What a fucking mess...
The three of us returned to the farm, I still can't get those woman's words out of my head. Just what exactly was she talking about? Maybe it was just her losing her mind, but I couldn't help but get an unsettling feeling in my stomach. I think it's best if we just leave straight after dinner and have nothing to do with these people ever again.
"Man, that was a helluva ride, huh?" Danny asks us as he goes through the front gate.
"Jesus, Danny," Lee exclaimed as he tossed his rifle to him.
"What? Y'all ain't gettin' soft on them, are ya? Not after what they did to your friend!"
"You're back!" Brenda, who'd been sitting on the porch stairs calls to us. "What happened?"
"Handled it, Mama." Danny walks off and Lee and I approach Brenda, she looks down in her lap in despair.
"This isn't what Terry would've wanted." She says.
"Who's Terry?" Lee questioned.
"My husband. Miss him every day."
"Then screw it up for everybody then, why don't you?!"
The three of us turn to see...Oh, God. What are they arguing about now?Lilly and Kenny are yelling so loud by the barn they might as well have two megaphones with them.
"Oh, calm down, princess. I'll do it myself." Kenny walks off and into the barn and Lilly returns to the gazebo.
"What's going on with them?" Lee asked Brenda.
"Dunno," She shook her head. "Squabblin', looks like. A lotta tension with y'all, huh?"
"Yeah, you could say that. They don't exactly see eye to eye on how we should be doing things."
"That's putting it lightly," I add.
"Well, it's probably just the hunger talkin'!" Lee and I share a glance, knowing that those two would be arguing despite any kind of hunger. "And Lee, Elijah, don't y'all worry your heads about them bandits. I'm sorry y'all've seen more violence than I'd'a thought in your short time, but y'all are safe here. Don't worry."
Lee nods. "I think we'll have a look around."
Brenda smiles. "Don't y'all wander too far. Dinner will be ready before you know it. And thank your friend Katjaa again for me. She and the kids are in the barn with the cow. That woman is a lifesaver!"
We walk down the steps and look to the barn, just in time to see Clementine wave at us from the barn. She steps back inside and I smile at myself, remembering what Lee and I found. I look at him just as he pulls out Clementine's signature hat.
"She's gonna be thrilled."
Lee smiles back at me. "Hell yeah, she is."
We head on over to the barn, only for the sound of Lilly's voice to stop us from going inside. "Hey, guys!" I internally sigh, part of me knows I'm not gonna enjoy this conversation. Lilly walks over to us, at least her dad is staying by the gazebo. "So what happened at the camp? Did you guys find any more of those people that hurt Mark?"
We found a woman in the woods. She was talking all crazy and had a crossbow..."
"And Danny murdered her..."
Lilly's eyes widen at this. "Holy shit. Was she one of those bandits?"
"I don't know."
"I didn't think so," I share. "I think she was trying to tell me and Lee something."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know. Danny went off before she could say anything more."
"I don't like this," She says. "I say we should go back to the Motor Inn where we at least know what to expect."
I nod. "For once, I agree."
"What were you and Kenny arguing about when Elijah and I came back from the camp?"
"He's losing it, Lee. He comes over and starts talking about searching the barn and that these people are hiding something."
"What if they are?" I ask.
"Not you too, kid..."
"His name's not 'kid'," Lee crosses his arms. "You know his name."
Lilly just rolled her eyes. "The way I see it, we just need to skip dinner and get our food to go. But I'm starting to think that your friend over there has another agenda." She walks away and Lee and I just head for the barn.
Inside, we find Katjaa, Duck, Clementine, Sandy, and Andy surrounding a cow, a very skinny cow. Looks like she hasn't eaten in a while. I know the feeling, cow. Clementine shyly walks up to the barn animal, wanting to pet it but she's unsure about it.
"It's okay, Clementine," Katjaa reassured. "you can pet her."
Clementine notices us and looks up at us. "It's okay," Lee smiled. "go ahead."
The little one slowly approaches the cow, gently petting her neck. "Whoa... Katjaa says Maybelle could have her baby tonight!"
"We'll see, Clementine."
The cow's pregnant? Huh...
"What's this thing?" Lee squatted down in front of what my best guess is a brick of salt.
