..

.

Lee carefully takes aim with the others, mentally preparing as the first walkers round the corner of the hall.

Christa takes out the first one, Lee shooting the next and Kenny taking out the third. Omid fires, taking out another as he climbs over the cabinet. Ben misses a first shot, recollecting himself with determination and killing a walker with the next bullet.

Lee waits to use his bullets until he absolutely has to, not wanting them to waste ammo on the same walker.

"I'm out!"

"Me too!" Kenny curses under his breath, rising from his position.

Omid's gun clicks, out of ammo as well as he winces. "Fuck! Where do we go now?"

"There's no Goddamn opening!"

Christa looks around them quickly, gasping softly when she spots the attic. "Up!"

Lee rises up quickly, pulling open the attic and moving as the ladder slides down to them. "Go!"

Christa was the first up the ladder, followed by Omid and Kenny. Lee climbs up after them, gasping as (Y/N)'s doll falls from his pocket. He hesitates before groaning, shaking his head and climbing up with Ben following.

They pull the ladder up just in time, safe from the walkers invading the house.

The group pant lightly, Lee letting out a breathless chuckle of relief as he braces his hands on his knees.

He looks up at Ben walks over, softly gasping when he sees (Y/N)'s doll in his hand.

"Here. Um... You dropped it back there, so I..." Ben trails off with a small smile.

Lee reaches out and takes the doll, looking down at it with relief and smiling in thanks to Ben.

Ben shortly nods, walking away from Lee and sitting away from the group, leaning against the wall.

Lee securely tucks the (F/A) doll into his pocket, making sure it was fully in this time before joining the others.

"Well, that could have gone better," Kenny sighs, pacing around the attic.

"Everyone okay?" Christa fusses, looking around the group.

Kenny frowns, glancing over to Lee.  "Lee's still bitten."

Christa scowls. "Shut up."

Omid looks between the group, clapping his hands together with a cheerful smile. "Okay! Let's get out of here and keep moving."

"Kid's right," Kenny agrees with him. "We gotta keep moving. Think there's any chance we get the kids and catch up to those Goddamn thieves?"

Lee was still panting softly, shaking his head. "I don't know. Maybe."

Omid hums out loud as he looks up at the stained glass window. "Well, we're not getting out through this window. No latches, no roof access, and thirty feet straight down."

Lee's breaths were wheezy as he wipes away at sweat dripping down his brow, Kenny looking around the group.

"Anyone have any ideas?"

"I bet this guy would!" Omid jokes with a chuckle, walking over to a statue bust. "He's got a resourceful air about him."

Christa sighs, "knock it off."

"Dixon Kent the III!" Omid kneels down to the statue, grinning. "Industrial--"

"Omid."

"Christa," Omid rises, turning to her with a frown. "I'm just trying to lighten the fucking tone."

She scoffs in disbelief, shaking her head in disapproval. "We need solutions! Not stupid jokes!"

The group was silent at her outburst, Christa's harsh gaze softening as Omid looks away with a frown.

"... I'm sorry." She softly apologizes.

Omid looks up at her with a side smile, taking her hand with a small nod as she smiles sadly back.

"So... No ideas, then," Kenny says after a moment.

Lee swallows thickly, his throat feeling tight and sweat continuing to drip off his temple. "There's... There's gotta be a another way."

"Check the floor for any another access," Christa agrees. "A vent, anything."

"Or we wait for the house to clear out and stick to the high ground," Kenny suggests.

Lee sways on his feet, his vision blurry momentarily as Kenny takes notice.

"Whoa-- Lee? You okay, pal?"

"Yeah!" Lee quickly reassures. "Yeah, I'm... I'm just gonna have to... Just..."

"Oh, shit!"

Kenny dashes forward as Lee collapses backwards, fainting.

...

"Lee?! Lee, are you there?! Lee! Lee! We're okay!"

Lee starts to wake at the sound of Clement's hushed voice on the walkie-talkie.

"We're where our parents-- oh no!"

Lee groans quietly as he looks around, the walkie-talkie near him on the floor where he was resting.

"Lee! Get up!" Ben urges, squatting down and shaking the man. 

