Cages

by InAHeartbeat23

Rick and his group are surrounded by Negan and his Saviors. As Negan is choosing who should meet Lucille first, two people catch his interest: Daryl and Everly. He takes them both back as hostages, determined to do whatever he can to break them in and make them his, but Negan soon learns that he took much more than he bargained for. **Now comes with romantic relationships! Daryl/OC

39. Chapter 39

Chapter 39

I stuck my head out into the hall, peering both ways to see if anyone was standing guard. When my inquiry came up empty, I moved into the hall and gently closed the door behind me. I wasn't entirely sure if I was allowed to leave the room, but Negan hadn't advised me otherwise and I'd eaten like he asked me to. I threw in some complimentary room service as well, straightening up the room and leaving my packed bag sitting by the door.

I was still sore as hell, the pain in my muscles a sharp reminder of the spectacle I'd made of myself the day before, but the salted bath had helped a tad and I glided down the hallway vigilantly. What I would find was still a mystery, and I hadn't really put forth much of a plan other than exploring the grounds as inconspicuously as possible. I didn't want to poke my nose into the wrong place, but arriving here with Negan as a stranger but part of his crew was a perk. I could play that to my advantage.

The floor we stayed on was mostly empty and boring. There wasn't much to see and it seemed to be the living quarters of the residents here, which made sense. I didn't bother going up to the higher floors as I assumed I'd find the same thing. It was a hotel after all. The real prize probably lied below on the ground floor or in the basement of this place and that's where I headed as I carefully stepped down the stairwell.

What am I looking for? I pondered

Anything useable, and if these people couldn't be convinced to fight against Negan, I needed to know their strengths and weakness. Could they be taken over and how easy would it be? Where did they keep their weapons? What kind of weapons did they have? How guarded was it? I went ahead and answered that question with a 'not heavily' because this place seemed nearly deserted as I opened the stairwell door on the ground floor and saw no one again.

Not to mention the deserted gate. No one had been there.

That was still odd to me. There was no possible way those gates worked on a drive-in sensor. That would be reckless. There had to be a button or remote that was pushed, but I hadn't seen Simon or Negan reach for anything when we arrived. I didn't even remember seeing a call box despite the fact that if there had been one it hadn't been used anyway.

There was the possibility that someone had been at the gates, but I had just failed to observe them. I really didn't get the chance to see if anyone fell behind as the gates were pulled open. We had been the first vehicle through, after all. But they opened automatically, the hinged doors swinging open fluidly, robotically. They were definitely motorized.

So, what option did that leave? More significantly, what did that tell me? The revelation played at the back of my mind like a hiding child. I wanted to find it, to win the game of hide-and-seek, but it kept running away from me. This place was mysterious; still lodged between the edge of past reality and now. Simon had said this place was mostly running; it had power, running water, and usable faculties to name a few. Almost similar to the government built Alexandria, but even its resources were limited. Was that also the case here or was there more to it?

I considered this, and my now dry, but stiff, boots thudded quietly on the compacted carpet as I strolled through the hall. I heard voices drifting down the corridor past the corner that lead to the back terrace. I decided I'd explore there first, working on what I'd say to whomever I found.

He's keeping you on your toes, I reminded myself. Everything was a surprise when you were constantly left in the dark.

I ventured down the hall, keeping my body close the wall as if it could somehow hide me if anyone came out one of the many rooms. Most of them had labels as I passed by, giving me an idea of what might be inside, but I felt my courage choking when I went to grab a handle. I kept moving to the voices instead, thinking I could at least hear their conversation or sneak a peek inside.

"As you know, our numbers here have stagnated at a smooth one hundred twenty, but we've been actively rotating cadets as more survivors arrive at different communities…like you've asked." An authoritative woman's voice spoke.

"I'm glad to know you've been consistent with your task, Tricia. You're making me giddy with glee over here."

It was Negan's voice and I stopped dead in my tracks a mere few feet away from the open door.

"Thank you, sir." Tricia's voice was laced with gratitude. "It's actually a solid plan. We send out those who are ready to stay at various outposts in a forty mile radius. We get rid of dead ones all over the metro area and scout out potential communities, covering more square miles daily. Sometimes, though, our soldiers do run into trouble and we lose a few. We lost six just three days ago."

I heard a sigh from Negan.

