The scenery didn't change no matter how long or how hard Carol stared at it. It was just an empty dirtroad through a field full of walkers that lead to the woods. It was from there she willed the car to return with all of them in it. Next to her was Carl who shared the same thought. He wanted his dad to return in one piece. Losing one parent had been hard enough. Fidgeting with the weapons in their hands, they had been standing at the gates of the prison, hoping and praying everyone came back fairly unscathed. Nervous butterflies made somersaults in her stomach. She tried calming them down by taking deep breaths, but it didn't seem to help. Mere minutes seemed to creep by like hours.
It was an exceptionally dangerous rescue mission they had gone on. A lot different from the regular runs they made. This time, they had to go into hostile territory to collect Maggie and Glen who were held there against their will. And no one knew before hand what state they were in and if they were even alive in the first place.
Finally the roar of a car engine could be heard from a distance. Carol stood on tiptoes and craned her neck to see if it was them. Yes, thank God, there was the car! Quickly both she and Carl ran up to the gate to open it and let the car through.
Rick was behind the wheel; Carl was instantly reassured his dad was ok. He put the car in park and got out. Michonne stepped out of the front passenger seat. Carol ran to the back of the car and peered in, hands on the window. She could see Glen and Maggie. They looked to be in pretty bad shape, but they were alive and back with them! But frantically searching further, she was missing one other person. The most important one to her. Her heart stopped dead in its track. "Where's Daryl?", she asked with a tense voice, at no one in particular. She just wanted an answer, it didn't matter who gave it to her. Panic was already setting in. Was he hurt? Bitten? Shot? Left behind? What?
On the other side of the car, Hershel welcomed Maggie and Glen; he too was relieved they were back. Rick had already anticipated Carol's reaction. He let go of Carl and walked up to her like a messenger of bad news would do, with his hand out to comfort her. That wasn't a good sign.
"It's alright... he's alive", he started. Ok, she though to herself, so where is he? You'd better not left him somewhere! But she quickly dismissed that thought; Rick would never do that to Daryl. They were too loyal toward eachother. She looked him in the face, pleading without words for more information. "We ran into his brother. They went off." Processing this news, she stared at Rick, not knowing what to think. When it sank in, she fell quiet. She was in disbelief. "They left?", she repeated to check if she'd heard him right. "Daryl left?... what,... like, he's gone...?! Is he coming back? ". The last question went unanswered by Rick. Every time Daryl'd go on a run, she'd prepare herself mentally that he might not return. It was a defense mechanism. She knew the day would come someone was going to give her news like this. She was prepared again now, but not for this. She was plain shocked. She realised all too quickly what this meant.
He wasn't coming back. He'd left without saying goodbye. He was presented with a choice and he had chosen his brother over them. Over her. She'd never see him again. She started crying, hand over her mouth, the tears just came. He was gone! He'd left them... She just couldn't believe it. "GONE?", she asked Rick again. Rick walked up toward the prison with her. He stopped her to hug her, he also knew what it meant. To the group and to her. He felt sorry for Carol, for all of them. Daryl had been an important member of the group and he would be missed.
Carol walked up to her cell and sat down on the bed. What the hell... she still couldn't believe this. That he would make a choice, just like that, pack up his stuff and leave. She knew he didn't owe her anything, but they had always shared a special bond. It was unspoken, but both their actions toward eachother made that clear. She felt like, she deserved more than this. She felt abandoned by the most important person in her life. Tears swelled up again and she sat there for the longest time. Alone in her cell. Alone. Again.