The Fall of the Governor, Part 2 by Robert Kirkman Page A

paratroopers—but the worst part was the guilt. Martinez barely escaped, pushing his way out the loading dock … but he would never forget the sounds of the children shrieking behind him as he fled, the biters devouring the class in a ghastly feeding frenzy.
    â€œBy the looks of those tire tracks,” Lilly utters finally under her breath, “I’m guessing they found him out, took him down, maybe with the vehicle.” She looks down. “He wasn’t perfect, but he was one of us—he was a decent man. He didn’t deserve this.”
    Austin reaches over and puts an arm around her. “There’s nothing you could have done, Lilly. He knew what he was getting into.”
    â€œYeah, I guess,” she murmurs, all the confidence draining out of her voice.
    Austin lets out a weary sigh. “Can we get outta here now? I mean … mission accomplished, right?”
    Gabe grumbles at him. “What are you talking about, mission accomplished? Nothing’s been accomplished here but Martinez getting wasted.”
    Austin looks at him. “We found him, right? We found out why he didn’t show up. There’s nothing else we can do, man. File closed.”
    David pipes in. “I have to say I agree with pretty boy. For all we know, the entire group of escapees may be dead. Besides, the sun’s gonna be setting fairly soon.”
    Lilly glances over her shoulder, surveys the path and the route back—no biters in sight. “Okay, it’s settled then,” she says. “Stay low, and keep quiet … we don’t want any of these biters on our tail.”
    They start edging their way back down the hillside toward the riverbed, but all at once Gabe springs to his feet and circles around in front of Lilly, blocking her path with fire in his eyes. “Hold up!” He shoves her back. “We’re not going anywhere!”
    Austin steps in, getting protective. But Lilly waves everybody back down into crouching positions. “Keep it down, goddamnit!” She turns and looks at Gabe. “What the fuck is your problem?”
    Gabe burns his gaze into her. “We need to bring back proof.”
    â€œExcuse me?”
    â€œGovernor’s gonna want to see proof this happened.”
    â€œProof?!” She stares at him. “You got four witnesses. What do you want, Gabe—a lock of his hair? C’mon, you want to risk more lives?”
    Gabe reaches down to his pant leg. He pulls his Randall knife from a sheath, the blade glistening in the beams of late-afternoon sun. “Do whatever you want, Lilly … but I’m not coming back without proof.”
    Lilly crouches there, dumbstruck, watching Gabe turn and creep down the embankment. She turns to the others. “Goddamnit-to-hell, c’mon … we gotta cover him.”
    *   *   *
    By the time they reach the bottom of the wooded path, all available firearms have been drawn, cocked, readied, and aimed. Gabe moves toward the clearing, ducking behind an ancient, gnarled live oak. Lilly crouches down twenty feet behind him, staying low, eyes taking in everything, both her Ruger semiautomatics gripped tightly in her sweaty palms. Austin hovers close behind her, his Glock at his side, while David brings up the rear, scanning the woods behind them for fear of having their escape route cut off.
    The silence is excruciating—a ten-ton weight pressing down on them—the only audible sounds now their breathing and their pulses racing in their ears. Lilly sees Gabe bend down and pick up a stone. She aims her Rugers at the distant swarm of walkers milling across the far meadow. So far, none of the creatures have taken notice.
    The monster that once belonged to their inner circle—the former football coach who, less than a year ago, shared a New Year’s bottle of brandy with Dr. Stevens, Alice, and Lilly—now shuffles directionlessly through the