Thanks for all the reviews! I appreciate the feedback. We are coming up onto some group changing events. Things may or may not be canon… dun dun dun.
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Merle was sharpening his knives while watching Sam sleep curled up on his bed roll. Their impromptu scavenging trip and the vigorous christening of the looted house had apparently tuckered her out. Merle smirked thinking about her pressed against the wall while he was buried deep inside her.
'Fuckin so hot,' he groaned inwardly and adjusted his suddenly to tight jeans. The sound of the church door opening had Merle looking up and watching Gabriel come back inside his voice low but hurried, "Something's out there."
Merle hopped up and exited the church to see Michonne near the edge of the woods speaking to someone. He climbed down the steps quickly and saw Daryl as well as a teenage kid.
"The fuck Daryl?" Merle growled stomping over, "Where'd ya fuck off to? Where's Carol?" He felt his heart clench at the missing woman.
"She's in Atlanta. I got shit to tell ya, le's do it all at once." Daryl responded pushing past Merle and Michonne muttering, "This is Noah."
Merle glared at the kid feeling untrusting of any new face. The teen cowered under the gaze, his lanky frame limping after Daryl. Merle looked at Michonne who shrugged then followed the other two. Soon Rick was woken by the noise and they stood at the back of the church discussing what Daryl found out.
Beth was being held at Grady Memorial hospital in Atlanta. The car that had taken her that fateful night belonged to a bunch of power hungry police officers. Merle sneered at the knowledge, "Fuckin pigs."
Rick rolled his eyes at the insult and rasped, "Carol?"
"Carol's there too. They hit her with their car. Took 'er away but they got doctors to help 'er. This is Noah, he knows Beth. She helped him escape." Daryl informed them and continued to describe the place she was being held and the power they held over the residents. Most patients didn't choose to end up there and were now indentured servants with no hope of escape. A plan was quickly devised and it was decided a group would travel back to Grady. They would do whatever possible to save both women. Merle looked over at Sam who was still knocked out and rasped, "Who's stayin?"
"I'd like Michonne, Sam and Carl to stay with Judith." Rick answered his eyes dancing over to Michonne. The woman gave him a nod before asking, "The priest?"
"He stays. Sam and you can keep an eye on him." Rick responded his hands resting on his low riding holster. "Will Sam be ok stayin'?" he asked his eyes cutting to Merle's.
"I don' care if she's ok with it, she's stayin'. She's far from healthy." Merle drawled gruffly, his statement getting a snort out of Michonne.
"You realize who you're talking about right?" she asked crossing her arms, a cheshire grin splitting her amused face. Merle scoffed, "She's gotta rest. We walked a ton yesterday. Lookit 'er. She's out, don' even hear us talkin'."
"Ok it's decided. Me, Merle, Daryl, Sasha, Tyreese and Noah will go to Atlanta. We'll get Beth and Carol and come back here." Rick instructed his eyebrows raised waiting for any disagreements. Merle nodded and drawled, "First light?"
Merle tipped his chin to Michonne who returned to watch. Rick, Daryl and Merle stayed to talk about what Daryl had missed while he was in Atlanta.
"Don't fuckin run off like that again, ya hear?" Merle growled, jabbing his finger into his kid brother's chest.
"Didn' have a choice. I couldn't loose the car." Daryl snapped angrily swatting Merle's hand away. Merle glowered at him and hissed, "We were attacked while ya ran off playin superhero, asshole."
"Wha'?" his brother asked with a furrowed brow, his eyes jumping to Rick's tension filled gaze.
Rick sighed and scrubbed his face, his shoulders slumping, "Bob got taken by the Terminus sickos. Ate his damn leg in front of 'em. He was bit at the food bank, hid it."
"Fuck," Daryl grunted his eyes looking towards Sasha and Tyreese. The woman was lying down but obviously awake. "Ya kill 'em?" he growled his eyes jumping to Merle's stony face.
"Yeah we did, then the big fuckin' ginger took Maggie, Glenn and the lesbo to DC. They left this mornin'. Didn't wanna wait for your dumbasses t'come back from who tha fuck know's where." Merle ranted harshly his accent coming out thick and angry.
"Fuckin' kiddin me?" Daryl snapped, his eyes jumping around the group looking for the others.
