It Comes With The Name

Chapter 33: Beside The Dying Fire

 Jimmy was gone. The young man's screams echoed through the R.V. as the dead poured in, taking him as their first victim. Lauren's heart ached with guilt as she turned her back on him, but she knew if she stayed in the vehicle a moment longer she would meet the same fate.

While the walkers were still focused on Jimmy, Lauren managed to lock herself in the small bathroom and somehow hoisted herself through the sunroof.

She was out of immediate danger for the time being. Now the question was, how the hell was she supposed to get off the roof and back to her family?

Lauren watched the vehicles peel out of the farm one by one, desperately wishing they would turn back for her. The sound of a bike engine fading away hurt the most.

Once the realization hit that she really was on her own, her brain immediately went into survival mode. She remembered the story Glenn had told her the first night Rick joined. How they had escaped the city masking their scent with walker guts and were able to pass through the horde. As disgusting as it was, it was seemingly her only option.

Quietly dropping back through the sunroof, she cracked the door of the bathroom just a bit, enough to pull one of the dead inside with her. After quickly stabbing the skull of the walker, she took a deep breath, trying to prepare herself for what she was about to do.

Pulling her hood on and zipping up her sweatshirt all the way, she covered her nose with one hand and plunged her knife into the belly of the corpse with the other. The insides of the walker spilled out onto the floor and the putrid smell confined in the small space was enough to make her gag.

Doing her best not to puke, she smeared the thick liquid all over her hoodie, careful not to get it on her skin. She wasn't sure exactly how the infection worked and she wasn't willing to risk it. She pulled the hood over her head, spreading the guts over the top of her head as well. She had to stop several times and gag before she felt satisfied enough with the application.

She clutched her knife, trying to psych herself up for what she was about to do. It was a crazy plan, she knew that, but it was the only plan she had. She took a breath, tugging her hood down further on her head and opening the door. She took a step out into the RV, fully accepting the fact that she could be stepping out onto her death. To her surprise, she wasn't pounced on and torn apart like she had feared. In fact, there were only two walkers that remained in the RV. She moved slowly, taking small steps until she reached the front of the vehicle. Her stomach churned when she saw the blood smeared and splattered all across the window and front seats. She had to blink back tears when she spotted Jimmy's body outside the RV. The horde had dragged the boy's lifeless corpse out onto the grass in front of the camper, pieces of his insides were scattered on the lawn. A group of the dead was crowded around him, still tearing him apart to feast on his flesh.

With a large portion of the dead distracted, Lauren was able to slip out of the RV, slowly making her way towards the woods, figuring she could slip into the trees and find the road from there. She tried to ignore the guilt that pooled in the pit of her stomach. Jimmy was only in the RV because she had asked for his help. His death was on her.

The pit in her stomach grew worse when she looked ahead at the sea of walkers she would have to get through if she wanted to make it to the woods. She moved slowly, still clutching her knife in her hand, trying to draw as little attention to herself as possible. So far the whole scent-masking plan seemed to be working, but she wasn't about to lull herself into a false sense of security, there was no telling if or when the dead would figure out she wasn't one of them.

She made it about three-quarters of the way across the field before something went wrong. Somehow, one of the dead had caught a whiff of her very much alive smell. She tried to shuffle away but it just followed her, drawing the attention of another walker nearby.