…

Rick goes over first. Michonne opens her mouth to argue when he tells them, but Rick cuts her off with a sharp look and she wisely closes it again before she can say anything.

He is quick and quiet on his feet – not as quick and quiet as Glenn could have been, but there's no way that Rick would send anyone else over this fence without knowing exactly what's on the other side.

There's another small hole in the fence, but it's big enough for him to stick the toe of his boot into it and with a little extra help from Oscar giving him a boost, Rick is able to climb over the top of the fence and drop nearly silent into the grass on the other side.

He goes completely still, holding his breath as well, as he waits and listens. It's quiet. There are torches lit, but no one seems to be patrolling this particular corner; at least not for the moment. He waits another minute though, just in case, but he doesn't hear anyone coming either. It's late and everything seems quiet. After making the decision, Rick reaches back to the fence and crouches down in front of the hole.

"Okay. Quiet as you can," Rick whispers to them.

He then takes a few steps away from the fence to give them all room to get over and he watches the street. One by one, the others climb over and drop down. Oscar is the last to come and first, he drops the bag of guns over, Glenn catching it in his arms, and then the man drops down, Rick pleasantly surprised that a man of Oscar's size could drop as quietly on his feet as he does.

"The police station was a good idea," Rick says as Glenn begins handing out the guns.

Everyone nods; no one argues.

"We'll follow the fence and get a feel for the layout. See how many seem to be on guard tonight," Rick continues. "Police station will be near the center of town. It usually always is. We'll work our way there, but we're going to have be quiet and we can't rush," Rick says the final part with his eyes on Maggie. "The last thing we need is to run and let everyone here within seconds know that we're here."

Maggie pauses and then nods, reluctantly agreeing.

"Once we're closer to the middle of town, we're going to split up. Some will focus on finding Beth. The others will focus on finding Daryl," Rick continues. "No matter who you find first, don't wait for the rest of us. If you have Beth or Daryl, you get them the hell out of here as fast as you can."

Everyone nods at that.

"And what about the people who have them?" Glenn asks.

Rick looks to Maggie again. "We kill anyone who tries to stop us."

This time, Maggie looks relieved at his answer. It's almost frightening to Rick in a way and yet, the speed in which Maggie is prepared to spill blood for her sister, it makes sense as well. Rick has already accepted that he's prepared to do absolutely anything if it means getting Daryl back with them tonight.

He knows for Maggie and Glenn, this isn't a line they've crossed yet. Killing walkers and killing people are two completely different things and Rick knows that this is a burden he and Daryl were prepared to always carry and shoulder for their family. Rick never wanted any of the others to have to be in a situation where killing a living person was the only way out of it.

But here they are. Two of their own have been taken and no one knows what the people here are doing to them. In Rick's mind, by taking Daryl and Beth, killing anyone in this town is the nicest thing Rick could do.

…

Beth wonders how awful she must really look because as Andrea looks at her, the woman is on the verge of tears. She finds herself on the floor and her eyes flutter open, focusing right on Andrea as the woman kneels at her side, leaning over her.

"Andrea," Beth says her name again – no longer a question.

Beth has realized that she's not dead and this isn't Heaven and both she and Andrea are very much alive. That must mean that wherever she is, Andrea is here, too. When the farm fell and they all got separated, was Andrea picked up by these men, too? Has she been here this whole time, being beaten and held prisoner?

But… no, that's not right. Through the one eye that's not swollen shut at the moment, Beth can see that Andrea doesn't look like anyone has ever laid a hand on her. She looks well rested and well fed; well taken care of. Does that mean that she's with Phillip and the others who are here?

And if she is… is she helping Beth right now or is this a trap?

"Who did this to you?" Andrea asks.

"How did you find me?" Beth asks first. There are a million more questions, but Beth feels like perhaps this one is one of the more important ones.

She begins to sit up and Andrea gently helps her, the woman still looking like she wants to cry as she hears Beth hiss with pain through her clenched teeth.

"I saw Phillip's fists and how bruised and bloody they were. It was obvious he was working someone over and I know… I know sometimes, people are kept here."

Beth wants to be angry at her answer, but honestly, she's too tired and in too much pain to feel so.

"So I came to see who he had," Andrea continues and then shakes her head. "I never would dream that… what are you doing here, Beth?"

"I was on a run with Daryl-"

"Daryl's here, too?" Andrea gasps.

Beth continues on. "Crawley forced us back here. They took Daryl somewhere and I've been in here. Phillip-" Beth nearly spits the name out. "-has been trying to get me to tell him where Daryl and I came from."

"Where did you come from? Are the others there?"

Beth doesn't answer her. As far as Beth knows, Andrea is fishing for the same information for the same reason as Phillip had been. As far as Beth knows, Andrea and Phillip are on the same exact page together and that is what Beth is going to keep thinking until she witnesses otherwise with her own two eyes. Well, at the moment, she really only has one eye that can see much of anything, but one eye is just as good as seeing the truth of a situation and who people really are.

"I have to find Daryl," Beth says. "Is he here, too?"