"But, we've been pushing our cadets hard," Tricia backpedaled. "Not just in combat, but in logistics, strategizing, on how to play the field, if you will."

"That's all peachy, Trish. Truly," Negan agreed.

"There is one community we stumbled upon, sir," Tricia sounded strained now, disgusted even. "I'm not sure how to describe them, and at first, I didn't believe the reports myself until I had a look…"

There was a hesitation, and I bent toward the door, thinking I was missing something. Tricia began to speak again, but it was drowned out by the squeak of a chair and boots echoing around the room and they were headed to the door. I hit full panic mode and busted into the nearest room, shutting the door as quickly and silently as I could but it flew back open in the next instant.

I cowered against the wall, pushing into it like I could slip inside of it had I tried hard enough. I thought I was dead meat and I closed my eyes like a child, hoping if I couldn't see them then they wouldn't be able to see me. And it seemed to work because the person who strode in didn't acknowledge me at all.

Great getaway, jackass.

And I ground my teeth together. This couldn't be happening. I didn't see who it was. It could be Negan or someone else entirely, and I hadn't noticed what room I was in either. A second later, however, I had a good guess of where I might be when I heard the sound of a zipper and a splashing noise that could be described only as that of someone urinating. A relieved sigh escaped my fellow occupant of which I did not recognize. It wasn't Negan's, so that was a plus, but it didn't make this situation any less mortifying.

Forcing myself to open my eyes, I found the profile of the second most intimidating man I'd met in the past couple years pissing in a urinal; Kai. I closed my eyes again and shook my head. This was too damn ridiculous to be real, but when I looked again I was still in the same place and in the same predicament. The fucking odds were astounding.

It's okay. Just ease yourself out.

I slipped achingly slow to my right, reaching out a sightless hand for the doorknob as I went. My fingertips touched the cool metal as Kai finished his business, shaking and tucking himself back in his pants, and turning to the sink behind him. I froze, thinking he'd seen me for sure, but he turned the faucet on and rinsed his hands, checking himself out in the mirror.

Think of the chameleons. Be one with the chameleons. You are a chameleon.

The chant was dumb, but it helped ease my mind and I grasped the knob, edging the door open wide enough for me to slip out. I let it go instantly, not caring if it made a noise when it shut. I strode down the hall as fast as my smarting legs would go, willing myself to not break out into a run because that would be too obvious – and painful.

"Yo!" I heard Kai's voice shout from the men's restroom.

Panic was my main motivation now as I flung open another door at random, not daring to glance behind me; partly out of fear of seeing Kai striding after me but also as to not risking the chance of him seeing my face. Plenty of people could look like me from behind…maybe. I just needed to pretend like I belonged in this place. I closed the door behind me and locked it, not really caring for what it held. It was a fucking linen closet, but when the door wasn't broken down immediately, I took it as a good sign that Kai hadn't seen me duck inside at the last second.

If I was going to snoop around, I needed to be more careful. I'd already raised Kai's suspicions and it was too much of a close call. While nothing might have happened to me if I'd been caught in the hallway, I surely was going to receive an earful, or more, for peeping in the men's restroom. I could only imagine the conversation and shit-eating Negan grins now. It wouldn't due to plead for ignorance because then I would be confessing to sneaking around.

I counted to five hundred in my head, buying myself a little time to stack up the courage before going out in the hallway again. I considered calling it quits and going back to the room, but that would be wasteful. I was here for a reason, and not because Negan forced me to be. I was here to learn and that was what I was going to do.

Taking a deep breath, I cracked open the door. I didn't catch anything out of the ordinary; no angry, lurking man demanding to know why I watched him urinate or the like. That was alleviating, so I stepped out, closed the door behind me, and went a different way this time.

The passage routing to the back part of the large foyer of the hotel was clear. It was where Negan led me in the night before, and I smelt a tinge of bleach and lemon as I neared it. The floor must have just been cleaned, probably because of me, but I crossed the floor anyway with an inward smile, my boots squeaking on the granite tiles as I strode over it. Let's see how Kai liked my boot prints.

