Rick arranged a four day per week schedule at work that allowed him to go to Atlanta almost every other day. It wasn't good for his salary but he had an exceptional track record and the sheriff gave him a large amount of leeway. Rick felt compelled at this point to give something closer to the true reason for his absences, and told the sheriff that he was helping a friend who was in hospital.

Daryl was of course not just a friend. As he grew stronger and was able to talk more Rick discovered just how much he enjoyed being with him. Behind Daryl's quiet manner was a kind heart, a sense of humor and a quick mind. Rick tried not to betray his surprise whenever Daryl showed how much he knew.

"Merle is messed up," he explained on one occasion when Rick expressed his admiration for some insight Daryl had shared. "But he's always liked to read. Rubbed off, I s'pose."

At the thought of Merle, however, Daryl's eyes grew dark. Rick guessed that it hurt him more than he admitted that Merle hadn't showed his face once since that first day. One evening when Rick got to his room he'd heard Daryl's raised voice before he'd even opened the door. Startled by the sound Rick had barged in without knocking, just when Daryl was slamming the hospital phone down hard. He had refused to tell Rick what had upset him, just that it had been Merle on the phone. He'd been especially quiet ever since.

It was Friday, almost two weeks after the accident, and Rick had been in Atlanta since Thursday evening. He was sitting almost motionless, trying to read a magazine, while Daryl dozed fitfully. Rick knew he'd been in a lot of pain the last few days and had not gotten much sleep. That was partly why Rick had come over right after work the night before.

The doctors were keen for Daryl to start eating normally as soon as possible. He'd been mostly on special nutrient shakes and soft foods since they'd brought him round but Daryl was struggling even with those. Oftentimes, nothing would stay down, and the vomiting aggravated the pain from the incision. He was still immobile, beside the large wound on his abdomen, the broken collarbone and wrist made sitting up or even turning over unaided virtually impossible. The constant vomiting only made him weaker.

Daryl had had a particularly bad night, where no position Rick helped him into did not bring discomfort within minutes, and the doctor had agreed to some additional doses of painkillers. Rick wasn't sure they were doing anything, though. Daryl's face looked very drawn. It was also becoming noticeable just how much weight he'd lost in the last two weeks.

Rick was just frowning down at Daryl with these thoughts coursing through his head when there was a knock on the door. A moment later the face of a woman peeked around the door. Rick didn't recognize her. She stepped through properly and smiled at Rick shyly.

"I'm sorry to disturb you. I wasn't sure whether there would be anyone with him." She stepped forward hesitantly and stretched out a hand. "I'm Carol."

At that Rick got up and covered the distance between them quickly. He shook her hand warmly when he reached her.

"I'm Rick. It's so good to finally meet you, Carol."

"I have been told about you," she smiled. "The officer who's looking after me has mentioned that you keep giving them a hard time, wanting to know what's going on with my husband." Carol's eyes went hard on the last word.

Rick looked her over. She was slight, and no more than 5'6. Her grey hair was cropped very short, and she had an air of nervousness about her that was familiar to Rick from other abuse victims. Carol now looked over at the bed.

"How is he?"

"Not great today, the pain's been quite bad. He had a restless night, but he's finally dropped off."

Rick motioned to the door. "Do you mind if we step outside? I have some questions I'd like to ask you, but I don't want Daryl to wake up again just yet."

Carol nodded and opened the door. Rick stepped out behind her and closed it quietly. There were some seats a few feet down the corridor. Carol went over to them and sat down. Rick sat next to her.

"Can you tell me what happened that night? I have not been very successful at getting much out of the sheriff's department at your end."

Carol looked down at her hands. "Daryl came to our house really late that night. Ed had been drinking heavily and was in a right temper because he was waiting for Merle." She looked at Rick. "Do you know about Merle?"

Rick nodded. "Daryl's brother. I saw him, that first night. He's not been back since."

