Hiding in Plain Sight

The corporal in charge of the patrol was a quiet young man who took his job seriously. He promised to drive Carol to the processing center himself. They drove along a road heavily fortified against walkers and a good deal of their military power was spent keeping Savannah safe. Her heart sank a little at the prospects of escaping Savannah but she kept her guise as woman who found herself alone in the ZA. That woman wanted to be in the relative safety of the capitol of the Carolinas. That woman just wanted to hide in plain sight.

Cpl. Parker smiled at Carol, "I'll go in with you. Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you." He meant it too. Blaine Parker had heard stories about how women survivors were treated by soldiers. Not on his watch. The world may have gone to shit, but he had been reared better than that.

Carol smiled back. Blaine Parker was a good guy. "Have you been in Savannah long, Corporal Parker?

Blaine laughed, "Just call me Blaine. I have been here six months and that is six months too long. I lived on a farming commune after the ZA. Lost my parents the first day and moved in with some friends and we kept alive by luck mostly. We built fences and raised crops and we were expanding our farm when we got rescued by the Army of the Carolinas. They decided I needed to be a soldier. I have to serve here two years and then I get to go to a farming settlement."

Carol caught the underlying resentment at the Army and his wish to be a farmer. "There are other options, Blaine. You just need to get away from here."

He shook his head. "My girlfriend got moved here last month. I need to be here to protect her. Animals inside the walls and animals outside the walls. I am going to make certain that they assign you to our building. That way I can keep an eye on you."

Blaine showed her the sights of Savannah before pulling into a two story brick building that looked as if it had been there for Sherman's March to the Sea. He opened the door for her and ushered her inside. There was a bored looking receptionist who handed Carol a form and a pen. The form was lengthy. There was one page of medical history and another about job skills. Carol marked that she had some emergency medical training and that she hoped she could work in a hospital. She kept the information vague and tried to appear as uninteresting as possible. She used Carol Peletier as her name. It felt strange to her but Carol Peletier had been a woman that nobody noticed and that is what she wanted now. Just to be the mouse that crept quietly about her day and not be in any ones way.

Carol talked to an equally bored man with the title of Processing Agent. He took one look at her and her bland information sheet and gave her a job working in the ER at the hospital. She was handed a plastic garbage bag full of things to start her new life. Blaine waited to make sure that she was given an apartment in his building and then drove her there.

He and his girlfriend lived on the bottom floor and Carol had a studio apartment on the third floor. She would work twelve hour shifts at the ER for five days and then be off two days. She had been given a coupon book so that she could eat at the hospital on the days she worked and then eat in a cafeteria close by on the other two days. She was starting tomorrow morning. Carol went through her plastic bag. There were a few toiletries. Toilet paper and a toothbrush and toothpaste. Some inexpensive soap and shampoo. She would be issued some sort of uniform when she went to work tomorrow morning at six o'clock.

She still had some food left in her backpack and she ate it standing by the window looking out the window. She felt small and alone. She slept that night on the couch. Carol didn't see the sense in making the bed. She closed her eyes and visualized the flash of white teeth against a dark face. Michonne smiling at her babies playing on the floor of their house. Morgan would be cooking dinner and smiling at everyone. Alia and Matthias would be with them and then Daryl and Eugene would be coming through the door and the house would be warm and alive and it all would be worth this. Carol fell asleep smiling at the vision in her mind.

She woke up the next morning to learn that there was no hot water in their building. After a bracing and very short shower she dressed and was at the hospital early. She was given a uniform and given the most menial jobs but that suited her. No one noticed the cleaning lady.

The next few days were busy. There were no doctors in private practice in Savannah. They all worked out the hospital or the doctor's building next door. Most patients just came to the ER and were shuttled from there to doctors. There were lots of soldiers that needed patched up from time to time. People got hurt or sick even in the ZA. After a few days Carol was promoted to doctor's assistant. She was practically living at the hospital because they were chronically short handed. That was fine with her because she was in search of a couple of doctors that she had seen in a "sight". They were young and working in a hospital in Savannah. The woman worked as an ob-gyn and the husband was a surgeon. Unfortunately she had been too busy to go explore the hospital.

It was early evening and Carol had hoped to get her shift over at seven and maybe take a walk around the hospital and the doctor's office building. There was a radio message that they were bringing in soldiers that had been attacked by rebels. Carol translated that as some group had resisted being enslaved and had fought back. The ER was soon filled with wounded men who needed care. The doctors treated the most critical patients and Carol worked with a nurse to suture up some wounds and then she worked alone when the nurse was called to help a doctor.

Carol was too busy to notice that a doctor was watching her technique. He spoke softly to her, "You do that very well. You can sew me back together any time."

