Rachel and Emma had wriggled under the RV, unable to find a place where sobbing couldn't be heard. They lay awake there all night, holding each other's hands as the dog's slept between them. They should have been terrified, but instead they just felt numb. It was as if after having to feel so much in the last couple days, they had exhausted all emotion and now there was nothing to feel. The terror they felt last night was still so fresh. Rachel lay there in silence, listening to Emma as she relayed the day's events while she had been in Atlanta.
It hadn't come as a surprise to hear that Ed had apparently been beating Carol and possibly even his daughter, Sophia. Nor had Shane's breakdown in which he beat the living daylights out of Ed. What did come as a surprise was the apparent acceptance the people in the group had. Especially when it came to who she had thought were the more upstanding people there, it boggled her mind why someone wouldn't have stopped Ed from beating her after seeing her with bruises even once. It never had made sense to her why people ignored the signs of domestic abuse even before the apocalypse. But now? What good did it do to ignore Ed beating his wife? Of course, she didn't expect Shane to do anything about it; but what about Lori? Or Dale? Even though Shane beat the crap out of Ed, based on what Emma told her about his and Lori's conversation, it was clear that it hadn't been for Carol's benefit. He'd just been blowing off steam.
After a while they just listened as Andrea cried over her sister and the children sniffled in their parent's tents. Their disconnect was so complete, they hardly reacted when Rick climbed up onto the roof of the RV just as the sun peeked over the hills. Rick stared out at the sunrise bathing the city of Atlanta in a golden glow as he tried to reach someone on the walkie-talkie. Static screeched through the audio receptor as he played with the knob, tuning the radio to the correct frequency.
"Morgan, I don't know if you're out there. I don't know if you can hear me. Maybe you're listening right now. I hope so. I found others... my family, if you can believe it. My wife and son, they're alive. I wanted you to know that. There's something else you need to know. Atlanta isn't what we thought. It's not what they promised. The city is... Do not enter the city. It belongs to the dead now. We're camped a few miles northwest, up by a big abandoned rock quarry. You can see it on a map. I hope you come find us. But be careful. Last night walkers came out of the woods. We lost people. Watch yourself, Morgan. Take care of your boy. I'll try you again tomorrow at dawn."
"Who do you think Morgan is?" Rachel whispered. She shifted onto her side as Kuzco worked to burrow underneath her. "Damn it, Kuzco! Your elbow is digging into my ribs!"
Emma shrugged and snickered, making cow eyes at her own dog who was still sleeping peacefully in her arms.
After dislodging Kuzco's paws out of her spleen, Rachel flopped onto her back, wincing at the lingering ache still worming its way through her head. She could hear the camp starting to awaken around them and inch out of their tents, the mood subdued as the chatter stayed low. Sighing, she stared up the RV's undercarriage. Even though she knew they needed to get up and help with packing up the camp she didn't want to deal with the day yet.
She made up her mind and tapped Emma on her hip. "Come on. Let's get up."
Emma groaned.
"Come on."
As Rachel shimmied out from under the RV, a cursory glance to the side let her know Andrea still continued to keep a lonely vigil over the body of her dead sister, Amy. She grimaced as she watched Lori come up to her, instantly knowing what she was going to say. She only hoped the broken woman wouldn't attack her.
"Andrea. I'm so sorry." She put a gentle hand on Andrea's shoulder, pausing for a moment when Andrea gave no acknowledgement of her presence. "She's gone. You got to let us take her. We all cared about her and I promise we'll be as gentle as we can."
Andrea continued to ignore her until Lori finally backed away to escape the intense awkwardness. The girls followed behind Lori toward the group, dusting bits of dead grass from their jeans while she looked back at Andrea, wringing her hands from stress. Those who survived last night's attack were busy dragging the bodies away from camp over to the burning bonfire and throwing the walker bodies into the flames. Those who were members of the group died were separated from the unknown walkers and set aside for burial. Daryl swung a pickax into the walkers' heads as Glenn and T-Dog threw the bodies into the fire.
Rick turned to his wife as she approached and put his arms around her. "She still won't move?
She shook her head.
"She won't even talk to us. She's been there all night. What do we do?"
Shane paused in his digging, taking off his cap and wiping the sweat from his face. "Can't just leave Amy like that. We need to deal with it same as the others."
"I'll tell her how it is." Rick stated.
Rachel grabbed him by the arm before he could pass. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
He looked at Andrea and then back at her. "She'll understand." He removed himself from her grip and continued on.
"I guarantee she won't."
Rick managed to get within a few steps of Andrea before he was stopped. She didn't even let him speak, immediately pulling out her gun and aiming it straight at him.
Rick put his hands up in defense. "Andrea."
"I know how the safety works." She sniffed, echoing his advice in Atlanta.
"All right. Okay. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
Rick backed away, breathing again only when Andrea set the gun back down and resumed.
