Chapter Twenty-Five: Something Found
"Bring me home in a blinding dream,
Through the secrets that I have seen
Wash the sorrow from off my skin
And show me how to be whole again"
Linkin Park – Castle of Glass
Vicki froze like a deer in the headlights as the three vile men sneered at her attire. Mainly, her bare legs that were only adorned by the same pair of shorts she'd worn for quite some time. Calvin's hand was slick from sweat as she clenched it tightly. Or was it her sweat? She didn't know.
To put on a front of good faith, the men weren't pointing their weapons at the two of them, but they carried them by their sides threateningly. Vicki clenched her teeth and felt her right hand twitch nervously in anticipation. All she needed was a good second to reach for one of her sickles and aim for the man on the far right. She knew Daryl would probably take out the one on the left first since he would be coming from that side.
The middle guy, well, they'd just have to play their cards right and hope he got flustered enough to let them get a good shot in. "No one claims me." She stated defensively as the men smiled a little too sweetly.
The man in the middle was not a leader, but he seemed to be exhibiting the superiority of someone high up in their group. "Sweetheart, that's not how the rules work. We see somethin' we like, we claim it. Simple as that." The man on the left spoke first and he ran his tongue along his teeth making her cringe. "And not to mention, you got somethin' of ours that don't belong to ya'." The man on the right added while giving Calvin a once over that made her stomach crawl.
She couldn't imagine the shit they tried to do to other people. She had only prayed they hadn't done anything to Calvin. Or Merle. "That's going to be a problem because he's with me. We got split up awhile back. I've been looking for him everywhere for weeks.." Though Vicki was very happy to see somewhat of a familiar face, she was laying the feelings on thick as a show. These men didn't look like they were going to let them leave, but she had to at least try.
Vicki pulled Calvin close and kissed the top of his head. Calvin just stayed silent, nodding his head a little to go along with the story. "He's like a brother to me. Please. We don't want any trouble, we just want to leave and be on our way." Her voice faltered purposely the middle man seemed to chew on his bottom lip for a moment, as if contemplating what she had said.
However, the one on the left spoke up again with agitation in his voice, "Can't leave 'em, ya' know that, Earl, right? Plus, the boss ain't here and we probably shouldn't do nuttin' without him.." The middle greyed hair hillbilly elbowed the man that spoke, "Shut up. He ain't here right now. Will be soon. I got this." Vicki watched wild eyed as the three men spoke amongst themselves, but not low enough so that she couldn't hear.
"Don't seem like ya' do." The man on the left countered again and Vicki shook her head realizing that nothing she said would change their minds. They wanted her and Calvin, so it wasn't going to end with goodbyes and kind words. And they certainly weren't going to wait for whoever was in charge to come along before they made a move. It was time to act. Vicki was sick of people like this; sick of the evil that seemed to pop up wherever they tried to go. It never seemed to end.
"Okay, I tried to be nice about this. I really did. But, you guys don't understand. I'm not going anywhere with you and neither is the boy." This comment made the men bristle and for a split second she could feel the tension in the air. It was like an old school standoff in the Wild West days. Everyone was itching to draw their guns and pull the trigger, but no one wanted to make the first move. And let's be honest, these men wanted her and Calvin alive. For whatever sick purpose that was, but Vicki didn't want to find out.
It was as if Daryl was reading her mind, or maybe he sensed the situation was going to spiral out of control. Whatever the case, the snik sound of his bow reverberated in her ears. The arrow landed in the man on the left's neck and he fell without so much as a warning. Without hesitation she shoved Calvin away and drew her sickle, throwing it with all her strength and precision.
The sickle landed in the man on the right's head with a sinking sound as it entered the tissue on his head. It was more like his forehead..or something around that area, but nonetheless, he gurgled and then dropped. The man in the middle had already drawn his weapon the moment her sickle left her hands. Calvin was grabbing her by the waist and pulling her towards the shelving he had been behind.
She fell into Calvin, but not before feeling a sharp stinging feeling on her upper left arm, but everything was happening so fast the pain came and went. She covered her head as a reflex upon hearing the shots ring off in the store from his rifle. She could tell Daryl was shooting too and so was the mystery hillbilly.
