It was a little after five o'clock in the morning when Rick made his way through the streets of Alexandria, his boots softly pounding the pavement. Judith had roused from her sleep earlier than usual, and after receiving a fresh diaper and warm cuddle, she happily went back to sleep in the bed between he and Carl, snuggled up with her stuffed duck clutched against her chest. Having needed to awaken early anyway, Rick waited only until he was sure she was asleep before getting out of the bed. Tucking the blankets and arranging the pillows so she couldn't fall out, he had gently roused Carl and told him that he was departing, requesting that he tend to Judith when she woke again later. He had a task he needed to attend to that morning, and the earlier he started, the easier it would be. Sliding his Colt into its holster, he followed it up with his spare gun, a knife and a machete, and then left the house earlier than even Daryl did. As he strolled up the street in the darkness, his eyes having mostly adjusted, he took a few moments to enjoy the peacefulness of Alexandria, understanding a little better why Sasha preferred to take the night watch shifts. It was so peaceful he even entertained the idea of extending his stroll through the streets, but he didn't allow himself to put off his task, no matter how much he'd prefer to leave it.

Walking past Deanna's townhouse, he slowed his steps and began fumbling with his set of keys. There were far fewer keys on this particular set than he carried at the prison, and yet they gave him the same peace of mind, the same comfort of knowing that he could access every part of Alexandria no matter what. It hardly mattered, given that none of the residents locked their doors at night, and that the armoury was now accessed by a combination lock, but the ritual of carrying a set of keys still held the same reassurance for him.

Descending the steps down to the basement of the fourth townhouse, he turned on the exterior light and then put his key into the lock, first opening the exterior gate and then the glass paned interior door. No longer needing to be discrete, he stepped inside and made his presence known, unsurprised when light bloomed in the adjacent room. Crossing the short hallway, he looked into the room where Carter had spent the night, watching him blearily rubbing his eyes and looking at Rick, the camping lantern on the ground beside him creating the light. Realising who it was, Carter sat up quickly, looking rather alarmed by the unannounced arrival of the man he had wanted to kill the previous day. Getting straight to the point, Rick set down a container of breakfast food and then stepped away from it, somewhat amused by Carter's confusion.

"You have fifteen minutes to eat, dress and be ready to leave."

Carter nodded quickly. "W-where are we going?" he asked nervously.

"Fifteen minutes."

Departing, Rick locked the interior door and the metal gate outside then checked his watch, determining exactly when he would return. He headed to the third townhouse where the Pantry and armoury were located, ascending the steps and heading straight for the main floor. Letting himself in, he turned on a few lights and began looking around, selecting a backpack that would be more than sufficient for what they needed that day. Having taken note of what Carter was already wearing he headed for the clothing racks and began rifling through the jackets, choosing one with a heavy and durable fabric. Assessing it, he figured it would be large enough for Carter, and so roughly stuffed it into the backpack before moving on to the other items he would need. Stuffing them into the backpack too, he added two bottles of water and a basic medical kit before heading upstairs.

Entering the combination into the lock, he pushed open the heavy door that would admit him into their general use armoury, knowing he would find all but one weapon he would need. He knew what Carter was capable of handling, and so took a Glock and a revolver, double checking they were clear before putting them into the pack along with sufficient rounds. A knife and machete followed that too. Departing the general use armoury, he entered a different combination into the lock on the next room, one that only few people had access to. This room contained their higher powered rifles, ones that he didn't want those not quite competent getting their hands on, not to mention the wide array of explosives, tactical tools and protective gear. As he selected himself an M4 and some magazines, he briefly entertained the idea of putting on a kevlar vest. You never did quite know how things were going to turn out.

Leaving the armoury, he double checked that all the doors had properly locked behind himself before continuing on his way. Heading down into the basement now, he selected a few snack items and tossed them into the bag too. Though he had more than necessary, being rather generous with his planning, he wanted to be sufficiently prepared. Carter still had another five minutes owed to him, and so he left the third townhouse and took a seat on the front steps, putting the bag down beside him. Sitting there quietly he enjoyed the peace and quiet of Alexandria at dawn, admiring the colours that were appearing in the sky while trying to remember the last time he had appreciated such a thing. As he passed the time he took a granola bar from inside his satchel and began eating just for the sake of it, knowing he had a long morning ahead of him. He wished he'd thought to take some coffee in a travel mug. He was probably going to need it.

Thinking of the morning ahead, Rick took a moment to appreciate the advice Carrie had given him yesterday. Level headed and as objective as possible, she had been the one who could see the potential the bad situation offered him, the unique opportunity that had arisen. Though they were conclusions he would have likely drawn himself, she had brought him there straight away, she had helped him recognise the logic and the consequences that her suggested course of action would bring about. On one hand Rick felt dissatisfied with the course of action he had agreed to take, not feeling like vengeance or justice was going to be served, but there was no denying what he was going to achieve today. Carrie had been right - Carter's poor attempt to stage a coup was an opportunity for Rick.

