A little later, in the prison guard office, Calista gathered with the core members of the main group.
Bossie, Mike, and the others had already taken Tyreese, Boone, and several more to inspect the breach in the wall and assess the prison's overall defenses.
"About the attackers," Calista said, getting straight to the point, "aside from the ones who got away, and the fact that one of them was wounded, did they leave anything behind?"
This was the apocalypse. They could not run DNA tests from bloodstains, and Calista could not simply say it was Woodbury outright. That meant they basically had no clues.
Andrea shook her head in frustration. "No. They moved fast and used grenades. The firefight was short too. Other than blood, they left nothing that could identify them."
T-Dog added with a dark expression, "They had a clear target. Blow up the wall, create chaos. Their focus was killing and destruction, not taking supplies. That doesn't feel like ordinary raiders. It feels more like they had a grudge against us."
"Could it be…" Dale hesitated before speaking. "We've taken in some new people recently. Could there be someone on the inside?"
As soon as he said that, the atmosphere in the room grew even heavier.
"Those two young people," Carol suddenly said softly, referring to Haley and Gargulio.
"They went out before dawn this morning. Said they were going to the edge of the woods to look for usable branches, since Haley needed to make more arrows… They still haven't come back."
Everyone's hearts tightened again.
At a time like this, anything unusual seemed suspicious.
Just then, a small commotion and questioning voices came from outside.
A moment later, the door was pushed open, and Carver, who was on guard, looked in. His expression was a little strange as he turned to Calista. "Calista, there are two people outside asking to see them. Haley and Gargulio. They look… off."
"Let them in," Calista said.
Haley and Gargulio walked in, with Carver following behind them, watching them warily.
Both of them were covered in dew and mud. Their faces were pale, their eyes red and swollen. Haley in particular still had tear streaks on her face, and her body was trembling slightly.
They did not look guilty in the way someone did after doing something wrong. They looked more like they were carrying shock and crushing remorse.
Seeing so many people in the room, especially the unfamiliar faces of Calista and Carver, made them even more nervous and lost.
"Haley, Gargulio," Andrea said, looking at them. "Where did you go? What happened?"
Haley's lips trembled, and tears welled up again. She looked to Gargulio as if begging him for help.
Gargulio was a little steadier than she was, but his face was still ashen. He took a deep breath. "We… we were sent by Woodbury."
The words struck the cramped office like thunder.
"What the hell is Woodbury?!" Carver's hand instantly went to his holster.
Andrea and the others' expressions changed sharply as well, their eyes filling with hostility. Hershel and Dale both looked stunned.
Calista's gaze turned cold at once, but she raised her hand, stopping Carver from making any further move. "Keep talking."
Gargulio was frightened enough by everyone's reaction to take half a step back, but he still forced himself to continue. He spoke quickly, as if afraid that if he stopped, he would lose his courage.
"We… we're not raiders, and we're not Woodbury fighters. Haley used to be a street messenger. I'm new there and didn't even have a proper job yet.
The Governor… he's Woodbury's leader. He told us the prison was full of vicious raiders who murdered and burned everything, people who wouldn't even spare children.
He sent us in to pretend to be survivors in trouble, find out what things were like here, and then… create some chaos before leaving."
Haley added through her sobs, "He… he said you were demons, and we believed him. We thought we were doing the right thing, protecting Woodbury…"
"So everything you told us before was made up?" Dale asked, understanding dawning in his voice, though his tone was complicated.
The two of them nodded, then shook their heads in shame. "Those things were true. We just hid the part about Woodbury."
"Then why are you telling us now?" Calista asked sharply.
Gargulio and Haley looked at each other, both wearing the same desperate look of having decided to risk everything.
"Because yesterday, out in the woods…" Gargulio's body began to shake. "We heard something had happened. People died, and the wall was blown down.
We were scared, but something felt wrong. This morning, we snuck out to see if the attackers had left any traces…"
Tears rolled down Haley's face as she took over. "We saw a body. No, a walker! The face… we knew the face! It was Tim! He was one of the men who went out on a mission with Captain Martinez!"
Her words plunged the room into dead silence once again.
"We froze right there!" Haley grew more agitated the more she spoke. "Tim died there and turned into a walker… That means the people who attacked the prison were from Woodbury!
And he was dead. His own people left him behind. The Governor lied to us! The prison isn't full of raiders at all! He sent us here to scout, then sent someone else to kill people and blow up the wall!"
Haley broke down and crouched on the floor, hugging herself. "We were wrong! We were all wrong! That old man, and that little girl… was that because of us?"
Gargulio's eyes reddened too. He looked at Calista, then at Andrea and the others.
"We'll tell you everything we know. Where Woodbury is, about how many people they have, the Governor, Martinez…"
Piece by piece, they poured out everything they knew. Woodbury's basic situation, the details of the mission they had been sent on, and Gargulio's belated, vague fear of the Governor.
They held nothing back and tried to dress nothing up. It was only the confession of two young people who had been deceived, used, and finally jolted awake by brutal reality.
The room went so quiet that only Haley's suppressed sobs remained.
The hostility on Andrea and the others' faces slowly gave way to something more complicated.
Calista listened in silence the entire time, revealing little emotion.
Only after they finished did she slowly speak. "This Governor you're talking about. Does he have a young daughter?"
Haley and Gargulio suddenly looked up at her in surprise. "How… how do you know? But we heard his daughter is weak and sickly. She's always kept inside the house. No one has ever seen her."
Calista did not answer. The last trace of uncertainty in her heart disappeared.
It really was him.
"What are you planning to do now?" she asked.
Gargulio said bitterly, "We don't have the face to stay here, but we can't go back to Woodbury either. The Governor won't let traitors go."
Haley only shook her head and cried, unable to speak.
"Stay," Dale said softly.
He walked over and helped the limp Haley to her feet.
"You were deceived, young people, but now you've chosen to tell the truth. The prison needs everyone who can help right now. Besides," Dale said, looking at the others, "they know Woodbury better than we do, don't they?"
Andrea, T-Dog, Jacqui, and the others exchanged glances.
They still had their misgivings, but Dale was right. This time, he was not just being kindhearted. These two young people were an important source of information.
And in a way, their confession was also a kind of redemption.
T-Dog finally gave a stiff nod. "They can stay and help, but keep an eye on them."
Relieved yet overwhelmed with shame, Haley and Gargulio could only keep saying "thank you," promising they were willing to do anything to make up for what had happened.
Calista stood and said to Andrea, "The attackers' identity is clear now. It was Woodbury. This was a planned attack. They lost one man, but they achieved their goal."
"They'll come back, won't they?" Andrea was too shaken to think clearly and could only look to Calista for an answer.
"If the Governor thinks it's necessary, or if he still believes you're vulnerable, then yes."
Calista walked to the wall, where Bossie had already hung up a sketch detailing the damage to the prison wall.
"So the most urgent things now are waking Rick up, sealing the breach in the wall, getting the prison back on its feet, and making sure they don't dare come again."
...
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