-Chapter seventy: The Day Will Come When You Won't Be-
———
LOOKING DOWN AT HER
bloodied, shaking hands, Taylor felt sick to her stomach.
She looked next to her at a sobbing Jordyn, seeing Abraham's bashed in head on the ground, blood splattered everywhere.
Finally...Negan was done...
"Oh, my goodness! Look at this!" He chuckled, twirling his bat, "You guys, look at my dirty girl!".
"You fucking monster! I'll fucking kill you!" Jordyn cried as Negan turned to her.
He walked up to her, "Wait, were you two brother and sister? Man, that sucks. But if you were, you should know there was a reason for all this. Red—and hell, he was, is and will ever be red. He just took one or six or seven for the team!".
He then pointed his bat in her face, "So take...a damn look. Take a damn look!".
That's when from beside her, Daryl shot up and punched Negan square in the face.
"Daryl!" She cried, hugging him from behind to get him to stop, and then three Saviors rushed up, one pulling Taylor off of him and pinning her to the ground with their gun to her head, and the other two pinned Daryl down.
"No!" Negan yelled, stepping foward with his bat pointed, "Oh, no. That? Oh, my! That...is a no-no.".
He then knelt down to Daryl.
"Please don't! Please don't hurt him!" Taylor cried, still struggling against the Savior that had her pinned down.
He turned to her, "Wait, are you two...this is the guy that has been taking care of you for two fucking years? Well hot damn.".
Dwight rushed up with Daryl's crossbow, aiming it at Daryl's head, "Do you want me to do it? Right here.".
"No! Stop it! Please don't hurt him!" She protested.
"Let her go." Negan turned to the Savior that had her pinned down.
She sat there, tears streaming down her face as Negan grabbed Daryl by the hair and told Dwight, "No. No, you don't kill her or him...not until you try a little.".
Then Dwight and two other Saviors dragged Daryl back in line as Negan helped Taylor up, "You alright, kiddo?".
"...Y-You killed Abe..." She stuttered, wiping the tears from her face.
He stared down at her for a moment before hugging her, "Darlin', you know I had to. Rules are rules. Now, go ahead and get back in line with your ol' buddy boy.".
She quickly pulled away from him, rushing over to Daryl and hugging him, resting her hands over his cheeks, "Are you okay?".
He nodded, "Yeah...I'm fine.".
"Anyway...that's not how it works. Now, I already told you people, first one's free, then—what'd I say? I said I would shut that shit down!" Negan walked down the lineup.
"No exceptions. Now, I don't know what kind of lying assholes you've been dealing with...but I'm a man of my word. First impressions are important. I need you to know me. So...back to it." He then brought his bat down to Glenn's head.
"Glenn! No!" Taylor cried, Daryl pressing her into his side.
"Don'...don' look, babygirl..." He told her, and she could tell he was crying.
She heard another slam from Negan's bat she flinched, covering her ears.
She just wanted this nightmare to stop...
"Buddy, you still there? I just don't know. It seems like you're trying to speak, but you just took a hell of a hit. I just popped your skull so hard, your eyeball just popped out, and it is gross as shit!" Negan said.
'Oh my god...Glenn...no...'.
"Maggie, I'll find you." She heard him mumble.
"Oh. Oh, hell. I can see this is hard on you guys. I am sorry. I truly am. But I did say it. No exceptions!" She then heard Negan blow another hit to Glenn's head.
They just kept coming...they never seemed to end...
"You bunch of pussies. I'm just getting started." She heard Negan remark, continuing to deal blows to Glenn's head.
She felt Daryl flinch everytime...
And then it was over...not only was Abraham now gone...Glenn was too...
"What? Was the joke that bad?" She heard Negan ask.
She pulled away from Daryl, looking across the lineup at Glenn's corpse, his head bashed in just like Abraham's...
'Glenn...Abraham...I'm so sorry...this is all my fight...I-I couldn't convince him...and now you guys are gone...'.
