Contagion Chapter Twenty-Three
Pacing back and forth in the living room, Kate ran a hand through her hair. It was dark out and her husband was gone and she was afraid he wouldn't make it back. Even with all of their troubles she didn't want to lose him, she couldn't lose him.
"You keep pacing like that and you are going to wear a hole in the floor," Taylor said as he went to Kate and put his arms on her to stop her from moving anymore.
Kate shook her head as she looked at Taylor, "I can't help it, I'm worried about Zac. It's dark and they aren't back yet. What if something bad has happened?"
"You think Zac is going to die now?" Taylor asked curiously as he raised an eyebrow.
"He's right," Jessica spoke up from where she sat on the couch with Glenn. "Zac's a Hanson and we're known for our stubbornness, we don't die without a fight and there is no way Zac is going out this early in the game."
"None of us are," Taylor added in knowing he planned on keeping what family he had left alive. They had already lost too many, there was no need to lose more.
"I'm going after them," Andrea spoke as she stood up from a chair she had been sitting in.
Lori shook her head at Andrea's words, "Don't, they could be anywhere," she said knowing Andrea may never find them or she herself could get lost. "And if Randall comes back, we're gonna need you here."
It wasn't even no time after Lori got out her words that Kate heard the door open and she turned her head seeing Daryl and Zac coming in and she felt a sudden amount of relief washing through her. Just knowing her husband was well.
"Rick and Shane ain't back?" Daryl asked as he looked at the people gathered in the living room.
"No," Avery answered as she came out of the kitchen being followed by Mac. She had heard Daryl's voice and that was all she had needed to get the nerve to come into the living room again, just knowing he was safe.
"We heard a shot," Daryl said knowing he and Zac had heard a shot on their way back to the farm.
Lori shrugged, "Maybe they found Randall," she spoke wanting to stay optimistic.
"We found him," Daryl said letting the others know they had found Randall.
"Is he back in the shed?" Kate asked curiously as she walked to where Zac was, pulling him to her some and just holding him as if her life depended on it.
"He's a walker," Daryl answered as he looked over at Zac's wife.
"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel asked as he eyed the two men.
Zac shook his head as he pulled away from Kate slowly, "No, the weird thing is he wasn't bit."
"His neck was broke," Daryl added in finishing Zac's sentence.
"So he fought back?" Patricia asked from where she was standing near a window.
"The thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other," Daryl said as he looked at the others again. "And Shane ain't no tracker, so he didn't come up from behind him. They were together."
Hearing Daryl's words Lori closed her eyes almost feeling sick at what he was saying, what that could imply, "Would you please get back out there, find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?"
"You got it," Daryl nodded as he turned to leave the house again.
As Daryl turned to leave Avery just looked down and closed her eyes not wanting him to go out again after dark. She hated thinking of what could happen to him but then again he could take care of himself, he had shown that numerous times.
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Standing on the front porch with Viv, Lucy closed one eye as she aimed her rifle at the incoming walkers, "What if they don't come back?" she asked referring to Sutton and Alice who had been on a nightly run. Viv had thought it better to do some runs at night.
"Then we leave them," Viv answered as she too aimed her rifle at incoming walkers and started shooting. "We can't die in hopes that they come back, but we keep holding on for as long as we can," she muttered as she kept seeing more walkers coming onto the property. "I never expected so many to come out this far," she muttered knowing that once they left here she wasn't sure what she'd do. They had no where else to go.
"Yeah well sometimes the world throws curve balls," Lucy responded as she started firing at the walkers with the rifle. The rifle wasn't the gun she was good at it but for situations like this it was what was best.
Continuing to fire at incoming walkers Lucy lowered her gun when she saw two approaching figures coming in from the other side of the house's porch, "Sutton? Alice?" she whispered wanting to make sure it was indeed them.
"Did you expect the pope?" Sutton asked as she climbed up onto the porch, "Alice and I we managed to make it back but just barely. I ran out of ammo so Alice had to cover me part of the way here."
"There's ammo inside," Viv told Sutton as she watched Alice walk up onto the porch behind her. She was glad that they had came back because thoughts of living without Alice were kind of sad since she had came to love the woman. "We stay until the last possible minute and then we run," she spoke trying to sound firm. "We keep running until we can't anymore and hopefully when that happens we'll find somewhere safe at least for a night or two."
"But our stuff...the life we planned," Alice frowned knowing they had all gotten used to the stability of life around here. It had been nice up until tonight.
"Maybe we should stop planning," Lucy muttered harshly not sure if planning was good when the world was gone to hell and there seemed to be no fixing it.
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"You bit too?" Carl asked as he looked up at his dad as they walked across the field, heading back to the farm.
"No," Rick answered as he looked over at Carl. He was still shocked at the events that had happened and he was almost numb in a way so his voice sounded almost emotionless.
"Shane was," Carl frowned looking down at the grass.
"That wasn't Shane," Rick corrected Carl. "You know that."
Carl nodded his head slowly, "Used to be," he said knowing that even if Shane had turned into a walker before that he had been a person. "What happened? You guys attacked?" he asked curiously not understanding what had happened. "I mean, I...I heard a gunshot, but I didn't see any walkers nearby. How did Shane die?"
