Hey guys, I'm back. The semester is almost over, meaning I'm getting to update a bit more frequently.
A LOT OF YOU ARE SAYING THAT NEGAN SHOULD KNOW JAMIE IS DARYL'S DAUGHTER, SINCE DWIGHT KNOWS. THIS WILL BE EXPLAINED IN UPCOMING CHAPTERS, SO TRY NOT TO WORRY ABOUT IT TOO MUCH.
For now, Negan thinks Jamie's just one of the kids who made it without parents and managed to get into Alexandria. He's about to play with her loyalties and try to sway her. This chapter is a lot of verbal jousting and cat and mouse- Jamie has to maintain her character of the kid who doesn't care about anyone while still conforming to Rick's wishes to stay as uninvolved with Negan as possible. The last thing eh wants is Negan taking other kids.
All Rick wants is to work for Negan peacefully and get through the day without anyone dying, since losing Abraham and Glenn has let him know just how ruthless Negan really is.
Anyways, here it is, please review! :)
"Little pig little pig, let me in!"
Negan waltzed into the street like he owned the place.
"So, here is where we get to work. A nice working relationship. Daryl- go load some shit up."
Daryl went to shuffle past Rick, who looked up at the man he thought of as a brother, eyes glassy with emotion.
"Daryl..."
"No!" Negan whirled, eyes blazing. "You don't talk to him, you don't look at him, you don't think about him. He's ours. Now, you just gonna stand there and be a shit host, or are you gonna show me what kind of a place you're running here?"
"R-right..." Rick nodded, blinking rapidly, as he turned, leading the man down the street towards the pantry.
"This is Olivia- she does the inventory."
Negan flashed his trademark grin. "I don't care. Show me your shit."
Rick nodded, leading him in. The shelves were already meagre, and Negan nodded, surverying the room around them. "I want you to notice- I'm not taking any of your food. Slim pickings in here. So, you get to keep it."
Rick glared at him. "What do you want me to say?"
"How about a thank you!" Negan bellowed, eyes going flinty.
Rick nodded, lowering his gaze. "T-thank you."
"No problem"
Negan nodded, throwing the inventory book to Olivia. "Two guns are unaccounted for. I want that shit by the time we roll out, or I put one between her eyes."
Olivia took in a shaking breath, eyes going wide.
All of a sudden, a gunshot went off. Negan's expression darkened, and he strode with purpose into the garage to find Carl holding a pistol against two of his men.
"...and the next one goes through your heads." Carl snarled venomously.
Rick stepped forward, sweat beading on his brow, hands up in a placating manner as he cast a glance at Negan. for nce, he was afraid- he was no longer in control here.
"Carl, put it down..."
"No. He's taking all of our meds! He said half. We need that shit... Jamie needs that shit..." Carl still hadn't lowered his gun.
"Kid, half is what I say it is." Negan said, eyes going coldly. "go ahead- fire that bullet. My boys have enough ammo to drop you seven times over. So go ahead and fire that shot. We'll make another example outta you, and your old man will drag your bloody corpse outta here and put you in the ground. So go ahead- fire that shot."
Carl lowered the gun, and Negan grinned. "Smart kid." he proffered a gloved hand. "Now gimmie."
Carl scowled at Negan, but handed over the gun. Negan grinned. "Smart kid."
"Jamie. That's her name, is it?" Negan played with the pistol in his waistband.
"The kid reminded me. I wanna see Nobody's Kid."
Rick nodded, though he looked slightly worried. "Carl..."
"I'll get her."
"Tell her to take her time. I'll wait." Negan grinned, pulling out the pistol in his hand and playing with it idly. "The kid also reminded me. Your guns- I'm gonna need 'em. All of 'em."
Rick nodded slowly. "I'll take you to the armory."
"Hey Daryl- with me." Negan called as they walked across the street towards the armory. Daryl shuffled obediently along behind, not lifting his eyes off the ground. It was worrisome.
"Damn, you folks are armed to the teeth. Load it all up Daryl." Negan's ivory teeth glinted for a moment, as his men followed behind Daryl, arms full of weapons as he trekked downstairs, whistling cordially, hands tucked into the pockets of his leather jacket.
All she really remembered was pain.
Feeling something inside her tear when Abraham was bludgeoned to nothing- the white hot burn of bone snapping, stabbing pain of ivory piercing skin- warm blood seeping between her fingers, trying to breath cold air that burned... And the feeling of absolute hollowness that set in when her father had been loaded into the van. Without her.
She was incredibly sore- her upper arm was splinted above the elbow, and it throbbed painfully. She'd been alternating between sleeping and moping, dressed in one of her father's old shirts- even though Daryl was gone, the familiar smell of motor oil and cigarette smoke lingered and brought her comfort.
