meanstreak
rick grimes 𝘹 fem!𝘰𝘤
© WANDARYEN ──── 2024

Rick, Carl, and I were driving into the nearest town for any supplies and ammunition for when the Governor would return.

Nobody voted against it after our latest attack and I was the one to even suggest it. Watching my father get pinned down the way he did out in the field, almost dying — I didn't want to waste another minute sitting on our asses.

Rick truthfully agreed that we needed more protection and Carl wanted to tag along for the experience, or so he says.

I rested my head back against the seat with the window down and the fresh air blowing against my face. Just as I was about to close my eyes, I heard a man calling for us to stop the car. I slowly sat up in the passenger seat, looking in the mirror as I saw a man with an orange backpack.

When I looked over at Rick, his eyes remained on the road with one hand on the wheel and the other out the window.

"What if — " I caught myself speaking before I could even think it through. My gaze wandered towards the mirror again, watching the male figure slowly disappear and deciding not to finish that statement.

Rick stopped the car at the front of the town where a small police station stood on its on. I climbed out of the car and grabbed my rifle, putting the strap over my shoulder as I looked around.

The scene was quiet.

A few birds flew above our heads as we walked towards the police station. The inside was completely empty; literally. When we got towards the back where they kept all their ammunition, the entire thing was empty. Only a few random bullets laid on the cold floor.

In anger and frustration, Rick kicked the stand of where the gun's would have been, holding the back of his head with a sigh and stepping to the side. I leaned down and picked up a bullet, holding it between my thumb and pointer finger before tucking the few pieces in my pocket. "There's got to be another place we can look. What other stations are around here?"

Rick rubbed his face with the palm of his hand, "I was the police here. Me and a few other guys — it aint a big town. But theres other places to check." He placed his hands on his hips now. "May not have as many guns as were in here, but—"

I leaned down and continued grabbing the hand full of bullets lying around, shoving them into my pockets. "Then we keep looking. What else do you have in mind?"

"There's a few places out on the main street..bars, a liquor store. Owners had a gun or two behind the counter that people didn't know about. I did. I signed the permits. They might still be there."

I took a deep breath then nodded my head, placing a hand on Carl's shoulder. "Come on, let's keep moving."

As I exit the station, the two followed close behind and we rounded the corner into the Main Street of the town. We passed a large area of grass with a large pile full of burned bodies. I furrowed my eyebrows but didn't think much off it.

The most reliable thing people have done is burn the bodies of the dead to keep them from growing. It didn't nearly put a dent into the world, but it was a start for us.

We came to an abrupt stop and a small gasp escaped my lips. "Holy shit," I breathed. The entire street was rigged of traps.

The middle of town had planks and barrels spread out with stakes sticking out. Someone, or more, spent time building the center of town to trap walkers like bait on a fishing pole.

The town seemed deserted, run down, and nonliving. But the traps that were spread about made it obvious that someone, or more, had spent their time on this place.

I slowly looked over at Rick, my eyes widening. "It looks like someone's already made this theirs."

"Doesn't mean they found what we're looking for. Couple of the places are just up ahead. Let's get in and get the hell out of here." Rick spoke.

The three of us ducked down a green line that met us at our waist with bells hanging by. "There. Tyrell's. A shotgun and two handguns. License issued to Tyrell Debbs."

I overheard a walker coming up behind us, making me turn around and put a hand on my knife until Rick caught my shoulder. "Wait. She'll get caught."

As the walker got closer, her waist hit the line, jiggling some bells before a bullet was sent straight through her head. The three of us immediately spun around to see a man on top of a roof with a mask and sniper rifle.

"Hands! Now you drop what you got and you go. Your guns, your shoes, and that rifle. All of it!"

"Shoes?" I muttered in disbelief. "What the f—"

"Run for the car now." Rick whispered to Carl and I.

Carl looked up at his father, "..dad."

I bit my bottom lip, keeping my hands raised and my eyes focused on the man on the roof. "We need that rifle." Rick whispered as the man was counting down.

I glanced to the nearby roof next to him and whispered back. "I think I can get up there."

His eyebrows furrowed but he didnt deny it. "Carl, go." He ordered before pulling out his gun and shooting at the man.

Carl took off running in the opposite direction and I ran towards the building beside the stranger man. I climbed on top of a dumpster then scaled the metal steps on the brick wall, reaching the roof to see the man was gone. I looked around fast, my neck twisting several times to try and spot him but he was no where to be seen.

When I looked down at Rick, I narrowed my eyes curiously. "Hey, so, where did he go?"

A sudden gun shot went off and I immediately ran for the stairs again, running out onto the street and quickly out of breath when I caught up to Rick and Carl. "Is he dead?"

Rick bent down, lightly hitting the mans chest with a raised eyebrow. "He's wearing body armor," he spoke out before ripping the shirt open and revealing the armor then pulling it off to show the bruise forming on his side where the built hit.

