CHAPTER THREE,
bob stookey.

Rick had left Aiden in charge of the group like he used to at the prison. Himself, Sasha, Bob, Gabriel, and Michonne had left to find the food bank the priest was talking about. Gabriel said it was overrun and that's why he had never tried with it.

Aiden was exhausted but she made sure everyone in the church was okay. She was a leader. Daryl and Carol had gone out to get water while Tara, Maggie, and Glenn went to look at a gun store they had seen in a phone book. 

Nathaniel and Tyreese were on watch. Aiden still felt an eerie feeling from the night before. Like they were being followed and watched.

Aiden kept an eye on Macy like Rick said to. Carl was holding Judith who had fallen asleep. Abraham and Rosita were out back working on the bus. Eugene was reading one of the many bibles laying around. Payton was looking around, picking up random things here and there.

Aiden heard the door open and saw Daryl and Carol walk in. Aiden allowed Daryl to take charge because she was on the verge of passing out from exhaustion.

She allowed herself to relax on the pew. She had placed her jacket as pillow and laid down. Her eyes slowly shut and she drifted into a deep slumber.

»

Aiden woke a couple hours later to the smell of food. She stretched and groaned. Everyone went quiet and looked at her. Her eyes stared up at the ceiling before she said, "food."

Everyone laughed as she stood up and made her way towards the several cans. Her stomach growled as she fixed her a paper plate full of food.

Everyone knew to save more for Aiden than anyone else because she was eating for herself and Baby Dixon. She eventually sat down on the pew she was sleeping on.

"I'd like to propose a toast." Abraham announced. Everyone went silent, "I look around this room... and I see survivors. Each and every one of you has earned that title. To the survivors!"

Everyone cheered and drunk their drinks while Aiden and Carl drank their water. "Is that all you want to be? Wake up in the morning, fight undead prince, forage for food, go to sleep at night with two eyes open, rinse and repeat? 'Cause you can do that. I mean, you got the strength. You got the skill. Thing is, for you people, for what you can of, that's just surrender. Now, we get Eugene to Washington and he will make the dead die and the living will have the world again. And that is not a bad takeaway for a little road trip." Abraham paused before asking, "Eugene, what's in DC?"

"Infrastructure constricted to withstand pandemics even in this fubar magnitude. That means food, fuel, refuge. Restart." Eugene informed.

"However this plays out, however long it takes for the reset button to kick in, you can be safe there. Safer than you've been since this whole thing started. Come with us. Save the world for that little one. The little one to-be." Abraham looked over at Aiden. She nodded at him and he returned the nod, "save it for yourselves. Save it for the people out there... who don't got nothing left to do except survive."

Judith cooed, "what was that?" Rick said to his daughter. "I think she knows what I'm about to say. She's in. If she's in, I'm in." Rick stated. "We're in."

The group clapped and cheered. Aiden didn't bother cheering. She knew this wouldn't work out. Even if it was true, even if Eugene didn't know how to stop it. Everyone they lost would still be gone. There was no getting back Shane or Hershel, no getting Andrea, Lori, or T-Dog back. Or Dale, Amy, Jim, Jacqui, Sophia, Patricia, Jimmy. Everyone they lost would still be dead.

She sat on the pew with a dull look in her eyes as she thought about Shane. She was in her own little world when Macy sat down in front of her.

"What's up?" Aiden asked her. Macy glared daggers into Aiden, "what's wrong with you?"

"You." Macy hissed. Aiden raised her eyebrows at her comment as if she were daring her to try something, "none of you trust me."

"You told me you killed eight people. You said the deserved it. What did those eight people do to you, Macy?" Aiden quizzed her. Macy's nose flared as her jaw clenched.

"They didn't deserve a thing." Macy started, "I just needed a little energizer."

The younger brunette woman stared at Macy as if she were crazy, she was. Aiden was right not to trust her, "so what? You gonna kill us too because you need a little energizer?" Aiden growled lowly, "huh? Gonna kill a kid and a baby?"

"No," Macy scoffed, "I'd kill them last. I'd pick off the big ones first, the stronger ones. Rick, Daryl, Tyreese, Abraham, Glenn. Then the stronger women, Michonne, Carol, Sasha, Maggie, Rosita, Tara. Then Gabriel, Eugene, and Bob. Then the kids. You'll watch them all die." Macy shrugged, "then Payton, Nathaniel, and I will leave like nothing ever happened."

Aiden looked as if she were about to kill Macy right then and there. But she knew, she met people like Macy before. Psycho and mentally unstable. She was tortured by one for years.

Macy simply stood up and stalked off. Going back to the others and acted like she didn't tell Aiden she would watch her family die.

She hadn't noticed four of their group members were missing, "hey, Rick! Where's Daryl, Carol, Sasha, and Bob?"