Coming to a stop at Carl's words, Rick turned to face him as he tried to think of an answer, a response he could give to his son but before he could even get words out he heard that indescribable moan that came with walkers and as he turned towards it, his eyes widened as he took in the sight. There was a lot of them, hundreds maybe more. More than what had been on the highway the day Sophia had ran off.
"Oh my god!" he exclaimed as he looked down at Carl. Putting his hand on Carl's back Rick started leading him towards the woods fast, "Go...go go."
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Jessica who had walked out onto the porch with Zac and Daryl made a face as they all three stopped in their tracks when they looked towards the woods and the barn. Off in the distance they could see an incoming herd. A herd much bigger than the camp one and the highway one.
Swallowing hard she couldn't help but have a sinking feeling in her stomach that shit was about to go down and they might not get out unscathed. Taylor's words from earlier could be a mote point because he indeed could lose some of his family.
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Running with his dad through the woods, Carl eventually crouched down as they made it to the tree lines where they could see the barn, "We..we gotta get to the house, tell the others," he said panic in his voice at the incoming herd that was coming at them.
Rick shook his head at his son's suggestion, "We'll never get through that," he said knowing there was no way they would make it back to the house through all those walkers. "Can't go around," he said knowing they couldn't go around it either. "Carl, stay close," he whispered to his son as he again put his hand on his son's back and began to walk with him to the barn.
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Hershel who now stood on the porch with most of their group watched the incoming herd silently, "Patricia, kill the lights," he whispered knowing if none of the lights were on that may distract them.
"I'll get the guns," Andrea spoke as she turned to head inside and get their guns which they would need.
"Maybe they're just passing, like the herd on the highway," Taylor mused knowing the herd could just pass them by. "Should we just go inside?"
"Not unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about," Daryl answered as he turned to look at Taylor, giving him a look as he rolled his eyes. "A herd that size would rip the house down."
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Making it to the barn with Carl, Rick closed the doors behind them before finding a piece of wood to secure the doors shut for now but as both he and Carl backed away he knew it wouldn't last long. The walkers already banging on the doors would break through and find their way inside.
Heck the walkers would also find their way inside the house too and he needed to do something, he had to find a way to keep himself safe as well as his son and his group. He had to think quick before things got even more worse then what they were.
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"Carl's gone," Lori said as she walked out onto the porch in a state of panic.
"What?" Daryl asked surprise in his voice at Lori's words.
"He..he was upstairs," Lori chocked out as she put her hands to her chest. "I can't find him."
"Maybe he's hiding," Jessica stated knowing Carl could just be hiding somewhere else in the house.
Lori shook her head, "He's supposed to be upstairs. I'm not leaving without my boy."
"We're not," Kate said as both she and Carol went to Lori's side. "We're gonna look again. We're gonna find him."
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Still just standing around in the barn, Rick could hear the walkers clawing at the doors like rabid animals and soon a plan began to formulate in his head as he took Carl by the arms and headed with him up towards the ladder going to the rafters so they'd be higher up.
The plan may not have been one of his best ones yet but hopefully maybe it could save some lives, hopefully it could help their group make it out and also alert them to where he was and the dangers that were incoming.
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Standing on the porch still, Taylor watched as Maggie went through the gun bag that Andrea had brought out and as she grabbed a rifle for herself and handed him one, he looked at her confused. "Maggie..." he started not even sure if she knew how to use a gun. She hadn't went to the gun training when the group had, had one.
"You grow up country you pick up a thing or two," Maggie stated as loaded the gun around her arm.
Zac who was watching Maggie just smirked at her words and how she had taken control. Maybe Taylor knew how to pick women after all. A woman who could handle herself and knew how to shoot a gun.
"I got the number," Daryl stated as he kept on watching the herd. "It's no use," he said knowing shooting at them was no use.
"You can go if you want," Hershel said as he loaded the gun in his hand.
"You gonna take 'em all on?" Daryl asked his voice coming out disbelieving. There was no way Hershel could handle all of those walkers.
Hershel finished loading the gun and he stood up straight again, eyeing Daryl, "We have guns. We have cars."
"Kill as many as we can and we'll use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm," Andrea added in going along with Hershel's train of thought.
"Are you serious?" Daryl asked still not believing this plan could actually work.
"This is my farm," Hershel stated as he locked eyes with Daryl. "I'll die here."
Daryl shrugged, "All right. It's as good a night as any," he muttered as he hopped over the porch's railings.
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Being back at the bottom of the barn again, Rick who now held a can of gasoline started pouring the gasoline all over the place even as he watched the walkers slowly tearing off pieces of wood as they tried to make their way in here, hungry for a meal, hungry for him and any living human they could get their hands on.
Once he was done pouring the gasoline he looked at Carl who had followed him down, "Up there. Hurry," he muttered not sure how much time they had and he wanted Carl out of harm's way.
"What about you?" Carl asked as he locked eyes with his dad.
"I'll be right there," Rick said as he reached for a lighter in his pocket and handed it to Carl. "Drop the lighter when I say. We'll stop some of them from reaching the house and distract the others, so at least they'll have a chance," he spoke seeing doubt and confusion on his son's face. "Hey..hey..hey, look at me," he said putting his hand on Carl's shoulder. "You can do this."
