A short walk downstairs leads us back to Bonnie, we find her filling a pair of buckets with nails. Clem still seems to be shaken up by Reggie's sudden death and frankly...so am I. I mean, he was a naive guy, but he had the positivity that most people need nowadays. I was the one who messed up anyway. Why didn't he just kill me? What point has he proven?

"Oh, hey," Bonnie notices our approach and turns to us. "So, they want y'all to run some supplies out to the guys workin' at the expansion. Real simple. Just take these buckets over to 'em," We reluctantly take them from Bonnie, and she smiles once her eyes see Clem's jacket again. "That jacket looks real nice. I don't know what Tavia's talkin' about."

"..."

"What's wrong, Clem?" Bonnie notices the distant look on her face. "You alright? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Reggie...Reggie's dead."

"What?" The hick woman's eyes widen at Clem's words. "What're you talkin' about?"

"Did she stutter? Reggie is dead. Carver pushed him off the roof."

"Maybe...maybe it was just an accident."

"'Accident'?!" I've just about had it with her."How much longer are you going to keep your head up your ass?!"

"Shh! Just...keep your voice down, Elijah. Now ain't the time to be callin' attention to yourself. Just...take this stuff out to those guys, and you and Clementine just come straight back. I need to go find out what happened," I sigh as Bonnie leads us to an exit door. At least she's actually looking into it and not just blindly denying it. "Hey, Troy!" She calls up to the hick standing guard on the roof above us. "Clem and Elijah's just gonna take them boys some nails."

"Alright." Bonnie leaves us and closes the door behind her. Outside the fence running along outside the fronts of the stores, I could hear a few walkers banging on the makeshift fortifications...but that wasn't what I was worried about. Through some of the wiring, I see Reggie's unmoving corpse underneath a pool of his own blood. Poor bastard, but at least he won't come back."Hey!" Troy yells at us. "That ain't your concern. Get that stuff over to them boys. Just follow them cables."

We know where to go, asswipe.

Clem and I do our job, ignoring the few walkers outside the fence until we eventually reach an old clothing store. I open the door to find Kenny and the scavenger asshole...and my friend had him pinned to the wall in anger. "I ain't nobody's laborer! Fuck that! Let 'em do this shit themselves if it's so goddamn important!"

"Get your fuckin' hands off me!"

Clem and I drop our buckets on the ground and run over to them. "You ain't gonna force me to do this bullshit!"

"I said get your hands off me!"

"Or what? You gonna go tell on me?"

"I'm trying to help you, asshole!"

"You? Help? Right. Just like how you 'helped' my boy and my people, right?!"

"Guys! That's enough!" I shout, effectively making them both look towards me. "There's no point in fighting so just knock it off!"

"I want to, Son, but this son of a bitch keeps testin' me!"

"I just wanna get the work done and-"

SMASH!

A Walker's arm breaks right through the window where Kenny had Mike held up, bringing the plank off the wall and making a clear path for its rotting friends. "Shit!"

"Son of a-"

"Fuck! Grab something!"

I count at least seven walkers as they pile into the store, three of them corner Kenny and Mike on one side and leaving Clem and I to deal with the other four. I grab a hammer sitting on a nearby table and quickly throw it to Clementine, I have to make do with a simple screwdriver for now. Remembering what she was taught, Clementine draws the attention of two of the walkers while I make the bigger two focus on me. Unfortunately, I didn't realize I was backing myself into a wall, leaving me no room to kick them in the knees. I stabbed the fatter Walker in the head, killing it instantly, but I lost my weapon as it got stuck in its skull.

"FUCK!"

The Walker, matching my height, grabbed onto my shoulders, and I pushed back as it tried to take a big chunk out of my neck. The stench of its rotting flesh stings my nose as I try to look around for anything to kill it with. When I look down, I can see its ribcage poking out of its ripped shirt. Despite how gross this would be, I chose to rip the bone out of the walker and use it to my advantage, stabbing the walker in the eye and killing it. I sigh in relief as I wipe the blood on my pants.

