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Endure

Crossbow

"We need to start on HWY 495 headed West. We can cut straight across these little roads here and it should be a straight shot to Route 66. We'll follow it until we get to Strasburg. Then we'll follow 81 South, until we get to 64. We can follow that all the way to Kentucky. Then we'll hop on to 62 until we get to your place." Rick repeated this plan for probably the 3rd time since we began our trip an hour ago.

"Don't you think we should just take this one step at a time?" Michonne asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

Rick shook his head aggressively.

"No. It's important that this is hammered into our brains. This is a long trip and anything can happen. We could lose the map, lose each other. Anything. I shouldn't be the only person who knows the plan." He replied.

He was right. It was a sad thought, but if something happened to Rick and he was the only person who knew where we were headed, it could be catastrophic.

Without a doubt, this trip would be brutal. It was an estimated 730 miles to my hometown. We had calculated how many miles a day it would take to get to where we were headed. If we managed to go ten miles a day, it would take us 73 days, two months, to reach our destination.

I didn't have to ask to know that that number loomed in the minds of my peers. It was terrifying. There was a part of me rejoicing, ever so slightly, however, because even though the distance was challenging, I was on my way to where my son should be. And better still, I wasn't alone.

We trudged slowly and I was acutely aware of the challenge we presented ourselves with by setting a goal of 10 miles per day. We had children and we were all injured and ill. Not to mention the great sadness radiating among our group that was heavier than the backpacks on our backs.

We had taken everything of value with us from Alexandria. We had a small sample of food, containers for water, a few clothing articles. There was a small bag of toys for Judith and there was a small bag of weapons for us. We were as prepared as we could have been.

Daryl walked beside me and I would occassionally glance up at him. He walked tall and strong, but without his crossbow, which had gone missing after his capture at Jude's, his walk was a little less confident. It was almost as if he had lost a limb, by losing his bow.

I gave him a light fist bump and he looked down at me through his bangs. The left corner of his mouth rose ever so slightly to acknowledge my playful gesture and then returned back to it's place. I smiled as brightly as I could muster and then looked back to the long stretch of road in front of me.

**********

"We should find a place to rest for the night before it gets too dark to check it out properly." I said, quietly from the back of the group. I had been watching the sky turn pink and had noticed that the group had begun to travel on auto-pilot at that point.

Rick nodded and we all began to survey our surroundings. We were encompassed by trees, but I could see a turn off for a county road about a quarter mile ahead. As we approached it, I squinted down each side to see if I could locate any type of building. I was able to spot what looked like a trailer house about half a mile to my left.

"There!" I said, pointing. "I'll go check it out and then you can send the rest."

Rick, and everyone else, was against this idea. It was determined that we would all go together and that Carl, Enid, Grace and Judith would stay outside with Michonne while the rest of us checked out the dwelling and the property.

Everyone split up to cover the area. I opted on the west side of the backyard. The grass was tall and made it easy for me to trip. At one point, I stumbled over something large and when I looked down, I noticed that I had found a storm shelter by accident.

I listened intently for signs of life (or there lack of) from within the buried tin box. My heart sank as I heard a light clanging sound from within. I looked around me for someone who might be able to assist me.

Daryl was coming down the back steps just as I looked up. I waved him over and pointed to the shelter. He started to speak, but I silenced him with my eyes and he listened to the same sounds I had heard. He, then, indicated that I was to open the door for him and he was going to take care of whatever was inside.

I did as I was told and slowly began to raise the lid. His expression changed slightly from aggression to a strange sort of sadness as he went inside the ground. I wasn't sure what this was about, but when the moans of the dead were silenced, I followed him down.

At the bottom of the steps were three bodies; a mother figure and two small, twin girls. They couldn't have been older than four or five. Their blond, curly hair was matted against their protruding skulls and their once big, bright eyes were sunken in to their heads.

"I got it." Daryl said, as I began to scoop up one of the children in my arms. Anytime you were presented with a child corpse, it was troubling but I could tell something about these particular walkers stung him. I wasn't sure what it was, but I didn't want him to bear that burden alone so I shook my head and continued up the steps and out into the open air.

After we had disposed of the bodies, I returned to the shelter to poke around. Daryl was still outside filling Rick in on what we had found. Being alone down there was a little unsettling, but I reminded myself that at this point I had seen everything and my only real danger was the liklihood that I'd wander into a spider's territory.

The shelves were lined with empty cans and bottles. The girls had obviously been down there for a while. There were toys and sports equipment scattered throughout. I wasn't sure what had been the cause of their death, but from the looks of the amount of dust on their food containers, starvation was my best guess.

There was a large bench in the corner that doubled as storage. I walked over and lifted the lid and removed a quilt that was draped over something that rested below it. A smile creeped across my face when I realized what the objects were. There were three large hunting knives and a dusty crossbow with several bolts resting nearby.

I grabbed the knives and bolts before I hoisted the crossbow over my shoulder. I didn't know a damn thing about the archer's weapon in my arms, but I knew someone who would and I hoped my find would lift his spirits.

Notes

Comments

Holy moly!! This was so great!! Thank you!!

JetCmoon JetCmoon
3/8/17

Thank you so much for the updated chapter!! It was awesome!!!

JetCmoon JetCmoon
2/20/17

@GeezLouise
Absolutely!! I check for updates daily!! LOL As I said to another great writer, I am faithful to the writers who put their heart and imagination into their stories so I am not going anywhere!! :)

JetCmoon JetCmoon
2/1/17

@GeezLouise
Of course I will! :D

A Lady A Lady
2/1/17

@JetCmoon

Thanks!!

@A Lady
I am so glad you enjoyed it!! Stay tuned.

GeezLouise GeezLouise
2/1/17