CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN
"Devil Baby"
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"Now, we're gonna work this out right now, and it's going to go our way" Paula says as she waits for a response from Rick. "You see we have one of yours so we'll trade but first I wanna talk to Jane, Maggie and Carol" Rick states and Paula sigh, "I'm gonna put you on. You say you're fine. I'll know if you try anything else" Paula says as she hands the walkie to Carol. "Rick, it's Carol. I'm fine but—" Carol states and Paula scoffs as she pushes Carol away from the walkie and hands it over to Maggie. "Rick, it's Maggie and I'm fine" Maggie cooperates and Paula grabs Jane's arm and brings her closer to the walkie. "Don't.. touch me" Jane says as she snatches her arm away and leans in to talk. "It's Jane and I'm perfect" Jane states as she backs away from the walkie and looks to Paula who walks away.
"Alright, this is the deal right here. Let 'em go, you can have your guy back and live" Rick suggests. "Two for one, that's not much of a trade" Paula advices. "You don't have another choice or you would've done something about it already" Rick says and Paula sighs knowing he's right. "We have to get him back" The man who Jane shot earlier says as he holds the cloth over his wound. "I'll get back to you" Paula says and Jane furrows her eyebrows as the women who had a gun to Jane, Maggie, and Carol's head puts there jackets over there head so they can't see and forces them to walk with the rest of the group only able to see the bottom of their feet and the ground they walk on.
Paula puts Maggie, Jane and Carol in a car and radios for backup as there wrist get taped together. "Just stay calm" Jane mumbles as her jacket stays over her head. "Stop talking" Someone says as she push Jane's head slightly.
Paula's group brings Maggie and Carol to a slaughterhouse, where they're gagged and bound in a makeshift cell with there jackets now off over there heads. A walker gets close to Maggie's face but Paula kills it before it can get to her. "Get on the ground. I want you over there and you over there" Paula orders as Maggie and Jane spilt from each other and walk to opposite sides of the room as they are told. Paula stays with Carol and starts tapping her legs together and eventually walks to Maggie and Jane doing the same thing.
Paula leaves the room as her people call for back up and Jane notices Maggie tries to cut her bonds on the edge of a wall and she starts to do the same so they can get out of here. Carol finds rosary beads on the floor and pockets them. Soon, the gunfire that they heard stopped and Jane and Maggie locked eyes and went back to the position they were in before so Paula and her group didn't suspect anything.
Jane notices Carol starts to hyperventilate and she widens her eyes. "Carol!" Jane mumbles as the gag fills her mouth making it hard to talk. Paula's group returns to the cell and Carol still hyperventilates. Maggie is concerned, unsure whether it's real or Carol is pretending. "Hey! Carol!" Jane shouts through her gag as Paula and her group have their own conversation on the side about walkers.
"Help her! Help!" Maggie shouts through her gag trying to get there attention as Carol continues to hyperventilate. "Oh my gosh!" Paula shouts as she walks to Jane and removes her gag. "Can't you hear that women is hyperventilating. Take off her gag" Jane states as she motions over to Carol. Paula scoffs and has the older women take off Carol 's gag letter her breath a little better. The other women walks over to Carol and points her gun at her. "Look at you. Bitch, how did you make this far?" She asks and Jane rolls her eyes as she looks between the gun and Carol. "Honey, you need to take some yoga breaths and calm your ass down" The older women advises.
The older women notices something in Carol's pant pockets and pulls out the rosary beads and hands them to her and Carol gasps for breath and begins to pray. Jane furrows her eyebrows and looks over at Maggie who shrugs her shoulders. "What are you so afraid of?" Paula asks as she walks over to Carol who wheezes while holding her rosary beads.
Carol doesn't answer and Paula furrows her eyebrows. "Are you actually afraid to die?" Paula asks and scoffs as she thinks that's the answer to her question. "It doesn't matter what happens to me. Just don't hurt Maggie and Jane, especially Jane. Don't hurt her baby" Carol says and Jane locks eyes with Paula and the women next to her and they are slightly shocked to hear about her pregnancy.