"Did you hear that?" Kenny questions as Lee grabs the walkie-talkie.

He nods, rising and blinking slowly as he pants lightly. "Yeah. I did."

"What did that mean?"

Lee takes a moment to respond, still gaining his bearings before he gasps softly in realization. "They're at the hotel, where their parents were staying. He hasn't moved them."

"Yet," Kenny adds.

"Yeah... Yet," Christa sighs, shaking her head.

Kenny looks at the bite on Lee's arm, his face hardening. "We need to start thinking about more than just the kids when it comes to our... urgency."

Omid squints at the man, "What do you mean?"

"How do we get out of here?" Kenny questions, a hidden meaning behind his words.

"... That's the whole point. We don't know," Omid replies with confusion, tilting his head.

"Okay," Kenny looks to Lee before looking back to the others. "Now your life depends on it. How do you get out of here?" He repeats firmly.

"I don't know! I don't get it," Omid was still confused at his tone, shaking his head with a frown.

"... I do," Christa softly speaks, glancing at Lee's arm.

"Stop it," Lee firmly huffs, shaking his head as he looks between them. "We can't panic."

(?) They will remember that

"How long do you think we have?" Kenny questions Lee.

"What?" Lee blinks quickly in confusion before understanding what he meant. "Oh. I... I don't know."

Kenny grits his teeth, pacing angrily. "We should have cut it off. At least then there would have been a chance..."

"Well, we didn't! And it's too late now."

Kenny grimaces at Lee's words, sighing heavily. "I think we need to have an adult conversation about what happens if Lee takes another spill."

Omid's eyes flicker between the two uncomfortably. "Hey, look..."

"We could be looking at a Larry situation here."

Christa's brows knit together in confusion. "Who's Larry?"

"... It don't matter."

"He looks fine to me!" Omid protests, standing in front of Lee.

Lee looks over Omid, his gaze hardening. "I think it'd be best if we just worried about getting to Clem and (Y/N) right now."

Kenny scoffs, "We're not gonna do them any good if you've attacked us!"

"That isn't gonna happen."

"How do you know that?"

"Guys!" Christa intervenes, the two men not taking their glare off each other. "I don't know what happened before Omid and I showed up, but we can cross this bridge when we get to it."

Kenny huffs as he looks away from Lee, pacing. "Lee, I'm not advocating anything here... But how is this not a thing?! We're all so worked up about Clement and (Y/N), that we're forgetting about what the fuck happened to you!"

Lee scowls, Omid staggering back out of his way as he steps forward. "Oh, I'm really glad I got you looking out for me, for Clem and (Y/N). This is just fucking great."

"Relax, Lee!" Kenny snaps back at his sarcasm.

"This is getting out of hand," Omid tries, Christa setting a hand on her shoulder to keep him back.

"You're gonna listen to me!" Kenny stomps over to Lee. "We will get (Y/N) and Clement back, with or without you! Because I haven't given up everything to die because we were stupid!"

Lee lets out an angry laugh, "Then kill me, you son of a bitch, okay?! Don't even fucking hesitate!"

"I will, pal! When it comes to it, I will!"

Kenny shouts loudly, grabbing the bust and hurling it with fury at the attic wall. He pants heavily, his anger slowly fading to confusion when he notices the wall had crumbled where the statue hit.

"... You ruined that dude's face," Omid pouts, gesturing to the broken statue bust.

"Shut up, sweetie," Christa gently replies, noticing the wall as well. "Look!"

Kenny walks over to the wall, kneeling down to inspect it. He pries off a piece, his face lighting up. "It's corroded to hell!"

"What's on the other side of this wall? A thirty foot drop? Christa questions.

Omid shakes his head, "no. This mansion butts up against the one next door."

"I'll be damned!" Kenny laughs, rising.

"We're not lifers on Alcatraz here. We can't spend the next three months digging through a wall."

"If the rest is as dilapidated as this, we might not have to," Kenny replies to Christa. "Let's see..."

He picks up a nearby metal coat rack, bashing it against the wall and grinning at it crumbles with ease. "Yeah! We can do this."

"Okay," Lee agrees with a smile.

"We'll work in shifts, Omid Christa and I. Lee, you rest. We have to work fast."

