Joey POV
I waited for Beth to round the corner as she was helping me cause a distraction so we could get into the medicine locker. I pretended to be mopping the floor. Suddenly I heard loud coughing as Beth rounded the corner nodding to me, "Now." I nod before putting the key in the lock and unlock it. I hear officers rush to Percy coughing. Beth and I quickly searched through the medications until I found the right one. I quickly grabbed it, placing it into the front pocket of my scrub top. I quickly relock the medication locker before we walk around the corner allowing Percy to know we were done. We snuck into Carol's room and started to try to save her. I hung fluids and attached them to Carol's IV as Beth drew up the Epinephrine. Beth slowly pushed the Epinephrine. Beth and I stood at the side of Carol's bed hoping to see something quickly rather than the reality of how long or if the medication would work. "Carol. It's Beth and Joey. We just wanted you to know that we were here."
Mads POV
"So Joey's your daughter, Madison is it?" Lecari asks looking at me. I nod, "Yes. She is." He nods, "Dawn's not gonna want to let them go. Joey and Beth have become Dawn's helpers. She holds onto helpers tightly, just ask Noah." I shrug, "She'll have no choice to hand them over." Lacari laughs slightly, "Why? To save a couple of her cops?" I shake my head, "No, to save everything she's worked so hard to protect and herself. If she doesn't trade, we'll kill every last person coming between us and our people."
I walked away from them and over to Rick who was with Lamson. "She'll tell you she won't make a deal. She'll tell you she won't compromise. But she will. She always does. Just- just know who you're talking to." Lamson tells Rick and I. Rick nods, "Probably heading out in the next 10 minutes or so." I look to Lamson, "Anything you need before we leave?" He smiles, "Actually, water would be great." I nod, "Will do." I look back to see Sasha was already grabbing the water and heading for us. Rick nodded, "Thanks, Sergeant Lamson." Lamson shook his head, "My name's Bob." I sighed looking over to Sasha who was already looking towards him. As I don't blame her, she was taking Bob's death hard. Worse than I took Shane or Rick took Lori. It's turned her angry, and in this world angry gets you killed. Rick waves him off, "You're still a cop." Lamson shakes his head, "No. No, the real ones are all gone." I rubbed Rick's back as we headed to the rest of the group. Sasha took Lamson to the south side of the building to for her to shoot a walker he once knew.
After not seeing them come back for a minute we grew concerned. "We should go check on them. They should've been back by now." The story we were told wasn't quite adding up either, I mean those walkers melted to the ground were almost unrecognizable. Tyreese, Rick, and I headed to the south side of the building while Daryl and Noah stayed with the cops. As we approached, we see Sasha on the ground unconscious. We rush over to her making sure she was still alive. Rick looks over to the open door, "Madison on me, we're going after him. Tyreese make sure she's alight." Rick and I run through the door Lamson ran out of. We run quickly in the only direction he could've went until we ran into a cop car. "Get in." Rick tells me and I nod as we both get in. Rick quickly drives ahead until we see a small herd following a running Lamson. Rick grabs the radio, "Stop. Stop right now." I look ahead to see Lamson continue to run. "Stop. I won't ask again." Rick warns him. Lamson doesn't stop. I look over to Rick, "I can shoot him. Just a graze from here, enough to get him to stop and bring him back." Rather than answering, Rick slams on the gas hitting Lamson before stopping the car. Lamson flew forward a few feet, hitting the ground. Rick and I sat in silence staring at him for a few minutes before getting out of the car. "Help me." Lamson yelled out, "You crazy sons of bitches. I think you broke my back." Rick sighed, "It didn't have to be like this. You just had to stop." Lamson struggled to get his words out, "I couldn't. I don't know you people. But I think I'm getting the idea." I kneeled down to him, "All I am is a mother trying to get back her little girl, anyone that comes in between that is going to lose. All you had to do was stay put, then we'd do the trade, and all go home free. But instead you're going to die today. Let that be a message to your other officers." He shook his head, "Take me back. Take me back to the hospital. I did this for your friends." Rick shakes his head, "Not after this, no. Can't go back, Bob." Lamson looked up at us, "Your girl is weak, she's going to die out here, you're all going to-" Lamson was cut off by Rick shooting him in the head, "Shut up." Rick grabs my hand pulling me up with him, "She's strong." I nod, "I know Rick, where do you think she got it from?" Rick gives me a small smile before we walk back to the police car and head back to the warehouse.
