Poker Face

Chapter 57 - Sanctuary Under Siege

Against her better judgement and her body's protests, Aven quickly slipped on her belt and holstered her gun before half-running as fast as she could manage out the door. She made her way down several sets of stairs, leaning heavily on the railings so she could partially close her eyes and avoid seeing the room spin in front of her. She stumbled onto the main floor and out a side door and sluggishly dragged herself around the corner of the building to see what was happening.

On the other side of the wall stood a group of people, small but armed and mostly hidden; the Saviors couldn't tell how many they were. Aven wasn't close enough to make out the faces through the openings in the wall, but she could guess who they were. And as she drew closer, she found she was correct.

She made her way further out from the building, careful to stay among the trucks and troves of Saviors herding to see what was happening. When she was close enough, Rick unintentionally caught eye contact with her for a brief second. His brow furrowed when he saw her and he nodded in her direction, whispering something to the people with him. Aven assumed he was surprised to see her alive after hearing the damage Rosita did.

"Well shit, I'm sorry," Negan's voice came booming across the yard. Aven turned to see him atop a set of stairs outside the building, his advisers lined up behind him. She wanted to yell at him for again stepping out in the open where anyone could have their aim on him. "I was in a meeting," he continued, the beginnings of a smug grin on his face. "What the fuck can I do for ya?"

"None of you have to die," Rick called across the grounds of the Sanctuary. "Only Negan. We just want Negan."

"Well you're gonna have to ask more fuckin' nicely if you want anything from me," Negan retorted, leaning forward against a railing.

"Dwight," Rick called. Aven glared up at Dwight, immediately suspicious when Rick called him out. "Arat. Your name's Simon. You're Gavin. Eugene." He pointed down the line and ended on Regina. "And you?"

"Regina," she spat.

"Most of you have the chance to survive here," Rick continued. "You lieutenants, the Saviors inside, the workers." He paused and looked back over at Aven. "The wives. Aven." She gritted her teeth at his gall to even suggest she'd betray Negan. Negan followed Rick's line of sight to where Aven stood and his heart nearly stopped. But he couldn't afford to stand there looking terrified for her and had to keep a cool, if not increasingly smug demeanor as Rick made his demands. "Y'all can live if you surrender. But you have to do it now."

"So they surrender and your little piss-patrol will let them live," Negan confirmed, sauntering back and forth across the platform, Lucille swinging loosely at his side. "That sounds like a good deal!" He stopped pacing and his grin fell as he stared Rick down, again leaning forward on the railing. "Rick, do you think you have the numbers for this fight?" he asked. "You don't." With that, Simon turned and retreated back inside for a moment before pulling Gregory outside and pushing him forwards to speak.

"The Hilltop stands with Negan and the Saviors," Gregory called over the walls, trying his best to stand tall and firm, but trying much too hard. "Any resident of the Hilltop who takes up arms or supports this ultimatum will no longer be welcome in the colony. Their families will be thrown out and left to fend for themselves. Go home now or you won't have a home to go back to." Gregory raised his voice on the last part in a last attempt to sound intimidating, and failed. There was long silence and none of the attackers retreated.

"THE HILLTOP STANDS WITH MAGGIE!" a voice boomed over the Sanctuary walls, a voice much more authoritative and sincere than Gregory's. Aven could see Simon turn on Gregory, backing him towards the stairs that led down to the yard. She couldn't hear what he was saying, until the last two words.