A Shred of Hope (The Walking Dead) (The Final Season Retelling)

24. McCaroll Ranch, Part I

Nearly 3 years ago

The night sky shone above as Clementine made her way through the forest. The dark surrounded her on every side as her feet stepped over the leaves and branches. She walked with a determination with the moonlight guiding her on her journey. Normally, she would have used her flashlight to find her path.

But that was not a normal day. That was the day she would hopefully find AJ where he was. At McCaroll Ranch.

Choosing the darkness was an obvious choice to her. She had no idea what this place was like and if they would allow her in, even with the New Frontier tattoo on her arm. If they were hostile, she would need to play it safe and sneak in. A flashlight would do all but conceal her.

She had sneaked into plenty of communities before. Starving and alone on the road made for one dangerous combination. Her solitary stance reduced when she met Javier and his family. He was partly the reason she was heading for AJ. She'd told herself that it was better he was gone since she wouldn't be a good mother for him. But after seeing Javier look after his family... she knew AJ was the only good thing she had left in the world.

She picked up the pace, taking care not to lose herself in the darkness. She had an inkling of where the place would be. Having it marked out on a map and looking at it nearly every waking second had made her sure she was heading in the right direction.

Only a little farther, she told herself.

She could feel the pit in her stomach as well as the excitement. After believing he was gone for so long, she was finally so close to him. Would he even recognize her? After all he was barely a couple of years old when she had last seen him and he hadn't even started talking. Maybe his first words would be 'Clem'? That is, if he still hadn't started talking.

All she wanted to do was give him the life he deserved. Maybe she could give him coffee. She wasn't sure whether kids were supposed to have it so early. He could always have just a sip, right? Her hand travelled to her bag, clutching at the outline of the toy she'd found in a store. She was sure he would love that. He would play with it as a toothy grin would spread across his face.

She couldn't wait to hold him in her arms and give him the biggest hug of his life.

Clementine found a wide smile on her face as she entertained thoughts of how he would react to her. Scenarios upon scenarios played in her head on a loop, almost making the entire journey from Richmond to here seem like a distant memory. It was always the last miles that would seem like they took years.

Finally, after a grueling walk, she broke past the trees and found herself on the road. She mentally pictured the map, remembering that she just had to follow the road for a mile or two and she would be there.

Setting off down the road, she walked closer to the trees in case she needed to quickly get off and hide. In the distance she could spot lights. Her first thought was to question their intelligence in using bright lights at night. It would draw a lot of walkers and it definitely would be a beacon for other groups.

She could now see that the lights were orange. She had never been a fan of orange lights. Ever since the apocalypse, the color had been nearly ruined for her. It only reminded her of candle flames, something that represented a night in any rundown place all throughout her journey.

The light didn't seem to be from an artificial source now. It appeared to be... natural, the way it mingled with the sky above it. The smoke rose high.

That's when she realised. That was no light.

They were flames.

The Ranch was burning.