The first thing I noticed when my eyes fluttered open was that my body ached tremendously. Sharing a twin-sized bed with someone the entire night was a difficult task. Besides, I wasn't entirely used to sleeping next to someone, so falling asleep and staying asleep was hard as well. The second thing I noticed was Daryl, who remained unconscious to my left. During the night, I learned that he was a sleep-talker. His brother's face must've filled his dreams because his trembling lips mumbled over and over again, "Merle…stop…please…Merle, it's me…It's your little brother." He twitched in his sleep and often rolled from facing me to facing the wall. Even though I was exhausted from lack of sleep, I knew that once woke up, he would feel even worse.

As the sun started to shine into the prison, Daryl stirred once more before finally opening his eyes. At first, he remained silent, staring at the back of the top mattress above us. Then, so quietly that I almost didn't hear him, he mumbled, "It wasn't a dream. Merle's gone."

I couldn't think of anything reassuring or helpful to say, so I only nodded and glanced sideways at his sullen face. "Yeah."

Letting out a heavy sigh, Daryl sat up and crawled over me. Once his feet reached the floor, he stretched his arms high over his head and yawned softly. "Well, ain't nothin' left to do but to kill this motherfucker."

"That's it?" I questioned, swinging my legs around to sit on the edge of the bed. "You think killing the Governor is going to help you feel better about Merle?"

"No, I know it won't. But," he paused for a short moment, as if contemplating his next words, "when my ma died, I didn't have time to be sad. My pa sure as hell didn't take care of me and Merle, so when she was gone, it was just us. I had to take care of 'im and he had to take care of me. So, I ain't got time to be sad 'bout 'im. There's shit I got to do to keep this prison safe."

Without another word, Daryl turned his back to me, grabbed his crossbow, and left me alone in his cell. Part of me wished he would've brought up the fact that we slept side-by-side the entire night, but then again, why would he? There wasn't anything special about it. Come to think of it, even in his sleep, he distanced himself from me. The only time we touched was when he rolled over once and his hand brushed my arm.

Daryl certainly was a mystery that completely changed every single time I thought I had him figured out.

"Hey," Adeline greeted me as she peeked around the corner. "Ready to get this show on the road?"

I forced a pitiful smile and nodded, following her into our own cell. As we packed everything we owned into our small backpacks, I couldn't help but feel incredibly uneasy. "I don't know about this," I admitted. "I mean, I get that we should defend the prison when the Governor attacks today – if he attacks – but maybe running wouldn't be such a bad idea."

Adeline grunted as she pushed a pair of ripped jeans into her backpack. "No way," she retorted sharply. "Running is a cowardly thing to do. You think he won't just hunt us down if we do? Besides—" She turned toward me, leaning in and lowering her voice to a harsh whisper. "—it isn't too late to leave. We could sneak out right now and not have to deal with any of this."

I stared at her, waiting for her to say she was joking. Her eyes, though, penetrated me, filling me with a horrid feeling of dread. It was as if she didn't recognize me, but at the same time, knew every single detail about my entire life. Neither of those were true, but just by looking at me, she had convinced me otherwise.

"Stop it, Adeline," I ordered as I tore my gaze away. "We're not leaving them. This is our family now, and I'm going to whatever I can to keep everyone safe."

"You mean to keep Daryl safe."

My hands froze in the middle of folding a shirt. "Excuse me?" I asked through gritted teeth. "What does Daryl have to do with—"

"Oh, come on, Harper," she said as she rolled her eyes. "He's the only reason why you've stuck around so long. You think you love him, don't you? It's the same situation as that kid that lived down the street from us. What was his name? That's right. Jason, wasn't it? You were so 'in love' with him and when he got a girlfriend, you cried about it for a few days then got over it. It'll be the same thing if we leave. You'll be sad about Daryl for a few days, and then you'll be fine."

At that moment, I finally realized that my sister was a completely different person. She was no longer the Adeline I grew up with, who listened to outdated music and cried at the end of the Harry Potter movies. This woman watching me like some sort of terminal patient was not my sister. She was someone entirely new: dangerous and unstable, willing to kill and abandon at the slightest sign of a threat.

Hurt and disappointed, I shook my head and jumped to my feet. "Make whatever excuse you want for me," I told her, "but I'm not leaving these people." Before she had the chance to argue with me, I hoisted my backpack strap over my shoulder and retreated the rest of the group outside.

o-o-o

"Is that everything?" Beth questioned me, eyeing my tiny backpack as I approached her. She stood at the back of a loaded car, packed with supplies and extra clothing just in case we needed to make a quick getaway.

I gave her a small nod. "Everything that I would need. Oh, and I couldn't stuff any make-up in there," I told her, feigning a tone of sadness. "Sorry."

"Dang," she mumbled as she grabbed my backpack and threw it in with the rest of the loaded junk. "Guess I'll have to wait even longer now. You okay? You look a little off today."

I was hoping that I didn't look the way I felt. My eyes seemed heavier than usual and my body felt as if it weighed two hundred pounds more. I'd even gone the extra mile to brush my hair so I would look decent enough for people not to ask questions. As I glanced toward Daryl's motorcycle about twenty feet away from where we stood, my eyes lingered on Carol's hand as she pulled him from his crouching position to his feet. Their hands remained locked for a moment before dropping. A small twinge of pain struck my heart.

"I just didn't sleep very well," I told her truthfully. "Just nervous about today, I guess."

Beth gave me an optimistic grin. "We all are, but we'll be okay."

Before I had a chance to respond to her, Rick placed a hand on my shoulder from behind, startling me. I whipped my body around to face him and studied his grave expression. "You remember what you're supposed to do, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, of course," I answered meekly. Since he announced the plan the night before, my position stuck in my mind like glue. "Stay down and out of sight. Shoot only when I'm sure. Don't kill, just scare."

Rick nodded and leaned uncomfortably close to my face. Beth, knowing not to eavesdrop, closed the trunk, hurried to the front seat, and drove the car to the spot we'd decided to hide them: about half a mile south of the prison. "I'm glad you decided to stick with us," he told me in a hushed tone. "Both you and Adeline. You've done us a great help."

The second my sister's name popped out of his mouth, my palms became sweaty. "It means a lot," I murmured, feeling my lips quiver as I forced them into a smile. "Thanks for keeping us."

"Where is she anyw—"

His words were cut short by the loud rumble of engines, a deafening explosion, and constant gunfire. Our attention immediately focused on the tower on the outermost gate. Smoke bellowed from it as flames escaped through the shattered windows. Below, heavily armored jeeps rolled in through the smashed fence. The people of Woodbury poked out from the intimidating vehicles, guns a-blazing.

Our prison flew into a frenzy of adrenaline. My body reacted before my mind could comprehend what was going on. Within only a few seconds, my gun was in my hands and I was sprinting toward the cell block entrance, heading for the roof. I'd only been up there twice before and the direction was fuzzy in my memory, but for some reason, I felt as if I could make the trip blindfolded.

Before I was able to enter the building, a strong force brought me to a halt. Daryl had intersected my path, gripping my arm tightly. "Don't you dare fuckin' die," he growled, his face only an inch from mine. "I ain't gonna lose you, too."

Through my racing heartbeat and heavy pulse, I managed to form a grin. "Same goes for you," I told him. Then, a thought struck me: today could very well be my last day on this earth. Without thinking or any hesitation, I lifted myself to my toes, crushing my lips onto his before tearing myself away and bolting into the cell block.