"An error occurred in my account during this past week, so there may be some chapters in which you have not read. In case this one gets a little confusing for you guys."
After they climbed the stairs, Lee stabbed the knife into the neck of another guard who had fallen behind, and pushed his body aside soon after.
Running his eyes around, he realized that a large number of the guards were running towards the main gates, probably being the source of the attack.
But Lee knew that it wouldn't take long for the "reinforcements" to attack.
- What's the plan?
Clementine asked beside him, pulling him into cover behind a garbage can as she realized that some guards had spotted them.
- I'm going to the infirmary. That's where Aj should be, according to Ed. You go to his office and wait there.
Lee said, and the girl narrowed her eyes.
- What? You're going in there alone?!
- Clem, he might as well not have gone to the infirmary. Or even if he did, he might just go to the office afterwards. He won't be there at that moment, he has some power here, responsibilities. He will talk to Clint first, trust me.
Lee said, and the girl rolled her eyes.
- You know what, Lee? I think I'm old enough not to obey you under certain circumstances. No fucking way am I going to let you go out there alone!
The girl said, and Lee stared at her dumbfounded for a while. The days when she did everything he told her to do without complaining were long gone.
- Jesus, you are so stubborn...
Lee said with a defeated sigh.
- I learned from you. Let's go.
She said, and as she stepped out from behind cover, she shot at the nearest guards.
Lee sighed slightly, and followed close behind. This was the first time she had taken the lead.
Grabbing a pistol from one of the fallen guards, Lee ran towards the girl and pulled her behind a tree as he saw more guards approaching from the side, and shot at the ones advancing down the street.
Screams and gunfire filled the place, and shortly after, an explosion came from down the street.
The cries of despair increased even more, mixed with the angry groans and shouts of runners.
Stabbing a man ahead in the neck, Lee's eyes widened slightly as he saw the wall at the back of the community destroyed, and the horde of runners beginning to pour in further and further.
Civilians were desperately running towards the front gates, or any safe place that appeared along the way, only to be caught in the crossfire. Lee gritted his teeth slightly as he saw that he not only had to watch out for the guards already inside the community, but for the guards outside as well.
He probably wouldn't be asked whether he was from the new frontier or not. And honestly, he was not up for killing people who had nothing to do with it.
But it wasn't his problem, he wouldn't hesitate.
Before he could turn around, however, he is attacked with a punch to the face, and as he turns around, he looks at a man who was unarmed, a knife in his hands.
One of the men who had beaten him up earlier. He was dirty and a little beaten up, he looked like he had been in a fight before he got there.
- It was a mistake to attack me without a weapon.
Lee said, and the man advanced towards him, trying to punch him, which hit him, but Lee just ignored the pain in his face, and counter attacked with a punch to the stomach, followed by a kick to the leg and a punch to the face.
The man fell to the ground, but before he could do anything, Lee plunged the knife into his neck, and opened a wide slit in his throat.
Letting the man drown in his own blood, Lee ran towards Clementine, who was taking cover behind a car up ahead, with three people firing in her direction.
Picking up his pistol again, he shoots two of these people. Unfortunately, he had missed most of the shots; he had not yet gotten used to shooting without one of his eyes. It was horrible.
But it was enough, even though he didn't hit these people in the places he wanted, they were still hit, and Clementine took care of the remaining person, also missing some shots.
They both ran towards the infirmary building ahead, and as soon as they entered, they were taken by surprise by some guards.
Clementine shot two of them, while Lee advanced against the one next to him and used the woman's body as a shield. Before she fell to the ground, Lee grabbed her rifle and supported the weapon on his forearm, firing at the remaining guards.
- Check down here! I'm going upstairs! If he's not here, we're going to Ed's office!
Lee shouted, strapping his knife in place of his severed hand, going up the stairs and shooting the first guards he saw.
Before long, however, he ran out of ammo, and was forced to use a more direct approach. There were only two guards left.
Throwing the rifle toward one of the remaining men, he advanced toward the other and kicked the rifle out of his hands, and then tried to stab him in the shoulder.
However, the man dodged, jumping back, and counterattacking with a kick to Lee's torso, but Lee dodged and counterattacked with a punch to the stomach.
Before he could act again, he was forced to turn to the other guard, and quickly stabbed him in the forearm before he could aim with his rifle, followed by a punch to the chin.
The other man, however, moved towards him quickly, and punched him in the face, sending him backwards, followed by another punch to the side of the head, and finishing with a kick to the chest.
Lee groans in pain slightly as he feels his back hit the wall, but then he steps aside as he sees the other guard trying to stab him.
Taking advantage of the opening, Lee stabs him in the stomach and runs with the guard toward the other man, who has jumped to the side.
Lee had expected this reaction, and as he throws the guard's body forward, he kicks the man in the knee, and stabs his knife into his neck, throwing him violently to the ground.
Spitting out a small amount of saliva mixed with blood, he enters all the rooms that followed on that floor.
He found several patients, mostly men, and all of them bedridden, so he didn't waste the time to kill them, they wouldn't get in his way.
