"Come on goddammit!" swore Patty as she pulled on the chainsaw's cord.
"I really think it's broken," said Clementine as she watched the woman try in vain to start the tool's motor.
"There's nothing wrong with it," insisted a frustrated Patty. "Everything on it is practically cherry and I just put some gas in it."
"I could just go around." Hearing Sarah's voice, Clem looked over her shoulder and could see the older girl was watching everything through the Brave's windshield. "Or we could just walk, it's not far."
"It doesn't matter how far…" Patty groaned. "Just tell her to give me a minute."
"Patty says give her a minute." Clem clipped the radio back to her belt and sighed. Looking past the frustrated woman fiddling with the chainsaw's various bits, Clem studied the road laid out ahead of them. It was a simple small town street running between houses. Not far ahead was an intersection that led to a fenced-in playground nestled in the very middle of this quaint neighborhood. But between it and the Brave was a trio of knocked over utility poles blocking the road. Clem had used their bolt cutter to remove the wires connecting the poles while Patty had tried to start her chainsaw. Now there were no more wires to cut and the chainsaw still hadn't started.
"Fuck!" shouted Patty as she stumbled backwards.
"Are you okay?" asked Clem as she rushed to the woman's side.
"Yeah, yeah," assured Patty as she regained her balance. "Just getting sick of this damn thing not working."
"We can just walk like Sarah said. We don't have to clear the road."
"And what if something happens?" asked Patty. "If we have to leave in a hurry it'd be better if we only had to cross a playground to do it, and not have to outrun something chasing us for an entire block while we're carrying a scared baby."
"Huh, that's a good point," conceded Clem.
"And it's not like this is the only time we're going to run into this." Patty gestured to the downed utility poles. "There's going to be other messed up roads out there, and I'd rather we get a handle on it now before we have to do it for something really important."
"I guess that makes sense, but the chainsaw doesn't work. Maybe we should try to find one that does?"
"If I can't get this one started then I doubt we're going to find one that does," said Patty as she knelt down to pull the chainsaw's cord again. "I usually managed to fix my dad's chainsaw despite him tearing it up all the time, and this one is in way better condition than my dad's ever was." Patty gave the cord another forceful tug and groaned. "But what's really pissing me off is it doesn't make sense for it not to start. Everything looks good, but it doesn't work. My motorcycle has been doing the same thing lately, just not starting for no damn reason."
"Yeah, I've noticed that," said Clem.
"I swear, I've tried everything," spoke Patty as she fiddled with the chainsaw's choke. "Your RV hasn't been giving you any problems lately?"
"No, not since you and Sarah worked on it."
"God, I just don't get it," said Patty as she bent down to grab the pull cord again. "It's like I'm cursed or something."
Watching Patty trying to start the chainsaw yet again, Clem looked over her shoulder at the Brave and the motorcycle parked on the side of the road next to it. She tried to think of differences between them, then tried to narrow it down to differences that would actually cause one to start and not the other. "Maybe it's the—" A loud sputtering filled the air.
"Here we go!" Patty picked up the chainsaw and revved its engine. "All right, remember what we talked about?"
"Yeah, I'll keep a look out while you're cutting up the wood," said Clem.
"This thing is loud, so I'll try to be quick," said Patty as she approached the nearest utility pole. "Once I've cut them up we can get them out of the road, just keep a sharp eye out until then."
Clem watched as Patty carefully maneuvered the chainsaw closer to the downed utility pole. Slowly the chainsaw sliced into the wood, creating a precise incision across the fallen piece of lumber. Seeing the woman was busy with her work, Clem ran towards the Brave. She headed around to the back of the RV and scaled the ladder. After reaching the top, Clem grabbed her binoculars and started scouring the landscape for possible threats.
She could see more humble houses beyond the playground, along with more storm damage. From up high, Clementine could see a clear path of destruction. Following the broken stumps where the power poles used to stand, Clem could see how the storm seemed to move to the right, dragging loose debris into the road before heading past the playground and leaving a clear mark on the roofs of the houses at the end of the street.
Turning her gaze away from the street they were on, Clem saw more pine trees, houses, and signs of a storm in every direction. Fortunately, there were no signs of walkers or anything else but birds perched on branches in the distance. Animals usually ran from walkers, so Clem breathed a little easier, or would if not for her respirator. She pulled the stuffy thing off her face, cringing as the rancid rotting smell of her raincoat stung her nostrils, but then took a deep breath, enjoying the taste of the cool air and the warm afternoon sun on her skin.
From on top of the Brave, Clem could see the playground more clearly. It was a big playground, but not the biggest she had ever seen. A chain link fence marked the boundaries of the grounds and within them were swings, teeter-totters, a jungle gym, and for some reason a giant tire sitting on its side in the middle of the area. Looking at the pebbles coating most of the ground, Clem could see patches of dirt where the storm had clearly scattered some of the stones and wondered if the tire was supposed to be there or if it had been blown into the playground at some point.
"I might need a hand in a minute," called Patty from the radio. "I don't want to turn this thing off, so we need to roll these things quick."
"Roll them?" asked Clem as she grabbed her radio.
"I can't cut clean through or I'll hit the asphalt and wreck the chain," explained Patty. "Bring your tomahawk down here and we'll get it done."
"Got it." Clem rushed back down to the ladder and raced over to the first downed utility pole.