"That was...gross," I utter, looking around the store to look for Clem. Gladly, she killed the two walkers who were after her. Seeing that she was safe, I ran over to her, kneeled down, and hugged her. "Thank God. You okay, Kiddo? No bites?"

"No bites." She nods. "You?"

"Yeah," I nod back. "No bites."

"Oh, thank God, you two are alright."

"We're fine, Kenny," I turn to him. "It'll take a lot more than that to-"

"What the fuck happened in here?!" An annoyed hick's voice cuts me off, Troy was not happy to see one of the windows broken. "Enough of your mushy shit! You!" He points at Clementine. "You get back inside right fuckin' now. I'm sure they got shit for you to do in there. And you," Troy points at me but now with his rifle. "I need an extra hand seeing how you idiots work."

"I go where the kid goes, mother fucker. I'm not your-" A quick hit to my gut with Troy's rifle nearly makes me fall to my knees. It did, however, knock the air out of my body.

"Think I'm fuckin' around, boy?! You will do as your goddamn told!"

"Elijah!"

"Hey! You don't touch my-"

"Kenny, it's fine," I say, coughing as I manage to get back on my feet. I turn to Clementine and nod. "It's okay, just for a little while."

"But-"

"I know. Just go."

"...Okay." Clementine leaves us, closing the door behind her.

"Great," Troy groans in annoyance. "Now, I gotta sit down here and babysit you assholes. Can't do a simple fuckin' patch job without me here crackin' the whip?"

"..." This is someone who needs to die, not someone like Reggie.

Clementine

This is bad. The Little One thought as she slowly walked alongside the fence. How are we supposed to escape from this place? It was a lot easier when it was just a bunch of bandits with guns last time, now it's organized people who know how to shoot one. Maybe we-

"MMFF! MMM!" Clementine couldn't finish her thoughts, thanks to someone popping from out of one of the stores and covering her mouth. The adult pulls her inside as she struggles in their grip. Not wanting to find out what this person would do if she didn't fight back, Clementine bites down hard into their palm.

"AH! Hey! Stop! Hey, it's me!" The man lets go of Clementine, allowing her to see who it was that pulled her aside into the abandoned comic store. The little girl's eyes widened when she saw the familiar face of...

"Luke?"

"Yes! Man..." he shook his hand, wincing in pain, "bit the hell outta me. Think you drew blood. Come all this way...and this is the welcome I-"

Clementine doesn't allow Luke to speak another word as she wraps her arms around the farmhand's shoulders, hugging him and happy to see him again. "I was worried. We all were."

"Aw, it's good to see you too, kid." Their hug doesn't last long, Luke breaks them apart with a serious yet paranoid look in his eyes. "Alright, listen, we ain't got much time, okay? I followed y'all here best I could. Haven't had a night's rest since y'all got nabbed and...well, this is the first chance I got to talk to somebody. They're everywhere, okay? They got guards. Watchin' everything. There's a herd'a lurkers just south of us. It's bigger than I ever seen around these parts."

"We know. I saw the dust in the distance; Carver also mentioned it. Said he hopes it passes us."

"Yeah, I heard folks talkin' about that, but that ain't so, okay? It's gonna hit this place, I know it is...I don't know when, but it's comin', and it's gonna be soon. See, I've been lookin' for places to...to get y'all free...but haven't been able to find anything yet. They plugged up all the holes we used when we got out."

"Luke?" Clem grows only more concerned for her shaky friend. "Are you feeling okay?"

"No...no, I mean...yeah, yes, sorry. I...I just could use some sleep, you know? Hard to rest when you think a lurker's about to get the jump on you at any moment, but, yeah. Yeah. I'm fine, okay? Don't worry about me."

"You don't seem okay, it's already dangerous that you're here."

"Well, the whole situation's dangerous, but, well, we're in it now. It's what we got." Luke started pacing back and forth in the empty room. "We just...we just need a plan, y'know, a way to get you and...and everyone..."

