"It was me putting us all in danger. It was me who made the dead with the bandits. . ." His voice trembled. "I thought maybe I could keep them off our backs!"
The group fell to silence, although the door had finally been opened and the dead were knocking at the door, no one ran to the Armory, instead Ben continued to spill his guts.
"When it got discovered- that's when they attacked our home, that's when Katjaa. . ."
Even though after all this time trying to kick the door open Kenny couldn't care he was finally through to the armory.
"You little pissant!"
All he cared about was kicking Ben's ass.
"You are fucking dead, you hear me? Dead!"
Vernon and Lee sprung to action, holding Kenny back from beating Ben to a pulp.
"What you did to my family! You got my wife killed! You got her fucking killed!"
Sharon stepped between them, she tried to be brave but once she locked eyes with Kenny the words failed to leave her mouth. Kenny stopped fighting back but was ready to attack once she was out of the way.
"Don't defend this pig shit, Sharon! Get out of the way!"
In her life never had trouble owning up to her mistakes, seeing first hand what avoiding problems can lead to. Her parents alcoholism being the largest example she could think of and how it had gotten out of hand so quickly. Now, as her mistakes faced her in the form of a seething vengeful man- she couldn't admit her faults, she couldn't think of one good reason as to why she let the secret grow and continue to worsen until it blew back in their face.
"Kenny, he wasn't the only one."
"What?" Kenny stood up straight, almost unable to fully process what she had said. "WHAT?"
"I knew about the deal, I tried to help-"
"We-We TRUSTED you! We accepted you in to our family!" Although Lee and Vernon still held on to Kenny he was no longer struggling, he didn't try to fight her. "Kat wanted me to call you our daughter! All this time you were doing this shit behind our back? Duck lost his mother because of you! I lost MY WIFE!"
"They tricked Ben!" Sharon tried reasoning. "They had his friend."
"And you trusted them?!"
Ben stepped aside. "They said if I didn't give them supplies they would have just killed me-"
"Well maybe they should have!"
Sharon tried again. "Kenny-"
"Not another damn word from you! All this time you were plotting behind our backs!"
"It wasn't plotting, Kenny I. . ." With Kenny's anger now pointed at her all of the past excuses as to why she didn't tell him the moment she heard of the deal had vanished, she couldn't even think of a single reason or excuse. She had made a grave mistake pretending she had no responsibility in this matter.
"If you two think you're getting on my boat after what you did, you're out of your motherfucking mind!" Kenny shouted, ripping his arm from Vernon's grip to point accusingly at Sharon and Ben. "Ya'll can stay behind and fucking ROT!"
Lee finally let go, still on edge in case Kenny decided to attack them. "We'll sort this out later, AFTER we get out of here, okay?"
"Ain't nothing to sort out, I just told you how it's gonna be! The boat's not big enough for all of us. Somebody's gotta get left behind, might as well be these lying pieces of shit right here!"
"We can do a headcount when we get back to the mansion, back to Omid." Christa spoke up. "I'm sorry Ben. We need to focus on getting out of here."
"I agree with her, you all can vote when we get home alive." Brie nodded to Christa. "Can we-" Brie couldn't continue before the window in the door shattered, as she leapt away from the door a walker entwined it's fingers through her hair and yanked her back.
No one could react fast enough, from the shock of the argument to the sudden attack the group watched as a walker latched on to Brie's neck.
Vernon cried out, too afraid to aid her as another set of teeth latched onto her shoulder.
With a wildly swinging arm Brie freed herself from both walkers, staring around at the group that had failed to help her.
"NOW can we go?" Molly asked the room, not waiting for a response before sprinting into the armory.
"Go!" Brie shouted, alarming those who hadn't already followed in Molly's footsteps. "We need to get out of here!"
The rest of the group followed suit to the Armory, all entered expecting a closet with shelves and weapons lining the wall, instead they found a stairway leading both up and down a dimly lit tower and one opened locker.
Christa sighed as she lifted up the only contents of the lockers. "A few rounds, that's it."
Brie stumbled inside, one hand covering the bleeding wound from her neck and the other shutting the door behind her.
"Brie. . ." Vernon covered his mouth. "I'm so sorry."
"Don't." Brie tried shutting the door again, finally pressed herself up against it, with the lock busted it no longer stayed shut. "I beat cancer, I can beat this."
