i.

if you're re-visiting this story, you'll notice there are a few changes.

summary:

When surveillance footage of a doctor conducting an autopsy on a living man is released, Abigail is tasked with putting out the fire. But when the number of reports of the dead coming back to life increase, she realizes things may not be so easy.

She hadn't wanted to believe it. Now she has no choice.

What ensues is a whole lot of death, destruction, and fear as she fights to make it back to her family but when a nasty wound leaves her incapacitated, she soon finds herself stranded at a quarry surrounded by a group of people who think she's one of the dead.

All she has to do now is try and convince the angry cop with the shotgun not to shoot her.

x

Disclaimer: I do not own The Walking Dead.

CHICAGO, IL

6 days since the Global Outbreak

The sounds of heels click-clacked against the pavement in a steady beat as the city breathed around her. Emissions from a passing bus caused nearby pedestrians to curl their lips in disgust before crossing the busy intersection. Amongst them walked a woman in a silent hurry.

Dark sunglasses sat perched on the bridge of her nose as a manicured hand wrapped itself against a now-empty cup of coffee. Her heels carried her further through the city until she reached the street-corner of her destination. Behind the mask of her glasses, her eyes rolled and a small groan slipped out of her at the sight of crowds huddled around the front of the hospital she was about to enter.

Drawing more polluted air into her lungs, she crossed the road and made a beeline for the back entrance used only by staff. There she was greeted by two security guards.

"ID?"

"I work here," she huffed. "PR? Judging by the horde out front, you kind of need me." The two men shared a look before shrugging simply.

"No badge, no entry."

"Fine." The woman pulled a small purse out from under her arm, quickly rummaging through the contents of it. As she did, the frustration mounted in her face when she realized she had left her badge on the counter at home. "Shit."

Looking back at the security guards, she sighed.

"Mind if I make a call?"

"Go ahead."

Turning away from the pair, she pulled up the number of her co-worker and pressed 'call'. Her foot tapped impatiently as she waited for him to answer.

"Abigail, where the hell are you?"

"Max! I'm stuck outside with security. You mind coming down to get me?" She heard the man sigh, no doubt exhausted by her.

"I'm on my way now."

Abigail's eyes shut in quiet relief. "Ugh, you're a life saver."

Hanging up, she pivoted on her foot, smiling briefly at the guards while they waited for Max to arrive. He eventually did, sticking his head out of the door to survey her.

"It's okay, she's with me," he said while flashing his own ID. The men accepted it and moved aside long enough for Abigail to slip through.

Max wasted no time hurrying her along.

"You're twenty minutes late."

"Really? I hadn't noticed," she answered sarcastically. Max rolled his eyes in response as they made their way to the elevator.

"Here," he said once the doors closed. Glancing down, Abigail spotted a fresh cup of coffee in his hand. She breathed a sigh of relief and took a gulp as Max continued speaking. "Dina's pissed. I don't blame her. The board's been breathing down her neck ever since that footage got leaked."

Abigail frowned, the lip of her coffee cup hovering above her mouth. "What is it this time? Anti-vax protestors?"

At her question, Max's brow raised and he turned to face her fully. She registered the disbelief in his eyes.

"Wait, you haven't seen it?" He watched as she shrugged and laughed in shock. "Abi…you're kidding, right?"

"No, Max I'm not." Wiping a piece of hair out of her eyes, she faced the opening doors. "I was busy last night."

"Did you not listen to the radio on the way over or watch the morning news?"

She didn't bother responding as they came to the Hospital Director's office. Max gave her another disbelieving look before knocking. Hearing the all clear, the two filed in to see their boss, Dina, standing across from the head doctor.

"Glad you could join us," said Dina. Her spine was rigid as she stood by the Doctor's desk. "Have a seat."

Abigail and Max shared a look where he raised his brow as if to say 'I told you so'. She fixed him with a quick glare as they sat down. Together they watched their boss take a few steps forward. Her arms were crossed and it was clear by the tension in her brow that she was stressed.

"I assume the two of you saw the mob outside the doors."

"Hard to miss," scoffed Abigail, placing her drink down on the coffee-table.

Beside her, Max cleared his throat. "Abigail actually hasn't seen the video yet."

