Where Your Loyalties Lie: Book One

Chapter 14: On the Side of a Hill

Overview: After catching up with the Saviours and their ambush, it is up to you to find a way to save everyone; to be a Saviour.

In, out. In, out.

Breathing didn't feel like it was really happening. It felt as if the oxygen entering your lungs and the carbon dioxide exiting them was just an illusion. A falsity.

Your body carried itself through the trees and along the road, as you sprinted for not only your life but the lives of your family as well.

By the time you had made it the hillside where the Saviours' trucks were, you were worn out but you kept going. You needed to find Negan and put an end to this.

With a sudden jump, Negan's loud voice carried across the place. It sounded like he was talking through a megaphone, as he taunted your people with his spitefulness.

You carefully and quietly slipped into the crowd of Saviours once you located them, knowing that they weren't aware of what had happened between you and Negan. You grasped your metal spike tighter as you walked across the crowd closer to Negan. He had a gun to the back of Gabriel's head while his other held a walkie talkie. Eugene was standing a little ways back from him.

As Negan stood there, mocking Rick's group, your heart was pounding uncontrollably. Everything you had fought for had come to this. Everything that could have been avoided had come to this; the two men that caused your loyalties to conflict inside of you gave you such a mental dilemma that you felt like it was the true end of the world.

The tension was unbelievable, until Negan stated calmly, "Here we go. Congratulations, Rick." The moment he said that, you dashed forward from where you were standing to place yourself between Negan and Gabriel. As you faced Negan, his eyes grew flames as he looked at you and it was clear that he was not impressed with you daring to challenge him.

"Negan, please don't", you begged. The look on Negan's face became angrier, his brows furrowing and his mouth pursing.

He took a moment before speaking off to his side, without breaking eye contact with you. "Arat, hold her back."

As Arat quickly charged at you, her arms eventually encased around your body to keep you still as you struggled in her grasp. She led you away from Negan as you yelled at him, tears swelling up in your eyes and your voice becoming coarse.

"Negan! No! If you kill them, then you'll have to kill me, too!" Your words were definitely heard by him, since you could see his eyes shift to the side. However, he regained his focus on Gabriel and the walkie talkie in his hand.

"Three," he began. Your eyes widened as he spoke, knowing that in that instance, your group didn't stand a chance to escape. It would all end in a massacre; the bodies of the people you care about would be lying there, scattered with bullet holes and blood.

"Two," came the next number.

You began to feel faint due to your heart beating out of control. You were still struggling against Arat's hold on you but she was stronger than she looked.

"One," Negan bellowed the final number and the Saviours emerged in a line on the top of the hill, guns drawn. Your eyes closed, hoping to wake up from the terrible nightmare. There was a wave of bullets being shot and screams. But they were screams coming from closer to you.

Opening your eyes, you saw that some of the Saviours were lying dead on the grass and others were clutching their faces and hands. You suddenly heard Negan growl in pain and you quickly elbowed Arat in her gut, making her stagger backwards since her guard was down.

You could see that Negan's hand was a mess as he yelled at Eugene. Eugene; he sabotaged the bullets? So that's what he was doing at the Sanctuary!