Haunted

Chapter 12

JUST A HEADS UP, MOST OF THIS CHAPTER IS DIRECTLY FROM THE TV SHOW. THIS IS NOT INTENDED COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT, AND I DO NOT OWN MOST OF THE DIALOGUE USED IN THIS CHAPTER. Enjoy :3

"Look here Merle," Rick says, getting all up in his face. "Things are different now. There are no 'niggers' anymore. No 'dumb as shit inbred white trash fools' either. Only dark meat, and white meat. There's us, and the dead. We survive this by pulling together, not apart." Rick unloads Merle's gun.

"Screw you man," Merle says.

Rick sighs. "I can see you make a habit of missing the point," he says.

"Yeah? Well screw you twice," Merle responds.

Rick held Merle's gun to Merle's head, clearly pissed. "You know you oughta be more polite to a man with a gun. It's only common sense," he says.

"You wouldn't. You're a cop," Merle says.

"The only thing I am anymore is a man looking for his wife and son. Anybody that gets in the way of that's gonna lose. I'll give you a moment to think about that," Rick says. He checks Merle for any other weapons. He finds cocaine in his pocket. "Got some on your nose," he says.

"Oh yeah? Whatcha gonna do, arrest me?" Merle chuckles at his own joke. Then Rick throws his cocaine over the roof. "HEY MAN WHAT'RE YOU DOING?! THAT'S MY STUFF! YOU HEAR ME, YOU PIG?!" he yells.

"Yeah, your voice carries," Rick says quietly. I laugh.

"You're not Atlanta PD. Where ya from?" Morales asks Rick.

"Up the road a ways," he replies.

"Well, Officer Friendly from Up The Road A Ways, welcome to the big city," Morales says, looking over the edge of the roof at the gathering herd of walkers.

"God, it's like Times' Square down there," Andrea says. I nod in agreement.

"How's that signal?" Morales asks T-Dog, referring to the walky-talky in his hand.

"Like Dixon's brain," T-Dog says, "weak." This earns him the middle finger from Merle.

"Keep trying," Rick says.

"Why?" Andrea asks. "There's nothing we can do. Not a damn thing."

"Don't give up so quickly," I tell her.

Andrea walks over to her backpack to get her gun.

"Hey, Honey Buns, whaddya say ya get me outta these cuffs, we go off somewhere, bump some uglies. Gonna die anyway," Merle says to Andrea, but not quietly enough.

"I'd rather," she replies, and comes back to join those of us staring at the streets, trying to find a way out.

"Figured as much," Merle mumbles.

"Streets aren't safe," Rick states.

"That's an understatement," Morales says.

"What about under the streets? The sewers?" Rick asks.

"Oh man, hey Glenn, check the alley. You see any manhole covers?" Morales asks.

Glenn goes to check, then comes back. "No. Must be all out on the streets where the geeks are," he reports.

"Maybe not," Jacqui says. "Old building like this, built in the 20s, often had drainage tunnels leading to the sewers in case of flooding. Down in the basements."

"How do you know that?" asks Glenn.

"It's my job," Jacqui replies. "Was. I worked in the city's zoning department."

This is enough information for us. All of us, except for T-Dog and Merle, head down to the basement. "There it is," Glenn says, shining his flashlight's beam on a giant hole in the floor with a ladder leading down into it. "I really scoped the building out the other times I was here. It's the only thing that goes down. But I've never gone down it. Who'd want to, right?' Everyone looks at him, except for me. "Oh. Okay," he swallows nervously.

"We'll be right behind you," Andrea says.

"No, you won't," Glenn says quickly. "Every time I came here alone, things went perfectly. The first time I bring a group, everything goes to hell. No offense." He looks over us. "I'll take one person. Not you, either," he says when Rick goes to take a step forward. "You," he gestures to me. "You can move pretty quickly. Plus, that bow is quieter than a gun." He looks to Rick. "You stay up here and cover our asses at the front of the store, where the walkers are trying to get in. You have Merle's gun, and I've seen you shoot." He looks to Andrea. "You go with him. You're the only other person who has a gun. Morales and Jacqui stay up here. If anything goes wrong, you guys let us know. Get us back up fast." They both nod.

"Alright, everyone knows their jobs," Rick says, laying a hand on Glenn's shoulder.

Glenn and I climb down the ladder into the dark nothingness that will hopefully be our way out. "Ugh," I say, covering my nose with the sleeve of my damaged arm. It smells horrible down here, but that's to be expected of a sewer. Glenn steps on a rat and it squeaks loudly. He looks disgusted. I hold in my laughter and keep looking around for a potential exit. We come to a metal grate that's blocking our way. Glenn starts to look for a way around or through the grate when a walker jumps out of the shadows and tries to grab him. I quickly shoot it, and then realize that it was on the other side of the grate. I see something reflect my flashlight's beam. I shine the light on it and see that it's a wheel. A wheel that probably brings the grate up. I quickly run to the ladder and yell up to Jacqui, "We found a way out!"