I Surrender

Chapter 13

Wes POV:

Wes almost felt like killing Belle. He sat in the back seat with his arms crossed. He bit his lip in worry and almost screamed. Belle kept her foot on the accelerator for the entire time. They reached the gas station in only a few minutes.

They were getting close and Belle wasn't slowing down. Wes leaned forward, "Belle, stop at the next station."

"Why?" was all she said.

Wes sent a glare her way, "Because you didn't let my partner in the car and she needs a chance to catch up."

Belle scoffed, "What makes you think she wants to be with us?!"

"Because she's got no one else!"

Belle simply rolled her eyes and pulled in next to the station. "Fine, but I'm going to check for supplies in the shop."

Wes threw open the door and began to pace in anger. He should've made her stop. He should've stayed behind. He should've done something.

John tapped his shoulder and made him stop. "Come on, Man. Let's go check out the store." Wes sighed and nodded following John into the store.

Belle was clearing the shelves like a vacuum cleaner. She grabbed everything she could find then stuffed it all into her bag. After she was done, she leaned against the counter and sighed incredibly loud.

"We should head out. Walkers are going to catch up." She spoke up after a minute of silence.

Emma walked in and gave Wes a look of sympathy, "We can't just leave Wes's friend. I found a trail out back that leads to a cabin. Let's just wait for a day or two. If she doesn't show up then we move on, but we need to give her a chance to find us."

Wes immediately nodded while Belle rolled her eyes again and shook her head. She didn't protest but she clearly didn't agree. She grudgingly climbed right back into the truck and crossed her arms.

Wes climbed over the counter and carved out a message in the dust. Jo probably wouldn't see the road at first. He got in the car and Belle drove the car along the road grumbling the entire time. Wes got out of the car as soon as it was rolling slow enough and dragged his and Jo's packs into a room after finding the door was unlocked.

Everyone else claimed their own room. Belle grabbed the one next door and John and Emma claimed one of their own. He knew they had always been dating. He was happy that they had stayed together.

Belle knocked on his door. "Hey, I know this girl seems really nice but you've only known her for a few days. We've all been friends since high school. Why do you care about her that much?"

Wes stood up abruptly and stood over her. "She saved my life several times. What have you done that's come close?!"

He didn't wait for an answer. He simply stormed out and found an axe in the shed outside. He wandered around until he found a bunch of fallen trees. They might as well enjoy a cozy fire. He took out his anger on the wood.

The entire time he imagined every piece as Belle's face. Then, he heard a small voice. The voice he hadn't heard in hours. "Wes?"

He practically broke his neck turning so fast. "Jo?!" He called back. He dropped his axe and ran to her. He felt incredibly bad when she practically fell into his arms. He held her close for a solid few minutes. Then he pulled away to see her awesome blue eyes again. He then scanned her for any injuries.

Her elbow and wrist sleeves were torn and he spied several other small cuts. He pushed up her sleeves and brought her elbow close to his face. His heart panged in sympathy as he found the bloody bites to look extremely irritating.

Jo sighed and said, "Thank God."

Wes found himself grinning like the Cheshire cat only for it to vanish when he heard a distant yell. "She's bitten! Quick! Let's get her!"

Wes didn't even have the time to scream as Belle found a large branch and swung it right into Jo's right knee. He went to take the branch when he felt John pull him back. Holy crap! They didn't know that she was immune!

"Stop! Stop! She can't get infected!" he yelled in horror as Belle swung the branch into Jo's head. Then, she dropped the branch and began to press her elbow into Jo's throat.

John heard him though. "What?!" he yelled.

"She can be bit without getting the sickness. Come on, look at the healed scars on her arms!"

John finally let go and Wes ran over to yank Belle off Jo. Jo's head was bleeding along her hairline and her knee was already swelling. He was tempted to pick her up and run but he couldn't leave John and Emma. He pulled up her sleeves to show the others.

"Do you see those scars? They're fully healed. Which means she never developed the condition." he explained breathlessly.

Emma gasped, John frowned in confusion, Belle looked furious. "That doesn't prove anything!" she yelled.

This time John turned around and stopped her from doing anything reckless. "Hey, that's proof enough for me. Wes get her inside."

Wes breathed a sigh of relief before scooping up Jo in his arms and carrying her into his room. She was really light. He set her gently on the bed and began to dig in her pack for some bandages. The whole time he could only think of one thing: I have no idea what I'm doing.