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Safe Haven in the Chaos	By : IdrilsSecret Category: S through Z > The Walking Dead Views: 6517 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the walking dead or any of the characters. No money is being made from the writing of these stories

Chapter List
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Chapter 79 Forty Eight Hours

The day started out like any other day. Daryl got up early to help Gracie make breakfast. Lydia was already up and in the back yard, practicing with her weapon. Aaron rose just in time for breakfast. Gracie made sure to burn Daryl’s toast, and Lydia held her nose in disgust. Breakfast was delicious, and it was time for the girls to get ready for school. They ran upstairs, leaving Daryl and Aaron alone to clean up. They flirted as they washed and dried the dishes together, flicking water at each other and talking about what was on each other’s agenda for the day.

Someone knocked on the door, and Daryl went to answer it. Laura stood outside on the porch. Gage was with her, standing on the sidewalk. “Sup?” Daryl asked.

“There’s a herd approaching. Everyone is needed. Aaron needs to gather his troops. Michonne’s waiting at the gate.” Laura didn’t wait for a response, and she was already descending the steps.

Daryl closed the door and rushed back to the kitchen. Aaron saw the seriousness on his face. “What is it?”

“Get your sword and your gun. A herd’s coming from the north.” Daryl ran upstairs with Aaron right behind him. They both geared up, and dressed for combat. Daryl told Lydia to stay with Gracie while Aaron spoke to his daughter about the threat. Within minutes, Daryl and Aaron were running to the gate.

Along the way, Aaron saw a few members of his troops and ordered them to gather the others. Those that were already there walked with Aaron, and his group grew step by step toward the gate. Laura saw them and approached.

“Get the equipment and all weapons and meet me back here,” he ordered her.

Daryl went up ahead to the gate and joined Michonne on the wall. She was looking through a pair of binoculars, and handed them to Daryl. He looked through them and could see a large herd slowly making their way directly toward Alexandria. It was unusual to see a herd make it this far. Alexandria got stragglers, but hardly ever a herd. The quarry where they had found thousands of trapped walkers still caught a majority of the dead. They sent fighters there every month to kill them, and to make sure it didn’t built back up to a dangerous level.

“What do you think is drawing them here?” Daryl asked Michonne as he peered through the binoculars.

“My guess is they were originally drawn together by the satellite crash. But they should have hit the quarry,” she said as she tried to figure out the mystery.

“Yeah, they should have. There can only be one reason why they didn’t.” Daryl glanced at Michonne.

“It’s too soon to know if she’s behind this,” she told him.

Daryl looked down and saw Aaron with his army, fully armed and ready. Michonne gave a nod. “Open the gates,” she ordered.

Daryl watched Aaron move out with his group of fighters and walk toward the herd. He was nervous for him. He never liked it when Aaron made a move without him, even though he had full confidence in Aaron’s skills as a fighter. This was Aaron’s job as captain of Alexandria’s army, and Daryl had no say in it since he had agreed with it in the first place.

“Michonne!” Gabriel called out from below. “We’ve got a smaller group coming up from the south.”

“Gather some people and go head them off,” Michonne ordered.

“I’ll go,” Daryl volunteered. He shot down the ladder before Michonne could protest, and joined Gabriel in the fight.

>>------->

It was the fifth wave of walkers to come toward the main gate. Aaron and his army had been fighting for the past eleven hours with only short breaks in between. There had been no time to check on Lydia and Gracie, no time to find out where Daryl went. He was exhausted beyond his means, but he couldn’t stop now.

This last herd was almost extinguished, and Aaron was struggling to take down one of the last ones standing. It chomped down on his metal arm, and he used the last of his strength to hold it off. He brought his knife up and stabbed it in the head. Then he fell to the ground with the walker, the dead thing falling on top of him. He laid there a moment catching his breath before he rolled it off of him. Taking a closer look, Aaron noticed that the walker was burnt. This one had come from the border where the satellite crashed. Had it wandered here on its own, or was it led here? He finally stood and looked around the area littered with dead walkers. “All right. That’s another one down. Let’s get some rest while the gettin’s good,” he told his people, and they made their way back inside the gates.

Daryl was just coming back from the south side. He was covered in guts and grime, and he looked as tired as Aaron. The two met in the street, and Aaron clasped a hand to Daryl’s shoulder. “How’s it going?”

“As well as could be expected. What about you?” asked Daryl, giving Aaron a good once over.

“I’m fine, just tired and my muscles ache.”

“You need to rest. Why don’t you let me take over for you?” Daryl advised.

“You’re as in demand as I am. I’ll be alright.” Aaron waved him off when he tried to help him walk. “I said I’m fine,” he said a little too harshly. He realized it right away and took hold of Daryl’s arm to keep him from walking away. “I’m sorry. I’m not myself right now.”

“Nobody is,” said Daryl, forgiving him instantly by wiping some dirt from Aaron’s forehead. They both saw Eugene approaching them at a quickened pace.

“I hate to break this up, but we’ve got another one coming this way,” Eugene notified.

“I’ll take it,” Daryl said, but Aaron shook his head.

“Eugene, find Michonne and the others. We need to have a meeting,” Aaron told him, and Eugene rushed off.

Daryl and Aaron walked toward the windmill. It was the tallest point in Alexandria, and it had a clear view of the area surrounding the town. Aaron put his arm around Daryl’s waist as they walked. “Have you been to check on Lydia and Gracie?”