"Brie, that-"
"I don't care." Brie shook her head. "We just need to get out of here."
"Come on." Kenny huffed, angrily bumping against Sharon as he passed her. "We're going down."
One by one the group rushed down the stairs, Sharon stayed put as everyone passed her, watching over the railing down the staircases.
"I'll be fine, kid, you need to get out of here." Brie said, her legs shaking as blood began to drip on the platform.
"And go where?" Sharon muttered, the weight of her backpack seemingly holding her down.
She didn't have much time to think about it as the group stopped descending, Kenny promptly slammed the bottom floor door.
"That's not gonna hold, back upstairs!" Lee's voice echoed through the tower.
Seeing the panic from the rushing group Sharon backed away, her attention turning to Brie who lost all strength in her legs, using her body to hold the door shut. The sound of a loud rifle from down below agitated the walkers from the classroom.
To both escape Kenny's path and ensure the groups safety, Sharon braced herself against the door, keeping a headcount as each person passed.
When Vernon stopped at the platform to catch his breath he turned around, peering over the railing.
"Vernon, where's Lee?"
"Shit." Kenny peered over the railing himself when he heard the question. "He's on his way up, keep that fuckin' door closed!"
Vernon hesitated, looking back and forth to the walkers that quickly surrounded Lee and to his fallen friend bleeding out against the door. Sharon couldn't see Lee from where she stood but could hear a crack and shout coming from him, meaning he's in trouble and everybody is leaving him behind in the panic.
"Vernon, hold the door shut!" Sharon called out, reaching out for him. "I need to help Lee!"
Vernon and Sharon quickly switched places, she had nearly forgotten the crossbow slung around her side as she hardly needed it until now. She tried to be quick but found she had tangled the straps of her bag and the crossbow.
Once she saw Lee struggling to kick off a heavy walker and release his foot from the broken floor boards Sharon unclipped her weapon from the strap and hefted it up.
With a deep breath and a squeeze of the trigger the walker fell backwards and on top of two other walkers behind it, momentarily slowing the line of dead bodies trying to follow everyone up the steps.
Now the threat is gone Lee easily dislodged his foot from the broken step and nodded to Sharon.
"Brie?" Vernon looked to his friend, unable to step away from the door to get a good look at her. "Brie!"
"Vernon, we need to move!" Lee called out, waiting at the base of the next set of stairs up. "Go!"
Vernon tried to say more, though there was nothing he could say that would make this better. He shook his head and sprinted for the stairs, Sharon followed him with Lee protecting them from behind and stopping the walkers that caught up with them.
At the very top platform Christa and Molly had already descended from one of the windows, a ladder leading down to another section of roof. Kenny took off his backpack, holding it out the window and dropping it for the rest of the group down below.
"Toss your bags out the window, the ladder won't hold all the weight." Kenny called to the group, ushering Vernon to go down the ladder before him.
Ben tried to speak but before he could get out a syllable, Kenny pointed a finger at him. "Don't you start."
All four had their backs facing the walker that hung from bell at the top of the tower, unaware that it tried swinging to reach them.
"Please, can you-"
"I don't have to do shit." Kenny growled, making his way to the window.
Ben only tried harder, standing by Kenny's side. "I'm sorry, it was just too much-"
"Just shut the fuck up!"
"I'm sorry! I didn't know what else to do!"
"Get the fuck out of my face!"
"I didn't want this to happen, I didn't want any of this to happen-"
Before Lee or Sharon could interject- Kenny had enough, using two hands to shove Ben away from him.
The corpse- with it's throat too constricted to make any noise reached his arms out to Ben, unable to grab him enough to pull him down though enough to throw him off balance yet could swing itself hard enough to loudly ring the bells.
All four covered their ears at the loud sound, with no balance left Ben slipped off the edge of the platform, only just managing to grab the edge and dangle by his upper body. With the weight in his bag and in general weakness from malnourishment, he continued to slip down and desperately try to grip on to something.
Sharon tried to ignore the hanging corpse, she knelt down and grabbed Ben by the top backpack strap and attempted to pull him up.
"It's okay, I'm here!" Sharon called out, from this angle she could see exactly how far Ben would fall and what is waiting for him if he doesn't land on his head. "I won't let you fall!"