Regardless of how he felt about it, he at least had Deanna's approval and support. Once it had been decided among his group what they would do he had spoken to Deanna who listened, hearing him out and only interjecting once. Overall it had been an easier discussion than Rick had anticipated…frankly he'd expected an argument, and had arrived prepared for one. He had arrived at her home not with the intention of seeking her permission, but with seeking her blessing. By now they both understood that he wasn't asking her permission very much these days, but that her blessing would make it easier on her people. In the end, Deanna had given her approval for his plan…highly reluctant approval, but she had given it nonetheless. Her only request was that he take his course of action first thing in the morning, before any of the other residents would notice and try to stop him. They didn't need a scene of angry protesters on their hands.

Checking the time on his watch, Rick got to his feet and dug around in his pocket for the keys, heading back down to the fourth townhouse basement and opening the doors. He found Carter sitting on the end of the mattress, looking rather apprehensive about what was going to happen next. Pleased to see that he hadn't been too proud to eat as instructed, Rick tossed him the items Michonne had confiscated the day before, his shoe laces and belt.

"Thank you," Carter said softly, taking the items.

Leaning against the stairs, Rick waited patiently for him to lace his boots and put on his belt, his fingers habitually tapping the handle of his Colt. He couldn't help but question his plans for that day, constantly reminding himself that this was the right thing to do, tactically at least. Given how much resistance there had been already, his handling of Carter was going to come under intense review. Scrutinising Carter now as he stood up and faced him he hoped that Carter had enough balls to handle what was going to happen. This had to work…Rick had to make it work.

"Are you ready?" he enquired politely, willing to give him another few minutes if he asked for it. He must be nervous.

To his credit, Carter nodded. "Where are we going?" he enquired, following Rick.

"Out."

Without another word he led Carter out onto the street, watching from the corner of his eye as he noticed the heavy back pack Rick had left waiting. Ready to depart, Rick slung the backpack over one shoulder and began walking, knowing that Carter would follow…and he did. Together they walked down towards the solar panels and then towards the watch tower, Carter hanging a little behind him rather than right by his side. Normally this would have unnerved him a little, not liking someone he mistrusted to be out of his sight, and he would have slowed until they walked side by side. But today he let Carter be…despite what had happened the previous day, he didn't feel like Carter was brazen enough to try anything at this very moment.

"After you," he said, gesturing to the ladder that would take them up to the small platform on the wall.

Doing as he was told, Carter climbed the ladder and reached the top platform, but to Rick's surprise he turned back to him. Reaching down, he gestured for the backpack, and Rick let it fall off his shoulder before hoisting it up. Carter seemed surprised when he felt the weight of it, for although it wasn't overly heavy he must be curious as to what was inside it. Following him up, Rick thanked him as he took the bag again and then entered the watch tower, greeting Sasha who was on watch yet again.

"Good morning," she said, rubbing her eyes wearily. She was starting to get worn out, just like Rick had after the supply run. "Hey Carter."

"Good morning," he replied awkwardly.

Not wasting time, Rick got straight to the point. "Walkers?"

"Four during the night. I haven't checked in with the other posts yet."

"A slow night, huh?" he remarked, opening the trap door and indicating that Carter should go down first. "Make sure you get some rest today."

"Will do. You be careful out there."

Assuring her they would, he followed Carter down quickly, wondering how worried the man was starting to get about this whole thing. They slowly made their way to the bottom of the watch tower in darkness, and there was an awkward moment when they both reached the bottom, Carter lingering at the door.

"You know the combination," Rick prompted. Being overly obedient, Carter entered the combination into the lock and began to open it, stopping when Rick grabbed the door handle quickly. "Check the peephole…make sure there're no Walkers."

Yet again reminded of how poor the instincts were in people like Carter, Rick watched as he looked out the peephole. "We're good," he said tentatively.

Though Rick was tempted to goad him, to ask if he was absolutely sure, he nodded and gestured to the handle again, knowing that because of his nervousness he was going to have to spoon feed him every instruction, at least for now. Carter entered the combination and opened the door to the outside world, slowly stepping out into the poor light. Taking out his flashlight, Rick shone it on the ground for both their benefit as he too stepped out and then closed the door behind himself, turning the handle to ensure that it had locked properly. Without further ado he set off, and Carter quickly followed as he knew he would, not wanting to be left behind in the darkness. They walked in silence, but only for a few yards. Reaching the road on the other side of the gate the green Hyundai loomed up at them, having been parked there ready for them the previous evening.

Walking around the car, Rick opened the front passenger door and gestured for Carter to get in. As he followed the instructions, looking like a man approaching his execution, Rick opened the rear door and dumped the backpack on the seat. Carter got in and closed his door, but Rick decided to let him sweat a little, and so he spent a few moments looking over the car, double checking the tyres. He knew the car was fine to take out for a run, that Tobin had checked it over and that he himself had gassed it up the previous night, but he took his time to check anyway, wanting Carter to sit alone with his fears. Finally joining him, Rick put the flashlight in the centre console and started the car.

"You're not going to blindfold me?" Carter asked.

Rick shook his head. "Pay attention to where we're going," he said shortly.

