Lilly's banging her head repeatedly against a nearby tree, Jane's standing there as if she's watching her house burn down, and I keep looking between the truck and the flooded city. As silly and foolish as this sounds, I really wish that our vehicle could also transform into a submarine or something.
But as cool as that would be, it's sadly not the case.
"Would you quit doing that already?!" Jane barks after the initial shock wears off; glaring at Lilly as she continues to indent her face into the tree. "You're gonna give yourself a concussion!"
"Good! Maybe then I could forget that we ever came up here in the first place!" Lilly snaps, pointing out towards the city. "Try looking me in the eyes and convince me how this is better than going up north! Try it! Because I'm just ecstatic to hear you tell me to look on the bright side this time."
"Fighting won't solve anything," I intervene, walking down the hill towards the water, with Lilly and Jane both telling me to stop. "We need to find a way across!"
"Why does this feel like one of those stupid math problems…" Jane groans before the both of them come down to the edge of the water. "Okay, new plan. Clem's right – we need to find a raft or something."
"You're seriously still going through with this?"
"We don't have any choice, Lilly!" Jane yells before stepping into the water and shivering as it goes up just below her stomach. "I don't like this either, but we need to keep moving. There's no going back now."
With an annoyed groan, Lilly reluctantly wades into the water while making sure that I stick in front of her at all times. While the water goes up to their stomachs, I unfortunately am quite a bit shorter than them, so the water goes right to my shoulders. It's freezing in here, and the water's all dirty and gross.
"Watch out for crocodiles," Lilly mentions, which scares me even more. I turn to Jane with worry evident in my voice.
"Are there actually crocodiles in here?"
"There aren't any crocodiles in New Orleans," she replies, which makes me sigh in relief. "It's the alligators you've got to watch out for."
"That's even worse!" I complain, scrunching up my nose when I see some garbage floating in the water.
The lake surrounding us is really murky and kind of scary – you can hardly see a thing, and the problem is that everything's super quiet around here. The only things you can hear are the birds and insects, so there's no really telling of what might lurk below the surface.
The three of us form ripples in the water as we move forward; my clothes soaking wet and sticking to my skin uncomfortably. I really hope we can get out of here as soon as possible.
"So where's this magical raft you said we'd find?" Lilly asks with annoyance, looking each way to make sure we haven't been followed.
"Do I look like some kind of magician to you? I can't just pop one out of mid-air!" Jane retorts, glancing at a stop sign that's half-submerged. Suddenly, I see Jane's body start to sink lower into the water as she stops momentarily. "Umm, Clem? You know how to swim, right?"
"Kind of…" I admit sheepishly, even though that hasn't exactly been a top priority for me ever since the apocalypse happened.
"Here – just hop onto my shoulders for a little while," Lilly instructs, but when I voice my concern about weighing her down, she just brushes it off. "I won't drown, don't worry. But it's safer this way."
Reluctantly, I climb onto her back and sit upon her shoulders as she pushes onwards, maintaining that she's fine when Jane looks over to us.
"Stay close to me, got that?" Jane states, moving forwards as the water gets up to her armpits. Just as I had suspected, the water comes up to Lilly's neck as I sit above her, but she says nothing as we walk. I think she must've gotten her stubbornness from her dad.
So far, we've been sticking to the left in order to avoid going in too deep near the shopping centres. Everything's flooded and ruined, with bodies occasionally floating on the surface and green stuff just sitting there and making this place seem like a swamp.
"How did this happen?" I ask aloud, wondering how a place like this could be torn apart by nature.
Looking over her shoulder momentarily, Jane points southwards before answering me.
"Must've been from the bayou," she explains, "there's a lot of swamps and wildlife over there. When people stopped developing and maintaining the sewer systems, New Orleans probably got overflowed. I reckon most of the animals moved their way in afterwards."
"You're one of those tree-hugger types, aren't you?" Lilly remarks, getting a bitter chuckle out of Jane.
"Ha! Not likely, just making an assumption, that's all," she replies, before pointing upwards a little ways. "Look there! I think that might be our ticket out of here!"
Floating right beside an office building is one of those wooden raft-looking things. You know, the wooden plank kind of things that they put under heavy boxes at the supermarket and places like that? It looks pretty rickety, but hopefully it'll at least keep us up top for a little while until we can get where we need to go.
