I Saw The Lights Go Out - Carl Grimes

Chapter Sixty One - May God be With us All

The office was large, not at all the size I thought it would be. It was big enough to accommodate us all comfortably but not oversized to where it didn't look like an office space. Inside, not a single candle was lit keeping the room midnight black, fitting for the time of night that it was. The others looked grainy around me as I forced my eyes to adjust to the lack of light.

There was one large window in the room behind Carl and I. White wooden shutters were closed in front of it for added security from the outside world. Two long and narrow decorative cutouts covered with blinds attempted to block light, the blinds just barely allowed any moonlight to push its way into the room.

Boxes full of paperwork were scattered and stacked throughout the office. A mix of bills, pages of gospel, and children's drawings depicting scenes of The Bible lay discarded in a frenzy on the desk.

The couch Bob lay on looked plush and soft, the perfect lounging spot for a man's final hours. I swallowed hard thinking about it once again.

Judith slept soundly in her basket, completely unaware of the danger that could be near. She didn't make a sound, adding to the dead silence that we all were listening to.

Carl bent down to what I assume was our pile of bags next to the desk. He returned to an upright position with a large dark object in his hands, the rifle I escaped Terminus with rested heavily in his arms. He aimed it to the ground before cocking it.

"It's loaded." He stated lowly, pressing it into my arms.

The dark metal stung cold against my overheated body. My clammy hands found their way to their designated positions, finger resting close to the trigger but not daring to touch it just yet. I forced myself to try to believe that Rick would be the first person through that door, that there was no need to get trigger happy. My body wisely betrayed my mind as I checked to make sure the safety was off. Just in case.

My heart quickened its pace in my chest, adrenaline and fear fighting for dominance. My mind raced going over every possible thing that could happen; Beth and Daryl never returning, Rick and his group never returning or returning without everyone, Gareth's group coming to find us after they've finished off and eaten the others. I squeezed my eyes shut trying not to listen to the thoughts. I had to be strong, I had to be ready, I had to be in my right head for whatever happened in the night.

We were going to be completely fine, I tried to convince myself of it. Rick and the others had it handled. Once they came back, safe and sound, we wouldn't need to watch our backs anymore. They were going to fix all of it until the only threat we had left were the walkers littering around the planet. Rick and the others would be back, in one piece. We were going to find Beth and Daryl, and we were going to get Eugene to Washington after all of this was over.

I forced myself to unclench my fingers from around the weapon, my knuckles surly turning bright white. If only I could see them through the darkness, I'd be able to know for sure.

Everyone took slow and shallow breaths, until eventually our breathing began to sync as if we all shared one pair of lungs. The room was silent other than the sighs and huffs from our lips. With the absence of my sense of sight, my hearing heightened. A few shuffles from shoes and clothes rustled around and all boomed against the quiet of the room.

My eyes shifted quickly to Carl's hand as he slowly tapped against the beretta resting in his holster, counting down the seconds for himself. Then my eyes darted across the room as Tara lifted her hand off of her own gun to itch her nose. Another sound, my head followed to Bob's creaky sofa. Another, my eyes moved to Gabriel who made the sign of the cross once again, I'd lost track of how many times he did so since we stepped into the room.