Ellie Dixon

No Going Back

I turned right on the road without thinking about it. I knew where Carl was going. He was going to kill Alpha. The idiot. I didn't give Finn and Ben ten minutes to catch up, I didn't even give them one. I left as soon as they were out of ear shot. I wasn't going to put more people's lives in jeopardy because of a mistake that I made four years ago. I was going to get Carl back before he got himself killed, that's a promise I made to myself.

I slowed the RV to a stop when I noticed something in the tree line. A car. It wasn't well covered, though it was clear that whoever stashed it there intended for it to be hidden. I got out of the car, and pulled out my gun, slowly walking over to the car. There wasn't much fuel left these days, if you weren't making it yourself then you were basically screwed. Our communities mostly used horses, but desperate times called for desperate measures. 

I recognised the rusty red four door Audi as a car that Sophia and I salvaged about three and a half years ago. It stuck out to us mainly because the license plate was: FXCK 69. Pure comedy.

I noticed some tracks next to the car. There seemed to be a little struggle before I noticed a dead walker on the floor, then just the one set of tracks continued. I walked along these tracks, following them like my father had taught me. I kept my eyes on the ground, on the trees, the bushes, behind me, in front of me, my left, my right... Looking for walkers and whisperers. I stopped walking when I realised that I was at a boarder. The spikes got my attention. They weren't the same ones that my friends' heads had been placed upon, but they were still wooden spikes carved by the whisperers. Constant reminders of what we lost a year ago.

Carl had crossed the boarder.

"Damnit, Carl." I muttered. The sun was too high in the sky, the day was too bright, it was too dangerous. I needed to wait until nightfall. I turned on my feet and started walking back to the RV. I went into the bedroom before laying down, I decided to get some shut eye before my potentially suicidal mission.

The door to the RV had developed a squeak over the years. In the days where me, Carl and Sophia used to go out scavenging, it was silent. Dad made sure of it to ensure our safety, but as things get old... They change. That squeak could've saved my life. I heard it, and it woke me. I'd always been a light sleeper. Since waking up to Isabella's drunk friends, to Beth singing at three in the morning.

Without a sound, I sat up in the bed. I grabbed my gun and made my way to the bottom of the bed so I could surprise attack anyone who walked through the door. I was going to do that. Attack, kill, ask questions never... Until, something scared me. "Ellie?" Finn's voice called. Finn? "Ellie, you in here?"

I jumped down from the bed and opened the door to see the boy standing by the counter. A goofy smile growing on his face when he saw me. "What are you doing here?"

"You didn't wait ten minutes. You said you'd wait." He insisted.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "Yea, I left to protect you and Ben. Where is he, by the way?"

"Left him back in Alexandria. I managed to convince him that you'd need someone there if you decided to come home." Finn told me. "When that didn't work because he knew you wouldn't give up on Carl, I threatened to tell his mother."

I smiled a little. "Thanks for saving the kid."

"He's older than you." Finn pointed out, sitting on the sofa.

"Not the point, blondie." I huffed, sitting on the sofa. "So, why are you here?"

"Couldn't let you do it alone, brownie- nope, that just sounded racist." He shook his head, his eyebrows furrowed. "Sorry."