Hey Everyone! Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
Rick lowered his gun after shooting a zombified Sophia. Everyone was distressed and horrified about what had just transpired. A sweaty and angry Rick gave a searing look to Shane. He looked over to Lori and Carl who were on the ground in a state of shock and Billy who was still hugging a crying Zachary. Carol was hysterically sobbing as Daryl tried to console her. Beth was also crying looking at her mother's zombified dead body.
"Don't look. Don't look," Daryl said to Carol, getting her on her feet. Carol angrily shook him off and ran away crying. Hershel and Maggie just looked on at the carnage, not knowing what to say. Beth continued to cry into Jimmy's arms until she started walking towards her mother's body, but Rick tried to stop her.
"Shh shh shh. Wait wait wait wait," he said trying to console her. She ignored him and pushed him out of the way. Everyone looked on sadly as she knelt next to her mother.
"Ma," she cried. That sadness quickly turned to fear when she screamed as her not-so-dead mother sprang to life and grabbed her, all the while trying to bite her. Everyone ran towards her, even Billy, who was the first to try to pull her away.
"Come on! Pull her away, pull her away!" Billy yelled as Beth panicked. It took Jacob, Wu, Billy and Rick to get her away from the walker, as T Dog attempted to stomp the walker's head in to no avail. Glenn held the walker down as Andrea grabbed a scythe and drove it through the back of Beth's mom's head. Everyone caught their breath as Beth sobbed into Hershel's arms. Hershel and his family, Billy and Glenn included, started walking back to the farm house with Rick and Shane following them, while everyone else stayed at the barn to take care of what remained of the walkers. Shane trailed close behind Hershel and, as usual, was the instigator.
"We've been out. We've been combing these woods looking for her and she was in there all along? You knew," he accused. Hershel didn't say anything, but Billy angrily turned to Shane.
"Back off, Shane," he said. Shane got closer to the family and Rick tried to stop him.
"Hey, Shane, just stop, man," Rick said, putting his hand on Shane's shoulder.
"Get your hands off me!" Shane said, pushing Rick back.
"I—" Hershel was at a loss for words.
"You knew and you kept it from us," Shane accused again.
"I didn't know," Hershel said, in a state of distress.
"That's bullshit," Shane said. "I think y'all knew,"
"We didn't know!" Maggie said, angrily turning to face him.
"Why was she there?!" Shane said, his voice rising.
"Your- Otis put those people in the barn. Maybe he found her and put her in there before he was killed," Hershel said, his voice breaking. Patricia led Beth back inside as Billy and Maggie stayed on the porch with Hershel.
"You expect me to believe that? Do I look like an idiot?" Shane said.
"Shane, hey hey hey," Rick said, trying to hold him back.
"I don't care what you believe!" Hershel called back, now visibly shaken.
"Everybody just calm down," Rick said, stepping in between them.
"Get him off my land!" Hershel yelled.
"Please. No," Rick said. Shane looked angry.
"Let me tell you something," Shane said, getting in close to Hershel. Billy stepped in between him and Hershel, and sucker punched Shane in the jaw.
"I told you to back off. Don't touch him," Billy said, seething, pointing menacingly to Shane. Shane was about to return the punch but Rick stopped him. Maggie looked at Shane angrily as Billy went inside to comfort the rest of the family.
"Haven't you done enough?" She said.
"I mean it- off my land," Hershel said, pointing to Shane. Glenn followed him and Maggie into the house. It was quiet for a minute before Rick or Shane spoke.
"What are you doing?" Rick asked. Shane didn't answer. "Hey, what are you doing?"
"Daryl almost died looking for her, Rick. Any one of us could have. I'm gonna tell you right now- That son of a bitch, he knew," Shane said quietly, rubbing his jaw where Billy punched him.
"He didn't know. He's not like that. He opened his home to us," Rick said, shaking his head.
"He put us all in danger," Shane said. Man, he kept a barn full of walkers,"
"So you just start an insurrection, hand out guns and massacre his family?" Rick asked.
"His family's dead, Rick," Shane replied.
"Well, he doesn't believe that. He thinks you just murdered them in cold blood," Rick said.
No, man, I don't care what he thinks," Shane said shaking his head. Rick looked Shane in the eyes.
"I was handling it, brother. I was handling it and you just—" Shane cut him off.
"You had us out in those woods looking for a little girl that every single one of us knew was dead! That's what you did," Shane accused. Rick didn't know what to say.
"Rick, you're just as delusional as that guy," he gestured to the farmhouse. You handling it, huh?" Shane snorted and walked away angrily, leaving Rick stunned to stew on Shane's words.
(Intro)
Farmhouse
Inside the house, Maggie and Glenn were in the kitchen, still trying to process what had just happened. Billy was upstairs with Beth, Patricia, and Hershel.
"Did you know she was in the barn?" Glenn asked. Maggie gave him a shocked, almost accusatory look. He put his hand up as if to say sorry.
