"Yo boys! We got ourselves a little prize over here!"
Reagan could feel herself getting dizzier and dizzier by the second.
She flailed, trying to get down from the trap she was in as fast as she could once the blood started rushing to her brain. The man's oddly familiar voice at the end of the street flooded her ears, as well as his gunshots as he took down a few Walkers the meandered up to him. Reagan's gold eyes watched as he disappeared behind the building he came from, most likely going to gather reinforcements to gun down Walkers and take on Reagan. She just couldn't let that happen.
Reagan yanked her cloak off and let it fall into the bed of the truck below her, along with her bladed scythe that gleamed back up at her. She did her best to lean over to see exactly what she was dealing with, grunting from the never ending pain that riddled through her left leg. There she saw the serrated bear trap clamped down on her boot so tightly she could see blood beginning to seep through the thick pad, knowing it had to have been serious. She followed the trail of the thick rope the bear trap was tied to and noticed that it draped over a light post that Reagan so desperately hung from. As Reagan heard more gunshots and more voices, she began to grow panicked that it might be her last moments: hanging like a trapped animal waiting to be executed. It would either be the Walkers or the humans that would be the ones to claim her life. Not both.
Reagan reached her free leg back and her fingers wiggled in attempts to grab it. As soon as she grabbed her boot behind her back, her face contorted into a pain riddled frenzy at the sudden weight change bearing down on her trapped ankle. A cold sweat broke out across her brow and pained heat formed under her clothing. Reagan gritted her teeth so hard that she swore they could break and ignored the pain the best she could, reaching into her boot and sliding out a large, hidden knife. Upon pulling it out, she balanced her legs with one another and took a deep breath, using all her abdominal muscles to crawl up to her leg. She gripped her thigh tightly and reached up, grabbing onto the bear trap triumphantly. A few strained pants escaped her lips and she looked down over her shoulder, seeing numerous Walkers crowding around the side of the truck and waiting for her to fall into their pit. Their snarls caught up in her ears and she closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths before making her decision. It was now or never.
"Fuck... this is going to hurt." She gasped to herself before reaching her free arm up and slashing the knife across the rope.
Reagan's body crashed down on the cab of the truck, her entire weight denting the whole top of the vehicle. The windows exploded out of the driver's and passenger's side doors, sending glass shrapnel shooting through the air and even through a few Walkers heads. All the breath in Reagan's chest halted and her mouth gaped open as she tried to breath, staring up at the sky in nothing but a blur. Her ringing ears could make out the soft sound of Walkers growling and snarling at her, even so much as fingers touching the sleeve of her jacket. The burning pain brewing in her ankle snapped her back into reality and she took a much needed, but shallow breath.
"She's down! She's down!" Reagan heard the shouts of the similar man and looked over seeing at least four of them standing at the end of the street. Her eyes widened as one of them raised his rifle and she immediately lifted herself up, rolling into the bed of the truck.
Bullets slammed up against the side and Reagan tossed her hands over her head in attempts to protect her fragile skull. As the bullets seized for only a few moments, Reagan grabbed her scythe and cloak, tossing the black fabric back over her shoulders. She glanced down at the bear trap and placed some weight on her ankle, grunting from an abrupt surge of undeniable pain. Reagan flinched as blood splattered all over her face, watching a Walker's head slam up against the side of the truck and disappear to the ground. Her fingers gripped up against the blunt edges of the bear trap and she used all the might of her arms combined to try and pry it apart. It only moved a few inches before her fingers slipped and it snapped back down on her boot, Reagan letting out a sharp cry from the traps intensity.
"Get her before she escapes! Take down all those biters first... we don't need any causalities today." She heard a faint voice say and her heart practically leapt out of her chest.
"Stop being a little bitch!" Reagan hissed to herself, taking one last look at the trap around her ankle before grabbing onto the hilt of her scythe. She then discovered her knife was still gripped in the palm of her hand and she quickly sheathed it back in the depths of her good boot.
