CHAPTER 18
"You can't kill Rick and expect to get away with it," Michonne warned Sora.
Sora lowered his katana and Rick exhaled in relief and covered his throat with his hand.
"I intend to 'get away with it', because you and that barbarian Dixon are next," Sora replied contemptuously.
"Fuck you, Astro Boy," Daryl spat as he compared Sora to the popular Japanese superhero.
Sora glared at Daryl; he held his katana with both hands, raised the blade over his head, and bent his knees in preparation to leap towards Daryl and deliver a killing stroke, but the archer stood his ground and glared back at the Japanese gambler.
"Why are you doing this?" Rick asked.
Sora blinked as if the sound of Rick's voice pulled him out his cloud of rage. Sora lowered his katana, straightened his posture and looked down at Rick.
"As the saying goes in this country: Get them before they get you."
"If you hurt my dad, I'll kill you," Carl promised as he glared at Sora.
Sora looked at Carl, and he seemed amused by the boy's threat.
"It's okay, Carl," Rick said reassuringly as he looked at his young son.
"Shut up kid," Julia pleaded as she held the boy from attacking Sora.
Carl struggled harder to free himself from Julia's hold, but after a few seconds he gave up. Rick looked up at Sora, and Sora looked down at him.
"If you think I'm out to get you, you're damn wrong," Rick explained. "I just want everyone to get out of this casino alive."
"Do not pretend that you are a humanitarian, Officer Grimes," Sora scoffed. "You came to my casino for supplies, not to rescue people."
"But we made a deal: food and gas in exchange for a new home at the prison!"
"Indeed, but during those negotiations there was no mention of my associates and I being slaughtered before we even left the El Dorado."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Rick asked.
Sora stood profile and looked at Juan, who was now restraining John by his shoulders. "Why do not ask Mr. Zavala?" he asked.
Everyone on the courtyard looked at Juan; he let go of John and took a frightened step backwards.
"What did you tell him, Juan?" Rick asked angrily as he glared at the handyman.
"I told him about the Governor! I told him about you! I told him everything!" Juan shouted as he pointed an accusatory finger at Rick.
Rick's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open, but he was speechless.
"The Governor is a psycho, you fuckin' dumb wetback!" Daryl spat.
"Hey, fuck you Dixon! Fuck your dead brother Merle, too!" Juan shouted angrily.
Daryl balled his hands into fists and he started to run towards Juan, but he stopped when Alonso leapt in front of him.
"Easy, amigo!" Alonso warned, as he jabbed Daryl in the chest with the barrel of his M16A4 assault rifle.
Daryl glared at Alonso, but when the chef wrapped his index finger around the trigger of his rifle, the archer lowered his fists to his sides and stepped back.
"You're crazy, Juan!" Michonne shouted. "The Governor lied to everyone in Woodbury! He started a war against Rick and his people. He killed your friends. He killed Andrea!"
"And that pendejo will kill all of us!" Juan retorted as he now shook his pointed finger at Rick.
"Juan, I think your brain has taken a siesta," John quipped.
"Oh, that's a fucking riot coming from you, John, because you were warning all of us about Rick since the day he brought us to the prison!"
Now, it was John whose eyes widened and whose jaw dropped.
Sora looked back at Rick and said, "It seems you are not as popular as you thought."
Rick was facing Sora's direction, but he was looking over the Japanese gambler's shoulder, and at the herd of walkers staggering ever closer on the highway.
John had gotten over his shock at Juan's statement; he narrowed his eyes, clamped his mouth shut tightly, and stomped towards Juan.
"Listen you stupid bastard!" John shouted as he grabbed Juan by the front of his jacket. "I said we had to keep an eye on Rick. I never said we had to kill him!"
"You were right, John! And Marianna was right, too!" Juan screamed. "Rick's the Governor all over again! He smiles. He wraps his arms around you. He tells you everything will be all right. All we've got to do is do exactly what he says!"
Rick hadn't heard Juan's latest statement; he was still watching the herd on the highway…they had stopped in their tracks and were looking down at them. Oh shit, he thought worriedly.
