Beta was put into a jail cell, in another basement, away from Dwight and Sherry. And his first visitor was Gabriel, who was now using the same tree branch as a cane that Michonne had used, formerly. Gabriel had insisted on being alone with the man that the kids here in the stronghold were calling 'The Monster'.

And poor Herschel Rhee! He was really being made fun of over his mother's once being married to 'Monster'. The kids were now saying Herschel had a 'Monster Father'. Gabriel liked Maggie and thought highly of her. If she thought this man, who had tried to take out his knee at one point, was worth redemption, then he would try and help her, and Beta, find it.

Gabriel pulled up a chair outside of Beta's cell. He could not get past his feeling that these jail bars would not really hold a man such as this. He could not get past the fact that Beta was only pretending to be caged. But Gabriel shook off his doubts and began a conversation.

"A meal will be brought to you shortly. Are you hungry? You must be, after all of this time, alone, out there."

Beta did not answer that. He just sat on his cot and stared at Gabriel. Or more specifically, he stared at Gabriel's collar. Gabriel noticed this and continued to speak.

"I was alone. Back in Georgia. Alone and scared. Maggie's group found me and now…now I am the man I should have been back then."

Beta answered.

"I was not found. You trespassed where you should not have. I meant to kill you and yet you live." was his response.

If Gabriel was thrown by Beta's hostility, he did not show it. Or he tried not to.

"But you trespassed as well, didn't you? Those campsites were not empty. People were there, trying to make lives for themselves in this lifeless world. And you killed them."

"They were trespassing as well." was Beta's answer.

"How is that?"

"I decided I wanted to live there, they were there, now they are not."

Gabriel stared Beta down.

"Is that what you are thinking here? That you want to live here among us, we are here and you will make sure we aren't? Even Maggie and Herschel?"

Beta smiled coldly at the priest.

"I could see what you were when I failed to kill you with my axe. I would like it back."

Gabriel smiled just as coldly.

"You want your axe back?"

"I do."

"Do you want it more than a life here with Maggie?"

Beta stopped smiling.

"Do not mention my wife to me…"

"I remember you, 'Brian'. Do you know I had a parishioner who's home was filled with all of your CD's? She had inherited her father's home and he was a fan of yours and your father's music. I also remember that you had a wife and child, didn't you? This parishioner did nothing but talk about you, when she wasn't devoted to her love for God. I would have remembered her expressing disappointment in you, if it had been known that you had strayed from your marriage vows."

Beta said nothing more and Gabriel struggled to stand, just as Rosita came down the stairs. She eyed Beta, who's eyes swept over her casually, before looking at Gabriel.

"Why are you down here?" Rosita asked uneasily.

"I was trying to see if there was any hope for this man Maggie believes so strongly in. I don't see any so far." Gabriel said pointedly to Beta.

"I don't care anything about saving his soul," Rosita said pointedly, "we need to find out where all of the supplies came from in those camps. Darryl told me that Negan and Michonne had been eating soup and drinking fresh Pepsi!"

Gabriel's eyes widened and he stared Beta down. Beta smiled.

"I don't eat much, so I have nothing to tell you." was his reply. Rosita walked up to the bars.

"The hell you don't, monster freak! You're going to tell us where those supplies came from, then you're going to die in that cell. And Maggie will see that we were right about you."

Beta stood up and slowly walked over to the bars.

"And that will happen all in that order?" he asked quietly. Gabriel pulled Rosita away from the bars, just as Carol came down the stairs.

"Virgil wants to examine your leg, Gabriel." she said. Rosita turned away from Beta and helped Gabriel up the stairs. Carol was about to follow, but paused to stare at Beta.

"Maggie wants you here. I need you here." Carol told him before turning away from him to go up the stairs. But Beta said something to her. Something unsettling.

"It doesn't matter what you want. Michonne is Alpha now." Beta replied, before backing away from the bars and sitting back down. He did not take his eyes off of her, as she turned away from him and walked up the stairs. Once Carol was out in the fresh air, she took two deep breaths! Michonne was Alpha now? What the hell?

