"GO FOR THEIR eyes first. Then their throats," Rick whispers, his voice a low growl that reverberates through the train car.

Gareth and his people were liars. They hunted the group down into a train car, leaving them trapped inside with no weapons.

The only silver lining of being stuck in the train car was that almost everyone else was there too. Maggie, Glenn, Bob, Sasha, and a few of the newer members. But no Tyreese, Carol, Mika, Lizzie, Reaper, Jin, or Felix. Maisie couldn't help but worry about them.

Maggie stood beside Maisie, giving her shoulder a reassuring squeeze before making her way to the opposite side of the train car to stand beside Glenn.

Maisie was on the other side with Michonne, Carl, and two of the new people, Rosita and Eugene. She glanced at Rosita, noticing how her eyes were fixed on another newcomer, Abraham. Maisie turned her gaze back to the door.

She tucked her hair behind her ears, sweat trickling down her face from the stifling heat inside the packed train car. The doors were shut tight, and the weather outside was scorching. She still had her pocket knife, hidden in her waistband. When Gareth had demanded she drop her weapon, she lied and told him she had lost it while running away.

He was foolish enough to believe her. All his talk about not being stupid was finally catching up to him.

Maisie turned her head and locked eyes with Daryl from across the train car. He gave her a nod, mouthing something she couldn't quite make out. She nodded back, then turned her gaze back to the door.

"Put your backs to the walls on either side of the car now!" someone shouted from outside. Maisie tightened her grip on the knife.

When no one listened, silence fell over the car, broken only by the sound of everyone's breathing. Maisie sighed to calm her nerves, feeling Michonne tap her shoulder. She turned to see Michonne giving her a reassuring nod.

Footsteps echoed from above, and Maisie glanced up to see a trap door on the roof. As it creaked open, she spotted a few snipers who had been chasing them drop something through the opening. She barely had time to register it before it exploded, filling the car with smoke and making everyone cough.

Maisie didn't let the air get into her lungs. She held her breath, clamping her mouth shut and squeezing her nose and eyes closed tightly.

A few moments later, Maisie heard the doors open and opened her eyes, following the light. Someone with a gas mask approached her, but she pounced on them, sending them both tumbling out of the train car.

Maisie ripped off his gas mask, stabbing him in the neck and chest before bolting away. She heard footsteps pounding behind her, bullets whizzing past, but she managed to sprint into the building and lock herself inside.

She continued to cough into her hands, sliding down the door and resting against it for a few moments. Then, she realized where she was. It was a meat locker, but instead of animal meat, it was filled with human meat.

Her breathing grew heavier as she stood up, trying to peer past the human bodies. But it was no use; they were packed too tightly to see beyond them.

Maisie crouched down, spotting three pairs of feet quietly approaching her, but they were spread out. She tightened her grip on the pocket knife, hiding among the hanging meats, waiting for one of them to come close.

A shorter man emerged, scanning the room for Maisie. He turned around, locking eyes with her. But before he could even register her presence, his throat was slit.

Maisie snatched the machete from his hands as his body hit the ground with a thud. She quickly pocketed her knife, then darted into the maze of human meat, desperately searching for an escape.

She crouched down again, noticing the two other men converging at the dead body. Seizing the opportunity, she slipped out of the room.

She found a door, quietly opened it, slipped through, and locked it behind her. Silently, she darted around the building, desperately trying to find her family.

Maisie knew they hadn't thrown a gas bomb into the train car just to make them pass out; they had to have taken them somewhere.

Yelling erupted behind Maisie, making her whip her head around. It was coming from another hallway. Keeping silent, she crept down the hallway, cautiously passing by open doors.

Once she made it to the room, she peeked inside through the open door. It was a large space, but she didn't take it in; her eyes immediately found Daryl. In front of her people was a large sink, and they all had gags around their mouths.

Gareth was saying something, but Maisie wasn't listening. He was mostly talking to a man with a metal bat and another with a machete, one that looked just like Maisie's.

Her grip tightened on the machete as Gareth began to walk backward towards the door, causing her to instinctively step back a bit.

Her eyebrows furrowed at the sound of gunshots, her grip on the machete loosening slightly. Suddenly, someone grabbed her by the hair and yanked her into the room where Gareth was.

Gareth had a walkie-talkie in his hand, raising it to his mouth until he locked eyes with Maisie and the man holding her.