Seeing his son give a slight nod Rick knew he acknowledged what he just said, "Carl, I love you," he said just wanting his son to know...in case one or both didn't make it out alive. It was after that, that he rushed Carl up the ladder and he headed towards the doors which he began to bang on, "Hey! Hey!. You want some?!" he asked "Come and get it!" he said as he opened the barn door in a hurry and began to walk away as fast as he could as the walkers began to come inside, all of them trying to get him.
"Come on! Come on!" Rick continued as he taunted the walkers he was leading farther into the barn. "Come on!" he yelled as he made it to the ladder which he began to climb up. "Over here!" he yelled "Come on, you want some of this?!" he asked feeling the walkers trying to grab at him as he climbed up the ladder as fast as he could.
When he made it to the top, he turned to look at Carl, "Carl, now!" he yelled at his son watching as Carl dropped the lighter down and a fire instantly started.
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Taylor who was in the front seat of the car Maggie was driving, sighed as he tried to get his aim just right as she drove erratically around the farm. Most of the group had split up into vehicles. Andrea and T-Dog where in the blue truck, Daryl was on his motorcycle, Mac and Jimmy had gotten in the RV while Avery and Zac had chosen to stay at the house near Hershel, mainly because both of them were pretty good shots from far away.
"Keep it steady!" Glenn complained from where was in the backseat with Jessica. Both of them were also hanging out the window shooting at or trying to shoot at the walkers.
"I'm trying," Maggie spoke as she shook her head. It was hard trying to drive the car around the farm with walkers coming at them from what felt like every direction.
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"The barn's on fire," Beth said as she grabbed onto Patricia and Kate, bringing both women to the window she was standing at in the house.
Kate looked through the wood they had used to board up the windows and she could see some of the walkers heading for the barn, "They're headed for it."
"Maybe Rick set it to draw 'em in," Patricia stated knowing Rick could have done that as a diversion tactic.
"I can't find him anywhere," Lori stated as she ran down the stairs still in a panic over Carl. She had searched the whole house and he was still nowhere in sight.
"So maybe he snuck outside," Carol stated as she came over to where Lori was.
Lori shook her head feeling tears sting her eyes, "What do I do?!" she asked getting frustrated by this situation.
Leaving the window Kate walked over to where Lori and Carol where, "He was here. He must've run off, maybe looking for Rick or went after Randall himself."
"Maybe he set the fire," Patricia added in as she looked over to Lori.
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Mac who had opened the window in the back room of the RV, hung out of it, shooting walkers, though he stopped briefly as he watched Daryl ride up to talk to Jimmy who was driving the RV. Jimmy, the boy he had a crush on and the boy he had hopelessly followed onto this RV like a lovesick puppy in hopes of some affection when this was all over with, even if it was just a few kind words.
"Must've been Rick or Shane who started the fire!" Daryl called out as he looked at Jimmy. "Maybe they're trying to get out back. Why don't you circle around? Go!"
"Got it!" Jimmy called out as he sat down in the driver's seat and started the RV again, heading to the now on fire barn.
Closing the window to the back, Mac left the back bedroom and went to where he could see where Jimmy was going. As he came to the front seats, he looked out the window seeing Rick and Carl perched on the back of the barn and Rick was screaming at Jimmy to park the RV which Jimmy soon did.
Once the RV was parked, Rick soon found a way down onto it, also helping Carl and they both walked on the roof soon finding the ladder and climbing down.
Mac couldn't help but smile to himself once he knew that Rick and Carl had been saved, though his smile soon faded as he watched Jimmy stand from the front seat and start to head for the doors. He hadn't even got a few feet before the doors burst open thanks to walkers barging their way in.
"No," he muttered as he shook his head watching the walkers starting to eat on Jimmy as more walkers just kept on piling onto the RV. Mac knew..he just knew there was no way out and he refused to become walker chow while still alive so he made his way into the RV's bathroom where he shut the door.
Once the door was shut he closed his eyes trying to fight off the tears that wanted to come and he said a little prayer, one asking for forgiveness for what he was about to do. He might've had his doubts about god but there had to be a place better than this world and if he was going to die tonight he wanted to go there, he wanted to go and be with his mom and Zoe.
After his prayer he raised the gun to his temple and took one last deep breath before pulling the trigger.
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Avery who was standing beside Zac and Hershel as they kept shooting at walker's turned her head briefly as she watched Lori,Carol,Beth, and Kate coming out of the house. She could hear Lori still going on about Carl and she was guessing they hadn't found him yet and her heart went out to Lori even if she wasn't a mother. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be stranded away from your child.
Turning back to the oncoming walkers she kept shooting as she also listened to Kate and Carol talking Lori into leaving. Leaving was something Avery knew they'd have to do, there was just too many but she wasn't sure if she was ready yet. She had grown too used to this farm and the supposed safety it had, had.
Hearing Lori trying to get Hershel to leave, Avery stopped shooting as she looked at Zac, "W..we have to go," she spoke to him as she chewed her lip.
Zac shook his head as he looked at Avery, "You and Kate go. I'm gonna stay with Hershel for as long as I can," Zac nodded as he smiled at Avery doing his best to hide his nerves.
Giving Zac a look Avery shook her head, "No..I.."
"Listen I don't want Daryl to kill me because you didn't make it out alive, so go," Zac muttered as he stopped shooting long enough to push Avery away.