"You know, maybe in some weird way this is for the best. At least we know and now we can move on," He continued.
"Move on?" Maggie asked.
"Yeah, it's just like It meant so much to everyone—" Glenn sighed. "Finding her, you know? And then—" Maggie cut him off.
"So now you'll just move on?" She asked, her voice almost breaking.
"If we can. I mean, we've lost others," Glenn started to look more distressed.
"This is-this is Sophia! The whole group- this one was different. If it were any of the kids; Carl, Zach— it was different," he said sadly. Maggie looked away from Glenn for a moment before speaking.
"So what happens now?" She asked.
"We bury her. With your stepmom and your stepbrother," Glenn said. Maggie had tears in her eyes.
"And then?" She asked. Glenn simply walked over to her and kissed her on her forehead.
"I don't know,"
Barn
Back at the barn, the rest of the group was still dealing with the fallout of the carnage. Lori and Carl were sitting on the ground next to Jacob and Zach, who had finally stopped crying.
"I thought I'd find her," Carl said. Jacob looked at him sadly. Lori rubbed Carl's back.
"We all did," she said.
"I mean, me. That I'd be the one. Like maybe she was hiding somewhere in a cave or a tree She'd be safe. And I'd find her and bring her back," Carl said.
"I- - I just, can't believe she was here the whole time," Zach said sadly.
"Yeah. But, at least she's not suffering anymore," Jacob said, shaking his head. Carl nodded.
"He did the right thing, shooting her like that," Carl said.
"I would've done it, too," Carl said. Zach nodded in agreement; an action that garnered concern from both Lori and Jacob as they looked at each other. All the while, Shane and Rick were returning from the house. Jacob glared at Shane, whether he noticed it or not.
"Dale?" Lori asked. Dale was shaken but responded.
"Yeah?" He said.
"Could you take Carl up to the house?" She asked.
"I want you to rest," she said to Carl.
"Okay," Carl nodded.
"Can you take Zach too? This whole thing- - it's a lot for them," Jacob asked. Dale didn't say anything but nodded in acknowledgment. Zach gave Jacob a hug and started back to the house with Dale and Carl. Rick walked by them with his sheriff's hat in hand.
"Hey, you dropped that," he said, putting the hat on Carl's head as they walked by. Everyone was silent for a minute as they looked at the dead bodies of walkers littered around the outskirts of the barn.
"You want us to start burying?" T Dog asked.
"We need a service. Carol would want that," Andrea said.
"Yeah, we all want that," T Dog said somberly. Neither Rick or Shane said anything. Lori noticed this and spoke up.
"Let's- let's dig a grave for Sophia, and Annette and Shawn, uh, over by those trees," she said, pointing to a nearby cluster of trees.
"We're probably gonna need a truck to move the bodies," Jacob added, putting his hands in his pockets.
"I'll get the keys," Jimmy said, starting towards the house. Shane put his hand up and stopped him.
"No no. I got the truck," he said in a low voice as he walked towards the farmhouse.
"And the others? That's a lot of digging," Jimmy said.
"We bury the ones we love and burn the rest," Andrea said. Everyone nodded in agreement. Rick still didn't say anything.
"Let's get to work," Lori said, breaking the silence. Everyone broke off from the group to help bury or burn bodies. Jacob followed Andrea into the Barn to cover up the bodies of their loved ones, while Jimmy, Wu and T Dog went to dig some holes. Lori pulled Rick aside.
"What did Hershel say?" She asked quietly.
"He wants us off the farm, or Shane at least," Rick said, not quite looking Lori in the eyes.
"That's not a surprise. We're lucky someone wasn't killed. And all that gunfire- more walkers could've heard it. Or worse. That T. rex is still out there," Lori said. Rick still wouldn't look at her.
"Baby, what is it?" She asked softly.
"She was there the whole time," Rick said flatly.
"And you did everything you could," Lori said, trying to reassure him.
"Yeah, I know. I always do, don't I? Went after her, protected her, killed those walkers, but she still got bit," Rick said, visibly frustrated with himself.
"And Carl still got shot," Lori said.
"Mm-hmm. People counting on me and I had 'em chasing a ghost in a forest," Rick said. Lori looked sad, and tried to comfort him by touching his face, but he pulled away and angrily stormed back to the farmhouse.
Truck
At the truck near the campsite, Shane was about to climb in the truck when he saw Dale standing idly glaring at him. Shane just scoffed and shook his head and got in the truck. He turned the mirror to face Dale who was still staring at him. He opened the door and looked at him.
"Do you got something to say, Dale?" No answer. Shane looked at him again. "Well, go ahead, man. Mr. Moral Authority, huh? The- the voice of reason," Shane mocked. Dale still didn't say anything. Shane elbowed the roof of the truck and angrily got out and started walking towards Dale.