She eyed the walkers that continued to climb the stairs, now preoccupied with trying to reach Ben, like dangling a treat in front of a cat. Lee shot the hanging walker to prevent it from grabbing anyone else.
"He's too heavy for me, I need help!" Sharon called out, seeing as Ben's grasp on the floorboards weakening, her help only seemed to sway him in the air and prevent him from falling further. "Lee? Kenny?"
Kenny turned his back to them, catching Lee's eyes just before facing the window. "Just don't take too long."
"Kenny?" Sharon looked away from Ben to watch as Kenny descended down the ladder without a second glance.
"There's no time!" Ben locked eyes with Sharon. "Just let me go."
"I can't lift you up, I need you to try, Ben!"
"Sharon, you said it yourself. Carley died because of me, I don't want you to die, too."
"Don't do this!"
Ben shook his head. "It's better for everyone if you just. . ."
"Not today, Ben." Lee knelt by Sharon's side, easily pulling Ben up without her help. "We can't have anybody else die today!"
"But-"
"'But' nothing!" Sharon heaved, pulling Ben away from the edge. Once he was safely on the landing she pulled him in a hug.
Lee stood and wiped the sweat from his brow, shoving the next walker that tried to climb the stairs.
Sharon let go of Ben, looking him in the eyes. "You dying won't solve anything, you'll leave Travis by himself, you'll leave me!"
Ben's eyes widened.
"You're my friend, I promised I'd help you."
He sighed. "I'm sorry, everything's just so hard. I don't know how I can keep going."
Lee extended his hand to Ben. "You start one step at a time."
Christa and Vernon stared up at the window, not knowing if they should try to ascend or wait for the rest of the group where they stood. This section of the roof looked stable but the bell ringing would soon surround the school.
"He needs to hurry up." Kenny huffed. "The walkers are drawn to the bell, we're gonna miss our chance to haul ass."
"What's happening up there?" Christa asked. "Why aren't they coming down?"
"We should just head out, let's start packing."
"Wait, we can't just leave them up there." Christa crossed her arms. "I'm going to see if they need help."
"Waste of time." Kenny called, adjusting the straps of his bag and grabbing the gas cans.
Molly squinted at Kenny, unsure of what his tone implied. Nonetheless she didn't like it.
As Christa stomped toward the ladder Vernon promptly pulled her back. She was furious until the backpack that was thrown out the window collided with the flat-roof floor only a few feet from her.
Lee was the first to descend, the four down below watched as the next backpack was thrown and Ben appeared out of the window, timidly climbing down.
Kenny huffed, rolling his eyes as Lee approached him.
"I'm not letting anyone else die today." Lee said. "Not on my watch."
"I'm glad you decided to save the food." Kenny crossed his arms. "It was the only thing up there worth saving."
As Sharon reached the bottom of the ladder Vernon is the one to hand her the bag back, lingering after she took it. "I have a question to ask."
Sharon put the bag on before answering. "About what?"
"Brie, did you see. . . " He hesitated, unsure how many details he really wanted to know about his friends' death.
Sharon blinked, trying to think back on the last second she saw Brie, what the final image of her is burned in her head. "She didn't suffer." She said. "She died before the walkers got to her."
Vernon nodded, not caring to ask if she was lying to make him feel better or telling the cold hard truth. Which way should he take that answer? Was it truly better knowing his friend died in pain from blood loss? Should he be thanking her for saying she wasn't eaten?
Sharon thought the same, not knowing herself if she was telling the truth, she spoke simply without thinking. The last moment she remembers of Brie is her clutching the bleeding wound on her neck, pale skin, shallow breaths. All she knew is that she didn't hear any screams when the door collapsed.
The group as a whole agreed not to take the sewers home, now that they know Crawford has fallen there is only the threat of the dead. They preferred the visibility and clean air than the rancid dark sewer tunnels anyways.
Ben and Sharon held up the back of the group again, this time because no one wanted to stand near them as the truth is settling in.
"What do we do now?" Ben asked. "Where can we go?"
Sharon couldn't answer, not because she didn't want to, she didn't know.
Where can she go?
After a long walk through Savannah the group finally arrived to the mansion. Previously, seeing this place had given Sharon hope; Lisa may be in there or a sign of her, happier times, warm memories. Now the mansion only made her feel dread.
