OUTLIVE.
❝The dead were never the enemy.
It was the living. ❞
THE WALKING DEAD.
DARYL DIXON.
BOOK TWO of the LANCASTER SAGA.
[ SEASONS 4 - 6 ]
*****
*I do not own The Walking Dead or any of its characters. I simply write to write. Astrid, any addi...
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[ xxxiv. it will catch up to you ]
july 2nd, 2012
➸➸➸
WHEN ASTRID LANCASTER AWOKE again in her hospital room, a heavy sense of silence washed over her. Yet, she was not alone in this stillness. Fortunately, the hideaway guest that now shared her space was a welcomed one. As Astrid allowed her eyes to adjust to the light overhead, she took a shallow breath to clear her throat and offered a faint smile to the figure before her.
"Beth," She croaked.
The eighteen-year-old sat at the end of the Lancaster woman's bed and was clad in worn blue scrubs. Her hands lay still in her lap, and as she turned to face Astrid, she unveiled the left side of her face, revealing an alarming sight. In place of the two deep gashes on her once-pretty, pale complexion, there now resided a third gnarly gash, a sickening purplish-blue bruise dominating the area just above her jaw.
"Hi, Astrid," Beth softly greeted.
Astrid's heart sank, and she beckoned the young girl closer. Her hand reached out, taking hold of Beth's small one. It was only then that she realized that her brittle arm was cast in plaster. "What happened?" She demanded. Her thoughts raced back to the memory of Dawn and the chase that led Beth out of her room.
Beth exhaled heavily. "I could only get so far. There are too many locked doors," She conceded. "By the time Dawn caught up to me, there was no point in hiding. I just let her do it."
"I'm so sorry," Astrid mourned regretfully. "I never should have said anything. I knew you were here. I should have looked for you instead of making it known that we were friends. Now, because of me, you're . . ." She could not finish.
Beth mustered a small smile and nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders, "Don't worry about it," She insisted. "It looks a lot worse than it feels. It doesn't hurt, I swear."
Astrid remained unconvinced, noticing the subtle flinches of pain that Beth tried to hide as her facial expressions shifted. It was evident that the girl who loved to smile so adamantly, but now could not, was in discomfort.
With a gentle squeeze of her young friend's hand, Astrid asked, "How long have you been here?"
Beth's gaze flitted away for a moment, and she replied, "A week."
Astrid turned her attention towards the window, too, where a monumental frame allowed a glimpse of the city of Atlanta. Even from the clouds, it still lay in ruins, a ghost town slowly attempting to revive itself from the ashes. But Astrid could not help feeling that this place was beyond saving, better off staying dead.
"What have they done to you here?" The Lancaster woman asked as she finally turned her attention back to the teenager beside her.
"Well, just like in an actual hospital, we're required to look after the patients," Beth explained. "There's only one doctor—Edwards. You met him. Dawn and the other police officers are here to keep the attendants like us in line. A girl tried to escape a few days ago, but she didn't get very far before they brought her back. She was bitten, though, so she didn't make it long after, anyway. I also tried to escape, but I gave myself up to protect Noah."