"Bring it here," Lilly tells her, spitting out water after it reaches her face. Lilly's really not having a very good day. "Ugh, the sooner we get out of here, the better off I'll be! Do you even know where we're going?"
"As long as we keep heading west, then we'll be fine," Jane huffs, bringing our makeshift raft over to the two of us. "You first, Clem. Up and over."
Lilly dunks her head under as I reach the wooden raft with both hands; pulling myself up and stumbling on top as it wobbles around a little bit. This thing isn't quite as sturdy as I thought it would've been.
Once I get settled, then I motion for the two of them to get on next.
Jane climbs aboard first, and Lilly follows suit afterwards, but unfortunately they both climbed on the same side. Their combined weight sends my side flying upwards, and I stumble into the water while Jane and Lilly gasp in fear. Quickly grabbing my hat as it falls off, I make my way to the surface to breathe and just start chuckling at how clumsy the three of us managed to be.
"That didn't go so good," I say splashing water a little bit as I grab Jane's hand and she pulls me up.
"Come on, you little goofball," Jane says as the three of us manage to successfully balance ourselves out after capsizing. We don't have any paddles, but Lilly manages to grab onto a fallen tree branch that's light enough for her to carry, so she uses that instead. Jane volunteers to kick at the back of our little boat in order to get it moving faster, while I'm on the lookout for any potential dangers – be it living or not.
Well, I can't exactly say that I've ever done something like this before – paddling on big, wooden plank through New Orleans. It's like we're on one of those pretend treasure hunts that I used to play with Sandra whenever I got bored and my parents had left. I used to make her wear a hat that we had sitting around at home; leftover from Halloween as a prop. Those sure were the days…
"I remember coming down here for the Mardi Gras festival with my friends one year," Lilly comments as we overlook one of the main streets. Jane lets out a snort for some reason.
"Did any boys give you some beads while you were here?"
"I would've clocked them in the face if they tried," Lilly replies snarkily, causing both of the women to share a small laugh. Am I missing something here?
"Yeah, I could totally see that happening."
"What do beads have to do with anything?" I ask, clearly not understanding what they mean.
This just causes the two of them to chuckle even harder, as Jane pats my back slightly and tells me not to worry about it. I pout my lip and fold my arms across my chest in annoyance. That's what grownups always say when they don't want me to know something!
"I remember they had jugglers over on that corner," Lilly reminisces, pointing with the tree branch over a little ways. I bet it'd look pretty if everything wasn't completely submerged. "There were a whole bunch of gypsies selling their stuff along the row of benches – masks, scarves, that kind of thing."
"Seriously? Gypsies?" Jane asks in surprise, to which Lilly nods her head.
"Surprising, isn't it? They were cool though," Lilly comments, smirking as she recalls old memories. "One of them gave me a bag with some travelling nuts and stuff inside of it – he said it'd help if I ever got the munchies."
"Are you sure there weren't any drugs in that bag?" Jane asks sceptically, to which Lilly shrugs her shoulders.
"Who knows? They tasted pretty darn good to me, anyways."
…
It's grown pretty quiet among the three of us as the sun has slowly started to dip downwards. We're all exhausted, and we'd love nothing more than to just get magically transported to Texas already. It's been a long journey to get here, and for once I'd like to just stay in one spot and live a little bit.
Jane's kicks have gotten slower, not only because she's getting tired but also because it's getting more difficult to see. We don't want something creeping up on us.
The sky is almost too beautiful to be real – it's like one of those professional paintings you would see in some art museums. Various shades of red, orange, yellow and even a little bit of black as night starts creeping in are up in the sky; the clouds looking like great big fireballs of light. Sometimes it's the little things like this that make all the difference, as well as some good company to lead you along.
…Okay, they're good about 60% of the time, that sounds fairer to me.
Looking upon my reflection in the murky depths below, I sigh and look at how much I've changed in the past two years. My cheeks are more hollow after having reduced diets for so long, and everything about me just seems more serious and focused; as if I've had to mature much faster than other girls my age. I remember how annoyed I'd used to get with Sarah, simply because she was living in a world where every choice you made was either life or death; yet she still somehow managed to have the same personality as a kid. I don't think that I was jealous – more concerned about what would happen if she didn't grow up in time.
