Lorenzo slipped from Mike's grip like a puppet with its strings cut and collapsed limply to the floor. His voice was hoarse. "I-I'll do it..."
He closed his eyes, refusing to meet anyone's gaze.
Calista listened quietly until he finished. "Good."
Then she turned and left without hesitation.
Leah followed close behind, her final glance at Lorenzo still full of warning.
Carver put away his throwing knife, glanced at Lorenzo sprawled on the floor, gave a cold snort, and followed them out.
Mike spat on the ground, then strode out as well.
The iron door closed again, locking Lorenzo back in the darkness.
Outside the door, Calista instructed Bossie, "Clean Lorenzo's wounds and get him into something cleaner. Make sure he's alive and clear-headed when we set out. Keep a close eye on him. Before we leave, don't let him touch any electronic devices."
"Understood, Calista," Bossie replied steadily.
While Calista and the others were meeting with Lorenzo, another operation was already underway.
Rick stood in front of a small team.
He had changed into a relatively clean sheriff's shirt, his signature Colt Python revolver hanging at his waist, and the fire axe he had borrowed from Shane clenched in his hand.
In front of him, T-Dog gripped a length of rebar sharpened at the tip, Glenn held a crowbar in both hands, and Jacqui carried a machete.
Andrea held a rifle tightly.
It was one of the few firearms their group had, and she had insisted on bringing it.
Last was Oscar, who also carried a machete.
The team members staying behind were busy organizing the cells, sweeping away dust, preparing food, and tending to the livestock.
Jenson, Danny, and the others were patrolling near the perimeter wall to make sure the base stayed secure.
"Everyone," Rick began, his gaze sweeping over the team, "our goal is clear. We're opening a path from Block C to Block B. Calista and the others gave us the walls, but the space inside is something we have to clear for ourselves!"
He saw Glenn swallow hard, saw Jacqui press her lips together, and saw the tension and eagerness in Andrea's eyes.
"Right now, we don't have that kind of skill. But we still have people we need to protect! Every step we take today is to win more living space and a safer future for all of us!"
Rick raised the fire axe, his voice firm and decisive. "Remember, we are family. Trust the people beside you, and watch each other's backs. With our own hands, we're going to clear a path! Move out!"
Rick took a deep breath and led the way toward the entrance of the passage connecting Block C to the deeper parts of the prison.
T-Dog and Glenn followed close behind. Jacqui and Andrea exchanged a look, each seeing encouragement in the other's eyes, then stepped forward after them. Oscar brought up the rear.
The moment they entered the passage, the light dimmed sharply. A thick smell of rot, mold, and dust pressed in on them, almost suffocating.
The flashlight beams looked weak in the drifting dust, barely illuminating the sticky floor beneath their feet and the walls on both sides, which were covered in stains no one wanted to identify.
A heavy pressure settled over everyone at once.
"Keep formation. Move slow," Rick said in a low voice, holding the fire axe across his body.
They had not gone far before the flashlight caught several staggering shadows ahead.
Four walkers in tattered prison uniforms wandered through the darkness, their low groans echoing down the corridor.
"Get ready!" Rick growled. "T-Dog, left one! Glenn, right one! Jacqui, take the middle with me! Andrea, watch the rear and flanks. Shoot if you have to! Oscar, guide us!"
The moment the orders were given, T-Dog let out a low shout and drove the rebar hard into the eye socket of the walker on the left. The walker dropped instantly.
Glenn swung the crowbar at the walker on the right and smashed it into its head.
"Thud!"
With a dull impact, the walker's head snapped to the side, but it did not fall right away. Instead, it kept lunging at him, clawing and snapping.
Glenn's face went pale. He backed up in a panic and nearly stumbled.
Fortunately, Rick finished off the one in front of him in time, then swung the axe back and chopped into the back of the neck of the walker tangled up with Glenn, ending the danger.
Facing the walker in the middle, Jacqui did not rush in recklessly. She waited for it to come close, stepped aside to avoid its grasping hands, and slashed horizontally with her machete.
The sharp blade cut into the walker's neck. It was not enough to take the head off in one blow, but it made the walker lose its balance and fall. She immediately stepped forward and, trembling, drove the finishing strike into its eye socket.
Andrea held the rifle, her finger outside the trigger guard, her breathing rapid.
She saw Glenn's panic and Jacqui's calm, and it tore at her inside.
Andrea desperately wanted to do something, but she was afraid the gunshot would draw even more trouble. She was also afraid she would miss.
All she could do was nervously scan the dim passage ahead and behind them, the muzzle following her gaze, her palms slick with sweat.
After a short burst of chaos, the fight ended. The four walkers were now corpses on the floor.
"You okay, Glenn?" Rick asked.
Glenn was panting hard, fear still lingering on his face, but he nodded. "I-I'm fine. This crowbar's harder to use than I thought."
"You'll get used to it. Aim for the head. Smash or stab," Rick advised with practiced ease.
Jacqui silently wiped the foul blood from her blade.
Andrea let out a breath, but a sense of helplessness still clung to her.
After a brief rest, they continued forward.
The passage twisted and turned, and the darkness and unknown kept pressing down on them.
At an intersection, they ran into their second and far more dangerous test.
Six or seven walkers surged in from different directions. Two of them were relatively fresh, and they moved noticeably faster.
"Watch out!" Rick's pupils tightened as he swung the fire axe toward the front.
The situation fell apart in an instant.
T-Dog and Glenn were each tied up with a walker, while another lone walker was caught up with Oscar.
Jacqui had to face two at once, and one of them was a fresh walker.
She swung her blade to force one back, but the fresh walker was already right in front of her, its rotten claws almost touching her face.
"Andrea!" Rick shouted in the middle of the chaos, his voice urgent.
Andrea saw Jacqui in danger, and her heart nearly stopped.
She could not hesitate anymore.
She snapped the rifle up and, almost by instinct, aimed at the fresh walker's torso and pulled the trigger.
"Bang!"
The gunshot exploded through the enclosed space, deafening.
The bullet's heavy impact knocked the fresh walker staggering backward, buying Jacqui a precious half second.
T-Dog had just dealt with his own walker. His eyes hardened as he seized the opening, sidestepping another walker's lunge, then drove the rebar hard into the fresh walker's leg joint from the side. It lost its balance completely and collapsed, and he quickly finished it off.
The recoil from the shot numbed Andrea's shoulder, but she had no time to care. More growls and footsteps were closing in from farther down the passage.
"Finish them fast! We're getting surrounded!" Rick shouted anxiously as he hacked with all his strength.
After firing once, Andrea's fear seemed to be replaced by a strange excitement.
She raised the rifle again. This time, she worked to steady her breathing and aimed at the head of another ordinary walker.
"Bang!"
Another gunshot rang out.
The bullet grazed the walker's scalp and struck the wall.
...
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