Chapter 016

Walkers surrounded the barn as we had found sanctuary within its walls from their grasp. They pressed against the barn door, attempting to get in to have their next meal. Their hands stretched through the stalls windows, their jaws snapping at the sight of us. They are determined to get their stomachs full, while we are deterred to survive.

My heart pounds against my ribcage rapidly, the wound in my arm having gone numb due to the blood loss. The world was a haze for me, yet I force myself to stay awake in hopes I'll make it back to Daryl and Sophia. I lean against the ladder that lead to the loft, my chest heaving as I try to catch my breath. We had spent the last twenty minutes navigating the horde, crouching, running and evading death.

"Up there. Hurry!" Rick orders as he points toward the loft, causing me to push myself off of the ladder. He motions for me to go first and I do so with struggle, as I am forced to use one arm. Crouching once I am safely on the loft, I reach out for Carl as he gracefully accepts my help. Suddenly Rick rushes back to the door as Carl pulls out a lighter from his jacket.

"Dad says this should distract some of them from getting to the house." Carl informs as he notices my confusion, causing me to nod in understanding. Turning to look toward Rick, I watch as he yells and hits the door to rile up the walkers - it works. He pulls the axe free from the door and hits it one more time before yelling something toward us, as he rushes to the ladder. Carl clicks the lighter causing a flame to form before he drops it down to the walkers below.

Rick throws himself onto the loft as he kicks a walker away from the ladder, causing both Carl and I to rush toward him. The father and son hug instantly, as we look down toward the walkers as the barn begins to burn. Rick motions toward the ledge of the barn, causing the three of us to walk out of the loft as the smoke begins to rise along with the flames. The heat of the flames caused sweat to form against my skin, not at all helping with the wound.

"Put it right here," Rick suddenly orders as he motions toward the crowd. Following his gaze, I see Dale's RV in motion as it comes toward the barn - someone is alive. "Come on!" The three of us hop onto the RV once it is stations in front of where we are. Rick is the first to climb down, followed by Carl, then me.

Wincing as I force myself to use both arms to keep myself steady, I drop to my feet as Rick pulls me away from the decaying hands that reached out to us. Suddenly the RV begins to sway, causing Rick and I to back away from it before blood splatters against the window, tainting Dale's RV with death. Not giving myself time to mourn the loss of whoever was in there, I look away as I gently shove Rick in the direction of the house. He pulls Carl closer to him as we begin to run toward the home, crouching and ducking along the way.

Clutching my arm tight in attempt to keep the blood at bay, I could feel myself beginning to sway on my feet. Rick must have noticed too before he comes back to me, throwing my arm over his shoulder as he practically pulls me alongside him. Carl held a gun in front of him, shooting walkers when needed as he lead the way - leading us behind the house. Smart move, as it seems to have less walkers, which should give us a second to breathe.

We know deep down there is no way we are getting this home and property back from the dead. In fact, a horde this size will tear down this house - they own this land now. As we round the back of the house, Rick leans me against the siding, his blue eyes staring into my hazel ones. "You're gonna be fine," He assures as he looks at the wound, his eyes growing worried. "We're gonna get a car and get outta here. Go back to the highway and hope that everyone else thinks the same."

I can only muster a weak nod, feeling rather tired from the events that is taking place. He throws my good arm back over his shoulders, pulling me close to him as we begin to follow after Carl once more. Rounding the home again, we are greeted with the horde once more, the smell of death lingering. Spotting a car, Rick begins to walk toward it before coming to a stop, his eyes locked somewhere else.

Hershel Greene stood in front of his home, one that has been in his family for years, a shotgun in hand. He shot at the walkers coming toward him, but it is evident that he will be greeted with death is someone doesn't save him. Removing my arm from Rick, I force him to go after Hershel. Grabbing Carl, I force him to walk toward the car as I stumble behind him.

Upon reaching the car, Carl opens the back passenger door before getting in, putting himself in the middle seat. Getting in behind him, I close the door quickly before looking toward the house. I watch as Rick yanks Hershel back, shooting down a few walkers before the two begin to run toward us. Leaning against the seat, I could feel the world beginning to grow dim.