"Frank, separate those two gentlemen," Sora ordered.
Frankie lowered his submachine gun and stomped over to John and Juan. "I prefer being called Frankie," he muttered angrily.
Karen leaned beside Tyreese and whispered, "Do something!"
"Don't worry, I've got this," Tyreese replied as he patted Karen's hand.
Tyreese stepped forward. "Are you for real?!" he asked Sora. "Are you're really just going to kill Rick, Daryl, and Michonne?!"
"Indeed," Sora answered. "I would rather not kill the rest of you, because your cooperation will help us gain admittance into the prison, but if you try to intervene, I shall not hesitate."
Tyreese froze in shock, and Karen slipped her arm around his arm protectively.
"What about Carl?!" Michonne asked. "Are you going to kill him, too?"
"I will not...the Oni will," Sora answered.
Sora's threat towards Carl caught Rick's attention. He looked up at the El Dorado group's leader and narrowed his eyes. "What did you say?" he asked icily.
"When my associates and I arrive at the prison with Mr. Zavala and his group, I will say that you and your two lieutenants were killed by the Oni. Your son was bitten, so I amputated his arm, applied a tourniquet to his wound and took him with us. Unfortunately, the shock was too much for the poor boy; he died so I took a knife and put it through his brain before he could return as an Oni."
Carl went pale with horror. Rick started to shake with rage. Daryl and Michonne both looked like they'd have leapt upon Sora and beat him to death if guns weren't pointed at them. Julia and Alonso glanced at each other nervously.
"If you touch one hair on my son's head, I'll take that sword and shove it down your throat," Rick promised.
Sora shook his head. "Those are not the last words one would want to be remembered by."
•••
"Okay, you old farts," Frankie quipped as he pushed his way between John and Juan, "break it up before you both have a heart attack."
"I'm not too old to kick your ass!" John snapped.
Frankie looked John over and said, "Please. You're so old, if I raised my voice at you, that'd be called elder abuse."
John threw a left hook that connected with Frankie's jaw and sent the young man falling to the ground.
"You've got anymore jokes?" John asked angrily.
Frankie spat out blood, sat up and glared up at John. "Go fuck yourself!" he shouted.
John kicked Frankie in the face, knocking him down again. Now, Frankie covered his face with both hands and he writhed on the ground in pain.
"That wasn't funny either," John retorted.
Floyd and Sam ran over to John and held him back from attacking Frankie any further, while Tyreese and Karen ran over to the injured Frankie.
"Take it easy, John," Sam pleaded.
"Do you want to get us killed, too?" Floyd asked.
"That punk better stay away from me or else," John grumbled as he glared down at the injured young man.
Tyreese and Karen helped Frankie sit up. "You good, man?" Tyreese asked.
Frankie reluctantly took his hands away from his face, revealing the imprint of a boot heel stamped on his face diagonally. "How the fuck can I be good after I just got kicked in my face?" he spat.
Tyreese didn't know how to respond so he turned his head and stared out into space.
"Frankie's not our problem," Floyd said.
"Yes, he's a problem," John snapped as he pushed Floyd and Sam away, "and Juan is a problem, and that Jap is a problem and these fuckers we've picked up are a problem!"
"Oh, but Rick isn't a problem?" Sam asked.
John looked stunned at Sam.
"He is man, and you know it. You've been telling us that from the start," Floyd pointed out.
"But I…I…I was wrong!" John admitted. "the son of a bitch and I butt heads, but he's a better leader than I thought he'd be."
Juan, his confidence returning, stepped in front of John and put his hands on his friend's shoulders.
"Rick's turning into the Governor," Juan insisted. "He made you risk your life to help him put down those biters in the prison's field. He let our wives and children go hungry while we built a new gate. You saved him from a herd, but he was angry at you for using a rifle!"
"But…but…" John stammered.
Stan pulled at John's shoulder so he could look at him. "Rick's already beaten the shit out of me! What if, when we return to the prison, he decides to execute me to keep everyone else in line?"
