Chapter Text
Claire knew would be today. She knew her dad well enough to know that not only was he an asshole, but he was also a smart son of a bitch. He had this habit of getting noticed. He loves to be noticed. And he always thought of everything. Whoever this Rick was, he would no longer be able to escape. Not with all the roads blocked. They would be cornered like rats running straight into a mousetrap.
She picked at her nails, peeling the black nail polish. Her feet swayed involuntarily and every second felt like an eternity. The wait is always agonizing even though she knows how it will all end. She had already snuck out earlier and given water to the prisoners who had already been captured. Claire was pretty sure Dwight saw her, but he didn't say anything so she was safe.
Before, Negan didn't like to bring her when he was going to punish someone. “It’s not a child thing.” He told her. Apparently he thinks she's old enough to see someone getting their head blown off or maybe he just wants to test her limits like he likes to do from time to time.
The noise of whistling sounded and she knew they were here. Soon everything would begin. It was already night and she knew it would be a long journey until daybreak.
Her father looked at her smiling and it was impossible not to notice how excited he was.
"Let's meet the man." She heard Simon's voice through the door and then heard the knock.
Negan got up and left leaving her behind. Claire took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment. After a few minutes she calmly walked out of the trailer, hoping that she wouldn't be noticed, but as soon as she turned around she noticed one of the hostages staring at her.
He must have been around her age, he was wearing a cowboy hat and a band covering one of his eyes; Even with only one eye visible, he was staring at her with such intensity that it made her hold her breath for a moment. He didn't seem scared or nervous, which was curious since she'd seen grown men cry just from meeting her dad.
For a few seconds Carl forgot where he was and everything that was happening. Out of the darkness she appeared, with golden hair contrasting with the black leather jacket she wore.
She was so different from everyone else around her that it almost felt wrong for her to be there.
But she was and she was one of them. It wasn't hard to notice when he looked more closely.
In a way she reminds him of himself. She was the first person his age who had the same cold and angry look. She wasn't frightened or scared, he noticed that she didn't seem to feel anything in particular.
"That's your son, isn't it?" Negan pointed at Carl as he approached him. "It's definitely your son."
He stopped in front of the boy and looked at him with a smile before shifting his eyes to Claire.
"This is my daughter, Claire." He gestured for her to come closer and Claire walked towards him. ''Of course my daughter isn't missing pieces because I'm a fucking good father.''
"Dad, that's insensitive." The two stared at each other for a few seconds in silence and Negan laughed loudly while Claire just looked at him smiling. They have this weird sense of humor that only the two of them understand. It's one of the only things that makes her feel truly connected to her father.
Negan wrapped an arm around Claire's shoulder and pulled her closer to the line of people. For the first time since she got there she faced them. Kneeling and with no way out. Some seemed more terrified than others, but everyone was clearly scared. The leader, Rick, seemed almost paralyzed.
"It's so hard to choose one of them, why don't you choose one?" Negan whispered loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.
Claire didn't question it, she knew she shouldn't. Even though deep down she also knew that he would never let her choose. Negan just wanted a show, a big memorable and traumatizing scene. And she was used to playing this game. Then she turned away from her dad and walked to the front of the line. She had seen him before, he was an Asian who had been kidnapped along with the others.
Claire stared at him for a few seconds trying to decipher what he was thinking. She always wondered what was going through people's heads when her father put them on their knees and said that one of them would be chosen to die. Several times she asked herself what she would do if it were her in this situation. There was no answer, much less a way out. And she knew it.
She continued walking slowly, facing them one by one. The redhead, she realized, wanted to be chosen. He was almost asking for it. Claire understands the feeling. Not wanting to die, but sacrificing yourself in exchange for saving others.
The short-haired woman next to him looked like she was about to faint. She was sweating cold and could barely stand. Claire crouched down in front of Rick and stared at him for a few seconds, but she wasn't sure if he was even aware of her presence. She got closer and closer to him until he suddenly moved away; then she smiled, pleased to cause discomfort.
When she turned to face the rest of the line, the boy was already staring at her, with an angry look and his hands clenched into fists. She was sure that if he could, he would punch her in the face. It would be interesting if he tried.
"Have you made up your mind yet?" Negan asked, looking at her while spinning Lucille in the air.
Claire ran towards him like a child running straight to the amusement park and leaned in to whisper in his ear. "I think we should play a game to decide. How about eeny-meeny-miney?"
Negan leaned back and smiled looking at her. "You are a genius!" Claire smiled as she bowed as if she had just finished performing some show.
