A/N: Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard own The Walking Dead. Not me. I own Alex though. This is my latest story. If you read what I have posted already and are waiting for me to update it. I will as soon as I get the inspiration to write the chapter that needs to written. Have some faith in me please? And as always read and review please. Italics are thoughts. Underlines are flash backs.

Chapter Four: Daryl Help Me!

"I dropped it down a drain." T-Dog stated to the two as Daryl pulled Alex close and tugged on her hair gently. While it was not uncommon for the camp to see Daryl tug on Alex's hair, it was very uncommon to see Daryl kiss Alex on the forehead or hug her like he had been doing since he got back.

"If it's suppose to make me feel better it don'." Daryl said as he threw some rocks at the ground by T-Dog's feet. He was pissed that his brother was left behind but was livid and seeing red in the corners of his vision at what Merle had done to Alex.

"Well maybe this will. I chained the door to the roof so that the geeks couldn't get at him. With a padlock." T-Dog stated as he watched Daryl pace slightly, Alex standing off to the side with her arms crossed over her chest. T-Dog did not want to face Alex's wrath again anytime soon. Not after the yelling she gave him in the back of the construction truck.

"It's gotta count for something." Rick said, causing Daryl and Alex both to look back at him, the latter of the two coming back over to stand next to Daryl. Daryl looked down at Alex and reached up to wipe a tear that was falling down her face away.

Even thought Merle was a dick to her, Cheetah still cared for him. Somethin' that the bastard didn' deserve. Daryl thought as he wrapped his arm around Alex's shoulders and glared at Rick. "Hell with all y'all. Just tell me where he is so I can go get him." Alex looked at Daryl before turning so she buried her face into his chest, causing Daryl to wrap both his arms around her. Daryl wondered if his Cheetah was blaming herself for what happened to Merle. "Cheetah, not yer fault." Daryl whispered to her as Alex looked up at him.

"I'm coming with you to get the dumbass you call a brother." Alex told him, causing the Dixon she was hugging to sigh but nod his head in agreement.

"He'll show you." Lori stated from where she was standing with Carl. The boy looked like he wanted to run to Alex and see if she was okay. Alex released Daryl and walked over to Carl and ruffled his hair before she moved towards her tent to grab a bag to throw things into should they come across useful items. When Alex came back to the main area of the camp, she saw Daryl sitting by the fire cleaning his arrows.

"Ya don' have to come ya know." Daryl said to her once she sat down next to him and took some of his arrows and started to help him clean them. Daryl watched Alex as she turned her head to him and gave him a soft smile.

"I know. But someone has to stop you from punching Merle within an inch of his life. He may deserve it Daryl, but that beating can wait until we are away from Atlanta and the Walkers there." Alex said as Daryl snorted before taking the arrows from her and pulling her to him so she was sitting in between his legs and he kept cleaning.

"Yer too good fer me Cheetah. Wha' I do to deserve ya?" Daryl asked her as she leaned against him. He looked down at her and saw her smile again and couldn't help but smile slightly himself.

"You saved me, not just from Merle but from everything that was ever thrown our way as kids. I'm the one who doesn't deserve you. You deserve someone so much better." Alex said softly as she closed her eyes, causing Daryl to stop what he was doing. Daryl stood up and picked Alex up into his arms before he sat back down and placed her in his lap.

"I don' deserve anyon'. Not after what happened to ya that I could've stopped. Only if I had kept ya with me that night." Daryl said as he felt his own guilt rise up as he hugged Alex and pressed a kiss to the crook of her neck. "But it happened and Imma ownin' up to my mistakes. Just like I should." Daryl felt Alex start to shake with laughter and looked at her with an eyebrow raised.

"Sorry. It's just, we both feel so broken over that week three months ago… We don't realize how strong we are together now." Alex said as she finally calmed down from her laughter. "You didn't make a mistake at all. Neither of us did. If Drew is still alive. We will deal with it then. Until then we make sure we stay alive and find the dumbass named Merle Dixon." She smiled and kissed him softly on the lips before she moved back to where she was sitting and rested her head on his leg as he picked the arrows up and started cleaning them again.

"I don't okay Rick?" Shane's voice asked as Rick came into view with Shane following him close behind. "So could you just... could you throw me a bone here man?"

"And here goes the drama. I'm going to go get some water for us from the cooler by the RV." Alex said as she and Daryl stood up. Daryl nodded and kissed her cheek and forehead gently before letting Alex go and grab the water.

"Could you just tell me why? Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?" Shane asked causing Alex to sigh as she walked back to Daryl's side. She handed him a water as she put the other two bottles she was carrying into her bag.

