Broken Road »» Rick Grimes (TWD)

Chapter 10

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"How do we meet up with the others?" I asked Michonne as we followed tracks down the road.

"I'm hoping these lead to some of ours." She answered, pointing down at the set of boot tracks.

I remained silent and pulled my jacket closer around me as we walked.

"We need to find shelter for tonight." Michonne stated.

"Yes." I agreed.

"That was a lot for you, wasn't it?" She asked.

"Brian dying? Not really." I answered, following her through the woods.

"I watched your last moments with him. You had no humanity in you. I've been there. It's a lot to deal with." She replied, briefly looking back at me.

"That was nothing." I muttered, following her to a small cabin.

"Look— I know nothing about you. The only reason I helped you was because Hershel told me you were trustworthy. If you try anything stupid I will kill you before you can think your next thought." She stated, turning to face me.

"Same goes for you." I replied, confidently.

Geez. Nice to talk to you, too.

She turned back around and entered the one room cabin with me on her heels.

"Cozy." I muttered, glancing around the small room.

"So, how did you get wrapped up into Woodbury?" She asked, sitting down on the recliner in the corner of the room. I locked the door to the cabin and shoved a wooden chair under the door knob.

"I was alone out here. Him and his scouts found me and brought me back to Woodbury. I was there for a few months. I'm sure he was a good man at one point, I don't know. We were nothing. Sometimes I think I stayed there as long as I did because it was an escape. I could be someone else.. but I began to hate who I was becoming. Anyways, after a few weeks, I began to question his motives. I would overhear him speaking of communities and his plans to take them over for 'Woodbury's advantage'. I soon realized that the communities he was taking over actually meant he was killing everyone and taking their supplies, guns, food, whatever he wanted to take. The prison became one of the communities he targeted. I started studying them all. He told me they were bad people; murderers, thieves.. you name it." I began rambling.

"I was at Woodbury with Andrea." She stated.

"You were?" I asked.

"I remember you. You were on the speakers that day warning everyone. I passed you in the hall one day after he had hurt you." She replied.

"Yeah, that was me." I replied.

"Why did you 'study' the prison?" She inquired.

"I didn't believe Brian. I was questioning why we had altercations with so many different communities. I decided to look into things myself. I watched the prison people everyday. I became.. kinda attached to them. I know that sounds crazy. But it was addicting— listening to them laugh, watching them work as a team, love as a family.. it's something rare. Especially now." I continued.