Not fighting anymore with Zac, Avery held onto her rifle as she took off running, soon catching up to Lori and the others in time to see Patricia get taken down and as she ran past the scene she watched as Lori had to literally pull Beth away from Patricia to stop Beth from getting eaten.
As the blue pick up truck made it to where they were Avery watched Andrea get out, telling them to get in and as she got in before Lori and Beth she heard Lori telling Andrea to go after Carol and Kate who had both ran off in another direction.
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Holding her gun close to herself Kate looked around, she had started after Carol who had gotten cornered by a walker but then she too had gotten cornered and had to run in another direction towards the opposite side of the farm. She could hear the walkers behind her but she tried to ignore it as she just kept running, soon making it into the woods where she used the trees to her advantage to crouch behind every so often before taking down walkers that got too close.
"God, I'm not sure you exist still but please get me out of this alive," Kate prayed to herself before taking off running again from a tree she had been hiding behind. "If you get me out of this alive I promise I will start praying more to you," she whispered under her breath before turning to shoot down some walkers that were getting too close to her liking.
After she had done that she did her best to ignore her tiredness. She had to keep running. She had to keep herself and her baby okay until Zac or one of the others came to look for her.
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"They got her!" Lori exclaimed as she watched a walker fall down on Andrea who had been trying to help Carol but ultimately had failed. "We gotta go!" Lori told T-Dog knowing they couldn't stay on the farm. It was a lost cause now.
After Lori's words Avery felt T-Dog drive off and she also felt her heart drop into her stomach because they were leaving people behind. She was leaving Daryl behind and she wasn't sure if she'd see him again and that thought saddened her, even if she was thankful to be getting off the farm and even if she was thankful that Lori, Beth, and T-Dog had also made it she didn't want to leave Daryl because she knew there was a possibility she may not see him again and god Zac was still with Hershel and what if he died? What if her other family members died?
All those thoughts were enough to render Avery numb and not able to speak as she just sat silently wedged between T-Dog and Beth.
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"Where the hell are they going?" Maggie asked as she watched the blue truck leaving the farm. "Should I follow them?" she asked to anyone who was in the car with her.
"I'd say yes," Taylor spoke as he came back inside and watched Maggie drive. "Swing it around, swing it around here," he said instructing her to get around. As she almost ran into oncoming walkers he made a face, "Whoa, whoa whoa," he muttered out.
Maggie watched horror stricken at the walkers coming her way, "Oh my god!" she exclaimed sadly as she shook her head. "I can't get through it," she commented knowing there was no way for her to get through the walkers.
"Head out," Taylor told her as walkers began to pile up onto the front of the car.
"What?!" Maggie asked not even believing he'd say what he did.
"Get off the farm now," Taylor urged her knowing that was the only option they had left.
Maggie shook her head, "Don't say that," she muttered not wanting him to tell her that.
"Maggie, it's lost!" Jessica added in from the backseat as she looked up at Maggie who was in the driver's seat.
"The others..we can't leave them," Maggie said knowing they just couldn't leave them behind like that. Seeing a walker banging his head against the windshield Maggie screamed but put her car in reverse.
"Get off the farm now!" Taylor yelled as he looked over at Maggie who soon followed his instructions.
As Maggie drove away from the farm Jessica heaved a sigh as she reached for Glenn's hand glad that they were at least safe, even if others in their group might not be. She needed him and she refused to lose another man she loved like she had lost Joe.
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Zac who was still standing beside Hershel as they kept shooting walkers sighed. He knew he was almost out of ammo and the old man had to be as well but he really didn't want to leave him behind, not when it was clear he cared so much about the farm and he was Beth's father and for some odd reason he wanted to keep the man safe for Beth.
As Hershel backed up but just kept shooting, Zac moved with him, listening to Hershel egging the walkers on by telling them to come on, though the egging on stopped when Hershel stopped shooting long enough to reload the ammo in his gun and so Zac lowered his own gun briefly, waiting for Hershel to finish loading his.
It was right as Hershel aimed his gun and fired that Zac heard another gunshot behind them and he turned his head, seeing Rick standing there, having taken down a walker that had been too close to him and Hershel for his liking.
"Where's Lori? Did you see Lori?" Rick asked as he walked to Hershel and Zac.
"I don't know what happened Rick," Hershel muttered, ignoring Rick's words. "It's like a plague. They're everywhere."
"Lori! Did you see her?" Rick asked again when Hershel ignored him the first time.
Zac shook his head as he lowered his gun, "No," he answered not sure if Lori had been with the group Avery and Kate had left with or not.
"We have to go," Rick stated before looking down at Carl. "Find mom and the others."
"It's my farm!" Hershel called out not wanting to leave the farm.
Rick shook his head as he grabbed Hershel's arm, "Not anymore! Come on!"
Following along with Rick, Zac followed him to a jeep and he got in the backseat as Carl and Rick got in the front, though again it seemed Hershel had stalled, trying to fight for his farm one last time and Zac watched as Rick urged him on. When Hershel finally got in the back with him Zac turned to face Hershel, watching as Hershel just looked on sadly as they left his farm behind. A farm that would probably be reduced to ashes once the fire in the barn spread to the main house.
Frowning Zac had to finally look away from the older man as he felt a sadness taking over him as well. A sadness for what they had lost tonight. They had lost their safe place, a place they were all getting used too, a place where he had hoped his child could be born at and raised at safely.
