▎SAFE HAVEN ▎
»»————　act two. on the hunt
CHAPTER NINE ━━ MISSING

Josie stared out of the window, the breeze blowing in her face. She tapped her fingers on her lap as she took in the scenery. They had been driving for days, stopping at a few places as they go. They came across a highway full of cars.

The RV came to a stop which made josie look up to see Daryl on his motorbike, drive past the cars and In between the cars on the highway.

There was a way through so he drove back to the others. "Is there a way through?" Dale asked and Daryl nodded, turning his motorcycle around. They did their best driving through the cars. Josie turned around when she heard something break.

She saw smoke coming from the front of the RV which made her sigh. Shane came to a stop as the two walsh siblings climbed out.

She walked over to called side and ruffled her hair. "Oh, just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of-." Dale cut himself as he watched Daryl looking through the cars. "Okay, that was dumb." He said, making tiff chuckle at his comment.

"Can't find a radiator hose here." Shane replied, bitterly.

"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find." Daryl said, continuing to look though the car.

"Can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start." T-dog also said, walking forward.

"Maybe some water." Carol suggested, holding her daughters shoulder.

"This is a graveyard.I don't know how I feel about this." Lori added which made everyone turn to her.

"Come on y'all. Look around, gather what you can." Shane told everyone.

Josie huffed as she walked over to one of the cars. She opened the boot as she looked through it. Her eyes lightened up as she a bag of food. She groaned as she pulled the bag out, placing it on the floor.

Tiff looked over at josie, turning to Glenn as he was looking through the car. "You spoke to her yet?" Tiff tauntingly asked, making glenn turn to josie, then back to Tiffany.

"She told you?" He asked as she nodded, rummaging through the car. "No, I haven't." Glenn sighed as tiff hummed, standing up properly.

"Well go talk to her, pizza boy. God its like you're both teenagers." Tiff chucked as Glenn gave her a look. "Go before i grab one of these clothes and suffocate you." Tiff raised an eyebrow as Glenn sighed, dragging his feet as he wearily walked over to josie.

Josie sighed as she found nothing else useful in the car, closing the boot. She spun around, going to pick up the bag, when she saw Glenn-making her jump. "Jesus." She sighed.

"Sorry." Glenn mumbled sheepishly. "You doing okay?" He asked her as she nodded her head.

"Yeah, you?" She asked him as he nodded his head slightly. Josie didn't like the awkwardness, it wasn't like before. Josie turned to the side to see Tiffany watching them. The blonde realised that the dark haired girl had seen her, making her hide behind the car. "Tiff sent you, didn't she?" Josie sighed.

"Yep, she threatened to suffocate me." Glenn turned to her with wide eyes. Josie shook her head, a smile on her face. "Look is everything okay, between us?" Glenn pointed to himself and josie.

"Yeah, why wouldn't we be?" Josie frowned, trying to ease the awkwardness. "Look, Glenn, If the kiss didnt mean anything, then it's okay. I don't want it to be awkward between us, okay?" Josie quickly spoke, fidgeting with her hands.

"Jo, calm down." Glenn brought his hands down on her shoulder. "We're fine, okay?" He asked her as she nodded her head. "It was just a drunken kiss between two friends."

Josie had to admit it hurt, but she nodded her head, a smile on her face. "Yes, exactly that." She hummed, turning to the floor and picking up the food bag. "Now hold this." She smiled as she placed the bag in his hands.

The two continued to look though cars and josie sighed as she opened another boot.
She looked further in the boot until she came across a sword in a Shoulder Back Sheath which made her grin. She picked it up and turned around to show glenn.

His eyes widener as he looked at the weapon in josies hand. She took the sheath off and holds the sword in her hand. "Now I'm keeping this." Josie smirked as she put the shoulder sheath on herself and out the sword in the sheath. She did a spin . "Do I look cool?" Josie asked Glenn.

Glenn rolled his eyes playfully. "Yeah, but it would look way cooler on me." Glenn teased which made josie tilt her head, raising a brow.

"Oh yeah? Whatever you say, pizza boy." Josie chucked as she shoot the boot. Their little moment was ruined as Daryl came running to the two.

"Under the cars." He told them both. The pair didn't question his requests as Glenn pulled josie under the car they were looking through.

The pair had no idea what was happening but they didn't say anything. Josie covered her mouth with her hand, looking around. The pair held their breath as they heard groans and moans. They turned and saw walkers which made them both close their eyes.

When the walkers had finally passed, josie went out first to check, giving Glenn a signal that it was fine to come out. Glenn quickly scrambled to his feet, picking up the bag of food.

The pair walked back to the RV. Everyone had worried looks. Glenn and josie looked at each other before walking to everyone. "What's happened?" Josie asked, confused. There was no Rick nor Sophia which made josies heart drop.

Josie and Tiffany m sat on top of the RV to pass time. Josie bit her lip nervously, hoping that rick was safe and Sophia.

