Daughter of the Fallen

Rock in the Road Part 4

The next morning, we followed Richard to see Ezekiel. I didn't get any sleep last night, nervous of what he would say.

Rick slowed down until he was walking next to me.

"Hey," he said softly. "You okay? Carl told me about yesterday."

I looked up at him and sighed. "Yeah, I'm okay." At his suspicious look, I lowered my gaze a little. "I will be."

He nodded and put his hand on my back. "Well, I'm here, Bree. We all are."

I smiled slightly. "Thanks, Rick."

Finally, we met Ezekiel by the archery training station.

"This is life here," he told us as he watched people practice. "Every day. But it came at a cost." He turned to us. "And I wanted more of this. I wanted to expand. To create more places like this. Men and women lost their limbs."

He gave me a meaningful look. "Children lost their parents."

I raised my chin and crossed my arms, expressing the same meaning to him as he continued.

"This happened because I sent them into a battle with the wasted when I did not need to."

"This is different," Rick claimed, taking a step forward.

"It isn't," Ezekiel disagreed.

Rick nodded. "It is. The dead don't rule us. The world doesn't look like this outside your walls. People don't have it as good. Some people don't have it good at all."

"I have to worry about my people."

Daryl scoffed. "You call yourself a d*mn king. You sure as h*ll don't act like one."

Ezekiel looked at him. "All of this came at a cost. It was lives, arms, legs." He turned back to Rick. "The peace we have with the Saviors is uneasy, but it is peace. I have to hold onto it. I have to try." He then addressed all of us. "Although the Kingdom can not grant the aid you desire, the King is sympathetic to your plight. I offer our friend Daryl asylum for as long as he requires it. He will be safe here. The Saviors do not set foot inside our walls."

"How long do you think that's gonna last?" Daryl asked angrily before walking away.

Rick started following him.

The group followed Rick, but before I could do the same, Ezekiel put his hand on my shoulder.

"It's Bree, right?" he asked.

I crossed my arms and didn't make eye contact with him. "Yeah."

"I was wondering what the bruise on your cheek is from."

I self-consciously touched the place where the Savior punched me while I tried to protect Aaron, wincing since the bruise was still fresh.

"Savior," I whispered. I felt a surge of anger and I looked up at him. "Not that you care, though, right?"

I shrugged his arm off and ran to catch up with the group.

•••

I walked next to my mom as we walked to the gate.

I sighed. "Mom?"

She turned to me. "Yeah?"

I forced a smile. "I love you."

She grabbed my hand. "I love you too, baby. Why are you telling me now?"

"Because I don't know what's gonna happen next," I said honestly.

She gave me a sad look. "I don't want you thinking like that."

"But that's the thing. I have to."