Dead Days: Season 8 Part 20

"If you don't make it. If none of us make it. Then what happens?"

Riley swallowed a lump in his throat. He didn't want to consider that as an option. "We cross that bridge when we come to it."

"We cross it now," Amy said, bow over her back. "We're going into somewhere better armed than us. We're taking a ma.s.sive, ma.s.sive risk."

"We've discussed the plan. We take a few out. We take their weapons. Then we take their home."

"I hate to say it but I can't help but think you're under-thinking things."

"I'm done with thinking," Riley said. "We've got a plan and now we've got to carry the plan out. Trust me."

Amy didn't look so trusting. But she nodded regardless.

Riley went to move when Amy hit him with another bombsh.e.l.l.

"What if Kesha doesn't make it?"

That was a thought Riley couldn't allow to grow too strong. A possibility he couldn't even begin to entertain. He didn't look at Amy when she suggested it. He couldn't. "She will make it."

"But if she doesn't-"

"She will make it."

Riley didn't have to say anything else. He didn't have to say a thing to anyone. He could tell from the tension now cutting through the air that they'd heard him, loud and clear.

"Now we move," he said.

He started his descent down the hill, towards the flat ground before Mattius' camp, still using the trees for cover.

"Rosa, Annabelle, Natasha-you head down to the front just as we head to the back. It's a risk. So you don't have to-"

"We've lost everything as it is," Natasha said, shaking her head and sighing. "If we go down fighting for a good cause then so be it."

Riley nodded at her and half-smiled. "I'm grateful for your help. Truly."

Natasha smiled back. "Not planning on dying anytime soon, though."

He looked back at Siobhan and Carly. "You two position yourselves to pick off as many of their people as you can. Cover us. Cover Rosa, Annabelle, and Natasha. Be vigilant. If it looks like a threat, it probably is."

Carly and Siobhan looked at one another then nodded. "These people killed Chlo," Carly said. "I won't show any mercy, don't worry."

Riley nodded, and then looked back at Amy and Melissa. "You ready?"

Amy's eyes were glazed, like she still wasn't so certain about taking the next step. Melissa looked more certain though, more focused, as she gripped into a replacement bow and arrow she'd been given after snapping the string of her last one. "I'm not totally sure," Amy said. "But I appreciate why you want to do this. Just... just stay on track, Riley. Stay focused. For Kesha's sake. Please."

Riley knew what Amy was referring to. She was worried about his l.u.s.t for revenge. She feared he'd get sidetracked the moment he saw Mattius. And you know, she might just be right to have those concerns.

He smiled at her, tried to put her at ease. "We've got this. All of us. We can do this."

She hesitated a few seconds. Then she nodded back at him. "Okay. Let's go."

She looked at Melissa and half-smiled. Riley could see the care in her eyes. The love.

"You ready for this?" Amy asked her.

Melissa's eyelids twitched. "One-hundred percent." She looked like she had a bone to pick of her own.

Riley looked at all of them. Then he looked down towards Mattius' camp.

He took a deep breath, his skin tingling.

"Then we go," he said.

They made their way down the hill in their separate directions, all towards the same ultimate end-goal.

A few hundred feet away, in the blanket of trees, Ricky watched the group walking down the hill.

He lowered his rifle and lifted his walkie-talkie. He pressed the b.u.t.ton.

"Yeah," he said. "It's me. We've got a problem."

Chapter Two.

When Riley got close to Mattius' camp, he was honestly surprised at just how poorly guarded it was.

The cloud was thickening above, bringing back that ominous feeling he'd experienced just a week ago when the ma.s.s of creatures had descended upon him and Kane, then advanced onto the rest of Amy's group. Their remnants were still around Mattius' place, too. He could smell their flesh and feel it squelching beneath his feet.

He hadn't heard any gunshots or any action at the front of the camp. So Riley had to take that as Mattius' people still didn't know he was here. He got that sense he was being watched, though. That someone was looking at him from afar, just waiting to see what his first step was going to be before launching an attack.

"So we're supposed to just jump over this wall and hope n.o.body notices?"

Riley heard the hesitation in Melissa's voice. He knew how ridiculous his plan sounded. It wasn't the tallest of walls-not compared to how the Manchester Living Zone used to be. But it was still tall enough. Twenty feet high.

There were protrusions coming from the edge of the wall where screws stuck out, providing them with a handy climbing frame.

"And don't ask me to volunteer first," Melissa said. "Don't even think about it."