Daryl nodded. “Yeah, but that was about six or seven hours ago. They’re fine. Lydia stayed in Gracie’s room last night, and she’s been keeping her busy today. She’s a tough little girl. Lydia said she hasn’t cried once.”

Aaron was proud of his daughter, and he felt like he had done something right by raising her to know exactly what was happening in the outside world. Though she hadn’t faced it yet, she was aware. Aaron never sugarcoated anything because he knew one day Gracie would have to fend for herself.

They arrived at the windmill just as Michonne, Carol, Eugene, Gabriel and a few others had. Everyone gave their reports, and it was all the same thing. The walkers kept coming at them in constant waves, almost as though it was being done deliberately.

“This is her,” Carol seethed. “She’s trying to wear us down bit by bit, hour by hour.”

“Has anyone come across any Whisperers?” Michonne asked, but no one had.

“Some of them are burnt,” Aaron informed. “They had to have come from the fire at the border. I just don’t know if that’s what has drawn them this way or not.”

Michonne looked around at everyone, and then out at the surrounding land. “We got more coming in. That’s our main priority right now. You all know your training. Let’s get this done.”

Fourteen hours in, and Aaron was behind the gates with Gabriel stabbing walkers through the bars. At twenty two hours, Daryl and Aaron worked together with a group outside the gates because there were too many dead walkers piling up on the walls. At thirty seven hours, Daryl and Aaron took turns working the north and the south.

Forty eight hours passed since the first warning of walkers advancing on the gates. There was another lull in the action, and everyone took advantage of the break. Michonne went home to check on Judith and R.J. Aaron and Daryl went home to do the same.

Lydia and Gracie were sitting on the couch when they walked into their home. Gracie ran to Aaron but stopped short when she saw him covered in blood and gore. He looked down at himself and took a step backwards. It wasn’t normal for Aaron to come home looking like this. He had always kept his job separate from his home life. To come home covered in filth was the same as bringing the horror home with him. He was too tired to remember to clean up first.

Lydia came up next to Gracie and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Why don’t you let your dads clean up first, okay?” Lydia suggested. Gracie nodded and went back to the living room. Aaron and Daryl moved to the kitchen with Lydia in tow.

“What’s going on out there?” she asked.

Both men were almost too tired to speak. They drank water first before answering. Daryl put his glass down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “They keep coming,” he said tersely.

“Wave upon wave,” Aaron added. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“Is this Alpha?” Daryl asked Lydia.

She glanced around the room first before answering. Then she shook her head. “I don’t think so. She’s never done anything like this before.”

The handheld radio Aaron carried with him went off. Michonne was at the other end, and told them to come back to the gate. Walkers were spotted again. Aaron held the radio in front of him, but he didn’t answer right away. He glanced at Daryl. “Do you think she would believe me if I told her I missed the call?”

“Come on. We’ll take this one together this time.” Daryl picked up his bow and headed for the front door.

Aaron paused and looked at Gracie first. She was peeking over the back of the couch, almost like she was afraid of him. “This will be over soon, honey. I promise.” He could see her slowly nod. Then he laid a hand on Lydia’s arm and thanked her again for her help.

After an hour of fighting, the latest wave was demolished. Luckily, it was one of the smaller herds or they might have been fighting for another hour or so. Michonne was at the main gate, and waited for the others to arrive and check in with reports of progress and injuries. No one was in a big rush to get there. The exhaustion was apparent on everyone’s faces. Eugene was on lookout duty, and she called up to him. “What do you see, Eugene?”

“It’s clear for now. If my calculations are correct, and so far they’ve been spot on, I’d say we have about an hour until the next wave arrives from the north. Closer to two from the south. The northern herd has been much thicker, while their more disperse coming from the south.”

“We can’t keep pushing everybody like this,” Daryl warned her. He was more concerned about Aaron right now. The man was at the end of his means, and Daryl knew people were more apt to make mistakes when working on fumes.

“We don’t have much choice, now, do we?” Michonne snapped. She recognized her impatience was due to her fatigue and apologized right away. Daryl gave a nod.

“Hey,” said Aaron with urgency. Everyone looked up to see what he was gesturing toward, and spotted a lone walker coming toward the fence.

“It’s one of them,” Daryl told Michonne quietly. Everyone saw the Whisperer, and brought their weapons into more convenient positions, while moving toward the gate.

The Whisperer was a female, and she stopped just before the barricades. Daryl stepped forward with Michonne and waited to see what she wanted. “Be at the northern border in one hour. Lay down your weapons and wait.”

“Wait for what?” Michonne asked.

“Her,” replied the Whisperer woman. She started to leave, but Daryl called out to her.

“Are you doing this?” Daryl asked. “Are you sending these herds at us?”

“It is not us,” she said.

Aaron pushed in front of Daryl, his aggression catching everyone off guard. “We’re done with this bullshit,” he seethed. “If this is Alpha–”

“I said it is not us,” the Whisperer repeated calmly. Then she looked at Michonne. “One hour.” With that said, she turned and walked away.

“Everyone, meeting hall, now,” Michonne demanded.

When they got to the hall, Aaron saw Lydia there by herself. She was sitting at a table with a book, practicing her reading. “Where’s Gracie?” he asked with concern.

“I took her to Sarah’s house. She’s having story time. I thought it would be good to switch up the routine,” Lydia told him.

“Is she okay? She seemed a little scared when I came home earlier. I shouldn’t have let her see me like that,” he said, referring to his befuddled state.

“She’s fine,” Lydia told him.