Reagan took a few deep breaths and then popped open her golden eyes, feeling her fingers begin to get cold through her gloves. She jumped up to her feet, almost falling back down into the bed of her truck upon putting weight of her bum ankle. Shifting all she could to her good foot, she swung the long blade of her scythe and sliced off the heads of a few Walkers crowding around the truck. Gunfire swiftly blazed past her and she swore she felt one slide past her head. Reagan dove over the side of the truck and slid across the ground with a grunt, the handle of her scythe still clinging desperately in her hand. The many presences of Walkers crowded around her, and in such a tight space between vehicles, there was no way the radius of her longs scythe could successfully cut down her enemy.
She rolled over on her back and reached into the flap of her jacket, sliding out a pistol and aiming it at the head of a Walker. Complete with a silencer, she pulled the trigger and the bullet pierced its brain, sending it plummeting to the ground. Her gloved hands helped her crawl backwards away from the frenzy that slowly moved after her, Reagan looking over her shoulder to see a path to the other side of the road clear as day. A Walker fell to its knees and grabbing onto her leg, Reagan quick to react with a swift bullet to its head. Wrapping her hand around the handle of her scythe, she stuck the blunt edge of the blade into the ground and slowly got to her feet. With a limp, she used her scythe as leverage and balance to help her stumble to the sidewalk lining the stores and buildings.
Reagan slammed her sore back up against a car, avoiding the spray of bullets that threatened to end her life. She looked through the broken windows the bullets had destroyed, seeing the men trying to make their way through the streets to get at her, cutting down Walkers along the way. Reagan's trigger finger shook with anticipation to gun down every single one of the militia men, but she knew in her condition she had no chance unless she got the bear trap off her ankle. With a deep breath, she hobbled towards a store, her eyes dead set on the door to take much needed cover. She raised her pistol and gunned down a Walker in her path, slamming the blunt edge of her scythe down on its face ruefully. Its face exploded under the blunt force and Reagan waded up saliva on her tongue, pursing her lips and spitting on the shambled face of the undead. Reagan slid up against the side of the building, looking over her shoulder as she saw the men caught in the middle of a Walker horde, their guns firing off in all directions.
Reagan took a deep breath, turning towards the door and pulling the silenced trigger against a Walker. With the turn of the handle, she mentally sighed in relief that it opened without a hinge and disappeared through the shadows of the room. As she shut the door behind her, Reagan locked the handle and deadlock in hopes that it would hold for as long as possible. She fell against a desk and eventually to the ground, letting out a heavy sigh and gripping her leg. The rusted mouth of the bear trap glared back at her wickedly, Reagan now seeing that there was more blood than she figured. The only thing she could hear were the men's gunshots and the labored breathing coming from her own lips.
"I need to find Rick..."
.:o:.
Rick ducked down behind a desk upon hearing an explosive gunshot, staring out through the clouded window of the gas station he was in. It was right around the corner of the block he was on and he was in search for a few more gas canisters, but found none. He moved towards the door as he heard another gunshot, wiping in sleeve on the window to try and get a better view of the outside, but he saw nothing that seemed dangerous. It could have been Reagan popping off shots to possibly get Rick's attention, but he knew better than that. Even though he had only known her for a few weeks, he figured out that she was very careful about how she did things inside and outside the comfort of her compound. She was very sneaky and blasting off shots wasn't something she would normally do.
Unless she could have been in trouble somehow.
But there was no way. It couldn't have been that way. Rick shook his head and put his hand on the cold door handle, opening it and looking out. The Walkers that were occupying his area began to migrate around the corner to all the commotion, Rick narrowing his eyes at why exactly someone would be stupid enough to shoot. The gunfire began to get heavier and Rick shut the door behind him as he fully stepped out of the station. His hand tightened around the handle of his silenced pistol and he held it in front of him just in case he needed to lift it quickly. His boots stepped lightly through the snow as he made way towards the back of the building strip. Instead of following the Walkers around the corner of the building, he decided to possibly take an alleyway to investigate the commotion.