"Kat," Carl says as he moves my head to face him. He notices my weak state, the blood dripping down my arm and the soaked fabric that is suppose to be stopping the bleeding and Merle's belt. "Are you okay?" I force a smile at the boys innocent question as I stare at him.

"I'll be fine."

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Squinting my eyes at the sudden bright light, I blink a few times before finally opening them. My body was resting against the backseat of the car, a blanket draped over me for warmth. Wincing as I move my right arm, I notice something hugging it tight causing me to look toward the wound. A new bandage and gauze replaces the fabric that was once there, a speck of blood covering a small part of it.

They must have found some sort of first aid kit to patch me up during the time of the farm and wherever we are now. Wincing as I sit up, I begin to look out of the passenger side's window just as a walker mindlessly stumbles by. Reaching for my gun, I notice that it isn't in my holster, meaning that I either lost it or Rick has it somewhere else. Rubbing my head as the dull ache grows a bit worse, I tilt my head to look behind me as I notice movement.

Hershel, Rick and Carl emerge from the crouched position on the drivers side of the car, seeming to have hidden themselves from the walker. It is clear they haven't noticed me yet as they engage in their own conversation. Figuring out that I must have grown unconscious during the time of reaching the car and Rick jumping into the drivers side, I realize I have no clue on where we are. Forcing my legs off the seat, I move closer to the back door of the drivers side and unlock it - gaining everyone's attention.

"Careful, Kat. You've been down a few hours." Rick informs softly as he opens the door and helps me to my feet. I only nod, not sure how to approach the conversation as I just woke up. Shifting uncomfortably, I begin to look around, noticing that we were on a highway. Noticing a car with writing on it, I step closer to it as there is some supplies on the hood; Kat, Sophia Stay Here!

"My baby," I suddenly sign as I turn to face Rick and Hershel. Carl had gone to sit in the car, clearly upset about something I have yet to know about. "Are they going to be okay?"

"We can't be too sure without proper supplies," Hershel answers honestly as he tries to rack his brain for the right words to say. At his words, I could feel the anxiety beginning to form not knowing if I am losing my baby or not. "I'll keep an eye on you for a while, at least until your arm heals. We'll watch for any signs of a miscarriage; cramping, bleeding, all of it. Until we know for sure, I want you to rest as much as you can."

"Where is everyone?" I ask after a moment of letting Hershel's words sink in. I don't like the fact that I won't know if my baby lives or dies until my pregnancy either progresses or ends in a miscarriage. But I know there is nothing I can do until either one happens and I'm just hoping for the best outcome possible. But how do I know which outcome is the best given the situation that we are in?

"We're sticking around for a few more hours before we begin our search." Rick informs as he turns on his feet and walks toward Carl. Hershel only nods at Rick's words before he leans against the car, his eyes scanning the area for signs of anyone else. Allowing myself to feel the loss we endured, I stand next to Hershel, leaning against the car myself. The farm was gone, the cattle, the barn, and the house were overtaken by walkers.

Our safe haven was taken from us in mere seconds and now I'm suppose to have a baby while on the run?

I don't even know if Daryl or Sophia made it off that property. I don't know if Millie even got the help she needed to have escaped. Everyone in my family is missing and I have no clue on what to do. Hershel shifts next to me causing me to look in his direction as he pushes himself off of the Volkswagen. Following his gaze, I spot a truck pulling into the grass of the highway.

Feeling rather hopeful has Lori jumps out of the truck before it comes to a stop, I watch as she rushes toward her family. She quickly engulfs her son in a tight hug, her body falling into Rick's embrace with ease. Tearing up at the sight, I watch as Beth rushes toward her father, the man welcoming her with a warm hug. Before they could say any words, a motorcycle and an SUV pulls into few.

My feet moved before I could think as my eyes land on Daryl as he pulls himself off the motorcycle. Before the man could react, I throw myself on to him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders with ease. Tears falls down my cheeks freely as I bury my face into his neck, as he lifts me off of my feet. I could feel that he spun around a bit before my feet touch the ground once more.

