❛ YOU PROMISED. ❜
21. Kidnapped
SEASON 03 EPISODE 06
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(mentions of SA)
Death is inevitable; all of us knew it, we knew that at some point at least half of us were going to die. It wasn't a hidden fact— still death affected us, especially when someone we counted as family was gone. It didn't stop the pain from reaching our hearts; it didn't stop the silence that paraded over us. There was a certain death that affected a great amount of us but that couldn't stop us from what we had to do. It was a survive or die kind of world and we had to do everything in our power to do so.
Without our strongest attribute we had to make plans on our own. Daryl announced how he was going to take a couple people from the group so he could search the rest of the prison; Glenn and Maggie had made it a plan to go out an scavenge from a building they found in a phone book, which would be perfect since baby food was very much needed.
"I want to come with you." The voice in the very back of my head forced through its way pass my lips. "And before you say no... it's a perfect way for me to learn to scavenge, plus I'll follow the rules, okay?"
"What are the rules?" Glenn challenged me, rocking on the heels of his shoes and raising a questioning brow.
"Uh, stay quiet and follow behind you." I repeat leaning my hip against my right side, crossing my arms. "No running off, no distractions, and listen to whatever you say."
"That's right."
"Glenn, are you sure?" Maggie stepped forward, grasping him by his upper arm with a worried look stretched across her face.
"I've got this." I smiled awkwardly.
"She's got this." Glenn sends me a smile back, giving me a wink.
A calm and soft sensation twirled in my stomach, a grin grazing my lips as we left the prison behind and started on the road. The silence between us wasn't awkward and untouchable anymore; and in the air I could breathe now— comfortably. In the car we were able to laugh and joke but it came to a stop when we reached the building, which looked to be in absolute ruin.
The surroundings looked to be safe and empty but that didn't stop my hand from hovering over the gun on my hip.
I blinked, my expression shriveling into one of disgust when I turned only to see the two adults basically making out. A loud and overdramatic groan left my lips and I leaned against the car with my hip. The view was gross, yes, but they way they looked at one another and the smiles that brightened on their lips when they were in each others vicinity, it caused something within me to warm and swell— this was hard to find, especially now, so I was glad they had it.
Birds flew straight from the building when the doors were opened, causing us to gasp and half-way scream when they flew over our heads. I let out a deep breath, brushing my hair from my eyes and squinting my eyes from the sun before laughing at myself; only lightly.
"Glenn get that duck." Maggie tells him as he steps inside the building.
"What?" He chuckled confusedly.
"Get that duck." She repeated, leading him with her flashlight and showing off the little toy on the ground.
"Are you serious?" Glenn laughed at her.
"Yeah. A kid growing up in a prison could use some toys."
I noticed how distracted I was getting. (It was nice to have just a little bit of fun since everything always felt do or die.) The gun on my hip was now in my hands, my eyes glancing side to side; something felt off, I couldn't put my finger on it but something was strange. If it was possible, I restricted myself from anything Maggie and Glenn were saying; only paying attention to all the shit that surrounded us.
And I was right. Something was off.
"And where is it y'all good people are calling home?" A scratchy and raspy voice shouts our way. There was a gun in the man's hand, pointed our way and I didn't waste a second, aiming my gun at him.
It was Merle.
"Merle?" Glenn asks in complete surprise, Maggie and himself were now aiming their guns at him as well.
The redneck laughed, raising his hands and dropping his gun to the ground when he realized just who he was looking at. "Wow!" He approached us— at little too quickly for Maggie's liking.
"Hey, back the hell up!"
"Ho-oh-oh okay, okay, honey. Jesus."
"You made it." Glenn says, taking in his appearance. Nothing in his voice seemed happy for him; if anything it sounded like he wanted him to turn around and go away.
"Can you tell me, is my brother alive? Huh?"
"Yeah."
