Sightless

Dr. Edwin Jenner

When we stopped next, it was dead silent as we all opened the doors. I could hear Max and Hendrix getting out of the back, and Hendrix's cold nose nudged my hand a moment later and I gripped his lead. It smelled, really really horrible and I could bet that there were a lot of dead bodies around because it was strong and had to be from somewhere close. 

"Mom..." I heard Max whisper, and a moment later his small hand gripped mine and I listened really hard to hear Daryl's footsteps coming around the truck. 

"Let's go. Stay close alright?" Daryl's voice whispered, and I nodded, and after a moment, Daryl called for Hendrix to follow him, and we were off, heading towards (probably) the building that the C.D.C. is housed in. 

"All right everybody, keep moving. Go on, stay quiet. Let's go. Okay, keep moving, stay together." Shane was whisper-shouting from somewhere ahead and I could hear the pounding of multiple sets of feet and knew that we had to have caught up with the group, but that didn't ease my anxiety any. 

I could hear the mumbling noises of the group talking ahead of me, and the small yips of Hendrix as he warned me of things to step over, it was slow going, but I knew we needed to get there before the sound of us caused some of the dead to start looking for us. We shouldn't have come this close to the city. It was an awful, horrible idea. 

"Keep it together. Come on." Shane said again, louder this time and I had to hope it was because we were almost there. 

A moment later though, I was shot through with disappointment. 

"Nothing?" Shane yelled, hitting something hard and causing whatever it was to ring out with a bang. 

"There's nobody here." T-Dog growled out, confirming my suspicions. 

"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick asked, proving a solid point, but a bad point nonetheless. If the shutters are down, even if there are people alive in there, what makes him think they would risk themselves to help strangers?

"Walkers!" I heard Daryl yell from behind me, and I had to wonder when he moved around me, but I didn't get a chance to wonder long as that familiar twang of his crossbow sounded, and I heard a thump, probably a walker. 

"You led us into a graveyard!" Daryl roared, coming closer for a moment and backing away yet again as the crossbow sounded, followed by another thud. 

"He made a call." Shane argued, but Daryl instantly fired back. 

"It was the wrong damn call! Let's go Meg, Max, we're going. Hendrix, come on!" I didn't even get a chance to reorient myself as Hendrix twirled me around and started leading me quickly after Daryl, Max's hand still clutched in my other as Daryl fired shot after shot at the seemingly endless dead surrounding us. I could barely even focus on the sounds coming from behind us, all I knew was that they were arguing, trying to decide what to do. There was screaming, yelling, and then the sharp grating sound as something moved. 

I was jerked to a stop by running into a very firm chest, I almost screamed, but a hand clamped over my mouth and Daryl's calm voice resounded in my ear. 

"Just me." And then I was being pulled back the way we came. 

"What's happening?" I cried, as my arms were being pulled out of socket, as Daryl forced Hendrix, Max and I to practically print after him. 

"The shutters are open!" Was all he said as the sound of his footsteps changed, became more echoey, and then I was in whatever he had run into, and then it was dead silent once again, like we were all holding our breaths. 

"Daryl you cover the back." Shane's voice finally broke the silence, and I heard Daryl's footsteps softly move around me and back the way we came, but he didn't go far. 

"Hello? Hello?" Rick's voice rang out, and was met by the sound of a cocking gun. 

"Anybody infected?" A new voice asked, one I didn't recognize and I had to assume he was the person who opened the shutters. 

"One of our group was. He didn't make it." Rick answered, and I had to wonder why he didn't just say no instead. 

"Why are you here? What do you want?" The new person asked again, and I would bet that he still hadn't lowered whatever gun he had aiming at us. 

"A chance." 

"That's asking for an awful lot these days."

"I know." 

"You all submit to a blood test. That's the price of admission." 

"We can do that." 

"You got stuff to bring in, you do it now. Once this door closes, it stays closed." Eerily fatalistic words... but alright.