take that risk.
"We're running low on food… We don't have a lot of options." Todd said.
"We still have the vent…" Garrett reminded. "You said it could be useful."
"Yeah, but we have a problem." Molly said. "No one is going to be able to fit through that thing… Well…. Except for Clementine."
The adults looked to the girl, who was playing with the other children.
"No way… She's a child…" Shelby protested.
"I know…" Molly replied.
"You can't seriously be considering letting her do something so dangerous." Lynette said.
"Everything is dangerous." Molly said.
"But you're literally tossing her into danger now." Lynette said, shaking her head in disbelief, a sad look in her eyes. "Those people are criminals. They... They killed my husband..."
"They're the worst kind, murders, rapist. What if she gets caught?" Todd asked, looking concerned.
"You said it yourself, we're running out of options." Molly said. "I'm not going to force her to go. But Clementine's smart. She knows how be careful. She won't get caught."
"You can't be sure about that." Todd said.
"I know her." Molly said. "That kid is tougher than you think."
The others exchanged looks.
"I don't like this…" Shelby sighed, shifting little Harper in her hold. She shook her head at the thought of letting a child do something so dangerous.
"Well… it's our best bet…" Molly said. She went over to Clementine, giving the child a tap on the shoulder. "Having fun?"
"Yeah. Do you want to help with something now?" Clementine innocently asked.
"Actually… I think we do need your help." Molly said.
The teenagers looked surprised to hear that.
"Why does she get to help?" Ian asked. "She's like seven."
"I'm nine." Clementine corrected.
"Who cares. Why are y'all letting some little kid help, and not us teenagers? I'm seventeen for fucks sake." Ian grumbled.
"She's the only one who can fit through the ventilation." Molly said.
Clementine frowned for a moment, remembering how she had to crawl through the vent when the group was stuck at the dairy. She was nervous then, but she was even more nervous now.
Molly noticed the girl's nervous expression and knelt to the child's level. "Hey, I'm not forcing you to do this… If you don't want to, just let me know."
"...I… I can do it." Clementine said. She wanted to help.
"You sure, kiddo?" Molly asked. "If you don't want to, just tell me."
"No… I can do it. I want to help." Clementine said.
Molly nodded. "You're always a big help, Clem."
Clementine smiled at that. "Thanks."
Molly gave the child a pat on the head before making her way back over go the other adults. Clementine followed her guardian, now curious to know what they had planned.
"Clementine's willing to crawl through the vent, and help out with the plan." Molly informed.
"Are you really going to make her do this?" Shelby asked.
"I'm not making her do anything." Molly retorted.
"I want to help." Clementine announced.
"She's just a child." Shelby said. "What if she gets hurt? They could hold her hostage or even kill her..."
Clementine frowned at that.
Molly sighed. "They could do worse than that."
The others paled.
Clementine furrowed her brows, wondering what Molly meant by that. She didn't know what could be worse than murder... She figured she would ask Molly later.
"This is a horrible idea..." Shelby huffed.
"It's the only one we have." Molly said.
That was true.
"Clementine is smart. I believe in her." Molly told the others.
Clementine felt happy to hear the praise. "Do you want me to go now?"
Molly shook her head. "Tomorrow."
"Why tomorrow?" Todd asked.
"I want to fill her in on the details. We gotta do this carefully." Molly said.
Before bed that night, Molly informed Clementine of the plan. The child still seemed nervous, and Molly could tell.
"You're going to be fine. You're brave, Clem. And you're such a smart little girl." Molly reassured the girl.
Clementine frowned, but said, "Okay..."
"What's wrong, Clem?" Molly asked.
Clementine shrugged.
"Come on, kiddo." Molly urged. "Talk to me."
Clementine hesitated, "I... Earlier you said that the bad guys could do something worse than killing me... What did you mean?"
Molly fell silence. She hadn't thought about Clementine hearing that statement when she said it.
"Molly?" Clementine looked to the woman, waiting for a response.
"It's time for bed, Clem..." Molly motioned for the girl to la y down.
Clementine frowned, but laid down. "Are you not going to tell me?"
Molly sighed, "Let's just say, they could hurt you in a bad way. And I don't want them doing anything to hurt you."
Clementine nodded. "Me either."
