Reunited
I was glad when Glenn pulled ahead of us, the constant wailing of the alarm was going to give me a headache. I thought about asking if we should ditch it because of that, but assumed they knew what they were doing. I mean they don't want walkers to follow us I'm sure.
We were pulling into an old quarry, steep cliff faces circled by the trees if the forest. A beautiful blue lake rested at the bottom as we followed a dirt path through the quarry.
I knew from movies and books that people wanted to travel the world to see beautiful places and while I doubted anyone had ever traveled here for that. I could help but enjoy the view as I stood in between Rick and Morales. As corny as it sounded to even myself I was glad I got to see this, and I was interested to see all the people that called this place home.
I didn't know what this meant for Rick and me though. He was still searching for his family, and I doubt this group would just drop everything to help him look. We'd likely stay here for a bit to gather more info and then be on our way. I didn't too much want to just stay in one spot. I wanted to see more of the world, see all the places that I had read about and watched movies of.
We pulled to a stop and everyone began leaving the truck, and up ahead I could see and hear the people of the camp talking.
"Come meet everyone." Morales said, patting Rick on the arm as he left too. Leaving just me and Rick, me now taking Morales' spot in the passenger seat.
"What do you think?" I asked.
"Think about what?" Rick asked in return, wiping a hand over his face as he looked at me.
"They seem to be good people. A little chaotic and disorganized, but still good people. You gonna stay with them?" I clarified and Rick looked out the front, I followed his gaze to the people we had just met walking towards the rest of the camp.
"I've got to find my family. But Adam… You should stay here. Morales has kids around your age, there's a whole group here to look after you. You shouldn't have to put yourself in danger for me." I didn't immediately reply to his words, just sitting there thinking when I saw Morales looking back waving for us.
"We can talk later. Seems they want us to meet the rest." I said stepping out the truck. I made sure my gun was secure in the holster at my back, covered by my shirt. Looking down I just realized how dirty I was. Dirt and grime mixed with the blood from the walker in the tank. Rick wasn't much better when I looked at him as we rounded the truck.
As we walked forward, Rick suddenly stopped and when I looked to where he was looking I didn't even need to guess. It was the people I had seen in the photograph at his house.
"Dad! Daad!" The young boy, Carl, ran towards Rick. I stepped away as they met, Rick carrying him over to his wife where they hugged as a family.
I thought that I would feel happy when we found his family, but something else did. Not anger or jealousy, I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It felt like a pit had formed in my stomach as I watched them. I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing to calm down. It was something Mother taught me so that I never let emotions cloud a judgement for my future missions.
The sinking feeling slowly faded, but a small ache remained. I focused my attention elsewhere, taking in all the different people, my gaze landed on a stocky man with curly black hair that looked as if he'd seen a ghost as he watched the Grimes family. Many emotions warred behind his eyes and not all of them were good ones, but he hid it behind a smile.
I heard someone walking towards me and when I turned to them I saw that it was Andrea.
"Hey, Adam. You alright?" She asked with concern and I nodded.
"Ya, I'm just surprised we found his family so fast." The best lies are ones mixed with truth, as they say. I was surprised, but whether I was fine I wasn't sure. I don't know why I wouldn't be fine, but it didn't feel like the truth when I said it.
"Why don't we find you a change of clothes. I'm sure Morales' son has something you can borrow."
Later that night the entire camp was split up into different groups of low campfires. Andrea and her sister Amy had all but adopted me, pulling me around from clothes to food and then finally sitting beside them at the fire. Our circle consisted of Rick and his family, and old man named Dale, Shane who was Rick's old partner, Glenn and T-Dog rounded out the group.
I had tuned out most of their conversations. I was thinking about what I was going to do now. I had never had to truly think for myself before, and finding Rick was the perfect thing for me. It had seemed so unlikely for him to find his family, at least not this quick. We had only woke up in that hospital a day ago.
I could sneak off in the night and grab my stuff from the cop car, but it was a lot to carry. I could probably drive the car I guess. I'll decide tomorrow, they made it sound like they were going to go back for Merle in the morning. Maybe I'll go with them.
I woke early the next morning, the sun just beginning to rise, in Dale's camper. He had offered me the small couch until they got me a tent and sleeping bag. Morales had tried to offer to let me sleep in there tent with his kids, but that just seemed like too many people.
