All Right—we are done with the Interrupted part of the story, for the rest of the chapters, we Carry On!

This picks up right at the end of chapter 9 (time jump chapter) and the last paragraph of chapter 11.

Chapter 12- Hang On and Maintain Focus

"I SAID TO STOP MESSING WITH MY EMPLOYEE! SHE HAS A RIGHT TO WORK! I AM GONNA SUE YOU DIRTY ROTTEN DEPUTIES FOR EACH TIME YOU UNFAIRLY ARRESTED CHARLENE!" Bud yelled in a panic after just receiving his orders from Joe.

It was 10:15am on Friday morning and Bud was standing in the foyer of the King County Sheriff's Department at a loss for what else to do. Joe had just called Bud mere minutes before, ready for him to implement the kidnapping scheme and Bud had no time to waste. Bud was desperate to talk to Rick and give him that vital, time sensitive information and acting a fool in the middle of the sheriff station was the only way he knew to do it quick, fast and in a hurry, especially with Deputy Warren lurking around ready to report everything he saw to Joe.

Rick was confused, they had a good plan to secretly talk. A plan did not require all the unnecessary chaos that Bud was currently causing. Arrest Charlene-Rick looked over to T-Dog and remembered he still owned T-Dog two dimes-then Bud would come into the station, protest a little, get placed in Rick's office, give Rick the information, then get thrown out. Easy. Rick was perplexed as to why Bud was causing an excessive commotion, then it hit him like a ton of bricks. If Bud was instigating this much of a scene, the information Bud needed to share was probably life or death. Rick threw down his phone and grabbed his handcuffs and ran to the station foyer. Rick felt such a deep-seated sense of dread that he had to pause for a second to catch his breath. Rick became even more unnerved after he observed the frantic panic in Bud's eyes. Rick did not have time for a fake conversation trying to talk Bud down and get him into his office, not when it could hinder the safety of Michonne and Carl. Rick impulsively attacked, and aggressively tackled Bud to the floor. For a minute, Bud thought Rick was taking his threats seriously until Rick whispered in his ear.

"Play along," Rick hissed, and Bud nodded in relief and played his part.

"GET OFF OF ME YOU ROTTEN SON OF A BITCH! WHERE IS CHARLENE! I'M GOING OUT OF TOWN AND I NEED TO MAKE SURE SHE IS SAFE BEFORE I LEAVE! FUCK YOU DEPUTIES!" Bud screamed, giving Rick a clue as to the nature of his visit.

Rick wrestled him to the ground and handcuffed him, his heart full of terror. Rick caught on that if Bud was going out of town, that meant he just got orders from Joe to head to Atlanta to get Carl. Rick was rattled because he had yet to call Abraham and was unable to get in touch with Michonne. He was disturbed that she wasn't answering his calls all morning. Neither was Carl. Rick could not concentrate long enough to get the cuffs on Bud properly. Rick was nauseous.

"SHIT!" Rick shouted, "SHANE! COME CUFF HIM!"

Rick was a few seconds from losing control. He needed to hear from Michonne. Listen to her voice and he needed to do that before he dealt with Bud. Rick also needed Abe to put his eyes on Michonne and Carl ASAP. Rick was sweating and breathing hard, but it was not from wrestling Bud. Rick felt like he was about to have a nervous breakdown, and Shane noticed.

"Rick, you ok man?" Shane huffed as he stood Bud up and waited for further instructions.

Rick could barely concentrate, and his mind was swirling like he was about to pass out. Rick clutched the handle of the file cabinet he was standing beside and took a deep breath. Fainting was not an option this time, and neither was vomiting, and instead, he breathed though the sensation. Rick needed to get his shit together for his family. Deputy Warren was closely observing the situation and after Bud's stunt, and Rick's reaction to it, the traitor deputy seemed to buy the whole charade. Rick knew it would look suspicious if he took an irate Bud to his office. That was not proper deputy protocol for a disorderly individual, especially a disorderly inside the station, and it might make Warren skeptical. Rick took another deep breath and took control of the situation.

"Walk him to interrogation room ONE," Rick emphasized as he wiped the sweat from his forehead and Shane nodded, "I need to make a call first then I will be there."

Interrogation room one was the only room of the three that was not monitored. It had no listening speaker system on the outside wall, no two-way window, and no cameras inside. It was the same interrogation room that Rick and Michonne used back in late September when she returned to King County to pick up their son after his surprise bus visit.

"NOAH!" Rick called and the young deputy ran right over.

"Yes, sir?" Noah answered.

"I need you to keep guard in the hallway in front of the interrogation rooms, especially room one. Do not let anyone even come down the hallway. NOBODY! The only people allowed are me, Shane, and Hershel. Anybody else, you tell them to turn around and leave immediately. Let me know if anyone tries. Got it?" Rick commanded and Noah affirmed and ran to position himself at the entrance of the hallway.

Rick ran to his office and called Michonne's cell phone. No answer. Then he remembered she was probably at work and called her office to tell her to stay put. When Michonne's secretary informed Rick that she had taken the day off from work, Rick's temperament entered full-blown panic mode.

"Of all the damn times," Rick flustered, "She didn't take off when she was sick, and she chooses now? FUCK!"

Rick was frustrated and immediately called Abe and took a breath to sound calm. He did not need Abe panicking. Not yet. Bud was still in King County. Rick had time. The last thing Rick needed was Abe in a frenzy and making a mistake like speeding to the condo and possibly having an accident preventing him from getting to Michonne or Carl, or to be held up on the side of the road getting a speeding ticket. Rick needed Abe to be clear-minded and composed. Once Abe had his family next to him, he would share the news.

"Hey Rick, what's got your ass twitching?" Abe answered and normally Rick would laugh at Abe's colorful greetings, but he did not have time for that.

"Abe, I need you to do me a HUGE favor. Please. I can't get a hold of Michonne. Do you think you can go and see if she is at home, like right now. Immediately? And call me as soon as you get to the condo?" Rick begged and Abe heard the desperation in his voice.

"Sure, I am actually in the area. What's wrong Rick?" Abe questioned anxiously.

"It's probably nothing. She just aint been answering this morning and she took off work. Michonne has been sick, and you know how stubborn she is. She might have passed out in the bathroom or sumthin. If she doesn't answer the door, call me back and I will tell security to let you in," Rick explained as calmly as he could.

In his head, Rick kept telling himself over and over to stay calm. Bud was still in King County, so for now, Michonne and Carl were safe. Safe. Safe. Safe.

"Will do. Rosita checked in on her when you said she was sick a couple of weeks ago, but Michonne seemed healthy as a pot of vegetarian beans," Abe laughed and hung up after promising he was on his way to the condo.

Abe figured Rick was being overprotective, and since he was already at the corner store down the block from Michonne's condo, he decided finish his errand and continued filling his basket. Rick had a feeling that Carl was not at school and that frightened him to no end. After hanging up with Abe, Rick dialed the number to Piedmont Elementary, gave his information to the clerk, then inquired if his son was in attendance.

"No sir, I got a call this morning from his mother that he would be out today," The attendance clerk answered, and Rick slammed down the phone.

"SHIT!" Rick hollered and tried Michonne two more times while he walked to interrogation room one.

"Sarge, Warren tried to get by. I told him no, and he tried to push past me, but I stopped him. He was angry about it. He walked back towards the locker rooms," Noah informed, and Rick's nostrils flared.