"I don't know," Andrea shakes her head. "This is the first door I've unlocked. But if Daryl is here, I have to find Merle and tell him. He'll help me get you both out of here."

Beth never met Merle, but she's heard plenty about Daryl's older brother. He's here, too? Who else is going to make a surprise appearance? Is Shane not really dead and he's suddenly going to be coming down the street? Despite the world pretty much ending, it really has stayed such a small one.

"Are you going to help me?" Beth is able to ask the only question she can manage to ask right now.

"Of course I am, Beth. Of course."

And Andrea is speaking with such strength in her voice, Beth wants to believe her. If Andrea is lying, Beth will find out soon enough, but right now, Beth is going to believe her. There's absolutely nothing she will lose except her very life and she had already prepared herself to lose that.

"Can you stand?" Andrea asks.

"To get out of here? Yes," Beth nods.

Together, they move her slowly, Beth hissing again and refraining from screaming as they get her to her feet. Andrea immediately loops Beth's arm around her neck and she holds Beth around her waist.

"I can't believe he would do this," Andrea is talking to herself, but Beth can hear her.

"Beat a girl?"

"Beat anyone. And yes, especially a girl who looks…" Andrea trails off, but Beth doesn't need her to finish.

She knows how she looks. She'll be eighteen in just a few more days, but she very much looks younger than that. Phillip beating on her in such a vicious way, it's pretty obvious that man has a very deep darkness to him that Andrea apparently hadn't known about until this very moment.

Andrea turns Beth so she's still in the room and Andrea is able to poke her head out into the hallway.

"It's clear," Andrea whispers back to her. "There's a door at the end of the hallway. It's going to take us right outside. We're going to move there as quick as you can, but we don't want you screaming, so we're going to get there as fast as you can get us there. Okay?"

Beth nods, taking a deep breath, readying herself.

Andrea pokes her head out again, making sure the coast is clear.

"Let's go," she whispers and then with her arm tight around Andrea's shoulder, Beth steps out of the room and she's still alive to do it.

They move quietly and each step Beth takes, she wants to cry out with the pain of it – it racing through every nerve of her body – but she bites down on her bottom lip and tells herself that with each step, she's that much closer to seeing the prison and her family and Daryl again. She doesn't know where Daryl is or what's happened to him, but she tells herself that she's going to see him again, too. It helps her take each step.

There is still no one coming – Beth wonders where everyone is – and when they reach the door, again, Andrea turns Beth away so Andrea can push it open with her own body and poke her head outside first.

"Jesus Christ!" Beth hears a rough, Southern accent quietly exclaim from outside and Beth can feel Andrea stiffen for a moment.

"It's just me," Andrea quickly tells the voice, whispering.

"You alone?" The voice asks.

"Are you?"

The voice pauses. "Not quite."

Beth imagines that the voice is blocking something and he must move away so Andrea can see because when she does, Andrea gasps sharply.

"Daryl?"

Beth feels something leap in her chest. Did she hear right? Her head is bleeding and she wonders if some blood has drained into her ears, but no. Andrea had definitely said Daryl's name.

"Daryl?" Beth whispers, almost saying the name as if too afraid to say it out loud in case saying it loud makes him disappear altogether.

Andrea looks back down the hallway, sees they are still alone, and then she helps Beth through the door into the dark, cool night. The door is some sort of maintenance door that leads to a narrow paved path that leads into a parking lot. On either side of the path is the green grass and sitting in the grass, hidden in the darkness and leaning against the building, is Daryl.

"Jesus Christ," the voice says again and Beth looks at the source with her one eye. It's too dark outside though and there is no light and her vision hasn't yet adjusted. But whoever he is, he takes her other arm and helps Andrea set her down on the grass next to Daryl.

Despite the pain, Beth turns her body towards Daryl and lifts her hands, putting them on his face, needing to touch him more than she needs to do anything else right then. The contact makes Daryl hiss and she can feel the blood and the swelling. She can't pull her hands away from him though.

"Beth," Daryl says and it sounds as if he's choking on the word. "Beth," he then says again, rasping, and he lifts his hands to her face, Beth's turn now to hiss. "Who did this to you?" Daryl asks and his vision has adjusted already to the darkness and he's able to make out the injuries to her face.

He asks the question in a low voice and even though he can't stand on his own two feet without help right now, that doesn't mean that he's not going to kill whoever did this to Beth.

She shakes her head and he can feel the wetness as she begins to cry.

Daryl pulls her into him and he knows he's hurt her when her breathing stutters, but he can't seem to care and Beth isn't complaining as Daryl tugs her in and wraps both arms around her. He might suffocating her against him, but he can't seem to care about that, either.

He has no idea why the hell Andrea is here, but she is and she and Merle are talking to one another in whispers, but Daryl can't figure out what they're saying. He doesn't really care either as he puts all of his attention on Beth right now as she cries against his neck.

"I'm sorry," she whispers. "I'm so sorry."

"What the hell you apologizin' for?" Daryl growls. "You didn't get us caught. I did."