Intrigue flooded her boss' eyes as she felt her stare wear down on her.

"Why not?"

Mentally cursing her co-worker, Abigail cleared her throat. "I had some personal things to deal with yesterday," she said, secretly hoping that they wouldn't pry. "I wasn't exactly aware of any developments until I got here."

Dina hummed, seemingly disinterested in her employee's personal life, and turned her head to the doctor standing by the desk.

"In that case, allow me to fill you in. Max, your phone." The man fumbled around in his suit jacket for a moment before placing the device in her awaiting palm. It was silent as Dina pulled up the video. Turning it to face Abigail, she pressed play.

The footage was obviously taken via a security camera and Abigail watched with quiet fascination as a pathologist performed a regular autopsy. She grimaced to herself; a little squeamish when it came to cutting through flesh and guts. Her mood shifted however at the sight of the supposedly-dead man regaining consciousness.

Her eyes narrowed, making sure that she was seeing what she thought she was. It started small, a curl of the fingers and the twitch in his neck. The doctor seemed to be oblivious to any of it as he traced his scalpel along the man's chest only to see the man begin thrashing wildly.

Abigail's eyes were wide with horror as she watched the two struggle against one another. Just as she saw the man on the table lurch for the doctor's neck, the video cut off leaving her staring at her reflection on the blank screen.

"That happened here?"

Dina nodded and handed the phone back to Max. "Four days ago."

"And you knew?" She asked incredulously.

"Of course. But we had to make sure that we figured out a way to deal with it before the press found it." Dina's mouth pinched. "Unfortunately for us, it leaked yesterday afternoon."

Abigail shook her head, still trying to make sense of things. "Why was he doing an autopsy on a living person?"

"We're still figuring it out. Doctor Freeman assures me that the patient had been announced dead prior to being taken down into the morgue."

"He didn't look very dead…"

"He was," said Dr. Freeman, entering himself into the conversation. "For six hours."

"And what? His body just decided to start up again?"

The man eyed Dina silently causing the woman to straighten with a sigh.

"A team of experts are looking into it as we speak but any details won't be available for disclosure until they reach a verdict," she explained carefully, knowing that she wouldn't like the sound of that.

"Can we see the doctor?"

Dina and Dr. Freeman shared another look.

"I'm afraid Dr. Pascal has been moved to the CDC's quarantine station."

Unfazed, the woman shrugged. "Okay, so I'll go down and talk to him."

"That's not possible," said Dr. Freeman, his tone clipped.

Abigail raised an eyebrow. "And why not?"

"Dr. Pascal has undergone significant… stress and his exposure to the patient has meant that he is a potential biohazard."

Abigail's eyes flicked to Dina's who stared at the ground. She scoffed.

"This is bullshit-"

"Abigail!"

The woman in question scoffed and rose from her seat.

"How are we supposed to convince the people that that doctor wasn't performing on a living person if we can't speak to the doctor?"

"Once Dr. Pascal is cleared, I'm sure he will be more than willing to clear things up."

Abigail shook her head, still not satisfied. "Did you see the people out front? That crowd is going to get even worse if you don't start giving me something to work with."

"We're already drafting a statement for the press," said Dina in an attempt to diffuse the situation. "While we're aware of the public unrest, our main focus remains as it always has been; maintaining the image of Chicago Mercy as an efficient and caring medical institution."

Turning to the man beside her, Dina pleaded with her eyes.

"If there is any information you're allowed to disclose please do so. Skirting around the truth too much won't have amazing results once the dust settles."

"I'm sorry but do you really expect me to put the fate of this hospital into the hands of someone who didn't even know what was going on until five minutes ago?"

"You won't have a hospital if you let this go on untouched," shot back Abigail, her eyes narrowed dangerously. She didn't trust the situation. She didn't trust him.

Dr. Freeman eyed her carefully before turning to Dina.

"Your team has three days to get this under control and satisfy the investors or we'll find another firm to deal with."

Dina's shoulders slumped in relief and she nodded.

"That's fair enough."

Gesturing with her chin, she watched Max and a hesitant Abigail file out of the office leaving her alone with the doctor. She could see the disdain on his face for the other woman and sighed.

