32. welcome to the tombs

MILO

     HE LOOKED AROUND THE CELL HE HAD been calling home for a few weeks now. He barely had any belongings. The prison suit lay crumbled up in a ball in the corner, Rick had found clothes on one of his runs and had given them to Milo.

Throwing the small backpack he'd packed over his shoulder he scanned the cell one last time before turning on his heels and walking away.

The plan they'd come up with was far from bad but it wasn't perfect either. All of them were convinced the Governor would try to hit them again and so they packed all their stuff and would hide the cars in the woods, making him think they left. Then they would attack, hopefully surprising him.

Milo was anxious to get it over with. It was awful to just sit here and speculate about what was going to happen. He wanted it done so they could move on.

He walked outside, placing his bag in the trunk of the car when his eyes fell on Quinn. She was helping Carl with placing a few of the heavier backpacks in another car. The circles under her eyes were visible even from this distance. Merle's death had hit her harder than she let anyone know. Milo didn't understand why at first. The man had been a danger to them all and he was almost glad he was gone. But when he'd thought about it, really thought about it, he understood. Merle had been a representation of her past, something familiar to look to in the chaos of this new world.

That thought had hurt him, but it also made sense. He had changed, being locked in a cafeteria for ten months changed a person. He wasn't the same as before, meaning he couldn't provide her the same comfort as before. But maybe now, with Merle gone, she would be able to leave her past behind her. He hoped she would, so she could become the person he'd always known she could be.

She must've noticed him looking at her because when she had loaded the last bag in the car she walked over to him, her hands burried in the pockets of her jacket.

He offered her a small smile but she didn't even bother to return it. 'Be careful,' she told him. He nodded at her and pulled her into a hug. Her body was tense as she returned it, almost as if she was scared to touch him. He let her go, studying her face as her eyes were turned to the ground.

'Milo,' Glenn called out, making the former inmate turn around. 'Let's go.'

Turning to look at Quinn one last time he put his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it before letting her go. He followed Glenn back into the cell block, his gun tightly in his hand. The asian turned to him, handing him a flash grenate. 'You're gonna need this,' he mumbled.

Milo took it, putting it away in his pocket before heading towards the entrance of the tombs.

'Hey,' Glenn said softly, making him turn back at the very last moment. 'Thank you.'

Nodding at him he gave a small shrug. 'That's what family's for.' Then he turned around and disappeared into the darkness of the tombs.

He ran quickly, turn after turn, as he tried to keep his footsteps as quiet as possible. Luckily for him they had cleared out most of the walkers earlier, so he didn't came across much trouble along the way.

Finally he stopped, hiding into a cell they had picked out earlier. Taking out the flashgrenates and setting them before him on the ground, he sat down against the wall, out of sight for anyone who might enter the hallway. Now all he had to do was wait.

While they had come up with this plan he had been asking himself why he was willing to go this far to protect these people. At first he thought he was doing it for Quinn but as he sat there in the darkness, waiting, he knew that wasn't the only reason.

Even though Rick had been hostile at first, he had let Milo, Axel and Oscar into his family. He gave them his trust and he had done to the same to Michonne and Quinn, eventually. Milo's fellow inmates were gone now, he was the last one standing, the last one that was proof of Rick his faith in him and his friends. These people had put their trust in him and he wanted to show them they had been right in doing so.

It almost felt like a chance to make up for that horrible night all those months ago. His chance at redemption. These people could be the family he and Quinn always dreamed about being a part of. And he was willing to fight for them.

Footsteps cut through his wandering thoughts and made him reach for the flash grenades. Carefully he looked around the corner of the cell he was hiding in. A man was making his way through the dark hallway followed by a group of heavily armed people. Milo squinted through the darkness and noticed the eyepatch the man wore. He almost laughed, not quite believing their plan was actually working.

He waited for the group to be just a little closer before he took one of the grenades, pulled out the pin and threw it into the hallway. Quickly he looked away as light flashed through the darkness, followed by a curtain of smoke. Screams echoed through the tombs as the people started firing blindly. Milo reached for the second grenate, throwing it right before the Governor's feet. The screams became louder as the bullets ricocheted against the concrete walls. The noise was almost unbearable as it echoed through the small hallways.

'Hold your ground!' The Governor screamed but his people were panicing too much.

Their footsteps faded away as they started retreating back to the courtyard, no longer controlled by their leader's angry shouts and Milo felt himself smirking slightly, unable to believe that actually worked. The sound of more gunfire came from far away, which was his cue. By now they would've reached the courtyard, meaning Maggie and Glenn would've opened fire.

