That night...
Mikey and Lucy found two decent dirt bikes, and carefully wheeled them out of the dealership. The keys were in the office, and after less than an hour if searching with only their two flashlights helping them, they finally found the right sets. Rolling them out, they were pleasantly surprised to find gas still in the pumps. Both hid both bikes in the bushes, before Mikey brought her to the apartment he was currently hiding out in. Lucy followed him, still keeping her gun close, as they walked down the deserted street, Entering through the drugstore, they climbed the steps, and Mikey opened up the apartment, before starting to drag furniture to block the door. Lucky looked around, the place was dark, but actually pretty clean besides some dust. She noticed Mikey had a window open, which dropped off to the fire escape. Respecting the fact he had thought out a second exit just in case, she took a look around. On the sofa there were blankets and a pillow, a few scattered empty bottle bottles and cans of food. Sitting down, she watched Mikey before he finished and wiped his hands on his jeans. She noticed he was slightly limping, before making his way over to the chair across from her and plopped himself down.
"Leg bothering you?"
Mikey shrugged looking down at it.
"Yeah, it's still hard to walk on. I'm real lucky I didn't lose it. I would have been a goner for sure if that happened."
"You want some aspirin?"
She went to reach into her bag when Mikey shook his head and motioned to the open first aid kit on the coffee table as well.
"Got plenty here and down below, thanks though. When everything happened I think all the junkies cleared everything out. Some nights it hurt so bad I swear I must have passed out from the pain. I got off lucky..."
"You think you broke a bone or something?"
"Maybe. I fell from a second story window. The place I came from was a gated community. Me and my dad went there after everything happened. There was a bunch of us, running water, electricity, everything...then my dad died, and one of the walls fell. The place got overrun with wakers and it was chaos. I tried to get away when those guys grabbed me."
Lucy listened and crossed her legs, almost certain the men were Negan's.
"Did they all themselves anything?"
"Yeah, the wolfs. They have the letter W carved into their foreheads. They were filthy...crazy in fact. They grabbed me in the woods. I was hurt bad, and they dragged me to one of their camps..."
His words drifted off when Lucy stared at him and swallowed hard.
"They raped you?"
Mikey looked ashamed. His dark eyes lifted before he slowly nodded.
"Yeah, for a month or so...they took turns, barley fed me. My leg got really bad...whenever I cried out or fought back they would beat me. It was pretty bad. Finally one day I was able to slip away when a group of walkers turned up at the camp. They were outnumbered. I was real sick, and been holding up here since. I kept waiting until I was strong enough...I have no idea if anyone is still alive or not..."
"I've been there."
"Huh?"
"Alexandra, where you came from? I've been there."
"When?"
"Not that long ago, few days..."
"Is anyone left?"
Lucy thought of the explosions, the walkers entering it, the saviors taking over. Staring at him, she slowly shook her head.
"No, I'm sorry..."
Mikey sighed, looking down at his hands.
"I figured. I heard my dad probably didn't make it...I didn't have any other family. My mom died from cancer years ago. I have friends there though."
"I'm sorry..."
Mikey sighed staring down, looking much older than he actually was. Finally after a few minutes of silence, he lifted his eyes and looked at her.
"What's your story? You from around here?"
Lucy sighed staring forward.
"I was with a group of people...and they were all killed. I was from Atlanta, when everything happened I saw my parents get killed. A man named Chris helped me get out...but my group stumbled upon the wrong group. They were called The Saviors. Heard of them?"
Mikey shook his head as she went on, knowing if she didn't say this now, she never would.
"It's an army really...hundreds upon hundreds of men all over the state. Their leader is a man named Negan. He's insane...he killed Chris, and everyone else I was with before kidnapping me and holding me hostage. He raped me over and over again, claiming I was his wife."
"Jesus..."
Lucy went on.
"He got me pregnant, and I tried to escape several times. Finally one day when I was nearly nine months pregnant I tried killing myself by throwing myself into a rock quarry. How I didn't kill myself is beyond me but I got hurt real bad. I collapsed in the woods, and went into labor. A couple found me and helped me deliver. I had twin boys. The couple took the healthy baby while they left me with the one who wasn't going to make it. I was bleeding badly, and I think they figured I wasn't going to make it either. I put down the baby after it turned, and a man named Joe found me. He was a good man, nursed me back to health and we hit the road. Due to my injuries I couldn't remember anything before the accident. Only the name Negan. As luck with have it a few months later we wandered back into Negan's camp."
"Shit..."
Lucy nodded.