"Hey, you, uh, take me to him and I'll call it even on everything that happened up there in Atlanta. No hard feelings. Huh?" Merle asks but he noticed how hesitant he was; a laugh puffing from his lips when he glanced at Maggie and I, then to the contraption on his hand. "You like that? Yeah. Well, I found myself a, uh, medical supply warehouse. Fixed it up myself. Pretty cool, huh?"
"We'll tell Daryl you're here and he'll come out to meet you."
"Oh-oh. Hold on. Just hold up." Merle stutters growing closer.
"Whoa. Whoa." Glenn shouts, stepping back just like Maggie and I. "Whoa!"
"Hold up. Hold up here. Hey, the fact that we found each other is a miracle. Come on, now. You can trust me."
"You trust us. You stay here."
Merle chuckled, again, but it wasn't amused at all. There was a thick heaviness in the air before he scowled and rushed at us. Merle whipped a gun out from behind himself and shot at us; he missed and ended up shooting the back window out. Maggie and Glenn went to the one side of the car and I went the other way, but I wasn't fast enough. The dirty redneck caught me by the arm and pulled me to the ground, causing my gun to fly from my hands just as he pointed one to my head.
It stilled me.
Maggie and Glenn came back around the car, pointing their guns at him when they saw his arm around my neck and a gun pointed to my head. I felt pathetic; this entire situation was pathetic.
"Hey, hey, hold up, buddy, hold up." Merle screamed right next to my ear.
"Let go of her. Let go of her!" Glenn's hands tightened around his gun as he shouts down at the man.
"Put that gun in the car right now."
"Kill him, Glenn." I mumbled, glaring.
"Put it in the car, son."
There was hesitation in his expression, both of theirs, he let out a sigh, reaching toward the gun and tossing the gun inside which made me let out a deep and annoyed breath when Maggie followed. Glenn's eyes never left mine; almost like he was trying to give me a sense of safety. Glenn and Maggie raised their hands in surrender, shuffling and rolling on the heels of their feet.
This had to be the worst day to every exist.
"There you go. Now we're gonna go for a little drive."
"We're not going back to our camp." The man shook his head, narrowing his eyes.
"No, we're going somewhere else. Get in the car, Glenn! You're driving!" Merle was obviously done with patience, his screams itching at the bottom of his throat as he pressed the gun harder against my skull. "Move!"
"Don't." Maggie and Glenn hesitated, their hands stretched out in front of themselves while moving slowly. I could tell how seeing this felt to them, how just the sight of me looking so weak confused and worried them. "Okay."
"Get up!" Merle shouts at me; I moved slowly and cautiously, taking a deep breath as he opened the back door to the car and tossing me inside— still with the gun pointed at me.
A man was something to always be wary and scared of; this was taught to me by my own father. It confused me when I was younger, I didn't really understand why a man was telling me to always be cautious around a man. I understood now— I knew just how creepy men could be; it was all in the way the spoke to me, looked at me, like now. I could feel the way his heart thumped against my chest, the way his breathing had gotten faster, he wanted me to know.
It felt so strange, to feel so unsafe around the two people that brought me to a level of comfortability. It wasn't them, in the least bit, but the problem we found ourselves in and the separation only made it worsen. I could hear nothing, just the sound of my ears ringing and my heart thumping; plus I had no idea where my 'guardians' were which only freaked me out even more.
In a small room was where I was sat; one table with a metal chair under me and the other in front of me, it was obvious that I was waiting for someone. I just had no idea who. There was only one light, swinging directly above me, side to side ever so slightly. The walls were bricked but a grey color was painted over it; it made the room seem so dull and... scary.
My hands were cuffed from behind me, causing me to be unable to move freely.
"Yep." I mumbled to myself, popping the 'p' at the end. "This is definitely the worse day ever."
A silence that slipped into the room when the sound of me sighing and groaning in annoyance stopped. Then it was filled with a tapping noise and the sound of chains chinking together drowned out the tapping. I was getting impatient and a bit anxious of what could've been happening behind the door standing in front of me. I wanted to hit myself repeatedly.