"You won't have to worry though. You're smart, you're small, and you're fast. Just stay as quiet as possible and go as slow as you need to. " Molly said.
"Go slow?" Clementine repeated.
Molly nodded. "Yeah. It's best if you take your time and not get caught rather than a rush and get clumsy."
"Okay..." The child said.
"Good girl." Molly said, she tugged the child closer to her. "Come on. Let's get some rest."
"Alright, you ready for this?" Molly asked.
"I think so." Clementine said. "Where do I go?"
"There's a place that looks like a doctor's office. That's where you go." Garrett said.
"Okay." Clementine said.
"Remember what I said, slow and quiet." Molly reminded.
"Okay Molly." The child said.
"And Clem, be careful." Molly told her.
Clementine nodded. "I will."
Garrett lifted the child up, helping her into the vent.
Clementine shifted in the ventilation, it was large enough for her to turn around.
Light from the open end of the vent illuminated the path.
Clementine crawled through the vent, ignoring the fear coursing through her body. She kept telling herself that she would be fine. She wouldn't get caught.
The girl crawled through the vent searching for the doctor's office room.
As she continued through the vent, it became darker the further she went. She relied on touch to guide her. From time to time the dark space would be lightened by a vent that opened into a room and Clementine would peek through, hoping it was the doctor's office.
She made sure to move slow to avoid making any suspicious, loud noises.
As she peered through one more vent, she realized she had found her room. Nobody seemed to be inside.
She waited for a few moments, listening out for any sign of a person in or close by the room. Once she felt confident all was safe, she grabbed onto the vent cover and moved it back and forth, shaking it loose from the connections.
She then pulled herself through the vent. Shifting her position, she scooted forward, inch by inch. she let her legs dangle downward, before letting her body release from the vent. She fell to the ground, hands hitting the floor. She winced slightly, but quickly composed herself, looking around for any threat. All was clear.
Clementine quickly spotted a large amount of supplies. The child started searching for a bag, finding an almost empty one. She began to stock up on what she could, remembering not to take too much.
She threw a couple of cans and water bottles in the bag, making sure it was light enough for her to carry.
Place the bag down, she made her way to the other side of the room. The child began looking through a draw, finding medication. She checked the other draws. More medicine. When she checked the last draw however, her eyes widened. There was a single candy bar. She picked up the chocolate bar before making her way back to the bag, she threw the candy bar inside.
She had to draw a chair over, in order to reach the vent. It wasn't super high, but it was high enough for her to reach on her own.
She practically tossed the bag inside, just as she heard a voice from outside the door.
Clementine's eyes widened and she quickly pulled herself up into the vent. Her heart was hammering in her chest.
The door opened, and a man walked into the room.
Clementine watched nervous, she didn't risk moving, not wanting to make any noise.
The man walked around the room, letting out a mutter of, "What the fuck?"
Clementine swallowed, wondering if she'd been spotted. She waited with dread for the man to come over to her but that never happened, instead he made his way over to the draw that Clementine just realized she had left open.
The man looked inside the draw before his face twisted into an angry look. "Who the fuck ate my damn chocolate bar."
Clementine's looked to the bag, eyes wide. She continued to watch the man for a moment as he angrily made his way out the room, slamming the door shut behind him.
Clementine sighed in relief. She waited several moments before she started back to where Molly and the others were.
Upon her return, Molly immediately hugged her. Clementine returned the hug, trembling a little.
"Good job, kiddo." Molly praised.
Clementine lowered her head, "I messed up…"
"With what?" Molly inquired.
"I took a candy bar…" Clementine said. "And then I heard a man get mad."
Molly smirked, "Eat it. Consider it a prize for a successful mission."
The child brightened. "Really?"
"Yep." Molly said.
Clementine smiled, fear forgotten as she immediately started to eat her newly obtained candy bar.
Molly took the bag from the child.
"Well, that went better than we thought." Todd said.
"Like I told you, Clem's a smart kid." Molly said. She felt pride in saying that, and knowing that Clementine was her responsibility.
"Well, you weren't lying. Well done, Clementine." Todd said.
As the weeks went on Clementine continued her mission.
Each time she felt less nervous than before. She knew what to do. Still, she made sure to stay careful. She knew didn't get caught yet, and she didn't want that to change.
Today's routine was the same, however sometime felt off today.