Christa and Omid move to the couch, Ben sitting back in his corner. Lee watches Kenny hit the wall with the coat rack, frowning and looking around as he rubs the back of his neck.

"I'm... sorry."

Kenny pauses, dust from the wall rising in the air. "... Me too. I get it. Go sit down, pal."

Lee nods with a faint smile before joining Christa and Omid, exhaling heavily as he sits down on a small table in front of them.

Christa smiles softly at Lee, her gaze flicking from his arm to his eyes. "I'm glad you told us when you got bitten. It would've been easy not to."

"Yeah, well..." Lee shrugs, sighing.

"We probably would have let you go alone if you hadn't told us. Which would've been a mistake," she continues, shaking her head.

Omid crosses his arms in front of his chest, leaning back against the couch. "If I were you, I would've been scared shitless."

Lee's eyes light up with amusement as he smirks, "If you were me, you'd be a foot taller."

Christa snorts as her hand flies up to her mouth, Omid scoffing with mock offense.

"Hey!" he whines, pouting.

"And about fifty pounds heavier!" Lee adds, chuckling softly. "You, uh, wouldn't get scared as much."

Omid playfully glares at Lee, "With your bad arm and my leg, I'll cripple-fight you right now, buddy!"

Christa smiles widely in amusement at the two bantering, shaking her head with a laugh.

"I would've had to chop this off for you to even stand a chance!" Lee heartily laughs.

Christa's eyes flick to the bite, "Wish you would've taken it off?"

Lee shakes his head with a shrug, "Don't think it matters much now. I'm losing a lot of feeling in it."

Omid's smile falls to concern. "Really?"

"Yeah... It's hot. Like when you break a bone, but tingly like it's asleep."

Lee sighs heavily, shrugging with a forced smile.

Omid nods, silent for a moment. "So, when we get this guy... what do you think?"

Lee's eyes harden, "We make sure he never takes anybody from anyone again. World's got enough evil in it."

"And... You know... Whatever happens to you... Uh..." he awkwardly trails off, his teeth grinding together as his eyes flicker around.

Christa glares at Omid, "Seriously, can we not talk like that?!" She turns to Lee. "The entire time we were at the hospital I could sense you think you're as good as dead."

"I'm bitten, Christa," Lee replies with a sigh, shaking his head. "We all know that's a wrap!"

"There-- there's gotta be something... I don't know!"

Lee shakes his head with a melancholy smile. "I want you guys to take care of them."

(?) Christa and Omid will remember that

"Stop it," she weakly replies, her eyes glossed with tears for the man.

"I'm serious. They'd be safe, and relatively happy with you two--"

"We're not doing this right now." Christa cuts Lee off.

Omid sets a hand gently on her shoulder, "Christa... Listen to him."

"It's what I want," Lee softly reassures, making her look up at him. "Okay?"

"And... what about him?" Omid gestures to where Ben was with his eyes.

Lee glances over his shoulder to Ben, Ben holding his knees to his chest and his expression saddened. "We gotta support him. He's only a kid still, it's easy to forget that."

"He lose his shit like that often?"

"No. That was a first," Lee truthfully replies.

Christa looks over at Ben proudly, her face neutral. "It's good that he did. Kenny couldn't pull that shit on me."

Lee heavily sighs and rubs the side of his neck, ignoring the thumping in his head. "Kenny has been horrible to him. He blames Ben for his family's death, and... it's just more complicated than that."

Omid peers over his shoulder to Kenny. "Well, seems to have gotten through to Kenny. Whatever that's good for."

Kenny pants softly as he sets the coat rack down, walking over to the group and wiping sweat from his brow. "All right, I'm out of gas. You look good and rested."

Omid huffs. "Sure. If you don't count an infected leg."

"You want me to do it?" Christa questions softly, looking to Omid with concern.

"Nah, hon," Omid rises with a wink her way. "You can hop in after me."

Kenny takes Omid's spot on the couch, Omid grabbing the coat rack and starting in on the wall.

"Shouldn't be long now," Kenny sighs loudly, leaning back on the couch. "It's good we're forced to take a breath."

His eyes glance down at Lee's bite, making his smile fall. "I still can't believe you went and got chomped. Just... Fucking hell."

