I'm so sorry for the lack of updates. Personal life has been hell on Earth and dealing with issues. But I'm glad that you stuck around, let's get started!
Disclaimer I don't own The Walking Dead, just my ocs and plotlines
TW: Blood, gore, and explicit content
Callie's PoV
The pair carry Connor into a room, the poor boy must have passed out during the ride here. Callie couldn't look at the decor right now because of the kid in her arms. His leg was... a bloody mess. There was skin and muscle hanging out of the leg. More like ripped out. What the fuck happened?
"Patricia, I need my kit, towels, sheets, alcohol. Everything.
"Daddy?" A voice breaks through and Callie recognises the young girl that she saw at the diner all those years ago.
"Stay away, Beth." The girl listens to Hershel and backs away, not before casting a final look to the young boy.
Callie swallows hard looking at the leg again.
"Go, Callie. I need the space." Hershel says and Callie stumbles out of the room, practically falling into a chair. She looks at her hands covered in blood again.
She hears footsteps and looks up to Rick and Lori. Rick was hiding a glass of orange juice.
"What happened?" Rick asks her and she shakes her head, a sob escaping her lips and she scrubs harshly at her hands to get rid of the blood but it only made it worse, further staining her hands red and spreading it. She feels a weight next to her and someone's hand ghosting on her shoulder.
"He accidentally stepped into a bear trap." Lori explains softly, and Callie looks up to see that it was her rubbing calming circles onto her shoulder. She was surprised at that, she thought that the woman hated her, but she guessed not. But a bear trap? She was surprised that his leg was still on.
"Oh god." Rick curses, a hand covering his mouth in disgust at the thought of that boy being in that predicament.
Some time later Hershel walks out, wiping at his hands once again, followed by Noa, her sister, and Patricia.
The three look at him for answers, but one look from Hershel and the three women left them alone. Noa casts one look at Callie, and she understood. Her father was different. But a fool? She didn't think so.
"He was lucky. If he moved even an inch, his bone would have been shattered, and that would have been damaged beyond repair. We would have had to remove his leg if that happened." Hershel informs them and Callie tenses at the thought. One legged in an apocalypse? He would be a dead man walking.
"The people that were with us when it happened told him not to move." Lori informs Hershel.
"That's smart of them. The muscle has been torn, I had to sew that back together. He won't be back on his feet for about 2 weeks. A month if he stresses it." Hershel explains softly and Callie nods. Hershel gives Rick a look who starts chugging his drink to a reasonable level.
"Okay." Lori whispers finally and looks to Rick for a moment before looking back at Hershel. "So I understand, when Shane gets back with this other man-"
"Otis." Hershel corrects.
Lori seethes at the name. "Otis." She repeats slowly. "The idiot who shot my son."
"Ma'am, it was an accident." Hershel points out and Callie agrees with Hershel. There was no way that Otis would have saw Carl. Or her for that matter, she was making herself look smaller to the deer to not spook her. Maybe if she stood up? Maybe that wouldn't have happened?
"I'll take that under advisement later. For now, he's the idiot who shot our son."
Rick puts a hand on her. "Lori, they're doing everything they can to make it right."
Lori nods her head, taking a breath before looking at Hershel with softer eyes. "Okay, as soon as they get back you can perform this surgery?" She asks, her voice breaking.
"I'll certainly do my best." Hershel answers honestly and Callie could tell that he was telling the truth. No point in giving false hope. Carl could die in this surgery. Her nephew- no, she couldn't think like that.
"I mean, you've done this surgery before?"
"Well, in a sense." Hershel admits and Callie furrows her brows.
"What?" She mutters, casting one look to Rick who looks just as confused.
Lori narrows her brows. "In a sense?"
"Honey, we don't have the luxury of shopping for a surgeon."
Lori blinks at Rick and raises a hand to silence him which he does. "No, I understand that. But, I mean, you're a doctor, right?"
Hershel stares for a second, contemplating something before finally. "Yes, ma'am, of course. A vet."
Lori looks hopeful and perks up at the news. "A veteran? A combat medic?" She lists.
"A veterinarian." He answers and Callie could swear she could hear a pin drop.
Callie looks at Lori who looks completely dumbfounded. Okay, she needs to take the reigns on this one. "You've done the surgery before? On animals?"
