Not Going Anywhere

Chapter 3

Throughout the night, Natalie hardly slept. Well, she'd barely slept at all since Anthony had died but this particular night was different. It wasn't Anthony's screams of pain or his cries as he died her arms. Nor was it due to the recurring memory of when Natalie had put a bullet into her fiancé's head after he had turned. Unlike the previous nights, it was Daryl who was the cause for her unrest.

Moreover, the fact that he had completely shunned her.

Feeling tears prick her eyes, Natalie decided to go for a walk around the farm to pass the time. She recalled how oddly familiar this simple life seemed; her lack of technology, nice clothes and money made this new life seem a lot like her childhood – her life before education. While Natalie had no regrets about moving away to become educated, she did regret how she'd handled her departure. After all, she'd hardly visited her family over the recent years – or Daryl – so maybe that made her a selfish person. Perhaps her aspiration to be in a better financial and educational situation had rendered Natalie blind to the importance of her relationships with those around her.

A sound from inside the barn in front of her brought Natalie away from her thoughts and she couldn't help but stare at the door as she attempted to work out what said sound was. Truth be told, Natalie was surprised to think that Hershel still had a barn full of healthy animals during an apocalypse. Deciding that she'd prove her worth by tending to the animals, Natalie began to remove the lock on the barn door.

"Don't open it..!" Someone hissed from behind. Natalie turned around to see a familiar face from earlier; she recognised him as the third guy who had been with Daryl when he was shot – Glenn, wasn't it? "You can't open the barn door."

"Why not?" Natalie asked suspiciously, her hand still resting on the wooden plank. "The animals might be hungry and I just want to help."

Glenn lowered his voice and took Natalie by the arm, "there aren't any animals in there..."

"Then what did I hear just now?" Natalie asked, puzzled by Glenn's secretive behaviour.

Knowing that this woman wasn't going to give in with the interrogation process, Glenn hung his head and knew that there was only one thing he could do. He just hoped that Natalie was better at keeping secrets than he was.

"There are walkers in the barn..."

"Excuse me?" Natalie smiled slightly, believing his words to be nothing more than fictitious – a joke, even.

"Hershel keeps walkers in the barn." Glenn repeated, waiting for Natalie's smile to be replaced by a look of mortification. Sure enough, it did.

"What the hell? Why would someone...does Hershel know the risks he's taking by keeping them in there?!"

"Keep your voice down – you can't tell anyone else about this, alright?"

"I can't let this lie; i-it's sick, Glenn..!" Natalie exclaimed, looking back at the barn; imagining the monsters that lurked inside.

"Is everything okay here?"

Glenn and Natalie spun around quickly to find Dale close by; it was apparent that he was aware of the tension, but unclear as to whether or not he knew the reason behind this.

"Everything is fine." She insisted whilst biting her lip.

Dale turned to Glenn, still convinced that he and the new member of their 'group' were hiding something. And of course Glenn caved in and told Dale everything – they were practically family after all.

"We can't let this continue," Dale insisted, turning from Glenn to Natalie, who nodded in agreement. "I think we should talk to Hershel. Perhaps we can get him to see sense."