Rachel smirked as he returned. "Told you." She sniped.
"Y'all can't be serious." Daryl panted, unintentionally flinging pieces of walker guts resting the pickax against his shoulder. "Let that girl hamstring us? The dead girl's a time bomb."
"And you're a dick."
"You talkin' to me?" Daryl growled. He dropped the ax and stomped up to the girl, stopping barely an inch from her.
She shrugged but didn't back down, tilting her head back so she could see his face. "I thought we were trading god-awful insults at people. What's the matter, you can dish it but can't take it?"
"Take it?" He scoffed. "Make sure you meet the height requirement first, Pincushion."
She rolled her eyes. "So original. I'm barely five feet, do you really think you're the first person to comment on my height-"
"Enough!" Rick sighed heavily, raking his hands down his face as tried to keep from yelling at her.
God, it was like herding cats since they picked up those two from Atlanta. He was grateful Emma wasn't as confrontational as her sister, but the constant stress was starting to get on his nerves. "Rachel, take your sister and go help T-dog and Glenn with the bodies. Daryl, what do you suggest we do?"
"Take the shot. Clean, in the brain from here. Hell, I can hit a turkey between the eyes from this distance."
"No. For God's sake, let her be." Lori interrupted.
"God, that's what I was trying to say." Rachel groaned. "Her sister just died horribly. You could at least let her say goodbye. By the way, if you had suggested something like putting my sister down to me you'd have eaten a bullet already." She added before joining them at the pyre.
Daryl picked the pickax back up and nudged Jim's leg with his foot. "Wake up, Jimbo. We've got some work to do."
The smell of burning rotted flesh inundated the campsite, causing many to tie pieces of cloth or bandanas over their faces to keep from breathing in the smoke and ash. Rachel sat down by Dale for a quick break, watching as he bent over the engine of his RV and tinkered with the tubes and canisters within. He straightened as Emma joined them, trailed by the dachshunds, and wiped his greasy hands on a handkerchief he pulled from his pocket.
"So, where are you two from?" He questioned, pulling up a crate and sitting down next to them. "You've never said."
"Utah," Emma answered with a grimace.
Dale chuckled. "Not a fan, I gather?"
Emma shook her head.
"It was always too cold," Rachel clarified. "The summer was okay, but those winters?" She shuddered as if just the thought made her cold again. "No thanks."
Dale nodded understandingly. "Utah to Georgia. That's quite the trek. You got family close by?"
"No. It's just us two."
Emma sniffed and wiped away a tear that escaped her eye. "Momma left us a couple weeks before," She whispered, fingering the silver charms of the necklace dangling from her neck. Rachel smiled sadly and pulled back the sleever of her flannel to reveal a bracelet with identical charms.
"Were you married?" He asked, indicating the gold wedding band on Rachel's hand.
"No. That was Momma's, too."
He covered the girls' hands with his and squeezed.
"You know, the end of the world is a funny thing. We're losing people out here every day. We almost forget that losing people before was just as hard, just as painful."
A panicked voice drew everyone's attention to Morales and Daryl who were being stopped by an outraged Glenn as they dragged the body of a dead camper toward the fire. Dale, Rachel and Emma joined with the growing group of people gathered around the increasingly heated argument.
"What are you guys doing? This is for geeks. Our people go over there."
"What's the difference? They're all infected." Daryl retorted, continuing towards the fire.
Glenn moved to stand in between Daryl and the fire, refusing to allow them to throw a member of their group in with the walker bodies.
"Our people go in that row over there. We don't burn them! We bury them. Understand? Our people go in that row over there."
"What's the difference? They're all infected." Daryl retorted, continuing towards the fire.
Glenn moved to stand in between Daryl and the fire, refusing to allow them to throw a member of their group in with the walker bodies.
"Our people go in that row over there. We don't burn them! We bury them. Understand? Our people go in that row over there."
Daryl rolled his eyes and huffed as he and Morales dragged the body away from the fire and back toward the digging hole.
"You reap what you sow." He sneered, tossing the body onto the pile.
Rachel could see that Morales was through with the man's antics. It was understandable. Everyone had continually tried to be understanding with Daryl as he dealt with not having found Merle in Atlanta
"You know what? Shut up, man."
"Y'all left my brother for dead. You had this coming."
As the argument continued between Daryl, Morales and Glenn, Jacqui and Jim continued to pile up the bodies. Emma tapped on Rachel's shoulder, pointing to Jacqui as she grabbed Jim's arm and stopped him from picking up another body, having noticed blood on Jim's shirt.
"Are you bleeding?" Her voice was just above a whisper, barely audible over the arguing.
Jim shook his head and turned away, trying to walk away from her. " I just got some on me from the bodies."