Laura walked up to Lydia, and gave her a scowling stare. “Should she be here?”

Aaron stood up straight and took a step forward, coming between Laura and Lydia. “Step off,” he said, making a quiet threat. Laura backed away, but her look of disdain didn’t falter.

Michonne got the meeting off quickly by approaching Lydia with the main question on everyone’s mind. “Is this your mother?”

Lydia glanced around, her defenses already in place. Everyone looked angry and full of blame toward her, but Lydia shook her head. “No. I don’t think it is.”

“Then why does she want to talk to us?” Daryl asked with more compassion than anyone else would show her. “She sent someone with a message to meet her at the border.”

“I … I don’t know,” she answered at first. Seeing that the people in the room weren’t satisfied with that answer, she continued. “It’s probably because you crossed into her land. She laid down the rules of the borders and you disobeyed. You have to answer for that.”

Aaron considered Lydia as she spoke, and he knew she was probably right, but he was tired of playing by Alpha’s rules. “We don’t have to do anything. We could just not go,” he said addressing Michonne.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Lydia said to Aaron. “It’ll just make things worse.”

“Worse than fighting waves of walkers for the past forty eight hours?” Laura confronted her.

“I told you, that’s not her. If she wanted you dead, she would have sent the entire horde, not little by little,” Lydia said to make them understand. “She’s never done anything like that before.”

“Well, there’s always a first time,” said Carol. “Maybe she’s trying to wear us down first.”

“Or perhaps the satellite crash and the fire is the cause,” Eugene put in, trying to keep the meeting’s aggressive vibe from escalating.

The room became a jumble of voices as everyone started speaking their mind on the situation. Some were growing increasingly angry, and arguments broke out from one side of the hall to the other. Michonne quickly reined everyone back into order. “This right here is what she wants. Alpha is trying to divide us. I understand that we are all tired and at the end of our ropes, but we can’t falter now. We must stay united. All of us.” The room quieted as she spoke, and everyone seemed to regain their composure. “For now, Alpha just wants to talk so we’ll send a small group to the border. The rest of you have to keep your main concern focused on these herds coming from the north and the south. If this is Alpha, maybe talking to her will put an end to this.”

“Why don’t you take her with your,” someone said from the crowd. Three people stepped forward, Gage, Margo and Alfred. Margo and Alfred were members of the Highwaymen, and Gage had been Henry’s friend from Hilltop. They all had something in common. They had lost someone at the pikes, Alpha’s border to the north. Since learning that Ozzy, leader of the Highwaymen, and Henry had met a grizzly end at Alpha’s hands, they had wanted nothing but to avenge their friends, and they always looked at Lydia as though she had been responsible for the murders.

“Yeah, send her back and maybe all this will end,” Gage commented.

“No one is going anywhere except where I send them. Aaron, Gabriel, get your people together. Daryl, Carol, Laura, gather a few others to take to the border. It’s time to go,” Michonne ordered.

Before Aaron left the hall, he went to Daryl. “Be careful out there.”

“You too. You’ve been at this for so long. I worry that–”

“I’ll be fine,” Aaron said, cutting Daryl off. He clasped a hand to Daryl’s shoulder, and Daryl covered it with his own hand, giving a squeeze.

>>------->

Aaron and Gabriel met with Michonne. She told Gabriel to go to the main gate and protect it from the northern herd. Then she told Aaron to gather his troops and make his way south to take on the smaller herd before it got to the walls. Aaron gathered his people and told them what their mission was. He had fewer troops now than he did yesterday and the day before. People were recovering from injuries and exhaustion. Now his numbers were thin.

Aaron was gearing up to go outside the walls. He exchanged his metal hand for the mace, and as he locked it into place, Gabriel approached him to voice his concerns. “You’ve lost some of your strongest fighters, and the one’s you do have are beyond tired, including you.”

“We’ll be fine, Gabriel,” Aaron said harshly. He was getting tired of people thinking he couldn’t keep going. He had to, and that’s all there was to it.

Gabriel glanced to the side and spotted Negan, who had been helping clean up dead walkers since everything started. “I have an idea. Take Negan with you.”

Aaron looked over at Negan, and a new surge of anger filled his chest. “We’re good,” he growled.

“But you’re fighting fatigue and–”

“I said we’re good,” Aaron insisted. The last person he wanted to be around, let alone work with, was Negan.

Negan overheard their argument, and since it was about him, he approached. “Excuse me, Gabriel, can I have a word?” Gabriel reluctantly went with him. Aaron kept a harsh eye on them. He had no use for the man after everything he’d done to them, to Alexandria and the Hilltop, to the Kingdom … to Daryl.

Aaron listened to Negan make his argument. “If it’s all the same to you, I’m happy with the job I’ve got now.”

“We need fresh fighters, and even though you’ve been locked up all these years, I know you’re one of the toughest fighters here, and you’ve done nothing but move bodies this entire time,” Gabriel explained.

Negan glanced at Aaron, and Aaron’s brows drew together, tightening the crease at the bridge of his nose. Negan turned back to Gabriel. “That’s what I’m talking about,” he said, referring to the hateful glare Aaron was giving him. “Everyone’s on edge, man. They’re pissed off at the skin freaks. They’re stirring up shit with each other. It’s like a bomb about to go off around here, and I’m afraid my presence might just be enough to light the fuse. And when it does finally go off, I don’t want that hateful shit taken out on me.”

Gabriel turned to look at Aaron standing near, and shook his head. “Are you talking about Aaron? He’s a saint.”