The closer she is to those doors the closer to the reality that she has nowhere to go. Kenny won't take her on the boat after this, she doesn't know if she can stop herself from resenting Ben after revealing the truth, she doesn't want Christa and Omid to take on the burden of caring for her. At this point, the only option she can see for herself is to be alone, do what she had been trying for so long and be on her own.
Once the group reached the property Lee rushed inside, panic setting in.
The front door is wide open.
As the group followed they soon discovered a dead walker in the foyer, no signs of Clementine or Duck, the house is silent.
"Clementine?" Lee called out, rushing up the stairs with Kenny following quickly behind him.
Christa and Ben followed them to the second floor, desperate to check on their respective partners.
Molly, Vernon, and Sharon stood at the base of the stairs. Molly shrugged and followed Ben to Travis' room, Vernon took his bag to the living room and sorted through what he needed to treat the two injured upstairs. When he had what he needed he stopped by Sharon's side who still stared up.
Vernon wanted to say something comforting as she had done to him after Brie's sudden passing, but nothing could surface, no words of wisdom.
Instead he just sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder.
As he ascended Sharon still couldn't muster the courage to follow, afraid of what she'll see, afraid of facing Kenny, afraid of seeing Lisa's room with two more dead children, afraid to see Lisa's room.
In the past Sharon had no problems owning up to her mistakes, the one thing she always struggled with is processing the emotional toll her trauma put her through. Instead she chose to ignore it, never embracing her feelings of hurt or anger.
Every nerve in her body told her to run away- keep what is in her heavy backpack and flee. Instead she took one step up.
She had ignored the emotional toll of being shot in her own home, feeling as if her relationship with her parents improved since she never brought up the incident. She ignored the feelings of growing up too fast, holding no resentment toward her family for taking responsibility for her parents sobriety and her siblings well being. Ignored pain for literally anything else. She had ignored her attachment for her group to latch on to the idea of Lisa being out here somewhere.
At the top of the stairs she heard the murmurs of her friends in the rooms to her right, Travis telling Ben to calm down and speak slower, Omid comforting Christa and calming her down.
Everyone had their person to go back to, everyone was welcomed by the person most important to them. Here she stands, a familiar hallway with a familiar face painted above the fireplace and yet she is alone.
Up one more flight of stairs are the voices of Clementine and Duck retelling what had happened while the adults were gone.
How much longer can she bottle up these feelings? How much longer can she run away from her problems until it explodes in her face?
Where did she belong in this?
With one more deep breath Sharon braved the staircase, standing at the doorway she saw a glimpse of the past. The hanging lights cast a soft glow around the room, little polished nick-nacks and nightlights lined every available surface, any space left uncovered had a rug or poster. Aside from the slanted ceiling- one could hardly tell by the warmth of the room that this is an attic. Lisa lay on her stomach with her feet swaying back and forth, nearly enveloped in the soft blanket she lay on top of, focused on the laptop without a care in the world.
Duck whipped his head around when he noticed Sharon was in the room, a new scene took the room.
Cold. Dull. Grimy. A lifeless boy with shoulder blades you'd fear would puncture his skin, eyes sullen and cloudy, his blood dark and rotted. There is no warmth here.
"Sharon!" Duck called out, a smile wide on his face, he attempted to approach her but Kenny promptly stopped him.
"No." He stood and stood protectively in front of his son. "Sharon, from here on out you're not allowed near my son, you got that?"
Clementine and Duck looked hurt and confused, unknowing who to look at for answers.
"You can't talk to him, you can't get near him, I don't want you to fuckin' look at him."
"But dad, mom said she's family, she-"
"Not anymore."
Sharon held herself together. "Kenny, let me explain-"
"I don't want to hear any of it. My son is all the family I have left, I'm not letting you- or Ben- fuck that up any more than you already have."
Clementine wanted to say something but Lee shook his head.
Kenny rolled his eyes. "Get out of here."
Lee spoke up. "Kenny."
Sharon turned away.
"Don't scold me, she's the one at fault here!"
She wanted to wait for someone to tell her to stop. As she descended she wanted someone to pull her in to a hug and tell her everything is going to be okay. She wanted someone. Anyone.
She debated continuing down and simply walking out the doors, she is unwanted here so why shouldn't she? This is Lisa's house. After trying so long to get here she isn't going to leave this place.