Rick put his hand out as if to calm Daryl and explained, "They were gonna leave as soon as we found Bob. Abraham wasn't risking Eugene's life on us. Glenn got 'em to stay to help as long as he and Maggie left in the morning. Tara offered to go also. Didn't like it but it was the only way we could do it."
Merle crossed his thick arms defensively and struggled to express the fear he had for his brother without saying it out right. "Try t'not leave us in the lurch again? I know ya found 'er. t's good ya did but shit! We thought they had ya. I didn'…. just fuckin' drop a note or somethin' next time, Darylina." Merle looked at his brother with a stern yet pained expression.
Daryl nodded, chewing his thumb looking guilty, "A'right."
They spoke the rest of the night on a plan and a route. Merle kept glancing at Sam's sleeping form with dread. He knew she wasn't going to let him leave easily. They had promised each other to never be apart again. He was breaking that promise and he knew it was going to stress Sam out.
"Sugar, Rick needs ya to stay with them kids. I'm needed in Atlanta." Merle rasped quietly to Sam who stood against the wall of the church. She watched as the others finished packing their bags, her arms crossed angrily.
"I don't feel good about this Merle." She muttered her eyes prickling at the thought of separating again. They had just found each other again and she feared what could happen. Merle pulled her into his chest and kissed her forehead, "I'll be back before ya know it."
She felt him nuzzle into her hair and his hand flex, his fingers squeezing her closer.
Sam hugged him tighter, tilting her face upwards to kiss him properly. Their lips teased each other and tongues stroked. Heat rushed up her chest and painted her cheeks. The man was like a drug. As soon as he started touching her and kissing her, Sam wanted to tear his clothes off. She moaned as she felt him hard against her stomach and the bite of his fingers into the flesh of her hip.
A throat clearing brought them out of their little bubble. "Gotta go Merle." Daryl drawled awkwardly. Sam glared at him despite the situation not being his fault. When he looked down nervously Sam sighed, "Sorry Daryl. I'm just worried about you guys leaving."
He nodded and tried to reassure her, "Ya know we'll be fine."
"I know, I know Dixons can't die yadayadayada." She teased looking up at Merle, "You better come back or I swear to Christ I'll…. I'll. I don't know but it won't be pretty."
Merle chuckled and kissed her chastely, "I'll be back soon sweetheart."
They hugged and then she waved goodbye to everyone before closing the large wood doors. Michonne and Carl started nailing it shut with the wood from the pews they broke up. Sam picked up the crying Judith to soothe her. The little girl was having none of it though, her keening reaching a fever pitch.
"Fuck how does Merle do this shit." She cursed bouncing the girl around. Judith's cries stopped and she looked up with teary eyes. Sam narrowed hers and whispered, "You really do like cussed words Huh?"
A whimper started with a wobbly chin and flushed cheeks, Judith was on the road to a full-blown scream so Sam whispered, "Fuckin' shit."
The little girl's cries stopped and she gurgled. Rolling her eyes Sam informed the others, "Carl the only thing that stops your sister from crying is when I say cuss words."
Carl chuckled and suggested, "Well keep fuckin' cussing then."
Sam snickered at his foul mouth when his dad wasn't present and whispered, "Dixon men are a bad fuckin' influences on huh lil ass kicker?" Soon the girl was napping after Sam sung a lullaby of foul-mouthed insults that would make a sailor blush.
After laying the baby down Sam noticed Gabriel scrubbing the stained floor while Carl tried to get him to pick a weapon. Sam wasn't too sure she wanted the guy to have a weapon, he seemed unhinged since his confession. Apparently he had locked his whole congregation out while they were eaten alive. It just reaffirmed Sam's belief that religion was pointless. The man who was supposed to be holier than thou was just another idiot capable of atrocities. No one was any better than anyone else. No one was free of doing wrong or committing evil acts, especially in the new world.
Sam was eating a can of peaches with Carl and Judith. They had been integrating some mashed fruit into her diet to get her on solid food. Formula was becoming nonexistent and the girl would need to adapt.
"You think they'll be back tonight?" Carl asked his tone hopeful.
