During the following week, Karen successfully integrated into life at the prison and learned some important details about the place. The watchtowers surrounding the grounds are usually empty, or at least they have been for the week she has been there. The taller towers seem to be used only to monitor the yard and rarely have more than one or two guards, who, by the way, change shifts every six hours.
However, she didn't know much about nighttime security. As a new survivor, she was not allowed to wander the halls late at night.
As for the staff, she was sure there were no more than twenty-five guards, while the rest were elderly, women, and children. In fact, she found several elderly people who needed constant care from others. Some women would push them in wheelchairs so they could get fresh air and enjoy the sun.
Additionally, under her observation, there seemed to be a shortage of weapons and ammunition. Every time a group went out, most were armed only with knives. Lately, she had only heard a handful of gunshots, and most of them came from the watchtowers.
Recently, Karen had made a friend: a beautiful woman named Lina. She answered all of Karen's questions and told her everything about the areas of the base she couldn't access. Sometimes Karen asked informal questions, and Lina always responded enthusiastically, talking a lot about the topic at hand.
According to Lina, this place was extremely boring. The whole day was reduced to farming and raising livestock, which was not very interesting. It was hard to meet new people, so she liked talking to Karen.
Karen felt lucky to have made a friend so quickly. She thought that if the Governor had sent someone else to the prison, the results might not have been the same. But, throughout those days, life in the place made Karen, who had always firmly believed in the Governor, begin to have some existential doubts.
She felt that the people there were very good, especially their leader, a man named Jason, who had even taken the trouble to talk to her twice. What she had seen and heard in the last few days was also very different from what the Governor had told her, especially concerning the story of a woman with a sword.
That woman, with dark skin, was named Michonne. The Governor had forbidden her to communicate with her for fear that they might be discovered. However, Karen couldn't contain her curiosity, so she still tried to make contact with Michonne.
Although the other woman didn't speak much and her demeanor was fierce, Karen still managed to pick up some interesting information from the few words she said.
First, she told her her story, and according to her words, she was not a spy from the place she was fleeing from. In fact, she had never had contact with the people at the prison before being brought to Woodbury.
The second thing she mentioned was that Woodbury was a place where those who killed and looted to survive gathered, "wolves stained with the blood of others," an illusion of survival.
As for why she said this, Michonne didn't explain it further and didn't insist. She just gave her a meaningful look and left, her sword on her back.
In the place where Karen was staying, she was now curled up in her bed, holding a radio tightly in her hands. Her face showed great confusion, and at that moment, she didn't know whom to believe. Ten days had passed. Should she send a message to the Governor?
If she didn't send the message in time, would her friends be in danger? The familiar faces appeared in her mind, and then the image of the Governor appeared, along with a phrase he had told her before she left:
"Don't trust any of them, only trust what you see! They're conspiring, and soon they'll attack us. They want what Woodbury has. Your friends and neighbors are waiting for news of your success!"
Karen's eyebrows, which had been furrowed, finally relaxed. The expression on her face softened, as if she had made a decision. She pressed the button on the radio.
...
Woodbury, Governor's Room.
Leaving the radio in his hand, the Governor showed a brief expression of emotion, but it was so fleeting that even Martínez, beside him, didn't notice it.
"Do you think what she said is credible?" Martínez asked, visibly concerned. Though he had also heard the conversation, he couldn't be convinced.
The Governor's expression was one of total confidence. He had always believed that his words and the brainwashing of all the survivors in that place were effective and marvelous. "The situation she reported is not much different from what I suspected. The reason she was sent was to confirm my assumptions. Even if the other side forced her to tell me this, it won't be a problem. Recently, we've gathered more than eighty survivors who know how to use weapons. Didn't you see how they left the towers empty?"
After saying this, the Governor pointed out: "When we finish eliminating them, we'll tell the people here that we helped that shelter recently occupied by murderers, prisoners who were freed from that prison and who looted survivors. When everyone sees how wonderful this place is, won't they be grateful?"
From what Martínez understood about the Governor, although he was a cruel and bloodthirsty person, he hadn't made a wrong decision so far. Thinking about this, Martínez suppressed his doubts, nodded to the Governor, and left the room.
…
Back at Karen's prison.
Throwing the radio in her hand, Karen felt inexplicably nervous. Her heart was pounding, and after breathing several times in an orderly fashion, she managed to calm herself down a bit.
She wanted to reach out and grab her backpack from her room, but she realized that her hand was shaking violently. Was this the feeling of betrayal? She thought silently, knowing she had stability in her hands, but still, it was completely inexplicable that she was shaking so much.
At that moment, she just wanted to go outside for some fresh air. Although she knew the base's rules and was aware that she wasn't allowed to go out unless there was an emergency, Karen didn't care at that moment. She walked out through the unit door and stood outside, looking at the calm landscape.
After moving away from the city lights and the pollution caused by the factories, the night sky became more and more beautiful. Countless stars shone above the sky just below the prison.
"I'm doing this for my friends! I'm doing the right thing!"
Repeating this phrase in her heart, self-hypnosis finally made Karen's breathing stabilize, and her hands stopped shaking.
"Are you getting some fresh air?"
Karen, who was looking at the sky, suddenly heard a man's voice beside her. Startled, she screamed and crouched down, covering her face with her hands.
"Sorry, it seems I scared you…" said the man in an apologetic tone.
It was his fault, as she hadn't looked around and really hadn't expected someone to be standing right beside her after she stepped outside. Karen didn't see who was in front of her until she stopped moving. It turned out to be the leader of this refuge, Jason!
"Ah, you almost scared me to death…" Karen patted her chest, feeling her heart pounding.
Jason didn't care about her reaction, walked over to her, and sat on the ground, signaling for Karen to sit down too.
The two of them just sat there. Jason didn't say anything, and Karen was too scared to say a word. At that moment, she was very glad it was night, and the other person shouldn't be able to see her expression. But as she was thinking about these unnecessary things, Jason finally spoke.
"Did you do it? How was the report to the Governor?"