Rick rubbed his aching temples and looked around the room. "Calista and the others have left to handle their big mission. This place is completely in our hands now."
He paused, looking at the familiar faces around him. "From now on, this prison is our new home. It's a place we have to defend and build with our own hands."
Seeing everyone nod in agreement, Rick continued, "We can't sit around and wait. We can't rely on the walls alone. We need more space, better facilities, and stronger defenses. That means the cleanup can't stop, and we need to move faster."
He began assigning tasks quickly.
"Cleanup team. Glenn, Maggie, T-Dog, Jacqui, Andrea, and me." He looked at each of them. "Our job is to keep pushing deeper into Block B. The goal is to clear at least thirty cells that are safe to live in and search any warehouses and offices that might have supplies. Safety comes first. If you run into a large horde, don't try to fight it head-on. Pull back immediately."
"Defense team." Rick turned to Oscar, Axel, and Big Guy. "You three know this place best. Oscar will lead, Axel will help with planning, and Big Guy will handle the heavy work.
"Check all the barbed wire, especially the side near the woods. Try to fix part of the lighting system so at least the key passageways have light at night. See if you can find a backup generator or restore power to some areas."
"Watch and patrol team." He looked at Dale, Otis, Jimmy, and Carol. "Dale, you've got the most experience, so you'll coordinate. The four of you will take turns on the watchtower and run scheduled patrols inside the prison. If anything seems wrong, sound the alarm immediately. Carol."
He looked specifically at the woman who was beginning to find her courage. "You'll stay with Dale for now and learn the routine."
Carol quickly glanced up at Rick, her eyes bright. "Okay!"
"Logistics team." Finally, he turned to Lori, Beth, Patricia, and Hershel. "Lori, you, Beth, and Patricia will manage and distribute the supplies. Make sure everyone's food and daily necessities are organized. Hershel, the medical side and the livestock are in your hands."
The assignments were clear, and everyone had their role.
...
Block B was dark, damp, and foul enough to make their heads ache.
Rick and Glenn took the lead, with Maggie close behind Glenn.
T-Dog and Jacqui guarded the left and right, while Andrea had somehow already climbed onto a pile of broken crates nearby and set up her rifle.
"Movement on the left!" Rick suddenly lowered his voice and pointed to the side.
Four walkers in ragged prison uniforms staggered out from behind a broken door.
The group had already gained some experience dealing with walkers.
Rick stopped the first one.
T-Dog charged toward the one on the left with a steel bar in hand.
Jacqui did not hesitate either, swinging her machete at the one on the right.
Glenn and Maggie faced the one in the back.
The walker lunged at them with its half-rotted mouth open. Glenn swung his crowbar and slammed it hard into the walker's shoulder.
The walker only staggered. It did not stop, its claws reaching straight for Glenn's face.
"Glenn!" Maggie cried out. Without thinking, she drove her pitchfork into the walker's neck with a wet stab and forced it against the wall beside her.
The walker's stinking mouth was only inches from her face, its cloudy eyes fixed on her.
Glenn's heart nearly jumped out of his chest.
He scrambled up from the ground, circled to the side, aimed the pointed end of the crowbar at the walker's gaping mouth, and shoved it in with all his strength.
"Gah!"
Glenn roared until he felt the crowbar punch through the walker's throat.
The walker finally stopped moving.
Glenn and Maggie leaned against the wall, gasping for breath. After that close call, the two of them were standing especially close.
"Maggie, are you... are you okay?" Glenn asked between breaths, his eyes locked on her, terrified she might be hurt.
"I'm fine." Maggie shook her head, though her voice still trembled a little.
She let go of the pitchfork, shook out her numb arm, then looked up at him and forced a small smile. "Is your hand okay?"
Only then did Glenn realize the web of his hand was aching from the impact. He grimaced and flexed his wrist. "It's fine. I'm not hurt."
Maggie quickly squeezed his hand, then let go as if she had been burned and turned to help T-Dog and the others.
Glenn watched her back, a faint sweetness rising in his chest. He stood there dumbly for two seconds before hurrying after her.
Andrea had been watching the situation below through her scope the entire time.
When Maggie was in danger just now, Glenn had blocked her line of sight, so she could not fire. Fortunately, Glenn had reacted quickly.
Andrea steadied herself again and aimed at a walker about to pounce on Jacqui.
"Bang!"
A gunshot rang out, and the walker's head burst open.
Jacqui looked back at her and, for once, gave her a thumbs-up.
Andrea said nothing. The corner of her mouth lifted slightly before she continued searching for her next target.
She realized that watching a target fall inside her sights, that feeling of taking down a walker, was much better than hiding in the back, scared out of her mind.
Meanwhile, outside by the perimeter wall, the prisoner repair team was working in full swing.
Big Guy had stripped to the waist, sweat running down his skin as he huffed and carried a steel plate over, setting it exactly where Oscar pointed.
Axel climbed up and down the barbed wire fence with a pair of pliers in hand, his mouth still running. "Hey! Oscar, look here. This thing must've been leaking electricity before! Is this how we fix it?"
Oscar was the steadier one. He knew how to repair plumbing and electrical systems. He inspected the cracks in the wall while guiding Axel.
As the three of them watched the wall grow more secure piece by piece, they felt more and more at ease.
Up in the prison watchtower, Dale held a pair of binoculars and carefully watched the distant streets.
Every now and then, he picked up the walkie-talkie.
"Otis, anything on the west side?"
"Jimmy, go take a look behind Block C."
Carol stood beside him, copying his posture as she looked through an old pair of binoculars.
"No rush, Carol. Keeping watch is simple," Dale said kindly. "Just take it slow."
Carol nodded, took a deep breath, and kept looking.
She had to learn these skills. For Sophia, for herself, and for the "family" around her.
Over with the logistics team, Lori and Patricia sorted the canned food, clothes, and soap they had found into categories.
Lori had found a small notebook somewhere and was using it to keep count.
Her brow was slightly furrowed. The early symptoms of pregnancy were making her uncomfortable, but in the current situation, she could only push through it herself.
In the makeshift animal shed at the prison, Hershel was examining a ewe that seemed a little listless, while Beth stood beside him and handed him tools.
"Dad, is she sick?" Beth asked worriedly.
"Nothing serious. I'll give her some medicine in a bit." Hershel sighed, but his movements remained gentle. "In times like these, surviving isn't easy for people or animals."
By evening, the cleanup team returned.
"We cleared almost twenty cells today, and we even found a few barrels of clean water!" Glenn told everyone excitedly.