COLLAPSED ᵀᵂᴰ¹ ✔

19. hunted

'Go back,' Quinn mumbled, watching the gruesome scene on the forest floor and strangely enough she almost burst out laughing. It was disturbingly funny to use a walker as a message.

'We'll ambush them while they're trying to figure it out,' Michonne said, handing Quinn their backpack. 'We can't have them following us.'

She nodded and despite the fact that she agreed, she couldn't help but shiver at the thought of having to push her dagger through the skull of a living human being for once...

The familiar raspy voice of Merle came from somewhere behind them and Quinn scoffed. If he was trying to hunt them, he was failing miserably and only because he was his usual self, way too loud.

'Hide,' Michonne hissed. 'When I give the signal you run.'

She didn't have to be told twice and sprinted into the greenery, seeking refuge behind a small ridge. She made herself as small as possible while looking through the branches at the message they left behind. Both her hands held a dagger, ready to be used to defend herself. With her leg still healing she wasn't sure how much strength she'd have to actually fight back but she refused to let the Governor have his way, which was reason enough to ignore her aches.

A few seconds later several figures entered the small clearing. Merle and three others she hadn't seen before. Merle was the first one to spot their work and held up his hand as a signal for the men to come to a halt.

'The hell is this mess?' Merle said, staring down at the body parts.

'They must've done this,' another guy said.

'It means somethin',' Merle pondered as he pointed to it with the knife that was attached to his arm. 'All set up like that.'

'Governor was right to send us out,' another guy joined in.

'Damn straight, Tim,' Merle agreed, sitting down on his knees to study the limbs. 'We're doing a righteous public service here.'

Silence fell as the men stared at the message, trying to figure it out. Quinn held her breath, wondering if they were just stupid for not getting it or putting off the moment of saying it.

'Go back,' the youngest of the group spoke up.

'What?' Merle asked, turning to face him.

The boy hadn't taken a single step near the body parts. He was staring at the message with wide eyes and when he spoke, his voice was trembling. 'The arms are a G, the legs make an O and that's a back. It says go back.'

Merle laughed. 'This is too good. I mean look at this. They sent us a bitergram y'all.' He continued to laugh, even though there was truly nothing funny.

'I can't believe this is happening,' the kid mumbled.

Merle turned to him, all the humor suddenly gone from his face. He stormed towards the poor kid, grabbing his shirt. 'Knock it off,' he hissed. 'The hell's wrong with you? The Governor chose you 'cause he thought you were ready.' He shook the kid's body violently. 'Now, I want you to succeed, I do, but if you keep announcing to the world that you're pissing your pants, I'm gonna have to smash your teeth in.'

The kid took a shaky breath as Merle let go of his shirt, giving him a pat on his shoulder. 'Now, how do you say your last name?' Merle asked.

'Gargulio.'

Merle nodded. 'I'm gonna keep calling ya Neil, alright?'

The sudden sharp sound of a twig snapping echoed through the forest, making the men immediately reach for their weapons as they turned in a circle, trying to determine where it was coming from.