Before Hershel could answer, Rick falls into a chair, muttering that he should sit and everyone rushes to him.
Lori glares at Hershel, seemingly snapping out of the trance that she was in. "You're completely in over your head, aren't you?"
"Ma'am, aren't we all?" Hershel retorts back.
Summer's POV
Summer has been listening to Jeremy explain that they needed to get back to the group at this Greene Farm and regroup. And she thinks it's the best idea, but what about Sophia? Amy looks slightly hesitant and who is practically comforting Carol.
Carol shakes her head, a tear running down her face. "I won't do it. We can't just leave." She cries, her arms hugging herself.
"We can't leave, Dale." Amy tries to shoot down the idea to help the mother.
"Carol, Amy, the group is split. We're scattered and weak." Dale argues back at her. "We need to regroup."
"But Sophia is still out there." Amy bites back.
"What if she comes back and we're not here?" Carol wonders. "It could happen." She argues weakly, but to Summer it was a good argument.
"If that happened..." She trails off and Andrea nods her head in agreement.
"If Sophia found her way back and we were fine. That would be awful."
The group falls silent at that and Jeremy looks agitated, clearly he didn't realise that leading people was this hard.
"Okay." Daryl speaks up which directs everyone's attention to him. "We gotta plan for this. I say tomorrow morning is soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig up a big sign, leave her some supplies."
"That sounds like a plan." Summer comments and smiles warmly at Daryl who returns the gesture with a small nod.
"I'll hold here tonight, stay with the RV." Daryl announces and Carol looks like she was about to cry.
"If the RV is staying, I am too." Dale points out.
"Thank you. Thank you, both." Carol looks eternally grateful at the two men.
Andrea makes a 'duh face' before saying, "I'm in."
"Well, if you're all staying-
"Not you, Glenn." Jeremy snaps and Glenn glares at him.
Dale gives Jeremy a stern look before he looks at Glenn. "What he means to say is you're going to the farm. Take Carol's Cherokee."
Glenn looks offended "Me? Why is it always me?"
"You have to find this farm, reconnect with our people and see what's going on." Dale tells Glenn who still looks hesitant.
"But you've got to take T-Dog and Josie to this farm, Glenn." Tabby adds and Glenn looks at her. "T's cut has gone from bad to worse, he has a serious blood infection. Get him to that farm and see if they have antibiotics. If not, T-Dog will die. Josie needs proper rest and to get somewhere cool, but also needs to be with her son, right now."
"I'll come with you." Summer voices and Glenn gives her an appreciated look.
Daryl flings a rag at Dale who catches it with ease. "Keep your oily rags off my brother's motorcycle." He warns before opening a bag of a huge amount of drugs. What the fuck? He turns to Tabby. "Why'd you wait till now to say anything? Got my brother's stash."
"Was he a hippie?" Summer asks him and Andrea chokes on her water. Amy looks at Summer like she was insane.
Daryl glares at her. "Nah." He rustles around the bag. "Crystal X, don't need that." He picks up a bottle. "Got some kick ass painkillers." He throws it to Tabby who fumbles with it for a second before settling. "Doxycycline." He throws that at Dale who catches it. "Not the generic stuff neither. It's first class. Merle got the clap on occasion."
Glenn grimaces and Summer's jaw drops. "That answers my question." Summer mutters disgusted.
"I'll come with you, Glenn. They might need me there." Tabby informs Glenn who nods at her.
"How is she?" Daryl asks Tabby.
"She's okay. Just needs to cool down somewhere, because, no offence Dale, but, that RV is a furnace in this heat." Tabby says honestly and Dale grimaces.
"I wish I brought a battery powered fan." Dale mutters and Tabby smiles at him.
"We'll leave now." Glenn tells her and she nods her head. "Let's get her out." Glenn and Summer walk into the RV to grab Josie, while Tabby escorts T-Dog to Carol's Cherokee.
That's that! I feel like this chapter was uneventful but nice to have a slower pace since the last few chapters have been crazy with all the injuries. But I wanted to include some humour between the group, because honestly, some of the banter with Daryl is hilarious in season 11, especially him clapping sarcastically at Sebastian. The sass is real with Daryl.