chapter 19
NORA WAS SITTING ON THE BENCH OUTSIDE, JUDITH ON HER LAP.
She was feeding the baby some oatmeal, as they were trying to wean her off formula. It was hard to find these days, and the earlier they can get her to eat solid food, the better.
She watched as Carl approached his dad and the two stared into the pig pen.
Harlow sat down next to her and smiled at the child. She poked her tummy before signing 'Good morning, Judith'. They were also trying to teach her baby sign language.
Daryl and Carol walked by, the hunter pausing just for a quick second to mess with her hair. Harley pushed him away with a smile and watch him continue on his way. He glanced back to smirk at her before paying attention to what Carol was talking about.
Nora set the bowl down and signed, "You're going on the run later?"
Harley nodded, "You?"
"Yes. Just got to finish with Judith first and give her to Beth." Nora answered, "I see you and Daryl are doing well."
"He's a good man." Harlow replied.
"That he is."
"So is Rick." Nora glanced up at Harley's face to see the grin on her lips before rolling her eyes,
Daryl let out a sharp whistle to gain the attention of Harley. He motioned to hurry up and the women stood, Nora balancing Judith on her hip, "Don't leave without me." She signed before going to find Beth,
Harley nodded before going over to the cars that the group were preparing for the run.
A sharp whistle caught her attention and she turned in time for Daryl to toss a bulletproof vest towards her. She caught it and stared at it for a moment before tucking it under her arm and signing, "Really?"
Daryl took the vest from her arm and placed it over Harley's head, "You're not coming unless you wear it." He signed,
Harley rolled her eyes and held out her arms as he straightened it and tightened the straps. The redneck quickly checked to make sure she had her earplugs around her neck before squeezing her upper arms and moving to his bike to finish prepping.
The redhead moved over to the car to put the packs inside and Sasha smirked at her, "Cute".
"Shut up."
She checked her weapons, making sure she had enough ammo and her hunting knife was tightly strapped into her belt. Nora quickly joined, tapping the car to let Harley know she was here,
"Alright, le's go." Daryl called out, patting Harley's hip to get her attention and signing along with his words,
She moved over to his bike and waited for Daryl to get on first. He held the bike steady as she grabbed his shoulders and swung a leg over the motorcycle.
Nora got into the driver's seat, Sasha getting in beside her, "Ready, boys?" Nora asked Bob and Tyresse in the back seat,
"Yes, ma'am." Bob responded, Sasha and Nora sharing a look.
Daryl started up the motorcycle and Harley gripped Daryl's vest at his waist as they approached Rick and Michonne. He stopped the bike and Nora put the Hyundai in park.
"Well, look who's back." Daryl said to Michonne,
"Didn't find him." She told him,
He nodded, "Glad to see you in one piece."
Nora stepped out of the car and walked over to the group, "Good to see you again, Nora." Michonne said to her,
"Are you heading out again so soon?" The brunette asked,
"I'm thinking of looking over near Macon. It's worth a shot." Michonne said,
Daryl shrugged, "Miles of walkers. You might run into a few unneighborly types. Is it?" He asked her before turning towards Rick, "I'm gonna go check out the Big Spot. The one I was talking about, just seeing."
"Yeah, I got to go out and check the snares. I don't want to lose whatever we catch to the walkers." Rick grumbled,
"I'll go." Michonne stated, walking towards the car,
"You just got here." Carl called out,
"And I'll be back." She smiled at him,
Daryl started his motorcycle up again and Nora turned to Rick, "Be safe out there."
"I could say the same thing to you." Rick joked, squeezing her arm before she went back to the driver's side door.
About thirty minutes outside the prison, they reached the town where the Big Spot was located. They parked the cars outside the fences that surrounded the building and got out to check for any stragglers,
"Army came in and put these fences up. Made it a place for the people to go. Last week when we spotted this place, there was a bunch of walkers behind this chain-link keeping people out like a bunch of guard dogs." Daryl told Bob, the newcomer,
"So they all just left?" Bob asked,
"Give a listen." Sasha replied,
Everyone took a moment to be silent for Bob to hear what she was talking about. In the distance, they could hear pop music playing.
"You drew 'em out." Michonne stated,
Nora smirked, "Put a boom box out there three days ago. Hooked it up to two car batteries."
Daryl glanced back at the group as he approached the hole they cut in the chainlink fence, "All right, let's make a sweep. Make sure it's safe. Grab what you can. We'll come back tomorrow with more people."