Rick and I walk in without Lamson and quickly get looks from everyone. Daryl comes over to us. "He wouldn't stop." Rick tells him and he sighs, "This change things?" I rub my face, "It has to." Daryl places a hand on my shoulder, "Maybe not." Rick nods to Shepard, "She said the plan won't work. The guy who did is dead. Maybe we gotta rethink this." Daryl shrugged, "They also said the cop in charge didn't have any love for him. Maybe you two did her a favor." I looked over to the cops, "I don't know if they'll play ball." Daryl took his hand off my shoulder turning to the group, "Let's find out." Shepard looked up to us, "He was a good man. He was attacked by rotters. Saw it go down." Rick hummed, "You're a damn good liar." Shepard looked away slightly, "We're hanging by a thread here. He was attacked by rotters. That's the story." "You said the trade was a bad idea. What changed?" Daryl questioned her. She sighed, "Lamson was our shot. So it's this or you go in gun blazing, right? You don't want that." I glare at her, "If this is some bullshit you're spinning and things go south-" She cuts me off, "I know. I know the good ones from the bad. Let us help you." Rick looks to Lacari, "What about you? You wanna live? How much?" Lacari looks back to us, "Dawn's afraid she'll look weak in front of us. Thinks it'll tip things against her. Hell, it will. She'll see this trade as a rip-off if she thinks you took out one of our guys. So it's a good thing Lamson got aced by rotters." Rick looks to me and I nod. Worst case scenario, they're feeding us bullshit and we go in with bullets and kill every last one of them.
Joey's POV
Beth and I were in Dawn's office cleaning as she was working out on her bike. "Shepherd, Lamson, what's your 20?" She spoke into her radio. I was sweeping the floor as Beth was cleaning her desk. "I need status on that gunfire. Do you copy?" She asks again. After receiving no response she sighs, "Licari, do you copy? Does anybody copy?" After no answer she cusses under her breath. "Something wrong?" Beth asks and Dawn sighs, "They don't always radio back and it drives me crazy." Beth goes to place a photo frame on the desk, but Dawn stops her, "Wait, no, no, no. Beth, no, not there." She nods up to the filing cabinet, "Up by the badges. Thank you." Beth looked at the photo, "Is this Captain Hanson?" I stopped sweeping to look up to the photo. Dawn looked down, "Did someone say something about him to either of you?" I shook my head, "Just that he used to be in charge." Dawn looks straight ahead, "Well, you'll hear stories about him. About me. About what I did." She stopped working out and wiped her face then took a deep breath, "He was my mentor. My friend. I miss him. That's the part the stories leave out." "What happened to him?" Beth asked her. She walks over to us, "They risk their lives every time they go out there. It has to be worth it. It has to matter. He lost sight of that. So he lost them." Dawn looks at both of us, "Joey, Beth, in this job you don't need their love...But you have to have their respect. Otherwise, the day is gonna come when you need backup and you don't have it. And what comes next? Everybody goes down. Hanson lost his way. That's what happened." It was not hard to see that Dawn was the reason for his downfall, she killed him.
"No, Percy, tell me. Should I use smaller words? Is the directive fix the hole in my sleeve too complicated for you?" We heard O'Donnell yell at Percy. He shook his head in fear, "I'm sorry. I forgot." O'Donnell scoffed as he pushed him down, "Well, here's an idea. Don't forget." He looked down the hall to see Beth and I, "What about either of you? You two any good with needle and thread?" Dawn walks up behind him and shakes her head, "I need them. Sorry, we have a lot of work to do. Come on, Beth and Joey."
I had taken Beth to the elevator shaft to clear our minds. "Cassie brought me here. Said the peace and quiet cleared her mind." I told Beth. Beth smiled placing her hand on my shoulder, "We're gonna get out of here, you and me. We'll find our people together." I sigh, "What if we can't find them?" Beth smiles, "We will." I look up to her, "But if we don't?" She sighs, "Then we'll make it together." The door opens and we look back to see Dawn as she leans against the wall. "Percy's going to be okay." She tells us. Beth sighed, "Nothing's okay." "Are you two going to jump?" Dawn asked us. I shook my head, "We wanted to be alone. You left your elevator key where it was." Dawn nodded, "Well, I know you're both not going anywhere." I looked back at her, "Neither are you. You keep telling yourself you have to do whatever it takes just until this is all over. But it isn't over. This is it. This is who you are and what this place is until the end." Dawn looked at us, "This place saved you. I saved both of you. Twice." She looks over to Beth stepping towards us, "The others don't know what you did. They think Joan was trying to get back at me and that Gorman and Jeffries were in the wrong place at the wrong time." I looked at Beth's face then back to Dawn, "That's what happened." Dawn scoffed, "That's bullshit and she knows it." She looks back to Beth, "I saw the smashed jar. I closed up my office and I fixed it before it could be a problem. You're a cop killer." Beth turned back to