"Hes alive," Rick answered my previous question and I nodded, sighing in relief. He reached over and pulled the mask from the mans face, letting his head rest back onto the ground.

I tilted my head to the side, getting a good look at the guy as Rick stared down at him. "Let's get him inside," I insisted before grabbing one of the mans arm. Rick stood up to help, both of his arms over our shoulders and we started to carry him towards the building he was standing on.

"His name is Morgan. He saved my life." I looked over at Rick as he spoke, slowly nodding my head. "He was shooting at us." I pointed out the painfully obvious fact. "Do you think he remembers you?"

Rick let out a sigh. "Hopefully—, maybe not. I dont know." I brought my other arm up and wiped the seat from my forehead. "Keep an eye out for booby traps. Looks like he's gotten pretty creative so far." Rick paused, looking over at Carl then down at the ground. "He had a son."

I let out a heavy sigh as Carl opened the front door for us. "Do you think hes in there?" Rick looked over at me just as I looked up from the ground. He was about to take a step onto the stairs until I quickly held my leg in front of his. "Wait — you said there could be traps."

Rick knelled down and slowly lifted the mat before him that revealed stakes pointing out of the ground from a hole. I visibly gulped.

"Thanks," Rick stood up straight with a small groan from Morgan's weight.

My teeth clenched together as my back was beginning to hurt, one foot lifting after another until I paused when I noticed a wire. "Shit," I spoke and Rick shoved a large curtain to the side, revealing an axe hanging from the ceiling, a quick gasp escaping my lips. "Good god."

We slowly looked at each other in silence before carefully stepping over the wire. "Carl, watch the wire." Rick instructed.

When we climbed the rest of the stairs, we turned to the first room and dropped him down onto a large cot by the wall. I leaned back with a wince, trying to stretch my muscles before rubbing my neck.

When I turned to face the room, my eyes grew wide when I noticed the amount of weapons and ammunition the man had.

"I showed him that weapons locker last year." Rick confessed.

"And it had all of this in it?" I spoke with shock, looking over at him.

"No, not even half. He's been busy." Rick glanced around the room. I walked away from the bed and kneeled down towards a bench, grabbing a duffle bag and started filling it with guns. Carl stood on the other side and started to do the same.

"No," Rick spoke up, making me and Carl stop our movements to look over at him. "We're going to wait for him to wake up. Make sure hes okay."

I pursued my lips and rubbed the sides of my face before standing up. Carl walked away from us both and into the other room as Rick followed behind after putting a zip-tie around Morgans wrists.

I clicked my tongue and looked around the room, noticing a box of granola bars standing on its own. I raised my eyebrows and reached over, taking only one bar and quickly munching down to cure my hunger.

When Rick and Carl came back into the room, Rick noticed me eating Morgan's snacks and tilted his head to the side. "We're eating his food now?"

"Yeah, well," I ate the last bit of my granola, using my thumb to wipe the corners of my mouth. I shrugged my shoulders and spoke to Rick with a full month. "He's not conscience to stop me."

"I'm going on a run." Carl suddenly spoke, moving towards the door.

Rick lifted his head with a raised eyebrow. "Where?"

Carl slightly shrugged, "I thought maybe the one thing people didn't loot was cribs and there's that baby place that Mom's friend Sara ran. It's just around the corner — "

"Carl-" Rick spoke with a stern voice.

"Dad, it's just around the corner. And there's all those walker traps."

"You're gonna need some help carrying the box." I looked over at Carl, noticing him glance at me in confusion. "What?" I softly shrugged, "if you're gonna get a crib, you have to get the box. It's big and heavy. You're gonna need help carrying the box. You are getting a crib, right?"

He nodded, "that's what I said."

I stood up now and smiled at the boy then turned to Rick. "Then I'll go with him."

Rick stood to his feet and pressed his lips into a tight line before nodding. "Right there, that's the deal. You get into trouble, you holler, okay? I'll hear it from here."

Carl nodded at his father as I picked up my rifle and pulled the strap over my shoulder then followed Carl out.

As we walked the street of the town, a little too fast for my liking, Carl finally spoke. "You dont have to come with me. I can handle it."

I looked around the area then down at Carl, "I told your dad i'd help you."

Carl came to a stop and nodded slightly. "Yeah, okay. Guess we should take care of that." He gestured towards the walker that was stuck against a long wire.

I rolled my head around then pulled out my knife with a nod and walked towards the walker, sticking the knife into its skull then shoving its shoulders as its limp body fell back on the ground. When I turned to speak to Carl, he was quickly cutting around the corner.

My eyebrows furrowed as I chased after him, my hand grabbing his shoulder to turn him around. "What the hell was that about? We're supposed to do this together."

"I want to do this on my own," he replied calmly, walking away from me. I cleaned the knife on my jeans in annoyance before putting it back into the pocket and crossing my arms over my chest. "You just passed the baby place." Carl slowly turned around and I tilted my head in the direction of the shop.