Applying the gas he started off down the road, going slowly as a he saw a few Walkers mingling on the road ahead. He was watching Carter from the corner of his eye as they went, observing not only his body language and where his hands were, but the way he looked at the Walkers on the road ahead. He watched them with apprehension, and even as Rick carefully drove around them without a flicker of fear, Carter couldn't hide his discomfort. It amazed Rick to see this, for Carter had been outside the walls on occasions…he was part of the construction crew, he had been helping with the expansion and even with installing the spikes and digging the pits. It was the hand to hand combat that he was afraid of, the idea of letting a Walker close enough to actually hurt you. For all his time spent outside the walls, Carter was very much out of his element, unlike Rick.

They reached the main road in a few short minutes, passing by one of the hunting cameras that would have detected their movement and taken a picture. Turning right, left applied a little more gas and enjoyed the feeling of the wide open space ahead of him…this would be the first time in weeks since he had really left Alexandria. After the Wolf's arrival, he had let the others in his group handle checking on their safe houses, knowing they needed enough strength and skill to remain behind in the case that something else should happen. Now that he was out in the wide open world Rick felt himself relaxing, though it was an entirely different vibe from Carter. Unlike Rick whose relaxation was genuine, Carter wore a facade, his elbow resting on the window sill as he tried to play it cool, to hide his nervousness. Rick didn't blame him, knowing what must be going through his head right now.

He had new insight into Carter now, having made good use of the bug he had Daryl plant on his behalf. Reminding himself that he would need to retrieve it lest it be found, Rick thought back to the late night he, Carol and Daryl had in the garage, listening to the playback of conversations held between Carter and those who had been allowed to visit him. Rick had given his approval for any visitors to come and go, after a thorough pat down from Abraham and Daryl to ensure they weren't going to slip Carter anything. The reason for the visitors was strategic, not something Rick allowed out of kindness. Having listened to all of the conversations that had taken place, he now had a better understanding of what had led up to Carter's pathetic and ill planned attempt at revolt.

The main conspirators in Rick's death had been Michael and Carter, fuelled by their fears of what was going to happen to Anna should she go on the run to the safe houses. They had no trust in Rick's group, in him in particular, and they feared that Anna was being taken advantage of, that she was being brainwashed by them. But it stemmed further than that too, the general unrest of the previous week having been compounded even more by what Carter had overheard Rick saying to Deanna. In the moments after Rick had brought the Walker inside the community, he and Deanna had exchanged harsh words that in hindsight were not exactly his best show of character. While every word of what he told her was true, that she was in charge only because he allowed her to be, it would have been best if he continued keeping that to himself rather than voicing it. It hadn't done him any favours, particularly given that Carter had over heard it.

Carrie was right. Killing Carter would have been salt on the wound.

Nevertheless, a few things had worked in Rick's favour, and plans he had set into motion long ago were working in his group's favour. His decision to take a step back and let Abraham and Aaron coordinate the supply run to Georgia had worked well, allowing the Alexandrians on that trip to see him in a different light, as a team member rather than just a leader. His decision to bring Tobin along too had been beneficial, for despite all the things that had gone wrong on the supply run, it seemed he had won Tobin over. It had been Tobin who had given Rick a heads up about talks of an uprising, and Tobin who had continually told Michael and Carter to pull their heads in, that they were being too dramatic. Further than that, the way Rick had positioned Carrie had worked as well. She'd spent most of her time in Alexandria subtly working on people's perceptions of him, on earning their trust and companionship. His decision to not tell her about his plan to bring in the Walker had paid off, for everyone seemed to believe without question that she hadn't payed a part in it. For that, they still seemed to trust her word, despite some people suspecting that she and Rick were sleeping together.

Carol though…her mask seemed to have taken a small hit, having revealed a slither of her true self to Carter in the few short minutes in which he pointed a gun towards Rick.

"I'm telling you," Carter had said to Michael the day before, his tone urgent and worried. "The way she was looking at me…the things she said…there's more to her, I know there is. Don't trust her. Don't let Anna trust her either."

Judging by what they overheard with the bug, there was the general agreement among Carter and his visitors that they would wait and see what happened next. For them this was not only another test of Rick's nature, but also of Deanna, to see how far under Rick's thumb she was. They were fearful for whatever Rick had planned for Carter's punishment, and this would be the moment in which they would see to what extent Deanna was willing to fight for her people. It seemed Carter had little faith in Deanna, and none at all in Rick, and he reminded his visitors yet again what he had overheard the day the Wolf had been shot, Rick's harsh words to Deanna that she was only in power because he allowed her to be. Carter was afraid he was going to be exiled, and he pleaded with his visitors to keep watch, to make sure that it didn't happen.

Carter's attack hadn't been the work of someone who meticulously planned a coup, it was rash and poorly considered. He had acted out of fear, not malice, and in a way that was what worried Rick the most. Carter had acted without thinking, with no plans for how he would handle the rest of Rick's group, or Deanna…given the precariousness of the situation he found himself in, Carter was lucky to make it out of there alive. With that understanding, it had made complete sense to heed Carrie's advice, to play out her suggested course of action. On one hand it felt absolutely crazy, but logically Rick knew she was right, that it made complete sense. Being a leader also meant protecting people from themselves, and now it was up to him to make sure that no one else acted as rashly as Carter had, that no one else endangered themselves because they were too blinded by fear.