And the day that Sarah died, Jane had taught me something pretty important.
Not everyone is built the same way. Not everyone is able to survive out here; able to cope with so much loss and just keep on fighting. Sarah certainly wasn't built that way, neither was Duck, and from the sounds of things neither was Jane's sister, Jaime. At one point I didn't think that I was built that way either, and I was so scared after shooting Lee that I'd end up getting swallowed by this hell and get spit right back out again.
I guess my transformation just came without me even really noticing that it happened. Maybe that's a part of what growing up is about.
Glancing back down again, I frown in confusion. Is that really what I look like? When did I get all this blood and gunk on my face…?
Not thinking quickly enough, a walker lunges out of the water and grabs a hold of my arm; twisting it around and snapping its jaws in order to make me a bedtime snack.
"HELP!" I cry out, not being able to reach for my gun without getting the chomp. Lilly starts whacking the walker's head in with the tree branch, while Jane takes out her knife and slices the beast's arm clean off. The walker falls back into the water as the grotesque limb sits resting on our raft. I quickly kick it off as Jane pulls out a gun.
"No!" Lilly stops her, pointing to Jane's knife. "Use that instead. We don't want to draw them all to us."
"Draw who to us? This is the only one… we've seen…"
One by one, the walkers start popping out of the water randomly like trout swimming upstream, as the three of us huddle closer together in order to keep away from their bites. This reminds me so much of that Scooby Doo movie where the zombies come out of the ground and the mud…
Now that I mention it, that movie took place in Louisiana! Wow, what are the chances?
"Don't let them get close!" Lilly yells as she rapidly starts to paddle forward; the walkers hot on our trail as they slowly edge towards our raft. "Shoot them if you have to, just don't let them drag you down! If you fall, you're dead!"
Jane normally would probably come back with a sarcastic response, but she's probably right this time. There are walkers literally everywhere, and they'll probably get to you if you fall off.
I fire three bullets into the brains of some pursuing walkers before having to reload. Jane does the same as Lilly smacks a walker straight across the face with the branch before pressing onwards.
This would be the one Olympic sport that nobody would sign up for – river rafting while shooting down walkers. First place would have to be a house and a fancy car along with $1,000,000, and they probably wouldn't need a second or third place trophy because they'd most likely be dead. Morbid, I know, but it's true.
Anyways, as we move closer to the shore and to temporary freedom, Lilly tells us to just get off the raft and make a run for it out into the swamp area. It's muddy and gross, but there's no other way around as far as we know. Lilly and I hop off the board quickly, but Jane slips on the plank and goes face-first into the water, with walkers close behind. Instantly turning around, I shoot two of the walkers that have almost reached Jane, and Lilly goes over to help her stand back up.
We sprint deep into the swamp, past all the shrubbery and trees as we disrupt the local wildlife. Bugs and fish scatter as we move forwards with a herd of walkers straggling along behind us. I hear a frog croaking like crazy as a walker sinks its teeth into its body, but that only causes me to move faster until my lungs start to give out.
Huffing and puffing, I just barely avoid a fallen log as I stop and look around. Where the hell are Lilly and Jane?!
"Oh no… oh no, oh no, oh no!" I mutter nervously; eyes widening as some lurkers advance upon my position. I swear under my breath when I hear the click of my gun, indicating that once again I'm out of bullets. Not bothering to reload right now, I turn tail and run further into the swamps, hoping by some miracle that Jane and Lilly are somewhere close by.
Lilly is, at least, but as luck would have it she's stuck in a thick layer of mud, and seems to be struggling to squirm out of it.
"Clem! Jesus, I thought I lost you back there!" she says, grunting as she tries moving with no luck. "Urgh… this is hopeless! I'm stuck!"
"Give me your arm!" I tell her urgently, worry only increasing as the both of us hear the infamous groans of nearby walkers. "Lilly, you have to listen to me! I'm not abandoning you, so just give me your hand!"
Not bothering to argue (since it would result in two needless deaths), she reaches outwards as the two of us touch fingertips. Damn, if only I could grow longer arms! Seeing no other option, I slowly move forwards and inch my way towards her despite Lilly telling me not to.
