~Daryl~

"You found them like this?" Rick inquires. Tyreese, Rick, Carol, Clary, and I stand in a courtyard, the charred bodies of Karen and David lying on the ground below us. Tyreese found them like this, and ran to get us.

"I came to see Karen," Tyreese explains, his voice just above a whisper. "Saw the blood on the floor. Then I smelled them. Somebody dragged 'em out here and set 'em on fire!" His voice shakes as he exclaims, "They killed 'em and set 'em on fire!"

Tyreese turns to Rick, and Clary steps forward, behind him. "You're a cop," Tyreese says. "You find out who did this and you bring 'em to me. You understand? You bring 'em to me."

"We'll find out who did this," I say, laying my hand on Tyreese's arm.

He slaps my hand away, his attention on Rick. "Do I need to say it again?"

"No," Rick replies. "No. I know what you're feeling. I've been there. You saw me there. It's dangerous."

"Karen didn't deserve this! David didn't deserve it! Nobody does!"

"Alright, Ty," Clary says, putting her hand on the burly black man's arm to pull him back. "We understand. Let's—"

He spins and pushes her against the wall. "I ain't going nowhere till I find out who did this!"

Clary looks past Tyreese and holds her hands up, telling us to back off. I lower my crossbow, not even realizing that I had raised it. She looks back at him, calmly saying, "We're on the same side, Ty. I don't wanna see you get hurt. Let's just calm down, m'kay? We're gonna figure this out, Ty."

He still doesn't release her, glaring at her as though he doesn't hear her words. "Hey, look, I know what you're going through," Rick says. "We've all lost someone. We all know what you're going through right now, but you need to calm down."

The former officer rests his hand on Tyreese's back, and he spins, shoving him back. "You need to back the hell up!"

"She wouldn't want you being like this," Rick says, unknowingly prodding the bull. Tyreese snaps, throwing the first punch. Carol cries for him to stop and he throws another punch. "Ty, stop it!" Clary cries.

I grab Tyreese from behind, pinning his arms to his side as Carol helps Rick up. Rick throws a punch back, and I release Ty. He falls to the ground, and Rick kicks him in the side. He throws punches, and I try to pull him off of Tyreese. "Let go of me!" Rick yells.

"No!" I reply, pulling him away from Tyreese.

"Let go of me!"

"Rick!" Clary exclaims. "It's over!"

Rick pushes me off of him, and Clary steps forward, separating him from Tyreese. "I will knock you on your ass, Rick Grimes," she threatens, boldly facing him. Her grey-blue eyes are hard, despite them shining with tears. "You hear me? I will stomp your ass."

He doesn't go back to hitting Tyreese. He holds his bloody fist in his hand, looking at it in shock. Clary kneels next to Tyreese, who had begun to sob. She hugs him, resting her head on his, and I see a few tears run down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Ty," she whispers. "I'm so sorry about Karen."

~Clary~

An emergency council meeting. That's what we said our reason for gathering in the library is. We're down one, but with Michonne present it brings it back to six. "It's spreading," Hershel says. "Sasha, Caleb, and now others."

"Jesus," Daryl says.

"So what do we do?" Carol inquires.

"Better question is, is there anything that we can do?" I inquire.

"First things first, Cell Block A is isolation," Hershel declares. "We'll keep the sick people there like we tried with Karen and David."

"Speaking of, what the hell are we gonna do about that?" Daryl asks.

"As Rick to look into it," Carol suggests. "Try to make a timeline, who's where when. But what are we gonna do to stop this?"

"There is no stopping it," Hershel says. "You get it, you have to go through it."

"But it just kills you?" Michonne inquires.

"The illness doesn't," Hershel tells her.

"It's not the virus that kills you," I explain. "It's the symptoms. The virus doesn't cause you to choke to death on your own blood. Coughing up blood, that's a symptom, and it'll end up leading to your death."

"What we need is antibiotics," Hershel says.

"We've been through every pharmacy nearby," Daryl argues. "And then some."

"That veterinary college at West Peachtree Tech, that's one place people may not have thought to raid for medication. The drugs for animals there are the same we need."

I had forgotten about him being a veterinarian. "That's fifty miles," I say.

Daryl nods, saying, "Too big a risk before. Ain't now. I'm gonna take a group out. Best not waste anymore time."

He stands, and Michonne volunteers to come. Hershel looks at her, saying, "You haven't been exposed. Daryl has. You get in a car with him..."

"He's already given me fleas," Michonne jokes.

Hershel chuckles, and stands. "I can lead the way. I know where everything's kept."

My brother looks at him. "When we're out there, it's always the same. Sooner or later, we run."