The drive he and Carter took that morning was blessedly short, allowing him to put the man out of his misery pretty quickly. When they arrived at the small hunting cabin the sun had begun to properly rise, casting enough light that Rick no longer needed to take his flashlight. Leaving it behind, he parked the car and slipped the keys into his pocket.

"Get out," he prompted Carter, taking his spare gun out of the driver's door and departing the car.

Stepping out of the car, Rick closed the door quietly and looked around for a few moments, taking in the silence of the surrounding woods, hearing only a few chirping birds. Finding no evidence to indicate a Walker or human was around, he turned back to the car, though he did not allow himself to relax. He kept an eye on Carter as he opened the back door and reached inside, noting that his expression was falling. Rick knew what he was thinking, that he was being abandoned here with nothing other than a small bag of supplies and a wish of good luck. Feeling he had allowed that scenario to run through Carter's mind for long enough, Rick left behind the backpack and instead took out the laptop computer and map. Putting them under one arm, he next took out the weapons he had chosen for Carter and set them on the roof.

The look on Carter's face was almost comical, his eyes wide with surprise when he saw what Rick was carrying. Certain of what he was doing, he handed Carter the map.

"Lay this out on the hood," he said requested, looking around out of habit while he placed the laptop on the windscreen. "Do you know where we are?"

Carter nodded slowly, taking a deep breath before indicating to a point on the map. "Here?"

"Close," he said, correcting his position and pointing an inch south. "How did we get here?"

"We went east on Redding, and then turned off….we turned off here," he recited, pointing to a spot on the road.

"Good," Rick nodded, looking around again. "And why are we here?"

It took Carter a few moments to answer this, and as he thought he looked around slowly, coming to his conclusion. "This is one of the safe houses…the ones your people set up?"

"Yes."

"You're…showing it to me."

"Yes."

There was a long pause, the two of them standing before one another with a wide gulf of unspoken fears and worry separating them. There was a rustle from the trees behind him, a Walker approaching, but Rick could tell by Carter's facial features that he hadn't noticed. Still looking at him, Rick swiftly drew his knife from its holster, amused by the momentary alarm that crossed Carter's face. Turning away, he walked towards the sound of the approaching Walker, his knife ready as he peered through the trees and waited. It arrived sooner than he expected, but he was prepared. The figure came stumbling towards him, its heavily decayed state making it easier for Rick to plunge his knife through the skill and into the brain. It fell to the ground, and he promptly wiped the knife clean on its clothing before returning to Carter.

He got straight to the point, not wanting them to linger here any more than necessary. "Am I going to regret it if I give you a weapon?"

Carter shook his head quickly, trying to assure him. "No. You won't."

"Good," he said shortly. Taking the two guns from the roof of the car, he showed them to Carter, requesting his preference. "Semi-automatic, or revolver?"

"Semi. Please."

Unsurprised by how polite and cooperative Carter was being, Rick passed him the very Glock he had drawn on him the day before, giving him a belt holster and a radio too.

"You're not…leaving me here?" Carter asked tentatively. "You're not exiling me?"

Looping his thumb through his duty belt, a habit that would never die, Rick peered at him. "Should I be?"

He was putting Carter on the spot, making him feel like he had to plead his case, that Rick might not be fully certain of his decision not to exile him. "I would understand if you did," he replied very slowly.

"Why? Because you came into my home and pointed a gun at me? At my children?"

Acknowledging what he had done, Carter nodded.

Letting him sweat for another moment, Rick finally gave him what he needed to hear. "I'm not exiling you. Don't get me wrong…I want to. To be honest, I'd prefer to kill you outright."

Accepting this, Carter nodded again, though his relief did take a hit. "Deanna won't let you?"

"Deanna does as she's told," he said plainly. "Which I know you overheard last week. She's adjusting to the way things are going to be done from now on, but that doesn't mean she's not still your leader."

"Then why are you letting me stay?"

Looking at his watch and noting the time, Rick answered plainly. "Because it's better to have you around in my debt, than to not have you at all. Understand?"

"Yes," he answered quickly. "I understand."

"Good. Let's get to work."

Glad that conversation was over, they simply got on with things, Rick leading the way to the front door and indicating to the welcome mat. Gesturing for Carter to follow, he crouched down and gently lifted it up by two corners, revealing four sheets of carbon paper underneath. Though they were dirty and a little scuffed, there were no foot shaped marks that indicated anyone had stood on the mat.

"There's carbon paper underneath every welcome mat at every entrance to each safe house. If someone stands here and tries the door, we'll be able to see their footprints," he explained, straightening the paper and then carefully replacing the mat.

"Wow," Carter said softly, in awe of the thought that had been put into such a simple indicator. "That's…smart."