Oh no, Rachel thought and began moving over towards the two. She could hear Gidget and Kuzco growling behind her, the pets obviously aware of the tension occurring on all sides.
Jacqui grabbed him again before he could escape. "That blood is fresh. Were you bit?"
"No. I got scratched during the attack." He continued to back away.
"You got bit."
"I'm fine."
"Then show me."
Jim clutched at his side, unwilling to lift his shirt. Sweat began beading on his forehead and running down the side of his face but whether it was from the coming fever or the stress of being singled out was anyone's guess. "Don't tell, please." He pleaded, his voice wavering.
"A walker got him. A walker bit Jim." She tattled immediately.
Rachel and Emma looked at each other as the argument in back of them ceased, the group coming to gather around Jim, worried.
Jim continued his pleas as he tried to escape for the entire group now. All except for Andrea who looked up for only a moment before bending down again to the still silent Amy.
"I'm okay. I'm okay."
Daryl picked up his crossbow and aimed it at Jim, stalking him as backed away like he would a deer. It was clear there was no escape for Jim now. Rachel and Emma fixed Jacqui with an accusing glare. Neither one could believe how easily she had thrown Jim under the bus like that.
"Show it to us. Show it to us."
"Easy, Jim." Shane said, inching toward him like Jim was now some rabid animal instead of their friend.
"Grab him."
Jim quickly bent to pick up a shovel from off the ground, holding it aloft against the people surrounding him.
"Jim," Shane raised his hands as he crept closer. "Put it down. Put it down."
T-Dog came from behind Jim and tackled him, disarming him and wrenching his arms behind his back as Daryl and Shane pulled his shirt up to reveal the large wound on his abdomen. The wound was surrounded by teeth marks, clearly showing it to be a walker bite.
"I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay." Jim repeated the mantra as he fell to his knees, the will to fight having left him as the group discussed his fate around him.
The discussion over Jim's fate continued for several minutes as Rachel and Emma sat with him. Everyone else in the group had stepped away from him, leaving him alone to feel the creeping effects of the fever as the discussion continued. He petted the dogs absentmindedly as they laid in his lap, seemingly in his own world and detached from the conversation happening around him.
"I say we put a pickaxe in his head and the dead girl's and be done with it." Daryl remarked, earning himself a glare from Emma.
"Is that what you'd want if it were you?"
Daryl didn't even pause to think. "Yeah, and I'd thank you while you did it."
Dale sighed. "I hate to say it... I never thought I would... but maybe Daryl's right."
Both Emma and Rachel jerked their heads in Dale's direction, surprised that he would make such a suggestion.
"Jim's not a monster, Dale, or some rabid dog." Rick fumed.
"I'm not suggesting..."
"He's sick. A sick man. We start down that road, where do we draw the line?"
Daryl scoffed. "The line's pretty clear. Zero tolerance for walkers, or them to be."
"What if we can get him help?" Rick asked. "I heard the C.D.C. was working on a cure."
Shane shook his head dismissively. "I heard that too. Heard a lot of things before the world went to hell."
Rick ignored him. "What if the C.D.C. is still up and running?"
"Man, that is a stretch right there."
"Why? If there's any government left, any structure at all, they'd protect the C.D.C. at all costs, wouldn't they? I think it's our best shot. Shelter, protection..."
"Okay, Rick, you want those things, all right? I do too, okay? Now if they exist, they're at the army base. Fort Benning."
"That's 100 miles in the opposite direction." Lori mentioned.
"That is right. But it's away from the hot zone. Now listen to me. If that place is operational, it'll be heavily armed. We'd be safe there."
Rick pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, annoyed that they were getting nowhere. "The military were on the front lines of this thing. They got overrun. We've all seen that. The C.D.C. is our best choice and Jim's only chance."
Daryl rolled his eyes before savagely lifting the pickaxe once again and heading toward Jim, murder clear in his eyes. "You go looking for aspirin, do what you need to do. Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!"
"Hey hey hey!" Shane cried as he immediately gave chase.
Daryl headed toward Jim but was stopped as he prepared to take a swing when both Emma and Rachel jumped in front of him, blocking his ability to kill Jim. Rick pointed his gun at Daryl's head, nodded in gratitude to the girls.
"We don't kill the living."
Daryl snorted in derision. "That's funny coming from a man who just put a gun to my head."
Shane joined them, aiming his own gun at Daryl as well. "We may disagree on some things, not on this. You put it down. Go on."
Seeing he wouldn't be able to pike Jim without losing his own life in the process, Daryl put the pickaxe down and stalked away, muttering a string of curses under his breath.
"Come with me." Rick grunted while pulling Jim to his feet and walking with him away from the situation entirely.
Jim looked around, grabbing Rachel's hand in terror. "Where are you taking me?"
"Somewhere safe."