As Luek paced around, Clem could hear footsteps outside. "Luke..."

"Oh, sorry, sorry. Shit, okay. Troy ain't gonna like you bein' late. Listen, Clem," Luke knees down to her. "I need you to meet me here tomorrow, about this time, 'cause I...I need you to get me one of those radios, okay? Do you think you can do that? Just...just one of those walkie-talkies. I just need to be able to tell y'all what's goin' on with them guards...you know, I'll figure out the schedule their patrols are on. I mean, they're...they're all over the place, but I can keep an eye on 'em for y'all from out here. Look, we ain't gonna be able to shoot our way outta here, so we gotta be careful. We just gotta be smart, 'kay? We gotta plan. That radio is crucial to that."

"Where do I get one?"

"I think they keep 'em in the stockroom. I ain't completely sure, though. Just...keep your eyes out for the charging station. They put most of 'em back on there at night. Remember, you meet me here tomorrow. I'll try and be here around this time. But if I ain't, just wait as long as you can, 'cause I really need one of those radios. Just let everybody know I'm alright, okay? I'm worried they, uh..."

"Clementine!" Troy's voice calls out from outside. "Get out where I can see ya!"

"Shit... Go on!" Luke says. "Get outta here!"

Clementine nods at Luke before he goes back into hiding. she leaves the store to find Troy angrily holding his automatic rifle. "The Hell were you doin' in there?! Answer me!"

Looks like it's time to play the naive little girl again. "I was looking at comics," Clementine says with a naive smile. "There's a whole store full of them."

"Yeah? No shit," The hick seemingly buys it. "You bets not dawdle, girlie. Pull somethin' like that again and you'll be meetin' the back of my hand," Just wait until he kills you, asshole... "Bill radioed. Wants a word with you up in his office. So get on up there, now!"

Now, back inside, Clementine finds the stairs leading up to Carver's office. Walking halfway up, Rebecca comes out of the room, sobbing. "Rebecca?" Clementine nearly falls over as Rebecca doesn't even acknowledge her presence and trudges down the stairs with a trail of tears.

"She's a strong woman," Clementine looks back up to see Carver standing at the top of the stairs with his arms folded over his chest, "surrounded by weak men. I ain't lettin' my next kid be raised around that, not again. Get in here."

Clementine finishes walking up the stairs and enters Carver's office, finding it relatively cleaner and well-kept together...despite what she found in the corner of the room. "Alvin?" Rebecca's husband was sitting unconsciously in an office chair, his body practically soaking in his own blood and covered in a variety of bruises and cuts. "Alvin!"

"He passed out hours ago, he can't hear nothin'. No point in making a racket."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Me and him, we got history. Understand? A couple of things we had to...get worked out."

You bastard...

"I wouldn't be so concerned about his well-being if I were you. Not with you being so close to the fore yourself. Now..." Carver gestures to the lone chair sitting in front of his desk, silently telling the little one to have a seat so they could talk. Clementine begrudgingly gives in to his quiet demand, sitting down in the chair, noticing the bowl of fresh apples sitting in the middle of the desk. "You make sure you tell me the truth when you're sittin' where you are...and you won't end up over in that chair," Carver said, referring to where Alvin was currently sitting. "You might not believe this after what happened earlier, but...I liked Reggie. He was a funny guy. He kept things light. You need folks like that...it's easy to let depression sink in during times like this. But he was weak. And I don't mean just 'cause he was maimed, that wasn't his problem." The grizzled man leans on his desk, using his palms as support, staring down into the little one's eyes. "He was weak of will. Weak of character. And we can't have that around here, not anymore. Not with what we got at stake."

"You're a murderer." Clementine hated how easily this man was disregarding an innocent man's life. "You can try and call it something else, but I know what it is. What it really is."

"...Listen, Clementine. It ain't murder. You see, Reggie put us at risk with his incompetence. He's had a string of screw-ups lately. Killing one in order to save many is part of survival. It's one of the tough decisions that a weaker person couldn't make. It's why it falls to people like us to lead them to safety. Do you understand?"

