Chapter 1

Sage Dixon (35) portrayed by Evangeline Lily

Kaylee Jo Dixon (11) portrayed by Mackenzie Foy

When Sage woke up, her fingers stretched out to sought out her daughter's warmth. Of course Kaylee Jo drew herself closer to her mother. Ever since the world went to shit, she expressed to Sage about her bad dreams—a constant reminder of walkers lurking around.

Sage propped herself on one elbow. There was enough light to see her daughter curled up by her side, cocooning herself by wrapping her arm around her mother with her cheek pressed against her. In sleep, Kaylee Jo looked peaceful, but Sage knew how the world took a toll on her daughter. Nevertheless, she meant everything to Sage. She didn't know what to do if she saw her lovely face collapse into a bloody mess if she was ever attacked by a walker.

She carefully moved Kaylee Jo's arm away from her and slid her hunting boots and gloves on. Such supple leather molded to her feet and her hands. Sage then gathered her long dark hair and tied it so that the wind wouldn't blow it against her face before she put on her belt that carried her hunting knife and machete. Finally, she grabbed her compound bow and quiver filled with arrows.

As Sage stepped out of her tent, it was hardly the break of day. Not a single person was out. Not the leader of the camp, Shane Walsh. Not even her older brothers. They had been with other survivors outside of the city for almost a week now. At first, it was just her, her brothers, and her daughter looking out for each other, then they found the camp. They survived this long, and Sage was going to make sure it stayed that way.

When Sage made her way into the trees, she thought about what foods were roaming freely. Inside the woods, they were just ready to be picked out. It was the only way for the group to eat though since it was too dangerous to go into the city. The only concern Sage had was if a walker managed to sink its teeth into an animal's flesh. The meat wasn't any good then. Luckily, her old man taught Sage and her older brothers how to live in the wild since they often went camping when they were little brats.

That was the only thing he was ever good for. Other than that, he wasted the day drinking, smoking, and running a whole bunch of scams. He even let his own sons get away with everything, leaving Sage and sometimes even her older brother, Daryl, to pick up the mess. It wasn't until when Sage got pregnant, then it all changed.

Daddy dearest didn't like hearing that his only daughter got knocked up. Sage never forgot the venom coming out of his mouth by calling her a good for nothing bitch before screaming that she was a whore and a slut as she slammed the door in his face when she walked out. Both of her brothers, Daryl and Merle, tried convincing her to stay. It eventually turned into a screaming match between her and Merle as Merle believed that there was no way she could raise a kid on her own while Daryl pulled Merle away from her when he got in her face. As Sage walked away, she heard Merle's voice reminding her that she wouldn't be able to do it on her own and that one day, she would come begging to come back before Daryl told Merle to shut the hell up and tried calling out for Sage. No matter how much Daryl said her name, his voice slowly drowned out the further she walked away from them. Eventually, she didn't hear him anymore as he gave up the fifth time he called out to her. At least, that was how much Sage counted before tuning him out.

Now, she was at the camp, sticking by their side. Sage knew though that eventually she was going to leave with her brothers. They were planning to rob them blind. It wouldn't be the first time Sage stole from people. She often did in her youth despite Daryl's objection when he told her to head on home and not get busted by cops. Merle didn't mind though. In fact, he liked seeing his little sister seeking thrill with them. Back then, it was to get a kick out of her adrenaline rush, but in this day and age, Sage knew that they had to do messed up stuff if they were going to survive even if it meant robbing from good people in the same situation as them. Until that night came, Sage was going to make herself useful by hunting dinner, and she sure as hell hit the lottery when she found a deer eating some grass.

When Sage slowly took an arrow out, she steadied it and she pulled it against her bow string and paused when the deer lifted its head and stared out in the open. Her gloved fingers pressed themselves tightly against the nook of her arrow while Sage breathed in deeply about to release it and hit it square in the eye only for it run away. Sage let out a defeated sigh as she put her bow around her shoulder and her arrow back in her quiver before kneeling to the ground.

