The morning light did not make the scene from the night before any less devastating. The campsite was torn to shreds, bodies littered the ground, and the chickens escaped. Andrea was just sitting against Dale's RV, staring at nothing with her gun in her lap. The men were moving bodies at a snail's pace while Rick and Shane argued about where they would be moving to. Lori fretted with a despondent Carl at her feet, anytime he moved to walk away the grip on his shirt would turn to iron. Carol sat besides Ed's body sobbing, forcing Sofia to sit in her lap to mourn her father. Hector was moving bodies with the men but his family was nowhere to be found.
Amy forced the children to stay in the RV, well, not really forced. They just didn't want her or Michonne to leave them alone but there was work to be done. After the blonde checked on her quail, she moved to her sister. The older woman didn't react to her younger sister sitting beside her, just clutched the gun her father gave her tighter.
"Have you been out here all night?" Amy asked, placing an arm around her sister when she didn't respond. After a few minutes she stood up and placed her arms around Andrea to help her up. "C'mon you can sleep in the RV, you're going to get sick."
A click. "I know how the safety works."
Amy only froze for a brief moment before she snatched the gun from her sister's hand with fury. The older woman appeared confused that the gun was gone and her fingers were slowly being bent back painfully. A full, hysterical scream built in her throat when she felt like her hand was about to snap in half.
"Did you just pull your fucking gun on me?" Amy's voice carried throughout the camp, startling the former cops out of their argument.
She was suddenly furious, she had built a warning system, gotten weapons for everyone and placed them into responsible hands, even gotten them chickens to draw the attention of the dead but it appeared a lot of the camp was still wiped out. Her sister stared dead into her eyes, like Amy had wronged her somehow.
"Give it back."
"Fuck you." Amy spat before grabbing her sister by her arm and dragging her to her feet. The camp watched with a little fear when Andrea was dragged to Michonne's RV and practically thrown bodily inside. "You want to explain yourself?"
"Give it back."
"Absolutely not. Explain what the fuck is going on in your head!"
"Give it back!"
"I'm not a kid anymore, Andrea. I'm not playing these games with you. Tell me what the hell is wrong with you!" Amy was screaming in the end, shoving the hand gun in her waistband.
"Give it back!" Andrea screamed back, looking ready to attack her sister.
"You want to act like a child." The young blonde took a deep breath, trying to relax but her sister just pulled a gun on her. "You're on time out."
With that she turned on her heel, ignoring the shriek of rage at her back. The camp was watching curiously but she walked determinedly to Daryl and Merle. Taking out a pair of work gloves, she and Michonne started stabbing bodies with their modified ice pick sticks just to be sure. It was gross and the sounds were nauseating but it had to be done.
"That's a good idea." Rick commented after twenty minutes of standing around watching them. "Did you make those?"
"Yeah."
"When?" The former deputy asked when neither woman elaborated.
"Amy made them when we hit the CDC." Michonne sighed, looking at her friend in concern. She had seen her moving mechanically, just getting the job done as quickly as possible so her mind could not catch up.
"You've been to the CDC?" He couldn't help but get a little excited. "What was it like? Were they taking people in?"
"The doors were closed for a week when we got there." Amy muttered, finally looking up at him through squinted eyes. "I'm guessing the scientists shut out the military when they were overrun."
"Jim's been bit!"
"I'm fine!"
"Show it to us!"
"Now, let's calm down!"
Shane and Rick overpowered Jim easily, ripping the shovel from his hands as they shoved him down hard. People gathered around fearfully, making Amy grind her teeth in agitation. When his shirt was lifted, it wasn't the expected bite but a long deep cut into his side.
"Jesus, Jim!" Amy shouted, pushing the shocked onlookers out of the way.
"I'm okay. I'm okay." The older man kept muttering to himself while Amy frowned down at him.
"Help me get him to Michonne's RV. It's already infected." The young blonde stood up, reaching out to help the man but the Dixons were already there. The former police officers followed them with curious frowns.
"Git the door, Blondie." Merle grunted, Jim grasping hands irritating his injuries. Andrea stood up defiantly when the door opened, glaring at everyone piling into the mobile infirmary.
"Why didn't you tell us you had this?" Shane demanded, looking around with a displeased frown.
"I think after I gave you guns and you didn't use them, you really don't get to ask anymore." Amy snapped while looking through the field dressing guide. After she found what she was looking for she put on a pair of gloves to try her hand at cleaning the wound and stitching.
"Is he bit?" Andrea asked fearfully from behind Shane.
"No, I'm not sure what he cut himself on. If I didn't know better I would think he walked into Michonne's sword but he wasn't near us last night." Amy muttered absently, Daryl was breathing down her neck watching her shaky stitches with laser focus. Merle laid down on one of the three cots he claimed as his.
"Have you done this before?" Rick asked, in awe of the larger than life ambulance that had just been sitting in camp.
"No."
"Amy you're supposed to tell when you bring back things for the group like this." Shane took off his hat to run a hand through his hair.
"Shane, this is Michonne's RV." Amy sighed as she cleaned up the area around the stitches carefully. Jim had passed out as soon as he was laid down and had not even flinched when she was poking him. Taking off her gloves, she reached behind Daryl's head for The Pill Book. Hopefully it would tell her what kind of antibiotics Jim needed.
"Is he okay?" Jaqi opened the door frantically before her mouth dropped open in shock at what was inside the RV. "How come we didn't know there was a hospital parked up the hill?"
"Could you all fuck off unless you know what kinds of antibiotics Jim needs?" Amy snapped at all of them hovering over her.
