Sometimes a Married Sheriff Isn't a Bad Thing to Do in a Zombie Apocalypse

Rick brought Katherine with him so they could get back into the department store and raided the racks that had long, white jackets and any rubber gloves that they could use to protect their hands from the amount of crap they were about to get on their hands within ten minutes. The two hadn’t spoken a lot since their little heated moment up on the roof, especially when Merle Dixon had been shouting anything obscene to them and Andrea was telling Katherine that she had gotten on a man who she knew was married and was trying to find her wife.

Rick gave a set of accessories and an outfit to Katherine, silently telling her that she will be the one that goes with her and she put her leather jacket back on underneath the white coat she was shrugging on.

“Katherine.” Rick spoke up as Katherine was about to head away and give accessories to the others in the backroom which they had come through in the first place. The brunette snapped around to him, a fresh coat of lipstick repainted her bee stung lips and Rick stared at her softly.

“I’m sorry. It was th’ heat of th’ moment.” She apologized quickly, nervous about standing in front of him and waiting for him to shout or scream at her for throwing herself at him. Katherine knew Rick loved his wife very much and was desperate to find her, she had now probably made things worse for his feelings and Katherine didn’t want to leave the Sheriff on bad terms. Katherine went to turn around but Rick jogged up to her and caught her wrist, pulling her back against him to the point where they were chest to chest and Rick was gazing down at her. “Rick, we need te go.” Katherine managed out, her throat becoming dry at the pools of crystal sapphire staring at her.

“I know but-“ Rick cut himself off, staring down at her desperate, chaotic orbs. He pulled her even closer to reconnect their lips into a passionate, needing kiss once again, just so he could feel her irresistible taste once again to confirm that he wasn’t dreaming the first time. Rick licked at her bottom lip and bit on purpose instead of an accident like before hand, and felt the woman melt into his arms with a gentle moan. His hand went to her waist, wrapping up in this perfect dip on her hip and pulled her closer. His other hand went to her cheek, caressing her milky skin.

It was cut short when Katherine brought her hands up to his chest and pushed him away suddenly, her eyes wide with surprise just like his were previously. Her kiss was of a spontaneous moment, overwhelming feelings that she needed to express someway but Rick’s kiss...it was of a purpose want and raw lust. A lust that could define your entire relationship with somebody even though you’ve only known them such a short while.

For example, less than twelve hours.

”I-I-”

“We need te go.” Katherine spoke once again, cutting off Rick’s stammering and wiping the lipstick that had slightly smudged on her bottom lip. Rick gave a shaky nod, not saying anything else and just wrapping his head around the second kiss before following Katherine back through towards the backroom where the others lay in wait for them.

Upon walking in, Rick and Katherine tossed the items to the group so they could suit themselves up for the walker that had been pulled in from the outside by T-Dog and Morales and was settle on the floor in the middle of the group. They were eyed up by their team mates, Andrea staring at Katherine with a sneer which of course made the Irishwoman roll her eyes at the pettiness.

Katherine put on the white lab coat over her leather jacket and then put on the hot pink rubber gloves so the blood didn’t get on her skin, good clothes or rings. Katherine silently admitted that she was becoming a little unsure of the plan but she trusted Rick to make the good decisions for the two of their safety.

“If bad ideas were an Olympic event, this would take the gold.” Glenn stated out loud, taking the gloves from the packet Rick had just offered him.

“He's right. Just stop, okay? Take some time to think this through.” Morales also began to bargain with them.

“We don’ have a lot of time te think. Punch first, ask questions later, my friend.” Katherine countered back his desperation, making sure she had her bearings. She turned around and grabbed the axe from the wall that was hung in emergency of a fire and she approached the dead walker, taking a deep breath and holding the axe above her head ready to get to chopping up the body. She never once thought she’d be dissecting one of the undead before.

The long haired woman went to pull the axe down but she pulled back with a frustrated sigh, dropping the axe down at her side and looked to Rick with unsure eyes.

“I don’ think I can do it. I’ve killed ‘em sure but...ye don’ chop one up and smother their guts on ye. I cross a line.” Katherine revealed, holding the axe out towards Rick and he reluctantly took it before crouching down next to the body and going through his pockets until he found a thick leather wallet. He straightened himself back up and opened up the wallet to read the information that was inside.