The room was empty when Clementine arrived, but she couldn't help but feel that someone had been there.
She went to work, trying to stock up the bag, but before she could start gather supplies she heard footsteps approaching.
Clementine looked around for a hiding spot, ducking under one of the beds.
She watched as a man entered the room, digging through some of the supplies, he started munching away on a bag of chips. He seemed to be as nervous as Clementine felt right now.
"What are you doing?" Came another voice.
The man practically jumped out of his skin, nearly dropping the bag.
Clementine frowned, watching fearfully.
"Are you stealing food?" The second man asked angrily.
The first man scoffed. "I was hungry, y'all putting limits on the food like we're in school or something.
"We're losing food as it is. Put it back." The second man said.
"Fuck you." The first man replied.
"What the hell did you say?" The second man shot him a glare.
"You heard me, asshole. I said fuck you." The first man said.
Clementine tucked herself further under the bed, heart pound harshly. The child stayed under the bed, trembling wildly as the men yelled at each other.
When suddenly, she heard a gunshot rang out.
One of the men collapsed, on feet away from her. Clementine threw a hand over her mouth, holding back a gasp. Panic rolled through her, filling her with bitter fear.
The second man walked to the first man, and proceeded to shoot him in the head.
Clementine watched in horror as blood dripped to the ground. The child was scared out of her mind. She had to struggle to keep her breathing quiet and not give in to the fear that was squeezing her chest.
"Fucking piece of shit." The man grumbled.
Clementine moved back a bit further as not to be seen as the man grabbed the dead body and began dragging it from the room.
The girl stayed put for a bit, waiting in case the man returned. He didn't.
Clementine took a few deep breaths. She had to fight panic and get back to Molly.
Shaking, she made her way from her hiding spot. She stumbled towards the vent before remembering the supplies. She quickly made a beeline back to the bag, packing it with what supplies she could before rushing over to the chair below the vent.
She tossed the bag in, before pulling herself up. She wasted no time in making her way back to her group. She had never been more terrified in her life.
The last thing Molly had expected was for Clementine to practically throw herself from the vent. She tossed herself into her guardian's arms as soon as she spotted her. The child was whimpering fearfully. Molly hugged the poor girl, wondering what had happened.
"Clem, what happened?"
Clementine shook her head, too shaken up to respond.
Molly picked the child up, telling her it was okay, she was safe now.
It took nearly fifteen minutes for her to actually get the child to calm down.
"I don't want to do it anymore…" Clementine sniffled. "It's too scary. Please don't make me do it anymore!"
"Shh…" Molly hushed the child. "Tell me what happened, Clem."
"They started fighting. They were yelling and then… One of them just shot the other one." Clementine explained. "I thought they were going to find me."
"But they didn't. You're alright…" Molly said. She had known it was a gamble, but they had been dealt a shit hand and Molly had to deal with it. However, it wasn't worth letting Clementine get hurt. The girl had done enough. "You don't have to do it anymore, sweetie."
"P-Promise?" Clementine stammered.
"I promise." Molly said.
"I'm sorry… I disappointed you…" Clementine said.
"No you didn't. You've done so good. You're so brave, doing it for this long." Molly said.
"There's not a lot left…" Clementine informed.
"Then that's good enough." Molly said.
"What now?" Asked Lynette.
"We wait." Molly said. "And hope the plan works."
Days went by and the plan had proved to be a success. With the lack of food, the prisoners were more irritable, turning on each other left and right.
Molly was glad the plan was going so smoothly.
Clementine spend the next few days, playing with the other children, who she had grown close to. It was the easy way to block out the gunshot that echoed throughout the place.
The group sat there in silence, hearing the loud fire of gun blazing. A good hour passed before the shooting finally stopped.
The silence didn't break until Molly spoke, "This is our time…"
"What?" Lynette asked.
"We can attack them…" Molly said.
"You sure it's a good idea?" Garrett asked.
"Their defenses are going be low, they're most likely wounded and exhausted. We have to do this now." Molly told them.
The adults seemed hesitant to agree but they knew Molly hadn't steered them wrong so far.
"Alright…" Todd said.
"I'm going too, dad." Ian said. "I'm not sitting this one out."
"Ian…" Shelby frowned.
"Don't try to stop me." Ian said. "I'm not going to sit here and do nothing."
