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chapter fourteen | the million-dollar question
LAUREL WALKED BEHIND Daryl with Ethan beside her as she remembered the look Cassie gave her brother when Shane was talking about the guns floating around camp.
She looked at her brother from the corner of her eye, watching him carefully as they walked for a few minutes. He repeatedly reached behind his back for something every now and then. She clenched her jaw before she grabbed his arm to pull him closer as she whispered so no one would hear them. She knew the people behind them were nosy.
"You gonna tell me what you got beneath your shirt?" She stared down at him, angrily.
He pulled his arm out from her grasp and rolled his eyes. "Did Cass snitch?"
"What? No? You know better," She whispered, "hand it over." Laurel held out her hand, in front of them as they continued walking.
Ethan tilted his head back towards the sky, before looking back at her and glare as he reached behind himself and slapped the barrel of the gun into her hand harshly. She carefully tucked it underneath the front of her shirt.
"Where did you get this?" She asked.
"I found it yesterday on the highway. Don't give it to Shane, please," He begged, "I had it so I can protect you and Cassie."
"We've made it this far without guns, Ethan," She argued, "We made it out of the city with nothing but knives and each other. That's all we need. It's my job to protect you two. Not the other way around."
Daryl overheard the conversation. He wasn't trying to be nosy but they were right behind him and he could still hear them even as they whispered. He remembered when he went to the city to find Merle, it was crawling with walkers on every block and he couldn't help but wonder how did they make it out of there alive if they were deep inside the city?
"So this is it?" Carol spoke up, "this is the whole plan?" She sat down on a log, the group coming to a stop with her.
"I guess the plan is to whittle us down into smaller and smaller groups," Daryl guessed.
"Carrying knives and pointy sticks. I see you have a gun." Andrea jeered at Lori.
"Why, you want it?" Lori snapped, handing over the gun to Andrea, "here, take it. I'm sick of the looks you're giving me."
Andrea's mouth fell open, grabbing the gun despite the embarrassment she felt. Laurel sent Ethan a look that he ignored. The group watched the interaction between Lori and Andrea silently.