“Wayne Dunlap. Georgia license. Born in 1979. He had $28 in his pocket when he died…” Rick trailed, looking through the pockets of the wallet and pulled out an old photography of a redheaded woman with a big grin on her face. “And a picture of a pretty girl. ‘With love, from Rachel.’ He used to be like us… Worrying about bills or the rent or the Super Bowl. If I ever find my family, I'm gonna tell them about Wayne.” Rick informed the group that surrounded them with his fulfilled honest tone and Katherine took the wallet instead, looking through the cards he had in the leather and she sighed at a certain one she pulled out.

It was bloody and Katherine recognized the scrawled, unkempt writing that had been signed on the card as well as Wayne’s. She knew the woman who had filled in the card and she had to hold herself together as Katherine began to think of her.

“Ye ain’ gonna believe this…he was an organ donor.” She covered her shaking tone and turned the red card around, showing them the information on it that had been filled in by Wayne and the one of the doctors, Lana West, at Atlanta ER.

They all shared a moment of silence, Katherine tossing the wallet and all of a sudden, Rick threw the axe blade down on the arm of the walker and all over the body as if he was having trouble hacking down a tree. The squelching and other inhumane noises began to gross everybody out, several gagging at the rotten smell and the sight in front of them.

“Madre de Dios!” Morales cried, turning away. “Dios!”

“Oh, God.” Glenn grimaced, becoming very pale in the face and Katherine was managing to keep a focused mind as Rick handed the axe over to Morales. She was used to seeing blood and guts but the only thing she wasn’t used to was the smell of decaying flesh. “I am so gonna hurl.” Glenn groaned, putting his fist to his mouth as his cheeks blew up a little. He was also apart of Katherine and Rick’s small team.

“Ain’ got time fer that.” Katherine informed, watching Morales slicing and dicing away, everyone still making noises in disgust around them.

“Everybody got gloves? Don't get any on your skin or in your eyes.” Rick instructed as they watched Morales, T-Dog, Andrea and Jacqui put their hands into the chopped mess of the walker and pull out all sorts of guts so they could begin to smother the three of them.

“Oh God! Oh jeez. Oh, this is bad. This is really bad.” Glenn wheezed, hands on his hips as Andrea began to cover him whilst T-Dog covered Glenn, Morales and Jacqui on Rick.

“Think about something else… Puppies and kittens.” Rick suggested, turning his nose up at the smell.

“Dead puppies and kittens.” T-Dog commented and Glenn turned around, vomiting.

“That is just evil. What is wrong with you?” Andrea questioned the dark man, in which T-Dog replied with an apologetic shrug.

“Next time let the cracker beat his ass.”

“I'm sorry.” Rick apologized after Jacqui.

“You suck.” Glenn heaved, straightening himself up again.

"This is not goin' te work Sheriff, this yer dumbest idea yet." Katherine decidedly spat to Rick as T-Dog smothered on some the undead man's blood and internal organs onto the lab coat that was wrapped around her body with a grimace. Katherine repeatedly gagged as she got repeated whiffs of the rotten flesh. She heaved, but held down the bile that rose to her throat.

"Didn't think it was dumb earlier when you were kissin' him." Andrea chided from the young pizza boy's side, also decorating him with the walker's guts. Glenn, Rick and Katherine were going to go through the city of Atlanta to go to a construction site where they were going to retrieve a truck and get the hell out of dodge. Katherine couldn't wait to get back to Dermot and keep on with her trip, as much as she wanted to go to the camp with the group she was with now.

"It twas th' heat of th' moment." She admitted sheepishly, squeezing her eyes shut when T-Dog wrapped around a length of intestine around the base of her neck.

"Do we smell like them?" Rick questioned with his southern drawl, asking the question which had started the plan in the first place.

"Oh yeah." Andrea agreed with a disgusted look. "Glenn, just in case." The blonde handed over her gun to Glenn, pushing the handgun in the front of his pants whilst avoiding the guts all over him.

"If we make it back, be ready." Rick told them all and Katherine managed a scoff.

"If? We are coming back Sheriff, there is no way I'm leaving my car and uncle in th' middle of Atlanta.” She informed him with a matter of fact tone, sure of herself.