Rick entered the combination into the heavy duty lock they had installed. "It's the same combination we use to get in and out of the watch tower," he said, openly the door and entering the dark cabin. Pulling open the drapes on one window, he gestured to all of their supplies that were neatly stacked along the far wall. The cabin was empty of furniture, most of it having been chopped up and set aside for firewood that might be needed. "There's everything here that you could need. Food, water, medicine, weapons, camping stove, sleeping bags, space blankets, regular blankets, solar lamps, portable solar panels, batteries, water purifying tablets…even books and games for the kids."

"There's a lot," Carter remarked, looking around in even greater awe.

"This is the smallest safe house, the smallest collection of supplies," he told him, glad that he seemed suitably impressed. "We call this safe house number one. You don't ever state it's description or location over the radios, only ever refer to them by their numbers. Don't ever mark it on a map, or draw a map for anyone, don't write down directions…if something like that fell into the wrong hands, our supplies here would be stolen."

"Okay," he agreed, looking around. "I get it."

"Good," he remarked, closing the curtains and leaving, Carter close behind him. As he closed the door and checked that it had locked, he gestured to something fixed on the ceiling of the spacious porch area. "That's a hunting camera. It takes shots whenever it detects movement," he explained, approaching it and taking an SD card out of a pouch on his duty belt.

"Like the ones you have further out in the woods?" Carter asked. "Near the main roads?

"Yes. We installed these out here last week," he continued, swapping the new SD card for the old, and double checking the batteries. "We need to make sure that no one knows these houses area here, that no one knows what we have inside. The group that took Anna out here yesterday checked then, and since we're here now we'll check again."

"Did they see anything yesterday? Any people?"

"Maybe something at the fourth safe house. Now stand at the front door and face the woods," he instructed, pleased when Carter remembered not to stand on the welcome mat. "When you're standing at the main entrance to a safe house, look directly out at what's in front of you. The first tree in your line of sight? On the other side of that tree is where we've got an emergency stash of guns, knives and radios."

"Emergency?"

"Just in case we lose the supplies we have here, we have spares," he explained patiently. "About three inches under the surface is a small shovel. Use that to dig three feet down, you'll hit a metal tool box. It's completely plastic wrapped to protect it from moisture, but otherwise there're no locks or combinations."

"Three inches down - shovel. Three feet down - tool box," Carter recited to himself, looking at the tree in question. "This is at every safe house?"

"Yes. The fourth safe house is in a suburb, so the stash is under the opposite mail box, but yes. Every safe house."

Heading back to the car with Carter in tow, he scanned the vicinity before taking the laptop which he had put on the windscreen. Putting the SD card in, he opened up the files and began scrolling through the pictures, showing them to Carter. "This is the group yesterday as they were leaving…some Walkers, a deer, and now us. Nothing significant."

"That's good," Carter nodded.

On the inside, Rick was tentatively pleased by how much Carter seemed to be paying attention, but knew they had yet to gain one another's trust. He closed the laptop and then returned it to the car. "Let's go…we've got four more safe houses to check."

A little over an hour later, Rick and Carter swapped out the SD card from the hunting camera at their fifth safe house, the two of them hovering around the laptop as they viewed the footage. It was more of what they had seen at the other four houses. Their group departing yesterday, the occasional Walker that went by, and then Rick and Carter's arrival that morning, nothing that got their attention or was cause for concern. The previous day Glenn had noted on the cameras something that looked like a human figure in the yard adjacent to their fourth safe house, the one located in the small town not far from Alexandria. But after reviewing the footage from the few hours that had lapsed since then, Rick was unconcerned. None of the safe houses appeared to have been disturbed either yesterday or today, but while they were undiscovered for now, that might not always be the case.

Over the next few weeks they would continue checking on them periodically, a task that would hopefully serve as opportunity to get the Alexandrian's out there with them. The final factor that had helped Rick make his decision about what to do with Carter was the opportunity to take advantage of the fact that he owed him big time. He had leverage over Carter now, and had been able to force him outside the walls so that he could see for himself both how easy the run was, and how easy it was to take down Walkers. The former part had been effective so far, with Carter having grown more at ease with each passing minute, the latter part would come into effect shortly.

"So," Carter began as the two of them got in the car for the return trip home. "I'm dying to know what's in the bag?" he remarked, looking into the back seat.

Rick smiled to himself, having wondered how long it would take Carter to ask. "A coat for you, some gloves, weapons, medical kit, food and water."

"But you said you weren't leaving me?"

"No, I'm not leaving you," he confirmed, starting the engine and then setting off back the way they had come. "Every time you leave the walls for longer than a short walk, you need to take food and water, just in case."

"Every time?"

"Every time."

"And the other stuff? The coat?"

"The coat, gloves and weapons are for you. When we get closer to home, you're going to show me what you can do with a knife and machete."

This got exactly the reaction he had been expecting. Carter seemed to sigh and shrink back in his seat, unsure of how to approach this. "I don't know if it's a good idea," he said, giving Rick a glimpse into his fears.

"It doesn't matter what you know," he said candidly, reaching the main road again and turning south. "What matters, is what I know."

There was a short pause as Rick hit the gas and increased their speed, Carter taking in what had just been said. "What is it that you know?"

"I know that you're perfectly capable of taking on a Walker hand to hand. You just don't want to."