"..."

"Let me ask you this. Has Elijah done anything like that in order to keep you safe?"

"That's different," Clementine retorts. "Elijah never blindly kills anyone without reason; even then, he only does it to keep me and my friends safe."

"Is that so? Then let me ask you another question. How many people have you lost ever since the beginnin' of this whole mess?"

"..."

"Hmm," Carver nods. Clementine's silence was all he needed to hear. "I figured as much. Well, I wish it was different, I do. But there are too many weak folks out there these days, not like you, me, and even my son. That's why it's our responsibility to shepherd the flock...to keep them safe. It's their nature to follow...not to lead."

"I'm not like you!"

"I know it when I see it," Carver smirks, almost like a proud father. "And we're more alike than you think. In fact, I think you realize it, but you're not comfortable with it yet. There's no way you could've lasted this long otherwise. I realized it back in that cabin. You were scared," He leans down, his face only a foot away from Clem's. "but you looked me straight in the eye. Kept your nerve. That's what we need if we're gonna get through this. The next generation has to be stronger than the last to... lead us out of this. Kids like you, raised the right way. The way my child'll be raised."

"It's not your baby. It's Alvin's."

"Well, even if that was true, it's mine now..."

"Is that what happened with Elijah? You just some poor woman pregnant and forced her to have him?"

"...What exactly is my son to you, Clementine?"

"What?"

"You think you and him are family just because he's put up with you for all this time...but we both know the reality of it all. Elijah wouldn't hesitate to abandon you for the sake of stayin' alive."

"You're wrong! Elijah would never leave me; we've been through hell and back. He's the only family I have left."

"Ah, so that's what it is," Carver smirks. "You lost your real folks and now you wish to find the smallest hint of love that comes with that bullshit. But people like us know better, don't we?"

"...You know what I wish?" Clementine started feeling a rising anger in her heart.

"What's that, honey?"

Clementine looks straight into Carver's eyes, her nerves unshaken. "I wish Elijah and Kenny had killed you."

"..." Unfortunately, Clem's words only made him smile more. "And there's all the proof I need, right there. You think anyone out there'd have the balls to say somethin' like that?" The little one looks over at Alvin, making Carver chuckle a bit. "Oh, he did, but look where he landed."

"..."

"Well, I think you and I are done here," Carver stands up straight. "Go on back out to the yard. Supper time'll start soon."

Clementine doesn't waste another second in this office and marches straight out of the door. Once she reaches the bottom of the stairs, Clementine finds Elijah coming to the staircase. The young man immediately rushes over to her little sister and checks her for any potential injuries.

"You okay, Kiddo? He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No," Clem shook her head. "I'm fine."

"What did he say? You know what, never mind. I guess I'll find out soon enough. He wants to see me too. I'll see you back in the yard, okay?"

"Okay. Just...be careful."

"I will."

Elijah

I have no idea what he wants to see me about but I have no choice but to go through with this. I reach the top of the stairs and step inside the office, My eyes naturally roll at how clean it is compared to the rest of this god-forsaken place. I find the man I once called my father sitting at his desk with an all-too-familiar smirk. But that was the least of my worries. I find Alvin's unconscious, bloody body in an office chair...and I can feel my blood begin to boil. But I know I can't lose my shit right now, not with my real family still here and in danger.

"Hey, son. Why don't you have a seat?"

"...Stop calling me that."

He smirks, amused by my response. "Now, why would I do that?"

"Because you stopped being my father the moment you tried to kill Mom. Or have you simply forgotten that night?"

"Of course, I haven't forgotten, son." He rises from his seat, coming up to the front of the desk and leaning against it in front of me. "After all, I still got the souvenir." Carver raises his right hand, showing me the large scar across the palm that I inflicted all those years ago.

"Yeah, well you deserved it." I fold my arms, giving him a look devoid of any humanity.

