AN- Thank you for the reviews! They make my whole day. It's great knowing that someone out there is enjoying what I write. There's some smut in this chapter. Skip the middle portion if you don't like that. But really, who doesn't love Macmanus smut?
ELEVEN
"You can't keep two men locked in my barn." Hershel said for what seemed like the tenth time. He put his hands on his hips and faced off against the much younger men. He knew he was outnumbered, but the Christian in him wasn't comfortable with what they were doing.
"We do no' have a choice." Conner scrubbed his hand over his chin and sighed. He was tired of this whole situation. When they had brought the men back, they had never expected this whole thing to have went on for as long as it had. "We have ta find out what they know."
"They know nothing." Hershel pointed out, his voice firm. "You've been questioning them for days."
"They know something." Merle growled.
"They weren't alone." Daryl added, standing next to his brother. "I got that out of the young one. They have a big group."
"And they'll be lookin' for tha lost men." Murphy said.
"It willna be long 'fore they look here." Conner sighed.
"These men kidnapped my son, Hershel. With bad intentions." Rick spoke up. "They've already made comments about the women."
"Just keep it away from me and mine." Hershel ground out and walked away. He knew when he was beat. Rick watched the old man walk off with sad eyes. He hated being at odds with him, but he knew in his heart that they had to figure out what the men were planning and where they were staying.
"What are we going to do with these assholes?" Merle asked. "Keeping them here is dangerous."
"Aye, we need ta end this." Murphy nodded.
"End it by killing them?" Daryl scoffed. "That gets us nothing. We need information."
"They're not talking." Rick pointed out. He wearily scrubbed a hand over the too long stubble on his chin.
"Tha fat one will no' talk." Conner stated. "He needs ta go."
"I'll do it." Merle's gun appeared in his hand as if by magic. He was itching for a fight. Trying to get information out of these idiots was putting him on edge.
"That's not the way." Aerin spoke up from behind them. She, Carol, and Andrea had been hovering nearby keeping an eye on things.
"Aerin, lass." Conner looked over at her, a frown marring his handsome face.
"They're bad men." She walked slowly up to them all, her eyes darting back and forth between Conn and Murph.
"They would have raped Sophia if they would have found her out there. God knows what they had planned for poor Carl. They wouldn't hesitate to take any of us for their own if they had the chance." Carol spoke up, her hand on Daryl's arm.
"You know what you have to do." Aerin said gravely. She held out her hand, two pennies glinting in the sunlight. Conner and Murphy looked at the pennies and then at each other.
"She's right." Murphy said, taking the pennies from Aerin. "Go back to tha camper, lass."
"Ye don' need ta see this." Conn kissed her cheek and looked over at the men.
"What's going on?" Merle asked. He followed the two men into the barn, Daryl and Rick on his heels. The fat guy, Tony they had learned, jerked up when he saw them enter. He watched with wary eyes as Conner and Murphy both pulled a gun. With a kick to the man's bad knee, he went down. Conn and Murph stood behind him, guns pointed to his head. The man blubbered and cried the whole time. They pulled out heavy cross necklaces from under their shirts and with quiet voices in unison, they spoke.
"And shepherds we shall be for thee, my Lord, for thee. Power hath descended forth from thy hand our feet may swiftly carry out thy commands. So we shall flow a river forth to thee and teeming with souls shall it ever be. In nomeni patri et fili spiritus sancti." Two pops sounded through the barn and Tony fell forward. Murphy and Conner rolled him over and Conner arranged his arms over his chest while Murphy put a penny on each of his eyes. They both made the sign of the cross over their chests and stood up. Rick, Merle, and Daryl were all three standing to the side, looks of shock on their faces. They watched as the Irish twins walked over to the other prisoner.