Before we could pull away, we are greeted with another body causing us to pull apart. Looking down as see a mop of light brown hair, causing me to pull Sophia into the hug as well. Kissing the top of her head as I pulled my family closer to me, I couldn't help but sob. Thank whatever God there is that my family made it out.

Forcing myself to pull away from them, I turn to face the others before I am nearly knocked down to the ground. I am greeted with matted black and white fur and a wet tongue - Millie. Petting the dog instantly, I allow her to lick my face as she is clearly happy to see me. Daryl carefully pulls the dog from me, before he helps me to stand fully, his eyes locked on the bandage and gauze.

"What happened? Are you okay? The baby?"

"Shane shot me when Rick killed him, but I'll be fine," I assure Daryl after he fired off many questions regarding the bandages. I could see the anger in his eyes at the mention of Shane shooting me, but it faded once he knew he was dead. "We don't know if the baby is okay. Hershel said we have to wait to see how the stress my body went through reacts toward the pregnancy."

Daryl clearly didn't like the answer to that but all he did was pull me closer to him, causing me to pull Sophia toward us. Our eyes locked on everyone else, my mind taking tallies to see who made it and who didn't. Carol stood next to Glenn as he stood next to T-Dog, Hershel stood next to his daughters, while Rick held his family close; Andrea, Jimmy, and Patricia are missing. "Where'd you find everyone?" Rick asks as he looks around at all of us.

"Well, those guys' taillights zigzagging all over the place.... figured he had to be Asian, driving like that." "Good one."

"Where's the rest of us?" Maggie questions as she looks around once more, hoping to see the faces of those who are missing. Shifting uncomfortably as a wave of nausea washes over me, I place a hand on my belly as I try to breathe through it. I'm not sure if my body is reacting toward the pregnancy or if everything is finally catching up to me. "We're the only ones who's made it so far." Rick answers truthfully.

"Shane?" "Andrea?"

"She saved me, then I lost her." Carol answers Maggie after Rick's shake of the head referring to Shane. That answer made Lori hold Carl closer as he cried over the man he considered an uncle. "We saw her go down." Lori admits, backing up Carol's claim as to what happened to Andrea. At least she is resting with Dale now.

"Patrica?" "They got her too.... they took her right in front of me. I was.... I was holding her, daddy. She just.... what about Jimmy? Did you see Jimmy?"

My eyes gloss over as Beth broke down in Hershel's arms, the girl clearly traumatized after the events that took place. I don't blame her one bit because I, too would be traumatized if someone I loved was ripped from my grasp. Looking toward Rick at the mention of Jimmy, I watch as the man shakes his head. "He was in the RV. It got overrun." Rick answers Beth's question, causing the girl to cry into her father's chest.

"You definitely saw Andrea?" Glenn questions as he continues to clutch the shotgun in his grasp tightly. He is still on edge and rightfully so after everything that just happened last night. I shook my head as he looked over at me, having not seen her myself during the entire ordeal. "There were walkers everywhere." T-Dog states as he leans against the truck, his eyes tired.

"But did you see her?" "I'm gonna go back."

"No," I snap instantly as I turn fully to face the man next to me. Narrowing my hazel eyes at him, I watch as he looks down at me with a raise brow. "I just got you back, ain't no way in fucking hell will I let you step foot back on that death trap of a property."

"Kat..."

"No, Daryl, she's right. We don't even know if she is there," Rick cuts in as he gains our attention, causing Daryl to look at him is disbelief. The others do too as they turned to face Rick, shocked by his words. "She's somewhere else or she is dead. There is no way to find her."

"We're not even going to look for her?"

"We gotta keep moving. There have been walkers crawling all over this place." I sign once I caught everyone's attention. We needed to move and fast before another horde breaks through this highway and another death occurs. "I say we head east." T-Dog suggest as he shrugs his shoulders, hoping someone will listen to him. Everyone seems to silently agree with the man, as Daryl lifts his crossbow.

"Stay off the main roads. The bigger the road, the more walkers. More assholes like this one. I got him."