"He lied to me saying I was his life and that I must have gotten lost in the woods and got hurt. I feel so stupid but I believed him. He killed Joe and lied that he left me. I lived with man who raped and tortured me for months, not remembering anything. I watched as he murdered people with this awful baseball bat wrapped in barb-wire. He named it Lucille...after me and after his first wife. I think somehow in his crazed mind he thought it was a sign of fate that he found me. All he did was lie. He ruled these people like an army and had complexes all over the state. He got me pregnant again and around this time I remembered everything. I planned my escape when I happened upon the people from Alexandra. Negan had taken over there, forcing them to give them half of everything they found and would kill if anyone questioned them. I believed one of the babies there might have been the other boy I have birth to. I know the chances were slim, but I believed it and when word got out they might have Negan's child...well...it got killed."
"They killed the baby?!"
Lucy sighed shaking her head.
"Everything happened pretty fast, but a war broke out between the people of Alexandra and Negan's men. I watched a lot of people die. Negan wanted to get even after they tried to help me. I tricked Negan into thinking I was one of your people and he got me with his bat before he realized it was me...that's why I wear this..."
She undid the handkerchief showing the scar traveling down her skull. Mikey blinked looking in the darkness at her before she sighed, no longer embarrassed or ashamed before putting the handkerchief back on. Tying it back, she stared at him.
"He kidnapped the doc from The Hilltop to try and help me but I got hurt real good. A few days ago he attacked Alexandra. Something tells me they were able to rebuild after the wall fell and you got taken. I had been inside it, met some people there...then I watched Negan destroy it. Half the place was in fire when I saw my chance and escaped. I figured he would send people after me but I've been careful. I've been laying low...but I don't want you to get hurt. If you don't mind I'll sleep here a few hours and take off if that's okay."
Mikey stared for a second before shaking his head.
"No."
"What?"
"No, I'm not kicking you out all because that psycho might be after you. If we take the bikes and travel at night we'll be okay, we just need to stick off the main roads."
"I'm hurt bad...I don't even know if I'm healthy enough to travel..."
"Then it makes more sense if we travel together. You're pregnant aren't you?"
Lucy shifted in her seat, before looking down at herself.
"Yeah..."
"Well after what you've told me I'm sure you can take care of yourself, but I might feel better having you with me. Hell, you might even help me."
Lucy gave an exhausted humorless laugh before staring at him. For just being a kid, he seemed as if he was being sincere.
"Listen, it's worth a shot. You're a survivor like me. We've been through a lot...and I really gotta tell you. I don't want to be alone."
Sighing, Lucy stared at him before nodding.
"Okay..."
Smiling Bradley looked around.
"I say we stay put here for a day. Get some sleep, I'll take first watch. I have some canned goods and we can eat later. We'll stay low tomorrow and take off tomorrow night. You ever ride a bike before?"
"A little...you?"
"Kinda, my uncle showed me how before..."
Lucy sadly smiled.
"Yeah, before..."
Mikey then stood up, rubbing his hands against his pant legs and motioned to the sofa.
"Sleep, I'll keep watch."
Actually feeling quite exhausted, Lucy looked around before nodding.
"Okay..."
Handing him the handgun, she knew she was taking a risk, but at this exact moment she no longer cared. If she was destined to die, she would die. If she would live, she would live.
"Ever shoot one of these?"
Mikey nodded.
"Yeah..."
"Okay...wake me in an hour and we'll take turns."
Mikey nodded before Lucy swung her legs up and settled into the sofa. It smelled a little musty, but otherwise was pretty comfortable. Settling down, she closed her eyes and within ten minutes she was dead asleep. Mikey watched her, before carefully pulling up one of the tangled blankets and covering her.
The next evening...
Mikey was kind enough to let Lucy sleep four straight hours before she woke up. She scolded him for not letting her take over, but thanked him for allowing her to get some much needed rest. For the first time in awhile she didn't have a headache. Using the bathroom down the hall, she stared at her pale reflection, and sighed wishing for a hot shower. Turning, she joined Mikey who insisted on them eating before he slept for awhile. They ate canned corn beef, and drank from water bottles, talking a little bit of life before, and how many walkers they had seen since all of this happened. Mikey slept for a while and Lucy stood guard, sitting in the chair, watching him asleep. She had learned he was turning sixteen soon. Funny enough, she would be nineteen soon. Nineteen. That seemed insane. All ready she had been a mother, and had gone through complete Hell.
Now, she had another one of Negan's babies growing in her, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, she didn't feel depressed staring down at herself. She had just begun to show, and she enjoyed the thought of that bastard never touching her again. Still, she was scared. He had found her all those times before, what would make this time any different? Knowing she had to be smart and careful, she sat there watching Mikey sleep and thought of Chris and then Joe. She hoped to God he wouldn't have the same luck as her other friends. When daylight came, they switched off again. She slept for an hour, then him. They ate again, sat on the furniture, and kept away from the windows. They didn't hear anything all day. When dusk settled, they decided to pack what they needed in their backpacks, and head down. Once in the drug store, Mikey grabbed another first aid kit then started looking for something else. Raising an eyebrow, Lucy turned.
