She ended up taking off the cast herself, and instantly understood why Edwards had been so against it months after the bone had healed. She stared down at the pale, wrinkled flesh that hadn't seen daylight in almost 6 months and forgot how to breathe.
She wasn't sure how long she'd sat gazing down at the healed wound in the imprint of teeth, but when she finally blinked the fog from her eyes half the day had gone by. Beth jumped in her seat when she noticed the disgraced doctor leaning against the doorframe of her room. He didn't look surprised, just pensive, worried, as if her finding out the truth was some cataclysmic discovery. And it was, she supposed because now she couldn't unknow it.
"How?" It came out as barely more than a breath, but she didn't have any more effort to put behind it.
He uncrossed his arms and stood straight, walked towards her with his hand outreached for her to place the offending limb in his grasp. "It happened outside the funeral home. Gorman and O'Donnell didn't notice when they grabbed you, not until they got you back here. The fever should have started by then, but your temperature was barely above normal." He inspected the mark, just slightly pink against her pale skin. "Dawn had me cover it once we realized you western't getting sick like you should have been. Wanted to keep it a secret from the others. Gorman was rough when he'd bring people in, it was easy enough to say your wrist was broken."
She looked at him, betrayed and scared all at once. "Why?"
They both knew she wasn't asking why they lied, but still he shook his head. "I have no idea," he admitted. "I've run every test I could think of. There's no reason for it." His shoulders dropped. "It just happened." The usually timid man squeezed her arm lightly and sought out her eyes though her vision was still hazy. "You can't waste this, Beth," he pressed. "You have the chance to save all of us. Don't be stupid."
Three little words and she went from dazed and angry in an instant. She snatched her arm away from him with a dirty look and moved to leave the room. Just before she crossed into the hallway she paused and looked back at him. "If I do get the chance to save the world with this," she said, lifting her arm, "I won't save you."
NowShe had an idea of how big the vessel would have to be to house so many sailors and carry so many other things including her former helicopter, but as they pulled up to the ship she felt smaller than an ant next to a fully grown oak. The USS Panacea was massive, and if she wasn't already regretting her choices for this trip, she would be now.
She risked a glance at the others to see if their reactions were similar. She guessed Judith had probably never seen anything like this before, and the astonished look on the girl's face proved that to be true. Beth wasn't the only one searching for the expression though, and she met a pair of blue eyes from the other side of the small dory. She didn't look away as he scrutinized something he saw in her, before they were both pulled away by the crew on deck who threw down a ladder for them to climb.
She went up first, more than ready to see what was waiting for them onboard. The vertical climb was more difficult than she'd ever admit, but she was eventually greeted by a pair of arms pulling her over the side, where her hands were immediately zip-tied behind her back. Well fuck. She made to call out to the others to warn them because was warned away from it by a masked sailor pointing a gun at her.
The Councilor kept her mouth shut and watched as one-by-one, her fellow travelers received the same treatment, although they did seem to take more care with the young girl. Once all four members of the group were bound, the figure with the voice she knew to be the ship's captain, Dane, removed his face mask.
The man was irritatingly good looking, somewhere close to Rick's age, and matched her unforgiving gaze. Tilting his head toward them, he spoke. "This is temporary, until we do a bite check." He pointed to an open hangar door nearby. "Doc Boswell will take you back one at a time for a check and then you'll stay in the hangar and away from my crew until we get to the coast. Two of my people will be in the room standing guard while Dr Boswell is present for her safety. You will not speak to them. Food and water will be brought to you. You will not attempt to exit the hangar. You will not be permitted weapons until we reach France. You will not converse with anyone on this ship other than myself and the doctor. Do you understand?"
He waited until he had acknowledgement from each of them before he finished, looking at Michonne. "Mom, you can go with your daughter but cuffs stay on until it's your turn. Welcome to the USS Panacea."
She could feel the fury coming off of Judith's parents in waves stronger than the ones they were floating in. She decided to risk a look and was met by a pair of brown eyes glaring daggers her way. As if it were her fault they brought the child along.
She had a flash of worry run through her at the thought of being checked for bites. Everyone who knew, knew because she'd told them not because they'd revealed it on their own.
Less than a moment later a pretty yet tired looking woman accompanied by two masked sailors stepped forward to introduce herself as Dr. Boswell. She called for the first of them to follow her into the hangar, and Beth looked straight ahead towards the ocean as Rick eventually stood to leave. She was not going first; it would likely end with them all getting thrown overboard. No, the others had to be cleared first just in case these meatheads didn't want to listen to reason and toss her over the side.