“All I’m saying is, I’d appreciate it if you just let me keep doing what I’ve been doing, and I think I’ve been doing a pretty damn good job of it,” Negan smiled.

Gabriel was done with it all. Time was wasting away. He pointed a stern finger at Negan. “You can fight.” Then he pointed at Aaron. “You need fighters. Peanut butter, meet jelly.”

Negan sighed in defeat and looked toward Aaron, who was still giving him the stink eye. Aaron stopped Gabriel as he passed him to go to the front gate. But Gabriel cut him off before Aaron could get a word out. “I don’t want to hear any more. You’re taking him. End of discussion.”

Aaron felt his ire rise, felt his blood pressure make his heart pump harder. Last thing he felt like doing was speaking to Negan. Unfortunately, Negan approached him first. “So … that’s awesome,” Negan commented, pointing at the mace at the end of Aaron’s arm. “Looks good on you. Puttin’ the ol’ stump to use,” said Negan, trying to make light of the situation.

Daggers shot from Aaron’s angry eyes before he turned away and walked off without responding to Negan. He could hear the man following him. At least he wouldn’t have to force him to go. He looked ahead to his people. “All right everyone, let’s move out.”

They moved outside the walls, going south where they could head off any walkers before they got too close. Aaron teamed people up and sent them in several directions so that they covered a wider area. He took Negan with him, since he had to guard him while he was under Aaron’s watch.

“Uh, don’t mean to bother you, boss man, but don’t I get a weapon of some sort?” said Negan.

As he walked, Aaron looked around him and saw a broken broom. He picked up the wooden handle and tossed it to Negan without saying a word.

“Thanks,” Negan said under his breath, disappointed with his weapon.

They set up near an abandoned tractor, and Aaron sent Negan out in front where he could keep an eye on him. Aaron had already set down rules, each one ending with the threat of being shot. Negan complied and took his position. Soon, walkers start trickling in.

He lost track of time, as Aaron continued fend off walkers. They weren’t just coming from the glade up ahead. Now they were coming from the trees at the sides. Aaron kept his sight in every direction, and found that two walkers were coming toward him. One advanced from the front, the other from the side. He glanced back and forth judging which one he should take out first. Eventually, he chose the one in front of him and punched it with his mace, creating a huge hole to the side of its head. As he pulled his arm back, he couldn’t help to notice the chunk of skull still stuck to the spikes on his mace. With the second walker almost upon him, there wasn’t any time to clean it off. Instead, he pulled his knife out of his belt and shanked it in the head. He was getting tired again, but he knew he still had a while to go before he could take another break. Aaron looked ahead, and watched Negan take on a single walker with his broom handle. A part of him hoped Negan lost the fight. If he got bit, at least he would have an excuse to kill him. There was no way he would bring back an infected person to town.

He kept thinking about his discussion with Michonne on the bridge yesterday. He was fed up with the pressure the Whisperers were putting on him and everyone else in the community. Having to be on edge all the time was affecting him in a way he’d never felt before. He was angry a lot of the time, easily irritated too. He had verbally struck out at a few people, especially when they still treated him like the nice guy that everyone knew him as. He thought about all the people who had died, Eric, Caleb, Jesus to name a few. These were people he cared about, who were very close to his heart. Each one died at the hands of a different enemy, but they could have all been from the same sick tribe. The Wolves, The Saviors, The Whisperers, each group wanted the same thing, to wipe out his people, his loved ones and his way of life. Those days he used to go out recruiting felt like a joke now. Were there any good people left in the world? It didn’t feel like it, since everyone they came across lately wanted his people dead.

Aaron’s eyes shifted to Negan, who was taking a break from his last kill, back turned to him. The anger he had for this man topped them all, but maybe that was because Negan was right in front of him. It was because of Negan that Caleb was dead, and that he’d lost so many precious years with Daryl. That hurt most of all, when Aaron thought of the horrible things Negan did to him. Whether it happened by Negan’s hands or one of his followers, it didn’t matter. Negan had been responsible for it all.

Flashes of Daryl, dirty, naked, beaten, lying in a cell covered by his own waste crossed his mind. It took Daryl a very long time until he was able to tell Aaron the details of his imprisonment, and it sickened Aaron to know the man before him was responsible. For a very long time, Aaron had put Negan out of his mind. As long as the man had been locked away, he forgot about him. Seeing him, having to work with him was taking its toll on him. Why should he have to allow this? Why did he have to be in charge of protecting this filth when Negan never cared about anyone but himself? Maybe he’d try to run, Aaron told himself, wanting an excuse to shoot the man dead. A lot of people would be happy to see Negan gone. The nice guy would set him free and tell him to never come back. The person he felt bubbling to the surface wanted to make sure Negan would never leave this spot, never hurt another soul, and would never be seen again.

At the height of his seething, Aaron hadn’t noticed that Negan was holding a crowbar. He found it laying on the ground by the tractor. Negan was smiling, and Aaron’s memories flashed back to that night in the woods, surrounded by whistling Saviors, everyone on their knees. Daryl was across the way, bleeding. It was the night Negan killed Glenn and Abraham, the night he took Daryl from him, and smiled the way he was now.

“Drop it,” Aaron demanded.

“Come on man. This broom isn’t cutting it,” Negan complained.

“I said to drop it. Now!” Aaron wasn’t hearing excuses.

