The Walking Dead: Hearts Collide

Chapter 38

Hey guys...it's been forever I know. I'm sorry. Life has been extremely busy so writing as been difficult. But! I hope this chapter fills your desires for awhile. I have a lot of really interesting and great ideas for this story so hopefully you will see them soon! This chapter took me a few months to finish because I once again kept restarting it and such, but it is finally done!

An hour had wasted away since the initial walker attack. Daryl Dixon had explored the inner prison in search of the other survivors. All whereabouts were unknown. The only members confirmed to be alive and their location known were Beth and Hershel Greene, Dale, Patricia, Rick Grimes, Oscar, T-Dog, and Daryl himself. He could only assume Glenn Rhee, Jacqui, and Axel remained breathing. But that could only be true once seen.

The search was not successful. No one was found except for Jimmy who had turned. He was hardly recognizable. It was obvious the walkers had gotten a hold of him. Only half his face was still in tact. His eyes had glassed over, his guts spilled every which way. Daryl took no hesitation in putting him down. In fact, it was almost a relief. Jimmy was a threat. Knowing he was dead and could no longer cause any harm was practically a blessing. Just a few feet away from the corpse was the bandana Carol had been wearing earlier in the day. It was hard to believe they had been transporting the vehicles just a few hours ago. Everything felt long ago. The four made their way back to the outer prison walls. Rick took it upon himself to tell Beth of Jimmy's death. The youngest Greene received the news in a poor manner. She fell to her knees in hysterics. Daryl did not understand the girl. She had ended things with Jimmy a while ago even stating she no longer trusted him. Now she was mourning his death.

Pathetic.

"The boy is dead?" Dale asked Daryl. The hunter eyed the man. The entire humanity speech he often gave was complete bullshit. He would listen the first couple of times but after awhile, Daryl learned to make his exit before the frustrations kicked in.

"Looks like the walkers got him." Daryl told. "He already turned. I put him down."

"Can we find the body? We could bury him out in the yard." Dale suggested taking a step closer to Daryl.

"Ain't nothing left of him. 'Less you want half a face." Daryl replied abruptly.

"He didn't deserve to be buried anyways." Patricia added.

"Really? In front of the girl?" T-Dog hissed.

"She knows how I feel. You all do!" Patricia protested. "He killed my husband. He gets no kindness." The woman looked down to Beth. She was staring back through tears clearly pained by the words.

"No one deserves to die like that." Beth murmured. Daryl shook his head, rolled his eyes, and turned his back towards the group.

"We have to go back in." Daryl said.

"We already searched everywhere." Oscar noted.

"Didn't think I was talking to you." Daryl growled.

"Stop it, both of you!" Dale shouted. "The world ended but that doesn't mean humanity did too!"

"Enough with your humanity bullshit." Daryl snapped.

"Stop it." Rick interjected. "We still have our people in there." Daryl already knew that though. His mind could not stop wondering where Emma was. She was fully capable of handling herself, but everyone has a weakness. He refused to imagine the worse. Once you start believing there is a possibility someone is dead, it becomes a reality. Emma was alive; he knew she had to be. As for the others, he was not as certain. The prison entry gate slammed shut jolting Daryl from his thoughts. Jacqui appeared followed by Glenn and Axel. Daryl frowned. A sense of panic settled over him then. He had been hoping at least Emma would have come out of the prison by now.

"Anything?" Dale asked.

"Not a thing." Jacqui replied shaking her head. "You?" She directed the question to Rick.

"Jimmy's dead." Rick informed. "Walkers."

"Oh, poor boy." Jacqui said. She looked over to Beth who was still on her knees crying beside her father.

"We have to go back in then." Glenn told heading back.

"The safe zones were already checked." T-Dog said.

"Well, now we check the unmarked areas." Glenn suggested facing T. "Maggie is in there still. I have to find her."

"There's other people in there too, Glenn." Patricia noted. "Lori, Carl, Emma, Addison, Carol. What about them?"

"They have to be together. They're smart enough to know there's strength in numbers." Glenn replied.

"We don't know that though. They could have been separated or maybe someone went in by themself." Patricia offered.

"Why are you thinking negative?" Dale argued.

