Prologue
The beginning of summer arrived in Georgia alongside relentless rain and overcast days. The sun still seemed to beat down through long breaks in the clouds but the humidity wasn't quite so torturous considering it was falling from the sky more often than not. Nightfall came later than usual and brought light drizzles with it to emerge from the star-speckled dark skies. Everywhere you drove in Georgia, you saw pedestrians with umbrellas, people making dashes from their curbside cars to the shelter of business entrances and awnings. Patios and outdoor cafes were all but abandoned, tables and chairs dripping with rainwater. Daryl Dixon didn't mind it, though. These days, all of his work took place indoors, and when he did have to bear the weather and travel somewhere, he had a dry, cozy car to take cover in and enjoy the ride.
It was mid-afternoon and the city passed by in a water-speckled haze as Daryl drove, one hand holding a cigarette partly out the window while the other rested its grip at the top of the steering wheel. He was driving outside of the city today, to the farm of a new acquaintance, and as he picked up speed on the open highway, buildings and houses and mobile homes quickly faded, becoming more and more sparse until all he could see for miles was open fields, green grass and crops, even scattered ponds in the far off distance. Parts of the land were already becoming flooded, and some of the ponds were only a few inches of rain short of overflowing. Once he'd passed the large, green sign that read Senoia 10, he took a couple of turns down roads that led away from the highway, offering only crunching gravel beneath the tires of his year-old Cadillac, as well as splattering mud. He didn't mind driving out here, but he loathed every time that he'd have to get a car wash soon after returning to the city.
He was just thinking of lighting up another smoke when he spotted the sight of the large, white farmhouse in the near distance. Even in the wet and gloomy weather, people were visible working outside, scattered throughout the large yard and nearby barn. As he approached the property, he slowed and turned cautiously onto a long driveway with a mailbox at the end, dripping with rain but still legible: Greene Family Farm.
He coasted quietly down the driveway until he was closer to the house, coming to a stop and putting the car in park and pulling out the keys. He turned from unbuckling his seatbelt to see an old, white-haired man approaching him from where he'd stood on the porch. His bearded face held a welcoming expression, and his blue eyes twinkled amidst his whitened hair and bushy eyebrows.
Hershel Greene was a farmer and a retired veterinarian, though he still did most of the veterinary work around his own farm. Daryl had made his acquaintance through a man named Rick Grimes who worked for the sheriff's department. He'd been one of the arresting officers and testifying witnesses in the case of Daryl's felonious older brother, Merle, and they'd become good friends as well as valuable connections to each other. Rick had suggested his friend, Hershel, when Daryl had mentioned he was thinking of purchasing some land for his own personal use. It was one of the reasons he'd ever aspired to climb as high in his career as he did – the thought of having a few acres of land all to himself were a peaceful dream to Daryl.
Once Daryl had stepped out of his car and let Hershel lead him up to the shelter of the porch that wrapped around the big white farmhouse, the two men shook hands, polite smiles on their faces.
"Mr. Dixon, I'm Hershel Greene, and this is my farm. Pleased to make your acquaintance," he spoke clearly, his voice older and wizened but respectable and with the same southern drawl as most everyone in Georgia possessed. Daryl noted that he seemed plenty sharp and spry for his age.
"Call me Daryl. Nice to meet ya, Hershel," Daryl said in his naturally gruff voice, letting his hand fall back to his side.
"Well, if you'd like to get down to business – Rick told me you're interested in purchasing some land. Could I offer you some sweet tea inside while we discuss it a little further?"
Daryl nodded. "Yes, sir, sounds good to me."