Vicki could hear her heartbeat pounding in her eardrums as she started to crawl down the aisle towards the end where Daryl had disappeared too. Sweat dripped from her forehead and her vision blurred as the threat of a panic attack was about to come on, but she pushed it aside as best she could. She ushered Calvin to follow her quickly.
Silence followed as the last man standing stopped shooting. Calvin and Vicki both stopped in their tracks crawling down the aisle and heard his boots getting closer. Vicki motioned for them to keep going forward so they could hide behind the end cap to their right, but Calvin pulled a gun from his pocket and looked at her with deadly eyes that told her he wasn't hiding anymore.
More silence followed before the hillbilly spoke, "Okay, you got me, girl. But, let me tell ya', we got more than you all can handle. Hell, they are probably already on their way-" His voice was cut off by the sound of a single gunshot. Calvin had stood up so fast; Vicki didn't have time to react. He not only surprised Vicki, but also the hillbilly himself. Calvin's aim was ridiculously accurate. He shot the man right in the temple as he had just been about to stroll right on up to the aisle they were hiding in.
Vicki was breathing heavily as she stood up slowly and noticed that Daryl popped his head up out from one of the front aisles near the cooler. He looked at Vicki and nodded and she nodded back, "Ya' good?" "Yeah, we're fine." Her eyes made their way to Calvin and what she saw made her frown. He was staring out at nothing and she calmly took the gun from his shaking hands. "Hey, I got this." Calvin nodded and handed her his gun as if he didn't really want to handle it at the moment. If Vicki didn't know any better this might have been his first kill, but she didn't dare ask. Calvin was lost in his thoughts and Vicki didn't want broach the subject when they needed to get the hell out of dodge.
Daryl was already searching the three men and pulling a small amount of ammo from their pockets. Vicki walked over to retrieve her sickle and Daryl watched briefly before muttering, "Still throw like a ninja." She offered a small smile before wiping it on the man's shirt free of blood and grime. "Yeah, and he shoots like a professional marksman." She replaced it on her hip and was about to say something else before Calvin interrupted.
"We have to go, like now." Vicki turned to an alarmed Calvin as he inched his way towards the back of the store that led to an emergency exit. "There more of 'em?" Daryl asked shortly before grabbing one of the rifles and handing it to Vicki. Calvin nodded and without a word they were already doubling back towards the exit. She trusted Calvin and if he knew there were more of these people they needed to run and not look back.
The three of them ran straight for the woods. She followed Daryl's lead since it looked like he knew where he was going. Or maybe he didn't, but Vicki trusted him with this kind of stuff. She learned early on with Daryl that it was best to just shut up and not ask questions. They ran like a hoard was chasing them and they had nowhere else to go. Her boots hit the earth, the rifle now slapping against her side and sweat pouring off her forehead. She couldn't believe they had found Calvin. Well, he kind of found them, but still. She wondered briefly why Merle wasn't with him and she hoped for Daryl's sake it wasn't because he was dead.
The three of them ran for what felt like an eternity until Daryl finally slowed down to a small area in the woods that opened to a small area that was circle shaped. It had no trees inside the circle and the earth was flat, mostly dirt, but remnants of grass blades could be seen here and there. Trees surrounded the outside of the circle. There in the center of the flat land was the smallest shack she'd ever seen. Daryl made the motion for them to fall back and he was already moving around to check it out.
Vicki nodded to Calvin and handed him his gun back. He took it hesitantly, but started to flank Daryl while she maneuvered around the other side of the shack. The three of them cleared the shack and upon further inspection realized just what a dump this place was.
"It's filthy." Vicki murmured, for once turning her nose up to something. "Ain't never heard ya' complain 'bout 'nuttin else before." Daryl responded, opening the door to the shack and nosing around the filth to find anything of use. "That was before this place." Vicki added defensively and she held her breath upon entering, but to her relief the place didn't smell terribly. If anything, it smelled of old burnt coffee for some reason. At least it didn't smell like shit.
Her mouth turned up in the corners in a small smile as this thought came to mind and Calvin gave her a peculiar look. She shook her head and took in the small place that someone might have been holing up in. "We really do have luck at finding stellar accommodations when the need arises." Daryl gave her a sideways glance, "After sleepin' on the damn ground for weeks I ain't complainin'." Vicki could agree to that, but still. This place looked like something out of the Hills Have Eyes. "True, just hope we don't get tetanus." He rolled his eyes, but when he saw her smirking he offered her a small smirk in return.