"All right, remember what we learned about leverage?" asked Patty as she approached Clem, the chainsaw idling in her hands.
"Yeah, I remember," said Clem.
"I'll make a little cut in the wood and you jam your tomahawk's blade in it, then you can use its handle as a lever to roll the log forward a little," explained Patty as she stepped over a pole. "Stand back." Clem took a few steps back and removed her tomahawk from her shoulder as Patty moved in close to the log. She very carefully used the end of the chainsaw to create a small incision in the wood, then backed away. "All right, give it a shot."
Clem pocketed her tomahawk's sheath and approached the groove in the wood. She flipped the weapon around so she was wielding its longer knife edge and arched it high above her head. A mighty swing lodged the blade in the wood and a quick stomp on the handle just below the weapon's head helped to further embed it in the pole. Clem adjusted her hands, gripping the end of the handle and pushed down on it with all her might.
"Let me set the chainsaw down for a second and I can…" Clementine felt a jolt running through her veins as the muscles in her arms became taut. She gritted her teeth and threw her weight against the tomahawk, moving it down and rolling the entire utility pole in the process. "Damn."
Clem let go of the tomahawk and took a deep breath. Looking up, she found herself surprised by just how big the utility pole was. She already knew it was as long as the road was wide, but seeing it again, rolled forward so much its uncut underside was exposed now, all because of her and a tool about as long as her arm, made the girl feel powerful. "Wow…"
"A little bit of leverage goes a long way," boasted Patty with a laugh as she approached the next pole. "Think you can do it two more times?"
"Definitely!" Clem grabbed her tomahawk's handle and, with a lot of wiggling, managed to dislodge it from the wood. Patty made a cut in the next pole and Clem happily jammed her tomahawk into it. Much to Clem's surprise, she found it easier to roll the second log, and easier still to move the third. After the last pole had been rolled forward, Clem watched as Patty approached the first of many large gashes she had made in the wood.
Now turned on its side, Patty used the chainsaw to finish the cut she had started, slicing through the remaining wood until that section of the utility pole was reduced to just a small piece of stray lumber waiting to be carted away. The woman worked fast, finishing a cut and immediately moving to the next one. She didn't even so much as slow down until after slicing what remained of the last pole into two pieces.
Clem looked at the woman for a moment as the chainsaw idled in her hands and Patty looked back at the girl, then they both turned their attention to the road. The three hefty roadblocks that stood in the Brave's path had been reduced to a neatly cut series of small logs set out in orderly rows, as if someone had left a bounty of firewood in the middle of the road.
"Hey… we did it," said Patty, sounding almost surprised.
"You did most of the work," said Clem.
"Give yourself some credit, you're the one who moved the logs for me," said Patty as she shut off the chainsaw. "Speaking of which, they should be small enough to dump on the side of the road now." Patty knelt down the grab the nearest log. She groaned as she lifted the piece of wood off the ground and struggled to tote it to the side of the road. "Damn…" grumbled Patty as she dropped the log. "This might take longer than…"
Patty looked over to see Clem rolling a log along the road like a wheel. With only some minor pivoting, the girl managed to guide the piece of wood towards the edge of the road and, with a final push, sent it spinning past the shoulder and into the bushes beyond. Turning to find another log, Clem saw Patty was staring at her.
"What?" asked Clem.
"Well, you're just a natural lumberjack, aren't you?" said Patty as she moved with Clem back to the nearest logs. "Or I guess you just have more common sense than me," said the woman as she knelt down to push a log. "I mean, you don't need to have done this before to know you can just roll something that's round. Especially after you just did it a few minutes ago with your tomahawk."
"Actually, I had to do this one before, for firewood," said Clem as she rolled one of the logs across the asphalt. "I only figured it out once I was too tired to lift the logs."
"You started working smart after you wore yourself out working hard," quipped Patty as she rolled her log.
"I had to," said Clem as she shoved the wood forward. "They wouldn't feed me if I didn't."
"What? Who wouldn't feed you?"
"The bad people who ran the awful place that wouldn't let me and Sarah leave." Clem sighed to herself, then moved back into the road.
"They were making a ten-year-old work for food?" asked Patty.
"I was nine and a half then," said Clem as she started rolling another log.
"Jesus, every time you tell me something about what happened to you and Sarah before we met just makes me think Miami wasn't so bad," said Patty as she pushed a log. "The military was full of a lot of assholes, but if you kept your head down they mostly left you alone… mostly."
"These people never left anyone alone," said Clem as she pushed a log out of the road. "And they weren't the first people I saw who were like that, or even the worse ones." Clem noticed Patty was staring at her now, a nervous concern tugging at the corners of her eyes. "I'd rather not talk about it."
"Yeah, let's not dig up ancient history," spoke a sympathetic Patty. "Especially not when we got a playground right on the horizon."
Clem could see the massive jungle gym poking up past the chain link fence in the distance and found the bad memories being chased away. She hurried back to the next log and Patty was right behind her. Moving the wood, Clem found herself striving to move the lumber faster than Patty. Initially, she didn't have any trouble outpacing the woman, only needing a little extra effort to beat her to the curb, but after a couple of logs, Patty started moving faster.
At first, Clem thought Patty was just keeping pace, but then she caught eye of a devilish look on the woman's face as she beat the girl to the curb and it was clear to Clem this was a competition now. She raced back to the nearest log and started pushing as fast as she could, and Patty was right behind her. The two went back and forth rolling logs out of the road, one after another, until only a single one remained.