Negan gave a sigh and laid the crowbar down where he found it. Then he picked up his wooden stick again. “Look, I’m just trying to help out here. I’m trying to make things better. I’m … I’m not that guy anymore,” Negan pleaded.

Aaron pointed past Negan. “Three more coming in. They’re on your side.”

Negan gave a defeated smile. “Anything you say boss man.”

>>------->

When they arrived at the northern border, Daryl watched Carol go to the pike where Henry was found. Since returning from the sea, Carol had been distant, and he was worried about her. It wasn’t just the distance, though. She was quiet, as though she was planning something. He started to think it wasn’t a good idea to have let her come along.

“Hey, you okay?” Daryl asked, coming up next to where Carol stood.

“I just need a minute,” she whispered.

“Weapons down,” Michonne told them. Everyone laid their weapons on the ground before them. Daryl watched to make sure Carol did the same, and she did.

In the distance, Alpha and her people appeared out of the darkness. Daryl remembered that night at the cemetary, the first time they had come across the Whisperers. It was a night similar to this, but for the absence of the fog. That was the night Jesus died, when Daryl stood by and watched Aaron’s heart shatter. It was a double edged sword to watch the man he loved cry for another, to see his pain and his absolute sorrow, and know there was nothing yoheu could do to ease that pain. Perhaps the biggest hurt of all was seeing just how much Aaron had loved Jesus.

Alpha approached and repeated her laws. “There is only one rule, to stay on your side of the border, and yet you disobey.”

“That fire would have destroyed your land too,” said Daryl.

Alpha’s answer was that it was an act of nature, and that they had no quarrel with nature.

Michonne stepped forward to defend their decision. “The fire would have spread to one of our communities, and we weren’t going to let that happen. So we crossed that one time in order to–”

“Three times,” Alpha interrupted. “Three times you came onto my land, during the fire, during the winter storm, and during your search along the river.”

Daryl looked to Michonne, confused by what she was talking about.

Alpha continued. “You and the man with the metal arm crossed the bridge, and walked my land. Three times, and what did I tell you about crossing my border? You’ll have to be punished.” As she finished talking, the Whisperers behind her took out guns, knives and swords. Michonne and the others took a step back, all but for Carol who stood her ground.

All Daryl heard was the mention of Aaron. He had crossed the border? No one mentioned it before. What was he thinking? He didn’t like the fact that Alpha knew Aaron, the man with the metal arm. It wasn’t the first mention of Aaron either. Alpha had spoken to him at the fair, when she was in disguise. Aaron’s recent actions put a larger target on his back. Daryl wanted him to stay below the radar when it came to this psychotic woman. He himself had gained her attention when he took Lydia. The last thing he wanted was for Aaron to gain it too.

“However,” Alpha continued. “There will be no bloodshed this time.”

“So, what do you want then?” Michonne questioned, keeping her cool. “Why did you call us here?”

“Land,” Alpha answered. “The creek that runs into the valley is your new southern border. We will mark the border to the north.”

“They’re cutting off our hunting grounds.” Carol said to Michonne. “We don’t have to stand here and listen to this bull–”

“Enough,” Michonne stopped her.

Alpha’s attention was fully on Carol now. Daryl moved toward her, but he heard weapons being readied with his movement and stopped. Then Alpha came forward to the very edge of the border, standing on the opposite side of the post that had held Henry’s head. “Listen to this … what?” she challenged.

“To this bullshit,” Carol answered without hesitation.

Daryl was done. He was afraid of what Carol might do, and went to her. “That’s it. Let’s go.” He reached out to pull her away from the border, but Alpha stopped him.

“We’re not done quite yet. Not until this one lowers her eyes to my feet.” Alpha’s eyes bore down on Carol as she tried to intimidate her, but Carol stood her ground and returned the glare.

Michonne and Daryl were ready for whatever was about to happen. They knew exactly where their weapons laid on the ground, and they would reach for them in a seconds notice if they had to. But they were more worried about Carol’s fate at that point.

“You should fear me,” Alpha told her in an eerie voice.

“But I don’t,” Carol said evenly. “I look and you and feel nothing.”

Alpha smiled a devious grin and continued to antagonize her. “The blond boy feared me, and then he screamed your name just before we took his head.”

Quick as a whip, Carol reached around to her back and pulled a gun out of her waistband. She cocked the hammer and aimed it at Alpha. Michonne was closest and knocked her hand down just as Carol fired a shot. The bullet went into the ground in front of Alpha. The Whisperers started for their weapons, but Alpha signaled to them, and they lowered them.

“I apologize for her actions,” Michonne tried to reason. “We haven’t slept much in the past couple days.” She paused and waited until Alpha looked at her. “And you know what she lost.” Michonne knew that would make Alpha think, since she too lost a child.

Alpha’s attention snapped back to Carol. “I forgive you … mother to mother.” Then she pulled Henry’s stake from the ground, and spoke in a whisper. “This is my land now. You’d better run.”

Michonne gave the signal, and everyone picked up their weapons. She took Carol’s gun and put it in her own waistband. Daryl went straight to Carol, who was still staring at Alpha, even as she stood there threatening them to leave.

“Come on,” he said gently, and put an arm around her to help guide her away from the confrontation. It was like separating two feral cats about to take each other down. “Why is everyone I care about trying to fuck with this bitch,” he said to himself when he was finally alone.

The group traveled as far as they could away from the Whisperers. They decided to set up camp for the night and head for home in the morning.