her, "I would never kill somebody." Dawn quickly interjected, "But you did. What do you think would happen if the others found out? I protected you. Both of you. And we helped that patient. I didn't have to, I wanted to. But there's a way things have to happen here. Don't you get that?" The door shuts and we look up to see O'Donnell standing there. He had heard everything. Beth and I stand up behind Dawn. There was a silence between the four of us until Dawn broke it, "What are you gonna do?" O'Donnell shook his head, "No, Dawn, what are you gonna do? Starting with them." Dawn shrugs, "They're my wards. It's my call." O'Donnell takes a few steps towards us, "Fine, but your people deserve to know who they're working for. So, you gonna tell them or am I?" Dawn shakes her head stepping towards him, "You don't get to threaten me." O'Donnell hums, "That's not a threat. But these are the facts. You look like shit. The guys are talking. They think you're cracking. This is Hanson all over again. It's time to make a change." O'Donnell goes to turn away to leave, but before he could Dawn steps towards him pulling her gun on him, "O'Donnell. You're wrong. I'm nothing like Hanson. I was the one who killed him, remember that? I was the only one who could go through with it." O'Donnell looked back to Dawn, "Lower your weapon, Dawn. All I have to do is shout." Dawn shrugs, "All I have to do is say you came at me." Dawn looks at Beth and I, "Beth, Joey, get out of the way." Beth and I walk over to the other side of the wall. O'Donnell shakes his head, "You're not gonna do this." Dawn sighs, "You're not giving me a choice." Dawn motions to the elevator, "Go." O'Donnell starts to walk slowly, "We were rookies together. You knew my wife. You were here in this hospital having cigars with me in the parking lot when my kid was born." Dawn points her gun to him angerly, "Don't. That guy is gone. We're supposed to protect people. To help them. But look at you. You're beating the old man. You're laughing with your buddies about those poor girls getting raped. That's who you are now." O'Donnell scoffs, "So who the hell are you?" Dawn glared at him, "Somebody who's not gonna let it happen anymore." O'Donnell shakes his head, "That's not what this is about. It's about holding on to what you have." A tear rolls down Dawn's face, "What the hell do I have?" O'Donnell looks down, "This isn't you. After Hanson, you changed." Suddenly O'Donnell launches himself towards Dawn knocking her gun out of her hands and it slides across the ground. I run to grab it sliding against the ground, but before I can it slides off the elevator shaft. "Beth!" I scream for her help as I start to fall, she quickly grabs me pulling me back up. Dawn punches O'Donnell slamming him into the fall. O'Donnell gathers himself before grabbing Dawn by the throat slamming her against the wall, "You think you're better than us?!" Beth and I go to grab O'Donnell off of Dawn, but he slams us back into the ground, "Stay in your lane, bitches!" Dawn takes the opportunity while he's distracted to push him off of her as I quickly stand up. O'Donnell stumbles backwards holding on the sides of the elevator shaft. "Joey!" Dawn looks to me and I nod before running over and pushing O'Donnell down the elevator shaft. O'Donnell screams before he hits the ground. Dawn and Beth walk up behind me. "Thank you." Dawn tells me and I nod out of breath, "Don't mention it."
Beth and I had sat on the floor in Carol's room hoping that she would wake up soon. Dawn walked into the room and looked at us, "It's okay to cry." Beth shook her head, "I don't cry anymore." I nod, "To cry shows that you're weak, that you're vulnerable." Dawn sighs, "Well I do. I just don't let them see it." Dawn pours from her flask into two cups and offers it to us, when we don't take it she sits it net to us. She sits on the edge of Carol's bed, "It's from my own stash. There's no strings." Beth looks up at her, "I know now why you covered for us. You weren't protecting us. You were protecting yourself." "Is that so?" Dawn asks and I nod, "Gorman, Jeffries, O'Donnell... they were problems for you. And now they're not. And you didn't have to do the dirty work. That's how things get done here." "Everyone uses people to get what they want. You're not the ones who have to remember." Beth added. "Is that what happened with Edwards and Trevitt? He used you?" Dawn asked Beth. Beth looked away, "We're gonna get out. Just like Noah." Dawn shrugs, "He'll be back." I shake my head, "He's going home." Dawn sighs, "They always come back. They don't ever get far because they can't. But really... they don't want to." "He's going home." I reiterate. Dawn smiled slightly, "I was like you both when I was younger. Nobody could tell me anything. I'm not stupid. You both know her. And somehow all three of you wound up here. Maybe that means something. You two can be a part of this thing. Hell all three of you. This is important. Maybe the most important thing you do in your life. And what Joey did back there...what Beth did...Gorman and O'Donnell hurt people. The world didn't lose anything when they died. And you're both wrong about what happened. I didn't use you. And I will remember."
A/N:
Long chapter but it's really about to go down!! Next chapter is big as most of you know. 🥺