"Thank you, Noah, keep em out," Rick acknowledged, patted Noah on the back and hurried down the hall to room one.

"Joe is out. And he has two Claimers on their way from Manville right now to pick me up to head to Atlanta to get your son. I didn't know any other way to let you know this fast. I gotta be back home soon Rick. I need to be there when they get to my house!" Bud exclaimed nervously and looked at the clock on the wall, "they should be at my place in about twenty minutes Rick."

"This was good Bud. You did right. Do you know where Joe is right now?" Hershel asked and Bud shook his head no.

"I have no clue," Bud stated honestly.

"Ok, when we escort you out. I want you to appear lovesick and all sorry-like. Apologize for barging in and cry a little and say you love Charlene and that's why you did it. Beg for forgiveness. For Warren's sake, we need it to look like we are giving you a break because you lost your mind, and we don't want to deal with all your blubbering. Usually this shit would get you put in jail for at least a night Bud," Rick uttered anxiously wondering if Warren would be suspicious that they were not following proper protocol.

"Ok," Bud answered ready to put on a show.

"Shane, manhandle him. Toss him out on the sidewalk. Do you. Make it look good. Warren has already called someone, probably Joe. And that asshole has already attempted to push past Noah to get in and see what's going on," Rick commanded and both Shane and Bud nodded ready to play their parts.

"But what about your son?" Bud asked anxiously, "do I take him?"

"NO! but don't worry about that, I got a plan. You just stick to yours and go home. Text me BEFORE you leave for Atlanta Bud," Rick commanded and left the room with the Sheriff, "Hershel, we are ready for that Atlanta PD escort now. Let me know as soon as they get to the condo."

"Will do Rick," Hershel agreed and left to call his contact in Atlanta PD who was standing by.

"You ready Bud?" Shane grinned and Bud exhaled and nodded.

Shane opened the door and started the show just in time for Warren who was coming back from the locker room. Joe was pissed when Warren called to detail Bud's crazy antics that put the heist in jeopardy. Deputy Warren wondered why Bud chose now to storm the station when he just found out his ride to Atlanta was on the way. Warren thought for a minute, then dismissed it. Bud was always a lunatic, especially when it came to Charlene.

"THIS IS THE LAST GODAMMED TIME YOU COME IN HERE DEMANDING SHIT! NEXT TIME I WILL LET YOUR ASS ROT IN A JAIL CELL YOU DUMB PISS POOR HILLBILLY PIMP," Shane yelled as he pushed a still cuffed Bud towards the exit to the station right past Warren.

Bud cut his eyes at Shane feeling a little insulted and Shane returned a hard eye roll. Bud gathered himself and stepped back into character.

"I'm sorry. I won't do it again. I just love her so much," Bud sniffed, and Shane thought he actually sounded genuine, "You love someone deputy? Huh? Seeing Charlene in jail breaks my heart! Please let her go. She has a right to go to the construction sites, doesn't she? This is a free country aint it? Please, I love her so much, let Charlene go please."

"SHE IS ALSO FREE TO GO TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM AND GET THAT LIP FIXED," T-Dog yelled from his desk as he processed her paperwork thinking he needed to make sure to get his two dimes from Rick at some point.

Both Shane and Bud actively tried not to make eye contact with Deputy Warren who was watching carefully. Warren seemed to breathe a sigh of relief that Bud was being let go. Shane sucked his teeth in disgust when he noticed Warren pull his phone to make another call. Shane uncuffed Bud and roughly pushed him out the doors hard enough for the fake pimp to take a hard plunge onto the sidewalk.

"STAY OUT OF HERE YOU PRICK!" Shane yelled before storming back to Rick's office.

"You didn't have to be so brutal!" Bud hollered as he stood from the ground then evil-eyed Officer Warren who was outside talking on his cell phone.

Rick was in his office pacing still trying to contact Michonne. If anything happened to Michonne and Carl, Rick knew he would not survive it. He would lose his damn mind.

"Atlanta PD is on the way to Michonne's condo. You think Bud really didn't know where Joe was?" Hershel asked as he walked into Rick's office followed by Shane.

"Yeah, I believe him. He took a big chance coming in here like that. You get Abe yet?" Shane inquired and Rick nodded.

"Yeah, he is gonna call me back once he gets to her condo. He said she was close, so it should be any minute now. You know Michonne took off from work today and kept Carl home from school. Why aint her and Carl answering their phones! I am losing my mind here, "Rick pulled out his phone and called both his fiancé and his son again.

No answer.

"Hell! I need to send a deputy to go and get Andrea!" Hershel remembered and went to find Leon Basset to escort her to the station.

Hershel thought Leon could not fuck up something so simple. He had more complicated jobs for the rest of the deputies, and Warren could not be trusted to be part of the plan at all, so Hershel could only spare Leon, otherwise he would have sent Noah. Even the rookie was smarter and more experienced than Leon who had twelve years on the job. Hershel thought of a plan to keep Warren busy and out of the way.

"Warren!" Hershel shouted and the deputy hung up his cell phone and lurked over to the sheriff, "I need you to head to the Morrison's over at the far south edge of town and do a welfare check. We haven't checked on em this week and they are pretty isolated out there."

"Can't Noah do it? That's almost a twenty-minute drive!" Warren bellowed anxiously.

Joe told Warren to stay close, and that old couple was completely on the opposite side of town.

"He could, but I'm telling you to," The sheriff answered with authority and Warren grabbed his hat and keys with annoyance.

Hershel needed a way to make sure that Warren made the drive all the way out to the boonies of King County so he could keep track of the traitor and keep him occupied.

"Call me when you get there. I have a question for Mr. Morrison, and before you ask, no. That old stubborn Tommy and his wife won't answer no deputies' questions except mine, so aint no use in me telling you my question," Hershel declared and watched Warren sulk away pulling out his phone yet again.

Hershel shook his head disgustingly at the turncoat before heading to Rick's office.

"Damn! She still ain't answering," Rick spat then took a deep breath and started speaking out loud to himself, "There is still time. The claimers aint picked up Bud yet. APD is on the way. Abe is on the way," Rick breathed bothered he could not get in touch with his family, and he was two hours away from them.

"Keep trying Rick," Shane suggested and just as Rick was about to call Abe to see if he made it to Michonne's condo, at 10:27am he heard a 911 call come into the station reporting a disturbance in front of Horvath and Dixon Law Firm. Then the phones it up with reports of a possible kidnapping at that same location.

Rick was in full blown panic mode.

"FUCK!" Rick hollered and left his office wondering where in the hell were his fiancé and son.

A day prior, on Thursday afternoon, Michonne was in denial. She had been in denial for well over two weeks. The flashbacks of that day in King County when she was six months pregnant lit up Michonne's brain like lightning. Even looking at the three sticks in front of her, one reading pregnant, another with a blue sign, and the third with a very clear double blue lines, she still could not fathom what was happening to her. Not the pregnancy itself, but the potential aftermath of this new pregnancy being similar to what happened when she was pregnant with Carl.

When Michonne first began throwing up, she knew it was not sushi, but she needed to make herself believe that it was, and for a few days she was successful in fooling herself. When she missed her period, she knew it was not from exhaustion, but Michonne's coping mechanism kicked in to convince herself that she was just tired from working so hard. When her breasts became tender, she blamed it on the ill-fitting new bra she purchased and not the fact that a child was growing inside her womb. Michonne knew what was happening, but she was in deep, deep denial. She had the exact same symptoms when she was pregnant with Carl, but the thought of a repeat of that traumatic day almost nine years ago terrified her and she pretended the symptoms were other stuff, different thangs. Michonne looked down at her engagement ring and blew out a breath then looked at herself in the mirror.