Pacing back and forth in the living room, Kate ran a hand through her hair. It was dark out and her husband was gone and she was afraid he wouldn't make it back. Even with all of their troubles she didn't want to lose him, she couldn't lose him.
"You keep pacing like that and you are going to wear a hole in the floor," Taylor said as he went to Kate and put his arms on her to stop her from moving anymore.
Kate shook her head as she looked at Taylor, "I can't help it, I'm worried about Zac. It's dark and they aren't back yet. What if something bad has happened?"
"You think Zac is going to die now?" Taylor asked curiously as he raised an eyebrow.
"He's right," Jessica spoke up from where she sat on the couch with Glenn. "Zac's a Hanson and we're known for our stubbornness, we don't die without a fight and there is no way Zac is going out this early in the game."
"None of us are," Taylor added in knowing he planned on keeping what family he had left alive. They had already lost too many, there was no need to lose more.
"I'm going after them," Andrea spoke as she stood up from a chair she had been sitting in.
Lori shook her head at Andrea's words, "Don't, they could be anywhere," she said knowing Andrea may never find them or she herself could get lost. "And if Randall comes back, we're gonna need you here."
It wasn't even no time after Lori got out her words that Kate heard the door open and she turned her head seeing Daryl and Zac coming in and she felt a sudden amount of relief washing through her. Just knowing her husband was well.
"Rick and Shane ain't back?" Daryl asked as he looked at the people gathered in the living room.
"No," Avery answered as she came out of the kitchen being followed by Mac. She had heard Daryl's voice and that was all she had needed to get the nerve to come into the living room again, just knowing he was safe.
"We heard a shot," Daryl said knowing he and Zac had heard a shot on their way back to the farm.
Lori shrugged, "Maybe they found Randall," she spoke wanting to stay optimistic.
"We found him," Daryl said letting the others know they had found Randall.
"Is he back in the shed?" Kate asked curiously as she walked to where Zac was, pulling him to her some and just holding him as if her life depended on it.
"He's a walker," Daryl answered as he looked over at Zac's wife.
"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel asked as he eyed the two men.
Zac shook his head as he pulled away from Kate slowly, "No, the weird thing is he wasn't bit."
"His neck was broke," Daryl added in finishing Zac's sentence.
"So he fought back?" Patricia asked from where she was standing near a window.
"The thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other," Daryl said as he looked at the others again. "And Shane ain't no tracker, so he didn't come up from behind him. They were together."
Hearing Daryl's words Lori closed her eyes almost feeling sick at what he was saying, what that could imply, "Would you please get back out there, find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?"
"You got it," Daryl nodded as he turned to leave the house again.
As Daryl turned to leave Avery just looked down and closed her eyes not wanting him to go out again after dark. She hated thinking of what could happen to him but then again he could take care of himself, he had shown that numerous times.
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Standing on the front porch with Viv, Lucy closed one eye as she aimed her rifle at the incoming walkers, "What if they don't come back?" she asked referring to Sutton and Alice who had been on a nightly run. Viv had thought it better to do some runs at night.
"Then we leave them," Viv answered as she too aimed her rifle at incoming walkers and started shooting. "We can't die in hopes that they come back, but we keep holding on for as long as we can," she muttered as she kept seeing more walkers coming onto the property. "I never expected so many to come out this far," she muttered knowing that once they left here she wasn't sure what she'd do. They had no where else to go.
"Yeah well sometimes the world throws curve balls," Lucy responded as she started firing at the walkers with the rifle. The rifle wasn't the gun she was good at it but for situations like this it was what was best.
Continuing to fire at incoming walkers Lucy lowered her gun when she saw two approaching figures coming in from the other side of the house's porch, "Sutton? Alice?" she whispered wanting to make sure it was indeed them.
"Did you expect the pope?" Sutton asked as she climbed up onto the porch, "Alice and I we managed to make it back but just barely. I ran out of ammo so Alice had to cover me part of the way here."
"There's ammo inside," Viv told Sutton as she watched Alice walk up onto the porch behind her. She was glad that they had came back because thoughts of living without Alice were kind of sad since she had came to love the woman. "We stay until the last possible minute and then we run," she spoke trying to sound firm. "We keep running until we can't anymore and hopefully when that happens we'll find somewhere safe at least for a night or two."
"But our stuff...the life we planned," Alice frowned knowing they had all gotten used to the stability of life around here. It had been nice up until tonight.
"Maybe we should stop planning," Lucy muttered harshly not sure if planning was good when the world was gone to hell and there seemed to be no fixing it.
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"You bit too?" Carl asked as he looked up at his dad as they walked across the field, heading back to the farm.
"No," Rick answered as he looked over at Carl. He was still shocked at the events that had happened and he was almost numb in a way so his voice sounded almost emotionless.
"Shane was," Carl frowned looking down at the grass.
"That wasn't Shane," Rick corrected Carl. "You know that."
Carl nodded his head slowly, "Used to be," he said knowing that even if Shane had turned into a walker before that he had been a person. "What happened? You guys attacked?" he asked curiously not understanding what had happened. "I mean, I...I heard a gunshot, but I didn't see any walkers nearby. How did Shane die?"
