juno grimaced at the sight of the severed hand--she wasn't entirely sure how to react, nor could she wrap her head around the idea of merle actually cutting off his own hand. daryl had stopped wailing---another thing juno wasn't sure how to react too. how does one comfort daryl dixon?--everyone waited nervously for a reaction from daryl.
and top be honest, it didn't shock juno when daryl turns his crossbow on t-dog, his eyes holding nothing but pure rage. rick retaliated without hesitation, aiming his python at daryl's head.
"i won't hesitate. i don't care if every walker in the city hears it."juno had every right to believe officer friendly's threat.
daryl eyed t-dog with a malicious glare, then lowered his crossbow. "you got a do-rag or something?" he asked. t-dog handed him one from his back pocket. daryl used it to wrap up the severed hand. "i guess the saw blade was too dull for the handcuffs. ain't that a bitch." he picked it up, walked behind glenn, and (much to glenn's disgust) put it in his backpack. "he must have used a tourniquet... maybe his belt. be much more blood if he didn't."
daryl walked towards away from the group, and that's when juno noticed the trail of blood.
the trail led the group back inside the building. "merle? You in here?" the group walks down the stairs. the groan of a walker caught everyone's attention. juno's stomach churned. please don't let that be merle. she'd hate for daryl to find his brother a walker. the group walked into an office room, and found that thank fully it wasn't. daryl shot the walker, and they spread out to check that the room was walker safe, only to come across two dead walkers.
"merle did this?" juno questioned.
daryl grunted. "had enough in him to take out these two sumbitches--one handed. toughest asshоlе I ever met, my brother. feed him a hammer, he'd crap out nails."
"any man can pass out from blood loss, no matter how tough he is." said rick.
they continue forward into another room. "merle!"
"we're not alone here. remember?" rick hissed.
daryl scoffed. "screw that. he could be bleeding out. you said so yourself."
they came across a dimply lit messy kitchen. oddly, a burnt smell lingured in the room, like someone was cooking but left it on the stove. sure enough, the stove was lit with a pan on top and little burned bits in it. juno had seen enough movies to know what happened here.
daryl came up behind her. "what's that burned stuff?"
"skin, i think." she cringed. "he cauterized the stump."
"told you he was tough. nobody can kill merle but merle."
"don't take that on faith. he's lost a lot of blood." said rick.
daryl walked up to a smashed window. "yeah? didn't stop him from busting out of this death trap."
"he left the building? Why the hell would he do that?" asked glenn.
"why wouldn't he? he's out there alone as far as he knows, doing what he's got to do. surviving." daryl stated.
"you call that surviving? just wandering out in the streets, maybe passing out? what are his odds out there?" asked t-dog.
"no worse than being handcuffed and left to rot by you sorry pricks." daryl said. "you couldn't kill him. ain't so worried about some dumb dead bastard."
"what about a thousand dead dumb bastards? different story?" rick said.
"why don't you take a tally? do what you want. I'm gonna go get him." daryl went to leave the room, but rick stopped him with a hand on his chest.
"daryl, wait."
"get your hands off me! you can't stop me."
"i don't blame you." rick reasoned. "he's family, i get that. i went through hell to find mine. i know exactly how you feel. he can't get far with that injury. we could help you check a few blocks around but only if we keep a level head."
daryl was silent for a moment, then nodded. "i could do that." if juno was being honest, she was a little surprised that daryl actually agreed.
"only if we get those guns first. i'm not strolling the streets of Atlanta with just my good intentions, okay?" said t-dog.
it was a little later. glenn had everyone crowed around a makeshift map of the city street that juno had drawn on the floor with a sharpie she had in her bad.
"you're not doing this alone." rick said to the two.
"even I think it's a bad idea and I don't even like you much." daryl said to glenn.
juno sent daryl a scolding look, followed by a 'hush'.
glenn rolled his eyes. "it's a good idea, okay, if you just hear me out." glenn uses a couple of random objects to represent each member of the group (juno handed him her nice rock to represent her). "if we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. if i'm alone, i can move fast." he placed an eraser on the drawn out street. "look. that's the tank, five blocks from where we are now." he puts down a rock. "that's the bag of guns. here's the alley i dragged you into when we first met. That's where daryl, juno, and i will go."