"Ye better start talkin', if ye don' want tha same ta happen ta ye." Conner growled at the cowering man in front of him. The other guys stepped up and circled the man laying on the ground. Outside the barn, the two girls followed Aerin back to the camper. They had peeked in the slit of the door and watched as the Macmanus brothers took care of Fat Tony. Carol and Andrea were shocked at the ease with which it had gone down. Aerin climbed into the camper and walked straight past Sophia at the table. She crawled into the bed and hugged a pillow.
"Are you okay?" Carol asked, perching on one side of the bed. Andrea sat on the other side, her hand on Aerin's shoulder.
"Yeah. It never gets easier to see." She said quietly.
"Really, cause I think it was pretty fucking hot." Andrea said. At Carol and Aerin's look, she laughed nervously.
"I used to think that too." Aerin finally nodded. "The first time I saw them, guns out, saying that prayer my insides quivered. I already lusted for them, but after that night watching them kill the man that tried to kill me, I loved them."
"Someone tried to kill you?" Carol gasped.
"It's a long story." Aerin sighed. "I saw something I shouldn't have and some mob guys kidnapped me. My boys saved me."
"Wow." Andrea leaned back. "That's quite a life you led before."
"They saved me in so many ways. And every time I watch them put another man down, I can see a little more weariness in their eyes." She shrugged. "It's just hard to watch the men you love do something like that."
"Yeah." Carol murmured, her eyes distant. She knew that Daryl had killed a man in the woods the day Carl had run off. She still wasn't sure exactly how she felt about it.
"Mama?" Sophia asked from the door. "I'm hungry."
"I know." Carol stood up. "I'll make you some ravioli."
"Again?" Sophia grumbled and walked back up front where she was supposed to be doing schoolwork. She didn't see the point anymore. What was algebra gonna get her these days?
"We've got to raid a grocery store soon. The kid's right. Chef Boyardee lost his appeal weeks ago." Andrea tried to make a joke.
"Tell me about it." Aerin chuckled and rolled off the bed. She wiped her tears away and headed for the kitchenette. "I'll open the cans."
"I'll stoke the fire." Andrea groaned. "Man, I miss the microwave."
"Chef Mike is missed by all." Carol stood up and smoothed out the skirt of the dress she wore. And just like that, after a killing, it was business as usual.
***TWD***BDS***
The next day, Carol tossed down the shirt she was mending and stood up. She stretched her back out and looked around the clearing. Aerin and Andrea were helping Maggie and her younger sister Beth with the chickens, against Aerin's wishes. She wasn't sure where all the men were and she knew Carl and Sophia were inside the farmhouse with Patricia, one of Hershel's people. She had been a teacher before the fall and had taken over teaching the children. Carol appreciated the break. She loved her daughter, but she did miss those days when she could send Sophia off to school and enjoy some silence.
With a slight smile at those thoughts of how the world used to be, she grabbed a bottle of water and walked over to the pond. Her eyes took in the sight of the rolling hills and valleys of the tranquil farm that was her sanctuary. She had never really been out of the city in her old life and had never understood the sentiments behind owning a huge piece of land that some people had. But now, standing on the dock with the array of beauty before her, she got it. She lowered herself down to the dock and slipped her flip flops off. Ducking her toes into the warm water, she chuckled.
"Hey." A gruff voice sounded behind her.
"Hey yourself." She greeted, glancing back over her shoulder at him. He was so attractive she almost shivered. Daryl had a movie star handsome face, if he would ever clean himself up. His brown hair flopped over his forehead boyishly and she knew he would be pissed if he ever knew she thought of him in that way.
"You shouldn't be out here alone." He said, chewing at his thumb nervously.
"I think I'm safe enough." She smiled, her eyes catching his in a blaze of blue fire. She scooted over on the dock and patted the space next to her.
"I should get into the woods. Kill something for supper." He kicked a loose nail with the toe of his scuffed boot.
"You can take a break." She patted the space harder and was rewarded when she felt him beside her. Playfully kicking her feet, she aimed a few drops of water at him. She felt him stiffen beside her and nudged his shoulder with hers. "It's okay to smile every once in awhile."