In the few seconds I let my eyes shut, the door opens and in came an unfamiliar and strange looking man. It was obvious that he was some kind of leader, just the way he carried himself as he sat down in front of me, manspreading, and laying his arm across the table while staring at me with a deadpanned expression. The man said nothing, he just watched me and it made me very uncomfortable.
"Merle tells me you are apart of a group and that you guys have settled—"
"I won't tell you." A glare had struck itself across my face before interrupting him. "There's nothing you can do to—" A sting burned my cheek, my head swiping to the left side.
He slapped me.
"You tell me where your group is or I'll bring in the hands of both of your friends." He threatened, now standing and looking down at me.
I kept my head to the left, my eyes staring deeply into the brick wall as I answered him monotonously. "They'll understand."
He clicked his tongue; tapping it against the roof of his mouth, rounding the table to stand behind me. It was as if he was hesitant, yet he still unlocked the cuffs that restrained my wrists before sitting back down in front of me. The man crossed his right leg over his left, crossing his arms and leaning back into the chair with a challenging glance. I allowed to take this one second of freedom to rub the reddening marks on my wrists, letting out a soft and inaudible hiss.
I had no idea what he was planning.
"Up." He ordered me but I blinked at him, slowly turning head back forward to face him. He pointed upwards when he noticed I didn't follow his orders, his index finger pointing toward the ceiling. "Get up."
Reluctantly, I slammed my hands flat against the table and pushed myself up. A deep and confused frown fell on my lips, but my eyes never falter— I was staring straight through him.
"How old are you?" He questions and before I could fix my lips to say anything he spoke. "No. Let me guess. Thirteen? Twelve? Tell me if I'm getting warmer."
"Thirteen." I grit out, grinding my teeth against each other. "You're going to die." This came out as a muttered breath, he could barely hear.
"What'd you say?"
"You're going to die." I say again, this time it was stern and louder. "You touch me. If you fucking touch me, I will kill you and if it's not me you'll be having to watch your fucking back."
The man had an amused smirk rising on his lips; still in his position he stares at me, going on with conversation like I had said nothing at all. "You know... I had a daughter around your age when this all started. She— she had that same shirt." He points, eyes never leaving mine. "I want you to take it off."
He had a daughter.
"No." I refused, clenching my hands at my sides.
"Take the shirt off or I'll leave this room and bring in a organ from... Glenn."
"Glenn would die for me. I would die for him. He'll understand."
I believed what I said. I believed that he would die for me— that he would do anything he could just so I could live but there was no way I could ever imagine him doing that for me, nor did I want him to. A life without him was one I didn't want to be in. This was only a tactic to use so they could see that there was nothing for them to threaten me with but as soon as I saw him standing from the chair... I broke. My shirt was off before he could even get up from the chair fully, the palm of my hand slamming against the table along with the shirt.
"That's better." He sat back down, rubbing his hands up and down his thighs. "You can sit down... when you tell me where you and the rest of your group lives."
"I'd rather die."
"I'd rather you take off that pretty little bra."
"I wonder if you ever watched your little girl take off her clothes. I wonder if you ever wanted to touch her like the creep you're showing yourself off to be. I mean, there's no way to determine that, right? Since she's dead."
"Bra. Off." He repeated his order, his hand slamming down against the table, creating a loud and flinching boom. It made me flinch, goosebumps fitted against my skin and I hesitated.
I was embarrassed; humiliated. There was nothing to see under the bra yet still this is embarrassing— exposing myself. The feeling made me flush with anger, a heat burning my heart as I did as told, staring down at the floors when the clothing was finally removed, dropping to the ground with a quiet thud. My gaze finally faltered— of embarrassment; my upper body was cold and I felt like the weakest piece of shit.
There was a burning in my throat, and it tightened and tightened until I could hardly breathe; along with that was my bottom lip quivering, shaking with the tears that clouded my vision. I crossed my hands over my chest, trying to hide away the embarrassment.
