Red River Blue
Chapter 53
Harley wrinkled her nose up as she stared at the man. She rubbed the back of her neck with her hand as she tried to figure out just what in the exact hell she was looking at. The man was not only dressed impractically for the warm Georgia weather, he looked like he was dressed up in some sort of weird halloween costume. He was on top of a large rock, screaming like a major sissy. And kicking at two biters that he could have easily killed or outrun at any time. The entire situation felt like some sort of weird trap or setup. There's no way a grown ass man could seriously be acting like this and still be alive a year into the apocalypse.
"What a fuckin' pussy," Merle mumbled under his breath, seeming to share in his older daughter's opinion of the man.
Maggie and River finally stepped forward, easily dispatching the half-rotted walkers the man climbed on a boulder to escape. They helped him down. When Rick questioned the man, he claimed he didn't have any weapons. Harley figured that was true. If he had any, he would have been using them. But just to be sure, she stepped forward, whacking at the man's sides and back with her palms. Rick bit his lip to hide his grin. He wasn't sure what was funnier, a grown man looking terrified as he was padded down for weapons by a teenage girl, or the fact that Harley was still wearing a fluffy pink sunday church dress while she was doing it.
"The word of god is the only defense I need," the man said.
"Didn't look like it before," Daryl quipped. Harley snorted out a laugh. Looked to her like the man needed a lot more than a bible. In fact it looked to her like the fool was a few books shy of a full shelf. But she kept her comments to herself. For now.
They followed the man back to his church. Despite Harely's suspicions about the man leading them into a trap, the evidence inside the building did appear to suggest that he had been staying there alone for quite some time. There was only one bed made up. And the place was littered with empty food containers and tin cans. Something about the whole situation still seemed fishy to her. But for now it didn't seem like the man was planning to get the jump on them.
"I'm going," Harley hollered the moment she heard people talking about going on a run to the food bank. Before her mother could object, Harley narrowed her eyes at the woman. She needed to find some clothes. Because she was about ready to start walking around in her underpants rather than keep this stupid dress on for much longer.
"I got 'er," Merle whispered to River, making sure he was speaking low enough that Harley couldn't hear him. Normally, he wouldn't be worried about the girl going on a run without him, but she was still injured. He hadn't been told what the extent of her injuries were but he could tell she was favoring her ribs and getting winded easily. Merle paused in the doorway of the church, glancing back. Daryl started to push up off the floor, assuming his brother was expecting him to join them. But Merle's gaze was fixed on someone else.
"The fuck short round," Merle hollered, "...you coming or what?" Daryl sucked in his breath, getting ready for the fight that he assumed Merle was intentionally starting with Glenn. But to his absolute surprise, Glenn hopped up from the church pew with a smile on his face and hurried to join the group. Merle tossed his bad arm around the other man's shoulders and they exited the building together. Daryl just shook his head. He was sure there was a good explanation for why two men who just spent the better part of a year hating the shit out of each other were suddenly acting like best friends but he wasn't sure he even wanted to know what it was.
The small group stayed together until they confirmed Gabriel's story about the food bank. Once they were sure they really were only coming to gather a large surplus of canned goods and there was no other group waiting to attack them, the group split off. Rick took Michonne, Sasha, and Bob into the food bank. Merle and Glen left to take Harley clothes shopping.
None of the stores looked very promising. Harely was hoping for some sort of army surplus store. The only one that even sold clothing was an expensive looking women's fashion boutique. There were fancy prom style dresses displayed in the window. Harley sighed. Anything was better than what she had on. She used the butt of her gun to smash in the glass.
At first, Harley thought she had wasted her time coming into the store. The front area near the door was filled with silk dresses and high heel bullshit. But once she got past that area, the pickings got a little better. She found a rack of expensive designer jeans. The material felt thick enough that it wouldn't rip easily but still breathable. She poked through the piles until she found her size, laughing a little at the $250 price tag. There was a rack of bra and panty sets. Most were so skimpy that there seemed to be no point in wearing them. But after a better look she found a plain black set that was substantial enough she would be able to use it as a bathing suit if she had to and not have all her assets hanging out.
Harley stepped behind a mannequin display to change. It felt a little weird getting completely naked with her dad and some other rando only a few feet away. But she noticed both men were making an effort to keep their backs turned once they realized she was changing her clothes. Her dad was shuffling around the place, poking at things with the knife on the end of his arm piece. And Glenn was behind the counter where the register was, looking for anything that might be useful to them. He had a small pile started on the counter. Harley could see batteries and a pair of scissors.
Undressing and redressing as quickly as possible, Harley came out from behind the rack in her new jeans and bra, looking for a shirt. She stretched her arms, careful not to jerk her ribs too much. She was overjoyed to be out of that horrid itchy dress and made sure to stomp down on the wretched item a few times with her boots. After a little more searching, Harley found a tank top and a t-shirt to layer over it. She grabbed a long sleeve button down shirt and tied it around her waist in case she got cold later.
"Feel better?," her dad asked. Harley nodded. She actually did feel better. A lot better. Her dad was holding a brown leather jacket up in front of him. Harley held her hands out and he tossed the item over to her. She pulled it on, moving her arms around experimentally to test the fit. The jacket was a little tight through the back and too short in the sleeves.
"Too small," she said. The disappointment in her voice made Merle smile. At least he picked out something she didn't hate. "We should take it back for mom," Harley suggested. It was really a nice leather coat. Lightweight but still thick enough that it would offer some protection from the dead if they got close enough to scratch. Harley slipped it off and tossed it back over to her dad, who folded it up and tucked it under his arm. They were already headed back towards the broken window they came in through when they heard the screaming.