"Let me ask you something, man. What do you do? What do you do to keep this camp safe, huh? What do you do? What, you fix up an R.V.? You babysit some guns? Hell, you and Jake must get along just fine, bein' the two deadbeats of camp," Dale stood his ground.
"Man, you pointed a gun at my chest, right? But you just- you couldn't pull that trigger, could you? If I was such a danger, if I was such a threat, what did you do to stop me, huh? That's me. I smashed that barn opened, I saved Carl. That ain't you. That ain't Rick. That's me," Shane said, practically in Dale's face. Dale still didn't indulge him so Shane walked back to the truck and slammed the door.
"Tell you what, Dale- Next time I need a radiator hose I'll give you a call, man," and with that, Shane sped off angrily in the truck.
Barn
On the outskirts of the barn, everyone was intensely digging holes. Jacob wiped dirt and sweat from his forehead as he and T Dog finished digging a hole.
"I think that should do it," Jacob said.
RV
In the RV, Daryl and Carol were sitting silently as the midday sun peaked through the blinds. Lori opened the door and Daryl gave a hello nod.
"They're ready," Lori said. "Come on,"
"Why?" Carol asked.
"'Cause that's your little girl," Daryl said. Carol paused for a minute with tears in her eyes.
"That's not my little girl. That's some other thing. My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought She didn't cry herself to sleep. She didn't go hungry. She didn't try to find her way back. Sophia died a long time ago," Carol didn't look at Lori or Daryl as she spoke. Lori left silently. Daryl sighed in frustration, but in his mind he knew Carol was grieving in her own way. He didn't press it any farther and left the RV and followed Lori to the memorial service.
Farmhouse
In the house, Hershel was somberly going through his wife's things, packing them up and reminiscing in silence. He grabbed a suit from his closet for the service. Billy happened to be walking by Hershel's room and heard him let out a soft cry. He walked in the room to see Hershel collapse to his knees with his face in his hands.
"Hershel…?" He said quietly. Hershel said nothing as Billy knelt next to him with a hand on his shoulder.
Barn Outskirts
The memorial service was quiet. The despair could be felt by everyone. Shane walked awkwardly away from the service as others quietly paid their respects. Soon, everyone began to disperse, leaving the deceased to themselves. Meanwhile, a distressed and grief ridden Carol tore up a trove of Cherokee Roses and wailed in agony.
Later
Andrea, T Dog, Rick, Lori, Jacob, Wu and Dale were loading the burn walkers into the truck.
"A few more trips," Rick said.
"We got lucky. If that barn had any more, we could've been overrun," Andrea said, as she and T Dog loaded a walker into the bed of the truck.
"Good thing Shane did what he did - When he did," T Dog said. Jacob sighed and shook his head, trying to ignore what T Dog had said.
"You can't tell me this was right," Dale added.
"It wasn't," Rick said. "It'll cost us with Hershel," Andrea wiped walker blood off of her hands.
"He's grieving. He'll come around, see we had no choice," she said.
"We did have a choice. And what Shane did, was the wrong fucking choice," Jacob said dryly, not looking at anyone.
"I agree. Shane was- - is, too impulsive. He took it too far. Much too far," Wu added, backing Jacob up.
"Look, I shot too. This wasn't all Shane," Andrea said, looking at Jacob.
"Yeah so did I! Because if I didn't someone else might have died. Doesn't mean I agree with it," Jacob said, as he and Lori put one more walker into the truck. T Dog just shook his head.
"Look, I got no qualms about it. Walkers in my backyard? Mm-mm," he said.
"I'm not saying that we shouldn't have taken care of the problem, but creating a panic?!—" Dale said, before Lori cut him off.
"There's no point arguing about it. It's done. There's nothing we can do about it," she said.
"Better get moving," T Dog said, climbing in to the truck. Andrea hopped in the front seat and Jacob jumped into the bed and sat on the tail gate. Dale, Rick, Wu and Lori started walking back to the farmhouse. T Dog put the Truck in gear and started driving towards the woods where they were going to burn the walkers. A disembodied arm fell off the truck as they began to drive away.
"Hey! Hold up!" Jacob said, as the truck stopped. He jumped off the truck and grabbed the arm with disgust, and threw it back on. A few compies came running from the field after smelling the rotting flesh, but quickly ran away frightened when they heard the truck's engine. Jacob just shook his head and scoffed at the overgrown chickens and jumped back into the truck.
"All right, we're good! Let's go!" Jacob hit the tail gate with a loud thud as the truck pulled off once more towards the woods.
Farmhouse
Glenn was pacing around the living room as Maggie entered from the kitchen, after helping Beth and Billy in the kitchen.
"So if your group leaves, you wouldn't stay?" Maggie asked Glenn.
I- I hadn't really thought about it. I mean, I- I didn't know that- Do- do you think this is really the time - to discuss this, I mean?" Glenn stuttered.
"Well, I'm not really feeling like there's a lot of time for anything," Maggie stated. All the while in the kitchen, Beth leaned on the sink as Billy put his hand on her shoulder, looking worried.