"What about me?" Floyd asked. "We've been in this casino for two days and Rick's threatened to kill me twice."
John looked over his shoulder at Rick, who was still on his knees with the unarmed Daryl and Michonne behind him.
"That Jap bastard's going to kill Daryl and Michonne, too," John muttered as he turned back to his friends. "I don't give a damn about the redneck, but Michonne…she's one of us."
"Cut the shit, man," Sam said with a rare fire in his voice. "Michonne was only in Woodbury for a few days, and she wasn't exactly Ms. Congeniality."
"Michonne and Daryl are loyal to Rick," Floyd pointed out. "They have to die."
John shook his head. "No! This isn't what I wanted. This is murder!"
Juan stepped forward and said, "I can't trust Rick with Marianna's life. And you can't trust Rick with Donna's life."
John and Juan stared at each other for a few moments, and then John bowed his head and muttered, "We can't kill the kid."
"We won't, John," Floyd replied as he retrieved the Beretta 92FS pistol he dropped moments before, "you heard what the Jap said; the biters will kill him."
•••
Sora watched Frankie stop the argument between John and Juan, but Frankie got knocked to the ground twice by John, and now Sora watched John and his three friends argue over the impending death of Rick Grimes.
Sora lowered his head, closed his eyes, and sighed. "I must have done something dishonorable in my past to be trapped in this accursed country with its foolish people."
"You, dishonorable? No, you're a fucking saint," Rick quipped.
Sora opened his eyes and glared at Rick. "Silence," he ordered.
"Or what, you'll kill me?" Rick taunted.
Sora swung his katana to his left and it came to a stop in front of Carl's throat. The Japanese gambler had moved with such speed, his black trench coat snapped in the breeze like a flag and when he stopped with the point of his katana in front of Carl, Julia screamed in fright and tightened her hold on the boy.
Alonso went pale at the sight of a sword pointed at a boy's throat, and he made the Sign of the Cross.
"I said I would amputate your son's arm after your death, but your disposition is making me reconsider my itinerary," Sora said.
Rick shouted in rage, leapt to his feet, and punched Sora. The Japanese gambler stumbled away from Carl and Julia, but stayed on his feet.
"Rick!" Michonne shouted fearfully.
The enraged Rick pressed his attack on Sora; he grabbed the Japanese gambler's wrist with both hands and tried to pry the katana out of his hand.
Sora dropped the scabbard to his katana, and gripped its handle with both hands; the two men struggled for possession of the sword.
Everyone on the courtyard now turned their attention towards Rick and Sora fighting. Alonso and Nate lowered their rifles, rushed forward and started cheering like they were at a boxing match.
"Andale, Officer! Beat him!" Alonso shouted to Rick.
"You've got this, boss! Kick his ass!" Nate shouted to Sora.
Harold lowered his MK 18 Mod 0 assault carbine too, but he huffed in annoyance. I hope they kill each other, he thought bitterly.
•••
Frankie touched his nose gingerly to test if it was broken, and winced in pain. Then then head Rick and Sora struggling, "What the fuck's going on?" he asked.
"Rick's fighting your boss," Karen answered.
Frankie snorted contemptuously and a bloody bubble came out of one nostril and burst. "It's the Pig vs. the Prick," he mumbled.
Karen glanced at Frankie and went back to watching the aftermath of Rick and Sora's struggle.
•••
Michonne, Carl, and the Woodburians watched silently as Rick and Sora struggled for the katana, but Daryl was observing, and his observations led to the start of a plan.
I've still got my gun tucked behind my back, but Rick's too close to that Yukaza motherfucker! Daryl thought angrily.
Daryl then looked up at the clear sky and prayed. You damn well better give me a chance to get us out of this mess, 'cause Carol is waitin' for me back at the prison.
•••
"I'll kill you!" Ricks shouted as he punched Sora again and again. "I'll kill you!"
"You will soon be dead!" Sora shouted in return as he struck Rick's nose with a back hand karate chop. "And then your boy will die, and after him all of your people will die!"
Floyd gulped in fear at Sora's threat.
