I Need You

Gabriel

We had been hiking in silence for some time now. I didn't care. The woods sang to me its gentle song every time the wind blew or a squirrel would dart across the trees. As I listened, I focused on the task at hand. Tracking. So far Gabriel had been pretty easy to follow. Every now and then I would have to stop loosing sight of his trail only to quickly pick it back up. All the while, Michonne would just keep a watchful eye out, stopping when I did, following when I began moving again, never saying a word, ready to attack at a moments notice.
As we continued on, I remained vigilant. Gabriel's prints were becoming harder to see due to the drier landscape. I made a mental note of the color of the leaves and grass. The vegetation that was a vibrant, lush green slowly faded to a dull brown as we ventured further. Eventually, I had to halt our search. I could barely see the indentation of his footprint on the hard soil. Squatting down, I studied the terrain before me. 'All the signs are there ya just got to know how to read 'em.' Daryl's voice echoed in my head. Standing up I walked a few steps ahead, there was no evidence of Gabriel. He must have turned. I turned back carefully looking to the left, then to the right and something caught my eye.
"He went this way." I stated confidently pointing to the right.
"How do you know?" Michonne inquired.
"The broken twigs and crushed leaves." I motion to the trail before us. I could tell what she was thinking, so I elaborated. "They go in a straight line. If it were a walker the leaves would be more disheveled, the broken twigs would be more sporadic, and the pattern would be zig zaggy." Not waiting for her, I continued on knowing she would follow. After a few more minutes, brown ground underneath us turned to a very muted green revealing a hidden footprint. "And there he is." I stopped with enthusiasm staring down at the print. A chuckle escaped my lips when I looked up to see an impressed Michonne.
Finally, the trees began to thin out and in the distance I could see a structure ahead. As we exited the forest, the structure turned out to be a school and in the school yard stood Gabriel. We didn't say anything and he never moved as we approached.
"Gabriel..." Michonne said softly.
He gave no response. He just continued to stare down at the ground. My eyes followed his to a makeshift grill. "Oh God, is that...?" I couldn't finish my question or tear my gaze away from the maggots eating away at the charred severed leg. My stomach flipped and I felt sick.
"Bob." Michonne says as she turns her attention to the grill.
Gabriel awoken from his trance turned to us. "I had to see... You said the things you do... that they are worth it. I had to see it for myself."
Michonne's shoulders tensed and she spat back, "Bob turning up with a missing leg wasn't evidence enough?"
He started to cry, "I just couldn't believe it. I had to see it for myself..."
Familiar groans eased the tension for a moment and I seized the opportunity. "We need to go. The others will be back soon."--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gabriel and I walked behind Michonne as she lead the way to the church. They both seemed to have settled down from earlier. He hadn't spoken since we left the school. Sometimes I would glance over at him to find there no expression on his face. It was like he was suddenly numb to his surroundings which worried me.
"I get why you did it." I say still looking ahead getting his attention. "Why you had to see for yourself. You were trying to see what kind of people we were." I look over at him. "I know my family scares you. But I promise we are good people... we may not look like it all the time but... we are." I pause for a moment and add, "If you'd been through and seen the things that we have, you might be scary too."
He processes everything I just told him. He scrunches his nose and says, "But you didn't see what they-"
I cut him off. I know what he is about to say and it doesn't matter. "I don't have to see. I know what they are capable of and I know they did the right thing. They protected themselves, you, and God only knows how many more from those monsters. In this world, people are more dangerous than walkers. My family knows that better than anybody."
"There are still good people left." He countered.
"There are." I agreed without hesitation. "But you can't blindly trust. We fight the dead and fear the living."
He was about to speak when Michonne warned, "We have company."
Out of the trees came five walkers. I pull my knife and spring into action along side her. With one swift motion of her katana, she beheads two walkers. I stab the closest one in the eye, then run at a second walker who was much bigger than me. I ram it up against a nearby tree, quickly piercing it's temple. I try to remove my knife from it's skull but it wouldn't budge. I gave a hard yank successfully dislodging the blade which sent a sharp pain in my shoulder. "Ahhh." Behind me, Gabriel struggled to dispose of the last walker. It had him pinned to the ground eagerly snapping at his neck. His shaky hands fumbled with the machete at his side. By some miracle, he finally was able to get a good grip on his weapon and finish the walker. He pushed the limp body off of him, stood and adjusted his clothes.
"You good?" She asked him. He nodded in response. She turned to me and I did the same. "Beth you're bleeding."