Suddenly she felt the weight of her backpack on her aching shoulders, with a simple shrug the bag fell to the floor with a loud thud. Uncaring for the noise Sharon stepped in to the office, shutting the glass pane doors and sitting in the nicely placed reading nook under the window.
Gently, she laid her head to rest on the cold glass, staring at the fog her breath made against it.
Would her father have been proud of what she's done? If she found her family, would they accept her after all that she's caused? Would Lisa be proud?
The Sharon everyone else knew would always be the perfect role model, she would step up and be the better person, she would treat everyone with kindness and seek the right path to take. She would never be too scared to admit her wrong doings, she would come clean when mistakes were made.
In the reflection Lisa stared back at Sharon, her skin pale and bright- contrasting her black hair. The red blouse and red lips popped brighter than her skin, she always looked amazing in red. Would this have been the Lisa waiting for her, or is this the Lisa forever in purgatory, remnants only alive to haunt Sharon's thoughts and mind? This image of Lisa is the same she followed mindlessly through the streets of Macon, her only comfort in a painful and bleak world. This image of Lisa helped her get through the day. This image of Lisa guided her. This image of Lisa. . . this is all she has left.
This Sharon is entirely new. This Sharon has been born from trauma and fire, the childhood trauma she had oh so carefully locked away in plain sight had been burned away with the baby she had tried so desperately to save. This Sharon was so desperate to follow a dream that she had ignored the plight of a teen boy that needed her guidance, chose ignorance for her own selfish needs, played with the lives of those who cared for her.
How blind to think she could accept Kenny and Duck as her family when she made such a grave mistake, one she knew wouldn't end nicely. They gave her the privilege of a new family, one born by blood of the covenant. She spat in their face and let danger take their home and their mother.
Her place in her world was once so defined; a girlfriend, a daughter, a sister, an active member of the community.
Now her role is: mistake.
Ben entered the room though Sharon didn't hear. She didn't see the hand waving in front of her face, nor did she see Vernon inspecting her. She only stared at the image of Lisa as various faces attempted to talk to her.
Once Vernon left the room Ben tried one last thing. A thin, baby blue, unicorn patterned pair of pajamas. Ben approached, trying to console her with words of comfort, when words didn't help he presented the fabric.
Her eyes moving scared him, he nearly screamed. Slowly she grasped the unicorn pajamas, her hand lingering over Ben's for a moment.
"Thank you."
The pajamas found it's rightful place in her lap, like a kitten looking for warmth. The cheerful baby blue, the silly pattern, a gift from her father.
This is the Sharon she needs to be.
Her eyes drifted back to the image of Lisa in front of her. With this she vowed to be better, she will no longer run and hide from her problems, she will help wherever she can, she will take responsibility.
Sharon will become herself again.
For now, she needs rest.
Duck sat up, eyes squinting in the darkness. His hand hovered over the flashlight by his side but stopped himself. He remembers his dad telling him that they couldn't afford broken tools anymore, flashlights being one he wasn't allowed to play with. He shrugged and stood up, using what little moonlight available to wander down the stairs.
He couldn't remember which of these doors led to the bathroom so he continued to the ground level, he remembers Sharon telling him the bathroom was next to the fireplace.
Wiping his hands on his pants he looked around the living room, spotting movement in the kitchen.
He froze, part of him felt he had just been caught doing something he wasn't supposed to, he's always getting in trouble for something now-a-days.
Duck then remembered the incident from last night, the walker that 'pushed' the door open, the walker he and Clementine might have accidentally let inside. The dark bloodstain was still there on the floorboard, though in the darkness he wouldn't be able to spot it.
Focusing at the possible danger present, he took each step carefully toward the figure. As he neared he noticed the familiar hat and short frame, with a small red light glowing from the walkie-talkie.
"Clem?"
She squeaked, quickly spinning around to find out who she'd just been caught by. "Duck? What are you doing down here?"
"The bathroom is down here"
"There's one upstairs."
"Oh, I didn't know that." Duck paused. "Why are you down here?"
Clem looked to the kitchen door, the one she had crawled through to unlock for everyone. She held her walkie close. "I'm meeting a friend."
"Who is it? Someone from your school?"
"No, there's a man on my radio who knows my parents, he's outside waiting for me."
"Really!?"
"Shh!"
"Oh, sorry. Really? Can I meet them?"
"Um. . . "
"Does that mean you're leaving?"