"I think we need to talk about all the things you're bringing to camp without telling us." Shane snapped right back, taking a step forward only to be pushed forcefully by Daryl.
"Think she told you to fuck off."
"Amy, was there anything else you need to show us?" Rick's tone made the hairs on her arms stand on end. When she looked up, it was to see her sister just standing there watching everything going on.
"I think it's time." Amy stood up to her full height with the Dixon brothers at her side. Glaring at everyone hovering and last at her sister who turned to her shoes. "I think if you ask me one more question about what I do for this camp, I won't be doing anything further. I think it will be time for me and mine to hit the fucking road and since you couldn't even pass out the fucking guns I gave you when the camp was attacked, I should give these to someone else."
They were all shocked when she took the keys from the humvee and offered them to Daryl. Merle and Daryl exchanged a look over the blonde's head before The younger Dixon accepted the keys with a smirk. Shane fumed, wondering how she got the keys in the first place and Rick was looking at his partner with worry. The whole morning they had been arguing it had not been the guns they needed but able bodies able to use them.
"We don't want you to leave." Rick put up his hands in surrender, keeping Shane slightly behind him. "No one is questioning that you've done a lot but if we are goin-"
"No one elected Shane. No one elected you either." Amy cut him off with a scowl. "Infact, most of us do shit that needs to be done without anyone else's input. So, I'm thinking that what you two need to do is make some really smart choices fast."
"Think of your kids."
"I am." Amy nodded with certainty. "The only reason we stayed was because there is safety in numbers. If those numbers start making stupid calls like trying to take my shit…I'll shoot you in the knee caps and leave."
"You can't go around making threats like that." Shane argued, genuinely worried after seeing the smirks on Dixon's faces.
"You're threatening to take food out of my kids mouths." Amy crossed her arms behind her back, looking them in the eyes. "Taking away the safety of a roof over their heads, taking my friend's home which was offered to the people of our group who are recovering. Merle will be staying in here while he recovers from being left for dead, chained to a pipe on a hot roof in Atlanta. My sister will stay here while she rests and so will Jim. So, I'm confused as to how you have any input on this."
"Okay, I see this is a conversation that is continuing on from something else." Rick nodded his head in concern, glancing back at his partner with a raised brow. "We have a lot to discuss today. I'm thinking our next step is the CDC, Shane believes Fort Benning is taking in refugees. What do you think?"
"Military was overrun." Amy sighed, seeing they weren't leaving. "They had outposts all over the place, setting up refugee centers or just check points but they're all gone. The CDC closed their doors, whether they did it in time or it's filled with the dead rattling around in there is anyone's guess."
"All them soldiers came from Fort Benning." Merle grunted, looking highly irritated when he sat down. "Aint no one gonna welcome us at ta base."
"Okay, everyone leave." Amy shooed them when Shane opened his mouth to argue some more. Her sister was swaying on her feet, Merle looked green, and she still needed to figure out how to do an IV.
"You heard her." Daryl stepped forward with no intention of stopping, he was going to drag them out if he had to. Jaqi had already rushed off but Lori took her place, watching the former policemen with worried eyes. Rick and Shane gave up, getting herded out of the RV with resigned sighs.
Andrea just laid down with her back to her once everyone left, finally letting Amy get back to looking for what medicine she should give Jim. There were a lot of very helpful guidebooks, they even had pictures so that she could hook the unconscious man to an IV. After only ten minutes color was returning to his face and she hoped she chose the right medicine.
"Hey." Michonne stepped forward with a tray, four bowls of chili with crackers. "How's it going in here?"
"I think I got it right." Amy turns to her with hopeful eyes. "I dissolved the pills with a syringe before adding that to his saline, like the book said. Made sure Merle was drinking plenty of water but he keeps shaking. There's nothing in here about detox at all! I don't know what's wrong with Andrea, she just stares like she's somewhere else. Michonne, I tinker, I weld, I like making things. I'm not a doctor!"
"You seem to be doing just fine." Michonne gripped her arms reassuringly before steering her over to a seat to eat. "You haven't missed much out there, other than Shane losing his mind after Dixon refused to give up the keys to the humvee."
"Should have kept the keys on him instead of his tent then." The young blonde shrugged, finishing her food in four bites after she crushed the crackers in it. "How are the kids?"
"Jamie is doing a good job keeping them entertained but they miss you." Michonne smiled a little, seeing her perk up.
"I would bring them in here with me but with them resting, I don't want the kids to disturb them. Braden could be a good little helper though. I'm really sorry about just offering up your RV."
Michonne just shrugs, taking a long drink of water. "I already said that Dixon could detox here but it makes me wonder. Could I have saved Mike and Terry? They never used before all this shit started."
"At the time, you couldn't risk it." Amy took the older woman's hand. "Merle has been trying to dry himself out slowly, he decided that. If Mike and Terry still wanted to use, then there was nothing you could do but lock them in a closet. Andre has to come first."
"Andre comes first." Michonne muttered to herself in relief, squeezing her hands in appreciation. "So, what's the plan?"
"I'm close to packing up and taking off on our own."
"I heard some yelling earlier and the new guy Rick seemed to grill Shane hard when they got back to camp."
"They were not impressed when they found out this was a mobile infirmary." Amy rolled her eyes in exasperation, pulling Fast Facts for Critical Care close to her chest, hugging the little binder close. "Made some suggestions that maybe they need to check my bus and trailer. I said I would shoot out their knee caps and leave them behind."
"Girl!" Michonne laughed, bringing a bright smile to the blonde's face. "You look all sweet but you're all bad bitch!"