Well I hope you all like how the story is going so far! I don't own anything! I just love Charlie and Monroe together and since the show is only giving us so much I wanted to do my own story of how they eventually come together! Thanks for reading! :)

Monroe knew that he had made a mistake the minute he stepped out of the cabin door. But he wouldn't allow himself to be weak anymore. Charlie had always proven herself to be more than capable of watching her own back and anything he would do to hinder that might give her the wrong idea. He thought to himself that it wouldn't be too wrong of an idea, as he had been feeling a pull towards her and it was part of the reason he was leaving. Letting himself be pulled was going to stray him off of his path to getting the Republic back up and going.

With leaves crunching under his feet he wasn't too worried about being caught. No one here knew what Sebastian Monroe looked like. If any nomads came across him the worst they could do was try and rob him of his gear, and that would be their own mistake. Spending too much time thinking of all the mistakes he had ever made would get him nowhere. He'd already left Charlie weeks ago. Nothing he could do now would change that. She would be well on her way home to her favorite Uncle Miles to figure out why she was on a wanted poster.

That damn wanted poster. He'd been searching for hired mercenaries when he'd come across it. The bounty hunter had been trying to lure him into a child's play trap when Monroe had killed him. The paper had slipped out of the pack he'd been searching, then curiosity had gotten the better of him. The rate the air had left his lungs reading it had surprised him. The poster had come from the Georgia Federation and as much time as he'd allowed himself to think about it he could not come up with a reason as to why they would want Charlie.

Monroe decided to move on from that train of thought and to head out of his room to go get some supplies. He'd settled at an inn deep in the Plains Nation. It had suited him well, the inbred bastards never could get any form of a government going so it was easy to hop from town to town without being noticed by any official. This town was no different than the others he'd been staying at since he'd left Charlie. The huddled booths were selling goods that were priced ridiculously high and were mediocre at best. Mold had either covered most of the goods or they were damaged beyond repair. It had taken him three days to find decent food. The run down, shitty inn only had a poor excuse for soup.

Moving from booth to booth he had started to pick up on whispers from the mainly toothless townspeople. Something was happening in the square. Before he would never have given it a second thought. But now, thanks to Charlie, he was constantly on the lookout for any sign of her. Hoping that she had run back to her beloved Uncle Miles had been a long shot, he knew that, but he'd really thought she would have been smart about it. She would need to be with people who could watch her back, that she could trust not to turn on her. That was the main reason Monroe had chosen to leave her, he couldn't depend on himself to be what she would need.

Following the whispers of the booth keepers Monroe made his way towards the square. The crowds were getting thicker and weaving in and out of the dirty, littered street was getting more complicated. There was a large flag pole that was posted in the middle of the square and it was where the masses had begun to circle. Pathetic men and women had begun to holler and chant. The words "bitch" and "whore" being two of the loudest words he could make out. The hairs on the back of his neck prickled again and he knew that this was going to be the complete opposite of how he had wanted this day to go.

The rope on the flag pole started to work its way up to the pulley system at the top. Monroe couldn't get any closer without bringing unwanted attention to himself but he found he wouldn't have to get any closer. Because soon two hands bound together came into view, along with bruised arms, and before he knew it Charlie's whole body followed into his line of vision. Monroe's heart skipped a beat as he looked upon her. Her feet had begun to dangle off of the ground and yet the damn guards kept hoisting her higher and higher, until she was positioned where all the townspeople could see her.

Monroe took a long look at her and let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. Her head was hanging and he couldn't see her face. But the rest of her body looked like it had been through the ringer, no doubt her own fault. She would not have gone willingly, and the Plains Nation was not known for its hospitality towards its prisoners. Someone shouted "bitch" in the crown and threw a rotting tomato that landed on her boot. With clenched fists he tried counting to ten. It wasn't working and he would rip out that man's throat whenever he got the chance.

A pot-bellied, sorry excuse of a man came forward and announced for the people to shut up. Monroe could take him out in the blink of an eye. When he spoke it reminded Monroe of a squealing pig.

