<3rd Person Pov>
The meeting ended and only Rick, Shane, Daryl, and Itachi stayed behind. When the last of the others left, Rick closed the door and came back to the table.
"I want to ask your opinion, where should we do it, and how?" he said.
"Shoot him in the shed. No point dragging it out," Shane answered.
"Or the barn," Daryl said. "Somewhere away where others won't see it. But dragging him there will be a pain the way he is now."
Itachi nodded. "The shed would be simpler."
"So who's gonna do it?" Shane asked.
Rick pushed his fingers through his hair. "I will. I brought him here. It's on me to take him out."
"I could make him unable to speak or move," Itachi offered. "Would make it easier on you."
Shane stared at him. "Kinda messed up how natural that sounds comin' from you."
Rick ignored Shane. "He deserves to at least say his last words, if he has any."
"No objections from me," Daryl said.
Shane nodded. "Me as well."
Itachi nodded.
"But what do we do with the body?"
"We don't really know him," Rick said. "Burn it. No one will have the energy to dig a grave in the middle of the night."
The room went quiet after Rick's last words. For a moment, none of us spoke, just the ticking of the clock on the wall.
Then, an engine.
We heard a car rolling slowly, then suddenly speeding off.
Shane's brow furrowed. "What the hell…?" He pushed back from the table and walked to the window.
He leaned closer, squinting through the glass.
"Son of a bitch, someone is driving away with one of our cars."
Then, shouting outside.
We immediately got up and started heading outside to figure out what was happening.
They didn't have to wait long once outside. Amy and Andrea came running towards them from across the yard, both out of breath.
Andrea bent forward, clutching her knees, gasping for air, while Amy stayed upright. Her chest was heaving, but she managed to hold herself steady.
Andrea tried to speak through the broken breaths."D–Dale… car… Randall—"
She couldn't get it out.
Amy stepped in, hurriedly trying to explain.
"We don't know what's happening. We just saw Dale drive up to the shed, carry Randall to the car, and speed off."
The words hit hard.
Shane's face twisted with rage. "Son of a bitch! Get the guns!"
Rick turned sharply to the others rushing over. Glenn, Maggie, and T-Dog had just arrived, confusion written across their faces.
"Tell everyone to get inside the house and arm up," Rick barked. "Dale just took Randall."
Glenn froze. "For real?"
T-Dog grabbed him by the arm, pulling him towards the camp.
"No shit, they wouldn't joke about this."
Maggie rushed past them, already heading for the house.
"I'll tell Daddy!"
Rick looked to the three beside him.
"Shane, Daryl, Itachi, you're with me." He turned towards Andrea and Amy. "Tell everyone else to get inside the house."
"I'll get the car," Daryl said, already moving.
Shane stormed off towards the weapons.
Amy stepped forward slowly, almost uncertain, before slipping her arms around him and pulling him into a hug.
"Just come back safe."
Itachi smiled softly and drew her closer, holding her as if to calm her racing heart. When he finally eased back, his gaze met hers.
"I will."
He pulled away and followed Rick, leaving Amy standing there, watching him go.
By the time he reached the others, Shane was already loading rifles, Daryl tossing spare mags into the backseat. Rick climbed behind the wheel without a word.
The doors slammed shut. Weapons shifted at their sides as the car lurched forward, engine growling as they sped down the dirt road after Dale and Randall.
Rick drove off at full speed, leaving the farm behind, already thinking where Dale could be heading.
"He's gonna try to release him."
Daryl shook his head.
"Not a chance. Kid probably ain't got a single unbroken bone."
Itachi spoke up next.
"Then Dale will try to take him back to his gang."
Rick's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, catching the two in the backseat.
"You know where they're staying?"
Daryl shook his head.
"Not sure. Randall mentioned they planned to stay in the woods for a couple days before hittin' the road again. They might not even be there anymore."
Rick didn't hesitate.
"Then that's where Dale's taking him. Tell me how to get there."
Shane slammed a fist against the door.
"That fuckin' idiot. Doesn't he get he's riskin' all our lives?"
Rick's grip on the wheel tightened.
"In his mind, he's saving one life."
Shane snapped back.
"By risking ours."
Daryl leaned forward from the back seat.
"We need a plan. If they're there, we can't just roll up and ask if they mind givin' back our prisoner."
Rick dragged a hand down his face.
"I know, I know… any ideas?"
Itachi answered calmly.
"A couple."
[Meanwhile – Randall's Camp]
The fire cracked in the middle of the clearing, shadows moving across the rough faces gathered around it. Empty beer cans and torn wrappers littered the ground.
"Hell of a haul today," Vince said, tossing a bag of jerky down beside him. "Gas, ammo, and even a bottle of whiskey. Ain't bad for a day's work."
Tyler smirked, leaning back on his hands. "Not as good as last night, though. Had myself a fine time with that redhead."
Across the fire, Cody scoffed. "Yeah, and you only got her 'cause Travis pussied out."
Travis glared at him. "She was already cold, man."
Tyler chuckled, shaking his head. "Better than nothin'."
A few of the others laughed, the sound mixing with the crackle of the fire.
Then the headlights swept across the trees.
The laughter stopped. Every man stiffened, hands going to rifles and pistols propped at their sides.
"Car," Marcus muttered, already raising his weapon.
The engine grew louder, getting closer by the second.
The men gathered around the fire, grabbing their weapons and aiming at the approaching vehicle.
It rolled to a stop a couple of meters away.
The door creaked open, and Dale stepped out, arms raised high. His face was pale, eyes darting between the muzzles leveled at him.
"Don't shoot! I brought your friend back!" he called out, voice shaking. "I brought Randall back."
"Randall?" Vince stepped closer, rifle steady on Dale.
Marcus barked a laugh. "Go check the car."
Cody walked forward, gun still raised, and leaned to peek into the back seat. He chuckled, looking back at the others.
"He brought the little pedo back. Kid's a bit fucked up, but alive."
"Not bad, old timer," Tyler sneered.
A couple of them rushed over, yanking the door open and dragging Randall out. He hit the ground hard, coughing blood, eyes rolling back as he tried to lift his head.
"Damn, he's really fucked up," Wade muttered.
Randall coughed, weak and broken, his voice barely above a rasp."Please—"
Before he could finish, Marcus stepped up and drove his knife straight into Randall's chest.
Randall slowly lifted his head. Seeing the blade buried in his chest, he reached a trembling hand towards Dale, muttering weakly.
"Help… me…"
Dale went pale, dropping to his ass as Randall's body twitched once, then went still.
Marcus yanked the blade free and wiped it on his jeans.
"We ain't carryin' dead weight. You should be thankin' me instead."
"God… no—" Dale scrambled back toward the car, but a shot rang out. His leg gave out, blood spilling as he dropped to the ground. He screamed, clutching at the wound, rolling in the dirt.
Vince stepped up, grinning down at him.
"Where you think you're goin', old man? We got some questions for you."
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🧪 Author's Note:
Thank you all so much for the support — over 500+ power stones!
This one's a little shorter. I didn't want to break the next chapter into two parts and leave you hanging, and I also wanted enough time to try and finish Chapter 40 tomorrow.
Hope you enjoyed this one! Let me know what you thought of the chapter and the direction the story is heading.
Thanks again for reading 🖤