The gun shots seemed to die down, and I took that as my cue to move. The table I was hiding behind was filled with holes, so I needed to get someplace else. And my butt cheek was throbbing.

Rick began shouting to the men again and the shots momentarily stopped, so I gathered myself up and scrambled against the front wall of the bar.

I crouched, wobbled and put my hand on the floor to steady myself. Unfortunately I didn't look where I was putting my hand as a shard of glass stabbed into me. I bit back a cry of pain and gasped as quietly as I could, bringing my hand up quickly to get a better look.

A piece of glass was sticking out of my palm, the shard looking about an inch and a half long. I laid my machete across my lap, gripped the glass and slowly began pulling it out, grimacing as I did.

I threw the piece away from me and held my machete in my other hand. It felt weird having the machete in my right hand. I can still fight like that - I made a point to learn with both hands just in case - but I wouldn't be as fluid as I would with the other hand.

This was a nightmare. They seemed to have an endless supply of ammunition, and they were making so much noise I was surprised we weren't surrounded by walkers by now. I was getting weaker and weaker the more I injured myself, and Rick was probably battling himself, meaning that he won't be as sharp s he normally is. How much longer could we hold out for?

Rick had stopped talking, and I looked up towards the door. More shots fired out, but this time I heard Glenn swear.

"Glenn!" I rasped, fearing the worst.

"I'm okay." He groaned in reply, but I wasn't convinced.

I began worrying my lip as I stared at Rick. He too was looking in Glenn's direction.

"You guys need to get out. Go, and I'll cover you." He quietly ordered.

Hershel nodded, signalling for Glenn to follow. They crept to the side of the building slowly looking for an exit as I edged towards Rick.

"What are you doing Sam? Go-"

"I'm not letting you stay behind all by yourself." I whispered harshly.

And I wasn't. If Glenn and Hershel left, Rick would have to walk back on his own in the dark. At least if I was with him, there's be another pair of eyes. Someone to cover him for once. He examined my face for a second, before closing his mouth and gave me the slightest nod.

"Get out your gun. We need to fire to give Glenn and Hershel some cover." Rick whispered, silently crawling to a hole in the window.

I steeled myself as I crawled to a gap in the wall. I wasn't going to kill anyone. That was for certain, but I was going to make life harder for them. If they knew what Dave and Tony were doing, then they were in for a rough ride.

Rick began firing, and I followed his lead. I put the gun up to the hole, smashed away some more of the wood do I could see out and fired.

I aimed for their truck, trying to bust anything I could. I managed to get a few holes in the side of their truck when they opened fire again. I hunkered down on the floor, laying in a foetal position, waiting for their shots to finish. I watched as glass smashed over Rick, making him groan.

I saw red. They were not going to hurt Rick. Not a hope in hell.

They hadn't stopped firing when I let rip on them. Out of anger, I aimed at them. I never aimed for a kill, but was going to give the fuckers a hard time. I stopped myself, realising what an animal I was. I then aimed for the truck again, this time striking gold. I managed to bust the two left tires.

"Sam, it's okay. I'm fine." Rick whispered, sidling close to me and wrapping an arm around me shoulder.

I looked at him and nodded, my heart hammering. His arm slid off, but he reached out and squeezed my hand.

"Thank you, though." He whispered. I nodded at him. At least he knew how much I cared. He was the rock in our group.

Shots started firing once again making me flinch. They had only been going off for a few seconds when there was a shout from the direction Hershel and Glenn went in. Panicking, I got up and sprinted towards where Hershel and Glenn went. I found Hershel at the side door, the outside black with night. I could barely see a thing.

"I think Glenn's been hit." Hershel rushed, and my stomach dropped.

"Where is he?" I choked.

"By the dumpster."

"Glenn, are you hit?" Rick called. There was no answer. My heart began racing even faster, dread seeping into every cell in my body.

Swearing, I gripped the railings in front of me and jumped over, brushing off the throb in my palm. I landed a little wobbly but raced to the only dumpster in the ally, ignoring Rick and Hershel's worried protests. I ignored them - how could I stand by if Glenn was sitting somewhere, injured and vulnerable? No way.

I dropped behind it to see an extremely pale but otherwise okay looking Glenn.

"I... I'm fine." He said quietly, and I nodded after a minutes assessment. I could feel my erratic heart calming as I checked him over.

"Don't do that again." I whispered harshly, but kissed his forehead and helped him to his feet as we hunkered down behind the dumpster.

He took a deep, shaky breath, and my eyes flicked towards him. He met my eyes briefly, before looking off towards the distance. Something was definitely up, and it may not be something physical. I made a mental note to talk to him about it later. If we all make it.

I can't think like that! We will. We all will. I'll make sure of it.

The gunshots had stopped, and the men were now talking. I could hear car doors shutting and a guy screaming, but also the worst-timed nightmare was coming this way - I could hear walkers.

Rick had noticed too as he and Hershel joined us, stopping in his tracks to look in the direction of the moans. We still couldn't see them yet, though, which made my stomach churn even more.

"Sorry man!" One of the guys shouted as the car drove off.

When it was out of sight, we ran forward through the ally towards the street and the screaming.

"Holy shit!" I gasped as I stared at the boy's leg that was skewered on the railings. His face was scrunched and covered in tear tracks, calling out for us to help him. Calling out for his asshole 'friends' to come back to him. For anyone.

I couldn't look at him for long. I wasn't squeamish, but that was just wrong. And the walkers had finally come into sight. And there were loads of them.

"Rick!" I shouted.

"Cover us! We need to get him out of here. Hershel, help me." He shouted, his eyes meeting mine for a fleeting second.