Thankfully, Sage knew how to track. She wasn't as good as Daryl, but it didn't mean that she didn't know what to do as she got some leaves from the ground and saw which way the wind carried them before heading off to that direction. Sage knew she was going the right away when she found the tracks. Some were clear and pressed into the dirt. Others were smudged and scattered. Still, it created a pattern as it eventually led her to the deer.

Sage pressed herself against the tree, careful not to reveal herself or to make too much noise for it to scurry away again. She got herself ready by taking out her arrow and pulled it against the string one more time. There was no way the deer was going to get away. The arrow Sage was about to release was going to go straight through its head. They were all going to have venison tonight. If only it hadn't been for another arrow flying through and land inches away from the deer as it ran for its life.

She couldn't believe it as she put her arrow back in her quiver and turned to see the culprit. He had a slim build, steel blue eyes, and rugged hands that carried a crossbow. As much as Sage was closer to Daryl than with Merle, he was the reason why the deer ran away.

"Damn you, Daryl!" Sage didn't like how Daryl came down, unfazed by her attitude since he was used to it. "That was my kill."

"Then why didn't you take the shot?"

She watched her older brother pull the arrow out of the ground as she reminded him, "Because I wanted to make sure my aim was clear, and what about you?" Daryl finally looked back at her, annoyed when he heard her raise her tone a bit. "You scared it away with your lame blow."

"Hey, don't forget who taught ya how to shoot," he told her off. "If I hadn't seen you there, I would've hit it. Ain't my fault you came out here and messed me up."

It was true that Daryl taught her how to use a bow and an arrow when she was around her daughter's age. Still, it annoyed Sage whenever her brothers had to get in her way, especially Daryl. She knew he tended to help her out, but she didn't want him to look out for her all the time when she knew she could handle it.

"Well, that was the first deer I saw since we've been here. Now I got nothin'."

Daryl didn't like hearing how Sage sounded defeated, so he thought he might help her out as he noticed a squirrel on a tree, so he quietly gestured it to his little sister. She then smiled back at her brother before turning her attention back to the critter by shooting it straight through its body and killing it instantly. Sage turned back to her brother and laughed a bit while Daryl smirked proudly at her. She then went over to it to pull the arrow out and let Daryl put it in his bag. They went off to see what else they could find.

"Is Merle asleep or he's out here with you?"

"Sleepin'." was Daryl's reply. "Kaylee Jo?"

"Same." As they continued trekking through the woods, Sage realized how worn out he looked. "How long you've been out here?"

"Long enough. Caught myself a few squirrels and a couple of rabbits. You?"

"Just woke up." When they caught a couple more rabbits and a bird, Sage couldn't help but think how wasteful the food was going to be over people they didn't care for. "How much longer are we gonna stay with these people?"

Daryl readied his crossbow as he aimed it and shot another bird. "Merle's thinkin' soon, but he ain't sure yet."

"Alright. Just let me know when we're ready to move."

Sage wished that she could help, but she didn't want to get Kaylee Jo involved in this. It was better to get her out of there while her brothers did the heavy lifting in case the situation went south. No hard feelings or anything, but the world was different now. All Sage needed was her family, not more mouths to feed.

When they finished hunting, they headed back to camp where everyone else was up. Sage's first priority was finding Kaylee Jo since she was always awake whenever Sage went into the woods. Right away, she saw her daughter with two other girls around her age: Sophia and Eliza. They were playing on the ground nearby with Eliza's mother, Miranda, watching over them while she did laundry.

As Sage looked through the camp, she couldn't help but always think that they were all nothing special to her. Their only purpose was to help her and her family survive. They took them in without knowing their true intentions. Good people were not cut out for this life. Kill or be killed followed the new world order now. That was how naive these campers were. They liked to believe that everyone coming through their camp was good, but with low supplies came competition, and people sure became ruthless when they didn't have enough going forward. Still, Sage couldn't help but feel somewhat grateful that there were other kids around for Kaylee Jo to share some memories with even if it was short lasting.

