Chapter Eight
"Glenn, this is crazy, no, it's suicide!"
"You're not doin' this alone."
"Even I think it's a bad idea, and I don't even like you much."
Carrie glared at Daryl, who didn't even acknowledge her.
"It's a good idea, okay, if you just hear me out," Glenn insisted. "If we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. If I'm alone, I can move fast. Look-"
He drew their attention to a map drawn on the floor.
"- that's the tank, five blocks from where we are now. That's the bag of guns. Here's the alley I dragged you into when we first met. That's where Daryl and I will go."
"Why me?" Daryl asked.
"Your crossbow is quieter than his gun," Glenn replied. "While Daryl waits here in the alley, I run up the street, grab the bag."
"You got us elsewhere?" Rick asked.
"You, Carrie, and T-Dog will be in this alley here."
"Two blocks away?" she asked.
"Why?" Rick added.
"I may not be able to come back the same way. Walkers might cut me off. If that happens, I won't go back to Daryl, I'll go forward instead. All the way around to that alley where you guys are. Whichever direction I go, I got you in both places to cover me," Glen replied. "After wards, we'll all meet back here."
"Hey, kid, what'd you do before all this?" Daryl asked.
"Delivered pizzas, why?"
No one answered.
Everyone went their separate ways, Carrie tailing Rick, T-Dog bringing up the rear. Everything seemed to go without a hitch, until the trio heard a voice they didn't recognize.
They looked at each other, clearly confused, before running in the direction of the voice, weapons drawn.
They found Daryl, alone, lunging at a boy who looked young – late teens, Carrie guessed.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop it!" Rick yelled, holding Daryl back.
"I'm gonna kick your nuts up in your throat!"
"Daryl, what the hell happened?!" Carrie demanded. She was confused, scared, and somewhat angry – she had a feeling something bad had just happened.
"Let me go!"
"Chill out!"
"EVERYBODY SHUT THE HELL UP!" Carrie shrieked, and there was silence except for the walkers.
"What the hell happened, Daryl," she said slowly, spitting the words through clenched teeth.
"They took Glenn! That little bastard and his little bastard homie friends! I'm gonna stomp your ass!"
"Guys, we're cut off!" T-Dog said.
"Get to the lab, go!" Rick told them, and they obeyed, taking the guns and young boy with them.
"Those men you were with, we need to know where they went."
"I ain't tellin' you nothin'."
Carrie rolled her eyes, and continued to pace. They had to get Glenn back, they just had to.
"Jesus, man, what the hell happened back there?" T-Dog demanded.
"I told you! This little turd and his douchebag friends came outta nowhere and jumped me!" Daryl replied.
"You're the one who jumped me, puto," the boy replied. "Screamin' 'bout tryin' to find his brother like it's my damn fault."
"They took Glenn! Could've taken Merle too!"
"Merle? What kind of nick name is that? I wouldn't even name my dog Merle," the boy spat.
Daryl immediately stiffened with anger, and Carrie looked at the boy.
"See, now, he's gonna kill you," she told him.
"Damn right, freckles," Daryl growled, lunging at the boy. Carrie raised her eyebrows at him while Rick pushed him away. Freckles? Where did that come from?
"Damn it, Daryl, back off!"
Daryl glared at Rick before walking over to Glenn's bag, reaching into the pocket with Merle's hand. Carrie bit her lip to keep from smiling. This was about to get interesting...
"Want to see what happened to the last guy that pissed me off?" he asked. He took his brother's hand out of the bandana and threw it in the boy's lap. His reaction was comical, but Carrie forced herself not to laugh.
"Start with the feet this time," Daryl threatened, and Rick pulled him away.
"The men you were with took our friend," Rick said, kneeling in front of the boy. "All we want to do is talk to them, see if we can work something out."
The boy, after some silence, nodded in agreement.
Soon, they arrived at an older looking, brick building with peeling red doors.
"You sure you're up for this?" Rick asked Carrie and T-Dog.
"Yeah," T-Dog replied, and Carrie answered with a nod.
"Okay."
"One wrong move, you get an arrow in the ass. Just so you know," Daryl told the boy.
"G's gonna take that arrow out of my ass and shove it up yours. Just so you know."
"'G'?"
"Guillermo," the boy explained. "He's the man here."
"Okay then," Carrie muttered.
"Let's go see Guillermo," Rick said, cocking his gun. Carrie sighed and pulled out her handgun before following them. With the boy in front, they approached the door.
The doors opened, and a man with darker skin stepped out.
"You okay, little man?" he asked.
"They're gonna cut off my feet, carnal."
He looked back at the trio behind the boy. "Cops do that?"
"Not him," the boy replied. "This redneck puto here. Cut off some dude's hand, man! He showed it to me!"
It took all of Carrie's will to not smile or roll her eyes.
"Shut up," Daryl growled.
"Hey!" two men materialized out of the doorway, gesturing to Daryl. "That's that vato, right there, homes! Shot me in the ass with an arrow! What's up, homes, huh?!"
"Chill, ese, chill, chill," the man standing across from them – Guillermo, she guessed – said. He looked back at the trio. "This true? He wants Miguelito's feet? That's pretty sick, man."
