Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or show, I'm just having a lot of fun with them. I don't make anything off this story but the kind reviews from my reader.
The Italic's is Rick from the present, this chapter is from Daryl's POV.
Warnings: Violence, Blood and Gore, Sexual Content between two men and Bad Language. You've been warned.
What Lies Ahead
That wasn't the worst that happened to us, losing Amy, Jim and Jacqui was just the beginning. I will say that it wasn't all bad, we had a few surprises and a few things to celebrate and we didn't let a moment of it just pass us by like before. Because then we realized how rare peace and normalcy was going to be, and we had to grab it when it showed up. Because tragedy was always just around the corner and each one was scarier and sadder and harder to deal with then the last. So you'll be hearing from several of us, as we tell you what happened next in our journey to make it in this new apocalyptic civilization.
My name's Daryl Dixon and I just found out I was going to be a father, turns out I'm so good I knocked up a guy. I'd been screwing around with him for the last few weeks, but because of these mutations he was able to conceive. On top of that my brother was still missing and with one less body part, his hand to be exact. We were just driving away from the fiery crater that had been the C.D.C. building; in the last week we've lost Merle, Amy, several others I didn't get know, Jim and Jacqui. She was the most recent having been in the C.D.C. when it exploded.
We drove for hours, well into the night until Rick stopped in a small suburban neighborhood, which was a good thing my truck had been running on fumes that last few miles. Glenn was passed out with his head on my lap. I kept thinking back to those last remaining minutes trapped in that room, finding out Glenn was pregnant and then getting locked in there by Doctor psycho. I had been pissed, and scared and the more freighted I got, the angrier I became. I wasn't scared of myself; I was terrified of losing Glenn and my unborn child. Which had made no sense to me at the time, but over the next few weeks my mixed emotions would end up no longer being mixed.
We didn't do much discussing that night, just cleared out a couple of houses, found a place to sleep for the night, couches, the floor or a bed or two. Glenn and I stayed in the master bedroom sleeping cuddled up together; no one questioned it, at least not until the next day.
It was that morning that we searched the houses for food, then sat down to discuss all that had happened and figure out where to go next. About an hour after eating lunch Rick sighed then spoke up. "Let's get some things cleared up, Glenn, are you really pregnant?" Glenn was sitting next to me holding his recently empty plate.
"Yes. It makes sense all the symptoms, I think the stomach cramps were because I was hungry and the baby wasn't happy about it. Plus I'm sure it wasn't happy with all the throwing up I'd been doing." Glenn said as he tried to explain why I had to carry him to the C.D.C. building.
"He's right, going back over the last few days it all adds up, and then the glow weather he knows it not, I would've asked or suggested that he was pregnant, but the fact that he was a man kept my mouth shut." Lori said as she put her arm around Carl.
"Do I need to ask who the father is?" Rick asked as he looked at the group then turned to me, everyone was looking at me, I had stopped hiding it the moment I found out.
"Just so you know, I was never ashamed of being gay, I just didn't have a death wish." I stated.
"Your brother?" Rick asked.
I didn't respond to that, because it was the truth. "Okay so now that you know, let's make things perfectly clear, y'all aren't my friends, you left my brother to die and I have forgiven you, 'cause you tried to help me get him back. So Rick, T-Dog we're even. But now you have to earn my trust and loyalty, it starts here and now." I turned to Glenn as I continued. "I don't show affection well, but I like you, and I'm not going to be a dead beat dad, but I'm not ready for the whole family thing."
"I understand Daryl, I'm okay with going slow, and truth is this wasn't what I was expecting either. So let's keep things as they are and go from there." Glenn suggested.
"I can do that."
"Good, now that, that is cleared up, let's discuss the mutations." Dale suggested.
"Good idea Dale, who's got 'em and who doesn't, has anyone noticed anything unusual with them or someone else?" Rick asked. Shane got up and walked out to his jeep from the house we'd been squatting in for the last day. He came back a few minutes later with a tire iron, it was a single metal bar with a twist at the end of it; he handed it to Rick.
"Bend that." Shane told him as he sat back down.
Rick took the bar grabbing it from either end then bent it in half without breaking a sweat. "Okay, I'm unnaturally strong."
Shane took the bar back grabbed it from either end and then straightened it, he used too much force and it broke in two. "I'm stronger." Shane said.
"I can see in the dark, and hear really far, I'm sure other things are changing as well." I informed them.
"That's pretty cool." Glenn said. "Besides being pregnant I'm pretty fast and I've gotten more agile lately."
"Anyone else." Rick asked, everyone either shrugged or shook their head. "Okay, let's discuss where to go next." Rick said changing the subject to something more important at the moment.
"I say we try my idea and head for Fort Benning." Shane suggested.
"At least it'd be a direction." T-Dog agreed.
"On what gas we're low as it is." Lori reminded us.
"Then we need to down size this convoy." Rick suggested.
"Rick's right." Glenn agreed as he pointed his thumb at him.
"My truck's on empty anyways so I'll ride my brother's bike; I can drive ahead of the caravan and come back if there's something that the cars can't get around." I told 'em.
"I can lose the jeep and ride in the R.V." Shane suggested.
"I can abandon the van; I'll join Shane in the R.V." T-Dog seconded.
"Rick, my station wagons big enough for your family as well." Carol threw out there.
"Thanks Carol, Andrea you can join the R.V. crew." Rick informed her.
"Got it, so we can just siphon the gas from the others and have more to travel on." Andrea said.
"What about Glenn?" Carol asked.
"He rides with me." I stated matter of fact.
"Daryl I don't think a bike ride while pregnant is a good idea." Lori told me.
"Lori's right, plus the R.V. has a bathroom." Glenn said. "I'll ride with them."
"All right." I relented.
