Coming Through

Day Seven

Carol and Sam came back from checking the gates. They took the horses and rode along the fence line to the river. It had been dry for weeks now and the water level had dropped to the point that it would be possible for raiders to come across the river and onto the farm.

Sam swung down and checked along the river bank. "I don't see any tracks in the mud along the river but the water level is really low. We could put some security cameras out this way and keep an eye on it remotely. The ones we put on the barns and the front gate are working okay."

Sam and Jada were the most tech savvy of the group. The two of them were boosting security by adding cameras toggled a video screen. Carol thought that they had a future in high tech spying or reality television. Hopefully no one would get voted off this island. "I'm sorry that you have to go through this, but I'm glad that you are on our side."

They rode the fence line and then took the farm road back up the gradual slope to the barn. Sam asked, "Why is James using the tractor over in the far meadow?"

Carol had hoped that the younger children hadn't noticed. The far meadow was a good distance away from the houses and the view was blocked by trees. "We're digging a hole in case we get attacked." Sam was still looking at her quizzically. "We can't leave dead bodies lying around. We're going to bury them as soon as possible."

Sam looked back at the river. "Good thinking."

Carol knew that Sam would understand. The boy was disappearing and the man who he was going to be was coming through. A good man that knew that sometimes you have to do things that you don't want to do to protect those you love.

Jada was with Lizzie and Mika in the horse barn. Sheila on guard at the door. Sam stayed there to care for the horses. Carol walked toward Michonne's house. She and Andrea were on the top floor deck on watch. Carol stopped in the kitchen long enough to grab the sweet tea and three glasses.

Andrea and Michonne welcomed company and the iced tea. Rick had arrived late last night and left early this morning. "Did Rick have any news and where is Sophia?" Carol handed out the tea and then moved to deck's railing to look out over the farm. She could hear the tractor running. Everything was so quiet now that sounds seemed to travel further than before.

"Sophia is with James and Judith. Rick said that the local druggies are jonesing for a fix. The meth heads and the heroin junkies are breaking into homes of people that have cancer looking for something to tide them over. Food supplies are low and lots of people are looking to take from someone else. The curfew is sundown to sunrise. Shoot on sight. No questions asked. FEMA is using the three high schools in the county as camps but people don't want to leave their homes." Andrea took a gulp of iced tea. "I don't know where my family would be if we had stayed in Atlanta. Maybe in a FEMA camp or dead."

Michonne began to stretch. She hadn't given up her exercise routine even though they were all running half empty from lack of sleep. "Somebody burned down Sophia's old farmhouse last night. That's only five miles away."

"We've nothing to fear but fear itself." Carol quoted though her stomach was telling her mouth to shut the hell up.

Andrea stood up and stretched, "Let's take our swords and go down to the lawn and work out. Get those kinks out. Nothing is out there right now."

Michonne led them in a hard workout. Carol was drenched in sweat when she was finished but oddly she felt less tired. Exercise endomorph kicking in. Maybe the druggies should take up martial arts.

Same Day, Ed's Gang

Ed drove the pickup truck that Lewis had jacked off of an old farmer who should have let Lewis take without a fight. In the back of the truck was Tomas, Chance, and Andrew and they were all on their way to the Dixon farm. Ed had convinced them that they needed to find a hideout and he knew where one was. He sweetened the deal. He knew these guys from prison. They each had a weakness and he exploited it.

Lewis was a rapist. Pure and simple. He was addicted to the thrill of humiliating and sexually dominating a woman. Ed told him about the beautiful but arrogant women who live on the farm.

Tomas was a sadist and had a crystal meth habit. He like to hurt others. Ed told him that no one would hear when they screamed.

Chance was addicted to opiates and he ran out this morning. Ed told him that one of the men was hooked on hydros.

Andrew was a child molester. Ed told him about the three youngest children on the farm.

Ed smiled to himself. He was all of those things and more. Not opiates but he liked a good hit of crystal meth. His wait for payback was over. Carol would be dead by tomorrow morning but before she died? She would watch everyone that she loved die in a horrible way. The farm would be a good hideout and they could stay there until things settled down.