Riley took a deep breath and looked over his shoulder again. He swore someone was watching him from the trees. He could feel their eyes on him, like this was all just a test. A test of how stupid they were.

But then he ignored his better judgement and looked back at the wall. "I'll go first."

"Are you s-"

"I'm sure."

He didn't stick around to listen to any more of Amy's protestations. Instead, he put his hand on one of those protruding screws and lifted his weight onto it.

It creaked as he shifted his body weight upwards. And for a moment, Riley expected the whole wall to come crumbling down. It wasn't going to be the smoothest climb.

But still, he had no choice. He had to keep on going.

He lifted himself further up the side of the wall, constantly aware that time was limited, and that his ascent wasn't the steadiest.

"You might want to get a move on," Melissa called.

"You might want to keep as quiet as you f.u.c.king can," Riley said, growing irritable. He needed his total focus right now. His absolute composure. And besides, he didn't want to let any of Mattius' people know that he was right here.

He climbed a little higher and he heard something, then. Voices, behind the wall. They didn't sound far away. Right at the other side, perhaps.

And then a sickening doubt filled his body that maybe he wouldn't be able to drop down the other side. That maybe the screws wouldn't be as readily accessible from the other side.

He'd be stuck up here like a sitting duck.

But then the wall creaked and moved a little and suddenly being stuck up here was the least of his concerns.

"Did you hear that?"

He heard the voice behind the fence and it made his stomach sink. He looked down at Amy and Melissa. Nodded at them to lift their bows and arrows, to ready themselves for whatever they had to do. s.h.i.t. He could do with a distraction right now. Wherever Rosa, Annabelle, and Natasha were, they weren't doing an excellent job of distracting Mattius' people.

Riley felt harsh asking them to act as bait. But they'd seemed ready. They'd seemed willing.

As hard as it was to take all this, no doubt nigh-on impossible for Amy, this was life now, and life was full of impossible decisions.

The voices subsided. He heard the footsteps heading further away, like interest in whatever Mattius' people had seen was waning. Riley kept holding on regardless, kept as steady as he could. Amy looked up at him, as did Melissa.

When enough time had pa.s.sed-a minute, maybe less considering how torturous a minute it was-Riley started climbing again.

He eased higher up. He was so close to the top now. Just a few more screws to grab on to. Just a few more to- He grabbed onto the next screw.

It slipped from his hand.

He fell back, felt his back shifting out away from the wall. He clung on with his right hand, swinging his left hand to try and regain his balance.

He made a push for the next screw. This one wobbled too. He was certain he was going to fall.

And then his grip steadied and he was holding on.

His heart pounded. His breathing was rapid. If one thing was for certain, it was that Amy and Melissa weren't going to get up here easily.

But Riley knew that. He'd suspected it all along.

This was his mission.

As long as they defended themselves, that was the main thing.

Riley clutched for the top of the wall, the rusty metal cutting into his skin. Now would be a good time for a teta.n.u.s jab. He dragged himself higher up, so close to the top.

When he poked his head over, he saw Mattius' camp.

It was empty, mostly.

But the thing that caught his eye was over by the gate.

Rosa, Annabelle, Natasha.

All of them were on their knees.

All of their bows were in front of them, snapped.

They were surrounded by a group of people. Twenty, by Riley's immediate estimations.

All of those people were pointing guns at Rosa, Annabelle, and Natasha's heads.

"Riley!" Mattius called. He was speaking through a megaphone. "What a delight to finally see you again, face to face."

Riley felt the hate filling his system. He felt the rage building up.

So much so that he didn't even notice the small group of creatures approaching Amy and Melissa from the woods behind.

"Anyway," Mattius said, looking at Rosa, Annabelle, and Natasha. "Nice of you to get yourself the best possible view. That's practically IMAX-level s.h.i.t."

"Don't," Riley muttered.

Mattius squinted. "What? What's that? I can't hear you from all the way up there."

"I said don't!"

Mattius smiled. "You see, Riley, I've always had problems with my hearing. And that's just got a lot worse since the burns. The burns you gave me.

"But hey. I think I heard you then. I think I heard you loud and clear. 'Don't,' right?"

Riley's teeth gritted against one another. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He couldn't do anything but dangle there and pray. "Please."

"That's what I like to see," Mattius said. "I like to see emotional attachment. 'Cause that just gives me more to take away!"

He tilted his head at the three people standing behind Rosa, Annabelle, and Natasha.

One moment, they were on their knees.

The next, a bang.