'Remember Mummy doesn't look like mummy, her face bruised,' Daryl held Sophia's hand walking down the halls of the hospital to go to Carol's room. 'You don't need to be scared or anything, its still Mummy, she's still there,'

'I know,' Sophia looked up at him, 'Last time, Ed put marks on her we drove away,' Sophia was matter of fact. The more Sophia was telling to him the more sick he felt, he gave her hand a little squeeze looking in the little window or the door. He tapped on the door, Maggie was sitting beside the bed reading a book. Carol was clearly asleep. She waved him in, Sophia let go of his hand and climbed up on the bed snuggling at her side putting her head on the pillow looking at her.

'She ok?' Daryl asked Maggie quietly.

'Some, they gave her something to help, they going to get her up moving, maybe a shower,' Maggie told him quietly. 'I've just been sitting here,' she held up her book, 'keeping her company, she's been a bit stressed about Sophia, I showed her the photo of you two sleeping peacefully she finally went to sleep.'

'Yeah sorry we are late we needed to get a car seat, ballet stuff.' Daryl admitted.

'Daryl Dixon buying ballet stuff,' Maggie gave him a wink, 'My, my, almost like a real Daddy does,'

'Stop, ...shush,' Daryl picked up her chart to look, and see if there was anything there, he really didn't know what he was looking for, he looked up at some stirring at the bed. He looked and Carol was waking slowly, instinctively snuggling into her daughter. Sophia was kissing her booboo's. The sight of them together was stirring something in Daryl that he couldn't figure out what that feeling was, but he wanted to gather them both up and get them to his house, keep them safe. Ed was still out there.

Carol was making soothing noised to Sophia who had started crying. Carol was stroking her face, she looked better Daryl thought just having Sophia there.

'Hey little girl, ...when did... you get here?' Carol asked, she tried to move her head to see Daryl but she couldn't so he moved into her line of sight giving her a little wave that he was there.

'Not long, 5 minutes,' Daryl said, he moved close bending down to give her a kiss, he caught her eye, she had questions and he gave her a nod that everything was fine, they were ok.

'Who... did her... hair?' Carol asked him.

'Michonne? She say's hi too, get better,' Daryl told her. 'We have got ballet sorted too, outfits and stuff,'

'Bet Michonne... liked you coming,' Carol told him.

'Probably, I got her a car seat too, the women knows you too, is there anyone you don't know?' he asked. She shook her head slightly, gave him a look.

'Keep away, from those women,' Carol told him, he couldn't help but chuckle her first clear comment since her attack was warning him to keep away from the car seat woman and Sophia's dance teacher.

'Its ok baby, I'm not going to run off with the dance teacher, or the car seat women,' Daryl assured her. He moved closer to the bed again, Maggie watched the exchange between them with interest. She'd never really seen Daryl take orders from a women before. Carol's injuries were shocking.

'I've got a new Daddy,' Sophia announced to Carol, 'I can called Ed, Ed, not that word any more cos I got a new one now,' She rolled on her side looking at Daryl. 'Cos Ed isn't nice,'

'No sweetie... he's not,' Carol told her, 'tell me ... about your new one,'

'He needs a hair brush, Miss Michonne could do his hair, put sparkles in it,' Sophia suggested, 'He let me build a snowman,... he doesn't know how to look after kids, he left me in the truck and on the side of the road,'

Daryl felt totally thrown under the bus by Sophia, 'I left her in the truck, by accident for like 30 seconds, I didn't know I had to hold her hand, let her out, and she can't be trusted alone in the shower,'

'So you are... ok?' Carol asked him, he nodded.

'We need to buy a bed and some clothes, we can't sleep like we did last night,' Daryl told her.

'How?' she looked at Sophia.

'I slept on top of Daryl,' she nodded it was correct, 'On the couch, he snores,'

'Soph,' Carol looked at him, he nodded.

'Right down her, woke up thought I was having a heart attack,' Daryl confirmed. Carol looked at them wondering if they come to some sort of understanding.

Daryl's phone was ringing, it was Merle, he took the call.

'Well brother they got him, a officer call Rick Grimes just made Carol a widow,' Merle's voice come over the phone.

Merle quickly filled Daryl in, Ed had been at the club, sitting in Daryl's office waiting for him to come into work. 3 of the tanks were wrecked, he hadn't been able to break them because of the quality of them, he'd scratched the life out of them. Daryl listened, relief washed over him.

'Soph, you wana go to the cafe with Maggie, get me a coffee, you can get a treat?' Daryl suggested, Maggie received a text from Merle with the information. She stood up, Sophia didn't want to leave Carol.

'You can come back, go get Mummy...' Daryl leaned in and whispered a secret into Sophia's ear and gave her some money and Sophia went on her mission with Maggie.

'The phone?' Carol asked, Daryl sat down on the chair.

'He's gone, dead, they shot him, he was at Mermaids,' Daryl told her, Carol started to cry, he didn't know why, sad, happy, he wasn't sure, relief even. He was shocked a little that it was over quickly, sad in a way the man never appreciated his little girl or wife. He climbed onto the side of the bed, and helped her snuggle into his side where she sniffed and cried.

'I don't know... why... I'm crying,' She sobbed.

'When do women need an excuse to cry, ya kids the same, bubbles over for all sorts of things,' Daryl told her, 'Its fine, get it out, don't go hurting yourself,'

He lay beside her long enough to get scolded by a passing nurse. 'Sir we don't allow men on the bed with our female patients,' He nodded, and waved her away with a grin.