Lee walked at a brisk pace through the empty streets of Macon, his mind flooded with ordinary thoughts and doubts, but his body was aware of his surroundings, something he had grown accustomed to after going out so many times in search of supplies. Beside him, Kenny was walking at the same speed, but with a disgusted look on his face, clearly hating the fact that he had to walk side by side with him.

But Lee didn't care, honestly, he no longer cared whether the group would survive, or break, since he already knew the answer.

Kenny had become even worse, his actions became even more careless and he complains about literally everything he is supposed to do, all his chores, like a grounded child.

Lee knew that the group's days were numbered, with Kenny like this, it would be best, not only for him and his family, but for all the members of the group, for them to split up.

If Kenny thought he could take good care of his family on his own, so be it, Lee would no longer stop him, he would not try to open his eyes one more time, because he knew that his "former friend" by his side did not want his eyes opened.

Now, Lee only worried about what he would do when the group is separated, who would stay by his side, who would leave with Kenny, although he suspected that no one would enter that RV willingly, or Kenny would take no one but his family.

But, they agreed on something, the two men knew that the days of the motel were already coming to an end, and with winter coming, they had to get out of there before they froze to death. Lee began to think about where he should go, if he should go south, north, to the coast, he doubted that there were any safe cities in the country, there might be some communities scattered around, but it was like a shot in the dark, he couldn't go looking for something he didn't even know if it was there or not.

A few minutes of walking passed, the roads were strangely empty, which was good, but made Lee worried, a bad feeling in his stomach, as if something was going to happen at any moment. It didn't take long, and they finally saw the barricade in front of the motel, with Ben on top of the trailer keeping watch.

Lee heard Kenny grumbling about something, as usual, but ignored him, making his way through the dumpster that served as the gate, and into the motel parking lot.

Further on, he saw Clementine talking with her radio in her hand, one of her imaginary conversations she had with her parents, Lee assumed. The girl, as soon as she saw him, ran towards him.

- Hey Lee, look, Ben found some stickers in one of the rooms and I put them on my radio!

she exclaimed, smiling, and Lee couldn't help but smile as well. It was almost a natural movement, every time he saw her, he smiled, especially when she was so excited like that, even with something as "small" as figurines.

- That's great Clem, I'll, uh, talk to Lilly for a little while and be right back, ok?

The girl shook her head, still smiling, holding the radio firmly in her hand.

Lee walked to Lilly's room, watching Kenny knock three times on the door, being greeted by a nervous Lilly.

- what did you find?

She asked, taking the backpack from Kenny's hands, putting it on the bed and opening it.

- What's left.

He answered, leaning on the door and crossing his arms, leaving the rifle on his back.

Kenny - Which was a lot, actually, it filled the bag, and there's a little more we couldn't get.

He answered, with that ironic and irritated tone they were already used to, it didn't seem to leave his voice, and, although they were already familiar with the man's hostile tone, it didn't mean that it made him less irritating, but they tried not to make a fuss about it, they didn't need another senseless argument, or an unnecessary fight.

- Great, if we keep this up, we'll make it through the winter here.

she said, a little relieved, perhaps? But clearly excited about the amount of food and medicine they'd gotten.

Kenny took a deep breath at what she had said, scratched his eyes and shook his head in clear irritation.

- Okay, if you want to stay here, be my guest.

He turned, walking with heavy steps toward the trailer, saying something to Ben that Lee didn't care enough to hear. Lilly rolled her eyes and sighed, also annoyed.

- God, what's wrong with him?!

she grumbled through her teeth, throwing herself onto her bed. Lee sighed and entered her room, sitting on the chair beside her, in front of the window.

- But he has a point Lilly, we can't stay here, the motel's days are numbered.

She crossed her arms and threw her body back, feeling the wood against her back, and her sore muscles relaxing a little, relieving those hours they were tense.

- We don't have anywhere else to go Lee.

She answered, sitting on her bed, facing him. Her eyes were as tired as his, her face was downcast, and it was obvious that she had not slept for days, the dark circles under her eyes showed it. She had been that way since her father had been killed by Kenny.

- But we can't stay here, Macon, unfortunately, it's over, there's no more food, nothing. people are dead, and those who are left are dying little by little. Besides, there are bandits in the forest, and to me, this place has become as dangerous as it is out there.

He pointed out, making good and true points, Lilly knew that. She knew that Lee was being truthful and just pointing out facts, the calm and soft voice in which he said it was proof of that. She was a mess, her mind confused, her insides twisted, she didn't feel like getting up during all these days she spent away from her father, she didn't feel like going anywhere.

But then again, she couldn't just lie in a garbage dump, and stay there, waiting for death to catch up with her somehow, whether it was a bullet to the head, or a bite, or having something thrown at her head.

She laughed humorlessly, if her father saw her now, he would go crazy, saying that he had not raised a coward, and that that kind of behavior was not what he had taught her.

-...We have another problem in our hands.

She said, reaching down and grabbing a flashlight from under her bed, the broken object making Lee curious.

