In which Rick Grimes comes back
from the dead, only to find that he's
living amongst them too.
OR
In which Emerson Scott falls for the
widowed cop in the midst of their
world crashing down around them.
BOOK ONE
part i. - when the dead come knocking
...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
10 | past, present & future demons
THE NEXT MORNING, AS PROMISED, RICK made the search as much of an organized effort as they could. They would start with the path he followed Sophia, which in turn they hoped would lead them to her. Ultimately, it led them deep in the woods. They passed many caves and stray tents that led them no where. It didn't give them any clues as to where she might have gone off to. It seemed as if she disappeared. Turned to dust in the wind...
It wasn't until they heard church bells that they let their wishes run wild with hope. They were happy to imagine it was Sophia ringing those bells. Hoping that as soon as they arrived, she'd run to Carol with nothing but open arms, relief and smiles.
"Do you think it's Sophia?" Carol asked from beside Emerson. The two of them were in the middle of everyone, making small conversation while they searched. Though, Emerson herself felt her chest swell with hopefulness.
Emerson grinned, "I do. Truly."
She was overjoyed this would all be over. Other than the RV's radiator hose, they had a clear path to make it to Fort Benning. At last, safety would be theirs.
Until it wasn't safe. And it wasn't Sophia. They found the church bells to be on a timer. At first, they thought maybe they found the wrong church due to that this one had no steeple.
Glenn was the one to find out it was on a timer. He ripped open the control box and ripped the cords out. It signified defeat. While everyone spent their time inside the church or walking about the grounds, Silas and Emerson found themselves sat on the steps to the entrance.
Emerson hated church.
When Emerson and Silas were younger, their mother and father drug them to church every Sunday. She remembered how close her and the Pastor's wife had become. She became a sort of role model for Emerson. She was someone Emerson wanted to be. A doting wife in a loving marriage, a mother to young children... A leader.
It reached the point where Emerson told the woman what was happening at home. How her father had laid hands on their mother, along with her and her brother. The pastor's wife informed her that prayer would help. It would make the pain stop and that the Lord would deliver her from their troubles soon enough.
Unfortunately, it never stopped until the day she left for college. Later in life, Emerson realized that the pastor was probably beating his own wife, too. It made her loathe the building entirely. She felt as if it was nothing but a structure of secrets.
