Chapter Text
“Jimmy,” Zoe called out, throwing a water bottle on his way, which he easily caught. Jimmy started chugging half the liquid in the bottle in thirst, wiping the sweat accumulating on his forehead while he plunged heads of corpses piled in a mountain beneath him.
“How–”
“They’re fine,” Zoe cut him off with his words. “Starving, maybe, but fine.”
“Oh, that’s not good,” Jimmy jumped off the corpse pile and used his handkerchief to wipe her cheek. “There’s bread on the canteen, me and Petey got that much. It’ll help,” he murmured.
Zoe flashed a small smile at him and gave him a nod. “Thanks, I’m not hungry.”
“But the baby might be.” Jimmy chuckled. Zoe raised a brow and lightheartedly slapped his shoulder. He winced playfully and rubbed his shoulder. “What?”
“You’re trying to butter me up? With a child in my womb?”
“Maybe, maybe not, but hey it’s true. You may not be hungry, but the little guy… you’re not sure.”
“We’ll live.”
Jimmy smiled and ruffled her hair, receiving a faux scowl in return. “Go back inside, I’ll check on you and the others soon.” He pecked her cheek and winked at her before returning his focus to the mountain pile of undead he was making sure were dead before he started burning.
She gave him a small nod and complied, detangling her crossed arms to fall on her side as she started walking inside to meet the others once again. Wondering what they could be doing.
As she entered inside, she saw Gary sleeping, both his arms behind his head, acting as a pillow for him. Petey was sharpening a machete that Jimmy gave him. And the two ladies, Mandy and Beatrice, were having a… rather serious conversation, judging by the look on their faces.
She assumed Petey was aware of the quiet tension between the two but decided not to intervene. Zoe silently walked towards the both of them, grabbing Mandy by the shoulder to not alert her.
But it did, Mandy flinched and scowled. “I told you not to touch me!– oh…” Her scowl fell as soon as she saw Zoe. “What?”
“Er, okay? You two seem on edge, what’s going on?”
“Yeah, we are. But it’s not like any of your business?” Mandy retorted.
“Oh wow, okay. Well, is it any of my business that you don’t eat a single shit on the sack you’re hovering on?” Zoe replied.
“I’m not eating, we’re not staying. Me and Beatrice, we’re leaving.” Mandy turned to face her, her stature defensive and almost shivering.
Zoe was utterly confused to where Mandy was coming from, so she decided to test the waters of her newfound annoyance. In her peripheral vision, she could see Beatrice trying to gently pull Mandy away from her, but it all fell on Mandy’s deaf ears.
“What’s your problem?” Zoe provoked.
“I told you, it’s NONE of your business!” She raised her voice. Gary woke up to the sound of her voice, and Petey’s head perked out from the sudden loudness.
“Shut… up, Mandy. What’s wrong? Why are you suddenly going off?” Zoe asked.
Mandy narrowed her eyes at her, her frustration palpable. “I swear to God, if you ask one more time–”
“Just shut up, Mandy... Jesus,” Gary irritatingly grumbled, his voice sore from sleep.
Mandy turned her head at him, and Gary grinned in return before closing his eyes again. After that, Mandy spoke in a hushed tone.
“Listen, Zoe, just leave us alone.” Mandy grumbled under her breath.
Zoe leaned in closely and squinted her eyes. “Why would I? There’s something you’re hiding from us, and you look real fuckin’ guilty.” Mandy narrowed her eyes back at her and huffed.
She turned to Beatrice and sighed heavily. “Just a misunderstanding between us, it’s nothing, okay? I just get defensive when someone asks too much.” Mandy spoke.
Zoe raised her brow in suspicion but ignored the risks, shrugging and rolling her eyes as she walked away. She was usually the type to press the issue until the person spilled the truth, but she was vulnerable at the time, and she had no idea how Mandy would react. She could not risk stressing out now that she was pregnant.
She walked away and huffed in annoyance, kicking Gary's foot off the table, causing him to flinch in surprise and grab Petey for support before falling, but Petey was equally surprised as he caught the fall and smacked his head against the table.