"You are not seventeen. You are engaged now. Rick would not do that again. You KNOW he would not," Michonne tried to convince herself.

Michonne tried to imitate her usual bright smile, but her reflection looked disingenuous, and she bit her lip and tried again. She stood smiling at herself in her bathroom mirror until she convinced herself that her smile was real, and deep down it was, but this new pregnancy brought back old, bitter memories that Michonne could not shake. The trauma that she thought she all but forgave and forgot was back with a vengeance. A large part of her knew that Rick would never, ever betray her like that again, but that small sliver of possibility that he might was overtaking and short-circuiting her brain. And although Michonne was mostly happy, she was terrified of raising another of Rick's babies alone.

Michonne grabbed the sticks and tossed them in the bathroom trash bin, then pulled out the bag and tossed them into the can in the kitchen, then walked the bigger bag out of her condo, down to the end of the hall and dropped it all into the trash chute. She walked back into her bathroom and looked in the mirror, beamed a bright smile and pushed the negative thoughts from her mind. Michonne figured she needed to talk to Rick, not only about the pregnancy, but about her fears because of it. They needed to work through the issue together and Michonne needed to look into Rick's eyes and be assured that this pregnancy would be different. And the sooner the better. Michonne could not take another day of pregnancy PTSD.

Michonne looked at the time, she left her job a little early to buy and take the pregnancy tests, and now it was time to pick up Carl from school. She called Mrs. Sanchez, one of her two carpool pickup partners, and informed her she would pick up her son. Michonne looked in the mirror one last time, hovered her hand over her belly, but could not bear to tenderly touch and begin to bond with the precious child just yet. Instead, Michonne dropped her hands to her side and left to pick up Carl.

Later that evening, Michonne walked into her guestroom and looked at the box of décor she was slowly packing up from her office and decided to head to King County early the next morning. Since she was going to probably make a stop at her new law office anyway, Michonne figured she might as well take it to her new office instead of keeping it at the condo.

"And I can double check those floors at the house too," Michonne uttered to herself knowing Rick was going to kill her if she made another change to their home, "Might as well kill three birds with one pregnancy stick."

As Michonne kicked the large box from the guest room to the front foyer, she played around with the name of the new law office.

"Dixon and Hawthorne? Dixon and Hawthorne-Grimes? Dixon and Grimes?" Michonne spoke each out loud to see which had a better ring to it, "CARL!"

Michonne looked down at her engagement ring and smiled and tried to push the destructive pregnancy thoughts even further to the back of her mind.

"Yes, mom?" Carl answered looking curiously at the box.

"Help me push this box to the front door," Michonne requested and once it was sat in the foyer, she gave her son another task, "Go pack. We are going to see your father in the morning," Michonne ordered, and Carl excitedly ran to his room.

"YES! NO SCHOOL!" Carl shouted as he ran to his room.

Michonne grinned then frowned.

"ON SECOND THOUGHT, I WILL PACK FOR YOU CARL!" Michonne hollered as she hurried to his room remembering all the nonsense her son tried to pack last time, "AND IT'S A SURPRISE! DON'T CALL YOUR GRAMS OR FATHER AND TELL them we are coming, ok?" Michonne's voice lowered once she entered the room to Carl filling his bag with everything but what he needed for the trip.

"Ok mom. On second thought, you better take my phone. I'm gonna be honest with you. If anybody calls me, I will probably tell everybody we are going. Dad, Grams, Uncle Darryl, Aunt Sasha, Aunt Rosita, Uncle Abe. Everybody. I would basically tell everybody," Carl uttered and tossed his phone to Michonne.

"You can't hold water!" Michonne chuckled.

"Yeah, I get it from my mama," Carl grinned and dodged the comic book that Michonne threw at him.

That evening, just after slipping under the covers for the night, Rick called. Michonne nearly burst with the news that she was making an unexpected trip to King County for the weekend. She rolled her eyes annoyed that Carl was right about her not being able to keep a secret either. Michonne yawned and told Rick she was sleepy and tried to end the call before she spilled the beans.

"You got the doors locked?" Rick asked before she hung up.

"Of course! Why do you sound so stressed Rick?" Michonne asked, noticing the tenseness of his voice.

"Just work is all. All right darlin', sweet dreams. I will call you in the morning," Rick covered and ended the call before he prematurely spilled the beans about Joe and stressed Michonne the fuck out.

Instead of sweet dreams, Michonne had trouble sleeping that night as nightmares of Rick leaving her six months pregnant for a second time filled her head. By 8:15am, Michonne and Carl were on the road to King County. She called Piedmont Elementary and informed the staff that Carl would not be in attendance that day, and then called her office too. Michonne noticed she had several missed calls from both Rick and Darryl but did not answer and instead tossed her phone in the center console and kept her eyes on the road.

"Would not be a surprise if I let him know we were coming," Michonne uttered and grinned when the city pavement turned to country pastures.

Halfway to King County, she had received several more calls from her fiancé' and grinned at his impatience. She smiled, muted the call, and picked up speed. By 10:15am, the same time Bud was making a ruckus at the station, Michonne and Carl were pulling up to Dixon and Grimes? Dixon and Hawthorne? Michonne took a breath of frustration that she still could not decide and focused her attention on how she was going to get those heavy ass boxes out of the car that her condo security guys help her with that morning. She figured she would call Rick, but then she saw Tyrese stroll up to her vehicle and she grinned widely.

"Tyrese! What are you doing here?" Michonne asked brightly as she exited her vehicle leaving her phone in the console of the car.

"Just checking on my very pregnant sister and the progress of the bakery. It's coming along. I hired the bakers, and they are working with my mother now to learn the recipes. Mom says they are pretty good, not as good as her or her staff though," Tyrese chuckled and looked in the back seat at a sleeping Carl.

"I have no clue why that boy is so tired. It's a school day. He is usually bright eyed, and bushy tailed this time of day," Michonne uttered then looked around downtown King County, "It's so different from when I came down here to pick up that little knucklehead of mine eight months ago," Michonne stated in wonder as she scanned around the growing town.

Michonne did not notice the man sitting on a bench in the middle of town square, but he most certainly noticed her.

"Yeah, I heard they are adding on to the Sherriff's station too?" Tyrese reported and Michonne laughed.

"Rick is excited about it. He said that old station smells like foul criminal feet and unwashed ass. He said the old part will still house the criminals, but the new section will be all office space and new locker rooms," Michonne chuckled, "Hey, you mind helping me with these boxes?"

"No problem," Tyrese agreed and walked around to the trunk of the car.

"Carl, we're here. Get up and get out of the car and stretch," Michonne ordered and went to the trunk to help Tyrese.

Carl got out of the car and did as his mother told him to and it woke him up a bit. As he was touching his hands to his toes, on his way down he noticed a man sitting on a bench across the street watching him. The man waved and Carl was suspicious, but cautiously waved back. The man looked old, but from a distance, he also looked a little like Rick.

"Carl, grab that little box and bring it inside please," Michonne commanded and walked into the office behind Tyrese.

