Spider Monkey

Chapter Eight - New Home

Months of continuous movement. House after house, shed after shed.

Lori had gotten big, pushing eight months pregnant. Carl and Hedley stood side by side, weapons raised and loaded as they waited for Rick and Daryl to come back from sweeping a house. No one spoke. Needing to keep quiet.

They were able to rest inside for a moment. Everyone huddled together, Carl and Hedley sharing a blanket as T-Dog and Daryl kept watch from the windows.

But soon they were back on their feet as a herd made their way towards the house.

Back in the woods, Rick paced around as Maggie, Hershel, Daryl and T-Dog were looking at a map.

T-Dog sighed with exhaustion, "We've got no place left to go."

"When this herd meets up with this one, we'll be cut off, we'll never make it south." Said Maggie.

"What do you say, it's about 150 head?" Asked Daryl.

Glenn shook his head, "That was last week, could be twice that now."

"This river could have delayed them. If we move fast, we might have a shot to tear right through this." Said Hershel.

"Yeah, but if this group joins with that one, they could spill out this way." T-Dog said.

Maggie sighed, "So we're blocked."

Rick spoke, "Only thing to do is double back at 27th and swing towards Greenville."

T-Dog shook his head, "We picked through that already, it's like we spent the winter going in circles."

"Yeah, I know. I know. At Newnan we'll push west. Haven't been through the area. We can't keep going house to house." He looks at Lori in the car, Carl and Hedley sitting outside on the trunk, hands together. "We need to find some place to hold up for a few weeks."

"Alright. Is it cool if we get to the creek before we head out? It won't take long. We gotta fill up on water, we can boil it later."

Rick nodded, "Knock yourself out."

Daryl walked up to him, "Hey, while ta others wash their panties, let's go hunt. That owl didn't exactly hit the spot."

Rick nodded.

"Spider Monkey! Ya comin'?" Daryl called for the boy.

Hedley looked at Carl.

"I'll stay here. Watch over mom."

Hedley nodded, hopping off the car and trailing off with Daryl and Rick into the woods.

With his own crossbow raised, Hedley looked around the trees, spotting a squirrel resting on the trunk. He breathed in before firing. The arrow missed and the squirrel ran away. Hedley whined, hand going in his hair to tug the strands.

Daryl took his hand away from his head, "Don't."

The boy pointed to his arrow, sticking out from the bark with no catch, and whined again.

"Ya tired and hungry. That makes ya aim off. Don't mean nothin'."

Hedley just went over to retrieve his bolt, reloading his bow with his head down.

"He's a good kid." Rick said, nodding to Hedley.

"Yeah." Daryl replied, biting his thumbnail.

"Ya surprisingly good with kids."

"Nah."

"He followed you around like a lost duckling the second he saw ya. That's gotta mean something."