When Daryl went on ahead to his tent, he found Merle watching over Kaylee Jo with a lit cigarette in his mouth before he turned to see his little brother and sister heading his way. "About time you both turned up." His southern accent was as rough as a steam engine. "Woke up and you both was gone."

Daryl tossed his bag to the side for Merle to look at the animals they caught before taking out a pack of Kool and stuck a stick in his mouth before lighting it up as he puffed out some smoke. "We caught a bunch, so you oughta say thanks."

Merle's eyes piqued with interest when he saw the amount of food they could cook up. "Well, no shit. Looks like you two did some work while I was out."

"No thanks to you," Sage retorted.

Merle never really cared whenever Sage got a little heated. In fact, he thought it was fun to see her rage a bit to cool off some steam. That was why Sage scowled when she saw the cheeky grin on his face. Merle always thought he knew best, and that was what aggravated her even more about him. Those two always liked to bite each other heads off, leaving Daryl in the middle to break them up.

Looking back at her daughter, Sage wanted to make sure that her daughter was safe, which was why she turned back to her eldest brother to ask him lowly, careful enough to make sure no one else heard, "When are we leaving already?"

Merle glanced over at the camp's leader, Shane, and smirked, thinking that they wouldn't see it coming when they rob them blind. "Soon. I'll be back by tonight anyways. Daryl's gonna give ya a signal when I get back to take Kaylee Jo out of here."

Their older brother's announcement made both them raise a skeptic brow as Daryl questioned, "What are you talking about?"

Merle gestured over to the camp's leader, Shane Walsh, as he nodded his head over at him for Daryl and Sage to understand. "Mr. Big Shot over there told me and a few bunch of others to run down the city to get some more supplies since they're runnin' low. Might load up on 'em guns. Ammo. The whole shebang."

Sage shut her eyes in irritation as she confronted her eldest brother. "Tell me you didn't volunteer."

She really wished that she didn't hear him say, "What you so worryin' about little sis? If I find any weapon I could, we could easily take them out if they step in on us. You think I'm afraid of these pussies right here? They're nothin' to me. All I care about is my own blood."

When Sage looked over at Daryl, she even knew by his expression that he was conflicted to say something. It was clear that he didn't agree with this either, but the only time Daryl ever stood up to his brother was whenever things got out of hand. That was why Sage had to tell Merle off by letting him know how stupid his ideas were at times.

However, she couldn't do it now when she glanced over at Shane, who stared at the trio. It was obvious that he didn't trust them so easily. Sage believed that the only reasons why they were taken in was because they were skilled in camping, they knew how to hunt and fight, and most of the survivors thought they were less threatening if they had a kid with them. Maybe this was why their leader let Merle go on the run.

After all, between the three siblings, Merle was incredibly unhinged. No one in camp really liked him except for his family. He often got himself in trouble with plenty of the survivors here in the camp by catcalling a couple of the woman, swearing in front of the kids, using racial slurs on occasion, and threatening some of the men whenever they went toe to toe against him. The only reason why he never hit anyone yet was because Daryl and Sage made sure he didn't cause any trouble for their family.

"Well, time to go." Merle got off his chair and stubbed out his cigarette on the ground with a crush of his boot as he headed out with the rest of the volunteers before calling back out to his brother and sister with a cocky grin on his face. "See ya real soon."

Both Daryl and Sage watched their brother leave with the survivors. It really ticked Sage off how Merle did whatever he wanted without thinking of the possible outcome. This wasn't like him running a few scams and going to jail. He could potentially lose his life with walkers lurking around every corner. He would never see them coming if they got a hold of him. She just hoped that Merle came back safe and not piss off the group he went with. Sage wouldn't know what to do if the group all of a sudden turned against him and left him for dead for his attitude.

"He'll be alright," Daryl consoled her.

All Sage did was cross her arms and watched Merle leave. "You sure about that?"