"I'm gonna kill you." Those were the words she hears from Rick.
Negan knelt down to him, "What? I didn't quite catch that. You're gonna have to speak up.".
"...Not today...not tomorrow...but I'm gonna kill you." Rick replied.
"Jesus." Negan chuckled, "Simon...what did he have a knife?".
"Uh, he had a hatchet." The man who had knocked on the RV door earlier responded.
"A hatchet?" Negan smirked.
"He had an ax." Simon corrected himself.
"Simon's my right-hand man. Having one of those is important. I mean, what do you have left without them? A whole lot of work. Do you have one? Maybe one of these fine people still breathing? Oh. Or did I..."Negan clicked his tongue as he swung his bat, Rick staying silent.
'Wouldn't Daryl be it...wait, please don't tell me Negan's gonna kill Daryl now. I-I can't loose anyone else...'.
Negan sighed, "Sure. Yeah. Give me his ax.".
Simon then walked over and handed Negan Rick's ax, and he put it behind his belt.
He then grabbed Rick by the collar, dragging him to the RV, "I'll be back. Maybe Rick will be back with me. And if not, well, we can just turn these people inside out, won't we? I mean...the ones that are left.".
He and Rick then got in the RV, and a few minutes later, it drove off, leaving the rest of the group to sit with death thick in the air, Abraham and Glenn's lifeless bodies laying right in front of them all.
———
AFTER ABOUT ROUGHLY AN HOUR
it was now morning, and Rick and Negan still weren't back.
"...How's your shoulder?" Taylor asked Daryl, holding his hand as she traced circles with her thumb.
"It uh...it hurts like a bitch, but I'll be fine..." He kept throwing glances at Glenn's corpse.
'He feels guilty...doesn't he...' She thought.
She turned to Jordyn, "Are you okay, Jordyn?".
"...Not right now, Taylor...Just...not right now..." She replied, staring at Abraham's corpse.
'She probably hates me...everyone does now...I couldn't stop him...'.
The RV then pulled up back to the clearing, and Negan dragged Rick out of it, tossing him to the ground, "Here we are. Let me ask you something, Rick...do you even know what that little trip was about?".
Rick didn't reply as Negan continued, "Speak when you're spoken to.".
Rick was shaking at this point, "Okay. Okay.".
Negan smirked, "That trip was about the way that you looked at me. I wanted to change that. I wanted you to understand. But you're still looking at me the same damn way...like I shit in your scrambled eggs, and that's not gonna work. So...do I give you another chance?".
"Yeah. Yes." Rick managed to get out, still shaking.
Negan patted him on the back, "Okay. Alright. And here it is—the grand-prize game. What you do next will decide whether your crap day becomes everyone's last crap day or just another crap day.".
'Oh god...what now...please no more...'.
"Get some guns to the back of their heads." He ordered his men, and Taylor felt the cool metal of a gun at the back of her head followed by a click as she gripped onto Daryl's hand.
"Good. Now...level with their noses, so if you have to fire..." Negan then imitated an explosion, "It'll be a real mess.".
She felt the gun at the back of her head lower down, sending a shiver down her spine.
"Kid..." Negan gestured for Carl to fget up, "Right here.".
'No...please don't hurt Carl...'.
Carl stayed put at Negan pressed on, "Kid...now.".
Carl then got up and walked over to Negan as he took off his belt, "You a southpaw?".
"Am I a what?" Carl asked, confused.
"You a lefty?" Negan simplified.
"No." Carl replied.
"Good." Negan smirked, wrapping his belt around Carl's upper left arm.
'Oh god...he's gonna...he wouldn't...'.
"Get down on the ground, kid. Next to daddy. Spread them wings." He ordered, tossing Carl's hat after he finished tying his belt around Carl's arm.
He pushed Carl down to the ground, his left arm out, and she spotted their friendship bracelet around his wrist.
"Simon...you got a pen?" Negan asked him.
"Yeah." Simon nodded, tossing Negan one.