"At least he told us," Christa replies.

Kenny nods, in both appreciation and agreement. "Took some brass. I don't think I would've."

He leans forward, his arm resting on his leg and his forehead against the palm of his other hand.

"How are you?" Christa questions softly with concern.

"I'm... I don't know how to answer that," Kenny truthfully answers, sitting back up.

"I'm sorry. You've... lost more than anyone," she sympathizes. "Well, as much as anyone, but..."

"Lee's been through hell, too," was Kenny's muffled reply as he drags his hands down his face, sighing.

"It'll be all right, Ken."

Kenny's eyes squint as he shakes his head, "Why you acting like what's happened ain't happen?! You're..." He trails off, swallowing thickly and breathing out deeply. "Anyway. I appreciate it, from both of you. A lot of us have lost families."

His eyes flick to Ben, no malice behind them for the first time since the motel.

Lee notices this, looking between the two before lowly speaking. "Maybe take it easy on him from here on out."

"I'm angry as hell," Kenny grumbles.

"Not at him," Lee points out firmly.

Kenny's harsh glare softens. "Maybe... Maybe not."

"You heard him outside..."

"I did. I never really thought about it that way..."

Kenny frowns deeply before taking a look around, noticing a box next to the couch. His eyes light up as he chuckles, taking out a bottle of wine.

"This guy tell you much about what we been through?" he questions, uncorking the bottle.

"Bits and pieces," Christa curiously replies.

"The aforementioned Larry fella? See, Lee and I got trapped in a fucking meat locker with him. Clement was stuck with us, too," Kenny shakes his head, recalling the ordeal. "Then, the guy had a heart attack. So, there he is. A guy who, I should say, was built like a brick shithouse, and we're terrified he's gonna come back and eat all of us."

Christa's eyes were wide with fascination and mild fear, "what did you do?"

"We were... resourceful."

"Larry didn't make it out?"

Lee shakes his head to Christa in response.

Kenny raises the bottle towards Lee, "No he did not. We did, though."

Lee nods back before thinking of his time with Kenny. The good and the bad and the ugly. "I'm sorry for hurting you in any way, Kenny. It's impossible to go through life without causing some sort of pain, but... Sometimes I can't help but wonder if I could've caused a little less."

(?) Kenny appreciates that

Kenny bitterly smiles, "You and me both, pal. Well... cheers."

He takes a long swig of the wine, exhaling loudly in appreciation before offering it to Lee.

Lee takes it with a nod, downing some of it and basking in the coolness of the liquid going down his throat. He hands it back to Kenny, who offers it to Christa.

She hesitates, looking between the bottle and her stomach.

Kenny's brows furrow in suspicion at this, Christa quickly taking the bottle and drinking only a few swallows.

His face falls and his eyes widen, a gasp leaving Lee when he comes to the same realization.

Christa is pregnant.

Lee and Kenny share the same baffled expression, Kenny opening his mouth to say something.

"I'm through!" Omid calls, interrupting the group.

He had created a hole in the walls large enough for them all to get through, him panting from working with an exhausted smile.

"No walkers," Omid says as he peers inside the house. "Things are looking up!"

They head through the hole one by one, dropping down into the bedroom.

"Everyone keep a Goddamn eye out, Kenny speaks in a hushed tone, searching through the drawers of the dressers.

"This place seems pretty sealed off," Christa points out with relief. "Well--"

She trails off when she notices Lee's wide eye expression, following his gaze over to the bed.

A couple's corpse was laying side by side, their hands intertwined and bullet holes through their temples. Suicide pact.

Christa gasps, her hand flying up to her mouth as she backs away. Omid moves quickly to her side, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as she hides her face in his neck with quiet cries.

Kenny shakes his head slowly, looking down at the corpses with heartbreak. "God..."

Ben swallows thickly to keep himself composed, looking away from them and pacing.

"How could they do this...?" Lee mutters aloud with sadness.

"... It's what Katjaa did," Kenny quietly reveals, staring blankly out the window.

Lee's head snaps over to Kenny, his eyes softening. "Jesus... I'm... I'm sorry, Ken."

