The Saints

Chapter 3

Daryl walked back into the kitchen after showing Smecker and Bloom out. He watched Beth grab a bottle of vodka and a pack of cigarettes before walking past him and sitting on the porch. He rubbed his face as he sat down beside Connor at the table. None of them had much of an appetite anymore as their food went cold. "We did this to her," Daryl muttered, grabbing one of Connor's cigarettes and lighting it. He exhaled slowly, hoping maybe he could exhale all of the guilt he felt. "If I hadn't taken her, she wouldn't be in this situation."

Connor shook his head. "No, she'd be dead, just like her sister." Connor lit his own cigarette and sighed. "By taking her we're able to keep her safe."

Daryl knew his brother was right but it didn't keep him from feeling like an asshole about it. She didn't ask for any of this. What was worse was that he'd slept with her and now she couldn't even look at him. Hell, maybe he deserved to have the family prayer said over his head before Connor pulled the trigger. "She won't even look at me."

Connor nodded as he took another long drag from his cigarette. "Aye, we talked about that this mornin'." He looked at his brother. "She said it was a mistake and it won't happen again."

Daryl sighed and ran a hand through his hair. That had been about the reaction he'd been expecting. Yeah, he deserved a bullet to the brain pan. He really couldn't blame her, though; he was a little upset about it. She'd wanted it last night; he'd asked her, made sure. He was a lot of things, but he didn't force himself on women; ever. That got him thinking though. Maybe she'd thought if she'd said no he would have forced her anyways. He swore under his breath and put his cigarette out.

"Daryl, look at me." Connor leaned forward on the table, looking his twin in the eyes. "Nothing can happen between you two, do you understand me?" Daryl rolled his eyes but Connor slapped him on the back of the head. "I'm serious. She doesn't belong in this life, and getting close to her, wanting something to happen between the two of you is only going to get one of you hurt, or worse, killed."

Daryl nodded his head a little and stared at the table. Connor was right. Beth didn't belong in this life. It wasn't a life for anyone, but they'd chosen it and here they were. Constantly trying to avoid the law and stay alive while dealing with the evil that roamed the streets. He rubbed his face and headed to the living room. He wanted to give her some time alone before he went out there. He knew she was going to need it. She'd just found out her family was dead and there was a half of a million dollars on her head, by two extremely dangerous men. Hell, if he'd found that out, he'd be drinking too. Connor turned the television on but Daryl didn't pay much attention. He knew Connor was right, knew nothing could happen between them, but he couldn't get her out of his head. She was stuck there…something was happening, but Daryl didn't want to admit it.

It what hours later before Daryl was able to pull himself out of his own head, thanks to Connor's slap to the back of the head. "What was that for?"

"She's still outside." Connor nodded to the door.

Daryl could see the porch light on and sighed, rubbing his face. "I'll go talk to her." He slowly got up and grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch before walking outside. She had to be freezing. He wrapped it around her shoulders, making her jump. "Sorry," he said softly. "Didn't mean to scare you." He sat down beside her and looked at her. "You wanna come inside?" She shook her head slowly and took another drink from the bottle. Daryl noticed that it was nearly empty. She must have been pacing herself throughout the day because she didn't look drunk at all. "Beth, look at me." Slowly she turned her head. "I'm gonna keep you safe, understand."

She shook her head and frowned. "What am I supposed to do now?" she asked.

"What do you mean?"

She looked at him, her brows drawn tightly together. "My family is dead. Even if you do manage to kill the guys that want me dead, what the hell am I supposed to do?" She paused to finish off the last of the vodka. "And not only that," she added, "but I think I may be falling in love with one of the men who kidnapped me and got me into this fucking situation."

Daryl took the bottle away from her slowly; slightly worried that she was going to hit him with it. He set it behind him on the porch and looked at her. "Beth, you're not fallin' in love with anyone, you're just upset." He tried to reason with her, but she must have been drunker than he thought.

She shook her head and got up, moving too quickly for him to stop her. One minute she was sitting beside him, the next she was straddling his lap. "No, I am. I can't stop thinking about you, can't stop thinking about what we did last night, how good it felt." She wrapped her arms around his neck and started to rock her hips against his. "Make me feel good, Daryl. Please?"

Daryl growled, griping her hips and holding her still. Fuck he wanted her, he was already half hard for her. But he didn't take advantage of women. If she thought last night was a mistake then she would really hate herself tomorrow if he let anything happen. "Beth, no," he ground out, pushing her away slightly. He wrapped his arms around her and stood up. "You don't really want me." He carried her inside, ignoring Connor's look as he carried her back to the bedroom. She just needed to get some sleep, give the alcohol a chance to get out of her system.

She whined but didn't fight him as he tucked her under the blankets. He sighed and watched her as she closed her eyes, burrowing into the blankets, the alcohol doing what it should and putting her to sleep. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He was in some serious trouble because he knew, as he watched her fall asleep, that whether he and Connor liked it or not, he was already falling for their captive turned charge.

Karol Ivanov looked up as Cosimo Russo, the head of the Italian crime family walked into his office. They were supposed to be meeting on good terms, to talk about a mutual problem, but Karol still held his gun close under the desk. He didn't trust the Italians, just as they didn't trust him. "Karol, thank you for agreeing to meet with me," Cosimo greeted, sitting down in the chair on the other side of the desk.

Karol nodded his head. "I assumed it would be beneficial on both of our parts if we could come to an understanding." He sat back a little, looking down his nose at the man across from him. "We were both fucked over by that Greene and now his daughter is running around with the Saints."

Cosimo nodded. "I'm aware, I sent men to try and kill her yesterday but the Saint's got there before they could finish the job." He sighed and sat back, crossing one leg over the other, folding his hands in his lap. "I propose a temporary partnership. If we want to get rid of the Saints and shut the girl up, permanently, we're going to need to pull our resources."

Karol nodded his head. "I've been thinking the same thing. Do you have any idea where they might be?"

The Italian smirked and nodded. "I had someone track them down. They're in a little cottage outside of the city." He leaned forward in his seat. "I'm planning on sending a few men out there tomorrow. Can I count on you?"

Karol smirked and stood up, putting his gun on the desk as he walked around to shake Cosimo's hand. "I'll have my men meet yours there. The sooner we shut the bitch up, the better." The deal was struck, now they just had to wait on their men to finish the job, then the mutual parties would go back to hating each other and the war would continue, without the interference of anymore Greenes or Saints.