Rick's sleeved shoulder brushed up against the brick make of the building, his eyes constantly darting back and forth for any sign of danger. He steadied his breathing to keep as quiet as possible, careful not to alert any stray Walkers that may be hiding everywhere and anywhere. A soft wind caressed his scruffy face, Rick slowing as he looked up at the sky, seeing some clouds beginning to muddle its soft view. The sun disappeared behind the fluffy concoctions and Rick's eyes darkened, knowing that at any moment another storm front would roll through and leave both him and Reagan stranded with whoever else was in the town. Rick then continued to step forward, a warm breath halting in his lips as his cold ears picked up a sudden sound.
A strong force knocked Rick off his feet and snow powdered onto his face, it instantly turning to liquid upon kissing his warm skin. Rick shoved back across the ground with his feet, his blue eyes glancing up to see two men crowding around him. One grabbed his boot and jumped down on him, slamming his fist into Rick's face and jarring him briefly. Rick gritted his teeth and wrapped his hand around the man's neck, pushing him up and ramming his knee into the man's stomach. He coughed and Rick shoved him off, reaching his pistol hand up and aiming at the man standing above him. He instantly kicked the pistol from Rick's hand just as the sheriff pulled the trigger, Rick feeling an intense pain in his wrist. The man reached down and grabbed the collar of Rick's jacket yanking him to his stumbling feet,
"Get the hell up you pussy!" He called to his partner as he struggled to get back to his feet, "We need to kill this asshole and take his shit before Kent comes over here and does it for us." He reached his fist back and shoved it into Rick's stomach, causing him to fall to his knees and gasp for air. Rick quickly recovered as he took in the real reality of the situation, knowing that if he didn't fight back he was for sure going to get killed.
Rick shoved his shoulder into the man's stomach and knocked him to the ground, Rick falling on his chest. The militia man grabbed Rick's arms as he tried to pry him off, but Rick shoved all his weight down on him. Rick's fist broke the skin on the man's lips, watching as he spit out blood before his fist could make more contact with the man's face. Rick glared down at him, gritting his teeth, "You're not gonna be the one leavin' alive!"
In the rage, Rick obliviously forgot about the man's partner and found himself face first into the snow once again. The sharp tip of a boot rammed into his ribs, causing his to cough out and grab at his side instinctively. As the two strange men regained their composure, they took out their entire wrath upon Rick, not realizing that Rick wasn't such an easy target at first. Never did they expect him to fight back when they first laid their eyes on him in the dark alley.
Rick finally managed to take a breath of fresh air as the onslaught of boots to his torso halted, his blue eyes opening and taking a look. His fingers grew numb against the influence of the cold snow, Rick leaning up as he stared down the barrel of his own silver Python. A sly smirk brewed on the lips of the man as he watched Rick look through the barrel of his own gun, seeing a spark of fear in his eyes. Rick choked down whatever was in his throat, nothing but Lori, Carl, and the rest of his group flying through his mind in his last seconds of life. His jaw tightened and he gritted his teeth, closing his eyes and just waiting for it all to be over.
The man's sharp cries echoed through the air and Rick's eyes popped open, seeing him fall to the ground and blood seeping out of a back wound. Rick looked up at his savior, watching as none other than Reagan ramming the wooden hilt of her scythe against the other man's face, knocking him to the ground. A bloody knife was cradled in her hand, her chest heaving in pants as her golden eyes stared back at him. Rick couldn't believe how undetected she was; the way she came out of nowhere at the last second to save the day, "What's with you people and me having to save your asses?"
Rick didn't say a word as he was still a bit shock, his eyes trailing down to her bloodied ankle. His eyes narrowed at its condition, "What the hell's goin' on?" Rick asked as he got to his feet and looking back into her eyes, Reagan leaning on her scythe for leverage,
"Marauders. By what I can tell they're not friendly." Reagan nodded towards the man she had stabbed three times as he died in the snow, "But you already know that. Anyways, we should get out of here before more of them show up. I already ran into a few of them, I'd rather not again." She looked down at her ankle with a grunt and Rick took a look at the damage,
"What happened to you? Can you walk?"