- Someone has been stealing supplies from us, medicine, food, antibiotics, all of them being stolen from my personal count. I found this near the barricade, we don't throw broken equipment in the trash, we fix it.

She handed it to him, sighing, the whole situation was giving her a major headache.

Lee looked at her for a moment, wondering if she was serious, or if it was just another one of her paranoid rants, but, she seemed serious enough, and he wouldn't lose anything if he investigated a little.

"Better safe than sorry," he thought.

- I'm a mess right now, so I want you to find out what's going on, whoever is doing this is killing us little by little.

She bowed her head and sighed, exhausted, they all were.

Lee stood up, looking at her for a few moments, and then walked towards the door and out, closing it, leaving Lilly alone, trapped in her thoughts.

- A mystery.

Lee was slightly startled by the sudden voice next to him. When he turns around, he finds Duck looking at him with a playful face.

- Duck!

he scolded him, laughing a little at his startled start.

- Sorry, I heard what you said, and thought I'd help.

He explained, staring with his caramel eyes into Lee's brown eyes, who sighed.

- You need to "unhear" all of that, and you can't tell anyone.

He said, crossing his arms in front of his body, and looking somewhat seriously at the boy.

- Come on, I can help, you can be the greatest detective of all time, and I can be "Dick Grayson", your sidekick.

He said dramatically, striking a hero's pose as he finished introducing his character, looking at Lee's slightly confused face.

- It's Robin.

- I know who he is.

He sighed again, crouching down at Duck's height, who followed him with his gaze.

- Okay, you're Robin, come talk to me if you find anything strange, okay? And you can't tell anyone about our ...aaahm, secret mission.

He said, slightly hesitant, but happy that the boy was so excited that he did a little celebrating.

- I'm on the case.

He said, his voice a little whispery, as if he was hiding from some bad guys and had to speak in a lower tone.

Lee shook his head as he watched the boy run to some random part of the motel, wondering how he could have all that energy.

Lee walked over to the barricade, following its base with his eyes, looking for the place where Lilly might have found the flashlight. After a while, he found some pieces of broken glass, hidden next to a trash can. Lee inspected the place, looking for anything else useful, and it was then that he found a large "X" marked on the wall, just facing the forest across the street, a marking, like the "X" on a treasure map.

- Hmmm, strange.

Lee looked at the boy next to him, who was still posing like a hero and looking at the chalk markings on the wall with suspicious eyes, or at least, they should be suspicious eyes.

- It's a clue!

He exclaimed, making Lee really think about the possibility, it was strange to have a chalk mark like that so hidden from the rest of the group, and it was too tall for the kids to have made.

It was pink chalk, and the only person who used chalk in the motel was Clementine.

- That's right, good job Duck.

He said, placing his hand on the boy's head, and the boy celebrated slightly.

Lee walked towards Clementine, watching the delicate movements the girl made as she colored what she had drawn.

- Hey Clem, do you have any pink chalk?

He asked, crouching down to the girl, who stopped coloring and looked at him with confused eyes.

- No, I lost it somewhere, do you want blue?

She asked, hoping he would sit next to her and color with her, she liked those moments, where they spent hours playing, or simply talking to each other, where he told her stories from books he had read, or taught her a little about history.

- Later Clem, Lilly asked me to do some work for her.

He replied, placing his hand gently on the girl's head, who closed her expressions, looking a little annoyed, perhaps, disappointed?

- Again?!

Lee smiled to hear her irritated tone, which didn't change much from his usual tone, because her voice was so soft. And it was rare that he saw Clementine with an irritated expression, he had even forgotten what it was like.

- I'll finish quickly and come play with you, you won't even miss me.

He comforted her, getting a nod and a grumble in response. He stood up and saw Duck calling him further ahead, near the garbage cans they were using as gates.

- Look what I found.

He said, handing him a pink chalk and pointing to the markings on the floor. The same person who marked the wall, opened a passage through the garbage cans.

- Good job Duck, I think you are good at this.

He congratulated him, giving a high five to the boy, who smiled excitedly and proud of himself.

- I'll go outside, you stay here, I'm serious.

He said, getting a nod from the boy and pushed the trashcan in front of him, looking both ways, making sure it was safe to leave.

He spent some time looking for anything in front of the motel, and even went into the forest for a while, but found nothing. It was on his way back to the motel that he noticed a small bag hidden behind a railing, right next to the barricade.

As he removed the grate and reached for the bag, his eyes widened as he saw medicines and food stored inside.

Lilly stared at the bag in front of her, now with an angry face and with her hands on her waist, when Lee returned with those supplies, she almost went crazy, but managed to stay calm, it wouldn't do her much good to be angry with someone without even knowing who it was.

- Well, what do we do now?

He leaned on the wall beside the door, crossing his arms and looking at Lilly, he didn't want to do something rash, not before she knew his opinion, however, as he always did, he would let her give the first idea, let her say what she thinks, and how they should solve that problem, then he would tell her what he thought.

Lilly- Let's get everyone together, even the kids, I doubt that...but what the fuck...?!

His eyes focused on some armed men who had entered the motel, where they were now holding his group hostage.