Same Day, Daryl's Group

Daryl drove the beat to hell Tahoe. Merle was asleep in the cargo section. He had gotten shot in Arkansas two days ago and Christie had field operated on him. He wasn't feverish now and they had crossed the Georgia line this morning. It was late afternoon and he had been reminded at every stop that there was a dusk to dawn curfew. He would risk it if it was just him and Jesse but there was a shoot on sight order. There was Caleb, Christie and Merle to think about. Only emergency and police vehicles were allowed out. If he could get into their town then Rick might be able to take them home.

Lots of ifs. Daryl reminded himself to not think about being home. Carol. The kids. Their friends. The farm. He needed to be alert because they weren't there yet. At every turn in the road there might be a militia guard post that demanded a toll before he could drive through or ambushers trying to take everything they had. They had survived both.

Jesse opened the window. "It's good to be back in Georgia."

Daryl nodded, "Almost home."

Same Day, Late in the Evening

Carol had just finished making dinner when Lizzie sidled up beside her at the stove, "Mika can't find her inhaler. She thought she lost it at the barn but we couldn't find it."

Mika was hanging back looking ready to cry. Carol bit back her irritation and smiled at Mika, "It's no big deal. We have more back at our house. I know where they are I'll just go down and pick up a couple." She gave Mika a hug, "Just be more careful from now on." Mika's asthma wasn't severe but Carol wanted an inhaler ready in case it flared up.

Sophia was setting the table. "I'll go with you. Buddy Plan." No one went anywhere but the bathroom alone. James and Judith were on guard and they told them where they were going. Sheila wanted to go but Carol ordered her back. The dog whined and whimpered but Carol was firm. "Sheila, stay."

Carol's memories of that evening were always in slow motion from that time on. She unlocked the kitchen door and pushed it open. She walked across the kitchen into the great room. Her bedroom was down a short hallway. The inhalers were in her medicine chest. Sophia was just behind her and it wasn't dark because the sun hadn't completely set."

Then Ed stepped out from behind the stairs, "Honey, I'm home."

She knew immediately who he was and grabbed for the pistol on her waist. Suddenly someone had her arms pulled behind her and her gun fell to the floor. Sophia gave a muffled scream behind her and she knew that the two of them were in terrible trouble.

Ed walked over to her and hit her in the face with his fist. "Payback time, bitch. Let me introduce you to my friends. The man holding Sophia is Lewis. The man holding you is Tomas. Chance is downstairs trying to find a way into your storage room. Andrew is going outside to wait until we're finished here. He likes them young and I've promised him that there are three children."

Ed's hit bloodied her nose but the pain seemed to drive the paralyzing fear away. "Don't hurt her."

"I'm not going to hurt her. Lewis is going to rape her and Tomas is going to hurt her. I'm going to kill her while you watch." Ed smacked her again. "Just like old times."

Ed grabbed her arm, "We're going to go get reacquainted. I see that the master bedroom is just down the hall. I think fucking you in the room that you fuck your husband sounds right." He pulled her toward her bedroom.

He closed the door behind them. "How should we do this? So many ways. Missionary? Not a chance. I always favored your ass. Didn't have to look at you then. How about you suck my dick and then I fuck you in the ass."

Carol pleaded with him, "Let her go. She's your daughter." She moved closer to him knowing that would make him hit her. He backhanded her and she fell down to knees. "Well, now that you are down there." He sat down in the chair beside the lamp. He unbuckled his belt and then unbuttoned his pants and pulled them down. His ugly dick was staring at her like it had so many times before. Carol moved close obediently. She knew what had to be done. His pants were almost to his knees and she put her head down toward his junk and her right hand came up in a smooth strong plunge to his femoral artery. Years of workouts with Michonne and the last two years of farm work had strengthened her body and the knife that Billy had given her was razor sharp and her grip was strong because each finger had its own hold. She cut deep enough to sever the artery and threw herself back out of the way of the rush of blood.

Ed looked at her, "You've fucking killed me."

He was in shock and Carol moved quickly to cut his throat. "Now I've killed you."

She left him there to bleed out and slipped into the hallway. Tomas was standing with his back toward her. He was watching what she couldn't look at now. She slipped up behind him and made one desperate stab at his kidney. Tomas turned toward her and she kicked him as hard as he could in his junk. He went down then and Carol used her knife to stab his neck.