"No. The drives a couple hours, figure a few hours to deal with the rescue, then a couple hours back... They'll rest half way home probably. That's if everything goes smoothly." Sam explained honestly. She didn't want to get the kids hopes up and have them dashed at sundown.
Carl looked down anxiously and Sam added to reassure the kid, "They'll be back though."
"I know it's just... I don't like us get separated again." Carl muttered, his hand fiddling with a pocketknife. Sam watched him carving his name into the wood floor.
She patted his back and agreed, "Me neither kid."
"Not a kid." Carl snapped but without any real bite.
"Me neither man." Sam amended.
"That's better." He smirked watching Sam put a spoonful of peaches in Judith's open mouth. The little girl smacked her lips and stuck her fist in while mushing the peaches, half of the fruit spilling out onto her shirt. Carl laughed and helped Sam scoop it back into the girl's mouth. Sam watched Michonne speak to Gabriel as he peeked through the office door. She quirked an eyebrow at the man's odd behavior.
"Don't trust that guy. Okay?" Sam stated her eyes coming back to the teen's.
Carl snorted, "Ya sound like dad."
Sam grinned, "Well your dads a smart man and I'm a smart woman. That guy's got a screw loose."
"Don't we all?" Carl quipped with a tiny smile, his blues eyes so much like his dad's.
Sam shook her head and turned to look at Carl head on. She wanted him to know that she was serious about her warning, "True but all of us would have each other's backs. He'll cut and run at the first sign of trouble. Don't trust him to keep you safe."
"Fine but not everyone's bad." Carl conceded his hand wiping the excessive food from Judith's little drool covered chin.
"I know. Look how many people we have in our family." Sam explained then continued, "I'm just saying even if he's good, even if he hasn't done as bad of things like the other people we've run into, doesn't mean he won't hurt us. He might not do it intentionally but he would put us at risk. So please just be safe okay?"
Carl chewed his lip and then nodded, "Okay Sam. I will"
"Thanks." She replied with a smile, "Now let's get your sister to sleep some more."
A pounding on the front door had the trio running to the boarded up entrance. Gabriel was somehow outside screaming for help. Sam could hear snarling walkers and the man's desperate pleas. Carl started trying to remove the boards. Sam yanked him away, "No Carl!"
"We have to save him!" the teen shouted, his hand pointing at the boarded up doorway.
"No he went out there on purpose. We aren't risking our lives for him." She shouted back, moving to block the door from Carl's reach.
Michonne looked at both of them and seemed to be torn with indecision. Carl tried yanking away from Sam but she pushed him into the wall holding him back.
"Carl! If we open that door we'll die!" Sam exclaimed her hands trying to keep a hold on Carl's narrow frame.
Gabriel screams were getting high and more frantic, the walkers were growling and moaning. Michonne nodded to Sam telling her she agreed. Carl's hands were gripping Sam's biceps painfully as he shouted, "We can't let him die!"
"CARL! Your dad gave me one job! Protect you and Judith. I'm not risking your lives for that crazy fucker!" Sam screamed in his face. She wasn't going to risk the two things she was trusted to keep safe. Not only would Rick never forgive her but she would never forgive herself if they were killed.
The man's screams became fever pitched and the crowd of walkers ferocious. Sam heard them tearing into the guy and closed her eyes as the screams cut off with a revolting gurgle. Carl was struggling, kicking her shins and scratching her arms but Sam held him still.
"You're a murderer!" He screamed, his hands beating on her back. "We coulda saved him!"
"Shut up! We need to be quiet. He brought a herd to our fucking doorstep." She snapped pushing against the kid, trying to pin his arms from hitting her.
The teen shoved her with all his weight, her legs stumbling away. Michonne went after him while Sam looked outside. There was a large group of walkers and there was a possibility that they'd have to run anyways. The damn priest led a large group straight to their doorstep.
"Fucking asshole." Sam grumbled as she counted how many head were outside.
Walking to the backroom she saw Michonne laying the planks over the hole Gabriel used to escape. She met her eye and Sam could tell she was still questioning Sam's decision. Sam felt guilty but the man left the safety of the building and then brought danger to them. Their shelter was now compromised and Sam couldn't bring herself to really regret what she did.