As I hit the parallel corridor, I tried to appear like I had a purpose, like I actually knew where I was going. A couple of chatty women appeared from a corner in front of me, and I avoided their gaze as I went by them. They didn't even give me a second look, and I felt a bit smug by that. The sight of the two women had me thinking, though. This place was strangely empty for being so big. I hadn't run into hardly anyone as I wandered the sunlight hallways, but the conversation I overheard made it seem like this place should be filled to the brim with people. So, where were they? Some clearly occupied the building now. I bet some of those positions were for those who couldn't fight or were found useful for something else: cleaning, cooking, general maintenance, auto mechanics, and maybe a fully staffed infirmary among other things. The real question I wanted answered was, what else could there be?

I read the signs by the doors again, hoping I'd be given a clue as to what lie behind them without doing too much probing. I didn't bother with the ones that were unassigned. The uncertainty of entering an unmarked room was nerve-wracking given the past twenty minutes of this whole exploration and time was precious. Besides, I'd been met with more than enough surprises and nudity to last me for the day, and I didn't want a repeat.

The unlatching of a door to my right took me by slight surprise, but I steadied myself and prepared to ignore whomever exited the room. Luckily, the man turned opposite of me and headed down the hallway in a jaunty strut, apparently off for lunch or perhaps a bathroom break… Either way, I didn't follow as the sign next to the room he just evacuated caught my attention.

Hotel Security, it read and I had a strong feeling this was the exact room I'd been waiting to find. I shoved my booted foot between the door and the jam before it could close, examining both ends of the corridor before I went inside. I heard voices from the direction the last man went, one of them deep and heavy with a unique northern accent that clearly belonged to Kai.

Not waiting to get caught, I placed my fingers to the door and pushed it open a tad. I grabbed the handle, and sure enough, it was locked. I counted my lucky stars and pushed the door open further, peeking inside to find it unoccupied and dark. Light from multiple screens illuminated the gloomy space, giving it a reminiscent glow of days long gone. The door clicked shut behind me, hopefully not too audibly, as I eyed the contrivances that hummed and ticked, knowing none of it was connected to a server but curious about them anyway. Why would they bother with wasting whatever energy they had on this? Scanning the security monitors, I got a better idea on that reason. Cameras were pinpointed all over Somerset grounds. They captured the front and back foyer, many (but not all) hallways, the hotel grounds which included the front gate (Bingo!), and the field I'd been forced to run on as punishment. It was now engaged by sweaty men and women who ran and performed other drills. Somerset was impressively preserved and now I knew how the gate had opened seemingly on its own the night before.

My eyes scanned across the multiple screens again. At first, nothing looked particularly special. I saw Simon and a few other Saviors in a dining hall having breakfast and relaxing, some Somerset soldiers loitered outside while they watched the trainees jog by with guns raised above their heads. That detail caught my attention because it reminded me of the weapons that must be stored here somewhere, and I wanted to find out how many. The computer Gods must've heard my prayers, because a monitor flipped scenes and lit up a whole room dedicated to the storage and maintenance of various weapons and ammo located in what looked like a concrete basement.

It seemed as if hundreds upon hundreds of armaments were stored here, and not just guns, but military grade artillery and gear such as bazookas, grenades, tactical vests with helmets, and more that I couldn't tell exactly what they were or put a name to. I quickly tried to find some way to identify what part of the building they were in and squeezed the desk I was leaning on as the camera changed to another angle outside of the hallway. I memorized what it looked like, taking mental notes of what hung on the walls and the unique flicker of the corridor light just outside of the room.

I felt satisfied with myself. While it wasn't the greatest revelation to find out just how prepared Negan had made himself, it also wasn't a secret anymore. Information like this was extremely vital and if we were going to start anything, Somerset would need to be taken down first and foremost. I needed to get this news to Rick somehow, and unless I could convince Negan to let me visit Alexandria, or unless Daryl happened to go there on a run, I would have to rely on Dwight to act as messenger. Whether or not he already knew about this place, which I suspected he did, was another question I'd have to ask myself later. Right now, I had to get out of this room before the guard came back and Negan's meeting ended and he realized I was gone.

I looked over the monitors one last time as I began to turn away when the sight of Kai standing in front of a closed door stopped me. I squinted my eyes, wondering what he was doing when a man walked up and joined him at the door. They didn't exchange words, but Kai held out his hand expectantly. The man gave him a quizzical look, but Kai must've said something to him because the man reached to his belt and unclipped a ring of keys. He placed it in Kai's waiting hand before turning around and stiffly walking back the way he'd come.