"Can't blame me for that, can you?" he asked, half joking.

"No, I get it," he replied, genuinely understanding. "But you still need to do it."

"Rick, I…I'm no goo-"

"I'm teaching you," he said firmly, drawing on all of his patience. "I'm not throwing you in the deep end of a pool and hoping you figure out how to swim. I'm teaching you. Anna could do it, and so can you."

Carter gave a long sigh. "I guess I don't really have a choice."

"The thing is…you do. Short of holding you at gunpoint, I can't force you to do anything."

"Then…" Carter began, trailing off as he lost his train of thought.

"Then why am I going to all this effort?"

He nodded.

"First of all, your incompetence endangers my family. Second of all, does it come as a surprise that maybe I actually care about you…about your people?"

"Honestly?" Carter began slowly. "Yes, that does come at a surprise."

Rick figured as much. "Well I do. Like I said last week, I'd much rather be spending time with my kids than forcing my company on people who openly hate me. And yet here I am, forcing my company on you."

"You just seem so," Carter started, trying to think. "So against us…like you don't want to be one of us."

Nodding, Rick had to agree with him. "I'm working on that…I am," he assured him when he saw Carter's skepticism. "Problem is that we're just so different. My people know and understand so much more, and we're just trying to help you understand too. In a different world, we'd be compromising with one another, reaching a happy medium between the two groups…but we can't."

"You can't compromise?'

"No," he shook his head. "We can't. I'm not saying that because I don't want to, but because we simply can't. I know that means I have to force your hand in all of this, and I know that's going to make you hate me. I'm willing to take that burden."

"You're willing for people to hate you?" Carter laughed, disbelieving him.

Rick shrugged. "My job is not to make people happy, that's Deanna's job. Mine is to make you safe, and that means for you to be able to take care of yourself. When things go wrong, which they will," he said imperatively. "My group and I won't be able to protect everyone."

Carter rubbed his face wearily, putting one elbow up on the windowsill. "Rick…I understand what you're trying to do…but it's just not going to work."

"What part of it?"

"Any of it…the people here just…"

"Don't trust me?"

"Yeah. They don't trust you."

"I'm aware of how people feel about me. That's why I'm going to need you."

"Me?"

"Yeah," he nodded, as though it was obvious. "I expect your unconditional support in all of this."

"H-how so?"

"Don't forget that you brought a gun into my home, pointed it at me and my children, and then I let that incident go," he said, looking over at him for a moment. "I'd be justified to put a bullet in your head, and I wouldn't lose a minute of sleep over it. But I'm not doing that. You owe me, Carter. You owe me a lot."

There was silence for a few short minutes, Rick allowing Carter some time to digest not only everything he had learnt so far, but the magnitude of what was now going to be expected of him. This was what Carrie had suggested he do, that despite what Carter had done, Rick should extend an offer of trust. As retribution for his actions, he was now expected to give Rick his allegiance in return for his life being spared. He would have to support Rick, but most importantly of all he would have to share this support with everyone else. Despite having spared his life, Rick knew he was asking a lot - he was essentially buying Carter's trust, and it wasn't necessarily guaranteed.

"I don't want to force a take over," Rick began softly, feeling the need to remind Carter of who he was up against. "But I'm willing to do it if things don't change."

Carter looked at him in alarm, which was exactly what Rick had been expecting.

"It won't be hard, either. I wouldn't even have to kill anyone. All I'd have to do is take control of the armoury and the food supply, make the whole community completely reliant on me."

"It sounds like you've given that a lot of thought," Carter said softly.

"I have," he said candidly, looking at him again. "And I'll do it if I have to. But like I said, I don't want to. That's why I need your help…that's why I'm not exiling you."

"So you can have me on your side, whether I like it or not?"

"Yes. All you have to do is work with me, not against me. The hardest part of that is going to be trusting each other."

"Yes."

Slowing the car down to move past a group of Walkers on the road, Rick thought for a moment, wondering what to say next. "You know, you're not all that different from the rest of my group."

"How so?" he asked, his curiosity piqued.

"Everyone in my group has harboured serious mistrust in me, at least once."

"Everyone?"

"Everyone," he confirmed.

"Even Carl?" Carter joked, trying to lighten the tone.

Rick made a point of looking at him for a moment. "Especially Carl."

This seemed to surprise Carter, and Rick's honest answer seemed to render him speechless. "Oh."

"Either my group thought I wasn't acting in their best interests, or they thought I wasn't capable of leading them. I don't resent them for these doubts, because sometimes they were right. We had to earn one another's trust, we had to prove ourselves. That's what you and I are going to have to do."

Cart gave a short laugh of derision, not quite believing Rick. "How?"

"A leap of faith?" he suggested. "Perhaps like the one I'm taking today?"

"With me?"

Rick nodded. "How often do you think I go on a road trip with an armed person who recently expressed a desire to kill me?"

"Okay," he replied slowly. "I'll give you that."

"And now I'm bringing you back. I'm bringing you back to the place where my children live, despite the fact that you don't deserve my trust."

Going silent, Carter just nodded.

