- Hey, girl ... are you holding up okay there?
Pete asked, turning to Clementine and looking at her with a spark of concern.
The girl sighed again, feeling her aching body begging for rest. And even though she had her arm stitched up, it still hurt like hell. The cut had been bad.
-... Well enough.
She answered, looking around, raising an eyebrow at not seeing any zombies or runners around. They were probably all attracted by the shot she had taken earlier... but it was strange anyway, she hadn't seen any of them the whole way up to that point.
- So, I guess we still don't know your name.
Luke said, slowing his steps a little and walking beside the girl.
-... Clementine.
- Well, nice to meet you, Clementine.
Pete said, smiling at her with a friendly smile on his lips.
- Is it just you and the person you got separated from?
Luke asked.
-... Yes, it's been a while.
She answered, not liking all those questions very much, but understanding that it was necessary for them. She was a stranger, and although they apparently wanted to help her, they still had to be careful.
However, she didn't understand why they didn't take her weapons before letting her walk so close to them.
Did they realize that the gun was without bullets?
If she had been in their place, she would have taken their gun a long time ago.
- Oh, so, he's the one who takes care of you, is he your father?
Luke asked, snapping her out of her thoughts.
- No.
She answered, her mind flooded with unpleasant memories.
She had forgiven her father for what he had done... but she would never forget, and she resented him for it.
But while she was somewhat relieved that he was dead, she was also somewhat saddened to think of him that way.
In her childhood he was her hero, and in the end he died as the villain.
The position of hero has been passed on to Lee now.
- Oh... so, is he a relative of yours, or...?
Luke asked, pulling the girl out of her thoughts again.
- No... he started taking care of me after... after I ended up alone... a few years ago.
She said, and both men looked at each other, some regret in their eyes.
-... You survived all this time just the two of you? Without a group?
Pete asked, and the girl could hear a flicker of distrust in the older man's voice.
- Yes ... so far we never needed a group.
She answered, taking a deep breath. Those unpleasant memories, mixed with the pain, the tiredness, the worry and the agony inside her body were pushing her to the limit.
- Oh, gee, well... maybe if you were in a group, you wouldn't have gotten separated.
Luke said, and the girl looked at him with narrowed eyes, causing him to look rather silly and embarrassed.
- What Luke meant was that it's good to have more people around.
Pete said, looking reproachfully at the younger man, who was scratching the back of his head.
- And at the same time dangerous, you don't know who can stab you in the back.
She said somewhat bitterly, looking even angrily at the ground.
The two men stared at her for a while, and looked at each other for a few moments.
The girl's words, tone, and expression practically confirmed that there was history behind that sentence. They realized that she must have been through something similar.
-... Well... how did you two get separated?
Luke asked, and the girl sighed.
Her heart beat worriedly, her chest rising and falling in agony. Her body turned cold at the thought that Lee might be dead.
Or worse, bitten.
- A herd of runners... we were surrounded... one runner grabbed his arm, and another ran towards me... he pushed me into the river before he could reach me...
She said with a distant look, just staring at the ground.
A heavy and somewhat cold atmosphere hung over the two men, who, like most people, began to think the worst.
-... And you're going to look for him?
Luke asked, and the tone in his voice irritated the girl.
He asked as if she was going to do something in vain, as if Lee was already dead. As if it was a waste of time, or an unnecessary risk to look for him.
- Yes, I will! He must be doing the same for me.
"Or nursing his wounds... or escaping some bad situation... or..."
The girl shook her head, feeling her throat feel a little strange due to the loud and somewhat strong tone in which she had answered Luke.
- Whoa, okay, I didn't mean to make you upset.
Luke said.
- You ran into a herd in the middle of the forest? Tough break.
Pete said, shaking his head slightly.
-... They were attracted by the gunfire... three men appeared before the herd, pointed their guns at us...
The girl said, and although she wasn't looking at them, she could see their slightly apprehensive expressions.
The girl sighs softly and mentally curses herself, as she had thought earlier, they could both be part of the group of those three men.
And if that was indeed the case, they wouldn't be happy to hear that she and Lee had killed those men...
Well, at least she had the herd as an excuse.
- What did these guys want?
Luke asked, turning slightly and looking at her.
- They asked us about our group... I don't know what they wanted, I don't usually talk when someone points a gun at me.
She answered, looking up into the treetops.
They had been walking for a few minutes, it was still morning. She thought she had been walking for hours.
Well, with a body like that, it was understandable.
- Did they shoot at you? I don't see any bullet wounds.
Pete asked.
- We killed them.
She answered, and the two men looked at her in surprise.
- Whoa, really?!
- They pointed guns at us, threatened us. Better them than us.
She said, ignoring the stares from both men.
- I understand, sorry for the disbelief, we're not used to meeting little girls with blood on their hands.
Luke said.
- I wouldn't have survived otherwise.
She replied.
- Oh, I'll never get used to what the world has become...
Pete said with a distant expression, and the girl just remained silent.
She was not in the mood to answer any more questions, so she mentally thanked them for keeping quiet.
After a few more minutes of walking, they finally reached a cabin in the middle of the forest.