"No no, there- there is. There is. I mean, I-I- I want—" Glenn was interrupted by the sounds of a clatter as Beth collapsed in the kitchen.
"Beth? Beth!" Billy said, on the floor next to her.
"Maggie!" He called.
"Oh my God," Maggie said, as she and Glenn ran to the kitchen.
"Glenn, help me get her upstairs," Billy said, picking her up. Glenn nodded and quickly cleared the debris off the floor so Billy could carry her.
Beth's Room
Beth lay frozen on her bed as Maggie and Billy comforted her to the best of their ability.
"Sweetie, can you hear me?" Maggie asked. Lori walked in the room and Maggie looked at her while holding Beth's hand.
"What's wrong with her?" Maggie asked.
"She might be in shock," Lori said. Billy nodded in agreement.
"She is. Her heart's racing and she's white as a ghost," he added.
"Where's Hershel?" Lori asked.
"We can't find him anywhere," Glenn sighed from the corner of the room. Maggie comforted her once more as Beth just stared into space.
Later in Hershel's room, Rick, Shane and Lori were going through the boxes in the bedroom looking for any trace of were Hershel may have gone when Maggie and Glenn walked in.
"Your stepmother's things?" Rick asked, going through a box.
"He was so sure she'd recover. They'd just pick up where they left off," Maggie said. Shane picked up a flask on the dresser.
"Looks like he found an old friend," he said, tossing it to Rick.
"That belonged to my grandfather, gave it to dad when he died," Maggie said, sounding almost surprised to see the flask.
"I didn't take Hershel for a drinker?" Rick asked.
"No, he gave it up on the day I was born. He didn't even allow liquor in the house," Maggie explained. Rick looked like he had an idea.
"What's the bar in town?" He asked.
"Hatlin's. He practically lived there in his drinking days," Maggie said.
"Betting that's where I'll find him," Rick said.
"Yeah, I've seen the place. I'll take you," Glenn said.
"All right, I'll get the truck," Rick said.
"Okay," Glenn replied, about to walk out the bedroom door. Maggie gently grabbed his arm.
"N- no," she practically pleaded.
"It's an easy run," Glenn said, trying to reassure her.
"Like the pharmacy?" She asked worriedly. Glenn took her hands.
"Maggie, that was different," he said softly.
"Hey Maggie," Rick said. "I'll bring him back," Rick started out the door as Maggie and Glenn continued talking, but Lori stopped him in the hallway with Shane close behind.
"Rick? You want to have a conversation about this before you leave?" Lori asked softly. Rick didn't say anything so Shane chimed in.
"So you're seriously gonna go after this guy with everything that's going on, huh? What you gonna do?" He asked.
"He's right. This is not the time to head off, not today," Lori said. "You don't know what's have—" Rick cut her off.
"I'm not arguing," Rick said. "It's the least I can do for Hershel after we- "
"What? After we what?" Shane cut Rick off. When Rick didn't say anything, Shane stormed off in anger.
"Carl said he would've shot Sophia himself. That's your son. He's getting cold. He's growing up in a world with- He's growing up in a world where he needs a father like you- around, alive, not running off, solving everybody else's problems," Lori said softly.
"It's not just his problem I'm trying to solve. We need Hershel for the baby. I'm going after him," Rick said. Lori was about to say something else, but Rick walked off towards the trucks.
Car
Jacob came walking up to the station wagon with the Marlin rifle in hand.
"Heard you were going after Hershel. Alright if I tag along?" He asked Rick.
"Yeah. I know Maggie'd appreciate you comin' along. That one of the new guns you and Billy grabbed?" Rick asked. Jacob nodded.
"Might come in handy if we run into the Rex," he said. Glenn came out of the farmhouse after hugging Maggie. She whispered something to him and he just stood there for a second. With his shotgun in hand, he walked over to the truck as Rick was getting in.
"You guys ready?" Rick asked.
"Yeah," Glenn said, climbing into the passenger seat.
"Let's go get Hershel," Jacob said, climbing into the back seat. Rick started the car as Maggie walked back inside, frustrated.
Well
Shane was pumping water at the well by the chicken coop when he heard rustling in the woods opposite him, he readied his gun, but relaxed when Carol came walking out, covered in dirt and blood. She started walking towards him but didn't say anything.
"Hey," Shane said. No answer. "Carol? Carol," he called again. She didn't say anything and kept walking. She was about to walk passed him but he stopped her.
"Hey hey hey hey hey. Hey, are you all right? Come here," he said softly. He sat her down at the well and gently washed the blood and dirt off of her.
"I want you to know that I'm real sorry for your girl," Shane said, cleaning one of her arms.
"Thank you," she said softly.
"When I opened that barn I had no idea," Shane said, with what seemed like genuine remorse. Carol just looked at him sadly.