Ten minutes later when the doctor returned with the female sailor she pulled the same routine until she watched mother and daughter disappear inside the hanger from the corner of her eye. Now alone on the deck she could sense the many eyes on her, and decided to play a little game. "What, no one's going to ask me about my scars?" she said smartly with a smirk. "I know one of you is dying to know about the bullet wound." She met eyes with Dane from where he stood to the side of her and held his gaze until Dr. Boswell came out to get her, neither willing to lose the staring match.
She kept that eye contact until she couldn't anymore, standing and walking behind the woman who led her into the open hangar where the family sat at a picnic table in the middle of the room, the other guard watching over from nearby. To the far side of the space stood a medical screen that blocked a section off from the rest. Behind it was a basic exam table, a stool, and a coat rack. All three women entered the hidden space and the doctor motioned for her to stand near the table while the sailor posted up near the corner.
Dr Boswell didn't look unsympathetic as she grabbed a pair of scissors to cut the zip-tie holding her hands and instructed the Councilor. "I need you to undress down to your underwear so I can check you over. Do you have anything to tell me before I look?
Beth raised an eyebrow at the woman, not necessarily needing to be coy. But it was one of her favorite ways to communicate. "I'm sure there's plenty of things I could tell you. Anything specific?"
The woman sighed and rephrased her question. "Do you have any bites or scratches on you?" Well when she put it that way…
"Yes."
The word went off like a gunshot in the room as the sailor standing guard raised her weapon, shouting for her to back up and place her hands on the wall. The doctor quickly stood to put the table's length between them, looking panicked. "Why would you come here if you've been bitten? Do you know what one infected person could do to this ship?!" From the other side of the curtain she could hear a similar conflict between the male guard and the Grimes family.
The Councilor exhaled loudly but kept a look of nonchalance as she offered, "Would you like to see it?" She didn't wait for a response but slid the sleeve of her right arm up to show off the white-lined scar beneath. In the same way her "Yes" set the room off, this movement quieted it to a standstill. Their half of the room anyway.
From the other side of the screen the male sailor yelled for his counterpart to answer him, but the woman, both of them, were too busy staring wide-eyed at her scar to respond. The noise must have drawn the notice of those on the deck as Captain Dane and a few others burst into the curtained area, guns at the ready. "What is going on in–" He cut off as he noticed her exposed arm. She just waited and raised an eyebrow at him once he met her eyes again. "Explain," he demanded.
She tried not to grin. "Explain…?"
"Just tell them!" came a shout from the former sheriff's deputy. She imagined that there was a similar number of camo-clad soldiers pointing weapons on the side of the curtain she couldn't see, that was putting him on edge.
Barely suppressing an eye-roll, she told a quick version of the tale. "I was bit 10 years ago and I didn't die, didn't turn."
"You're immune?" the doctor questioned, finally finding her voice again. Beth just shrugged."Can I–"
The Councilor knew what was coming and shook her head. "No tests. I have my own scientists for that. I just need a ride to France," she said matter-of-fact.
They group continued to appraise her as the captain motioned for everyone to put their weapons down. "I want to renegotiate our deal."
"Tsk," she started. "You already got my helicopter."
His face scrunched up, exacerbated by her attitude. "Do you know what we're doing out here? How important it is?"
She was unmoved. "Like I said, I have my own scientists." She acted like she was thinking it over for a moment. "But, we can make a deal. One test per day until we reach Europe if you also give us a ride back when we're done. You get two tests per day on the way home."
The captain shared a look with the doctor as they communicated without speaking. It only took seconds before he turned back to her. "Deal."
The room took a collective breath as the agreement was made, and the majority of the ship's crew left. Dr. Boswell took a vial of her blood and scurried out the door, likely giddy at the thought of what could be found inside. The captain exited last, looking at the group even more skeptically than he had before, before motioning for the large open door to be closed behind him.
When the quartet was finally alone again, the family continued to sit as she moved to examine the room further. Metal walls, locked doors and small, un-openable windows. There was a small bathroom off through the only open door but other than that and the small exam room, there wasn't much to it.
"Did you plan that?" a voice asked, interrupting her inspection. She turned to find Michonne and Judith looking directly at her, and the husband at his wife. Perhaps he hadn't expected her to ask so directly.
She lifted the corner of her lips as she stared right back. She shrugged at her. "Well, we needed a way back and I only had one helicopter."