He held his gun tightly as he ran through the hallways. The sound of screams and gunfire became louder as he reached the cell block. Roaring engines sounded as he pulled the door open and ran into the courtyard, just in time to see the Governor and his people retreating, driving away in their vehicles.

'We did it?' Maggie yelled from her position.

'We did it,' Glenn confirmed as he came out of his hiding place, walking towards Milo.

Milo felt a smile appear on his place as he placed his hand on Glenn's shoulder. The asian chuckled slightly at the gesture and returned it before both their gazes went to look at the retreating cars.

'We did it,' Rick said as he looked across the meadow. 'We drove 'em out.'

Smoke was still rising from the bomb the people from Woodbury had dropped on the guardtower and the smell was itching his nose. Even more walkers started to fill the field, drawn into this direction by all the previous noise but Milo couldn't worry about any of it right now because Rick was right. They had managed to drive the Governor and his men out.

'We should go after them,' Michonne said.

Milo turned his gaze away from the field and back to the group, his stomach tightening at those words. He really didn't feel like fighting when it wasn't truly necessary. Bringing the fight back to Woodbury might not be the smartest thing to do. They couldn't afford to lose.

'We should finish it,' Daryl added, making a small sigh escape Milo's lips.

'It is finished, didn't you see them hightail it out of here?' Maggie interjected.

'We can't take the chance,' Glenn joined in, 'he's not gonna stop.'

'They're right, we can't keep living like this,' Carol said.

'So, we take the fight back to Woodbury? We barely made it back last time!' Maggie said.

'I don't care,' Daryl mumbled.

'You should,' Milo said, crossing his arms over his chest. 'Maggie's right, we have to be smart.' He turned his gaze to Rick, wondering what their leader was thinking about this. A thousand thoughts seemed to whirl around in Rick's head before he finally nodded slowly. 'Let's check on the others,' he said, referring to Carl, Hershel, Beth and Judith who had been hiding with the car in the forest. They should be back in the cell block by now.

Without another word the group headed towards the cell block where the others were already waiting for them. While Rick greeted his son and daughter, Milo walked outside to where their car was standing, taking two bags in his hands as he carried them back inside. It felt permanent this time, they were moving back into this place to stay. For good this time, at least that was what he hoped. He wasn't sure it was going to be for good if they were to attack Woodbury.

'You're not going to Woodbury?' A small voice behind him asked. Milo turned around to see his sister standing a few feet away from him, her arms wrapped around herself, as if protecting herself from everything around her.

'I'm not sure it's the best idea,' he sighed, his eyes studying her as she stared at him. 'Do you want me to go?'

She nodded, opened her mouth to talk but closed it again. Taking a deep breath to try and calm herself she finally spoke up. 'I know you don't like fighting but we have to end this before he does any more harm.'

Nodding he put the bags he'd been holding on the floor, every vein in his body wanted to move forwards and embrace but something told him that wasn't what she needed at this moment. 'Listen, I know you want revenge because of what he did to Merle but at least be smart about this. We shouldn't rush into Woodbury just because we won this fight, it isn't our territory. We'll be at a disadvantage.'

'I don't care,' she stated, 'if we're going, then I'm joining.'

Knowing he couldn't say anything to change her mind he simply nodded as he tried to make sense of her expression. Her eyes that avoided his, her arms wrapped around herself, exhaustion was painted on each of her features. She was clearly tired, the kind of tired that just sleep couldn't fix.

A horn echoed over the courtyard, making the siblings turn in the direction it had come from. Rick was waiting for them with a black car at the gate. Daryl sat on his motorcycle, standing behind the car, ready to go.

Throwing one last look at Quinn, Milo took a deep breath. He didn't agree with this, not at all but if his little sister was going than so was he. There was no way he was going to let her walk into danger alone. The very least he could do was walk into danger with her. 'Let's go,' he finally said, making Quinn nod. Together they walked up to the car. Milo opened the door and they sat down in the backseat.

He turned to look out of the window as Glenn and Maggie came walking up to Rick. 'We're staying,' Glenn said. 'We don't know where the Governor is. If he comes back we'll hold him back.'

'So just the five of us?' Daryl said, throwing his crossbow over his shoulder, referring to the siblings, Michonne and Rick. 'All right.'

Rick nodded at Daryl before turning to the couple, putting his hand on Glenn's shoulder. 'I appreciate you staying,' he spoke, looking into his friend's eyes with a serious glare on his features.

'Sure,' Glenn mumbled and Milo couldn't figure out if he truly wanted to stay himself or was just doing it for Maggie, the same way he was about to fight for Quinn.

Then their leader turned around, taking place behind the wheel. Michonne sat down in the passengers seat, slamming the door of the car closed. Rick started the car and they drove through the gate, leaving the others behind.

It was time to end this.