The Walking Dead: Blood

Chapter 40: The Bell Tolls for Thee

Chapter 40: The Bell Tolls for Thee

The city was empty. From the time we had got off the train, we hadn't found anything or anyone. No walkers. No survivors. The city was dead. But we were still here.

Chuck held a shovel on his shoulder that he had picked up out of the ground somewhere on the way here. Ben was constantly turning around so he could see all the sides at once. Christa was helping Omid limp along. Kenny and I were leading the pack.

Clementine ran up to me and tried to grab the walkie-talkie off my belt. I swatted her hand away. "Can't I just hold it?" She asked me. I glanced down at her and didn't answer. She continued. "Maybe just for a little while? We're getting really close to where my parents are. Maybe I can-"

"I already told you no." I answered her. "Don't ask me again."

"What's the harm in letting her have it?" Christa asked. "It doesn't even work."

I scowled. "You took care of yours. Let me take care of mind."

She grimaced back to me. "Sorry I spoke."

"How's Omid?" I asked.

"His leg's in bad shape." Christa answered.

"I'm fine." Omid could barely force out the words.

"You're not fine. You need to rest." Christa turned to me. "He needs to rest."

"Yeah. You're right." I told her. "Kenny, hold up!" He ignored my request and continued walking. "Kenny, da**it, I said hold up!"

He turned around slowly. He spoke with a sorrowful tone that matched the mood. "We're almost to the water... almost to the boats!"

"Then it won't hurt to stop for one da** minute." I glanced back around at Omid, who was having trouble maintaining balance, even with Christa supporting him. "Omid needs to take a break. Let's give him a second."

Kenny closed his eyes, and ran his hand over his head. He seemed to accept the request without another word.

All of a sudden, I heard a loud ringing sound echoing from above. I look up to my right to find an old church building. On the top of it was a swinging bell inside a rickety clock tower. That bell was gonna get us killed.

"What the hell?" Ben exclaimed.

Christa sighed and shook her head. "Maybe this city's not so dead after all." Omid nodded in agreement, then grimaced in pain.

Kenny turned around to meet us. "Keep moving. No one's ringing that bell. It's automatic. On a timer." He lifted his arm up to symbolize the watch that he didn't have.

I looked down at the watch that I really did have on. It read 8:22 a.m. Just past daybreak. "What kind of church bell goes off at twenty past the hour?" I asked.

Everyone crossed their arms. Monod scratched behind his head. They all seemed to agree with me.

I looked back up to the church bell, expecting to find something worth seeing. I found the silhouette of a person running and jumping off the back of the roof. It wasn't a walker, because it was moving too fast. "Someone's up there!" I shouted.

"Are you sure?" Ben stood on his tiptoes trying to see what I saw. "I don't see anything."

I waved my arms and jumped up and down. "Hey! Hey you up there!"

Christa put her finger to her mouth and shushed me. "Da**it, Lee!" She whispered. "Keep it down! You're gonna-"

A sort of static was emitted from the walkie-talkie on my belt. It made me jump. "If I were you...I'd get out of the street. Now." It spoke.

Christa turned around, outraged. "I thought you said that thing was broken!"

I ignored her statement. I pulled it to my face to speak. "Who the hell is this?!" I shouted into the radio, hoping to get a response. When none came, I kept shouting. "Hello? Hello?! Answer me, da**it!"

Clementine hung her head, in embarrassment. We all stood around for a few moments, with a sense of unease in the air. "What the hell was that?" Omid asked. "Is someone trying to f*** with us?"

Ben crossed his arms, frightened. "Sounded more like a warning." He said.

Chuck turned around. It just occurred to me he hadn't said one word ever since we got off the train. "Ask not for whom the bell tolls..." He said mysteriously.

Kenny turned around as well. "What are you yammering on about?"

"...it tolls for thee." Chuck continued. There was what looked like all the walkers in Savannah approaching us from all directions. Every single way I looked, there were just more dead coming to their next feast.

"Everybody!" I yelled. "RUN!!"

Kenny drew his gun out of his back pocket and ran forward to meet the horde ad fend them off. Chuck whacked a zombie in the head with his shovel. We all ran for a house that was just up the street. It had a brick fence. It was safe.

Kenny continued running, but a walker crawled out from beneath an abandoned pickup truck and tripped him, knocking his gun away from him. He grabbed a road sign pole and used it as leverage to reach for the gun.

I drew my gun out of my pocket and shot the walker in the arm. It had been a while since I had missed. I tried again, but shot the bumper on the truck. On my third time I hit it in the head. Three bullets on one walker. I was losing my edge.

Kenny crawled up onto the curb, hyperventilating. "Little too close." He breathed. "Don't you think?"

"Ben!" I heard Clementine squeal from behind me. I immediately turned around. Ben and Clementine were cornered by the zombies.

"Ben!" I yelled. "Help her!" Ben paused for a moment looking back and forth between Clementine and the walkers. After a few moments, Ben shut his eyes and ran as fast as he could from the situation, brushing past walkers as he went. "Da**it, Ben!"

I raised my gun in the horde's direction and fired off at least twice as many shots as there were walkers. There was still one left. It was inches away from Clementine. "No!"

The sharp end of Chuck's shovel landed in the walker's head. I was grateful to the man for saving her. "Get the hell out of here! Go!" Chuck shouted to Clementine and I. "I'll catch up with ya."

"I'm not leaving you!"

"Just go!" He screamed, planting his shovel in another walker's chest and pinning it to the wall. He nodded to me and I nodded back.

"Move your asses!" Kenny shouted. "River street's just up ahead!"

"That's not all..." Ben said.

"Oh give me a f***ing break!" Kenny swore.

Christa started violently looking around. "Wait! Where the hell is Chuck?"

Everyone turned around to find Chuck swinging his shovel away at the zombies encircling him. "He's in trouble!" Exclaimed Omid. "We gotta help him!"

"There's no time!" Kenny waved his arm toward the manor on the corner of the street. "Move!"

I stopped for a moment to glance back at Chuck, knowing well enough this might be the last I'd ever see him. I'd only known Chuck for about a day, and he already felt like a brother to me.