A/N: Excited, season 2 starts tonight. Thanks for the reviews/favs/alerts. Hope you continue to enjoy.
All of the adults huddled in a meeting room and sat in the comfortable chairs, except for Daryl who leaned against the door. He kept watch over the hallway. The children played in the room across the hall. And Carol and Lori could easily see what the three kids were doing. Lilli didn't seem to be worried about Sara like the other two mothers were worried about their kids.
Rick picked up various papers that were on the table.
"Lt. Gonzalez's plan," Georgia said. "He was hoping that after we got to the CDC we would rescue Dr. Jenner. If the CDC was compromised we would head over here," she pointed to an area on the map in South Carolina.
"Did he say how all this started?" Shane asked. He was the first military officer that they had heard of. Surely, he knew about what was happening.
Georgia shook her head. "He was saying that the point of origin seems to be here," she said, pointing to a spot in California.
"How the hell did it travel so fast?" Rick asked in surprise.
Georgia shrugged. "Planes, cars, any type of transportation really. No one knew that they were infected. All anyone knew was that they had been bitten by a crazy person. By the time the authorities realized that there was this epidemic it was too late. They made a mistake in trying to bring people to larger cities. I don't know about you, but there was a helicopter over my town urging us to go to Frankfort." Georgia shook her head. "I wish I had listened to instincts. They told me to keep away from the big cities, but the authority figures were telling us to go there. That they would protect us." She paused and her eyes grew distant. "Who wanted to believe that one bite could end you?"
Shane and his group nodded. "There was a helicopter over our town. They told us to go to Atlanta. That there was safety there," he muttered then shook his head.
Lucy shook her head as she remembered that fateful day. "I was working the night shift at the Frankfort Regional Medical Center when shit hit the fan. The soldiers started shooting everyone in sight. I probably would have died if Lilli hadn't pulled me into her room. We both escaped. Found Lt. Gonzalez about two days later," she stopped talking and grounded her teeth. It was clear that she was trying to keep from crying.
Georgia nodded her head and bit her lip. "I don't know what we would have done if you hadn't come along when you did," she finally said with a little smile when she looked at Rick.
"I'm glad we came when we did, ma'am," Rick said. "I only wish we had arrived a little bit earlier."
Shane had stopped focusing on the conversation. He was more curious about the plans that this Lt. Gonzalez had made for his group. "So this is where it's supposed to be safe?" Shane asked as he pointed to the dot on the map. "If you came from Frankfort, why didn't you go straight over there instead of coming down to Atlanta?"
"Because we just heard the transmission last night," Lilli answered. "Matt figured we would go to Atlanta, see if we could find any survivors in the CDC and in general, before we headed toward safety."
"Can we get into contact with these people?" Rick asked with hope.
Lilli shook her head. "We tried yesterday and this morning to reach them, but they're not answering us. Maybe they switched channels or they got over run or they lost power. They were cutting out, but they gave a list of coordinates," Lilli pointed to three other dots on the map. Each was further and further away from their location.
"But they said they had a vaccine," Georgia said.
They looked at her in surprise.
"A cure?" Rick asked.
Lilli shook her head. "It wasn't clear. It was either that they had one or were close to getting one."
"Why are you so sure that there will be few geeks out there when we get up in the morning?" Glenn asked, changing the subject. He didn't want to get his hopes up for a haven against the walkers or a vaccine to not be one of them. Instead, he was worried about what tomorrow would bring. He didn't want to wake up in the middle of the morning to have a horde of zombies outside waiting to eat them.
"They just won't," Michael growled. Everyone looked at him in surprise. He hadn't said anything during dinner, despite some of their best efforts to get him to talk. He was an older man in his late 60s. Lilli had told Rick that he was a pilot. Rick had become excited by the thoughts of a man being able to fly them to any city. Then he brought himself back to reality. Lt. Gonzalez knew what the man could do and didn't use him. Why?
Michael glared at Lilli. "How did they die?" he snarled.
"We were on our way back and a helicopter landed on the convoy. I was behind and tried to warn everyone. The helicopter hit Felix's truck and the gas inside ignited. The blast sent me in the air and knocked me unconscious. When I woke up, Matt attacked me and then they saved me," Lilli said as she leaned across the table. Her body challenged Michael to say another word, to blame her for what happened.