"why me?" asked daryl.
"your crossbow is quieter than his gun." he answered. glenn quickly looked at juno. "and before you say anything, i'm going alone. you'll stay back to cover daryl just in case. while daryl and juno waits here in the alley, I run up the street, grab the bag."
"you got us elsewhere?" rick asked. glenn points down the street.
"you and t-dog, right. you'll be in this alley here."
"two blocks away? why?"
"i may not be able to come back the same way. walkers might cut me off. if that happens, i won't go back to them. i'll go forward instead, all the way around to that alley where you guys are. whichever direction i go, i got you in both places to cover me. afterwards, we'll all meet back here." glenn explained. the group digested the plan. it was a really good plan; it was hard for it to go wrong.
"hey, kid, what'd you do before all this?" daryl asked.
glenn furrowed his brows. "delivered pizzas. why?"
juno, glenn, and daryl hid behind a dumpster in their alleyway. rick and t had already made their way down to the designated alley.
"you got some balls for a chinaman." daryl complimented? juno wasn't sure. it was probably the closest thing to a compliment you'd get from daryl.
"i'm korean." glenn said.
"whatever."
glenn took a breath. "hey," juno placed a hand on his shoulder. "you've got this." he nodded and sent her a small smile before taking off out of the alleyway.
the two peaked from behind the dumpster they were hiding behind, watching the road in a ridged silence. neither felt the need to say anything. there really wasn't anything to say. though, having daryl by juno's side was good enough for her. despite his intimidating exterior, she found his presence comforting. but that didn't stop juno from feeling incredibly tense and anxious, hoping to everything out there that glenn returns safely, and that this doesn't end up like the last time. one time was enough. she released a heavy sigh and shook her hands a bit. it helped relieve her nerves.
her relief didn't last long though. from behind them, light footsteps against the alley way concrete were heard, from the opposite direction where glenn to come from. daryl shot his arm out and push juno behind him before he aimed his crossbow at the newcomer. he was young man, who looked just as surprised to see us as we are him. his eyes widen and he raised his arms up.
"whoa, don't shoot me! what do you want?"
"i'm looking for my brother. he's hurt real bad. you seen him?" daryl demanded.
the kid started shouting. "ayúdame!"
"shut up! you're gonna bring the geeks down on us. answer me."
juno clutched her knife tighter, and turned towards the end of the alley. the walkers didn't seem to notice them yet.
"answer me!" daryl pushed.
"ayúdame! ayúdame! ayúdame! help! help!"
"shut up!" desperate, daryl hits him with his crossbow. when he fell, daryl covered his mouth. "shut up!"
then two more people enter the alley way. juno grasped the back off daryl's shirt instinctively. "daryl!" spotting the two, they charge. she only had a moment to compose herself before they reached them. she swiped at one of them with her knife, narrowly missing. grasped her arm and pushed her down to the ground. before he could join the other one in beating up daryl, she took the taser out of her back pocket and jabbed it at his calf. he cried out and dropped to the ground as he writhed in pain.
the other man on daryl had a bat, and mercilessly beat daryl to the ground, then delivered a few heavy kicks to the gut.
juno quickly rose to her feet, and without really much thought or hesitation threw herself onto the back of the bald one. they both fell over like dominos. juno struggled to keep the guy pinned down, giving daryl as much time as she could for him to regain his composure.
then another set of footsteps caught everyone's attention. glenn stood halted in his tracks, eyes wide, the bag of guns and a brown hat grasped firmly in his hand.
there was a pause. before juno could tell glenn to run, the man beneath her delivered a swift punch to the jaw. her vision blurred. she barely processed the feeling of cement against her cheek.
