Red (sequel to TYG)

Chapter 13

Anna's pov:

"Fifty-one! Fifty-two!" Charlie counts. The soldiers are all sweating as they do more and more push-ups.

Since there is a full scale blizzard going on outside, Charlie has decided to be extra brutal and force the soldiers to do training all day.

I find myself thinking about the group. I wonder how they are doing with this weather. I hope they've found somewhere to stay if they've moved on. I can't imagine being on the road right now with Judith and no where to go. The thought of it makes me sick to my stomach when I think about all of them being cold and hungry and trapped.

Charlie interrupts me from my thoughts and holds out a knife to me.

"Why don't you show them how it's done." Charlie suggests, nodding towards the targets set up on the wall about fifteen feet away from us.

How does he know that I'm good with knives? The only implication I ever could have given him is when I've tried to kill him with a knife. Charlie is freaky smart.

I stand back and take a deep breath with all the soldiers eyes on me.

I focus on the target and then take a step forward and throw the knife with force. It sticks into the target about two inches away from the center. I missed, but if it was an actual Walker it would have done the trick.

"C'mon, you can do better than that." Charlie says and holds another knife out to me.

I sigh and take it. Once again I focus on the target for a second and then throw it. This time it sticks straight into the center and I get a round of applause.

"She's got you beat, Charlie." One of the soldiers that I've never caught his name chuckles.

"Hm." Charlie says.

He grabs a third knife and quickly throws it at the target and it lands spot on next to mine and the soldiers all make an 'ooh' sound like he showed me. The two knives are pressed against each other, sharing the space of wood.

He gives me a smirk and I hold out my hand for another knife which he quickly hands to me.

I'm not sure if what I'm about to do next is gonna work and it could end up back firing.

I take my aim and fearlessly throw the knife, knocking Charlie's knife off the target.

"Ooh!" The soldiers say again and I know that I've won.

I smirk at Charlie this time and he just laughs and mouths 'that's hot' to me to which I shake my head in disapproval at him.

"Everyone line up." Charlie orders so they will start practicing themselves.

The soldiers stand in random lines behind the targets and take turns throwing knives.

After training is over Charlie tells me to go to his room so I do.

I settle down on the bed with an encyclopedia and read for a while.

Charlie comes back to his room after about an hour and I barely pay attention to him because I'm reading something interesting.

He sits down on the bed behind me and rests his chin on my shoulder to read. I don't bother making him move because I know he will just find another way to touch me. It doesn't bother me that much anymore anyways.

He suddenly wraps his arms around my waist, locking his hands together at my belly button. Never mind, it still really bothers me.

I scooch forward a little bit and he takes the opportunity to sit back and put his legs on either side of me and I sigh a little while he smirks about it.

I go back to reading and I ignore him for a while until he gets bored and stands up and walks over to his desk.

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Carl's pov:

"Does everyone know exactly what they have to do?" Dad asks everyone. "I don't want to go into this with any dis-advantages. They have everything going for them."

Everyone nods their heads, signaling that they know what to do. We've all known what we're supposed to do for a week now.

There keeps being another reason to stall. First it was the blizzard and then it was Dad being sick for a couple of days and now we just keep going over the plan. Why is this so hard?

"Dad, we've all known what we were supposed to do for days now. Let's go." I say.

"We're not going to be hasty with this. There's no need to lose one of us." Dad says.

I can tell that this is gonna turn into an argument so I shut my mouth. That would only pro-long this more.

"If everyone is comfortable, than we will leave tomorrow." Dad says and raises his eyebrows and looks at us all.

I have suspicions that he thinks something isn't right. Maybe he doesn't know what it is himself, but he senses that something is wrong. If he knew that Anna wasn't there he would never do this. He can't find out about this. I don't know how long Daryl is willing to keep his mouth shut for.

No one answers him so he walks away to the kitchen. We're all so scattered and distant without the Greene family. We're not the same without Herschel. Without Maggie. Without..... Anna.

I feel another fresh wave of anger wash throughout my body but there's something else there too, and it's completely natural. Sadness.

I escape back to my room and pull the letter out of my bag. The letter that ended everything.

I run my fingers over the letters, tracing the perfect shapes of them.

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"Hey, buddy. How you doing?" Shane says, punching my arm lightly.

"Fine." I answer him. That's how I answer everybody when they ask me that question.

Wait a second, this isn't one of those weird flashback dreams I've been having. This is an actual dream.

"I don't think you're fine." Mom says in that knowing voice of hers.

"I'm sad, Mom. What do you expect?" I answer her.

"Don't be sad. She's not-"

"Carl!" Someone says.

I force my eyes open and see my Dad standing over me.

"What?" I ask, my voice groggy.

"It's time to get up." He says and then leaves.

What was my mom about to say? Oh well.

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(Thanks for all the votes! Goodnight, lovelies. Xoxo, Isabella.)