Rick’s shoulder hurt as Monica held it in a vice-like grip while she growled at the farm. She did not move, the human had to take a moment to look at the ranch and then back at Monica. The others had stopped at the blood curdling rumble the feline let out.

“What’s got her so pissy?”

“I don’t think she’s angry.” Her grasp made him wince. “She’s afraid.” The words came out without consideration, there was something about that glare, her tension, the way she almost seemed ready to bolt.

“Our girl doesn’t do scared, Rick, just look at her.” Kat waved at the growling.

It was hard for him not to agree. He certainly felt intimidated by the display. But his gut told him there was something that was making her nervous. He stepped closer to her, stroking the paw that kept his shoulder trapped in a vice-like grip. “Monica.”

The name snapped her from the growl. Her eyes looked down at him. She loosened her grasp on his hands, letting go just enough not to hurt, but she didn’t let him pull out. Her brow furrowed. “Rwick,” she replied, tugging gently at him, trying to urge him to move away from there.

She was turning around, nudging him to return to the forest.

His mind flashed to the bus, to the people there. To Charlie and his empty eyes and the spider. Rick dug his heels in. “No.” His proclamation made her stop. She looked down at him, and the slight frown changed into a glare. “Monica, no, I can’t go back.”

“Rick.”

“No.” He turned towards the farm, gesturing at it. “I need to go there.”

She dug her heels. “Rick.”

“No, Monica, no.” Pulling his hand, he tried to escape her grasp- a failed attempt that made her expression falter. “Monica, we need to get there, we need help.” Their eyes met. The feline looked at him unblinking.

“Rick.” This time it came with a growl. Her paw tightened, her fangs gleamed, and she yanked him a step closer. Her other claw grasped his head and forced him to peer up into her blue-green orbs. “Rick!” There was urgency there now.

He felt a shudder go down his spine. Every instinct in his body screamed to run and not stop. Tightening his fists, he met her gaze in full. “If you take me away, I will never forgive you.”

Perhaps it was the tone, or the way he said it, or maybe something else. Maybe Monica had gleamed part of the meaning. She reacted, eyes widened like platters at the proclamation. He was sure she hadn’t understood the words themselves, but the look in her eyes spoke of how she’d gotten the message all the same. He pulled his shoulder out of her grasp. His first step away from her was tentative, hesitant. The second was surer.

Her grasp had faltered and, for a moment, Monica appeared as if struck.

She stood there, looking at him. “Rick!” She called out, reaching at him but not grabbing a hold as he took the third step. He met her pained gaze, and his resolve wavered. For a fraction of a second he could see the possibility to turn back, go to the bus, and have Monica help them take everyone to safety. Or maybe go around, find somewhere else that didn’t cause the feline to feel intimidated. There had to be something dangerous here, right?

But did they have the time? Would they have the luck?

“Please, we need you.” He turned to face the farm, gesturing at her to follow.

The woman’s gaze lingered on him as she looked past him and to the wheat, the building, the river. Her claws extended as her shoulders tightened, heels digging into the dirt and fangs coming back out. It was clear, she would not follow.

The snarl faltered with his next step towards the ranch. “Rick,” she spoke as he took another, turning his back to her. “Rick!” His gut wrenched into a ball of knots, his eyes focused on the farm ahead. “RICK!” She roared.

“Are you sure about this?” Kat whispered, glancing back at the feline. “We can just… you can stay here while we… Maybe the ranch’s dangerous.”

“It might be. So you two stay here and wait for my signal.”

Tomas and Kat shared a glance as the young teacher walked past them. “Rick, I-”

“No, Tomas,” he snapped at the young man. “I can’t send you to something that might get you killed. You’re safer here for now.”

“If she’s scared, then…”

“Then we still don’t have a choice. We can’t just sit and wait. People are going to die the longer we take to get help.”

Whatever the faces or reactions either of them had, he didn’t pay them any attention.

“She’s gone.”

That made Rick snap. He turned around to frown at Kat, the young woman staring at the spot Monica had occupied a moment ago. She was no longer there; she was nowhere to be seen. And just like that, the tightness in his gut was a rock that had been thrown down a well.

“Stay put.”

Rick shifted to look at the farm and continued to move closer. Confusion welled up inside his chest as he tried to push it aside. He had to keep moving. His mind summoned a million different things that could go wrong the moment he strode into the green fields that stretched between the forest and the ranch. And as the trees ended, those images became ever more gruesome. The first of which being someone shooting him for trespassing, but everything that came after involved more monsters popping out of the greens and tearing him to shreds.

Rick realized he’d stopped right where the wheat began. Clenching his fists, he steeled his resolve.

With a deep breath, he stepped out of the woods. Thunder rumbled in the distance, it made Rick glance upwards. The sun was shinning through some clouds. But the noise had come from the mountains to the right, they were enveloped in dark cotton that flashed with streaks of light. Tearing his gaze away from the incoming storm, Rick’s eyes inspected the terrain. Flat, it was all covered in a green grass-like vegetation, shrubbery, and the odd tree littering the fields. He saw a river running down through the property, splitting it in two.

The closer he got, the clearer things became.

The fence surrounding the farmland was made of stone, and it was broken, in many places, entire sections missing, especially on either side of the small river. The bridge that connected either side was built out of wood and was moldy, the foundations worn out and somewhat dug out at some points.

It made Rick frown in concern. This indeed looked like signs of civilization, but it had clearly been abandoned. How long ago? He couldn’t take a guess. His steps grew more cautious as he approached the main building they’d spotted earlier.

It was built out of smooth stone, two stories high. The outside had been white once upon a time, now it was gray and dry mud stained the outer walls of the first floor. The plant-life had invaded the area, small bushes and grass grew around the building. Vines were stretching out through the back wall.

Rick looked around, spotting a handful of smaller buildings that were in a greater state of disrepair. Made out of wood, their walls and roofs were caved in, trees bloomed through the debris. Nothing hinted at how long ago this had been abandoned, or why. His gaze turned towards the door leading into the main building.

A bolt of lightning crossed the sky.

A light drizzle began to fall.

Ignoring the rain, Rick closed in on the structure cautiously.