Relieved of their duty to watch out for Daryl or keep Jim company, Rachel and Emma left to start packing up their bags, readying for the coming funeral and exit from the camp. They watched as Dale sat beside the still silent Andrea who'd kept a continual vigil for over eight hours. While it was understandable that she wanted to say goodbye to her sister, Rachel couldn't even begin to understand why Andrea was still waiting for Amy to turn into a walker. Wouldn't her as a mindless, growling walker be the exact opposite of the last image you wanted to have of your loved one? Awful as it was to even think about, if something were to ever happen to Emma, there was no way she wanted her to become a walker.
"I came to pay my respects." Dale mentioned as he sat, his presence actually being acknowledged by the girl. "Did I ever mention how I lost my wife?"
"Cancer, wasn't it?" She whispered, her eyes not leaving her sister.
He nodded. "Yeah. I dragged her to every doctor, every test. And after all the surgeries and the chemos, she was ready. She accepted it, you know? But I never could. And I spent the last few years so angry. I felt so cheated. Since she passed, you girls were the first people... That I cared anything for." Dale paused for a moment, wiping his eyes at the memory of his dearly departed wife. "This is her birthday?"
Andrea nodded mistily. "Her birthday was always like... like a week long affair. But I somehow always missed it. I was away at college or too busy for kid's parties. She'd call all excited. I always said that I'd make it home and I really always meant to, but I never made it past that phone call."
"I know things are hard enough for you without adding guilt into the mix, huh?"
Andrea sniffed and wiped her hand across her nose, nodding as she pulled out the mermaid necklace and carefully wrapped it around Amy's neck.
Later, after Amy had been put down by Andrea and all the fallen campers were piked and buried, the remaining survivors staged the funeral. Andrea and Dale cried as they carried Amy's body and put it into a digging hole. However, beyond setting Amy down, Dale was no longer allowed to help with pulling her into the grave. When he tried, Andrea immediately rebuffed him, sobbing.
"I can do it. I can do it. I can do it! I can do it." She wailed, struggling to pull her sister's body into the grave.
Everyone stood in silence over the mass grave, pondering the memories of those within and entertaining thoughts of what lay ahead. Slowly, they filled the graves with the quarry dirt and went their separate ways. Rachel and Emma took the dogs and made their way towards the RV, finding a much sicker Jim lying within.
He smiled when he saw them enter, patting the side of the bed for them to sit with them. Both of the girls were quiet as they sat next to him, sad to lose one of the only people to have actually welcomed them into the camp so soon. As they sat together, he told them stories of his wife and children before they passed, back when they were all together and happy before the apocalypse. It was sad to learn of how they died and the guilt Jim continued to feel over the fact that he survived while they had died.
Carol stayed with him as well, letting him tell his stories in silence as she sat with Sophia, checking his temperature every so often.
They jumped slightly as the door to the RV opened after a while, relaxing once they saw Lori and Rick enter.
Carol stood and skirted the small hallway as she made her way over to the couple.
"His fever is worse."
Lori pursed her lips before looking around the corner towards Jim and the girls. "You need anything?"
"Uh... Water." Jim whispered, licking his chapped lips. "Could use more water."
"I'll get some."
Jim nodded and laid his head back down on the pillow as if even that little bit of movement had tired him out. "Okay."
Lori motioned for Carol to follow her as she stepped out of the RV. "Carol, you help me?"
They left Rick and the girls to stay with Jim. Emma moved out of the chair sat next to Jim's sickbed and moved over to sit next to Sophia as Rick sat next to Jim. She and Sophia giggled together as Sophia played hand clapping games with Gidget as Kuzco jumped around at their feet, offended that he wasn't being included in their games.
"You save a grave for me?" Jim chuckled, not noticing as Rick's face went pale.
"Nobody wants that."
Jim swallowed hard and groaned, squeezing his eyes shut in pain. "It's not about what you want." He croaked. "That, uh... that sound you hear, that's God laughing while you make plans."
"What I want, Jim, if... if God allows, is to get you some help."
Jim groaned again and spat out a glob of rust-colored saliva.
"Watch the mangroves." He moaned, delirious. "Their roots will gouge the whole boat. You know that, right? Amy is there swimming. You'll watch the boat, right? You said you would."
The giggling and playing stopped as Emma and Rachel stared at each other, fear clear on their face over Jim's sudden turn.
Rick nodded and put a hand on Jim's shoulder to calm him down. "I'll watch the boat. Don't worry."
Jim smiled and laid back down, closing his eyes. "Okay."
Rachel heard as voices began talking outside the RV from where she sat beside an open window. They were barely above a whisper, but she could tell it was Shane and Lori.
"I need you to help talk some sense into Rick. Look, this C.D.C. thing, Lori, it's a mistake. So you're backing him?"
"What else would I do? He's my husband."
"Look, it may be time for you to play the dutiful wife, but you can't tell me that fixing your marriage is worth putting people's lives at risk."
