Everyone suited up in whatever riot gear we could find and get clean. I had strapped my Kevlar on when Daryl approached me.
"Ya know a dead man wore this?" he scoffed at me. I looked at him, nothing protective on his body whatsoever and I picked up the last vest off the table. He eyed me warily as I walked over to him with it.
"For me?" I asked, holding it out to him. He eyed it contemptibly and I frowned. Daryl sighed, snatching it from me and strapping it to his body.
The parts of the prison we'd had yet to explore seemed darker than the part we currently occupied. We walked slowly, carefully, through the halls. Daryl and I had strapped a flashlight to our bows and I kept it trained in front of me as I walked.
Every creak was loud and every tiny sound made me jump. The halls were terrifyingly tight and I knew if we were ambushed running was our only option. Glenn sprayed the walls as we turned corners so that way we could find our way back, almost like breadcrumbs.
The halls rank of death, bodies scattered around on the floor. Most of them were eaten through by walkers, torn shreds or bones. I couldn't imagine what had happened here the day the infection hit. There's a good chance it was a madhouse, no wonder half these people are eaten.
I stepped precariously over one, knowing that it would be just my luck for it to spring to life and grab me. I let out a relieved sigh when the corpse stayed motionless on the floor.
Rick checked our corners for us, each one more uncertain than the last. Our flashlights gave us enough light to walk, but I wasn't sure how much good they would do if we came face to face with a horde of walkers.
There was a loud thud ahead and I froze, training my light onto the corner from which I heard it. Rick and Daryl took tentative steps forward, me following close behind. We turned the corner, finding our selves face to face with a hallway full of walkers.
"Go back!" Rick whispered intensely. We tripped over ourselves as we all stopped and I gasped, turning and running straight into Hershel. I pushed him forward lightly, kicking him into gear and we took of, Glenn and Maggie leading us down another hall.
Maggie shrieked as that passage, too, bottomed out into a group of walkers.
"Come on this way!" Rick yelled, blindly running into another hallway. We were now fully sprinting, growls echoing off of all the walls, making it impossible to determine where they were coming from.
There was a utility closet up ahead and we ducked inside, quietly shutting the door behind us. Hershel held up his light, taking stock of the group. I looked around as well, noticing our numbers seemed lessened than they were before.
"Where's Glenn and Maggie?" Rick asked in a hushed whisper.
"We have to go back." Hershel replied, worried for his daughter.
"Yeah, but which way?" Daryl asked. The group shrugged and he glanced up at me. I had no idea and I looked at the ground shaking my head. Rick turned to the door, making sure it was clear before he led us out, back into the dark hallways.
It sounded like the walkers had moved off, their snarls and moaning nowhere to be heard, but we still ran down the hallway carefully, whispering for our missing people. There was a sudden scream from the hallway we just cleared and I turned swiftly, sprinting down it.
My flashlight found Hershel on the floor, struggling against a walker on the ground. The walker had bitten into his leg and pulled at the flesh, chewing on him intensely.
"NO!" Rick screamed, grabbing his pistol and shooting the walker dead. Hershel still laid on the ground, crying in pain, wailing in shock. Maggie and Glenn turned the corner, staring down at him, stunned.
I ran over, dropping to Hershel's side, checking the damage to his leg. It was incredibly extensive and he bled profusely. T-Dog and Rick both bent down, helping him to his feet, carrying him off. I grabbed my bow from the floor, standing just as the walkers turned the corner. Daryl and I dropped a few of them to the ground, both of us reloading.
"WE'RE BLOCKED!" I heard Rick yell over the commotion and the snarls. Daryl brought his hand's to his head, running them through his hair nervously and I whimpered, panicking. Rick took off down another hallway and we followed him quickly, firing arrows down the hallway behind us, hoping to kill enough of them to slow them down.
We came to a door at the far end of the hallway and I began to wonder why it was taking so long to get through it.
"Get the door!" Daryl yelled. I looked to find that it was locked with a pair of handcuffs. The zombies grew closer and my breath hitched in my throat. Daryl and I both reloaded our bows, shooting into the crowd behind us.
