Dad and Glenn walk through the front door and I immediately run to him gripping his waist tightly. A sudden weight is lifted off of my shoulders knowing that he wasn't dead.
"Rick and Shane ain't back?" He asks rubbing my back assuring me he's okay.
"No," Lori tells him.
"We heard a shot." Dad says as I let go.
"Maybe they found Randall." Lori suggests.
"We found him." Dad tells her. That means the shot came from Rick and Shane. I hope Rick isn't hurt.
"Is he back in the shed?" Maggie asks.
"He's a walker."
"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel asks the question we all were wondering.
"No the weird thing is," Glenn states looking at each of us. "he wasn't bit."
"His neck was broken." Dad finishes. This doesn't make any sense. How could he be a walker if he didn't get bit? "The thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other and Shane ain't no tracker." That's apparent. Shane couldn't track; so how in the hell would he be able to now especially when he's lost his mind? "So he didn't come up behind him. They were together."
"Would you please get back out there and find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?" Lori pleads approaching dad. He waits a moment before answering.
"You got it." Dad says walking towards the door.
"Thank you." Lori says relieved dropping her hand from its place on dads arm.
Everyone heads outside with my dad leading. There are bodies in the distance but they aren't living. A giant herd is headed our way. The gun shot must've gotten their attention.
"Patricia, kill the lights."" Hershel whispers.
"I'll get the guns." Andrea says running back inside the house. The herd is loud, any more stray walkers in the woods can probably hear them and are probably on their way.
"Maybe they're just passing." Glenn says with faint hope in his voice. "Like the herd on the highway. Should we just go inside?"
"Not unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about." Dad says looking in the direction all the walkers are coming from. We don't have much time to discuss what to do. "A herd that size will rip the house down."
"Carl's gone." Lori exclaims coming back outside. My eyes widen. Maybe if I had checked up on him earlier-
"What?" Dad asks.
"He-- he was upstairs." Lori says in a panic. "I can't find him anymore."
"Maybe he's hiding." Glenn suggests. As much as I want that to be true we all know he's not. Carl has a bad habit of doing things he's not supposed to.
"He's supposed to be upstairs." Lori states with heavy breathing. "I'm not leaving without my boy."
"We're not." Carol says as Lori is on the verge of tears. This is just one problem after another. "We're gonna look again, we're gonna find him."
I hope they do find him. I can't lose another best friend and I can't be the last kid in our group. I wouldn't be able to live with myself knowing that I survived while my friends didn't.
We all rush around in a panic. Andrea brings the guns out and sets the bag onto the porch. I run inside to grab my crossbow and backpack before going back out to my dad. I'm not planning on leaving his side tonight.
"Maggie." Glenn says as she pulls out a shotgun.
"You grow up country, you pick up a thing or two." She says handing him a gun of his own.
"I got the number--" Dad says. "It's no use."
"You can go if you want." Hershel says taking a gun of his own. I didn't expect the old man to even know how to use one.
"You gonna take 'em all on?" Dad asks him.
"We have guns. We have cars." Hershel states.
"Kill as many as we can," Andrea simply states. It's an easy plan but will it work? "And we'll use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm."
"Are you serious?" Dad asks.
"This is my farm." Hershel says cocking his gun. What a badass. "I'll die here."
"All right, it's as good a night as any." Dad says hopping over the railing. I follow. If I get separated from the group I'd rather be with my father. I get behind him on his motorcycle and we take off. "You shoulda stayed behind."
"I'm not getting separated from you if things go south." I state wrapping my arms around his waist.
We roll to a stop and I notice the barn has burst into flames. Dad begins shooting walkers and I follow his lead. He rides in the direction of the RV where Jimmy is shooting walkers from inside.
"Yo! Must've been Rick or Shane that started that fire." Dad shouts over the walkers groans. "Maybe they're trying to get out the back! Why don't you circle round!"
"Got it!" Jimmy yells before doing as told.
The farm has erupted into chaos. Gunshots and groans are all I can hear. I continue shooting the walkers that get to close for comfort but before I know it I've run out of ammo. By the sounds of it the others are too.
"Daddy I'm out!" I say gripping his waist tighter. Everyone else begins to leave. There's no use, the farm is lost. The barn is fully engulfed in flames when dad stops his bike to look around.
We hear Carol scream and once again we head off. She's limping to us as I get as close as I can to dad, after all the bike isn't very big. I quickly take off my backpack and put it on the side of the bike next to dad's.
"Come on, I ain't got all day." He yells as she gets behind me. As soon as she gets on the fence holding the walkers back breaks and a large group is now chasing after us.
"Let's go!" She yells.