Clem gave the log she was pushing a final mighty shove and sprinted back to the road, prompting Patty to do the same. Clem had a headstart, but the woman was gaining fast. The girl lunged forward and planted her hands on the final piece of wood just as Patty reached for it.
"I win!" declared Clem as she clutched the log triumphantly.
"You won a piece of wood," teased Patty.
"Don't pretend like you didn't want it," retorted Clem as she rolled the lumber towards the shoulder. "I won and you know it."
"Yeah, well, not too hard when you're so short you barely have to bend over to reach the ground," said Patty.
"Yeah, well, you've got longer legs, so you're faster," said Clem as she pushed the log past the shoulder. "And you've got longer arms too, and I won anyway."
"With a headstart. Next road we clear, we're starting at the same time."
"Next road?" Turning around, Clem found it strange to see the street clear of debris now. Despite being there for it happening every step of the way, it still felt surreal to think just her and Patty could so quickly clear a road with just a chainsaw, a tomahawk, and an improv race. "I can't believe we're done already."
"Yeah, we make a pretty good post-apocalyptic road crew," said Patty. "I think we've earned a break before we clear out the houses around here."
"Actually, I'm not that tired," said Clem. "In fact, I feel like doing… I don't know, something… anything?"
"That's the caffeine talking," noted Patty. "You're wired."
"Wired?"
"Means you got a lot of energy and you're dying to use it. Like I said, that's why adults drink coffee, and I had a double, so why don't we just go ahead and knock out these houses before we clock out for the day?"
"Let's do it!"
The pair radioed Sarah, telling her to move the Brave so that it's in front of the playground, then went right back to work. The houses in the area were largely the same as every other house they had checked today, the only noteworthy difference being how badly they were damaged by the storm, some only having debris in their yards while others were full of broken glass from smashed windows.
There were no walkers in any of the abandoned homes, but there was more food to be found, which the pair limited to a selection of their favorites so as not to slow their pace, reasoning they could always come back for the rest later. And with each house they cleared, the pair found themselves moving a little faster. After a while, Clem and Patty didn't even need to tell each other which rooms to check, the two simply knew where they both were going out of habit and they cleared whole houses without a word between them.
Working through the final house in the area, Clem found herself slowing down enough to examine her surroundings. This home was neatly intact and well furnished with only a minimal of mess that would need to be cleaned up. She also liked the decor in this one more than the others, the wallpaper being a cheerful yellow and adorned with a pattern of white flowers.
Checking the last door on the second floor, Clem found a bedroom that clearly belonged to a young child. The walls were light blue with puffy white clouds painted on them, and there was a small bed in the shape of a race car tucked in the corner. Looking down at the ground, Clem found herself envisioning Omid roaming across the dark blue carpet to play with his toys and jumping on the bed when he got a little older.
"Yo." Clem turned around to see Patty standing in the door. "Thought I lost track of you for a second."
"I just thought this might be a nice place to stay for a while."
"Really? I thought this place was kinda vanilla actually. The one three houses back had that cool living room with the beaded curtains and those black light posters upstairs."
"I guess we don't have to stay in the same house," realized Clem. "As long as we're not far from each other it should be fine."
"Neighbors are better than roommates, trust me," said Patty. "But we're getting ahead of ourselves. We were just going to hit that playground today, which, seeing as this was the last house in the neighborhood, we should be good to check out."
"I can't wait, let's…" Clem stopped suddenly.
"What? What's wrong?" asked Patty.
"Um… I really got to pee."
"That's probably the coffee. I saw a bathroom at the other end of the hall, last door on your right."
Clem hurried out of the room and headed for the bathroom. She found it strange that she needed to use the bathroom so urgently after spending so much time without even realizing it. Finishing her business, Clem found herself trying to flush the toilet out of habit. She was so used to doing it in the Brave that her hand moved to handle without even thinking it. Stepping outside, Clem found Patty standing outside, wincing badly.
"Are you okay?" asked Clem.
"I need to pee too," said the woman. "Watch the door for me?"
Patty didn't wait for Clem to answer and just barged into the bathroom. After the door had slammed shut, Clem headed for the nearest window. Looking out she could see the playground just across the street from her, practically glowing in the afternoon sun. Imagining Omid spending a whole day having fun there before coming home to rest in his own room while she and Sarah slipped off to spend the rest of their evening together made Clem think about all the happy days the trio had back in Spokeston.
"Sorry about that," said Patty as she left the bathroom. "You ready to go?"
"Definitely." The pair made their way out of the house and headed for the playground. Parked by the front gate was the Brave and on top of it was a telescope with a familiar teenager standing behind it.
"Sarah!" called Clem as they approached the RV. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah," said the older girl. "I thought I'd just look around while I was waiting for you two to get back." Sarah collected the small telescope and climbed down the Brave's ladder.
"Did you see anything?" asked Patty as Sarah stepped off the ladder.
"Nothing dangerous," said Sarah. "But all the trees around here make it hard to see very far."
"Where's OJ?" asked Clem.
"Don't worry, I made sure to put anything sharp or dangerous out of reach, and I didn't come out here until he started playing with his toys, and that was just a few minutes ago."
"Well, we checked all the houses, and there was nothing bad in them, so we can finally take OJ to the playground," said Clem.