She heard loud rattling inside the prison before she exited and decided to check up on Finn. He seemed too quiet these past few days, and she couldn’t help but feel somewhat concerned. He was the reason she was alive during weaker times when she couldn’t stand her feet.
With an uneasy sigh, she proceeded to the canteen to check where he would be, as Jimmy had assigned him to watch.
When she opened the door, there was no one there; it was an empty preserve for the heavy sacks of potatoes, other essentials that had expired too long, and jail meals. She searched for him but found no trace.
She decided to turn her heels and ask the others whether they'd seen Finn, but as she walked out the door, she heard faint murmuring. Zoe paused her movements and turned around to investigate the source of the noises.
She stepped inside the cafeteria once again, taking calculated and careful steps. She narrowed her eyes and perked her ears to listen. Her eyes spotted the janitor’s closet connected to the cafeteria.
Zoe stepped closer, and the noises grew prominent, but the murmurs remained incoherent. She was starting to get nervous. Was there a walker inside? She thought to herself. But it didn’t let this deter her, she grabbed a fallen brick on the ground and grabbed it tightly between her shaky hand.
With a hefty huff, she grabbed the doorknob and opened it instantly. Of course, nothing was visible, but the room had far too many blind spots for a room the size of a pantry, so she tilted her head to the side and widened her eyes in surprise.
She gasped and fell backward in terror. Zoe lost her balance and fell to her rear, aggravating and groaning in pain. She clutched her stomach and whimpered in anguish.
Fuck.
Zoe hated feeling so weak, fragile, and powerless, as her movement was limited by her condition. Her eyes started to water as she hyperventilated; she wanted to scream, but nothing came out of her diaphragm.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck—what do I do!?” She panicked internally.
The sound was more audible now that the door was open; the growls and snarls of a walker grew louder and louder as it approached the opened door. Zoe grunted as she tried to stretch her leg as far as possible below the door, facilitating her to close it before the walker could exit the closet.
But her foot could only reach so far. She let out a pained scream as she felt her stomach cramp, pulling her leg as she hurled on the floor.
She stared at the opened door with such terror.
Zoe was never afraid to die, she never valued herself, but oh… the child inside her, she could never not value her life.
The walker emerged from the opened door, she could make the face, she recognized, it was Finn. His body was still fresh, she assumed he just turned, as his body was taking its time to decompose.
How? Was it a question? How.
Before Finn could reach her, Zoe heard loud footsteps sprinting behind her.
"Zoe!" Jimmy yelled, rushing towards her. Using a knife, he pierced Finn's head. Zoe's ear rang as she saw the limp body tumble to the ground. "I'll check, I'll check later, okay?"
Jimmy kneeled and grabbed her into his arms, his muscles straining under the weight, but he persisted and cooed her as he exited the cafeteria. He ran, but was aware of her condition and did not want to justle her up too much.
Making his way towards the main area, he gently placed Zoe on the sofa. The others grew confused at what was happening.
“What’s happening? Is she okay?” Petey asked, worried.
“Yeah, she’s… just a little overwhelmed, it’s fine,” Jimmy firmly replied to him. Petey nodded and took a step back.
“Was it him?” Zoe spoke under her breath as she hyperventilated. Jimmy knitted his brows together and shook his head.
“I’m not sure… I didn’t get to look at him that much. But I’ll check, okay?” He reassured before sprinting towards where the commotion was. Petey hardened his expression, concern evident in his eyes as he examined Zoe.
“Breathe, Zoe… calm down, okay? You need to breathe,” he cooed, demonstrating her how to exhale and inhale. Surprisingly, Gary was the only one that looked confused, despite the fact that he’s usually the first person who’d be aware of what’s happening. Mandy and Beatrice looked somber, more so guilty.
Zoe looked Petey in the eyes and copied his demonstration, she felt stupid. She was overreacting, she thought. But being pregnant has its cons, her senses being heightened which is something she’s out of control. She didn’t know what to do, so she took comfort and distracting herself with Petey’s demonstration.
She held her hand up and shook her head. “I’m… fine,” she murmured under her breath.
“What happened?” Gary smugly asked, hands resting on his hips. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost, or like a walker.”