Carl walked to the back of the car, his eyes still on the man sitting on the bench. The old man was watching him intently. The man smiled and waved again, and Carl was so focused on why the man looked like Rick and curious as to who he was that he did not notice an old beat-up van approaching. At 10:25am, as Andrea was walking back to her office from the coffee cart after purchasing her mid- morning pick-me up after dealing with Greggory all morning, she noticed the van too. Once she realized the van was slowing down near Carl, Andrea dropped her double shot espresso Americano and took off running.

"CARL!" Andrea shouted and ran like the wind towards the tyke.

The man sitting on the bench noticed the van too and hopped-up yelling for his grandson to RUN! Carl was confused as he looked back at Andrea who was running and yelling his name, then at the waving stranger across the street who seemed to be hobbling towards him.

"RUN CARL!" Yelled a panicked Andrea.

"RUN!" Yelled Richard.

By the time Carl came to his senses and turned to run into the law office, all he felt was someone grabbing his arm and lifting him up and throwing him inside the back of the van. Carl was screaming and fighting to get out.

"NO!" Yelled Rickard who was struggling to run and save his grandson.

When Andrea got close enough, she leapt on top of one of the men's backs and began punching him repeatedly in the head and face.

"CARL, GET OUT! LET HIM GO!" Andrea shouted still hanging from the kidnappers back and fighting with all the strength that she had.

Richard tried to pick up speed, but his heart would not allow it and became winded and had to stop to take a breath. When he looked up at the situation, Richard noticed the kidnapper shake Andrea loose and grab her by her neck.

"You can't kill her Clyde! Joe needs her alive! That's the City Manager!" Claimer Wendell yelled nervously and watched as Clyde loosened his grip.

Andrea took a deep breath, and then started kicking and screaming again.

"Let me go you asshole!" Andrea yelled, "CARL! GET OUT OF THE VAN!"

The man was struggling to get Andrea inside the van, and the other was struggling to keep Carl from getting out. Carl stomped on the Claimer Wendell's toe and elbowed him the groin and the man yelped in pain.

"FUCKING BUD!" Wendell yelled as he jumped up and down and hit his head on the inside van roof.

Claimer Wendell was pissed Bud was not at home and instead asked to be picked up at a parking lot on the edge of downtown. The new location took them off their route and they were forced to cut through King County. Wendell thought the change worked out for the best since the boy was in King County, but the kidnapping definitely was not going as planned and they could have used Bud's help. Joe was going to be pissed. They were supposed to pick up Bud, drive to Atlanta, and snatch the kid from there. Someone else was supposed to get the Blond. Shit was hitting the fan and the two claimers panicked because when you displeased Joe, it was nothing nice. Carl jumped out of the van, but Wendall caught him mid-air and roughly threw him back inside hitting his head against the side van wall.

"You hear something?" Michonne asked both Sasha and Tyrese and all three quietly listened as they stood in the back office.

"No," Sasha answered and began to help Michonne unpack the box and Michonne noticed Carl was not in the room.

By then, Richard made it to the van and Claimer Wendell did not know what to do. If they did not hurry, people were going to start to come out and the kidnapping would be foiled. To Wendell it seemed like they had been out there trying to get the boy for at least an hour, when he looked at this watch it was 10:26, it had only been barely a minute. He was exhausted and sweating and grew pissed at the whole unexpected situation.

"CLYDE, PUT HER ASS IN THE VAN NOW!" Claimer Wendell shouted now highly pissed and looking at Richard who he knew he could easily take.

Wendall looked back at Carl and noticed the boy must have bumped his head. He seemed to be knocked out, and Wendell wanted to get this done before the little terror woke up.

"Get in the goddammed van bitch!" Claimer Clyde yelled angrily and finally got the upper hand.

Clyde tossed Andrea forcibly inside the van and she landed on top of Carl and Andrea noticed he was unconscious.

"CARL! CARL!" Andrea hollered and shook Carl's face to try and wake him up.

"I know you heard that!" Michonne exclaimed and rushed from the back of the office towards the front followed by Tyrese.

Sasha wobbled behind them as fast as she could.

Joe wanted this to be quiet and easy and it was anything but. People were already starting to peek out to see what all the commotion was about. Andrea was yelling at the top of her lungs, and the claimers needed to go before they were caught.

"Let em go!" Richard yelled and Wendell just about had it.

He was not gonna get his throat slit by Joe because of a boy, a blond and an old man. Wendell pulled out a knife and stabbed Richard in the abdomen.

"Shit!" Claimer Clyde yelled.

"FUCK!" Wendell yelled knowing his impulsiveness was a mistake.

Things were going from bad to worse. Clyde noticed a few people step out and one was on their phone, probably calling the Sherriff. The botched kidnapping was going on now for a minute and a half. Any longer and the men rushing towards them from a block away would get them caught and that meant Joe would kill them for sure. A jail cell would not protect them for long.

"We can't leave him here, to ID us!" Claimer Clyde yelled and pushed the frail man into the back of the van then jumped in the driver's seat, "Do we take them back to the clubhouse?"

"I think we have already been identified, I told you not to wear the Claimer Jacket! They got pictures of us now too! The clubhouse will be the first place they look, FUCK! DRIVE CLYDE!" Claimer Wendel shouted when he saw people running towards the van and one seemed to be videoing or trying at least.

"Let's go to the old man's house!" Clyde suggested and shifted the car into drive.

A witness was so nervous that they could not get the camera to open fast enough, and once they did, Wendell did not know if they shot a video or took a picture right before the van doors closed and the van SPED off. Either way, his face was on that phone. Wendell realized he was fucked. Joe had yet to give them Carl's drop off location. Probably because it was way too early for the kidnapping to have occurred, so they had to improvise. The van sped off and before Claimer Wendell could even get the back doors shut properly, Richard managed to drop something on the ground before they closed.

"Where do you live old man!" Wendall hollered in Richard's face.

By the time three community members made it where the van was once parked, Michonne and Tyrese were running out of the law office.

Sasha was horrified and called the station. Then dialed Darryl.

"Where's Carl? Michonne asked panicked, "WHERE'S CARL TYRESE!"

Michonne was losing it and was screaming bloody murder and a witness pointed to the blue van. Michonne ran after the speeding van, with Tyrese at her heels until her legs gave out. By that time, at least four people had called the Sherriff's station and Michonne was on the ground wailing. Tyrese picked Michonne up and jogged back to the scene.

"I think those guys took your son ma'am, along with the city manager and some old man," One of the men stated, "Sherriff should be on their way."

"I got a picture of the guy and the van's license plate!" The community member who was fumbling with his phone exclaimed.

Both witnesses were relatively new to King County and had no clue who Richard was, especially since he mostly stayed to himself.

"We are going to get him back Michonne!" Tyrese assured and turned when he heard the sirens.

"I ASKED YOU WHERE YOU LIVED OLD MAN!" Wendell spat irritated that Richard was not giving him the address.

Richard did not want to be too forthcoming and make it obvious that he wanted the kidnappers to take them all to his cabin. Richard had to play it just right.

"Go fuck yourself," Richard spat as he held onto his side and bleeding profusely.

Wendall pressed his hand on Richard's wound and the man wailed loud enough to wake up Carl. Andrea was relieved and pulled a groggy Carl in her lap. Richard gave the two Claimers directions and prayed Rick would find and understand the clue he left behind once he heard the Claimer demand his address before shutting the van door.

"They got Carl and Andrea, two men got em in front of the law office!" Shane shouted as he bumped into Rick in front of his office.

