Negan X Reader || Behind Enemy Lines (COMPLETED ✔️)

19|| The Council

Y/N's POV
I clench my fists tightly until my nails dig into the palm of my hands though I can barely feel the pain.

"What is your name?", One of the council members asks me. She is a greying older woman with a seemingly fragile body and the only female out of the five of them.

My eyes dart around the huge spacious room, the walls plain white and without windows or decoration. Almost as if to resemble a padded cell of a psychiatric hospital.

"Answer the question, girly" Ozzy nudges my side with his elbow.

"y/n," I say quietly under my breath, looking up at the tall judge's bench that seated the gatekeepers of this community.

"It's to our knowledge that you're from a place called "The Sanctuary", is this correct?" the woman eyes me as I sit at the small defendant's table.

"yes" I keep my response short, fearing that if I say the wrong thing it could land me in even more shit.

"Negan is your husband that you have a one-year baby boy with, correct?"

"yes"

When I say this a strange smile takes over her face, "You and your team did good Ozzy" she congratulates him.

"Thank you, ma'am" he nods graciously.

"Did your team manage to capture the son as well?" The heavily tattoed muscular brunette man next to the woman, chimes in.

"Um, no sir. Lucas said that the chance to get them both might never present itself self so we decided to only move forward with the plan to get y/n"

The man's eyes narrow and his mouth tightens into a straight line, "I'll forgive this mistake one time, the next time you don't fully complete a mission you're losing your rank" his voice stern and dominant.

Ozzy lowers his head in shame.

I try my best to not let anger or fear overtake me, the fact that they could talk about kidnapping a baby so casually makes me want to vomit.

The man turns his attention to me, "I figure by now you already know that you're going to be here for a while so we'll be giving you some important rules and information about Delta"

I nod respectfully so that he knows I'm listening.

"I'm Bryant, the head of military operations" he points to the woman, "she's Mildred, head of agriculture"

I gaze up as the rest of the council introduces themselves.

"I'm Marshall, the head of resources and storage supply" the ginger middle-aged man on the far left adds.

"I'm Colin, head of weaponry" the man next to Marshall looks me up and down with annoyance. I can tell by his demeanor that he couldn't care less about me or this situation. He looks to be the youngest of all them with his blond shoulder-length hair.

"And I'm Christian, head of community relations" the bald member smiles at me warmly unlike the rest of them.

"Now that we have that out of the way, it's time to go over the most important aspect of this community" he pauses for a moment then asks me, "What do you think it is?"

I struggle against my handcuffs nervously, not knowing who to respond.

"He's asking you a question" Ozzy yells smashing his elbow into me harder this time, causing me to cry out in pain.

"Ozzy, don't be so rough with her. She can take as long as she wants" Bryant warns in a sarcastic and somewhat threatening tone.

"I-I don't know, sir" I meekly retort.

"The answer is "rules". It's the single most important thing in keeping a group functional. Everything that I'm about to tell you must be followed at all times, do you understand that?"

"Yes," I focus into his cold blue eyes.

"Number one, you are to stay in your room unless you are being accompanied. We wouldn't want anything to happen to you in our care."

"Sir, we don't have to worry about that, we've been keeping her in a cell" Ozzy interjects proudly.

"Why is that? The jail is for people who've broken one of our rules. She hasn't done that, has she? The bald man named Christian intervenes.

Ozzy instantly becomes unsure of himself, he struggles to explain his actions "I mean, she is a prisoner right? I thought that's what we do"

"She's not a prisoner, she's a guest. The least we could do is make her feel comfortable" the previous aggression Bryant once had is gone but still, I'm not comfortable with the situation. I can't get over the feeling that his sudden kindness is some type of trick.

"My apologies sir, I must've misunderstood protocol" Ozzy tries to show remorse but it's painfully obvious that it's all bullshit.

"She can stay in the open room next to mine"

"How kind of you to offer that Bryant but that won't be necessary, I'm sure there are plenty of rooms available in the main housing area" Mildred looks to him with confusion and concern, which in term makes me even more worried than before.

"No, it's fine. This way I can keep a close eye on her" he flashes the older woman a performative smile.

She slowly nods her head agreeably.

"Let's get back to the rules. Rule number two is that when you're asked to do something, you don't argue or put up a fight, understand?"

"Yes"

"Good. Now this last rule is the most important out of all of them and it is to be respectful to all those who rank over you especially us council members"

I nod quickly, agreeing to all of the rules set in front of me, knowing in the back of my mind that I have no intentions of following them.

"If your accused of breaking any of these rules, you will have a trial and if you're found guilty you will be sentenced to time in our jail or in extreme circumstances to death."

His mention of death sends a shock wave through my body. My plan to escape has to be flawless, I can't risk it with these type of consequences.

"Now that you know the rules, we still have to give you a work assignment," He says rubbing his chin as he thinks.

"She can work in the fields with me" Mildred volunteers herself.

"I guess that settles it. Does anyone disagree with anything that was decided here today?" He announces to the whole room.

Everyone stays silent and at this moment it occurs to me that Bryant is the one in control and the others are puppets.

"It's a wrap then, you're dismissed y/n" he motions for Ozzy to take me out.

"Come on, girly" he grabs me by my handcuffed wrist lifting me out of my chair.