Thanks to gaara king of the sand for the help.

Sorry for the delay everyone. Life's been keeping me busy. But I'm back! Hope you all enjoy the chapter.


Molly couldn't shake her worry as she continued to run. She kept wondering if Pete would survive this. She had done her best to bandage Pete's stump with what she had, she knew clothing wasn't the most sanitary choice of "bandages" but it had to do.

She felt bad for leaving Pete. He had been barely conscious and due to the blood loss, he was completely defenseless. Still, she knew he wouldn't last long without medical attention.

As she ran, she was pulled out of her thoughts when she noticed a small crowd of geeks surrounding some kind of shed.

The woman furrowed her brows, something was obviously drawing their attention. She wondered if Clementine and Nick were inside.

She needed to find out. She needed to make sure her girl was okay.

Clementine made her way downstairs to find Sam stationed at the door, barking away. The girl started to call out to the dog, but Sarah's nervous voice got her attention.

"That's not Luke." Sarah said, her back was against the wall and she seemed to be trying to avoid being seen.

Clementine felt her stomach drop at those words.

Sarah trailed off taking a peek at the door.

Clementine followed suit with a confused expression.

"Clem… I think I know him…" Sarah said.

"Who is he?" Clementine asked.

"I… My group was with him before… but he… he yelled a lot… He was so mean, and scary…" Sarah stammered out an explanation. "The… The grown-ups are scared of him… Dad's scared of him…" That was saying a lot to Sarah. To the teen, her father wasn't scared of anything.

A knock came at the door, causing the two girls to jump a bit. Clementine felt worried by how panicked Sarah sounded. Who was this guy?

"He can't see me. You have to make him go away." Sarah said.

While still confused, the child nodded. "Go and find somewhere to hide."

"Where?" Sarah asked.

"Hello?!" The man at the door called.

Sam began to growl even more, barking now as well.

"C-Clem… I can't breathe. I ca-can't breathe." Sarah choked out.

Clementine motioned for the teen to quiet down. "Go upstairs… I'll… try to make him leave."

"H-How…?" Sarah asked.

Clementine reached into her pocket drawing a knife.

Sarah's eyes widened. "A-Are you gonna use that?"

"Hopefully I don't have to." Clementine replied. "Go hide. Now."

Clementine took a deep breath and started to tip toe towards the door, hoping to lock it.

"Hello?" The gruff voice called once more.

Clementine reached her small hand towards the lock, but the door swung open before she could even touch it.

"Hello there." A man spoke.

Clementine eyed him suspiciously. "Hello…"

"How are you?" The man asked.

"Okay… How are you?" Clementine replied.

"Well, I'm doing just fine. Thank you." The man said.

Sam gave a growl at the man.

The man looked to the dog. "Settle down, I'm not here to hurt anyone."

Clementine watched as the man allowed the dog to smell his palm before petting his head.

"He's a cute dog." The man said.

"He's tough…" Clementine wished Sam started barking or would just scare the man off.

"I'm sure he is." The man said. "My family and I are set up a ways down-river. I'm… kinda surprised we haven't run into each other yet."

Clementine's gaze drifted to the gun at the man's side. She knew she needed to be careful. If this guy was as dangerous as the group made him out to be, she was at a big disadvantage."

"What's your name?" The man asked.

The question surprised the young girl. She didn't know why, but she wasn't expecting it. "What's your name?" She questioned back.

The man chuckled. "My name is George, honey." He reached out a hand to shake hers.

Clementine hesitantly shook his hand.

"Pleasure to meet you." The man said.

The child didn't respond.

"You mind if I come in for a bit?" The man didn't give her the chance to reply before he started forcing his way into the room.

"Yes… I do mind." Clementine said in a stern tone. "You need to leave."

"Don't worry. I won't stay long. I've just been out all morning and the heat has got me feeling a bit cooked." George said.

"I don't know you, you have to leave." Clementine said.