"Great, let's get ready," said Sarah as she headed for the Brave's door.
"I'm gonna move my motorcycle, I'll be right back," said Patty as she headed out into the road. Clem went inside with Sarah and the pair helped each other out of their raincoats.
"What's in here?" asked Sarah as she lifted Clem's backpack.
"Food."
"More?"
"Yeah, and there's more left in the houses we didn't have time to take."
"That's great," said Sarah as she dragged the backpack into the closet. "Although, we might have to eat some of what we got just to make room for this stuff."
"I think we can do that," said Clementine with a smirk as she stored the respirators, gloves, and weapons in the cupboards. Clem felt a literal weight lifted off of her after removing her gear and jumped down from the stool with a sense of excitement. As Sarah was still finding space in their closet for the food that had been collected, Clem hurried to the bedroom to fetch Omid, only to find him missing and all their clothes strewn across the floor.
"OJ?"
"Ah-bah-buh-dah-bruh." Clem could hear Omid babbling contently, but she couldn't see him. The bed was on a boxspring that sat on the ground, so he couldn't be under there. Clem herself could barely reach the cupboards above the bed, so that just left the dressers, whose drawers had both been pulled out.
"Omid?"
"Muh-men," Clem heard Omid say from the dressers. Kneeling down, she saw where the bottom drawer used to be there was now a baby boy.
"What are you doing in there?"
"Muh-men," spoke an excited Omid as he tried to crawl out of the dresser. Despite his small size, the boy had trouble negotiating the narrow gap to get out and Clem found herself helping him position his arms and head in the best way to squeeze back out.
"Come on, I've got you," said Clem as she gripped the boy under his arms.
"Muh-men!" he said as he waved a loose sock in front of the girl.
"Is this for me? Did you want to give me a sock?" Clem tried pulling on the sock, only for Omid to tighten his grip.
"Mah-bah," insisted Omid as he refused to let go of the sock.
"If we get much more food we'll have to…" Sarah trailed off as she saw the bedroom. "What happened here?"
"I think Omid pulled out the dresser drawers and started playing with all our clothes," said Clem.
"I was gone for like five minutes," said Sarah as she picked up their clothes. "How'd he even get our clothes all over this place like this?"
Omid tossed the sock and laughed as it sailed through the air before crumpling onto the ground.
"I guess he was just throwing them for fun," said Clem.
"I just washed most of these," lamented Sarah as she dropped a bundle of wadded up clothes on the bed. "And I'll have to fold them again, and—"
"I'll help you put them up later, for now, let's check out the playground."
The pair sifted through the mess of clothes until they located Omid's bright orange jumper. It was a challenge to get him into it, the boy insistent on trying to take it off almost as quickly as they put it on him. Struggling to tie Omid's shoes as he tried to kick them off, Clem heard the sound of a motorcycle approaching followed by a knock at the door.
"I'll go see what Patty wants," said Clem. "Can you handle OJ?"
"I'll try," said Sarah as she stopped Omid from tugging on his own shoelaces. "Come on Omid, just be good a little longer."
"Ah-dah-bruh-mah," answered a defiant Omid as Clem left the bedroom.
"Hey neighbor," said Patty as Clem opened the door. "I've literally got no room left for more food, so I figured we could keep this in here." Patty hefted her backpack past the threshold and set it on the floor.
"We're running out of room too," said Clem as she pulled the pack aside.
"That's a good problem to have," said Patty with a smile. "Having too much food."
"Yeah, I guess it is," realized Clem.
"So, you three ready for a little play time?"
"Just about, OJ's being a pain about getting dressed," said Clem. "Are you gonna come with us?"
"Eh, think I'll pass on that. The monkey bars lost their appeal a long time ago for me," said Patty. "Plus, I'm kind of crashing right now anyway."
"Crashing?"
"The caffeine is wearing off, so I'm feeling kind of tired," explained the woman as she removed a cigarette from her pocket. "Surprised you're not crashing yourself."
"I feel fine," said Clem as Patty lit her cigarette.
"Like I said, enjoy that youthful energy while you have it." Patty took a long drag off her cigarette. "It doesn't last forever. I'm only twenty-one and I already feel like a sloth compared to my teenage years."
"Is that why you smoke those?"
"Kinda," shrugged Patty as she blew out some smoke. "It's another thing that helps take the edge off."
"Like coffee?"
"Uh… sorta."
"Does that mean I can try it?" asked Clem.
"Cigarettes? No—no way, you're not smoking," insisted Patty.
"Why not? I do lots of things kids should never do."
"Smoking is a terrible habit you never want to pick up, ever."
"If it's so terrible how come you do it then?"
"Because part of what makes it so terrible is that it's nearly impossible to quit once you start. I've been cutting back because it's getting harder to find cigarettes, but it's easier if you just never start. Trust me on this one, if I could go back a few years and tell my younger self to never start smoking I would."
"Really?" asked Clem. "Would you tell her to not do anything else? Like, drink coffee or whiskey?"
"Nah, those are fine. Anyway, I figured I'll just park myself on top of your RV and keep a look out. Even though we didn't find any walkers, I figured the noise from the chainsaw was loud enough where there might still be some limping their way here from a town over."
"Or if there's anyone alive, they might still be following a noise only other living people could make," added a concerned Clem.
"Huh… I hadn't thought of that."