"I would like to introduce you all to the relation of Miles Matheson! This bitch is going to bring us all the justice we deserve! Still not sure if she is his daughter seeing as how the whore wouldn't fess up, but for one diamond a piece you can all have a crack at breaking her!" And with that the crown went wild. They were out for blood and he knew the only way Charlie was getting out of this was if he was able to get his hands on some diamonds himself.

Charlie had lasted just fine on her own after Monroe had left her the bounty poster. She refused to go home and bring the danger back to Miles and the rest of her dysfunctional family. So she had stuck to the back roads and trails, choosing to be a loner until she could figure out what the hell was going on. That had all gone to shit though, whenever some psychotic bounty hunter had blown the building to rubble that she had been staying in. In the aftermath she'd been disoriented and the fucker had chosen to grab her at that opportune moment.

And now here she was. Strung up on this rusted pole for a whole town to leer at. To top it all off she was basically being sold to be tortured for information. It didn't matter though, they could do whatever they wanted to her and she wouldn't give anything away. Charlie had learned loyalty from Miles, and it had been a very important lesson.

She felt the ropes giving way and took a deep breath. They had begun to lower her down and Charlie knew that a dark room was next. Just like the whole ride to this town had been like. They would even find shacks to hole her up in to try and beat information out of her. It wasn't anything she couldn't handle. Every time a fist landed on her side or her hair was yanked back she focused on all the anger she had. Charlie knew that focusing on one thing would make it bearable. The only thing she had to fear now was the town people. They looked blood thirsty and the men were giving her disgusting looks while they licked their lips. The last image she saw was the butt of a gun came down with a loud crack on her skull.

Charlie came to and tried to reach up and rub the pain in her head away, and instead found that her hands had been secured behind her back with her body firmly tied to a chair. Her mouth tasted of blood. When she opened her eyes she realized why. Some greasy haired bastard was smiling down at her with his mouth moving.

"What?" Charlie's voice was squeaking. "Who are you to General Matheson? And where is General Monroe?" The man's voice sounded too deep for his build. "I don't know who you're talking about you son of a bitch." She was rewarded with another slap across the cheek. "Pretty soon I won't be using slaps on that pretty face." "Go ahead and make it a party, haven't you heard that's what this is? They're even bringing the petting zoo and I know that's true because there is a pig standing right in front of me."

Charlie tasted even more blood when her head snapped back. He had used a closed fist this time. Fearing what would come next she decided to just keep her mouth shut from then on, not wanting another bar incident.

"Time's up John! You've used your diamond's worth!" The guard at the door was heavily set and if he hadn't been making sure Charlie was staying put and taking her beatings she might have been grateful for him coming in when he did. "So now who are you going to throw at me lard ass?" The guard spit at her before stepping back to let in her next torturer step into her pitiful holding cell. When she looked up from rolling her eyes her breath caught in her throat. Her own personal monster stood staring back at her.

"I think I'd like my privacy now." Monroe looked at the guard with venom. "No way man, Boss says I get to watch the first hit of every paying customer." Charlie looked at Monroe and started pleading with her eyes. He was looking anywhere but at her. "Fine whatever fulfills your sick boy fantasies." And with that Monroe walked over to Charlie and hit her hard enough so that the chair tipped over. She was crazy if she thought the people before this could hurt her. Monroe had caused her more pain in that split second than she had felt since she'd been captured. And the pain wasn't just physical.

Charlie spit the blood out of her mouth and cursed Monroe's name in her head over and over. She would not grace him with a single word. Monroe was leaning over her, apparently to pick her up off of the floor. Why not just kick her while she was down. His hands reached around gently pulling her forward and he bent his head down close to hers. Charlie felt his breath on her ear and despite herself shivered.

"I'm getting you out of here Charlotte. Please forgive me for the pot shot. Do as I say and you'll be safe." Damn Monroe, for Charlie believed every word of it.

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