Zoe glared at him and spat on the floor. “Shut up, Gary, or I might actually fucking give birth under stress.”
Petey looked at Gary and sighed. “Can you, for once, stop being an asshole? Can’t you see there’s something wrong?”
Gary grinned and leaned closely to him. “I’m aware.”
Petey narrowed his eyes and pushed him off, focusing on Zoe. He placed his hand at the small of her back and demonstrated her to breathe accordingly. Zoe followed his instructions, her breath shaky and labored, her body trembling and shaking.
She hated being this weak, it was like being in another woman’s body, it was clear that she wasn’t used to being vulnerable, always wanting put a strong face, that’s her way of creating a barrier between people so she wouldn’t get pushed around.
That worked for as long as she lived when she was residing at Blue Skies, she even made the townies like her, although some of them still deliberately badmouth her.
Anyways, the world has gone to an awful state, she realized just now that no matter what she does, the people who’d judge her would soon die.
“Alright, Zoe, you’re not supposed to give birth now because you haven’t reached your nine months, just relax, breathe… follow me. Inhale… exhale,” Petey reassured, to which she followed.
“Great, she’s hyperventilating. Beatrice, do something,” Gary shook his head, he doesn’t look to serious about it. Beatrice looked at Gary briefly before rushing to her aid.
“Don’t tell her what to do,” Mandy suddenly spoke up.
Gary looked at her with an amused look. “Isn’t she a nurse or something in your sunshine–bullshit–village? Make a use of her, jeez.” He said, looking away before turning his head back at her, face full of grimace. “I don’t want to talk to you,” he grinned.
Mandy gritted her teeth and looked away, eyes focused on Beatrice.
Petey moved aside and let Beatrice handle Zoe, since she seems to know a lot about it that he does, he put his hands on his hips and let out a heavy sigh. He could tell Mandy was growing agitated and nervous, well, he was getting nervous as well, none of the people he’s with were stable enough to make him feel at ease.
After a while, Zoe fell asleep in one of the cells, exhaustion evident on her face.
Mandy immediately grabbed Beatrice and leaned in closely. “That’s Finn, he’s dead. IS this enough evidence for you that it was a warning, he’s coming here to kill us! Let’s just go and leave–”
Beatrice widened her eyes and pushed her off. “Mandy, are you okay? You need to relax… you’re scaring me.”
“I’m scaring you? I’m saving you!” Mandy raised her voice.
“Keep it down, please,” Petey pinched the bridge of his nose. “What is going on Mandy, I’m getting nervous knowing you’re getting nervous.”
Mandy narrowed her eyes and grabbed his arm, guiding him to a quiet area to discuss. She assumed Petey would be someone she could rely on to keep things private, despite the fact that he was acquainted with Jimmy and Gary. Mandy wanted to tell Jimmy immediately away, but the situation had deteriorated, and she couldn't find the perfect time.
“I have not been… calm about this, ever since Beatrice told me that… Earnest put a stupid tracking device on me!” Mandy whispered–yelled. “Matter of fact, he put tracking device on everyone that he sees ‘valuable’” She air-quoted.
Petey widened his eyes and shook his head. “Wait… what!?” He whispered–yelled as well. Trying to keep his voice to a minimum. “And you’re telling us this now?”
“No! Not… everyone yet. Just you.”
“Are you serious, Mandy? What if Earnest’s army comes over here and kill us all!”
He sighed. “I’m telling everyone.”
Mandy caught his arm as soon as he turned his heel. “No, no, please don’t.”
“And why? Our lives is at stake. You know me, Jimmy, and especially that jerk Gary did something horrible to him, he’ll kill us.” Petey reasoned.
“I…” She was a lose for words. “Beatrice could do surgery, she could just take it out from me, or I was thinking, we could run away for him to lose track of me. He doesn’t have that good of a tracking device.”
“Oh, yeah, Beatrice could do surgery, with what?” Petey hovered his arms dramatically. "And even so, Earnest is strong enough to move places, we are not comfortable with the thought of it being far away enough so he could not track us."
“Please, Pete, you don’t need to tell them just yet.”
“When are we gonna tell them then, Mandy? Just when we’re currently under attack?”