"You're gonna get stuck, too! Just go back!" she pleads, watching as a walker starts to make its way through the trees.
"How many times do I have to say this?!" I ask her, grabbing onto her arm and roughly pulling back as her legs start to break free of their prison. When she finally does get out of the sticky situation, she lands on top of me as I bang my shoulder onto the ground painfully.
I think I just heard something snap…
"Shit! Come on, Clem! Let's – "
"GET BACK, YOU SONS OF BITCHES!" the both of us hear Jane screech out, as Lilly shoots down a walker and follows the source of the noise. I tag along, clutching my hurt shoulder and wincing when I move it around too much. I hope nothing's broken…
When we finally catch up to her, Jane's knee-deep in water and trying to fight off four walkers all by herself. Their jaws snap hungrily as she takes one down with her knife, but the second one lunges at her as she collapses into the water; the walker still on top of her.
"JANE!" I screech out, running over to her as Lilly starts to finish off the remaining walkers around us. The water splashes everywhere as I flail about and try to get to my friend as quickly as humanly possible. There's fighting going on beneath the surface, and Jane's trying her hardest to grapple with the beast and give her some time.
The knife she was using glimmers as it's stuck in the mud, so I quickly pull it out and run to the walker. Jabbing it in the back of the head, Jane throws the monster off and rises to the surface; gasping for air as her chest moves up and down.
She looks as though she's in shock, so Lilly's suspicion grows tenfold as I ask if she's alright.
"Did you get bit?" Lilly asks sharply, moving towards her with a serious expression.
"No…"
"Jane?"
"I said no, damn it!" Jane yells, smacking Lilly's hand away and slowly standing up. She wipes the mud and gunk off of her jeans before shivering due to her soaked clothes. "I'm fine – just freezing my ass off, that's all."
Beckoning for Jane and I to follow her, Lilly keeps her gun at the ready as I look at Jane worriedly.
"Don't worry about me, Clem," she whispers in a soothing tone. "It's not as if this is anything new. We risk our lives every day."
"I guess…" I grunt, trying not to roll my shoulder as I grind my teeth together. Man, this hurts!
"Looks like you got banged up pretty good," Jane remarks, not missing a beat as I stubbornly tell her that I'll be okay. "Clem, if you're hurt then we need to stop. Lilly, hold on a sec!"
"We're not safe out here! Not with those walkers lurking around!" she fires back without turning around, scanning the area before moving forward.
"Fucking asshole…" Jane swears before reluctantly walking forward with me. "If that gets worse, you let me know, alright? No exceptions."
"Fine…" I agree quietly, trying my best not to look like I'm in as much pain as I actually am.
We walk forward for another fifteen minutes or so before finally seeing some real progress. I don't know how, but we've managed to make it out of New Orleans and almost out of the bayou. It's just a little bit further until we hit the land, and Jane's encouraging me onwards.
And of course, a walker happens to be sitting trapped underneath a nearby rock and trips me over; causing me to land on my bad shoulder and scream out in pain as Jane stabs it with her knife.
Well, at least now Lilly's stopped for a bit.
"Lemme see," Jane commands, rolling me over carefully and lowering my collar a little bit. Once she looks at my shoulder, she winces and sucks air inwards.
"How bad… is it?" I ask, making occasional crying sounds as jolts of pain shoot up my arm.
"You've separated your shoulder pretty badly," she explains, dragging me to the shore as Lilly bends down beside me. "It doesn't look like anything's broken though."
"Well, that's good at least!" I say shakily, trying to look on the bright side as Lilly and Jane eye each other wearily. "What's the matter?"
Biting her lip, Jane shudders and closes her eyes for a moment. She looks as though she's gonna be sick to her stomach.
Lilly, however, sighs and orders me to look over at Jane.
"Why?" I ask as Lilly places one hand on my back and one on my arm. I yelp in pain as she touches a sore spot. "Oww! What are you doing that for?!"
"Just look over at Jane," she repeats herself, and I reluctantly do as she tells me. "Alright, I'll make this quick."
"Make what – AGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!" I scream aloud, my voice reverberating out through the fields as unbelievable pain goes through my shoulder. I throw up on the ground as the bone is set back into the socket, causing me to sweat and gasp out as it finally settles.