"I don't think it's unreasonable to ask for a similar show of faith in return. Do you?" he asked, slowing the car again and turning left onto the last road to Alexandria.

"No."

Silence fell for a short while, both of them breathing a sigh of relief now that they were close to home again. Thinking about everything they had talked about, and hoping he had managed to build some kind of a rapport with Carter, Rick drew on the rest of his patience to get the two of them through the final stage of this morning. It was imperative that Carter learn how to take on a Walker hand to hand, and now was perhaps going to be his only opportunity. If he pulled back now and let Carter go inside, then it would be even more difficult to get him back outside the walls again. But today, with his pathetic attempt at taking Rick's life still fresh in both their minds, he knew he had the leverage he needed.

"Who's on watch in the tower?" he used the radio to ask.

"It's me," Tara replied cheerfully. "You boys back safe then?"

"We are. What's it look like in the car park?"

"Hmmmm….looks pretty clear to me, you should be fine."

"Okay," he said, glancing at Carter as he continued speaking. "We're going to stay out in that area for a while, maybe half an hour."

"Got it. Don't shoot you."

Not missing the dread that had crossed Carter's face, Rick turned right as the gates of Alexandria loomed up down the road ahead of them. Heading towards the streets dubbed their car park, he raked his eyes over the streets to check for Walkers, pleased to see that things did indeed look pretty clear. He drove past the RV, a place where he hoped he and Carrie would be able to spend a little time together at some stage, and then parked the Hyundai in it's usual spot. Not feeling at all sorry for Carter, Rick pocketed the keys and prompted him to get out.

Unsure of how to begin, he got Carter's attention and gestured to the mailbox of the house they were parked outside of. "Three feet directly behind it is another stash of emergency supplies. We've got three other stashes of emergency supplies buried out here. This one we call south-east, then you've got one south-west, north-west and north-east. We're going to take a walk around the walls, I'll show you exactly where they are."

"Okay," he nodded diligently, taking it all in.

"I'm taking a major leap of faith by showing you these weapon stashes," Rick reminded him again. "I'm showing you so that you can protect yourself and our people, but you could just as easily use them against me. Do not throw this trust back in my face."

"I won't," Carter said quickly. "I swear."

Sensing that just like before his tone and body language were genuine, he accepted this on face value. "Have you ever actually killed someone?" he asked bluntly, opening the backpack and taking out the thick jacket and pair of gloves. "You ever looked a person in the eye, and killed them?"

Carter shook his head. "No."

"Judging by what happened yesterday, I didn't think so."

Pulling on the jacket and zipping it up, Carter looked at him cautiously. "You have," he stated.

He nodded, passing him some gloves next. "I don't regret killing the people I did…but I do regret that I had to."

"Is there a difference?"

"Yes." Folding his arms across his chest, he leant against the side of the car and looked around, checking they were still safe. "Now about what happened yesterday. I am suitably concerned about the fact that you wanted me dead, but I'm equally concerned about the fact that you didn't even do some basic recon. You had no back up, no alibi, no plan for what would happen next. You had nothing."

Carter looked suitably embarrassed, his cheeks going red as he scratched the back of his head. "I err…I guess I got caught up in the moment."

"I could tell. Next time you go to kill someone, I suggest making sure their children aren't home. Not only is it the polite thing to do, but a lack of witnesses will make it easier to get away with." He paused, pleased to see the genuine regret that crossed Carter's face. He'd been scared when he realised Carl and Judith were there, realising he had made a very poor decision.

"Okay," he nodded, not knowing what else to say.

"Carter," Rick said next, getting his attention and making sure he looked at him. "If you ever kill someone, make sure it's for the right reason. Not because you're scared of them, or because people have asked you too…it has to be because it's the only choice you have left. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"It's going to happen one day, and you won't be prepared for it. But eventually, you'll come to see that all you're doing is making a choice, and that you're choosing the consequences you can live with."

Carter nodded again. "How many have you killed?"

He'd been dreading this question, though he'd expected it to come up. "I don't know. I stopped counting. Now I'm too afraid to count."

Raising his eyebrows, Carter shifted uncomfortably. "And you can live with those…consequences?"

"Yes," he answered bluntly. Having said his piece, Rick was ready to just get on with things, and with that in mind he turned back to the bag in the car to retrieve the knife and machete, but it seemed Carter wasn't finished.

"Rick, I'm sorry," he said. "I'm sorry for what I did."

Pausing, Rick considered the apology, knowing that it was genuine and without ulterior motive. "I accept your apology." Those words tasted pretty bad in his mouth, but he had no choice but to say them.

"Thank you."

"I understand where you were coming from too…you did what you thought you had to do."

Carter nodded slowly, his body language relaxing now it appeared they had cleared the air. "Thank you," he said again.

"It just so happens that you were wrong, that's all." Turning back to the car, Rick retrieved the knife and machete, and then handed the former to Carter. "Now let's go kill a Walker."

Little of significance had occurred in the week that had passed since Carter had come to Rick's house with a loaded gun, and what was exactly how Rick wanted it. Just like Carrie said it would be, Carter's attempt to take power by force had been a blessing in disguise, and a series of important factors seemed to just fall into place afterward.