“I think you should tell Jimmy just as soon as he verifies that it was Finn’s corpse.” Gary spoke. His body leaning against the wall right next to the door frame. Petey raised his brow and went to the door, looking at him leaning next to it.
“Yeah, and well.. hopefully it’s not him.”
“It’s him, Petey, who else would it be, Finn’s not here.”
Petey rubbed his head and sighed heavily. There was a part of him that didn’t want to believe that it was Finn, but it made sense seeing that he was missing, and that the walker cleanup had already happened. He was overthinking things and had little time to make a decision.
“I’ll just tell Jimmy when he gets back,” he said. “We can’t keep this a secret, Mandy, our lives is at stake.”
He gave her one more look before leaving the room, massaging his temple with anxiety. He sat on the hard floor with his hand on his knees, thinking about how he would tell Jimmy. But given how nervous he was, he'd probably simply say it without thinking.
“Give yourself a break, Petey.” Gary spoke as he walked with intent towards him, grabbing a chair to sit next to where he was. “Doesn’t matter if Earnest attacks us. Either way, it’s just gonna be us again.” He simply shrugged.
“I don’t find that comforting at all, Gary,” he mumbled in annoyance.
“Well, you should. Because I’m the only reason why you’re still alive, might as well depend on me.”
“No way.” Petey scowled and looked away.
After a few minutes of Gary just bickering, Jimmy emerged, exhaustion evident in his eyes, sweat trickling down his forehead as he caught his breath. Petey’s eyes widened, he stood up immediately, and thought of a word to say to him.
“Jimmy, I …” he paused.
“It’s Finn, the corpse is him.” Jimmy announced.
Petey’s heart dropped at the news. He knew it, he prepared himself for it.
“Where’s Zoe?”
“She’s sleeping,” Petey answered, his voice gradually getting silent. “We shouldn’t wake her up for this, let’s… give it time.”
Jimmy nodded at his suggestion and raised a brow. “What were you gonna tell me?”
Petey rubbed his neck in embarrassment. “Right… um.” He began. “We should leave, as soon as possible.”
Jimmy looked at him, bewildered. “Why? We just got here. We’re getting settled in.”
"Yeah, but… I talked to Mandy. She told me that Earnest is probably going to attack us soon, he has a tracking device on her.”
He narrowed his eyes, “Wait, what?”
“Then she told me we could go far away for it to… lose track of us.”
Jimmy was at a loss for words, he didn’t know what to do in a situation so bizarre. “And I know this now?”
“I just heard it from her just now too.”
“We’ve been here for… almost a week, or even more!” Jimmy raised his voice, his eyes flickered the surroundings. “This is bad, this is not safe for us.”
“I know…”
“We should attack,” Gary spoke out of the blue.
“With what weapons, Gary? Are you out of your goddamn mind, I have a pregnant girlfriend, for Christ’s sake.” Jimmy glared at him. “We’re leaving, don’t know where, but we are.”
“I don’t know, seems like we’re safe here, as far as I know. We should just give Earnest what he wants.” Gary suggested, nudging his head to where Mandy is.
Jimmy paused for a moment; he was correct; they were settling in just fine inside the prison, and the idea of moving to an unknown location was risky; they needed a place to cover themselves, a roof over their heads, especially since Zoe was pregnant and would desperately need to relax and not venture too far outside the world filled with deadly biters.
“Don’t tell me you’re thinking about it.” Petey sighed in disappointment. “Look, Gary’s suggestion was stupid, we can’t send Mandy to her death.”
“Let him think about it.” Gary grinned. Petey shot him a glare before turning his head back at Jimmy.
“Gary,” Jimmy started. “What about the bag of guns we took before we left that place?”
Gary nodded and raised a brow. “We could put that stuff to use.”
“Sure,” Gary stretched his arm. “I really wanted to kill the guy anyway.”
Petey squinted his eyes and held his hands dramatically before he moved away. “Oh, stick it up your ass, moral boy. We’re not fighting for civil rights anymore.” Gary chuckled before turning to Jimmy. “Hey, when it comes down to it, can I have dibs to have his head on a stick?”