"Okay, I think we need to take the highway it'll be faster and easier getting to Fort Benning. It'll use up less gas too." Rick suggested.
"Well that sounds like a plan; when do we start?" Andrea asked.
"First thing in the morning, we all need another day to rest and recuperate our emotions." Rick said.
The rest of us seconded that, some were still grieving for their loss, I was speaking of Andrea and T-Dog; he'd been close to Jacqui. So we took care of ourselves the rest of the day, cleaned our clothes, washed up the best we could in the situation we'd been placed in. Some of us shaved, I liked my goatee right where it was, on my face. And as the day came to an end me and Glenn headed to the master room again where we talked a little while before going to sleep.
I found out that night that his father disowned him when he came out, he got a pizza deliver job to pay for college, he found out that my first real relationship was with my next door neighbor, who looked great mowing his lawn. I didn't mention much about myself or past, well not the important stuff, I wasn't ready and Glenn never pushed, ever, that kid surprised me with how patient he was. No one, not even the neighbor had enough patients to coax me out, he did.
The next morning we packed up our bags and loaded the cars, Rick went to make his call as T-Dog and I siphoned off the gas and loaded them up. Rick got back as I started up my brother's bike, I suppose it's now mine. I saw Carol and Sophia getting into the Station Wagon with Rick and his family. T-Dog and Glenn went into the R.V. with Andrea and Dale.
I stopped right behind where the station wagon was parked as I saw Rick kiss Lori; I looked in the other direction and noticed Shane watching not far from them. Rick turned and looked at him as Lori got in the car, he smiled, Shane smiled back, they both nodded before Rick joined her.
"Son, let's saddle up." Dale called to Shane just before getting in the R.V. Shane moved from his spot to the R.V. and got on bored. I headed out front, of the convoy, with Dale right behind me and Rick taking the rear as we headed to the highway and Fort Benning.
It was a few hours on the empty highway, at least our side; the other was jammed packed with vehicles. Then a problem came up, as not all those vehicles stayed to one side of this highway, I sped up as I weaved through the cars to see if there was a way through for the convoy. I looked back and saw the R.V. stop; there was a clear path if they went slow and followed me there shouldn't be a problem, some cars could be pushed with a slight nudge out of the way; so then I turned and headed back. I drove up to Dale's window he looked at me.
"Do you see a way through?" He asked, I nodded and jerked my head as a signal for him to continue on then went passed the R.V. and drove up to Rick's window.
"What's going on?" He asked.
"I'm going to lead y'all through just go slow and follow me." I informed him; then drove around and back to the front of Dale.
I went slow as I led them through this minefield of cars, some of which had bodies in them, most were abandoned, and quite a few had been flipped. We were half way through when Dale's radiator hose gave and his engine started to sputter as it steamed and hissed and then died.
I stopped and turned off my bike before headed back as they were getting out of their vehicles. "I said it, didn't I say it?" Dale said as he came around to the front of the R.V. "A thousand times dead in the water."
"Problem, Dale?" Rick asked as he walked up to him.
"Just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere with no hope of—" Dale paused as he noticed that I went around to the back of one of the cars. "Okay, that was dumb."
I was going through what supplies were in the car as Shane said. "If you can't find a radiator hose here…"
"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find." I finished for him as I pulled out a back pack.
"I can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start." T-Dog suggested.
"Maybe some water." Carol piped in as she wrapped her arms around Sophia.
"Or food." Glenn suggested next, I was betting he could use some food right about then.
"This is a graveyard." Lori informed us; I looked at her my arm still searching through the car. "I don't know how I feel about this." She said.
"All right, all right, here we go. Come on y'all just look around, gather what you can." Rick said. T-Dog headed back to grab the gas cans and hoses to start siphoning the cars. Everyone started going in separate directions as they looked for things we needed to survive. I finished my search on this car coming up empty.
I grabbed my bow from where I'd hooked it on the back of my Harley and followed T-Dog to one of the cars. I had an arrow in my mouth as we opened up the gas cap, he started to siphon from it as I took the other gas can and hose and headed to another car, I passed Carol as I went, she was riffling through a suit case placing a rather pretty blouse up against her body, I tuned them out as I set up the can next to one of the cars.
I started siphoning from while I took the arrow out of my mouth and loaded it into my bow, I looked in the backseat then, there was a car seat strapped in, covered in blood. I set my bow next to the can, and while the car was empting I went to the back and started going through it, there were blankets and pillows some boxes of clothes, then I saw a diaper bag and I grabbed it.
As I looked through it, I found: diapers, wipes, some baby toys, a few bottles some empty some not; I tossed those, there was a colorful blanket that was rather soft, a book teaching the ABCs, a couple of baby clothes, a feminine product named tampon; I figured the girls would end up needing those, there was also a wallet, a powdered milk container that was more than half full; still good, there was nail polish, lip stick, some sort of cream and baby powder, I zipped up the bag and slung it on my back.
Once the car was on empty I picked up the can and felt that it was not quite full yet, I picked up my bow with my other head and headed to the next car, and as it was siphoning I stood and stretched glancing around, that's when I saw them, several walkers headed our way; in fact it was a whole herd.
I tossed the diaper bag next to the car as I saw Rick dive under a vehicle along with the rest of his family and Carol and her daughter as well. I looked around and saw Glenn oblivious to the threat; I gripped my bow as I started to make my way to him while staying hidden behind the cars. There was a time when a situation like this would come up and I'd only think of myself, I thought of Merle to but he could take care of himself, I never worried about him. But then and now I think of Glenn first not myself, I'm constantly worrying about Glenn not myself, now that was a big difference I noticed, between who I used to be and who I became.
I stopped as I saw Shane push Glenn under the van he'd been working on; I crouched next to a car. I looked around and saw T-Dog running; he got stuck at a car when he suddenly cut himself. "Shit." I muttered as I ran around the cars.