"Let's get her settled down somewhere for the night," Lilly advises to which Jane quickly nods and helps me to stand. "Texas shouldn't be a day or two away now… Then I can tell you I told you so."
"We'll be fine, Lilly. You just have to have the right attitude," she states, pointing to a run-down farm with rusted tractors and some old hay bales lying around the doors. "There – we'll grab some hay for pillows and rest up for a little while. How are you feeling, Clementine?"
Whimpering and shaking my head, I can't give Jane a verbal answer as we open the barn doors and sit on the floor. Straw itches at my sides, but at least it's soft enough that it doesn't hurt.
Jane takes my hat off and begins to rub my head gently, which is something that I had never thought she'd do as Lilly starts rolling in some of the hay bales.
"Easy, Clem. Just take it easy, alright?" she whispers as I start to calm down a little bit. "Just get some rest – you're gonna need it, kiddo."
She's definitely right on that account, as my eyes become heavier and my brain starts to slow down while I drift off into sleep.
…..
"…I know you're there, Lee. It's safe to come out," I tell him, swinging back and forth on the swing set as I call out to the trees. Lee brushes the evergreen branches out of his face before smiling at me and joining me on the other swing. I sigh as I silently soar a little bit higher; not a care in the world as I try my best to reach the clouds.
"Shooting for the moon, are we?" Lee comments as I get some air on this thing. "You might want to put on a space suit for that kind of thing, sweet pea."
"Going to space would be so cool!" I remark, smirking as I look up at the starry sky. Not a cloud to be seen; just twinkling, cosmic magic decorates the sky tonight. But I slow down after my elevation causes me to get a little bit woozy. I can't usually stay on these kinds of things for very long before feeling sick.
"Yeah, yeah it would be," Lee agrees as the both of us look upwards. When a star goes flying across the night sky, Lee immediately points it out as I gaze in wonder. "That's a shooting star."
"Wow… I've never seen one before!" I admit, finding it amazing how quickly it moves.
"Make a wish, Clem," Lee tells me with a smirk, causing me to scratch my chin thoughtfully.
"Hmm… alright, I wish – "
"No, you're not supposed to tell me silly," Lee says, shaking his head. "Otherwise it won't come true."
Rolling my eyes playfully, I relent and do as he tells me. What I really wish for is for things to be normal for a change; no more people getting hurt, and no more losing my family and friends.
But that's a wish that won't ever come true, since most of them already are dead and gone.
And Lee…
"You're not really here with me, are you?" I ask, already fully knowing that the answer is no. When he shakes his head, I look to the ground sadly as a few tears stain my cheeks. Even after all this time, I still get upset about him.
"We might not physically be together anymore," Lee says, his expression unwavering as his body starts to fade, "but I live on inside of you, Clementine. Our bond can't be broken, not even by death."
"I… I love you, Lee," I tell him with a heartfelt, sombre voice. "I don't want you to go… I miss you so much…"
"I love you two, sweet pea," Lee smiles, planting a kiss on my forehead before almost disappearing entirely. "God knows I do."
I've been playing that dream over in my head for the past two days. Two days of straight walking, and that specific part of the dream refuses to leave my mind as it races over the possibilities. Did Lee really try contacting me in there? Or was my mind just playing tricks on me; making me believe that Lee, in a sense, never left?
Whatever the case may have been, it was a welcome change from the harsh realities of what we've been through, and it certainly helps take my mind off of my shoulder.
Jane managed to wrap it (somehow) with some thin cloth, since obviously you couldn't put a cast on a shoulder even if hospitals were still around. According to her and Lilly, I just need to let it heal properly on its own for a little while, and try not to move my arm around that much. I told them that they really wouldn't get an argument from me – it hurts badly enough as it is.
Jane chuckles slightly and grins as she runs up to the sign, smacking the 'H' for Houston as I smile along with her. Lilly seems shocked that we've actually made it this far alive, but deep down I know that she's pretty thrilled too.
"Still think going up north was a better idea?" I ask as Jane marches on ahead; a bounce in her step as she walks forward with her head held high.
Lilly shrugs and adjusts the backpack over her shoulders as she places her hand near her face to avoid the sand from getting in. "Let's not count our eggs before they've hatched," she comments, frowning as she spots Jane squatting in front of… a cactus? What is she up to?