"Sorry, kid." Negan sighed, rolling up Carl's sleeve as he took the cap off the pen, "This is gonna be as cold as a warlock's ballsack, just like he was hanging his ballsack above you and dragging it right across the forearm.".
He dragged the pen across Carl's arm, "There you go. Gives you a little leverage.".
"Please. Please. Please don't. Please don't." Rick pleaded.
"Me?" Negan chuckled, "I ain't doing shit. Rick, I want you to take your ax...cut your son's left arm off, right on that line. Now, I know, I know. You're gonna have to process that for a second. That makes sense. Still, though, I'm gonna need you to do it, or all these people are gonna die. Then Carl dies. Then the people back home die...and then you, eventually. I'm gonna keep you breathing for a few years, just so you can stew on it.".
"You...you don't have to do this." Michonne spoke up, "We understand. We understand.".
"She's right, Negan. Please don't do this. We understand how things work now. Just please let go of Carl..." Taylor pleaded.
"You all understand." Negan grinned, nodding, "I'm not sure that Rick does. I'm gonna need a clean cut right there on that line. Now, I know this is a screwed-up thing to ask, but it's gonna have to be like a salami slice—nothing messy, clean, 45 degrees—give us something to fold over. We got a great doctor. The kid'll be fine. Probably.".
Rick stayed silent as Negan knelt down to him, "Rick...this needs to happen now—chop, chop—or I will crush the little fella's skull myself.".
"It can—it can—it can be me. It can be me." Rick stuttered out, "W—W—Y-You can do it to me. I c—I can go with—with you.".
'Oh god...Rick...'.
"No." Negan refused, "This is the only way. Rick...pick up the ax.".
Rick sat still as Negan continued on, "Not making a decision is a big decision. You really want to see all these people die? You will. You will see every ugly thing.".
Rick still didn't move and Negan groaned, "Oh, my god. Are you gonna make me count? Okay, Rick. You win. I am counting. 3!".
"Please! Please! It can be me. Please!" Rick begged, in tears at this point.
"2!" Negan kept counting.
"Please, don't do—" Negan slapped Rick and grabbed him by the jaw.
"This is it." He said as Rick continued to cry.
"1." Negan continued, and Rick grabbed his ax, placing a hand over Carl's.
"Dad...just do it. Just do it." He told him.
Rick brought up the ax above his head and Negan knelt down to him, "Rick. You answer to me. You provide for me. You belong to me. Right?".
Rick frantically nodded and Negan grabbed him by the jaw again, "Speak when you're spoken to! You answer to me. You provide for me.".
"Provide for you." Rick repeated.
"You belong to me, right!?" Negan asked him.
"Right." Rick replied, nodding.
"Right. That..." Negan pointed to him, "Is the look I wanted to see.".
He snatched Rick's ax, "We did it...all of us, together...even the dead guys on the ground. Hell, they get the spirit award, for sure. Today was a productive damn day! Now, I hope, for all your sake...that you get it now...that you understand how things work. Things have changed. Whatever you had going for you...that is over now. Ah. Dwight...load him, Chris, and Taylor up.".
He pointed his bat over to Chris, then Taylor and Daryl.
'No no no...'.
Dwight grabbed Daryl and threw him back in the van, and a Savior then grabbed Taylor and another her dad and threw them in the van with Daryl.
"And what are their names?" Negan asked, pointing over to Jordyn and Kenny.
"Ah...the girls Jordyn and the guys Kenny." Simon replied.
"Load them up too. We're gonna have a full fucking house tonight." Negan grinned.
Two Saviors then brought Jordym and Kenny to the van and threw them in.
The doors slammed closed, and a few minutes later, the van pulled away, leaving the five in quiet, depressed silence.
'I'm so sorry, Abraham...Glenn...it's all my fault...I...I couldn't stop him...and now...I don't know what happens now...'.
———
To Be Continued...
Word Count: 2213
Edited: ❌
@Taylor_Frickin_Dixon