I shrugged my shoulders, finding the exchange peculiar as Kai chose a key and began to unlock the door of interest. I turned to head out, thinking I'd need to peek around each corner to avoid running into him when I heard the slip of the key and disengagement of the lock leading into the room I was in now.

I didn't have time to think. I barely had time to react as the door swung open and Kai's hulking form blocked the doorway - my only exit. He flipped the keys over in the lock again, checking that the handle was secure before closing the door, trapping me inside alone with him. He had caught me.

I stood there agape, not sure if I should go ahead and beg for mercy or try to talk my way out of whatever he thought I might be doing. All I knew was that it wouldn't look good for me to be standing by myself in the security room of the community he ran.

He doesn't know who you are, though, right?

Maybe! Maybe he didn't know who I was; that I was Negan's prisoner or that I was in here to gather intel on his community's strengths and weaknesses. I could use his ignorance to my advantage; tell him Negan sent me as a precaution to check up on Somerset's efficacy. That could be believable if I spun it the right way. I just had to make sure my social awkwardness didn't sell me out.

Kai tucked the keys into his pocket, his face a hard, unreadable mask as his brows furrowed marginally. He held his hands together in front of him, his right hand gripping the other, and he adjusted his shoulders and sighed through his nose as he studied me.

I knitted my brows back at him, trying to pretend like I didn't know why he was here interrupting my business. I put my hand on my hip casually as I waited for him to speak. It wasn't entirely safe for me to try to talk at this moment or I might give myself away the instant I did.

"Ya think ya foolin' me?" He finally asked, cocking his head to the side.

I straightened, gripping the bottom my jacket nervously in both hands. "Fooling you? I don't know what you mean."

"You prancing around here, sticking ya nose where it don't belong," he said.

"I'm perusing on Negan's orders. He requested that I survey the premises to make sure everything was still up to par security wise. So far, so good," I smiled tightly at him but the waver in my voice didn't go unnoticed by me or him. My stomach began to drop when he smirked and let out short laugh through his nose.

"You his security detail?" Kai asked, looking me up and down. "I thought you was more of a play thing."

"No," I spoke through my teeth. "I work for Negan. He made it clear that he set some high expectations for your group and I'm his coadjutant. I go behind him and double check everything. See if there are any cracks that need mending or…heads to bend to Lucille."

Kai raise his lips in a smile then, showing clean, white teeth. "Clever, but nah. Negan has Simon for that if that was something he needed done, but it ain't. And that doesn't even bring up the fact that I've ever seen your face before now… You and I both know that you're tryin' to spoon feed me bullshit, honey, and I ain't fuckin' bittin'."

"Well, you clearly know less than you think you do," I countered.

"That so?" Kai raised his pierced eyebrow. "Funny, because I didn't think it was customary for Negan's lieutenants to do a security sweep in the men's bathroom."

My heart stopped then. It might have been obvious how much shit I was trying to spin before but there was no denying it now. I wasn't as inconspicuous as I tried to be - so much for being a fucking chameleon.

"You're a fuckin' spy," Kai accused.

"No." The reply was short and a lie, but it was all I could manage at the moment.

"Yes," Kai affirmed with a nod of his head. "You are."

"I'm not a spy. I work for Negan." It was a weak attempt to convince him, but I said it regardless.

"Nah, shut ya mouth because that's what every fuckin' spy says when they're called out on being a spy, it's practically textbook."

He unclasped his hands and walked closer to me, and instinctively, I backed away. I bumped into the computer chair situated by the desk and it rotated from the momentum.

"Whadya say your name was again?"

"Everly," I whispered.

"Yeah, that's right. Weird fuckin' name," Kai commented as he continued advancing toward me. "Well, Everly, we've got a problem, don't we? A spy, you, is roving around my compound, lookin' at all the ins and outs, learnin' the tricks, but then I catch you red handed. I'd say that's a pretty good break for me, but you… Well, let's just say you ain't gonna get off so easy."

"You can't hurt me," I stated stupidly as the backs of my thighs hit the desk. He could whatever he wanted to me at this moment and no one would be the wiser.

"On the contrary," Kai said, slamming his hand down on top of the now computer chair, stilling it. "What do you think Negan will say if he finds out?"

