𝘼dalyn was happy to be back home. She could hear rain hitting the roof of the R.V., making a quiet tapping noise as Rick drove up the man street. Sasha and Aaron ran to greet him, talking through his open window. "Get Olivia," he said. "She should inventory what we have. We'll meet her at the pantry."
"You have food?" Sasha asked.
"Yeah," Michonne said, coming out of the R.V. to speak properly to Sasha. "Enough for another month."
"I need everybody in the church in an hour," Rick said.
"What is it?" asked Sasha.
Rick waved his hand. "We'll talk about it." He started the R.V. back up, ready to get moving again when Carol moved to the window. "Rick, what's going on?" she asked.
"We're gonna have to fight," Rick replied simply. Then he drove on ahead.
Thunder was rumbling overhead as they met Olivia at the pantry. Adalyn helped her log everything, not missing the smile on Olivia's face. It made her happy to know that they had food for everyone now. She actually hugged Adalyn when they finished. Adalyn hugged her back with a laugh.
When the time came, everyone gathered in the church. Adalyn sat on one of the pews, knees pulled up to her chest as Rick was speaking. "And we can work with the Hilltop. Maggie hammered out a deal. We're getting food- - eggs, butter, fresh vegetables. But they're not just giving it away," he was saying. "These Saviors, they almost killed Sasha, Adalyn, Daryl, and Abraham on the road. Now, sooner or later, they would've found us, just like those Wolves did, just like Jesus did. They would've killed someone or some of us. And then they would try to own us. And we would try to stop them. But by then, in that kind of fight, low on food, we could lose. This is the only way to be sure, as sure as we can get, that we win. And we have to win. We do this for the Hilltop, it's how we keep this place. It's how we feed this place. This needs to be a group decision. If anybody objects, here's your chance to say your piece."
Silence for a moment. And then Morgan got to his feet. Everyone turned to face him as he asked, "You're sure we can do it? We can beat them?"
Rick looked around at everyone before his eyes landed back on Morgan. "What this group has done, what we've learned, what we've become, all of us- - yes, I'm sure."
Morgan nodded. "Then all we have to do is just tell them that," he said.
"Well, they don't compromise," said Rick.
"This isn't a compromise. It's a choice you give them. It's a way out, for them and for us."
"We try and talk to the Saviors, we give up our advantage, our safety. No, we have to come for them before they come for us. We can't leave them alive."
Morgan wasn't giving up. "Where there's life, there's possibility."
"Of them hitting us," Rick stated.
"We're not trapped in this. None of you are trapped in this."
Adalyn swallowed hard.
Rick locked eyes with Morgan, trying to keep his tone even. "Morgan... they always come back," he said.
Morgan nodded stiffly. "Come back when they're dead, too."