Michael snorted as if he didn't believe her.
"It's true," Rick said. "When we arrived, there was a helicopter in the middle of the road. Do we look like a group who could harm others?"
Michael looked at Rick, his eyes narrowed with disbelief.
"I was just wondering," Glenn said nervously. "How did the geeks get into this place if it's so safe?"
Michael turned his attention to Glenn, making the young man cower.
"Excellent question, Glenn," Rick said as he leaned closer to Michael.
"Pastor Jerry let them in," Sara said. Everyone turned and looked at the little girl who stood in the doorway.
Lilli stood up and looked back at her remaining group. "What?" she asked, trying to keep her voice leveled.
"You don't know that, sweetie," Georgia said softly.
Sara nodded her head. "Do to!" she nearly shouted. "I was in the lobby behind the counter. I heard Pastor Jerry talking to himself about devils. There was a knock on the glass. He opened the curtain then opened the door. I heard him scream in surprise and I heard them…" she perfectly imitated the noises that the walkers made. Chills ran down everyone's spine from her imitation.
Lilli went over to Sara and knelt down. "No one is going to open the door this time," she whispered. "I promise. We'll only open it when we're going to leave." She hugged the little girl who let out a soft sob. "Why don't you go and play with Carl and Sophia. I promise nothing like that will happen again."
The little girl nodded with understanding and left. Lilli stood up and glared at Georgia and Michael. "Nothing was broken. He let them in!" she hissed.
Georgia was pale while Michael shook his head. "Do you think he wanted us dead? Someone tricked him!" Michael snapped as he stood up. "Either way, even if it was his fault he's dead now."
"We don't know that!" Lilli interrupted. "We didn't see his body in here. He could be out there."
"And probably a geek now," Georgia countered. "We can't focus on that. What he did is now in the past. We have to focus on our future."
"She's right," Rick said. "We can discuss past grievances when we're absolutely sure we're safe and sound. This place that is supposed to have the cure, maybe we should go there?" He looked at the group. It was clear that he wanted their opinions.
Andrea bit her lip. "The CDC was supposed to be our haven and looked what happened," she finally said. "What kind of supplies do you have here?" she directed her question to Georgia.
"The ones who left only took enough food for the day and left the rest. Have enough can food and bottle water to last a good while. If we portion it out among all of us," Georgia stopped to ponder. "Maybe two or three years, before the can food is finished."
"You have that much food here?" Rick asked with surprise.
The four shook their heads. "Matt liked to keep our options opened. He stashed the food in various areas on our way here. Just in case we decided to return back to the apartment building we had secured. He didn't want anyone to be able to steal all of it," Lucy said.
Georgia nodded. "Here in the inn we have enough food and water to last us a month or two."
Lilli hissed in pain as she jumped up in surprise. Shane looked at her in concern. Nobody had been examined for bites and she had a stronger chance of being bitten.
"You okay?" Lucy asked as she stood up.
Lilli nodded her head. "Feet are killing me," she reassured and smiled.
"I think we shouldn't make our decision tonight," Dale finally said as he focused on Rick. "If it's truly not that bad out there then I don't think it would hurt to stay here a few more nights and sleep in proper beds. See if we can communicate with those people who may have the cure. If we leave now we may never be able to come back here. At least here we have the luxury of thought. Who knows what will happen on our way there or what happens when we get there. If they," he pointed to Georgia and the others. "Lost communication with this other group then that tells me something bad happened. What if we find a facility full of those things? I don't want to risk it on little sleep."
"Or what if it's a safe haven?" Georgia countered. "We can't afford to waste much time sitting here and debating if it's a good or bad idea. We should take action and go there. The longer we wait, the more likely that…"
"That what?" Lilli interrupted her. "Say we go there and it's full of those things because others went there? Hmmm? What if we barely arrive and we get caught in a huge mess?"
"Or what if they don't have much more room to house people and turn us away?" Georgia pointed out. "Usually, government facilities are only so big to house just the minimum of the more important people. What if we get turned away because the convoy in front of us filled them up? We don't have the luxury of waiting."
