CHAPTER FORTY

The group walks up on the side of a large building with big, white letters underneath the windows to spell out TERMINUS. It's made of brick, clearly rundown over time. It's nearing sunset, and there's no one out and about for them to see at the moment.

"We all spread out, watch for a while, see what we see, and get ready." Rick quietly addresses the group. "We all stay close. You wanna stick with me?" He asks his son.

"It's alright." Carl says before walking off in the same direction that Michonne went.

"Can I stick with you, Dad?" Andie asks, and he smirks as he looks at her.

"Is something on your mind?" Rick asks after the others scatter to look around.

"I wanna leave most of our weapons out here when we go in." She tells him, and he nods.

"I was thinking the same thing."

"I wanna leave Derek, Malia, Braeden, Peter, Carl, and Luna out here too." She says as she turns to look up at him. "We can watch all we want, but we won't know what we're walking into until we're already in it. I want them out here in case things don't go well in there."

"That's a lot of muscle we're leaving out here."

"That's the point. If things go sideways for us, muscle on the outside — armed muscle — is exactly what we're gonna need."

"Aright." He nods, pausing a moment, and her eyebrows furrow when he smirks.

"What?"

"Nothin'. Just, uh... You sure you're not suited to be leader?"

"Uh..." A small smile tugs at her lips as she looks at the ground. "I'll admit I've come a long way from the girl in the barn...even farther from the girl I was before I knew you...but I'm a foot-soldier. I don't make the plans, I just help carry 'em out."

"If that's where you're comfortable, that's where I'll leave you." He says, and she nods. "But I may still ask you for your opinion from time to time. Is that alright by you?"

Andie smiles as she looks up at him. "Yeah, that's alright by me."

"Hole's dug, boss." Theo says, and they look over at him. "Ready when you are."

Rick walks over and lays the duffle bag he's been carrying on his back into the freshly dug hole, swapping out his revolver before he zips up the bag. "Just in case." He says, and Andie chuckles as she looks up at Theo.

"She never goes anywhere unarmed either."

"I'm always armed no matter what." She flexes, and he shakes his head before pushing her away from him. "Too douchey?"

"Yes."

"What if I said I'm always packing?" The brunette asks as she follows after him.

"I'd say you've spent too much time around Theo." Rick says from behind them, and she sighs.

"Ain't that the truth?"

Rick goes over the fence first, then Michonne, Merle, Theo, and Daryl. Andie's about to go over, but she stops and looks back at Carl.

"You know your job?" She asks, and he nods as he looks at her.

"Keep Luna safe, no matter what." Carl says, and she smiles at him.

"That's my boy."

Derek walks over and looks down at his cousin. "Anything goes wrong, you call me."

"Have a little faith, will you?" Her eyes turn blue as she tilts her chin up. "I'm tougher than when we were last together." She blinks and her eyes are brown.

"Just be careful." He tells her, and she nods before hopping over the fence to join the others.

Rick has his gun out and aimed at the ground, and Daryl's ready with his crossbow. Michonne has her sword, Merle a gun and his prosthetic knife-hand, Theo has a gun as well, and Andie has her hatchet and knife both in hand.

They cross a short, dirt area to a door that's been left ajar on the side of the building. Rick grabs the side of the door and looks back, Daryl nods and he's the first to enter as their leader opens the door for him. Andie's listening to what's going on inside, and she hears a female voice.

"Terminus — those who arrive, survive. Follow the point where all lines intersect. There are maps at the crossings to help guide you on your journey. Sanctuary for all. Community for all."

"What do you think?" Theo whispers as he looks at Andie, and she shrugs.

Daryl's already lowered his crossbow as he leads them into a large, open room where the woman's talking and other people are working on maps.

"Hello." Rick gains their attention as he walks ahead of his people, and the woman stops reading from her script as she takes off headphones. "Hello."

"I smell blood." Theo whispers as he drops his head.

"I know, but that could mean a lot of things." Andie says. "The whole world kinda smells like that." She looks up at him as he quirks an eyebrow, tilting his head slightly to the side.