Tiffany noticed josies hands fidgeting and tiff reached into her pocket to pull out some hair bobbles. She turned to josie, with a slight smile. "Braid my hair."

Josie turned to the teenage girl and smiled sadly. "Yeah."

She moved around so that she was behind Tiffany. "So how did the talk go? Looked friendly." Tiffany asked josie.

Josie started to braid tiffs hair into a French plait. "Well it's not awkward. I panicked and said the kiss didn't mean anything and he agreed. Saying, and I quote 'a drunken kiss with a friend.'" Josie replied, concentrating on tiffs blonde hair.

"Bullshit." Tiff scoffed. "Phinny, He probably only said that because you said that it didn't mean anything. Dude can't think for himself."

"Well, it was just a kiss, tiff. If it didn't mean anything, it didn't." Josie sighed as she grabbed the bobble off of her wrist and tied the end of her hair. "We was both drunk."

"Well, all I'm saying is that dude can't go without staring at you for a solid five minuets." Tiff turned around to face josie, the older girl tapping her shoulder-signalling she was done.

"Whatever you say tif." Josie shrugged. The two looked down as they saw Andrea walk up to Dale and sighed, hand on her hip. The pair looked down and tried not to listen but it was hard not to.

"Where's my gun? You have no right to take it." Andrea asked Dale, annoyed that the man had taken it away from her.

"You don't need that just now, do you?" Dale asked. He only wanted the best for Andrea and josie could see that but she didn't want to get in between any bickering.

"My father gave it to me. It's mine." Andrea spat at Dale, a hand out, waiting for her gun to be placed in her hands.

"I can hold onto it for you." Dale suggested, not wanting to give her the gun back, not yet anyway.

"Or you can give it back to me." Andrea suggests.

"Everything cool?" Shane asked the pair, becoming part of the situation.

"No, I want my gun back." Andrea spat, annoyed.

"I don't think it's a good idea right now." Dale shook his head. Andrea scoffed, shaking her head and turning to Shane.

"The truth is, less guns we have floating around camp the better." Shane insisted.

"You turning over your weapon?" Andrea asked, tilting her head at the man.

"No. But I'm trained in its use. That's what the rest of y'all need is proper training. But until that time I think it's best if Dale keeps them all accounted for." Shane told Andrea. He was trained, so was rick. Josie was slightly trained.

"Uh-huh." Andrea said before walking over to Carol, who was waiting for her daughter. Tiff lifted her head off josies shoulder as she sees Rick and Daryl walking back.

Josie noticed it too and the pair climb down, tiff going down first. "You didn't find her?" Carol asked, on a verge of another mental break down.

Both Tiffany and josie felt bad for the woman. Josie placed a hand on carols back. "Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again at first light." Rick explained, sadness in his eyes that he didn't find the young girl. Anyone could tell he felt guilty.

"You can't leave my daughter out there on her own to spend the night alone in the woods." Carol cried out.

Josie bit her bottom lip, watching the woman cry. "Out in the dark's no good. We'd just be tripping over ourselves. More people get lost." Daryl explained to her, gently.

"But she's 12. She can't be out there on her own. You didn't find anything?" She turned back to rick. Lori put her hands on both of carols shoulder, trying to comfort the woman.

Tiffany looked down at her shoes. "I know this is hard. But I'm asking you not to panic. We know she was out there." Rick told her, calmly.

"And we tracked her for a while." Daryl added, gently.

"We have to make this an organized effort. Daryl knows the woods better than anybody. I've asked him to oversee this." Rick promised

"Is that blood?" Carol asked Daryl which made josie look at him where the blood was then back up at him.

"We took down a walker." Rick informed her. Tiffany eyes widened at the mention of a Walker.

"Walker? Oh my God." Carol cried, trying to control her breathing.

"There was no sign it was ever anywhere near Sophia." Rick promised her, holding a hand out to try and reassure her.

"How can you know that?" Andrea pipped up.

There was silence for a bit until Daryl spoke up. "We cut the son of a bitch open, made sure." Daryl said.

Carol sat down on the railings, catching her breath before glaring at rick. "Oh God. How could you just leave her out there to begin with? How could you just leave her?"

Josie frowned at her statement, this wasn't Ricks fault at all. "Those two walkers were on us. I had to draw them off. It was her best chance." Rick bent down to her level. Shane walked and stood beside Rick, looking down at Carol, hands on his hip.

"Sounds like he didn't have a choice, Carol." Shane said, calmly.

"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child. She's just a child." Carol cried out to rick who squatted down.

"It was my only option. The only choice I could make." Rick said, looking up at the grieving woman.

"I'm sure nobody doubts that." Shane added, sitting himself down.

"My little girl got left in the woods." Carol cried. Lori held the grieving women. Rick walked off to the cars.

- MADDIES NOTES
4th September 2023

FIRST CHAPTER OF SEASON TWO BABY!
Now I can't wait to write Riley and her plot, I honestly can't wait! You guys are gonna LOVE her!!

2011 words!!