I saw T-Dog running from the walkers; he was bleeding from his arm leaving a trail. There were cars and walkers in the way so I knew I'd have to go the long way around if I wanted to reach him before he became walker food.
I saw a walker trap T-Dog as he stumbled and fell on his ass against one of the cars. I finally made it as I crouched behind a car and looked at the walker as he passed me headed straight for T-Dog. I stood up dropping my bow on the hood of a car and with my knife I grabbed it around the throat and right at the top of the spine into its brain I stuck my knife. It started collapsing as I lowered it to the ground with me on top.
I took out my knife as I looked at T-Dog; there was fear and pain in his eyes, as well as shocked surprise that I just saved his life. T-Dog started sobbing in both pain and fear as I put my finger to my mouth. "Shh." I told him as I grabbed his legs and pulled him down onto the asphalt.
I turned and grabbed the walker I just killed and placed it on top of T-Dog to cover his scent. Then walked over him to the car he'd been against, there was a dead body sitting in the drivers seat, it had had been there for a while. I grabbed it and pulled it on top of myself, I breathed through my mouth as I tried not to think about the dead face that was right there laying on me. I heard some walkers as they shuffled passed us.
After a few minutes when there was no more shuffling and the growling sounds were gone I moved. My first thought was to get this stinking ass off of me and check on T-Dog, make sure he hadn't bled out.
I got to my hands and knees and pushed the dead walker off of T-Dog, then grabbed his shirt and pulled him up. He groaned as he sat. The bandanna Glenn had wrapped around my hand several days ago was in my pocket, I used it to press into T-Dog's wounded arm. I'd cleaned it yesterday so it was safe to use on T-Dog. My hand was healing nicely I had noticed when I took the bandage off last night.
While he held the bandanna there I crouched low and took a look around when I saw Sophia screaming and running to the woods while she was being chased by two walkers, I saw Rick follow her as the rest were coming out of their hiding spots. I got T-Dog up and pushed him toward the R.V. grabbing my crossbow from the hood of the car where I'd dropped it when I saved his black ass.
I saw them gather at the guardrail Rick had jumped over just moments before. Carol had ran to the guardrail. "Lori." She cried Lori was by her with Carl, Shane and Glenn right behind them. "There's two walkers are after my baby." Carol cried as Lori grabbed her keeping her from running after them. Andrea and Dale had joined them as Lori wrapped her arms around Carol.
I walked up to them, T-Dog next to me holding his arm. Andrea saw him and took him to the R.V. where she could wrap up his arm and get the bleeding under control. I went to Glenn and put my hand on his shoulder. "I'm okay. Just-" He bent over the guardrail then and threw up. There wasn't much I could do for him as he finished.
Rick arrived several minutes later. "Where's Sophia?" Carol asked as she noticed her daughter wasn't with him.
"What? She's not here?" Rick asked.
"Last we saw she was with you." Lori told him.
I had a feeling something had gone wrong. "Rick, show me where you last saw her." I said, I was the best tracker the group had, scratch that, I was the only tracker the group had. Glenn and Shane followed us as Rick led me to the creek and the burrow he'd left her hiding. I looked at Rick as I asked. "Sure this is the spot?"
He walked up next to me as he said. "I left her right here." He stretched his hand out to the burrow.
"I drew the walker's way off in that direction up the creek." He said as he pointed before resting his hands on his legs.
"Without a paddle—seems where we've landed." I informed him.
"She was gone by the time I got back here, I figured she just took off and ran back to the group. I told her go that way and keep the sun on her left shoulder." He explained as he pointed to a trail up the creek that would take her right back to the highway.
I walked to the edge and looked up at Glenn. "Hey, short round, why don't you step off to one side? You're mucking up the trail." I told him. He looked at me as he held his shot gun close to his chest before moving off the trail.
"Assuming she knows her left from her right." Shane said.
"Shane, she understood me fine." Rick told him, frustratingly.
"Kids tired and scared, man. She had her a close call with two walkers, got to wonder how much of what you said stuck."
Once Glenn had moved away some I saw the tracks. "Got clear prints right here, she did like you said headed back to the highway." I informed Rick as he walked over to me; I placed my crossbow in my left hand. "Let's spread out, make our way back." I told 'em as Shane gave me a hand up out of the creek bed.
"She couldn't have gone far." Rick stated as Shane helped him out as well.
"Hey, we gonna find her." He told Rick before letting his hand go, as Rick followed us Shane taking the rear he continued. "She'll be tuckered out hiding in the bush somewhere."
I led the way as I stayed low to the ground my bow in my right hand again as I followed the trail, I stopped and knelt on the ground my free hand resting on my knee. Glenn stopped behind me, Rick off to the side a bit and Shane walked up and crouched with his shot gun against his shoulder between his legs trying to see what I see.
"She was doing just fine till right here." I explained. I looked off in the direction she had been heading in as I continued. "All she had to do was keep going." I used my arm and pointed it in the other direction. "She veered off that way."
"Why would she do that?" Glenn asked.
"Maybe she saw something that spooked her made her run off." Shane theorized.
"A walker?" Glenn asked
I shook my head then informed 'em. "I don't see any other footprints. Just hers." I informed 'em.
"So what do we do? All of us press on?" Shane asked as he looked at Rick.
"No, better if you and Glenn get back up to the highway. People are gonna start panicking." Rick said, then Shane stood back up as Rick continued. "Let them know we're on her trail doing everything we can. But most of all keep everybody calm."
"I'll keep 'em busy scavenging cars think up a few other chores. I'll keep 'em occupied." Shane said then turned and headed back to the highway Glenn behind him. I grabbed Glenn as he passed me and kissed him real quick, it was all I could do to tell him it'd be all right and Rick and I will do our best to bring her back safe and sound. Glenn seemed to understand as he smiled at me before following Shane.
