C H A P T E R  13

❛ tension rising ❜

QUINN

      'IT'S REAL, ALL OF IT, YOU'VE BEEN OUT THERE for a long time and while you were the Governor was doing this.'

Quinn was barely paying attention to the woman showing them around. She was too busy taking in all the things happening around her. The people walking around like the world hadn't ended, the small market in the middle of the street. It was perfect, too perfect, nothing was perfect anymore in this world and that worried Quinn.

'How many people do you have here?' Andrea asked their guide.

'73,' she answered and then nodded at a woman with a large belly. Quinn swallowed uneasily looking at the pregnant woman. She simply couldn't imagine having to carry life inside of you when everything around you was dead. 'Eileen is about to pop so her kid will make it 74. It's still a work in progress but Rome wasn't built in a day.'

'That's a bold comparison,' Andrea said.

'I think we've earned it,' the woman continued. 'The walls haven't been breached in well over a month. We haven't suffered a casualty on the inside since early winter.'

'How's that possible?' Quinn asked, feeling herself growing more suspicious with every bit of perfection she saw and judging by the tense form of Michonne beside her, she felt the same way.

'Our Governor has a strict curfew. Nobody out after dark, noise and light kept to a minimum. Armed guards on the fence and patrolling the perimeter to keep the biters away.'

'I saw the patrols on our way in last night,' Andrea said, taking a stand in front of their guide to force her to a halt. 'They had a dead one strung up like an ornament.'

'I won't make excuses,' the woman replied, 'those men put their lives on the line everyday to protect this town. They've lost more than a few friends out there. Everybody copes with it in their own way, but I'll bring it to the Governor's attention.' And with those words she walked away.

Everybody had lost somebody at this point, that wasn't an excuse to kill those dead corpses as some sort of sport.

Andrea turned to look at Michonne, who gave a slight shake of her head. Then she turned to Quinn, who was leaning against a street lantern so she didn't have to put any weight on her leg but she didn't have any words of comfort for Andrea either. There was something very wrong about this place and she wouldn't be able to find peace until she'd figured it out.

A sigh left Andrea's lips as she nodded, silently agreeing with their unspoken distrust. Then she offered Quinn her arm as they continued on their way to the Governor's house. They'd been invited to have breakfast with him. There were a thousand things Quinn would rather be doing but it was an opportunity to get to know the man better and so she didn't complain.

They walked to the house their guide had pointed out earlier belonged to the Governor and knocked on the door. It took a few seconds before the door opened and he appeared. 'Goodmorning,' he said, offering them that empty smile of his.

'Morning.' Andrea was the only one to reply.

'Please,' he said, opening the door wider so they could enter. 'Come in.'

The smell of freshly baked eggs greeted them as they made their way inside. It was both delicious and strange at the same time. She couldn't remember the last time she had eggs for breakfast. She'd gotten used to cold beans and moldy bread. But that wasn't even the strangest thing.

At the table sat a man in a white suit, offering them an awkward smile as they took a seat beside him.He had a nervous gleam in his eyes and round glasses resting on his nose. The suit looked so ridiculous that Quinn had to suppress the urge to laugh.

'Eight months,' the Governor said as he joined them at the table and put some eggs on Andrea's plate. 'It's impressive you girls lasted that long out there.'

'Because we're women?' Andrea questioned.

The Governor stopped his movements for a second before managing to gather himself. 'Because you were alone.'

'We had each other,' Andrea said.

'Three against the world,' his tone was mocking as he moved to Michonne's plate and to put some eggs on it as well. 'Slim odds.'

'We managed,' Andrea told him, grabbing her fork.

'Well, we're impressed,' he replied, moving to give Quinn some eggs as well. 'Must be hard, wondering what will happen every morning when you wake up. Wondering that if you die, someone will be smart enough to put you down, or if you'll be forever left to wonder.'

Quinn reached for one of the apples on the table, starting to cut it slow and precise. She wasn't even really listening to whatever bullshit came out of his mouth. She couldn't care less about his thoughts on their situation. All she truly wanted to do was to sleep, and the thought of eating made her feel sick but knowing that if she didn't eat she would only feel worse made her force herself to take a bite anyway.

'Do you think they remember who they were, after they turn?' The strange man on her right suddenly asked.

Andrea shook her head. 'I don't think about it.'

'Milton believes there might be some trace left in them of who they were. Still trapped inside,' The Governor broke the awkward silence that had followed.

'Like an echo,' the man, Milton, said. 'Surely it must've crossed your mind.'

'If you want to survive, you can't afford to think like that,' Quinn said.

