Last Chapter of this book but there will be a sequal and I'll post about it when I have the first chapter published. It would mean a lot if you continued to read. This will be a long chapter but bare with me the ending is worth it(I hope 😂)
Madisons pov.
I hold the test in my shaking hands and I have to blink really hard and stare at it again and again until it sinks in.
No. No. No. No. No.
I take two more tests again and go through the same routine. All the while thinking:
This cannot be happening, I mean how could it, I haven't had sex in a long time and the only person I ever did it with was Carl.... OH MY GOD...CARL!!!
This isnt real its just a really bad nightmare that I have to wake up from.
I stay sitting on the ground and actually pinch myself to get myself to wake up. I literally started pulling my hair and bashing my fists to my forehead and my last attempt was headbutting the ground. But I never woke, but it cant be real except the small voice in the back of my mind says it is real. I grab the box of pregnancy tests and the ones ive used and walk back into my room throwing them all under the matress of my bed. My chest begins to heave and move at irregular rates. My breathing is loud and uneven and tears form at my eyes.
I need to get out of here.
Im being trapped behind these walls and im sick of it. I need air, I need to think.
I feel wave after wave of fear and my stomach gave out on me. I could hear my heart pounding so loudly I thought it was gonna come out of my chest. My hands become cold and sweaty and my head hurts. I pull on proper clothes and a coat and then lace my shoes on my feet. I quietly walk down the hall. Everyone is in bed now and the house is silent. I quietly race to the sitting room to collect my bow and arrows that are still lying at the end of the couch. A figure on the couch moves in the dark and I have to bite my tongue to prevent myself from screaming and waking everybody.
"Where are you goin Mads." Luke asks
I forgot that he was still here. He must have woken up.
"Out." I snap.
"No, you can't its too dark out. Its dangerous. I wont let you." He tries desperately to stop me.
"You couldnt stop me if you tried. You're battered, I bet you can't lift yourself off the couch. And if you dare tell anyone I swear i'll make those walkers look less threatening." I promise. I swing my arrows onto my back and make my way towards the door, carefully and quietly unlocking it and then reminding Luke
"Dont follow me and dont say anything to anyone. Ill be back in a few minutes." I tell him and shut the door behind me. I take deep breaths an wipe away the tears that keep spilling down my face as I walk towards the gate. I see people on watch duty so I quickly turn and avoid their attention. I jog to the fence and put my knife in the holes in the walls to use as a step to climb higher and higher, I also used the steel bars to step on until I reach the top.
when I finally reach the top I jump down landing on my hands and knees. I pick myself up and I pay attention to the stinging in my hands as its the only feeling other than fear that I can feel right now. I load my bow and run into the amounts of trees. I dont know how far I run but I know that i've been running for quite some time and never stopped. The weight on my chest only gets heavier and I feel like i'm suffocating. I cant breath. When I finally stop running I gasp for breath and throw up beside a tree. I sink to the ground and hold my stomach.
Thats when I realised:
This is real. This is happening.
Luke's pov.
A few minutes later she never comes back. I gave her five minutes and they were the longest minutes of my life. I cant let anything happen to her, not while I'm the only one that knows shes out there. I try to heave myself off the couch but everywhere hurts and so I lie down again and roll off the couch instead. I use the coffee table infront of me to help pick me up off the ground. I need to get help.
"RICK!! CARL!! MICHONNE!! SOMEBODY?" I yell and in an instant Rick is by my side with a gun in his hand as he scans the room for any other sign of life other than our own.
"Whats going on? Who's here?" Rick asks and Michonne enters the room with her katana in hand and Carls not far behind her, also armed.
"Nobodys here. It- it's Mads..." I say panting for breath. I hold my ribs which hurt badly.
"What about Mads?" Rick and Carl say in sync. Michonne picks me up so i'm fully standing and I bend to pick up my gun from the coffee table and I put it in my holster.
"She left. She grabbed her arrows and her bow and told me she would be back. She's going outside the fence and its dark and shes alone. We need to help her." I rush.
"Holy shit Mads." Rick mutters.
"Michonne I need you to bring Judith to Gabriel. He can mind her. Carl, We need to gather up people for a search party." He announces.
"What about me?" I croak.
