The Undead Secret (A Walking Dead Fan Fiction)

Confiscation

Jaime had been woken up bright and early the next morning alongside Carl. She used a water bottle to wash blood out of her hair and she had a raging headache as well as a busted lip and eye. Shane had confiscated everybody's gun but Jaime's.

"Everybody takes a weapon." Rick spoke, rolling out a collection of hunting knifed and small machetes.

"These aren't the kind of weapons we need." Andrea shook her head, "What about the guns?"

"We've been over that. Daryl, Rick and I are carrying. We can't have people popping off rounds everytime a tree rustles." Shane gestured to the handgun on his belt.

"It's not the trees I'm worried about."

"Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, a herd happens to be passing by, see then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it." Shane had a great amount of attitude in his voice now.

All Jaime could think about was how much of an egotistical prick he was, and how fucking stupid the idea of no guns was. Sophia had already gotten lost and the whole reason they were having this conversation was because she was still missing.

"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark." Daryl walked off towards the woods at that moment, leaving Rick to give the rest of his instructions.

"Stay quiet and stay sharp. Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other. Everybody assemble your packs, and Dale- keep on those repairs, we've got to get this R.V ready to move."

"We won't stay here another minute than we have to, bring Sophia back."

"Keep an eye on Carl while we're gone."

"I'm going with you." Carl gave his dad a look as he shook his head, "You need people right? To cover as much ground as possible?"

Rick groaned, giving Lori a look as she shrugged, "It's your call. I can't always be the bad guy."

"I'll take him." Jaime spoke up, walking towards the four of them. Her foot still hurt but she was more aware of her busted eye than her foot. "Yes! Please, Dad? Please?" Carl begged.

"I'd say he's in good hands." Dale smiled at Jaime as Rick sighed. "Okay, but you don't leave Jaime's sight, no exceptions."

"Yes!" He grabbed Jaime's hand, pulling her towards the woods as they started off behind the rest of the group. "Does your face hurt?" Carl asked, gesturing to the bruises and swelling. "A little, but I'm used to it." "What's your favorite color?" "Mine? Probably green, like a foresty green. Whats yours?" "Mines red! Hey look, Dad said I could carry it and Mom said as long as I was-"

Jaime nearly jumped out of her skin as Shane grabbed her shoulder and stopped both her and Carl. "Keep it down we're looking for Sophia. You need to focus on the task."

Jaime shoved Shane's hand off of her, as he pushed Carl ahead of herself. "Hey, you two. Gotta keep up." Lori turned around, slowing down so they could keep up. "I am." Carl sighed, "I think Shane's mad at me, did I do something wrong?" Carl looked at his mom with teary eyes as he held onto Jaime's hand. "No, honey, I promise you. He's just- he's worried about Sophia, that's all. Come on."

"Carl, if it makes you feel any better, Shane doesn't like me anymore than he likes you. And I think it's really cool that your dad said you could hold onto that knife." Jaime said, putting a smile back on Carls face.

Lori mouthed the words, "Thank you" as she nodded.

They fell behind the rest of the group for a bit, talking quietly for awhile. "So, Jaime. Do you have any siblings?" "No, no. It's just me." "Has your mom always been so crazy?" Carl interrupted, forgetting Topanga was just a couple feet ahead of them, as she turned around real quick and gave Carl a haunting stare. "Carl, don't be rude." Lori whispered, smiling at Topanga as she turned back around. Jaime bent down closer to Carls ear. "To answer your question, yes, and she's super duper mean so don't you take your mom here for granted, okay? Give her all the hugs you can."
Carl nodded, turning towards Lori as he stopped to hug her, "Thanks for not being mean, Mom." "Well of course, sweetie." She laughed.

Carl turned back around, hugging Jaime as he whispered a question in her ear and laughed, "I would love that." "What? What did he ask you?" Lori smiled, "He said it's top secret." Jaime shrugged, ruffling Carls hair.

"Jaime, before all hell broke loose, what did you do?"

"Well I graduated two years before everything, so I was just about to start my sophomore year of College. My dream school was Harvard or Stanford, but I didn't get accepted so I went with Georgia State. I was studying to be an accountant. Sounds lame, but my other idea was to be a world traveller and that didn't get farther than a few states." She laughed, "I wanted to be good with money. My mom was always broke when I was younger. I think we moved a dozen times because she couldn't afford the rent or we were kicked out for her smoking and leaving burn marks in the mattresses and carpets." "Smoking is gross." Carl remarked.

Jaime nodded, "It's really gross, so don't you ever do it. It'll make your lungs black and you'll sound like a robot from those commercials." "They make your teeth fall out too right?" "Yup, that's why my mom's smile is so gapped."

The three of them walked up behind the rest of the group, all waiting a few yards behind Daryl, Rick and Carol. Carol was softly calling out Sophia's name.

"Oh, God." Jaime mumbled, praying that the little girl wasn't in there. Daryl stepped into the tent, as Rick moved to the side coughing as whatever stench was inside filled his nose. "Daryl? Daryl is she in there? Oh! Please tell me it's not her!"

Daryl stepped back outside, shaking his head. "It ain't her."

"What's in there?"

"Some guy. Did what Jenner said. Opted out. Ain't that what he called it?" Daryl spoke.

"What the hell is that?" Jaime asked, looking around them as the others looked at her like she was crazy. "What? I don't hear nothing."

"The church bells, you don't hear them?"

Rick paused, turning towards Jaime as he nodded. "No, no, I hear them. This way!" He turned towards his right, running as the rest of the group was forced to keep up.

Jaime struggled to keep up, her foot bothering her as the bandages slid beneath her sock and began driving her crazy. "Jaime, come on!" Carl wrapped his hand around her waist, trying to help her as they followed the others. They veered off to the left, following the sound of the bells, and slid down an incline as they were met face to face with a white church just past the trees in a small clearing. "That can't be it. No steeple, no bells." "So what? Ghost bells?" Carl asked, making Jaime laugh as she nodded. "Something out of Scooby-Doo, huh?"