Carl shook his head. "Im getting Judith something else first, okay?"

I took a deep breath, watching him walk away until I smoothly caught up behind him. He stopped in front of a store, using his sleeve to clean the window and peek inside. As he reached for the door knob, I grabbed his hand to stop him, then pulled him away. "Okay, if we're going to be a team, you don't just walk into some random place like that."

He lifted his head up and glared me, "I know what I'm doing and I can take care of myself."

I inhaled slowly, moving my hands to his shoulders. "I don't doubt that you can, Carl. But this is dangerous. You need to think before doing something."

He then quickly shrugged my hands off his shoulders and snapped back. "I just think its none of your business. You barely know me or my dad."

I swallowed hard, placing my hands on my hips. "Pretty cruel thing for you to say when my family saved both of your lives — Remember?" I raised my eyebrow down at him curiously, irritation curling inside my system as if I was talking down to one of my sisters — but then I remembered he was just a kid. "I came out here to help."

"You came out here for common interests." Carl looked away. "We have the same enemy and the same problem. And that's why you're here. That's it. This is important. I'm going to do this. And I know how I can. You can't stop me." As Carl turned, I tightened my jaw before following beside him. "I can't stop you. But you can't stop me from helping you."

Carl and I went back around the corner to grab two of the traps that were already laid out for walkers. Morgan put together two skateboards with two cages that had rats in side.

When I slowly opened the front door to the store, I quickly reached up and grabbed the bell to keep it from making any noise as Carl pushed the two skateboards into the bar.

The walkers in the room started to crowd around the rats as Carl slipped inside, turning to the left and walking down behind a wall that divided the sitting area to the bar on the other side.

I tip toed behind him silently, shutting the door behind us to the bar. Carl started to climb on top of the bar, grabbing a photo from off the wall.

As he was going to climb down, a walker from behind the bar came up and grabbed onto Carls ankle. I yanked out my knife and jabbed it into its head before slowly letting it rest on top of the counter silently.

When I pulled the knife out, we snuck our way outside the bar and made a bee line towards the front door. But before we could reach it, one of the rats ran past my feet and I choked down a gasp as the walkers turned their attention on us.

I then shoved Carl back as we started walking backwards, slipping my knife back into its pocket then pulling out rifle to shoot the walker making its way towards us.

"Sienna!" Carl called out, making me turn around on my heels and shoot the walker that came out of the kitchen.

"Go! Run!" I told Carl as the both of us ran to the other side of the room, running out of the bar until Carl paused.

"Wait!" I shut the door behind us, pressing my back against it hard as Carl sighed. I noticed the picture frame was no longer in his hands and shot him a hard look. "I have to go back!"

I ran my fingers through my hair to push it back before nodding my head. "Okay—okay, I'll get it. But god damn it, just stay right here!"

Carl nodded anxiously as I moved away from the door, making my way towards the back and heading inside again to retrieve the dropped picture frame.

When I returned, Carl was waiting nervously by the front door, only to let out a sigh when I waved the picture frame. "Don't ever say I didn't do anything for you."

He smiled as I handed it to him, his thumbs caressing the edges. "I just thought Judith would like to see what her mom looked like. Thank you.."

I pursed my lips, my gaze squinting past the sun while I lifted my hand to keep the sunshine out of my face. "See what a little act of kindness does for someone?"

He didn't say anything but nod his head — a knowing frown lingering on his lips.

Willing to ease the tension, I played kicked his but with the side of my foot, earning a soft groan with a mixture of laughter in response.

"Why didn't you just tell me?" I prodded gently.

Carl sighed, "it was just something I wanted to be able to do on my own. This is all I have left of her."

I gently placed on a hand on his shoulder, giving him a small squeeze while I nod my head. "Come on."

After searching the baby store for a regular bed for Judith, clothing, and food, we headed back to Morgan's place where Rick handed me a bag of ammo and guns.

I shrugged it onto my shoulders as Rick to place where Carl was carrying the crib. As the three of us walked slowly through the center of town, I noticed Morgan strapping down walkers onto a gurney.

"Will he be okay?" I asked softly, looking over at Rick.

"No," he sighed.

We continued to walk further until Carl stopped in his tracks and turned towards Morgan. Rick and I paused while gripping onto the crib.

"Hey, Morgan," he called out. He stopped what he was doing and looked over at Carl. "I had to shoot you. You know I had to right? Im sorry."

Morgan eyed him closely before speaking, "don't ever be sorry boy." He spoke out towards Carl before turning his focus back onto his project.

When we got back to the car, Rick was helping me put everything into the trunk as Carl was already in the back seat. Rick placed his hand over the trunk door and turned to face me. "Thank you for going with him."

Just as I dropped the gun bag into the trunk, I looked up at him and smiled a bit. "You don't have to thank me. I'm glad I could do it." When Rick shut the trunk door, I looked back at Carl to see him looking at the picture again.