Carol had turned to thank him for the compliment and looked into face of a tall dark haired man in his early thirties. He was the man who she had risked everything to find. Someone called him over to look at a patient and he had turned away before she could speak. He soon left the ER to go to surgery. Carol was too busy to do anything at that point, but just knowing that she had finally seen the man in her visions made her heart pound.

The rest of the evening was a blur as they continued to bring in wounded soldiers. Most were barely out of their teens and the others were younger. Carol's hatred of this evil empire grew. There were so few people left in this world and they should be united to put down the walkers and to find a cure, but instead the remnant was bent on killing each other.

She had just sutured a wounded arm when there was a commotion in the bay next to hers. She sent her patient out with the usual instructions before she had a chance to see what had happened. The patient had come in suffering with chest pains. He had a long history of cardiac problems and diabetes. His heart stopped and they couldn't get it started again. Carol said, "Shouldn't we put him down?"

The doctor said, "He's a high ranking officer in the Army. I am afraid to do it before he turns. We have done all we can do, but there is always an inquiry if a member of the higher echelon dies. We have to have an autopsy, all witnesses will be questioned, and it is better if the patient turns before we put him down."

The last thing Carol wanted to do was be involved in the death of an officer that worked for Mason Summers and she began to edge away. There were other patients that needed care. The dead man stirred and the doctor sighed and moved closer to him with a knife. Carol scooted away though she did think the doctor's technique was a little sloppy. Dr. S had taught her better than that.

She slept that night at the hospital. There was a break room next door with several sets of bunk beds. She was up at six and ready to start another day. Blaine had come by to check on her and he went with her to the cafeteria. He seemed tense and jumpy this morning. He blurted out, "Lisa is pregnant."

Carol smiled at him, "That's wonderful. You both will be good parents. It must be a little scary though." She figured that he must want to talk about it.

Blaine ran his hand down his face, "I am scared, we both are. We both grew up in the country on farms. That is the life we want. I..I can't do this anymore. They expect us to kill the Black survivors now. Carol, I can't do that. What in hell am I going to do?"

Carol looked at him with narrowed eyes, "You either do it or you find a way out. Are you willing to risk your life to get out of Savannah? You and Lisa would have to leave everything behind. Do you have the guts to do that?"

Blaine had always known that there was a lot more to Carol Peletier than she let others see. She appeared to be a mousy middle aged woman who just wanted a job and chance to contribute, but there was some inner core of toughness that came out once in a while. "You said something when we met. You said there are other options. I am ready for those other options."

Carol stared at him. "Is Lisa ready to risk her life to get away? It is not just you now, Blaine. There is a baby involved. Talk it over before you make a decision."

Blaine nodded. "I won't tell anyone else. Lisa won't either. Most people will do anything to stay in Savannah and we can't trust anyone not to turn us in if we say we want out."

Carol realized that it had taken courage for him to talk to her about this. "She just found out? Don't be doing anything different for a few days. You have some leave right?"

He nodded, "I am off for four days and but Summers is getting ready for another campaign north and I'll be going when that starts".

Carol had sat where she could watch those coming in to the cafeteria. She saw the man and woman she was looking for coming in together. They looked as if they have been up all night. She was tall and thin with black hair. These two people could save Michonne and her babies. She had found them and now she had to gain their trust, convince them to escape Savannah with her, get them from Savannah, Georgia to Adair, North Carolina in a walker infested world. Piece of cake. The hard part had been leaving Daryl and her family.

Carol turned back to Blaine. "Get weapons, ammo, and fuel. We'll always need those. Go slow. Hide in plain sight."

Blaine grinned at her, "One day you are going to tell me who you really are, right?"

"Go home and take care of Lisa." Carol hugged him goodbye, "I'll see you this evening". She took the last bite of her cereal and put her bowl in the container to be washed, "I am going to go visit some old friends now and you shouldn't be here when I do."

Blaine walked out and she sat a moment gathering her courage together. She walked over to the out of the way table where her two doctors were sitting. She sat down at the table, "Just smile and act as if we are friends. I am your friend, you just don't know me yet. I need for you to smile at me."

David Hakim who was going by the name of Ali Raissi smiled at her, "You were working in the ER last night suturing up wounds."

Carol smiled at him, "Yes, they called you a different name last night."

David frowned, "My name is Ali Raissi and this is my wife Sharon. We work here at this hospital. You must have us mistaken for two other people".

Carol smiled at Dr. Sharon Raissi who was really Chana Hakim. "I know that you don't trust me. I know who you really are inside so it doesn't matter what name you are going by. My name is Carol. I have come a very long way to find you and to take you home with me. You eat your breakfast and I will see you tomorrow morning at the same time. We will talk then." She got up and walked away. The first step is always the hardest.

David and Chana Hakim stared after her. She was the first to speak, "She is our deliverance".