"I'm sure your folks taught you not to talk to strangers." George said.

"They did teach me that…" Clementine frowned upon hearing that. If only she had listened and not talked to that man on the radio. Lee would still be here...

"They'll be proud to know how well you follow directions." George said. "But I'm not a stranger, honey. You can talk to me." George figured the "stranger-danger warning" was why the girl was so quiet. "I told you my name, how about you tell me yours?"

Clementine scrunched her nose in doubt, not responding.

"I guess I can call you whatever I please then? Is that right, honey?" George asked.

"My name's not honey…" Clementine spoke up after a second.

"Oh? Then what is it?" George wondered.

"Cl- Carley… I'm Carley." Clementine lied.

"That's a sweet name." George said. "And now we know each other."

"That's a tricky move…" Clementine said. "You're still a stranger. I don't know you."

"Well, we could get to know each other. I'll tell you a little bit about myself." George said.

Clementine shook her head. "You have to leave."

"Are you scared of getting in trouble, Carley?" George asked the girl.

"No…" Clementine said.

"I promise if your mommy and daddy come back, I'll tell them you were just being polite." George said.

"Can you please leave." Clementine said, running out of patience.

"Like I said. I won't stay long." George replied. "This is a nice place. Is there anyone else around? You don't usually see cabins this big out here."

Clementine didn't say a word.

"It can't just be you and your dog?" George asked. "No way you've would've made it this long."

Clementine crossed her arms at his statement.

"Where did your mommy and daddy go?"

Clementine didn't like how he was speaking to her. As if he was talking to a small child, which to be fair, she was, but she wasn't used to being treated like one.

"Sam and I can handle ourselves." Clementine said.

"Really? So you don't have a group?" George asked.

"We have a big group… Lots." Clementine said.

"Oh? How big?"

"Dozens. They'll be back soon." Clementine fibbed, hoping he believed her.

"And they left you here all alone?" George asked.

"So?"

"Not a good idea leaving a small defenseless child alone." George said.

"I'm not defenseless." Clementine replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh? And what would you do if someone dangerous came by?" George asked.

Clementine felt her heart pound a bit at the question. "I can handle myself…"

"I guess so. Seems that group of yours really trusts you." George said. "Well, I'll cut to the chase; I'm out looking for my people. Seven of them, to be exact. They've been gone a long while and... I'm worried they might've gotten lost." George moved further into the house, peering into the living room. "Maybe you've seen 'em. A couple a farm boys, and an old man... Spanish guy and his daughter. Quiet girl, a bit taller than you. A big black guy." George used his hands to demonstrate the man he was describing, "This big. And a pretty little pregnant lady."

"That's a lot of people to lose." Clementine said.

"Tell me about it. This whole damn thing's a pain in the ass." George replied. He looked around before pushing open the kitchen door and carefully stepping inside.

Clementine nervously rubbed the back of her neck before trailing after the man. Sam followed behind the little girl, the dog didn't seem to sure on how to react to the stranger.

George scanned the room, before walking over to stand beside the sink. "Well, looks like a damn tornado ran through here. Must be like, close to ten people with you."

"More."

"Hm..." George hummed.

Clementine was unsure if he was buying her story or not.

"Hey, listen kid. I hope you're not one of those nuts headed up north, looking for Shangri-La. Now, I'm not sure why you'd go anywhere after finding this place. Hell, I just got here, and I already don't want to leave." George said.

"You should leave... This is my house." Clementine said.

"Not really the most welcoming, are you?" George asked.

"I asked you to leave and you forced your way in… I don't know you. You're a stranger." Clementine responded.

"And mommy and daddy told you not to talk to strangers, right? Well… You know something, honey, that's true. You should never talk to a stranger who might hurt you. But I'm not gonna do that, am I?" George said.

Clementine shrugged, her gaze once again drifting to his gun.

George noticed this and said, "Oh, don't worry about this here. It's just for protection. You know things can get pretty bad out there."