"Daddy said it's called a 'salt lick.'" Duck confirms my silent guess.
"Yeah, but don't lick it," Clementine tells Lee. "It's gross."
I cross my arms, unable to hold back a light chuckle. "Did you lick it?"
"...I don't know..."
"I dared her to," Sandy leaned over and whispered in my ear.
I chuckle. "You evil girl."
"Did Elijah and I miss anything?" Lee asked.
"No, not really," Duck answered. He sniffed the air, his nose scrunching up. "Hm. It smells funny in here."
"Like manure!" Clementine says.
"What's 'manure'?"
"Doody!" Clem whispered and they guffawed.
"Kids..."
"Speaking of..." I nudge Lee's arm, reminding him of what we found.
"Here, Clementine..." Lee takes out her hat and hands it to her. Clementine's eyes glisten with happiness at the sight of her beloved headwear.
"My hat! You guys found it!"
She takes it from Lee. Before she put it on, she took off my beanie and handed it to me. I place it comfortably on my head, feeling content. Ah, right back where you belong. The girl hopped in place when her hat finally rested back on her head.
"I knew you guys would find it! You said you would!"
"Listen," Lee started. "did you ever give your hat to anyone?"
"No," the little one shook her head.
"Did you see any strangers that might've taken it?" I questioned.
"No. Why?"
"It's probably nothing," said Lee. "Just let me, Elijah, or Sandra know if you ever see anything like that."
"Okay," She nodded. "Hey, Lee. Do you think you'll ever have kids?"
"...I don't know," He says. "I haven't thought about having kids in a long time..."
"You'd make a good father," I say.
"Yeah!" Clementine agrees.
"Well, I appreciate that."
"Well, thanks for finding my hat."
"You're welcome, Clem."
"No problem, kiddo."
"Do you guys wanna pet the cow with me?"
"Nah, but you go on ahead."
"Just stay close to Sandy, alright?" I look off to the side seeing a door at the end of the barn. Lee walks off with me, seeing the same door that I did. It's locked not only by a latch but a padlock that needs a key.
"Y'all found it too, huh?" Kenny, who I didn't even see when we came in here, walks up to us. I suppose this is what Kenny was arguing about with Lilly. "They're hiding something, boys. Behind this door. I got a quick look. They got boxes of stuff. And something metal and sharp."
"Don't get paranoid," says Lee.
"It's my job to be paranoid, Lee. I got my whole family on this farm right now. How about y'all? Clem and Sandra?"
"I'll protect them no matter what."
"I will too," I add.
"I know y'all will," Kenny looks over to where Andy is standing and scowls. "Look, that guy with Katjaa. What's his name? He locked it up real tight the second we came in. I definitely heard a noise back there."
"Like what?" I ask.
"I don't know. My point is, we gotta know for sure. So go find a hammer or something, and I'll have this thing off in a second. Y'all back me up in case them farmers come running."
"Hang on, man," Lee says. "Think this through. You smash the lock. Then what if it turns out you're wrong? You just fucked your chance to get a good meal in those kids you're trying to protect. Use your head, Kenny."
"He's got a point. I wanna know if they're hiding anything too, but we gotta be cautious about this."
"Alright, poindexters. What'd you have in mind, Lee?"
"Let me have a look at what we're dealing with first." Lee takes a look at the lock while I keep a lookout, just in case Andy thinks we're being conspicuous. For now, he's just keeping an eye on the cow. Lucky for us...
"Hey, Lee," Kenny says. "You know how to pick a lock, right?"
Wait what?
"No! Why would you say that?"
"Well, you're...you know...urban?"
"What the fuck, Kenny?" I'm almost dumbfounded by this.
"Oh, you are not saying what I think you're saying."
"Jesus, man! I'm from Florida!" Kenny shakes his head. "Crazy shit just comes outa my mouth sometimes. Sorry..."
"Christ..." I roll my eyes, knowing good and well he has...somewhat of a point.
"Hmm..."
"What?"
"What is it, Lee?"
"See those screws?" He pointed them out. "Instead of breaking the padlock, we can just take off the assembly, have a peek inside, and then replace it all again like nothing ever happened."
Kenny nods. "Alright. Sounds like you have a plan. Me and the boy here can keep an eye on that guy with the cow."