"Nate! Watch those two fuckers!" Harold ordered as he pointed at Daryl and Michonne.
Nate nodded and spun around. "All right. Hands up!" The young assistant district attorney ordered as he pointed his AR-15 rifle at Daryl and Michonne.
Daryl and Michonne followed Nate's orders reluctantly.
"And keep them up!" Nate added with a jab at the air with the barrel of his rifle for emphasis.
Harold stomped towards the fight and clubbed Rick just below his right ear with the butt of his assault carbine. Rick cried in pain and covered his ear with his right hand as he fell backwards onto the courtyard.
"Dad!" Carl shouted fearfully.
"No!" Michonne shouted angrily.
Daryl kept quiet and kept observing.
•••
Julia dropped the Beretta 92FS pistol to the ground and put both arms around a frantic Carl to stop him from breaking loose.
"Stop fighting, kid. I'm not going to hurt you, okay?" Julia pleaded.
Carl lowered his head, and tears started rolling down his face. "He…he wants to kill my dad," he cried.
Julia looked down at Carl, and she started to weep herself. The cocktail waitress placed her hand comfortingly on the top of the boy's head.
Nate heard a body fall to the ground, so he turned around and saw a stunned Rick, laying on his back and covering his right ear with his hand. "Hell yeah," the young lawyer smiled.
Harold slung his assault carbine over his right shoulder and glared down at Rick, who was groaning painfully. "Goddamn cop," he muttered angrily.
Alonso stood alongside Harold, and looked down at Rick too. "Oh, shit," the chef muttered.
"What the hell were you thinking, Alonso, rooting against the boss?" Harold whispered as he looked at the El Dorado's chef.
Alonso glanced over his shoulder and saw Sora spit blood onto the courtyard then pull out a silk handkerchief from the inside pocket of his black trench coat.
"Somebody has to stop him," Alonso whispered to Harold.
"Yeah, but it sure as hell ain't going to be this guy," Harold replied as he pointed down at the injured Rick.
A disheveled Sora wiped the blood from his mouth with a silk handkerchief, then he combed back his hair, straightened his tie, and smoothed out his black trench coat, he then picked up his katana's scabbard, and sheathed the blade. When Sora heard Rick groaning behind him, the anger rushed back into his eyes, and he turned around to finish his business with the sheriff's deputy.
•••
With the struggle between Rick and Sora over, Frankie waved a hand dismissively and stood up on shaky feet.
"Where are you going, man?" Tyreese asked.
"I've gotta get cleaned up," Frankie answered as he took a shaky step towards the water fountain.
Tyreese glanced at Karen, she nodded, and Tyreese said to the injured young man, "We'll help you."
Tyeese and Karen stood up and at Frankie's sides; they put the injured man's arms over their shoulders, helped him towards the water fountain. After setting Frankie down on the fountain's edge, Karen reached into one of her jacket's pockets, and produced a handkerchief; she dipped it in the fountain's cold, still water, wrung it out, and placed the wet cloth on Frankie's bruised face gingerly.
Frankie took the wet cloth from Karen, and looked up at her. "Thanks," he said.
Karen looked at Frankie and managed not to wince as the boot heel marking on his face began to bruise. "Sure," she said cheerfully.
•••
After Rick fell onto the courtyard, Juan nodded in approval, Sam uttered an excited "Yes!", and Floyd smiled as he wrapped his index finger around the trigger of his pistol. John removed his Atlanta Braves baseball cap and wiped a hand across his white hair.
Michonne closed her eyes and she shook with rage. Daryl observed the opposition and the proximity of their hands to their weapons; the most threatening ones were Sora, and as funny as it seemed, Floyd.
It'll either be the Jap or the chicken shit mailman, Daryl thought confidently. He lowered his hands to sides slowly.
•••
Rick growled painfully as he opened his eyes; blood was tricking out of one nostril from Sora's karate chop, and his ear was ringing from the blow Harold had struck to stop the fight, but he managed to sit up on the courtyard. As the ringing faded away, Rick realized Sora was standing over him again. Rick remembered Sora's threat on Carl's life and he looked with widened eyes in Carl's direction, he saw his son was still alive and still being held prisoner by Julia, but they both were crying.