"If I did… Everybody thinks that I'm a- - I was just trying to keep everybody safe," Shane stuttered, almost seeming to regret his actions. Almost.
"I had no idea she was in there,"
Farmhouse
Lori and Dale left the farmhouse, headed back to camp.
"This place is going to hell," Dale said, looking down steadily.
"Yeah, I'm trying hard to prevent that," Lori said.
"You won't be able to. No, there are people in this group who think that what Shane did was justified," Dale explained. Lori sighed.
"I know you two can't stand each other, but he did something that needed to be done," she said.
"He's dangerous," Dale said flatly.
"Yeah, he's a hothead," Lori stammered.
"No, Lori, he's dangerous. I think he killed Otis," Dale said. Lori looked stunned and the two stopped walking.
"Otis was killed by raptors. Walkers too," Lori said.
"He knew how to handle walkers. The raptors; debatable. But the walkers-" Dale said, putting his hand up.
"Otis was the one who was putting them in the barn!" He said, his voice rising. Lori gave him a worried look.
"You need to be really clear with me right now. What are you saying?" She asked.
"I believe that- that Shane sacrificed Otis. And I think Jacob know's something too," Dale said.
"I can't prove it, but I-I-I- I think that he- I think that he shot him and left him for bait, so that he could get away," Dale was getting more and more shaken. Lori just shook her head. Wether out of denial or disbelief, remained to be seen.
"Shane may be a hothead, but he's not a murderer. And- and why would he kill somebody who's trying to help?" She asked.
"I don't know. Maybe he was pinned down," Dale quieted his voice a bit. "He said- he said it. He all but threw it in my face. I'm telling you- I knew guys like him, and sooner or later he's gonna kill somebody else," Dale walked away, feeling defeated while Lori stewed on his words.
Car
There was awkward silence in the car and Glenn looked apprehensive about something. Rick looked at Jacob from the rear view mirror, and Jacob just shrugged. Finally, Glenn spoke up.
"Maggie said she loves me," Glenn stated.
"Well damn," Jacob said.
"She doesn't mean it. I mean she can't. I mean- well She- she's upset or confused. She's probably feeling, like—" Glenn stammered as Rick cut him off.
"I think she's smart enough to know what she's feeling," Rick said.
"No. No," Glenn started again. Rick and Jacob chuckled as Glenn tried to rationalize the situation.
"No, you know what? She wants to be in love, so she's- she needs something to- to, like- to hold onto," Glenn said, looking at both of them.
"Glenn, it's pretty obvious to everyone Maggie loves you," Rick said.
"Yeah. And not just because you're one of the last bachelors in camp," Jacob added.
"So what's the problem?" Rick asked.
"I didn't say it back," Glenn sighed.
"Huh," Rick said, keeping his eyes on the road.
"I've never had a woman say that to me before except my mom, of course, and my sisters. But with Maggie, it's different. We barely know each other. What- what does she really know about me? Nothing. We're practically strangers. But I- I didn't know what to do with it. I just stood there like a jerk," Glenn explained.
"Hey. Hey, this is a good thing, something we don't get enough of these days. Enjoy it," Rick said. Glenn gave a shy smile.
"When we get back, you should tell her how you feel too. If she really means that much to you," Jacob said with a smile. Rick nodded in agreement.
"He's right. It's not like she's going anywhere," Rick said. After a few minutes, the truck pulled up to the bar and Rick put the car in park and turned off the engine. He was about to step out before Glenn spoke up.
"Rick? I know about Lori, her being pregnant," he said. Jacob's eye's widened.
"Wait- - Lori's… Pregnant?" He asked, a bit shocked. Glenn and Rick both looked back at him. Jacob put his hands up.
"Hey. My lips are sealed," he said.
"I got her those pills," Glenn said.
"I figured," Rick said, as he opened the door and stepped out of the car. Glenn and Jacob followed suit, with their guns in tote.
"Hey, I'm sorry I kept it from you," Glenn said to Rick.
"Don't be," Rick said. "You did what you thought was right. It just so happens it wasn't,"
Farmhouse
Beth was still in a comatose state. Patricia was taking care of her as best she could while Jimmy sat on the bed with her. Billy was awkwardly sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, twiddling his thumbs. Despite his feelings for Beth, and her potential feelings for him, he still didn't want to make it known to people. Jimmy, especially. Lori was on the opposite end of the room, and Andrea felt Beth's forehead before walking to Lori.
"Her heart's racing. She's burning up. We need Hershel. He'll know what to do," Andrea said. Lori paused for a moment, like she was thinking.
"Would you look in on Carl for me?" She asked. Andrea looked confused but nodded.
"Of course,"
Farm Outskirts
After searching for a few minutes, Lori finally found Daryl, who was sitting on a rock, sharpening a knife.
"Moving to the suburbs?" Lori asked. "Listen, Beth's in some kind of catatonic shock. We need Hershel," Daryl just looked at her.