"Come on." Rick said as I watched Glenn a few seconds before we continued to follow her trail.
I grabbed my bow with both hands as I headed deeper into the woods with Rick behind me. For several minutes close to an hour we followed the trail. Not a word between us, which was fine with me, I preferred the silence, I had learned that early on when hunting, it just became a habit not to talk. That is until it became necessary to speak.
"Tracks are gone." Rick said.
I kicked a few leaves off the trail and bent closer, I was thankful for my improved eyesight as I saw them. "No, they're faint, but they ain't gone." I informed Rick. I pointed them out as I continued. "She came through here."
"How can you tell?" Rick asked. "I don't see anything dirt, grass."
"You want a lesson in tracking or you want to find that girl and get our ass off that interstate?" I asked, he shut up. "Besides with these eyes I don't miss much anymore."
"Right." Rick muttered as he fell into step on my left as he followed.
We kept moving for several minutes, more like a couple of hours probably, Rick was holding his pistol in his right hand as he moved to my other side, it was quite, no birds nothing. Then we heard leaves rustling ahead of us, we both crouched down I got my bow ready to fire while Rick kept his piece down not wanting to attract unwanted attention.
Rick pointed the direction it had come from and he started to lead the way as I stayed at the ready while I followed him keeping our steps light. I think I'd gotten use to the smell of death 'cause I smelt that sucker way before it started making noise, I just didn't mention it, mostly because these new improved senses were something I was having to get use to and learn how to use them.
We looked down a slight hill at the walker; it was a guy once, probably a good looking ladies' man before he became walker food. But I really wouldn't know much about that, I was never a ladies man, for one thing I didn't know how to talk to them or relate to 'em. With men it was always easy, when I wasn't around my family that is.
Rick looked at me I gave him a signal to go to the left, I went to the right and we pincer moved the fucker. Rick got its attention as he whistled, it roared at him for 'bout a second before my arrow went through its skull, and he collapsed on the ground.
Rick and I walked up to him; I braced my foot on its back as I grabbed my arrow and pulled it out. I backed a few steps from it before raising my voice. "Sophia!" Rick pulled out a pair of gloves from his back pocket and put them on as he knelt down next to the walker.
"What are you looking for?" I asked.
"Skin under the fingernails." He explained before rolling him over. "It fed recently." He opened its jaw and tried to pull something out of its mouth. "There's flesh caught in its teeth." He pulled it out of the fucker's mouth as I crouched next to him.
"Yeah, what kind of flesh?" I asked.
"Only one way to know for sure." He pulled out a short knife from his other back pocket then opened the guys bloodied shirt, its stomach was distended, so it's been chowing down on something. I pulled on some gloves before touching his shoulder.
"Here, I'll do it." I pulled out my hunting knife as I asked. "How many kills you skin and gutted in your life? Anyway, mine is sharper." I straddled the body then, using my feet I braced myself as I gripped the handle with both hands, then jammed the knife from tip to hilt into the dead guys gut with a grunt as I started to use a sawing motion back and forth as I pulled it down to open the guys stomach up.
I'll tell you this right now in all the years of hunting and gutting kills the inside always, always smells worse than the outside. So while I was cutting Rick was making a face as he turned away from the putrid smell of death, I had learned early on to breathe through my mouth to control both the intake of the smell, and the gag reflex. I got done with the first cut, I pulled my knife out and jammed it in a second time; Rick flinched at the sound and the smell.
I cut a third time before the hole in the guy's gut was big enough for me to get in there and dig around. Rick looked at me, then back at the dead body as I finished, I put my knife down before looking at him. "Now comes the bad part." I warned this is when the smells really hit you, when you start riffling through the guts.
I used my hand to dig and maneuver inside this guy's belly before I started pulling things out. Unlike most of my kills where their body parts are red some tinged pink or a tannish gray color, this guy was all black and dark green. He'd been dead a while before I killed him for good, as the blood was black as night.
Rick had to cover his mouth as I pulled out some intestine before I reached in and found the stomach. "Yeah, hoss had a big meal not long ago." I told Rick as I felt around the stomach. "I feel it in there." Using my other hand as leverage I pulled his whole stomach out and laid it on the ground so we could go through it.
"Here's the gut bag." I informed Rick who looked at it.
"I got this." He took his pick sticker and cut into the stomach, opening up its contents. We used our knives to take out the contents, Rick pulled out some mush and threw it on the ground; I pulled out the skull of a rodent.
"This gross bastard had himself a woodchuck for lunch." I informed Rick as I examined the skull of said rodent. Then tossed it to the ground before I stood grabbing my arrow and bow.
"At least we know." Rick said.
"At least we know." I seconded before we both headed back to the highway, the sun was going to be setting soon and there was no way we'd be able to find her in the dark. Seeing as I'm the only one that can see in the dark a one man hunting party won't cover much ground.
On the way back Rick stopped and turned to me. "Daryl, there's going to be a lot of questions and Carol's probably going to be in a panic. I know we can't leave until we find Sophia but we aren't woodsmen, you are. When we get back to the group I need to get us organized. So my question is will you help oversee that it gets done properly and we don't lose more people."
"Sure Rick, I already planned on doin' that anyways." I told him. He turned and picked up the pace a bit as there was a golden hue showing up, which told us the sun was starting to set. It was the truth, you see I felt this need to find her, mostly because ever since Glenn's condition was known I became scared, terrified even that I'd be just like my old man, a mean drunk with a bad temper to boot. I thought that if I could find Sophia then I could take care of and protect my own child. This search didn't end well.