Clem hadn't been thinking much of it either, but now that she was she couldn't force it out of mind. "You should take our rifle, just in case."
"Seriously?"
"It has a scope, so you'll be able to shoot further with it." Clem headed for the closet, collecting the only gun that wouldn't fit in the cupboard, then went for the cupboards themselves to get the rifle's magazine. "Sarah set the scope for about a hundred feet," explained Clem as she loaded the gun. "And if you see anyone, don't use the scope to look at them, use your binoculars instead."
"Really? What's the scope good for then?" Patty tried to take the rifle, but Clem refused to let go of it.
"I'm serious," warned Clementine in a stern tone. "If someone sees you pointing a gun at them, even if you're just looking at them with the scope, they might think you're going to shoot them and shoot you first."
"Huh… didn't think about that." Patty's cocky grin morphed into a more thoughtful look, at which point Clem let go of the rifle.
"And don't shoot unless you know you have to," pleaded Clem.
"I won't," said Patty as she cocked the rifle. "I'll buzz you on the radio if I see anything."
"Thanks." Patty headed for the back of the RV while Clem retrieved her radio.
"Come on now, you're going to have so much fun."
Clem watched as Sarah walked a fussy Omid out towards the front of the RV, holding his hand every step of the way.
"Muh-bruh," said Omid as he made a pouty face.
"I hope this is a good idea," said Sarah.
"He'll love it," assured Clem. "And so will you."
"It would be nice just to go outside for a while for fun," said Sarah. "But I'm always worried about what's out there."
"Patty's keeping watch for us. She'll let us know if anything is coming."
"That's good," said Sarah as she knelt down to pick up the boy. "All right Omid, let's—"
"Don't carry him. This will be the first time he's been outside since he learned how to walk, so we should let him go out by himself." Clem moved down the steps and opened the door, stepping out into the brisk air of the outdoors. Turning around, she could see Omid was surprised to see the door was open. "Come on OJ, you can do it, it's okay."
Omid seemed baffled by Clem's command. He stood there near the top step, awkwardly looking down at Clem for a few moments before turning to look up at Sarah instead.
"It's okay," assured the older girl with a smile. "Go ahead."
Omid turned back to Clem and stared at her in disbelief. "Come on, I'm right here." Omid looked down at his feet, then took moved towards the step. He sat down on the edge, then turned over onto his stomach. Clem watched with great delight as Omid tried to put his legs down on the next step, then felt her heart skip a beat as he slipped and slid down the stairs.
"Omid!"
"I got him!" Clem reached out and scooped up the boy as he slid into her arms.
"Is he okay?"
"Ah-dah! Ah-dah!" Omid laughed excitedly.
"I think he's okay," said Clem, breathing a sigh of relief.
"Next time, let's just carry him out," said Sarah as she joined Clem outside. "At least until he's a little older."
"Yeah, good idea," said Clem as she set Omid down.
"Everything okay down there?" called Patty as she looked down from her perch on top of the Brave.
"We're okay Patty," assured Clem. "Right OJ?" Clem looked down at Omid, who was gazing up at the sky. "OJ?" The boy didn't respond, simply standing in place as he stared up at the sky in disbelief. Circling around to get a better look at this face, Clem could see the boy's eyes were wide open with wonder as he took in his surroundings. Very slowly his gaze moved downward but remained every bit as inspired by what he saw.
"We should—"
"Just let him look around for a while," whispered Clem.
"I was going to say we should get the camera," whispered Sarah.
"Oh… oh yeah, go get it, I'll watch him." Sarah stealthily moved back into the Brave while Omid headed for the fence surrounding the playground. Walking past the edge of the sidewalk, he looked down at the lawn under his shoes with great curiosity. He sat down and ran his hands through the uncut blades of grass, his look of awe morphing into a bright smile as his chubby fingers wrapped around a particularly long weed.
"Mah-bah!" The more Clem watched Omid, the more she felt like crying for joy. The boy's delightful laughter as he played in the grass, a big smile on his face and not a care in his heart, it all made the world seem a little brighter. All the death and horror she had seen, and all that still lay out there, all of it, chased away by a baby's laughter as he only found happiness in the world he was discovering.
"I gotta get a picture of this." Sarah inched past Clem and carefully maneuvered beside Omid as he giggled while tugging on a weed. "Say cheese." The camera clicked and Omid looked over at Sarah. "Don't mind me, just keep being cute." Sarah took the photo from the camera as Omid stood up. "You want to play with the camera?" Omid walked towards Sarah. "Okay, but you'll need to be careful and…"
Omid walked right past Sarah and looked up at the side of the Brave in utter awe. He seemed utterly dumbstruck by the size of the vehicle sitting before him, then he raced towards it as fast as his chubby legs would carry him. He marched right up to the side of the Brave and stretched out his hands, a look of utter amazement frozen on his tiny face.
"Broo-puh-puh…" said Omid in a whisper. "Broo-puh-puh!" he chanted as he enthusiastically slapped his hands against the Brave's tire.
"It's like he's seeing the world for the first time," said Sarah.
"I know," said Clem. "Even though he's been outside before."
"He was in his stroller or we were holding him those times." Sarah raised her camera. "This is the first time he's just been outside on his own." Sarah snapped a picture.
"We gotta make sure there's a bunch more times after this," insisted Clem as she watched Omid cling to the Brave's tire. "Hey OJ," said Clem as she approached the boy.