Calvin was silent as they made their way inside and Daryl was nice enough to clear some of the garbage away in an area where the three of them could sit comfortably and stretch out. The place had a small counter top and a stove that was so old she didn't know if she recognized the brand. It was dented, rusted, and had old stains on it that creeped her out. The floor was and some of the boards in it were poking out and a small area near the kitchen was torn up to the concrete.
After all they had been through this place was the one thing that creeped her out. It kind of made her chuckle and Calvin looked up at her, "I'm thinking it's kind of funny that this place creeps me out. After everything that has happened, this right here makes my skin crawl." Calvin looked around and smiled before adding, "You watched too many scary movies before all of this, right?" Vicki chuckled and nodded, "Yeah, something like that."
"We should stay here, rest our feet a bit and then we need to be back on our way." Daryl bit out and sat down grumpily. Way to kill the jovial mood, Daryl. Vicki already knew his problem. Merle wasn't with Calvin. Vicki didn't really know how to approach that subject or if Daryl was content not wanting to talk about it.
Calvin sat down cross legged and started to pick at the hem of his pants before speaking up after a moment of awkward silence between the three of them. Before that, their breathing had been the only thing that could be heard in the small shack. "He was with me.." Calvin ventured and Daryl looked up from inspecting his hands silently.
This got everyone's attention and Vicki coaxed Calvin to go on, "We got out. He was with me for a while, but we ran into some trouble with a small group of walkers and he.." Daryl looked tense as Calvin got nervous the more he spoke. "He-uh, he said he would lead them away and take care of it. It was a pretty intense situation and I just..did what he told me. I ran. I just.." Vicki frowned, feeling for this boy and watching as he wrestled with the decision of leaving Merle behind.
"I know he's still out there somewhere. It just..all went downhill so fast. Then those guys found me and were bringing me back to wheverer they stayed at. They didn't know I was an Eagle Scout so I got out of their ties and fled. Ended up finding you guys at that store.." Calvin sounded hopeful the more he spoke and she saw the small gain of confidence in his features as he spoke about being an Eagle Scout.
"Who were those guys?" Vicki asked and Calvin shrugged, "I don't know much about them, but they aren't good. There are more of them though. I know that. They had to have said about six different people's names." Daryl was silent while he shared a withering look with her at the mention of these people being part of a group. She knew hearing Merle's name was a soft spot too, but hearing that Merle was possibly still out there while those other freaks were out there was probably even tougher.
Her heart ached for Daryl, but she stayed silent as Calvin continued, "Oh, they also said some of their men were found dead in a neighborhood that they had been scavenging. I don't know the details, but they seemed really pissed off about it." This had Vicki looking up at Daryl with a glimmer of hope in her eyes. They stared at one another before Vicki broke, "Think it was some of our people?" Daryl mulled it over, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he always did in nervous thought, "Maybe."
"See anyone else out there?" Vicki asked hopefully, but Calvin shook his head sadly. Daryl looked away from Vicki and chewed on his thumbnail. It didn't mean anything that Calvin didn't seen Rick or anyone else. They all knew more people had gotten out alive, but the chance at seeing everyone again was still up in the air.
"Look, about your brother.." Calvin started, but Daryl shook his head, "Merle is a tough asshole. I know he's out there somewhere." Calvin nodded and Vicki grabbed her bag, attempting to offer Calvin some food. She reached out to hand it to him and winced immediately. She dropped the bag from the bright hot pain that came across her left arm. Calvin looked up at her and Daryl furrowed his brow, "What's wrong?"
Vicki looked at her upper left arm and noticed part of her shirt was ripped away as if something had torn it. She couldn't get a good look at what was in between the fabric. She bit her lower lip as she started to roll her shirt all the way up her arm. When she had to shove it up past the wound she made a small noise of discomfort, but continued.
She bit the inside of her cheek as a gaping wound was staring up at her. It looked as if she had snagged something with her arm. Vicki instantly remembered being pulled away from the gunfire by Calvin and feeling a stinging sensation as her shoulder had collided with the old shelf.
Could it have been an old screw? A nail? Or the corner of the wood, maybe? She hadn't a clue what had snagged her arm so deeply and through her shirt, but whatever it was had got ass her good. Daryl nodded towards the wound; "Lemme see." She quickly shoved the bag to Calvin with her boot, "Eat something, okay? And get some rest. We can take watch for a bit."
