infection | D. Dixon

chapter twenty-six

to death

We walked in silence for the most part, a small triumphant smirk playing with my cracked lips as I felt a icy stare hit the back of my head, that smirk widened as the undead emerged in the path ahead of us, it was finally time to get some blood on my hands. A way to release everything inside of me. I saw it now, I could release without hurting myself. I stabbed a departed, hearing the group start killing behind me as we tried to push our way to the town our voyage had been set toward, but there were too many for even a skilled group like ours to handle.

"This way!" I hissed quietly, getting the attention of my perfectly disarranged group. They followed my path through the trees until we found a small clearing with a run down looking barn sitting directly in the middle of it. We ran inside, and shut the door so the jaws of the deceased could not feast on our flesh and bone.

"Keep it down!" Rick whisper-yelled as we stormed into the barn, and checked it over quickly.

"That smell is loud," Daryl muttered, and I found myself fighting the urge to smile towards him.

The blackened fists of the broken and hungry pounded against the chipped and splintering wood of the barn as we investigated the strong smell, the cadaver of a dog was laying on the far side of the room, more than likely giving off the horrible stench.

"Looks like lassie went home," Daryl commented, making me once again hold back the urge to smile at him, I knew he was trying it, he was trying to get under my skin and make me give in to him.

Rick pulled back a blanket on the bed exposing a disgruntled man with a shotgun. "get the hell out of my house!" He yelled. The dead outside became more fierce with every word out of the mans mouth. "I'll call the cops!" He yelled again.

"I am a cop," Rick said quietly. I smiled and kept my knife ready to throw. "Now I need to to put the gun down, don't do anything rash," he said. "Let's do this nice and slow."

The dirty, out of his mind fellow cocked the gun, "let me see your badge!" He yelled, making the dead outside groan louder with hunger.

"It's in my pocket, I'm going to reach down," Rick said smoothly. As soon as he got his hand down far enough he grabbed the gun, as a shot rang through the air, hitting the barn wall.

The groans grew louder as the two men fought, I couldn't step in without fear of hurting Rick, I couldn't do anything.

Rick swung the man and he ran, screaming loudly. Michonne stabbed him, making him drop to the floor, lifeless and freshly dead.

Michonne opened the door as Daryl and Rick threw his body for the walkers to eat so we could sneak out the back. We ran out the back and made our painfully slow way to Woodbury.

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Once we were under the cover of nightfall and outside the gates my heart rate slowed to a steady pace. It was a practice I learned from working in the ER, keep your heart rate down, it keeps you steady and helps you focus.

Michonne lead us to a entrance where we could slip inside. I wish I knew about that place before I took a jump over a wall from the second floor of a house.

"This is where you were held?" Rick asked quietly.

I didn't realize Michonne was being held against her will. "Where I was questioned," She said.