Instead of saying anything, they looked at each other, both hoping that their brother would come back home safely. All they could do was be patient and see. For the time being, they were just going to have be useful to the group. That was why Daryl nodded his sister off to her daughter as she looked over to see her getting up with the two young girls and was ready to head off with them.

"Kaylee Jo, where are you goin'?" Sage called out.

She stopped to turn back to her mother. "I'm going with Sophia and Eliza to the creek."

Sage knew it was all in good fun, but she still wanted to make sure her daughter didn't hurt herself, so she sighed before reminding her, "Don't go too far."

As Eliza and Sophia encouraged for Kaylee Jo to follow them, she gave her mother an encouraging smile before running off with them. She would much prefer if she stayed, but her daughter was actually with other kids around her age. It was good for her to be with them so that she wasn't at least scared all the time. Sage actually saw a smile on her face whenever she was with them as opposed to being with her family because she constantly heard them bickering all the time after the outbreak.

"You're lettin' her go off on her own?" Daryl puffed out more smoke.

His sister turned back to him to tell him, "It's better for her to be around other kids right now."

There was no doubt in Sage's mind that Kaylee Jo was going to be okay as long as she listened. Back when Sage was working as a bartender and a server at a local bar to support herself and her daughter, she often left Kaylee Jo with their neighbor to take care of her for the night. It was a pain working that job, but she managed to get by, especially when she made hefty tips.

Daryl threw his cigarette to the ground before crushing it. "Well, before Merle gets back, I'm gonna see if I can track down that deer. Might as well cook up some venison before he gets back."

"You're not gonna help me skin what we caught so that they're ready for tonight?"

He shook his head, telling her, "Nah. I'll let you do it this time."

"Thanks," Sage scoffed.

As Daryl went back into the woods, Sage got to work by unsheathing her knife to take off the animal's skin. Tearing off their skin wasn't so bad. Birds were a real pain to deal with though. Sage always had to pluck out the feathers first before she went in for their meat. She just didn't like though whenever someone disrupted her work, and that was just what Shane Walsh did as he approached her. "Where'd Daryl go?" he asked.

She glanced at him for a moment before continuing her work. "He saw a deer when we were in the woods. Now he's gonna go hunt it down. Do you need him for something?"

"No." Shane then gestured to the pile of meat in her bag."Is there enough there for everyone?"

"If there weren't, I'd still be out there."

"Alright. Good."

Sage really wanted to tell him to leave her alone so that she could get back to work, but she stopped herself when she looked ahead to see Ed coming out of his tent and headed over to the direction where the girls went to. She knew what was coming. It was no secret to anyone in this whole camp that whenever he lost his temper, he often took it out on his wife and his daughter. Sage remembered when she first met his wife, Carol, she was often scared of her husband's shadow. She even saw her coming out with fresh new bruises and cuts on her face when she came out of her tent, causing Shane to turn to her when he noticed Sage fixated on something. No doubt that Sophia was going to get the same treatment. That was even worse now that Sage thought about it.

When Shane turned back to Sage, he told her, "I'll let you get back to work."

She was glad that he walked away from her so that she could distract herself by prepping dinner for tonight instead of staring at Carol. Sage couldn't help herself though when she took another glimpse at the woman sitting on a chair, while one of the other survivors, Amy, slowly went over to her to give her some bread. A part of Sage felt sorry for her to have an abusive husband, but Sage always had to keep reminding herself that these people were no one to her, so she shouldn't get involved. It not only would bring trouble, but building relationships was pointless now. If a person Sage cared for was killed, then she wouldn't know how to deal with it. It was bad enough that she had her brothers and her daughter to worry much less strangers. It was best to keep her distance from them and to avoid the situation.

The day slowly went by, and both Daryl and Merle weren't back yet. Sage thought that maybe Daryl was hunting more animals out there. She never really worried about Daryl since he knew how to take care of himself. Merle, on the other hand, should have been back by now. That was why Sage couldn't stop twirling the knife in her hand, watching the mesmerizing blade dancing through the air.