Watching as Daryl aims his crossbow at a walker, he kills it with ease before he walks over to collect his arrow. We all silently agreed with the man while we took in the remaining survivors. Hershel held his daughters close, Maggie and Beth having not moved from their spots next to the older man. Glenn stood close to the Greene family, unsettled as he looks around at everyone else just as I am.

"Let's gather what we can and get going."

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Stirring uncomfortably, I slowly blink as I begin to wake up from the nap I must have fell into. Lifting my head from the window of the passengers door of the SUV, I instantly look in the rear view mirror to spot Sophia. She is in the seat behind me, her brown eyes locked on the trees that seemed to fly by. Her hair is beginning to mat from the sweating she done while escaping the farm.

Next to her sat Beth, as she and Hershel cuddled close as they continued to rejoice in the fact they found each other. Maggie squeezed in after Hershel, her eyes locked on the trees just like Sophia. Glenn was the one who took up driving, his thumb occasionally drumming against the steering wheel. T-Dog and Carol rode in the trunk behind us, as Daryl coasts swiftly behind to keep track of walkers.

Rick, Lori, Carl and Millie took over Hershel's Volkswagen and took the lead. We had no destination in mind, just hopes and dreams of finding a safe place to hunker down before nightfall. We just wanted to distance ourselves from the farm - from the horde that took everything from us. Noting that Glenn is slowing to a stop, I look in front of us to see Rick had came to a stop, likely honking while doing so.

Stepping out of the SUV, I shrug my jacket off carefully before handing it to Sophia as she shivered due to the coolness. She smiles before putting the jacket on, hugging it close to her smaller frame. Following after the others, I place my injured arm over Sophia's shoulders to keep her close. "You out?" Glenn questions as we finally reached Rick and his family.

"Running on fumes." Rick answers as he begins to look at our surroundings. Millie walks over to me and lays down at my feet, resting her head on Sophia's shoes. "We can't stay here." Carol utters with fear, as she clutches her jacket and looks around. Mentally agreeing with her, I look toward Rick for answers.

"We can't all fit in one car." Hershel states, his arms hugging Beth close as if he is afraid to let go. And after all that has happened, I wouldn't blame him if he didn't let go at all. "We'll have to make a run for gas in the morning." Rick informs while he places his hands on his hips, something he seems to do when he is trying to make the right decisions. Everyone seems to look uneasy at his words, all but Daryl who didn't seemed fazed by sleeping under the stars.

"Spend the night here?" Lori questions as she rubs her hands over Carl's armed, who had muttered something about being cold. Rick shrugged off his jacket and placed it on Carl's shoulders, in hopes to keep his boy from getting sick. He had only just healed from his own gunshot wound. "We'll build a fire," Rick states as he looks around at everyone, before his eyes landed on Daryl. "You go out looking for firewood. Stay close. Only got so many arrows. How are you on ammo?"

"Not enough."

"We can't just sit here with our asses hanging out."

"Watch your mouth," Hershel orders as he looks toward his eldest daughter, his blue eyes full of disappointment. Maggie only rolls her eyes at her father, before she moves to stand closer to Glenn. "Everyone stop panicking and listen to Rick." Nodding toward Hershel's words, agreeing with him that everyone needed to calm down. Panicking and talking over one another isn't going to fix anything.

"All right, we'll set up a perimeter. In the morning, we'll find gas and some supplies."

"Glenn and I can go on a run now, try and scrounge up some gas." Maggie offers, attempting to find a solution to not have to sit with our asses hanging out. It is very clear that she never had to deal with a situation like this, however everyone else aside from her family has. "No, we stay together," Rick finalizes, as he tries and keeps everyone together. He is just trying to do what is best and it seems like nobody is seeing that. "God forbid something happens and people get stranded without a car."