"You'll have to forgive Abigail. She may be direct but she knows what she's doing."

The man seemed unconvinced as he sent one last look at the closed door.

"She'd better. For all our sakes."

Outside the office, the topic of conversation stood beside a water cooler as Max poured himself a drink.

"Crazy right?"

Abigail shrugged, her lips quirking. "Must be pretty bad if they're not telling us everything."

"When have they ever?" Responded Max before taking a sip of the cold water. His lips smacked together at the refreshing taste as his eyes fell on his friend. She seemed pre-occupied as she toyed with the thin silver chain around her neck.

"What do you think it is?" He asked, snapping her out of her daze.

Looking at him, she blinked. "Huh?"

Max gestured around them. "The video."

"Oh…" Abigail took a moment to think on it. She raised her drink in a small shrug. "The hospital made a mistake, ID'd the guy as dead when he wasn't and are trying to cover it up to protect their image. Nothing we haven't dealt with before."

Max seemed unconvinced as he took in the signs of another sleepless night that she had tried to cover up with a thin layer of make-up.

"What did you get up to last night?"

Abigail pondered it for a moment and shrugged. "Not much. You?"

He shook his head. "Same here." He sipped his water. "Didn't you say you were busy last night?"

"Did I?"

"Yeah, when we were talking to Dina."

The woman pursed her lips. "Oh, I hadn't realized."

"Abigail…"

"Max…" she responded mockingly. Catching his look, she huffed. "I just had a few drinks last night that's all…"

He didn't seem completely satisfied with her answer. In fact, he seemed even more worried.

"How many?" He asked, leaving no room for her to get out of it.

Abigail's jaw clenched in annoyance.

"Can we not do this right now?" She said, dragging a tired hand over her face. "Dina's stressing out about whatever the hell that video was and I don't know about you but I'd like to keep my job."

Not giving him an opportunity to respond, she pushed herself off of the wall and walked back towards the elevators. It was too early for this shit.

/

The remainder of the day seemed to drag on forever and it reached the point where Abigail thought she would never see the outside of Chicago Mercy ever again. Freeman had kept them in their offices working on a plan on how they were going to convince the public that they hadn't royally screwed up.

Abigail seemed to be at her wits end and the rest of her team weren't far behind her. Dina, in particular, had taken to pacing the boardroom as they rattled off suggestions. Extra security had been placed outside the entrance of the hospital, keeping the crowds away from the doors so that paramedics could do their job as easily as possible.

Abigail watched from the eighth floor window as another dozen showed up. She had to admit, their resilience was admirable given how late it had gotten. Some had already left but she had no doubt that they would be back in the morning. Observing them for a minute, she rolled her eyes and let the blinds fall closed once again.

"Any luck with Freeman?" She asked, directing her question at her boss.

The other woman sighed and shook her head. "Not yet. CDC is examining the body as we speak. Hopefully, we'll get some information in the morning so we can set up a press conference in the afternoon."

Max, who had been half-asleep in his chair, piped up.

"Well then…as much as I love sleeping in a cold office, I'd much rather the comfort of my own bed." No-one stopped him as he rose from his chair and made his way to the door. A chorus of 'goodbyes' sounded out before he left.

Abigail similarly made for her belongings.

"I think I'm gonna do the same. I'll see you tomorrow." As her hand went to grab the handle, she heard her name being called and looked back at Dina.

"Try to get here on time."

Abigail nodded and left.

/

It was almost one in the morning by the time she got home.

The place was dead silent as she walked inside, a grim feeling she was still getting used to. She made her way into the kitchen, dropping her keys off on the counter before making a beeline for the top shelf. She eyed the bottle of dark liquor warily. She didn't need it, not really. She had lived without it before. She knew she could.

But she grabbed it anyway.

Quickly, so as to not second-guess her decision again, Abigail popped off the cap and poured herself a healthy serving. Her nails click-clacked against the countertop.

"May as well," she muttered.

She took her first sip. Then another one.

But she knew she had to pace herself. She tried to think back to the lessons she had learned, all those helpful little mottos she had been told, but the alcohol had kicked them right out of her mind.

So she had another sip.

Keeping the glass in her hand, she made her way over to the phone and pressed down on her 'messages' button. She leaned back against the cupboard waiting for the beep.

