⌜ chapter thirteen ⌟

"We're moving out, leaving the quarry." Rick says into his walkie-talkie. "If you heard me yesterday, you may be coming here. If you are, we'll be gone by the time you arrive. I'm leaving a note and map behind for you taped to a red car so you can follow our trail. We're heading to the C.D.C. If there's anything left, it's got to be there, don't you think? Morgan... I hope you were right about that place. I need you to be." He looks up at MJ as they wait, but nothing comes through the walkie. She sighs as he turns it off.

"Come on." She motions with her head, and they go back down to the others and get ready to leave. They all gather around the cars to talk before heading out.

"Everybody listen up, those of you with C.B.'s, we're gonna be on channel forty. Let's keep the chatter down, okay?" Shane says as he looks around. "Now you got a problem, don't have a C.B., can't get a signal, or anything at all, you're gonna hit your horn one time. That'll stop the caravan. Any questions?" He asks as he looks around.

"We're, uh..." Morales starts. "We're not going."

"We have family in Birmingham." His wife says. "We want to be with our people."

"You go on your own, you won't have anyone to watch your back." Shane tells them.

"We'll take the chance." Morales says. "I got to do what's best for my family."

"You sure?" Rick asks him.

"We talked about it. We're sure."

"Alright." He looks at Shane, and the two kneel down to go through their weapon's bag.

They give Morales a gun and some ammo, much to Daryl's annoyance. Then they all say their goodbyes. Carl and Sophia start crying as they hug Morales' kids and say goodbye.

"Channel forty, if you change your minds." Rick tells him, and Morales nods before they walk away from the group to get in their car.

"What makes you think our odds are any better?" Shane asks his friend. "Come on. Let's go." He says, and they all pile into the cars.

Dale's driving the RV at the head of the caravan. He's got Glenn in the passenger seat, and Jacqui and Jim in the back. Rick's driving another car with Lori, Carl, Sophia, and Carol. Shane's driving his Jeep and he has Jess with him. T-Dog's in a truck with Andrea, and Daryl's driving his own truck with MJ and Jack with him. His motorcycle's in the truck bed behind them.

"MJ?" Jack turns his head to look at her. She's sitting between the two boys.

"Hm?" Her head's leaning against the top of the seat and her eyes are closed.

"What was that poem that you told me before, the one you said reminded you of heaven and hell?" He asks her.

"It's called Fire and Ice." She tells him.

"How does it go again?"

"I don't think Daryl wants to hear it, bud."

"When has that kept you quiet before?" Daryl asks, not looking at her. "Kid wants to hear it, don't let me stop you."

She sighs as she lifts her head and looks out the front windshield. "Some say the world will end in fire, some say in ice. From what I've tasted of desire, I hold with those who favor fire. But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate to know that for destruction ice is also great and would suffice." She recites the poem.

"Hell would be fire?" Jack asks, and she nods. "And heaven would be ice?"

"That's my interpretation, but it's just a poem, Jack."

"Everyone keeps saying that the world is over." He looks at her again. "Who do you think did this? Heaven or hell?"

The blonde takes a deep breath as she looks over at him, but she doesn't say anything. She doesn't have an answer to his question because she has no idea who's to blame for what's happening to them. Maybe both... Maybe neither.

Daryl glances at them before turning his attention back to the road. Their ride is quiet until they eventually​ come to a stop.

Dale's having trouble with the RV, and they're trying to figure out what to do. MJ's leaning against a car when Jacqui comes rushing out of the RV.

"Y'all, Jim — it's bad." She tells them. "I don't think he can take any more." She says and then goes back inside.

"Hey, Rick, you want to hold down the fort?" Shane asks. "I'll drive ahead, see what I can bring back."

"Yeah, I'll come with you too and I'll back you up." T-Dog tells him.

"Y'all keep your eyes open now. We'll be right back." He says, and the two of them leave.

Rick goes to talk to Jim and when he comes back out, he tells the others that Jim told him to leave him here. "It's what he said he wants." He says, and he looks at MJ. Shane and T-Dog are back already.

"And he's lucid?" Carol asks.

"He seems to be. I would say yes." He nods.