I swallowed and bravely said, "I don't know. Let's go get him and see."

Kai laughed at that, pushing the chair out of his way. He came up to stand in front of me and brought up a finger to my jacket, flipping the zipper head back and forth.

"Or," he began and, thankfully, folded his arms, "I could pretend like I didn't see a thing, like I didn't see you sneaking out of the bathroom after you were done watching me…"

"I wasn't watching you," I stammered but he covered my mouth with his hand.

"And there ain't living dead people outside killin' anything that moves," he hit back with a soft raise of this lips and let me go. "Listen, if you want me to bite my tongue on this, you're gonna have to do somethin' for me."

"I'm not doing anything with you."

"Do you have selective fuckin' hearing?" He asked looking affronted now. "I'm not gonna blackmail ya into fuckin' me. I said for me, not slam yourself down on ya knees and suck my dick."

"Okay," I said defensively, pulling on the bottom of my jacket again.

Kai eyed me from head to toe once more before releasing another short laugh. "While it would be tempting to take the pussy train, I'm not a carbon copy of Negan. Besides, he doesn't like to share much."

"What do you want?" I blurted, wanting this conversation over with.

"I want what any other bastard like me has been scramblin' for: world domination."

I screwed up my face and he let out a barking laugh.

"Kidding, spy," he smacked the side of my arm roughly, "but I'm not. I'll be humble and say that I'll take what Negan's got. I'll work on the rest myself."

I nodded but didn't really understand. "World domination?"

Kai let out a big sigh. "It was a fuckin' joke, Jesus Christ. Did humor die with fuckin' humanity too? Fuck sakes."

"Okay, you want what Negan's built. Great. I'll be sure to hand you that one a silver fucking platter just as soon as I'm able to cut off his head."

I went to storm past him, but Kai caught my arm and pushed me back. He pinned me against the desk, his knees digging into my sensitive thighs.

"This isn't some fuckin' game. I'm serious," he glowered. "All jokes aside, I'm happy with the position I have now. I respect that fuckin' asshole out there, but if it came to it, I'd sink a ten inch blade in his back if it meant I could take over. What I'm asking in return for my silence is that opportunity."

"I don't know if I can give you that," I answered truthfully. The whole point of getting rid of Negan was to be rid of him, not replace him, but I didn't say that.

"Well, figure it the fuck out," he demanded. "I am gonna bust ya, though. We're gonna go see Negan and I'll tell him I found ya skirtin' the halls. You ain't supposed to be outta the room, are ya?"

He narrowed his eyes down at me and I shrugged because I really had no idea what restrictions I had here.

"So, what are ya then? Ya ain't a wife 'cause I never seen one of them broads nowhere 'cept the Sanctuary. You ain't a fucking lieutenant either, spy," Kai stopped his musings and gave me back my space, but stayed close as he leaned back on the desk beside me. "You a pawn? You an anvil over someone's head?"

"For lack of better words," I conceded.

"What's ya story then? Tell me who you're a spy for."

And I told him. I told him how we'd been cornered by Negan's men, and fearing for our livelihood and safety, we ambushed them without realizing the bite we'd taken was much more than we could chew. In fact, we'd begun to choke on it and it was only by Negan's 'saving grace' that whoever was left of us were still breathing. I left out Hilltop's blessing to go after Negan, not wanting to drag them into this in case I was setting myself up by sharing my side with Kai. I couldn't even begin to trust him, but he'd caught me in a tight spot and I felt there was no other option. The pride I'd felt earlier had quickly soured into the self-loathing, and I crossed my arms angrily as I finished.

"Damn, spy! This is some drama series shit. I could write that whole thing up and call it "Survivors of the Risen Dead" or "What Happens When You Make Stupid Fucking Decisions."

Kai barked out a hearty laugh as he finished speaking. I wasn't in the position to appreciate the joke at the moment, but he had a point. We had been dumb and I felt like we kept repeating ourselves. I certainly wasn't of any help.

"Why are you coming to me with this?" I questioned, suddenly confused. "Why not just do it yourself?"