The girl ran her tired eyes over the place. The cabin looked quite large.
She arched an eyebrow when she saw a man in a cap approach them as soon as he saw them.
He was approaching with a rifle in hand, and as soon as he saw her, he looked very unfriendly.
- Hey, Nick. Everything okay here?
Luke asked as soon as the man approached.
Nick was tall, maybe as tall as Lee, but had a far less intimidating appearance. He had black hair that flowed down to just below the nape of his neck. Dark brown eyes, a small beard still growing on his face, and he seemed to be the same age as Luke.
- Nothing wrong... who is this?
he asked, looking at her for only a few moments before focusing his eyes on her arm.
It wasn't the warmest welcome she had ever received, but the girl just ignored the man's slightly rude tone.
- Her name is Clementine. We met her in the forest while hunting. She had stumbled upon a runner and-
- Is that a bite?!
Nick interrupted Luke, gripping the rifle a little tighter in his hands and looking at the girl's bandaged arm.
- What? No, she-
- How can you be sure?! Did you check it?!
He interrupted Luke again, and the girl looked at him, who sighed at his friend's manner.
- No, we didn't.
- What?! And why the hell did you bring her here?!
Nick asked, almost in disbelief.
- Damn it, Nick! Will you calm the fuck down and let me finish talking?!
Luke growled, looking irritated at Nick, who stared at him.
- We found her injured in the woods, her arm already bandaged, and a runner with a blown head. If it's a bite, she'll go away, if not, we can help her.
Luke said, and Nick rolled his eyes in irritation.
- We've been over this, man! If you get bit, you get put down, end of story! I'm not going through this again! And even if she isn't bitten, she could be with Carver!
Nick said, and the girl arched an eyebrow.
Who was Carver?
Why was he so angry? She didn't do anything to that anger.
Besides, they were the ones who offered to help, if they didn't want her there, just say so. They shouldn't have taken her there in the first place.
- Oh yeah, Nick? We don't know if she is bitten, it could just be a common injury! And does leaving a little girl to die in the woods really make us different from Carver? Because to me, it makes us just like him! Jesus, sometimes I don't recognize you.
Luke said, sighing wearily and walking past Nick toward the cabin.
- You didn't just accept that so easily, did you?!
he asked Pete, who, like Luke, sighed.
- It's like Luke said, if it's a bite, she's on her own, if it's not, we will have helped someone.
Pete said, not bothered by Nick's annoyed look.
- I can't believe you're saying this! Not after what-
- You don't have to remind me of this, but even after what happened, I don't go shooting every wounded survivor out there. Come on, Clem, the doctor's inside.
Pate interrupted Nick, putting an end to the discussion and passing him by shortly after.
Clementine alternated her gaze between the two of them for a few moments, feeling a little uncomfortable about the little discussion she had just witnessed, but soon, she followed Pete, ignoring Nick's rather intense gaze at her.
The girl entered the cabin and ran her eyes around the inside of the place. Kind of cozy, there was a warm air about the place.
Walking down the small corridor, the girl arched an eyebrow when she saw a pregnant woman sitting on one of the couches in front of her, next to a very large man with a slightly older expression.
- What the... who is this?!
the woman asked, standing up suddenly and looking at Clementine with mixed feelings in her eyes, which made the girl a bit curious by the rather strong reaction.
- This is Clementine, we found her injured in the forest.
Pete said, and the girl nodded somewhat
- Oh, hey, nice to meet you.
The man said, looking at her with a friendly smile and a slight expression.
- Alvin! You found a strange girl in the forest and decided to just bring her here?! And worse, she's injured! Who's to say it's not a bite?!
The woman said, looking irritated and nervous at Pete, who just sighed, seeming to be used to the woman's manner.
- Jesus, Rebecca, you're going to kill your kid before it's even born, will you calm down? She's here now, deal with it.
Pete said, looking at a man who had just come down the stairs next to Luke.
- I could hear Rebecca's scream from upstairs.
Luke said, looking at the woman with a raised eyebrow.
Clementine looked at the man who had a medical kit in hand, approaching her with rigid, and somewhat professional, eyes.
-... Come, I'll take a look at your arm in the kitchen.
He said, walking through the next door.
The girl looked at Luke and Pete for a few moments, before following the man and sitting down in a chair beside the counter, listening to the woman discuss something with the two men behind her.
- I want to know why you thought this was a good idea! You might have put us all in danger!
The woman grumbled again, following the men into the kitchen, and looking at Clementine with a mixture of anger and distrust.
- You guys seem so comfortable with the idea of leaving a child to die that it scares me. Well, guess what, Rebecca? She's here now, and Carlos is going to take a look at her. If it's a bite, she'll go away, she's fine with the idea herself, if it's not, we'll have helped someone and we'll feel pretty good about it. You can stop yelling now.
Luke said in a low tone, trying not to let his anger take control of his words. He looked deep into the woman's eyes.
- Even if it's not a bite, she could be working with Carver!
The woman said, and the girl looked at them.
Who the hell was Carver, this was the third time she had heard that name, and she had no idea what it meant.