Carl was holding Judith and shooting daggers at Sam. She left him to it and peered through the woods slats. She could see the area was flooding with dead bodies. They were pounding on the front door and moaning, scratching along the wood planked walls. The dead knew they were inside the church and had gotten around the giant spikes the group had installed.
"Do we need to run?" Michonne asked with apprehension, her hand gripping the hilt of her sword.
"Probably." Sam grunted her eyes scanning the surrounding woods. She tried to remember where the subdivision Merle and her visited was and if they could secure one of the houses.
"Fucking priest." She hissed angrily pacing by the doorway.
Meanwhile in Atlanta.
The group was discussing the plan to get Beth and Carol back. They stood in an abandoned warehouse. Rick was outlining his thoughts on infiltrating the hospital to rescue the girls. Merle was ready for whatever was decided. He wanted to go in, kill some assholes, grab their family and get back to Sam. The longer it took, the longer he was going to have to worry about her being so far away.
"At sundown we fire a shot into the air. Get two of them out on patrol. Then once it's dark enough that the rooftop spotter won't see us, we go." Rick explained his finger pointing out spots on a crudely drawn map of the hospital, "We cut the locks on one of the stairways, take it to the fifth floor. I open the door, Daryl takes the guard out."
"How?" Tyreese asked, his hand wringing the grip of his rifle. Merle glared at the man still burning with anger about the lie he told about Martin.
Rick answered flatly as if there weren't any other answer, "He slits his throat. This is all about us doing this quiet, keeping the upper hand. They're not expecting us." Looking back down at the map Rick continued, "From there, we fan out. Knives and silenced weapons." Everyone was nodding but their expressions were a mixture of apprehension and fear.
"We need to be fast. Tyreese, Sasha, take them. Merle, Daryl, you take care of whoever is in the kitchen. I got Dawn. If they're smart, the rest of them will give up. Then it'll be six on three." Rick concluded standing from his crouched position, brushing dirt off his hands.
Daryl grunted, "Seven on three once we get a weapon to Beth." Merle raised and eyebrow at the statement but Daryl just nodded in response.
'Guess Blondie grew up,' Merle thought to himself.
"13 on three. The wards will help." Noah chimed in.
Tyreese stepped forward and stated, "That's best case. What's worst case? All it takes is one of those cops going down the hall at the wrong time. Then it's not quiet. All hands on deck. We're talking about a lot of bullets flying around."
Merle grunted scoffing, "If that's what it takes. 'cause unlike ya we're ready to kill for what's ours."
Tyreese glared at Merle and shook his head angrily, "If we get a couple of her cops alive out here, we do an even trade. Theirs for ours. Everybody goes home."
Merle rolled his eyes and looked at Daryl seeing his brother's face grow hopeful. Merle's eyes narrowed at the sight realizing his brother didn't want to go in aggressive and silent either.
"Yeah, I get it. And it might work…. This will work though." Rick answered while pointing at the strategy drawn in dirt. Daryl responded instead of Tyreese, his teeth chewing his lip nervously. "Nah, that'll work, too. You say this Dawn, she's just trying to keep it together, right?"
Noah shrugged and responded honestly, "Trying and doing are two different things." Daryl looked at Rick before his eyes landed on Merle's, "We take two of her cops away, what choices does she have? Everybody goes home. Like he says."
Daryl tipped his chin to Tyreese and then focused on Rick's reaction. Merle shifted uncomfortably because he wanted to go in and take it by force. He wasn't willing to fuck around with the possibility of being taken advantage of. If they stepped into that building expecting to have an even trade they lost their upper hand. If they went in silently, killed until they got what they wanted, the group could win. However the more aggressive plan could very well lead to them being killed also. What made Merle swallow down his argument against a peaceful resolution was the hope in Daryl's eyes. The man looked like he wanted to be different, make different choices. It struck a chord with Merle because it was what he'd been struggling with ever since Sam showed up. This urge within him to be a better person and value more than just surviving at any cost. A desire to be more and have more to live for. Be a better man.
Rick nodded, his hand scratching his thick beard. His calculating eyes landed on Merle who only stared back with equally thoughtful eyes.
Rick glanced at the group as a whole and nodded, "A'right. We'll try it your way."