Coming to a stop at Carl's words, Rick turned to face him as he tried to think of an answer, a response he could give to his son but before he could even get words out he heard that indescribable moan that came with walkers and as he turned towards it, his eyes widened as he took in the sight. There was a lot of them, hundreds maybe more. More than what had been on the highway the day Sophia had ran off.
"Oh my god!" he exclaimed as he looked down at Carl. Putting his hand on Carl's back Rick started leading him towards the woods fast, "Go...go go."
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Jessica who had walked out onto the porch with Zac and Daryl made a face as they all three stopped in their tracks when they looked towards the woods and the barn. Off in the distance they could see an incoming herd. A herd much bigger than the camp one and the highway one.
Swallowing hard she couldn't help but have a sinking feeling in her stomach that shit was about to go down and they might not get out unscathed. Taylor's words from earlier could be a mote point because he indeed could lose some of his family.
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Running with his dad through the woods, Carl eventually crouched down as they made it to the tree lines where they could see the barn, "We..we gotta get to the house, tell the others," he said panic in his voice at the incoming herd that was coming at them.
Rick shook his head at his son's suggestion, "We'll never get through that," he said knowing there was no way they would make it back to the house through all those walkers. "Can't go around," he said knowing they couldn't go around it either. "Carl, stay close," he whispered to his son as he again put his hand on his son's back and began to walk with him to the barn.
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Hershel who now stood on the porch with most of their group watched the incoming herd silently, "Patricia, kill the lights," he whispered knowing if none of the lights were on that may distract them.
"I'll get the guns," Andrea spoke as she turned to head inside and get their guns which they would need.
"Maybe they're just passing, like the herd on the highway," Taylor mused knowing the herd could just pass them by. "Should we just go inside?"
"Not unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about," Daryl answered as he turned to look at Taylor, giving him a look as he rolled his eyes. "A herd that size would rip the house down."
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Making it to the barn with Carl, Rick closed the doors behind them before finding a piece of wood to secure the doors shut for now but as both he and Carl backed away he knew it wouldn't last long. The walkers already banging on the doors would break through and find their way inside.
Heck the walkers would also find their way inside the house too and he needed to do something, he had to find a way to keep himself safe as well as his son and his group. He had to think quick before things got even more worse then what they were.
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"Carl's gone," Lori said as she walked out onto the porch in a state of panic.
"What?" Daryl asked surprise in his voice at Lori's words.
"He..he was upstairs," Lori chocked out as she put her hands to her chest. "I can't find him."
"Maybe he's hiding," Jessica stated knowing Carl could just be hiding somewhere else in the house.
Lori shook her head, "He's supposed to be upstairs. I'm not leaving without my boy."
"We're not," Kate said as both she and Carol went to Lori's side. "We're gonna look again. We're gonna find him."
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Still just standing around in the barn, Rick could hear the walkers clawing at the doors like rabid animals and soon a plan began to formulate in his head as he took Carl by the arms and headed with him up towards the ladder going to the rafters so they'd be higher up.
The plan may not have been one of his best ones yet but hopefully maybe it could save some lives, hopefully it could help their group make it out and also alert them to where he was and the dangers that were incoming.
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Standing on the porch still, Taylor watched as Maggie went through the gun bag that Andrea had brought out and as she grabbed a rifle for herself and handed him one, he looked at her confused. "Maggie..." he started not even sure if she knew how to use a gun. She hadn't went to the gun training when the group had, had one.
"You grow up country you pick up a thing or two," Maggie stated as loaded the gun around her arm.
Zac who was watching Maggie just smirked at her words and how she had taken control. Maybe Taylor knew how to pick women after all. A woman who could handle herself and knew how to shoot a gun.
"I got the number," Daryl stated as he kept on watching the herd. "It's no use," he said knowing shooting at them was no use.
"You can go if you want," Hershel said as he loaded the gun in his hand.
"You gonna take 'em all on?" Daryl asked his voice coming out disbelieving. There was no way Hershel could handle all of those walkers.
Hershel finished loading the gun and he stood up straight again, eyeing Daryl, "We have guns. We have cars."
"Kill as many as we can and we'll use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm," Andrea added in going along with Hershel's train of thought.
"Are you serious?" Daryl asked still not believing this plan could actually work.
"This is my farm," Hershel stated as he locked eyes with Daryl. "I'll die here."
Daryl shrugged, "All right. It's as good a night as any," he muttered as he hopped over the porch's railings.
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Being back at the bottom of the barn again, Rick who now held a can of gasoline started pouring the gasoline all over the place even as he watched the walkers slowly tearing off pieces of wood as they tried to make their way in here, hungry for a meal, hungry for him and any living human they could get their hands on.
Once he was done pouring the gasoline he looked at Carl who had followed him down, "Up there. Hurry," he muttered not sure how much time they had and he wanted Carl out of harm's way.
"What about you?" Carl asked as he locked eyes with his dad.
"I'll be right there," Rick said as he reached for a lighter in his pocket and handed it to Carl. "Drop the lighter when I say. We'll stop some of them from reaching the house and distract the others, so at least they'll have a chance," he spoke seeing doubt and confusion on his son's face. "Hey..hey..hey, look at me," he said putting his hand on Carl's shoulder. "You can do this."
