Till The End Of The Line

Days Gone Bye Part 5

No POV-

Rick, Morgan, Zayne and Duane come out of the Drake's house the next morning. All the walkers are gone except one lying against the picket fence. Rick shows his concern "Are we sure they're dead? I have to ask at least one more time." Morgan "They dead, except for something in the brain. That's why it's got to be the head." Rick approaches the walker. The walker starts to hiss and growl at them, it gets up to attack but Rick hits it in the head over and over with a baseball bat. Still sore from his wound. He reels and collapses to the ground. He looks like he might get sick. Morgan and Zayne express their concern "Y'all all right?" Zyane "You okay Rick?" Zayne goes over to him and rubs his back "I just need a moment."Rick walks into his house with Morgan, Zayne and Duane behind him "they're alive – my wife and son. At least they were when they left." Morgan "How can you know? By the look of this place-" Rick "I found empty drawers in the bedroom. They packed some clothes. Not a lot, but enough to travel." Zayne "you know anybody could've broken in here and stole them clothes, right?" Rick gestures with the baseball bat "you see the framed photos on the walls? Neither do I. Some random thief take those too, you think? Our photo albums, family pictures – all gone." Morgan "photo albums." Morgan sits down in a chair. Morgan "my wife – same thing. There I am packing survival gear; she's grabbing photo alb..." He breaks down, unable to speak. Duane speaks for his father "they're in Atlanta, I bet." Morgan "that's right." Zayne "Why there?" Morgan "Refugee center. A huge one they said, before the broadcast stopped. Military protection, food, shelter. They told people to go there, said it'd be safest." Duane "plus they got that disease place." Zayne "the Center for Disease Control." Morgan "said they were working out how to solve this thing." Rick walks to the kitchen, opens a cupboard and takes keys from a cup hook.A door opens flooding a darkened kitchen with light. Rick, Morgan, Zayne and Duane enter cautiously. Rick leads the way with a flash light. They end up in the Sherriff's Department locker room where Rick tries the showers. The water comes out clean and strong. Knobs squeak, pipes groan and the shower comes on. Morgan "Gas lines have been down for maybe a month." Rick "The station's got its own propane system." Zayne puts his hand in the water Zayne "Pilot's still on."Rick shaves, Morgan washing his hair, Zayne cuts his hair down and Duane free styles. Duane "Whoo Hoo!" Morgan "Oh my Lord." Duane "Hot water!" Morgan "Ah! That feels good, right?" They all laugh with joy. Duane starts to rap "Bring it around, bring it. Bring it around, bring it around uh uh. Yeah, I'm wet. Take that. What? Whoo!" After their shower Morgan, Zayne and Rick sit on a locker room bench. All four are in towels. As Duane walks by, Rick hands him his clothes and points through a door. Rick "Duane, dressing room back there." Morgan "What do you say, Duane?" Duane "Thank you." Morgan "Mm-hmm." Duane closes the door and Rick starts talking "Atlanta sounds like a good deal. Safer anyway – people." Morgan "That's where we were headed. Things got crazy. Man, you wouldn't believe the panic. Streets weren't fit to be on. And then my –my wife couldn't travel. No, not with her hurt. So we had to find a place to lay low. And then after she died, we just stayed hunkered down. I guess we just froze in place." Zayne "You're doing good, right by your son. Staying in place isn't always a bad thing you just gotta watch out for yours, and I don't mean just those freaks out there... People can be just as bad now more than ever." Morgan nodded to him. Walking to another area Rick starts a conversation "Plan to move on?" Morgan "Haven't worked up to it yet." Rick, in his uniform, opens the door to a weapon cage. Duane, Zayne and Morgan walk in with him. Rick "A lot of its gone missing." Rick takes a rifle down, checks it out. Duane "Daddy, can I learn to shoot? I'm old enough." Morgan "Hell yes, you're gonna learn, but we've got to do it carefully, teach you to respect the weapon." Rick "That's right. It's not a toy. You pull the trigger, you have to mean it. Always remember that, Duane." Duane "Yes sir." Rick "Zayne, do you know how to shoot?" Zayne "Had to learn, so yeah..." Morgan "Here load up." Morgan hands Duane a bag. Rick picks up a Remington rifle with a scope. He checks out the sight before he hands it to Morgan. Rick "You take that one. Nothing fancy, the scope's accurate." Morgan looks intently at Rick and checks the weapon. Duane loads ammo, Rick checks a shot gun while Zayne checks out a hand pistol.Rick, his hands full, kicks open the outside door and walks up a flight of steps to ground level. Morgan, Zayne and Duane walk with him. They are similarly burdened. Rick "Conserve your ammo. It goes faster than you think, especially at target practice." Morgan "Duane?" Duane "Uh-huh?" He give Duane a bag. Morgan "Take this to the car." Duane "Okay." Rick "Are you sure you won't come along?" Morgan "A few more days. By then Duane will know how to shoot and I won't be so rusty." Rick opens the car door; Morgan looks around to check on Duane. Rick takes out a walkie-talkie that whines when started up Rick "You've got one battery I'll turn mine on a few minutes every day at dawn. You get up there, that's how you'll find us." Morgan "You think ahead." Zayne "Can't afford not to, not anymore." Morgan "Listen, one thing –They may not seem like much one at a time, but in a group, all riled up and hungry –Man you watch your asses." Rick "You too." They clasp hands Morgan "you're a good man, Rick. I hope you find your wife and son." Zayne walks over to a fenced area and Morgan talks in a hushed voice "Look after that boy too, he needs all the help he can get... my guessing he didn't have a nice childhood, when I was cleaning his wound up I saw scars, some looked self-inflicted and some looked like whip marks. Take care of him he needs you." Rick slowly nods and separates from Morgan as Zayne walks back over. Rick "Be seeing you, Duane." He shakes Duane's hand Zayne "Take care of your old man, little dude." Zayne fist bumps him. Duane laughs "Yes sir." As they are about to leave Morgan looks over Rick's shoulder. Seeing his demeanor change Rick turns around. A walker, in a sheriff's uniform, approaches from the street, a restraint chain hangs from his left hand. Rick "Leon Basset?" Morgan pulls Duane close. Rick "I didn't think much of him - Careless and dumb but I can't leave him like this." The now walker Basset growls it's stopped by a chain link gate topped with razor wire Morgan "you know they'll hear the shot." Rick "let's not be here when they show up." Morgan "let's go, son. Come on." Morgan and Duane get into their vehicle Zayne hops into theirs. Rick walks up to the fence. Walker Leon pushes against the fence, trying to get at Rick as he nears it. Rick puts his Colt Python up through the fence against Walker Basset's forehead and pulls the trigger. It falls finally being at rest.Morgan makes a right turn in his jeep onto the road outside the Sheriff's station with Rick and Zayne behind in a Deputy's car. Morgan honks his horn, Rick turns left and whoops his siren twice.