Chapter 64

Having solved the psychological problems of some people and the hunger problem of everyone, the entire convoy turned around and drove back to the church.

Michonne and Sasha aren't usually gossipy, but the news Lina just revealed still piqued their curiosity, making them want to know more.

Michonne herself had some money before the cataclysm, so she knew perfectly well that what Lina said was probably absolutely true.

If she had tried harder back then, perhaps her child would have been… Michonne felt a pang of sadness, and she blinked to hide her tear-filled eyes.

Sasha was just a little angry. The money of those politicians and rich people didn't just fall from the sky, and they just ran away like that. Don't ordinary people have the right to live?

News of wealthy individuals building doomsday fortresses appears online from time to time, and some even sell tickets to the public at astronomical prices.

Lena got this ticket, but her parents bought it to amuse her. Her great-uncle even said that he didn't know how many horror stories she read as a child, which is why she always felt that the world would end.

Later, they overheard news of the bunker under construction and reserved a spot for Lina early on. They didn't even prepare one for themselves because they didn't believe there would be an apocalypse.

When her great-uncle told her about this, Lina once thought that she might have been born that way, and that she had discovered something when she was a child.

But you never know, what if she just watched too many horror stories before?

But they truly love her. Why would they actually spend a fortune on a bunker just because their child is spouting endless doomsday theories?

As she thought about it, Lina became a little listless. She couldn't remember anything about them, and her great-uncle hadn't mentioned it much either. He was worried that it would upset Lina, because she had been having headaches since she recovered.

“We’re almost there. We can go hunting nearby. I remember seeing deer tracks before,” Daryl said, glancing at a less-than-happy Lina.

"Really? Then let's go when we get there," Lina said. She wasn't really that interested in hunting; she just wanted to eat meat.

Recently, I've started living a life of irregular eating habits again, which is actually quite difficult to endure.

“Okay,” Daryl said. Anyway, they had thoroughly explored the area around the church and it was relatively safe. Leaving for a while shouldn’t cause any trouble.

The car in front turned onto a side road, and the roads on both sides became familiar. Lina clung to the car window, trying to look ahead and see the church, but her view was firmly occupied by the fire truck.

Gabriel's shouts and the sound of a car crashing came from ahead.

Daryl stopped the car, and everyone got out with their weapons. The church was completely overrun by walkers, and Abraham used a fire truck to hold the church door shut.

"Oh no, I thought we could stay here for another two days," Lina said with some regret, looking at the church. Now they'd have to find a new campsite.

“There aren’t that many walkers in town, so we can make do over there,” Michonne said. “Or we could clear this place out, reinforce it, and cultivate the woods, which seems like a good idea.”

“I feel safer in a concrete house,” Lina exclaimed, but it’s quite difficult to find a concrete house in the United States; most houses are made of wood.

Daryl slung his crossbow over his shoulder. "I'll go see what Rick has to say," Lina nodded to him, indicating that she understood.

Sasha went straight to Bob's grave as soon as she got out of the car, while Michonne and Lena chatted by the car. After all, they both used knives, so they had a lot in common.

Daryl walked over a moment later. “Let’s go hunting,” he said to Lena, then looked at Michonne. “Rick probably needs your help.”

They planned to kill the walkers in the church, clear it out temporarily, reinforce it, and settle there for the time being.

Michonne nodded and walked towards the church, while Lina and Daryl went back into the grove.

Daryl confidently led the way, having scouted the area beforehand and set traps.

Lina did indeed have to listen to Daryl when it came to hunting, but her usefulness soon became apparent as she carried the deer back.

And just as Daryl said, he hadn't made a mistake. He shot an arrow through the deer's head, and Lina picked it up and carried it on her shoulder. She looked at Daryl with a proud air and said, "Let's go! Let's go back and eat some meat!"

Daryl chuckled and pulled the arrow out of the deer's head. At first glance, the deer was about the same size as Lina.

"Just how strong are you?" Daryl asked.

"Who knows?" Lina blinked. "Maybe I should go back and try to lift the car?"

"Be careful of your back," Daryl said, though curious, but not necessarily needing to know exactly where her limits were.

“Go this way,” Daryl pointed in a direction that would be faster.

Lina followed Daryl without a care in the world; it didn't matter where they went. Daryl was leading the way, so what did she have to worry about?

Soon, Lina saw a path through the woods. Crossing it would lead to the main road. Whether it was a hallucination or not, Lina seemed to hear the sound of screeching brakes.

Lena looked at Daryl, who also frowned and looked in the direction of the sound. "Is it Rick and the others?" Lena asked, somewhat puzzled.

"I don't know, shall we go take a look?" Daryl looked at Lina, who was still carrying the heavy load.

