Ch.70

It took us three days to get around Woodbury and the other survivor groups when they turned hostile, fending them off with the RV's weapons and making it around to Fort Benning and most of that was making damned sure no one was following us. As for the military fort, it was overrun and it took another three days to clear it out with the four of us working in shifts to kill the walkers silently.

When it was clear outside, we went in and they piled the bodies, took the weapons, ammo and a supply truck. I cleared the inside alone, floor by floor, building by building. When I cleared the first building, I came out and told them to take everything they think is useful from meds to food, weapons and everything in between in it while I cleared the others. Eighteen buildings plus cars, and the parking lot, I cleared them all while they took what they could find.

It was exhausting and repetitive work for them, but I didn't get tired easily, not physically at least. I was clearing buildings even while they were locked and sleeping in the RV at night. When I finished, there were two supply trucks full, the RV and a transportation flatbed with two M60 Patten tanks on it. Gas cans and two refueling tanks were on trailers hooked to the military supply trucks.

From medicine to food, weapons and everything, we emptied the fort out of all it had including the empty spent brass shell casings. I drove the flat bed, Amy was in the RV and Andrea and T-Dog were in the supply trucks. It took us the better part of the rest of the two weeks to get back after we lit the mountainous pyres of dead bodies on fire and chained the doors shut with signs that read empty, no dead and no supplies.

We made it to the highway and barely made it before Rick and the group were ready to move on. When they saw what we brought, they were relieved, especially for the gas. There was literally two twenty foot trailers full of gas cans and two refueling tanks that were full. I hopped out, not even pretending to be dead tired and asked if they found a place to put everything and hunker down for the winter.

They shook their heads and I sighed. "I saw a back path we can conceal the flatbed, but it's not going to be easy to retrieve for anyone if walkers overrun it. Y'all take what supplies you can fit in the vehicles and refill your gas. Once we have what we need, we'll take it slow, circle the area and survive on what we can find until we can find a place to put our stash safely."

Rick asked. "What if someone comes and finds it?"

I shook my head. "It's well concealed, trust me. I'll set traps and make sure it stays that way. We need to focus on conserving our supplies and finding a place or outlasting the coming winter."

Rick agreed slowly and Hershel said he deferred to Rick as the leader so I made it clear to Rick I wouldn't be doing the same. He agreed and we loaded everything up, leaving the bulk of our supplies hidden on a back road I covered in fallen trees and a spell to keep anyone from coming upon it by accident. The thick foliage did the rest and we left, having no other choice.

After three months, the area we circled was picked clean by us and with no other choice besides starving, I took off on Daryl's motorcycle one day, coming back with a horrible yet perfect place, the prison. I told them about it and how we could seal off the yard and set the supplies there and rest before we took the prison itself. I told Rick about the broken wall and that I could fix it and more, reinforce it and with the tanks, defend the place.

I told them we could defend and sleep in the cell blocks, turn the yard into a crop garden and use the guard towers as lookouts. I tossed Daryl the keys and grunted. "It's two miles away from where we left the main supplies and the only thing I can think of at this point besides capitulating to the other groups and likely getting killed while the women are passed around."

The group grimaced and he nodded, knowing I was telling it like it is. He asked what the play was when we got there since it was my find. I told him how we'd go in with swords and crossbows, clear them out, keep them from grouping together and sealing the gate to the prison itself. He said it was similar to what he was thinking so we got to work.

Twenty minutes later the cars, RV and the flatbed with the supply trucks rolled into the cleared yard. We piled the bodies and sealed off the outside gates while I went in alone, telling them that it was faster, easier and I didn't have anyone to trip me up if I had to haul ass. T-Dog called me crazy and I shrugged before getting it done. I cleared out the inner yard of walkers, killing the body armored ones and sealing it all up before moving inwards.

I used my senses, a flashlight and flares where need be to clear each cell block out. I sealed off the broken wall area and made sure nothing was getting in behind us. After that, I came back out and told the group. "We've got a problem."

Andrea asked. "Horde?"

I shook my head. "No, the walkers are all dead, but some inmates have been sealed in the cafeteria and one has a pistol. I don't know their supply status, but there aren't more than a handful."

I turned to Rick. "The other issue is that the medical room is covered in a mess that'll take weeks to disinfect if you're expecting to have the baby there. On the bright side, I can repair the boiler and generators to restore full power to the prison so we'll have lights within a day or two, but I'm not dealing with inmates who haven't seen a woman in months or years depending on their crimes and considering this is a maximum security prison, it can't be shop lifting."

Rick nodded and Daryl spoke up. "We'll handle it. Amy says you haven't slept in nearly a week. I don't need a twitchy finger to give me an arrow in the ass nohow."

I grunted. "In that case the sealed off area leads to the broken wall. The rest is dead walkers in cells or empty ones. I double checked on my way out so feel free to toss the walkers on the empty supply truck and dump them elsewhere to burn. I'm gonna work on that sleep idea."

Andrea asked if I needed a hand with that and I wrapped an arm around her waist. "Could be I need two."

Amy volunteered and we went into the RV, showering and enjoying each other before I passed out, exhausted. Amy had been wrong, I hadn't slept in more than a month and even with my healing that wasn't a good thing. I was out for the rest of the day and night before waking up groggy. Amy was there, telling me Andrea and the rest were dumping the dead ten miles down the highway and planned to burn them.

She told me they unloaded the tanks and used the flat bed with the trucks and trailers to make it quicker, but there was a hell of a lot of walkers to dump. I grunted. "If they come back for more before they burn them, tell them to load up the flatbed with vehicles on the return trips. I can use the metal and reinforce the wall as I rebuild it. Tell Rick I need to speak with him when they're done."

Amy nodded before asking if I wanted breakfast or if I wanted her before breakfast. I smiled and she sat on the edge of the table in her panties, sliding them over and telling me she was all mine to feast on because I deserved it for this. Feast I did and she barely made it to asking for the cars and vehicles. I washed up before making some MRE grits and Salisbury steak for a semi edible meal.

Andrea told me the prisoners were out, but they wanted to join up with us. I went to the boiler room, killed the one dumb ass who tried to use it to force us to capitulate to them and killed his lover when he tried to get revenge. That left the last of them to Rick to deal with while I took the gun the prisoner had. I got to work repairing and restoring power and heat to the prison.

It took the better part of a week to do so and once it was up, I had to disable the bells and alarms which wasn't that hard. I had a veritable junkyard of vehicles outside by the time I was done inside. I'd requested Rick to have his people get concrete mix and mortar for the wall repairs. They'd brought me all they could find which was more than enough so while they cleaned the fields and planted crops, settling in, I repaired the walls and made them far harder to break down.