"Andy," I correct him.
"Shit. I-I thought that was Danny. Whatever."
"Can I help you boys find something?"
Speak of the devil... "We were just checking out the barn, Andy. We've never seen a dairy farm before." I do my best to make a good excuse.
"Well, just don't roam around without me or Danny. The farm can be a dangerous place. You know, with the bandits and all. Sorry about your friend."
"It's no trouble, man,"
"Just, uh...do me a favor. Don't fuck around with this door, okay? Just, you know, Mama gets nervous."
"Andrew," Katjaa calls to him. "I need you help again."
"No problem! Right away, doc!"
Andy goes back to assist Katjaa, Kenny stands nearby and Lee heads back outside. I stand beside Sandy who's looking after Clementine. Lee will come up with something, all I gotta do is make sure Andy is distracted long enough to keep him occupied for now.
"Hey, Katjaa," I think of an important question to ask before I move on to Andy. "how's Mark holding up after we left?"
"He'll be alright, sweetie. I managed to remove the arrow from his shoulder without furthering his injury, all he needs to do is rest and he'll be alright."
I nod. "That's good."
"What about you?" Sandy asks me. "You okay?"
I offer another nod. "Yeah, I'm alright. Just a bit shaken up, I guess."
"What happened?"
I lean in and whisper. "We met a woman in the woods. I think she was trying to warn us about something and..."
"And what?"
"...Danny just shot her...in cold blood."
"...What?" Sandy slightly covered her mouth.
"I don't think she was crazy, not entirely anyway. She sounded...scared. I can't stop thinking about it."
"...I don't like this," She says. "I think we should just get our dinner and go. That guy," Sandy gives a subtle nod to Andy who's currently giving Katjaa a hand. "he's been eyeing me down ever since we got here, it's freaking me out."
I do my best not to lash out and stick to my part of the plan. "...Just keep your distance for now, okay? I'll keep you safe."
"Huh?" Andy looks to the barn door, looking like he heard something off. "I'ma go check on somethin' real quick. Be right back, doc." He leaves the barn. A minute or two later, Lee returns with a multitool in hand. He nods to me and I follow him to the back of the barn.
DING! DING! DING! DING!
Ringing comes from outside. My best guess is that Brenda is ringing some triangle, I suppose that also means that it's dinner time. The kids stand with excitement.
"Mom, Dad, dinner time!" Duck called out. "It's dinner time!"
"Okay, honey, let's get dad."
Duck runs up to Kenny who's now beside me and Lee. "Dad! Dad! C'mon! Let's eat!"
"Kenny, come along, honey. Kenny, c'mon, don't make the children wait!"
"I'll make an excuse for y'all!" Kenny whispers to us. "Get that thing off!"
Everyone leaves the barn except for me, Lee...and Sandy? "...Hey."
"Go on," I say. "Lee and I won't be long." Sandy nods, twiddling her thumbs. A rising redness comes to her cheeks. "...Are you oka-" She cuts me off by pulling my beanie over my eyes, temporarily blinding me. "Oh, ha ha, real matu-"
Sandy cuts me off again, but...this time it was by something else. I feel her pull away from me, but the presence of something warm and soft never leaves my lips. "I'll see you inside, Mi Corazon."
I pull my beanie off, clearing my vision, and fit it on my head. I'm just in time to see Sandy walk out of the barn, but not before looking back and winking at me. Sandy leaves me, leaving a confused mess as my fingers graze over my mouth.
"...That girl still finds ways to confuse me," I mutter.
"Heh, they'll do that to ya." Lee chuckled before he began to unscrew each screw with the multitool. The lock soon falls off and he opens the door. Inside...
"...Jesus, Mary, and Joseph..."
Many various tools from saws, buzzsaws, sickles, even...bear traps are laid out all across what can be a slaughterhouse. Each tool is plastered with questionable amounts of blood, seeing this is making my stomach churn. I've had my fair share at the sight of blood, but this... This is not normal. What would dairy farmers need a-
"Didn't you boys hear the bell?" ...Shit. Lee and I slowly turn around, seeing Andy look at us with a smile, making my skin crawl. "...Dinner time."
"..."