"Muh-men," said Omid as he looked up at the girl.
"You want to see something really great?" Clem headed towards the gate leading to the playground and slowly creaked it open. "Come on, you're going to love it."
Omid smiled and started walking towards Clementine. He moved along the sidewalk as quickly as he could, nearly arriving at the gate before tripping forward.
"Omid, are you okay?" Sarah reached down to help the boy, but he managed to return to a stand unaided. "Hold onto me." Clem thought Sarah was going to pick up Omid, but instead, she gently grasped Omid's hand and started walking with him through the gate. Clem thought it was cute how Sarah had to lean to the side to reach Omid's hand even when it was raised high above his head.
"Okay OJ, where do we start?" Again, Clem saw a sense of wonder and excitement grip the boy's eyes. His gaze went from the swings, to the teeter-totters, to the giant tire sitting in the middle of the playground. Each sight appeared more awe-inspiring than the last, but it wasn't until he spotted the jungle gym did the boy come to a decision.
"Ohhhh…" Omid's mouth hung wide open as he stared at the colorful pipes arranged into the shape of a dome. He started moving towards it almost as if he was in a trance, and Sarah followed along with him, holding his hand the whole way there. The boy took great joy trying to climb on the lowest rungs of the jungle gym and had even more fun when Sarah lifted him up so he could touch the top bars. Clem took it upon herself to hang from the top just across from him and make faces that made Omid laugh.
The trio moved from one plaything to another with Omid leading the way all afternoon. He sat on Clem's lap while Sarah pushed them on the swings, then again on the merry-go-round as Sarah spun them around, and once more on the teeter-totter while Sarah sat in the other seat. Swinging, spinning, teetering; it all excited the boy more and more, causing him to squeal with delight, which just made Clem laugh with joy herself.
Stepping off the teeter totter, Clem discovered Omid was already running as fast as he could to the tire next, giggling every step along the way. The wheel was massive, appearing like the kind of tire a monster truck would use. Examining it closely revealed it had been cemented in place and was indeed part of the playground. Helping the boy climb on top of the overturned tire, Clem discovered the interior had been partially filled with the same pebbles that coated the rest of the area.
"Ahh-cah-da-mub-duh," babbled Omid as he climbed down into the tire's center.
"Where do you think you're going?" asked Clem as Omid dropped into the small pit of pebbles. The boy immediately crawled into the tire's interior and out of sight. "OJ?"
Clementine could hear the boy's giggles echoing from inside the tire, prompting her to go after him. It took the girl considerably more effort to squeeze under the edge of the tire than Omid, but by scooching while on her back, she managed to narrowly slip inside. The interior of the tire was cramped and dark, yet comforting. It felt reassuring being out of sight and the potent smell of rubber was strangely soothing. Between that and Omid's giggles echoing around her, Clem felt herself easing into a more comfortable position on her side.
"Wuh-buh-buh. Wuh-buh-buh."
Turning her head, Clem could see Omid crawling around inside the tire. "Hey there you. You having fun?"
"Wuh-buh-buh," repeated the boy as he happily crawled ahead at full speed. Shifting in place, Clem found herself face to face with Omid. Seeing the joy brimming over in the boy's big brown eyes and his large but not quite entirely toothless grin, Clem arched her head and kissed him on the cheek.
"I love you," whispered Clem.
"Muh-boo!" exclaimed Omid.
"Omid? Clem?" Omid crawled out towards the center of the tire while Clem scooched out from her hiding place. "Say cheese!" Clem heard a loud click and watched as a photo emerged from Sarah's camera. "Having fun?" asked Sarah in a playful voice.
"Tons." Clem climbed out of the tire while Sarah helped Omid back onto the ground. "What about you? Are you having fun?"
"Yeah."
"Really? Because you've mostly been taking pictures and pushing Omid and me on things," said Clem. "Don't you want to play on anything?"
"Nah, I just love seeing you and Omid so happy," assured Sarah with a warm smile. "In fact, here comes another great photo for the album."
Clem watched as the boy ran towards a small plastic playhouse clearly made for younger children. Clem headed after Omid, thinking he'd need her help to climb the stairs leading inside, but Omid managed to climb up the first step on his hands and knees before Clem even reached him. Clem watched as he climbed the next step, and the next, and then he was in the playhouse, all by himself.
Taking a few steps back, Clem watched as Omid briefly surveyed the playhouse. There were some colorful shapes that spun attached to one of the walls, but Omid honed in on the slide leading back outside. Clem watched intently and Sarah raised her camera as Omid sat down on the edge of the slide. He tried to flip over, only to slip and slide down on his belly. The boy squealed with joy the entire way down the green plastic chute, and moments after reaching the bottom, he headed right back to the stairs, giggling the whole way there.
"That's a good one," said Sarah as she collected another photo from her camera. "Do you want to take some pictures?"
"I think you got it." Watching Omid hurry back up the steps to slide again with no loss of enthusiasm, Clementine started to feel a little drowsy. "I think I'd like to sit down for a minute." Sarah pointed to a bench facing the playhouse and the pair sat down together while Omid continued to play. Feeling Sarah beside her without a gun digging into her hip and smelling the fresh air around them not tainted by filthy raincoats, Clem moved in close and rested her head on the older girl's shoulder.
"Are you okay Clem?" asked Sarah.
