This Night

Chapter 208

Author's Note: I'm back, did you miss me? Miss the story? I understand! Wound up fighting a cold, the dry air does that to me. Now a couple of characters were giving me ideas, and one of them (won't tell you who) offered his or herself up for an emotional death. He or she feels there job in the story is done. It'll be a while. Nope not telling. Mean aren't I? Yep! It's the Walking Dead, deaths happen. Anyway, where were we? Oh right! Review please.

Rosita and Joey's POV:

Joey tightened his grip on his older brother's arms. "Rosita, get a bottle water out of my pack. David, listen to me, I am not going to hurt you. I'm your brother, your family. I need to check you for bites, for scratches. I'm going to have to let you go to do that."

Rosita looked at him. "Do you think that's a good idea? He just tried to attack us."

Joey glanced at her. "He didn't know who we were."

David struggled from Joey's grip and let out a laugh. "Family? Brother? That's a damn laugh. You don't get to have family, not in this world. No, in this world, it's every man for himself. Fighting those things, until you just had enough. I'm not bitten or scratched. I told you that."

Rosita handed Joey the bottle of water and looked at David. "Well, forgive us for not believing you. Not a lot of people are that trustworthy today. Joey can I speak to you for a minute?" she asked.

Joey glanced at her then nodded. "I'm going to let you go, drink this. I'll be right back," he said as he let his brother go and handed him the bottle.

Rosita grabbed his arm and pulled him over. "I know we just met earlier today, but I feel like I need to tell you that this isn't a good idea."

"He's my brother, what do you want me to do Rosita? Leave him here? Not even try?" Joey asked.

David let out a laugh as he drank the water. "You sleeping with her to give you protection? Makes sense, the only way you'd survive this long is to hook up with someone who could take care of you."

Joey looked at his brother. "You are not doing any favors, shut up," he told him. "Just let me try alright?" he asked as he turned his attention back to Rosita.

Rosita sighed. "Fine," she said. "Hands up, we have to check you for bites or scratches."

David glared at her, his brown eyes meeting her brown eyes. "Are you deaf? Or stupid? Or both? For the third time, I'm not bit or scratched."

Rosita looked at him for a moment before she closed the gap between the two of them and brought up her knee to meet his groin. As he doubled over, she grabbed him by the neck of his shirt. "Maybe you're the one whose stupid and deaf, since I'm telling you again, we're going to check you for bites and scratches. Now, out of respect for your brother, I'm not going to kill you. Well, not right now, but I do reserve the right to change my mind. Now, are you going to stand up and let us check for scratches or am I going to have to knee you again?" she asked.

David looked at her before standing up and spreading his arms. "Got to admit Joe, this one is feisty. Not your usual type," he said.

"David, shut up," Joey said as he shook his head.

Rosita rolled her eyes as she checked him over. "He's all yours," she told him. "I'll be over by the window, looking for the others."

Joey nodded as he took out a piece of jerky and handed it to the other man. "You're wrong, you know?"

David took it. "What exactly am I wrong about?"

"That you don't get to have family in this world. I'm not talking about the blood that's running through our vanes either," Joey told him.

David looked at him then at Rosita. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I got lucky, I found good people, people that I am proud to fight with in this hell of a world. People like that, people like Rosita, they are family," Joey told him.

David rolled his eyes. "How long have you known these people? The people you came in with? Rosita here?"

Joey glanced at Rosita. "Rosita and I just met earlier today, the others have been a while now."

David let out a laugh. "So you met Rosita here today and you call her family? You didn't use to be that gullible."

Joey shook his head slightly at Rosita to keep her from saying anything. "Rosita is good people, she volunteered to come here with us because one of our group needed medicine. She didn't have too, but she did because it was the right thing to do," he told his brother. "You're a good person too. Who was that you put down? You cared for her? You said that Carley didn't make it out of Atlanta? The baby?"

David turned his head away from him. "We were heading for Grady…Atlanta was a cluster fuck…even before the bombs hit. They had the doors locked…..at a hospital…chained. No one was getting in. Then the bombs…the bombs started…in the chaos…Carley was bit. We knew….there was no chance…for her or the baby. I put her down…they both died in my arms. I wanted to end it right then…but there was other people who needed help, and I had this delusion that I could help," he said as he wiped his eyes. "No one can help."

"No, you're wrong, we can help. We may lose people, it's part of life now a days. But we survive by helping people, by being helped. Who was she David? If she wasn't someone important you wouldn't have put her down. You would have walked away, but you didn't. You didn't turn away and let her turn, you stayed and put her down. She was important to you or you would have left her," Joey insisted.

David looked at him. "Emmy….she was only seventeen. We met in Atlanta…her dad was bit, I promised to take care of her…and her little brother. We were…we were with a bigger group, we were trying to find some place safe. But nowhere is safe, no one is who they seem. Emmy and a couple other girls were raped in our group at one of the camps we found. I couldn't save them….but I got Emmy out, we had lost her little brother a few months before. She started to see signs for Terminus, for Sanctuary, she still believed there were good people out there and she wanted to find them," he informed them.

Rosita and Joey exchanged a glances. "Terminus is gone," Rosita told him.

"Gone? How? You were there?" David asked.

"Our group took it down. They weren't who they seemed, who they were advertising to be," Joey simply said.

"So you took Sanctuary away from everyone? You could have walked away," David insisted.

"No, we couldn't," Rosita told him. "They were cannibals', you either joined them or became food. I was locked in a train car with others', damn lucky I was. They picked on the wrong group to take captive," she told him.

David shook his head. "Like I said, nothing is what it seems. Doesn't matter now, Emmy got bit last night, this was the closest town…she's gone and I'm alone."

Joey looked at him. "No you aren't, I'm here, your brother. Do you think that I'd turn my back on you now that we found each other?"

David laughed. "The other members of your group may disagree with you," he said as he turned and looked at Rosita. "What do you think of this idea?"

"Not the smartest thing I've heard, but not the dumbest," Rosita admitted.

Joey got up and put out his hand to David. "Just got a few questions for you."

David looked up at him and hesitantly took it as he stood up. "What?"

"How many walkers' have you killed?" Joey asked.

"What?" David asked.

"Biters, creepers, geeks, the things out there that want to eat you? How many have you killed?" Joey asked.

"I don't know, plenty," David answered.

"How many humans have you killed?" Joey asked.

"Five," David told him.

"Why?"

"Two were bit, the baby…the baby died because I had to kill Carley, and the other two were raping Emmy," David answered.

Joey nodded as he handed him his bag. "Come on, let's go find the others."

"You're going to explain this to Merle, you know he isn't going to be happy about this," Rosita answered.

"You don't know Merle well enough, but he's hardly happy about anything," Joey answered.

"Dad with this group of yours?" David asked Joey.

"He's dead," Joey answered.

"Not surprising. Got bit?" David asked.

"He got shot. He was following the wrong person, and a decision had to be made. It was the right one," Joey said. "Don't waste bullets if you don't have too," he warned his brother.

TBC

Author's Note: Wanted to get this out before I go to work today. I really don't want to go to work but I must. I've been off for two weeks. Review please