"Why the hell is there so much blood in here?!" Lee demanded while I remained speechless.
"Look. We have food here, but Danny and I still gotta do a lot of hunting to keep everyone fed. When we catch something in the woods, we skin it and dress it back there. Mama doesn't like us to make a mess in the house. So you see? Nothin' to worry about."
"..."
"..."
Lee and I share a look. We know we can't just jump to accusations, not with everyone here. Especially Clem and Sandy. So for now, we buy his story and leave the barn. But I know something for certain.
We need to get the hell away from this place...
Andy opens the front door of the house and Lee and I follow him inside. We hear the voices of everyone inside. And...I don't know if I'm hearing things, but I swear I thought I heard Larry flirting with Brenda. Did I miss something? Probably best if I don't ask. Lilly leaves the bathroom and heads for the dining room. As she passed, I noticed a bed frame that completely blocked off the hallway to the backdoor.
"Excuse the mess," Andy says. "We had to block the back door after a walker got upstairs. Don't worry, that was a while ago and they ain't been back inside since."
The three of us enter the dining room where everyone minus Brenda is sitting down. Andy takes a seat. "Everybody sit down and I'll go get the meal! Ooh, this is a delight!"
"I could eat a horse." I hear Kenny exclaim.
"Where's Mark?" Lee asked Brenda.
"Now, don't you worry about him. I've already brought some food up. You just let him rest."
"Mind if we wash up first?" I ask and Brenda nods.
"Bathroom's right outside in the hall. And y'all be sure to get under your nails, y'all've been muckin' around in the dirt all day."
We nod and enter the hallway, heading for the bathroom but we don't step inside. "I'm gonna go check upstairs," I say.
"What? But-"
"Lee," I say firmly as I look at him. "We have to know." He sees my resolve and eventually nods. Both of us slowly make our way up the stairs, Lee walks a few steps ahead of me and I lag behind.
CREAK!
Damn, these creaky floorboards! I look behind me, making sure that no one hears that. No one does, so Lee and I finally reach the top of the stairs. When I look down, I see a wire that's been running up from the bottom of the stairs. I follow it until I reach a closet. Inside are some candles, towels, a trashcan, some medical supplies that have been opened, and... Is that morphine?
"What the hell?" I whisper. There's so much of it, too. Why do they need all of this?
"What is this stuff?" Lee looks in the trashcan, "Looks like a bunch of medical waste in here. IV tubes, saline..."
"Why would dairy farmers need that kind of stuff?"
"No idea..." Lee looks down and sees a power cord next to the wire that led us to this closet. He picks it up and plugs it in. A light comes through a small hole. "What the hell?"
"That's definitely not good..." Lee and I head for the nearby bedroom, finding it completely empty. "Mark was supposed to be resting up here..."
"Elijah, look!" Lee points to a bookshelf, the light from earlier shines from underneath. "Help me move this thing."
I nod and help Lee push the bookshelf out of the way to reveal a door. We take a step back. Well...no going back now... I look to Lee, he nods at me and he opens the door. It slowly creaks open to reveal...Mark lying on the bathroom floor in a puddle of his own blood, his legs have been severed above the knee.
Mark weakly gasps. "Lee...Elijah..."
Lee and I cover our mouths in disgust at the sight. "Mark! What the hell happened?!" Lee kneels down to him.
"Christ alive..."
Mark tries to take in a breath, finding it hard. "Brothers..."
"What the hell happened to your legs, man?!"
He looks up to us with a horrified look in his eyes. "Don't...eat...dinner..."
Lee stands next to me, sharing my horrified expression. Bear traps...that guy in the woods...'bringing them fresh meat'... Oh, God...they're-
"Boys, did y'all fall in?" Brenda calls from the dining room. "Dinner's on the table and everyone is havin' at!"
"Barbecue! Wow!"
"How on earth did y'all get barbecue meat?"
"Clementine!"
"Sandy!"
Lee and I race out of the bedroom and downstairs, we nearly trip over each other as we reach the bottom. Thankfully we don't. We reach the dining room just in time. I see Clementine and Sandy sitting beside each other...with a piece of the meat on their forks.
"Clementine, no!"
"Sandy, don't!" Both of them stop, startled by our shouting. They both set down their forks. Thank God...we stopped them...