After a while of checking the place out, he rolls his eyes when he sees that Aj was not on that floor. Turning around, he runs as fast as he can to the floor below, and finds Clementine pulling a knife from the chest of one of the men she killed.
- He's not here!
He shouted, and the front door was suddenly kicked in, where some men and women came shooting in.
Lee pulled Clementine into a next room and closed the door, where they both pushed a closet in front of the door, blocking the entrance.
- Argh! These guys are more trouble than help!
Lee complained, walking over to the window of the room and breaking the glass. Clementine was the first to jump out, and Lee followed.
As they approached the street ahead, Clementine shot at the two runners who had approached, and they both watched the situation.
Runners chasing and devouring people through the park, fire in some of the buildings, the members of the new frontier were in a heavy firefight against the members of the other communities. It was practically a war going on there.
Rolling his eyes at the backlash, Lee walked over to a car and broke the front window, starting to push the vehicle towards the building where Ed's office was, using it as cover.
Clementine ran up to him and helped him push, doing the same thing to the rear window.
Before they could approach the building, however, a runner appeared and crashed into Lee, pinning him against the car.
Clementine's eyes widened and she ran into the runner, killing him with a stab to the head.
Lee turned to the girl to thank her, but before he could say anything, he pulled her back and put his arm in front of her, protecting her from a gunshot that would have hit her head.
Groaning in pain as he felt his arm being pierced, he crouched down with the girl behind him.
- Are you all right?!
she asked worriedly, looking around for a few moments before looking at the wound on his arm.
- Yes!
Lee said, ripping off another piece of his shirt and tying it around the wound. He would remove the bullet later.
They both stood up, and before they could push the car again, they saw Ed running down the back street, heading for a yard further on.
A parking lot not far from the street.
Grumbling at the same time, they both ran towards the yard. However, before they get very far, Lee grabs a runner along the way and uses it as a shield from the shots flying towards them, leaving Clementine on the opposite side of where the runner was being hit.
As they approach the place, he kills the runner and throws his body to the ground, running his eyes around.
It was a large place, with a few vans parked at the moment, with a metal fence around the area.
- Can you go around?
Lee asked the girl after seeing movement in there.
- Yes, but it will take a while.
She said, wiping the blood that stained her knife.
- Good! If you see the opportunity, don't hesitate to act. We can't leave Aj with him.
Lee said, pulling the girl close to him and giving her a quick kiss on the forehead.
She turned and started running along the fence, not letting Lee see the involuntary smile that was born on her lips.
Sighing slightly, Lee jumps over the fence and runs toward the nearest vehicle. Leaning his body to the side, he crouches down and walks slowly towards the guard ahead, who was fixing the engine of one of the vans in a hurry.
Positioning himself behind him, Lee stabs his knife into the back of the man's head and grabs his body, dragging him behind the vehicle.
Still behind the van, he tilts his body to the side and observes Ed inside the garage ahead, with no sign of Aj, which made Lee close his eyes and control himself not to run towards the man.
Grabbing the pistol from the dead guard at his feet, he sneaks behind the vehicles and waits. They must have missed that man by now.
However, he didn't expect another guard to show up, one he hadn't noticed. And he couldn't really blame himself, he was fixing something under one of the vans, in a place that Lee had not seen before.
They both stared at each other for a while, and the man reached for his pistol.
Lee was too far away to run towards the man, and the guard had the pistol too close for him to actually do it, so, with no choice, Lee is forced to throw his body to the side, dodging the three shots the guard fired.
- Hey! Guys!
the man shouted, and coming out from behind cover, Lee shot him. Three shots, two of which he had missed, and one hit the man in the head.
Shooting with only one eye sucks.
Crouching again, Lee throws his body back as he sees two men with rifles shoot in his direction.
Looking around, he is a little apprehensive as he hears the men's footsteps approaching, but soon, an idea pops into his head.
The two guards approached from either side of the van, and quickly checked the rear of the vehicle. No sign of Lee.
Narrowing his eyes, one of the guards crouched down and checked under the van. As he did so, two shots echoed just above him. The man's body fell beside him, and before he could do anything, everything went black.
Lee jumps off the top of the van, groaning slightly for his shot arm. He should paint himself white and red all at once, he had been shot so many times he could already consider himself a target.
Hearing the roar of a vehicle engine, he grumbles softly and runs toward the van ahead, shooting both tires and aiming his gun at Ed.
- I wouldn't do that!
The man shouted, coming out of the van with a cloth wrapped around his arms, and a gun pointed in the direction of the baby.
Lee's eyes widened at the thought of Aj, but he didn't put the gun down.
- Come on Lee... I gouged out your eye, I know you must think you can hit me from this distance, but you are more likely to hit the boy than me, and you know it.
Ed said, and Lee gritted his teeth in anger.
- He's just a baby, you piece of shit!
Lee growled, gripping the gun tighter, but careful not to pull the trigger.
Although he really wanted to shoot Ed, his aim was terrible. Not to mention that he was shaky and tired. Like it or not, the chances of him missing that shot were high, and Ed would have a chance to shoot the boy.
But still, he didn't put the gun down.
