Good morning! Again, so sorry for the delay =( Life is hectic at the moment. I'm extremely tired so if you find four billion typos it is because I flat out didn't see them! I hope you enjoy this one. We are moving right along now. Much love to you all for being so patient. Thank you for reading! Have a great day!
Chapter Ten
Daryl could hear Andrea and Buck arguing from all the way down the hall. Him and Shane were cleaning guns, both men trying to tune out the yelling. They didn't say much to each other because neither of them had much to say but eventually the tiresome squabbling down the hall was grating on their nerves so much they had to make conversation. Daryl was about to ask Shane something but Shane looked up before he could even open his mouth.
"So, what do you think about this other town? You think Michonne is right? You think we got somethin' to worry about when it comes to this Philip guy?"
That had been at the forefront of everyone's thoughts all day. His eyes shot up and met Shane's. "I don't see no reason not to trust her. The guys a fuckin' freak. Even Blue thinks so."
Shane snorted. "You all and that damn dog."
"Talk as much shit as ya want, dumb ass. That dog is a lot smarter than you." Daryl grumbled.
Another few minutes of silence hung between them. Andrea and Buck must have came to some sort of agreement because they couldn't hear them anymore. He looked up once more and caught Shane staring at him, causing him to frown.
"The fuck you lookin' at me like that for?" He asked.
"If they have as many people in that town as Michonne says, and Philip is as bat shit crazy as you and... your dog think, then our biggest problem ain't the walkers. We ain't got the numbers he has. All we have are the guns but from what she says he's stockin' up pretty quick. You think it's smart to sit and wait for him to make a move?"
Daryl met his eyes and held them for a long time before he said anything. "What do you think we should do? Go slaughter a whole town? We don't know who the bad guys are there. Michonne said there were a ton of civilians. Kids and women. We couldn't do that."
"I ain't sayin' we should go in there, guns blazin'. But I don't think it would hurt to go have a look. Size up the enemy. You got a lot to lose, man. I figured you'd be all up for doin' what you could to keep'em safe." He shrugged and looked away.
Daryl was about to get pissed. Shane was good at finding peoples weak spots and he knew Daryl's well. The only thing he could think about was keeping Carol and the baby safe and Shane insinuating that they were in immediate danger from the men in that other town sent his teeth on edge. It was a low blow. But it worked.
"What do you suggest we do, Einstein? Fight our way through a sea of walkers for days just to spy on a town that we know nothin' about? I don't know if you ever thought of this but I can protect Carol a whole lot better if I ain't dead."
"Michonne made it here through the walkers. I bet we could get there pretty easy." Shane muttered as he put the last gun back together quickly.
"That's pretty easy for you to say. You ain't got a damn thing here dependin' on you." Daryl almost regretted the words as soon as they were out of his mouth. He didn't particularly like Shane all that much but he didn't have to rub in the fact that the man didn't have anyone, other than his best friend.
"Leave it up to you to remind me." Shane smirked, blowing it off but Daryl could see the sting in his dark eyes. He felt like a real asshole.
He shook his head. "You know what I mean. If somethin' happens to me then my kid'll end up bein' raised with Merle as a daddy figure and that shit just wont fly."
This, at least, got a genuine laugh out of the man. "I see your point there." He shook his head and leaned back in his chair, stretching and then working the kinks out of his neck. "What do you think we should do then?" He asked.
Daryl shrugged. He wasn't too sure what they could do. He knew that Merle and Buck would be on the same page as Shane. Rick and the others would most likely side with Daryl on this one. It was too damn risky. They had too much at stake to risk losing everything they had here by leaving the place just to check out Woodbury. He knew Michonne was right but they didn't have much choice but to wait.
Shane shook his head. "You just want to sit here and play defense, huh?"
"I already told you. I ain't leavin' her here alone while I go scope out some other town. You wanna do it, fine. Have a fun trip. I'm out."
"So it's up to me to take care of you and Rick's women, huh? Go figure," Shane grumbled in a disgusted tone.
Daryl looked up from the gun he was holding, eyes blazing. "Fuck you, Shane. Ain't nobody gotta take care of mine. I've done it just fine so far."
"By knockin' her up in the first place?" The smug look on Shane's face disappeared as soon as Daryl's fist connected with the bridge of his nose.