"I am glad you are conscious, Grimes," Sora said angrily as he dropped Rick's title, "because I want you to see your son die."
Rick looked up at Sora again; his eyes narrowed and his hands balled into fists, but he lost the element of surprise; if he tried to jump Sora again, or attempted to draw his service revolver, Harold would whip out his assault carbine and empty its magazine into his chest.
Sora turned his head towards Julia and said, "Give me the boy."
Julia trembled and clutched Carl protectively. "No," she whispered.
Sora tilted his head, as if he misunderstood what Julia said. "I beg your pardon?"
Julia looked straight at Sora. "No," she said a bit louder.
Sora glared at Julia. "That was not a request."
"I know," Julia said.
If Sora had attempted a bluff on Julia, he failed. The Japanese gambler blinked several times, and his grip on his katana became loose. Rick had a second chance to overpower Sora, but he looked up at the herd atop the highway, growling louder and reaching out with their hands to grasp them all.
They're starting to realize we're alive, Rick thought worriedly.
A moment later, Rick looked up at Sora, and saw the Japanese gambler was glaring at Julia again and gripping his sheathed katana tightly.
But we might not be alive much longer, Rick thought again.
"Mr. Singleton," Sora said as he looked over his left shoulder, "Bring me the boy."
Harold raised his head and looked wide-eyed at Sora.
Sora slipped his thumb underneath the katana's handguard, and pushed forward, exposing an inch of the blade's sharp steel.
Harold gulped in fear. A moment later, Harold looked at Julia, and the boy she held captive, yet was now protecting with her life.
"I'm tired of this shit, Julia," Harold grumbled as he started to walk towards the cocktail waitress, "hand over the kid so we can get the hell out of here."
"No!" Alonso shouted as he raised his M16A4 assault rifle up to his shoulder.
Harold stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder to see Alonso was pointing his rifle at him.
"Alonso? What the hell, man?" Harold asked in disbelief.
"He's not killing the niño," Alonso answered. "And he's not killing anyone else."
Sora stood still, but he gripped his sheathed katana so tightly, it started to rattle.
•••
Floyd exhaled through his clenched teeth and he tapped the slide of his pistol against his right leg. He looked like a man waiting impatiently at a bus stop.
Michonne watched the El Dorado group argue, and she flashed a grin at Daryl, who was still observing the furious Sora and Floyd.
One of them's gonna make a move any minute now, Daryl thought.
•••
"Why are you two defending this cop?" Nate asked as he pointed a finger at Rick. "You both heard the same story as the rest of us."
"Sí," Alonso nodded, "we heard the same story, and when Miyaguchi said he would kill him, Julia and I said nothing, but no more."
"Yeah, I thought I'd be okay with killing Rick. But killing Carl, Michonne, and even Daryl…I can't live with all of that," Julia admitted.
Nate looked back and forth at Alonso and Julia; he huffed and lowered his head in shame. "Okay. I hear what you both're saying, but—"
"I have heard enough," Sora said firmly.
"Well, you're going to hear some more!" Julia shouted. "A few months ago, we asked you to be our new leader, and that was the biggest mistake we ever made!
"You ungrateful bitch!" Sora shouted angrily as his hand returned to the handle of his sheathed katana, "Every rule and every decision I have made was for this group of filthy Americans!"
"You said your fucking rules would keep us safe!" Julia retorted. "Executions for sleeping on guard duty, stealing food from the pantry, and deserting the group on runs. But all that did was turn us into your slaves!"
"Liar! Are we not about to leave this casino? Am I not taking you all to a new sanctuary?"
"We're leaving because you failed to get the rest of us to let Juan and his amigos join us in the El Dorado!" Alonso shouted.
Sora turned around and glared at Alonso, but the chef wasn't afraid of him anymore.
"You never wanted us to leave and find a safer place," Alonso said as he shook with anger. "You just wanted to hide inside the El Dorado, and if you could get four more people to join our little group, then they would've been a bonus!"