She was currently curled up on the couch, good arm leaning against a throw pillow while the other dangled limply at her side. IT still hurt when she moved too fast, but the pain was bearable, at least. Or that was what she told herself, anyways.
The door to the house flew open, and Carl stood in the doorway, eyes burning with anger and something akin to confusion. "Negan... he wants to talk to you. And Daryl is here."
she was on her feet within a second. Her arm flared, the broken ends of bone grinding together in protest at the moment, and she bit back a howl of pain, tears springing to her eyes as her breathing was ragged...
Carl had her by the shoulders and was looking her in the eyes, no, more like he was holding her up, concerned.
"Don't say anything about Daryl. About him being your Dad, about missing him- nothing. Or Negan will use that against us. You understand me?"
She paused, blinking rapidly and trying to play off the tears that were still pooling in the corner of her eyes as the pain faded to a dull throb.m "D-doesn't he already know? Dwight..."
Carl paused, shaking his head. "No. For whatever reason, Dwight hasn't told Negan what he knows about you two. At least, I don't think he has. You're lucky. Don't be weak in front of him." Carl spoke firmly, meaning Negan.
Jamie glared up at him, straightening and looking disgusted. "When have I ever been weak?" she growled.
Carl simply looked down at her critically, and she scowled at him in return. "I may be small, but I ain't weak." Had he thought living within the walls had made her soft? She scowled at him, brushing past him and heading towards the door.
"I can take care of myself."
"No you can't. We can't even take care of ourselves- this whole place belongs to Negan now." Carl spoke bitterly, glaring at her. "So if you don't want it to get any worse, you watch what you tell him."
"I will." she growled, before she was striding across the porch and down the stair, minding her injured arm and gripping the railing with her good hand as she fumbled down the steps onto the street.
Rick and Negan strode out of the armory, Negan whistling slightly, hands tucked in his pockets.
He paused when he saw Jamie, smile widening, if that was possible, head bobbing as he spoke. "Hello there Darling. Man, I gotta say- you look like shit."
She was in a pair of clean jeans and a dirty black t-shirt. The too-big sleeves did a little to cover her splinted upper arm, but not much. Her boots were covered dirt- she was in faded torn jeans and a too-big black t-shirt, the sleeve only serving to partially cover the make-shirt splint on her arm. Her face was pale, only highlighting the scar on ehr cheek from Terminus- it felt like that'd happened ages ago.
Chocolate hair pulled back into a pony tail, bags beneath her eyes...
Did she really look that bad?
"That's me. Ugly all fucking day." she muttered halfheartedly. Her arm was throbbing, Negan had stolen everything from her- why couldn't this asshole just let them be? He'd already taken everything- what more was there?
Negan chuckled, smiling that sickening grin he had. "Still have a sense of humor. Rick- go help Daryl load up them guns, would you?" his eyes never left her face.
Rick hesitated for a brief moment before nodding, gaze lingering on her as he turned to go. Don't do anything stupid.
"So kid." Negan tucked his hands into his pants, striding closer to her and giving her the once over. "You still like the people you chose?"
She paused, looking over at him. "Why wouldn't it?"
"Because you picked the losing side. You're a survivor, kid- I can tell by that scar on your face. How'd you get it?"
Terminus. Fighting for my life.
She stared at the ground, silent.
"I asked you a question, darling." his expression never changed, but his tone did, and he stepped closer to her.
She looked up, eyes wide. "It was a bullet graze." she admitted quietly, but she offered nothing more.
Negan paused for a moment before stepping back, nodding respectfully. "A kid who can survive that, find a place to survive after being outside for so long... is a kid I'm interested in having with my people." he reached out and grabbed her splinted forearm, squeezing.
She jerked back, hissing in pain and glaring at him with a mixture of pain and contempt. What was he trying to pull?
"That hurts, does it?" he asked, expression neutral. "My people got a doctor. You come with us, we fix you up, and you put those skills you got surviving to use. What do you think, kid?"
She stepped back, surprised. Was he really... recruiting her? Why? Sure, he thought she didn't care about anyone, that she was the group's newest addition, but why spend all this time with her unless... he was grooming her.
She snarled, stepping back. "Fucking perv."
Negan's eyes widened. "Whoa there kid. Don't flatter yourself. I want you to work for me, not sleep with me. But hey, I can arrange for that to happen if you're down..." he offered her a crooked grin, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
Daryl was leaving the armory behind Negan, now, arms full of guns. He stared at her mournfully, Negan didn't see it, but she did- her Dad, a slave to this motherfucker...
She could go with him. Play Negan's game, free her father. But doing that would set them in an all out war...