"I'm tired of being optimistic!" Patricia fired back. "Y'all keep talking like everything is fine. It's not! People die and we've all witnessed that. It's time to start accepting that we're not safe and stop being some damn dreamers!" Everyone froze at the outburst. Patricia had been more reserved. Daryl thought she did not have a backbone in her body. He was wrong.

"Don't look at me like a monster. I'm just telling the truth that you all choose to avoid." Patricia said.

"No." Jacqui spoke. "You're right."

"She's wrong!" Glenn protested. "We're survivors! It takes a lot to kill us."

"I don't even know how to properly use a gun." Patricia debated. "Don't call me a survivor because I still rely on the rest of you."

"We all rely on each other." Rick pointed out. Everyone let his words sink in. Daryl might even have taken in the words if his mind was not preoccupied.

"I'm going to keep looking." Glenn quietly said. He headed towards the prison. Rick followed close behind ready to stop him. The two men stopped in their tracks. In the distance, there was someone crying. More specifically, it sounded like a child.

Carl emerged from the prison. His face seemed sunken, the sheriff's hat shielding his eyes. The boy stared at the ground as he walked towards the others. Next came Maggie. In her arms was the newborn Grimm wrapped in a plaid cloth. Daryl recognized the fabric. It was Lori's.

Oh, fuck.

Maggie stood there like a deer in headlights. She had tears running down her face with eyes wide. Carl stopped just before reaching Rick. Everyone stood in silence. Daryl refused to believe it. Lori Grimes was not dead. Not until someone witnessed it and said it aloud. He was sure Carl felt everyone's eyes on him.

"She's alive." Carl mumbled. Daryl let out a small breath. He knew it. But his mind was still occupied on wondering where Emma was.

"Where is she?" Rick asked kneeling down to Carl's height.

"She's unconscious." Maggie spoke up approaching the others. "She lost a lot of blood, but we know where she is."

"And you left her there!" Rick shouted standing back up and taking a step towards Maggie.

"Hey!" Glenn barked.

"The walkers won't get her. She's safe!" Maggie replied.

"But you left her alone! What if she needs help?" Rick argued.

"Then we will help her! Don't you want to see your daughter?" Maggie defended closing the space between her and Rick. The man looked down at the newborn as if suddenly realizing she was there even though she was still crying.

"It's a girl?" Rick whispered tucking his hands under Maggie's. He looked at Maggie internally asking permission. The woman nodded letting go of the baby. The woman looked past the man seeing Beth.

"What happened?" She asked running to her sister.

"Jimmy's dead." Beth told wrapping her arms around Maggie's shoulder. The older daughter patted her younger sister's back.

"Do you know where Emma is?" Daryl asked.

"We got separated inside. She said was going to come back out here." Maggie informed. "Addison went with her."

"We have to go back inside then." Daryl ordered pushing pass Dale.

"Emma isn't the only on missing." Jacqui said. "Carol's gone too."

"They found her bandana next to Jimmy." Dale told.

"Was she one of the bodies you found?" Patricia asked.

"Couldn't be. They'd been dead before we got here." Daryl said. He looked to Rick seeking some sort of advice on their next move. He was wrapped up in admiring his daughter. His face seemed more relaxed. He was blocking out the rest of the world. A gunshot sounded. Everyone's attention snapped towards the prison.

"What the hell." Glenn mumbled.

"Help!" An unseen female cried. Everyone knew that voice. It was Addison. Just as Daryl matched the voice to a face, the teenager rounded the corner entering sightline. Daryl felt his heart sink. Addison was not only. She was assisting a limping Emma. She looked injured and was coated in blood.

No, no, no.

Daryl reacted before his mind registered the entirely of the situation. He heard footsteps following behind him but they did not matter. Emma and Addison needed help. Daryl reached them in seconds grabbing taking Emma's arm wrapped around Addison's shoulder and lifting the woman. Glenn and Dale stood by Addison aiming their guns. Inside the prison were about a dozen walkers. They began shooting them down as Daryl carried Emma to Hershel. He lied her down on her back as Hershel lowered himself to his knees with Patricia's help. Dots of red covered Emma's face, her shirt was soaked, and her jeans stained. She was too weak to move or speak. Daryl's heart was racing. The gunfire had silenced. Addison and the others were at Emma's side. His emotions went from scared to anger within seconds.