"I can manage. Don't worry about me... it's really not as bad as it looks." She lied through her teeth, remembering how much pain she endured in prying the bear trap off her ankle.
"We should get moving before-"
"Walter! Kent! Help us!" Reagan jumped at the sound of one of the men she put down shouting as loud as his vocal cords would allow him. She gritted her teeth, "Help! By the gas station-"
Reagan plunged her knife into the back of the man's head, twisting it, and popping it back out of his skull. Blood stained her gloves and as she looked back to Rick, she could see a slight disturbance in his demeanor upon witnessing her actions. Reagan huffed, "Quit lollygagging and let's go." She wiped the bloody blade across her pants, swirling around and hobbled quickly away from the scene, knowing the fresh blood of the recently killed men would soon attract the Walkers. With one last look at the men both dying and dead, Rick followed after her, swinging down and snatching his trusty Python from the dead man's hands.
Reagan slipped in through an alleyway, Rick close behind her as he pulled the rifle off his back and pressed it against his shoulder. He watched Reagan's careful, but slightly clumsy movements as she led him to their vantage point. Reagan soon stopped and peeked over the side of the wall, searching for any sign of living movement. Walkers crowded the streets, looking for any source of the men, or Rick and Reagan, to fill up their hungry bellies. Rick bumped Reagan with him elbow, "What happened to your rifle."
"I dropped it." She said bluntly and looked back at him, "I got caught in all the commotion with these men and I can't remember where I dropped it."
"I should go first." Rick volunteered, standing next to her. She eyed him with contemplation, not knowing whether or not she should let him. Rick could read her eyes like a book, "I'll protect you while you're down. Just trust me."
Reagan saw the sincere look in his blue eyes and she chewed on the inside of her lip, feeling her ankle pound in agreement with Rick. Hesitantly, she nodded at him and lifted her silenced pistol up to show him she was ready, "Alright... I'll watch your back."
Rick pressed past her, cautiously tilting his rifle up as he took the lead and frantically looked back and forth for hostile movement. Reagan pressed the end of her scythe into the snowy ground and followed after him, limping her way through with a few huffs escaping in stressed breaths. Her stomach began to grow queasy and her vision started to spin with all the blood rushing through her veins. Resting her hand on the side of the building, she pressed her hand against her forehead and groaned. Rick looked over his shoulder and was quick by her side, putting a hand on her shoulder, "You gonna make it?"
"Don't worry about me, cowboy." Reagan's eyes had already glazed over with sudden fatigue as she looked at Rick, "I'll make it... just keep moving." Rick hesitantly turned back around, his slim, cold hand sliding off her shoulder and returning to the black steel of his AR. A few Walkers began to take notice to their movements and their legs began to trek slowly towards the two survivors. Reagan kept a close eye on the walking corpses as Rick led her back towards the vehicles to make a slim escape. Reagan stopped briefly as she saw a flashy movement out of the corner of her eye, staring at the other side of the street in trying to find the source.
The explosion of a guns barrel caused Reagan to dive to the ground, avoiding a spray of bullets that riddled through the wall of the building behind her. "Reagan!" She heard Rick call and looked up, seeing him returning fire from over the top of a car, the rifle slamming its recoil against his shoulder. Reagan began to crawl across the ground, keeping low to avoid the death lead from enemy fire. A figure jumped out from behind a truck and Reagan's eyes darted behind her, seeing him pointing her rifle at her. She gasped, waiting for a bullet to crack her skull open and end her life where she lied as she had no time to retrieve her pistol in order to gun him down first.