Then again, staying here wasn't going to do much, either. She was torn- her Dad wasn't here to tell her what to do now. Should she risk the safety of the whole group and try to stage a coup by going with Negan, or stay in line?
Rick emerged behind Daryl, eyes imploring her. Don't do anything stupid. He's stronger than us- all of us.
She was safer here. Daryl would've wanted her to listen to Rick- the man had a plan for everything. It was best if she went along with it and helped them scout for supplies to get Daryl back. This man could crush them all like a bug- it wasn't realistic to think she could manage to free her dad by infiltrating her camp. Not alone, at least.
She stepped back. "No."
"No?" Negan raised his eyebrows, looking surprised. "Even if it's strictly a working relationship? See, with my people- they get to choose. Especially the women- nothing they don't wanna do."
"I said no."
Negan let out a slow breath, looking shocked. "Wow. That's unexpected, kiddo. You're on the losing side here- these people- they belong to me, now. I'm offering you the chance to join my people. That ain't something I just DO..." he was getting slightly agitated.
"It's not that." she said neutrally, trying to placate him. She'd seen what happened when this man got angry- people were punished.
"Then go ahead, kid, fucking enlighten me as to why you'd throw that opportunity away." Negan said, eyes burning.
"You don't put up with shit. I've met people like you before- you're a cut-throat guy. Your people are tough, your rules are law. You don't let things slide. With you, wrong gets punished. I'm better off with these people, flying under the radar. You want me to work for you." she narrowed her eyes, glaring at him.
"But the thing I've learned is that loyalties end up getting you killed way to often. I don't promise anything to anyone anymore- I just look out for myself. I'm better off with Rick- he's a softer leader than you are, and I'm unnoticed here. I don't work for anyone but myself, and I benefit more from staying here."
Negan blinked for a moment, surprised by her rationale, before he smirked. "That's how you made it this far, is it?"
"I consider myself my first and only priority. You got a problem with that?"
Negan's eyes were alight. "Nope. But tell me, kid- what are you gonna do once I leave here? You gonna ditch these people once and for all? Strike out on your own again?"
She eyed him cautiously. "...I thought we belonged to you?" she hadn't been aware leaving was an option.
Negan broke into a grin, slapping her on the back. "Smart answer." he emphasized his words, looking down at her with... was that pride? "Looks like Lucille gets to stay thirsty. Damn, kid, you know every rule to play by. You just stay here and keep looking out for number one, huh?"
"That's the plan."
Negan smirked, throwing an arm around her shoulders and leaning close to her. "You're much more dangerous than you look." he admitted. "And if circumstances change, well... I'll look forward to having you help me and my people out. I'll be keeping an eye on you, kid. I like the way you think."
She looked up from the pavement to see Daryl staring at her from where he stood, twenty feet away, behind a loaded truck, and Rick a mere five feet behind Negan, Lucille in hand.
"Truck's loaded." Rick said.
"Nice work." Negan stepped forward, arm falling off her shoulders as he beamed at Rick. "I was just talking with the nomad here. You got a pretty smart kid on your hands, Rick. Don't forget that, or it might come back to bite you in the ass some day." he said with that signature smirk.
Rick looked at her, gaze serious, as he swallowed. He nodded. "I won't.".
"Good to hear. Now, finished showing me what this place has to offer." and they were gone, striding off towards the other housing units.
She looked up, only to see Daryl standing behind the truck, staring at her anxiously, green eyes burning with anxiety.
She raised her chin nearly imperceptibly. I'm alright.
And she was. Because despite all the lies she'd told Negan- about who she was, and how she felt about Rick's people- about her family- they were alive, and no one was in danger. Well, no more danger than usual. She'd done all she could to keep it that way, to keep the peace. That was all that mattered.
She sat on a porch, watching Negan's men swirl around like small rats, gathering food, resources- packing it into trucks like gluttons.
As the trucks proceeded to the gate and she came to realize the first raid on Alexandria- that;s what it was- a bloodless raid- was nearly over.
Still, she watched as Rick turned to Negan, speaking to him quietly, eyes downcast respectfully, before he looked up and nodded towards Daryl.
Was he asking if they could ahve her father back?
She had to consciously bite back the urge to stand and crane forward to try and hear what they were saying. Negan shrugged, looking over his shoulder at Daryl, who made no move to acknowledge him, before he shook his head sadly, and Daryl stepped back onto the truck like an obedient dog.
She tried to bite back the tears that sprung to her eyes at the realization , but her heart broke all the same as the trucks pulled away, leaving them nearly drained of all supplies and completely without hope.
Please review!
Also, bear with me- the next chapter explains why Dwight hasn't informed Negan Jamie is Daryl's daughter.