"What? No! Michonne and Carl are in Atlanta!" Rick yelled in a panic.

"Nah, they were here Rick. Let's go!" Shane hollered and Rick was stunned still.

Rick could not move. Tears were streaming down his face and his eyes were glassy.

"RICK!" Hershel yelled.

"RICK! SNAP OUT OF IT MAN! I need you to channel Fighting Rick right now. Angry, Beat Yo Ass Rick. You hear me brother. I need you to hang on and maintain focus!" Shane persuaded then watched Rick's face change into the scariest thing he had ever seen.

Shane saw that Rick was channeling something more ferocious than fighting or angry Rick. His brother had savagery in his eyes.

"Come on," Rick growled and jolted out of the station.

"That'll do," Shane whispered to himself as he raced after Rick.

"How in the hell did they get Andrea? Leon was on her tail!" Hershel spat and called for Deputy Bassett to report.

Deputy Leon Bassett was not the brightest bulb in the bunch, but his task was so simple that the highest of idioits should have been able to complete the task without a problem. Not Leon, his dumbassedness burst through and exited the stratosphere. All he had to do was find Andrea, let her know she was needed at the police station ASAP, and bring her in. That was all. Simple. Easy. Idioit proof. What actually happened was Leon saw Andrea's car near the cute new coffee stand in the middle of town and figured approaching her at said stand with all the hot coffee might spook her, thus spilling the coffee and burning herself. Leon Bassett grinned at his smart thinking as he waited for her to return to her white BMW. Most deputies in this situation with half a brain would make sure to keep a close eye on the PERSON they were meant to protect, not the VEHICLE, but not Leon. That dumbass did neither. While Andrea was ordering her coffee, he took his eyes off both Andrea and amazingly enough, her car too, and began to look around at all the changes in the town. He was smiling when he noticed the pizza place, Rhee's Pizzeria, and peeked inside the window to see how far they were coming along with the remodeling. When he looked back at the car, it was still there, and when he glanced over at the coffee stand, Andrea was gone. Leon panicked and ran to the cart.

"Hey, just because you are the law don't mean you can cut the line dude!" One of the customers hollered.

Leon eyed he man and figured he must have been a new resident because he had never heard a single OG resident from King County call another person, DUDE.

"I ain't cutting, did any of ya'll see which way the City Manager went?" Asked an anxious Leon.

"She went that way," The barista pointed in the opposite direction of Andrea's vehicle.

Leon was confused and looked at Andrea's BMW and then in the direction Andera supposedly went. When dimwitted Leon Basset looked towards the BMW again, he looked up and noticed her car was parked in the side lot of the Mayor's Office, Andrea's place of employment that just so happened to be right next to the new coffee stand. Leon closed his eyes tightly at his stupidity before running off to find Andrea towards city hall. All Leon saw when he rounded the corner was Rick's fiancé, and Tyrese running after a blue van screaming Carl's name.

"Fuck," Leon uttered and called the station.

"Call Darryl, have him meet us at the scene Rick," Shane ordered, and Rick pulled out his phone with shaking hands.

Rick called Darryl as Shane drove a furious, yet anxious Rick to the crime scene.

"What the fuck was she doing here? Why In the hell did Andrea move the damn office so far, FUCK!" Rick shouted as he hit the dashboard of the cruiser.

When Andrea took over the law office with Dale back in January, it was directly across from the Sherriff station and the space was not the best. It was small and only had two tiny offices and a reception area that could barely fit a desk. She scouted around town and found the perfect spot. It had four spacious offices, and one strangely already had a desk along with a working landline. The rest of the office space was completely empty. It also had a large reception area, and a big conference room. It even had a nice area with a sink that they could use as a break room, along with two functioning bathrooms. It was perfect and Andrea wondered why it was vacant because it seemed modern compared to the rest of downtown and appeared to have been recently renovated. When she asked Aaron to research the property, he informed Andrea it was purchased by Gordy N. Eggerton more than a year ago, before King County was even a blip on the radar. Gordy N. Eggerton, the reclusive owner, was hard to track down. When Aaron searched the property tax records, he was surprised that they were paid by King County taxpayers. Andrea was suspicious and stared at the name for a few minutes and shook her head. It was an anagram for Greggory Denton.

The unscrupulous Mayor secretly purchased the space probably with embezzled King County funds, to use as a second nefarious office. Andrea found it strange until she went to inquire about the property and met the shifty Mayor in person. He was smarmy, insincere, and an overall slimy type of individual. Andrea immediately knew Greggory was nothing but a no good, scheming criminal.

When Andrea asked why the Mayor's office would need a second office off site, and inquired if taxpayers knew they were paying for the office, Greggory snarled but then quickly smiled. Andrea grinned. The Mayor knew he was caught with his hands in the cookie jar and Andrea was going to immediately investigate to trace the dishonest dealings back to Greggory. An anagram was not enough evidence. In the meantime, the Mayor was spooked that he was caught, and immediately informed Andrea he would contact the fake owner to see if he was willing to sell. A week later, Andrea acquired the office space for a hell of a deal, and at the time of the kidnapping, her and Aaron were close to proving Greggory's illegal activities. Michonne was now crying frantically in front of that very same office space. Rick called Michonne again and almost threw the phone against the windshield when it went to voicemail but refrained when he received a call from Darryl.

"She still ain't answering Rick," Darryl informed a little worried, "hold on Sasha is calling."

"Wait Darryl! She is calling because Joe got Carl. Meet us at the law office now!" Rick commanded and hung up the phone.

Darryl jumped on his bike and paused to call Abe who was on his way to Michonne's condo in Atlanta.

"Hey Darryl! You won't believe it! I got the dick down of deals on coconut donuts at this store next to Michonne's house! I Had to buy them since Rick took the rest of Carl's stash to King County," Abe chuckled before his face dropped and he became serious, "What the fuck you mean Carl has been kidnapped? What the Fuck!" Abe yelled, getting Jerry's and his son's attention.

Abe darted out of the store and was quickly followed by Jerry who listened to the rest of his conversation. Jerry ran back inside the store and called the pawnshop owner Mr. Mohan who then called the hardware store owner Mr. O'Malley.

"I'm coming too!" Nabilla shouted.

"No, you stay with the store and the girls," Jerry shouted as he ran to the back to get his car keys.

Jerry ran back out with his son Ezra on his tail. By then, Mr. Mohan had closed his pawnshop and jumped into the back seat of Jerry's car, followed by Mr. O'Malley who was carrying a fully loaded nail gun. DEM STREETS were on their way to King County to get their boy. Carl was theirs and nobody fucks with Carl Ian Hawthorne Grimes. When Carl insanely thought he, an eight-year-old child, was running DEM STREETS alone, he was grossly mistaken. All eyes were watching Carl anytime he was out and about behind his mother's back, when his little ass should have been at home. When Carl would leave the pawnshop, Mr. Mohan would call Mr. O'Malley and he would watch Carl as he strolled down the street as he texted Jerry. Jerry would step out of the grocery store and follow Carl until he entered his residential building before the three men would go back to their jobs. Michonne had a block of undercover babysitters, and she did not even know it.

"RICK!" Michonne shouted when she saw the cruiser pull up and Rick jumped out of the still moving vehicle and ran towards her.

"What happened?" Rick asked a sobbing Michonne as she ran into his arms.

"It was a blue van, and that guy over there got a picture of the guy and the license plate," Tyrese informed and yelled for the witness to come over, "They said they got the City Manager, and some old guy too."

