No Rest For the Wicked ~ A Walking Dead Fan Fiction

Chapter 10: Hell or Hallelujah

Chapter Ten 

Hell or Hallelujah 

Third Person

Kate took off running, knife in hand as she burst back into the main area, leaving Daryl in the dust. The others were gathered there, the women and children by the RV, the men she'd returned with finishing up the walkers. 

"Elsie!" Kate screamed as Rick embraced his own child. "Elsie!" Kate screamed again over the final gun fire, her hands shaking. 

"I'm here!" Elsie ran out of the group and Kate dropped to hug the girl tight, panting hard relief through her tangled hair. "Are you okay?" 

"I'm fine, sweetheart. What about you? Any walkers touch you?" Kate asked, pulling back to examine the girl. 

"No, Shane protected me." Elsie said. Kate noted a glimmer of an adult tooth poking through the gum of the hole Elsie's missing tooth left. 

"Thank goodness, young lady. I'll have to start calling you that once your tooth comes in all the way." Kate poorly joked out of sheer relief. 

"No!" Elsie squealed protest. 'It'll sound like I'm always in trouble!"  

"Well you might be. You are quite the little trouble maker." Kate tapped her on the nose playfully before standing up. 

"Am not!" 

"Aren't you? I must be confusing you with the other Elsie." Kate winked as she glanced down, though her eyes were primarily scanning the faces of the others now. She pressed the little girl to her side, never breaking contact as they approached the others along with Jim. Rick was staring in horror at something over the shoulders of Lori and Carl. Kate followed his eyes to see Andrea kneeling beside a bloody and very still Amy. Her body revolted, a shudder running up her spine as her stomach tried to turn inside out. She covered her mouth with her hand, swallowing hard as she pressed Elsie's face into her side, keeping the sight from the girl. 

"Amy! Amy! Amy!" Andrea sobbed, shaking her sister's corpse. 

"I remember my dream now," Jim whispered hoarsely. "Why I dug the holes."

First Person~ Kate

The next morning I found my fingers itching for some pastels or water colours as the sun rose. The sunrise was beautiful, and as I recorded it with pencil in my sketchbook I'd never been so glad for a night to reach its end. I was sitting on the roof of the RV to escape all the bodies below as well as Andrea and Amy. Elsie was curled up beside me and I gently stroked her hair.  

"Kate?" I turned to see Olivia sticking her head up tentatively from the ladder. 

"Come on up." I beckoned. She and Eric both climbed up as I got to my feet, Elsie shadowing me. 

"I just wanted to saw how thankful I am. You saved my life last night and I can never repay that." Olivia said earnestly. 

"You don't have to. But you're welcome. I'm glad your both okay." 

"Thank you." Olivia hugged me tightly before heading back to the ladder. 

"I know you're gonna say it was no big deal but it was. Because of you I've still got my sister. Thank you Kate." Eric placed a hand on my shoulder and looked me dead in the eye as he said this. All I could do was nodded, dropping my own eyes at the honest praise. He gave my shoulder and squeeze and disappeared after his sister. 

* 

"Y'all can't be serious. Let that girl hamstring us? The dead girl's a time bomb." Daryl argued. We were all gathered outside the RV discussing Andrea and Amy.