>>------->

It was getting late, but the flow of walkers hadn’t slowed much. Aaron and Negan were still fighting the waves. Aaron’s back hurt, and where the buckles were attached to his upper arm were starting to rub blisters on his skin. He pushed aside the pain and continued with the job that had been given to him. But since he was concentrating on that, he hadn’t noticed that Negan was using the crow bar again.

“What did I say about that?” he berated Negan, pointing at the iron weapon.

“I had to. I’m getting more tired by the minute, and this broom handle is giving me splinters. It’s getting harder to shove it through their thick skulls and–”

Aaron threw a piece of rope at him, and it landed on the ground at Negan’s feet. “I’m taking you back. Tie up.”

“That’s the best idea you’ve had all day there, Broke Back, but I’ll be damned if I’m going back like some P.O.W.”

Aaron narrowed his eyes on him. “Yes, you are.”

Negan took a step forward. “Or what, cowboy?”

Aaron’s hand went to his belt, and he pulled out his knife.

Negan wasn’t done challenging him. “You know what I see? I see someone who’s pretending. You heard Gaby, you’re a saint. Now, I get that you want to hurt me, but I don’t see killing in those pretty eyes of yours. Besides, what would lover boy Daryl think of you breaking the rules? So, come on, man. Let’s just go home. I actually can’t wait to get back to my cell.” Negan walked past Aaron as though leading the way back.

Aaron was taken aback by Negan’s comments. He wanted to punch him, to stab him, but instead, he pushed him and made him trip over his foot. Negan fell hard and moaned as he got back to his feet.

“What the shit?” Negan complained as he struggled back to his feet. “Did you just trip me? What are you, twelve? What the hell, man? I’ve been putting my neck out there for you people all goddamn day, and all I–”

Aaron was on Negan in a flash, right in his face, and not backing down. “That’s bullshit. You don’t give a damn about us. You never have. If you did, you would have left. That’s what everyone wants.”

“And just how in the hell am I supposed to do that?” Negan asked.

“With you out on work release every day, you’ve had plenty of opportunities to figure that out.”

Negan backed up and slumped his shoulders, defeated again. He hung his head as he spoke. “Look, I did what I had to do back then.”

“What did you just say?” Aaron seethed. Negan tried to wave him off, but Aaron wasn’t going to let it go this time. “No, let’s further examine this. You did what you had to do? You had to kill my friends who were on their knees and defenseless. You had to kill Caleb, an eighteen year old boy who had been through so much shit in his young life only to succumb to one of your bullets. Someone who was like a son to me. You took Daryl from me, held him captive, tortured him, beat him, starved him … allowed him to be raped by one of your own men. You cost Daryl and me years away from each other because of what happened to him when he was in your custody. So tell me again why you did what you had to do.”

“Hold on a second there. From what I heard through the grapevine, you weren’t exactly Mr. Lonely during that time. You found yourself a nice pretty boy to fill in all those supposed … lonely years. Now, I have not nor will I ever play for the other team, but I’d seen Jesus a time or two, and let me tell you … even I might have given in to those dreamy eyes and met him beneath the bleachers.”

“Don’t you ever speak of him again,” Aaron seethed through clenched teeth.

Negan could see he wasn’t making matters any better by antagonizing Aaron. He backed away a couple steps and put his hands up in surrender. “Okay. I apologize for that. Too soon and too far. So instead, let me get back to your question, and answer it honestly. This is just me being open and raw. All joking aside, all right? There’s one simple fact, one truth that kept me and my people going, and here it is. If you don’t protect what belongs to you then sooner or later it will belong to someone else. That goes for your land, your home, your country … your loved ones. And it’s your job as a man to protect those things most important to you. That’s not just the new rules of the apocalypse. That’s how it’s been since the beginning of time. And ain’t nothing changing it either, not you, not me … nobody.”

Aaron heard what he had to say up until the part about it being his job as a man. It felt like a low blow, as though he didn’t fight for what he had or for those he loved. “Are you saying it’s my fault that Caleb is dead or that Daryl was taken and raped?”

Negan remained silent and it further irritated the living hell out of Aaron that this piece of shit could stand there and place the blame on him, as though Negan hadn’t learned a single fucking thing since his incarceration eight years ago. One thing came to mind, the only thing Aaron could think of that would hurt Negan. Without giving it much thought, he used it as ammo against him. “Well, if I failed them, then you failed your wife.”

“Careful,” Negan growled, and within that one word there was something very sinister in his tone.

This was the Negan that Aaron remembered, the original monster. He surfaced only briefly, but it was just enough to prove to Aaron that Negan couldn’t be rehabilitated, no matter how much he pretended to have changed. That man he met in the woods with the barb wired bat was too deeply imbedded within him. Sure, he’d been on a leash all these years, and seemed to have tamed, but give him enough slack and he would lunge and bite again.

“You see, this is where we differ. I’ve lost far too many friends and loved ones, but when they died, at least they loved me and they knew I loved them too. But your wife died hating you, and you’ll never have the chance to make that right.” Aaron hoped to get a rise out of him. He hoped Negan would come at him, and give Aaron an excuse to hurt him. But instead, Negan simply smiled and laughed quietly.

“You wanna say something to me?” Aaron continued to challenge.

“As a matter of fact, yeah,” Negan said coolly. “Behind you, cowboy.”