"Yeah. So what?" He asked, still sharpening his knife.
"So I need you to run into town real quick and bring him and Rick back," Daryl didn't look up from his knife.
"Daryl?" Lori asked again.
"Your bitch went window-shopping. You want him? Fetch him yourself. I got better things to do," Daryl retorted, still sharpening.
"What's the matter with you? Why would you be so selfish?" Lori asked, kind of dumbfounded. Daryl stood up angrily.
"Selfish? Listen to me, Olive Oyl. I was out there looking for that little girl every single day. I took a bullet and an arrow in the process. Don't you tell me about me getting my hands dirty!" He sat back down on the rock and went back to sharpening.
"You want those two idiots? Have a nice ride. I'm done looking for people," he said, calming down a bit. Lori just looked at him and angrily shook her head before walking back to the farmhouse.
Hatlin's
Rick, Glenn and Jacob opened the door to the bar. The room was dark, with tables still set up from before the world fell. Hershel said nothing as the trio entered and he heard the door close. Jacob and Glenn stood on either side of Rick, not saying a word.
"Hershel," Rick said.
"Who's with you?" Hershel simply asked.
"Glenn. Jacob too," Rick replied. Hershel pondered for a minute.
"Glenn. Did Maggie sent him?" He asked.
"He volunteered. He's good like that," Rick said, finally walking towards Hershel. Glenn and Jacob Hung back a bit while Rick and Hershel talked things out.
"How many have you had?" Rick asked, leaning on the bar next to him.
"Not enough," Hershel replied, picking up his pint glass.
"Let's finish this up back at home. Beth collapsed, is in some sort of state. Must be in shock. I think you are too," Rick explained. Hershel looked at him with a mixture of worry and shame.
"Maggie's with her?" He asked. Rick nodded.
"Yeah, but Beth needs you," he said.
"What could I do? She needs her mother," Hershel said sadly. Jacob and Glenn just looked at each other.
"Or rather to mourn like she should've done weeks ago. I robbed her of that. I see that now," Hershel said, taking a drink.
"You thought there was a cure. Can't blame yourself for holding out for hope," Rick said.
"Hope? When I first saw you running across my field with your boy in your arms, I had little hope he would survive," Hershel said, looking Rick in the eye.
"But he did," Rick added.
"He did. Even though we lost Otis. Your man Shane made it back and we saved your boy. That was the miracle that proved to me miracles do exist," Hershel let out a big sigh. "Only it was a sham, a bait and switch. I was a fool, Rick, and you people saw that. My daughters deserve better than that,"
Farmhouse
Back at the farm, Lori discreetly left the house, checking her revolver to make sure it was loaded. She climbed into one of the cars and grabbed a map out of the glove box before getting on the road. She was a few miles from the farm when she grabbed the map from the passenger seat, and tried to get her bearings. Unfortunately, she wasn't paying attention and failed to see a group of stegosauruses crossing the road in front of her. She let out a gasp as she swerved and hit one of the stegosaurus' tail, causing her to drive into a ditch and flip the car, until it landed on its side. The stegosaurus that she hit, was not too happy, and gave the car one last swipe of its tail, sending it even farther, before lumbering off into the woods with the rest of its herd…
Hatlin's
Rick, Jacob and Glenn were conversing by the door, trying to figure out how they were going to get him home.
"So what do we do? Just wait for him to pass out?" Glenn asked. Hershel had obviously heard them
"Just go," he said. "Just go!" He yelled again. Rick shook his head.
"I promised Maggie I'd bring you home safe," he said. Hershel actually chuckled a bit and took another drink.
"Like you promised that little girl?" He said.
"Hershel. That's not fair," Jacob said. Rick just put his hand up as if to say "I'll handle it." Rick walked back towards the bar.
"So what's your plan? Finish that bottle? Drink yourself to death and leave your girls alone?" Rick asked, frustrated. Hershel slammed his glass on the bar and walked up to Rick.
"Stop telling me how to care for my family, my farm!" He yelled, nearly in Rick's face. "You people are like a plague! I do the Christian thing, give you shelter, and you destroy it all!"
"The world was already in bad shape when we met," Rick said, calmly.
"And you take no responsibility! You're supposed to be their leader!" Hershel yelled. Jacob looked at Glenn.
"Should - - should we…?" Jacob asked Glenn quietly. Glenn shook his head.
"No. This needs to happen," he whispered back. Jacob nodded.
"Well, I'm here now, aren't I?!" Rick yelled back to Hershel. Hershel seemed to calm down a bit.
"Yes. Yes," he said, sitting back down at the bar. He took another drink.
"Yes, you are," Rick leaned on the bar next to him again.
"Now come on. Your girls need you now more than ever," he put his hand on Hershel's arm, but Hershel pushed it away.