"Well, I bet Albert is on perimeter watch." A tall, somewhat scrawny man says as he sets down a paintbrush. Then he walks around a table and takes a few steps toward them, but there's still plenty of space between them in the large room. "You here to rob us?"

"No." Rick says, re-holstering his gun. "We wanted to see you before you saw us."

"Makes sense." He smirks as he looks around.

"I don't like how calm he is facing a group of armed strangers." Theo says, and Andie shakes her head.

"Usually we do this where the tracks meet." He clears his throat as he walks toward them, holding his arms out. "Welcome to Terminus. I'm Gareth... Looks like you've been on the road for a good bit."

"We have." Their leader nods. "Rick. That's Daryl, Merle, Michonne, Theo...and my daughter."

He waves, but none of them return the gesture. "You're nervous. I get it." He motions behind him. "We were all the same way. We came here for sanctuary. That what you're here for?"

"Yes."

"Good. You found it. Hey, Alex." He glances back, and one of the other guys starts toward them then. "This isn't as pretty as the front. We got nothing to hide, but the welcome wagon is a whole lot nicer."

"Sure, it is." Andie mutters, and Theo looks down at her. She shrugs, not sure why she has a bad feeling about this place.

"Alex will take you, ask a few questions." Gareth continues as Alex waves at them. "Uh, but first, we need to see everyone's weapons. If you could just lay them down in front of you."

Rick looks at his people, and Andie narrows her eyes as she looks at Gareth. But their leader nods. "Alright."

"I'm sure you understand."

"Yes, I do." He says as he lays his gun and knife down in front of him, and then the others follow suit.

Andie's the last to lay her weapons on the cement, and then Gareth and Alex pat each of them down.

"Hate to see the other guy." Alex says as he looks at Daryl's black eye.

"You would." Rick tells him.

"He deserve it?" Gareth asks, kneeled down in front of Andie.

"I wouldn't have killed him if he didn't." She says, and he pauses as he looks up at her. "Is there a problem?"

"You tell me." He pulls a dagger from the inside of her combat boots.

"Look at his face again and tell me you wouldn't be extra cautious around strangers." She says, and he eyes her carefully as he stands up straight.

"You're Rick's daughter?"

She pauses a moment, sensing a double meaning behind the question. "What gave me away? I mean, besides that he told you as much."

"He's clearly the leader, and you obviously have a problem with authority." He says, and she smirks as she glances in Rick's direction.

"That was the last weapon." She looks at the dagger in Gareth's hand before returning her gaze to his face.

"Just so you know, we aren't those kind of people, but we aren't stupid either." He says, addressing the group as a whole again. "And you shouldn't be stupid enough to try anything. As long as everyone's clear on that, we shouldn't have any problems. Just solutions. Okay." He hands Andie her dagger.

"Follow me." Alex says after everyone has their weapons up off the ground and back in their possession.

"So, how long's this place been here?" Daryl asks as they all leave through a different door, heading back outside.

"Since almost the start." He tells them, and they walk through a largely shaded area between buildings. "When all the camps got overrun, people started finding this place. I think it was instinct, you know? Follow a path. Some folks were headed to the coast, others out west or up north, but they all wound up here." He leads them to a spot where a woman's barbecuing.

"Hi." She greets. "Heard you came in the back door. Smart. You'll fit right in here." She says, but something about her isn't really welcoming. Maybe the tight-lipped smile or the way she avoids eye contact.

"Hey, Mary, would you fix each of these new folks a plate for me?" Alex asks her as Andie and Theo exchange an uneasy look — one that Daryl sees, and he's immediately reminded of Zoe's comments from the day Beth hurt her ankle.

"Why do you do it?" Michonne asks. "Why do you let people in?"

"The more people become a part of us, we become stronger." He tells her. "That's why we put up the signs, invite people in. It's how we survive."

"On my six." Andie whispers as she turns her back to a group of people, looking up at the rooftop above as Theo turns his head. "Riot gear."