"Yeah… I do…"

"So, how long does your group plan on staying here?" George asked.

Clementine furrowed her brows, "Where do you live?"

"Down by the river there. There's a sweet little spot with a boat where we pitched camp. Got a few tents up and everything. Like I said, I'm surprised we haven't run into each other."

Clementine started thinking of ways to get this man out of the cabin. If she just drew her knife and threatened him, she doubted he would take her seriously. Besides, he had a gun. It was too risky. She needed to think of something, fast.


Molly wracked her brain trying to come up with an idea on how to easily deal with the geeks. However, none came to mind. She was outnumbered here, and though she was pretty used to dealing with geeks she knew there was always a risk.

Regardless, she had no choice but to kill them in order to get to the shack.

Drawing Hilda in a secure grip, she made her way over and became killing the geeks one by one.

Once the undead were all…. Dead. She headed to the shack in pulled it open.

She noticed Nick, laid upon the ground and for a moment she couldn't tell if he was even alive. "Nick?" Molly called.

Nick groaned. "My head is fucking killing me."

"What happened? Where's Clementine?" Molly asked.

"I told the kid make a break for it…" Nick struggled to his feet. "Where's my uncle?"

"Things don't look good. I'll take you to him, we got to get him back to the cabin fast."

Nick looked confused and worried at the same time. "Wait, slow down… What's wrong with him?"

Molly hesitant before saying to the boy, "Pete was bit."

Nick's eyes grew wide.


Clementine glanced around the kitchen for something she could use then and there. Drawing her knife would be too dangerous. Especially when George had a gun.

George noticed the child seemed distracted and followed her gaze, catching sight of a knife. He grabbed it, in case the little girl had some kind of "smart" idea. He raised it to intimidate the small child who took a startled step back.

Sam begin to growl and George quickly lowered the weapon.

"Where does this go?" George asked.

"I-In that drawer over there…" Clementine stuttered, feeling a bit shaken.

George walked over to the drawer and placed the knife inside. After doing so he made his way to the door and walked out the kitchen. Clementine followed, feeling more nervous with each passing minute.

"This is a real nice place. Kinda cozy." George said as he headed towards the living room. He caught sight of a shirt on the couch. "I knew a guy who always wore shirts like this. Doctor. Real smug son of a bitch, but a smart man. I miss him…"

"What's his name?" Clementine asked, trying to keep an innocent tone.

"Carlos." George replied before continuing to look around. He spotted the chess board and spoke again, "Well, well… white's in trouble. Only two moves away from checkmate."

Suddenly the two heard a creak from the staircase, and Clementine immediately knew it had to be Sarah.

"What was that?" George asked.

"What was what?" Clementine played dumb.

"I thought you said nobody's here." George said.

"Nobody is here!" Clementine huffed.

George pulled his gun and went to check upstairs. Clementine made sure to follow him, worried he would find Sarah.

George began to check room after room, when a thought dawned on Clementine. George had his back turned to her, he was vulnerable. Now was her chance to take him out.

Clementine rushed forward, pulling her knife free and jabbing it into his leg.

George yelled in pain, clutching at his bleeding leg.

Clementine took the opportunity to snatch his gun and aim it at him. "I won't say it again. Leave, now."

"You're a crazy little bitch, aren't you?" George hissed.

"I guess I am." Clementine said, nonchalantly keeping the gun trained on him.

"You won't shoot me…" George said.

"Want to bet?"

George kept silent for a moment, before groaning in pain. "Fuck… I was trying to help you, honey."

"Help me?" Clementine raised a brow.

"You… You have no idea who these people are, do you?" George grunted out.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Clementine said.

"Lemme ask you this..." He muttered. "When you met 'em, how much did they trust you?"

Clementine choose not to respond. She wasn't going to budge for this man.

"…If people don't trust you, how can you trust them?" George asked.

Clementine let his words sink in, but said nothing, keeping the gun aimed at him.

"…Well, I think I've troubled you long enough… I'll let myself out."

