If you need a fun reminder/flashback of the previous events click here.
Episode 25: Decayed (Part 1)
What happened in the storage room seem to set the tone for the next two months. A cloud of tension and despair hovered over the sanctuary like a thick fog. There were more armed guards roaming the halls more than ever now and the looks on some faces seem to say it all. Something in the atmosphere had changed. Not overnight as one might assume. No, it felt like something that was long coming. That was festering long before we set foot in this place. In fact, if it was up to Matthew we would have left months ago, but things were much more complicated than that. This place had food, medical supplies, and people. Weighing our options it seemed almost idiotic to just leave, but was staying even an option?
“Checkmate!” Omar smirked moving the chess piece across the board. Two of us sitting across from each other in his room spending a lazy afternoon shooting the breeze. A welcome distraction for us both.
“You cheated!”
“Ah man, don’t be a sore loser.”
“You just took advantage of me.”
“Took advantage of you?”
I’m starving. I can’t think straight when I’m starving.,” I groaned as my stomach growled.
“Not my fault you’re a bottomless pit.”
“But the portions are getting smaller. Well, they seem smaller anyways.”
“They probably are. I wouldn’t be surprised. Seems like we’re getting less of everything nowadays. Even the lights seem dimmer,” he said frowning. “Still doesn’t excuse your poor chess skills”
“Yeah. Yeah. Whatever. How’s Grace? I’ve been meaning to ask.”
“She has her good days and her bad days. Seems like she’s having more bad days lately.”
“Uh…I don’t know,” he said furrowing his brow. He bent down searching around in a bag and handed me two pills. “They gave her this.”
“Who gave you this?”
“One of the nurses. Why?”
“This is a placebo, which literally does nothing and I’m pretty sure this is a strong sedative. This certainly isn’t going to make her any better.”
“Are you sure? I mean…”
“I use to be an orderly in a nursing home remember? My job was giving out pills all day. I should know.”
He grabbed them staring at them intensely taken aback. I stood up and patted him on the back. “Well, I think I’ll catch you later. Hopefully, she starts feeling better.”
He nodded and I let myself out. Soldiers eyed me as they passed by. I then spotted Matthew standing by the infirmary and heard the wails of a crying woman. As the infirmary doors open, I saw that the woman was Lin. She was bloody, teary-eyed and completely beside herself. Madison followed closely behind comforting the usually composed woman.
“Lin? I haven’t seen her in a while. I thought she would have left. I know she’s been working on it at least,” I said joining Matthew on the sidelines.
“I think Wade somehow talked her out of it. Then she’s been spending a lot of time with her dad. Think she had a change of heart when it came to leaving him” he said sadly. “Heard he should be gone any day now though. Maybe today from the looks of it.”
As she sobbed in Madison’s arms a soldier then exit the infirmary and the sobbing turned into screaming. She got in the soldier’s face and began screaming at the man at the top of her lungs. Madison tugged at her and pleaded for her to calm down, but it was useless.
“Do you know who I am? I’m an attorney and I know people! I can have you prosecuted for what you’re doing here! Jailed even!” she screamed wagging her finger in his face. “I swear you will regret what you did to him! When my mother finds out…”
The soldier scoffed grabbing her arm, “Look, lady, I doubt anybody you’re talking about is alive anyway, so how about you move along and spare me the empty threats.”
“How dare you?!”
“Let her go, scumbag,” Madison said intervening jumping in his face.
“That’s enough!” Matthew roared walking over to them. “Aren’t you overdoing the whole asshole act a little? Give her a freaking break!”
“She started it. She’s lucky I don’t shoot her with the way she’s been carrying on,” he retorted glaring back at him. He let her arm go hesitantly. “Ok. I think we’re done here. Sorry for your loss ma'am.”
She cursed under her breath spitting on the floor where he stood as he walked away. Then she began crying again burying her face into Madison’s shoulder. Madison looking quite weary and bothered herself began guiding the woman down the hall. She looked back at us stopping for a moment.
“She lost her dad just now. I’m going to take her back to her room, she lamented. She then lowered her voice. “I’m going look into some things tonight. Just prepare yourselves to leave.”
She continued guiding Lin down the hall and out of sight. I stood there wondering if she was serious while Matthew seemed unfazed by her words.
Then as if he had read my mind he whispered, “She means it this time. We are leaving.”
“Don’t you think we’re being a bit hasty,” I said still stunned. “I mean we can’t just leave. What are we going just walk out the door?”
“No, but Madison still thinks that door has some significance.”
“The door with the code? Are you kidding?! Don’t tell me the whole plan is banking on that stupid door?!”
“You were pretty eager to find the code before…”
“Yeah, but now I’ve come to my senses and my spidey sense are telling me it’s bad news.”
“I don’t feel all that good about it either, but she’s determined or maybe I should say obsessed with it. Luckily, I have plan B up my sleeve just in case.”
“Plan B? This is freaking insane, Matt. We can’t just leave. Don’t you remember how it was out there? How hard it was?”
“Of course, I do!” he said angrily. “I know first-hand.”
“Then why are we going through with this? Is it because of her? Look, I know how you feel about her and I know that everything isn’t exactly peachy here, but they don’t eat your flesh here, Matt..”
“No. They just stab you in the back and drug you here! Oh, did you forget about that? How is your drinking buddy these days?”
“Guys!”
We were inches apart from each other faces far from throwing blows at each other, but the conversation had become somewhat heated. We both turned to see Tao standing there. He looked a little afraid much like a kid walking in on his parents arguing. We quickly changed our tone forcing awkward smiles and greeting the teenager.
“Oh, Tao. How are you? Are you ok?” I asked generally concerned realizing just like his sister he had also just lost his father.
“Yeah. How are you? You going be alright, kid?” Matt asked echoing my sentiments.
He looked down at the floor looking sullen and red-eyed. A hood on his head as if trying to hide the sadness in his eyes. Then he said quietly staring at us both, “I have something to show you.”
We went with him willingly following him through winding hallways. Both of us doing our best to avoid eye-contact with each other and noisy guards. Only when we climbed a flight of stairs we have never seen since our time here did we exchanged confused looks. Then the boy pulled out a ring of keys as we reached a doorway at the end of the stairs.
“I took this from a guard,” he said holding them up as we looked on impressed. He then grinned slightly. “I’m good at pick-pocketing.”
He inserted one of the keys into the door and unlocked it. Then he pointed at the scenery outside. We both exit out the door almost bumping into each other over the anticipation of what would we see. Then in unison, we gasped. The yard we had once took breaks in and breathed what little fresh air we could was filled with the dead. Walkers everywhere. As far as the eye can see. The gates that once stood were fallen pieces of scrap metal amongst the heard of the dead. They scraped and clawed at the walls, Matthew and I had once leaned on. Their ugly faces staring up at us.
“Does anyone else know about this?” Matthew asked looking as if he was still in a state of shock.
“Lin of course of and I showed Madison this morning.”
Matthew sat down bewildered and distraught leaning over grasping his face. I walked over to the edge surveying the crowd of dead below. My feet kicking something in the process. I looked down at the item and picked it up. An empty wine bottle.
“Anything in there?” Matt asked jokingly.
“He made his bed. Let him lie in it,” Matt grumbled. “We got worse things to worry about. This was my Plan B. Going through the yard and leaving out that way. Now, what are we going to do? All those walkers…”
I smiled, “We can get through them. I have a way.”
This been sitting in drafts for a while. Good to finally release it. :P
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