"Three feet to his left — a woman in Daryl's poncho." He turns to look in another direction as Alex hands a paper plate to Michonne and then Merle. "Rick's heart rate picked up."

"He sees it too." She nods. "Alex's pocket."

"Glenn's watch. I already saw it." He tells her. "You wanna stop Rick?"

"Naw." She shakes her head as Rick walks past them, and she lets the handle of the hatchet slip through her grasp before catching the end of it. "Let's back him."

Their leader slaps a plate of food out of Alex's hand before ripping the watch from his cargo shorts, then he gets him in a headlock and holds his gun to his head. Theo raises his gun, aiming it at the man in the riot gear, at the same time Daryl raises his crossbow.

The others don't know what's going on now, but Daryl saw the way Andie and Theo were behaving. And they don't need any more reason to draw their weapons than their leader being sure that something's wrong. Michonne and Merle drop their plates as they raise their weapons as well.

"Where the hell'd you get this watch?" Rick questions, holding it where they both can see.

"You want answers? You want anything else?" Alex's voice is panicked. "You get it when you put down the gun."

"I see your man on the roof with a sniper rifle. How good's his aim?" He asks. "Where'd you get the watch? Where'd you get the watch?!"

"Don't do anything!" He shouts, talking to his people.

"Not that good a shot, I guess." Andie says, and Theo shakes his head as he glances at her.

"I have this! You just put it down!" He tells the sniper. "You put it down!"

"Any thoughts?" Theo asks.

"None I like." The brunette says as she looks around.

"You want to listen to me." Alex says. "There's a lot of us."

"Where did you get the watch?" Rick repeats.

"I got it off of a dead one." He tells him. "I didn't think he'd need it."

"What about the riot gear?" Andie asks as she turns and walks over to them. "And the poncho?"

"Got the riot gear off a dead cop." Gareth says as he walks over to them, hands down but with his palms faced out, and she looks over at him. "Found the poncho on a clothesline."

"Convenient." She nods. "What about the orange backpack? Was that on a clothesline too?"

"Gareth, we can wait."

"Shut up, Alex."

"You can ignore him." She points the hatchet at Alex. "You and I are having a conversation here."

"What's there left to say?" Gareth questions as he looks at Andie. "You don't trust us anymore."

"Oh, honey..." She takes a few steps toward him. "I never did."

"Gareth—"

"Shut up." He looks at Alex over her shoulder.

"Gareth, please."

"It's okay." Gareth tells him as he holds his hand up, palm toward her. "You know, I don't think I caught your name before." He says as he takes a step toward Andie, and she shakes her head.

"We're not on a first name basis." She says.

"I thought you wanted to have a conversation."

The brunette smiles, nodding once. "Allison."

He pauses as he looks at her, and she raises her eyebrows. "Well, Allison... Why don't you tell me what you and Daddy want?"

"Where are our people?"

"You didn't answer the question." He closes his hand, and she immediately drops.

"Move!" Andie yells as the gunfire starts, and Rick spins with Alex before throwing him to the ground.

There's a lot of gunfire coming from up above them, and they start running. Andie reaches out, pulling Daryl toward a path between two buildings, and the others follow immediately after.

"This way!" Theo yells, and they run into a building, only to be blocked off when people close a rolling door.

"Here!" Daryl gets their attention, and they all follow after him, ending up outside again.

"Hey, hey." Theo grabs Andie's wrist. "This isn't right. They could've killed us ten times over with all those shots. They have the higher ground..." He's quiet as they keep moving.

"I know." She huffs when she hears chatter over their radios, and someone yells get 'em off B before more shots are fired in front of Daryl. "They're corralling us."

"Help!" A female voice shouts as they start past shipping containers.

"What the hell?" Daryl grunts as he skids to a stop.

"Let us out!"

"Keep going!" Rick orders, and Andie grabs Theo before pushing Daryl ahead of her, and they all take off again.

The group ends up in another building, and Andie looks around at the rows and rows of cots set up all over the room. There are candles for light, and some personal effects of the people who live there. There are items in the room that are centuries old.