"What the fuck, Dixon!" Shane yelled as he stood up, knocking the chair over.
"Fuck you, Walsh." Daryl growled as he took a step closer to the ex cop. The truth was, he was scared to death of this pregnancy, even if he did want the baby more than anything he'd ever wanted in his life. But there were a lot of things to think about now that they didn't have access to any doctors or hospitals. This was going to be hard and there were so many things that could go wrong. And if something did happen to her or the baby or both of them then the only person he could blame would be himself for putting her in that position to begin with. The last thing he needed was for Shane fucking Walsh to rub it in his face.
~H~
Merle was walking down the hall when he suddenly stopped outside Daryl's door. He thought he heard Shane yell something and he sounded pretty pissed. He opened the door right as Shane was about to lunge at his brother, blood oozing from his nose. Daryl moved back enough for Shane's blow to just graze his jaw.
Merle hurried over to them and got in the middle, putting his hand on each mans chest and shoving them both away. "What the hell are you two fightin' for? Ain't we got enough shit to deal with without the two of you actin' like a couple of idiots?"
"Your brother needs to learn how to take a damn joke!" Shane barked as he glared past him towards Daryl.
"Your dumb ass friend here needs to learn that some shit shouldn't be joked about." Daryl grumbled as he tried to push past Merle. Merle shoved him once more.
"Do we need to drag Buck into this?" Merle grunted as he shoved Shane away next. Both men finally relaxed a little and stopped trying to attack one another.
"That asshole hit me first. He's lucky I don't kick his ass," Shane said as he sat back down.
"Get up and try it," Daryl spat as he stalked off towards the living room.
Merle followed Daryl and put a hand on his arm to stop him before he was able to make it out the door. It was like the dumb kid was too pissed off to even realize he was in his own house. "What's the problem, little brother? First Andrea and Buck and now you and Shane. What the fuck did I sleep through?"
Daryl spun around, glare in place. "I ain't sure yet. I think we need to find Buck and sort it out though. I got a bad feelin' about that fight him and Andrea just had." He opened the door and Merle followed him.
"I doubt it's anything too bad. I'm sure they done made up by now."
Daryl looked back at him like he was an idiot. "I don't give a shit if they made up or not. I wanna know what they was fightin' about in the first place. Whatever it was it probably wasn't somethin' good for the rest of us."
They found Buck sitting on one of the benches sharpening a knife.
"What the hell are you and Andrea fightin' about?" Daryl asked.
Buck didn't even look up from his blade. "We ain't fightin'."
Merle heard Daryl sigh in frustration. "What the fuck was the two of you fightin' about then?" Daryl rolled his eyes.
Buck looked up, his lips turning up at the corners. "Thinkin' about leavin'."
Merle saw Daryl's eyes bug out of his head. He wasn't sure what the hell was going on but he was in. He was getting restless and the thought of any sort of escape from the monotonous life they had fallen into here was a welcome thought indeed.
Daryl apparently didn't feel the same way. "I fuckin' knew it! Why can't you dumb asses just leave well enough alone?"
"Just gonna be me and a few others, boy. Ain't no need in gittin' your nickers in a fuckin' bunch. Jesus." Buck grumbled as he looked back down at his work.
Now Merle was the one that was pissed. "What!" He stomped around, knowing he was looking exactly like Daryl but was unable to stop the fit he was about to throw.
Buck looked up once more. "Can't leave this place without any protection, dumb ass. You know that. We're gonna take a car anyway. We wont be gone long. I wanna see what we're dealin' with here."
Merle was about to say something else but Andrea came out of Hershel's clinic, backpack slung over her shoulder. She didn't look mad anymore and Merle thought he had an idea why.
"She gets to go?" He jabbed an angry finger in Andrea's direction. "You're makin' me stay here and you're lettin' her go with you? You know that's bullshit, right?"
"You wanna go that bad then saddle up, ya damn crybaby." Buck mumbled as he stood up and sheathed the newly sharpened knife. "Make sure you let Beth know you're plannin' on ridin' out. And don't lie to the girl either. I'll tell her the truth if you don't."