Rick stood up quickly and looked around, "shit. Here Aiden, take Judy." Rick handed her the baby, "Ty come with me." The two men left on search for the others.

Aiden stared at Macy, she didn't like this woman not one bit. After all, she just threatened to kill everyone she cared about. She kept an extremely close eye on her while the two were gone. Soon, they returned. With only Sasha.

Sasha stormed in and right up to Gabriel. Aiden handed Judith to Carl who sat beside her and stood up.

"Stop." She said clearly and as calmly as ever. "What are you doing? What are you doing? This is all connected. You show up, we're being watched, and now three of us are gone."

"I... I don't... I don't have anything to do with this." Gabriel stuttered. Sasha pulled out her knife. Several voices started talking at once, all telling Sasha to calm down and put away the blade.

"Sasha, put it away." Tyreese said to his younger sister.

"Who's out there?" Sasha stepped forward.

"I- I don't have anything... to do with this."

"Where are our people?" Sasha snarled.

"I don't have anything to-"

"Where are our people!?" She screamed at him.

"Please, I don't have anything to do with this. I-" Sasha backed you with tears in her eyes and Rick stepped towards him.

"Why'd you bring us here?" Rick asked the priest.

"Please, I-"

"You working with someone?"

"I'm alone. I'm alone. I was always alone." Gabriel stated.

"What about the woman in the food bank, Gabriel? What did you do to her? You'll burn for this. That was for you. Why? What are you gonna burn for, Gabriel?" Rick grabbed him by his collar, "what? What did you do? What did you do!?"

Gabriel looked panicked before informed them, "I lock the doors at night. I always lock the doors at night. I always lock the doors at night. I always-" he began to cry. "They started coming, my congregation. Atlanta was bombed the night before and they were scared. They were- they were looking for a safe place, a place where they felt safe. And it was so early."

Aiden watched him carefully, her heart clenching in her chest.

"It was so early. And the doors were still locked. You see... it was my choice. There were so many of them and they were trying to pry the shutters and banging on the sidings, screaming at me. And so the dead came for them. Women.. children. Entire families calling my name as they were torn apart, begging me for mercy. Begging me for mercy." He began to sob, "damning me to hell. I buried their bones. I buried it all. The Lord sent you here to finally punish me."

Gabriel fell to the ground while sobbing, "I'm damned. I was damned before. I always lock the doors. I always lock the doors." Gabriel sobbed while Aiden wiped her own eyes. Gabriel's story made her heart ache, she hadn't wanted to get emotional but her damn hormones.

Suddenly she heard whistling. She whipped towards the door and towards Glenn, "there's something. There's someone outside lying in the grass."

"Daryl." Aiden whispered. Both her and Sasha told off towards the door.

"Aiden! Sasha!" Rick yelled after the two women. Aiden was the first out the door with Sasha hot on her heels.

"Holy shit, it's Bob!" Aiden yelled. She collapsed to her knees beside the unconscious man. She looked him over and her eyes stopped on his leg, "his leg!"

"Get inside, Aiden!" Rick yelled to her as he ran past her to kill the walkers approaching her. Aiden obeyed as soon as Sasha and Tara got to her and got Bob up. The three ran inside and set him down.

Bob was laid in the middle of the floor with everyone surrounding him. Payton, Nathaniel, and Macy hung back as they didn't know him as well as the rest. Bob soon woke up and explained what happened.

"I woke up outside this place. It looked like a school. It was that guy, Gareth." Aiden's heart dropped at his name. My beautiful mama. She heard his voice say to her. Her hand softly brushed against the line across her throat from his knife. "And six others ones. They were eating my leg right in front of me. Like it was nothing. All proud like they had it all figured out."

"Did they have Daryl or Carol?" Rick asked. Aiden's eyes scanned Bob's face as his eyes moved to hers.

"Gareth said they drove off." He stated. Aiden felt like she was gonna be sick.

"Drove off?" Aiden said. Everyone looked at the mom to-be. Bob suddenly groaned and all attention was back on him.

"He's in pain. Do we have anything?" Sasha asked.

"I think there are pill packets in the first aid kit." Rosita replied.

"Yeah."

"Save 'em." Bob insisted.

"No." Sasha said to her significant other.

"Really." Bob sat up and pulled his shirt down revealing a walker bite on his shoulder. Aiden's eyes widened at the sight. "It happened at the food bank."

Sasha struggled to hold back her tears, "it's okay."

Bob passed out, "there's a sofa in my office." Gabriel said. "I know it's not much, but..."

"Thank you."

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word count: 1,838
episodes: strangers & three walls and a roof

edited chapter numero three guys!!

not much happened this chapter other than macy threatening tf outta aiden, gabriel's breakdown, and bob.

but macy is freaking insane. she doesn't like aiden one bit. the only people she likes in the group is payton & nathaniel.