"No way" The women with the gun says as she looks to Jane. "She got a bun in the oven. I doubt it" The man that sits up against the wall with a gunshot wound to the arm says. "I'm not that far long. One... Two months? I'm not sure. Hard to keep track" Jane mumbles as she rests her head on the wall unbothered by the gun pointed at her. "You got knocked up at a time like this" Paula states and Jane furrows her eyebrows. "Upset? Is hubby not putting out enough for you? Getting too old? I bet it don't work like it use to?" Jane asks as she smiles mischievously at Paula who shakes her head. "I'm not gonna lie I was conflicted at first but babies make everything better, right? This one won't change the world but it'll make it just a little bit normal. I'm trying to survive. I'm trying to let my baby survive and if you have a problem with that then I don't know what to tell you besides I'm sorry" Jane says as she continues to look into the eyes of Paula before Paula exits the room and the women continues to point her gun at Jane.
The older women lights a cigarette takes one hit of it and coughs harshly. "Lung cancer is a real thing, you know?" Jane asks as she looks to the older women who continues to smoke her cigarette like there's not a pregnant women in the room.
"The baby" Carol reminds and the older women starts laughing hysterically as smoke leaves her mouth. "Honey, in case you haven't noticed, you've got bigger problems than a little secondhand smoke" The women states before going back to smoking her cigarette. "Molly" The other women calls out and Molly, the older women sighs and puts her cigarette out. Jane looks over at the women who stopped Molly from smoking and began to see her guard come down after learning about Jane's baby which made Jane think she was pregnant at one point in time.
Donnie, the Savior who Jane shot in the woods, shrieks with pain. "You've gotta calm down. The scout crew is coming. They're 30 minutes out, maybe less" Paula states as she looks at Donnie's arm. "He doesn't 30 minutes. His nerves are dying. If he doesn't get medicinal help, he's gonna lose his arm, maybe his life. I'm not a doctor, but my dad lost his leg and I know that much" Maggie states and Jane looks over at the man as he groans in pain. "She's right he's losing blood and he's losing it fast. You can stop it but without help it'll just make him die even faster" Jane adds, backing Maggie up.
"Your man, Primo. You think he can help you?" Maggie asks and Paula and her people stay silent. "It's time to end this. Talk to Rick" Maggie urges but Paula is not in the mood to listen. "30 minutes" Paula says to Donnie promising he'll get help even though Jane and Maggie know he'll die before they even get here.
"This is her fault" Donnie says as he forces himself to stand to his feet as he looks to Jane. Jane becomes high alert and sits up straight looking to the man across the room. "She did this to me. She did it and we got her sitting here with a baby on the way, fully intact" Donnie argues as he walks closer and closer to Jane looking down at her. "Hey!" Paula calls out.
"No, we're not making that trade. We can just kill 'em all now" Donnie suggests and Jane looks over at Maggie and Carol then back up at Donnie who wants to kill Jane. "We have to be smart. We need insurance" Paula argues. "Then shoot her in the arm. Hell, shoot her in the damn stomach" Donnie states and Paula chuckles while shaking her head.
"You really gonna take this smart mouth bitches side over me?" Donnie asks and Paula doesn't answer as Donnie's arm strikes with pain again and he lets out a painful scream. "Shut up!" Paula orders. "Don't push me, Paula!" Donnie demands as he lets out a groan and yet again Paula orders him to shut up making him more angry and smacks Paula across the face shocking everyone in the room. Donnie looks down at Jane and steps towards her. "I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Jane screams as she uses her feet to trio Donnie and knock him on the ground.
"You bitch!" Donnie shouts as he stands to his feet and grabs ahold of Jane's hair. "Really? Me? A bitch?" Jane asks as she elbows Donnie in the face making him fall back. Carol grabs his but Donnie knocks her down and kicks her in her back multiple times. Paula knocks Donnie unconscious with the butt of her gun and instructs Michelle to interrogate Maggie in another room. "Let's let the pregnant women rest" Paula says as Michelle takes Maggie out of the room and leaves Jane and Carol.
"You can help your friend" Paula says as Jane limps over to Carol and manages to sit her up against the pipe and rests next to her against the wall. "Excuse me" Carol says and Jane looks over to Carol as she grabs the attention of Molly and Paula. "I just wanted to say thank you for helping us. My husband Ed, he used to—" Carol explains but Paula quickly interrupts. "Yeah? I don't care if your old man used to ring your bell. I see exactly who you are, Carol. I know. You're pathetic. You wanna think we're just the same? Go ahead. You're wrong. He's just a warm body for my bed. That's it. I could kill him in his sleep" Paula rants as she walks towards Carol and stops once she notices Carol fidgeting with her rosary.