Lina bounced the deer on her back. It was alright, as long as she didn't have to carry this thing for eight hundred miles. "Let's go," she said.

Walking through the woods, Lina and Daryl followed the path toward the source of the sound. Although it was in the opposite direction from the church, Lina was a little confused and had a feeling that it couldn't be their people.

A car was parked on the side of the road, and next to it was a bucket that had fallen over. Daryl crouched down and took a look. "It probably hit something." There was no blood, but the thing had been crushed by the wheel.

Just then, someone ran over from further ahead—Sofia?

"Sophia? What's wrong?" Lina threw the deer down and ran towards Sophia.

Sofia cried and hugged Lina, “I went to the bathroom and when I came back I found my mother was gone. A car took her away.”

She chased after the car for a couple of steps, but was left behind and could no longer see it at all.

Lina's expression froze. How could this connect to the plot?!

Daryl pulled over the car parked on the side of the road. "Xiao Na!"

Lena glanced at Sophia, who was carrying a gun. "Go back and tell Rick what happened. Daryl and I will go after them first. Be careful. We'll bring your mother back, trust me."

Sofia wiped away her tears; of course she believed Lina.

"Do you remember anything about that car? Its color?" Lina asked.

“There’s a cross on the car window,” Sofia said.

Lina's heart sank; they were really going through the motions! "Let's go back," Lina patted Sophia on the shoulder.

Sofia nodded and ran toward the church.

Lena quickly walked to the car, opened the passenger door, and Daryl drove off at high speed.

“It’s the group that took Beth away,” Lina said.

"It's them again?" Daryl was furious. "What's wrong with those guys?"

“…Because people are a resource nowadays,” Lina sighed.

Daryl frowned. He didn't like this way of putting it, but he had to admit that it was the current reality.

Following the tire tracks, Daryl drove all the way to Atlanta, and once inside the city, they lost track of their target.

The car that was found on the road finally gave out and ran out of gas.

Lena and Daryl had no choice but to get out of the car and try their luck.

“A cross, or a church or a hospital or something, in the city, I’d prefer a hospital,” Lina said.

“We need to go to a bookstore and see if they have a map.” Daryl nodded.

Lina and Daryl exchanged a troubled glance; in such a large city, it was truly like finding a needle in a haystack.

With no other option, the two could only try their luck and look around. Unlike when Lina came last time, there were far fewer walkers in Atlanta.

"I'm so afraid of running into love around the corner, a domineering zombie forcing love," Lina complained. Last time she and Rick came here, they messed up that poor horse.

Daryl's initially serious expression turned helpless under Lina's rambling. "Focus," he said. "Who knows what might come out of here?"

Lina shrugged and kicked open the wooden door in front of her. Inside was a general store, though it had been completely looted.

Daryl leaned on the counter, reaching over it. Lena's eyes fell on his arm, at the bulging muscles. Tsk, so sexy.

Lina guiltily looked away and gazed outside.

"Do you think there would be anything like that in the store?" Lina looked at the store across the street. The glass door was wide open, and she could vaguely see the mess inside.

“Go take a look,” Daryl said, leaning on the counter and jumping out from behind the counter.

Lina turned to Daryl, “...So, the door is right there,” you don’t need to be flying around on the table like that, do you? Why are you seducing her? That’s not proper conduct for a man!

Daryl awkwardly looked away. Who told her to like looking at him? Daryl had long since noticed that Lena was particularly fond of his muscles.

He was usually reserved, but secretly pretended not to know and peeked at her.

While doing a certain sport, her hands would very honestly scrutinize every muscle on his body.

"Let's go," Daryl said, rushing out as he feared Lina might discover something.

He was genuinely afraid that Lina might say he was seducing her or something... although he probably was a little bit.

Just like birds displaying their magnificent plumage when courting, Daryl didn't see anything wrong with showing Lena the muscles she liked, but he still couldn't help feeling shy if he was called out on.

Lina shrugged. Oh, shy Dalia, hee hee.

Daryl was still in charge of searching the map, while Lina observed her surroundings, wondering if Noah had escaped this time. After all, Beth wasn't there to help him...

Daryl still hadn't succeeded. He patted Lena on the shoulder by the window and said, "Let's go." His repeated failures made him frown in frustration.

"Let's go," Lina said, also feeling annoyed. She was afraid something might happen to Carol; those people at the hospital only cared about their own interests.

“Let’s go… Is someone there?” Daryl looked carefully out the window. It couldn’t be his imagination, could it?

Lina glanced back, but there was nothing there. "Let's go check it out. Maybe that person can give me some information," Lina said. Anyway, with the two of them together, she didn't think anyone could beat them.