David picked up her hand, "You want her to be our deliverance. We have no idea who she is. She works in the ER and just started. You know that she could just be someone testing our loyalty to the regime. We can't trust her."

Chana kissed her husband's hand, "David, we are living a lie. She knows who we are. I'll be here tomorrow and so will you." Her voice was firm and he kissed her hand.

Carol went back to the ER to find that there were Army officials taking statements about the death of the officers. She was questioned and she told them that she was working nearby but had seen nothing. He wrote her name down and she had to spell Peletier for him. The interview hadn't taken over two minutes and she went back to work.

That night she collapsed onto her couch and went to sleep. She dreamed of being home and walking on a graveled road with fields of wheat on either side. It was warm and sunny and the children were walking just in front of her. Daryl was with her and they were holding hands while they strolled along. The baby inside her kicked hard and she put Daryl's hand on her stomach. The baby kicked again and he leaned over and kissed her. She woke up the next morning still bathed in the glow of that dream. It was a jolt to realize that none of that was true. She was in Savannah and had no real plan for escape. She closed her eyes to recapture that feeling but it had fled from her. Carol steeled herself to face another day. She would make this happen.

Carol saw Ali and Sharon waiting for her in the cafeteria. She waved and got in line for breakfast and then walked casually to their table. Sharon smiled at her and Carol knew that she was ready to listen. David met her eyes but he looked at her suspiciously.

David had checked on Carol yesterday. She had been working in the ER less than a week. Supposedly she had just been found by a patrol and since she had been given a menial job in the ER. She had impressed her supervisors by her hard work and knowledge about treating injuries and had considered as asset to the ER.

"I don't know who you are and this is no world to trust anyone." Ali Raissi said.

The silver haired woman nodded at him, "That is right. I am risking my life to talk to you. It is my life and I have chosen to risk it. I don't think you will believe me when I tell you how I know who you are. You are trained in science and you won't like a story that is unscientific, but I will tell the truth as I know it. I have a friend who I love like a sister who is pregnant. She is going to die if I can't find a doctor to do surgery before the babies come. Her babies won't live either. I know this because I have the "sight". She paused and looked at their incredulous faces. "I had that dream over and over until I prayed that I be given a way to change it. Then I began to have visions of you two. He is a surgeon and you are a specialist in high risk pregnancies. I know that you are both descendants of Iranian Jews. You tell everyone that your families were Islamic but that the two of you are agnostic. Stop me when I am not telling the truth."

Ali said, "The things that you say about us are just guesses and we have made no secret of our agnosticism."

"I want to put my hands on you." Carol sensed that Chana had some psychic ability. The dark eyed woman eyed her curiously and then put her hand out casually toward Carol. David put his hand on Carol's arm to stop her from touching his wife and Carol turned toward him and patted his hand. "I won't hurt her, David".

Carol patted Chana's hand. "He is an old worrywart, isn't he?" Carol and Chana smiled at each other.

David took his hand off of Carol and watched the two women smile at each other. "Why would we try to leave Savannah? There isn't a way out. We are all truly stuck here".

"I don't have a plan to get out of here right now. It isn't going to be a cake walk and you need to start getting your supplies gathered. You can only take what you can carry. David can find me in the ER. I don't think we should meet again for breakfast. It might get noticed. Have a good day." Carol left as quickly and silently as she had come.

"What do you think now?" The woman leaned close to her husband and added, "David".

David leaned closer to his wife, "It's dangerous, but she isn't a Nazi or they would have questioned us already. My instinct is to trust her."

Chana nodded, "She is a tough minded woman. She reminds me of those stories about Harriet Tubman. She had the nerve to go into slave states and steal slaves from their owners. The slave owners wanted her caught and put a high bounty on her head, but she never let that stop her. Our Harriet Tubman is one determined woman. I think she would get us to where she wants us to go if she has to carry us on her back".

"I'll start gathering supplies today. I love you, Chana Hakim." David was a surgeon. You made up your mind in surgery and even when you met obstacles you didn't give up.

Chana took his hand, "I have a scheduled delivery this morning. No one else is due for a while and they can make do with another doctor. I love you, David Hakim and I always will".

Chana didn't tell David everything. She knew Carol was pregnant. She could always tell when someone was pregnant without running a test. Carol had come here for a friend even though it endangered herself and her baby. She would find a way to get them where she wanted them to be but Chana sensed that Carol might have to pay a high price to make that happen.

AN

Chana is a Hebrew word for "beautiful". Hakim is a common name for Iranian Jews. David Hakim is a character that I have used before.

Carol has lied to Daryl about where she was going. She has found a way in Savannah and has gathered up the two that she came for and two that she didn't. Do you believe that Carol would do that? How much more will she have to do to find a way out? Will you forgive her? Will Daryl?

Give me some feedback, peeps. Carol is out on a limb here.