"Jesus, guys!" Kenny says. "Did you find something?"
"Ah, sit your asses down, you two!" Larry shouts at us, fueling my anger. "This lady has made you a meal!"
"Yeah, guys," Lilly adds. "what's gotten into you two?"
"Aw, they just had a start, is all."
"They could use some goddamn manners."
"Mark is upstairs with his fucking legs cut off!" Lee stated with a frown. "You're eating him!"
"And this woman is smiling while she does it like it's just another goddamn Sunday!" I add, pointing at Brenda.
"This woman made you a homecooked meal, you ungrateful shit! Show some respect!"
"Thank you, Larry."
"You two don't even have the decency to take a handout when you're offered one!" Larry continued on as I see Duck chow down on his food without a worry in the world... I think I'm gonna be sick. "It just makes me sick, it really does."
"That's enough, Larry."
"Ken," I hear Katjaa whisper. "Maybe we should-"
"Hang on, Kat. Just keep close to Duck."
I've had enough of his bullshit... "You know what? Fuck you, Larry! Eat up!"
Lee crosses his arms as I do. "Enjoy your meal, you son of a bitch."
"I will, and I'll enjoy every last bite!" Larry proudly takes a piece of meat from his plate and chows it down. I feel a sense of satisfaction as he so smugly chews on human meat.
"Lee, Elijah, what the hell is wrong with you two?!"
"Don't indulge them, Lilly. It's always something with these two."
Duck was about to continue eating, but thankfully, Katjaa snatched away his plate and set it aside. "Mom, I was eating that!"
"Go upstairs and look!" Lee shouted, getting furious like me. "You'll find a guy with both of his legs hacked off!"
"This is a dairy, not a fucking ranch!" I add. "Think about it!" Everyone sitting down at the table shares shocked glances as their heads turn to Brenda at the end of the table.
She sighs in defeat. "...It's true."
"Everything coulda' turned out okay for you folks..." Danny says before he eats.
"He woulda died anyway!" Andy proclaimed. "We gotta think about livin'!"
"Settle down, honey," Brenda says before she looks to the others. "Growin' up in rural Georgia, you're taught not to waste. It's how I was raised and how I raised my boys. Now, you got monsters roamin' around that do nothin' but eat people. And for what? To continue to rot 'til they eat some more. We think we can put that meat to better use."
Larry and Lilly push their plates away. "Ugh...I'm gonna puke."
"You're sick..." I say. "You're out of your fucking minds!"
"Now, Elijah, that's not a very nice thing to imply. Andy is right. We go after folks who are gonna die anyways, one way or another."
Danny looks up from his plate...to the rest of the table. "...Like y'all."
"Clem! Sandy! Run!"
"Nobody's goin' anywhere!" Andy draws his revolver and stands from the table. Danny stands and draws his rifle he's had by his side.
"We got lots of use for y'all right here."
"What the... what... the fucking... what... fuck!"
"Put your guns down! We're walking out of here!"
'You don't go near my fucking family!"
"Jodidas enfermas ... Sabía que tenías problemas." (You sick fucks... I knew you were trouble.)
"I don't wanna die! Mommy, what did I eat?!"
"Everyone," Lee calls out. "everything will be okay!"
"Lee! Elijah! AAHH!" Clementine yelps as Andy grabs her hair and yanks her backward to stand beside him. And he points his gun at us.
"You fucker!" Lee says angrily.
"Let her go you- AH!" Sandy tries to stand and get Clem back, but Andy smacks her with his gun.
My blood begins to boil... "I'LL KILL YOU!" I charge forward but I'm stopped when Danny points his rifle at my throat, making me take a step back.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
Noises from the hall grab our attention, and we all turn to see...Mark dragging himself along the ground. His blood pours from his wounds, leaving a noticeable trail. "Please...someone...!"
Everyone from our group who had been sitting at the table gasped in shock and horror at the sight of our friend. I turn to Clementine, she's still being held by Andy while Sandy gets up with a noticeable cut on her face.
"Sand-" I feel a blunt force against my temple, blurring my vision as I fall to the floor. Everything goes black as I hear Lee fall to the ground.
No...fuck...Lee...help...them...