Rachel struggled to keep her face neutral as she listened, appalled that Shane could bring up such a thing. The more time she and Emma spent here, the clearer it was that there was a lot more going on between Lori and Shane than they were saying. In fact, she was sure prior to Rick's return that they had been sleeping together.
Oh, what a tangled web we weave...
"I think folks around here can make up their minds without bringing my marriage into it. It's a habit you need to break." Lori's voice was angry.
"I guess I'll just add it to the list of habits that I'm breaking whether I like it or not."
Rachel scrambled to her feet, motioning for Emma to stay with Sophia as she and Rick emerged from the RV.
"What habits?"
"Just talking about my need for a plan, man." His eyes narrowed when Rachel smirked and pointed towards the open window from behind Rick. "So what is it? Are we leaving or not? Maybe y'all just want to stay here. We could hang some more tin cans."
Rick stared at Shane in disbelief. "We can't stay here. We both know that."
Lori nodded, looking directly at Shane as well. "I was just telling Shane I think we should trust your gut."
He held her gaze before he turned around, smirking." Let's go do our sweep."
Rick nodded and followed Shane and Dale as they departed to sweep the surrounding forest for walkers. Rachel crept behind the trio, watching as Rick and Shane pulled away from Dale in their search.
Shane scanned the paths through the trees, listening carefully for any sounds before turning back to Rick.
"Tell you what, man, these people, man, they're not convinced. You know? You head to the C.D.C., you might be on your own. You gotta really consider whether you want to put Lori and Carl in that kind of spot."
"I got to do what's best for my family."
"Best for your family?" Shane snorted. "What's that? Exposing them to all kinds of risks?"
Rick stopped, eyeing Shane carefully. "As opposed to what? Crossing 100 miles of hostile territory? If we're looking for a lifeline, I say swim toward the closest ship, not further out to sea. Why can't you back me up?"
"Look, I want to. It's just... I don't see it."
"If it was your family, you'd feel differently."
Shane immediately spun around, his eyes dangerous as he pointed at Rick in anger. "What did you say to me?"
Rachel crept closer through the foliage, staying crouched low to the ground so as to not draw attention to herself as she moved closer to the arguing duo. Crawling over a fallen log, she waited for a moment in her advance as she waited for the voices to continue.
"I kept 'em safe, man. I looked after them like they were my own. That's what I did."
"I didn't mean it that way."
She raised her head just over a stump and saw Rick as he stepped toward an obviously angry Shane and tried to calm him down.
"Well, how'd you mean it? Go on, man. How'd you mean it?"
"You're misinterpreting me."
Shane rolled his eyes at Rick's placating tone. "All right."
"You're just hearing it wrong."
"Yeah?"
"Look, you know..." He sighed, momentarily at a loss for words. "You know I can never repay that debt, okay?"
A branch snapped, drawing Rick away as he followed the noise. From his place in the distance, Rachel watched in horror as Shane stalked Rick's trail and his aim landed on Rick. She moved quietly but quickly towards him, keeping herself camouflaged, ready to tackle him to the ground if necessary. His eyes were crazy, but his demeanor was calm, evidently at peace with his decision to murder his best friend in cold blood. He bared his teeth as his finger hovered over the trigger.
What can I do? Do I say something? Is he going to shoot me if I do?
Beside her, she could see Dale making his way to Shane as well and breathed a sigh of relief at the fact that she would not be alone in her knowledge of Shane's persisting breakdown. Finally, the Fluffernutter dropped the gun to his side with a glare, only then noticing Dale watching him.
"Jesus." Dale breathed, his eyebrow raised in suspicion. He was cautious as he stepped closer.
Shane chuckled and Rachel's blood ran cold at the ruthless sound of it.
"I know. Gonna have to start wearing reflective vests out here. Seriously." He motioned to Rick. "Come on, man." He called, ignoring Dale's worried gaze. "Come on, man, let's go. Nothing out here."
Dale watched Shane as he left, clearly worried. He raised his gun toward Rachel in fear as she stepped out of the brush, her hands raised.
"Whoa, dude!"
Dale sighed in relief, pulling off his bucket hat to wipe off the sweat running down his face. He scanned the woods around them, knowing Rick and Shane couldn't be far away.
"Come on," he commanded. "Let's head back."
"Wait, are we really going to ignore that whole thing back there?"
He shushed her. "Later. As you've clearly proved, you never know who's listening in these woods."
They arrived back at the camp, no one mentioning the tense conversation that took place in the woods. They watched as Shane stood in the middle of the group and made the announcement.
"I've been, uh... I've been thinking about Rick's plan. Now look, there are no... There are no guarantees either way. I'll be the first one to admit that. I've known this man a long time. I trust his instincts."
Rachel glanced at Dale who gave her an answering shake of his head.