Michonne and Negan rode on the horse he borrowed from Alexandria, through the woods, looking for one of the well stocked campsites. All of them had had a vehicle or two at them, and the plan was to load what they could into one. Then, Michonne would drive it back to Alexandria while Negan followed with the horse.

The forest was full of walkers but they kept a respectful distance, watching them as they casually rode past them. The horse herself, didn't even whinny at the undead being so close. It was as if she sensed their lack of threat as well.

Negan of course, was LOVING this! Just to be able to do something normal, without having to stick a knife in someone's head, every ten minutes, was very peaceful. And he would have liked to continue on like this forever, with him holding Michonne close to him in this way. But there were things that needed to be said.

"So, I think that more than a few of our people need to get in shape." he said. Michonne, who's eyes were on the walkers, half turned her head to look back at him.

"What?"

"Yeah. There's a school a couple of miles down the road from Alexandria. I think it's called 'Snotty School for Rich Kids' or something."

Michonne could not help but smile.

"I remember it. It's called Van Brock something. We cleaned that out of supplies years ago." she remembered.

"Yeah well it's not the supplies I'm interested in. The school has a gym. I think our people need to be running laps and climbing ropes. Just in case."

"Just in case what? Everyone in Alexandria knows how to kill a walker."

Negan tightened his arms around her.

"I was thinking of when Beta escapes and comes for all of us." he said quietly. "This arrangement isn't going to work and in the end, he'll try to kill all of us. I know you think you can control him, but all of this, what you can do, might not last."

Michonne nodded.

"That's all I can think about."

"So we'll make sure our people are in shape?" Negan asked.

"How about we talk about something else: like Alpha and this sex you had with her…"

"Oh come on, Michonne! Okay… she practically forced herself on me. She appeared naked in a mask and she was kind of hot…in the moment. I don't really remember." Negan lied.

"Hmmm." was all Michonne said to that. Negan peered around her to try and see her face.

"Okay, Miss Warrior Princess, let's say that you were the one that had been locked away someplace, and that your jailers wanted you to kill the leader of Alexandria because that guy sucked…."

"Oh," Michonne interrupted wryly, "so the reason the leader has to die is because Alexandria sucks?"

"For starters." Negan replied just as wryly. "so your plan is to infiltrate the group. And you decide to sleep with the leader."

"Why would I do that? Seriously, why wouldn't I just bide my time, do what they wanted and then kill the leader—who supposedly sucks?" Michonne countered.

"Anyway," Negan continued, ignoring her question, "so who would you sleep with?"

"What?"

"You heard me! I'm there and Darryl is there and Father Gabriel…I'll even throw in King Ezekiel, rest his bastard soul. So who do you try and get to, to dismantle the group?"

"Okay, Negan, I guess I'd sleep with the leader. I'm guessing that would be Darryl then?"

"I'm guessing you need to say 'Negan'!" Negan purred and proceeded to stick his tongue down her ear! Michonne yiped, since she hadn't been expecting him to do anything like that! Negan's tongue was either very long, or quite talented, because it tunneled into her ear and then…began to pump slowly, his tongue strokes were almost majestic.

The heat of his tongue and his body being pressed so close to her, were welcoming and Michonne closed her eyes and allowed Negan his will. She scarcely noticed when he moved his hands from around her middle and under the shelf of her breasts. He cupped them gently, before kneading them expertly and soon, Michonne felt like a hundred butterflies were caught in her body.

Negan and Michonne were so lost in their erotic act that they did not notice when they horse began to trot on her own…on to the property that was Higgins Haven. The horse stopped next to a Dodge Caravan that had not been there before…

"Michonne?"

Michonne's eyes flew open and she looked down into the shocked face of Morgan Jones! Morgan and some other woman.

"Negan!" Michonne squirmed and he pulled his tongue out of her ear. She removed his hands from her breasts and they both climbed down off of the horse. Negan walked the horse over to the barn, while keeping a wary eye on the two people that were here to probably steal the supplies! But Michonne knew them, so he would give her until the time it took for him to put the horse away, to kill either kill them or tell them to get lost!

