𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐍, rick grimes (ON HOLD)

SIXTY-FOUR

      SASHA HAD ANNOUNCED THAT BOB WAS MISSING AND DARYL AND Carol weren't back either. Josie had been asleep on one of the pews and all the commotion had woken her up, so she joined Maggie, Rick, and Sasha and they caught her up with what was happening.

      Sasha approached Gabriel. "Stop, what're you doing?" Gabriel didn't answer and he stepped away from her, but she stepped closer. "What're you doing? This is all connected. You show up, we're being watched, and now three of us are gone."

      "I don't..." Gabriel paused. "I don't have anything to do with this."

      Sasha pulled her knife out and Rosita stepped towards her. "Don't!"

      "Sasha, put it away," Josie said.

      "Where are our people?" Sasha asked.

      "I don't have anything to-"

      "Where are our people?!" Sasha shouted, cutting him off.

      "Please, I don't have anything to do with this," Gabriel said.

      "Why'd you bring us here?" Rick asked, pulling Sasha away from Gabriel.

      "Please, I..." Gabriel trailed off.

      "You working with someone?" Rick asked.

      "I'm alone," Gabriel replied. "I was always alone."

      "What about the woman and the food bank, Gabriel?" Rick asked. "What did you do to her? 'You'll burn for this'? That was for you. Why? What are you gonna burn for, Gabriel?" he grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. "What? What did you do? What did you do?!"

      "I lock the doors at night," Gabriel said. "I always lock the doors at night. I always lock the doors at night. I always..." he sobbed, falling to his knees. "They started coming. My congregation. Atlanta was bombed the night before and they were scared. They were... they were looking for a safe place, a place where they felt safe. And it was so early, it was so early, and the doors were still locked. You see... it was my choice. There were so many of them and they were trying to pry the shutters and banging the sidings, screaming at me. And so the dead came for them. Woman, children, entire families calling my name as they were torn apart, begging me for mercy. Begging me for mercy. Damning me to hell. I buried their bones, I buried them all. The Lord sent you here to finally punish me," he continued to sob. "I'm damned. I was damned before. I always lock the doors, I always lock the doors."

      Josie watched as he cried and she made a face, sharing a look with Rick before a whistle sounded from outside.

      Glenn made his way over to a window and peered out of it, looking back at the others. "There's... there's something outside lying in the grass."

      Sasha ran for the door as Rick tried to stop her. "Sasha!"

      Josie and the others followed her out and saw Bob lying in the grass. The brunette stayed by the front doors, holding them open as she watched a few of them helped support Bob and into the church.

      They laid him on the ground and crowded around him as he slowly came back to consciousness. Josie sat next to him as he woke back up, then Rick asked what had happened.

      "I was in the graveyard, somebody knocked me out," Bob explained. "I woke up outside this place, it looked like a school. It was that guy, Gareth and five other ones," he sniffled sadly. "They were eating my leg right in front of me, like it was nothing. All proud, like they had it all figured out."

      "Did they have Daryl and Carol?" Josie asked.

      Bob looked at her. "Gareth said they drove off."