All Nightmare Long

Chapter 522

Author's Note: I'm hoping to get to the scene with creepy guy and Enid, Jewel's going to knock him on his but which will lead to an enlightening conversation with Negan. Can't you all feel the excitement? Not sure if I will get to that in this chapter but I'm excited at the thought. And they'll be no stupid roller skating with Enid and Carl. Please review.

Alexandria:

Jewel put her hand on Carl's shoulder as Rick led Negan out to the armory. "What were you thinking?" she hissed.

"Somebody has to do something," Carl told her.

"That somebody isn't you," Jewel told him. "You know where I need you, and who I need you to be watching," she whispered to him. "Did you know Mitch got out of the house? That Negan knows about him?"

"Your mother stood between him and Negan, she could have been killed kid," Jes warned him. "You do realize because of your stunt, Negan is going to take all our guns right?"

Jewel glanced at Jes. "I'm handling it. You are not getting out of my sight, come on. I don't want to leave your dad alone with Negan to long," she told him as she pushed his shoulder to get him to move.

"He's old enough to be faced with the hard truths," Jes told her.

"I know, right now I just want to get Negan out of here as fast as I can," Jewel told the other woman.

"Do you know where Mar is?" Jes questioned.

"No, I don't know where a lot of people are," Jewel said as she sighed.

"Are we seriously just going to stand by and let them take all our guns?" Carl asked.

Jes and Jewel exchanged knowing glances. "Right now, there is nothing we can do. That's the thing about being an adult, you have to know when to take actions and when you can't. And actions have consequences. This is the consequence of an action," Jewel said. "Stay put. Jes," she said.

"I got him," Jes told her as Jewel walked toward Rick and Negan.

"You know what today is Rick? Today is a banner day, yes it is," Negan said as he glanced over to Jewel. "Where have you been?"

"Being a mother," Jewel told him. "Don't even ask the about the conversation between me and my son because it's none of your business."

"Everything is my business," Negan told her.

"No, it's not. Now, back to business, you taking all the guns? So that should suffice right? That and the mattresses?" Jewel asked.

Negan laughed. "Damn Rick, I've said it before and I'll say it again, you have your hands full with this one," he said. "Anyway, I was just telling Ricky here that I think this arrangement will work out just fine. What do you think Jewel?"

"You really don't want me to tell you what I'm thinking," Jewel answered as she saw Daryl come out carrying guns. She took a breath and watched as Negan stopped him.

"Hold up, let's see if you've been taking care of my guns," Negan said as he took one off of Daryl. "He cocked the weapon and pointed it at Daryl.

Jewel immediately went to take a step forward as Rick grabbed her, as Negan never took his eyes off Rick or Jewel but followed Daryl with the gun.

Negan raises the gun a little higher shooting out a window and laughing as the glass shatters. "Feels good, sounds good! Oh I do believe Lucille's getting jealous!" he said as both Jewel and Rick looked at him.

Negan looked as one of his men came up carrying the rocket launcher. "Well Holy Smokes, look at this! It was you guys that took out Little Tommy and the Dick Brigade? Wow Rick, getting in your last licks! Oh man, I'm going to have some fun with this!"

"Please I don't know," Olivia said as she was dragged up the stairs by Olivia.

Negan pointed his finger at Arat. "Arat, we don't do that, unless they do something to deserve it," he told her.

Arat looked at him. "Yeah we went through the inventory, guns in the armory, guns they had on the wall. They're short, Glock 9 and a .22. Bobcat," she told them.

Jewel thought back to the guns they had taken and knew that those two weren't part of the ones they took.

"Is that true?" Negan asked Olivia.

Olivia gave a slight nod of her head before Rick spoke up. "We had some people leave town, those guns probably went with them," he told him.

"So Olivia sucks at her job, is that what you're saying?" Negan asked.

"No, no that's now what I'm saying," Rick said.

"Olivia can't be present 24-7, and you killed one of the few people who helped her out," Jewel told him.

"So you're saying this is my fault?" Negan asked.

"I didn't say it, you did," Jewel told him.

Sylvie stepped forward. "Do you have a key to the armory? Is it locked? Is there more than one?" she asked as she tried to diffuse the situation.

"She locks it at night, but anyone can keep a window unlocked and sneak in afterwards. I did it when we first got here, took four or five guns right out from under their noses," Jes said as she walked up. She didn't mention it was actually Carol who did it, since she wasn't there. "We were proving a point that the job was too big for one person."

"We weren't in charge then," Jewel told him. "People could have gotten scared, knowing you would be here within a week, didn't sign out guns. It's no big deal."