I take one last look at the farm as we speed off. I hope everyone got out alive but I know we must've lost some of our family. The one place that had been untouched by the apocalypse was now over run and the barn collapses from the flames.I place my head on the back of dad's vest and squeeze my eyes shut. I wish that all of this is just a nightmare as we drive away from the farm.
When I open my eyes its dawn and the sky is gray. We're driving in a forest and walkers are still following us. We're in for a long ride and the motorcycle is only becoming more cramped by the minute.
I keep my head on dad's back seeing as it's my only source of comfort right now. The farm is gone. My friends and family could quite possibly be dead. I don't know if Carl or Beth are alive everything went downhill so fast.
We're headed towards the highway. It's a good plan, but it is it good enough? The highway is the most logical way to go. I see a car driving ahead of us, from the looks of it- it's the car Maggie and Glenn used at the farm to escape.
"Dad look!" I say, hope lacing my voice.
"I see it Cheri." He says speeding up in order to catch the car.
Sure enough, Glenn is driving a distraught Maggie. When he notices us, he rolls down the window and slows to a stop.
"We're headed to the highway," He tells us looking towards the woman in the seat next to him. "That's probably where the others are."
"Same here." Dad states. "We'll take the lead."
Carol takes the this time to get into the car with them. I suppose she wasn't comfortable either. We take off again and it's silent for the most part. Every once and a while, we'll pass a stray walker but they can't reach us. Eventually a blue truck begins following us signaling another survivor from the farm.
It doesn't take long to get to the highway and soon enough we're at the spot where we left supplies for Sophia. We're back at the beginning. Stranded and low on supplies. I spot Carl and as soon as dad stops the bike I've hopped off and I'm running towards my best friend and engulfing him in a hug.
When I let go, Lori is running towards Rick and Carl with a relieved look on her face and I smile as everyone embraces their family.
"Where'd you find everyone?" Rick asks dad.
"Well those guys tail lights zigzagging all over the road figuring he had to be Asian driving like that." Dad jokes.
"Good one." Glenn chuckles.
"Where's the rest of us?" Dad asks Rick who has a solemn expression.
"We're the only ones who made it so far." Rick tells him.
"Shane?" Lori asks standing up but still keeping a hand on Carl's shoulder. Rick shakes his head and Lori looks away.
"Andrea?" Glenn asks.
"She saved me, then I lost her." Carol says. That must've been before we found her.
"We saw her go down." T-dog says sadly. I look down to my shoes.
"Patricia?" Hershel asks about his daughter.
"They got her too," Beth says on the verge of tears while holding Maggie's hand. "Took her right from me. I was holdin' onto her daddy. She just--" She's crying now as she asks for her boyfriend. "What about Jimmy, did you see Jimmy?"
"He was in the RV." Rick tells her. "It got overrun."
"You definitely saw Andrea?" Carol asks. She must feel bad, Andrea did save her life.
"There were walkers everywhere." Lori states.
"Did you see her?" Carol repeats.
"I'm gonna go back." Dad says and my heart drops as I reach for his hand.
"No." Rick states and I most definitely agree.
"We can't just leave her." Dad tells him.
"Daddy please." I whisper hoarsely. I don't want to lose him.
"We don't even know if she's there." Lori says. She's right, if Andrea was alive she would get the hell out of there.
"She isn't there." Rick assures. "She isn't, she's somewhere else or she's dead. There's no way to find her."
"So we're not even gonna look for her?" Glenn asks in disbelief.
"We gotta keep moving." Rick tells the group. "There have been walkers all over here."
"I say head east." T-dog suggests.
"Stay off the main roads." Dad says walking towards a walker thats making it's way towards us and picking up his crossbow. "The bigger the road, the more walkers. More assholes like this one."
He shoots and the walker drops dead to the ground with a bolt sticking out of his eye. A moment goes by before everyone gets back into their vehicles and I sit behind dad again.
We stay on the road for a while. It's windy and shivers rake through my body due to the Autumn weather. When Rick honks his horn we all stop and dad turns the ignition off as everyone gets out of their vehicles.
"You out?" Dad asks Rick.
"Running on fumes." He tells us.
"We can't stay here." Maggie says. She's right we haven't gotten that far ahead from the farm. Maybe we have, but not far enough in my opinion.
"We can't all fit in one car." Glenn says stating the obvious.
"We'll have to make a run for gas in the morning." Rick is looking around.
"Spend the night here?" Carol asks while Carl complains about being cold. I don't blame him.
"We'll build a fire, yeah?" Lori suggests.
"You go out looking for firewood stay close. "Dad tells the group. "Only got so many arrows, how you doing on ammo?"
"Not enough." Rick says.
Maybe we shouldn't have tried to save the farm. We got in over our heads and only wasted our ammo. There were obviously too many walkers for us to handle. The farm was lost the moment we saw the herd.
"We can't just sit here with our asses hanging out." Maggie argues slightly. She's also right but we don't have a choice; we've run out of gas.
