Hello darlings :) Here's a new , May and Darryl are gonna be separated for a chapter or two. I thought it might mix things up a bit, give them a chance to figure out what they feel. Anyway, tell me your thoughts. Leave a couple of reviews, and the next chapter's coming :)

Disclaimer:

I only own May and Kiba

Chapter 11: Blood and Fear

May kept her poker face on and walked away without saying anything and without sparing him another glance. She found the rest of the group in front of the church, including Daryl and Kiba, who disappeared for a while. The dog started wagging his tail enthusiastically when he saw her and ran up to her, raising his paws to her shoulders. He truly was a terrifyingly big dog. She hugged him and scratched behind the ears and he was back on all fours, following her loyally around. She saw Rick about twenty feet uphill. Shane walked up to him and they seemed to be discussing something important. He, then, walked up to the group.

"Ya'll follow the creek back. Okay, Daryl, you're in charge, me and Rick, we're just gonna hang back, search this area another hour or so, just be thorough."

"Yer splittin' us up? You sure?" Daryl asked suspiciously. "Yeah, we'll catch up to you."

"I wanna stay too." Carl said, stepping out from behind his mother. "I'm her friend." He seemed determined not to take 'no' for an answer. Rick and Shane exchanged glances, both of them smirking slightly. Lorry looked at them and then walked up to her son. "Just be careful, okay?" she said, ruffling his hair. "When did you start growing up?" Rick took out his gun. "Here, take this. Remember how to use it?" he asked, offering it to her. "I'm not taking your gun and leaving you unarmed." Daryl walked up, pulling a gun from the back of his belt. "Here, I got a spare. Take it." He handed it to Lorry. Lorry took the gun, and Rick nodded at Daryl gratefully. May saw Andrea sigh angrily in the background.

The group was ready to leave when Rick said: "May, I'm sorry to ask this, but would you come with us? You're an experienced tracker." He looked her straight in the eyes and she knew there was no way to turn it down – Shane or no Shane. Daryl frowned at this, but said nothing. "Yeah, sure Rick." May replied, walking up to the three of them. She knelt by her dog's side and buried her hand in his fur. "Kiba, go with Daryl, be good and listen to him. See you guys back at the interstate." she said, waving to the rest of the group. She looked at Daryl, but he was looking away, seeming agitated, giving her a tugging feeling in the pit of her stomach. They went their ways and, when May turned back to glance at the rest of the group, she saw Daryl had also turned, looking at her. She smiled to herself, catching up to the others.

"Give me a minute?" Rick asked them when they passed the church doors. "Sure." Shane said. He ruffled Carl's hair and the boy smiled at him. May walked a few feet away and sat under a tree, taking in deep, steady breaths. She decided to ignore Shane and let them sort out their issues. He shot her a couple of nasty glances, but said nothing, and she sat there in silence until Rick came back and they were off on their way.

They walked around the forest for a while, May leading the way, scanning the ground for footprints. Suddenly, she heard a noise to their left and jerked her arm up, signaling them to get down and shut up. The slow patter of hooves became coherent and soon, she saw a stag through the branches. They started sneaking up to it and reached a small clearing. They stopped there and, to everyone's surprise, the deer just walked right out and faced them. May, who already had her bow and arrow ready, completely forgot about them, letting them hang limply from her hands. Shane was ready to shoot it, but Rick stopped him. He pointed at Carl and both Shane and May saw the bay walking up to the deer. He slowly covered the distance between them, periodically turning to them for support. The deer had now noticed him, but didn't run. To May, it seemed surreal; like a scene from a fairy tale. Carl was practically within hand reach of the deer when a lout shot sounded out, sending both the deer and Carl to the ground.

*WDWDWDWD*

Somewhere in the distance, Daryl heard the familiar sound people always dreaded – he heard a gunshot sounding out. One, single gunshot. He felt a stabbing sensation in his gut. Something was wrong. I knew I shouldn't 'ave let 'er go with them. What if she was hurt? Kiba raised his ears, turning them towards the sound.