"No, you stay here. Your not in good enough state to go outside." Rick amends. I raise my hands in the air and start shouting.
"Im in this state because of that asshole." I yell pointing to Carl.
"Watch your mouth" Rick scolds.
"You had it coming. You wont lay another hand on Madison." Carl threatens coming closer to me but rick pulls him back.
"Guys this isnt a competitoin, its Madison. Hurry up" Michonne yells while putting her katana on her back and carrying Judith outside to give her to Gabriel. Rick and Carl gather their weapons and leave.
No way in hell am I staying here waiting for the girl I love to arrive back dead or alive.
Im going to find her.
Madisons pov.
I twirl my dads ring around my finger. Starring at the unique and original gem that I was named after as I paced back and forth between the trees that surround me. I hear a twig branch snap and I spin around to find the source but the darkness makes it difficult to see. I squint my eyes trying to look further into the darkness. Another twig snaps and I hear the horrible growling, moaning noise that roams the earth. My heart rate doubles in speed if thats even possible. I spin and turn trying to see which direction the noise is coming from. I reach for an arrow and slide it into place on my bow, ready to shoot. I walk forward and raise my bow at nothing in particular because I cant see. Suddenly something grabs me from my back and pushes me to the ground. My bow slips out of my grip due to the impact of the push and I scramble desperately to retrieve it. I quickly roll onto my back in time to see a walker fall ontop of me, trying to peal away my flesh and chow down on it like a sunday roast dinner. I look at my bow on the ground and battle to reach for it and use my hands to keep the walker off me. It snaps repeatedly above my face and I really look at it. If this pregnancy is really happening, then I could be like this walker in just a few months or less. I cant have a baby, I cant. For a split second a small voice in the back of my head says
Let go! Let the walker get you. This can all be over. You wont have to deal with any of this or anyone. It can all be over. It just takes a split second.
but another voice yells at me to keep fighting. Dont give up, dont let go. Its not just you that your trying to protect anymore.
Voices from everyone I've ever loved replay in my head at that one minute as the walker still struggles to eat me.
Ben- "Your strong Maddie, dont let anyone tell you otherwise. Your a fighter."
Dad-"All this i've been teaching you, how to shoot with a bow, how to throw knives and survive. This will all come to use when the time comes and this is what will make you who you are."
Mom-"I love you Maddie." (chp. 11)
Nick- " I always knew you were strong Mads." (chapter 41.)
Rick-" Your my daughter, your my family." (Chp. 119)
Abbie- "Do you think there is such thing as heaven?"
"Do you think mom and dad are up there? And Nick and Ben too."
"I hope when my time comes I'll be with them." (Chapter 104)
Luke-"I've always loved you." (Chp115)
Carl-"Ill always stay with you."(chp.95)
Suddenly the walker is knocked off me. It just dissapeared as if by magic. I look over to see the walker beside me on the ground, scrambling to get back to me, while another body lies face down on the ground. I grab my bow and shoot the walker but the arrow only gets its cheek. I stand up now and grab another arrow. I march upto the walker and drive the arrow harshly into its head. It instantly falls to the ground, bringing me with it and I know its already dead but I keep stabbing it in the face over and over with the arrow. I feel the freedom that I needed and the adrenaline rush that i've missed from being behind the walls. Blood splatters up at my face and I stop myself and take deep breaths.
"Mads." The other body calls. I crawl over to it and turn the person around. Its Luke, he must have dived and taken the walker off me.
"Oh my god! Luke? Are you trying to get yourself killed?" I whisper.
"I could ask you the same question."
"How did you get here?" I mumble.
"I ran ahead of the others, they're out looking for you." He explains.
I see his green eyes burning like fire into my own and I look at a cut he got on his forhead. I wipe away the blood with my thumb and lift him into a sitting position. He groans so I just hold him close and I feel my anger towards him slowly disolve.
"Im sorry Mads. I want things to go back to how they were, even though they're not the way I want them to be. Please just forgive me. I miss you." He pleads and his face looks up to me. His eyes have become so soft and his features grow childlike that I feel the need to nurture and protect him even though he is older than me. This is the face of the boy I grew up with and who I wanted to be like when I got older. This is my best friend and my brother.
"I forgive you. Im still angry, but we will figure this out. We always do brother." I whisper and pressing my lips softly to his forehead.