Seeing his son give a slight nod Rick knew he acknowledged what he just said, "Carl, I love you," he said just wanting his son to know...in case one or both didn't make it out alive. It was after that, that he rushed Carl up the ladder and he headed towards the doors which he began to bang on, "Hey! Hey!. You want some?!" he asked "Come and get it!" he said as he opened the barn door in a hurry and began to walk away as fast as he could as the walkers began to come inside, all of them trying to get him.
"Come on! Come on!" Rick continued as he taunted the walkers he was leading farther into the barn. "Come on!" he yelled as he made it to the ladder which he began to climb up. "Over here!" he yelled "Come on, you want some of this?!" he asked feeling the walkers trying to grab at him as he climbed up the ladder as fast as he could.
When he made it to the top, he turned to look at Carl, "Carl, now!" he yelled at his son watching as Carl dropped the lighter down and a fire instantly started.
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Taylor who was in the front seat of the car Maggie was driving, sighed as he tried to get his aim just right as she drove erratically around the farm. Most of the group had split up into vehicles. Andrea and T-Dog where in the blue truck, Daryl was on his motorcycle, Mac and Jimmy had gotten in the RV while Avery and Zac had chosen to stay at the house near Hershel, mainly because both of them were pretty good shots from far away.
"Keep it steady!" Glenn complained from where was in the backseat with Jessica. Both of them were also hanging out the window shooting at or trying to shoot at the walkers.
"I'm trying," Maggie spoke as she shook her head. It was hard trying to drive the car around the farm with walkers coming at them from what felt like every direction.
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"The barn's on fire," Beth said as she grabbed onto Patricia and Kate, bringing both women to the window she was standing at in the house.
Kate looked through the wood they had used to board up the windows and she could see some of the walkers heading for the barn, "They're headed for it."
"Maybe Rick set it to draw 'em in," Patricia stated knowing Rick could have done that as a diversion tactic.
"I can't find him anywhere," Lori stated as she ran down the stairs still in a panic over Carl. She had searched the whole house and he was still nowhere in sight.
"So maybe he snuck outside," Carol stated as she came over to where Lori was.
Lori shook her head feeling tears sting her eyes, "What do I do?!" she asked getting frustrated by this situation.
Leaving the window Kate walked over to where Lori and Carol where, "He was here. He must've run off, maybe looking for Rick or went after Randall himself."
"Maybe he set the fire," Patricia added in as she looked over to Lori.
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Mac who had opened the window in the back room of the RV, hung out of it, shooting walkers, though he stopped briefly as he watched Daryl ride up to talk to Jimmy who was driving the RV. Jimmy, the boy he had a crush on and the boy he had hopelessly followed onto this RV like a lovesick puppy in hopes of some affection when this was all over with, even if it was just a few kind words.
"Must've been Rick or Shane who started the fire!" Daryl called out as he looked at Jimmy. "Maybe they're trying to get out back. Why don't you circle around? Go!"
"Got it!" Jimmy called out as he sat down in the driver's seat and started the RV again, heading to the now on fire barn.
Closing the window to the back, Mac left the back bedroom and went to where he could see where Jimmy was going. As he came to the front seats, he looked out the window seeing Rick and Carl perched on the back of the barn and Rick was screaming at Jimmy to park the RV which Jimmy soon did.
Once the RV was parked, Rick soon found a way down onto it, also helping Carl and they both walked on the roof soon finding the ladder and climbing down.
Mac couldn't help but smile to himself once he knew that Rick and Carl had been saved, though his smile soon faded as he watched Jimmy stand from the front seat and start to head for the doors. He hadn't even got a few feet before the doors burst open thanks to walkers barging their way in.
"No," he muttered as he shook his head watching the walkers starting to eat on Jimmy as more walkers just kept on piling onto the RV. Mac knew..he just knew there was no way out and he refused to become walker chow while still alive so he made his way into the RV's bathroom where he shut the door.
Once the door was shut he closed his eyes trying to fight off the tears that wanted to come and he said a little prayer, one asking for forgiveness for what he was about to do. He might've had his doubts about god but there had to be a place better than this world and if he was going to die tonight he wanted to go there, he wanted to go and be with his mom and Zoe.
After his prayer he raised the gun to his temple and took one last deep breath before pulling the trigger.
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Avery who was standing beside Zac and Hershel as they kept shooting at walker's turned her head briefly as she watched Lori,Carol,Beth, and Kate coming out of the house. She could hear Lori still going on about Carl and she was guessing they hadn't found him yet and her heart went out to Lori even if she wasn't a mother. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to be stranded away from your child.
Turning back to the oncoming walkers she kept shooting as she also listened to Kate and Carol talking Lori into leaving. Leaving was something Avery knew they'd have to do, there was just too many but she wasn't sure if she was ready yet. She had grown too used to this farm and the supposed safety it had, had.
Hearing Lori trying to get Hershel to leave, Avery stopped shooting as she looked at Zac, "W..we have to go," she spoke to him as she chewed her lip.
Zac shook his head as he looked at Avery, "You and Kate go. I'm gonna stay with Hershel for as long as I can," Zac nodded as he smiled at Avery doing his best to hide his nerves.
Giving Zac a look Avery shook her head, "No..I.."
"Listen I don't want Daryl to kill me because you didn't make it out alive, so go," Zac muttered as he stopped shooting long enough to push Avery away.