"Get in!" I heard and quickly we began to file into the open room, not even clearing it. Daryl and I shut the door behind us, and him and T-Dog held it closed while I ran to Hershel's side. He was panicked, hyperventilating and I looked at him cautiously.
"Breath! Just breath!" I pleaded with him, grabbing his foot. He cried out in pain, but I didn't have time to be gentle with him. It was bad and the walker had taken a chunk of his leg before Rick shot him. I grimaced, reaching for my belt undoing it.
"Hold him down Rick!" I motioned to his shoulders and the sheriff did as I told him. Maggie and Glenn helped, taking his legs and pinning them to the floor. I fastened my belt around his leg tightly, cutting off the circulation and Hershel looked at me in horror.
I pulled out my knife, glancing up at Daryl, swallowing hard, bringing it above my head. Rick stopped me, shaking his head and reached into his pack, bring forth a small hatchet. I looked at it warily.
"It'll be easier." Rick explained. I took it quickly, tossing my blade aside. Rick removed his over shirt, rolling it up and placing it in Hershel's mouth as a bite board. He nodded, signaling he was ready and I looked at Hershel, sobbing pathetically.
"There's only on way to keep you alive." I told him apologetically. I brought the hatchet above me head and before I could think about what I was doing, I slammed it down into his leg. Hershel cried out, spazzing uncontrollably, only to be subdued as I brought it down again.
Blood splattered all over my face and I grimaced, again bringing the hatchet above my head. I was making a decent dent in his leg, the bone would be what was tough, and I chopped again, this time more forceful. There was a loud crack, I had broken the tibia. Again, another loud crack, blood splattered my face, broken fibula. Again, more blood splatter.
I hacked like a mad woman and after the first few Hershel's cries died out, he'd passed out from the pain. I chopped until I heard the metal clashed against the floor and I stood, dropping the hatchet to the ground. It clanged loudly, echoing off the walls.
"Oh…" I said shakily, reaching down for his leg. "He's bleeding out, oh god." Maggie whimpered beside me. Daryl had joined me by my side, his hand on my shoulder to support me.
"Duck." He whispered. I looked at him confused, but the look on his face was deadly serious. I crouched low, the smell of iron filling my nose, and Daryl stood aiming at something behind me.
"Holy shit." Someone exclaimed from behind me. I turned briefly to see several inmates behind the fencing around the kitchen.
"Who the hell are you?" Daryl asked them. They returned the question but I stopped listening. Looked at Glenn and he rounded to me.
"Put pressure on the knee." I demanded, taking off my Kevlar and my shirt. I quickly tied my shirt around his knee, tying it off tightly. Glenn walked off past the group of men into the kitchen to look for med supplies. I glanced around again to find one of them had drawn their guns.
The one in front's eyes dropped to me and I cowered, only clad in my bra. Daryl followed his gaze and Daryl shifted to stand in front of me, shielding me from his eyes. Glenn returned with a rolling tabletop and I looked to Rick, we had to move him.
"On three. 1…2…3!" Maggie and Glenn helped Rick and I pulled Hershel onto the stretcher. "T the door!" I shouted to the man. He nodded, killing a walker that made its way inside. The inmates were shouting at us, but I ignored them as I hastily ran into the hallway.
It was hard following the arrows, but I let Daryl lead the way.
"Go, go, go!" he yelled to me, gesturing with his hands for us to follow. I did as I was told, sprinting after him. He made another sharp turn and then another, killing walkers as he went. Voices came from behind us and Rick stopped us. The inmates had followed us out into the hallway.
"Go, go, go!" Rick whispered, not wanting them to catch up to us.
"Open the door! It's Hershel!" Rick yelled as we entered our cell block.
"Oh my god!" The other said I was rolled up. I ignored them, leading them into the nearest cell.
"On the bed on the bed!" I yelled. "On three! 1…2…3!" again they helped me move him, placing him gently on the bed.
"He got bit!" Daryl told them as they looked at him confused.
"Oh my god!" Beth cried out.