"That was a gunshot." Lorry said, not moving. "We all heard it." Daryl answered. "Why one? Why just one gunshot?" she asked, panic slowly rising in her voice. "Maybe they took down a walker." Daryl said, not believing it himself. "Oh, please don't patronize me, you know Rick wouldn't rick a gunshot to kill one walker. Or Shane. And definitely not May. They'd do it quietly." Daryl knew that was true. "Shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?" Carol asked. "There's nothin' we can do 'bout it anyway." he said in a dismissive tone, trying to shake off the rising feeling of dread. "We can't run around these woods chasin' echoes."

"So what do we do?" Lorry asked sharply. "Same as we did, beat the bush for Sophia and make our way back to the highway." the hunter answered in a no-nonsense tone. "I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the RV." Andrea said reassuringly and they were, once again, under way.

"I'm sorry for what you're going through. I know how you feel…" he heard Andrea say to Carol. "I suppose you do… Thank you. The thought of her out here, by herself… It's the not knowing that's killing me. I just keep hoping and praying she doesn't wind up like Amy." As soon as the words left Carol's mouth, you could see she regretted it. "Oh God… That's the worst thing I ever said." Andrea sighed. "We're all hoping and praying with you. For what it's worth."

"I'll tell you what it's worth – not a damn thing! It's a waste of time, all this hopin' and prayin'. We're gonna locate that little girl an' she's gonna be just fine." Daryl said in a stern, assured voice. "Am I the only one zen around here? Good lord…" He then turned, and led them on their way back to the highway. You better be safe, ranger-girl.

*WDWDWDWD*

There was a burning sensation in her legs. They'd been running for almost half an hour now at an incredibly fast pace, fueled by adrenalin. Rick was just a couple of feet ahead of her, holding Carl in his arms. Following them were Shane and a fat hunter that lived on a nearby farm. He told them they had a doctor. From time to time, May would see a red glisten in the grass meaning only one thing – Carl was bleeding profusely.

"You move, shithead!" Shane screamed at the fat man, pulling him along. "C'mon, get us there!"

"How far?! How far?!" Rick asked in a fiery voice. "Just there… go that way. Talk to Hershel… he'll help your boy…." the man uttered through gasps. May found his footprints from when he was going to the woods. "Rick, c'mon!" she called out, running along a path only her eyes could see. After a couple of minutes, a big farmhouse came to their sight. They kept running like they were being chased by death.

May saw a figure on the porch of the house. It was a girl, just a couple of years younger than herself. She turned around and called for someone. When they finally reached the house, her lungs were burning and she stumbled a bit, looking up to see a grey haired man surrounded by two girls, a woman and a teenage boy holding a baseball bat. "Was he bit?" the grey-haired man who must be Hershel called out. Rick was gasping for air and barely holding on to Carl. "Shot. By your man…" May uttered, gasping for air herself. "Otis?" the woman asked. "He said 'find Hershel', is that you? Help him… Help save my boy!" Rick was hysterical. Hershel led them in to the house, calling for the woman – Patricia – to bring him his medical tools and for the girl on the porch – Maggie – to bring him medicine for Carl. "Beth, get me clean towels, sheets, bedspreads, whatever!" he asked the younger, blond girl.

Rick placed Carl on the bed and kept asking "Is he alive?" as if he wasn't aware of his surroundings. May, as instructed by Hershel, was talking pillowcases of the pillows and was folding them to make pads. He instructed Rick to put pressure on Carl's wound, taking a stethoscope, and looking for a heartbeat. "I got a heartbeat. It's faint…"

"I got it from here, step back." Patricia rushed Rick and May away. "We're gonna need some space." Maggie said gently, letting them pass through the door. Rick didn't move. "What's your name?" Hershel asked loudly, trying to break through Rick's hypnotized state. "It-i-i-it's R-Rick." the policeman barely answered. "Well, Rick, we're gonna do everything we can for your boy. Now please step out and let us work." When Rick still didn't move, May took his hand and gently led him out. They saw Shane and Otis run up the house, Shane shouting at Otis the entire time. They left the house just as the two men reached the entrance.

"Is he alive? Is he still alive?" Otis asked panickedly. Rick wiped of the sweat from his forehead with his hand, smudging Carl's blood all over his face. He was mumbling something incoherently as Shane took a rag out of his backpack and started wiping Rick's face. He gave May a questioning look, all of their animosities forgotten for a moment. She nodded, letting him know that Carl is still alive. The led Rick back in to the house and headed back to where Carl was.