Not fighting anymore with Zac, Avery held onto her rifle as she took off running, soon catching up to Lori and the others in time to see Patricia get taken down and as she ran past the scene she watched as Lori had to literally pull Beth away from Patricia to stop Beth from getting eaten.
As the blue pick up truck made it to where they were Avery watched Andrea get out, telling them to get in and as she got in before Lori and Beth she heard Lori telling Andrea to go after Carol and Kate who had both ran off in another direction.
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Holding her gun close to herself Kate looked around, she had started after Carol who had gotten cornered by a walker but then she too had gotten cornered and had to run in another direction towards the opposite side of the farm. She could hear the walkers behind her but she tried to ignore it as she just kept running, soon making it into the woods where she used the trees to her advantage to crouch behind every so often before taking down walkers that got too close.
"God, I'm not sure you exist still but please get me out of this alive," Kate prayed to herself before taking off running again from a tree she had been hiding behind. "If you get me out of this alive I promise I will start praying more to you," she whispered under her breath before turning to shoot down some walkers that were getting too close to her liking.
After she had done that she did her best to ignore her tiredness. She had to keep running. She had to keep herself and her baby okay until Zac or one of the others came to look for her.
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"They got her!" Lori exclaimed as she watched a walker fall down on Andrea who had been trying to help Carol but ultimately had failed. "We gotta go!" Lori told T-Dog knowing they couldn't stay on the farm. It was a lost cause now.
After Lori's words Avery felt T-Dog drive off and she also felt her heart drop into her stomach because they were leaving people behind. She was leaving Daryl behind and she wasn't sure if she'd see him again and that thought saddened her, even if she was thankful to be getting off the farm and even if she was thankful that Lori, Beth, and T-Dog had also made it she didn't want to leave Daryl because she knew there was a possibility she may not see him again and god Zac was still with Hershel and what if he died? What if her other family members died?
All those thoughts were enough to render Avery numb and not able to speak as she just sat silently wedged between T-Dog and Beth.
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"Where the hell are they going?" Maggie asked as she watched the blue truck leaving the farm. "Should I follow them?" she asked to anyone who was in the car with her.
"I'd say yes," Taylor spoke as he came back inside and watched Maggie drive. "Swing it around, swing it around here," he said instructing her to get around. As she almost ran into oncoming walkers he made a face, "Whoa, whoa whoa," he muttered out.
Maggie watched horror stricken at the walkers coming her way, "Oh my god!" she exclaimed sadly as she shook her head. "I can't get through it," she commented knowing there was no way for her to get through the walkers.
"Head out," Taylor told her as walkers began to pile up onto the front of the car.
"What?!" Maggie asked not even believing he'd say what he did.
"Get off the farm now," Taylor urged her knowing that was the only option they had left.
Maggie shook her head, "Don't say that," she muttered not wanting him to tell her that.
"Maggie, it's lost!" Jessica added in from the backseat as she looked up at Maggie who was in the driver's seat.
"The others..we can't leave them," Maggie said knowing they just couldn't leave them behind like that. Seeing a walker banging his head against the windshield Maggie screamed but put her car in reverse.
"Get off the farm now!" Taylor yelled as he looked over at Maggie who soon followed his instructions.
As Maggie drove away from the farm Jessica heaved a sigh as she reached for Glenn's hand glad that they were at least safe, even if others in their group might not be. She needed him and she refused to lose another man she loved like she had lost Joe.
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Zac who was still standing beside Hershel as they kept shooting walkers sighed. He knew he was almost out of ammo and the old man had to be as well but he really didn't want to leave him behind, not when it was clear he cared so much about the farm and he was Beth's father and for some odd reason he wanted to keep the man safe for Beth.
As Hershel backed up but just kept shooting, Zac moved with him, listening to Hershel egging the walkers on by telling them to come on, though the egging on stopped when Hershel stopped shooting long enough to reload the ammo in his gun and so Zac lowered his own gun briefly, waiting for Hershel to finish loading his.
It was right as Hershel aimed his gun and fired that Zac heard another gunshot behind them and he turned his head, seeing Rick standing there, having taken down a walker that had been too close to him and Hershel for his liking.
"Where's Lori? Did you see Lori?" Rick asked as he walked to Hershel and Zac.
"I don't know what happened Rick," Hershel muttered, ignoring Rick's words. "It's like a plague. They're everywhere."
"Lori! Did you see her?" Rick asked again when Hershel ignored him the first time.
Zac shook his head as he lowered his gun, "No," he answered not sure if Lori had been with the group Avery and Kate had left with or not.
"We have to go," Rick stated before looking down at Carl. "Find mom and the others."
"It's my farm!" Hershel called out not wanting to leave the farm.
Rick shook his head as he grabbed Hershel's arm, "Not anymore! Come on!"
Following along with Rick, Zac followed him to a jeep and he got in the backseat as Carl and Rick got in the front, though again it seemed Hershel had stalled, trying to fight for his farm one last time and Zac watched as Rick urged him on. When Hershel finally got in the back with him Zac turned to face Hershel, watching as Hershel just looked on sadly as they left his farm behind. A farm that would probably be reduced to ashes once the fire in the barn spread to the main house.
Frowning Zac had to finally look away from the older man as he felt a sadness taking over him as well. A sadness for what they had lost tonight. They had lost their safe place, a place they were all getting used too, a place where he had hoped his child could be born at and raised at safely.