Disclaimer-I do not own any part of The Walking Dead, only my OC's! Please review so I know what you guys think! I will respond to reviews in the chapter after I get them! Speaking of which...
Suzannewazhere - Thank you so much for the nice review! I'm glad you like it! :)
WhiteShadow21 - I'm glad you like it so far! If you have any suggestions just send me a PM! I appreciate any help I can get! I could also use a Beta if you're interested because right now I just try to reread the chapters to find any errors and a fresh pair of eyes would be big help! :D
Well, here's the next chapter, hope you guys like it! :)
They had been on the road for several days, driving through the night and only stopping to eat or relieve themselves a few times. They were just outside of Atlanta where this so-called army shelter was supposed to be when they hit a very large road block. People flooded the road as they talked amongst each other, trying to figure out what had happened up ahead.
The four stepped out of the truck to stretch their legs and see what was up. Piper turned and picked up her sleepy niece, settling her on her hip. "Stay close women. We getta chance ta get outta here, we're gunna take it with or without ya." Merle threw over his shoulder. Piper snorted and picked up a pebble from the road and threw it, hitting him smack in the middle of his head. He rubbed it and laughed as he continued walking. Throughout the drive, Merle and Piper had at first been at each other's throats, but quickly adjusted and began throwing sarcastic comments back and forth, while the other two more quiet passengers just watched, her mother in amusement, his brother in surprise. Little Bailey found the arguments hilarious and started repeating words that a three year old girl should never be saying, causing Claudia to terminate any further foul language for a time.
Piper and her mother saw two women a little ways ahead with two children and walked up to introduce themselves and see if they knew what was going on.
A young brunette woman with a small boy at her side saw them approach and smiled warmly at them. "Hey, you stuck too?" She asked sweetly. Piper nodded. "I'm Lori, this is my son Carl. You're welcome to wait with us if you want?" She asked. "Aww, what a doll! What's her name?" She added when she saw the shy little girl in Piper's arms.
The women smiled down at the boy and nodded to Lori. "That would be nice. We aren't from around here and we aren't exactly sure what's going on. I'm Claudia, and this is my daughter Piper, and my granddaughter Bailey." Claudia spoke softly, the first she had spoken the whole trip and her voice was weak from disuse and exhaustion.
"Well, I'm sure you've seen, but people are risin' from the dead and… it's just horrible." Lori muttered, rubbing her hand up and down her son's arm.
"Mom, can I go play with Sophia?" The boy asked, obviously not interested in the adult talk. Lori gave him a look, which he responded with puppy dog eyes. She sighed and nodded, "Stay where Carol and I can see you!" She hollered at him and he waved back at her over his shoulder. She shook her head and returned her attention to Piper and Claudia.
A tall man with dark curly hair wearing a policeman's uniform approached the three women. "Shane, this is Claudia, Piper and Bailey. They got stuck here too." Lori said to the man. He had dark brown eyes that darted to the two new women and little girl before sending them a gentle smile and holding out his hand to them.
"Shane Walsh. Nice to meet you ladies. I hate to rush off, but I just came to get Lori to go look at somethin' real quick." Piper nodded and looked over to the light blue truck she arrived in, seeing that Merle and Daryl were leaning over the hood looking at something and talking. "You're welcome to wait here til we get back." Lori said with a smile.
"Thanks, I think we'll do that." Piper replied. Shane and Lori both nodded and headed off into the woods. Not two minutes later a low rumble was heard and felt, as fighter jets soared over their heads. Before anyone could really understand what was happening, Atlanta, seen in the distance, was up in flames as explosions sounded while planes dropped napalms over the city.
Piper and Claudia clung to each other, arms wrapped tightly around Bailey as she whimpered and tucked her face into the crook of Piper's neck. Carl ran towards the vehicle they were standing by, searching for his mother. "Mom! Mom where are you?" He called desperately. Piper snatched the back of his shirt and pulled him into her side, where he clung as she held him tight.
Lori and Shane approached the vehicle at about the same time Merle and Daryl did. "What was that?" Piper cried out. Carl rushed from her side and into his mother's arms and she kissed his face and hugged him tight.
Shane didn't respond, just pulled out a megaphone from the driver's side of the police car next to him and turned it on, causing it to screech and quiet the people in the nearby area.
"Listen up people." His voice didn't carry too well amongst the cries and screams of the panicking people, but a decent amount of people turned at the sound of his voice. "We need to get somewhere safe, if they're bombin' the city, it ain't safe. Now there's a small quarry not too far back where we can set up a base and figure shit out. Anyone interested follow us out." He then turned off the megaphone and turned to Merle and Daryl, who flanked Piper and her mother, who were still terrified and clinging to each other.
"Y'all comin'? We could use people who hunt." Shane asked as he eyed the rednecks in front of him with some distaste, but hid it quickly.
The look didn't go unnoticed by either redneck, but just as Daryl was about to send a rude remark to the man, Merle cut in. "That sounds mighty nice officer. I think we'll take you up on that." Shane nodded hesitantly and turned to Piper, Bailey and Claudia. "You ladies need a ride?" He eyed behind them to the Dixons, causing Piper to flinch at his unsaid insinuation.
"No thank you. We'll ride with Merle and Daryl." She said confidently, causing the man to eye her curiously before shrugging his shoulders.
"A'right, your call. Let's get movin'" And with that, people began flooding back to their vehicles, following Shane's car to the quarry, where they hoped it would be a safe place to get their bearings.