Safe haven | Rick Grimes

098. THE THINGS WE DO TO STAY ALIVE

Chapter ninety eight

"The things we do to stay alive."

Back at Hilltop, the exhausted lines of fighters scrambled back through the burning gates, retreating in a desperate panic. Ezekiel had managed to gather the community's children and was running hard with them toward the relative safety of the rear perimeter.

"Stay with me, everybody! It's alright!" he voiced, his lungs burning as he checked over his shoulder to keep the line moving. "It's gonna be fine!"

He whirled back around to count heads, but the moment he scanned the small, soot-stained faces, his heart stopped. Four very important kids were entirely missing from the group.

Ezekiel skidded to a halt in the dirt. "Wait, wait, wait!" he voiced sharply to the other guards.

The evacuation line came to a sudden stop. Thick, choking black smoke from the inferno began to swell around them, completely blinding their view of the burning courtyard. Ezekiel frantically spun in a circle, his eyes wildly searching the haze.

"Where are the Grimes children?" he demanded, his voice tight with sudden terror.

Before anyone could answer, a violent explosion roared from the main house, sending a shower of burning timber into the sky and swallowing the courtyard in fire.

Out in the deep woods, they kept running, the sharp stench of burning pine and charcoal clinging heavily to the damp night air behind them. Dog led the vanguard, his nose low as he confidently navigated the tangled brush.

Suddenly, a snarling walker lunged out from behind a massive oak directly in front of them. Daryl didn't hesitate. He hoisted his training crossbow, lined up the sights, and pulled the trigger in one fluid motion, driving the bolt cleanly into its skull. The creature collapsed into the leaves with a heavy thud, and the siblings sprinted right past it without breaking stride.

Once they had put enough distance between themselves and the roaring inferno of Hilltop, their adrenaline finally gave out. They collapsed together into the thick brush, their chests heaving as they desperately fought to catch their breath in the quiet dark.

By daybreak, they were back on their feet and moving deeper into the forest. The morning light filtered through the thick canopy, casting long shadows across the damp earth. This time, Daryl had Rick hoisted up on his back, while Judith and Caroline walked closely on either side to monitor their perimeter.

Rick blinked his eyes open, rubbing the sleep away as he realized they were trekking through a completely unfamiliar section of the woods. "What happened?" he asked, his voice small and raspy.

"Hilltop came under fire," Caroline shared, checking her recurve bow string as they walked. "Literally."

"And the second Daryl saw the flames, he didn't hesitate to get us out of there," Judith shared, giving her brother a reassuring smile as she shifted her grip on her katana.

"All we need to do now is make sure we don't run into any skin-freaks," Daryl shared, his expression deadpan as he adjusted his grip under Rick's knees to keep him secure.

The siblings fell back into a disciplined silence, their focus entirely locked on the trail ahead as they navigated the dangerous wilderness alone.

Meanwhile, the survivors were moving quickly toward the coordinates they had designated before the evacuation. Uncle Daryl and Rosita led the vanguard of their small group, slicing through the high grass of an open field. Rosita glanced back at the trailing refugees before focusing on the path ahead.