They walked across the porch together and inside of the house, the warmth immediately washing over Daryl's face as he took in the combined smells of cooking meat and something sweet being baked. The house was large, but cozy and homely, with a dozen different doors on all sides that Daryl could see as he was led into the sitting room. Hershel gestured to the couch and chairs and Daryl plopped himself down on a cushion of the couch, looking up in time to see a young, petite blonde girl setting down two large glasses of sweet tea onto the coffee table in front of him, ice cubes clinking inside the glass. Her eyes met his as she raised her head and he noticed she had the same blue eyes as Hershel, only larger and unblemished by the lines of age. She smiled politely and turned to leave, but Hershel reached out to her as he'd only just gotten settled in one of the chairs across from Daryl.
"Bethy, hon, don't be rude. Introduce yourself to our guest," the old man called to her, his tone still firm but kind.
The blonde stopped and turned back to face the older men, her smile now more shy than polite. She folded her hands together in front of her and nodded to Daryl. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Dixon. I'm Beth Greene."
Daryl blinked as if to clear the sudden fuzziness from his vision and smiled back at her, unsure if it looked completely genuine. "Call me Daryl. Nice to meet ya, Beth."
Her cheeks flushed with pink and she gave another polite nod before turning and hurrying from the room, blonde hair whipping behind her in its messy ponytail. Daryl watched after her, then realized he was doing so and quickly turned back to face Hershel. He was relieved to see the farmer was preoccupied with taking a long drink from his glass of tea. Daryl picked up his own and took a small sip before setting it back down, just in time for the older man to begin speaking again.
"That's my youngest daughter. She's back home for the summer from her first year at Georgia Southern University. Her older sister, Maggie, plans on takin' over the farm once I get too old, and my step-son, Shawn, may just end up doin' the same at his rate, but Beth just ain't the type to live here forever," Hershel explained, glancing at the door as if expecting her to return any moment. "Ever since her mama passed away, seems like she'd rather be just about anywhere but here. Can't say I blame her. This place sure hasn't been the same since."
Daryl took all this in and nodded politely, completely unsure of what to say. As much as he'd improved in social skills and small talk throughout his career, situations like this still made him feel uncomfortable and unsure of himself. Not to mention, he had to wonder why this old man would think he'd care about any of this. He came to talk about buying land, not his children's aspirations.
"Well, uh.. I'm sorry fer your loss," he muttered awkwardly. "What, uh – was it?"
Once it had come out, he wasn't sure it was even acceptable to have said. Luckily, the old man didn't seem to mind, and even gave a small, sad smile. "Cancer. Unbelievably aggressive, and too damn quiet. Snuck up on us before we could even catch it… Took her in the night, just about a year and a half ago. But not before it made her suffer, and us with it."
Daryl nodded, lowering his eyes and frowning. That all sounded bad, but he honestly couldn't relate, no matter how hard he tried. "Sorry to hear that."
Hershel let out a breath like he'd just told a long story that ended with his defeat. "Ah well, it's all God's plan, I suppose… Now what I'm gettin' at here, Daryl, is that I don't just sell land to anyone. Money's been a little tight since the medical bills and the funeral costs, and I got two kids in college and a farm to maintain. Now I've always been a God-fearing family man, and that's what's made my businesses so successful in my lifetime – I treat everyone like family, and I expect the same kinda trust. I told Rick about my situation because he's a man I trust, a good man, and I believe he's got a good sense about people. So I'd like to think I can trust you, and we can become somethin' like family."
Daryl eyed the old man suspiciously but tried to hide his uncertainty. He just wanted to buy some land…?
Hershel smiled and relaxed a bit, meeting Daryl's studious gaze. "Now I know, it's just a few acres, and once it's yours, you do what you please with it. All I ask is for respect and honesty, and I ask that you take care of this land, seein' as it's all I've got and I've worked awful hard for all of it… I don't mean any offense, but I've heard all about your brother, Merle, and the kind of mishaps he was dealing in that got him into prison."