Lee looked wide-eyed at the men who entered, all were armed, most with a pistol, another with a shotgun, but still, one wrong step, one mistake, and lives would be taken.

His eyes fell, almost immediately, on Clementine. The girl was frightened, and looked both ways as her body shook, probably searching for him.

- Lilly...

He started, watching her open the window of her room, which led to the back part of the motel, with a rifle in hand.

- Distract them, do whatever it takes to keep them from pulling the trigger, not before me.

She said, jumping out the window and out of Lee's line of sight, who cursed mentally, making sure his pistol was in the back of his waistband.

Sighing heavily, he leaves Lilly's room with his arms up in a sign of yield.

- Stop right there, asshole!

One of the bandits shouted, this seemed to be the leader, he was wearing a mask and pointed a pistol in his direction, while the others pointed their guns at the heads of the members of his group.

- We had a deal, do you think you can try to fool us like that? You will give us what you owe us, and more!

he said, and although Lee had no knowledge of any deals made with bandits, he decided to keep up with the pace of things.

Lee- Okay, the deal goes on, what do you want?

he asked, as calmly as he could, watching the body movements of the men in front of him, noticing that some of the bandits had taken their finger off the trigger.

- I don't know if you understand my friend, what's to stop me from killing all of you and getting the stuff myself? - He asked.

- You're not stupid enough to do that, because you'd have to take your chances to get the supplies in town, but if you leave us alive, we'll take our chances for you. You don't have to risk your lives, and we will have a chance to survive, even if it is really small.

He argued, watching some of the bandits look at each other, thinking about the deal.

-... Ok, you're a smart guy, keep going.

He lowered his tone of voice, opening his guard a little more, Lee noticed this, and mentally wished Lilly would act fast.

- We will give you double the amount agreed upon, in exchange, you stay away from us, so you don't have to risk your lives in a dead city. And we won't need to fight each other, because I' m sure that lives will be taken... from both sides.

The bandits looked at each other again, apparently they had liked the deal.

But, before they could say anything, a gunshot echoed through the motel, penetrating the trees of the empty forest ahead. The bandit's body fell with a deafening thud to the ground.

In one swift movement, as if the world around him were in slow motion, Lee picks up his gun and fires, five shots, instantly killing four of the bandits who were holding his group hostage, and hitting the fifth in the shoulder, who hid behind the trash cans.

People ran, Duck, Katjaa and Clementine ran to a trash can right next to the RV, Ben and Carley took cover behind some sandbags that Lee had placed there some time ago.

Kenny ran as fast as he could to the RV, feeling the bullets pass close, very close to his head.

Lee picked up the rifle that was inside the RV, cradled it in his hand, and began firing at the approaching bandits, more and more of them coming out of the forest.

And more and more of them were coming into the motel.

Part of the barricade was destroyed, and Lee was trying to keep the bandits from entering at all costs, with Lilly taking over on his left, and he being able to concentrate on his right. What was worse, was that the noise had attracted walkers from miles away, and they were beginning to move in with the bandits.

One of the bandits was firing a pistol in his direction, taking a deep breath and steadying his rifle, Lee shoots the man, and hits him right in the head, a clean shot in the middle of his forehead.

- Katjaa!

He shouts to the woman, signaling for her to run towards him. She grabs Duck in her arms and runs, but one of the incoming walkers grabs her by the leg, knocking her down, and soon, he stands over her, trying to tear off a piece of her flesh.

Katjaa struggles violently, and then another shot is heard, the walker's body softens in her arms, and she throws him aside, mentally thanking Lee, who had just saved her.

Duck watched it all in slow motion, both his mother being knocked down by the walkere, and Lee shooting him in the head. And now, his eyes could no longer leave the bite that was branded on the side of Katjaa's body.

Clementine tried to run towards him as well, but, like the woman, a walker grabbed her by the leg and knocked her down.

Lee was desperate at this scene, he tried to shoot at the walker, however, he had run out of ammo, and, ignoring all the risk of being hit by a stray bullet, he runs towards the girl, kicking the corpse in the head, knocking it off her, and stomping heavily on his head.

Clementine cries out his name, and hugs him tightly. Lee crouches down, returning the hug filled with relief, almost crying at the feeling that overpowered his body.

Looking at the situation around him, he lifts Clementine into his arms, and the girl instinctively puts her arms around his neck and crosses her legs around his waist.

Lee then tries to run toward the RV.

However, he felt his body paralyze as he saw the RV start to move.

It seems that the world has gone into slow motion for Lee, the bullets passing by him so slowly that he almost feels that he can dodge them. He saw Kenny look back, checking on the people who entered the RV, checking on Duck, and checking on Katjaa.

After that, he looked deep into Kenny's eyes, deep into the eyes of the one he once considered his best friend, eyes filled with anger, anguish, betrayal. Angry eyes, cast in his direction.

And with that look, so angry, penetrating his mind and settling deep in his head, Lee watched Kenny leave the moter inn with the RV, leaving him behind, alone.

He was abandoned.

And Kenny felt no remorse in doing so.