"We need to stay here at least a few days," Lori finally said. Everyone looked at her in surprise. "Yesterday was the first day that we got to get a decent night sleep," for a brief second she glanced at Shane before looking away. "Unlike your group, we've barely been able to sleep or eat properly. We've always been on the lookout for food and for the walkers. I think it will benefit all of us if we stay put and actually be able to eat, rest and clear our minds, for at least two or three days. Rick hasn't been able to stop and rest since he woke up from the hospital." She looked at her husband.
"Sure," Dale said with a nod. "If there are few to none of those things then we should strongly consider that option tomorrow. Hell, I could use a couple more nights of sleep in a bed."
"Jus' cus some of you folks want to stay here don' mean all of us need to," Daryl said. Everyone looked at him in surprise. "Look, looks like it'll take maybe twelve hours to get there? Me 'n three, four people tops could get there an' be back in a little over a day."
Rick nodded. "We all need to rest, including you, Daryl," Rick finally said. "If you really feel like going and checking this place out then we'll discuss it tomorrow. Everyone make sure that you take a room here in the first floor."
Daryl shrugged his shoulders. "You ain't my boss. If I chose to leave tomorrow I can. And I can sleep where I want," he finally snapped before he walked away.
Lilli yawned. "I think I'm going to get ready for bed," she said. Shane watched as she struggled not to limp out of the room. She poked her head into the room that the kids were playing in, before she made her way to her room. That seemed to be the silent signal to everyone else. Soon most of the people were getting up and leaving.
"Excuse me," Georgia said as she made her way pass Shane and walked toward Lilli's room. She hesitated a moment outside of the young woman's door before she opened it and stepped inside.
"What do you think, Shane?" Rick suddenly asked.
"What?" Shane said, clearly caught off guard.
"If there are only a few walkers here tomorrow morning then we hold up here for another night or two see if we can get into contact with the people who say they have a vaccine. Or we go over there and hope that we find them."
Shane looked at his friend for a minute then shook his head. "I hate to admit it, but I like Daryl's idea. We don't know what to expect over there. I think we should take a small group of people and head that way, if this place looks to be safe. It'll make it easier for a small group to look out for one another instead of a big group. They'll also be able to maintain a steady pace."
Rick nodded. It was a sensible reply. The children would slow them down. This had to be treated as if it were a recon mission. If they took everyone and ended up getting stranded in a far worse place like Atlanta then he would blame himself. It would be better to send a small group of people to check first. The only question would be who would go?
Rick sighed. He really did need to sleep. "Then let's discuss it tomorrow," Rick said with a nod. "I still think we should still have someone staying up, in case the walkers are able to get through."
Shane nodded as he suppressed a yawn.
"I'll do it," T-Dog said with a smile as he grabbed one of the office chairs and wheeled out. He placed it at the edge of the hall, close enough to the lobby but not in view of the covered windows.
"Night," Shane said to the others as he slowly walked out and made his way to Lilli's room.
A combination of anger and pain ran through Lilli's body as she opened her door. Her body shook as she entered her bathroom. She took off her shirt before examining her body. Except for the tattoo there was nothing new. She took off her pants and put her foot on top of the toilet seat before snarling in disgust. There it was. The zombie that had pulled her out from under the marine had bit her, more like raked his teeth across her jeans. Still, it had punctured her skin, and now it hurt like hell.
"Son of a bitch," she said to herself as she took her water bottle and poured some water into her shirt and pressed it against her leg.
"Are you alright?" Georgia asked.
"Christ!" Lilli shouted as she jumped up. She knew she looked guilty. "Don't you knock? I'm fine, just a scratch."
"Are you sure?" Georgia asked in concern. She walked over to examine the wound but Lilli backed away.
"Seriously? Go into the bedroom if you want to talk to me," Lilli snapped at the older woman.
"If you were bit then you can be a danger to us!" Georgia said with worry.
Lilli shook her head. "I wasn't bit. It's just a scratch. Considering that Sara sleeps in the room with me, do you think I would allow myself to become one of those things? You know how much I treasure that little girl."