"Rick, we're stranded now." Glenn says desperately as he clutches the shotgun in his hands. He doesn't like being out in the open much, that much I can tell - he never really has. "I know it looks bad, we've all been through hell and worse, but at least we found each other," Rick states as he looks around at all of us, his eyes showing just how tired he truly is. He didn't know what he was doing, none of us did, yet we all looked toward him, something he never asked for. "I wasn't sure.... I really wasn't.... but we did. We're together. We keep it that way. We'll find shelter somewhere. There's gotta be a place."

      "Rick, look around. Okay? There are walkers everywhere. They're migrating or something."

      "There's gotta be a place not just where we hole up, but that we fortify, hunker down, pull ourselves together, build a life for each other. I know it's out there, we just have to find it."

      "Even if we do find a place and we think it's safe, we can never be sure. For how long?" Maggie states as she looks directly at Rick. Our leader had hope that there is something out there, but how can he make everything else believe that? Do I even believe that after the farm? Is there truly something out there for us, or are we simply existing?

      Apart of me wants to have hope that there is a place for us to settle down, build a sanitary - a life. I want to believe that we can find this place for ourselves, but also for those in the future, my baby, Lori's baby, Carl and Sophia and whoever else joins us along the way. But after the farm, Maggie is right, we don't truly know how safe it can be and for how long it'd be ours. We've already dealt with it before we even reached the farm; the Quarry, the CDC, then the farm.

      So how am I suppose to have hope that there is somewhere out there that is safe enough for us and my baby?

      "Look at what happened at the farm," Carol counters as she folds her arms to keep herself warm. She hasn't even tried to check in on Sophia during this entire ordeal, not even after we all reconnected on the highway. "We fooled ourselves into thinking that was safe." Wanting to roll my eyes at the woman, I fight back the urge as I also agreed with her. I hadn't been there nearly as long as them, but I also know that I fooled myself into thinking it was safe.

      "And we won't make that mistake again." Hershel says gently as he continues to hold his youngest daughter close. I don't think Beth minds much considering she keeps pushing herself closer to him. "We'll make camp over there, get on the road at the break of day." Rick finalizes as he points to some broken walls of stone.

      "Does this feel right to you?"     "What if walkers come through, or another group like Randall's?"

      "Y'know, I found Randall, right?" Daryl informs as he looks toward Rick, who turns to look at him with a raised brow. I had done the same, shocked that Shane didn't hide his mistake well enough. "He had turned, but he wasn't bit." Now it was my turn to look toward Rick with a raised brow, hoping that he had some sort of explanation toward that. Was it even possible to turn into a walker without getting bit or scratched?

      "Rick, what the hell happened?" Lori questions as she stares directly at her husband. Everyone seemed to have forget that I had also been there when Rick discovered that Shane was a lunatic. While it wasn't really a shock to me, considering I found out of Shane and Lori's affair not long after I arrived to the camp at the Quarry, when the world hasn't been dead that long. Shifting uncomfortably, I allow my injured arm to fall from Sophia's shoulder, wincing as it did.

      "Shane kïlled Randall. Just like he always wanted to." Rick states nonchalantly while he looks down at the ground. It is clear that he is thinking back to what happened, trying to piece together the events itself. Everyone looks around at each other for a moment, shocked that Shane would even do that, aside from Daryl and I. "And the herd got him?" Lori asks as she continues to look at her husband.

      "We're all infected."

       My eyes grow wide at Rick's words, as everyone begins to fire off their our chorus of questions. Feeling my chest tightening at his words, I place a hand on my belly as I force myself away from the crowd. Backing up, I turn on my heels as I force myself back to the SUV. We're all infected, how is that even possible?

      Neither of us were bitten? I wasn't bit, Sophia and Daryl were not bitten, my baby hasn't even had the chance to be bitten. Feeling my breath becoming uneven, I tighten my left hand around the fabric of my shirt around my belly. Leaning against the SUV, I lean forward as I try and even out my breathing, only to fail.

      If my baby dies inside of me, would they rip me from the inside out? Would it kill me before it even knows me?

      Feeling my chest grow more tight as my knees begin to buckle, I allow the tears to freely fall down my cheeks. Falling to the ground, I catch myself with my hands, no doubt scrapping them against the rocks and pebbles on the road. Regardless on how we die, somehow we become one of the things we're trying hard to fight against. I don't want to become one of them things, I don't what my baby to become one of them things.