"You know your son's blood type?" Hershel asked as soon as they walked in. "A+, same as mine." Rick answered in a shaky voice. "That's fortunate. Don't wander far, I'll need you." Hershel said. "I'm O-, I'm a universal donor." May pointed out. "Good. We'll need as much as possible. What happened?" he asked, turning to Otis. "I was… tracking a buck… Bullet went through it. Went clean through…" his voice trailed off weakly. "Well, it slowed the bullet down. The buck saved his life. But it did not go through clean. It broke up in to pieces. I should get the bullet fragments out. I see six."

"I never saw him, I…" Otis was convincing Patricia in a shaky voice. "Lorry doesn't know." Rick said suddenly. "My wife doesn't know… My wife doesn't know…." Rick cried as Shane hugged him. "I'll go get her, Rick." May said in a forced calm voice, picking her things off the floor. "You're not going anywhere, you have to be ready to give your blood at any time." May sighed and they all left the room. Rick and Shane sat in the living room and May left them alone, thinking how Rick must want to worry with his best friend. She sat on the porch and tried calming down by looking at the sky. She heard Maggie call for Rick and she jumped to her feet, practically running to Carl's room.

Shane was holding the screaming Carl down, as Hershel dug into his flesh, digging for bullet fragments. "Stop, you're killing him!" Rick screamed at him while Patricia was prepping him for a transfusion. "Damn it, Rick, do you want him to live?" Hershel asked sharply. Carl passed out from too much pain as Patricia stuck a needle in Rick's arm. Shane started panicking. "He just passed out – it's better this way." Hershel said calmly. He pulled out a chunk of metal from Carl's belly and dropped it in a metal bowl. "One down – five to go."

After a while, Hershel took Carl's pressure, concluding he was stable for now. They unhooked Rick from the transfusion – just in time, too, May thought, as he was getting pretty green in the face. "Lorry needs to be here. She doesn't even know what's going on, I gotta… I gotta find her, bring her here…" Rick said, stumbling as he got up. "You can't do that." Hershel repeated calmly. "She's his mother! She needs to know what happened, her son is lying here – shot!" Rick said more desperately. "The boy's going to need more blood. Neither of you two can go more than fifty feet from this bed." Hershel said to Shane who nodded in understanding.

"Hey, hey… C'mon…" Shane said, helping Rick up. "I'm alright, I'm alright…" the policeman said, leaving the room. They followed him out and found Maggie and Otis waiting there. They said nothing, but it was obvious they were expecting news. "He's stable, for now…" May said, quietly.

"Lorry has to be here, Shane, she has to know." Rick said once again to his best friend. "Okay. I get that. I'm gonna handle it. But you gotta handle your end." Rick looked at him confusedly. "M-My end?"

"Your end is being here for your son. Even if he didn't need your blood to survive, there's no way I'd ever let you walk out that door man, I-… I'd break your legs if you tried, you know that, right? What if something happened to him and you weren't here?" Shane said, seemingly earnest. Rick buried his face in his hands, slightly shaking from worry and exhaustion. "If he slipped away while you were gone, you would never forgive yourself for that. And neither would Lorry man."

"He's right, Rick…" May said, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder. She felt his entire body shiver slightly before he composed himself and looked at them. "You're right…" he said, nodding his head as if trying to convince himself of what he said. "When was I ever wrong?" Shane asked in a slightly lighter voice. A nervous smile escaped his lips. "You know when… When you were in that hospital, the one you were never supposed to leave, man… You should've seen Lorry. I mean… There's strength in that woman. Man, you can't imagine it. See, that's what you gotta have now. Carl needs that from you. So you hang tight, man. You got the hard part, but leave the rest to me." Shane said, hugging Rick. Rick nodded in agreement just as Hershel left Carl's room.

"He's out of the danger for a moment, but I need to get the rest of those fragments." Rick faced him. "How? You saw how he was…" he said in a weak voice. "I know, and that was the shallowest one. I need to go deeper to get the others." They all sighed heavily. "There's more: his belly is hard, he's pressure is dropping which means…"

"Internal bleeding." May realized, wide-eyed in her terror. Hershel nodded. "A fragment must have opened one of the vessels. I have to open him and find the bleeder and stitch it. And he can't move while I'm in there and I mean at all. If he acts like before, I'll accidently sever an artery and he'll die in minutes. To even try this, I have to put him under, but if a do, he won't be able to breathe on his own – same bad results."