"Not much to smile about these days." He rubbed a hand over his head, messing his hair up more.
"There's still plenty to smile about." She inched her hand closer to where his gripped the dock. "We've got food, water, shelter."
"Yeah." He grunted, extremely uncomfortable being this close to her without the motorcycle under them.
"We're still alive." Her fingers moved closer still. She could touch him if she stretched out her thumb.
"So far." He had to agree with her. His eyes grew wide when he felt her tiny hand cover his much larger one. She wormed her fingers inside of his and held on tight. He wanted with everything he had to pull away, but there was something about Carol that he couldn't resist.
"And I have you." She said in an almost whisper. Daryl turned his head and looked down at her. She gazed up at him with wide, trusting eyes and he wondered how it was that someone as good and pure as her could even be friendly with someone like himself. "If it wasn't for all this, me and Sophia would never have met you. I think all this happened so that we could meet."
"Why?" Daryl found himself asking.
"Why what?" Carol asked, her fingers squeezing his hand.
"Why are you like this with me?" Daryl asked, tearing his eyes away from her and staring out at the serene water.
"Because as soon as I saw you at the quarry, getting off that motorcycle something inside me was pulling me to you. It was like my soul was reaching out for you, its missing half." She glared when he snorted. "You can act like that all you want, Daryl Dixon, but I know you care about me too. Me and Sophia." He was silent, just staring at her with those stormy blue eyes. After a few long moments of silence, Carol leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his scruffy cheek, despite the flinch when she got close. She squeezed his hand one last time and stood up. Stepping into her flip flops, she walked away from him. The ball was in his court now.
"I don't know how." She barely heard him as she was a few feet from the dock when he finally spoke. She slowly turned around and saw him turned, looking at her. Carol's heart broke for him when she saw the haunted look on his face. She walked back over to him and stood, staring down at his scowling face. Daryl cursed under his breath and looked back at the pond. Carol kicked her shoes off again and sank down behind him. Kneeling, she threaded her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his shoulder.
"I'll show you how." She whispered and laid her cheek against his. She felt like it was a small victory when he placed his hands over hers.
***TWD***BDS***
"You Glenn?" Maggie stopped at the side of the old camper and looked up at the man standing there, her hand blocking the sun.
"Yeah." He said, his eyes taking in the farmer's daughter. She was tall and slim while still being built in all the right places.
"My daddy wants me to ride the fence line and check for breaks. Rick said I should take you with me." She explained, her brown eyes looking up at him expectantly.
"Yeah, ok." He nodded, fumbling with his gun. "I can do that."
"Great. We leave in fifteen. I'll saddle the horses." She turned and walked off.
"Horses?" Glenn stammered and looked over at Jim and Dale laughing at him. "I don't know how to ride a horse."
"You better learn, son." Jim laughed. Glenn groaned and sank down into the camping chair. He adjusted the baseball hat he wore over his head and looked around.
"Get down there and get some water together, Glenn. It's mighty hot out today." Dale nudged Glenn off the camper. He complied and busied himself getting some water and his weapons ready. He was waiting nervously when Maggie came back riding a horse, leading another one behind her.
"This one's yours. You need a boost up?" She asked, a smile on her face.
"I can do it." He mumbled and eyed the horse. With a silent prayer, he gripped the saddle horn and clumsily pulled himself up. Maggie held in her giggles and waited until Glenn got settled before taking off towards the pastures. He followed behind her splitting his time between trying to stay on top of the horse and checking out Maggie's bouncing ass in front of him.
"I know you're not checking out my ass, Glenn." She called back to him, laughter in her voice.
"No." He shook his head and nudged the horse to speed it up. "Do you think there's a breach?"
"Don't know." She shrugged. "It's best to be safe though."
"Yeah." He nodded. He wanted to be smooth and suave and charm her with pretty words, but he had no clue how to go about doing that. Girls freaked him out.
"So, what did you do before all this?" She asked, waving a hand around her.