"I can draw you a map."

"Take Bob," I say, and the attention turns to me. "He was a medic. He'd know what the meds look like."

"Good idea," Hershel says. Daryl and Michonne turn to walk off, but Hershel stops them. "There are other precautions I feel we should take. After all, there's no telling how long it will be until Daryl and his group are back."

"Like what?"

"Wouldn't it make sense to separate the most vulnerable? We can use the administration building. Separate office, separate room."

"Who is the most vulnerable?" Glenn inquires.

"The very young. Children."

"What about the old?"

Hershel gives a nod, and I don't miss the look he shoots at me. "I ain't goin' in," I say. "I'm more use out here. 'sides, I've already been exposed. Wouldn't do me much good if I went into quarantine."

"You're our exception, then," Hershel says. He follows Daryl and Michonne out, going to draw them a map, and Carol exits moments later. Glenn and I remain, him still in his chair. "You okay?" I ask.

"Just tired," he tells me. I feel his forehead, then bend down to look him at him more closely.

"You're burning up," I say. "You should get Hershel to take a look at you." He opens his mouth to object. "Please, Short Round? For me?"

"Okay," he gives. "I'll talk to Hershel."

"Thank you." I press my lips to his forehead. "Take care, Glenn."

I watch as Tyreese finishes putting dirt back on the two graves, and look down. It's hard when you lose someone you love. As I look down, I notice a white rose in the ground, and immediately pick it. I walk over to Tyreese, the flower at my side. I place it on the grave where Karen lies, and stand up. "A flower?" he questions.

"It's a Cherokee Rose," I tell him. "The story is that when American soldiers were moving Indians off their land on the Trail of Tears, the Cherokee mothers were grieving and crying so much 'cause they were losing their little ones along the way from exposure and disease and starvation. A lot of them just disappeared. So the elders said a prayer, asked for a sign to uplift the mothers' spirits, give them strength, hope. The next day this rose started to grow right where the mothers' tears fell." I look up at him. "It grows when you lose someone that you love."

Tyreese glances down, and we stand in silence for a moment. He looks at me. "Thank you, Clary."

I bite my lip, then walk away. As I walk away, I run into Rick, who had walked over. I stop at Tower Three, picking up a quart of oil for Daryl. When I arrive, he and Michonne are talking. "You know I'm not running off," Michonne says, and Daryl nods. "So it's just gonna be me, you, and Clary like in the old days?"

"Not exactly," I say, handing Daryl the oil. "I'm not goin'. There's things that I can do around here."

"So just me and you, then," she says, addressing Daryl.

"Yeah, and Bob," he confirms. "Still, feels like we could use another person."

"Who else isn't sick?"

"We don't ask Rick. He wants to stay here with Carl and Little Ass Kicker. Keep them safe. Plus there's plenty of stuff he could do here. Clary, you'd be helpful with everything goin' on with Karen and David. Mind like yours."

"Carol's looking after the girls. Lizzie and Mika," I say. "I told Rick I'd do what I could. No promises. So the three of us are out. I think Glenn's got it. Maggie hasn't been exposed. Five are out."

"So who else we got?" Michonne asks.

"Tyreese."

~Daryl~

I find Tyreese standing outside the entrance to Cell Block A. "There you are," I say. "Took me damn near forever to find you. What're ya doin'?"

"Somebody's gotta stand watch," he replies.

"Man, I want to find them, too. Put a bolt in 'em for what they did." Tyreese turns and looks in at the sound of coughing. "These people are cut off. Ain't no way anyone's gettin' in and out without a whole bunch of people seein' 'em."

"Sasha's in there. I ain't going nowhere. You'd do the same if it was Clary."

"Damn straight. But standin' guard ain't gonna do 'em any good unless we come back with them meds." He turns to the door, away from me. "All right, then. We're gassing up by the front gate in case you change your mind."

I turn and walk off, back to the cars.

"I'm in."

I look up at the sound of Tyreese's voice. I close the trunk as I say, "We've got work to do."

~Clary~

"Clary?"

I turn at the sound of Lizzie's voice. She stands a little ways behind me, her arms crossed over her chest. "Hey, Lizzie," I say. "You okay?"

"I don't feel good," she tells me. "I was looking for Carol."

"All right, c'mon." I take her by the arm, gently leading her to A Block. "I'll take ya to her."

I lead the way into A Block, saying, "Carol."

She turns, and her eyes go straight to Lizzie. She looks back at me. "I don't feel good," Lizzie says. "Clary brought me to you."

She coughs into her elbow, and I release her as Carol hugs her. "Don't worry," Carol tells her softly. "Hey, don't worry. We're gonna get you better." She looks down at Lizzie. "You just go in there and lie down."