He raises an eyebrow for a moment before chuckling, folding his arms to mirror me while doing so. "There it is. I was real proud of you that day, you know?" I remain silent, unmoving, and my expression stoic as ever. I do not give him the satisfaction of knowing that he can still get under my skin. "Seeing my son, for once, actually doing something worthy of the Carver name."

"My name is Elijah Everett."

"Figured you'd say somethin' like that. You know, I really did love your Mother, Elijah, truly. Unfortunately, she wanted to raise you weak-"

"Don't you fucking dare talk about her, you have no damn right."

"Ah." He smirked at my anger. "So you did get my temper after all."

"I'm nothing like you. You're a fucking monster, even before the world went to hell."

Carver tilts his head, finding my words amusing. "Monster, huh? That's funny, coming from my own flesh and blood. Is that really how you see me?"

"You almost killed my mother, you looked down on me like I wasn't worth a damn, so why would I feel anything else about a piece of shit like you?"

"Funny. You would think that my own son would be grateful for turning him into a man that night."

"You didn't do a damn thing."

"You might not think so." Carver slowly walks over to me. Despite the fact we were the same height, it still felt like he was towering over me. "I set you on a path that night. I saw the fire in your eyes as you held that knife towards me. That primal urge in you to survive. I was finally able to look at you with pride."

"I was protecting Mom from a man who was strangling her."

"And that's why I was proud of you. I made you strong enough to protect what you care about."

"No. Don't twist how it all went down. I was lucky enough that Mom saved me from a life under your control. She's the one who made me stronger."

"Control? No, no, son, I was teaching you how to survive, how to be a man." He placed a hand on my shoulder. "And Ashley…If she really was the one who made you stronger, then how come she isn't here now?"

"Don't." My right hand tightens into a fist; every fiber of my being wants me to kill him right now. "Don't you fucking go there."

The hand on my shoulder removes itself away from me and reaches into Carver's back pocket...pulling out the last remnants of my beloved mother. "I always loved the way she wore this thing every day, you can imagine my excitement when I found it on that blondie girl. She wouldn't tell me where she got it, of course...but I figured I already knew the answer."

"That doesn't belong to you."

"But back to my original point," Carver ignores my statement and continues. "You know I'm right. Despite you being raised by her, only you survived. Coincidence?"

"..."

"I don't think so. Ashley gave you compassion, but that's not what this new world needs. It needs people like us, people who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty, people who will do whatever it takes to survive. And that's exactly the kind of man I saw back at the lodge. You killed one of my guys with no hesitation, didn't even give him the courtesy of making sure he didn't turn, and you looked me in the eye…and kept your nerve."

"I'm nothing like you. You kill because you see others as incompetent or weak compared to others; I only do it to keep my people safe. That's why you killed Reggie, but he was an innocent man that didn't deserve it."

"See, that's where you're wrong. I run this settlement, I run a community. And to do that, sometimes I need to separate the wheat from the chaff, to cull the herd...to make sure everyone is safe and sound. And you..." Like all those years ago, my nose stings from the faint smell of Whiskey on his breath. "You do the same, You wouldn't have survived as long as you have. 'Cause like it or not...you're a lot more like me than you're willing to accept."

"No!" I push him away, not wanting to hear another word utter from his worthless mouth. "Call it what you want, but I saw you murder Walter, Matthew, and Reggie, people who didn't deserve to die. All because of your twisted sense of survival. This conversation is over This conversation is over," I turn away and head to the door. "If you think for a second that this place will last with the way you're running it, then you've already failed as a leader."

"...You know, that girl you've been with might be more open to what exactly I'm trying to do here."

"..." My hand was just about a few inches away from the handle of the door before he said that. I turned my head back...and I swore I could feel a vein bulging against my forehead. "What did you just say?"

"What was her name again?" Carver sat himself down on the edge of his desk, hands held together almost like a businessman and with an amused smirk. "Oh, that's right... Clementine."

"If you lay so much as one fucking finger on her-" Carver held up his hand to silence me.