"I didn't want to believe you," he said. "You told me there was no cure, that these people were dead, not sick. I chose not to believe that. But when Shane shot Lou in the chest and she just kept coming, that's when I knew what an ass I'd been, that Annette had been dead long ago and I was feeding a rotten corpse! That's when I knew there was no hope," Hershel began tearing up, looking Rick in the eyes. He continued.
"And when that little girl came out of the barn, the look on your face- I knew you knew it too. Right? There is no hope. And you know it now, like I do. Don't you? There is no hope for any of us," Rick just looked down steadily and then to Glenn and Jacob, who also didn't know what to say. The two of them sat down at the bar near Rick and Hershel. Rick started up again.
"Look, I'm done. I'm not doing this anymore, cleaning up after you. You know what the truth is? Nothing has changed. Death is death. It's always been there, whether it's from a heart attack, cancer, dinosaur or a walker. What's the difference? You didn't think it was hopeless before, did you? Now there are people back at home trying to hang on. They need us, even if it's just to give them a reason to go on, even if we don't believe it ourselves. You know what? This- this isn't about what we believe anymore. It's about them," Hershel didn't say anything, but he seemed to truly consider Rick's words. He took one last drink and finally put his glass down. Before he could say anything else, the door to the bar opened and two men stepped in. One larger man, and a fit looking man with a short beard. Everyone looked shocked to see more living people.
"Son of a bitch," the fit man said. They're alive,"
Later
The two newcomers sat at the bar with everyone as Rick poured everyone a drink.
"I'm Dave," the fit man said. "That scrawny-looking douche bag there is Tony,"
"Eat me, Dave," Tony said, flipping him the bird.
"Hey, maybe someday I will. We met on I-95 coming out of Philly. Damn shit-show that was," Dave said, taking a drink.
"I'm Glenn. It's nice to meet some new people," Glenn said with a smile.
"Jacob," Jacob said raising a glass and introducing himself.
"Rick Grimes," Rick said, pouring Tony a glass.
"How about you, pal? Have one?" Dave asked Hershel.
"I just quit," Hershel said.
"You've got a unique sense of timing, my friend," Dave said. Things felt awkward already.
"His name's Hershel. He lost people today, a lot of them," Rick said, breaking the silence.
"I'm truly sorry to hear that. To better days and new friends," Dave said. He raised his glass. "And to our dead- May they be in a better place," everyone took a drink. Dave set his glass down and Rick noticed the rather large handgun on his hip. Dave pulled it out and showed it off.
"Not bad, huh?" He said. "I got it off a cop,"
"I'm a cop," Rick said dryly. Dave looked nervous but then chuckled.
"This one was already dead," he said. There was awkward silence in the room.
"You, uh, you guys are a long way from Philly," Jacob said.
"It feels like we're a long way from anywhere," Dave replied.
"Well, what drove you south?" Rick chimed in.
"Well, I can tell you it wasn't the weather. I must've dropped thirty pounds. In sweat alone down here," Dave explained.
" Heh. I wish," Tony added.
"No, first it was D.C. I heard there might be some kind of refugee camp, but the roads were so jammed, we never even got close. We decided to get off the highways, into the sticks, keep hauling ass. Every group we came across had a new rumor about a way out of this thing," Dave said.
"One guy told us there was the coast guard sitting in the gulf, sending ferries to the islands. Also heard they got attacked by some kinda sea monster. No survivors," Tony said. Hershel and Rick looked at each other. Jacob's eyes widened a bit. That was no doubt the Mosasaur. He took a big drink.
"The latest was a rail yard in Montgomery running trains to the middle of the country- - Kansas, Nebraska," Dave said.
"Nebraska?" Glenn asked.
"Low population, lots of guns," Tony explained.
"Kinda makes sense," Glenn said.
"Any of you ever been to Nebraska? A reason they call 'em Flyover States," Dave and Tony both laughed. Rick even cracked a smile and took a drink.
"How about you guys?" Dave asked.
"Fort Benning, eventually," Rick said.
"I hate to piss in your cornflakes, officer, but We ran across a grunt who was stationed at Benning. He said the place was overrun by lizards and lamebrains," Tony said. Rick actually looked a little defeated.
"Wait, Fort Benning is gone? Are you for real?" Jacob asked. Dave just shook his head.
"Sadly, I am. Oddly, the truth is there is no way out of this mess. Just keep going from one pipe dream to the next, praying you don't get disemboweled by one of them lizards or have one of these mindless freaks grab a hold of you when you sleep," he said.
"If you sleep," Tony added.
"I mean, if you wanna get technical, they're birds," Jacob said with a dry smile after taking a drink. Dave and Tony just laughed.
"Yeah," Dave chuckled. "Birds, sure,"
"Anyway, it doesn't look like you guys are hanging your hats here. You holed up somewhere else?" Dave asked. Rick was cautious with his answer
"Not really," he said.
"Those your cars out front?" Dave asked.
"Yeah. Why?" Glenn asked.
"We're living in ours," Dave said. "Those look kinda empty, clean. Where's all your gear?"