The man kicked the machete out of her hand and then struck the back of her legs, forcing her to kneel. She let out an annoyed breath, her eyes meeting Gareth's as he smiled.

"Your friend out there? The one shooting?" he asked, clipping his walkie-talkie back into his front pocket as he walked over to Maisie.

"She was the only one who escaped," the man gripping her hair tightly said, shoving her head forward before letting go.

"Go check on that, I got her," Gareth nodded towards Maisie, prompting the man to nod back and exit the room.

Gareth started to speak, but a massive explosion cut him off, sending everyone, including Maisie, crashing to the ground.

Gareth quickly stood up, yanking Maisie by her hair and pointing to the bat and machete men. "You stay here."

Maisie glances over at Daryl, who is staring at her with a worried expression. She mouths to him, "I'm okay," trying to reassure him.

"Gareth, these guys aren't goin' anywhere—"

"Stay here until I know what's happening!" Gareth shouts, yanking Maisie to her feet and dragging her out of the room.

Gareth keeps a tight grip on Maisie's hair, shoving her into a room and securing her to a pipe with zip ties he grabbed from the table.

"Stay here if you know what's best for you," Gareth murmurs, grabbing a makeshift gag crafted from ripped shirts. He pats Maisie down, finding her pocket knife and grinning. "Nice one."

He pockets the bloody knife, then sprints out of the room, locking it behind him.

Maisie groaned, shaking her head to move the hair from her face, strands sticking to her skin, slick with sweat.

She pushed her tongue against the gag, spitting it out since it wasn't tied tight enough. Maisie glanced down at the ties around her wrists, letting out a longer groan as she tried to wriggle free, but it only made her wrists ache.

*

Maisie was never found. Gareth and a few other survivors moved to a new location a few days later, with Maisie in tow. It was a school. They starved her, denied her water, and deprived her of sleep until she was so weak she couldn't stand or even think straight. Her feet were tied, her wrists bound, and a gag silenced her cries.

Gareth's group never really spoke to Maisie unless it was to hurt her or interrogate her about her group, demanding answers or any clues about their whereabouts. Maisie would stay silent, and that would always result in her getting beaten.

They kidnapped Bob, cut off his leg, and ate it. They forced Maisie to eat Bob's severed leg. She spit it out, then vomited, while Bob started yelling about how he was tainted meat. Then, Bob was kicked in the face.

"Drop him off, we're leaving in an hour," Gareth demands, his tone sharp and annoyed as he plants his hands on his knees.

"What about her?" a teenage boy asks, nodding towards Maisie, his eyes wide with worry as he moves to help the three adults lift Bob's body.

"She's coming with."

After they dumped Bob's body in front of where the group was staying, they waited. One of the members hung back, keeping an eye on the church. When Rick and a few others finally stepped out, the girl rushed back to warn the others.

They yanked Maisie up to her barely functioning feet. Everything went black for a moment before snapping back to normal. They untied her feet, forcing her to walk.

The whole time, Maisie's mind was a blank slate. Her eyes threatened to close, and her legs were on the verge of collapse. She was breathing heavily, the gag preventing her from drawing a normal breath.

She clung to the hope that the group would come for her, deep down, she knew they would.

They reached the church, and it was eerily quiet. One of the guys unlocked the doors, and as soon as they swung open, Gareth seized Maisie by her hair, dragging her up the stairs. She wanted to fight back so badly, but she couldn't. She was too weak.

"Well, I guess you know we're here," Gareth announced to the empty church. "And we know you're here. And we're armed. So there's really no point in hiding anymore."

Maisie groaned as Gareth dragged her to the front of the church, shoving her onto her knees. She tried to hold back her tears, but they were already streaming down her face. She was angry. Angry at herself for being so weak and stubborn.

She blamed herself because it was her fault. She shouldn't have tried to help the group; she knew they'd make it out. They always did. All she had to do now was believe that they would get her out of this. That they would kill Gareth.

Every step they took made the old wooden floors creak, the sound echoing in Maisie's ears. Her eyes fluttered shut as she fought to stay awake.

"We've been watching you," Gareth sneered. "We know who's here. There's Bob, unless you've already put him out of his misery. And Eugene, Rosita. Martin's good buddy Tyreese. Carl. Felix. Judith. Oh, and the dog. Can't forget that dog."