"She left me... My son... People that cared about her," Kenny's eyes squeeze shut. "I forgive her, but it don't make it any less wrong. You don't just end it cause it's hard! You stick it out, and you help the folks you care about. So, let's find a way outta here and get those kids back."

Omid nods in agreement. "We should move."

"Yeah," Christa softly speaks.

Kenny takes the gun from the man's corpse, checking the ammo. "Got at least one shot left."

"Let's clear the room before we move on. Lee, figure out where we're headed," she nods to the man, joining Omid in searching around.

Kenny notices Lee lingering, making him sigh. "Don't ask me how I'm doing. Let's just keep going."

Lee holds up his hands in surrender. "I was just gonna say Randy Tudor. Good man, damn fine man. Powerful 'stache. One of the greats."

Kenny looks at Lee oddly before chuckling, shaking his head in amusement.

Lee backs away and walks over to the bedroom door, pausing at the sound of muffled snarling on the other side.

"House is full, too," he sharply whispers. "Stay quiet."

"Judging by the decor here, I'd guess they were PBS watchers," Omid jokingly says, snickering.

"Hey, my parents' house looked a lot like this, and they watched kung fu movies!" Christa protests quietly.

Omid muffles a laugh behind his hand, Christa chuckling softly.

"Just saying!" she defends.

Christa notices Lee staring at the dead couple sadly, making her walk over.

"Lee? You okay?"

"Yeah, just... I was..." Lee struggles to say the words, eventually sighing. "Thinking about my wife. Before this all started... And... I'm fine."

Christa was surprised at this new information, setting a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Let's keep at it."

Lee forces a smile, nodding before approaching Ben by the window. "You still with us, Ben?"

"Yeah, Lee," Ben reassures with a nod, peering from the window to Lee. "I just want to help."

Lee nods before heading towards Omid by the balcony door.

Omid looks back at the couple, uncharacteristically silent before sighing. "It's sick, but... Think of all the pain they avoided."

Somewhere in Lee he felt himself agree, but he couldn't give up. Not with Clement and (Y/N) still in his life.

Lee pushes the balcony door open, though it wasn't really a balcony. More like a small ledge with a short fencing. The roof next to them was close, however, giving Lee an idea.

"Nothing other than personal items in here," Christa sighs in disappointment as she walks over to Lee with the others.

Kenny looks from the ledge to the roof, having the same idea as Lee. "Looks like we can stay off the streets all the way to River Street if we're careful."

"Let's go," Christa urges with determination.

"Go ahead." Ben smiles, nodding to Lee.

Lee exhales softly through his mouth as he carefully climbs up onto the railing, the others watching with concern.

"That don't look too sturdy," Kenny points out.

Lee slowly looks at him with a glare, Kenny's eyes shining in amusement. Lee turns back to the root and grunts as he leaps across, pulling himself up to safety and turning to the others with a grin.

Omid smiles back and climbs up, leaping over and pulling himself up and turning to Christa.

She follows, Omid helping her up to safety. Kenny goes after her, leaping off and not noticing the railing of the balcony coming loose as he leaps off onto the roof.

Ben climbs onto the railing with confidence, preparing to leap, when--

Creek!

"Ben!" Lee yells with wide eyes.

Ben's eyes widen as the railing gives out, making him fall down into the alley as he screams.

Lee swiftly looks over the side, Ben buried by garbage that he had landed on.

"... Me and my fucking mouth," Kenny says after a moment of silence.

"Holy fuck! What are we going to do?!" Omid urgently questions, looking from Ben to Lee.

Kenny groans as he turns and races to the side of the roof, climbing down using the ladder.

"Stay up here and keep an eye out!" Lee firmly says to the two, rushing after Kenny.

"Okay, but I can't see much from up here!"

"Just..." Lee pauses on the ladder. "Let us know if they start coming down the alley. We'll be back."

"Be--"

Lee climbs down before Christa could finish her warning.

"... Careful," she frowns with worry, her and Omid looking to one another.

Lee quietly creeps into the alley, spotting Kenny moving the garbage off from Ben.

"Ow!" Ben coughs weakly, hissing and clenching his teeth in pain. "I... I'm okay... I'm okay, just... Get me out of here. I just slipped-- ow!"