"I say the most important thing here is we need to stay together. So those of you that agree, we leave first thing in the morning."
Rachel lay on the floor of the RV next to Emma that night, cocooned in her sleeping bag as they listened to Jim murmuring in his sleep. Rick and Shane had tied his arms to the bed in case he turned in the night. She shifted in the dark, trying to get comfortable around the table leg pressing into her back as she and Emma were squeezed into the narrow walkway of the RV and prayed it wouldn't turn into a night of her being a rotisserie chicken. She was grateful, however, that the headache from her concussion had finally dissipated and her bruises, while still tender, weren't throbbing with constant pain. Carol was snoring on the couch above them while Sophia slept curled up in the passenger seat. With so many people crammed into such a small space, she supposed it was inevitable that there would be a rather funky smell hanging in the air, but it still bothered her.
Sleep couldn't be further away as she listened to the cacophony of breathing reverberating throughout the space. She nudged Emma, making sure she was awake before she inched toward the front of the RV where Dale slept.
"Pssst! Dale" She whispered.
"I'm awake," he replied softly, sighing as he turned around in the driver's seat to look back at them.
"What are we going to do about Fluffernutter?" She asked. Noticing her sister's confused look, she leaned towards Emma and whispered. "Dude tried to kill Rick today. And earlier I heard him talking to Lori. Those two are totally banging each other."
The younger girl nodded and turned to Dale to wait for his response.
He sighed and scratched his head. "There's nothing we can do right now. He hasn't done anything concrete yet-"
"What, so we wait for him to actually kill Rick before saying anything? That's fucked up."
"That's not what I'm saying." He looked at her disapprovingly. "What I'm saying is to keep an eye on him for now. If we all keep an eye on him, he can't do much without at least one of us noticing."
Rachel and Emma gave each other a dubious glance before looking back at the old man.
"Go to sleep for now, girls." He said quietly, turning away from them to go back to sleep himself. "We have a long day tomorrow."
Still dissatisfied, the girls nevertheless crawled back to their sleeping bag and cuddled down with Gidget and Kuzco, hoping that sleep would soon claim them and a new day would dawn.
At dawn, the RV rocked once again as Rick climbed up onto the roof and tried once again to reach his unknown friend, Morgan, on the radio to advise him of their plan.
"We're moving out, leaving the quarry. If you heard me yesterday, you may be coming here. If you are, we'll be gone by the time you arrive. I'm leaving a note and map behind for you taped to a red car so you can follow our trail. We're heading to the C.D.C. If there's anything left, it's got to be there, don't you think? Morgan... I hope you were right about that place. I need you to be."
He climbed down, joining everyone as they quickly dressed and packed away what little had been left.
Shane stood on a log and addressed the group.
"Everybody listen up. Those of you with C.B.s, we're gonna be on channel 40. Let's keep the chatter down, okay? Now you got a problem, don't have a C.B., can't get a signal or anything at all, you're gonna hit your horn one time. That'll stop the caravan. Any questions?"
They were surprised when Morales and his family decided to split from the group, opting to head for Alabama to be with family instead of the CDC in spite of the pleas from several of the survivors for them to stay. Respecting their decision, Rick gave them a couple weapons for them, wishing them luck as they parted ways. Before they left, Rick placed a note on the hood of the sports car for Morgan, letting him know where they were going.
A couple hours into their journey en route to the CDC, the RV's radiator hose burst, forcing the caravan to stop along the side of the road. Dale poked around the innards under the RV's hood for a few minutes before slamming the hood back down in frustration.
"I told you we'd never get far on that hose." He said, wiping his hands down the leg of his pants. "I said I needed the one from the cube van."
Rick sighed. "Can you gerry-rig it?"
"That's all it's been so far. It's more duct tape than hose. And I'm out of duct tape."
Shane shielded his face from the sun as he looked up and down the road. "I see something up ahead." He pointed. "A gas station if we're lucky."
They were interrupted as Jacqui climbed out of the RV.
"Y'all, Jim... It's bad. I don't think he can take anymore."
Rick and Shane gave each other a worried glance.
"Hey, Rick, you want to hold down the fort?" At Rick's nod he grabbed up a walkie-talkie and turned. "I'll drive ahead, see what I can bring back."
"Yeah," T-dog added. "I'll come along too and I'll back you up."
"Y'all keep your eyes open now. We'll be right back.
As Shane and T-Dog drove ahead, Rick climbed into the RV to check on Jim. The man thrashed on the bed, contorting his body in obvious agony. Sweat poured from his body, soaking his clothes and bedding beneath him. His gaze flitted around the room, poorly attempting to follow the figments of his fever dreams.
"We'll be back on the road soon." Rick stammered softly, reaching out to the frightened man.
