Chapter 2: History
"Maggie cool it." Rick said shooting Maggie a look and then turning his attention back at Melanie in disbelief and ran his hand through his hair. "Say that again… You were 16 and a half at the beginning of the world crashing around! You're what - 20 now?" He said looking at her. He let out a scoff and shook his head. He couldn't believe it she ended up with someone like that.
"Yeah - thats exactly why I was with him! Of course I'm close to 20. Hell birthday's don't exactly count anymore do they? You're what close to 40?" she said sarcastically, with a slight smirk. "You don't know the story of why I was with his group - or why I'm even here willing to help." She said getting up and walking over to where Rick had moved to sit on the broken couch. She sighed and watched the others gather around.
Rick frowned, "Damn your snippy like your mom." His frown turned into a slight smile, he rubbed his chin slightly as his beard was starting to grow back in. "What became of your mom, and stepdad? Along with Ella?"
"Of course I'm snippy - I got it from aunt Lori! She and my mom did share a womb." She said flopping down on the couch. "Mom and Ella went down to visit you guys a week before the shit hit the fan. You had just gotten hurt and aunt lori wanted us to come down. I couldn't go as it was finals week, Ella was being homeschooled with the governess..." She shook her head, and got cut off by Maggie.
"So you're some rich kid? Great that's all we need. Another Spencer..." She rolled her eyes and sat down across from Rick with Michonne sitting on the arm of the couch and the others standing watching.
Melanie let out a laugh, "Hell I'm as poor as they come. Mom remarried when I was 6 and I was just the shitty package that came with the deal. She was pissed because my daddy left her for his younger girlfriend and didn't take me with him - bastard." She rolled her eyes. "Edgar was the mayor of Greenbridge.." she paused frowning, she never liked him. "He wasn't not prize either." She hadn't thought about them in a long time.
Harlan raised an eyebrow. "Your step-dad was Mayor Edgar Silverton?"
Melanie looked up. "Yeah. Crazy s.o.b.. How'd you know him?"
"I delivered your sister, that was about 7 or 8 years ago, I was just new to the practice." Harlan chuckled slightly. "Though the name sounded familiar - I'm sorry for your loss." He said frowning slightly.
Mel raised an eyebrow. "I'm not.." She shrugged, and relaxed.
"You know Lori and I were coming to get you - right? We got your letter telling us what he did." Rick said squeezing her arm slightly drawing out of her thoughts. Melanie didn't move and shrugged it off.
"It's fine. I grew up on my own anyway." she smiled slightly."I just liked giving them hell along the way." She flashed a grin, "Negan was my gym teacher. He was an ass - and thats putting it nicely. Okay, fine he was a total dick, but a good person." She paused hearing a scoff coming from Maggie.
"Negan and his old lady treated me very good." She said ignoring her. "Lucille." She took off her jacket and adjusted herself on the seat. "Anyway. That's another story." She said reflecting on what happened in a brief memory.
"Lucille was his wife?" Michonne said looking ather. "Thats why he speaks like that to his uhm... bat?"
"Yeah, his wife from before." Melanie said softly. "Sweet old girl. Good nurse. Saved my ass more times than I can count when my stepdad would use me as a punching bag. Like I said I've been with him since the beginning."
"What made you change your mind into helping us?" Daryl asked handing Melanie a glass of water. She smiled and took it.
"Thank you..I've seen how he has changed… It's gotten worse, in the last year…Ever since you guys killed his men, and i understand why you did it. That group you killed where the worst of our group. They never listened and did things their own ways. I'm suprised Negan didn't Lucille them himselves in the end." She let out a laugh, making a sick reference. "Anyway. He's just gotten out of control with everything." She sighed keeping her hand on her wound. She had bruises all over her body from Arat taking her frustrations out on her, and her head was starting to throb, she was thrown from her horse - her left hand was bandaged from the fall.
"His temper has gotten worse - he's never used it on me, or any woman in general...he - he...needs to be stopped…" She trailed off laying her head back on the sofa.
"Melanie?" Rick said shaking her arm slightly. He move her hand and seen her shirt soaked with blood, and leaking all over the couch. "Carson… She's bleeding a lot..." He said worried, getting up, and picking Melanie up. "What where her wounds?"
"She had a multiple defensive wounds, looks like one hell of a fight." He said following him. "She was stabbed in the stomach with a knife..." He said gently. Not to loud. That didn't stop the others from hearing it though. "She didn't want to talk about it when she woke up. She just wanted to see the leader of the group." Harlan felt her head, "She's burning up."
Rick sighed. "Sounds like her - stubborn as the warren woman come." He said laying her on the table. "I can donate. We are the same type." He ignored Maggie standing in the doorway, he took off his jacket and watched Harlan the best he could..