Carol looked at Rick. Her eyes were hard as glass. "Good. Rick, whatever you do, don't let Merle take Daryl home." Her voice was much stronger now, and she looked angry. "That man is bad news. He's been selling Ed drugs for years, and that night, when it happened, Merle was supposed to come over and talk to Ed about going into business with him, selling drugs. Ed had lost his job a couple of months ago, because of his drinking and all the drugs.

"Rick, don't even leave Merle alone with Daryl, if he shows up. He's a very dangerous man, and Daryl knows about the drugs. Merle is paranoid, I've heard him talk when he's been over at ours. He thinks Daryl will grass on him as well as Ed. I bet he's nervous as hell now that the police are poking around. I think he stays away because he suspects you are here most of the time. On top of all that, he despise Daryl for being gay."

Rick took Carol's hand, which lay balled on her knee, and smoothed her fingers gently. "I will do my best to ensure that he can't get to Daryl." An idea was starting to form at the back of his head.

"Did Ed hurt you that night as well, before the police showed up?" To his surprise Carol smiled.

"No. When Ed threw Daryl out I ran to get Sophia. My daughter," she added. "We climbed out of Sophia's window and went round to the front of the house. I was going to get Daryl away from there, but he was gone when we got there.

"Sophia and I went to our neighbor Dale, and hid in his house. He turned all the lights off and we stayed very quiet in the living room. Ed went round all the neighbors, banging on the doors, but we just stayed down. A couple hours later we saw the flashing lights from the police car that was sent to arrest Ed. They said you asked them to do that?"

Rick nodded, and Carol smiled. "Thank you. When I saw them go into our house I went out and talked to them. I told them what Ed has been doing to me and Sophia, and what he'd just done to Daryl. Daryl being so brave gave me strength to be brave, too, I guess. I wish I'd done this years ago!"

Rick squeezed her hand which he was still holding. "You were both very brave, yes. I just wish Daryl had gone about it a bit differently."

Carol looked at him, and Rick saw that she understood some of his pain. "Me too, Rick. But at least now he's got you, finally someone who will help."

A nurse stepped from Daryl's room, then and came over. "He's awake. I just thought I'd tell you. I've given him another dose of meds, he's feeling better now."

Rick smiled his thanks and looked at Carol. "Do you want to go in and see him? I think I'll go and get a coffee and stretch my legs for a few minutes, if you don't mind?"

"Of course I don't mind." She looked him straight into the eyes. "Rick, when have you last slept properly? I don't know you, but I can tell that you are close to exhaustion." Her motherly concern made Rick feel bashful and amused. He got up.

"I won't be long."

Daryl's face betrayed his disbelief when Carol stepped through the door. He tried to sit up further, forgetting his injuries for a moment and instantly paying for it. Carol hurried to his side as he gritted his teeth and clutched his middle.

"Here." She raised the bed a little with the help of the remote control hanging on the side. "Stay still now until the pain passes."

She sat down in Rick's chair and waited patiently while Daryl breathed through the pain. When he was able to concentrate on something outside himself again he looked up.

"You are ok." He reached out with his right hand and touched her face. "He didn't get you again?"

Carol shook her head and told Daryl what had happened.

"It's just Sophia and me in the house now. Of course things must change, I need to start earning money so we can pay the bills. But I've got a job lined up already. It's just stacking shelves for now, but it's a start. Daryl, you saved my life, in more than one sense." She looked him up and down. "I just wish you didn't have to suffer through this for me to get free."

Daryl shrugged, then winced and sighed. He was so fed up with his body being broken, with being laid up in bed. If he'd had the strength he'd have started throwing things around the room days ago.

"It's happened, nothing we can do now. And it's not all bad. I've got Rick." Daryl was surprised that he'd actually said it. He'd been marveling at his luck all week, thinking about Rick to distract himself when the pain was too much or the nausea hit.

The smile Carol gave him was full of warmth.

"Rick is a good man, I can tell. But there's something going on with him..."