Georgia hesitated then slowly walked away and into the bedroom. Lilli looked at her leg one last time before wrapping it with a bandage and pulling her sock up. It covered the wound, but just barely. "What do you want? I'm a little tired."
"I want you to help me convince this Rick that we need to go to that place," Georgia urged. "You heard them on the radio. This is the best option for us."
"Really, Georgia?" Lilli snapped as she walked into her bedroom. "Can't give these people who rescued us some time to rest? You've seen them. They all look exhausted. A few days rest will surely help them."
Georgia shook her head. "And a few days of delay can make the difference. What if we get there and they don't have any more room for us? You helped convince Matt to go to the CDC."
Lilli shook her head. "Yeah? And looked what happened to everyone because of that." She let out a sigh as she turned away. "I hate that Matt took out the locks for the rooms down here," Lilli hissed, more to herself than to Georgia. She made her way back toward her bathroom.
Georgia let out a soft smile. She knew that when Lilli changed the subject it meant that the woman was strongly considering what to do. And that she would do what Georgia asked.
Suddenly, she smacked her forehead. "That's what I came out here for. Clothes," she said to herself. There was a soft knock at her door. "Come in," she said with a sigh. "Jesus!" She shouted as Shane opened the door. She wrapped her arms around her chest and dashed into the bathroom.
"Sorry," he stammered. Clearly, he hadn't expected to see her walking around in her bra and underwear.
"It's okay," she said from inside the bathroom. "My fault. I thought you were someone else."
"I… I just wanted to make sure that you were alright," he said.
"Fine. Thanks," she responded as she walked out of the bathroom. She had put on her shirt and had wrapped a towel around her waist, but what did it matter. He just saw her in her undergarments. Parts of her shirt clung to her skin, clearly it had gotten wet.
"Sorry to bother you," he said as he retreated.
Lilli frowned then nodded as she closed the door behind him and went into the bedroom. She opened the closet and looked at the simple set of clothes that she had.
"He likes you," Georgia mused.
Lilli looked at her then away. "Do you think?" she finally asked.
"Honey, I've been around and I know looks. Used to see my sons give that exact same look to their girls," she let out a small laugh.
Lilli had her back turned to the older woman, but allowed herself to smile. For some reason, she liked that idea. He wasn't a bad looking guy.
"You can't be with him, you know," Georgia said, breaking the mood.
Lilli turned and looked at her in surprise. "And why not?" she snapped in anger.
Georgia's eyes narrowed. "We're in a post-apocalyptic world. Life as we know it isn't normal. We don't have many contraceptives and we all know that they aren't exactly baby proof, anyway. We haven't found a safe place to stay and if you get pregnant while we're still running you may die. You'll put the whole group at risk because they'll be trying to protect you and your baby. See! It would be better if we were at this haven!"
Lilli turned away, shaking her head. "We don't even know if it's a haven. And whether or not I get pregnant is none of your concern," she muttered.
Georgia shook her head. "Whatever a person does in this group that affects the group is my concern."
"So will you be making sure that no one has sex, ever?" Lilli asked as she glared at Georgia.
The older woman crossed her arms. "I will not help protect someone who knowingly causes more trouble. If you get pregnant then you'll have to eat more food, Lucy will…"
"Jesus, Georgia!" Lilli gasped. "I'm not your child. I'm not a child. If it happens it happens. You can't tell me who I can and cannot be with. You have the right to not want to help me if something like that happens. But what I do with my body is my business."
Georgia stood up and started to walk out. "The sooner we get to this haven the easier it'll be for everyone to relax," she said.
Lilli frowned. "Why are you pushing this?"
"Because I'm tired of always having to be on the alert," Georgia snapped. "I just want to go to a place where we don't have to worry about defending ourselves against the walkers."
Lilli snorted, shaking her head. "We'll see. But, I'm really tired. I've had a very long day."
Georgia nodded her head as walked out of the room. A scowl crossed her face as she closed the door. She didn't get a good glimpse of the wound that Lilli had. But then again, young woman cared too much about Sara to allow herself to turn into a walker. Still, Georgia entered her room and pushed the TV against the door, before allowing herself to lay down in bed.