"No! Everyone here is my friend." She shook her head. "Once he takes me to my parents we'll come back here, he says he's with a group too. Maybe we can all be together."
"Can I come?"
"Your dad will get mad if you leave the house."
"He's always mad, he won't even let me talk to Sharon." He crossed his arms, with the morning light Clem could see his sneer. "And I'm not even tired."
"Are you sure? I don't know when we'll be back."
"I'll be fine, the walkers are dumb, remember? Won't Lee be mad you left?"
Clem looked down. "He's not my dad."
"He acts like it sometimes."
The radio buzzed, halting the conversation between the two. "Clementine? Are you still there?"
"Oh." Clem rushed to the door, opening it let in moonlight and a cold breeze. "Come on."
Duck quickly followed her outside, the two running to the back fence and easily slipping through the bars a third time. Once there they whipped their heads around looking for Clementine's new friend.
She lifted the walkie. "I'm outside, do you see me?"
"I do."
The man appeared from around the corner, announcing himself to the kids. "It's nice to meet you in person, Clementine." He looked down on them and smiled.
"You look a lot older that I thought you were." Clementine said. "This is my friend, Duck."
"Clem has told me all about you." The man said. "You like comic books, right?"
"Yeah!" Duck smiled wide. "I really like Batman but dad found me these new Green Lantern comics that are so much cooler, it's about a-"
"-actually, I have some of those comics back at the Marsh House."
"The what?"
"It's the hotel we're staying at, where Clementine's parents are." He gestured down the alleyway to the glowing red lights of the station wagon. "We don't even have to walk there."
"Cool, you have a car!" Duck bounced in his spot. "I wish we had one, my feet still hurt from walking."
"Mine too." Clementine sighed. "But we won't have to move around, right? It's safe there? No one from Crawford?"
"Oh it's safe alright." He smiled down at her. "Duck, would you like to come along, too?"
Duck looked back to the house. "Um. . . I don't think my dad would like that."
Clem frowned. "But you said he's always mad."
"I know but. . ."
"We have comics." The man repeated. "I can take both of you to the hotel and you can take whatever ones you want."
"Wow, really?" Duck smiled ear to ear. "Do you have Green Arrow?"
"Yup."
"Justice League?"
"Mhm."
"Do you have-"
"Clementine is getting impatient." The man said, not allowing her to respond to his assumption. "I can give you a ride back here once you have the comics, then you can tell your group about Clementine and her parents. We can all meet up later."
Duck's smile vanished, nervous about what his dad would think if he left again, the smile plastered on the man's face didn't make him feel better either, Clem also looked a little uneased. The silhouette of the man against the early morning sky and the red parking lights on his car felt foreboding.
"Come on." The man said, gesturing to the car once more. "The car is all warmed up for you two."
"Wait, can I talk to Lee?"
"Why would you want to do that?" The man's smile faltered.
"U-um. . . He would want to know where I'm going and maybe if we're taking Duck he can come, too."
"No-" The man cleared his throat. "Remember what he did? He tried taking the only chance you had to be reunited with your parents, he stole your walkie-talkie."
Clem's face fell, her eyes scanning the ground. Something didn't sit right in her gut, the sudden change in tone made her doubt leaving the group.
The man took a step toward the car. "Let's go, Ed and Diane are waiting."
Duck and Clementine nervously followed.
"You'll love it at the hotel; we've got cakes, pies, cookies, candy." The man smiled again. "We even have new clothes for you Clementine."
"Um, if you have cars why didn't her parent's come here?" Duck asked. "Why is it just you?"
"I don't see the problem."
"Are they busy?"
"Oh yes, very busy." The man opened the back seat door, holding it open for the kids to get in. "Diane is our only doctor and Ed is building us a fence to keep us safe from the walkers."
Clem stopped at the door, the warmth of the car was inviting but something didn't feel right. "Hey, why do you keep calling her Diane? It's Diana."
"Same thing, just get in the car."
"And she's not a doctor, she's a nurse."
"Well, we call my mom. . . we- um. . ." Duck tried to compare the two, but thinking about his mom made all tracks stop.
The man placed a cold hand on Clementine's shoulder. "Just get inside and we can talk about it there, it's not safe out here."
Clem shook her head. "Can we just take Sharon, then? She lets me get away with things and she's really nice."
"NO." The man's face crumpled. "Not her, not anybody, just. . ." he took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, it's dangerous and I don't want us to be standing out in the street for too long."
