The Middle of the End

Eleven

got a problem with my typos? too bad. i'm lazy and don't feel like fixing them. deal with it, or leave.

Random Song: Heaven's Calling - Black Veil Brides

Chapter Eleven: Bruised But Not Broken

It was dark when we pulled up to the farmhouse, and Alfie had slept for most of the drive. Glenn helped T-Dog up the front steps when the door opened. The girl from earlier, the brunette on the horse, stepped out with a middle aged blonde woman. They talked for a couple minutes, and the blonde helped Glenn and T-Dog inside. The brunette smiled and walked down the steps to the car; she seemed friendly enough so I got out and picked Alfie up to carry him inside.

"Hey. I'm Maggie. Can I help with anything?"

"There's a small suitcase and a backpack in the trunk, if you don't mind grabbing them." I followed her inside, and got Alfie situated on one of the two loveseats. "I'm Callie Walsh. He's Alf-"

"Alfie Stark. I used to babysit him, before his mother passed. Where did you find him?"

"In the trunk of a car. From what I got out of him, his father got sick and turned into one of them. It must not have been long after that when his stepmother locked him in that trunk. He's covered in bruises and cuts, and stunk somethin' awful." I didn't know why I was telling her, a complete stranger, any of this. But she had known him before.

"Doesn't surprise me. His daddy was a mean man. Remarried a nasty witch. Her name was Nikola Varkovich, if I remember correctly. They moved away last summer so I doubt Alfie really even remembers who I am." Maggie watched him sleep for a minute. "Walsh... Are you related to Shane?"

"Yeah, Shane's my brother. Where is he, by the way?" I hadn't seen him, or Lori and Rick. She explained how Carl had been shot accidentally shot by a man called Otis, and how the bullet had split up into six pieces. Otis and Shane left a few hours ago to get a respirator so Maggie's father could attempt to remove the fragments.

I could head Rick and Lori fighting, and T-Dog shouted out in pain which woke Alfie up. He looked around, saw Maggie, and ran to hug her. I guess he remembered her after all. Rick, Lori, and an old man I assumed was Maggie's father rushed past us to the front door; Shane came in a couple minutes later with Rick. He looked off, and there was something unexplainably different about him that I couldn't quite figure out. Shane followed Lori and Rick into the room Carl was in, and Maggie's father called for her. Glenn, T-Dog, Shane, Rick, and Lori somehow found places to sit. T-Dog fell asleep. Glenn went outside for some air. Shane went to wash himself up. Rick paced the floor anxiously. All we could do now was wait for Hershel, Maggie's father, and Patricia, the blonde woman, to finish operating.

"Rick, sit down. You need to rest." Lori stood up. Rick had been giving blood to Carl for a better part of his time spent here. It was extremely lucky they had the same blood type.

"I'm bored." Alfie yawned, subconsciously snuggling up against me. He was the first to fall asleep and it didn't take long before I was sleeping, too.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

I woke up to Alfie poking at my face, and groaned at the brightness of the sun shining through the windows. "Mr Daryl is here. He won't let me go for a ride on his motorbike."

"That's no fun." I yawned, stretching as I sat up. It took several seconds to remember where I was and how I got here.

Carl!

I shot up and pulled my shoes on.

"Auntie Lori's outside with Ms. Carol talkin' 'bout babies." Alfie took my hand and led me to the front porch.