"Oh, I don't plan on doing anything to her, but she seems like she's been through a lot. Wouldn't you say? But I also imagine that girl is far from a snot-nosed little baby. She shares that same look in your eye, she's a survivor."

"Because she was raised by good people," I argue, making Carver laugh at my words.

"And where exactly are all these good people now?"

"You've met some of them already. They're my family, more than you will fucking ever be."

"All I see is a group of dysfunctional sheep and an orphan; you see it too. You only consider that girl family 'cause you feel obligated to replace the one she lost...but that's understandable; you're trying to be the man here." Carver leans off the desk, slowly taking a few steps closer to me. "But tell me this...who exactly is going to take care of her once you or anyone else in that yard kicks the bucket?"

"Clementine knows what to do. That little girl is more capable than most of your men here combined."

"Maybe so, but she still has that fear in her eye of losing the 'only family she has left'...and you're mirroring that same fear right now."

"It won't come to that."

"I guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we?" I wanna wipe that condescending smirk off his face. Thankfully, the radio hanging from his belt crackles, effectively capturing his attention as the voice comes through.

"Bill? You there?"

"Yeah? I'm here."

"The loading bay door is jacked. Troy really knocked the shot out of it."

They gotta be talking about how the truck ran into it yesterday...

"How bad is it?"

"Rails are tweaked so it won't shut all the way. I don't think it's an emergency or anything, but it's somethin' Stan should take a look at while he can."

"I'll get him on it. Out." Carver sets the walkie-talkie back down on his desk, his face forming into an annoyed frown. "That fuckin' idiot. Herd on its way and he puts a goddamn ding in my door..." That's what you get when you have idiots in your community. "I think our conversation is done here. Go on back to the yard, it's almost supper time."

I sighed in relief, I didn't think I could stand his voice for much longer. But before I leave, I need to say one final piece. "That boy of yours, Troy. I'm telling you now...if he starts stepping more and more out of line, or if he ever touches a certain person again, I'll kill him. Right then and there. Consequences be damned. So you better get him under control...Carver."

I was escorted back to the yard by a woman carrying a pistol. She opened the loading door, and I went inside. Everyone else, minus the loner woman in the corner of the yard, is already gathered around the campfire. I hear Kenny going off as I get closer. "'Cause we all know what happened this morning! I don't know what that son of a bitch is gonna do next!"

"So you wanna ring the diner bell for a herd of walkers to show up?" Mike asks. "How is that better?"

"'Cause this place'll be fucking chaos when that thing hits. No one'll be payin' attention to us. And that's when we go. That's our opening. We just gotta figure out a way to draw 'em to us."

"What exactly did I miss?" I ask as I take my seat on the floor between Molly and Clementine, the former naturally scoots herself closer to me with her body pressing right into mine.

"Your friend here wants to get us killed by Lurkers before Bill can do it."

"What is it with you?"

"That's what it sounds like to me."

"You know that's not what he's saying," Sarita defends Kenny. "But...it does sound dangerous."

"This shit is all dangerous!"

"Kenny! Do not speak to me like that."

"Okay, okay. Sorry."

"I was kinda thinking the same thing, too," I admit. "If we draw that herd here, it gives us the perfect distraction to make our escape."

"Luke has a plan, too."

"What?" I look at Clem with a confused brow. "What are you talking about?"

"He's hiding somewhere here. We met after killing the walkers back in the clothes store. He wants a radio to help keep an eye on the guards."

"That's the plan I vote for," Rebecca says.

"You all knew about this?"

"He flagged us down when Troy wasn't lookin'," Kenny answers my question. "Told us about his 'plan', mentioned he talked to Clem about it too."

"If Luke can tell us what's going on with the guards, we can use that to pick a good time to escape."

"That seems reasonable."

"But it's impossible to know when that'll be," Molly points out. "Back down in Georgia, there was a way I used to get around the city. I climbed up to any bell tower I could find and used it to pull the Geeks away from where I needed to be; it doesn't take much to outsmart the dead. It's just these assholes we need to worry about."