"I delivered pizza and played video games mostly." Glenn said sheepishly. "What about you?"
"Not much. I was just finishing up school and trying to figure out what I wanted to do, you know." She replied, her eyes on the fence as they rode alongside it.
"Your dad seems nice." Glenn said after a long moment of silence.
"Yeah." She agreed. "How did you meet up with your group?"
"We were all camped at a rock quarry just outside Atlanta."
"How did you find them?"
"I was parked next to Dale's camper in a traffic jam. Daryl and Merle led a bunch of us to the rock quarry. We stayed for a long time." Glenn shrugged.
"They all seem nice." She said.
"Mostly." He nodded.
"That Lori Grimes is one hot mess, though." She rolled her eyes.
"She wasn't like that at first." Glenn didn't know why he thought he should defend Lori. He had never really even spoken to her. "She's been through a lot."
"We all have." Maggie pointed out. "You don't see any of the rest of us acting that way."
"No." Glenn agreed. He finally tore his eyes away from Maggie and looked around. They were long gone from the farmhouse and he saw nothing around but fields and pastures and in the distance the woods.
"You married, Glenn?" Maggie asked suddenly, her eyes on him.
"No." He stammered. "No, not married."
"I'm not either." She gracefully slid off her horse and looked up at him with huge brown eyes. His mouth dropped open when she reached down and grabbed the hem of her t-shirt. He gasped when she drew it up and over her head. With a saucy wink, she turned around and he watched as she unhooked the white cotton bra she wore. With a laugh, she threw it at him. "Get off your horse, Glenn."
***TWD***BDS***
Aerin stared up at the ceiling of the camper and sighed happily. She was laying between Conner and Murphy and it seemed like it had been weeks since she had just gotten to relax with her boys.
"I missed you guys." She whispered, her hands busy touching bare chests.
"We're always righ' here, lass." Conn said, his lips grazing her forehead.
"No, you're always busy." She knew she was pouting but she didn't care. She shivered when Murphy snaked his fingers under the tank top she wore. His callouses raked against her belly.
"Sorry, love." Murphy nuzzled her shoulder.
"We'll try ta make more time." Conner mumbled against her neck.
"You better." She turned her head and caught his mouth with hers, their tongues swirling together in a dance they both knew so well. She could feel Murphy's tongue and teeth nibbling their way down her arm. Her hands searched lower, ghosting over taut stomachs and under jeans. Her hands finally found what they were looking for, grasping throbbing erections. She felt them both stiffen at her touch, Conner growling into her mouth. Murphy had already licked his way up her belly, pushing her tank top and bra out of the way. Conner helped his brother remove the clothes and they both latched onto her breasts, dual tongues and teeth teasing her simultaneously. Her breath caught in her throat and she squirmed under their touch.
"Take your pants off." She gasped out, already sliding out of her shorts. With hurried movements, they divested themselves of their clothes and grasped at each other. It had been weeks since the three had been together and they had all missed it. Aerin pushed Conner down and rose over him, mewling when Murphy came behind her and palmed her breasts, fingers tweaking her hard nipples. She leaned forward, her mouth sinking down on Conner's waiting cock. She hummed against him and moved her head up and down, finding the rhythm she knew he loved. Murphy slid his fingers over her ass and between her legs, his thumb finding her clit and rubbing slowly. She groaned when he slipped a finger deep inside her. Reaching behind her, she found Murphy's cock bobbing behind her. She fisted it and moved her hand up and down and around.
"I need ye, love." He groaned and with a quick movement, he sank into her. Aerin moaned on Conner's cock. He bucked under her mouth and she smiled when Murphy began moving inside her. She could feel her insides grasping at him, the friction driving her insane. She knew she couldn't last long and when Conner's hand found her clit, she came in a rush. Shaking and twitching between her twins, she smiled with a satiated grin as they switched positions. Murphy slid his cock between her open lips and she groaned when she tasted herself on him. Conner slid between her legs and he and his brother moved in tandem, playing Aerin between them like a great bow saw. Conner and Murphy came at the same time. They always did and she loved it that it happened like that every time. They all collapsed on the bed and Aerin stretched between them.