"Hey! Choose your words more carefully." Daryl warned Shane before taking a sip of the water and giving the bottle to Alex to drink from and put in her bag as well. Alex growled a little even at Shane as he said he meant to call Merle a douche bag.

"Merle Dixon… Guy wouldn't give you a glass of water if you were dying of thirst." Shane stated as Rick listened to him.

"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't matter to me." Rick finally said after a second of silence. "I can't let him die of thirst, me. Thirst and exposure. We left him like an anime caught in a trap. That is no way for anything to die, let alone a human being." Rick pointed out as Shane showed visible irritation on his face at the fact Rick was not listening to him.

"So you and Daryl? That's your big plan?" Lori asked as Daryl sat back down and pulled his red rag out of his back pocket and started to clean some of Alex's arrows for her. Rick looked back at Glenn, causing the boy to sigh.

"Oh, come on." Glenn groaned, causing Alex to smile since the poor kid was always going into Atlanta.

"You know the way. You've been there before. In and out no problem, you said so yourself." Rick pointed out as Glenn took his cap off and ran a hand through his hair before he placed the cap back on. "It's not fair of me to ask, I know that. But I'd feel a lot better with you along. I know she would too, as well as Alex."

"Hey! Don't act like your leaving me behind!" Alex stated as she stood next to Daryl, the redneck placing a hand on her calf and rubbing it gently. "I'm coming along to get Merle. Someone has to stop Daryl from beating his brother to an inch of his life. He can do that once we get back here, but until then Merle will have to walk with a swollen face."

"That's just great. You're going to risk three men's and a girl's life huh?" Shane asked causing Alex to growl and Daryl to stand up and hold her close.

"Four men and a woman." T-Dog stated causing Daryl to huff as he gave Alex her clean arrows.

"My day just gets better and better don' it." Daryl grumbled as Alex gave his arm a squeeze and start to walk towards the van that they were going to use. Alex ignored the rest of the conversation and just worked on getting things that they would need inside the truck. Soon she felt a pair of hands wrap around her waist and spin her around. Alex's emerald hues stared up into the ice-blue hues that belonged to Daryl as he lifted her up so she was sitting in the truck.

"What's the plan?" She asked him as Glenn jumped into the driver's seat. Daryl quickly told her before Glenn started up the truck. Leaning in, Daryl placed a soft kiss on Alex's lips before he climbed into the back as well. Glenn backed the truck up to where the stolen sports car that the group stripped clean was. Daryl, getting tired of watching Rick, T-dog, Dale, and Jim talk, stepped on the horn, causing Glenn to move over so he didn't get in the man's way.

"Come on, let's go!" Daryl called out as Alex couldn't help but smile at his impatience. Soon after everyone was in the van and the group was now driving back towards the city.

"Gonna be along day…" Alex muttered as she sat down in front of Daryl and leaned against him as he leaned against the passenger seat. Daryl wrapped his arms around her and held her close before glaring at T-Dog.

"He better be okay. That's my only word on the matter." Daryl told him as he took his red rag and wiped the sweat off of his face that was starting to form. The heat from the summer combined with the fact they were sitting in an enclosed van that was basically a metal box was not helping any. "I'm not happy with you holding Alex back earlier either."

"I told you, Daryl, the geeks can't get at him. We will be the only ones that will be able to get through that door." T-Dog replied as he looked at the two in front of him. He had been trying to figure for a while now what the two were exactly, and honestly he was still trying to figure that out. "As for Alex, would you really want her in the fight you had going on with Shane?" Just after T-Dog asked that, Glenn stopped the van and shifted it into park before turning the engine off.

"We have to walk from here." Glenn informed them before getting out. Daryl lifted the rear door up and jumped out before helping Alex down from the van. T-Dog exited soon after and the group jogged down to a fence that had a hole and climbed through. Daryl helped Alex through before he climbed through after her.

"Merle first or guns?" Rick asked, causing Daryl to get upset along with Alex.

"Merle! We ain't even havin' this conversation." Daryl said as he climbed over a guard rail and walked past Rick and turned to face him. Alex climbed over the guard rail as well and pulled her bow off of her and nocked an arrow on the string before holding it properly with the arrow pointing down.

"We are!" Rick stated firmly before everyone started walking towards the area they needed. Rick told Glenn to decide since he knew the area best. With Glenn's decision, pointing out the fact that Merle last would mean having to double back, they all went to the department store to get Merle. They all could hear the tell-tale groaning of a walker in the store once they entered it.