"She's right," Kenny agrees. "We just need something really loud."

"What about the PA system?" I voiced my sudden thought. "It was pretty loud when Carver used it after we first got here. I also saw some speakers hanging outside the building; all of them were pointing at the parking lot."

"He's right. I saw them too."

"It's all controlled in Bill's office," Said Rebecca. "There's a switch in there that'll turn them on."

"How do you know that?"

"...I used to make a lot of the announcements back in the day. I had it flipped on once...luckily, there wasn't much around at the time to hear it. It was plenty loud, though."

"That's perfect!" Kenny exclaimed. "We juts gota get into his office. Why didn't you say anything sooner?"

"'Cause it doesn't change anything. This isn't a discussion about how to do it, it's a discussion about whether it's stupid. And it's still stupid. The sensible thing is to get Luke the radio and wait for an opening."

"But you're forgetting the fact that we don't know how long until that opening happens," Christa points out. "The next time we could all escape from here could be days, weeks, or months from now. Even then, I doubt we'll be lucky to get out all at once."

"You people may have been lucky once, but that doesn't guarantee it'll be like that a second time. With that herd on the way, we know exactly when it'll happen and the opportunity to ditch this place."

"Why can't we do both?" Clementine asks...a really good question. "Even if we bring the herd to us, it's probably good for Luke to be able to tell us where they're coming from."

"That could work," I say proudly before patting Clem on the shoulder. That's my girl.

"You know what? Fine, I can get behind that," Kenny agrees with Clem's plan. "Okay, so we get that turd a radio, he keep sus posted on the herd's movement, we fire up the PA thing, and bring the walkers to roll over this place."

"Just like flies on shit."

"After all," Molly smirks knowingly. "The dead usually wins."

"And then what do we do once that happens?"

"Get some guns and shoot our way out," Kenny answers Mike. "I don't know. Whatever we can. We improvise."

"Then that's not a plan. You don't plan to improvise."

"Yeah, we know how you seem to plan things," I remark. "We'll be sure to come back to you once we need to rob some folk."

"I'm just saying is all, Jesus..."

"I think I figured out what your problem is," Rebecca scowls at Kenny. "you don't think this stuff through. If the end if the plan is just to stroll through a herd of Walkers, then you should know from the jump that there's no way it's ever going to work."

Well, there is one way...

"Actually," Joining us by the campfire was the loner, short-haired woman. "I do it all the time."

The group is silenced by her words...but I think I know exactly what she's talking about. "First words I ever hear you say, and it's just some crazy, stupid shit," said Mike.

"Hush," Sarita quickly shushes him. "What exactly do you mean?"

"When you cover yourself in their smell, rub the Walker guts all over you. They can't tell you from one of them."

"Now I don't know who's crazier."

"Trust me, I've walked through herds before. It works. You just have to keep calm and make sure you're good and covered."

"You seem to know what you're talking about."

"She does," I say. "Because I've done it before, too."

"What?" Kenny looks at me like I'm crazy.

"It's how Lee and I managed to get through the herd to get Clementine back. We pushed our way and killed as many Walkers in our path until we were pretty much covered in their blood to the point where they couldn't even tell us from themselves. Once we figured that out, we covered Clem and we walked straight back through the herd."

"Really? Holy shit..." Kenny chuckles with a faint smile. "Good one, Lee."

"Well, then, I guess we have a plan," I smirk. "Let's get Luke that radio."

"We still have to find a way to get in the stockroom."

"I think I have an idea for that," Molly says before standing up. "Come on, Clem," She follows her and I do the same, eventually leading us to a broken off ladder that leads up to the roof. "I've been thinking about it ever since you guys got here. I boost Clem up there, then she can drop into one of the skylights over the stockroom."

"Not bad," The short-haired woman says. "I was thinking the same thing. There's a lot of shelves and stuff for her to land on, so...she probably wouldn't fall to her death."

"Great," Clem rolls her eyes at that.