Merle stared at the three cops in restraints kneeling before them. The group had reeled in two cops with Noah and eventually captured a third. He couldn't help but sneer at the three cops in their standard issue uniforms. Merle never had any love with policemen. He still had a deep-seated dislike for the profession, even having grown to respect Rick as a leader. It seemed as if this particular group of police officers were living up to Merle's critical views on the group as a whole.
"Figure's a bunch o' pigs would be holdin' people hostage, makin' slaves. Y'all can't make it on your own. Bunch pussies holdin' the injured and old to wash your shorts." Merle taunted, "Bes' hope our friends ain't hurt 'cause I know ways to make ya beg for ya mamas."
Daryl grunted, "Shuddup Merle."
"You should listen to your boyfriend," the bald cop sneered at Merle. Sauntering forward Merle brought his bayonet blade pressing into the man's dirty cheek.
"Ya think it's a time to insult a guy like me?" Merle asked him, his knife slicing a thin line into his skin.
"I need to talk to your leader. Your plan is going to get me and my friends killed." The female cop interrupted Merle's threats.
"We're gonna make it work." Daryl answered gruffly.
The cop continued, "It would work if you had different cops to trade. Dawn's running Grady into the ground. A bunch of us want her out and she knows it. Pretty sure she knows we want Lamson to replace her, too."
"Dawn doesn't know that." The bald cop muttered, sitting back on his heels as Merle moved away. He was looking over the cops, checking them for signs of lying. Merle needed to know if they were working an angle he wasn't aware of.
"She might. And she's smart. So there's a good chance you can't make this deal work and that'll leave us all dead. But if you let us go, we'll take care of Dawn ourselves and then we'll let your friends go and this is over." The female cop explained her eyes jumping from Merle to Daryl obviously noticing their swing in the group's decisions.
"No, we're not gonna do that." The third cop finally spoke, his eyes still on the ground.
"Do you want to die?" she asked her fellow officer.
"No. I just need you to shut up right now." He snapped his eyes jumping up to Daryl's. "You can make this work. But you've got to be able to talk to her."
Merle snorted, "Noah told us all about her."
"I've known her for eight years. I know this woman. And my only interest is peaceful resolution, not dying, and sleeping in my bed tonight." He replied to Merle, "So, please, let me help you. Please."
Daryl brushed his thumb across his lip thoughtfully, his eyes looking over the cops and then to Merle. He looked at his little brother for a moment and ticked his chin towards Rick giving Daryl his consent.
"Hey, Rick. You're gonna want to hear this." Daryl drawled loudly.
Merle and Rick were running after the escaped cop. They found Sasha knocked unconscious and the lying bastard gone.
"This way," Rick ground out his breathing escalated as they jogged, his blade gutting a walker as they passed. Merle skidded around a corner and saw the uniformed cop running, his hands still tied behind his back. They hopped into a squad car, Rick pulling out the handset ordering the cop to stop where he was. The cop kept going, his feet pounding across the pavement. Merle looked over at Rick who hung up the radio and dropped his boot-clad foot heavily on the accelerator. Feeling both surprise and a sick sense of respect Merle watched and felt the car impact the escaped hostage as Rick ran him down.
The man's body skidded across the rough cement, landing in a crooked pile of limbs. Merle grimaced at the blood streak his face left along the road. Rick climbed out and strolled over, his hand resting on the revolver's hilt. Merle joined him, his hand holding a handgun aimed at the downed cop's head.
"All ya had to do was stop," Rick drawled, crouching down to his knee next to the moaning cop. Merle listened to the man call them son's of bitches and beg to be taken back to the hospital. Rick explained that it didn't have to be this way, that all he had to do was stop running.
"I couldn't. I don't know you. But I think... I think I'm getting the idea." the cop muttered his body still contorted into an awkward position. Merle drawled, "You've got no idea who we are and what we can do."
The cop groaned and begged, "Take me back to the hospital. I did it for your friend."
Rick stood up, his head cocked to the side, "Not after this. Ya can't go back, Bob."
There was a group of walkers coming down the alleyway towards them. Their groans and snarls echoed against the brick buildings. The sun was beating down on them, the heat waves rising off the cracked cement. They needed to get back to the others before Daryl came looking. Merle glanced at the walkers lazily before looking back down at the injured man.