Thunder roared over their heads, but it didn't seem to bother everyone else while Miranda and Carol were giving food that Sage and Daryl caught to the camp. Sage didn't have much of an appetite though as she gave her share to Kaylee Jo, who shared it with her friends. She almost wanted to smile when she saw her daughter so happy with them, but with Merle and Daryl not here, it made her even more nervous with every minute that passed by.

Eventually, Kaylee Jo looked out on the road when she noticed Dale helping Jim repair the mobile home before turning to her mother. "Mom, when are Uncle Merle and Daryl coming back?"

Sage wished she had a better answer than "I don't know," but she didn't, so she added, "Hopefully soon."

She never lied to Kaylee Jo, because she never thought there was any reason to. Still, Kaylee Jo was just a kid. She didn't want her to worry about her uncles. That job was for Sage alone to think about. If Kaylee Jo concerned herself about it, then it left Sage to deal with that issue, and she didn't want to do it, because it would only increase her anxiety more.

However, Sage wasn't the only one who was worried as she looked over at Amy, who was pacing back and forth. "It's late. They should've been back by now."

"Worrying won't make it better," Dale reminded her.

Sure he thought that. It wasn't like it was his own family he had to worry about. Hearing Dale though made Kaylee Jo look down at the ground in disappointment. It was clear to Sage that her daughter was worried about her uncles. Daryl should have been back with the deer a while ago, and Merle should have been back with the group about now, but they weren't here. Her stomach formed a horrible knot when Sage her brothers being torn up by walkers. She shook off the chill running down her spine and continued twirling the knife to distract her from playing that horror film in her head.

"Hello, base camp!" Sage caught her knife when she heard the radio squawking. "Can anybody out there hear me?" All of the campers rushed over to the mobile home as Dale climbed up the ladder. "Base camp, this is T-Dog. Anybody hear me?"

As soon as Dale got to the radio, he called in, "Hello? Hello? Reception's bad on this end. Repeat. Repeat."

Nerves sunk in on Sage as all she could was watch Dale play with the radio to get better communication, but all they heard was static, which made Kaylee Jo look at her mother in concern. "Is that them?" Lori asked.

"We're in some deep shit," T-Dog said over the radio. "We're trapped in a department store."

Even Shane looked nerve wracked when he rubbed his head after hearing him. "He say they're trapped?"

Sage couldn't help but hear slow heavy breathing coming from her daughter when T-Dog announced, "There are geeks all over the place. Hundreds of 'em. We're surrounded."

"T-Dog, repeat that last. Repeat." His voice didn't come through the radio this time, which made Kaylee Jo suck in a breath, so Sage wrapped an arm around her to comfort her while Dale tried to get a hold of him again. "Repeat."

Static sounded off the radio, and it eventually shut off, leaving everyone disheartened by the situation, but Sage wasn't ready to let her eldest brother go. "He said they're in a department store."

"I heard it too," Dale confirmed.

Lori then turned to Shane, pleading to help them, but Shane wasn't having it. "No way. We do not go after them. We do not risk the rest of the group. Y'all know that."

Sage was tired of hearing Shane. The only reason why he was the leader of the group was because he was a cop, but to Sage, he was just another self-righteous prick who thought he knew everything. If there was one thing Sage couldn't stand, it was people who thought they were above others. That was why Sage stood against him.

She let go of Kaylee Jo and went right over to Shane to tell him off, "So we're just gonna leave him there?"

"Look. I know that this is not easy-"

"He volunteered to get supplies." Sage cut him since she didn't want to hear Shane's bullshit reasoning.

"I know, and he knew the risks, right?" he argued. "See, if he's trapped, he's gone, so we just have to deal with that. There's nothing we can do."