The man cried out in pain and his body cocked back, blood spattering all over the innocent white snow behind him, a few bullet holes in his chest. Reagan looked back over her shoulder, seeing quickly moving towards her to help her to her feet, "Come on!" He grabbed her arm and hoisted her to her feet, a soft grunt erupting low in her throat from the protesting pain in her ankle. Her scythe drug against the ground as Rick pulled her along, their bodies moving in a slow jog as they tried to avoid the bullets chasing after them. Rick stopped and got on one knee, Reagan following his movements as they hid behind a large truck. She clenched her eyes shut and jumped at the sound of the bullets trying to make their way through the trucks steel to get to the two survivors. Rick panted and pulled the rifles strap off his shoulder, yanking the empty clip out and shoving his only spare back in. "We need to get back to the SUV. Do you think you can run?"
"There's no chance." Reagan shook her head, "The pain's getting worse. You go... I'll cover you."
"No." Rick was quick to answer, "I'm not leavin' you behind. If there's gonna be someone makin' their way to the car it's gonna be you."
"You all are a group full of idiots. It's a miracle you've survived this long." Reagan hissed more from the pain than that of her own consciousness. Rick grabbed onto her shoulder tightly causing her to look up at him through her veil of blonde bangs,
"Get to the car as fast as you can and get it runnin'... I'll be right behind you."
"No you won't..." She shook her head, "No one ever says that and makes it out. Don't be a hero."
"I'm not." Rick argued back, his blue eyes staring hard, "I'm just tryin' to return the favor..." He noted that it had been twice since Reagan had saved his life and he desperately needed to pay her back somehow. He wasn't going to be the cause of her death; it just wouldn't be right with that blood on his hands.
The gunfire suddenly stopped and the two stared at each other uncertainly for a moment before breaking contact, looking around for any sign of enemy movement. Slowly, their heads moved over the side of the truck, trying to find at least some form of the militia men. All they saw were Walkers trying to decide which side of the street to investigate for food, not knowing where exactly the living human beings were hiding. Reagan narrowed her eyes, knowing all too well that it was too quiet in their situation. The men had to have been changing strategy in order to kill her and Rick and take whatever supplies or weapons they had. Shooting from across the street was getting old. Reagan's foot throbbed uncontrollably and the discomfort of its aching was getting almost unbearable. She didn't know exactly what the damage was to her limb underneath the boot, but it couldn't have been pretty. Her fingers gripped tightly around the handle of her pistol, looking over at Rick as his face twisted into thought on how to get out of the death trap.
A surge of angst tore through Reagan as she saw one of the men jumped out from behind the alleyway, only feet away from the two. She grabbed Rick by the jacket and shoved him out of the way, "Move!" Her voice demanded as she raised her silenced pistol and aimed it at the perpetrator. His trigger finger was faster than hers and Regan's chest buckled out from under her, her body falling to the ground with a muted thud.
"No!" Rick saw Reagan cough up blood and turned quickly, sliding out his trusty python from the holster on his belt. The man's rifle barrel pointed at Rick to take him down next, but in a madly exploding bellow, Rick's pistol exterminated the man. Rick abruptly turned, sliding over Reagan and staring down at the thick gunshot that had pierced her chest, seeing her eyes red with strain and shock. Rick dropped his head as a mass of gunfire took out the windows above them, the two still hiding behind the truck as safely as possible.
"Molo...tov." Reagan choked and Rick looked back down at her, Reagan squeezing her eyes shut, "Molotov... throw a Molotov!" Rick breathed heavily and pulled her softly to her side, unzipping the backpack behind her and rummaging around before he felt a cold bottle. "Kill those fuckers..."
Rick yanked a lighter from his jacket pocket and flicked the ignition, the wick only sparking. "Come on, come on!" Rick pleaded as he frantically shoved his thumb down on the ignition for the lame sparks to turn into bright flames. Miraculously, it finally ignited and he frantically set the flame on the dirty, alcohol soaked cloth sticking out of the bottles lips. As the rag lit on fire, Rick gripped the bottle of vodka tightly in his hand and looked through the broken window of the truck, seeing the three men leaning over the hoods of a couple cars. One took Rick in his sights and the gun fired at Rick's head, barely missing him by inches and he hid back behind the heavy truck. Taking a couple deep breaths and stealing a glance at Reagan as she tried to lean up off the ground, Rick jumped up and tossed the Molotov as hard as he could across the street.