"Everyone stop panicking and listen to Rick." Hershel tells the group.
Rick gives us instructions to set up a perimeter. We'll find gas and supplies in the morning. While thats all fine and dandy, we need to survive the night first. Maggie suggests that her and Glenn go try to find gas now but it's no use because Rick shuts her right down and assures us that we're fine as long as we stick together.
There's a stone structure that we will make camp at tonight. It's a good idea but not everyone is sure. There's still an element of panic amongst us.
"You know I found Randall right?" Dad asks Rick. "He turned but he wasn't bit. Shane killed Randall, just like he always wanted to."
Rick doesn't our eyes as Beth and Lori question how that was possible.
"We're all infected." He croaks. We stand around in shock and look at the man who we call a leader. "At the CDC, Jenner told me. Whatever it is we all carry it."
"You knew this whole time and never said anything?" I ask the question everyone is wondering. It's the first time I've spoken up about something in a while.
"How could I have know for sure? You all saw how crazy he was."
"That is not your call!" Glenn exclaims. "When I found out about the walkers in the barn I told everyone."
"I thought it best if people didn't know." Rick tells him. He goes silent before walking off towards the place that we'll make camp.
I stare at the ground for a moment taking all the information in. It's been a long day and I haven't slept in probably 24 hours. I take a step forward and a wave of dizziness washes over me before I fall to my knees. I don't know how long I stay there but I see feet approach me. Looking up a can see the outline of Carl through the sun.
"I thought you died." I whisper. "Why did you leave the house?"
"I don't know." He tells me with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Do you know how worried I was?" I ask. "How worried your mom was?"
"I know."
"No you don't!" I say with my voice raising. As much as I hate to admit it; I really do like this boy. Today and it's recent events confirmed it. "I thought you were gone forever and that I was never going to get to tell you how I really felt!"
He stays silent. I guess thats the only thing he knows how to do considering he doesn't know how to listen.
"Kids why don't you come over here." Lori suggests. I get up dusting myself off.
"Maybe you could listen for once." I suggest somewhat angry at the boy. He shouldn't have worried me like that. I shouldn't be this upset but at the same time he shouldn't have left the house.
As the sky grows darker and night falls upon us, I lay on a blanket next to the fire as dad pets my hair. It's something he's always done and it's always helped me fall asleep.
"We're not safe with him.'' Carol pipes up. "Keeping something like that from us. Why do you need him? He's just gonna pull you down."
"Nah, Rick's done all right by me." He tells her.
"You're his henchman." Carol responds. "And I'm a burden. You deserve better."
"What do you want?" Dad asks the older woman.
"A man of honor." Carol says and I almost laugh.
"Rick has honor." He says throwing a stick into the fire. There's a rustle in the woods and I immediately sit up placing a hand on my crossbow in case of emergency. I look around the trees searching for any signs of danger.
"What was that?" Beth asks.
"Could be anything." Dad assures. "Could be a raccoon, could be a possum."
"A walker?" Glenn stands up.
"We need to leave, what are we waiting for?" Carol asks.
We do need to leave. But we can't. With no food, fuel or ammo we might as well walk up to some walkers and let them eat us. Everyone begins to suggest ideas but Rick snaps.
"The last thing we need is for everyone to be running off in the dark." He states harshly. "We don't have the vehicles. No one's traveling on foot. No one is going anywhere."
A branch snaps and my crossbow is now aimed in the direction it came from.
"Do something." Carol pleads.
"I am doing something!" Rick says angrily. "I'm keeping this group together, alive! I've been doing that all along; no matter what. I didn't ask for this, I killed my best friend for you people for christ's sake!"
My jaw drops. That's why there was a gun shot. That's the reason the herd came. Of course it was Shane; it's always Shane. The group is silent as we all look towards Rick.
"You saw what he was like, how he pushed me." Rick says. "How he compromised us. How he threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing, he lead me out and wanted to put a bullet in my back. He was my friend, but he came after me."
The only sound is Carl who has now begun to cry. Lori hugs her son tight and rocks him back and forth.
"My hands are clean." Rick says before taking a moment of silence to think about his next words. "Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead, I say there's a place for us but maybe- maybe it's just another pipe dream. Maybe I'm fooling myself again. Why don't you go and find out yourself? Send me a postcard, go on theres the door. You can do better? Let's see how far you get. No takers? Fine. But get one thing straight-- you're staying? This isn't a democracy no more."
All eyes are on Rick. Some are horrified. For me, I can't tell if he's crazy or badass. Either way I know he's just trying to do whats best for the group and I respect that.
Wow this was long and it's trash. I'm sorry about that because even I'm not that satisfied with how I wrote everything and it's just very dialogue heavy. IDK.
Word count: 3022