'So, you just kill it,' Milton continued, 'I only say "it" because no one here likes to refer to them as "him" or "her".' He coughed when no one responded and then turned to look at Michonne. 'The two you had, in chains, who were they?'

Again a silence fell.

'The way you controlled them, almost to your benefit. You did know them, didn't you?'

Quinn wished the man would stop talking. The way Michonne's face was drawn into an angry frown indicated that if he didn't stop asking questions soon she would push her fork into his hand.

The silence that followed felt heavy as Michonne flat out refused to talk about her dead companions.

'Let them eat,' the Governor broke the silence once again.

'My apologies,' Milton said before moving his attention back to his plate.

Quinn put another piece of apple into her mouth, staring at the man next to her and wondering if he was just curious, or plain stupid.

'So, what you have here, you expect it to hold?' Andrea asked. 'What if a herd comes through?'

'It will hold,' the Governor said.

'What's your secret?' Andrea pressed.

'Really big walls,' the Governor said, a small smile playing on his lips.

Quinn exchanged a look with Michonne and she knew the woman felt the same way as she did. They needed to get out of here, as soon as possible. Better out there at risk, than safe with people she didn't trust.

The Governor must have noticed their sceptical looks because he put his fork down and looked at them. 'The real secret is what goes on within these walls. It's about getting back to who we were, who we really are and not just waiting to be saved.' His blue eyes then turned to Andrea, looking at her with a certain expression on his face that Quinn couldn't quite place, but made her sick to her stomach all the same. 'Now the people here have homes, medical care, their kids go to school. They all have jobs to do. It's a sense of purpose. We're a community.'

'With a lot of guns and ammunition,' Milton added.

'Never hurts,' the Governor said.

'And really big walls,' Andrea said, her lips drawn into a mocking smile before taking a bite of the eggs he had given her.

'And men willing to risk everything to defend them,' the Governor added, his gaze intensifying as his eyes lingered on Andrea.

Quinn felt a shiver crawl down her spine. That look in his eyes took her back to that dark parking lot, almost two years ago. To the burning eyes of the Magician right before he was about to have his way with her. Looking back to her plate all her hunger had suddenly disappeared and she felt so incredibly tired.

A sudden knock on the door made her heart jump into her throat. She was on edge, bound as tight as a wire and wished for nothing more than sleep.

The Governor mumbled an "excuse me", before standing up and making his way to the door.

Quinn left her gaze on him as he opened the door. The man she had seen earlier with a bow whispered something in his ear, making the Governor nod before sending him away. Then he turned back to the people at the table. 'Well, sorry to cut breakfast short.'

Michonne stood up, pushing her chair back. 'We want our weapons.'

'You can have them, and some food if you like, when you leave,' the Governor said. 'But you should relax, get your strength back. Have a look around, who knows? Might like what you see.'

Quinn couldn't help but notice the way his eyes trailed to Andrea upon saying those words, the same kind of hunger appearing in his eyes as before. Andrea looked away, not seeming entirely displeased by it. She scoffed and got to her feet, though not before taking the rest of her apple in her hand.

Andrea was quick to stand up and offer Quinn her arm again. She wanted to slap it away but knew her leg wouldn't heal if she refused to give it rest and so she let herself be guided out of there. Michonne followed them closely, though not without a glare at the Governor.

'I don't trust him,' Michonne said as soon as they had left his apartment.

'Why not?' Andrea asked. 'Have you ever trusted anybody?'

Quinn thought she could notice genuine hurt in Michonne's eyes at that question. 'Yeah.'

'Then give this a day or two, that's all I'm asking,' Andrea said.

'I'm not giving someone who reminds me of my father "a day or two",' Quinn snapped, immediately wanting to take the words back after they left her lips.

Andrea stopped in her tracks, forcing Quinn to come to a halt as well. 'Was he that bad?' she asked quietly.

'Yeah,' she said, not sure if she should say more.

Silence fell between the three of them. She kept her eyes focused on the ground, her stomach aching by the thought of seeing disappointment on their faces. 'I-I guess I just...' she found herself at a loss for words, looking back up at the two women she called friends. The first two real friends she ever had. And she felt surprised upon seeing their expressions. There wasn't a single hint of judgement in either one of their expressions. Just surprise, mixed with maybe a hint of concern.

'My mother died when I was born,' Quinn said, swallowing heavily when she knew that she had to tell them the truth. 'My father blamed me for it, used his fists to let me know.'

Andrea looked like she was about to reach out and put her hand on Quinn's shoulder but she stopped herself at the very last moment.

When she didn't continue, Andrea cleared her throat, obviously uncertain about what to say next but trying anyway. 'And the Governor reminds you of him?'