At first, Aaron glanced over his shoulder, leery that Negan was trying to trick him. It only took a second to realize he was about to be attacked by a pair of walkers. He already had his knife in his hand and used it quickly to bring one of them down. The second one was directly behind the first, and since Aaron’s energy was running on empty, he couldn’t move fast enough. The walker pushed him, and they both fell to the ground. As he struggled with the vine covered corpse, some of the leaves rubbed across his face and eyes. Instantly his skin was on fire, and his eyes shut tight on their own accord, burning and stinging from some unknown agent. It all happened so fast, Aaron didn’t have a chance to give it much thought. All he concentrated on was getting his eyes to open enough so that he could see the walker to kill it. His mace arm was pinned down, but he managed to get his knife up. Finally, after wrestling with it, he killed the walker. It collapsed on top of him, and he could feel leaves on his face and neck. He pushed the walker off of him and struggled to get to his feet.

“Shit, it burns. If fucking burns,” he called out. It felt like the burning was traveling into his nostrils and his mouth. He thought he was breathing it in as his lungs began to burn. Aaron coughed and that made it worse. His nose was running, and he was salivating and spitting to the point he thought he might throw up.

Aaron remembered an incident as a boy, when he went into a pet shop with his mother. While she was talking to the store owner about something, he went over to look at the macaws. At the edge of the bottom of the birdcage was a dried pepper. He used his fingers to grab it and work it through the bars. Then he teased the bird with it until the macaw took the pepper from him and started eating it. Aaron laughed at how funny the bird looked, and without thinking, rubbed his eyes with his hand. Instantly they started to burn until he couldn’t open them. Saliva built up and his nose started to run. He rubbed his eyes even more, and they burned even harsher. He started to cry, which gained his mother’s attention. She took him into the bathroom and splashed cool water on his face and eyes until the pain began to subside.

Remembering that awful time as a child made him think of what to do now. He pulled his canteen from his belt and started pouring water over his eyes and face. Then he used his shirt to wipe his eyes and skin. It didn’t help all that much, but it was all he could think to do. After a few minutes, he tried to open his eyes to check his surroundings, and realized his vision was severely limited. As a matter of fact, it seemed like he was going blind. That’s when he knew he needed help.

“Negan,” Aaron called out, but there was no response. While he struggled with his current condition, he’d lost track of Negan, and now it seemed he had disappeared. “Negan!” he called out repeatedly, but there was still no answer. “Damnit all to hell,” he complained under his breath.

Panic set in. If Negan got away on his watch . . .

“Negan, get back here right now!” he commanded. He had no choice now but to try and find him.

Aaron remembered seeing a dilapidated house not far from where he was. He tried to get his bearings and see where he was in respect to where the house was. Blind and in pain, he stumbled along until he felt wood siding on his palm. He moved along the side of the house, splinters embedding beneath his skin. He felt a window and its frame, and knew he was going in the right direction. Aaron tripped over the step up to the porch, and felt his knees scrape beneath his pants. He got up and moved on, finally finding the door.

“Negan, you in here?” he asked, but it was quiet.

His second thought was the threat that might be lurking inside the house. He couldn’t see to give the place a thorough once over, but he didn’t hear any growls. That didn’t mean there wasn’t something inside.

The sun was beginning to set, and Aaron started to worry for himself. Blinded by whatever he had come in contact with, out of water, and having trouble breathing, he didn’t know how he was going to fend for himself. And then there was the fact that Negan had disappeared.

Aaron continued to call out for him. Maybe he was close. Maybe a walker got him. One could only hope. But Aaron knew that it had been his responsibility to guard him and he had failed. He decided to continue checking the house. He was desperate to get Negan back into his custody, even if he couldn’t see. As he moved around the house, he bumped into shelves and tables, knocking things onto the floor. Glass broke, metal clanged. He knew he was making noise, but he had to keep moving. He had to find Negan. It was his main priority. “Damnit Negan,” he complained.

Suddenly, Aaron heard growling, and he knew walkers were near. He heard more than one, and they sounded close. He spun around, facing the direction they came from, and realized he’d left the front door open. They were getting closer, and Aaron continued to back up. He swung his mace arm out in front of him, but was met with nothing but air. He could barely make out the shadowy figure advancing on him, but he couldn’t tell how close they were. Taking a step backwards, Aaron tripped and fell over something. He landed on his ass on the floor, and knew the walkers were about to fall onto him. Blinded as he was, he knew the odds of making it out of this alive were slim to none.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered to himself, thinking of Daryl and Gracie when they learned he was dead.

And then there was a loud thwack and a grunt, a familiar voice, the sound of a solid object crushing bone, a thump and a crash as bodies fell to the floor. “Negan?” he calls lightly. Silence.

“You all right?” Negan said.

“Yeah,” he answered, confused by how Negan found him. “How … how did you–”

“Your flashlight was on. I saw it through the window. So did those walkers. And you were making a hell of a lot of noise.”

Aaron kept his head down, looking left and right, but not seeing anything. It dawned on him that he needed Negan’s help, but he was afraid to admit it. Negan finding out that Aaron was vulnerable might trigger him to do something stupid, but there was no other choice at the moment. Aaron would never be able to make it back to Alexandria on his own, not like this, not with all those walkers streaming in. He had to fess up. “I … I can’t see,” he admitted with defeat.

“Those vines on the walkers, it’s called hogweed. I recognized the flowers. Nasty shit. Causes rashes, burns, and blindness.”

Aaron shook his head. “Is it permanent … the blindness?”

“It can be. Did you wash your eyes out?”