"Do you really believe in that crap?" Paula asks. "My faith got me through the death of my daughter" Carol says as her eyes fill with tears and Jane begins to wonder if the act Carol is putting on.. an act. "Hmm. Well, at least maybe you'll see her again soon" Paula says and Jane slowly turns her head to face Paula and looks at her with a deadly look, knowing she will kill this women.
"Have you thought about it?" Rick asks as he radios Paula which grabs Jane attention and she listens in. "You weren't listening. I said I'd contact you" Paula radios back and waits for Rick's response. "Would it make a difference if I said I was sorry about that?" Rick asks and Paula sigh, "What do you think?" she asks.
"I think we're gonna make the trade, so tell me where" Rick demands and Paula begins to pace back and fourth around the room slowly. "We haven't agreed to that" Paula says, "You will" Rick states and Paula delays her decision and ends the transmission. "You don't have to do this. You don't have to fight" Carol explains. "Your people killed all of my people. Of course we gotta fight" Molly argues as she steps towards Carol and Jane. "It's not like we wanted to—" Jane lies. "But you did" Paula states.
"Your people ambushed some of my on the road and tried to take everything we owned and we're gonna kill them so we killed them. It was 50/50 both of our groups are in the wrong" Jane states and Molly and Paula shake their heads slowly making Jane slowly furrow her eyebrows. "So now we know what happened to T's group. Those idiots. Probably out on a big show" Molly states and Paula scoffs, "Okay, fair play" Paula agrees.
"You were just defending yourselves. But see, your people kill them on the road, right? Blew them to pieces. So, why not stop?" Paula asks and Carol swallows a large lump in her throat as tears fall down her cheeks. "They said they were working for Negan" Carol answers as she looks up at Paula. "And do you think you know about Negan?" Paula asks and Jane clears her throat and locks eyes with Paula. "I think he sounds like a narcissistic maniac and we had to stop him" Jane confesses with no mercy and Paula sucks her teeth. "Oh, "Sweetie, we are all Negan," says Molly cryptically and Jane furrows her eyebrows looking between Paula and Molly. "What?" Jane mumbles to herself.
A few minutes later, Carol and Jane are still locked in the cell and Maggie ha she to return. Carol takes it upon herself to tell Paula that she'll die unless she makes the trade, "Are you going to kill me?" Paula asks and Jane chuckles softly and shrugs her shoulders. "Depends. Would you like me too?" Jane asks as she locks eyes with Paula who seems frightened at her statement but tries to hide it. Paula eventually radios Rick again and tells him to meet her in a nearby field. Afterwards, she worries that the absence of static on the walkie means that Rick's group is close, possibly already outside the slaughterhouse. Paula contacts her reinforcements, who are now only minutes away. She and Molly leave Carol alone in the cell.
In their absence, Carol sharpens the crucifix on the rosary beads and uses it to cut herself free. "Come on, I'll help—" Carol says too Jane but Jane pulls apart her hands which breaks the tape off of them. "You should've let me know that's what we were doing. I could've done that ages ago" Jane states as she quickly undoes the tape around her ankles and stands to her feet. "We have to find Maggie" Jane says as she and Carol leave the cell and travel down the halls.
They see Molly around the corner killing a set of walkers and quickly hide behind the wall until she was gone and they decided to run the other way to avoid running into her. Eventually, they found Maggie alone in a room trying to cut the tape off of her wrist. Jane and Carol rush in, shutting the door behind them. Jane and Carol help get the tape off Maggie and they all bring each other in for a group hug. "Are you alright?" Jane asks and Maggie nods her head.
"They've spread out, but I think we can make it past them" Carol states as the three of them stand to their feet. "We can't leave them alive. We have to finish this." Maggie insists and Jane nods her head in agreement. "I knew that from the beginning" Jane breathes out before the three of them return to the cell and realize that Donnie died from his gunshot wound and is beginning to turn.
"We should go" Carol advises. "We need a gun" Maggie says and Jane notices the rope in Carol's hand and grabs it from her and begins to tie it around Donnie's belt and Maggie and Carol help her tie him to a pipe near the door. "Go go" Jane says as her, Maggie and Carol leave out the other door and wait outside before Molly returns to the cell and is attacked and bitten by a turned Donnie, who Maggie, Jane and Carol tethered to a pipe in range of the door. "Where are you, Magnolia? I wanna bloody up that nice—" Molly states before Maggie comes up behind her bludgeons the injured Molly to death, then Carol takes her gun, Jane takes her knife and they race away.