I could hear some of our group talking as we neared the interstate, couldn't say who or what was being said, but as Carol came into view I did hear Glenn plain as day. "Oh God, they're back." A heard a clunk on the asphalt like something was set down, before the group headed for the guard rail. Rick was a few paces ahead a me as he got to Carol first. She was just standing at the guardrail waiting; the saddest thing for a parent, is waiting for news of their lost child.
"You didn't find her?" Carol asked when Rick stopped.
"Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again at first light." Rick informed her as he stepped over the guardrail.
The others had gathered as Carol begged him. "You can't leave my daughter out there on her own to spend the night alone in the woods." I had reached them standing on the other side of the rail; I had my crossbow slung on my back.
"Hunting in the dark's no good, y'all just be tripping over yourselves, more people get lost." I explained.
"But she's twelve, she can't be out there on her own. You didn't find anything?" She asked sorrow and fear were in her voice as tears appeared in her eyes.
"I know this is hard, but I'm asking you not to panic. We know she was out there." Rick said trying to calm her down.
"And we tracked her for a while." I added.
"We have to make this an organized effort." Rick said as he addressed the whole group. "Daryl knows the woods better than anybody; I've asked him to oversee this."
Carol noticed a spot on my pants that I got when I was digging around in hoss's stomach. "Is that blood?" She asked her breathing picked up as she was headed closer to a panic attack.
"We took down a walker." Rick explained.
"Walker? Oh my God." Carol was start to look a little faint.
"There was no sign it was ever anywhere near Sophia." Rick told her trying to calm her down.
Lori put her hand on Carol's arm to help comfort her as Andrea asked. "How can you know that?"
Rick looked at me. "We cut the son of a bitch open, made sure." I informed them.
Carol turned around and sat on the guardrail. "Oh God." Sounded more in relief that time then in panic. Lori sat next to her rubbing her back as she tried to get her breathing under control. She looked at Rick and said. "How could you just leave her out there to begin with? How could you just leave her?" She was angry and scared and taking out on Rick.
"Those two walkers were on us. I had to draw them off, it was her best chance." Rick explained, of course I tried to put myself in her shoes if it was mine and Glenn's child that he left, I knew I'd probably be pissed, but truth was I wouldn't leave our kid in his care. I'd have gone after 'em and protected them myself, I glanced at Glenn real quick.
Shane walked up to Rick and looked at Carol. "Sounds like he didn't have a choice, Carol."
"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own?" Carol asked tears in her eyes and voice as she was losing the battle not to cry. "She's just a child." Rick knelt in front of her, Carol bent towards him as she repeated. "She's just a child."
Lori pulled her back as Rick looked up at her and continued to try and explain. "It was my only option the only choice I could make."
Shane was leaning against the guardrail as he spoke up. "I'm sure nobody doubts that."
"My little girl got left in the woods." She started to give into her tears. I finally crossed the guardrail and walked up to Glenn putting my hand on his shoulder. Rick stood then and walked away, there was nothing more he could say to convince Carol that it had been his only option to save Sophia's life. Andrea sat on the other side of Carol as she broke down and cried.
Rick was upset it was easy to see in his stride as he walked down the highway until he was out of view. I turned my attention to Glenn as I pulled him to where I left the diaper bag and gas canister. It was full now the car on empty, I picked up the bag and showed Glenn. "This stuff is great Daryl, I'll go store it with are things in the R.V." Glenn said as he moved off. But not before he kissed me long and hard.
I leaned against the car as I watched the sun set, I could hear the sobs from Carol but it had dimmed as I tried to tune her out. "Daryl, here." I snapped my head up when I heard Glenn so close to me, I hadn't even realized I'd closed my eyes until then. Glenn was handing me a bottle of water which I took gratefully as I chugged the whole thing in one go, I was so thirsty.
Glenn looked around and then took my hand and led me further from the group, it was one of those days when I let Glenn take the lead in our relationship. One of the cars was a pretty big, mostly empty SUV; Glenn opened the back and had me get in on the bench seat. I leaned against the other door as he crawled in after me he left the door open to give himself a little more room to move.
Glenn knelt between my legs; I had one on the bench seat the other hanging off with my foot on the floor. Glenn reached for my pants and started to take off my belt, then unbuttoned and unzipped them before pulling, I lifted up some off the seat, my boots went with my pants leaving me in my boxers and shirt.
I didn't say anything as Glenn pulled at my boxers, again I lifted; I wasn't up to doing much, more worn out from the emotions of the day than anything else. But Glenn seemed to know exactly what I needed. He pulled out a rag and used another bottle of water to wet it, which he then ran over my face, down my chest as he unbuttoned my shirt. As he got to my waist he wet the rag and rung it out before continuing. This wouldn't be the first time he bathed me like this, at some point it becomes a ritual between us to help us connect, when either of us or both have a stressful day.
Once he cleaned me up he rung out the rag and set it on the floor near where my foot was resting before he moved and kissed me, I deepened the kiss as I tasted his mouth, and enjoyed the small tongue battle before I let him win. When he pulled back he said. "I love you, Daryl."
I didn't say anything for a couple of minutes, Glenn continued. "I know you can't say the words yet, I know you have a hard time believing that I love you, so I'm going to continue to say it until you can say it back, and then I'll know that you believe that someone in this world loves you Daryl Dixon." He kissed me again before moving down to my hardening cock.
He started at the root with his tongue, just small licks, until I was fully hard, I moaned as he lavished attention to my aching member. Then as he licked the tip he opened his mouth and engulfed me fully, right passed his gag reflex, he's clearly had experience. That made me a tad bit jealous, that I wasn't the first, but I got passed that as I moaned when he started to suck.