Maisie's eyes flew open at the mention of Reaper. She snapped to attention, suddenly alert and energized, her gaze darting between the two doors, eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

"Rick and the rest walked out with a lot of your guns." Gareth's voice reverberated through the desolate church. "Listen, we don't know where you all are, but this isn't a big place. So let's just stop this now before things get more painful than they need to be."

At Gareth's signal, two members of the group broke away, heading towards the doors. They rattled the handles, but both doors were locked.

"Look, you're behind one of these two doors and we have more than enough firepower to take down both. Can't imagine that's what you all want," As Gareth spoke, he cocked his gun and sauntered past Maisie, giving her hair a sharp tug just to irritate her.

Maisie groaned, glaring at him as he walked past. She tried to stand, but the cold barrel of a gun pressed against her head, forcing her to stay put.

"How about the priest?" Gareth announced once more. "Father, you help us wrap this up, we'll let you walk away from this. Just open the door and you can go. You can take the baby with you. What do you say?"

A heavy silence hung in the air until Judith's sobs suddenly broke through.

"I dunno. Maybe we'll keep the kid. I'm starting to like this girl." Gareth stepped away from the door and made his way toward Maisie, positioning himself beside her and Martin. "It's your last chance right now to tell us you're coming out."

Martin let out an annoyed huff, turning to Gareth. "Are we done?"

"We'll hit the hinges," Gareth replied, exhaling slowly.

Maisie spoke into her gag, the same girl keeping the gun pressed against her head. She had no idea how to escape this. Her eyes darted down to her wrists; the ties were too tight. There was no way she could untie them.

Two muffled gunshots echoed, and the girl holding Maisie at gunpoint collapsed on top of her. Summoning her remaining strength, Maisie shoved the lifeless body off.

"Drop your weapons," Rick commanded, his voice firm as he aimed his gun at Gareth's head.

"Rick, we'll fire right into that office. So you lower your gun—"

Another silenced gunshot rang out, cutting off Gareth's words as he cried out in pain, his gun clattering to the floor.

Maisie couldn't fully grasp what had just happened to him. All she knew was that she was saved, and she was going to be okay.

"Put your guns on the floor and kneel," Rick demands softly, stepping out from the shadows of the church and revealing himself.

"Do what he says," Gareth mutters from beside Maisie, his voice laced with whimpers and groans of pain.

The group obeys, and Maisie begins to crawl towards Rick. Just as she reaches him, she feels a familiar hand on her shoulder.

It was Maggie, her face etched with worry. She set her gun down, pulled out her knife, and quickly cut the ties around Maisie's wrists. Pulling the gag down, she enveloped Maisie in a tight hug.

Rick walked past them with Michonne, Abraham, Tara, and Sasha in tow. Glenn and Jin quickly sat beside Maggie, wrapping their arms around Maisie and joining the hug.

"Are you okay?" Maggie whispers, pulling away from the hug and gently tucking Maisie's hair behind her ears.

All Maisie could do was nod. She stared at Maggie for a few seconds before pulling her, Glenn, and Jin back into a hug.

"No point in begging, right?"

Maisie pulled away from them at Gareth's words. Maggie and Jin helped her stand up properly as Glenn resumed pointing his gun at Gareth, just like before.

"No," Rick replies.

"Still, you could've killed us when you came in. There had to be a reason for that," Gareth speaks quickly, his hand trembling between his thighs.

"We didn't wanna waste the bullets."

Gareth started to talk, but his words were too quick for Maisie to process. She was exhausted. Her mind felt hazy, and her vision began to blur. She let her body go limp, forcing Maggie and Jin to struggle to keep her upright before gently helping her to her knees.

Maisie dropped to all fours, shaking her head as she stared at the floor. Maggie rubbed her back, whispering that she was going to be okay, that she was safe. Jin watched Maisie with a saddened look, his hands on her shoulders, trying to keep her steady.

Maisie looked up at Rick, noticing the sharp look in his eye as he stood in front of Gareth.

"I already made you a promise," Rick murmurs, his voice low and dangerous, as he reaches for his machete and slams it into Gareth's head.

Maisie flinched at the scream Gareth let out, watching the blood splatter onto Rick when he yanked the machete from Gareth's head, only to slam it back down again.

Maisie looked around, watching in horror as everyone else got rid of Gareth's group. She didn't know why she was afraid; she had done the exact same, if not worse. Her eyes were fixed on the sight of Gareth's head, now practically gone.

Maisie turned her head to look at Jin, seeing the terror in his wide eyes as they followed Rick's every move.