"Yeah, just tired." Clem yawned and closed her eyes for a moment. "I think I'm crashing."
"Crashing?"
"Patty says that's what you call it when coffee wears off."
"I'm surprised you didn't get tired sooner," said Sarah. "You've been working all morning without a break."
"I really wanted OJ to get to come here," said Clem as she watched the boy started spinning the colorful plastic shapes built into the wall near the slide.
"I don't think I've ever seen him have this much fun," said Sarah. "This was a great idea. I can't thank you and Patty enough for doing this."
"Thanks for looking after OJ all day," said Clem. "I know it must get boring staying in the RV all day."
"It's not that bad," said Sarah. "It gives me plenty of time to read."
"You haven't read every book we have by now?"
"Not all of them. Lately, I've been working on those medical textbooks we got back at Five Corners."
"But those aren't fun to read," said Clem. "That's like reading the manual for the Brave."
"Actually, I think it's really interesting learning about anatomy and how the body works," said Sarah. "Did you know your heart rate and your breathing will change to try and match the music you're listening to?"
"Really?" asked Clem.
"Yeah, fast music can make your heart beat faster and relaxing music can make your heart beat slower."
"No wonder we're always fighting over the CD player."
Clem watched as Omid used the slide yet again, still squealing as happily as he did the first time he used it before hurrying up to do it once more. Birds were chirping and the sun was setting, casting a comforting orange light over the area. Beyond the fence, Clem could see the house she checked out earlier. It had a little white fence out front and was painted red. Even faded it appeared as a gem of a home waiting for new owners. Then Clem saw a flock of birds flee the tree right outside the playground's fence.
"Did you see that?" asked Clem as she stood up.
"See what?" asked Sarah.
"I thought…" Clem watched as Omid moved away from the slide and started walking towards the fence.
"Guys," said Patty over the radio. "I think something's coming—"
"Omid!" Clementine sprung out of her seat as did Sarah, both racing towards the child as they could see a figure emerging from the bushes.
"Hah-buh—"
A walker lunged forward, thrusting its head over the top of the fence and making a sickly gurgling sound as it tried to force its broken jaw closer to the toddler screaming in terror. Sarah grabbed Omid with both hands and immediately pulled him away from the fence while Clem reached for her gun, only to remember she had left it in the RV.
"Get back to the Brave, right—"
A gunshot sounded and the top of the walker's skull exploded into a gory mess. The now limp corpse fell forward onto the top of the fence, its neck clinging to the chain link while the rest of her body hung there like a piece of strung up meat.
"I'm coming." Patty rushed to the girls' side, the rifle clutched in her hands. "Are you guys okay?"
"Yeah, we're okay," reassured a nervous Clem.
"We're all right now, it's okay, don't cry," pleaded Sarah as she cradled a still shrieking Omid in her arms.
"Was that the only one?" asked Patty as she approached the fence.
"I think so." Clem examined the walker. It looked like a young woman with very long hair. She was missing the bottom half of her jaw, causing her tongue to hang out of what remained of her mouth, like some putrid slug oozing its way out of her throat.
"Why… why isn't she wearing any clothes?"
Patty's observation caused Clem to look away from the sickly sight of the walker's head long enough to see the only thing this person was wearing wasn't clothing.
"Why is there a rope around her neck?" After asking that, Clem moved in close enough to find it was an actual noose wrapped around the walker's neck, the other end of the rope ending at her feet in not so much a cut as a messy tear where the line had become severely frayed.
"She's got handcuffs on too." Clem stepped a few feet to the side and discovered the walker's hands were indeed cuffed behind her back. Looking closely, Clem could also see a series of uneven cuts and marks covered both the walker's wrists, although it wasn't clear if those were done before or after she died the first time.
"Maybe… maybe someone did this stuff to her after she turned into a walker?" suggested an apprehensive Sarah as she approached the pair while trying to comfort Omid. "Like, they were just trying to keep a walker from biting people by tying them up… or something."
"Didn't you say their skin gets really dark and rotten after a long time?" Patty asked Clem.
"Um… yeah," said Clem.
"This one's skin doesn't look that rotten, like she hasn't been dead all that long." Checking again, Clem noticed the woman's skin appeared pale, a sign she hadn't been a walker for as nearly as long as the other ones they had encountered today. And if the woman died recently, it wasn't from other walkers, as her body was mostly intact and showed no signs of being eaten.
"If a walker found its way here, then whoever did this to her might be on their way here too," said Patty.
"Whoever did this to her?" repeated a nervous Sarah.
Clem started eyeing the houses in the direction the walker came from, and Patty did the same. She didn't see anything coming, but after only a few seconds of searching the girl reached an undeniable conclusion.
"We should go," said Clem with a hint of panic. "Right now."
"Yeah, let's… let's just get out of here."
The group hurried back to their vehicles, keeping a sharp eye on the roads as they moved. Patty handed the rifle back to Clem as she raced into the Brave with Sarah and Omid. After setting a still sobbing Omid in the bedroom, Sarah hurried into the driver's seat while Clem prepared to put the rifle away. She removed the magazine, but looking out the windshield, the girl was struck with a sense of dread and quickly replaced the magazine, thinking it better to keep it loaded a little longer.
"Where should we go?" asked Sarah as she started the Brave.
"Just head back to the highway and we'll go west for a while," said Clem as she sat down in the passenger seat.
"Got it."