Beth instantly shakes her head. "You didn't. You've never got caught on a run before and the first time I go out on one, I get us both caught."

"Shut up, Beth," Daryl says and he holds her tighter. "You 'ave no idea what you're talkin' about."

He almost makes a comment about how she's been beaten too hard and it's rattled her brain, but Daryl can't form those words on his tongue; as soon as they're formed in his brain, he squashes them out again.

Someone's beaten her. Someone has looked at Beth and was able to beat the absolute shit out of her.

Daryl thinks of his mom and how she looked when she got in the way of Will Dixon when he was going after Merle and then when Merle had left, after him. She always had some bullshit excuse for the neighbors or the staff in the ER even though that's what everyone knew that's what it was. Bullshit. How many times can a doorknob actually open into a person's eye to swell it shut and why would a doorknob be opening into someone's face anyway?

Beth is like his mom was, too. Small. Fragile.

Whoever beat Beth didn't care about that though. Whoever did this to her had beaten her like she's any other man and Beth is here. Beth took everything thing rained down on her and she's still here.

"Who the hell are you?" Daryl whispers before he can stop himself.

"What?" Beth pulls her head back enough to look to his face. Like him, one of her eyes is swollen shut so she can only look at him with one eye, but seeing with one eye is enough to be able to see everything that has been done to them by whoever these guys in this place are.

Daryl shakes his head, not wanting to repeat himself. He didn't mean to say it out loud anyway even if he really is wondering that question. Who the hell is this girl? This girl who slit her wrists back on the farm because she wasn't strong enough to face whatever this world became? When did Beth Greene become the strongest person – not just woman – that Daryl has ever met?

Daryl presses a kiss to her forehead, tasting blood and sweat and not caring.

"The man, Phillip, he wanted to know where we came from, but I wouldn't tell him," Beth shakes her head.

"Good girl," Daryl murmurs and his head begins to feel too heavy on his neck. Instead of leaning it back against the brick wall behind him though, he finds himself leaning it forward, his forehead meeting Beth's shoulder, and Beth lifts one of her hands, her fingers curling into his hair on the back of his head.

"Did I do good? Really?" She whispers to him.

"Shit, Beth. You did better than me."

Beth turns her head and kisses his ear and then she's quiet, both of them too wrapped up in each other at the moment to think much of anything else – like how they're going to get out of here, for one. Daryl knows it will be discovered that they're both gone and he figures that that will be pretty damn soon.

"Beth, this is Merle," Andrea says, coming to kneel down in front of them both.

"So you're Beth," Merle gives her a grin. "When we get both of you out of here, I have a few teasin' words to say to you," he tells her.

"Knock it off, Merle," Daryl grumbles, lifting his head to give his brother a glare; not that intimidating of one though and Merle just keeps on grinning.

From the stories Beth has heard about this man – from Maggie and Glenn and the little things Daryl has let past his lips – Beth knows that Merle Dixon isn't necessarily a good man, but she finds herself smiling at him anyway. Good or bad, he's here. He's gotten Daryl and he's now helping them both. Beth can't imagine that this is some gigantic, complicated ruse to trap her and Daryl and hand them back over to Philip.

"We're going to move," Andrea tells them both. "Just like in the hallway, we're going to move as quick as you both can move. We can't have either of you making noise."

"Here," Merle than says and crouching down, he pulls off the zipped sweatshirt he's wearing. "Beth is gonna wear this and pull the hood over your head. Your blonde hair is too obvious and even if they're a distance away, someone might be able to see it."

Beth nods without comment and manages to sit herself up, Daryl moving his arms away from her so Andrea can help her move her arms through the sleeves, Beth clamping down on her bottom lip to keep quiet. Daryl thinks she might have a dislocated shoulder the way she's holding her arm, but he knows why Andrea hasn't popped it back in place and he's not going to offer to do it right now either. If they pop Beth's shoulder back in place, she's going to scream and they just can't have that right now. Daryl hates that he can't even take just a little bit of her pain away.

Once the sweatshirt is on and zipped up and Beth is working on tucking any bit of her hair into the hood she has flipped on over her head, Andrea and Merle stand up. Beth notices that they both have guns and they're drawn as they look around, taking note to see if anyone is coming upon them.

"Beth."

She looks instantly at Daryl when he says her name. He doesn't say anything else and instead, he looks into her one eye with his and he lifts a hand to her cheek.

"If we don't make it…" he begins to say and then swallows; as if he can't believe that he's just said that, but Beth can only nod in agreement. They're not out of here yet – even with Merle and Andrea helping them – and with their severe injuries, they might not ever be out of here.

"I think you're amazin'," Daryl continues. "I need you to know that."

And it even hurts her face to smile, but Beth does it anyway.

She opens her mouth to reply to that – three very specific words for this man on the tip of her tongue – but before even a sound can slip past her lips, the sound of something exploding, something so close, Beth can feel the ground shake beneath them, cuts her off.

…

Thank you so much for reading and please take a moment to review!

I've also been in a The Orchard mood and am brainstorming an idea for that, coming soon.