Quinn took a shaky breath before nodding. It may sound absolutely ridiculous to them, but they had no idea how dark Nick's eyes would turn whenever he looked at her. How angry he could get when things didn't go his way. The constant tension that seemed to follow him wherever he went, almost as if he could explode at any given moment.

'We really need to get our shit together,' Andrea mumbled.

'My shit never stopped being together,' Michonne replied.

The blond woman raised her eyebrows. 'Didn't look that way when Milton asked you about the walkers. It surprised me you didn't put a fork in his eye.'

'It's none of his damn business,' Michonne snapped.

Quinn took a small breath of relief when they continued their way down the street. The bomb of her past hadn't left as big of an impact as she had expected. In fact, the two women almost seemed relieved, like it was suddenly clear why she always looked so guarded, or why her arms were covered in small scars that would never fade.

'Guess it's none of mine either,' Andrea said.

Both Quinn and Michonne frowned at her words.

'Seven months, all we've been through, I still feel like I hardly know you,' she pointed at Quinn. 'Quinn finally trusted us enough to tell us about her past. Why don't you?'

Michonne didn't reply, her brown eyes filled with a silent plea to stop talking, her entire body tensed as she placed her hands on her hips.

Quinn had never felt the need to know more about Michonne, she trusted the silent and guarded woman from the moment she'd saved her life. She didn't want the fact that she shared something about her past to put any pressure on Michonne to do the same.

'Come on, you know everything about me,' Andrea pressed. 'Those walkers were with us all winter long, 'protecting us and you took them out without any hesitation. That-'

'Was easier than you think,' Michonne finally spoke. Her voice heavy. Her eyes hard.

Quinn inhaled deeply, shook her head at Andrea and walked away, needing a moment alone. With her aching leg, however, she didn't get very far and was forced to take a break on one of the benches that stood on the sidewalk of the busy street.

Leaning back she let her eyes wander over her surroundings, anything to distract her from the strange feeling that Andrea had just broken something fragile in their so carefully builded trust. Her chest tightened at the sight of all these people, alive and not hurt in the slightest. It made her jealous to notice they had been fine here all winter while they had been out there fighting for their lives.

After the long night of sleep she just had, she felt a lot better. But her bones were still aching and her head still pounding. She had desperately tried to keep away from the doctor, knowing she wouldn't be able to refuse morphine without an excuse for a second time but she had taken her pills this morning. It felt as though she had to swallow a rock, but she'd done it. She knew it was the only way to get better and yet she hated it.

A shadow fell over her, making her turn to look to her right. Michonne stood next to her, her arms crossed over her chest as she narrowed with that ever alert gaze at the street. Then she turned to look at Quinn, tilting her head slightly, silently asking her opinion.

Quinn was fairly sure that Michonne knew what she'd been thinking but voiced her thoughts anyway. 'That Governor guy was right when he said I needed rest.' She fell silent, biting her tongue as she thought about her words. 'But my gut is telling me that something is off. And I always trust my gut,' Quinn finished.

Michonne gave a curt nod before taking a seat next to her. 'Agreed,' she said and for a moment it looked as though she wanted to say more, but commotion at the gate saved her from having to do so.

The gates were opened, three military trucks driving inside. The Governor jumped out of one of them, followed by Merle.

Quinn spotted Andrea in the crowd gathering around the arrival of the vehicles and felt her discomfort return.

Next to her Michonne leaned her arms on her knees as she stared at the scene playing out in front of them with distrust.

The Governor climbed on top of one of the trucks, spreading his arms as though he wanted to give the gathered crowd a hug. 'We brought in four new people yesterday,' he started, his voice carrying over the now quiet street. 'One was a helicopter pilot with a National Garde outfit. Even though he's clinging to life, he told us about his convoy on the highway. His men.' He let a silence fall and for a long moment the only sound to be heard was the chirping of the birds. He knew how to play a crowd and that made him only more dangerous. 'I promised that I'd bring 'em back here alive,' he continued. 'But they didn't have our walls or our fences. The biters got them before we did. These men had trucks and the trucks had weapons, food, medicine. Things we need. Now, we didn't know them but we'll honor their sacrifice by not taking what we have here for granted. Won't be long before dark, so go home and be thankful for what you have. Watch out for each other,' the Governor finished.

Then he climbed down the truck, the crowd slowly separating as he did.

Michonne nudged Quinn's side, making her turn to look at what she had wanted her to see. Andrea had followed the Governor and was now talking to him with a teasing smile on her lips, almost as if flirting with him.

A shaky breath escaped Quinn's lips. 'We really have to leave,' she mumbled.

edited: ✔