Daryl nodded. "I know. He won't talk about it, though." Saying it out loud was surprisingly painful. Daryl knew he had no right to demand that Rick open up. He still barely knew him. But it hurt that Rick wouldn't let Daryl help, even a little, when he helped Daryl all the time.

"Give him time," Carol said. "He'll come round. Just don't let yourself get hurt again."

Daryl shook his head. "Rick would not hurt me, not now."

Carol looked at him with puzzlement, but seemed to decide she had pried enough in that direction.

"Has Merle been to see you?"

Daryl looked away. "Rick says he was here the first night. He's not been back, but he's phoned once." He looked at Carol. "I'm scared of him, Carol."

"Can't blame you." Her eyes were hard. "What did he say?"

"That he'll make me pay for smashing his bike. That I have to start pulling my weight if I want to stay with him. He..."

He couldn't go on. A sudden wave of nausea hit and he had to use all his willpower to control it.

"Daryl, are you all right?"

Daryl closed his eyes. There was a niggling pain in his left side, towards the back, that had been increasing all day.

"Been better. Doctors keep nagging me to eat, but nothing stays put."

As if on cue he felt the vertiginous warning sensation he got just before throwing up. Luckily Carol's reflexes were good. She had located the basin and grabbed it just in time.

Daryl hated puking, he always had. When they'd been younger Merle had often dragged Daryl along to binge sessions with his friends, until Daryl had refused to go. They'd usually tried to force him to drink until he passed out, finding it amusing for some reason to see him lose control, and sneering at him for being too weak to hold his liquor. Daryl had always felt wretched the next day, spending a lot of the morning, and sometimes most of the day, curled up on the bathroom floor. When he'd put his foot down and no longer given in to Merle's demands and threats Merle had become very angry. That had been one of the things that had created the rift between the brothers.

When the bout of sickness passed Carol helped him to shift into a more comfortable position. She went to wet a towel in the bathroom and wiped his face gently, just like Rick did.

"I think the doctors are missing something," she said. "You definitely have a fever. I'll talk to Rick when he comes back."

Daryl kept his eyes closed. He willed the sick feeling to go away, without much success. The pain in his back suddenly doubled and he groaned, pressing a hand on the spot.

He could sense Carol standing up. "Never mind Rick." Daryl opened his eyes to see her reaching for the nurses' button on the wall.

It was getting dark outside. Rick was back on his perch by Daryl's bed. He'd come back after his stroll to heightened activity around the sick bed. Nurses came and went and Dr. Edwards was back. They hadn't seen him since Daryl had been moved from the ICU.

Daryl had looked so awful it had torn Rick's heart apart. Curled up on his right as much as he could manage, his arm wrapped around his middle and his hand pressed on his left side he'd looked so vulnerable. Carol had pulled Rick to one side so the medical staff could do their work. Dr. Edwards had stepped over to them shortly thereafter.

"It's the kidney that got damaged in the accident. He's developed a bad infection. That's what has made his nausea so bad, too."

Rick's eye fell on the Foley bag hanging by the end of the bed. He could clearly see traces of blood in there.

"Why did the doctors not spot this? Even I can see it. And he's been feeling awful for days..."

Dr. Edwards followed Rick's gaze. "The bloody urine is probably a recent deterioration. Kidney infections often get bad very quickly. He is on antibiotics now, and I have given him IV Anzemet, that will help with the nausea." He looked at Rick. "I'm sorry we dropped the ball. It won't happen again. I have requested to be kept appraised on his condition throughout, and I'll make sure everything is done right."

Rick nodded. "Thank you, Steven."

And now he was back to keeping watch. Rick rubbed his face. He was so tired, he wished there was somewhere he could lie down properly. The worry for Daryl had pushed everything else to one side for days now. As much as he wanted to be here, and have this man become part of his life, he wished that some of the responsibility he felt could, at least temporarily, be transferred elsewhere.