The woman by Morgan's side was named Grace and she eyed Morgan, who was now staring at this woman, whom he had called 'Michonne', accusingly! Morgan had never mentioned anyone specific that he had known from this area, and now Grace wondered if the woman standing before him had been a former lover or something?

"Morgan," Michonne said, "what are you doing here? We ran into Dwight and Sherry and they said they were with you in Oklahoma?"

Morgan recovered his shock at seeing Michonne engaged in such an intimate act with…with Negan?

"We're here looking for Dwight and Sherry. I knew they wanted to come back and kill Negan. I wanted to stop them…or back them up." Morgan said.

"Yeah, they made that clear when they kidnapped our people. They are locked up at Alexandria." Michonne told Morgan in a no nonsense tone.

"Rick's dead, isn't he? He would have to be, for you to allow that murdering piece of trash to put his hands on you like that." Morgan said with a calm he did not feel. He was clutching his stick. Grace touched his arm and took over.

"We just want to find Dwight and Sherry. We started a new community with some of our people back in Georgia. We want Dwight and Sherry to be a part of it." Grace told Michonne just as Negan joined them.

"Well, well! Who do we have here?" Negan asked in a fake, friendly tone. The man looked vaguely familiar, but he could not think as to why. The woman he had never seen before at all.

Morgan looked from Michonne to Negan.

"Who let you out? Rick was supposed to keep you locked up."

Negan looked from Morgan to Michonne.

"Who the hell is this?" he asked her.

"Morgan Jones. He was once on of us."

Negan suddenly grinned at Morgan!

"Your crazy Morgan! One of my men who used to collect from the Kingdom told me about you! You killed someone there over a kid or something! He said you had this whole 'Book of Eli' shit going! Well I'll be goddamned! Dwight and Sherry were living with you until what? You went off on them with that stick?"

"You were the one that did that to Dwight?" Grace asked.

"Did what?" Negan asked innocently.

"Burned Dwight with an iron!" Morgan snapped.

"Dwight fell onto an iron himself! I didn't do anything to him!" Negan lied. "Now why don't you both cut the shit here! You're here trying to steal OUR supplies and we're not going to let you get away with it!"

Morgan looked at Grace, before replying.

"We haven't been inside. There are supplies in there?"

"Supplies WE'RE taking back to Alexandria." Negan told him.

"Supplies we could use in our new community. We could use supplies and we want Dwight and Sherry." Morgan told them.

"Look," Michonne said, "why don't we take the supplies back to Alexandria, you can stay there and see Dwight and Sherry and then, before you leave for Georgia, we'll give you a care package, okay?"

"Georgia?" Negan asked. "You want to haul supplies all the way there?"

"I want to go back to the beginning." Morgan said quietly. "My group cleared out the prison Rick and Michonne's people once stayed in. We cleared out the walkers…it is now a good, safe home."

Michonne gaped at Morgan!

"What?! Why would you think to go back there?!"

"If you really want to know, Michonne, I had a dream about Rick. He told me it was the right thing to do…"

Michonne suddenly punched Morgan and he fell to the ground! Grace screamed and knelt beside him! Walkers came into the area and they moved around Michonne and Negan(Negan made sure he stood very close to Michonne during this) and attacked Morgan and Grace alone! Michonne glared at Morgan, and offered no assistance as they fended off the undead!

Once Morgan and Grace saved themselves, they eyed the two of them.

"Those walkers didn't come near the two of you." Morgan noted. Grace backed back behind Morgan.

Negan's arm encircled Michonne's waist as he answered.

"Everything here is ours. Leave unless you want a repeat of what just happened." he told them. But Michonne had something more to say.

"When we're satisfied that Dwight and Sherry won't try anything like they did again, we'll send them your way." she said quietly. She felt drained and sad. If they had never been forced out of that prison…

Morgan just stared at her.

"I don't know what's happened here or what's going on, but I'm not leaving my people with you." he said. He nodded to Grace and they both got into the Dodge, it started up and they drove off. Negan and Michonne stood there and watched them drive off.

"We have to go back to Alexandria and warn them!" Michonne huffed, but Negan's arm tightened around her waist.

