Bittersweet
Heartbroken screams vibrated around her, children's wails cut through the air.
Six dead.
Six innocents lost in an attack, walkers let in through a crudely sawed hole in the fence. Beth tried not to think about it as she soothed the young ones, cradling their heads against her chest and drying the tears for loved ones lost. Across the courtyard, her eyes met Daryl's as he carried the dead out to the edge of the gate with Tyreese, upwind from where Glenn, Maggie, and Carl were burning brained walkers. He gave her a nod of approval. As she had mothered Carl after Lori's passing, so too would she care for the other children, and she did so without needing to be told. It was easy for her, a natural inclination toward motherhood, and most young were fond of her as Judith was. As soon as they had begun crying, the children had rushed to Carol and her, desperate for affection. Beth cared for them with grace beyond her years.
Daryl grunted, pushing away thoughts and laying down the final body. Ms. McLeod had been a bitter, vengeful old woman, but it was still sad to see her go. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of a dirty forearm, squinting through the sun to watch Rick's approach. He nodded to him in greeting as Tyreese stood aside.
"Everythin' patched up good?" He asked.
Rick nodded, "Yeah, reinforced that part of the fence too, just to be safe."
"Those cuts, they weren't made with no clippers or nothin'. That chain was sawed through, prolly with a knife or something of the like. Could be the Governor getting' sloppy; maybe he's sacrificin' his grand gestures for desperation."
"Yeah, yeah I know…" he ran a hand through his hair, glancing around at the residents milling about and trying to help as they choked back sobs.
"What is it? You got somethin' on your mind bout this, just come out n' say it."
He sighed and looked Daryl in the eye seriously, "Ain't nobody accusing anyone of anything, I just wanna put that out there… however, those cuts look like they might'a been made from the inside. Might not've, but it's a possibility we gotta address, you understand that."
"Yeah…" He watched the cop uncertainly, a sense of foreboding curling into his stomach as he saw where the conversation was headed.
"And where the cut was made, the part of the prison, it-"
"Quit tryin' to spit it out, Rick, I'll just say it for ya. Someone strong n' with a good blade could slip over without bein' seen and get back to the safety of F Block real easy, without breakin' a sweat. That's what yer implyin' ain't it?"
Rick sighed, "Daryl, he didn't come out to help."
"I thought he ain't allowed out of his cell block."
Tyreese gave him a pointed look, "C'mon, Daryl; that's weak and you know it."
"Look," Rick cut in as the other man opened his mouth to give a no doubt scathing retaliation, "no one's gonna go in there guns blazing to attack him. But we gotta know, you understand that."
"So what, you just tellin' me all this as a courtesy? Gee, I'm plum grateful." Daryl spat sarcastically.
"No, we aren't. Y'all need to go talk to him, see if he had something to do with it. No one knows Merle like you do, and if you're certain after talkin' to him that he had nothin' to do with this, we'll trust your judgment. It'll be your call."
"You serious?" He asked. Tyreese looked taken aback at the offer but said nothing.
Rick nodded, "Absolutely."
"Alright… alright, I'll go talk to him."
R_S: So the drama's picking up haha. I really just wanted this chapter to illustrate Daryl's standing at the prison: how much Rick and the others respect and defer to him and how much he has to lose from a relationship with Beth, even putting up with Merle for his sake... not sure I made that point, but whatever.
Hope you liked! =)