She walked away and walked towards Carl who was staring at her like a moth following the light. It was intriguing to her, he's definitely the first person her age who doesn't seem like a total worthless idiot.
Claire smiled at him, not sweet or kind, more like a challenge. An invitation for him to play with her. She pulled the cowboy hat off his head and he instinctively tried to take it back.
"No, no, no." she whispered, slowly moving away from him as she put on the hat. "if you survive I'll give you back."
The rest of the events were a blur. Over time Claire learned to control her reactions. She barely moved as she watched Negan crush the heads of not one, but two men.
The redhead, she was sure would be chosen and he was the first to go. Everything was fine, he was doing his show for the group, but Daryl punched him in the face and Negan would never let an act like that go unpunished. “No exceptions.” Claire knew this phrase well. It wasn't just an empty promise, it was true and valid for everyone, including her.
Daryl's punishment was watching another friend die. And if Claire knows her father as well as she thinks she does, this wouldn't be Daryl's only punishment.
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Claire watched the day slowly dawn as she waited for Negan and Rick to return from wherever they went.
Carl continued to stare at her. Despite not reacting to everything that just happened, in his head, his thoughts were all jumbled. The feelings made him want to scream and also paralyzed him.
He was sad, angry, confused and intrigued. He hated admitting the last part. But curiosity was inevitable when he looked at her and all he saw was a strange reflection of himself. It was as if they were different sides of the same coin.
It irritated him, made him want to scream and ask who she was. She stared back at him, her arms crossed in front of her and one eyebrow arched in defiance.
It was as if she wanted the conflict, as if she had been waiting for it. Exactly how he was before he ended up in this trap.
Claire walked over to him and placed the hat back on his head. "Congratulations cowboy, you won."
Carl wanted to respond with some acidic comment, he wanted to grab her arm and dig his nails into her skin, but all he did was look away and stare at the floor. He had never felt so much urge to hurting someone and he hated that feeling.
Claire grabbed a bottle of water and walked over to the woman who was clearly not well. She bent down and offered the water even though she knew the woman wouldn't accept it.
"Drink the water." She took the woman's hand and placed the bottle in it. "if you faint they will take you to our doctor. I'm sure you don't want to go home with me."
Even though Maggie was trembling, she took the bottle to her mouth and drank some of the water. Claire wanted to say something, but she knew that anything she said wouldn't make a difference.
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Claire was impatient, pacing back and forth without getting anywhere. All she wanted was to get home, drink half of one of her bottles of whiskey and black out for over ten hours.
The sun was already shining warmly beneath they heads and Negan and Rick still hadn't returned.
Dwight walked over to her and grabbed her arm making her stop walking around in circles like a lunatic. "Can you stop this? You are starting to irritate the others."
Claire was about to respond that she wasn't giving a shit about her father's subordinates when she heard the sound of the trailer approaching. She sighed in relief at the thought that this long night would soon be over.
Dwight walked away as if nothing had happened. They had this kind of weird exchange where he pretends not to see some of the things she does and she pretends not to see how much he hates her father. She understands him. She understands why he made the choices he did and he pretends not to see what she does because he understands her too.
Once again Rick was on the ground, kneeling at Negan's feet. And to Claire's surprise, whatever they did didn't make her father happy because now he was ordering his henchmen to point guns at everyone's heads.
He asked Carl to come closer and tied his belt around the boy's left arm. Claire watched him, almost irritated at not receiving any fearful reaction. He seemed so carefree.
Carl knelt on the ground and Negan pushed him down. Now he was lying on the gravel with his arms spread wide. Simon passed a pen to Negan who marked the boy's arm.
"Claire, come here, honey." Negan pointed to the place next to him and she slowly walked there. "Take your gun and point it at his head."
For the next few minutes Claire watched Rick beg Negan not to make him cut off his own son's arm. If Rick didn't do it, everyone would die one by one and Claire would have to be the one to shoot Carl.
She unlocked the gun and took a deep breath as her father counted down, hoping Rick would have the courage to cut off his son's arm so she wouldn't have to blow his head off. Mainly because he seems too interesting to die.
Negan suddenly shouted stopping Rick.
"That was the look I wanted to see!" He knelt in front of Rick and grabbed his face. "You belong to Me. You serve me."
After finally being satisfied Negan ordered them to put Daryl in one of the vans and left towards the cars. Claire put away her gun and followed him after looking again at the boy who was still on the ground without moving.
One week. Just a week and she would see him again.