The more he spoke, the more her nostrils flared. She couldn't believe this was happening. If Daryl was here right now, he would wrestle Shane to the ground and make him choke on the dirt before going to get Merle back himself. That didn't mean though that Sage wouldn't say anything back to him as she sneered menacingly at him. "He's my brother, you son of a bitch."

As Sage stormed off, she grabbed Kaylee Jo and took her away from the rest of the group because they really pissed her off. All Sage heard when she dragged her daughter away was Amy sobbing while Lori tried to console her, only to be pushed away so that she was left alone. When they reached their tent, Sage sniffed out a sob while Kaylee Jo watched her mother, so Sage didn't cry, because she knew she had to be strong for her daughter.

"Uncle Merle's not coming back, is he?" Sage turned to her daughter when she heard her plead, "Can't we go get him?"

As much as Sage wanted to, she needed to wait for Daryl. If Sage was going to go in the city, then she couldn't do it alone. She needed someone who she trusted the most, and Daryl was the one. She also couldn't allow Kaylee Jo to go with her. As much as Sage wanted to, she needed Kaylee Jo here where she was safe.

"Not yet." Sage shook her head before taking her daughter's shoulders and kneeling down to her level. "We need to wait for your Uncle Daryl to get back, and then we're gonna get your Uncle Merle."

"But Uncle Daryl should be back too," Kaylee Jo argued. "Why isn't he back yet?"

"I think he's still after that deer, or maybe he saw some more animals to kill so that we could have dinner for tomorrow. We just gotta wait for him, okay?"

Kaylee Jo was hesitant, but eventually, she agreed. All that was left was to wait for Sage's brother to come back so that they could work out a plan to get Merle out of the store, head back to camp, and take whatever they could from these people before leaving them to fend for themselves. All Sage had to was wait.

Time passing by became torturous to Sage. Not only was Sage getting more and more anxious, but now, Kaylee Jo was upset. It was already the next day, and Sage tried to hand Kaylee Jo an apple to eat for breakfast, but she refused as she got up and headed to where Sophia and Eliza were. She was just like her mother. Both didn't like to eat when they were worried.

Everything soon changed when everyone's heads turned up to hear a car alarm blaring loudly, so they all rushed to the mobile home as Dale got his binoculars out to see who was approaching. Shane wanted to know what it was, but Dale couldn't tell yet. Amy seemed hopeful though by asking if it was the rest of the group.

The car alarm got louder, and Dale confirmed that it was a stolen car as it drove up the hill. Hearing that alarm made Sage's nerves slowly disappear as she wrapped her arm around Kaylee Jo, telling her that everything was going to be okay when her daughter gave her a hopeful look. She wouldn't be surprised if Merle stole the car. He often did with his friends only to get locked up, leaving Daryl and Sage to find enough bail money to bust him out.

Not long after Sage saw a Dodge Challenger pull up by the camp with the alarm sounding off against their ears while the Asian kid, Glenn, came out of it with a beaming smile on his face.

"Holy crap. Turn that damn thing off!" Dale warned him over the noise.

When Glenn told him he didn't know how, Shane kept telling him to pop the hood while Amy went into hysterics, asking Glenn where her sister was. Glenn assured her she was fine while he clicked the button inside to open the hood so that Shane and Jim could shut the alarm off. Even Glenn had enough of Amy's pestering questions when she couldn't stop, so he cut her off, "Yes! Yeah, fine. Everybody is." However, Sage's eyes nearly widened when she heard him continue, "Well, Merle not so much."

As soon as Sage heard that, she went over to him to confront him, "What are you talking about?"

"Sage, look-"

She wanted him to stop beating around the bush and get straight to the point. "Don't give me crap. You tell me what happened."

Before he could even say anything, they all looked ahead when they heard another engine running. Sure enough, a truck rolled by. Sage froze to see it stop before the door opened so that the survivors came out. First came out Andrea as Amy raced over to her and cried in her sisterly embrace. Then Morales with his kids running over to him as he picked one of them and kissed his wife when he went over to her. Next was Jacqui, then T-Dog., but no Merle. Sage just wanted to know what happened to him.