"Hey Abi…" the woman's head lifted at the voice and she resisted the urge to take another drink. "I tried callin' last night but you were probably asleep." She hadn't been. "Anyway, I just wanted to check in, make sure you were taking care of yourself." Oh, she was. "I've been counting down the days until you're home…Love you."

Abigail's jaw rolled as she fought to keep the tears at bay.

"Love you too, sis," she murmured as the second beep signaled that that was the end of the message.

/

12 days later

The squeak of the brakes as the car came to a stop was the only noise that rang out at the desolate gas station. Before cutting the engine, Abigail eyed the petrol meter to see that she was running on a quarter of a tank. It would be enough for now but if push came to shove, she would have to siphon some gas later on.

It was eerily quiet as she hopped out to survey the place. The world had gone to shit just over a week ago and yet the place looked like it had been abandoned for months. An incessant buzzing filled her ears causing her to swat aimlessly at an annoying fly.

She approached the entrance cautiously as a hand moved to rest against the gun tucked into her belt. It felt strange even having to carry one on her person; the cold of the steel sending a shiver down her spine. Her face pressed against the window to try and get a better look inside.

So far, so good.

It didn't look like there were any of the turned inside and so, carefully, Abigail made her way inside. Her first stop was the food aisle where she packed whatever snacks she could find into the two bags she had brought with her. While she was at it, she also grabbed the remaining water bottles from the fridges. They were slightly warm given that the power had been cut off for the last two days.

She trod around the store, eyeing the little bits and pieces that had been left behind. She had been lucky with this place. Once everyone found out that the end of the world had arrived, mass chaos had erupted and survival instincts had kicked in as everyone fought tooth and nail over whatever they could get their hands on.

Abigail came to a stop in front of a display for sunglasses and decided it wouldn't be a bad idea. She trialed three that she liked before settling on her favorite.

Pushing them up to rest on her head, Abigail grabbed whatever else she thought would come in handy before zipping up the bags and heading to the door. Before she left, however, she paused to glance behind the counter where the alcohol and cigarettes were being kept. Her foot tapped in thought until she finally gave up and grabbed one of each.

Happy with what she had gathered, Abigail returned to where she had parked the car. She dropped the two bags to the ground and opened up the back door. As she did, a pair of feet that had previously been resting against the door, fell over the edge of the seat. Abigail nudged the sneakers causing the person to stir awake.

"How you feelin'?" Inquired Abigail, tilting her head to get a better look at him.

There was a slight groan from the man as Abigail crouched down and began digging through their loot.

"Ugh. I feel like shit."

The woman sighed and gestured for him to join her. "Come on. Scoot on out."

Focusing on the bags, she heard a low grunt of effort and raised her eyes to see Max emerge from the back seat and slowly maneuver himself down onto the cement. Abigail, sensing his exhaustion, helped to lean him up against the car.

"I got you some water and some ibuprofen," she said, opening both up. "It should help with the fever."

Max chuckled wryly but obliged nevertheless, even allowing Abigail to practically feed him the water.

Once she pulled away, he wiped at his mouth and groaned. "Why are you doing this?"

Abigail frowned at his question, finding it stupid. "Why do you think I'm doing this?" Max shrugged in response causing her to sigh. "Because you're my friend and I care about you."

"You should just leave me here-" Max paused to cough into his arm. "I'm dead already."

"You don't know that," refuted Abigail with a firm shake of her head.

Taking the bottle from her hands, Max took another gulp that was quickly cut off by another coughing fit. In front of him, a crouched Abigail retracted her head to avoid any of the spray.

"Sorry," grimaced Max, avoiding her eyes.

"It's okay." Screwing the lid back on, Abigail packed it away and faced Max once again. "Let me see it."

The man gave her look that did little to change her mind. She quirked a brow and nodded her chin at him.

"Let me see it," she repeated more forcefully.

Rolling his eyes, Max slowly lifted the hem of his shirt to reveal a nasty bite. Abigail winced, seeing that it had worsened since earlier that morning. Max regarded her reaction sarcastically as he stared up at her with half-lidded eyes.

"Like I said. I'm dead already."

x

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