"Your plan would've worked too if Carl hadn't spoken up and told us the truth about Floyd and Sam," Julia added.
Sora looked at Julia again and saw that she had let go of Carl and now had her hands on his shoulders, like she was a big sister seeing her little brother off on his first day of school.
A moment later an angry voice shouted, "Oh, the hell with this!"
Everyone looked in the direction of the fountain and saw Floyd stomping towards Rick, with a pistol in his hand.
•••
"What are you doing, Floyd?" John asked.
"I'm not letting that son of a bitch go back to the prison with us," Floyd answered.
"Christ Almighty," John muttered nervously as he slapped his Atlanta Braves cap back onto his head.
Rick raised his hands up as Floyd got closer. Oh, shit, he thought.
Sora smiled in amusement at the sight of Floyd enraged and armed with a pistol. "Officer Grimes did threaten your life, so I would say you are entitled to be the one who kills him," he said.
"Hey man, you said it yourself: 'Get them before they get you'".
"Indeed," Sora agreed.
"No!" Carl shouted as he tried to rush Floyd, but Julia's fingers gripped his shoulders and pulled him back to her.
"Shut up," Floyd snapped. "I don't have any problems with you, kid."
"You're going to have problems with me if you kill my dad!"
"Fuck it, kid. We've all lost somebody in this God forsaken world; it's the cost of staying alive."
Alonso gasped in surprise and raised his rifle at Floyd. "Stop!"
Floyd kept walking.
"I'll shoot you!" Alonso warned.
"Bullshit!" Floyd retorted. "You didn't kill your friends, and you're not going to shoot me!"
Floyd came to a halt in front of Rick, who looked up bravely at the retired postal worker.
"You don't look so tough now, Rick," Floyd said contemptuously.
"Neither do you, Floyd," Rick quipped.
Floyd's eyes widened and he flinched in surprise at Rick's insult, but a moment later he narrowed his eyes and stood straight.
"Fuck you!" Floyd shouted as he thumbed the hammer back on his Beretta 92FS pistol and aimed it at Rick's forehead.
•••
Daryl had observed Floyd stomp towards Rick with a pistol in his hand, and he observed Floyd's reactions to Carl's and Alonso's threats, and to Rick's insult.
This was the moment of truth.
Daryl slipped his right hand underneath his poncho and to the small of his back; his fingers wrapped around the walnut grip of his Colt Official Police revolver, pulled the revolver out, and aimed it at Floyd.
"Hey!" Daryl shouted.
Floyd looked up at Daryl.
Daryl pulled the trigger.
BLAM!
•••
The .38 Special bullet struck Floyd above the ridge of his thick framed glasses. A second later the bullet burst out of the back of Floyd's head, taking with it pieces of skull, brain matter, and droplets of blood. The bullet's impact also made Floyd throw his arms up, and his pistol flew free and tumbled up into the air. Floyd stood still for a few moments with a shocked expression frozen on his face, and then he fell backwards and landed on the courtyard at the same time as his pistol.
"Floyd!" John shouted in shock.
The echo of the gunshot ran from the courtyard, to the parking lot, and to the highway as the others looked in shock at Floyd lying dead with a puddle of blood spreading underneath his head.
"Jesus Christ," Sam said as he brought his hands up to his temples.
"No," Juan whispered in disbelief as he looked at Floyd's corpse.
Daryl aimed his revolver at Sora, "Drop the sword, motherfucker!" he ordered.
Sora glared at Daryl, and kept his sheathed katana in his hand.
Harold cursed under his breath and started to swing his MK Mod 0 assault carbine off his shoulder and into his hands. Daryl aimed his revolver at the truck driver and pulled the trigger back.
"Drop it!" Daryl ordered.
Harold grumbled in defeat, and his carbine dropped to the ground with a clang.
"The pistol too!"
Harold cursed some more, but he unholstered his Glock 17 pistol and dropped it to the ground.
Michonne ran forward and pulled Nate's AR-15 rifle out of his hands. "Get back!" she ordered with a push against his shoulder.