Just before she could ask, Shane asked how they managed to escape, so Glenn informed him, "New guy...he got us out."

"New guy?" Shane questioned.

"Yeah, crazy Vato just got into town," Morales chimed in before he turned back to the van to call out, "Hey, helicopter boy! Come say hello." When the truck door shut, Sage looked to see who he was as she heard Morales say, "He's a cop like you."

Sure enough, he was a cop. His uniform was proof of it with his golden badge shining brightly against the light. He was tall and lean, and he had some muscle on him, but then again he was trained as a cop, so it wasn't a surprise to Sage. The emotion in his blue eyes were also fathoms deep, almost lost, trying to find their way out of something.

For some reason, Shane was speechless when he first laid eyes on the newcomer, and it wasn't long until Lori and her son, Carl, looked over and carried the same expression on their faces. The new guy was just as shocked as them as he muttered, "Oh my God," before making his way over to them before Carl and Lori rushed over to him while Carl cried out for his dad. Next thing Sage knew, they were crying in each other's arms as the newcomer let out a sigh of relief and headed over to Lori to hug her.

As much as everyone was celebrating their little reunion, Sage didn't care. She just wanted to know what happened to Merle. Sage looked back at the van, anticipating for him to come out, but when he didn't, she was getting so upset that no one bothered to tell her what happened. She went back over to the Asian kid and pushed him against the car with her elbow against his neck, causing everyone to stop to see the commotion.

"You've got ten seconds to tell me what happened to my brother, or I swear I'm gonna crack your head so wide open for everyone here to see," Sage seethed.

When she felt arms around her middle tugging her away from Glenn, she struggled against their hold and realized it was Shane when she elbowed him in his stomach and heard him grunt while Glenn panted when Sage let go of him. Shane kept telling her to calm down, but she refused as she kept interrogating Glenn even when she didn't have a hold on him anymore. It all soon changed though when she looked over at Kaylee Jo.

Her doe eyes watched in numb horror when she saw her mother in an erratic state. Sage calmed down, but her anger was still burning inside. She just wanted to know what happened. When Shane saw her calming down, he let her go.

Sage then got straight to the point when she put her hands on her hip and told Glenn sternly, "Just tell me what happened to my brother."

Instead of Glenn, the newcomer stepped forward as he put his kid down and told her, "No easy way to say this, so I'll just say it."

"And who are you?"

He seemed unfazed by her attitude as he told her, "Rick Grimes."

Sage had a sick feeling in her stomach, and she didn't like the grim expression on his face when she asked, "What happened to him?"

"Your brother was a danger to us all, so I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there."

His answer punched her in the gut, and it only got worse the longer it sunk deeper into her brain. She couldn't believe that her brother was left there with walkers lurking around, anxiously waiting to rip his skin off just to eat him. It was completely inhumane. Now, Sage didn't know what to do. How could she leave without him? How was she going to explain this to Daryl when he got back?

"I'm sorry."

Sage didn't want to hear his apology. All she wanted was blood, and she was going to get it. Some of the campers stepped forward when Sage slugged Rick's jaw, cutting his lip. Kaylee Jo flinched when she saw her mother's fist made contact with the cop, but right now, Sage didn't care as her eyes burned with fierce, unyielding hatred towards this man.

"Least I could do for him," Sage said lowly before she went over to Kaylee Jo and dragged her away from the scene when she took her hand.

No one bothered to get Sage to see if she was okay, but then again, she was glad that they didn't. If they did, nothing would stop her from attacking them. There was not a chance in Hell she was ever going to forgive Rick Grimes for what he did. She wished that she could go back for her brother, but she didn't want to leave Kaylee Jo with these people, and she also needed to let Daryl know that their plan was all screwed up. She just had to wait for him to figure out their next move.

Here is the first chapter! Please let me know what you think so far. I am looking forward to hearing your thoughts. Stay tuned for more. My story is also on Wattpad too if you would like to go check it out.