"Well, other than being a doxy, it wasn't until I caught you in here being a fuckin' spy that I figured out what ya were. Negan is an ambitious guy. He's smart and he takes opportunities as they come at him, but only the good ones. I've learned that from him, and now, I'm ready to do the same. You don't work under someone as powerful as Negan and not take any fuckin' notes. I've got a whole manuscript stored up in here," Kai tapped his temple and mimicked me by crossing his arms. "On the easy side, when it's your word versus mine, spy, who do you think he'll believe?"

"Point taken," I admitted. I let out a heavy breath, but kept my tumbling thoughts and questions to myself. My gut remained unconvinced of his truth. He may want what Negan has, but he had the means to do so himself right under our feet. Why take the chance of using me and blowing his cover?

"I could take Negan out myself and stir up some shit, sure. But what good would that do me? I'd be a fucking traitor. No one wants to follow a traitor."

"Or people would see you as stronger," I reasoned. "They'd be afraid of you."

"They already are," he winked down at me. "But I can't have some other asshole catchin' any bright ideas, and I don't want to look like no asshole either."

I rolled my eyes. "I think that comes with the territory."

"Maybe so, but imagine how much sweeter life will be with me, ya new best friend, takin' things over," Kai whispered. He nudged me softly with his shoulder. "I didn't take ya from your group or kill any of your friends. I'll do the opposite. We'll make a deal; one that we're all happy with. No demands, no requirements. It'll be an equal give and take."

"I don't know."

"See it this way… You and I are in the same boat now, spy. I got info on you, you got info on me. We can depend on each other to get what we want," Kai shrugged and smiled to himself. "I ain't truly unsatisfied with this get-up. It has more ups than downs, but there comes a point where complaisance can become…so…boring. Ugh!"

He shook his head and gazed down at me. "Look at me here, yappin' my trap while you're sittin' over there confused and trying not to piss yaself. I've got you in a tough situation, I'm aware, and sorry it had to be this way, but enemies can be allies. Whadya say? Can I get in on this gravy train?"

"I have no way of guaranteeing you anything, but I'll try."

"Nah-uh, I need that grade A fuckin' guarantee or there ain't no you and me, nothing."

"I'll work on it!" I was exasperated. "What exactly do you think I can do? I've got my hands figuratively tied behind my back and you just added five extra cinches!"

"Okay, take it easy there. I already said I'd scratch your back if you scratch mine. No need to lose ya fuckin' head."

Kai took my upper arms in his hands and squeezed, trying to calm me down. It didn't help much.

"Look, if I was gonna rat you out, I would've done it by now."

I closed my eyes and shook my head, trying figure out how to get out of this mess. I had royally fucked-up. There was no way I could believe in Kai. There was a large screaming part of me that smelled the fucking trap as I bit into the poison, but it was too late now. Kai knew what I was doing, he knew I was part of a group that planned to take out Negan, and he balanced our success or failure, our lives or deaths, in his hands. He offered me a deal, but who's to say it wasn't a mockery?

"Rat me out," I requested.

"What?"

"Rat me out. It's the only way I'll trust you. Tell Negan you found me here, that I was snooping around. I'll be punished, but you can still do something. Contact Dwight. He'll know what to do."

"Wait, Dwight's in on this shit? Can't say I'm shocked, but fuck!"

"Do it," I demanded. "I won't bring my group into it, but Negan will question them anyway. If you're for real, have Dwight go to them or you two go together somehow. I don't know! Just tell them what happened."

"And if they don't believe us?" Kai asked shrewdly. That was a high possibility.

"Bring them guns, weapons, ammo… They'll believe you then. I'll send Dwight to you if I can."

Kai watched me in silence for a moment, weighing his options. I was asking him to take action before he was promised anything, but this all banked on him. When he nodded his head, his mouth in a firm line, it seemed as if he realized that.

"Okay, spy. I'll lead the way."

"Fuck," I whispered to myself, but this was the only viable option I could think of.

Kai went to the door and I followed him out, fisting my sweating hands as they began to shake. My life wasn't the only one in jeopardy because of my mistake. I'd been too determined and now Alexandria might have to pay the price for me. I had to convince Negan I acted alone, that I set out on this autonomously. He may believe me but…maybe he wouldn't.

---

Edited by lolasskicker.

Everly's done goofed, y'all. Do you guys believe Kai or has Everly ruined everything? Does it seem too convenient? Is it an interesting turn of events? I guess we'll see how sincere Kai is as the story progresses!