While still holding a distraught Michonne, Rick grabbed the witness's phone and looked at the picture.

"Send that to me please," Rick ordered and gave the man his phone number, "What are you doing here Michonne? They got Andrea too?"

Rick squinted and looked angrily at Leon standing nervously at the corner. Rick was about to tear Leon a new asshole right in the middle of his sorry ass face but was distracted when the witness gave the deputies a specific description.

"And the big one was wearing one of them damn Claimer jackets," One of the OG King County residents added.

Rick radioed the station and Hershel informed Rick that he had already sent T-Dog and Tara to Manville right after the 911 call and also contacted the Manville sheriff, and his deputies were on the way to the Claimers clubhouse too. Darryl arrived and Rick nodded for him to come over and hold Michonne while he looked around the scene for any clue as to where they may have gone. Rick's first instinct was the clubhouse in Manville, but he was not willing to impulsively make that 45min trip in case he was wrong, and Carl was still somewhere in King County. Rick needed to know for sure, and his gut told him that Carl was still somewhere in town.

"You call me the second they get to that clubhouse and let me know if that's where they took my son," Rick bit and Hershel assured him that he would.

"And I think they stabbed an old man and threw him inside the van too," A second newer resident notified the deputies, "He sits in town square sometimes, but I don't know his name."

That got Rick's attention and he turned to walk over to the witness but before he took more than a few steps, something cracked under his foot. When he looked down, he saw a bloody, half crushed pill bottle.

"Hey Shane, bring me some gloves out of the glove compartment," Rick hollered, and Shane jumped into action.

"What you got?" Shane asked as he handed the rubber gloves to Rick.

Rick put on the gloves and picked up the broken pill bottle and read the label. It was heart medication prescribed to Richard Grimes. Rick thought about what Tyrese and the other witness said, then looked around and saw a blood trail leading to where he assumed the back of the van once sat.

"I think the old man was Richard," Rick uttered as he held up the prescription bottle to show Shane, "What the fuck does Richard had to do with this? If he is involved, I will kill his ass dead in the most painful way possible," Rick seethed.

"No, he was yelling for the boy to run, and then one of the guys stabbed him. I don't think he was part of the kidnapping; I think he was trying to help," The witness clarified.

Rick nodded and turned to a panicked and crying Michonne who was sobbing on Darryl's shoulder. Rick walked over and, on his way to his fiancé, he took off one of his gloves, and Deputy Noah grabbed a plastic bag for Rick to place inside. Rick pulled Michonne into a tight embrace with his free, gloveless hand.

"We are going to get him back safe and sound Michonne, I promise you that!" Rick assured then looked at the pill bottle that he was still holding in his gloved hand.

"If Richard was not involved, then this might be a clue," Rick said almost to himself and Michonne focused on the bottle perplexed, "It's his pill bottle. I think he might be with them."

"I am going to fuck that motherfucker up Rick!" Michonne spat and Rick pulled her close.

"Witnesses said he was trying to help Carl and Andrea and was stabbed in the process. I think he left his pills as a clue. Richard is a piece of shit, evil asshole, but he is a very smart piece of shit, evil asshole, so this means something, I'm sure," Rick explained and turned to Shane and Darryl.

"Shane, Darryl, let's go check out Richard's cabin. Noah, run the plates of the van and send all available deputies to be on the lookout. Then go to the Mayor's office and see if Joe is there with the Mayor," Rick commanded, and Noah nodded, "Go get Deputy Anderson first and take him with you!"

"Yes, sir! on it," Noah yelled and ran to his cruiser.

The feeling Rick had that Carl, and his kidnappers were still in town grew ten-fold. He could feel how close his son was in his bones and was positive they were at the cabin. Rick looked at the address on the pill bottle and was ready to strike.

"Hey, we need to go in quiet. Just us three. Shane, call and let Hershel know the plan and have him and the rest of the available deputies' station at the edge of the woods off Saturn Road and no further until we give the signal. Tell Hershel to watch Greggory and James and Anderson are on the way to city hall. And have Bassett stay put at the station and take calls. He obviously can't do simple shit," Rick instructed, then looked menacingly over at Leon while Shane went to the cruiser to call Hershel.

Rick thought about all available deputies and was frustrated when he realized there were none. Noah and Anderson were headed to the Mayor's office. T-Dog and Tara were halfway to Manville. Bassett was a dummy and Warren was a traitor that worked for Joe. All that was left was him, Hershel, Shane, and a civilian, Darryl, until more help could be freed up. Rick thought it would have to be enough.

"What's the plan," Asked Darryl ready to get his nephew back the looked over at Michonne who was running inside of the Law Office, "Shit, let me go check on Sasha."

Darryl ran inside behind Michonne.

"What is the plan?" Tyrese repeated with force.

"To fuck shit up," Rick spat and walked over to the cruiser.

"I'm in Rick," Tyrese offered ready to fuck some shit up too.

"I need you to stay with Sasha, Tyrese. I need Darryl and I don't want him to worry about his wife. He will feel better if you stay and take care of her. Make sure she stays safe," Rick suggested, and Tyrese nodded and ran inside the law offices to fulfill his part of the plan.

While Tyrese was running in, Michonne was running out followed by Darryl and a wobbly Sasha.

"MICHONNE!" Darryl called and Rick turned to see Michonne carrying the katana that used to hang in her Atlanta office as decoration.

When Rick first saw it on a visit to her office months ago, he laughed and assumed it was fake. Michonne tiled her head with a grin and climbed up and detached it from the wall then unsheathed the weapon. She informed him that it was on the wall because she did not need to use it anymore and after a few twirls, and spins, Rick realized Michonne knew how to use the sword expertly. Rick wondered when she learned the skill and before he could ask, her secretary interrupted and informed them it was time for Michonne's meeting. Rick forgot all about her Katana until it was glaring him in the face.

"What the hell are you doing Michonne?" Rick almost hollered when she opened the back door of his cruiser.

"Did you think I wasn't going after my baby Rick?" Michonne said incredulously.

"Michonne, please. Just stay here and out of sight. Please stay with Sasha and Tyrese," Rick begged and Michonne reared her head back.

"I can fight Rick. And luckily, I packed my sword, and you already know it is not just for show. I am not staying here," Michonne spat and dared her fiancé to try and stop her as she partly unsheathed her sword.

"Michonne, do you really know how to use that thang?" Rick panicked and indicated for her to put it away.

Michonne placed the sheathed Katana around her neck and over her shoulder.

"She does. Knows how to use it well. Jesus taught her along with some other skills after she was attacked back in college," Darryl uttered ready to go get Carl.

Rick was mortified.

"ATTACKED!" Rick hollered out too loudly.

"Carl now, Rick! Focus!" Michonne commanded and Rick snapped back to the urgent matter at hand after realizing she was not going to stay behind.

"Fine! Reminds me that I need to stop by the farm really quick and grab something, It's on the way," Rick stated and jumped in the driver's seat of his deputy cruiser with Shane riding shotgun and Darryl and Michonne in the back.

