There will be Caryl in this story (later chapters) so hang with me. This is my take on what could have happened.

Carol moved methodically through the prison yard. Placing her hand at her brow she squinted and gazed out at the horizon. The Georgia sun had waned from its normal intensity of blaring heat as the winds of Autumn blew through with its comfort and threat of winter. The Walkers had thinned to a small army and it was just in the nick of time since the fence was clearly on its last leg.

Bending down at the site of Lori's grave she began to pull the weeds that had gathered there. It would be almost a year since they lost their friend and she was embarrassed to say she barely thought of her anymore. She contemplated to herself how a gravesite was not only a marker but a memorial so even if we never knew someone, they would somehow still at least be wondered about.

"Sophia's where she should be." His low gravely voice startled her from her thoughts. She turned to see Daryl standing there, bow hung over his left shoulder, head slightly lowered and looking at her with those eyes that saw straight through her.

"On some remnants of what used to be a home, under a tree that has probably burned to the ground? No marker to even let someone know she is there?" Carol said with tears burning her eyes, threatening to spill over.

Daryl slowly walked toward her. He reached out and placed his hand on the left side of her chest. She flinched, scared of the feelings his touch brought her. "I was talking about here." He gave her a sad smile and walked away. Carol turned, watching him in bewilderment, shocked at his revelation. She turned back just as the sun was setting. She smiled wide at the thought that Sophia could never really be taken from her. She looked back again to watch him as he entered the prison but he was already gone. Just like an Angel, she thought. Just like an Angel.

Daryl opened the curtain to his cell and stood there for only a brief moment. He didn't know what it was like to be tired anymore. If he wasn't hunting food for the group then he was attending council meetings and going on runs. That is why it bothered him that Carol seemed to occupy any extra room he had for his thoughts. She seemed distant and aloof – something was bothering her and it was more than worrying about the family. He sat down on the edge of his bed – afraid to lay down for fear he would fall asleep and he had fence duty in less than an hour.

"It seems I'm always walking in here thanking you for something." Carol smiled.

Daryl smirked at her slightly. "Well, you're always gettin' your ass in trouble." Daryl huffed.

"You know what I was talking about. I needed that out there. I've been feeling sorry for myself lately. I just wanted to tell you that what you said meant a lot to me and it mattered. It made a difference. She smiled at him and it made the butterflies in his stomach go crazy. Why was she always giving him that beautiful soft smile that made his palms sweat and his heart race?

"Do you want to talk about it?" Daryl asked.

"Not really, just feel like we can't catch a break. "

"Hey, sorry to interrupt you guys but Rick is calling an emergency council meeting in the library right now." Beth said.

The council sat around the table waiting for Rick to explain why they were being called to such a late meeting.

Rick stood before the group –"We think it's the swine flu but we are not sure. It could be something worse. It could be a strain we've never seen before or something else all-together. Right now we have two quarantined – Karen and David. Hopefully with them separated from the rest of the group, we will keep it from spreading, but we have to play it safe until then. We're going to have a lot of scared people and the last thing we need is people panicking. Don't lie to them but try to keep them calm. We'll regroup tomorrow morning. Everybody get some rest – it's crucial right now.

Everyone left and Carol walked back to her cell, feeling defeated. As she lay in her bunk, she couldn't help but fear for how many more they were going to lose because of this unseen enemy. They knew how to fight walkers, they knew how to fight people, but this was something that was beyond all of them – even with medication, there was no way to guarantee those she loved would survive. She thought of Lizzie and Mika and then, as always, she thought of Daryl. She couldn't lose him. She knew there was only one thing to do and though she couldn't bear the thought, she kept her family in the forefront of her mind. Grabbing her knife, she headed for Death Row.

The prison was always scariest at night. She swore demons from past prisoners still resided there, despite the fact they had done everything to make it a home. She walked closed to the walls, out of the light and in to the shadows. She marveled to herself at how quiet she could be when she needed to. The few times Daryl had taken her on hunts had proved to come in handy for this moment, though nothing could be good about what she was going to do. She opened the wide, heavy door slowly and slipped her way through the smallest opening. She held her breath for fear though the stench would have caused her to do so anyway. She could hear noises coming from one of the cells and she braced herself and moved forward. Suddenly Carol froze. Lying in the floor before her was a large pool of blood outside both of the cells. Carol covered her mouth to catch the escaped gasp that left her mouth. She could see blood skids leading from the cells to beyond her scope of vision. Quietly she tiptoed to follow the trail and standing there, just outside the doors, holding a gas can, was Sasha.