"What the hell is this place?" Daryl questions as he looks at the antiques.

"These people — I don't think they're trying to kill us." Michonne says.

"No, they were aiming at our feet." Rick says, and Merle looks at Andie as she turns and walks over to Theo.

"We're in a nest." The brunette whispers as she grabs Theo's hand, her chest nearly against his as he looks down at her.

"What are you talking about?" The chimera questions.

"They're vampires, Theo."

"Fuck." He mutters as he looks around at all of the cots.

"There." Rick points to one door, but it's slammed shut when he starts toward it.

"There." Daryl leads them through a different door, and more bullets are sprayed at their feet as soon as they make it outside.

"Son of a bitch." Andie stops when she sees a bunch of people on the other side of the fence, guns aimed at them. They look around and find that they're completely surrounded.

"Drop your weapons! Now!" Gareth orders as he walks up on one of the rooftops. "Do as I say, and I'll give you what you want."

"Our people and out of this hell hole?" The brunette questions as she turns to face him.

"The boy." He says, and her head snaps to the side when she hears footsteps on their right.

"Carl." Rick grinds his teeth.

"Okay." Andie nods, dropping her knife and hatchet, then she pulls her dagger from her boot and drops it as well.

"Let him go!" Gareth calls when the others drop their weapons as well, and Carl runs over to his father. "Ringleader, go to your left. The train car, go."

Rick turns his head, but doesn't move.

"You do as we say, the boy goes with you. Anything else, he dies and you end up in there anyway."

Their leader looks at his son, then nods as his gaze turns to Andie. He turns and starts toward the train car.

"Now the archer."

Daryl goes.

"Now Hook."

Merle walks over.

"Now the samurai."

Michonne makes her way to the train car.

"Double-oh dumbass."

Theo looks at Andie, and she nods. They both know that means the vampires heard them whispering to each other.

"Stand at the door." Gareth tells them. "Ringleader, archer, Hook, samurai, Bond — in that order."

"Why aren't they telling you to go?" Carl asks, his voice low as he looks at Andie.

"Dad and I may have pissed them off." She says. "He's punishing him...and showing me who's in control."

"My kids!" Rick yells, and they both look over at him.

"Go, kid." Gareth says, and Carl starts reluctantly walking away from Andie. "Allison."

Andie looks up at him for a second before she starts toward the others. She doesn't like the way he said her name.

"Ringleader, open the door and go in!"

"I'll go in with my kids!"

"Don't make us kill them now!"

"Go." Andie tells Rick, and he looks at her. "I got him."

Rick hesitates for a moment longer before he very reluctantly opens the door and goes inside. Then Daryl, Merle, Michonne, and Theo follow after him one at a time. Andie turns her head and watches Gareth as Carl climbs the steps, and she only moves when she knows he's safely inside.

The door's shut behind her, and Andie grinds her teeth as she takes a deep breath. Daryl starts to move toward her, but stops when her head snaps in the direction of the opposite end of the train car. Theo's already facing that way as someone starts walking toward them.

"Andie?" Glenn looks at her in the dim lighting coming in through cracks in the top of the car.

"Oh, thank God." She rushes over and hugs him, and he takes a deep breath as he wraps his arms around her.

"You're here." Rick looks from Glenn to Maggie as she walks up behind her husband. "You're here."

They have Bob, Sasha, and four other people with them as well. Andie pulls back as she looks at the big guy with red hair.

"They're our friends." Maggie tells them. "They helped save us."

"Well, any friends of the Rhees are friends of ours." Andie says.

"For however long that'll be." The big guy says.

"Don't look so glum, Red." She smiles when he looks at her. "You haven't seen what your new friends can do."

"They're gonna feel pretty stupid when they find out." Rick says as he walks over to look out a slit in the doorway.

"Find out what?" He questions as he steps forward.

"They're fucking with the wrong people."

"You have no idea." Andie looks up at Theo, and he nods as he takes a deep breath.