The bottle exploded against the building, igniting into a massive, destructive ball of flame. He heard the frantic cries of one individual enemy and watched as he ran around from behind the car, his entire body lit on fire. Taking the small chance given to him, Rick jumped over Reagan and jiggled the door handle of a shop behind him, growling and slamming his hand against it as it was locked. He had to get Reagan to safety and get some safer cover to ensure no more enemies came popping out of nowhere. Rick jumped back and slammed his boot into the door, the locks breaking the frame and the door swinging inside violently, ramming into the wall behind it. He got on one knee and grabbed Reagan's arm, tossing it over his shoulder and pulling her up. She hissed and gasped from being moved but Rick ignored it, knowing it was the only way for her to possibly survive. Not forgetting her scythe, he grabbed it and tossed the strap on his shoulder, pulling her through the door and kicking it shut with one foot.
As he took a look around the shop, it just so happened to be a bar. His eyes desperately searched for some type of cover, knowing that the only way they could find refuge was behind the bar himself. He helped Reagan walked and she clambered along with him awkwardly, trying to stay conscious from the unbelievable pain that took over her entire self. Her feet struggled to walk along with him as he pulled her behind the bar, seeing that the bar was rather small and feeble, "Shit..." He rolled her arm off from around his neck and set her down softly, looking over the bar once he heard commanding shouts from the men outside. Frantically, he searched for some type of other refuge,
"There..." He looked to Reagan and her shaky hand pointed over towards the corner. Rick followed her finger's trajectory and looked over to the corner of the bar, seeing an iron handle on the floor. He looked back to her and her lips drew in a small, bloody smile, "You need to start using your eyes better..."
Rick immediately went to the corner, yanking up the handle of the floor and put the back of his hand against his mouth as dust exploded into the air. A cold draft wafted up from the room below, that room being a rather large cellar. Rick pulled out the flashlight that sat in a pocket on the inside of his jacket, clicking it on and looking down into the cellar. A Walker stood at the end of the stairs leading down into the cold room, its head turning once its nose picked up Rick's scent. With a snarl, it gasped and turned around, tripping on the first step of the wooden case. Rick slid a leg down onto the staircase, his hand reaching for his knife in his pants pocket. He flipped the switchblade out of its case and gripped it tightly in his hand, reaching his leg out and kicking the Walker in the head. He watched it stumble back to the ground and continued down the steps to finish what he started. As the Walker tried to recover, Rick rammed the blade into the Walkers head and heard its last snarl of life before he put it out of its misery.
Reagan's gold eyes opened as she heard Rick's boots making way back up to the top floor, seeing him appearing before her. Her hand pressed against the bullet hole in her clothing, trying to muffle the blood from escaping her arteries. Rick walked past her and his footsteps faded towards the back of the bar, Regan's eyebrows knitting upon hearing a door open. Rick had opened the back door in hopes that the men would follow their false trail and look for them elsewhere. Reagan heard his footsteps returning to her, knowing he wasn't too much of a coward to leave her behind. Rick grabbed her arm and Reagan tried to lift herself, squeezing her eyes shut and gritting her teeth as she finally got to her only good foot. The two slowly made their way down the steps, Rick shutting the door above them as tightly as he could, hoping the men wouldn't notice the cellar door in the corner of the bar. Reagan eyed the down Walker as her boots connected with the cold, dirt ground of the cellar, Rick leading her towards the back under a window half encased with snow. Reagan sighed with relief upon sitting down and leaning against the cool wall behind her, her eyes closing in slight bliss.
"Where'd you get shot?" She felt Rick moved her bloody hand to try and observe the wound. Reagan's tired eyes opened and stared at his face,
"Right above the heart..." Her voice was low and she tried to look down at the wound with a smile, grunting to herself, "I forgot what it feels like to get shot... hurts like a bitch."