"You cut it off?" Lori asked. I nodded my head quickly returning to the stub. She raised her eyebrow at me. "Hopefully you caught it in time." Rick removed the stretcher and I knelt next to Hershel, dipping my head down, listening for breathing. Hershel was still unconscious, but he was breathing.
"I need bandages!" I yelled to someone, anyone, who would go.
"We used everything we had!" Glenn reasoned with me.
"WELL GET ME MORE!" I shouted, taking a sheet and placing it against his leg. The tourniquet helped, but not nearly enough, he was still losing blood and if I didn't stop it soon he'd be lost.
"Carl go get the towels from the back, right next to my bed baby!" Lori commanded him. Everyone was towering over me and I grew frustrated. I pointed to the door and quickly they filed out, leaving just Daryl and Rick inside.
"Do you think you can stabilize him?" Rick asked me quietly, knowing my nerves were shot.
"I need to keep his leg elevated." I said, holding it high in the air. "Get me some pillows!" I reached out my blood stained hands and Rick obliged me, handing me every single pillow in the room.
"We need to burn the wound to stop the blood, I can start a fire!" Glenn suggested. I shook my head taking the towels from Carl.
"No, the shock could kill him. It wouldn't stop the arteries from bleeding anyways." I paused, taking a deep breath, holding the towel tightly to his leg. I breathed deeply, my hands shaking, from shock or adrenaline, I didn't know which, and I fought back the tears. I knew I needed to be strong for his daughters, but I was finding it hard. I was covered in blood and my mentor was laying on a bed bleeding to death. "We need to just keep it dressed and let it heal on its own." I tried to finish strong but I ended up sobbing, my voice breaking.
Daryl had gone missing from my side and I looked around wildly for him. Rick noticed and he knelt beside me.
"I sent him to secure the door, keep going, we believe in you." Rick said quietly, cooing to me.
"H-his leg isn't elevated enough." I took a few deep breaths, taking a sheet and putting it under his leg. I tied it to the bars above him on the bottom of the top bunk, shoving the pillows under his thigh. I looked at my craftsmanship, tugging hard on the sheet his stump was held up by. I glanced up at Rick, still shaking and he kissed my forehead reassuringly. "I've done all I can…" I said quietly, standing up.
"It's okay. Beau you did good." Rick took my shoulders in his hands, looking me straight in my eyes. I shivered and Lori took her arm, putting it around my shoulder.
"I've got an extra blouse in my cell honey, lets get you cleaned up. Lori led me up to her cell and then to the guard room so I could clean up and wash off.
There was a bathroom up in the guard room, it was small one toilet and a tiny sink with a wash bin and a mirror. Lori, draped the shirt and the jeans she had for me over the toilet quietly, smiling at me tightly before leaving me. I watched the door close and upon hearing it latch I began to sob.
I ran to the sink, leaning on it, looking quietly into the mirror. My face was literally covered, almost like warpaint, with Hershel's blood. I stared at myself in horror, immediately turning on the sink and splashing water onto my face. I scrubbed vigorously until my face hurt and then I scrubbed again, down my arms, my neck, my hands.
I was clean, but I still felt dirty and gross. I replayed what I did in my head, seeing myself chopping through Hershel's leg over and over again. I walked over to the toilet, taking the shirt and pants in my arms. Slowly I pulled them on.
I found myself back in Hershel's cell a little later on to change the bandages I'd placed on his leg. The bleeding had slowed considerably, something that pleased me greatly. Glenn and Maggie hadn't left his side, while Beth was a permanent fixture on the wall opposite.
"Bleedings stopped considerably, but when we get him through this we'll need crutches. Right now though…" I trailed off, feeling his forehead with my hand. No fever had set in, which was good, but I new it could only be a matter of time. "We need antibiotics, sterile gauze."
"We're out of antibiotics." Glenn said quietly. "and that was the last of the gauze we had." I looked up at him frowning.
"We've got to find the infirmary. It'll have plenty of what we need for him. Where's Daryl and Rick?" I asked Lori. She frowned through the bars at me.
