Surviving The New World (Book Six in the Surviving The Walking Dead Series)

Dine and Dash

"Harper, would you be a lamb and help me with something?" Negan softly smiled.

"What?" Harper asked.

"See, I'm horrible with picking out clothes for myself, but I can see you're an expert." Negan motioned to her pink hat, blue shirt, yellow pants, and red rain boots. "Could you go upstairs and find me something to wear today?"

"Okay! I'm gonna make you look pretty!" Before Negan could protest, Harper was already dashing up the stairs.

"Happy? Now she's gonna make ya look pretty," I chuckled.

"I'll live with it." Negan quickly turned back to me. "Now, tell me what's on your mind."

"Nothin' is on my mind."

"You're bullshitting through your fucking teeth. Now, tell me what's up." I let out a sigh and lowered my head, hoping to keep my voice low.

"A couple of nights ago, I was out lookin' for Eugene and MJ in the dark with Makeda and they claimed to of heard the walkers whisperin'."

"Uh...whispering?"

"Yeah."

"Uh-huh, and how hard did they hit their heads?"

"I know it sounds crazy, but they wouldn't lie about that. Besides, they're not the only ones who heard it, Rosita did, too...and me."

"Y-You heard it?"

"I was grabbed by a walker and I kicked it to get away, but when I was about to stab it in the skull, it whispered 'run'." Negan fell silent. "It's been hauntin' my dreams since that night. I haven't slept good since."

"That's, uh...huh." Negan thought to himself.

"I warned the Kingdom and Eugene warned Hilltop and Alexandria, and Oceanside, but other than that, I'm not exactly sure what to do about it."

"Well, what do you think is going on?"

"Eugene thinks that there's a slim possibility that they're evolvin'."

"A slim possibility."

"Yeah, somethin' about how decayed they are and their brain, or somethin'. I'm thinkin' what he was tryin' to say that if they're evolvin', it's only the fresher walkers." I shrugged. "I dunno. It's a mess."

"Well, to get off the creepy subject, is there anything else on your mind?"

"Michaela?" Michonne spoke up as she entered the house.

"Thanks for knocking," Negan scoffed. Michonne instantly ignored him and kept her attention on me.

"Would you mind coming with me to Hilltop?"

"Ya think that's a good idea?" I chuckled. "I might kill Daryl this time."

"That won't be a problem. Daryl, Kal, and Eugene are heading out to scout the, uh..."

"He knows," I confirmed.

"The walker situation," Michonne finished.

"And why do I need to go?"

"It was a request from MJ. Something about you, Jesus, and Eduardo?"

"Oh!" I cleared my throat. "That, uh...thing. Yeah, that's today?"

"Yes, and he asked me to bring you there because he knew you would back out on your own."

"For your information, I've decided to go ahead with it on my own accord."

"Good. Finish up here and we can go."

"Ladies, I don't mean to interrupt," Negan butted in. "But I've still got my hour of free time. And besides, while she's off doing...whatever...who is gonna watch Harper?" I looked over at Michonne, who gave a very reluctant sigh, before walking out the front door. "What?"