Jim shook his head vigorously. "Oh no. Christ... My bones... My bones are like glass. Every little bump..." He swallowed hard, his mouth dry. "God, this ride is killing me. Leave me here. I'm done. Just leave me. I want to be with my family."
"They're all dead." Rick cried, desperate to change his friend's mind. "I don't think you know what you're asking. The fever... You've been delirious more often than not."
Jim chuckled, groaning as pain rippled through him at the action. "I know. Don't you think I know? I'm clear now. In five minutes I may not be."
His body convulsed, wracked with spasms as he coughed violently, his lungs struggling to take in more oxygen. He rolled his head to the side, staring into Rick's eyes. "Rick, I know what I'm asking. I want this. Leave me here. Now that's on me. Okay? My decision. Not your failure."
Everyone clambered out of the vehicles, gathering together as Rick relayed Jim's last wishes. Rachel clutched Kuzco to her chest, causing him to give the underside of her chin a few comforting licks. She couldn't believe what was being suggested. To just leave Jim behind? Looking around the group, it was obvious the sentiment was echoed by many.
"It's what he says he wants."
"And he's lucid?" Carol questioned, wringing her hands together as she glanced back at the RV.
Rick straightened his shoulders, taking in the group as a whole. "He seems to be. I would say yes."
Dale shifted from one foot to the other and cleared his throat. "Back in the camp when I said Daryl might be right and you shut me down, you misunderstood. I would never go along with callously killing a man. I was just gonna suggest that we ask Jim what he wants. And I think we have an answer."
"We just leave him here?" Shane recoiled. "We take off? Man, I'm not sure I could live with that."
Lori stood with her arms crossed in front of her, her eyes downcast towards the ground when she spoke. "It's not your call, either one of you."
Reconciled to the dreaded course of action, Rick and Shane carried a nearly unconscious Jim out of the RV and over to a nearby tree. They gently set him down against the base of the tree, smiling as the man dug his fingers into the earth beside him as if needing to feel some tangible object to center himself again.
"Yeah. That's it." Rick stated as he backed away.
"Hey," he moaned, looking up at the leaves and branches swaying in the gentle breeze above him. "Another damn tree." Jim chuckled at the memory, thinking back to a similar tree only a couple days ago.
Shane got down on his knees in front of Jim and placed both his hands on the man's shoulders, blocking out everything else from his view. "Hey, Jim... I mean, you know it doesn't need to be this."
"No." He shook his head, a peaceful smile finally gracing his face. "It's good. The breeze feels nice."
"Okay. All right."
"Just close your eyes, sweetie. Don't fight." Jacqui whispered. She leaned in, kissing Jim on the cheek before backing up, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Rick pulled out the gun from the waistband of his pants and showed it to him. "Jim, do you want this?" He asked, holding it out to him.
"No. You'll need it. I'm okay. I'm okay."
"Hey." Dale croaked. "Thanks for, uh, for fighting for us." The old man quickly looked away into the sun, sniffling as he worked to blink back the tears threatening to spill down his face.
Rachel and Emma knelt down, releasing the dogs as they bounded to crawl on the man they'd grown so fond of. Gidget fell on her face getting out of her bagging, skidding into the dirt as she tried to regain her balance. Finally getting back on her paws, the dog shook her tiny body to dislodge the dirt and leaves stuck to her coat, making Jim chuckle as he was showered with the debris. Kuzco was much more graceful, hopping up onto his hind legs and planting his front paws on Jim's chest to beg for pets.
"Kuzco," Rachel moaned. "Stop being such an attention whore."
She knelt down and looped her arms around Jim, squeezing him in a hug and whispering a goodbye in his ear before standing to gather her dog into her arms. Emma hugged the man as well before fixing her noise canceling headphones back on her head and pushing Gidget back into her carrier. They watched Jim as the RV pulled away until he was nothing more than a spot in the distance and then disappeared completely.
The caravan traveled in complete silence until finally coming to a stop outside the CDC compound. The parking lot, outer sidewalk and building are surrounded by hundreds of corpses, all of which were covered with a thick swarm of flies. The front vehicle in the caravan ran over the limbs of several dead bodies as it approached the CDC. As the group filed out of the vehicles, they were hit by the intense smell of death and decay from the hundreds of bodies lying dead on the ground. Dried blood caked every conceivable surface and organs had been ripped out of the bodies and left to rot in the sun.
Emma whimpered as she took in the grisly scene, burying her face in Rachel's shoulder as both girls fought to hang onto what little had entered their stomach that morning. The dog's whined from within their packs and Rachel made shushing sounds to Kuzco as he tried to escape from the bag. Afraid he might escape, Rachel zipped the bag closed and pressed close to the group. Her eyes scanned her surroundings, but the constant swarm of flies made it difficult to detect movement when it seemed like everything was moving.
"All right, everybody. Keep moving." Shane commanded, pushing Carol and Sophia to walk in front of him. "Go on. Stay quiet. Let's go. Okay, keep moving. Stay together."