"You've been out here too long..." he stammered as Merle moved closer, his handgun still trained on his prone form. "You'll die."
Merle's flit to Rick seeing the same decision in the man's eyes and squeezed the trigger. The sound of the shot pierced the air around them, Merle's ears rang from the reverberation.
"Shut up." He murmured to the dead man his eyes rising to Rick's. They both stared at each other, a silent conversation taking place. Both men thinking, 'We will do anything to protect our own.'
"We changin' our plan?" Merle asked as they climbed into the cop car. Rick chewed his thumb as he drove, his eyes cutting to Merle for a moment.
"Gotta see what the other two will do." Rick finally answered. Merle nodded and scratched his chin, "Maybe we can work somethin' out. Take out this Dawn for 'em as payment."
"Ya wanna be a hired gun?" Rick asked without any judgment, his eyebrows raised thoughtfully.
"Done it before for less important reasons. We gotta get our people and get home to our others. I wanna do it the fastest and easiest way as long as we get out alive. If I gotta kill some power hungry pig so be it."
Rick nodded in agreement and rasped, "Le's find out."
"It's a shame he got eaten by walkers," Merle told the other man firmly, "Ran right into 'em tryin to escape."
Nodding to show his understanding Rick drawled, "Ya. Was a shame to lose 'im to those biters."
The two remaining cops agreed to back up their story of the escaped officer's death. Merle knew they were not fooled by the lie. He could also tell they were just desperate to survive and were willing to do just about anything to do it. It was helpful to Merle's groups cause but could also get them all killed if the cops broke their word.
The plan was the same as before but the female cop added a stipulation in the plan.
"If you get a chance to kill her, do it. We both guarantee to stop anyone from retaliating. You'll be doing us a favor. You'll get your people back and we'll give you gas and supplies for your trip out of the city and you won't return." The female cop explained while the other nodded along. He added, "She's gonna get us all killed. You take her out and we'll make sure you all get out alive."
Rick, Daryl and Merle listened but didn't respond. They wanted to talk over their options. Daryl was pushing to just do the trade and get it over with. He didn't want to spill blood without needing to. Merle felt it was a good deal and would get them what they wanted plus supplies they needed to get home. Rick was on the fence, his mistrust of everyone outside their family to strong to ignore. They were in between a rock and a hard place though, a decision had to be made.
"Fine," Rick spoke quietly to the two bound hostages, "If we can, we will. If it looks too dangerous, like it'll blow up in our faces, we still get our people. We walk out safe and sound. If we do kill her for ya, we get supplies and gas. We get to walk out unharmed and unhindered. And we won't come back."
Both cops nodded and the female cop replied, "On our badges."
Merle scoffed, "Those shining pieces o' shit don't mean nothin' no more doll. Ya just another walker meal like the rest of us."
Back at the Church
The walkers were still wound up and soon even more were in the area. Michonne and Sam spoke quietly, the decision finally made. They had no choice but to leave. The more that came, the more that would be called to the area. Soon a herd would be at the door and the walls would eventually come down.
Moving to the office they pulled the loose floorboards away and got to work. Carl packed his bag and they crawled under the building. Sam went first, her eyes scoping out the nearest threats. Luckily they escaped the building without many walkers seeing them. The few that followed were killed by Michonne's wide sharp swings. Sam looked over her shoulder as they jogged, seeing a few stragglers catching their scent in the air.
'Fuck,' she grumbled inwardly pushing them to run faster.
Sam had them move away from the swarm of undead and headed towards the subdivision. She figured Merle could track them there and possibly would even guess that as a meeting point. Michonne was taking down walkers easily and Sam was guarding Carl who carried his sister. They jogged for more than a few hours before reaching the tiny group of houses. Sam led them to the one Merle and her enjoyed alone time in. They searched it again for walkers and started barricading the doors and windows. Soon the structure was secure and group was eating dinner.
"You did the right thing." Michonne stated while sitting with Sam on watch. She nodded and sighed, "I know... I feel bad for Carl witnessing it but not for the act. We would've been overrun if I opened the door."
When she finally lay down Sam thought about Merle and the others in the dangerous city. She hoped they were on their way back and that the Dixon boys would find them easily.