"What will it take?" Rick asked weakly. "A respirator…" May said, rubbing her forehead with the bottoms of her palms. "What else?" Otis asked, leaving his chair. "The tube that goes with it, extra surgical supplies, drapes, sutures…" Hershel started listing. "If you had all that you could save him?" Rick asked, fighting to stay composed. "If I had all that I could try." Hershel corrected him.

"The nearest hospital went up in flames a month ago." Otis said. "Usually, schools have ventilators and suture kits in case of emergency." May said hopefully looking at them. "The high school!" Otis said suddenly. "That's what I was thinking." Hershel agreed, nodding at May approvingly. "They set up a shelter there, they would have everything we need."

"But the place was overrun the last time I saw it, you couldn't get near it. Maybe it's better now…" Otis said uncertainly. "I said leave the rest to me – hard to take that back now." Shane said half jokingly. "I hate you going alone…" Rick replied. "C'mon… Doc, why don't you give me a list, draw me a map…" But Otis stopped him. "You won't need a map – I'll take you there." His wife was at the door. "Otis, no!" she said in a stern voice. "Honey, we don't have time for this. I'm responsible and I ain't sitting back and letting this fellow do this on his own." she gave him a scared look. "I'll be alright."

"Are you sure about this?" Shane asked the man. "Do you even know what half of the stuff he's talking about looks like?" Otis asked earnestly. "To tell you the truth, no…" Shane replied. "I've been a volunteer EMT, I know. Look, we can talk about this till next Sunday or we can just go do it real quick." he said, turning to Shane. "I say we do it real quick." Rick looked at Otis. "I should thank you." he said in a stern voice. "Wait till that boy of yours is up and around." he said, and he an Shane left the room to pack up.

"Where is she? Your wife?" Maggie asked suddenly.

*WDWDWDWD*

"It's not gonna be light for too long. I think we should call it…" Daryl said, looking at the slowly setting sun. "Let's head back, we'll pick it up again tomorrow. Yeah, we'll find her tomorrow." Lorry said assuredly. They'd been looking for Sophia for a couple of hours now and the rest of the group hadn't joined them yet. Daryl found himself wanting to go against his head and try and find them. Well, if he was honest with himself, he wanted to go and find her. Still, he signaled them all to follow him, and headed for the highway. Kiba pushed his head against Daryl's hand and he scratched the dog, absently.

"Hey, she's alright? May, I mean." he suddenly heard Glenn ask him quietly. He shot him a look and saw worry on the Korean's face, reflecting how he felt as well. "She's tha toughest woman I know…" he muttered in reply, but sad nothing else. They continued walking in silence and Daryl did everything he could to try and appease the boiling feeling in his stomach.

They've been stumbling through the woods for a while when Daryl realized he couldn't see Andrea. A terrified woman's scream broke through the woods. They ran to her aid but, before they reached her a girl on a horse emerged from the woods and smashed the head of a geek attacking Andrea with a baseball bat.

"Whoa!" she said, stopping the horse and putting her bat away."Lorry? Lorry Grimes?" she asked, searching through the group. "I'm Lorry." The brunette said, seeping forward. "Rick sent me, you gotta come now." the girl on horseback said urgently. "What?" Lorry asked, confused like the rest of them. "There's been an accident, Carl's been shot. He's still alive, but you gotta come now." she repeated, waiting. Lorry was frozen in place. "Rick needs you! Come on!" the girl shouted, snapping Lorry out of it. She dropped her backpack and headed for the horse.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, we don't know this girl! You can't git on that horse!" Daryl said suddenly, feeling responsible for everyone around him. The girl on the horse ignored him. "Rick said you had others on the highway? On that big traffic block?" she asked, turning to Glenn. The Asian man nodded. "Backtrack to Frewin's road, two miles down is our farm, you'll see the mailbox. The name's Greene." And with that, she rode off in to the woods. The walker she knocked down rose again, snarling. "Shut up." Daryl said nervously, logging a bolt in its continued on their way, Daryl feeling even more uneasy then before. He thought that, if anyone's gonna come and get them, it'll be May. Where the hell are you, woman?

That's it for now. I hope you enjoyed it and will review. Peace!