When Rick ran back to the car from the back of the farmhouse with his red-handled machete, Shane groaned, and he jumped out of the passenger seat deciding it was best for him to drive. It was not just Angry Rick on full display. It was Murderer Rick. Shane looked at Darryl and then they both looked at Michonne and they all were confident that Rick was about to end some lives that day, and when it came to Carl, they were all on board with it. Rick jumped in the passenger seat and Shane pulled off. Shane looked over at Rick in slight amusement. If it was Halloween, Rick would have blended right in as one of those expressionless horror movie villains. Rick sat still, looking forward expressionlessly clasping the red machete handle firmly to his chest. Rick stayed like that the entire way to the cabin. Michonne was the same except she kept her hand on the handle of her Katana.

Joe was not in Manville. He was too smart to for that. Instead, he was hiding inside of an old, abandoned shopping center about 15 minutes outside of King County on the Atlanta side that, according to the sign, was about to be renovated and reinvigorated very soon. Joe's plan was to wait there until early afternoon, then drive to King County to "show his face" during the time Carl was to have been kidnapped. The claimers were then to take the boy to the Claimer's clubhouse where the gang could kill the boy or let him go. Joe had no preference. Joe's final part of the plan was, after he got his money, he would make an anonymous call as to Carl's whereabouts and let the stupid Claimer gang take the fall.

But then, Joe got the call that his two claimers fucked shit up. It was too early. They were supposed to grab Carl once he got out of school and take him to Manville, quietly. Not a botched kidnapping in the middle of King County. The plan was to send Rick and his little gang of deputies running to Atlanta to search desperately for his kid while Joe joined Greggory in the deserted Mayor's office after hours once everyone was off from work. Blondie would be held in her office, and Claimer George would kindly escort her to Greggory's office at gunpoint if necessary. Easy Peasy! But now, his plan was fucked to hell, and everything was happening before the damn clock even struck noon.

Joe wondered how it all went wrong took a deep breath before he dialed the number to ask that very question to Claimer Clyde and Claimer Wendell.

"What the fuck happened?" Joe yelled demanding answers.

"We were on our way through town to pick up Bud and we saw the boy, Joe. They were not in Atlanta like you said they were. So we stopped and grabbed him. We got the blond too. And we took another man, I had to stab him, Joe. I had too. And Joe. They know it was us. The Claimers," Wendell admitted reluctantly.

"YOU WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO GET THE CITY MANAGER! SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE AT WORK! I WAS GOING TO TAKE CARE OF HER YOU IDIDOTS! DO NOT TAKE THEM TO THE CLUBHOUSE!" Joe yelled into the phone and then calmed down a little, "You asstards did not give me a chance to make myself noticed before you took them, so they are gonna suspect me now!" Joe snarled angrily.

"You mean notice us? Right boss?" Wendell asked wondering if this was going to be another Rondo situation.

"Of course," Joe uttered, "Where are you now? Where is Bud?"

"We never made it to pick Bud up on account we saw the boy first. We made the old man take us to his house. And we lucked up because he lives out in the woods in a cabin. It's secluded," Claimer Wendell added proudly for successfully thinking on his feet.

"I am on my way. Send me the directions," Joe spat and hung up looking over at Claimer George.

"FUCK!" Joe yelled slamming his fists down on the dashboard. "They were only supposed to get the boy. How was that so fucking hard to understand?" Joe spat at Claimer George who was driving the car.

"I don't know boss," responded the Claimer George.

"IT WAS RETORICAL!" Joe screamed in frustration and repeatedly hit his fist against the dashboard, "IT WAS NOT FOR YOU TO ANSWER!"

"Sorry," George whispered in irritation and kept his eyes focused on the road.

"FUCK! I needed Andrea at the Mayor's office! SHIT! How in the fuck is Greggory going get our money without her," Joe spat, and this time George correctly kept quiet, "Ok, change of plans. I'm going to drop you off at Bud's. You and he go pick up the Mayor and bring Greggory to me at that old man's place and make sure he brings his computer. And call the Claimers and tell them to meet me at the cabin."

George nodded and called and informed Bud to be at home because he was on his way to pick him up and Bud needed to drive. The claimers were not answering their phones. Bud was nervous and he went to look for the keys to his shitty car. Word had gotten around King County that the Deputy's son was kidnapped despite all he had done to help prevent it. Bud was terrified that Rick would blame him, so he called him immediately to update him with the new plan.

Joe meanwhile had a very bad feeling that his plan of leaving King County with a buttload of stolen money was going to be fucked all to hell. Joe moaned reflecting on how he was so careful and meticulous. Joe had the plan firmly in place, all the dummies had to do was follow it. He had his account set up to receive the funds and he preemptively bought an airline ticket on the redeye to anywhere outside the state of Georgia. Joe was going to move around from place to place and cover his tracks using the new identification he got the day he was released from prison. James Smith was the name Joe chose. It sounded common enough to just blend with everyone else and live a good life with his stolen money while he left the rest of the Claimers to take the fall. He shook his head because he was surrounded by idiots. He was so close to that money he could almost smell the green ink. By the time Joe was headed back to King County, Abe and Rosita were less than 15min behind the nefarious kidnapper, and DEM STREETS were right behind Abe. They were making record time thanks to the two APD police units speeding like bats out of hell going in the same direction. ABE and DEM STREETS just followed suit.

"Rick, this is Bud. I got orders to grab Greggory and take him to a cabin. I am on my way inside the office, but I told George I had to pee so that I could call you," Bud whispered in his phone as if Joe was going to jump out of the bushes and catch him.

"So they are there," Rick uttered and put the phone on speaker for Shane, Darryl, and Michonne to hear as he sat with his red-handled machete gripped tightly in his hand.

Rick was clutching that machete so tightly that his whole hand was turning the same color as the handle, but neither Shane nor Darryl would dare take it away from him.

"Yes, Joe is on his way there too. The plan was for him to go to Mayor's office, now it is to bring Greggory to him. What do you want me to do?" Bud asked waiting for instructions.

"Follow the plan Bud," Rick commanded and hung up then called Hershel to fill him in.

"You got something?" The Sherriff asked.

"Joe wants bud to bring Greggory to the cabin. Let him. Then send all available units to the cabin but remember, don't get too close until you hear the signal. We are just about there now," Rick commanded, and Hershel sent an alert for all available units.

"Hey Sherriff, Do you want Tara and I to come back? It's a mess here in Manville. Their deputies raided the place right before we got here and there were shots fired and now there are four dead Claimers, one in custody, and two on the run. We just checked the clubhouse and there is no trace of Carl or Andrea. Or Joe. Tara and I are helping with the search for the runners." T-Dog informed when he heard the alert.

"Head back now. Joe is here and we got a clusterfuck of a problem. And those two claimers might be on their way here. I am going to send Tara the address to the location and directions on what to do when you get there." Hershel instructed, and T-Dog and Tara ran back to their car and stepped on the gas.

When Bud and Claimer George approached Greggory, the embezzling coward was too scared to leave. The Mayor had a gut feeling he would not walk out of those woods alive, so he sat behind his desk and refused to budge. Bud was frustrated, and Claimer George was angry enough to pull a gun on The Mayor, but Greggory simply laughed.

"You can't kill me. Joe needs me," Greggory mocked in the same condescending tone that made everyone in King County dislike him immensely.

"Joe needs your brain. Your arms and legs are up for grabs," George grinned and then did the dumbest thing a person could do in that situation.

Claimer George, thinking he was taking the initiative that would make his boss proud, shot Greggory in the shoulder and the sound reverberated all though city hall. Bud even shook his head at the dummy.

"It is 11:45am on a Friday morning," Bud muttered rubbing his forehead in frustration, "PEOPLE ARE AT WORK GEORGE! Everybody in this building just heard that shot. I bet the police are already on their way!"