Maggie, Jane and Carol find a hallway full of impaled but living walkers, designed to slow them down or trap them. "We have to find them" Jane says as she steps in front of Maggie and kills the walker that was walker towards her and tosses it on the ground. From behind, Paula fires at them until she runs out of bullets. Carol aims her gun at Paula, "Just run" Carol orders and Jane furrows her eyebrows. "Carol! Shoot her!" Jane insists and Paula chuckles softly.
"Go on, do it" Paula urges as she slowly steps towards the three of them. "You've killed Donnie, you've killed Molly, Your people have destroyed my home" Paula declares and Carol shakes her head. "Get out" Carol orders. "Carol" Maggie warns as Paula continues to get closer. A walker attacks, causing Carol to shoot Paula in the shoulder. Maggie kills the walker, then races over to fight Michelle who's calling out for Paula. "That baby won't last in this world, Jane" Paula says grabbing Jane's attention. "What?" Jane asks as she grips the knife in her hand. "That baby won't make life any better. That baby is gonna kill you. That devil baby!" Paula shouts and Jane tilts her head as she looks to Paula. "What did you just say?" Jane asks as she steps towards Paula slowly.
"I said that devi—" Paula begins but Jane rushes up to her and immediately pushes the knife into Paula's stomach harshly. "I thought that's what you said" Jane whispers in Paula's ear as she quickly removes the knife and stabs Paula over and over and over again until she get's tired and tosses Paula onto the ground with multiple stab wounds. Jane hears Maggie struggling to fight and watches as Maggie's abdomen is slightly slashed by Chelle's knife, but Carol then manages to shoot Michelle in the head killing her.
Jane looks down at a dead Paula then down at the blood that's on her hands and doesn't feel bad at all. "Ah!" Jane screams as she stabs Paula in the head so she doesn't come back as a walker. Moments later, a Savior calls Paula's walkie to announce that reinforcements have arrived. "Meet us on the kill floor," Carol responds mimicking Paula's voice.
As Maggie, Jane and Carol wait for the Saviors, Carol confesses that she has killed 20 people. "I should've killed Donnie in the woods. I had a clear shot. None of this would've happened if I had just killed him" Carol blames herself and Jane balls her fist up tightly as she holds the knife in her hand thinking about the moment she killed Paula. "Just don't think about it" Maggie urges, "I can't stop" Carol states and Jane looks over at Carol. "We're almost done. Push through it" Jane orders as she looks ahead again while sweat beams off her body.
They hear footsteps coming closer and Maggie quickly shuts the door half way. "Careful the floors slick" A man says. "You sure this is it?" Another man asks as Carol lights a cigarette and looks over at Jane and Maggie who quickly shut the large door behind the group of saviors but Carol tosses her lit cigarette into the room before the door closes fully allowing the room that they have doused with gasoline before the Saviors got there to erupt into flames. Jane, Maggie and Carol have there backs to the doors as the man scream and pound on the door, wanting out the room while Carol watches them through the small window.
Maggie and Jane kill the impaled walkers, as them and Carol make their way to the exit. They find Rick's group just outside the door, about to storm the building. "Jane!" Glenn shouts as he puts his gun down and rushes to Jane who's eyes immediately fill with tears as both of them wrap there arms around each other. "Are you okay?" Glenn asks as he pulls away from the hug looking to a sweating, bloody Jane. "I will be" Jane answers before she looks over to Joslyn who has tears running down her face. "Oh!" Joslyn cries out before she pulls her sister into a hug.
"I thought I lost you" Joslyn whispers and Jane places her hand on the back of her head reassuringly before pulling away from the hug. "Is everything okay? With the baby?" Glenn asks as he gently places his hand on Jane's stomach. "Everything's perfect— This baby will make everything better" Jane mumbles as a tear slides down her cheek thinking of Paula's horrible words about her unborn baby. "We killed them— They're all dead" Maggie assures everyone as she pulls away from her hug with Rick.
Glenn looks down at Jane's bloody hands and clothes and pulls her in for another hug as she begins to sob into his shoulder. "I had too" Jane confesses as Glenn places his hand on the back of her head and kisses her cheek softly. Rick tells Primo that his friends are dead and demands to know if Negan was among the people they killed at the compound. "I'm Negan, Shithead!" Primo says. "I'm sorry it had to come to this," Rick says before shooting him point-blank in the head.