Lewis had pulled himself away from Sophia and was coming toward her. Carol walked backward up the stairs. Sophia had her own knife out and Carol spoke to Lewis to distract him, "I'm going to kill you for what you did to her."

Lewis sneered, "I'm not going to wait to kill you. Don't bring a knife to a gun fight." He began to lift his gun to aim at Carol when Sophia grabbed his long hair and pulled him off his feet backwards. Carol jumped down to help but Sophia had already used her knife to slit his throat.

Carol grabbed the pistol. "Where are our guns?"

Sophia pointed to the kitchen and Carol found them in the sink. She ran back to her daughter who was pulling her clothes on, "We've got one downstairs and one outside."

"Let's get the guy downstairs." He was so busy pounding at the steel frame door that he didn't see Carol and Sophia come down the stairs. Carol very deliberately shot him in the head. They hurried back upstairs because Andrew would hear the shot. It was nearly dark now but as they opened the door and hurried down the steps Carol saw a man with an automatic rifle turn toward them. No place to hide and they were out of time.

The man moved one step closer and Carol saw that Sheila had found a way out and was streaking toward them. He lifted his weapon and Sheila jumped onto his back and threw him off balance. The dog bit down on his neck with a death grip. He was still firing wildly but Andrea and Michonne were behind him now and Michonne kicked his legs out from under him and Andrea shot him. Sheila let go then and raced toward Carol.

Carol sat down on her front steps holding onto Sophia, "It's all over. It's alright now." Sheila pushed herself beside of Carol and put her head on her lap. Carol patted her head, "Good girl. You saved us."

Sophia was dazed and bloody. Andrea took charge. "I'm taking you to my house to get cleaned up. Michonne will tell the kids that you will be in shortly. That is all of them, right?"

"Go into my medicine chest and get the inhalers. Just ignore the dead body in the bedroom. Make sure that the big guy in the great room is dead. Don't worry about the one in the basement." Carol needed a drink of something far stronger than spring water.

Andrea and Michonne went inside, Carol reminded Sophia, "We have morning after pills. We can take care of this."

Sophia shook her head, "He slapped me around, and he was going to sodomize me when you showed up like an avenging angel."

Andrea and Michonne were back and leading them away from the house. Michonne took Sheila into the house with her and sent James and Sam out. Carol and Sophia showered together. They held each other up and let the hot water wash away the blood. Andrea had cleaned the blood from their boots and hunted up clean clothes. Carol checked and found her knife had been cleaned and was tucked away inside the boot.

They dressed while Carol talked to Andrea, "How are you doing?" Andrea, an officer of the court had killed a man tonight. It didn't make you feel all warm and fuzzy.

"I need a stiff drink and a stiff Rick. He's not here so I'm settling for a drink." They had a drink of whiskey before they went back to the others.

Michonne sniffed them when they come in, "I'm late for the party again."

Carol reassured the children that her nose and eye did hurt but she was going to be alright. Sophia's face was bruised and she had a bloody lip but she held it together. It had been a very strong drink on an empty stomach.

Carol and Sophia were put to bed together. Lizzie and Mika joined them and Carol went to sleep with her daughters surrounding her. She woke up before dawn and got dressed and slipped outside to see what had to be done. Judith and Andrea were on watch and they were standing there talking when Rick drove in with lights flashing and behind them was a beat all to hell Tahoe. Carol began moving toward the Tahoe as Daryl jumped out and ran toward her.

AN

I had this chapter in mind since I started. I wanted Carol to defeat Ed by using her mental and physical strength in a way that is believable. To me anyway. Ed was so used to passive Carol that he wouldn't think that she would attack him. Cousin Billy's boots and the magical compartment gave her the means. Carol let Ed beat on her because that reinforced the idea that she wasn't a threat.

Carol's quote about fear. President Franklin Roosevelt made that statement in an address to the nation regarding the Great Depression.

Yes, all of the men were disgusting and I didn't describe them in any detail because I don't think Carol would be taking note of hair color. She's trying to save herself and her daughter. Carol just does what she had to do.

Sheila? I'm a sucker for dog hero stories.

This Sophia wasn't a frightened little girl. This one had been trained in self-defense from an early age.

I need a review. I really do. I like to write fluffy and I hate to write gore.