"They're going to take the prisoners to clear out a cell block."
"What?" I exclaimed standing up. I exited the cell, making for the front room to find them. Daryl was coming down the line and he stopped me, a hand on under my shoulder.
"Where ya going?" he asked quietly. I stared at him, eyes wide.
"I should ask you the same thing." I tried not to sound angry, but I knew I had failed. He licked his lips, sighing, letting me go.
"We made a deal with the cons. Half the food in the kitchen if we helped them clean out a cellblock." I guffawed at him.
"Well you're going to have to put it on hold. We have to find the infirmary for Hershel." Daryl sighed, glancing over his shoulder.
"We aint got any of Merle's stash left?" he asked. I shook my head quietly, glancing back to where Lori and Carol stood, watching us. Daryl bit his lip, contemplating something.
"Darlin, these men are jumpy, agitated. We can't go back on our word. Shit's stressed as it is." He pleaded with me. Rick had approached us, wondering where Daryl was, they were ready to go. He looked at us questioningly and I shook my head.
"I'm going with you." I said finally. Daryl shook his head at me.
"No. No way." He argued.
"If the infirmary isn't on this side of the prison, it's on that side, where you're going. I have to get things for him or he is going to die." Rick took a deep breath thinking about what I said and Daryl looked up at him, begging for him to be on his side about this.
"You'll carry a gun with your bow. And you'll stay close to us. These prisoners have been here a long time, I don't want you getting lost with one."
"Are you fucking serious?!" Daryl was not happy with Rick's decision. Rick gave him a look and much to his chagrin Daryl quieted down.
"I will do whatever you tell me to, I promise." I pleaded with him. Daryl seemed to be okay with this and he pulled a pistol out of the back of his waistband, handing it to me. I placed it under my shirt, in my waistband and he gestured for me to follow him back to the common area.
In the common area we laid out an array of melee weapons for the prisoners to take. They looked at them, eyes narrowed, confused. I watched each of them, studying them. The Hispanic one, Tomas, was definitely the leader, he seemed to call all the shots this far and he was the one with the gun. There were two large black men, one who's name I didn't know, and the other they referred to fondly as Big Tiny, they just kinda followed, along with the third small black man. The only one who seemed to go against him was the white guy, Axel, but that was rarely and never with any confidence.
"So tell me, why do I need this," the Hispanic inmate spoke up, gesturing to the weapons we'd provided them. "When I have this?" He held up his pistol and I crossed my arms, looking at him in disbelief. He winked at me and Daryl growled.
"You don't fire guns, not unless your backs against the wall." Daryl said snidely. The inmates seemed confused and I cleared my throat.
"Noise attracts them, really riles them up." I said plainly.
"We'll go in two by two. Daryl will run point with Beau, and I'll bring up the rear with you." Rick laid out, pointing to the smaller black inmate. "Stay tight, hold formation, no matter how close the walkers get. Anyone breaks ranks, we could all go down. Anyone runs off, they could get mistaken for a walker, end up with an axe to the head." Rick said quietly, looking at each inmate in turn. I didn't know how I felt about trusting my life to a group of felons, but I knew I had no choice.
"That's where you aim." Daryl repeated. "These things only go down with a headshot."
"You aint gotta tell us how to take out a man." The Latino said coolly. His inmates chuckled and my blood ran cold. Daryl glanced at me before narrowing his eyes back at them. I watched them carefully, my arms crossed in front of my chest.
"They aint men, they're something else." I said slowly, hoping that they'd understand how dangerous what we were about to do for them was.
"Just remember to go for the brain." Rick said again, heading for the locked cell door.
Omg guys two chapters in one day? I'm just the nicest author ever i swear.
no. no thats a lie. I have ulterior motives. I haven't been writing. i've done maybe a single chapter in three days. Blame it on The Mummy. I just had this brilliant idea for an OC and i can't get her out of my head. uhgssss. If you'd liek to read about her please let me know!
Also Reviews and stuff. those really help me get going and i haven;t been getting many lately :( such sad.
STAY BEAUTIFUL!