Nate put his hands up, nodded, and complied.
Rick stood up and nodded in appreciation at Daryl, and he nodded in return.
"Dad!" Carl shouted as he ran towards his father.
It was a chance for Sora to regain the upper hand, and both he and Rick knew it.
"Carl, don't—" Rick warned as he held out a hand to signal his son to stop running.
Carl ran past Sora, and the Japanese gambler wrapped his left arm around the boy's throat, pulled him close, and unsheathed his katana.
"Carl!" Rick shouted in horror.
"Drop your revolver!" Sora shouted at Daryl as he held his katana underneath Carl's throat.
Daryl glared at Sora, and aimed his revolver at him.
Harold bent down to pick up his guns, but Michonne brought the captured AR-15 to her shoulder and took aim.
"Don't!" she ordered.
Harold stood up and raised his hands above his head.
Sora faced Rick and tightened his hold on Carl, who whimpered in fear as he felt the cold, sharp blade underneath his throat.
"Tell your people to drop their firearms!" Sora ordered.
Rick's complexion had gone pale, and sweat started running down his forehead.
If I do what Miyaguchi said, he'll have Daryl and Michonne killed and he'll probably kill Carl next. But if I don't do anything, he'll kill Carl right in front of me, Rick thought fearfully.
After a few moments of internal debating, Rick said, "Let my son go. You can keep the supplies and our vehicles!"
"We are not negotiating again, Officer Grimes!" Sora said angrily. He then flicked the katana like it was a razor underneath Carl's chin, and a thin trickle of blood ran down the blade.
"No!" Rick pleaded.
From behind Sora, Julia shouted. "Look!"
Everyone turned towards Julia and saw she was pointing towards the highway, they looked in that direction and they couldn't believe their eyes.
•••
It was as if the gunshot confirmed the herd's suspicions that they were indeed watching a group of humans, because they climbed over the highway's railing and fell to the pavement below with a sickening splat.
Bones were broken, bodies were crushed, heads were split open and brains destroyed. But the first dozens of walkers that hit the pavement acted like a large pile of dead, dry leaves, and the rest of the herd rolled off the pile, stood up, and began staggering forward while Karen and Julia screamed in horror.
Tyreese looked at Rick and asked, "What're we going to do?!"
"We have to leave now," Rick answered firmly.
Rick turned towards Sora and said, "Let my son go!"
Sora smiled and shook his head.
Rick dug into his front pocket and took out the keys to the Dodge Ram 1500. "Here are the keys to my truck! You and your people can take it! Just give me my son!"
Sora looked at his group and shouted, "If you want to live, return to the El Dorado!"
Sora spun around, knocked Julia down, and ran towards the El Dorado.
"Dad!" Carl screamed as Sora tucked him under his arm like a running back would carry a football as he ran down the field.
Harold picked up his firearms and followed Sora. Frankie picked up his HK UMP45 submachine gun and ran towards the El Dorado too.
Juan watched as the three men and their young hostage ran towards the El Dorado. "This wasn't supposed to happen," he muttered regretfully.
Rick drew his Colt Python revolver and after Sora. "Carl!" he shouted.
Daryl watched as the herd approached slowly, and then he looked over his shoulder and saw Rick running towards the El Dorado. "Here they come!" he shouted.
"Hold them back!" Rick ordered as he continued running. "I'm not leaving without Carl!"
Michonne shoved the AR-15 rifle into Nate's arms. "Here," she said.
Nate glanced at the rifle and looked at Michonne in disbelief. "Hey, what the—?"
Michonne picked up her sheathed katana and slung it over her back. "I'm going to help Rick!"
"We can't hold 'em back for long!" Daryl warned Michonne as she ran past him with her hooded cape billowing behind her.
"Just make it happen!" Michonne retorted.
"Yes, ma'am," Daryl replied.
Daryl grabbed the hem of his poncho with his left hand, and tossed it over his left shoulder; he tucked his revolver against the small of his back, picked up his crossbow, and faced the approaching herd.