Another
supply run, and another gang of cutthroats looking to entertain themselves on
the misery of the living.
Rick Grimes
held still, the hard, cold barrel of a gun to his right temple. His son, Carl,
was in the grip of a sweaty thug, while two more men held Michonne at gunpoint.
“Well, let’s
see,” the man holding Rick said. His breath was sour from gum disease and
cigars, and flowed across the side of his head in a hot, nauseating puff with
each excited breath. “Irv, here, is partial to little girls around ten, but
he’ll settle for a boy when he can’t have what he wants. This kid is a little
older than Irv likes, but beggars can’t be choosers, can they, Irv?”
“Sure can’t,
Ned,” Irv said, and licked the side of Carl’s face.
Carl, for his
part, didn’t put up any resistance. He kept his eyes locked on his father,
waiting for any order, as well as any opportunity. One would present itself,
and when it did, Rick planned to put up a fight. So would Carl and Michonne.
“Turley and
Calvin here aren’t very fond of dark meat, but they ain’t had a woman in almost
two months.”
“Nigger
bitch,” Turley said, and spat at Michonne. The disgusting brown glop hit her
neck and slid down between her breasts. Carl made a noise like a growl. It was
a perfect reflection of Rick’s own anger. “I’ll put you in your place before I
put you down.”
“Lookie
there, the boy likes her,” Calvin laughed. “What is she, your girlfriend? Or is
she daddy’s woman?”
“As for me,
well I hit the jackpot. I’m gonna get exactly what I want,” Ned said, and
rubbed his crotch against Rick’s ass. “You’re just my type, if you know what I
mean.”
“Yeah, Ned, I
think I know what you mean,” answered Rick. This earned a smelly chuckle from Ned.
“Take off
your shirt. I wanna see me some titty,” said Calvin. He was rubbing the front
of his crotch with his free hand and had a full-on erection.
Rick felt his
guts clench when Irv unbuckled Carl’s belt.
“You be
good,” Ned warned, “and you might walk away from this. Can't speak for the
woman or the boy, but I might let you live.”
Rick wasn’t a
fool. He knew the men would kill them all rather than leave him to possibly
seek retribution for Carl and Michonne. Still he nodded.
“Unbutton your
shirt or get a bullet in the leg,” Turley shouted at Michonne. “Then you can
take off the pants, lay down and spread ‘em.”
The
opportunity to fight came when Irv suddenly screamed. Rather than see what had
happened, Rick shoved at Ned, then elbowed him hard in the face. He gripped the
gun, wrested it from Ned’s grip, and then swung the man around and used him as
a shield. He shot one round, straight into Calvin’s head. That's when he realized Carl had stabbed Irv in the leg.
“Fuck!”
Turley shouted, panicked. He tried to keep an eye on Rick, Michonne, and Carl
all at once.
Rick spared
Carl another glance just in time to see him drive the same knife he’d used to stab Irv in the leg down into
Irv’s head. He gave it a twist and then withdrew it. Turley made the mistake of
watching Irv’s death, and Michonne used the distraction to scoop up her katana.
She brought the blade down, severing the hand that held the gun. Blood sprayed
across the ground as Turley screamed.
“Seems I’m
putting you in your place before I put you down,” she said, and then drove the
katana straight through his eye.
“P-p-please,
don't kill me,” Ned begged. He’d pissed himself and was now sobbing. “Look, I’m
sorry, okay? I’ll just leave and you’ll never see me again. Don't kill me, man,
please!”
Rick didn’t
bother wasting another word or another second on Ned. He had nothing
else to say. He put a bullet in the man’s brain and then let the body drop.
“Everybody
okay?”
He got nods
from both Michonne and Carl.
“I wonder,”
Carl said, wiping the side of his face and looking down at Irv. “Just how many
freaking pedophiles are running around out here?”
“You would be
surprised. Whoah!”
Carl and Rick
both took aim at the newcomer who’d spoken. He now stood with his hands held up
in a gesture of surrender, showing them empty. He was a tall, rotund man with a neatly
trimmed beard, glasses, and clean clothes, which told Rick that this man had a
good setup somewhere.
“My name is
William. I go by Will. I was not with these men. Though I proudly confess to
being homosexual I can assure you that I am neither a rapist nor a pedophile. I
have a willing, adult, husband
waiting for me at home. His name is Nathan. He’s a delightful fellow, as I am
sure you are, sirs, when you’re not aiming guns at people.”