"that's it. that's the bag, vato. take it! take it!"
both men charged at glenn before he could flee, grabbing him. they tried ripping the bag from glenn's grasp, but it wouldn't budge.
daryl raised his crossbow and shot, planting an arrow in the asscheek of the bald one. he screamed in pain.
the other had his arms tightly around glenn, who dropped the bag of guns. "get off me! get off me! juno! daryl!" a car pulled up behind the men, the bag of guns long since dropped, they dragged glenn towards the car.
juno dismissed the pain of her head. she rose to her feet. the ground swayed a little beneath her. "glenn!" juno stumbled for moment, then ran towards the fence. the growling of the walkers got louder. one of them smashed a geeks head in before shoving glenn into the trunk of their car. "no!!"
daryl was beside her, slamming his hand on the fence making it rattle. "come back here, you sumbitches!" juno's stomachs dropped as the car skidded away. her best friend in the trunk taking him to who knows where.
as the walkers started to converge, daryl grunted in frustration and shut the fence gate before they got any closer.
daryl turned to the kid, who finally stood to his feet. with a fiery vengeance, daryl shoved him hard into the wall. rick an t-dog came running down the alley way.
"whoa whoa whoa. stop it." rick was quick to get in between daryl and the kid. t pinned the kid against the wall.
"i'm gonna kick your nuts up in your throat!" daryl yelled at the kid. he thrashed to get around rick. "they took Glenn. that little bastard and his little bastard homie friends. i'm gonna stomp your ass!"
the growling of the walkers only got louder with the shouting. more piled against the rattling fence, rocking it back and forth. juno eyed the fence, nervously.
"guys! guys! we're cut off!" t said,
"get to the lab. go!" rick instructed. t grasped the kids arm and dragged him away.
rick swung the bag of guns over his shoulder and swiped his hat off the ground. he noticed juno, who stared at the fence with a blank look.
"juno," he spoke softly. she snapped out of her gaze, and turned to rick. "we will get him back."
"those men you were with, we need to know where they went." rick stated.
they were back in the room they started in. the kid, who we now know as miguel, was thrown onto the ground with all the men stood around him. juno stood back against the wall watching the men. she figured the could handle it, and plus now that they were somewhat resting, the pounding headache was just now catching up to her.
despite the obvious fear in his eyes, miguel didn't stray from his tough act. "i ain't telling you nothing." he spat.
"jesus, man." t-dog sighed. "what the hell happened back there?"
"i told you, this little turd and his douche bag friends came out of nowhere and jumped me and june." daryl accused.
"you're the one who jumped me, puto, screaming about trying to find his brother like it's my damn fault." miguel sneered.
daryl huffed. "they took glenn . . . could have taken merle too."
miguel laughed. "merle? what kind of hick name is that? I wouldn't name my dog merle."
daryl went to attack the kid, but rick held him back by the arm. "damn it, daryl. back off."
daryl grunted and stalked over to glenn's backpack. he rummaged around, the grabbed the do-rag. "want to see what happened to the last guy that pissed me off?" he tossed merle's severed hand onto the kids lap. miguel yelped, and scrambled to swat the hand away. "start with the feet this time."
rick kneeled down to the kids level. "the men you were with took our friend. all we want to do is talk to them, see if we can work something out."
"you sure you're up for this?" rick asked again.
t nodded. "yeah."
"juno?"
"yep." she answered quickly, tightening her grip on the shotgun. never in her life had juno held a shotgun or think she ever would. so granted, she was nervous about using it (and prayed to whatever out there that she wouldn't need to) but she didn't tell anyone that of course. she put on a brave face, and masked some confidence. but she had a feeling rick knew it was a facade. maybe even daryl.
and he did. they both did. rick had offered that she stay with t-dog on the roof with a sniper, but she denied. ("strength in numbers, right?" she said.) rick admired her willingness, as did daryl. he found immense respect from it.
rick nodded. "okay."
they walked through a sort of ruin, under an archway into what looked like a once nice courtyard (now all riddled with debris and overgrown foliage). the kid had his hands tied behind his back, with rick holding onto his upper arm.
daryl had his crossbow aimed at miguel. "one wrong move, you get an arrow in the ass. just so you know."