I nodded and span to face the walkers. I pulled the gun from my shorts and held it in my left hand, machete gripped tightly in my right. Glenn fell into step next to me, and nodded.

I began shooting at the oncoming walkers, my hand as steady as I could keep it. My aim was getting better, and we managed to keep the front couple of walkers at bay. I had to put in more bullets to keep up with the walkers. They just kept coming.

The kid's screams were reaching an earsplitting level, but I really didn't blame him. I tried focusing on the walkers, but there was just too many. I ran out of bullets again. I stowed the handgun in my shorts and picked up the gun I took from Tony. It was a lot like the one I used when I hunted with Otis, so getting to grips with it took no time. Soon I was again running out of ammo.

"Rick, there's loads of them. We can't hold them off for long!" Glenn shouted, Stopping firing for a second.

I covered the walkers while he shouted at Rick, but they were getting closer. I looked back at Rick to watch in horror as he ripped the kids leg up in the air, his screams reaching a different octave.

I span back to shoot a walker who was within four yards of me. Shit!

"Go! I'll cover the walkers!" I screeched.

Rick and Hershel carried the kid away as Glenn dug out his keys, racing forwards to the car and out of sight. I ran protectively behind Rick and Hershel, my eyes scanning for any walker that got within ten feet.

"Damn it!" I shrieked as I reached the end of the bullets. I was completely out.

I shoved the gun under my left arm and gripped my machete, running rings around Hershel and Rick, taking out walkers. It was getting harder to breath as my ribs were making it difficult, but I knew I couldn't stop pushing myself. I had to make sure they were all okay, even if I wasn't.

I heard the engine of the truck start and saw Glenn's taillights reversing towards us. He stopped ten feet away and got the rear door open for the kid. They settled him in the back while I held off another walker, easily running the machete through it's head. I yanked it out with a grunt, and pushed the it into the walker coming up from behind it, sending them both to the ground.

"Sam! Let's go!" Glenn shouted as he climbed in the truck.

I span and began to run towards the truck. I was within a couple yards when I felt a sharp tug of my hair making me shriek. Without thinking, I swung the machete behind me to swipe off the attachment. I then span on one foot and brought the other up to kick the walker in the chest. It flew back, giving me enough of an edge to race to the truck.

I tore open the passenger door in the front and climbed in. Glenn threw the car into gear and we sped off, leaving the walker-infested town far behind.

I sat back in the seat, gritting my teeth at the throb I felt on my butt cheek and my ribs. My lungs were burning and my hand was slightly swollen. But I was better off than the kid.

After driving for a long time with his crying, the kid eventually passed out. Rick used his knife to rip a shred of his shirt off and blindfold him. Just in case, I suppose.

That was close. Too close.

I ran a shaky hand through my hair, but something didn't feel right. It felt lighter. I ran my hands over my hair and gasped to find that instead of cutting off the walker, I cut off my own hair.

And it was really short.

Completely and utterly gutted, I ran my hair down the length, feeling that it was only just below my shoulder. A big chunk of it, too.

I sighed and gathered my hair loosely together. I pulled it tightly and began to cut off the rest with my machete.

"Sam, what're you doing?" Glenn asked quickly.

"I thought I cut a walkers grip from my hair, but I actually cut my hair. I'm going to make it an even length." I said quietly.

"That sucks." He said, sounding genuinely saddened.

I began running the machete slowly through my hair. A few strands pulled tightly at my scalp and I winced but the sharp pain quickly ebbed. Soon enough, I had a handful or two of thick, long red hair.

My hair was the only thing I had ever really liked about myself. I loved its rich colour, and how thick it was, reaching down to the middle of my back. Now it was barely above my shoulder blade, despite it still being pretty thick. Would I still be able to tie my hair back?

I know it sounded pathetic. I'd just fought off a load of walkers, had to defend people I care about and watched as a boy got left to die, and I was worried about my hair? Eugh. I'm a terrible person.

I opened the window and held my hand out, watching as the stands get blown away, the moonlight illuminating them as they floated out of my hand. I wanted to cry.

I woke up, curled into my seat with my knees drawn closely. I slowly opened my eyes to see the faintest light starting to creep into the surroundings.

I looked over at Glenn who was still driving with heavy eyelids. I then glanced in the back to see the boy still seemingly unconscious. Rick was dozing against the window, fighting to remain alert whereas Hershel was on the verge of snoring. Seemed to suit their personalities quite well.

"I'll drive." I said gently. Glenn nodded and slowed the car to a stop.

He got out of the driver door while climbed across to his seat. I shuffled around uncomfortably until I found a position where my cheek didn't hurt. I ran my hands through my considerably lighter hair, my fingers getting free from the strands a lot more quickly than they used to. Glenn got in and was almost instantly asleep.

I started driving as the sun began to rise, the whole car somewhat peaceful. I put my elbow on the window ledge, and rested my forehead on my hand as I drove.

A thousand scenarios, memories and faces flashed through my head. What was going to happen with the boy, having a load of walkers in the nearest town, how many injuries I'd gotten, and how much worse they're going to get.

I tried to push all of that to the back of my mind, and tried to focus on where I was driving. But we were on a straight road, and even the beautiful colours of the morning sky could stop me thinking about everything that had happened, and what could still be.

But we were all okay. That's what I had to focus on. And even if I had a leg hanging off, I'd still do everything in my power to look after these people. My people.

For confirmation, I looked over to Glenn. His hat had slid down his face, and he had crossed his arms tightly across his chest with his legs pulled closely to him. He looked so precious.

Smiling to myself, I forgot everything, and just concentrated on getting us all home.

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- Loré. X