- A very useful baby for me... look around, if I didn't use him as a hostage, I would be dead already.
Ed said, smiling cynically at de Lee, as he started to walk slowly to the side.
- You know, the times we spent together, me, you and our sweet Clementine, were great. That's right, Lee, OUR Clementine.
Ed said, laughing softly as Lee's expression contorted into anger.
- I am her father, whether you like it or not. But although I hate to admit it, you are the one she considers her real father. So that makes us both her fathers.
Ed said, walking slowly away toward the garage behind him.
- I know you'll chase me, and so will she. Doesn't this bring back wonderful memories?
Ed asked, stepping into the garage.
- Remember the last time? I took Clementine with me, and you chased me to that hotel. This time, I'm taking Aj with me, and you two are gonna chase me... maybe I'll find another hotel somewhere. Isn't it great, all of us, reliving the past, with the company of a new child? This will be the last time, Lee... and no matter what the outcome is, it will be magnificent.
Ed said with a smile, and Lee closed his eyes as he saw movement behind the man, feeling his chest fill with relief as he saw Clementine slowly approaching from behind him.
- This time... I'm going to kill you. And me, Aj, and Clementine will live happily forever.
He said, and the girl positioned herself behind him with a crowbar in her hands.
- You won't live.
She said, and as soon as he turned around, he ran into the crowbar, sending him crashing to the ground with blood dripping down his face.
Lee ran towards him as Clementine kicked the gun out of the man's hand and picked Aj up.
But as soon as she saw that this was not Aj, but a dark skinned doll, she gritted her teeth in anger.
Lee clenched his fist hard, and punched Ed hard in the face, grabbing him by the shirt shortly after.
- Where is he?
he asked, and the man smiled slightly.
- You already know the answer to that, in the infirmary.
He said, and Lee punched him again, mercilessly, ignoring the pain in his hand.
- Ed, you are going to die, nothing is going to stop that, so how about doing something good for once in your pathetic life and tell me where he is!
Lee growled, holding him tightly by the neck.
- I told you... in the infirmary... I just didn't say which one.
Ed spoke with some difficulty, and Lee let go of his neck.
- Lingard didn't tell you? The ranch, Lee, McCarroll ranch...I had him taken there as soon as I left my office...I knew Kenny's little friends would attack.
Ed said, putting his hand on his neck, and spitting out a certain amount of blood.
- It's safe there... the people there are not like the people here.
Ed said, and both Lee and Clementine noticed a change in the man. Not that it mattered.
- I'm surprised someone like you did that.
Lee said scornfully, grabbing him by the neck again and dragging him into the garage. Clementine closed the door, and then covered the windows.
- If I said... I regretted my sins, would you believe me?
Ed asked after being thrown to the ground.
- No.
Lee replied.
- Good, because that would be a lie. Does it matter?
Ed asked, looking at Lee cynically.
- No.
- Hm, and what are you going to do to me now... scare me? Torture me? Tell me, how are you going to kill me?
Ed asked, and his smile slowly died as he watched Lee slowly walk away.
- I won't... she will.
He said, and Ed looked incredulously at Clementine, who had placed her pistol on the side table, and was staring at him with hatred.
-... What? Her?! No, no, no, that's wrong Lee... our sweet Clementine is not the type to do that!
Ed said, trying to get up, but Clementine stopped him, kicking him in the face.
- You don't know me... you don't know what I'm capable of...
the girl said in a snarl, slowly approaching Ed as Lee cleared away the surrounding tables and chairs.
- No, honey, I know what you are capable of... I just don't want to believe that you are capable of killing your own father.
He said, wiping the blood dripping from his face.
- You're not my father... and I'm not going to kill you.
Clementine said, and the man looked at her, slightly confused.
- You know, Lee taught me something... Do you know what it feels like to be "half dead"?
The girl asked, taking her knife and stabbing both of Ed's knees, who cried out in pain and struggled to feel the blade pierce his leg.
- If we consider destroying the whole body as a "full death", and then separate the lower body from the upper body, the damage on both sides is quite different.
She said, putting the knife back on her waist.
- You can still live without your lower body, but if your upper body is destroyed, you die... not exactly what I am looking for. So I thought about organs... but this way I have to think about the value of each organ as well.
She said, walking over to him and taking his arm.
- So, there are the bones. There are 206 bones in a person's body. The bones are symmetrical on both sides, so splitting them in "half" is relatively easy. Of course, some, not so much, some bones in your body are stronger than concrete. But, in other words, from now on, I am going to break 103 bones in your body.
She said, and pulled Ed's arm closer to her, staring at the man's somewhat perplexed expression.
And even a little frightened.
- Let's start with the arm. We'll go from the upper arm and forearm first, then the hand. There's one bone called the "humerus" in the upper arm.
Clementine said, and the sound of the breaking bone was mixed with Ed's shout.
The girl did it exactly the same way Lee had done it years ago with Carver, the way she remembered it.
That image never left her mind, it was not something that could simply be forgotten.
And now, she would remember that feeling for the rest of her life.
And she would remember that day...
The day she tortured her own blood.