Good evening~ thank you to all my lovely reviewers, I have responded to all of you except for the wonderful Guests who have reviewed. I love you all and it means everything to me when you review. This chapter may be a little shorter, so I'm sorry for that! Enjoy anyway~

...

I knew I'd have to see him tonight, but I didn't know Martinez would show up.

I sighed and looked down at my feet. "Yeah, I got it. I'm done with that life after this, though, Martinez," I said boldly. My original plan was to just not contact him.

"I don't think so, chica. You made a promise five years ago to me, me and you no matter what," he replied. Daryl looked at me, then glared at Martinez, taking a step closer and putting a protective hand on the small of my back.

"I don't need your protection anymore, Martinez. You have a wife, what would she do if she knew you were doing this kind of thing with a twenty-one year old girl?" I shot back. He stepped closer to us and I took a small step back.

"You better step back, amigo," Daryl grunted out.

"Yeah, what are you gonna do about it, white trash?" Martinez spit at Daryl. Apparently that was all it took for him to let out his anger. Daryl hooked Martinez in the jaw and I heard a sickening crack.

"Daryl!" I yelled at him, and instead of Martinez backing off, he swung at Daryl, hitting his nose. I cringed at the sounds of bones cracking.

I stepped in between the two of them right when Daryl was about to punch Martinez once more. He stopped inches from my face.

"Get tha fuck outta tha way, Beth. This asshole needs ta be taught a lesson," Daryl said to me. I didn't respond to him. I turned around and handed Martinez the money.

"Please just leave. I'm done with that me. I need to change, Martinez, no matter how hard it is," I said softly to him. Martinez always had a soft spot for me, and I saw his eyes soften for a split second before turning icy hard again.

"Don't come crying to me when you're in the hospital from withdrawal, chica. You were supposed to be in this for the long run. Have fun playing house," Martinez said, walking out and shoving the money into his pocket. I turned back to Daryl, his nose swollen and bloody.

I realized we had an audience and I blushed and murmured, "Come on, Daryl. Let's get you home."

He glared at everyone when we walked out to the truck. I hopped in the drivers seat, and he surprisingly didn't protest. It was cute, he reminded me of a kid who was pouting when he didn't get his ice cream.

I drove us home and got Daryl inside, his head tipped forward and a tissue on his nose.

"You didn't have to hit him, Daryl," I said quietly, not wanting to upset him. He grunted back at me and I sighed, walking out to the living room just in time to catch the news at six.

I flipped on the TV and stared at the screen, holding my breath.

"Investigators say they have a possible lead on the deaths of Annette and Hershel Greene; a hit man who calls himself The Governor. No reports of Beth or Margaret Greene." An old high school picture of both me and Maggie popped up on the screen. "If you see either of these sisters, call the missing persons hotline." The reporter listed off a number and tears sprung up in my eyes, turning the TV off again. Who would want to kill my parents? I needed to find Maggie, and I honestly doubted she had made it back to Georgia.

...

Daryl's nose had stopped bleeding, and it didn't look broken, just swollen and bruised. He sat at the island with a frozen bag of pees on his face, watching me intently while I hummed and moved around the kitchen, getting a dinner of chicken breasts and mashed potatoes made.

"Why are you watching me?" I finally confronted him. He looked up at my eyes and actually smiled.

"You're beautiful. If I let ya outta my sight, ya might disappear," was his response. I blushed at how sweet he was. He seemed like he would be so rough, and today he proved that he wasn't afraid to be. But with me he was different, more gentle. It made me smile to myself.

"Thank you, Daryl, but I'm nothin' special. Just a fucked up drug addict with a great cooking skill," I replied.

"I don' think so. You're different than the others, Beth," he said quietly. His eyes darkened and heat pooled in my pelvis under his gaze.

I needed to change the subject before things got out of hand. "I want to go back to Wisconsin. I think Maggie is still there, and I need to know that some part of my family is still alive."

He was quiet for what felt like hours. "You goin' by yerself?" he asked.

"I would love for you to be with me Daryl, but you don't have to drop your life just for me." His face brightened a little bit.

"I'm comin' with ya, Beth. Ain't safe for ya to go alone, and I ain't got nothin' ta do here," he replied, his voice gravelly. I smiled brightly at him and the oven went off.

"Chicken's done!"