Rick took hold of Lori's hand as she grabbed Carl, determined to keep them near him as they moved toward the building. "Keep moving. Come on."
"Carol." Lori whispered, motioning toward the woman to hurry, giving Shane a dirty look when he shushed her.
"Oh, God." Glenn moaned, almost bent over as a wave of nausea threatened to overwhelm him.
Rachel snickered as she watched him, remembering how he had reacted to the walker bodies being spread on him back in Atlanta.
When they finally reached the building, Rick pulled hard on the handles of the door, his eyes going wide with fear when found them locked and shuttered. He yanked harder, pounding on the doors in frustration when they still wouldn't open. He screamed, pushing his head against the door.
"Keep it together." Shane urged. "Come on."
The group slid around the outside of the building, looking for another set of doors to try. The building was a fortress. There was no way it could have fallen.
"We're almost there, baby." Lori crooned in her son's ear. "Almost there."
"Nothing?" Shane panicked when yet another door turned out to be a fruitless effort.
Rick shook his head, looking back at his best friend in desperation. Shane pounded on the door, yelling.
"There's nobody here." T-dog gasped.
Rick's arms flailed, indicating the blocked off windows. "Then why are these shutters down?"
"Walkers!" Daryl shouted, taking aim at the dozens of bodies shambling closer, lured by the sound of the living.
Lori pulled Carl into her arms, pressing his face into her body as she tried to shield him from the coming horror. "Baby, come on."
"Oh yeah, because if he can't see them coming then it means they're not." Rachel sneered as she withdrew her bat.
"You don't know what you're talking about," Lori barked.
"You can't coddle him forever, Lori. The dead are walking, shielding his eyes from won't change that."
"Enough!" Daryl shouted as he released an arrow into the head of an advancing walker.
He glared at Rick as another fell. "You led us into a graveyard!"
"He made a call." Shane responded.
"It was the wrong damn call!"
"Just shut up. You hear? Shut up. Shut up!" His breathing quickened as the horde drew near, their growls hungry as they wandered toward the warm bodies gathered together. "Rick, this is a dead end."
"Where are we gonna go?" Jacqui wailed, hugging her arms tight around her.
"She's right." Lori responded as she clutched her son's hand tightly in her own. "We can't be here, this close to the city after dark."
"Fort Benning, Rick..." Shane sighed. "Still an option."
Andrea rolled her eyes and snorted. "On what? No food, no fuel. That's 100 miles."
"125." Glenn corrected. "I checked the map."
"Forget Fort Benning. We need answers tonight, now." Lori answered, dismissing the option entirely.
"We'll think of something." Rick said, still glued to the CDC building.
"Come on, let's go." Shane motioned back towards the vehicles. "Let's get out of here. Let's go. Please. All right, everybody back to the cars. Let's go. Move."
Rick suddenly pointed up to a camera in the upper corner above the door. "The camera... it moved."
"You imagined it." Shane retorted.
Rachel looked at Shane, frowning at the way he subtly ran his hand down Lori's arm as he led her away. She threaded her fingers through Emma's belt loop, pulling her away from Shane and towards Rick. While she wasn't sure if Rick actually saw the camera move, she definitely trusted Rick's judgment over Shane's.
Rick remained adamant. "It moved. It moved."
"Rick, it is dead, man. It's an automated device. It's gears, okay? They're just winding down. Now come on." He yanked on Rick's collar, trying to pry him away from the doors. "Man, just listen to me. Look around this place. It's dead, okay? It's dead. You need to let it go, Rick."
Rick slammed his palms against the shutters.
Lori's eyes flashed as she moved in front of Rick and clutched his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her. "Rick, there's nobody here!"
"I know you're in there." He pleaded with the camera. "I know you can hear me."
Shane fought to drag him away, even roping in Lori to help him. He wrenched out of their grasp, however, and threw himself back against the door, continuing to pound as walkers surrounded them. Rachel and Emma joined him, pounding on the doors and windows as well. The walkers were moving closer, their numbers too many to be taken out now. Soon there would be no escape.
"Everybody get back to the cars now!" Shane screamed, pulling again at Rick.
"Please, we're desperate." He begged. "Please help us. We have women, children, no food, hardly any gas left."
Lori's tone was unforgiving as she jerked Rick's arm, still clutching a now sobbing Carl to her. "Rick. There's nobody here."
"We have nowhere else to go. Rick pounds on the door. Rick: Keep your eyes open. If you don't let us in, you're killing us! Please!"
"Come on, buddy, let's go. Let's go."
Rick was inconsolable as he slid down the door and onto his knees. "Please help us. You're killing us! You're killing us! You're killing us!"
The others began moving away from the building back toward the caravan when the door to the CDC opened, drowning the survivors in light.