He would suck; then lick, he'd pull off only to engulf me again, he moaned a couple of times sending vibrations through me. Each time I would get close to coming he'd pull off, for several minutes he'd do that until I finally ground out. "Glenn fuckin' stop the teasin'." He smirked; I saw it in his eyes as he looked at me. But did as I requested, he sucked hard, seconds later I fell over the edge into his moist warm heat, with a cry of ecstasy. He swallowed not letting a drop get away, he licked me clean before he pulled away, then with his help I got dressed in some fresh clothes he had gotten that I hadn't noticed until then. He must've placed them there when I'd been trying to tune Carol out. I rested a few minutes before Glenn pulled me up and we went back to the group.
He slept; I didn't, not much anyways. I kept watch for most the night, Shane did relieve me a good three hours before sun up then it was time to gear up and head back out to look for Sophia again.
Once we were all gathered T-Dog included, Rick unrolled a black tool bag filled with knives and other sharp objects on top of the trunk of one of the cars. Dale informed us that Carl found it yesterday while we were looking for Sophia, well it was about to come in handy.
"Everybody takes a weapon." Rick said as he picked up his hat. I was standing next to him with my bow on my back as I looked at them.
"These aren't the kind of weapons we need." Andrea said on the other side of the car. "What about the guns?" She asked.
"We've been over that." Shane said from his position against the R.V. next to T-Dog. Lori stepped up to the weapons and looked through them, Carl was right behind her, she picked a knife; all the weapons were sheathed so I don't know which blade she picked as she walked off. "Daryl, Rick and I are carrying." Shane continued. "We can't have people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles." Glenn came up next to pick a blade, then stepped to the side and unsheathed it, while we continued to discuss the gun issue with Andrea.
"It's not the trees I'm worried about." Andrea said adamantly.
I was watching Glenn as he looked at the blade he picked; it had a curved end with a sharp point that faced the wilder.
"Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, a herd happens to be passing by. See, then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it." Shane finished as he slung his pack on his back while Glenn sheathed his weapon.
"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark." I instructed once the gun matter had been settled. I walked passed Rick to where Glenn was packing his stuff.
"Stay quiet, and stay sharp. Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other." Rick finished and walked over to Dale who was sitting on the steps into his R.V.
"Everybody assemble your packs." Shane said.
"Dale, keep on those repairs. We've got to get this R.V. ready to move." Rick told him. I grabbed leaned against a truck as Glenn put food and water battles in his pack.
"We won't stay here a minute longer than we have to. Good luck out there, bring Sophia back." Dale told Rick.
"Keep an eye on Carl while we're gone." Rick requested of Dale.
"I'm going with you." Carl said. "You need people, right? To cover as much ground as possible." He reasoned with his father. Rick groaned as he looked at his wife. I looked back down at Glenn as he fished packing up, I wasn't sure I wanted Glenn to go but he was a grown man, I wasn't gonna tell him what to do. Not yet at least.
Lori looked back at Rick as she spoke. "Your call, I can't always be the bad guy."
Dale spoke up next. "Well, he has all of you to look after him. I'd say he's in good hands."
Rick sighed as he relented. "Okay, okay." He placed his hand on Carl's shoulder as he told him. "But always within our sight, no exceptions." Rick walked off to get his stuff. I noticed Dale wink at Carl before they smiled at each other, and then Carl went with his mother.
I turned my back then as I loaded my bow with as many arrows as it could hold, but I did hear Dale talk to Andrea. "Andrea, I'm begging you, don't put me in this position."
"I'm not going out there without my gun. I'll even say please."
"I'm doing this for you."
"No, Dale, you're doing it for you, you need to stop. What do you think's gonna happen? I'm gonna stick it in my mouth and pull the trigger the moment you hand it to me?" Rick noticed the conversation going on as he turned to watch them, he put his hat back on while he surveyed but didn't but in.
"I know you're angry at me. That much is clear." Shane was watching as well, he was holding his shotgun against his shoulder as he stood there, Dale continued. "But if I hadn't done what I did, you'd be dead now."
"Jenner gave us an option, I chose to stay."
"You chose suicide."
"So what's that to you? You barely know me."
"I know Amy's death devastated you."
"Keep her out of this. This is not about Amy, this is about us." The rest of the group was watching and listening as Andrea raised her voice. "And if I decided that I had nothing left to live for, who the hell are you to tell me otherwise? To force my hand like that?"
"I saved your life."
"No, Dale. I saved yours, you forced that on me. I didn't want your blood on my hands and that is the only reason I left that building. What did you expect? What, I'd have some kind of epiphany? Some life-affirming catharsis?"
"Maybe just a little gratitude."
"Gratitude? I wanted to die my way, not torn apart by drooling freaks. That was my choice. You took that away from me, Dale."
"But—"
"But you know better? All I wanted after my sister died was to get out of this endless horrific nightmare we live every day. I wasn't hurting anyone else. You took my choice away, Dale. And you expect gratitude?" A tear slipped down her cheek as she finished her admission.
"I don't know what to say."
"I'm not your little girl, I'm not your wife, and I am sure as hell not your problem. That's all there is to say." She then walked passed Dale, who looked devastated as he watched her go.
I walked after her the rest following as we headed back out into the woods to find Sophia. I'll tell you this right now, back then I agreed with Andrea, it was her life and her choice to die. These days, I would agree with Dale, life is what keeps us human, their choice or not, death isn't the answer, it's just a way out.
T-Dog stayed with Dale, the rest of us, Carl included headed out to find Sophia. No matter how hard I try I can't forget those grueling days before we found her, and after.
As we got to the woods I took point the rest following me in this order. Rick, Andrea, Carol, Glenn who'd left his cap behind I noticed, Carl, Lori and Shane took up the rear.