"Don't come back." Clementine warned to the now limping man.

"You have a real good day now." George scoffed.


"That ain't fucking true. You're lying to me." Nick snapped at Molly.

"I'm not lying. He got bit…" Molly said.

"So… So he's dead…?" Nick gulped, feeling sick.

Molly shook her head. "He's alive. Just barely… He…We… cut it off."

"You what?" Nick's eyes were wide, jaw dropped.

"We cut his leg off. It was the only choice we had." Molly said.

"Are you out of your damn mind?! Where the fuck is he?" Nick inquired.

"I'll take you to him. Just lower your voice." Molly said.

"Lower my voice? You're telling me my uncle was bit! Fuck you." Nick spat.

"Look, freaking out isn't going to help him. He needs medical attention. I need you to help me carry him back to the cabin."

"…Fine."

"Good." Molly said.

"Lead the way…" Nick said.

Molly nodded and started making her way back towards the truck where she had left Pete. The whole time she was just hoping the man was still alive.

They got to the truck and Molly opened the door, seeing Pete laid out unmoving. She cautiously checked the man's breathing, finding he was still alive.

"Come on. Let's get him back to the cabin. Carlos can take a look at him."

"I… I saved you girl and you do this to my uncle?" Nick shot her a glare.

"Do what?"

"This?"

"I didn't do anything wrong to him. He would've died if I wasn't here." Molly said. "Anyway, my girl can handle herself anytime, anywhere. She's very adaptive."

Nick huffed, but nodded home." What should I do?"

"Grab his left side and I'll get the right."

Nick nodded in response.

With Pete in their grip, the began to walk further and further away from the truck.

They continue to make their way to the cabin in silence. That was until, Nick suddenly seemed to feeze.

"What's up?" Molly asked.

Nick was about to respond, however they suddenly caught the sound of voices. "I thought I hear someone…" He muttered. He peeked through a bush and his eyes grew wide. He stumbled back.

"What?"

"That's Tavia and Troy… Nick said.

"Tavia and Troy? Who's are they?" Molly asked,

"They work with Carver…. We…. We gotta go back." Nick stuttered.

"No way. We gotta get to that cabin. Pete's life depends on it." Molly reminded.

Nick nodded, though the look of fear in his eyes didn't fake. "But… If those two are here… That means Carver and the others can't far. We need to get the hell out of here. You don't understand what their capable of."

"I don't know a thing about them. And I won't until you explain to me." Molly said.

"Now? Now's not the time." Nick said,

"Now's the perfect time." Molly said. "While we're heading back to the cabin."

"If we can make it back…" Nick mumbled.

"Listen to me, we're not looking for trouble. But if they try to start trouble…. We don't hesitate to fight back." Molly said.

"Okay…."

"Now tell me what I should know about those people." Molly said.


Clementine followed George down the stairs, watching him walk out the door before quickly locking it. She watched from the window as the man limped away from the cabin. She than began to check the rooms for Sarah, quickly finding the teen hiding under the bed in her room.

"It's okay. He's gone…" Clementine informed the teen.

Sarah slowly crawled out from her hiding space and stood. "What if he comes back?"

Clementine bit her lip at the question.

"Do you think he will?" Sarah asked.

Clementine was almost positive he would, but she didn't want to scare Sarah. "We have his gun now. If he comes back… We'll shoot him."

"I don't want to hurt anyone." Sarah frowned.

"Sometimes, you don't have a choice, Sarah. We got to be ready for anything." Clementine said.

Sarah frowned at the young girl's words. "What now?"

"We hope the adults come back soon… If not, we'll go find them." Clementine replied.

Sarah looked shocked. "We can't just leave…"

"It's not safe here anymore, Sarah… You got to trust me." Clementine said.

"I do…" Sarah said. "I trust you…"

"Good. For now, we'll wait… hopefully they come back soon. If not, we go looking for them." Clementine said.

"…Okay…"