- If it was true, she wouldn't be alone in the forest with an injured arm. Besides she would be trying to get back to Carver instead of accepting help from strangers.
Luke retorted, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms as Clementine watched the doctor, Carlos, remove the bandages from her arm.
- Were you even smart enough to ask questions?
The woman asked, crossing her arms.
- Yes, she is traveling with one other person. They were separated by a herd, the man she was with threw her into the river before she was grabbed by one of those runners.
Pete explained, sitting down in a chair beside a table further on.
- A little girl and a man? Just the two of them?
Nick asked suspiciously.
- Did you really believe that?!
Rebecca asked, looking at Pete incredulously.
- The question isn't whether I believed her or not, it's what she told me, and I'm not cold enough to abandon her, especially when she's hurt.
Pete said, narrowing his eyes at them.
- And how did she say she was hurt?
Rebecca asked, somewhat ironically.
- We found her in an abandoned camp, the body of one of the runners was lying next to a destroyed tent with half of its head blown off. Her arm was already bandaged when we arrived.
Luke explained
- You see see?! It might as well have been a bite! And do you really think a little girl is capable of killing a runner all by herself?!
Nick said, walking a few steps towards Nick.
Clementine just sighed at the discussion, it seemed that they had temporarily forgotten that she was there.
- A little girl with a gun, yes, I do. How about we let Carlos tell us whether it's a bite or not? From what I can see, he is finishing bandaging her arm!
Luke said, looking at Carlos, who was putting a bandage back on the medical kit, right after changing the bandages on the girl's arm.
- I'm glad you guys finally stopped this stupid arguing.
Carlos said, washing his hands and drying them on a cloth beside the sink.
- So, is the girl telling the truth?
Luke asked, watching as Carlos took a few steps closer.
- It wasn't a bite, it was a cut... a very wide cut. It was not made by blades like knives, the cut was not so clean. What surprises me the most, is that if she really was alone, she did a good job stitching the wound.
He said, looking at the girl with analytical eyes.
- What?! A little girl stitching up her own arm?! Oh, please!
Rebecca said, in disbelief.
- I have the necessary things in my backpack, and my mother was a doctor.
Clementine said, this being the first time she had said anything since she had arrived at the cabin, feeling a little uncomfortable with all those stares.
- Rebecca, try to calm down, getting angry like this is not very good for you.
Carlos said, and the woman gritted her teeth, huffing angrily soon after, but not saying another word.
- Anyway, she'll be fine. It didn't get infected, so she doesn't need any medication. It will leave a scar, and she'll feel a little strange moving her arm, but nothing too serious. She's just tired and probably hungry.
he said, crossing his arms.
- Oh, great. I'm glad we decided to make sure.
Luke said, clearly teasing the others. A rather childish way of celebrating being right, but one that the girl ignored.
- Okay, now that you've helped her, she can leave.
Rebecca said, putting her hands on her waist.
- Where exactly do you plan to go?
Charles asked, turning to Clementine, who lowered her eyes somewhat thoughtfully.
- North of the forest... that was the last place he and I were together.
She answered after a while, getting up from her chair.
- Alone? You haven't even eaten anything, you need some more rest.
Luke said, ignoring Rebecca, who stared at him.
- As long as I'm cautious and quiet, I'll be fine. That runner just saw me because of a sloppy zombie...and I need to go as soon as possible, he...he's out there, looking for me at this point.
The girl said.
She was grateful for their help, but as they said themselves, they wanted nothing in return, and even if they did, she would have nothing to give them back.
If she went out and found Lee, they could think of something for it.
- Okay, like I said, I understand. But just think, you won't get very far this way, and I'm sure whoever the man you are with would think the same way. Get some rest, eat something, and if you want to go, feel free.
Luke said, and the girl sighed.
She begrudgingly admitted that he was right. But still, she wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.
She couldn't rest without knowing what happened to Lee, she was too anxious for that.
- We are not responsible for her.
Rebecca said, crossing her arms again.
- So what, that stops us from doing something good for a change? You could be in her place.
Pete said, walking over to the cabinets in the corner and picking up something Clementine couldn't see.
- While she rests, Nick and I are going down to the river to check the fish traps. We didn't do that earlier.
Pete said, placing a bowl of food in front of Clementine, who looked at him appreciatively.
- Thank you.
She said, starting to eat.
But even hot food didn't seem to taste that good in this situation. She simply couldn't stop thinking about Lee.
What if he is in need of her help?
What if he is desperately looking for her in the forest?
- Well, at least we will have time to cook them for lunch.
Luke said, watching Nick pick up his rifle with a upturned face. He looked a bit uncertain.
- When you're done, Clem, I'll show you where you can rest. You... you can think things over in the meantime, and call me when you've made up your mind.
Luke said, looking at her with a sympathetic expression before leaving the kitchen.
The girl nodded to him and went back to eating, ignoring Rebecca's grumbles as she walked briskly into the living room.
Hm, those strangers were kinder than she had thought they would be, even with all that mistrust.
They didn't seem like bad people... but, as Lee always said, appearances can be deceiving. She hoped that wasn't the case, because if it was, she would be in trouble.
She would have already fallen into their trap.