"That thing breaks all the time," said Rebecca. "Unless something's changed, it won't support much weight."

"Which is why Clementine is the only one who can." I squat down in front of her. "I know we're asking a lot, but are you sure you can handle this?"

"I can," Clementine reassures me with a determined nod. "I can do it."

"Good," I pat her arm.

"That's my girl," Kenny adds. "We can use that rope up there to get you up."

"That won't be necessary," Molly cuts in. "You remember what I taught you to do, Clem?"

"Yep."

"Good," Molly smiles knowingly before setting herself below the ladder with her hands cupped. "Ready when you are, Kiddo."

"The hell is she doin'?"

"Hehe," I chuckle and knowingly smirk at Kenny. "You'll see. Just watch." With a good running start, Clementine sprints towards Molly, plants her right foot in Molly's hands, and lifts her high enough to where Clementine can grab onto the broken ladder. After finding her footing, Clem looks back down and gives us a thumbs up. "That's my girl."

"holy shit..."

"What else have you taught that kid?"

"More than enough," Christa answers.

"Well, all we can do is wait."

"You guys get back by the fire," I say. "I'll wait by the ladder." Everyone leaves me alone to keep an eye out for Clementine once she gets the radio. Well, everyone, minus Molly, who just stayed by my side.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, just...worried."

"She'll be fine, Elijah." Molly rests her hand in mine, intertwining my fingers with her own. "You know she's been through worse than this."

"Yeah, I know. But still...I can't help but worry."

"I know you do, It's one of the things I admire about you."

"Thanks, babe," I accidentally let that slip. "I mean..." But before I could correct myself, Molly was already smirking at me.

"So we're going with 'babe' now? I like it; it's gotta nice ring to it," I roll my eyes at her teasing. Even so, I can't stop myself from smiling.

Just be careful, Kiddo...

Ten minutes later...

Everyone else has gone back to their bunks while I stayed by the ladder, waiting for Clementine to come back. I know it's only been a few minutes, but I feel like she's been gone for way longer than it should've taken her. No. Stop it, Elijah. She'll be fine, Clementine's been through so much worse than this.

"Psst!"

I look up, silently thanking God as I see Clementine climbing down the ladder. "Did you get 'em, Kiddo?" She nods at me. "Good job." I hold my arms out so I can catch her. "Jump down, I got you." She does as I say and lands in my arms. Yep, she's definitely not little anymore. Ow... I looked around, making sure that no guards were watching. "Come on, we need to get to bed before someone comes back."

We head over to the cots. Some of the few who were still awake saw me and Clementine coming. Kenny was the first to speak up in a hushed whisper. "Well?" Clementine answers him by holding out a pair of walkie-talkies with a smile on her face, making Kenny chuckle and offer a smile of his own. "You little devil. Everybody stay where you are," Kenny tells the others as Clem and I take our space in a cot next to Kenny and Sarita. "No need drawnin' suspicion."

"That was so cool," Sarah notes.

"Way to go, Clem," Molly adds.

"That's our girl." So does Christa.

"Thank you, Clem."

We get ourselves comfortable on the ground. Clementine took her resting place beside me and Molly was on my other side. "I told you you probably wouldn't die," Jane says to her. "Nice job."

"..."

"Anyways, get some rest."

I continue to ignore Jane as I try to get myself to sleep. Molly wraps herself around my arm and uses my hand as a makeshift pillow; her hair feels rough...but somehow soft in my fingers. Just as I was close to drifting off to sleep, Kenny's voice brought me back to reality. "I thought about Duck today, Elijah, about his dumb little face..." I stay quiet, letting him go on. "First things that come to mind are always the dumb things he was doin'... Kid was always runnin' in circles. Every damn place we went he'd just run. Couldn't stop him... Makes it hard to remember he was...a good boy."

"...I'd give anything to play another game of tag with him, Ken...him, Clem, and...Sandy."

"Heh... I always liked that girl. She'd be real proud of ya, son. You know that, right?"

"..." I hope so, Kenny. I sure do hope so...