"Will you tuck me in?" Lizzie inquires.

"Hey, Lizzie," I say, and she looks at me. "You know Glenn?" She nods. "He's the best tucker I know. He'll make sure you're all snug and warm. He'll take care of you. Keep you safe."

"You swear?"

"I swear."

Carol opens the door for Lizzie, gently pushing her in. Lizzie takes a step forward, then turns and hugs Carol. "I'm scared."

"I know, honey," Carol replies. "I know. But you gotta go in. It's okay. It'll be over soon."

Lizzie turns and goes in, Carol shutting the door behind her. She turns to me, pulling off the mask she was wearing. She looks like she's close to crying. "Lizzie's sick now," Carol says. "Sasha's got it."

"Glenn, too," I say, running a hand through my hair. I look at her, and say, "Carol, what the hell did we do?"

"We need to get you a bell, my God," I say after jumping when I turn and see Tyreese standing behind me.

He smiles in amusement. "Sorry to interrupt."

"No, it's okay. I was just takin' a break from the investigation. Tryin' to figure out what I can. Not much to go off of. No one here had a problem with Karen and David, did they?"

"No," Tyreese says. "Everyone liked her. Same with David."

"I know," I tell him. "It wasn't cold-blooded, I can tell you that right now. I have a theory that whoever did this... they didn't want the sickness to spread. If that is the case, like I think it is, then it did a hell of a lot of good, didn't it?" Tyreese remains silent. "Hey, you okay?"

"I'm goin' on the run with Daryl. I was wondering… I know there's a lot of people in trouble. Sick. It's just, I know how you are. Carol, too. Even if you don't show it. You care. Look, I was wondering if you and Carol could look in on Sasha for me."

I look down as Tyreese continues to talk, biting my lip.

"It would make me feel better if you two were looking in on her. If you can't—"

"No," I say, looking up. "No, we can. I'd be happy to. I'm already looking in on Glenn. I can look in on Sasha for you, too."

"Thank you."

"And, Ty, I'm so sorry about Karen."

He nods, patting my shoulder as he passes. As soon as he's gone, I break down. I sit on the ground, sobbing about what I did to Karen and for Tyreese. I cover my face with my hands, and eventually calm down. I wipe my eyes as Rick walks by, and he looks at me. "You okay?"

"Just worried about Glenn," I say, not exactly lying but not telling the truth either. "He's got it."

"Yeah, I heard," Rick replies. He walks over, pulling me to my feet. "C'mon, I'll take you to see him."

As we walk towards Cell Block A, we start to hear Maggie speaking with her father. Well, it was more or less Maggie arguing with Hershel. "What's going on?" Rick asks.

"Elderberries," Hershel says, gesturing to a crate on the ground. "My wife used to make tea with them. They're a natural flu remedy. Caleb's too sick to help. I can."

"Shouldn't you be in quarantine?" I inquire.

"Thank you!" Maggie exclaims, then looks at me. "Wait, shouldn't you?"

"Long story," I say.

"There's so many times, we haven't been able to do anything to change what was happening, what was happening to us," Hershel says. "We wished we could, but we couldn't. This time, I can. I know I can. So I have to."

"Hershel, if you go in there, you're gonna get sick," Rick warns.

"We don't know that. What we do know is that these people's symptoms need to be controlled."

"Hershel, please. We can wait," I say.

"Listen, dammit! You step outside, you risk your life. You take a drink of water, you risk your life. And nowadays you breathe, and you risk your life. Every moment now, you don't have a choice. The only thing you can choose is what you're risking it for. Now I can make these people feel better and hang on a little bit longer. I can save lives. That's reason enough to risk mine. And you know that."

We're all silent for a minute, then I say, "Well, damn. When you put it like that."

And so he picks up his elderberry tea and goes into Cell Block A, none of us stopping him.

~Rick~

"That was a stupid thing you did," I say, referring to Carol going out alone to fixed the muddied line. Clary and Carol turn, the teenager, glancing at the two of us. "Going out there like that."

"Yes it was," Carol agrees.

I walk down the steps, and stop in front of them. "You know, you do a lot for us, for the kids. Both of you. You sacrifice a lot. Is there anything you two wouldn't do for the people here?"

"Rick, you know me," Clary says. "I would die for each and every one of you at any given moment."

Carol shakes her head in response. "No."

I look at Carol and Clary, hoping like hell they deny what I need to ask them. "Carol, Clarissa, did you kill Karen and David?"

They glance at each other before answering in unison: "Yes."

Well, that puts a damper on my son's relationship.