I slowed my pace as I saw a camp site ahead of us. There was a tent; it was a sickly color green and tan. I pointed at Rick then the tent; I crouched down as he turned and stopped the rest of them before crouching next to me. Carol and Andrea followed suit, Glenn was behind them and Shane had walked up next to Glenn, Lori and Carl taking the rear.
"She could be in there." Shane said quietly.
"Could be a whole bunch of things in there." I whispered as I moved forward keeping my bow at the ready and going slow. Rick followed, the rest were going to, but he stopped them, we didn't need all of them crowding us, the fewer the easier to keep out of sight should there be walkers around.
Shane followed, but he was trained so that was okay, I didn't really have an opinion on Shane, just so you know I wasn't blind of the tension between him and Lori, Rick might have been, but I knew what was going on, they had been giving off signs similar to myself and Glenn days before Rick left my brother on that roof. So I didn't have anything to say about him, or his tactics as long as I took care of my own and he didn't cause any problems with that I didn't give two shits what he did.
I crept up to the camp, while keeping an eye out for walkers. We got around the trees until the tent was straight ahead. I looked back at Rick and Shane; I made a signal for them to wait while I checked it out. I pulled out my hunting knife I had cleaned while keeping watch last night and headed to the tent flap.
I set my bow down on the ground before I reached out with my now free hand as I looked through the small slit in the flap, I walked to one of the edges and moved it slightly out of the way to see inside without making myself a target. I saw a figure in there but it wasn't moving. I turned to Rick and Shane and shrugged as I moved back to the flap.
Rick turned and motioned as he whispered. "Carol." She rushed to him. They walked a few more paces to the tent, Rick instructed her. "Call out softly. If she's in there, yours is the first voice she should hear." The rest were coming up behind Shane.
"Sophia, sweetie, are you in there?" I stayed at the flap waiting in case it wasn't Sophia but a walker instead. "Sophia, its mommy. Sophia, we're all here, baby. It's mommy." Rick and Shane walked up closer as I started to unzip the rest of the flap slowly.
Rick gripped his gun with both hands, ready to use it as I moved my hand to the pull the flap back. I coughed into my arm as the smell hit me, there in the middle of the tent was a lawn chair with a body in it. I walked in and around to get a better look, Rick backed off as he coughed and gaged, letting the flap close. The guy's been there a while; there were maggots and warms making a feast out of his face.
I could hear both Rick and Shane coughing outside. "Daryl?" Lori called. I looked and saw a pistol in the guy's lax hand. I grabbed it by the grip frame and pulled it free; it looked like a six shooter. I stuck it in the back of my pants before I exited the tent.
"It ain't her." I informed them.
"What's in there?" Lori asked.
"Some guy. Did what Jenner said and opted out. Ain't that what he called it?" I picked up my bow and slung it on my shoulder. Suddenly the sound of church bells ringing filled the silence. We looked around then Rick headed off the rest of us followed at a quicker pace than before.
He slowed down at a small clearing. "What direction?" Shane asked.
"I think that way, I'm pretty sure." Rick said pointing off in the distance.
"Damn it's hard to tell out here." Shane said the sound was reverberating off the trees and echoing in all directions, making it difficult, even with my enhanced hearing to pinpoint its exact location.
"If we heard them maybe Sophia did too." Carol said with hope in her voice. Hope was the best and worst thing for Carol to have at that point in time.
"Someone's ringing those bells, maybe calling others." Glenn suggested.
"Or signaling they found her." Andrea theorized.
"She could be ringing them herself." Rick said next. "Come on." Rick picked up the pace, we followed after him.
It was several minutes after the bells stopped ringing that we arrived at a cemetery, there was a white building in the center; it looked like a church.
"That can't be it, got no steeple, no bells." Shane said which made us doubt it being our ringing church. "Rick." Shane called as Rick started running toward the building, we were just seconds behind. We ran passed tomb stones that had a people's names and timelines, from birth to death carved into them.
We got to the building; Rick led the way to the front entrance. He ran up the steps to the big red double doors. I was right next to him standing across from him, bow gripped firmly in my hand, he motioned for everyone to be silent as he and I opened the doors slowly.
It was a small church with two sets of pews an isle between 'em. At the end was a cross with Jesus nailed to it. There were three walkers sitting in a few of the pews as we looked in. There were hanging chandeliers that served as light, I also noticed crosses and pictures on the walls between the stain glassed windows and there was a back door, and one side to door to the left of us.
The doors banged against the walls alerting the walkers to our presence, two of them were once men and the third was a woman who had a veil over her face, before she died I guess she was going to be married, that's what I gathered from the attire she was dressed in.
They started to snarl at us, I had my bow raised. Shane and Rick were next to me when Glenn walked up to us with the women not far behind. The walkers started to stand, one looked like a pretty big guy, a little bit like a quarter back. Rick holstered his gun then he reached back and Lori handed him her blade.
He headed for the big guy; I turned and took the blade from Glenn who grabbed my bow as I handed it to him. Then headed around to the would be bride. Rick pulled his arm back and with a grunt slammed the long straight knife into the guy's forehead, when he pulled it out the guy dropped he slashed him several times.
Shane went for the other guy, with a blade that could've be deemed a short sword as he aimed it and stuck it right through the guy's temple before pulling it out, the guy dropped.
I came around the other end near the wall to the woman; she had her attention on Shane, until I made some kissing sounds. When she turned to me I slashed her across the face taking half her cheek and jaw, she dropped as I backed away from her. I looked up and saw Shane still going at his walker, just like Rick. Finally they both stopped, Rick was panting for breath as he looked at the crucifix right behind the pulpit.
The rest started to file into the church; Glenn was still at the door my crossbow gripped firmly in his hands. I headed up the main walkway as Rick shouted. "SOPHIA!" He opened the side door and looked out while I stopped in front of the crucified Christ.