Merle glared. He hadn't thought of that. If he did tell her what he was doing then she would insist on going with them and there was no way in hell she was leaving the walls of the town. But if he went without her she'd have a fit. He kicked the bench that Buck had abandoned and stormed off towards Oscar and Rick who were talking amongst themselves in the middle of the street.
He didn't even know that Daryl was on his heels until Rick asked him how Carol was doing. Merle was about to tell him that he hadn't seen her when Daryl spoke up from behind him.
"She's good. Lori?" Daryl asked after a pause.
Rick smiled, a real one for the first time in a while. "She was cooking breakfast when I got up this mornin'. And she ate without getting sick so I guess that part is done with for now."
Well that was some good news. Everyone had been secretly wondering whether or not Lori was going to be able to carry the kid and Merle knew that most were betting on a solid no. She hadn't been doing good at all since they had secured the town and made it their own.
"You guys heard about Buck and Michonne's bullshit plan to leave?" Merle asked as he shoved his hands in his pockets.
Oscar nodded and this didn't surprise Merle at all. Of course they all would know about it before him.
"You think it's a good idea?" He asked.
Daryl snorted. "Hell no it ain't a good idea. Say somethin' happens while they're out? That means we're down people that could otherwise help keep this damn place safe."
Merle knew where his brother was coming from. He wasn't too thrilled about it either. Well, not now that he knew it wouldn't be worth the fight it would cause him to have with Beth. He'd rather just stay and deal with the boredom.
Rick spoke up then. "I don't think it's that bad of a plan. All they're gonna do is check it out. I'm sure Buck and Michonne had other plans until Andrea pitched a fit. Now that she's goin' he wont risk her by doin' somethin' dangerous."
Merle nodded. It was true. All he was really missing out on was a boring car ride and a sneak peak of the mayors new town. Nothing too exciting about that. Hell, he could be just as bored here. He was still pissed though.
~H~
Carol kept glancing over at Lori. She was humming to herself as she helped go through the stockpile of meds that Hershel had found in the back room of the pharmacy. It was dumb luck that whoever had looted the place hadn't checked any of the back rooms. Then again anyone worried about drugs while dead people are running around trying to kill you probably weren't smart enough to check anything other than what was behind the counter. Lucky her.
"I take it you still feel better?" She finally asked.
Lori's smile lit up her whole face. "Compared to how I did feel, I would have to say that I feel amazing today. I never thought I was going to feel this good again.
They both shelved the last of their loads and then headed out into the late afternoon sunshine. It was cold but it felt good. She felt like she had been stuck in that damn room forever. The fresh air had her feeling energized. Today was a good day. It had started out good, other than Buck and Michonne acting like a couple of children out there in the middle of a herd of walkers. That had nearly scared her to death but other than that, Lori's good mood was pretty contagious. She found herself smiling from ear to ear. Yeah, today was going to be a great...
"Shane?" She asked as she stopped on the sidewalk. "What the hell happened to your face?"
Shane glanced over at her and then stopped. "Your man is what happened to my damn face."
"Daryl?" Carol asked feeling that good mood slipping quickly.
"Hell yeah, Daryl. You know anybody else that would do it?" He snapped.
Carol narrowed her eyes. "What the hell did you say to him to cause him to do that?"
Shane seemed to tone down his attitude a bit. "Said somethin' that pissed him off apparently. No big deal, Carol." He gave them a wave and started walking towards the group that were gathering in the street.
She watched him walk away for a few long seconds and then she shook her head as she fell in step with Lori once more. The two of them started talking baby names when Lori grabbed her arm hard and stopped her. When Carol looked up Lori was staring down the street, eyes wide. Before Carol even looked to see what had the other woman so stricken she swung the gun around and aimed it just as her eyes spotted a lone figure walking down the street with his arms raised in what looked like surrender.
She kept the gun trained on the man as he made his slow way towards them. She'd killed enough walkers by now to know that she was a decent shot. She wasn't as good as some of the men but out of all of the women the only one that had anything on her as far as aim went was Beth. She could drop the man from here and she knew it. But this was what everyone had been arguing about. This wasn't a monster. This was a man and he was alive and breathing. Until he made a move to prove he meant to harm her or the group she wasn't going to gun him down.