"Jane? What are you doing?" I ask as she pulls out an empty water bottle from her backpack. We managed to snag two of these bags at a small, roadside shop before getting here, and so far it's helped out quite a bit.
"Let's see if the rumours are true…" she comments before taking out her knife and slicing downwards onto the plant. She winces as the cactus pricks her finger, but she quickly shakes it off and struggles to cut through it. Why she's putting herself through this is anyone's guess.
When she finally does manage to cut some of it off, she peers inside and her smile grows even wider.
"Ha! National Geographic is never wrong!" she proclaims, carefully putting her water bottle downwards and scooping up some water. "It pays to know this stuff when you're out in the desert."
"We're not even really in the desert, to be honest," Lilly chimes in, but not going into an argument as she too dips her water bottle in. I do the same, careful to use my right arm instead of my left.
Once we're satisfied with our catch, the three of us get back on the road and proceed to walk for another hour or so. According to her map, and from what the sign said about this so-called "refuge" a few miles back, Houston Hills shouldn't be very far away from here at all. We won't be going directly into the city itself, which is a shame because I really wanted to go check out the space museum if it was safe enough. The place we're heading to is sort of in a sub-area on the outskirts of the city, which is probably a smart thing since they won't get cornered by walkers constantly if they're a safe distance away.
I wonder what this place'll be like… Will it have massive walls with loads of people defending it? Will there be tents pitched up for people to sleep in, and people handing out small plates of food to feed the hungry? Will it be as well-maintained as Howe's was before the walkers came and claimed it for themselves?
Or will this be another crap-hole, just like most places left in the US? I seriously hope not.
"Should be just over this hill," Jane says, telling us to have our guns out just in case things go badly. "No sudden moves, alright? We stay together, and if anything feels unsafe, then we leave and find someplace else."
"You were trying to convince me on how safe this place would be!" Lilly snaps, to which Jane simply rolls her eyes.
"There are no guarantees anymore, shit for brains! We'll just do what we can. It's not as if we've got a baby to lookout for anymore…"
As soon as she utters those words, her eyes go wide and she looks towards me apologetically. I simply stare at the ground and don't say a word; hearing Jane mutter an apology under her breath as Lilly heavily sighs. I really don't want to relish anything on AJ – I've been trying to block him from my memory recently. Every time I think of that sweet, innocent baby boy, I feel sharp pangs of guilt take over my stomach.
I've got enough problems as it is right now – I don't want to add any more.
Silently, the three of us make it up this last stretch of hill; hope in our hearts… but doubt in our minds.
This place… it just looks like a rich person's house. The white-washed wooden boards stick out like a sore thumb from everything else around here, and it looks as though it's almost been untouched. There are no tents, no survivors cooking their meals over a fire, nothing. If you had stayed here for the past two years, you might never have even known that there was an apocalypse. It's that untouched.
"No… This can't be right," Jane mutters, shaking her head as she sprints forward to the house's big-ass lawn. I tell her to stop, which thankfully she does, but she's constantly reading and re-reading the directions and description of this place over and over again. "There's no such thing as a free lunch – why does this place look so clean? This… it's too much of a good thing. Why aren't there any people patrolling?!"
"You're telling me… we came all this way; went through four fucking states to get here, just so that we could look at somebody's fucking HOUSE?!" Lilly hisses darkly, her agitation boiling by the minute. She's like a pot of unchecked Kraft Dinner – leave it too long and it'll overflow.
"Lilly, calm down… There's got to be a reason for this…"
"Don't you tell me to calm down, Clem!" she glares menacingly, causing me to step back and give her some space. "That is the very LAST thing that I need to hear right now!"
"Leave her out of this, you crazy bitch!" Jane says, getting in between us and standing up for me as she confronts Lilly. "You know what? We should've dumped your ass in Atlanta when we had the chance! Would've been a hell of a lot more peaceful to get here, and we wouldn't have you biting at our heels every fucking step of the way! Don't snap at an eleven year old just because you're angry! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"
"You… are getting on my last fucking nerve, Jane! I've had it up to here with you!"
