Impregnable {A Walking Dead Fanfiction}

Twenty

    "Did anyone get bit? Scratched? Anything!" Daryl called out. I thought back to earlier when the walker had pulled me to the ground. I reached up and rubbed my head through my thick hair, not feeling anything abnormal. "I think I'm good, are you sure nothing touched you?" I said to Shane. "Positive, they never got the chance." He said over his shoulder, still pointing his rifle into the woods. "We can't stay here anymore, we're leaving for the CDC in the morning," Dale said. No one protested, no one said anything. 

    "We can't stay here, I can't clean up my friend's blood," Jacqui said after a long pause of silence.  "Do we bury them?" I asked. "Gotta make sure their brain's poked first, or our guys are gonna be waking back up in a minute." "What?" I asked, my face contorting in confusion. "Damn, Hollie, you've been around too long to be asking questions like that... It's the brain. You can chop these f****r's heads off and they'll still try to bite you. You gotta bust their brains out their skull." I looked in Andrea's direction. She'd finally stopped sobbing but still sat motionless over Amy's corpse. "How long do we have?" I asked, "Not enough to be standin' around talkin' about it." Daryl said, beginning to walk towards a group of people that had gathered at the edge of the woods. I turned and walked in Andrea's direction. "I'm so sorry..." I said, crouching down next to her. Her eyes were fixed on Amy's, both glazed and unblinking. I reached out and touched her shoulder, a switch flipped the second I made contact. She turned and lunged at me, throwing me violently to the ground. "LEAVE!" She roared, spit flying in my face. I lay below her, stunned and cowering. She glared at me with hot rage before her eyes glazed over again. Shane ran to me, grabbing my arm and pulling me to my feet before we retreated. Andrea returned to Amy, taking her hand and staring into her eyes. 

    I led Daryl, Rick, and Shane over to where I'd last seen Dean. He'd been dragged behind his truck and was lying under a pile of dead walkers, barely visible. I gripped the leg of a small woman and pulled her backwards, her hip cracking and dislocating. Her skin began to tear, filling the air with an awful stench. I gagged, continuing to pull her out of the pile. 

    "Your turn, Hollie," Daryl said, holding out a long knife covered in blood and gore. I looked back at him, hesitating before reaching. "Best to get it out of the way, before he starts moving again." Daryl continued. I nodded, cautiously taking the knife from him. I bent down to Dean's corpse, everything becoming too real. "Just a quick jab in through the temple," Shane said, bending down next to me. I touched the knife to his temple, creating a small cut before freezing. My hands shook uncontrollably. "Here, let me..." Shane said, reaching for the knife. "No, no, I got it," I said, pushing him away with my arm. "Shit." I breathed, looking into Dean's glazed eyes. "Thank you for saving Mable and me. Thank you for getting us here. I'm so sorry..." I said, placing my hand on the base of the knife and shoving it through his temple, squeezing my eyes closed. The knife made an awful gushing noise as it entered and the air filled with the smell of rot. I yanked backwards, spraying Shane and myself with dark blood. 

    "Was that it...did I do it right? I asked, looking back at the men. Daryl nodded, "We'll know for sure in a minute if he gets up." He reached out for the knife and I handed it to him, blood dripping from the blade. "The others have Lana handled, now we just have Amy. What are we going to do about Andrea?" Rick asked. "Pull the bitch off and take the thing out before she turns," Daryl said, starting off in their direction. "Daryl wait!" I yelled, running after him. "Please, not like this!" He ignored me, barreling towards her. Rick and Shane outpaced me, each grabbing one of his arms and pulling him backwards. "C'mon man, Dale's already over there talking to her, just let him. Andrea's a good shot and we need her on our side." Shane said. Daryl broke free, turning to glare at us. "You better pray she doesn't try anything like she did with Hollie, I will handle it." We watched anxiously from a distance, waiting to run to Dale's aid if he needed us. He'd gotten much farther than I had earlier. He reached out to touch her back and my heart jumped into my throat, preparing myself for the worst. She looked over at Dale as he patted her back, tears glistening in her eyes. She then turned to Amy, leaning down and kissing her forehead before removing her gun from its holster and placing it at Amy's temple. She took in a deep, shaky breath before pulling the trigger.