Yes, I know I screwed with the timelines here. Rick (minus Carol) get back before Daryl and the uni crew, but I feel like it works better when I switch it. The suspense of Daryl waiting for Rick to get back so he can let Jamie out without risk of the unknown murderer killing her, fearing she'll infect them all, works pretty well here. This chapter is kinda depressing, but what can I say? People choking to death on their own blood isn't a very happy topic. Please review!
Daryl was gone. She sighed, starting up towards the cells. Lizzy had fallen asleep, and she'd locked the girl in, making sure no walkers could've gotten to her. She peered inside, satisfied.
She didn't want Lizzy locked up- in truth, she hated the idea, since she might tempt some wandering walker over by the bars of her cell to 'play', but there was no way the girl was going to be able to protect herself, so bars were the bedt defense method.
She sighed, heading towards Glenn's cell, where Maggie would no doubt be. She ignored the undead hands that reached out of some cells as she walked past, ignored the pools of blood she was constantly stepping in, the stench of death, and the smell of vomit.
She hadn't told Daryl how bad it was, since, if she had, he'd have insisted on coming in too.
This place was a literal, living hell.
She slipped over, finding Glenn, who was, surprisingly, up, tending to a man.
"How is he?" she asked worriedly.
"H-" Glenn stopped, eyes rolling back in his head, as blood started to come up with every cough.
"Glenn!" she fell to her knees beside the man she'd come to think of as a brother, shocked, not sure what to do...
"Hershel! Help!"
Just then, the patient on the bed let out a gurgle and sat up. His eyes were amber.
"Fuck."
Hershel ran out of the cell he was in, only to have a walker from the cell next to him grab him. A man raised his gun to try and help but missed, hitting another patient, as a walker sank his teeth into his shoulder.
Jamie raised her own gun and took aim, firing, and the walker that had Hershel hit the ground.
She drew her knife, lunging over Glenn's choking form to kill the walker, knowing Hershel could handle himself from there.
"Please...please don't die..." she pleaded, turning his head to the side, horrified as blood spattered all over her.
She noticed the intubator was on Henry's now dead body and grabbed it, ripping it from his body and struggling to force it into Glenn's mouth. She had no idea whatbshe was doing, but she started to squeeze the plastice node, trying to get oxygen into her struggling friend.
Hershel rushed over, then, and Maggie had managed ti get to her, as well.
"I don't know what the fuck to do!" she said, turning to Hershel, dropped to his knees beside her, rythemicalky pumping air into his starving lungs.
Maggie had a hand over her mouth and was starting to cry, and Jamie stood, wanting to put her fist through shomething. She felt so useless- she noticed the walker that had attacked the man sitting on the floor, ripping out his intestines.
Lizzy stood at the cell bars, watching with sick fascination.
She raised her gun, about to end the pitiful scene before her, but thought better of it, instead choosing to unsheath her knife and drive it through both their heads. She stood, the blood sprinkled on her, staring solemnly at Lizzy.
"That could've been you."
Lizzy shook her head. "Yeah- but I'd come back.
"Yeah- as a mindless, flesh-eating monster." Jamie muttered.
"No. I'd come back different. I wouldn't have to be afraid of them anymore- they wouldn't hurt me. Because I'd be one of them."
Jamie wanted to shudder, but didn't. "You wouldn't have a choice at who you wanted to be." was all she said, before absently kicking the carcass, turning and walking down the cellblock again, hoping she could help someone alive.
Daryl heard the gunshots and looked up, nervous.
Jamie had only been in there for an hour or two since he'd left her.
He stood, nodding the Beth, who understood, before jogging out the room towards the cell block.
Jamie sighed, looking around. Hershel had begun locking all the patients in there cells- at least fifteen were dead and turned.
Jamie sighed. She noticed Lizzy was up, holding onto the bars of her cell.
"You locked me in." she said coldly.
"It was so they wouldn't get to you." Jamie said simply. Shew as distracted by the moans- there were five cells across from Lizzy's- three had walkers standing at the doors, reaching out futiley towards her.
"They're better, now." Lizzy said calmly. "They stopped couhing up blood. They went to sleep and woke up better."
Jamie eyed the girl nervously. Once Carol was back, she was going to have to talk to her about Lizzy...
She turned back to the walkers, raising her gun.
"Don't!" Lizzy shreiked, suddenly horrified.
Jamie ignored her, taking aim and firing. The first walker fell, and Lizzy fell to her knees, screaming.
She shot the second, then, and the third, missing the first shot, striking it in the neck, before nailing it between the eyes with a second shot.
The silence after the gunshots seemed to echo, but the moaning, the undead suffering- had stopped. The only sound was Lizzy crying.
"W-why'd you have to kill them? They weren't hurting anyone..." she sniffed.
"They were suffering." Jamie said simply, as some blood from the fallen walkers trickled close to her feet.
"They were alive! They were better! That was MURDER!" Lizzy screamed.
Jamie looked over at the girl pitiously, wishing she could somehow make her understand.
"It was mercy."
She went down the steps to find Daryl standing by the observation window, looking worried.
"I heard shots. You alright?"
She nodded, forcing a wane smile. " 'm fine, Daddy." she assured him. It was a lie- they were surrounded by the dead and dying, unable to tell the moans of the living apart from the dead, and she was running low on ammo. She had three bullets left. Three.
Of course, if she told Daryl that, he'd rush inside and force himself into this hell. So she lied. She seemed to be getting better at it by the minute.
"As soon as Rick comes back, we'll get you out. I promise."
She nodded. Daryl could tell she was forcing that smile, but then again, who wasn't, nowdays?
"Everything alright in there?"
"Yeah. Everything is fine..."
Daryl gaped. Someone must've died outside the cells and lurked around, since a group of three walkers were stumbling towards her from behind. Jamie whirled and saw them, shooting one, two... she missed the third.
She cocked the gun again and fired. It clicked. She was running on muscle memory, and she tried to fire it once more before she remembered she was out of ammo.
Daryl stared, horrified, as the walker beared down on his little girl. He watched, helpless, as the gun clicked, realizing she was out of bullets...
She realized it, as well, throwing the gun to the side in an atrempt to distract the walker. It kept coming. She pulled out her hunting knife, brandishing the blade...
He back was against the wall, here. daryl looked around, hoping desperately to find keys, something, anything...
The walker lunged, and Jamie dodged to the side. The walker slammed into the window, Daryl stared at its ugly face...And then there was a knife through it's head. Jamie pulled out the blade, panting, and the walker fell limply to the ground. She'd escaoed desth yet again- but who knew how long she could keep evading it?