      Feeling myself beginning to gasp for air, I am suddenly greeted with a wet nose and a fuzzy face; Millie. Blinking through the tears, I could see that she was forcing herself between me and the ground. Gripping her fur tight as I try to focus on her, she snuggles against me as she licks my face to bring me back to where I need to be. I can faintly feel a hand on my shoulder that is pulling me closer to them.

      Leaning my head on their chest as their arm wraps around my shoulder, I keep my focus on Millie. My heartbeat begins to slow down, falling into a normal rhythm as the tightness in my chest fades. The shakiness in my body subsides as I continue to focus on my dog, the scent of wood and cigarettes feeling my nose - Daryl. Forcing myself to look away from Millie, as she had finally settles, I tilt my head to look at my boyfriend.

      He holds me close, keeping an arm around my shoulders as he uses his free hand to run his fingers through my hair. He seems to be battling with the news himself, but is holding it together way more than I ever could. "Our baby could become one of them things," I sign weakly after I tapped his leg to gain his attention. The tears still rolled down my face at the mere thought of it - my baby dying. "I don't want them to die. I don't want our baby to die. God. How could I be so stupid for going out there knowing that I was or am pregnant?"

      "Kat.... Katherine, stop," Daryl orders as he pulls me to sit in front of him, keeping his hands on my face as he tries to center me. His blue eyes stare into my hazel ones, fear in his own as he tries to mask it. "Our baby is not going to die, they are going to be fine.... she is going to be fine. She won't become one of them. You're not stupid, so don't even think that you are. You are one of the smartest people I know, now pull yourself together. Our daughter needs you, our baby needs you, I need you. I love you."

      "I love you too."

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     Night had fallen rather quickly as we were all gathered around a small fire, attempting to stay warm. My body feels exhausted after the episode I had, that being the first one since the CDC. Sophia and Millie hasn't left my side, both cuddled close to me as I lean against the half stone wall. My injured arm rests against my belly, as my left arm holds Sophia close as she rests her head on my legs.

      It didn't take long for the girl to have fallen asleep after I began to run my fingers through her hair. Daryl had paced around the area for a while, checking for walkers or any other threat that lingered before he finally took the spot next to Sophia's legs. He had covered her with his poncho in hopes to keep her warm. Carol, T-Dog, Hershel, Beth, Maggie and Glenn were closer to the fire, all engaged in what seemed to be a serious conversation.

      Lori and Carl sat with them, but neither seemed to be listening in to the conversation being had. In fact, Carl is resting against his mothers leg, fighting his sleep as she ran her fingers through his hair. Resting my head on Daryl's shoulder, I look down at Sophia as she stirs in her sleep. Her brows were knitted together, yet she made no attempt to open her eyes - a nightmare.

      Daryl nudges my head a bit causing me to lift it and look toward him, only for him to motion toward everyone. Following his gaze, I noticed that the conversation had grown heated but fell silent upon Rick's arrival. His blue gaze lingered on them, rage yet compassion filled his eyes as he had heard their words. What had they said?

      "I am doing something! I am keeping this group 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 God's sake! You saw how he was like, how he pushed me, how he compromised us, how he threatened us. He staged the whole Randall thing to put a bullet in my back. He wasn't even gonna spare Katherine, was just gonna kill her for just being there. He gave me no choice! He was my friend, but came after me! My hands are clean. Maybe you people are better off without me. Go ahead. I say there's a place for us, but maybe.... maybe that's just another pipe dream. Why don't you.... why don't you find out yourself? Send me a postcard. Go on, there's 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 anymore."

____Word Count: 5,392

Well, this one was a doozy to write. But it was very fun and I'm impressed by how it turned out so.... Welcome to Chapter 16!

I hope you guys like long chapters, because there will definitely be a chapter here and there just as long as this one, if not longer.

Anyway....

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and feel free to leave a comment to engage. I love reading them and replying to questions when asked.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far!

Lots of Love, Crimson Rose