"What are you looking for?"
"Prenatal vitamins..."
Mikey then found a white bottle, grabbed it and held it up before smiling and tossing it to her. Grabbing it, she looked at the bottle touched before smiling.
"Thanks..."
Mikey smiled before telling her to come on. Together, they left the store, careful, sticking to the alleyways, before finding the two dirt bikes in the bushes. Lucy insisted that they test drove the bikes behind the dealership a few times. At first Lucy felt a little uneasy climbing onboard, scared she was going to wobble off. Instead after a few laps in the back lot, she began to feel more and more comfortable. She remembered all those times having to ride with Negan on his motorcycle. Disgusted, she pushed that thought away before motioning with her head to Mikey who seemed to slowly be getting the hang of it.
"You good?!"
Mikey nodded before calling back over the hum of the engines.
"Let's keep our speed down until we either find helmets or get more comfortable with it! I looked at a map, I know which back road to take to get onto the freeway."
"If there's any trouble, don't wait, just ditch the bike and run okay?!"
Mikey nodded before telling her to follow him. Together the two rode their bikes down the main road, and into the darkness of the night.
Two weeks later...
Florida.
Lucy couldn't believe it. They had made it. They had rode the bikes non-stop, only twice did it seem tricky when they were low on fuel and forced to search all the deserted towns until they found some. They followed Mikey's map, keeping the speed down, riding side by side. Durning the day they would find someplace safe to hold up, always hiding the bikes a mile or so away. They slept on rooftops, in an old motel, even up a tree once. Their sleep was broken, but they were always careful, and always kept watch. In total, they killed just nine walkers between the two of them. They began to suspect that whatever walkers were left were rotting badly, and weren't as much of a threat as before. Still, they made sure they were careful. They ate canned goods and Mikey always made sure Lucy ate first and had enough. He was always the first to make sure she got plenty of sleep, and warned her to take it easy on the bike. When they crossed state lines they came upon a bike shop and got themselves helmets, jackets, and elbow and knee pads.
They only saw one person, a filthy drifter who tried flagging them down while they rode through a town, but both picked up the speed and blew past him knowing it was smarter to keep going. When they reached Florida, they still didn't exactly know where they were headed. To Lucy, the more miles they made, the better. Currently they were staying at a deserted resort. They killed two walkers, and were holding up in a third story hotel room that looked out onto the lagoon. They found water bottles, and some bags of stale chips. They secured the place, and were burning pieces of broken furniture in a tin trash barrel together, both sitting Indian style side by side. It was warm here, and they were making plans maybe to head as far as Key West before trying to figure what came next. Both knew this couldn't last forever. The real threat were survivors, both learned that the hard way. Sitting and poking the fire, Mikey glanced at Lucy and raised an eyebrow when he saw her staring at the flickering flames smiling.
"What is it?"
Lucy rocked back and forth looking around this giant hotel room, and began to laugh, tears in her eyes.
"I'm free...I'm finally free!"
Smiling, Mikey stared at her before Lucy turned and stared at him. The two made strong eye contact, before slowly Lucy felt a strange fluttering in her stomach, a fluttering she knew wasn't the baby, and a fluttering she hadn't felt since Chris. Leaning forward, she closed her eyes, and gently kissed Mikey.
Later...
"Are you sure?"
Mikey asked laying on top of Lucy crammed in a sleeping bag on the double bed in the hotel room. They had put put the fire they had made, and now both laid in the darkness, sweating and anxious. Lucy laid there, finally relaxing, allowing herself to let go, and see that this wasn't Negan. Mikey admitted he was a virgin, and she helped him undress in the dark, before both climbed into bed together. She felt him lay between her two spread legs, his penis rubbing against her inner thigh. Licking her lips, Lucy nodded. Mikey stared, still looking unsure. "What if I hurt the baby?" Smiling, Lucy gently wrapped her arms loosely around Mikey's neck, pulling him down before hearing him gasp.
That night Lucy laid awake in Mikey's arms. The sex had been wonderful. The first attempt Mikey had climaxed almost instantly when he entered her. The second time, after Lucy gave him a half hand job, he seemed excited, and less embarrassed. It only lasted a few minutes, but for Lucy for the first time ever she saw sex was something nice, something that brought her pleasure, not pain or embarrassment. She enjoyed feeling him move inside of her, exploring her body. She loved the feeling of his warmth, how gentle he was, and how he bit his bottom lip when he finished. Afterwards, he laid in her arms, asking over and over if he had hurt her? Finally, he drifted asleep in her arms as she gently stroked his hair. That's when she felt the baby very slightly move inside of her. Staring up at the hotel ceiling, she stroked Mikey's hair and smiled thinking to herself...
"Oh Negan...I hope you are suffering you son of a bitch."
With that she gently laughed, and closed her eyes, allowing sleep to take over.