She heard feet pounding behind her. She lowered the gun as the man stopped, keeping his hands in the air. He was still a little bit too far away to identify yet. All she knew was that he wasn't one of them and that instantly caused her to distrust him.
Rick, Merle, Shane, and Oscar ran past her. Daryl stopped in front of her but kept his back to her. She peaked around him and saw the others approach to man with their guns raised. The guy went to his knees and put his hands behind his head. Rick was barking orders and Shane was actually cuffing the guy. Carol wasn't sure if this was precaution or protocol but the men worked together easily.
"What do you think he wants?" Carol asked as she placed a hand on Daryl's back.
He shook his head. "No idea. But we ain't takin' no chances of him bein' some sort of scout for that asshole."
Oscar pulled the guy up so he was standing and Daryl finally walked forwards, her and Lori following caughtiously. Once they got closer Carol could tell that whoever it was, she had never seen him before. He was short and skinny with a ridiculous mustache and eyes that were filled with fear.
"I ain't here to cause no problems. I promise. I left my group and stole a car to get here to warn you people. Just listen to me, please, and then you can do whatever ya want to me."
"Warn us about what?" Rick asked, taking on the role of the leader.
The man swallowed hard. "I was with another group. Bout thirty or so men. We'de been watchin' you people for a while..." He winced when Oscar's grip on his arms must have tightened, "before we left and then found that other place. Woodbury."
A chill that had nothing to do with the weather ran up Carol's spine and she reached out and grabbed Lori's hand.
"Keep fuckin' talkin'." Daryl growled dangerously.
The man nodded. "The guy that leads our group, he talked to this man there."
"The mayor?" Shane asked.
His head bobbed again. "That's what he says. Anyway, he met with us last night and Dave, he's the one we all kind of follow, he told the guy about this place. He described everyone here and that kind of excited the guy. He said that you all have a few things that belongs to him and he's recruitin' some of my group to help him come and get it."
"And you took it upon yourself to come all the way here to spill all of that to a group that you don't even know?" Shane scoffed. "Are you stupid or somethin'?"
The man shook his head. "You don't understand, man. This guy ain't right. I could see it right away. Dave is all for comin' here. He said he has a score to settle with someone here."
"Dave?" Daryl asked.
Carol was feeling sick now. Like things weren't already bad enough. They didn't have enough people to fight off an army like that. Michonne said there were a lot of survivors at Woodbury to begin with and now a large group of seemingly dangerous men were going to help Philip Blake come and take the town.
"Did he say what it was he wanted?" Rick asked.
The man seemed to get even more nervous. "He said his woman is here. His pregnant woman."
There was a heavy silence that hung in the air after that. Carol's mind felt slightly numb. Surely not. There was no way this could have anything to do with her. After everything that had happened with Jim what were the chances of it happening again?
"Did he give you a name for this mystery woman?" Oscar asked, his eyes flashing coldly.
The man bobbed his head once more. "Carol. He said that no matter what goes down, nothing can happen to her. He said to kill the rest."
"Jesus Christ." Shane whispered as he glanced up at her.
Daryl's arm went around her then, she didn't dare look up. It wasn't that she was afraid of what she would see on his face, it was more that she was afraid of what he would see in hers. She still had a hold of Lori's hand and felt her give it a gentle squeeze.
"You came all the way here alone?" Rick asked finally.
"No, some boy came with me. Said he wasn't gonna take no part in killin' people. He's hidin' out on the outskirts of town. He's from these parts. Mister, I'm tellin' ya. The only reason we came here was to warn ya about what they was plannin'. If you ain't welcomin' any newcomers then that's fine. If ya let me go we'll leave. No problem."
Carol swiped a few stray tears off her face. "What's your name?" She asked in a hushed voice.
He met her eyes and gave her a quick nod. "Axel, ma'am."
She gave him a weak smile. "I think it's time we get Buck and Blue."
Axel looked confused but Shane actually agreed with her. "Good plan. Oscar, you got find that boy and bring him in. We'll figure out what to do once we know more details."
Daryl didn't waste any time leading her away. She let go of Lori's hand and let him guide her down the street towards their building. She couldn't believe it. There had to be some sort of mistake. There was no way this was happening.
Philip Blake wanted her and he wanted her baby. And he had an army willing to kill to retrieve what he, in his twisted insane mind, considered his.