"We will. We'll figure it out problem by problem until we get back to being brother and sister. Just like the good old days." He smiles and his eyes crinkle. I cant help but smile back as a tear falls down my face.
"Starting with a big problem and I need your help with it." I sniff. I can trust Luke with this.
"Anything." He promises.
"Im pregnant." I whisper.
His expression freezes and he doesn't say anything for several minutes.
"Is it Carls?"
I nod.
"Does he know."
"No. Only you. I only found out, thats why I ran out here." I admit.
"We're gonna figure this out Mads. Don't be scared. I'll always be here and we'll keep this to ourselves until you decide otherwise. I'll take it to the grave if I have to." He murmurs and all of a sudden he's not in my arms, im in his. I sniff and wipe away my tears. The night is getting colder and the sky darker.
"Lets go back home." He suggests. We stand up and he walks to the far group of trees.
"Wait! I forgot my bow." I run just a few feet away from him, he's still in easy eye distance. I bend to grab my bow. When I stand up again I hear a rustling in the trees. I look back at Luke who has come closer and is now at arms distance to me, he has taken out his knife. I load my bow and point it at the direction of noise.
Suddenly I see something hurdling towards me, but not exactly at me. It comes to quick for me to have a chance to react. At the same time I release one of my arrows into the darkness in hopes to kill the preditor. Im rewarded with a loud piercing scream. The object skims painfully across my cheek but still passes behind me. I hold my hand to my throbbing cheek and when I pull it back there is blood. I hear something fall behind me and I turn around to find Luke slumped onto his knees and an arrow in his throat. I drop to my knees and catch Luke before he falls over. His blood is everywhere and I cant stop it. I dont know what to do. Hot tears drip down my face as I scream at Luke to hold on, but his green eyes are bulging and his face is turning purple.
"No, no, no. Please Luke dont leave me. Please dont go, you promised. You promised you would stay with me. We have to figure this out WAKE UP! WAKE UP BROTHER! dont leave me." I sob. My breathing hitches and I cant find my breath. I lift my head when I hear many footsteps running in our direction. Rick, Carl, Maggie, Beth, Michonne, everyone.... they've found us. They stand taking in the image and everyone reacts differently.
"PLEASE HELP ME!! HELP ME!" I scream at them. Everyone suddenly raises their weapons to behind me where a man walks out with his gun pointed at me. The man who killed Luke. I reach for Lukes knife and hurdle it towards the man as it smashes into his head and he drops stone dead onto the ground.
But Luke has an arrow in his neck not a bullet. Theres another man, with a bow. I look at Luke whos eyes have glazed over and skin has paled. I close his eyes and kiss his forehead.
"I love you brother. Sweet dreams. I will avenge you." I swear to him. I stand to my feet and load my bow at the darkness again while the others yell for me to come back. Rick marches up and hauls me back to the group but I kick and scream all the while, yelling to the person who took my brother from me.
"COME OUT! COME OUT AND FACE ME YOU COWARD!" I scream.
"Show your face now because I will find you and I can guarentee you, my face will be the last one you ever see." I threaten low and cold.
A tall man stumbles out from the trees and drops his bow to the ground. He doesn't show his face but I long to see it so I can see his eyes alert and frighted as I let him plead for the mercy that I won't show before plunging an arrow into his throat and watch his blood pour.
His beard is bushy and his hair is wild. He drops infront of who I presume was his friend before I killed him. He looks up at me with rage in his eyes as I do to. But his eyes soften and brows furrow as he takes my image in. My heart skips a beat. Even without the bow and behind the wild hair and bushy beard, this man is completely real and recognisable.
"Dad?"
Hope you enjoyed this book and I will post an authors note here during the week about the new book. Xx
Thanks for all the support.
*****************************
A.N
Hi guys so the second book has been published its called
'Living with the dead.'
I really hope you all read it and continue to vote and comment on it. I'm so proud of this book and I really hope you guys enjoyed it. I cant believe that it now has 13.1K views. Thats amazing and I couldnt thank you all enough, it means the world to me. I remember freaking out and being so happy when I got my first five views. That was like two years ago. I just really want to thank everyone who kept reading and encouraged and motivated me to keep writing. Thank you! 🎉💖✨