Rick didn’t
lower his gun; neither did Carl, though he believed the man when he said he
hadn’t traveled with Ned’s gang. Those men had clearly been living
hand-to-mouth. This man looked like he could have stepped out of a time
machine, having come from the world that was before the Turn.
“Where would
home be?” asked Rick.
“Sanctuary
One. I would really like to get back to Nate, so if you could try not pointing
those guns at me.”
“I don’t know
you well enough not to keep my gun on you,” Rick answered. He thought it
unlikely Will had a weapon that he was ready to draw, but he wasn’t taking the
chance.
“Okay,” Will
said, nodding. “I’m a recruiter, if you will. I go out and look for survivors
to offer shelter to at Sanctuary One.
Rick spared a
glance at Ned. “These the kind of people you let into your sanctary?”
“No, but you
are. I’ve watched you and your group for two days now, while avoiding these
men. I wanted to approach you first but I saw you’d run into them. I was going
to leave to alert your friends to your predicament when you fought your way out
of it,” Will explained.
“We heard
shots! Is everybody okay?”
Glenn had
arrived. He was alone but armed with two pistols. He looked over the carnage
and then back at Will. A second later, he also pointed his gun at the newcomer.
“He’s okay,”
said Rick, deciding to cut the man some slack. He lowered his gun. Glenn and
Carl followed his lead. “Tell us more about this sanctuary.”
*****
“You can’t be
serious. After Terminus, you really want to risk another so-called safe place?”
Rick
understood Michonne’s skepticism. He felt the same way, but the truth was, they
needed food and shelter, and the pickings were practically nonexistent. He
rubbed her back and pulled her close while listening to the sound of a few
stray walkers meandering by on the street below. The sky was clear and the half
moon gave them some light through the open window.
“I get it,”
he said. “After all we’ve been through, this could be another trap, but think
about it, Baby. Every living person has picked through the stores and houses for
anything that can be eaten. Every other group has degenerated into rape gangs
and murderers. Ammo is nonexistent. Walkers have formed herds sometimes a
thousand head strong. We saw a few hundred of them tear into a house to get at
two people just last week.”
“I know…”
Rick’s eyes
went to Judith, who slept on her little mat a few feet away. She looked like an
angel, wrapped up in her blanket, but he knew it wouldn’t be long before she
woke and insisted on cuddling up to Michonne. “I really don’t see how we have a
choice. Judith isn’t old enough to understand to be quiet. A cry at the wrong
moment could get everyone killed. We’re gonna die out here without safe shelter.”
“We could
also die in there,” she answered.
“Then again,
these people might be genuine. I don’t see how we’re going to avoid the risk.”
She looked up
at him, ready to suggest one or two of them going for a look of the place, when
someone knocked at the door.
“Who is it?”
“Me, Dad.”
They sat up.
Rick pulled his shirt on. “Come in.”
Carl opened
the door and leaned in. “Food’s here.”
“What food?”
“That man,
Will? He came back, with food.”
Michonne
picked up Judith and went with Rick and Carl down the hall to the main room of
the store they’d sought shelter in to find Will had come bearing gifts, along
with another fellow that Rick assumed was his husband, Nate. Candles had been
set up, along with a couple of lanterns, making the room glow warmly with flickering golden light. A
veritable feast had been set up in the center of the table, but no one had
started to eat.
“Three roasted
chickens, mashed potatoes and gravy, rolls, green beans, stuffing, and apple
pie for dessert,” said Will. “Nobody will touch it. I was told you hadn’t eaten
in two days.”
“It could be
poisoned, or drugged,” said Rick.
Will and his
partner looked at one another and burst out laughing. “My God. Why on earth
would we poison you?” asked the new man with Will. He offered a hand. “I’m
Nathan, Will’s husband.”
Rick shook
his hand. “Rick Grimes. Have you tasted the food?”
“No, but we
will.”
They made
themselves a plate and tucked into it. Rick decided the food probably wasn’t
poisoned, or drugged, and he gave the go ahead to the others to eat. The sound
of chewing finally overshadowed the sound of rumbling bellies. Rick made his
plate last, after he made certain Carl and Michonne had food, and Judith woke
up to the smell of it.
“I have to
ask,” Michonne said. “Why would you want us to join your people in this sanctuary
of yours? We’d just be a drain on your resources.”
“Quite the
contrary. We’re not just gathered together and going out on raids. We’re using
the resources at hand to build. The more people we have, the more energy we
produce, the more we build, the better off we are. We’re located five miles
from here. You almost found us on your own,” said Nathan.