The Brave backed away from the playground but Patty's motorcycle remained in place. "What is she waiting for?" Clem moved closer to the windshield and saw the woman was desperately turning her bike's key over and over again. "Oh no, her motorcycle isn't starting again."
"What should we do?" asked Sarah.
"Just stop. I'll go out and cover her until she gets it started." Clem set the rifle down and hastily headed for the cupboards, retrieving her pistol. "Keep the rifle close, in case you need to come after us."
"Okay. I'll… I'll be ready," assured Sarah with as much strength as she could muster.
"Lock the door until I get back," reminded Clem as she cocked her pistol.
"I will." Clem nodded at Sarah, then barged out the door. She hurried to Patty's motorcycle while the woman struggled to start the vehicle.
"Come on, you just started like an hour ago," mumbled an aggravated Patty as she fiddled with the bike. "Just… just give me a minute, I'll—"
"Patty, take your time, I'll keep a lookout until you get the bike started." Patty seemed surprised by Clem's offer. The woman nodded slightly in gratitude, then immediately turned her bike's key again. Clem kept shifting in place, searching for danger in every direction while she clutched the pistol tightly in her hands. Her heart was in her throat, and every muffled stall she heard from the motorcycle just made the girl feel even more anxious. With each passing second, Clem found herself growing more and more frightened, feeling like something was going to happen any moment, and then it did happen, Patty's motorcycle roared to life.
"Finally!" said Patty.
"Follow us to the highway!" yelled Clem as she ran back into the Brave.
"Got it!" Clem rushed back inside and locked the door behind her.
"Sarah, drive."
Sarah put the Brave in reverse and with some maneuvering returned to the road. Clem kept the pistol in her hands as the Brave moved along the small streets, still fearful of what may be out there. Only once they reached the highway did the girl finally loosen her grip on the weapon, and only after a few minutes of watching the open road move past them did Clem finally store her pistol. After unloading the rifle, Clem headed for the bedroom to check on Omid, who was sobbing quietly in the corner.
"Hey OJ, how you doing?" Clem sat down by the sniveling boy, who looked at the girl, revealing the tears on his face, then turned away. "It's okay OJ. You're safe now. Nothing's going to…"
Omid stood up and moved to the nearest window. He tried reaching for it, but it was too far.
"I got you." Clem lifted Omid up to the window and the boy placed his hands on the glass. "You want to go back outside."
"Ow-suh," he said as he peered out at the grassy fields moving past him.
"I know, I know, but we can't go back out right now," said a disappointed Clem. "Maybe—"
"Ow-suh," repeated Omid as he looked out the window.
"We'll go out again soon," said Clem. "We—"
"Ow-suh!" repeated the boy has he banged on the glass.
"We just can't," confessed a saddened Clem as she set the boy down. "At least, not right now."
"Ow-suh…" repeated a saddened Omid as he tried reaching for the window again.
"I'm sorry OJ. I really am," said Clem. "I want to go outside too, and we will, as soon as we find somewhere safe to stay for a while."
"Ow-suh," repeated Omid as he kept reaching for the window.
"I don't know when that will be, but…" Clem felt the Brave come to a stop and sighed. "I'll be right back." Walking up front, Clem could see Patty getting off her bike through the windshield. "What's going on?"
"I'm not sure," said Sarah. "Patty just stopped and…" A knock came from the door.
"I guess we can just ask her." Clem headed for the door and unlocked it. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," assured Patty. "I just wanted to tell you we'll need to find somewhere for me to crash before it gets dark, and I'd really rather not go back to that town right now."
"Me neither," said Sarah as she moved to the door.
"So I was just wondering what you think we should do?" asked Patty. "I mean, the sun's already going down, and we have no idea what direction we should be avoiding, and we'll have to clear out anywhere we stop, so—"
"Patty," said Clem. "Why don't you just stay in the Brave tonight?"
"Real… really?" asked a surprised Patty.
"Yeah, really?" asked an equally surprised Sarah.
"I really don't want to go looking around here anymore today," admitted Clem. "And it'd be safer for all of us that way too."
"You sure you've got room for me in there?" asked Patty. "I mean, it's already kind of cramped the three of you. Where would I even sleep?"
"The couch folds out into a bed," said Sarah.
"It does?" asked Clem.
"Yeah, I read it in the manual," said Sarah.
"Well… if you two are okay with me staying in there, how could I turn down a chance to crash in the fun bus?" said Patty. "We could finally play poker like we've been talking about."
"That'd be nice," said Sarah.
"But first we should move to somewhere further away from the road," said Clem. "That way if anyone comes this way, they won't see us."
"Makes sense to me," said Patty. "This far out in the sticks, there's gotta be some dirt roads leading to nowhere. I'll go ahead and look for one to pull into it."
"I'll be right behind you," said Sarah as she headed for the driver's seat. Clem closed the door and locked it, then headed for the passenger seat.
"It's nice of you to let her stay with us tonight," said Sarah.
"I wish we didn't have to," said a forlorn Clem as she sat down.
"You still don't trust Patty?" asked Sarah.
"It's not that," said Clem. "I just wish we didn't have to be afraid to go outside all the time."
"Yeah… me too." Sarah started the Brave's engine and Clem watched as Patty's bike pulled ahead of them. Once again, the three of them were in search of somewhere lonely and isolated where they'd hopefully be safe for at least the night.