It was still there.
"Go on."
It got colder and colder; a confusing and soft breeze brushing against my thighs while I slipped from my pants, letting them drop to the ground. I let my eyes fall upon his again; I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of my fear, I didn't want him to use it against me.
The man stood up— finally— circling the table with his fingertips brushing against it. He stopped behind me, his figure towering mine. His fingers caressed my shoulders, slowly falling down my arms and stopping at my hips. He leaned in, nose digging in the curls of my hair as he inhaled a deep sniff. The hands around my hips tightened, squeezing my sides at a bruising grip. Then he slammed me down against the table; I could still feel his breath against my skin but it was added with the feeling of his lower region rubbing against...
I pushed out a choked gasp; my hands were numbing at my chest, this was an uncomfortable feeling.
"If you tell me where they are... this can stop."
"You do what you think have to do. I just hope that in the end you die just like your fucking daughter." I grit my teeth, a scowl etching across my face.
A scoffed laugh left his lips and he backed away from me, pulling me up along with him. The man had me by the arm and he scoffed before throwing me back into the wall.
"Pick up your clothes." He ordered.
I scurry around the floor, picking up my shirt, bra, and pants and clutching them to my chest to hide my nude-ness away. He grabbed me by my arm again and dragged me out of the room, not even caring if I was actually walking or if my ankles were dragging against the cement ground.
There were many doors we had passed but as soon as we turned a corner I could hear the sound of booming voices and obvious commotion. It made me tense. The man had pushed his way through two others; one of them holding onto a half-naked Maggie. In the front of them, in the room, was Glenn; arms at his side, beaten and bruised, and ultimately weakened.
I looked to the ground, at my feet, when the two glanced over at me. The looks on their faces... I just couldn't stand to see them.
"We're through with games." The man that held me spoke, his grip tightening causing me to wince. The gun that was shoved into his hip made an appearance, now touching my temple. "Now one of you is gonna give up your camp." He clicked the gun and stepped away from me, now shoving the weapon into Glenn's face.
"The prison." Maggie says before he could say anything— before he could even cough up a threat.
"The one near Nunez?" Merle asks.
"The place is overrun."
"We took it." Her voice shook as she spoke.
"How many are you?"
"Ten." Maggie answered him. "We have ten now."
"Ten people cleared that whole prison of biters?" The leader questioned. "Huh?" A silence was held over us and he dropped his gun ready to leave the room but before he did he caught sight of Maggie, on the verge of tears. "Hey, hey.." He cooed at her, caressing her cheek as if it was going to calm her down. "Shh, shh, shh. It's alright. It's alright." The man pulled her into a hug, giving a kiss on the forehead just to spite Glenn. And just that gave him the satisfaction he needed, the fear, the tears... the anger. He was done; pushing Maggie into Glenn's arms and leaving the room with his followers trailing behind him.
"Kendall—" Glenn called for me but I just shook my head at him, clutching the clothes to my body tighter and walking to the furthest part of the room.
The clothes in my arms were now on my body once again, shielding away my embarrassment, stress, and anxiety. Even if I was safe— for now— I felt exposed and uncomfortable. This was something I have not felt in years; I was wore thin and there was this sensation that crawled all over me that made me burn and hurt, it made me wince in pain. A disgusting bile rose in my throat, like all of the humiliation was there and if it was freed now it would stay with me forever.
A hand touched my shoulder and I flinch away, my arm covering my lips as I tried to bring myself back to the reality of the situation.
"Kendall... did he?" Glenn tried to ask me about it but I knew he didn't really want to know. I knew that he probably had a vision of the situation sitting at the top of his brain.
"Just... please don't touch me."
okay... in my defense i have this new guy i'm crushing on and like... that's it. that's my excuse. anyways, it's staring, the trauma and the cracking of her tough exterior. i love all of you guys and i'll try to be better with time management.
comment & vote, please🫶🏽