"g's gonna take that arrow out of my ass and shove it up yours. nust so you know." mocked the kid.
"g?" rick asked.
"guillermo. he's the man here."
"okay then." rick nodded. "let's go see guillermo."
they stop at a set of large metal doors, which swung open revealing an artillery of men holding all sorts of weapons. juno resisted the urge to gulp. she couldn't show weakness. it was easy for her to put on a brave face, to pretend, she just copied everyone else's expression.
a man from the bunch stepped forward. "you okay, little man?" he asked miguel. juno assumed he was the infamous guillermo.
"they're gonna cut off my feet, carnal." he cried.
the man nodded to rick. "cops do that?
"not him! this redneck puto here! he cut off some dude's hand, man. he showed it to me!"
"shut up." daryl grunted.
the bald guy from earlier stepped forward, his gun trained on daryl. "hey, that's that Vato right there, homes. He shot me in the ass with an arrow. and that bitch tased me! what's up, homes, huh?
g held out his arm. "chill, ese, chill. chill. this true? he wants miguelito's feet? that's pretty sick, man."
"we were hoping more for a calm discussion." rick stated.
"that hillbilly jumps Felipe's little cousin, beats on him, threatens to cut off his feet, Felipe gets tased and an arrow in the ass and you want a calm discussion? you fascinate me." g said.
"heat of the moment. mistakes were made on both sides." rick argued.
"who's that dude to you anyway? you don't look related."
"he's one of our group, more or less. i'm sure you have a few like him."
"you got my brother in there?" daryl asked.
g shook his head. "sorry, we're fresh out of white boys. but I've got asian. you interested?"
"i have one of yours, you have one of mine. aounds like an even trade." rick said.
"don't sound even to me." g answer.
juno clenched her jaw.
"g! come on, man." miguel begged.
"my people got attacked. where's the compensation for their pain and suffering? more to the point, where's my bag of guns?"
"guns?"
"the bag miguel saw in the street. the bag felipe and jorge were going back to get. that bag of guns." g said.
"you're mistaken." rick shook his head.
"i don't think so."
"about it being yours. it's my bag of guns."
"the bag was in the street. anybody could come around and say it was theirs. i'm supposed to take your word? what's to stop my people from unloading on you right here and now and I take what's mine?" g questioned.
"you could do that. or not." rick nodded to where t-dog was positioned on a roof, his sights trained on g. juno jaw clenched. please just make the trade.
"oye!" g called out. two men appeared on the roof above them, holding a third man in between them. his arms were tied behind his back and a bag was over his head. juno knew it was glenn before they took the bag off. she was so grateful to see him okay.
g spoke again. "i see two options. you come back with miguel and my bag of guns, everybody walks. or you come back locked and loaded, we'll see which side spills more blood."
the group found themselves back at building. juno had little doubt that rick would actually leave glenn there, so she really wasn't surprised when rick had unzipped the bag and started to divide all the weapons.
but daryl just wanted to argue. "them guns are worth more than gold. gold won't protect your family or put food on the table. you're gonna give that up for that kid?"
juno could hardly believe her ears!
"if i knew we'd get glenn back, i might agree. but you think that vato across the way is just gonna hand him over?" t dog asked.
"you calling g a liar?" miguel prodded.
daryl turned to the kid. "are you a part of this? you want to hold onto your teeth?!"
t continued. "question is, do you trust that man's word?"
"no, question is what are you willing to bet on it? could be more than them guns. could be your life. glenn worth that to you?" daryl asked.
"yes! he is!" juno stepped in, glaring at daryl. "and there is no way in hell i leaving him behind!"
rick placed a hand on her shoulder. he spoke up calmly. "what life i have i owe to him. i was nobody to glenn, just some idiot stuck in a tank. he could have walked away, but he didn't. neither will i."
juno smiled gratefully at rick, who nodded in return.
"so you're gonna hand the guns over?" daryl asked.
rick shook his head. "i didn't say that. there's nothing keeping you two here. you should get out, head back to camp."
"and tell your family what?" t asked.