"We were hoping more for a calm discussion," Rick told him.
"That hillbilly jumps Felie's little cousin, beats on him, threatens to cut off his feet, Felipe gets an arrow in the ass, and you want a calm discussion? You fascinate me."
It did seem a little far fetched...
"Heat of the moment," Rick defended. "Mistakes were made on both sides."
Guillermo finally scanned over Daryl and Carrie.
"Who are they to you anyway? You three don't look related."
"We're part of our group, more or less," Carrie answered.
"I'm sure you have a few like him," Rick said, gesturing to Daryl.
"You got my brother in there?" Daryl asked.
"Sorry. We're fresh out of white boys. But I've got an Asian, you interested?"
"I have one of yours, you have one of mine," Rick replied.
"Sounds like an even trade," Carrie added.
"Don't sound even to me," Guillermo replied, and Carrie ground her teeth.
"G... come on, man!"
"My people got attacked. Where's the conversation for their pain and suffering? More to the point, wheres my bag of guns?"
"Guns?"
"The bag Miguel saw in the street. The bag Felipe and Jorge were going back to get. That bag of guns."
"You're mistaken," Rick told him.
"I don't think so."
"About it being yours," Carrie said.
"It's my bag of guns," Rick added.
"The bag was in the street," Guillermo replied. "Anybody could come around and say it was theirs. I'm supposed to take your word? What's to stop my people from unloading on you and your pretty little girl right here and now and take what's mine?"
"You could do that," Rick said. He, then, gestured to T-Dog on the rooftop of a building, a gun aimed right at Guillermo's head. "Or not."
"Oye!" Guillermo called up to the roof. Slowly, Carrie looked up to see two men holding Glenn, who's hands were tied behind his back and head covered with a bag. They uncovered his head, and Glenn looked down at them, his eyes pleading.
"I see two options," Guillermo said, drawing their attention back to him. You come back with Miguel and my bag of guns, everybody walks. Or you come back locked and loaded, we'll see which side spills more blood.
Guillermo and his men went back inside, and Carrie hesitantly followed Rick and Daryl to another building.
"Them guns are worth more than gold," Daryl commented.
"Yeah, well, people are eating people," Carrie muttered.
Daryl ignored her. "Gold won't protect your family or put food on the table. You willin' to give that up for that kid?"
"If I knew we'd get Glenn back, I might agree," T-Dog replied. "But you think that vato across the way is just gonna hand him over?"
"You callin' G a liar?" Miguel demanded
"Are you a part of this?" Carrie demanded, glaring at him. She was about sick of him.
"You want to hold onto your teeth?" Daryl added, slapping the side of Miguel's head.
"Question is, do you trust that man's word?" T-Dog asked Rick.
"No, question is, what are you willin' to bet on it? Could be more than them guns, could be your life," Daryl said.
"He has a point," Carrie said, and Daryl looked at her. She quirked an eyebrow.
"Don't give me that look," she said. "Agreeing with you is a one time thing."
Daryl rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to Rick. "Glenn worth that to you?"
Carrie glared at him.
"Screw you! Glenn is resourceful, he knows the land, and he's my friend," she said through her teeth. "If you three aren't going after him, I will."
"What, freckles, you think you'll get through all those guards?"
Carrie rolled her eyes. "It would be simple. There are a lot of windows in that damn place, I saw a few that weren't boarded up. Slip in through one, grab Glenn, get out."
"And the guards? You just gonna slit their throats?"
Carrie shuddered at the thought, which Daryl noticed, and smirked. She glared at him again.
"I'd knock them out with the butt of my gun," she said, earning another eye roll from Daryl. "What? You didn't think about that? You just automatically go for the crossbow?"
"What life I have, I owe to him," Rick said, interrupting their spat and Daryl's retort. "I was nobody to Glenn, just some idiot stuck in a tank. He could've walked away, but he didn't. Neither will I."
"So you're gonna hand the guns over?"
"I didn't say that," Rick replied. He looked at the three of them before continuing.
"There's nothin' keein' you three here. You should get out, head back to camp."
"And tell your family what, exactly?" she asked.
There was silence before Rick nodded at them, handing them all extra weapons and ammunition.
"Come on, this is nuts!" Miguel protested. Daryl glared at him and pointed to the spot where he was sitting, and the boy sighed and sat down again.
"Just do what G says!" he begged, and Carrie rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, why should we?" she asked. "Can you guarantee he's going to give us back Glenn? He wouldn't even make a fair trade for you. Stop kidding yourself."
"Cold, freckles."
"Yeah, well, so is the world."
Hopefully, this is a longer chapter. My font is weird, so I don't know until I post. I got sick of the shorter ones, and I know you guys were, too, so here we are!
SLOWLY BUT SURELY, we are making our way to the zombie raid at the camp. I'm actually really excited, and I hope you are, too. Many Darrie moments soon to come!
Pictures of Carrie and Delilah are still up on my profile, if you're interested. I know I like having a visual of the characters in my head when I read a book or a fic.
I hope you guys had a very merry Christmas, and I hope you stay safe traveling home, if you did travel.
Thanks for reading guys, and why don't you drop me a review? I'd love to hear what you think.
Have a good day.
-SparrowEyedGirl
