Young and Young at Heart (The Rewrite of The Walking Dead Game: S2) [TWDG/TWD]

28. Meet the New Boss

"Howdy y'all. I'm William Carver. But you can call me Bill," introduced a short middle-aged dark-haired man with a thick mustache and a fur lined jacket . "Byron, why don't you grab another chair so our guests can sit down?" The man's tone was inviting but his coarse voice and odd grin made Clementine feel uneasy.

The office's decor was strange as well. Bill sat in a lavish looking leather chair while a variety of guns adorned much of the walls. A kerosene lamp hung from the ceiling, a pair of cast iron lion statues bookended the desk, and behind Bill was a push board with over a dozen radios hanging from it.

"Here." Byron placed a folding chair between the two seats in front of the desk, then clicked off his flashlight. "Sit."

"Byron, why don't you go head and cut off their ties? Make things a little more comfortable?"

"You sure about that?"

"They look harmless enough."

"Actually, Consuelo says the girl shot her thumb off," said Byron.

"Really now?" Bill turned towards Christa. "Is that so? You shoot off my girl's thumb?"

"Not her," corrected Byron. "The younger girl."

"The little one?" asked Bill as he pointed at Clem. "She shot off Connie's thumb?" Clem found it odd Bill didn't sound mad but amused by this revelation. "Is that true?"

"When she grabbed my gun, she put her thumb over the end of it," informed Clem. "So—"

"Well, she won't be doing that again, right Byron?" asked Bill with a smile.

"If she did she wouldn't have any thumbs left to do it a third time," shrugged a weary Byron.

"Good one." Bill chuckled while Byron merely stood there with a bored look on his face. "Still, I doubt the girl here is going to cause any trouble. Go head and cut 'em loose."

"Hold still." Clem felt Byron grab her hands. She heard a snipping noise and suddenly felt the restraints fall off. As Byron released Christa and Walter, Clem rubbed her wrists. There were thick red lines running across them where the ties had been cutting into her skin.

"Now why don't you sit down so we can all get acquainted?" Clem sat down between Christa and Walter. Looking at Bill's desk, Clem noticed more oddities. She could see an antique globe, a small American flag statuette, several hundred dollar bills scattered about, what looked like an old calendar with the words 'Quote-a-Day' written on it, a rather ornate looking bottle of whiskey and a pair of shot glasses. "Can't interest any of you in a drink, can I?"

"I don't want a drink," answered a crestfallen Walter.

"And I can't," informed Christa.

"What about you little lady?" Bill asked Clem as he poured a shot. "You feeling thirsty?"

Clem looked at the glass. "Um... no thanks," she answered.

"Byron?" Byron shook his head. "Well then, more for me then." Bill downed the shot of whiskey. "So, y'all got names I presume?"

"I'm... Walter DeWitt."

"Christa, and she's Clementine."

"Nice to meet you," smiled Bill. "Byron, what did our newest guests bring with them?"

"The woman didn't have anything on her when we found her. The man only had a wallet, which had some photos in it." Byron placed Walter's wallet on the desk, which Bill examined. "The girl threw out a Glock seventeen when she surrendered. It had ten bullets left in it." Byron placed Clem's gun and its magazine on the desk. "She also had a backpack, which contained two drawings, a radio with no batteries, a note, and two paperback books." Byron placed the backpack on the desk.