"come on, this is nuts." miguel pipped in. "just do like g says."
back at the vato hideout, everyone marched to that front door. everyone armed. rick had the half empty bag over his shoulder, leading the way. behind him, daryl had a shotgun trained at miguel's back, whilst juno and t-dog followed behind.
when the reached the doors, they opened and rick pushed miguel forward.
g eyed the group, his eyes landing on all the guns. "i see my guns but they're not all in the bag."
"that's because they're not yours. i thought i mentioned that." juno didn't understand how rick was able to keep such a calm composure. she suppose that was the benefit of being a cop.
the balled one popped in. "let's just shoot these fools right now, ese. all right? unload on their asses, ese."
g continued. "i don't think you fully appreciate the gravity of the situation."
"no, i'm pretty clear." rick cut miguel free, who was quick to flee inside. "you have your man. i want mine."
"i'm gonna chop up your boy. i'm gonna feed him to my dogs. they're the evilest, nastiest man-eating bitches you ever saw. i picked them up from satan at a yard sale. i told you how it has to be. are you woefully deaf?"
"no, my hearing's fine. you said come locked and loaded." on cue, the men and juno cocked their guns and aimed forward. rick aims his a g. "okay then, we're here."
had this not been such a detrimentally serious situation, juno would be thinking about how unbelievably cool that looked and felt.
Then, out from behind the band of fully armed men, came this little spanish elderly women, shouting for "felipe!"
felipe, is evidently the bald on that juno tased and daryl shot in the ass. "abuela, go back with the others... now."
"get that old lady out of the line of fire!" daryl shouted.
g placed a hand on her shoulder. "abuela, listen to your mijo, okay? this is the not the place for you right now."
but the Abuela would not take no for an answer. "mr. gilbert is having trouble breathing. he needs his asthma stuff. carlitos didn't find it. he needs his medicine!"
having enough, g gestured to felipe. "go take care of it, okay? and take your grandmother with you."
"¡abuela! ven conmigo por favor." uttered felipe.
the women turned to the group. "who are those men?" she asked g.
she ignored her grandsons ("por favor, ven conmigo."), and walked over to rick. at this point, everyone lowered their weapons.
"don't you take him." she said.
rick furrowed his brows. "ma'am?"
abuela went on. "felipe's a good boy. he has his trouble but he pulls himself together. we need him here."
rick shook his head. "ma'am, i'm not here to arrest your grandson."
"then what do you want him for?"
"he's helping us look for our friend. his name is glenn." juno said softly to the women.
abuela smiled. "the asian boy? he's with mr. gilbert. come. come, i'll show you." she grabbed juno's hand and pulled her into the building. "he needs his medicine."
g rubbed his forehead and sighed. "let 'em pass." the vatos group parts for juno and the spunky abuela. rick followed closely behind juno, while daryl kept an eye out for her, watching for anyone who got too close.
They were lead down a long hallway with various room. some doors were closed, but the ones that were opened allowed for juno to see beds and . . . medical equipment. some rooms occupied people, old people. it dawned on juno that they were in a nursing home, and that these men were protecting the elderly. talk about a plot twist. juno found herself holding so much respect for these men.
abuela lead them only a bigger room, stocked with chairs and tables, and more of the elderly. in the center, they surrounded an old man in a wheelchair. his gasps for breath echoed throughout the room. felipe and his abuela had rushed forward to him. "all right. all right. nice and easy. just breathe. just breathe."
it wasn't hard for juno to spot glenn amongst the crowd. he stood by nervously watching, biting his nail. "glenn!" his eyes lit up when he saw juno. she ran and crushed him into a hug. "thank goodness you're alright." they pulled away.
he eyed the dark bruise that was forming on her jaw. "that's quite the shiner." he commented.
"what the hell is this?" rick fumed, eyeing the elderly.
"an asthma attack. couldn't get his breath all of a sudden." glenn explained.
t-dog patted glenn on the shoulder. "i thought you were being eaten by dogs, man." glenn furrowed his brows and look to the corner of the room, where in a little cage barked a couple of tiny chihuahuas.