"Damn. Yer one ugly skank." Daryl said as he let an arrow fly from his crossbow and nailed the walking sack of rotting flesh in the forehead, killing it for good. "Cheetah." Daryl called to her as she went and pulled his arrow out of the woman. Alex looked at him and cocked her head to the side before giving him back the arrow in her hand. Daryl snorted at her look and took the arrow before Rick, Glenn and T-Dog all came over to where they were before they all went up to the roof. T-Dog used the bolt cutters that they had borrowed from Dale to cut the padlock and before Daryl kicked the door open. Alex stayed in the stairway for a second before she heard Daryl's shouts of no. Alex quickly ran out to see Merle's hand next to the handcuffs.

"Oh God…" Alex muttered before she turned and hunched over, expelling the contents of her stomach. Daryl went over to Alex and held her hair back as she threw up. "Daryl…"

"Shh. Just get it out… Ya should pick up on' of them tests while we're here." Daryl said to her softly as he rubbed her back. Alex nodded her head before she felt Daryl leave her and a small commotion could be heard. Alex looked up just to see Rick pointing his gun at Daryl's head, with Daryl aiming his crossbow at T-Dog's head.

"Pull that trigger Rick, and I will make sure you never leave Atlanta alive." Alex threatened as she raised her bow up and aimed her arrow at his head. Once Daryl put his crossbow down, and Rick put his gun away did Alex lower her bow.

"Cheetah, do you have something…" Daryl trailed off as he looked at Alex. Alex shook her head sadly as she stared at the hand before looking back up at Daryl. T-Dog pulled a blue bandana out of his pocket and gave it to Daryl. Daryl picked up his brother's severed hand and wrapped it up before putting it in Glenn's back, much to the discomfort of the Asian male.

"Daryl… he used something to work as a tourniquet. His belt maybe." Alex stated as she noticed a small trail of blood leading away from where the hand was laying. Daryl noticed that she was correct and quickly kissed her forehead before leading the way. After they discovered that Merle was no longer near the building, after he cauterized the stump that was his arm now, they had to make a plan to go and get the guns. It was the only way T-Dog would be willing to walk a couple of blocks of Atlanta looking for the older Dixon brother.

"Glenn… you can't do this alone." Alex told him as she watched the boy make a plan on the ground.

"Even I don't like ya that much and I think it's a bad idea. Hell I wouldn't even let Cheetah do it and she's fast." Daryl pointed out from his spot against the wall. Glenn sighed as he looked up at Alex, Rick, and Daryl.

"It's a good idea. Just hear me out." Glenn stated before he explained it to them. Daryl and Alex looked at each other impressed before looking back at Glenn.

"Hey, kid. What'd ya do 'fore all this?" Daryl asked him as Glenn looked up at him confused.

"Delivered pizzas. Why?" Glenn asked confused as to why Alex was now rolling on the ground laughing.

"Shut up Cheetah. Lets go." Daryl said before he held his hand out to Alex to help her up. Once Alex stood up, she reached into her bag and pulled out the hunting knife she got for Daryl. "What ya got a new knife for?"

"It's the one that you always wanted to get." Alex said before she gave it to him and smiled at him softly. Daryl took it and placed it in the holster on his hip before he placed his old knife in Alex's bag. Reaching into his pocket Daryl pulled out a chain that had a sapphire engagement ring.

"Was my mom's when she was still around. Gave it to me… Giving it to you, if you agree." Daryl said as he held it out to Alex.

"Yes." Alex said simply as she put the chain round her neck and kissed Daryl soundly. "When we find the time, we'll get wedding bands to keep around our necks." Alex smiled at Daryl before they both went out of the store and back the way that Alex and Glenn came when they first met Rick. Once they got all set up Alex and Daryl loaded their bows while Glenn pulled his outer shirt off.

"You got some balls for a Chinaman." Daryl said to Glenn as he looked out towards the main street, ready to clear walkers out should he need to.

"I'm Korean." Glenn told Daryl irritated as he ran out to the streets and to get the bag of guns. Daryl just shook his head as he and Alex crouched down so that they couldn't be seen. A young male, probably about his teens, came up and startled them. While Daryl demanded to know where his brother was, the boy started yelling for help in Spanish.

"Do you want the geeks to come here and kill us?" Alex demanded before she and Daryl were attacked. Alex was grabbed from behind and was putting up a good fight against the one holding her before Glenn came back into the alley way. "RUN GLENN!" Alex shouted as another man shouted about the bag of guns. Glenn was grabbed and the bag of guns was dropped before he and Alex were shoved into the back seat of a car.

"CHEETAH!" Daryl shouted as he watched in horror, fighting to get to the girl. He shot one of the men in the ass with an arrow. "LET HER GO NOW!"

"DARYL HELP ME!" Alex shouted just as the car drove away. Daryl could not believe that he let the girl he cared for more than his own life down again.