After Harlan treated Melanie's stomach wound. He fixed her IV, and had Rick continue doing a direct blood transfusion. "Looks like sepsis - it's treatable with the antibiotics, I have her on.." He said sitting down and watching her. "She needs to rest for a week before even attempting to go back to the savior's camp.." Rick nodded in agreement.
Maggie sat down in the chair. "I'm sorry I got all over her earlier Rick. It's just a hard thing to imagine she's doing this willingly.. What if, Negan sent her into spy on us.." She sighed.
"Negan thinks you are dead." Rick sighed. "We made sure of him thinking that it's true."
"Tell me some more about your niece." Maggie said watching her. "She's something.."
"Well.. Lori had an older sister - she had a drunken marriage in vegas with her husband - then one night, he up and left when Melanie was around 4 leaving Emily for a younger woman." He frowned slightly. "She flew out and left Melanie with us for about 8 months, came back remarried to Edgar. Well on and off when Edgar and Emily wanted to drop her off for months at a time to go on vacation alone." He shook his head. "Then we get a letter when Melanie just turned 17 telling us what all Edgar did to her." He sighed softly. "He was horrible to her. Abused the shit out of her daily. Emily drank daily, and Ella pretty much ran the house at a young age."
Harlan frowned. "That's awful… Some people don't deserve children." He sat back and kept an eye on Melanie, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Sounds like a fucked up family, Rick." Maggie sighed. "Still. How do we know?"
"Might as well try something, Maggie." Harlan pointed out watching over things.
"Yeah, right before i got shot that day - Lori and I were talking about going up there and getting her, we had even built on a room at our place to give her a decent few years before she headed off to college." Rick sighed. "Not sure how i didn't see the signs when she was over."
"I…...hid…..them… well." Melanie croaked out softly, blindsided by the pain she was in - she usually wasn't so easily weakened by pain but she couldn't handle her shit today. "Kind of had to keep quiet in the spotlight of being the mayor's step-daughter." She exhaled hard, "I'll prove that I'm not a traitor." She said looking at Maggie.
"Glad you are awake." Harlan smiled and leaned down to be at her level. "Pain scale of 1-10?"
Melanie huffed. "7 tops." She said but in reality she was at a 10.
"Alright." Harlan said grabbing some dilaudid and putting it into her Iv and flushing it. "You never gave us a story on what happened to you out there." He said putting a cool rag on her head.
"I was sent….out on a supply run with Arat and a few other collectors. Arat had me stay back with her, She wanted to ask me something, and she lead me to the river. We argued about her position, and what she really wanted from Negan, along with how I felt she didn't deserve to be a Lieutenant. She's a deadly combination of stupid and crazy." Melanie sighed, "She took her rifle and sung it at me, I fell from my horse, and it ran off. She jumped off her horse and went on a full beating rampage. I grabbed a rock and swung it hitting her, I got up and grabbed my knife ready to her attack. Then Darren - her partner grabbed me from behind, and held me down while they both continued to beat me. Arat took the knife and stabbed me." She sighed. "She told Darren to finish the job, and left. He continued beating me, then he...Thats all i remember." she said laying her head back. "I can take a beating and give one..But if Negan find's out an assault was given - he doesn't stand for that shit." She sighed softly. "He will end them."
"How do you expect to get to him?" Maggie asked sitting down closer to them. "He will notice how much your injuries are healed."
"Rick… Could take me. Say he found me, and bandaged me up best he could, and was bringing me home." Melanie sighed softly. "He's going to be relieved that I'm back though." She sighed. "When is he due to come for supplies?"
Rick shook his head not liking the idea of taking her out on horseback. "He comes to Hilltop in 2 days..We have everything he asked for.."
"Thats great.." Melanie grinned slightly. "Is that dick Gregory still alive?"
Harlan shook his head, and butted in. "He's gone, he tried killing Maggie. Maggie is our leader now - but if Negan thinks she is dead..."
"Then we need to assign someone to fake being the leader for a day." Melanie said taking a drink of her water.
"Who?"
"Harlan." Melanie smiled slightly. "He can handle it. Plus Negan still doesn't know Daryl escaped the jail. So he should be hidden."
"I dont think i can..." He frowned looking at them. "I'm not a leader."
"Hell you got more balls than most folk around here." Melanie winked laughing.
Rick shot her a look " As my niece bluntly put it - you can handle it for one day. Plus I will be here anyway. We can combine our supplies."
"That would work actually." Maggie smiled slightly. "I'll fill you in will Rick."
Harlan nodded. "Fine..Just give me a minute to finish up with our patient.." He sighed. "Glad to talk about this - but Melanie should get some rest. You can come back later." He told Rick and Maggie.
Author Note - Yes I did change some things from the walking dead - If your interested- Review! IF you like it thats great! If not that's cool. More explanations will come in the next chapter - How rick has a niece and how paul and Melanie know each other.
Stay tuned!