Aaron nodded. “Yeah. I used my water. It’s all gone.” He looked away from Negan. The situation had turned quickly, and now Aaron was the vulnerable one. After their recent conversation, he feared what Negan would do to him. It was just the two of them out here. Negan could easily leave Aaron to fend for himself, and he would most likely be killed by the next wave of walkers to come through the area. Whether Negan returned to Alexandria or not, he couldn’t guess, but if he did he would probably tell them they got overrun and Negan was the only one to make it out alive.

He could feel Negan studying him, sizing him up, maybe even gloating. If he decided to harm Aaron it would be easy, especially since he was mostly blind.

“You parched?” Negan asked.

Aaron nodded. “Yeah.” And he was. After being doused by the plant’s toxin, and trying to find his way to the house, his throat was dry, and he was exhausted.

Negan handed Aaron his own canteen. Aaron drank greedily. It was a relief to wet his tongue again. When he was done, he handed it back to Negan.

“Let’s get you up,” Negan said.

Aaron felt Negan take his hand to pull him up. Then his arm wrapped around Aaron’s chest and he got him to his feet. They both stumbled as Negan led him to a couch. Aaron collapsed on it, and turned his eyes to Negan, though all he could see were blurred colors. When he heard Negan’s footsteps going away from him, he began to panic. “Wait! Where are you going?” Aaron tried to sound commanding, but he couldn’t hid the fear in his voice.

“Relax. I’m just going to stand here at this window and keep watch. That way you can rest and recover from your ordeal. I figure we can leave in the morning.” Negan paused, realizing he was sounding much too in control. “I mean, if that’s okay with you,” he added for good measure.

Aaron nodded. “Yeah,” he said tersely. He could hear Negan’s feet shifting across the floorboards as he stood guard. Aaron tried is best to stay alert. He didn’t trust Negan, and wondered what he could be up to. Some pretty harsh things were said, things that might have triggered Negan into trying something while Aaron slept. Instead, Aaron swore he would force himself to stay awake.

>>------->

Morning sun cut in through the window, laying a glowing line across Aaron’s face. He started to open his eyes, and was instantly blinded. He raised his hand to fend off the invading sunlight, and wondered if he was still under the effects of the hogweed. When his eyes seemed to have adjusted to the dimly lit room, he slowly cracked them open as he sat up on the couch.

“Ah,” Negan sang. “You’re awake.”

“And you’re still here,” Aaron said in a dry tone. He forced himself to open his eyes and prepared for the worst, but slowly they came into focus.

“Can you see me?” Negan asked, and Aaron nodded.

The first thing Aaron noticed was that Negan held the crowbar in his hands. He kept it at his side though. Negan saw him looking and laid it on a nearby table. “Just in case I needed it. Luckily I didn’t. How you feeling?”

“I’ve been better. I’m thirsty though,” Aaron replied.

Negan handed him his canteen again. “There’s only a little left. We need to get you back home and have the doc look you over. Besides, being out here is giving me the creeps.”

“All right, let’s go.” Aaron stood from the couch and fell back down.

Negan lunged toward him as he did, but he was too late to break Aarons fall. “Maybe we should–”

“I said I was fine,” Aaron retaliated. “Just give me a moment.” Aaron moved forward to the edge of the couch. He pushed himself up until he was standing on his own. When he was ready, he gave a quick nod toward Negan, and they made their way out of the house. Surprisingly, Negan stayed close, just in case Aaron took another fall, but he didn’t. Somehow, they made their way back home.

When they got there, Daryl was waiting at the gate. Negan stayed with Aaron until they crossed the gate’s threshold, and then he moved to the side and turned away, awaiting further instructions. He was once again the prisoner.

Daryl rushed to Aaron, caught him by the arm, and pulled him further into the yard. “Where the hell have you been? Everyone was worried about you. Are you okay? Are you hurt?” he said looking Aaron over for blood or wounds.

“I’m fine. I just had a little incident with some hogweed,” he explained quickly. “I lost my vision temporarily.”

“How are you now?” Daryl cupped Aaron’s face in his hands and looked into his eyes.

“I can see and it doesn’t burn anymore, but I’m worried about the swelling in my face, and my neck really itches.”

“Hogweed huh? Where the hell did you get tangled up with that stuff?” Daryl looked past Aaron to glare at Negan. “Is he responsible for this?”

Aaron shook his head. “It was growing on a walker. Damn thing wrestled me to the ground, and when I killed it, I guess the leaves brushed across my face and eyes,” Aaron explained, but Daryl was still focused on Negan. Say the word, and Aaron knew he would be on the man with a knife to his throat. Aaron was half tempted to let it play out, but he knew better than to start something when there was no reason for it. “Come on. I need to get to the infirmary.” He glanced around and saw Brandon, Negan’s guard. “Take him back to his cell,” Aaron ordered. He watched Brandon push Negan in the direction of the jail to get him moving. As much as he hated Negan, the man had saved his life, and Aaron felt he owed something to him for that. “And give him an extra helping of stew with his dinner later.” Aaron saw Negan look back at him and give a nod in appreciation.

“What was that about?” Daryl asked as they walked to the infirmary.

“I’ll tell you about it later. My throat and lungs hurt,” said Aaron. “So, what happened at the border?”

“She took more of our land, cutting back on our hunting grounds. There’s more, but we’ll talk later.” Daryl didn’t want to confront Aaron about crossing the bridge when he and Michonne went out a few days earlier. And he didn’t want to discuss his findings about Carol. That was a whole other bag of worms. There would be time later for that discussion. Right now, he just wanted to make sure Aaron was fine.
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Safe Haven in the Chaos