I grabbed my clothes from yesterday, as well as the soaps and shampoos they gave me last night. I had asked about washing up then, but Andrea claimed she would take me. I knew that most boys would probably love such a thing, but I didn't know these people. And bathing had always been the one thing that was my own. I didn't want that to change if I could help it.
I sneaked out the door, making sure to not let it rattle too much and headed to the lake in the quarry. After a bath I washed my clothes as best I could. I found the laundry line to hang up my wet clothes and after putting back on my holster and knife sheath, i decided to look around the camp.
There were quite a lot of people here, nearly 50, and it seemed like they didn't get many walker scares by the way they talked last night. This seemed to be a safe place as even now they had someone on watch on top the RV. It was easy enough to to avoid their sight as they weren't really expecting anything as well as there being so much cover for me to use.
The only other line of defense they had was a poor excuse of a trip alarm. They had the right idea, putting cans on a string, but the string was flimsy and likely to break. Not to mention they had none of the cans knotted to together for them to knock against each other.
Maybe they hadn't been here as long as I though, but all the evidence pointed to them being here at least for a week if not 2. I had inspected the immediate vicinity by the time the rest of camp began to wake, so I figured I better make my way back inside the camp proper.
"Ah, Adam. There you are." Andrea called out as I reached the center of the camp. She looked me up and down before looking at me confused.
"Did you already bathe?" She asked.
"Ya, I'm an early riser." I replied.
"Adam you can't go off on your own, you're just a kid." She said, and I held in my sigh as I feigned ignorance.
"Oh really? I just figured since the camp is safe it wouldn't be an issue." I replied with false sincerity. She eyed me before finally relenting.
"Fine, but don't do it again. If you're embarrassed maybe we can see if Lori will let you and Carl bathe together." She said before turning to her sister a little ways away.
"Hey, Amy. Will you help Adam get some food while I go bathe?" She asked.
"Ya, of course!" Amy smiled brightly.
A quick breakfast down and I was passed from Amy off on to the other children with the 'go play' encouragement.
While we were playing though, walking around the edge of the camp, I began to smell that familiar smell of death. Not only that, but I could smell fresh blood hear that familiar raspy breathing of walkers.
"Wait. There's something over there." I said as I pointed to the bushes. About 50 feet to the left I could smell the fresh blood, and directly where I was pointing I could hear the breathing along with the crunch of leaves and snap of twigs.
"I don't hear anything." Louis, Morales' son said.
"Ya you're just trying to scare us, nothing comes this far up the mountains." Carl added on and went to walk straight towards the bushes when I pulled him back. He went to turn to towards me, but I pushed him back as the walker stumbled out from behind the bushes.
It had probably been following whatever was dead, but had heard us and was now heading for Carl.
"Ahhh!" Eliza Morales squealed as she saw it, Sophia joining in as she called for her mom.
"Mom! Dad!" Carl yelled as he stumbled back. The rest of the kids ran back to the camp, but I stayed. I knew that I should run too to keep up appearances, but several had already seen me shoot a hunting rifle from atop the department building. Rick had seen me do many things in just 2 days that likely no other 10 year old would have known how to do.
Besides, right now I needed something clear my head, and taking down this walker would do just that.
"Groaa!" It growled as it lunged at me. I dropped under its grasp and locked my legs around its so that it fell face forward onto the soft forest floor. I rolled its legs up to its back as I got on its back. Its arms flailed trying to scratch me, but a moment later I drop my knife up the back of its skull.
Wiping my blade off on its shirt, I stood up and just a few moments later the cavalry arrived. They all stared at me with surprise etched across their face, all except Rick that is.
"What?" I asked as I put the knife back in its sheath on my thigh.
"You're alright? Not bit or scratched?" Rick finally asked
Before I could answer they finally heard the footsteps from the woods, all turning to the source as Shane pointed a gun into the tree line. A young man with a couple braces of squirrels stepped out.
"This the thanks I get for bringing that deer back to camp? Why don't you stop pointing that gun at me and help me drag it into camp." He huffed before seeing the walker on the ground.
"They comin up here too now? Forget it, where's Merle?" He stepped around the dead walker and into camp.
Seems we've met the brother.
"Merle! Get out here, I bagged us a deer and some squirrel."