The morning he and Carter left to check on the safe houses, word had spread quickly that he was missing from their makeshift prison, and Rick was glad he didn't have to be there to witness Deanna trying to deal with the panicked assumptions that he had been exiled, or worse. It seemed her people didn't quite believe that Carter would be returning, and no one relaxed until he and Rick returned later that morning. When they returned side by side with a newly developed respect for each other, the Alexandrians were sent onto a flurry to see Carter covered in blood and guts, the result of his messy Walker kills. As if there had been no incident the day before, Rick and Carter simply shook one another's hands and parted ways with one key understanding.

Rick would reluctantly forgive him, but he would not forget.

With Rick's encouragement, life in Alexandria began returning to normal. The residents at large still hated him, still resented him and his group for intruding on their easy and carefree lives, but enough had changed. Secret whispers of an uprising slowly died off, mainly thanks to Carter's efforts to stem them, and although people still mistrusted Rick in general, a new kind of atmosphere spread throughout the community. The school lessons resumed, as did work on the expansion of the walls. More people were taking posts on watch, and the gun training would continue with a longer term focus now that the residents had acquired the basic skills.

There was still some way to go, achievements that still needed to be reached. More residents needed to learn how to take on Walkers hand to hand, and more of them needed to make trips out to safe houses, but for now Rick was willing to approach that at a more gentle pace. The initial urgency for the community to protect itself had been alleviated, and both he and his group agreed that they had made enough changes for now. The armoury had been moved and was easily accessible, Rick's group and a few others were now armed within the walls, and every resident knew how to safely handle a gun. With key people like Tobin, Carter and Anna now in his corner, they were working on the residents…already Erin had agreed to accompany them on the next run out to the safe houses. As he knew they would, the moment one resident demonstrated strength and courage, the others began falling into line behind them.

With things better under control now, Aaron and Daryl had departed three days ago for another attempt at recruiting. With the promise that this time they would stick to their two week deadline to return home, they packed what they needed and left without fuss, Aaron taking the Hyundai while Daryl took Merle's bike. His departure had been a little easier on Rick this time, for although he knew he would worry day and night until Daryl returned, he was more prepared to handle his absence this time around. Other things in their households had fallen into place too. Carl was settled back into school, and aside from a few nightmares recently, he seemed to be better handling what had happened with the Wolf he had shot. Remembering Daryl's advice, Rick had made a point of trying to spend more time with him again, even if it was only taking a walk outside the walls or collecting the compost together. It seemed to be working…the two of them talked a little more, most of the time about mundane things, and occasionally about the more difficult things too.

Things were falling into place with Carrie too. They'd returned to their usual routine again, and while on the surface Rick was glad they had cleared the air and they were sleeping together again, the desire for more from their relationship still lingered in the back of his mind. For now though, things were working. Over two weeks had passed since their first major fight, and a week had passed since they'd recovered from it, and Rick was reluctant to mess with the renewed harmony. But still, he knew that it wasn't going to last, at least not for him anyway. He wanted more from her, it was just a matter of working himself up to it. He was willing to take a chance on her, to risk everything and tell her how he felt…but a part of him was still too cowardly. If she rejected him, there might be no going back to the way things were. If he risked it and told her how he felt, would it back fire on him?

This question lingered in the back of his mind every day, a blight on the otherwise smooth horizon. Everything else in their lives was going as well as could be expected…so why did he awaken in the middle of the night feeling so uneasy?

Hearing Judith whimpering, Rick was awake in an instant, automatically knowing that something was wrong. He could tell by the sounds she made that she wasn't hungry, and nor was she just feeling lonely…something was wrong. His heart pounding a little faster, he sat up in his bed and rubbed his eyes, his mind running through a mental list of what could be bothering her. Was it the new tooth erupting through her gums? Was she feeling sick? Whatever it was, Rick felt uneasy already, but as he stood up and reached into the crib that was right beside his bed, he slowly realised that it was the light bothering her…or the lack thereof.

"Hey sweet heart," he soothed, hearing her settle the moment his hands touched her. Picking her up from the crib, he gave her diaper a quick sniff before ascertaining that it was wet. He would need to change that for her. "I know, I know…it's too dark, isn't it."

Blindly feeling his way around for the lamp on his nightstand, he figured the nightlight that normally comforted her had blown. It wasn't unusual for her to awaken during the night and then simply go back to sleep when she saw Rick only a few feet away. It wasn't usually until closer to dawn that she would rouse properly and insist upon getting into the bed with him. But tonight when she had awoken the nightlight was out, and she couldn't see him. Feeling her snuggle against his chest and suck at her pacifier, he continued fumbling around his nightstand in the dark, muttering under his breath when he knocked off a few items before finding the lamp. His heart gave a jolt when he flicked the switch and nothing happened, and he sighed when he realised the cause behind Judith's absent nightlight.

The power was out.

A/N I hope you enjoy the two chapters this week! Chapter 26 coming Thursday/Friday, and it's the start of a new subplot from season 5! I'm so excited to finally get to these chapters! Thanks for the encouraging reviews, please please please keep them coming, they're my fuel!