"What about your ankle?" Rick moved back down to her boot and began to untie it. Reagan pulled her foot away from him,
"Don't worry about it." Rick's eyes slowly fell back upon her and her condition, his eyes closing and his fingers digging into them as they rubbed his lids softly,
"Why'd you do it?"
"Do what?" She asked, pressing her hand back against the bullet hole,
"Risk your life to save me?" Rick's eyes narrowed as he opened them, staring hard at her, "You put yourself in harm's way to do so. You call me an idiot... stupid for how I do things. Why did you save a fool?" Reagan scoffed with a soft smile, rolling her head to the side and closing her tired eyes,
"Your wife... she told me to keep you safe." Reagan opened her eyes to see a slightly disturbed expression of his face, almost surprised to hear it. A hard roll of grief rolled down Rick's throat and Reagan squeezed her eyes shut, arching her back as the wound bit at her. Her head dipped in front of her, some of her blonde hair cradling around her face, "I wouldn't have been able to sleep at night it I let you take a hit. You may be stupid... but at least you're decent."
Rick's ears picked up the sound of an old tune song chiming in an echo throughout the cellar. It almost spooked him and he had his pistol ready to shoot whatever it was. But as he looked, he stood up, his eyes narrowing in suspicion at the item that sat on one of the stairs. He walked up a couple of the stairs and stopped, tilting his head and reaching down to pick up the old shaggy object. It was a teddy bear, no bigger than his hand, and the wind-up key in its back turned slowly as the chiming song continued. The soft fur of the bear's skin caressed his cold hand, the bear being oddly warm and even a few blood stains plagued its coat.
"That's mine..." Reagan said softly from behind, Rick turning halfway to face her. Reagan's solemn expression stared at the teddy bear in his hand and he looked back down at it, walking slowly back towards her. As he approached, she shakily extended her hand out to him and he softly placed the teddy bear in her palm, her hand instantly dropping to her lap from tiredness. Her fingers supported the soft, chiming bear, "It must've fallen out of my back pocket."
"Why do you have that?" Rick asked a bit hesitantly, his legs dropping him to one knee curiously, "What's it for?" Rick saw a spark in her eye; but it wasn't a happy spark, but a sad one. The song from the teddy bear slowly ended, a few more notes tagging their ears and finally fading to quietness. Regan's lips drew into a thin line, her eyes continuing to stare at the teddy bear lazily clasped in her fingers,
"It was my son's..." Rick swore he felt a needle shoot straight through his chest at the sound of the word. He didn't know how she could smile in that moment as one formed on her lips, "I guess this is another time... to share that story I said I would."
"You don't have to." Rick shook his head, stealing a glance at the teddy bear in her hands, "Save your strength for when we leave her."
"No." Reagan breathed, looking up at him, "This might be my only chance left." Reagan tried to press her back up against the wall harder, feeling a wave of depression hitting her like the bullet had in her chest. Her head tilted slightly, "His name was Corbin... he would've been nine years old, just about Carl's age. During my years of being homeless and drug ridden... I was lost for a long time. But after I turned twenty two, I found out I was pregnant. Of course, I didn't know what to do, but eventually, I did was I thought was right. As much as I could, I went into a shelter and cleaned myself up; rehabbed myself of all the drugs and alcohol." She shifted to a more uncomfortable position, whatever that could have been as she became even more uncomfortable as before, "I got him this teddy bear when he was born and I would sing him the lullaby that went along with the song the bear gave. I don't know... I had Corbin for about a week before CPS came and whisked him away from me. Bunch of assholes. I fought the courts, but of course, with my record and history of heavy drug use, I lost. But I complied with them, kept clean and even went to nursing school to become an RN so I could help people. Finally got my own apartment, visited him at the foster home as much as I could..."
