"If you dare lay a hand on him..." Ali warned. Her eyes filled with panic as she watched the Governor search a tray of tools. She let out a sigh when she realised the Governor had stopped listening to her pleas a long time ago.
"Ah!" The Governor smiled, holding up a small knife which was just sharp enough to cut through skin. "Now...Where should I go first? Shoulder? Leg?"
Carl sat quietly, his eyes trained on his mother as he waited for what was to come. He pulled against the metal holding him down but nothing was working.
Suddenly, a sharp pain ripped from the top of his arm to his elbow making him cry out in pain as blood began to pour from it.
"Carl!" Ali screamed, her eyes filling with tears at her son in pain. "No, please. Hurt me instead. Please. Leave my son alone."
The Governor only chuckled and began to speak. "You see...Your little friend - Belle, was it? She told us that the easiest way to torture you would be to get Carl. It was quite easy actually. You complied with Andrea very well! We also knew that Carl would follow you. This was probably one of the easiest things we've done in a good while. Oh. And we also knew you and Rick had been having problems which made Andrea's story even worse. Like salt in an open wound."
At this point, Ali was infuriated. She looked to Carl and saw the tears streaming down his face because of the pain the cut was causing.
"Carl. Look at me, baby." When his eyes met hers, every ounce of anger and sadness rushed back to her in tidal waves. "I swear I will get us out of here, okay? I'm gonna get you to safety and everything's going to be okay. We're gonna be okay."
"Okay." Carl whispered.
"I love you." Ali weakly smiled which brought a smile to him too (even though it was extremely small).
"I love you too."
"I think I need to hurt you more because I can't have these moments every time." The Governor frowned before slicing another cut through Carl's hand.
Ali watched in frustration as her son screamed again. Her body began to shake as she yanked against the metal with everything she had.
Through tears, she watched as more cuts were painted on Carl. The scarlet flowing like a river; twisting and turning with every bend. It silently called out to her - 'This is your fault'. It took over her vision. Everywhere she looked - red. It leaked down the walls, made pools on the floor and coated her son like a blanket. The sad thing was, she couldn't stop any of it and she knew it.
She looked down at her wrists and saw the same scarlet leaking through her own, pale skin. The metal had tore through it like a knife through air. She tried to wipe it away but it just kept coming back. Frantically, her eyes looked back up. Still the screams, echoed through her mind like a ghost from the past.
Suddenly, the walls felt too closed in. Her breathing became short as her mind could only focused on the panic running through her veins. She tried to think clearly but it was like her mind was stuck in a fog.
"I think that's enough for now." The Governor sighed before his eyes looked to Leah. A sick smile took over his features at her state. With one last chuckle, he left the room.
"Mum?" Carl groaned.
Ali shook her head and closed her eyes. She focused on her breathing and tried to mirror what Glenn had done to calm her down.
"I'm okay." Ai breathed, before opening her eyes to see Carl. "Baby, I'm so sorry..."
"Mum. It's not your fault. I'm okay." He reassured but the pain dancing in his eyes gave it all away. "Dad's gonna come and save us!"
Ali just nodded her head but deep down in her heart, she knew that they were alone.
