Of Monsters & Men [TWD]

1.05

"The Streets of Atlanta"

— TRAVIS FOLLOWED CLOSE BEHIND DARYL AS THEY MADE THEIR WAY OFF OF THE ROOFTOP. Following the path of blood that Merle had left for them. Merle was a freak of nature, Travis knew that. Merle wasn't going to let anything touch him if he didn't want it to. He wasn't going to die handcuffed to a roof, he would die when he was good and ready. But Travis couldn't exactly see Merle getting through the pain for sawing off his own hand without his stash that would put him into a whole other world to avoid the pain.

He also would have never picked up that hand and shoved it in the kids backpack.

      The moment he watched Daryl pick up the hand that was covered in blood and had graying skin, he wanted to be sick right then and there. Now he could only imagine Merle's hand being knocked around in Glenn's backpack being knocked around as the five of them followed Daryl. Who was desperate to find any trace of Merle as they made their way into a cramped kitchen that looked like it had been cleaned out long before they had set foot in the building.

As soon as Glenn crossed the threshold into the room, he immediately gagged at the smell the filled the kitchen. "Oh god..."

         Travis reluctantly took a deeper inhale of the warm air, letting the rotten smell fill his nose. To him, it wasn't anything to get sick over. It was much more bareable than the image of Merle's hand in the backpack to him.

"There's worse smells," Travis shrugged as he made his way over to the stove that was still lit. On the counter beside it sat Merle's belt. Covered with dried blood.

"What's that?" Daryl questioned observing the burner on the stove.

"Skin..." Travis replied, look at the black pieces of flesh burned onto the metal burner. "Son of a bitch burned up his stump."

"Told you he was tough," Daryl replied, turning his back to Travis and towards Rick. "Told you he was tough. Nobody's gonna kill Merle but Merle." he said arrogantly as he walked towards the window to the kitchen.

"I wouldn't take that on faith. He lost a lot of blood." Rick replied, reluctantly looking past Travis at the stovetop.

"Merle ain't ruin' till he's damn good and ready." Travis replied, "Hopefully that's before he finds any of you three." he added, earning a glare from Rick.

"Losin' all that blood didn't stop 'im from bustin' out of this death trap." he said motioning to the propped open window that was being held open with a drawer Merle had pulled out of the counters.

"He left the building?" Glenn questioned, with her hand covering his mouth and nose as he spoke. As if it would filter the air in the room. "Why would he do that?"

Travis scoffed, "Seriously?" he questioned, "Not like officer prick here made it obvious he'd be comin' back to save the day."

Rick sighed heavily, "Your cousin didn't exactly seem like the type that anyone wanted back at camp-"