"Fuckin' hell, lass." Conner sighed against her back. "It's been too long."
"Your own fault, baby." She grinned against Murphy's chest. "I'm always right here."
"Righ' where ye belong." Murphy kissed her forehead. They both leaped up looking for clothes when someone banged on the door.
"If you horny bastards are done, we've got a bit of a situation out here." Merle's gruff voice sounded.
"Are you serious?" Aerin flopped down on the bed.
"How long ye been standin' there?" Murphy called back.
"Long enough to know what your lady sounds like when she comes." Merle banged on the door once more and they heard him walking away.
"Redneck fucker." Conner grumbled under his breath and drew on his pants. Across the bed, Murphy was already strapping his guns on. He stepped into his boots and grabbed a t-shirt. Swiftly kissing Aerin, he left the room.
"Go see what new tragedy has befallen us today." Aerin kissed Conner and he groaned when he walked away. He was pulling his shirt on when he stepped out of the camper. Spying the men gathered around the weapons tent, he hurried over.
"What tha hell is goin' on?" He grumbled.
"Someone stole most of our guns." Merle held the flap open and Conner peered in.
"It's fuckin' Shane." Murphy ground out. "Where tha fuck is he?"
"Sophia said she saw him leave in that new car he got." Daryl said, his hand on Sophia's shoulder. She had come to him as soon as she had seen what Shane had done. "We've got to find him."
"Aye, we need our guns." Conner agreed.
"That weird fuck is gonna get it for this." Merle said. They all looked at Rick when he walked up to them.
"Randall's gone. I think Shane took him." Rick stood with his hand on his revolver.
"God damn it! He's joining that other group." Merle exclaimed, kicking at the dirt around him. "We need to get on the damn road."
"We can't leave camp unprotected." Daryl said, ushering Sophia into the camper. Shutting the door behind her, he turned to the other men. "What if Shane leads those men right back here? I won't have Sophia and Carol put at risk."
"He's right." Rick said, looking at Daryl. "Who do we leave here?"
"Tha five of us will go after Shane." Conner finally spoke up. "We need ta talk ta Hershel. Rick?" At his nod, Conner continued. "Tha women need ta stay in tha house 'til we get back. Dale, Jim, Glenn, and T-Dog need ta station themselves around tha house."
"Aye." Murphy nodded, agreeing with his brother for once. "How ye plannin' on tha five of us taking down thirty men?"
"We'll figure it out." Merle grunted, looking around for Andrea. He finally spotted her near the pond with Amy and Carol. Tearing off across the clearing, he rushed over to his woman.
"Hey." She smiled up at him. "You come to help us?"
"No. You guys have to come with me." He said, his hands reaching for Andrea.
"We're in the middle of the laundry, Merle. You like clean clothes, right?" She teased him.
"I like you in one piece better. Shane took off with the guns and the prisoner. We need you women to stay in the house until we get back." Merle explained, herding them around him to the house. Carol breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Daryl walking Sophia over.
"What are you guys gonna do, Merle?" Andrea asked, her heart racing. She stopped when he didn't answer her. "What are you gonna do, Merle?"
He stopped and looked at her, his hard eyes unusually soft. "Whatever it takes to keep our family safe."
"Oh my god." Amy gasped and they all stumbled up the steps. Rick was already there explaining things to Hershel. Within twenty minutes, they were watching the Armada peal down the driveway. When they couldn't see them anymore, the girls went into the house. Looking around, they saw Lori holding court in the living room with Carl and Jackie. In the kitchen, Maggie and Patricia were sitting at the table shucking corn. They all looked at each other and hurried into the kitchen.
"No way I'm listening to that bitch." Aerin grumbled under her breath.