A Broken World

Ten

We watched Rick and Glenn as they ran through the streets towards the construction site that was blocked off by a chain linked fence. The plan had been to get the box truck that was sitting there. They would find a way to distract the walkers, and then Rick would back into the loading bay for us to get in. It all started to go wrong when it started to rain. The guts that were spread onto the coats they were wearing started to get washed off.

We all let out the breath that we had been holding when we saw they got to the truck safely. "Where are they going? They can't leave us here!" Andrea said when she saw them driving the opposite way. "They need to get them away from us," I said, rolling my eyes. Andrea had the habit of assuming things. I wasn't the biggest fan of hers, but she wasn't bad all the time, at least not from what I have seen since I've been with the group.

Not long after, we heard a car alarm blaring through the city. The walkers down on the street were all turning and slowly moving towards the sound. Then the radio in T-Dogs hands started to crackle. "Loading docks. Get ready!" Glenn's voice came through. Everyone grabbed their bags and started to run for the door. "T-Dog, you got Merle?" He stopped, dug into his pocket, and made his way back to Merle.

I started down the stairs but stopped once I heard Merle yelling in frustration about T-Dog doing something. I turned around and ran back out onto the roof. "What's going on?" I asked. T looked at me, "I dropped the damn key!" I closed my eyes and sighed. "Go." I looked at him, and he shook his head. "I'll be fine. Just go. Chain that door so walkers can't get up here. I'll figure it out, and we'll make it back to camp on our own somehow."

"You can't…" I raised my hand and cut him off. "Go! Just go, or you won't make it!" He hesitated for a second before leaving. The door closed, and I heard him chaining the door and padlocking it. Not even five minutes after he left, walkers were pushing against the door. I walked over, pulling my knife and jamming into the heads of the ones trying to push their heads through the gap. After I got as many as I could I went back over to Merle who hasn't stopped bitching.

"That fucker dropped that fuckig key on purpose!" He was pulling on the cuffs where they were hooked to the pipe. "Shut the fuck up Merel! And stop pulling on that. It's not going to do anything. You know this already." I started digging into my pockets to see if I had a key on me. "Shit. Look, the precinct isn't too far from here, maybe like…five or six blocks. I can make my way there quickly and get back. I'm sure there are handcuff keys there and if not, then I'm sure there is something I can bring back to break those cuffs."

"You're gonna just leave me here to die!" He was still pulling on the handcuffs trying to get free. "Look, Dixon, I wouldn't have stayed behind if I wanted to let you die!" He wasn't listening and more walkers were trying to push through the door. "Why the hell did ya stay behind anyway?! You don't give a damn about me!" He was right. I could care less what happens to him. "I might not give a shit about you, but I do give a shit about Daryl even after all these years."

That was true as well. I do still care about Daryl even after what happened between us. I knew what would happen if Daryl came back from his hunting to find out that his brother was left on a roof in an infected filled city. Merel was his family even if he was an asshole. "Look, I'm going to go get the keys. Just sit here and be quiet so you don't attract more walkers!"

"I don't need your fucking help! You did this to me! Daryl will never forgive you for this!" I rolled my eyes and kicked the tools that were left behind towards him. "Then figure it out yourself asshole!" I flipped him the finger and stormed towards the other door on the other side of the roof. "You fucking bitch! You'll regret this!" I ignored him and slammed the door shut.

I had no idea where these stairs led to but it had to be somewhere that would get me out of here. Because no matter how big of an asshole Merle is I couldn't just leave him handcuffed to a roof. It was inhumane and cruel. I slowly and quietly made my way down the stairs and through offices and hallways, finding my way out into an alleyway.

Once I got my bearings on where actually I was, I made my way towards the precinct. I had to put down a few walkers on the way, but I was lucky enough that I didn't run into a large group of them. By the time I got there and got upstairs the sky was starting to get dark. I was able to find keys for the handcuffs and grabbed a few more things while I was there. I had a small war with myself whether I should wait until morning to go back to the roof or go back now.

I looked out the tall floor to ceiling windows and made my decision. It was still light enough that I would be able to see and it shouldn't take too long for me to get back. Well, as long as I didn't run into any trouble I would be there by the time it gets fully dark. I picked my pack up, swung it over my back, and started making my way back. I did run into more walkers on the way back but it wasn't anything I couldn't take care of.

When I got back up to the department store I made my way back inside the way I came. I walked back through the offices and halls, then up the stairs. When I pushed the door open and walked out onto the roof I was knocked off balance by a body slamming into me. I stumbled backwards into the wall beside the door. Before I could recover my head was slammed against the wall a few times until my vision started to get fuzzy around the edges. "Fuck you." Was the last thing I heard before everything went black.