"Okay." Todd said, surprising the boy. "You can come."
Hayley looked to Garrett, who let out a sigh.
"Just be careful." Garrett simply said.
The girl gave a nod.
They picked up some weapons, Todd looked to Molly, offering her a gun. "You need a weapon."
"I don't go anywhere without it." Molly motioned to Hilda. "Keep an eye on Clem for me, will you?" She addressed the two women who were staying with the children.
The women nodded.
"Of course." Shelby said.
Molly looked to the rest of the group, "Let's go."
They discussed methods for taking out the prisoner. Silent weapons where their prime choice. Molly knew it was risky, but it was their best chance at ending things once and for all.
However things didn't go as they hoped.
When the prisoners started to fire gunshot, instinct was to fire back. And that's what they did.
They wiped out several of the remaining prisoners.
Molly, Todd, and Ian made their way inside to rid of the prisoners there.
They stopped as Garrett let out a yell.
"Garrett!" Hayley yelled.
"I'm fine! I'm fine!" Garrett said. He had been shot in the leg.
"Get him behind cover." Molly ordered to Hayley. "Stay with him."
Hayley nodded.
Molly could see prisoners taking shots from the barred windows inside. "Come on."
Todd and Ian followed the woman. The three ran into the building, taking out the few prisoners that remained in the building.
"I think we're good…" Todd said.
"Stay on your guard." Molly replied.
"Looks like we took out-" He was cut off by a sharp pain in his chest. The man collapsed to the ground, limp as a rag doll.
"DAD!" Ian cried. Glaring at the man who shot his father, he returned fire.
Molly rushed over to him. A large puddle of blood had form under him. She quickly checked for a pulse, finding none. He'd been shot right in the chest.
Molly frowned, heart clenching.
"Can you help him? Do something!" Ian cried.
"I can't… I can't, Ian… He's gone…" Molly said.
She placed a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder as he began to sob. Molly pulled the boy into a hug, allowing him to cry for his loss.
Her gaze drifted to Todd's form, knowing he would turn so. She let out a sigh, it never got easier to lose someone...
Releasing her grip on the teen boy, she spoke in a gentle, yet firm voice. "Close your eyes."
The boy did so, trembling.
Slowly Molly stood and made her way to Todd's body, just as the man's corpse began to move again. She quickly stabbed him in the head, trying to block out Ian's broken cries.
"Come on..." She called to the boy in a solemn tone.
The boy slowly stood and made his way over to the woman.
Molly had to practically guide him out. He was so distraught.
The two left, without looking back.
When Molly and the others returned to the group, Clementine quickly rushed to the woman.
"You're okay!" Clementine said. "I'm so glad."
"You're all back." Lynette sighed in relief.
Shelby quickly hugged her son, while little Yadiel ran over to Garrett asking if the officer was okay.
"Wait…" Avery spoke up, "Where's dad?"
Shelby's eyes widened and she looked to Molly.
Molly shook her head, a sad expression on her face, "I'm so sorry…"
Shelby immediately broke into tears, Avery doing the same.
"Did... Did he turn?" Avery asked through her whimpers.
"No..." Molly said. "I didn't let him..."
Everyone lowered their heads frowning.
Little Harper gently patted her mother's cheek, "Don't cry, mommy."
That only made the woman cry more.
Molly felt her heart break for the family.
After a week, had gone by Molly was sure the prison was safe. The group had enough supplies for at least a few weeks, and more importantly, they wouldn't have to worry about the prisoners shooting at them.
Molly decided it was time to move on. She had never been a group person, and she didn't plan on becoming one.
She looked to Clementine as the child snuggled close to her. "Molly, are all the bad people dead?"
"Yeah…" Molly said.
"Will more bad people come?" It only made since to the child. It was a prison afterall.
"Hopefully not." Molly replied.
"I hope not too." Clementine said.
"Get some rest, kid. We're hitting the road tomorrow." Molly said.
"Do we have to leave?" Clementine asked with a frown.
"Yeah, kiddo."
"Okay…" Clementine said. "Molly…"
"Yeah?" Molly asked.
"I'm glad I have you." Clementine simply said.
It was the last thing Molly had expected to hear, but it made her feel good. A small smile crossed her lips, "Thanks Clem. I'm glad I have you too."