Rick noticed a slight change in her demeanor and a glint in her eye ripped at his core. She sucked up whatever tears she could to keep them from falling off her cheeks, "But when the breakout happened... I didn't know what to do. I rushed over to the house where he was being fostered and the door was locked, so I broke in. I called for him, over and over again, and when I turned the corner-" Reagan hesitated and closed her eyes, letting out a shallow breath as the memory consumed her. She shook her head, "They were eating him. The foster parents... I couldn't anymore. I've always wanted to beat their heads in before, but then I actually got to do it. There was so much blood, so much of it everywhere... I went crazy; all I saw was red." Reagan couldn't help but smile at the memory of destroying the foster parents until they were dust, "I sat there for hours staring at my son, laying on the floor, guts everywhere... eventually he turned." Rick stared at her, not knowing what to say as he was almost breathless. A scenario formed in his mind, seeing Carl in that state. He would go absolutely insane.
Never did he think he would ever see tears stroll casually down the cheeks of someone like Reagan. But she was vulnerable, wounded, and out of her zone. Rick pressed his fingers together, rubbing the balls of each other in them anxiously, "I'm sorry... that happened to you."
"You should go."
"What?" Rick asked and Regan opened her eyes to look at him, trying to take a deep breath,
"Leave. Go back to your group- your family. They need you." Reagan looked down at her wound, pulling her hand back and taking notice to the unstoppable, steady blood flow, "I don't have much time left. I thought this wound wasn't much... but I'm losing too much blood. The bullet must have hit an artery."
"I'm not leavin' you behind. I won't have any of it." Rick shook his head, planting his feet steadily to the ground, "Not after what you did for me. You put your life on the line."
"Don't act all macho." Reagan scoffed, "You have people that depend on you back at the house. You have a wife and a son that need you. Go back to them."
"I won't." Rick leaned forward and put a hand on her shoulder, "They all depend on you just as much as me... you... you're one of us now."
"It's only a matter of time before I pass out... I'm starting to get there..." Reagan rolled her head and her sticky blonde hair stuck to her cheeks, "You won't be able to carry my dead weight back to the car, on top of trying to avoid all those men and their guns... there's no way."
"I'll find a way." Rick stood up and looked around the cellar, "You're not getting' rid of me that easily."
Rick's eyes scanned the cellar, looking for any way to get out. The window was too small for them to fit through and the only exit seemed to be the one they entered through. But with it being a cellar, there was always a second, topside exit as well. Rick moved towards the walls, rubbing his hand across the dirty brick in trying to find a possible secret exit. But as he moved towards the furthest wall from Reagan, he noticed a few two-by-fours nailed up against a door. He had found it. Grabbing a crowbar from the corner, he shoved it under a wooden platform and yanked, hearing the squealing sound of the rusted nails being pried from the door. Rick pried it off with his hands and repeated the process with the second, tossing them behind him and ignoring the loudness they both made upon hitting the hard floor.
Rick stepped up the small platform of stairs and jiggled the two doors, hearing them creaking against the influence of his hands. Upon feeling them barely budge, Rick stepped up on the top step and rammed his shoulder against the doors. He growled and ignored the sore pain brewing in his back and shoved his shoulder as hard as he could into the door, feeling it buckle under his force. With one last heave, the two doors busted open and snow poured down on top of Rick, Rick stepping back down the steps and brushing it off his jacket. Rick could feel the freezing snow melting against his hot back, shivering after it crawled down his back. "All we have to do is-"
He turned to see Reagan's head hanging over her lap, her hair masking her face. Rick rushed up to her and knelt down, tilting her head back up and smacking her cheek lightly, "Reagan... come on, stay with me." Her eyes barely opened and she didn't protest against him. Rick knew he didn't have much time before she would completely pass out, "You just have to walk a little further."
"So persistent..." She whispered and Rick tossed the strap of her scythe over his head. He then grabbed her arm and pulled it around his neck, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her to her feet. She stumbled for a moment and regained her awkward posture, Rick turning towards the doors and looking up into the snowy light above them.
"Come on... we're goin' home."