Calvin nodded, but looked wearily at her wound before returning his attention to the food. He was a growing boy, he needed to eat. Daryl inspected her wound before reaching in his own bag and grabbing a few things. They didn't have much. Hell, they didn't even have a safety kit or anything. They would have to make do with what they had.
She grinned at him, "Doctor Dixon." He rolled his eyes and tried his best to patch her up. He cleaned it as best he could and that was really all anyone could do in their situation, but the notion was appreciated. And each time his fingertips touched her bare skin, a fire ignited and spreading like wildfire.
He swallowed thickly, as if sensing the building tension between their closeness and backed away against the wall when they were done. "Need to watch it for a bit." Daryl grumbled. She nodded back and looked down at it. It was cleaner, but it still hurt pretty good. Vicki figured her skin must be really tender there.
Calvin had already gotten into a comfortable position and closed his eyes. She could hear his light snores from where she sat and it made her smile nostalgically. Henry would snore sometimes when they were kids. Upon closer inspection of Calvin as he slept, Vicki saw a mop of dirty blonde hair and an innocent face. However, he had the chiseled jawline of a kid that had grown up quick. He wasn't much older than Carl, but he certainly wasn't younger.
Vicki looked to Daryl, "Merle is fine." She murmured quietly and Daryl raised one of his legs up and drew it close to his chest. The other leg was stretched out lazily. "Ain't what I'm thinkin' 'bout." Vicki rolled her eyes this time, "Liar." He looked at her with that calculating stare before muttering, "He's baggage. We ain't got 'nough food for us all."
Vicki looked perplexed at Daryl for changing the subject from Merle to Calvin and then shook her head with a fierce whisper, "Stop being like that. We haven't had enough food since day one. Yet, here we are. What's the real problem?" Daryl narrowed his eyes at her, but kept quiet. Vicki scoffed lightly and shook her head, watching as Calvin stirred silently in his sleep. The poor kid looked exhausted and she resisted the urge to go over and push his locks of hair out of the way of his face in a motherly way.
"He saved my life back there; pulling me out of the way of gunfire in the nick of time like he did." She stated simply, now looking back over to Daryl and resting her chin on her knees. "Feel like ya' owe him now? Is that it?" Daryl grumbled with his gravelly voice. "No, I just know a good human being when I see one." She could have sworn he huffed at her comment. Daryl was still agitated. Well, that made two of them.
"He's yer' responsibility." Daryl muttered and Vicki simply stared at Daryl. His mood swings really sent her for a loop sometimes, but she pushed her agitation aside and ignored his comment. "I know you're upset about Merle not being with Calvin." Daryl fell deadly silent, his demeanor shifting from angry to a resigned and uncomfortable truth.
"And if your hair gets any longer I'm never going to know if you're looking at me or not." Her voice held a small chuckle and this time Daryl's face brightened ever so slightly. He looked up at her, his hair falling into his eyes, but he made no movement to push it away. Daryl responded reluctantly, "Ain't upset. Jus' would 'of been nice to see him is all." His words were so low Vicki almost didn't catch them, but she was glad she did.
"Thought ya' liked the long hair anyways." He added and Vicki couldn't resist the smile that was forming on her face. "I do, but I also like seeing your eyes." Daryl breathed out a breathy chuckle to himself and Vicki added earnestly, "I'm serious. Your eyes are so blue. They are a breath of fresh air in an ugly world." He looked up at her shyly and this time she got a glimpse of those blue eyes.
A few beats of silence lingered as Calvin continued to sleep, "They are all out there. I know it." Vicki's words held a truth and she felt this truth to her core. All their friends and family were out there. That was a sure thing. And she would hold onto that hope for as long as she possibly could. It was just a matter if they were going to see anyone ever again was the kicker. "So are the bad ones." Daryl responded, smashing her little hopeful victory party. Vicki froze, feeling that pull at her belly from remembering those men.