"aww!" juno hesitated.
she looked back at the group. rick was quielty cussing out guillermo ( "you're the dumbest son of a bitch i ever met. we walked in there ready to kill every last one of you."), while glenn and t stood by. she shrugged, then walked over to the little pen. "hello babies." she cooed at the dogs. they yipped and stood on their hind legs, their tails wagging. she reached down and pet their heads, and scratched behind their ears and on their bellies. "oh i wish i could take you home with me . . . you'd probably fit in my backpack." she joked.
"june." she turned around. daryl stood a few feet away. how long was he watching? "let's go."
juno frowned. she gave the dogs a last scratch before standing up. she cringed at the cracking of her knees. jeez i'm getting old. she's only 27.
it was good that the two groups had managed to come to an agreement and gain a mutual respect for each other. they divided the guns in a half amongst each other, and then juno's group was left to go on their way.
"admit it, you only came back to atlanta for the hat." glenn teased rick.
"don't tell anybody." rick played.
daryl, always throwing a fit, grunted. "you've given away half our guns and ammo."
"not nearly half."
"for what? bunch of old farts who are gonna die off momentarily anyhow? seriously, how long you think they got?"
"how long do any of us?" rick reasoned.
they approached the spot where they left the truck, but the truck wasn't there.
"oh my god."
"where the hell's our van?" daryl asked.
"we left it right there. who would take it?" said glenn
"merle." rick sneered.
"he's gonna be taking some vengeance back to camp." said daryl.
so, they ran.
and ran.
and ran.
by the time they reached the camp, it was nightfall. juno felt like she'd pass out any second as she heaved. her lungs burned, with each inhale, and her legs feel like they would just fall off if she took another step. she had even had already came close to vomiting.
as they group would have it, luck was not on their side that day. a scream, followed by another and another was what made the outstanding groups blood run cold. they somehow were able to muster whatever was left in they're always exhausted bodies, and pick up the pace.
they broke though the tree line of the camp. all hell had broken loose. a hell worse then the vengeance of merle. the hell of walkers. dozens of them trampled through the camp, they're jaws snapping and arms reached out towards members of the group.
"oh my god." rick breathed. he charged forward with his pistole, calling for his wife and son.
juno spotted carol clutching sophia behind her back, tears streaming down both their faces as two geeks cornered them. she ran, kicking the back of one geek's knee making it fall while stabbing the one still standing in the head. then she stabbed the other before it could stand. she saw the move in a movie once.
"are you okay?" she frantically asked the two. carol nodded. "get to the truck. quickly!" carol nodded again, and pushed sophia ahead of her as they ran towards the truck where morales and shane stood, protecting the rest of the group.
juno turned and lifted the shotgun. she fired at the walker that was approaching her; it's head blew off into bits, but that wasn't what caused her to yelp. she should have expected the recoiled of such a powerful weapon. it smashed into her shoulder, and for a moment she wondered if it was dislocated (and who the hell thought it was a good idea to give me a shotgun?), but she didn't let herself think about that for too long. another walker sauntered towards her, so she instead decided to use the gun as a baton of sorts, and bashed its head in. when it fell, she gave it a couple swift kicks for good measure.
"juno!"
she turned in time for next geek that had almost grabbed her shoulder. she panicked and fired the shot gun into it's gut. it stumbled back, so she shot again, this time in the head. behind her again, another groan, but it was quickly silence before juno could even turn around to attack. an arrow lodged itself in it's head. she glanced around, daryl found his way over too her. he sent her a nod, and pilled the arrow out of its head and used it to stab another geek.
it wasn't too long before the groans stopped. juno's skin had already begun to itch with all the splattered walker blood that soaked through her shirt, and her adrenalin began to die down. as she glanced around the camp, the tents that was flattened, even her own. the furniture strew about. everything that once made the quarry feel somewhat homely and safe was gone, and all that ways left was the putrid smell of rotten meat, and the wails of andrea as she cried over her bloodied and bitten sister.
juno sank to her knees.