"It is a big deal, a very big deal," Negan told her. "They're should be a full accounting here, right? Top to bottom, am I right?" he asked as he turned to Olivia.

"No…I," Olivia stammered. "I mean yes," she answered. "The inventory's correct."

"Just stop talking, Olivia," Jes mumbled to herself.

"Good," Negan said. "But not so good," he said. "You see what's in here isn't in there, you're two handguns short. Do you know where they are?" he asked Olivia.

"No..I," Olivia stumbled.

Negan sighs. "That's disappointing Rick, I thought we had an understanding. But this…well, this shows that someone's not on board, and I can't have that," Negan told him. "I don't enjoy killing women. Men I can waste them all day long. But at the end of the day, Olivia, my dear, this was your responsibility."

Jewel took a step to put herself between Negan and Olivia. "You want to kill someone, kill me. In the end of the day, Rick and I are in charge, we give the orders, and it comes down to us."

"Look we can work this out," Rick told Negan.

Negan looked at Rick. "Oh yes we can, and I am going to…right now. Jewel, move," he warned as he pointed the gun at Jewel.

"Jewel, please," Rick begged.

Jewel took a breath as she moved slightly out of the way but staying near Olivia who was whimpering by this time.

"This was your job and you screwed up. Keeping track of guns, that shit is life and death," Negan told her.

"Look killing her isn't going to get the guns back, she doesn't know where they are. Trust me if she knew, she would have told you already," Jes said. "Let Rick and Jewel get everyone together, we'll find the guns."

Negan nodded. "Fine," he said. "You don't mind if we keep looking around, do you? Of course you don't." he said with a laugh.

Jes nodded at Jewel as Jewel and Rick went to gather everyone up.

Church in Alexandria:

Jewel watched as Rick stared at Lucille on the window seal. She put a hand on his shoulder. "It's time," she whispered to him as she kissed him.

Rick nodded and turned. "I thought about hiding some of the guns, I did it before. I figured I could bury some of them out there, maybe we don't touch them for years," he said.

"Years?" Tobin questioned.

"Yeah, that's right," Rick answered. "What if the savior's find those guns?" he asked as he walked down the aisles like a preacher. "What if we run into them when we have those guns on us? One of us dies, maybe more than that, maybe a lot more. Doesn't matter how many bullets we have," he said as he turned back to walk to the front. "It isn't enough. They win," he said as Jewel glanced at Jes then at Aaron. "It's that black and white. Hiding a couple guns, it isn't the answer, not anymore. We don't have to like it, but we need to hand them over. A Glock 9 and a .22, that's what they're looking for. Who has it? Someone knows where they are, or who they know who does," he said. "If we don't find them, they're going to kill Olivia. They'll do it," Rick warned them.

Scott stood up. "Why do they care? Two guns aren't a threat to them," he pointed out. "But those guns could protect us from whatever else is out there."

"They care because it's all about control. It's all about Negan and his savior's showing us who is in control. I've offered to take Olivia's place, to be killed, and you all know what I have to lose if that happens, but he isn't going to kill me, he's going to kill Olivia. One of the people that you've known longer than us. Are you really willing to let that happen?" she asked. "Do you have the guns?"

"I wish I did," Scott answered as he sat down.

"Most of you weren't there, you didn't have to watch. You can look away now, and someone else dies, or you can help solve this," Rick told them. "We give them what they want and we live in peace," he said.

"Don't lie to them, Rick. Things are never going to be the same, not with Negan in charge. Now, I'm the first one willing to go out there and doing what it takes to fight, to die. I was ready to charge in there and save Glenn and Abraham, but I had a friend tell me that I can't fight if I'm dead. Olivia doesn't have to die, but if she does, that's on one of you as much as it's on Negan," Jes told them.

Eric whispered something to Aaron. "Don't, now's not the time," he told Eric as Emily looked at them.

"It is," Eric answered as he stood up. "Say we find the guns, how are we going to get out of this Rick?"

"There is no way out of this. Let me put this to all of you, as clearly as I can. Jewel, Quinn and I aren't in charge anymore, Negan is. Now who has the guns?"

Eugene looked around. "Not everyone is here," he said.

Jewel and Rick looked at each other. "Everyone go back home, stay out of there way," Jewel said. "I'll meet you at Spencer's," she told Rick as she kissed him.

Jes stayed behind as did Aaron. "Those weren't the guns we hid are they?" Aaron asked.

"I'm not that stupid," Jewel told him. "We keep this between us, alright? Until Rick is ready to fight."

Aaron and Jes nodded as they walked out of the church leaving Jewel to think.