The Third Dixon [The walking dead]

Chapter three - Part 1

The argument still rang in Measi's ears. She sat apart from the others, her rifle resting across her thighs as she stared down the empty road leading back into town. The argument with Shane still burned in her chest, unresolved and sour. Every minute that passed felt stolen—time that should have been spent moving, planning, doing something other than waiting to be proven right too late.

She kept her breathing steady. Waiting didn't mean weakness. It meant survival. Still, her fingers twitched against the rifle stock, restless.

Behind her, Lori worked carefully at Carl's hair, the soft snip of scissors cutting through the quiet. Carl fidgeted despite her warnings, shoulders tensing every time the blades came close. Measi watched them with a faint, reluctant smile. It was almost normal—too normal for a world that had ended.

Shane hovered nearby, trying to turn the moment into something lighter. He talked about shaving, about frogs, about food—anything but the department store. Measi let herself drift into the conversation just enough to keep from snapping, trading a few dry remarks while her eyes never fully left the road. Humor was easier than anger. Anger led to mistakes.

A low rumble rolled through the mountains.

Measi was on her feet before anyone else reacted.

She climbed onto the RV, rifle coming up smoothly as she scanned the distant road through her scope. The sound grew louder, sharp and unnatural, bouncing off the hills in chaotic echoes. A car alarm. Loud. Careless.

"Hey, Dale!" Shane shouted. "Can you see what that is? Talk to me!"

"I can't tell yet," Dale called back.

"It's a car," Measi said, adjusting her angle. "But I can't see who's driving."

"Is it them?" Amy called. "Are they back?"

Measi's breath hitched.

Her pulse spiked.

She adjusted her focus and exhaled sharply. "It's Glenn."

Relief hit her hard—too hard. The noise washed over the camp, drawing every eye, every nerve taut. Dale shouted from the RV roof, Shane cursed, and Glenn rolled in grinning like he hadn't just risked all their lives.

"Holy crap!" Dale shouted from the RV roof. "Turn that damn thing off!"

"I don't know how!" Glenn yelled back, grinning like an idiot as he got out of the car.

Measi climbed down fast, irritation replacing relief the moment she saw his expression.

"Pop the hood!" Shane shouted. "Pop the damn hood!"

Glenn finally did. Measi leaned in beside Shane, spotted the alarm, and stabbed it with her knife. The noise cut out instantly.

"Yes! Everybody's fine," Glenn said breathlessly. "Well—Merle not so much."

Measi snapped her head up too fast and smacked it on the hood.

"Ow—shit."

She rubbed her head, wincing.

"Are you crazy?" Shane barked. "Driving that wailing bastard up here—trying to draw every walker for miles?"

"I think we're okay," Measi said, still rubbing her skull.

Dale nodded. Shane glared at her.

"You call being stupid okay?"

"The sound was echoing through the hills," she shot back. "Hard to pinpoint."

He knew she was right. He didn't argue.

Glenn shrugged. "Sorry. Got a cool car."

Measi laughed despite herself, then stepped forward and hugged him tightly.