Chapter 12 - The Voodoo That You Do

By the time Kate had finished patching up the last of the wounded, cleaned, and disinfected her instruments, she was exhausted. She donned her coat and headed back to Simon's room.

The room was dark and empty. The bed still lay unmade. She kicked off her boots and climbed in the shower. She could barely focus, she was so exhausted. She pulled on one of Simon's tshirts, slid into bed, and hugged his pillow tight.

The next morning, Kate awoke to the smell of fresh coffee. Sitting up in bed, she instantly froze. There, posed in the chair by the window, was Negan.

"Well, good morning, Sunshine. How the fuck are you?" Negan smiled behind a mug of coffee.

"How did you get in here ?" Kate demanded.

"Now, is that any way to say thank you? I brought you real fucking coffee. Now, come over here and drink it with me."

Kate didn't move. She didn't have any pants on, and didn't want to give Negan any ideas.

"Kate. Don't make me ask you again."

Negan's smile was sinister. Kate slowly climbed out from under the covers, revealing her bare legs. Negan drew in a sharp breath and whistled.

"Now, if I were Simon, I'd never want to leave. I mean, fuck sweetheart. If you were in my bed -,"

"I'm not. " Kate interrupted, pulling on a pair of shorts that were on the floor. She walked over to Negan, and wrapped her hands around the second mug of coffee.

Kate sighed. She couldn't remember the last time that she had drank real coffee. She closed her eyes and smiled as the warm liquid ran down her throat.

Negan simply sat and watched her. He hadn't expected her to be half naked, and wanted to take the rest of her clothes off as soon as she climbed out of the bed. He could feel himself becoming aroused as he watched her dress and walk over to him.

Kate was catching on to what was happening. She sat her mug back on the table.

"What do you want, Negan?"

"You." Negan stood, his height towering over her.

Negan stepped forward. He cupped his hand over Kate's face. She placed a hand against his chest in protest.

"I told you, I'm with Simon."

"Simon's not here. And everything - and everyone - belongs to me. "

Kate snapped. She was getting tired of the tyrant act. She couldn't keep her opinions to herself any longer.

"You must be pretty proud of yourself. Bribery, threats. Is that the only way you know how to behave with women? Or is this just all a game to you? I love Simon. And from what I can tell, you don't even know what love is. How many 'wives' do you have? Six? Seven? Jesus, it's just sick, if not comical."

Negan backed away from Kate. Her words surprised him. He walked over to the sink, grabbed a glass of water, and drank it quickly. His anger was boiling up. He squeezed the small glass so hard that it shattered in his hand. Blood dripped onto the floor.

Kate grabbed a towel out of instinct, and picked up the broken shards.

"Sit. I need to look at that." Kate commanded.

Negan complied. She grabbed another towel and wrapped it around his hand. When she looked up at Negan, there were tears in the corners of his eyes. He didn't move, but simply let Kate tend to his hand. She pulled a large glass shard out, and pressed hard to stop the bleeding.

"You need stitches. I've got a kit in my bag. Hold pressure here. "

Negan couldn't think straight. No one, not since his late wife, had ever spoken to him that way. No one here in the Sanctuary dared to do so. He was overwhelmed by Kate, and all that she was. He was starting to feel more than just lust for her.

"Do you want me to numb it?" Kate asked.

"Fuck no. Just do it."

They sat in silence as Kate stitched Negan's wound. When she was finished, Negan walked to the door, but paused.

"You know, no one talks to me the way you did. No one fights back."

"Please lock the door behind you." Kate responded.

When Negan was gone, she washed her hands and climbed back into bed.

When Kate awoke, the sky was just getting dark. She dressed and headed to the mess hall.

When she arrived, there was a crowd of people waiting for their meal. She started to get in line when Dwight approached her with a tray.

"What's this?" Kate asked.

"You don't wait in line. Negan's orders." Dwight handed her the tray and walked away.

A small loaf of bread, still warm, sat on a plate next to a sliced apple and some fresh salad greens. There was also a hard cooked egg.

Kate looked around to see if Negan was watching her, but he was nowhere in sight. She carried the tray over to where Dwight was sitting. He was drinking a beer, his back turned to her.

"Dwight. You know, I'm confused. What's going on?"

Dwight chugged the last of his beer and spun around.

"He won't be happy until your his. You know that, right?"

"I'm not interested. There are already several women who have that job description. But you know that already. "

Dwight winced, and right away Kate was sorry for her choice of words.

"Well, that makes us even for me calling you a whore." Dwight nodded, picking the label off his beer bottle.

"Dwight, I'm sorry. Negan's a sociopath. He's …. He's just fucking crazy. Like he's the star of his own movie. I don't want to be a part of that. "

"Look. I know you're with Simon. That's great. But I just wanted to warn you. If Negan wants something, he takes it. You can't have your fairytale. Not here. Sooner or later, you'll have to give in."

Dwight stood and walked away, leaving his mess behind. Kate knew he was right, and she hated it. But she wasn't going to make it easy for Negan. She had to hold him off for another day. She knew that Simon would be back soon. Just one more day.