"Back in the camp when I said Daryl might be right and you shut me down..." Dale starts, earning the attention of the entire group. "You misunderstood. I would never go along with callously killing a man. I was just gonna suggest that we ask Jim what he wants. And I think we have an answer."

"We just leave him here?" Shane asks. "We take off? Man, I'm not sure I could live with that."

"It's what he's asking us to do." MJ says, and they look at her. "Daryl would have us kill him if he turned. Jim wants us to leave him. Who are we exactly to tell him no here?"

Rick nods as he looks at MJ. "She's right."

"We don't have to like it. But we should respect his wishes." She says, and Shane nods, reluctantly agreeing.

Rick and Shane go into the RV and they carry Jim out. They take him up into the shade and lean him against a tree. MJ and Jack don't go up with the others to say goodbye, they didn't really know him.

After they each say goodbye, the others all get back into the cars and leave him there, resting against the tree trunk in the shade. Jack leans against MJ, and she rests her head on his.

"Did you know him well?" She asks Daryl, and he glances at her.

"Well enough." He says. "He was a good guy."

"I'm sorry." She says as she looks over at him. "And I know that what I say probably isn't worth a damn to you, but I am sorry that we didn't get back to Merle in time."

He clears his throat, looking straight ahead at the road. "Sorry about your family." Is all he says in return. She nods and leans her head against Jack's again.

They finally make it to the CDC, and everyone gets out of their respective cars to see what's out there. There are dead bodies all over the place and flies buzzing around them. Some of them in the group are coughing because of the smell.

"Alright, everybody keep moving." Shane tells them. "Go on. Stay quiet. Let's go."

MJ's got her angel blade in one hand and she's holding onto Jack's with her other. All of the men — with the exception of Dale — are armed and ready to shoot if necessary. They all navigate through the bodies and head toward the large building​.

They make it to the front, and there are large roll-up doors that are shut. Shane and Rick try to open them, but it doesn't work. MJ's keeping an eye on their surroundings, as it's getting darker and darker by the second.

"There's nobody here." T-Dog says.

"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick questions.

"Walkers!" MJ calls, and the kids start freaking out. Carl hugs Lori as Sophia clings to Carol. Jack hides behind MJ as Daryl kills the walker moving toward them.

"You led us into a graveyard!" Daryl yells as he looks at Rick.

"He made a call." Dale says as Shane moves to keep Daryl away from Rick.

"It was the wrong damn call!"

"I didn't see you making any!" MJ yells before telling Jack to stay with​ Jessica.

Shane pushes Daryl back and then turns around. "Rick, this is a dead end." He says.

MJ runs over and pulls Daryl's arrow out of the walker. She uses her angel blade to kill another and then heads back to the rest of the group.

"Where are we gonna go?" Carol asks.

"She's right. We can't be this close to the city after dark." Lori says as MJ hands Daryl his arrow.

"Fort Benning, Rick — still an option." Shane says, and MJ goes to stand beside Rick.

"On what?" Andrea asks. "No food, no fuel. That's a hundred miles."

"You think someone's in there?" MJ asks, and Rick looks at her.

"Yeah, I do." He nods.

"Good enough for me." She walks over to the shutter and starts banging on it. "Open the damn door!" She yells as she looks into the camera above them. "Open it!"

"This place is dead." Shane says as he walks up behind her. "We need to go."

"Open the door, you son of a bitch!" She yells. "We've got kids out here and we need help! We don't have any food or gas to get anywhere! Open up! Open the door! If you don't, you're killing us!"

The others are all yelling at her to leave, but she won't listen. Lori runs over and grabs her husband as Shane wraps his arm around MJ's waist.

"Ah! My side! My side!" She yells, and he lets go of her. She falls to the ground and starts gasping as she holds it. He didn't mean to hurt her, he had completely forgotten that she was injured. He was just trying to get her to go with them so that they didn't leave her behind.

"Get her up!" Daryl yells as he runs over.

"MJ!" Jack tries to run to her, but Jess holds him back.

The door starts to open, and they're blinded by a bright white light. It's almost as bright as the glow that comes from an angel's eyes and mouth when one of them is killed, and MJ can't help but make the association in her head as she shields her eyes.

Daryl gets MJ off of the ground, and she wraps her arm around his neck. His own arm is hooked around her back and he's keeping her standing as they all look at the doorway that's finally fully open.