Bud was correct. The entire building evacuated immediately. People were screaming and half of them were calling the Sherriff's station on the way out of City Hall. All that was left in the building was Bud, George, and Greggory. Bud feared he would not make it out alive.

"We have shots fired at the Mayor's office, I repeat we have shots fired at the Mayor's office," Deputy James hollered through the radio, "we have an active shooter, send any available units."

Rick heard Noah's call and rolled his eyes. He prayed Leon or Anderson did not shoot the damn Mayor. Rick needed Greggory at the scene to prove the man was part of the scheme and wanted to personally put a bullet in the motherfucker's head for it. Rick also would have liked Bud there as his undercover informant to confuse Joe into trusting Bud, maybe even turning Carl over to him thinking Bud was part of plan. Looks like that idea was kaput too.

"Pull over and park down that side road," Rick instructed, "We're close. We can walk on foot from here."

After a few minutes, they heard another vehicle, and they all ducked behind the bushes. Rick pulled Michonne down close to him and he sucked his teeth when he recognized who it was.

"Joe," Rick spat as they watched the car slowly travel down the dirt road past them, "He seems to be alone."

"Why in the hell would he attempt a kidnapping in the bright of day? And in the damn middle of town on a busy Friday morning? What in the hell sense does that make?" Shane asked as he watched the car pass him by.

"I don't think it was supposed to go down the way it did. Michonne and Carl were not supposed to be here. I think they saw Carl and took their chances, and bungled it," Rick stated realizing that the whole kidnapping plot was off the cuff.

Rick did not know if that made the situation better or worse.

"I agree. I guess that's how Richard became part of the plan. What was he doing there?" Darryl asked perplexed.

"Hershel said he sits in the town square people watching. I think he wanted to catch a glimpse of me and mama but must have seen Carl instead. I'm sure he recognized Michonne and put two and two together. We aint seen or talked to him since he had his heart attack," Rick answered and sucked his teeth.

Rick was torn. He still hated his father's guts and would absolutely never forgive that evil under any circumstances, but he did try and help Carl. It was something. Rick figured at the end of the day that was the very least Richard could do. Rick supposed he would be thankful for Richards actions, but in the end, it would change nothing about the current status of their relationship. Rick felt nothing for that man. Living or Dead.

"You stay close to me Michonne. I wish you would've just stayed in the car, but I know you won't, so stay close please," Rick begged and Michonne nodded and told Rick she would try her best.

Rick stared at his stubborn fiancé and blew out a strong breath of frustration. Michonne shrugged her shoulders and told him to get over it. The four picked up the pace now jogging following the vehicle and being sure to stay shielded behind the trees on the side of the dirt road.

Meanwhile, back in town, the remaining deputies were responding to shots fired in the Mayor's office and Abe and Rosita, and APD parked when they saw all the commotion. When they saw Hershel, they jogged over to him.

"Carl in there?" Asked a concerned Abe as he looked at the old building.

"No, he is at a different location. Rick, Shane, and Darryl are headed there now. We were too until this mess happened. Not sure what's going on inside city hall. I am about to call in and find out," Hershel responded and reached for the phone and dialed Greggory's office.

"Where is Michonne?" Rosita asked worriedly.

"Michonne is with Rick, Darryl, and Shane on the way to where Carl is being held captive. They took the City Manager when they got Carl. Took Rick's father too," Noah filled them in.

While Hershel was on the phone, Abe noticed the man that was ringing up his coconut donuts in Atlanta was exiting a vehicle with three other men, one with some sort of tool in his hand. Abe jogged over to DEM STREETS.

"Hey, you work at the store in Atlanta, right?" Abe asked, confused, as to why they were there.

"I heard you when you said Carl was kidnapped in King County and we came right away to help. We consider Carl ours too," Jerry stated then went to his trunk and pulled out an axe.

Deputy Anderson's eyes grew big when he saw the axe and even wider when he noticed the nail gun.

"Ummm, y'all can't be here," The nervous old deputy informed the big man with the axe.

With all the new updates to the town, explosive population growth, and all the chaos he was right in the middle of, deputy Anderson decided it was time to retire and spend his golden years in relative safety. He considered moving to Manville where the population was more to his liking, small and unexciting. The kidnapping had him nervous, the shooting had him panicked and now Officer Anderson felt faint when he saw that big ass axe.

"Make me and Shiva leave," Jerry demanded and swung his axe then turned towards Abe, "Is Carl in there?"

Officer Anderson decided to let the young new Deputy Noah James handle the situation and also be Hershel's second in command on the scene. Anderson stepped the fuck back. He was going to put his retirement papers in immediately!

"No, Sherriff said he is at a different location," Abe answered impressed when he saw Shiva in action.

"Then let's go!" Jerry shouted and told the rest of his group to get back in the car.

"Don't know where yet, but soon as I find out, we roll!" Abe ordered and turned back towards the Sherriff.

Abe jogged over to Hershel who was still on the phone but was looking more and more agitated. When Hershel hung up the phone, he was gripping it so tightly that Abe thought he was going to crush it with his bare hands.

"Damn claimers shot the Mayor," Hershel shook his head, "got him held hostage. Said he needs to take him to Joe, but Greggory was refusing and now the Claimer is saying the shooting was not his fault because Greggory is an asshole."

"Did the Claimer just implicate Joe as the leader of this kidnapping?" Noah asked amusedly.

"Yup," Hershel answered.

"This gang aint too bright," Abe responded, and all the lawmen nodded, "Where is Rick? His location I mean?"

"I can't let you folks go there. Leave it to the deputies before ya'll get hurt," Hershel stated then nodded at Noah before walking off calling for a paramedic.

Abe texted Darryl but no response. Abe and Rosita were frustrated. And Rosita called Sasha.

"I'm at the office with Tyrese. All I know is…." And Sasha proceeded to tell Rosita the story, "Michonne took her sword."

"The one she hangs in her office for decoration. She has not practiced sword fighting in years!" Rosita exclaimed worriedly.

"Yes, and I could not wobble my big pregnant ass to stop her. I am scared Rosita," Sasha admitted worriedly, "Tyrese is here trying to calm me down."

"Well keep calm, last thing we need is for you to have that baby two months early. I will keep you updated," Rosita responded, and Abe shook his head nope.

"You aint coming with Rosita. I'm gonna drive you to Sasha," Abe stated adamantly and rolled his eyes when she pulled her large knife from her purse.

"Who will protect you Abe if I don't go? Huh? Soy un luchadora ruda, and you know it. Much better than you babe," Rosita chuckled reminding her husband that she was a badass fighter.

"FINE!" Abe agreed reluctantly to his spitfire wife.

Abe knew if he resisted, she would follow alone.

"Oh, Michonne might be wildly swinging a sword around. Just FYI, "Rosita informed.

A damn sword, a huge knife, an axe, and what is that? A nail gun? This is not going to end well," Abe uttered and prayed that everyone, but the bad guys, walked out alive.

Abe noticed Noah talking to APD and then they all ran to their vehicles.

"Let's follow them. They know something," Abe uttered and he, Rosita, and DEM STREETS jumped in their vehicles.

Darryl texted Abe the address and Rosita put it in her GPS and noticed they were already going in that direction. Rosita read the rest of the text to Abe.

Darryl: Come in quiet to the cabin. We are about to go to fucking war.