Here We Are, Come Join Us (The Walking Dead FanFiction)

Chapter 5

Morning couldn't have come soon enough for Allison. She'd slept fitfully and intermittently, not just because of some slight dizziness, but because her mind kept replaying that scene in the rec room. Shane's face pressed against Lori's, pushing her backward and Lori striking out at him. My God, what was going on with these people? We're supposed to be a group. She's married to the sheriff, no? Why was Barney Fife doing almost raping her? From what Allison had surmised in the short time she'd been with the group Shane was Rick's best friend and on-duty partner. And, most confusing of all, why didn't Lori want anyone to know of the incident? This seemed like it should be some sort of red flag alert that needed to be conveyed to the other women in the group – don't be caught alone with Shane; he may be a cop, but he is dangerous and not to be trusted. Yeah, she'd promised Lori she'd keep quiet, but she was drunk when she'd made that spur-of-the-moment vow. Now that she'd had time to think about it silence didn't seem like such a good idea.

Tired of tossing and turning, Allison finally got up and wandered to the communal ladies' room. She glanced at the digital clock on the wall. Six o'clock. The one morning she could've slept in, should've slept in, and she's up with the sun. She washed her face and was just finishing brushing her teeth when Lori walked in. Upon spying Allison at the sink she immediately turned as if to leave.

"Lori, wait," Allison tried to articulate as she spat toothpaste into the basin. She stood up straight and faced the dark-haired woman. "We need to talk."

Lori removed her hand from the door handle and turned toward Allison. "There's nothing to talk about," she said, her eyes wide with either fear or surprise.

"Oh, I think there is," Allison said very pointedly. "I know I wasn't supposed to be there last night, but I also know what I saw. Shane attacked you. Cripes, he looked like he would've raped you if I hadn't interrupted!"

"It's not what you think," Lori said, her face now pleading as she stepped toward Allison. "Shane and I....well, we have sort of a special...relationship..." She paused and sighed. "It's very complicated."

"Sexual assault is complex?" Allison stated incredulously, not quite believing what she was hearing. After a few moments of silence Lori spoke again.

"Please, Shane didn't mean anything, I'll take care of it. I just need you to promise me that you'll never tell anyone what you saw, what happened... Really, everything is OK."

"No, it's not OK. He's dangerous. I think the other women have a right to know that."

"He's not dangerous," Lori insisted. "He would never hurt any of the women here. What happened last night happened because he loves me..." her voice trailed off.

"He loves you," Allison repeated in a sarcastic monotone. "You know," she continued, shaking her head slightly in revulsion, "I've read romance novels about women who enjoy their strange little brutal rape fantasies, but I've never had the pleasure of meeting such a woman in person, how do you do?" She extended her hand for a mocking handshake.

"Allison," Lori repeated, grasping Allison's hand with both of hers and pulling it tightly to her chest, "I need you to promise not to tell anyone about what happened. Please."

Allison released her hand from Lori's grip and went back to the sink to gather her toiletries. "Don't worry, your sick little secret is safe with me, lady, if that's what you want," she sighed with disgust.

"Thank you," Lori whispered and then fled from the room.

When Allison arrived in the dining area, T-Dog was already hard at work dishing out breakfast.

"Hey, Doc, I hope you're feelin' better than the rest of our crew," he laughed, handing her a plate. He nodded toward the long table where Glen and Rick were both showing the obvious signs of a nasty hangover.