IN WHICH - The last thing that Hope Mikaelson expected when she came out of Malivore was to still be alive, the second last thing she expected was to be disowned by most of her living family, and the final last thing she expected was some ancient be...
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CHAPTER 19
THIRD PERSON POV
The tension in the room was thick as Rick, Shane, and Dale stood locked in a heated argument over the fate of the 19-year-old kid tied up in the barn. The kid, a scrawny figure with wide, terrified eyes, had confessed to being part of a group that raped and murdered without remorse. His admission had ignited a moral firestorm.
"We can't just execute him in cold blood!" Dale insisted, his voice quivering with passion. "We're supposed to be better than that!"
"And what do you suggest, Dale?" Shane snapped, his voice sharp with derision. "Let him go so he can run back to his buddies and bring them here to kill us all? Is that your idea of better?"
Rick stood between them, rubbing his temples. He looked exhausted, his moral compass being tugged in every direction. "We can't just do this lightly," Rick said. "We need to think this through. There has to be another way."
Off to the side, Hope leaned against the barn wall with her arms crossed, her expression unreadable. Daryl stood to her left, picking at his nails with a knife, and Merle stood to her right, chewing on a toothpick with his signature cocky smirk.
"Seems to me this ain't much of a debate," Merle drawled, tipping his head toward the trio. "Kid admitted he's a scumbag. Don't see why we're wastin' breath on it."
"Yeah," Daryl grunted, his eyes narrowing at the kid through the barn doors. "Ain't no cure for what he's got. Put him down and move on."
Hope raised an eyebrow. "But let's be real—this whole debate's kinda entertaining," she said, her voice laced with dry humor. "Dale's over there trying to save the soul of humanity while Shane's ready to play Judge Dredd. Rick's stuck in the middle like a referee at a death match."
Merle let out a bark of laughter. "Damn, princess, you sure got a way with words. Think I like watchin' you poke the bear more than listenin' to their crap."
"Well, you'd better get used to it," Hope retorted with a smirk. "The way things are going, we'll be here all night."
Merle shot her a look, his grin widening. "Careful now. Keep flirtin' like that, and Daryl's gonna start gettin' jealous."
Daryl shot a glare at his brother, his knife stilled in his hand. "Shut up, Merle."
Hope laughed softly, giving Merle a light shove. "Keep it up, and I'll put a spell on you."
"Promises, promises," Merle teased, stepping back with a mock bow.
Meanwhile, Rick's voice rose, snapping their attention back to the argument. "This isn't a joke, Shane! We're talking about killing a kid!"
"That kid is a monster!" Shane roared. "Wake the hell up, Rick! This ain't the world you're clinging to anymore!"
Hope exchanged a glance with Daryl, her smirk fading. "As much as I'd love to see how this plays out, we all know how it's gonna end," she muttered.