"What about Merle Dixon?" T-Dog questioned them, pulling off the plastic gloves they grabbed from the department store and tossed them on to the chopped up man between them. Rick grabbed the small key in his pocket to his handcuffs and tossed it over to the man and then gestured for Morales to hand over the two axes.

"Are you ready?" Rick smirked at her with a raised eyebrow.

“Nope.” She breathlessly laughed back.

Before they left, Katherine made sure that she had the gas cans filled and the clothes and supplies she took from the department store were packed and ready to go.

Rick, Glenn and Katherine made their way out of the back alley of the department store and almost had a heart attack when they saw two walkers in front of them. Katherine paled as they stumbled over to them and she clutched the axe harder in her hand before the trio moved past the undead, being smelt but they didn't even bother taking a bite into them.

"It's workin'" Katherine ghostly whispered, barely audio and Glenn gave a nervous smile back.

A bus came to their eyes and the three of them were forced to lie down in front of it and crawl quietly and as carefully as they could before coming out to the other side where a massive hoard of walkers were waiting for them.

"We're going to do it." Glenn began to smile, the three of them shuffling further through the crowd. Katherine couldn't believe the hundreds of people that had been attacked and turned.

"Don't draw attention." Rick told them through gritted teeth, the construction site getting closer and closer into their vision as they kept a steady pace but the sudden unfortunate sound of thunder made their hearts plummet to their stomachs.

They tried not to panic as they continued to walk at the normal pace, rain beginning drip on to their jackets and Katherine could see the blood on them slowly starting to drip down the white.

"Nope, this is not happening." The brunette whispered to herself painfully, watching some of the walkers following them and smelling them strangely before they started to get a little more aggressive towards Rick, Katherine and Glenn as they tried to figure out if they are dead or alive.

"The smell's washing off. Isn't it? Is it washing off?" Glenn began to panic and Rick shook his head with a stammer.

"N-No, it's not, well, maybe-" However, as more guts began to wash off, the walkers slowly realized that they are indeed alive and began to charge at the terrified trio. Both Rick and Katherine swung their axes at walker's heads before they ran towards the fence, stripping off their coats and they took out any that got close to them.

"Run!" Katherine screamed at Glenn as he crushed a walker through the head with the crowbar and Rick went to the fence first, grabbing and pulling himself up over it like a professional. "Go next Glenn, I've got this.” She told him, throwing her axe over the fence with Rick's, being careful not to hit the Sheriff in the process, and she pulled out her two guns and began shooting at the front line of walkers.

"Come on Kathy!" Glenn and Rick began shouting at her to get up so she quickly spun around and began climbing up the fence just like she did back in Army training, being careful of the barbed wire now in between her legs. Just as she was about to carefully swing her leg over, the hoard rammed themselves against the fence and made her grip slip, her hand going through a ring of barbed wire whilst a walker grabbed onto her food firmly.

"Rick!" Katherine screeched at the top of her lungs, feeling the sharp pain of the barbed wire beginning to cut through the forearm of her leather jacket and tears began to sting the back of her eyes. Rick jumped up to grab her leg, beginning to yank her body to the safer side but he couldn't hear her protesting cries over the heavy rain, groans of walkers and Glenn's panicked shouting. "Rick, no! Stop-!" Her foot came loose in the walkers hand and she fell over the fence into Rick's arms with a sickly shredding of flesh from her arm. Blood began to spurt violently from the slashes under her jacket and she passed out from the blood and throat burning screaming, Rick forced to pick her up bridal style and get to the truck as fast as he could.

Glenn got the truck open and helped Rick lift Katherine into the front seat with a horrified look on his face, Rick taking his belt off and wrapping it around her arm before also getting in and starting up the engine.

"Oh my God, Katherine I am so sorry." Rick said over and over, tears welling his eyes at the sight of Katherine's own eyes beginning to roll to the back of her head. He scrambled getting his belt off his pants and wrapped it around her arm, blood staining the seats and their clothes quickly.

"Ssh, I need you-" She began to gasp violently, going into shock and Glenn shook her shoulders when Rick had to begin to drive out of there, walkers following. Glenn tore off his hoodie and let Rick use it to soak up the blood coming out the Irishwoman's arm to stop the bleeding at least enough until they got her medical supplies.