"We're with a larger group out scouting, thought we could use a drink," Hershel said.
"A drink? Hershel, I thought you quit," Dave joked. There was another awkward pause.
"Well, we're thinking of setting up around here. Is it- is it safe?" Dave asked.
"It can be, although I have killed a couple of walkers around here. Dinosaurs too," Glenn said.
"Walkers? That what you call them?" Dave chuckled.
"Yeah," Glenn said with an awkward smile.
"That's good. I like that. I like that better than lamebrains," Dave laughed.
"More succinct," Tony added. Jacob chuckled.
"Okay, Tony went to college," Dave said. Jacob raised his glass slightly.
"Two years," Tony said. The air was starting to feel tense.
"So what- so what, you guys set up on the outskirts or something? That new development?" Dave asked.
"Trailer park or something?" Tony asked, as he got up. It looked like Dave had a realization.
"A farm? Old McDonald had a farm You got a farm? E-i-e-i-o," Dave sang in a rather creepy way. Rick looked over to the corner of the room to the sound of Tony peeing on the wall. Dave and Tony had them. The rest of the group looked at each other nervously.
"Is it safe?" Tony asked.
"It's gotta be," Dave said. You got food, water?"
"You got cooz? Ain't had a piece of ass in weeks," Tony chuckled. Dave put his hand on his head.
"Listen, pardon my friend. City kids- they got no tact. No disrespect," he said. He gestured to Jacob.
"So listen, Jake; can I call you Jake—" Rick cut him off
"We've said enough," Rick said, pointedly.
"Well, hang on a second. This farm- it sounds pretty sweet. Don't it sound sweet, Tony?" Dave asked, looking to Tony.
"Yeah, real sweet," Tony said, in a kind of creepy manor.
"How about a little southern hospitality? We got some buddies back at camp, been having a real hard time. I don't see why you can't make room for a few more. We can pool our resources, our manpower," Dave explained, almost pleading.
"Look, I'm sorry. That's not an option," Rick said. Dave and Tony looked pissed.
"Doesn't sound like it'd be a problem," Dave said.
"I'm sorry. We can't," Hershel said, rather solemnly.
"We can't take in any more," Rick said. Dave laughed sarcastically.
"You guys are something else. I thought- I thought we were friends. We got people we gotta look out for too," he said.
"We don't know anything about you," Rick said.
"No, that's true. You don't know anything about us," Dave said, almost threateningly. "You don't know what we've had to go through out there, the things we've had to do. I bet you've had to do some of those same things yourself. Am I right? 'Cause ain't nobody's hands clean in what's left of this world. We're all the same. So come on, let's- let's take a nice friendly hayride to this farm and we'll get to know each other," Dave said. Rick just shrugged and looked down at the floor.
"That's not gonna happen," Rick stated. Glenn, Jacob and Hershel looked a bit on edge.
"Rick—" Dave said, right before Tony cut him off.
"This is bullshit," Tony said.
"Calm down," Rick said, with a less than pleased look on his face.
"Don't tell me to calm down. Don't ever tell me to calm down," Tony said.
"Woah, alright," Jacob said.
"I'll shoot you four assholes in the head and take your damn farm!" Tony yelled. Big mistake. Rick got up and was about to square up to Tony when Dave stepped in
"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa. Relax. Take it easy. Nobody's killing 's shooting anybody. Right, Rick?" Dave said, climbing behind the bar. Rick, Glenn, Hershel and Jacob were now on the opposite side of the bar, closer to the door.
"We're just friends having a drink. That's all," Dave continued. He put his gun on the bar. Glenn and Jacob looked to Rick, who had his hand on his revolver.
"Now where's the good stuff, huh? Good stuff, good stuff, good stuff. Let's see. Hey, look at that. That'll work," Dave pulled out an expensive looking bottle of whiskey
"You gotta understand," he said, pouring himself another drink. "We can't stay out there. You know what it's like,"
"Yeah, I do," Rick said. "But the farm is too crowded as is. I'm sorry. You'll have to keep looking,"
"Keep looking. Where do you suggest we do that?" Dave asked. He looked angry. Jacob had his finger on his rifle's trigger just in case.
"I don't know. I hear Nebraska's nice," Rick said.
"Nebraska. This guy," Dave laughed, and then went for the gun on the bar. Rick didn't even let him pick it up and shot him in the head, spraying blood on the mirror behind Dave. He also wasted no time in firing several shots into Tony's stomach, who fell to the ground, while shooting his shotgun in the air as he collapsed. Rick fired one final shot into Tony's head. Everyone looked at each other in shock as Rick holstered his python. A few miles from the bar, a pack of raptors perk up in alert after hearing several gunshots (as rock music plays), and run swiftly through the forest, towards the source of the sound….
END
Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Sorry to make you wait so long. Things are definitely getting interesting! Please let me know your thoughts, and as always, thanks for reading!
~JPfan