"You think they're gonna' find us here?" Daryl shrugged at her question, unable to lie to her. Vicki swallowed a thick lump in her throat at the thought of those vile men and what others might have gone through with them. "He's lucky we were there." Daryl murmured as they both watched Calvin sleep once more. She could agree to that. There was no telling what they would have done to him. The thought made her want to retch, so she pushed that aside
"We're kinda like sitting ducks here." She ventured, but Daryl just stared at her with a tired expression. He very well knew what she had said was true, but there was nothing they could do. All of them needed a moment to rest and relax, especially after running for what felt like an eternity. It was probably the afternoon time by now.
A familiar sound started to make small clink noises against the roof of the shack. They started slow at first. One here and one there, until eventually the noises started to build in strength and slap against the roof. Her eyes lit up and Calvin woke up, rubbing his eyes, "What's that noise?"
Vicki felt an elation of joy she hadn't felt in a long time. It was rain. "That's the sound of mother nature doing us a favor." She grabbed whatever empty bottles they had collected in their bag overtime and rushed out with Daryl hot on her heels. The rain hit their skin and she breathed in that rain smell. It NEVER rained. Ever. After being in an eternal ove for so long this all seemed too good to be true. But, here they were...out in the rain and it was actually real.
This wasn't a dream.
Vicki laughed as she set the bottles down on the ground and allowed them to fill up with the natural rain water. The feeling of the cold drops against her warm skin didn't deter her in the least from this natural event. Calvin came out after them and unzipped his jacket and tossed it to the side, letting the rain soak through his polyester navy blue shirt. Daryl stood silently, letting the rain beat off his skin and she watched as the muscles in his arms seemed to ripple against those beads of water.
She quickly looked away just as he looked over at her. Vicki snuck a glance back over at Daryl, watching for a moment as the rain cleaned the grime off of his skin. He looked away and back out to the woods beyond. She felt her cheeks burn red because before he had looked away she saw the way he was looking at her. It was the peculiar way he looked at her as if he realized he had something very special before his eyes, but was too scared to say anything about it.
They stood there silently, taking in the rare moment before their eyes. None of them taking this unnatural weather event for granted. It rained for quite some time and it rained pretty hard. Her eyes cast up at the sun that never left the sky while it rained down on them. The moment of basking in a cool wet moment was gone. Vicki was still riding off of her high and she collected the bottles with Daryl before walking back inside with Calvin on their heels.
Vicki was soaking wet, but paid no mind to it. Neither did the guys. They all were refreshed and it showed in everyone's demeanor. "If they were trackin us, ain't got nuttin to track now. That was the right amount of rain to clear our steps." Daryl offered and Calvin breathed out a breath of relief. "We still need to keep moving though." Vicki countered and Daryl nodded in agreement. "Stay here the day and then head out tomorrow morning?" She asked as Daryl shuffled on the floor and started to look through their stash of stuff.
His locks were wet, droplets falling to the floor before him, but he paid no mind to it. She, however, watched as if all the past sins were washed from their skin. A fresh start. A clean start. She swallowed as she started to think of Hershel and how he would have had something wise or grandiose to say about the rain. How it meant something, maybe. A sign.
Vicki looked over as Calvin stared at the wall across from him. He was silent, but his eyes held a thousand emotions. The boy was young, but he had seen so much it made him appear older. Calvin felt her looking at him and she asked curiously, "Hey kid, what was life like before this?" He looked at her and shook his head, "Not now. Tomorrow." He was cryptic at times, but she nodded and realized despite his earlier nap, he was still exhausted. They all were. "I have a feeling those marksmen skills you got will be an interesting story." Calvin gave her a small smile and confirmed this, "Something like that, but not as interesting as you think."
She didn't need to sleep just yet so she nodded towards her bag and offered it to him, "You can use this as a pillow." He nodded and got up to grab it before shoving it under his head and drifting off to sleep again.
After a bit she looked to Daryl, "Poor kid. Probably need to let him sleep through the night." Daryl didn't say anything, but he eyeballed the boy and nodded. Vicki didn't know how much time had passed, but all at once it was the evening and she was looking around abruptly, all wild eyed and awake from the floor.
"Did I fall asleep?" She asked Daryl, rubbing her eyes and watching as Calvin still slept peacefully.
Daryl smirked, "Yeah, had to lean ya' over and on the floor. Ya' fell asleep against tha' wall." She smiled, "My neck would not have been happy about that later. Thanks." She lightly stretched her arms, but winced as soon as the pain from her wound hit her. "Feelin' alright?" Daryl asked hesitantly as he looked from the front window over to her arm. "Yeah, it's fine." She lied coolly before getting up and creeping over towards the window with Daryl. Calvin only stirred a moment, but continued to sleep.