The kids exchange looks, both suddenly nervous of their new 'friend.'
Duck stepped away. "I think we should get everyone else, why can't they come with us?"
"This is your last chance, Clementine." The man said. "Don't you want to see your parents?"
Duck shook his head. "I don't like this guy, Clem."
The man shot a look at Duck.
"Let's go back."
Clementine shook in the spot, she wanted to see her parents again but this man, this stranger? He's acting different than he usually does on the walkie-talkie, he's usually so nice, so patient.
"Um." Clem took a step away from the vehicle. "I really want to bring Lee, so, Duck and I will be right back, okay?"
The man sighed. "Don't make me do this."
Clementine dropped her walkie to the ground from shaking, his tone of voice was one she had never heard from him before. He reminded her of the farmers, this was the same feeling.
Without a second for the kids to think the stranger swiftly shoved Clementine in the wagon with ease, slamming the door shut before she could try to crawl out.
"Let her go!" Duck shouted, weakly punching the man. "Let her go!"
The man easily restrained him. "Either you can come with and be a good boy or you can stay here to rot, your choice."
Duck stopped punching when he realized he wasn't doing any good and tried shoving. The man sighed, exasperated as not only Duck is fighting against him but now Clementine tried escaping the car, unable to figure out that the door has the child-locks on.
With a quick shove the man pushed Duck to the ground.
Sharon had been startled awake by the sound of tires screeching. She tried to blink the sleep out of her eyes, when she could see clearly she looked around at her surroundings and through the window she was pressed up against. The sun had not risen yet though the sky was lit bright enough to give everything a dim glow.
She didn't know if she was still asleep or not, wondering if the sight of Duck running down the foggy alleyway was real, though she didn't have time to debate that thought, her heart and mind racing.
Kenny was already at the base of the stairs, his gun in hand. "What the hell was that-"
"Duck is running away!"
Kenny- no longer skeptical or suspicious of Sharon- scrambled to action, following her down the stairs and out the back door. Even in his panic he was still slower than Sharon who was already trying to squeeze herself through the fence bars.
Oddly Duck was already walking back with his head hung low, ashamed.
Sharon got to her knees when she reached him, trying to look him in the eyes, until Kenny shoved her to the side to replace her.
"Are you crazy? What were you thinkin'? It's not safe!"
Sharon stared wide eyed at Kenny, shocked at how easily he mistreated her. She cast her eyes to the ground, hoping her short hair would cover her face enough to hide the tears that freely dripped down.
Lee and Christa walked around the corner, both with their guns drawn as they surveyed the scene. "What's going on out here?" Christa asked.
"Nothin'." Kenny said, standing up. "I just need to get that fuckin' boat working then everything will be fine."
"Wait." Lee spoke up. "Where's Clementine?"
"Ain't she inside?" Kenny asked, trying to lead Duck away but his feet were glued to the spot.
Lee walked behind Duck, staring at two black streaks in the ground each two feet long. "Are these. . . tire marks?"
"Was that where the noise came from?" Christa asked. "Was there a car out here?"
"These tire marks are fresh." Lee said, his eyes catching a familiar walkie talkie on the ground by a few trash cans.
Kenny looked down to his son. "Duck, what the hell is goin' on here?"
"We can't go back inside!" Duck shouted. "We have to go, we have to rescue Clementine!"
"What?" Sharon whipped her head up, no longer caring to hide that she was crying. "What do you mean?"
With seemingly no warning Christa sprung to action, sprinting to aide Lee at the sight of a Walker jumping out from the boxes and bits of rubbish it was hiding in. As Lee was recoiling Christa kicked the corpse back down to the ground and shot it before it could move again.
"Lee, are you alright?" Christa asked, bringing her hand to her face. "Oh god."
Everyone returned attention to Lee, at first Sharon noticed the walkie talkie with the pink stickers on it, her eyes trailing to the blood dripping from the bite mark on Lee's wrist.
"No. . ." grabbed on to his wrist, eyes glued to the obvious teeth marks. "No. . . no. . ."
Kenny's mouth opened wide, letting go of his son to bring his hands up to his head. "No way, no fuckin' way."
"Lee. . ." Sharon whispered. "I'm so sorry. . . Oh my god I'm so sorry."
"Fuck. . ."