King ☞ r. grimes

21

Rick and Carl got out.

Katie climbed over the center console and got in the drivers seat.

The man from the road was coming over the hill in the distance.

He was still calling after the group.

By the time they got the car unstuck, the man from the road was getting closer.

Rick went to get back into the drivers seat.

Katie slammed the door shut in front of him, blocking his path.

"There's no time. You're either going to have to lap sit or ride passenger. Your choice," Katie said quickly.

Rick looked behind him at the man running towards them.

He sighed and ran to the other side of the car.

Katie put the pedal to the metal and floored the gas out of the area.

She sped away from the man on the road and kept making her way towards King County, Rick and Carl's hometown.

"What? You didn't want to take my offer and sit on my lap? Is my lap not good enough for you?" Katie asked in mock offense.

"Next time," he said with a chuckle.

Even Carl laughed in the backseat.

After that short chuckle, Carl went back to being straight faced and silent.

It was hard for him to be going back to the town where he grew up.

Katie couldn't even imagine what he was going through.

The three of them finally got to the King County police department.

They ran straight for the armory.

It was completely empty.

"Some stash you've got here, sheriff," Katie said sarcastically.

She was trying to lighten the mood even though she was frustrated.

She tried her best to hide her frustration.

Rick could always tell when she was angry or frustrated because the tip of her tongue would stick out of the corner of her mouth slightly.

Just a little.

It was hardly noticeable, but Rick noticed.

Just like he noticed that she would bite her lip slightly when she was concentrating on something.

He knew all of her little quirks. He didn't realize that he knew them until right that moment.

It was almost like a veil was dropped and he could see clearly for the first time.

All of these feelings bubbled up to the surface and he had no idea what to do with them.

He led the group to a bar that he knew had a hidden weapon.

When they turned down the street, they saw a labyrinth of traps that had been built.

"Be careful," Rick said to them.

"We'll be in and out faster than a cat in a fryer," Katie said.

Carl and Rick both looked at her like she had three heads.

"What?" Katie asked.

"A cat in a fryer? Really?" Carl asked, trying to stifle his laughter.

"That's what my dad used to say. Guess it rubbed off on me," Katie sighed.