Harley was the next to follow, gun in hand. She kept her guard up as she passed all the tents the military had set up within the fences. There was always the possibility of a biter that was left behind was hiding.
Once all the tents were checked, they group came to a stop in front of the doors. Daryl banged on the front windows before sitting on the ledge, "Just give it a second." He told them.
Harley leaned on the wall next to him, waiting for the signal.
"Okay, I think I got it." Zack spoke up from the other side of Daryl,
"Got what?" Michonne asked, coming up behind him,
"I've been trying to guess what Daryl did before the turn." Zack informed her,
"He's been trying to guess for, like, six weeks." Nora smirked, sitting down next to Harley and translating for her,
"Yeah, I'm pacing myself." The younger man defended himself, "One shot a day."
"All right, shoot." Daryl sighed,
"Well, the way you are at the prison, you being on the council, you're able to track, you're helping people, but you're still being kind of..." Harley and Nora shared a look as Zack hesitated with his words, "...surly. Big swing here. Homicide cop."
Michonne burst out laughing and Harley hid her smile behind her hand as everyone stared at her,
"What's so funny?" Daryl asked,
Michonne shook her head, "Nothing. It makes perfect sense."
Daryl turned his head, "Actually, the man's right. Undercover."
Zack raised his eyebrows, "Come on, really?"
"Yep. I don't like to talk about it 'cause it was a lot of heavy shit, you know?" Daryl smirked, raising an arm and placing it around Harley's shoulders,
"Dude, come on, really?" Daryl turned and gave the kid a look, "Okay. I'll just keep guessing, I guess."
"Yeah, you keep doing that." The redneck grunted,
The glass shook behind them and Harley turned to see a few walkers pressing on the window. Daryl patted her shoulder before grabbing his crossbow and standing,
"We're gonna do this, Detective?" Michonne asked,
"Let's do it." Daryl held out his hand towards Glenn, who gave him the crowbar.
He forced the doors open and everyone took a walker, swiftly taking them down. Tyresse grabbed the corpses by the arms and dragged them out of the store.
"All right, we go in, stay in formation for the sweep. After that, you all know what you're supposed to look for." Sasha ordered, "Any questions?"
"Was there ever a time that you weren't the boss of me?" Tyreese asked her,
"You had a few years before I was born." She joked before they all went inside,
Everyone grabbed a cart and went to their own section of the store. Nora held a basket in her hand as she went down the gardening aisle, grabbing seeds and tools for Rick.
Harley separated from Daryl for a few minutes, rushing to grab a few things before going to try and find him again.
The tile beneath her feet vibrated slightly, telling her something big had fallen. A shelf? She glanced around, not seeing anyone. It had to be coming from a different part of the store.
A sharp whistle rang in the air and Harley turned, trying to find the source. She let out a scream as the roof above her caved in and walkers fell through the hole, landing around her.
"Harley!" Daryl yelled, "Someone find Harley!"
The redhead turned the corner and spotted Glenn on the ground, two walkers on top of him. She grabbed her hunting knife and quickly stabbed them before helping the Korean up,
"Thanks." He signed,
"What's going on?" Harley asked,
"Bob's stuck. We need to get out of here." Glenn answered before grabbing her arm and running towards the middle of the store. A group of walkers cut them off and Glenn turned to her, "Earplugs." He signed.
She nodded and put the rubber in her ears before grabbing her hand gun.
"Anyone got eyes on Harley!?" Nora called out as she grabbed a tennis racket and whacked a walker across the face,
"Got her!" Glenn yelled and they met up by the alcohol,
Daryl stood on a display case of beer boxes, surrounded by walkers. Harley quickly took aim and took out a few of them before looking up at the hole in the roof, spotting the helicopter that was about to fall through,
The redneck grabbed her arm and they ran towards Bob, who was stuck underneath a shelf of wine. Zack was already there, trying to lift the shelf off of him and Daryl moved to help, "C'mon!"
Harley grabbed Bob's arm and helped him out. Once he was standing, Zack and Daryl let go of the shelf and they moved to leave, "Let's go!" Daryl yelled, once more grabbing onto Harley,
There was a scream of pain and they turned to see Zack getting dragged under the shelf, a walker on top of him.
Nora went to help, but Michonne pulled her back as the walker bit into his neck,
"It's too late."
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