Sam woke to moans and groans outside the house. Michonne was on watch and hissed, "Looks like we got company. A lot of it."
Sam looked outside to see a dozen or more dead milling around the yard and street. She chewed her lip and spoke quietly, "If they stay out there the rest are gonna follow. You up for some killin'?"
Michonne smirked and nodded, "Always am. Carl can stay in here with Jude."
Michonne woke Carl up and got him in the bathroom, the door barred shut. The two women opened the front door, weaving through the crowd and picking off the dead as they came upon them. The night was dark but there was enough moonlight to see most of the yard. Sam slammed her blade into a female walker's head, the brain splattering across her face. Michonne was slicing and dicing as she spun into the fray of the fight.
Sam pushed a walker away as her blade slammed into another. She tried yanking it out but it was stuck on the jagged cranium. Letting it go she pulled out her knife and began stabbing but was getting surrounded too quickly. Panting she kicked the legs out from under one of them and pushed another trying to keep herself from being taken down. Hands grabbed her from behind and she fell hard to the trampled grass below her. Sam had the wind knocked out of her as a dead man fell on top her with a gaping mouth. His hands squeezed her arms painfully as she struggled to free herself. Sam screamed out as his broken teeth reached for her face, the sharp edges centimeters from her cheek. She kicked her feet out trying to free herself but the heels of her boots slid on the wet soil. Turning her face away, Sam braced for the bite when the tip of a sword punched through his bloodied maw. Michonne was instantly pulling the dead thing off Sam and helping her to her feet.
"Ya ok?" Michonne gasped her blade spinning backwards at another approaching corpse. Sam panted confirmation and headed for the next body. Soon the yard had thinned but the women could see more coming from the thick woods. Michonne pulled Sam back inside the house and they pushed the door closed only to feel more bodies pushing than they could hold. "Fuck," Sam growled as the door began creaking at the weight. "This ain't holdin' for long."
Grady Memorial Hospital
Merle could see Beth and Carol behind the group of cops at the end of the long hallway. The female cop in the front was obviously Dawn, her anger for the transaction plainly visible on her face. Carol was rolled over in a wheelchair and traded for the male hostage. Daryl stepped forward and retrieved her, pulling her to the back of their group. Merle moved forward with Rick, his hand looking slack next to his holster but poised to shoot Dawn. The female hostage was brought forward to be traded for Beth. As she passed she looked up at Merle and gave him a tiny nod, her eyes trying to reassure him but he was still cautious. He didn't want to turn the exchange into a bloodbath. All he could hope for was the cops holding up their end of the bargain.
Beth walked forward, Rick cupping her neck and kissing her forehead. She moved back towards Carol and Daryl. Merle watched Dawn and the cops behind her. She was closer to him than her comrades.
Dawn crossed her arms and spoke evenly, "Glad we could work this out."
Rick was watching her closely and started to back away. He gave her a stiff nodded and glanced at the other cops. Merle saw the female cop whispering to her fellow officers. They looked to be discussing the assassination plan right behind their leader.
"I just need Noah now." Dawn demanded her voice louder than before. Another cop exclaimed, "Dawn no."
She ignored their resistance and snapped, "Noah."
Rick growled harshly, his voice rough with rage, "That wasn't the deal."
"Noah's my ward. Beth took his place but now she's gone. I need him back." Dawn explained flatly, her voice firm and eyes challenging.
Merle looked at the other cops and watched as most gave him a nod. A silent conversation being spoken, 'take her out'. Moving quickly Merle drew his handgun and squeezed the trigger, the bullet ripping through the woman's skull. He watched blood paint the wall behind the cop and her body collapse to the ground. The sound echoed in the hallway loudly, the other cops pulled their guns instinctively. Everyone was armed now as they watched Dawn's head bleed all over the tiled floor.
The female cop threw her arms up, running in front of her group screaming, "Don't shoot, don't shoot. It's over! We've made a deal. They get a pass. No one shoot!"
After a tense moment the female cop said, "Tanner, round up food, medical and gas for them. You held up your end of the deal, we're gonna hold up ours. No one else has to die."
Yep I totally killed the priest and saved Beth! More drama to come of course because what is the Walking Dead without drama? Obviously some canon storylines and timelines are changing. Hope they keep the story fresh and exciting.