A Different Virus - Laura's Story

Chapter 78

Woah, woah, woah... Attackers? Bethany Fort was under attack? And he wanted to race into an unknown situation? I may be the youngest one here, but I knew that Rick would have had some rather sharp words for his half-baked plan. I had enough Raider training to know that it was a foolish move.

Those inside the Fort would have closed the gates, so they were safe. I glanced back and began to worry, the smoke looked like it was coming from both buildings and the palisade fence... I looked back at Diane.

Diane frowned at the man, "Those sounds were gun shots. You do realize that, right?"

My eyes widened. That noise had been gunfire? To the best of my knowledge, no one in that place owned a gun. Ammo was rare this long after the Collapse.

Don didn't seem to care, "We will be careful. You and I can get close without them seeing us and our aim is excellent. We can tip the battle in our favor."

He planned to attack gunmen with a bow? Had he gone mad? The fact that he wanted to drag Diane into such a stupid fight made me frown. They would both probably get hurt with that plan.

Diane also stared at him as if he had lost his mind, "And what do you plan to do with the others?"

The young men were already mounting their horses and heading back the way we came. Diane sighed before putting me on her shoulders. Don jogged alongside her as the others pushed the horses into a trot, "We can leave Laura in one of those safe spots you pointed out to me in the past. The others can stay further out and pick off any who stray into their range."

Diane shook her head, "This is a bad idea. We have no idea what we are getting into."

Diane had far more Raider training than I did. She plainly did not like his plan. If she thought it was unsafe, then I would toss that plan right out the window. Don was plainly not that wise.

He just looked determined, "Well, it isn't like we can just stand here and do nothing."

Diane exhaled gustily, unable to refute that fact. I knew that she wouldn't let Don drag her into a dangerous situation. She was much too cautious for that. We reached more level ground and the horses picked up a bit more speed. Diane was moving at a steady lope as we travelled with them.

She made them detour down a different trail. Diane came to a stop near a huge spruce tree. She put me on the ground and crouched down in front of me.

Her expression was serious and her eyes faintly glowed, "Stay here. I will be back before dawn at the absolute latest. Hopefully I will return in a few hours. Here is some food and a blanket, I know you have your hammock. Don't leave here, I am not sure what kind of people might be wandering around in this forest, but don't let them know you are here. You do have the walkie talkie, but please don't use it unless there is an emergency. It may also take me some time to respond if I am too close to people."

I nodded seriously. Don's plan was stupid, pure and simple. She was going to have her hands full keeping this bunch from trying to be heroes and doing something idiotic. The last thing she needed was to worry about me disobeying. "I won't come down until you return."

She smiled faintly before giving me a small kiss on my forehead. She gestured towards the tree and I quickly climbed it. The group lingered below while I quickly set up my hammock and curled up in it. Diane glanced back, as if reluctant to leave, but she followed after the impatient group. I hoped that they didn't do anything rash.

Once the group was out of sight, I climbed out of the hammock to sit in the branches for a bit. I wouldn't leave the tree, I had promised Diane that, but I wanted to arrange things better. My hammock was already quite secure, so I hung my backpack up on a nearby branch and dug through it for something to kill the time.