Will nodded
in agreement and cleaned the meat off a drumstick. “We have a lot of educated
people in Sanctuary One. We have secure access to the Ocmulgee River, we’ve got
fresh water being pumped in twice a day. We’re farming solar energy and sharing that with Sanctuaries Two and Three--”
“How many of
these places are there?” Abraham asked.
Will grinned,
looking proud. “Sanctuary One was the first. We started it when the Turn first
began. Since then we’ve expanded and have two more. We have a total of two
hundred forty-five survivors in all three Sanctuaries. We’re farming, we’re
fishing, we’re using natural renewable energy to keep the sanctuaries powered.”
“Sanctuary
Three is mostly a wind farm that was set up just as the Turn broke out. Our
people are doing good work but we need more to grow. My God, there’s a good
chance we can start rebuilding humanity right here in Georgia,” said Nathan.
It was hard
not to get caught up in their enthusiasm. It sounded wonderful. It sounded too
good to be true. Rick showed nothing outwardly. Instead, he looked to Daryl,
then to Tyreese. They looked back, trying to play it cool, but he could sense
the hope in them, too. He could see it in their eyes. They wanted to try.
“We hope you’ll
join us,” said Nathan. “Honestly, we thought you’d jump at the chance to have a
safe home and food.”
“We thought
we’d found that last year,” said Rick. “Turned out they were a gang of
cannibals, luring victims in by promising safety and food.”
Will and
Nathan looked genuinely horrified. “No wonder you’re wary,” said Will. “I can
only offer you my word that we’re not cannibals, though, I realize my word means
nothing to you since you don’t know me.”
“You’re
welcome to come back with us, check the place out, see if you like it, and
then, if you judge us to be trustworthy, bring all of your people with you. At
the end of the day, however, it really comes down to trust. You can stay out
here, in danger, or you can come to Sanctuary One and help us try to beat this
disease, and help us try to rebuild civilization.”
*****
It was easier
to fall asleep on a full stomach, but Daryl Dixon wasn’t in the mood to sleep.
When the others went to settle down for the night he took Beth’s hand and led
her up to the roof of the building. He spared a glance at the street below and saw that the light from the
candles had drawn about fifteen walkers. They’d have to worry about that in the
morning.
Turning his attention to Beth, Daryl reached under her skirt and pulled down her panties. He was desperate to be
inside her, and she was equally desperate to have him. They’d mastered the art
of quiet sex. Now they had a hard, fast rhythm established and they muffled
their moans by breathing them into one anothers mouths. She tore her lips from
his and bit into his shoulder as he moved inside her, pumping his hips and
gripping her legs to keep her lifted off the ground. He thrust hard, driving
her over the edge before he followed her.
“What do you
think of this so-called safe haven?” Daryl asked, zipping up when they were finished.
“I think I
want to check it out,” Beth said, pulling her panties back on. “I’d rather be
slaughtered and slapped on a barbecue pit than live another day out here.”
“Rick has
agreed to go back with Will and Nate tomorrow. I’m going with them to see how
it looks.”
Beth put her
arms around Daryl’s neck. “Can’t you stay with us? Let Abraham go.”
He knew she’d
say that. She always came up with an excuse to try to keep him by her side
rather than let him go out to try to provide for the group. He understood her
fears. She’d watched the Governor cut her father down, and she’d seen so much
shit since then. Still, he couldn’t put all the risk off on Rick, Glenn, and Abraham.
“You know I’ve
gotta go, Baby,” he said. “Rick needs me.”
“We need you.”
“Glenn is
gonna stay,” he assured her.
Beth heaved a
sigh. She knew it was pointless. This was an argument she almost never won with
Daryl. She kissed him, slow and deep, and then lay her head on his shoulder.
“Be careful.”
“I’m always
careful. I’ll come back. Promise.”
He took her hand
and led her back inside. They found their place on the floor of the main room
and curled up together. To his relief, she was asleep in seconds.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t wind down so easily.
Sanctuary.
Was it another trap, or was it for real? He prayed, for Beth’s sake, that this
time it was real. He didn’t just want to survive anymore. He wanted to live. He
wanted a family of his own. He wanted this place to be the real deal.
Next
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Neat story. Well written. You have a natural ease with the action and the dialogue. I like the stage you're setting and I look forward to more!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! I'm glad you're enjoying it :D
DeleteGreat story.
ReplyDelete