"Yo, J.C., you taking requests?" I asked. I can't say I was a believer, I wasn't then, I might be now, can't say for sure. But I figured hell it was worth shot if the big guy did exist. Who was I to say he didn't to those who believed. I turned my back on him and headed to the rest of the group near the doors.
"I'm telling you, it's the wrong church, it's got no steeple, Rick. There's not steeple" Shane said adamantly. A few seconds later the bell started ringing again, it was close, I'm talking right outside the walls close.
I ran for the doors the group moving aside to let me pass, Rick, Shane and the rest followed as I led the way around to the side of the building. I looked up when I stopped, I saw connected to the building something that looked like a bull horn but was smaller and hooked up to some system that was making the ringing noise.
Glenn walked up to a small box, which he opened, and then pulled out the battery that made it work, the noise stopped. "A timer, it's on a timer." I told the group as I panted from my sudden sprint.
"I'm gonna go back in for a bit." Carol said as she headed back inside the church. Most of us myself included went inside with Carol. Andrea, Shane and Lori stayed outside, I could hear Lori and Shane speaking, I wasn't eavesdropping as I tuned them out, I was starting to get pretty good at that, Lori came a minute or so later she walked up to Carol who was kneeling at the pulpit looking up at Christ, Lori sat on the pew right behind her.
"Father, forgive me. I don't deserve your mercy." Carol started. "I prayed for safe passage from Atlanta and you provided. I prayed for Ed to be punished for laying his hands on me and for looking at his own daughter with whatever sickness was growing in his soul. I prayed you'd put a stop to it." Rick and Carl were against the wall on the right side of the door just watching. I was to the left of the door keeping my hands gripped to the strap that held my crossbow on my back.
There was nothing we could do for her as she continued. "Give me a chance to raise her right, help her not make my mistakes. She's so fearful. She's so young in her way." Glenn walked over to me as Carol was getting to him. I put my arm around his shoulder and held him close; he placed a hand on his belly while his other arm wound around my waist.
"She hasn't had a chance. Praying for Ed's death was a sin. Please, don't let this be my punishment, let her be safe, alive and safe. Please, Lord. Punish me however you want, but show mercy on her." Tears started to fall down Carol's face. She stood and looked at Lori who held out her hand to her. Carol walked to her and sat next to Lori as she cried. Lori kissed her head and held her hand trying to comfort her the only way she could.
For a few minutes we just stood there, finally Carol stood up and headed out, we followed, I let Glenn go as we joined the rest near a shaded tree. I saw Andrea and Shane headed to us, they were talking; I tuned them out as I focused on Glenn and the rest as we tried to figure out where to search next.
I did tune in when Shane walked over to where Rick was standing. "Got to move here, man." He said as he stopped next to him. "These people are spent. There's only so many hours of daylight left, we still got a long way back."
"I can't stop, not yet." Rick told him.
"We still got a lot of ground to cover, whole other side of the creek bed. So we search that one the way back." Shane suggested.
"She would have heard those church bells she could be nearby." Rick said as he looked off into the distance.
"She could be a lot of things."
"I can't go back. Her being out here is my fault."
"That's great. Now they got you doubting yourself, huh?" The rest couldn't hear what was being said, but I could.
They continued talking. "What about you? You doubt me?" Rick asked.
"Hey, we can assign all kinds of blame."
"This means something, finding her." Rick got closer to Shane.
"Oh man."
"It would be the miracle we need we can't give up." Shane sighed as he gave into what Rick needed; he tapped Rick's shoulder before heading back to us, Shane addressed us as he stopped.
"Y'all gonna follow the creek bed back okay? Daryl, you're in charge. Me and Rick, we're just gonna hang back, search this area another hour or so just to be thorough." Shane told us. Lori stood up put her pack back on, Rick walked up next to Shane then as well.
"You're splitting us up, you sure?" I asked, I didn't like the idea of us being separated, bad things happen when we separate. Like the whole reason Sophia got lost in the first place.
"Yeah, we'll catch up to you." Shane told us.
"I want to stay too." Carl said. "I'm her friend." He explained.
The guys didn't speak so his mother did. "Just be careful, okay?"
"I will."
"When did you start growing up?" Lori asked as she hugged him. Rick walked up to them and kissed her before hugging her. The rest of us were grabbing our packs and things while they were saying goodbye.
"I'll be along soon enough." Rick told Lori. After he pulled away he tried handing her his pistol. "Here, take this. Remember how to use it?" He asked.
"I'm not taking your gun and leaving you unarmed." Lori told him.
I pulled out that small six shooter from dead guy's tent and walked up to her. "Here, got a spare, take it." I looked at Rick and nodded as Lori took it. It was the start of our trust, like I had said three days ago, I'd forgiven him, that hadn't been a lie; I just didn't trust him yet. But he was starting to trust me, and in the end we'd trust each other with our lives and families, just not then.
I led the way as Glenn, Carol, Lori, and Andrea who reluctantly followed. Shane, Rick and Carl headed in the opposite direction; I wish I had gone with my gut instinct. Us splitting up had been a bad idea, what happened over the next several days, and weeks will forever haunt us. We just had no idea how bad it was going to get.
A/N: From the moment the group split up will be the start of the next chapter, from Rick's POV, the stuff that happens in the woods with Daryl's group will be put in as a missing scene for the second episode. The story was really long and it seemed like a good place to stop for the chapter, before Rick prays and Carl gets shot, which goes into the second episode, so instead of splitting that part up in missing scenes I'd just play it all through with Rick's POV, next chapter. Sorry that the first chapter was so long, it will probably be the longest chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it and will come back for the rest of the season. Please read and review. I will be posting the missing scenes for season two episode one by the end of this week or next. Thanks to all who have put this series as a favorite, or follow or reviewed.