"Can't just abandon him." She muttered after a few beats of silence as Daryl peered out the window. His rifle was in his hands, his fingers loosely on the gun, but his muscles rigid with tension. "I know that." He admitted reluctantly, staring out the window still for any sign of trespassers.
She felt relief sink from her as Daryl finally admitted that Calvin was with them now for good. He wasn't going anywhere and they certainly weren't going to just abandon him. Vicki looked at Calvin before looking back at Daryl as the bright moon shone through the window. "Unless..you're upset because you wanted me all to yourself." She chirped out with a small snicker. Daryl scoffed, but he also didn't confirm that it wasn't true.
Vicki gave him a coy smile before playing with the hem of her button down. "Back there, at tha' store.." Daryl started suddenly and she snapped to attention at his words. "Ya' took a risk just standing up with tha' kid." She could hear his tone and it wasn't like he didn't approve her actions, hell he told her he trusted her, but she could get a sense that he worried. "They could have shot me, I get that. I just-sometimes I act without thinking everything through. It's just..the hero in me." She said the last part with a smile, but Daryl didn't smile back.
She frowned slightly as Daryl's rough voice broke through, "Can't always go playin' hero cuz you'll get yerself' killed." He didn't have an edge to his voice, but he did sound slightly annoyed. In that moment Vicki wanted to say so much to Daryl, but she chose to keep it locked and buried inside. So, she just shrugged glumly, "We're all gonna' die one day, Daryl." Daryl froze and this time his hands gripped the gun a bit tighter than he had been.
They were silent for a brief moment and she leaned her head against the wall, taking a deep breath and praying their conversation didn't go south. "Jus' don't want nuttin' to happen to ya', is all." His voice was low and this time he didn't make eye contact with her. He continued to look out the window and she felt her heart skip a beat at his words. When he did finally look at her they were silent, but a small smile crept on her face. He cared so much about her and vice versa. She would never take these little moments for granted because she never really knew how long all of this would last.
A few more moments passed and she noticed the way his skin glistened from the rain and how it had washed away a lot of dirt and grime off his hands and arms. "Anyone ever tell you that you clean up nicely?" She asked quietly, her eyes drifting back up to rest on his face. He rolled his blue eyes, but shook his head, "Hell nah." She hummed quietly to herself in response, "Maybe I need to pray to the rain God's more often." This made him snort and she chuckled quietly.
"Get some more sleep, Red. We'll head out at dawn." Daryl murmured and motioned for her to go back to where she had been sleeping before. She nodded, knowing full well she needed a few more hours of sleep, but so did Daryl. However, that was a conversation for the morning and if she was lucky to catch him in a good mood she might be able to talk him into sleeping for an hour or so before they actually headed out.
Vicki looked over to Calvin and then back at Daryl with an excited and hopeful gleam in her eye, "And then there were three."
Daryl looked at Calvin and then back at Vicki who was already making her way back across the floor to her spot. She allowed herself to drift off for a bit into dreamland. This time she dreamed of rain, lakes of sparkling water and a really big white house by those lakes of sparkling water. The best part was that the whole group was together again. Daryl's arm was wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her close as they walked towards the lake where a brand new motorcycle sat gleaming in the sunlight.
Vicki knew it was just a dream, but those dreams were the only thing that kept the nightmares and visions of death from her mind. So, she clung to those cheesy moments in her dreams because they pushed the darkness away. She didn't know what kind of person she would become if she let that darkness seep into her soul and she prayed the day would never come that she would find out.
Author's Note: I named this chapter Something Found in regards to Calvin. I think he is a great addition to their storyline and he's in good company with those two! I imagine since this is now set closer around to Season 4(ish) Carl is about 13/14 ..so that would make Calvin about 15/17ish. Which would explain why he is an Eagle Scout and why Vicki mentions he is young, but looks more mature for his age as far as his hardened features. Also, yes, it did rain. I know it might not seem realistic weather-wise, but this is my fanfic and I wanted that moment for all of them. And who doesn't like the idea of Daryl dripping wet from a nice rain shower? :p Can't wait to continue this story later this weekend!