He winces, Lee looking up and down the alley for walkers as Kenny moves more trash and boxes away.

"How the fuck did this happen?!" Kenny curses to himself quietly.

"Are you okay?!" Lee softly speaks, rushing to their aid.

"How the fuck did this happen, Ben?" Kenny questions in a mock-upset tone.

"I'm-- I'm sorry. Just get me up. My leg's hurt, I think," Ben whimpers out in pain.

Kenny nods, "we're gonna get your ass up."

Ben's eyes widen in surprise, his face falling. "R-- Really? I thought you..."

Lee's heart sinks in his chest when he hears footsteps approaching, followed by a low snarling. Kenny moves the final cardboard box off Ben, his eyes widening at the sight.

Ben's jersey was soaked in his blood, a sharp part of the railing pierced through the side of his stomach.

"Fucking hell..."

Ben's eyes were clouded over as he stares at the sky, whimpering. "What is it? I'm okay... I'm okay..."

Lee looks down at the sight with horror and shock, not knowing how the hell they were going to do this.

Kenny takes action, "we can get you up! We can--"

He tries to lift Ben, making him cry out loudly in agony as tears fall from his eyes. Kenny quickly sets him back down, breathing heavily as he looks around.

Ben looks to his stomach with wide eyes, shakily holding the railing caked in his blood as he tries to move.

Lee opens and closes his mouth, genuinely at a loss.

"We gotta do something!" Kenny's gaze snaps up to Lee.

"Please!" Ben sobs, his breathing rapid and uneven.

Lee's eyes flick up down the alley, making him slowly look back with a gut twisting feeling at the sight of walkers starting to approach.

"Fuck!" Kenny curses, trying to pull Ben up again.

More walkers start closing in on the other side as Ben screams in pain, gripping at Kenny's arms with shaking hands.

Kenny drops him back down, Ben noticing the walkers with wide eyes as his bottom lip trembles in fear.

"Oh, God! Don't let them get to me!" he begs, sobbing.

Kenny looks down into Ben's terrified eyes, and back to the walkers. He nods firmly, rising from the floor.

"Do you have any bullets left?! This has only got one left in it!" Kenny takes out his gun.

"Just three!" Lee takes out his pistol, unloading the clip.

"Give 'em to me."

Lee's brows furrow. "What are you going to do--"

"Give them to me, and get the hell out of here, pal!" Kenny takes Lee's pistol, emptying out the few bullets and loading them into his gun.

"I'm not leaving you!" Lee firmly disagrees.

"Go!"

Lee scowls, shaking his head twice. "Hell no, man! I'm not leaving!"

Kenny's mouth curls up in anger, "What did I just say?!"

"Let's get Ben and get out of here!"

Kenny's face softens before he shoves Lee to safety, slamming the gate shut and locking it on his side.

"What the fuck, Kenny?!"

"Lee, Lee, it's okay," Kenny softly speaks, nodding. "You've been a good friend to me. And I'll never forget that."

Lee's eyes widen as he shakes his head, "No, Ken! No, it's not okay!"

He slams against the fence, trying to open it.

"This is somethin' I gotta do. You know that, pal," Kenny shrugs with a side grin and narrowed eyes. "Now, go get darlin' and Clement!"

He turns to the walkers, raising his gun. "Back, you sons of bitches!"

"Damn it, Kenny!!"

Kenny bashes his gun against the first walker, shooting down another. A walker nearly gets Kenny as he backs away, making him yell and punch it back against another walker.

"Kenny!"

Ben suddenly screams out with terror and agony, "Fuck! Kenny! Help, please--!"

His screams go silent as Kenny shoots him, sparing him the torture of getting ripped apart by the walkers.

Kenny disappears from Lee's view as more and more walkers appear, Lee ramming against the fencing with shouts.

Lee's hands drops from the bars of the fence weakly when he hears the sound of flesh being torn apart, and the sounds of Kenny fighting no more.

Only the sounds of the walkers was left. Like Molly said... In the end... The dead always win.

...

..

.

KENNNNYYYY 😭😭😭

(spoiler)

But okay we know he aint dead, he's too badass.