Chapter 22 "Garden"

Day 90; Group A

The next day was a solemn one. There was very little joy, let alone even talking. Mika was distraught, confused why her dad was locking himself up and so sad, and wondering what had happened to Lizzie. She was no fool, and she knew that Lizzie had died. They would have told her something if she hadn't. Of course, it was very upsetting to think about, but it was so surreal. She didn't see Lizzie at all that day, and then to suddenly find that she had passed seemed like it wasn't happening.

Early that morning, Beth and Mika were sitting on the couch in the living room, and Beth was reading a story to the younger girl, hoping she would get some more sleep. Mika was wrapped around her right arm, looking on at the book sitting on Beth's lap, using her still-bandaged left hand to turn it. "And the princess looked to the kingdom, who shouted happily seeing her. 'I have returned,' she said to the masses, 'and I am here to stay. I vow' — that means promise," she said to Mika, "'to never leave again. And they lived happily ever after, the princess safely back home thanks to the bravery of her knights. The end.'" Beth closed the book and kissed Mika's head tenderly. "Still not tired?"

Mika shook her head at Beth, the smile she had from the book fading. They remained silent for a few moments as Beth held Mika close, her own eyes getting heavy as she cooed at the girl calmingly. "Beth, what happened to my dad?" Mika asked the older blonde girl, who had been with her all day. Beth knew what it was like to lose a sister, and she didn't want Mika to go through what she did.

"Well, he's just," she paused, considering. "He's had a really bad day, and he just wants to sleep." Beth was slightly horrified. There were so many similarities between herself and Mika and their fathers that she was just beginning to see.

"I know why he had a bad day. You don't have to keep hiding it from me."

"What?"

"Lizzie," she said, cuddling deeper into Beth's arms. "I know that she's.. gone."

Beth frowned at the innocent girl. "I know, cupcake. You're a smart girl. Your dad's just not taking it well. But we can't be mad at him for that. And you shouldn't feel guilty if you don't get upset as he is. Over anything. As long as you love and respect them, they'll know you miss them."

Mika smiled. "You know everything, Beth."

"No, I don't," Beth said, looking up to Ryan's room.

"Well, you know how to be nice. How do you know all of that?"

Beth met the girl's eyes. "My daddy always used to tell me, 'Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.' You just have to always do your best to be nice. You've heard 'if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all,' haven't you?"

Mika nodded. "That's what my mommy told me when I was little." She looked to the ground. "I miss Mommy. And Lizzie."

"I know, sweetie, I know. It's hard to lose people you love."

"Have you lost anyone?"

"I have. My mom, my daddy. My cousin. And my sister, too."

"Were you sad?"

"Every time. I think I was the saddest about my sister. I hated losing all of them, though. But she was just so.. selfish."

"Selfish? Did she not share?"

"No, no. Not like that. She uh," Beth said, beginning to regret talking about Maggie, "well, to be honest, she killed herself."

"Oh," Mika said, looking sadly to Beth, and she kissed Beth's cheek, who looked like she was about to cry. "It's okay."

"It is." Beth wiped a tear away and smiled to the young girl. "The scary thing is… I was thinkin' about doin' the same thing. When momma died, I wanted to do it, but Maggie and daddy were there for me. They didn't know how I felt, but they made me feel better. Then when daddy died, I was really considering it. Shawn thought I wanted to do it. He wasn't wrong, but I didn't let him know. He helped me. Then, a few days after Daddy died, Maggie did it. It made everyone so upset. Even me. I saw how much it hurt everyone, even those who didn't love her as much as some of us did. It helped me see how selfish I had been. I felt so stupid."

Mika sat there, taking it all in. She looked to Beth, seeing the strength in her. "But you're okay now. You're stronger, and smarter."

"That's right," the Greene said, smiling warmly with tears in her eyes to Mika. "I am."

Hours later, after they both got some sleep on the couch together, it was time for everyone to start working. Because of Ryan's mourning, and it being so soon after a big loss in people, the group considered postponing the run, which was scheduled for this day, but Shawn took full advantage of Ryan being upset, and they headed out without him. He, Selenis, Robert, Greyson, Seth, and Daniel went early that morning in the RV that was in the best condition, which used to be Xavier's. They were waved off by Beth, Mika, Amanda, Gabriel, and Allan.

A while after they left, Patricia and Beth were at the table in the dining room after breakfast drinking coffee and discussing keeping the group busy in order to help distract them from their losses. "Maybe we could play board games?" Beth asked.

"No, dear, I'm all board gamed out," Patricia half-smiled, sipping at her coffee.

Beth looked out the window and saw the land they had readied for farming. She smiled. "The garden. We could finally start on those winter plants."

"Now I think we've got something. Let's go see who wants to help."

The two finished their coffees and rose to ask others if they wanted to help. Mika happily volunteered. Lyrik agreed to do it because she'd be with some of her closest friends and she felt like she needed more things to do around the place. Ryan, as expected, turned them down, even though his daughter was going to be out there as well. His stance didn't change no matter how much Beth begged, and she didn't want Mika to have to see Ryan the way he was. Otis agreed to do it for his wife, even though he would rather be sleeping or reading. They asked everyone else, but only Allan wanted to do it. They either wanted to sleep more, said they were busy, or just didn't care.

Out in the garden, they had just made it through the first row of cabbage and were about to begin on the next when Otis ripped his glove pulling out weeds that had grown in, and there were still many to get. He stood back for a few moments, watching the others work. Beth was showing Mika how to garden. Allan and Lyrik were doing their best as Patricia struggled to watch over the both of them and make sure that they didn't mess up by planting seeds too close, or planting wrong seeds. Otis smiled at the site. "I'm gonna go look for a new pair of gloves," he said to Patricia, who hummed in return.

Not long after Otis left, some walkers came out from the trees. Allan scoffed as he got up, raising his gun to put them down. Then, more came. It was a herd. A massive one. As it got closer, it could be seen that they were coming from everywhere. All along the northern treeline, not a single place could be seen that a walker wasn't coming out of, and many were making it onto the road leading back to the highway, which was the only safe way out of the forest.

They panicked and began reaching for their supplies. The seeds, gloves, fertilizer; anything even moderately useful within their vicinity. Instead of heading for the house, Allan made a beeline for the remaining RV, causing everyone to follow. Smart, Beth thought to herself as she followed behind everyone.

They loaded the RV with as much as they could and everyone except for Beth and Patricia piled in. Patricia was crying, and was beginning to get hysterical, screaming to go inside for Otis. Allan and Lyrik had to drag her inside the RV as Beth went to warn to the group, "Herd! Get out!"

A clattering was heard from inside, but when the herd got too close and no one came outside, they were forced to take off. Allan drove them south, down a dirt road they had cleared for just in case they needed to make an escape. "We can't just leave them!" Patricia screamed. "We can't leave Otis!"

"And what about my dad?" Mika asked, staring out the back window as the house faded into the distance.

Though they agreed that they shouldn't just leave them, they had no choice. If they had waited, the herd would have destroyed everything and killed all of them. All they can do is hope that everyone made it out. "I'd rather have sixteen die than twenty-one," Allan said, almost heartlessly.