"There are only two of them. And let them take Dwight and Sherry. They'd just be two more mouths to feed anyway. Let's go get the supplies before someone else decides they want them as well." Negan said.

"He's using our prison as a home. I met Rick there! He has no right…" Michonne suddenly snapped and tried to pull out of Negan's hold around her middle! She was going to go after Morgan and stop them from…

From what? Making a life for himself in a place Rick and them failed to?

And what was that about Rick coming to him in a dream?

"Hey!" Negan suddenly snapped and let go of her waist to cup her face within his hands. "Let him go!"

Michonne knew he wasn't talking about Morgan and she started to pull away from Negan again, but the binding attraction she felt for him, could not be squelched. Negan kissed her angry mouth and he felt her breasts heave against him with outraged passion, before he ended their kiss, reached for her hand and pulled her towards the cabin they had made torrid love in, just hours before. It was Negan's intention that this time, the two of them would spend the whole night here and return to Alexandria in the morning. Negan wanted a whole night to erase Rick Grimes from Michonne's mind—and heart.

As soon as they entered the cabin, it began to rain.

"So you think Negan and Heath were working together?" Aaron asked Dwight outside of his cell. He nodded and Sherry looked at Darryl, who appeared to be thinking.

He finally spoke.

"I can see it except for that 'Beta lives with us in one house shit'. Negan would've never went along with a plan like that. We need more proof." Darryl said.

"Why?" Sherry asked. "I mean I don't get why you can't just kick him out of here?"

"Because he killed someone that came after us and has made himself useful around here. After seven years, there are people here that don't know the Negan we know." Aaron admitted.

"No," Darryl said, "but I have an idea."

"What do you mean?" Dwight asked. Darryl did not answer him but he looked at Sherry oddly, before turning and leaving the cells. Aaron nodded to Dwight and Sherry before hurrying after him. It was raining and he followed Darryl into his house, closing the door behind him.

"I thought the idea was to sic Beta on Negan?"

"Beta isn't the problem. Michonne has to kick him out of here. She can control Beta, for whatever reason. Both of them can get rid of Negan." Darryl said.

"But Michonne won't. Not if Negan turns out to be RJ's father." Aaron countered.

Darryl was silent and Aaron sensed that whatever idea he was about to reveal, it would come at a heavy price.

"You remember the first time Negan came with the Saviors to collect?"

"Yeah?"

"Well Negan dragged me here and I had to help put our stuff in his trucks. Rick told me something later. Later after I escaped from them. He said that he and Gabriel faked Maggie's death to keep her safe and Negan looked at her 'grave'. He said he had wanted to ask her to be one of his 'wives'."

"Like Sherry was?" Aaron asked. Darryl nodded.

"Okay…so where are we going with this?" Aaron asked.

"Nowhere good," Darryl admitted, "I'm going to ask Maggie to pretend to like him. She might even have to…"

"Are you out of your mind?" Aaron yelled. "There is no way we can ask Maggie to do anything like that!"

"You think I like thinking about this kind of shit?!" Darryl snapped back. "But we need to prove something to Michonne! We need Michonne to catch Maggie and Negan doing something and I guarantee you, Negan will either be running for his goddamned life from here or taking a dirt nap in the woods! I don't care which one as long as he's out of here."

"And what happens when Beta finds out? You see how he is! He would have a fit if he found Maggie with anyone, much less Negan! She could be in danger too." Aaron argued.

Darryl shook his head.

"Negan is never going to let Michonne go now that he sees what she can do. I'm betting here, that Negan would still go for Maggie if she dangled the chance in front of him. We need for him to do it and for Michonne to see it. We can't deal with both Beta and Negan. This community will fall apart with the two of them here. Something has to give." Darryl said firmly.

Meanwhile, in the dark cell that Beta now called home, during the rainstorm that grew more intense and violent with each moment, Maggie Rhee, who had snuck down to see Beta shortly before the rain began to fall, arched her naked body wildly underneath the powerful, giant body of a prisoner named Beta, moving with him in a compelling, undulating rhythm that sent sweet streams of ecstasy flooding into her soul.

Maggie had not felt this alive in years.