VITRIOL | Shane Walsh

XI

That morning Rick and Shane escorted our hostage, Randall, off the farm. 18 miles out and he'd be left for dead. The compromise only increased tensions between the two partners and encouraged the bubble of harmony to burst. Sending them out alone together was a bad idea.

Beth had finally woken up and Maggie allowed me into the room to check up on her properly. I could sense something was off and wanted to always have someone watching over her. She wasn't made for this world and I felt sorry for her. I'd been sat with her all morning when Andrea came upstairs and into the room. She offered to take over for a while so I could go spend time with my son which I graciously accepted. She made a smart suggestion for once.

That's how I ended up spending the rest of my morning sat at the dining room table with Caleb. We had taken apart his pistol because puzzles were always fun to him and this would prove educational in the end. He was getting the hang of it when we heard a smash come from upstairs.

"You carry on bud, I'll go check what that was"

I climbed up the stairs to see Lori and Maggie pounding on Beth's door; It was locked and Andrea was nowhere in sight. I pushed the two of them out of the way before kicking the door handle's pressure point and forcing it open.

When we flooded into the room, Beth was a crying mess. Blood was dripping between her fingers and I immediately grabbed her, sitting her down on the bed. Maggie had read my mind and grabbed my med kit for me. I cleaned, stitched and dressed the wounds before giving the tears on her face a wipe with my thumbs. I checked she was okay for a final time before telling Maggie to stay and watch while I went to find Andrea.

She was minding her own business outside when I grabbed her left shoulder and pulled her round to face me. I sent a mean right hook to her jaw, knocking her straight to the floor. With my size, there probably wasn't much power but anyone can turn to hulk when fuelled by rage. I climbed on top of her and closed the collar of her shirt in my fist.

"You left her alone! She tried to kill herself!"

"She's made her choice" she groaned out.

I raised my fist to hit her again but Daryl had pulled my weight off her and pushed me away. I continued cursing at her from over his shoulder until she stood up and Daryl turned me around. I ended it with one final shout and walked away.

"You set foot in that house again. I'll kill you"

- - -

"Shane what the hell happened out there" I interrogated the man as we sat alone at the water pump. He was bruised and covered in walker guts when he returned and the air between the two friends had grown sour.

"We just took it out on each other. I thought I was dead at one point but he still came back to rescue me. I don't know if I'd have done the same"

"Well, it's over now." I picked up the wet cloth and rubbed it along his brow bone where there was a slight cut. "At least there's going to be a vote to execute the kid. We won't raise Rick's suspicions anymore than we have" I stated. I cleaned the remains of the dirt off his face before hanging the cloth on the pump.

"I don't know who'd vote to save him after what Daryl got out of him. How could they knowing what his group do? Murder the men, rape the women and beat up the kids"

"Dale probably still would" I sniggered and caused Shane to let out a small chuckle himself. He tucked a stray piece of hair behind my ear and spoke with a soft, gentle tone.

"I'd never let anyone take you away from me. Ever. Not without a fight"

"I know, officer" I placed a light kiss on his lips before standing up and offering him a hand. He readily accepted it, stood up and leant into to give me another kiss. However, when we heard talking coming from within the barn we both pulled away in confusion. No one was meant to be in there besides Randall. We both walked up to the door and Shane threw it open to find Carl and Caleb.

"What the hell are you two doing in here, Carl wait outside, now!" He ran straight out.

"What did you say to them, huh?" Shane demanded and pushed Randall up against the wall with a pistol held to his head. I cradled Caleb into my side and stared at the hostage with malice.

"Nothing I swear"

"You're lying, you tried to get Carl to help you escape" Caleb confessed causing Shane's temper to rise.

"oh you little shit"

"DONT TALK TO MY BOY LIKE THAT!" Shane shouted thrusting the gun deeper into his temple. He clearly wanted to kill him on the spot but it wasn't a smart move.

"Shane not now!" He backed off and we all pushed our way outside, placing the two kids next to each other. After Carl's fuss about us not telling his parents he finally calmed down. We drilled it into both of them about looking out for the kind of people who attack when you let your guard down. Caleb seemed to be taking it more seriously than his accomplice.

"Carl go find your momma, Caleb you stay here."

"Carl" Shane called, the kid stopped momentarily "Quit trying to get yourself killed"

- - -

We had all dispersed that evening after the pointless meeting we had. We voted for an execution yet Rick had to put a stop to it last minute, ignoring the democracy he preached. The air was thick enough but it intensified with horror as a blood-curdling scream ripped across the camp.  My eyes shot to Shane's before grabbing the nearest weapon, which happened to be a baseball bat and sprinting in the direction of the sound.

Daryl was the first person to reach the source of distress and waved everyone over. Dale was lying in a pool of his own blood and guts and the stench was unbearable. Rick grabbed onto his face before throwing commands at me.

"Pricilla do something now!"

"I'm not a miracle worker Rick!"

Everyone started to panic. Andrea was crying along with Lori and Rick's actions grew more frantic. Dad had collapsed onto the floor next to me assessing the damage and shook his head.

"He won't make the trip"

"We'll operate here get the stuff-"

"Rick." I stood to meet him and shook my head. This was it. Dale was dead. Shane pulled me into his chest but I could still see the man suffering whilst we faced sideways on. Caleb had rushed over and pressed himself up against our legs, shielding his eyes from the view.

Rick finally reached for his holster and removed the very same revolver he used to shoot Sophia. He wavered for a moment and everyone realised he just couldn't do it. Daryl stretched out a hand and replaced the finger on the trigger with his own.

A final "Sorry Brother" was heard before the shout rang out and silenced the night.

{EDITED}