Daryl had to consciously remind himself not to retaliate that statement. This wasn't the first time this had come up and it surely wouldn't be the last, but even after years of work, he still had to fight just a little to hold in his temper and the instinct to immediately get defensive. He inhaled sharply through his nose and steadied his voice, explaining calmly, "With all due respect, Mr. Greene, Merle is my brother and he always will be, but he ain't me. I dunno what you think made me so successful to be where I'm at today, but it sure as hell had nothin' to do with Merle. Half the reason I'm here now and not locked up right next to him is because he got caught before I could, and it woke me up. He was the reason for mosta my bad decisions years ago, but now he's the reason for all my good ones. I ain't got nothin' to do with Merle or any of that shit that got him locked up."
He hadn't realized the profanity had slipped from his mouth until he saw Hershel noticeably cringe. He muttered a quiet "sorry," then awaited a reaction. The old man slowly nodded, seeming to mull over what he'd just heard.
"Well, Mr. Dixon – Daryl - I'm gonna take ya at your word 'cause I feel like I'd be a fool not to," he stated decisively, leaning forward and reaching his hand out across the coffee table. "How does five acres sound? To start off with. If ya feel like you'd like more later on, we can go ahead and arrange somethin'."
Daryl leaned forward and grasped Hershel's hand in a firm shake before releasing their grips and both men relaxing back into their seats. "I think that'll do just fine for quite a while. Now I know Rick told me a little about the property, but from what I understand, you have some nice wooded areas around the outskirts of the farm?"
Hershel nodded. "That's right. Most of my property is surrounded by the woods. It ain't quite so thick closer to the tree line, but it spreads out pretty far, particularly around the acres you're interested in."
"Perfect. I'm lookin' to do some tracking and huntin', and I'd like to make a little base on those acres and check out the woods around it, get myself back into the hobby. You wouldn't mind if I hunted the deer and whatnot in those parts, would ya?" Daryl explained.
"That sounds just fine to me," the older man agreed. "The deer are in no shortage this year. In fact, I've been havin' a couple of my people watching the tree line around my crops 'cause those doe seem to love my vegetables. It'd be nice to have a hunter around the area to thin 'em out."
Daryl nodded in understanding and added, "I plan on spendin' weekends out here for now. I'm in my office in Atlanta most of the week, or out makin' the rounds on my shops."
Hershel's blue eyes lit up with interest, as if he'd just remembered something. "Now that's another thing I wanted to ask ya. Rick told me you're pretty high up in your company, and as you know, my daughter, Beth, is on summer break from college. I could have her do chores around the farm like every summer, but I know this is an important time for her to be pickin' up on opportunities that could help her in school, and I know she's said she could use an internship. Plus, I don't think it's so good for her to be stuck around here all summer, what with her mama bein' gone and not much to keep her mind off things. Do you think you might be able to point us in the right direction of a little help?"
Daryl raised his eyebrows and processed his words for a moment. What would Daryl know about internships? His company made and repaired motorcycles, what could this little girl possibly be going to school for that any kind of internship he could offer would help her? Besides, wasn't she supposed to have found an internship before summer started?
"Uh, I mean, I dunno about any sort of thing like that anywhere, but I suppose she could work at my office till school starts back up. I dunno that it'd be any help to her, though. I don't think she's goin' to school for anything related to my company," he grumbled awkwardly.
Hershel smiled warmly and nodded. "She missed the deadlines for the remaining spots available in Atlanta, so she's pretty disappointed to be stuck here all summer. I know your company may not have a lot to offer her specifically, but I don't think it could hurt. Experience is experience, right?"
Daryl shrugged, slowly realizing that the old man was probably just trying to pawn his daughter off on him so he didn't have to watch her mope around the house all summer. What harm could it do? he figured.
"Of course it won't go unpaid, Daryl. I think we can find ourselves a little agreement on the cost of the land and anything else you might find yourself needing use of," Hershel added, his smile still warm underneath his whitened beard. "And I know my Beth is a hard worker. You'll find her more than helpful, I'm sure of it."
Daryl finally returned his smile and nodded in agreement. "I'm sure I will."