"Ooh, I'm so scared! What are you gonna do, Lilly? Shoot me like you did to that Carley chick I keep hearing about?" she reprimands as Lilly's face contorts in seething anger. "Go ahead and try! See where that gets you! Obviously that'll make you feel better, since that seems to be your sick way of dealing with your issues! Go ahead, Lilly! Do it! Show Clementine the monster that you really are!"
Lilly's about to pull the trigger, when all three of us are interrupted by a man in a white tuxedo, black dress pants, dress shoes and brown, slicked-back hair. He looks like some kind of business tycoon, and he's surrounded by at least ten other people – all heavily armed.
"Well, ain't you folks a long way from home?" he remarks, putting his hand in his jacket pocket before pulling out a lighter and a big Cuban cigar. As he lights it, he sticks the thing in his mouth and breathes in before blowing out a big puff of smoke. Gross. "Oh, I'm sorry. Where are my manners? The name's Jonathon Crowley, although you fine honeys can just call me Papa John. Everyone does – I reckon it's some kind of running gag."
None of us speak, so Papa John turns to the side and gestures to the house right in front of us.
"I'm guessing y'all were looking for shelter, weren't ya? Read my sign, you did!" he smirks, placing the cigar in between two of his fingers. "Ain't she a thing of beauty? Built by my forefathers ages ago, and it's been passed down in my family for generations. Now, since this whole critter business is going on, what with the dead walking about and all, we've managed to open up some livin' spaces for people like yourselves."
Why does this feel a hell of a lot like the St. John's?
"Why haven't you fortified this place?" Jane asks suspiciously, not trusting this guy in the slightest. "Walls, people on watch, boards on the windows… you've got none of that stuff. Why?"
"Don't really have a reason to, sweetheart!" he says with a shrug of his shoulders. I don't like where this is going. "We've got enough protection as it is. There ain't too many of them critters lurking about 'round these parts, as you can see."
"Then why do you need them?" Lilly asks, motioning to Papa John and his troop of heavily armed men and women, all looking as though they'd kill us without a second thought if asked. Some of them look as though they're itching for a fight.
"Ahh, well you see… Here comes the not so fun part," he says, putting his cigar back in his mouth while motioning towards us. "I'm afraid that I'm gonna have to ask you to lower your weapons – I just had this coat washed yesterday, and I'd hate to get any of your blood stains on it. And don't think about resisting, ladies. As you can see, it won't end well for you."
Locked and loaded, Papa John's security force aim their various weapons – pistols, assault rifles, shotguns and all – towards us, and as I look towards Jane and Lilly, I sigh and drop my gun to the ground. Jane and Lilly look really pissed off about it, but they both reluctantly drop their guns as well. We've been forced to surrender without even firing a shot.
"Hmm… yeah, I reckon you three ladies will fetch a mighty fine price," he smirks, nodding his head as the security team force us to our knees and proceed to tie our hands behind our backs. When I yelp out in pain due to my shoulder, one of the people tell me to shut up before banging my head with the side of their gun. I'm almost certain that my head's bleeding as I wince after the blow.
"Don't you fucking touch her!" Jane yells as one of the guards come over and aim their rifle towards her. Before doing anything, however, the man looks toward Papa John, who nods for the go-ahead. The security officer shoots Jane right in the leg, causing her to scream out in pain and agony.
Lilly and I widen our eyes in horror, but say nothing as more guns are trained upon us. Jane's in a shit-ton of pain right now; you can see it in her eyes as her face contorts in pain and anger. But trying to fight back isn't going to help now.
Wait, what did he mean by fetch a nice price?
"Blind 'em," Papa John orders, and my world goes dark as they put a cloth hood over my face that blocks my vision. That combined with the blow to the head I just inflicted is making my head spin slightly.
"I'm sorry that it had to come to this ladies, but I've got a business to run," he explains as I'm forced to stand back up. "And nobody fucks with Papa John. Get 'em on the truck – Sandro wants a new batch of workers over to Mexico by morning."
The last thing I remember before blacking out is Jane grunting in pain and Lilly struggling against her captors. My head hits the ground, and my vision fades into nothingness.
AN: Alright, that's the end of book two. It was a lot to get through, I know, so thank you for sticking with it! Things are gonna get interesting from here on out, so please be sure to drop a review!
Leafs nation