"What the fuck happened!" Daryl yelled looking to Addison.

"I didn't do that!" Addison defended herself. "We were attacked!"

"You too fucking stupid to fight back?" Daryl accused.

"I tried, asshole!" Addison shouted getting in the hunter's face.

"Not well enough by the looks of it." He growled.

"You weren't there to help her, were you?" Addison pointed out. Something snapped in Daryl as he roughly shoved Addison back. The teen stumbled backwards managing to keep her footing.

"Hey!" Dale warned. Daryl saw anger bubbling in Addison's eyes. The girl lunged at the redneck tackling him to the ground and swinging. She got a good hit across the left side of his face. Both would be bruised, his face and her knuckles. However, he did not strike back. Somehow, the beating felt right. Earned even. He was not there for Emma like he promised he always would be. Another punch this time to his right. The weight was lifted off his chest as Glenn held the girl back.

"Stop!" Glenn commanded locking his arms that surrounding Addison's body. She continued to kick being fired up. Daryl stayed on the ground resisting the urge to attack. He heard an argument among the group but failed to make out words. Nothing seemed right.

"You alright?" Jacqui asked. She extended her hand offering help. He rejected the aid instead sitting up on his own and staring at Emma.

"We almost died back there, don't say I didn't help!" She screamed.

"I need the medical supplies from my cell." Hershel said ignoring the commotion currently happening.

"I can go in and get it." Patricia volunteered.

"Take someone else with ya. We don't know if it's still safe inside." Hershel said.

"I'll go with her." Carl spoke up. Daryl had forgotten the boy was standing there. Rick was still mesmerized by his newborn.

"The kid ain't going!" Dale protested.

"He's fast and knows his way around. He'll be fine." Patricia said.

"Rick?" Dale wished for help. No response.

"Let's go." Patricia instructed pulling out knife. The two raced into the prison.

"I'm going to watch over Lori." Maggie said looking to Rick. "You want to come?" The man continued ignoring her. He seemed disappointed in the woman.

"I'll go." Glenn offered. Maggie waited a few more seconds for a response from Rick. With silence being her answer, she nodded and ran back into the prison followed by Glenn.

"Is she going to be okay?" Daryl asked.

"I don't know the extent of her injuries." Hershel explained. "I don't even know if I have the right supplies to help her. Just an overview, I suspect a broken rib or two. She might have a concussion and based off that limp she twisted her ankle."

"It was Andrew." Addison said. "He set off the alarm and got the walkers here."

"Are you certain?" Dale asked.

"Yeah, that's who attacked Emma. We were in the cafeteria but we had to bust the doors open. I had them in place so the walkers wouldn't get in and that's when Andrew attacked." Fury pulsed throughout Daryl.

"Did y'all kill him?" He snarled.

"Emma did. He was about to shoot me but she got him first. Shot him in the back of the head. We managed to clear out the walkers trying to get in before she passed out again." Daryl continued to stare at Emma. The sight was unbelievable. How could the woman who was always so strong now be before him, beaten up after almost being murdered?

Come on Emma…wake up! Live…live for me…

The prison smelled of rotten flesh. Blood was smeared along the walls as corpses spread across the floors. The sounds of the undead were no more. Instead, the silence forced Maggie's thoughts to run rapid. The decision of leaving Lori behind may not have been moral but correct for survival. If she had died and turned, Maggie doubted Rick wished to witness the act. Lori as a walker could have also killed other members of the group. She was a friend to everyone, it was hard imagining putting her down. It was a risk not worth taking.

Now Emma was added stress. The woman was a fighter but even the toughest lose a battle. Her time could not end now. Maggie started thinking about what would happen if Emma died. Daryl's first reaction would be to place blame. And if anyone was deserving of accusations, it was Andrew. However, Andrew was dead meaning Daryl could not take his anger out on him. He would instead focus that somewhere else. Whether that be out hunting killing a dozen walkers or a screaming match with another survivor, she did not know. He was already starting a fight with Addison. She had never seen the younger girl so angry. Confrontation was something everyone wanted to avoid. The uncomfortable feeling and having no prepared response was unnerving. But now Daryl knew she let Emma runaway with Addison. She too was a target for blame. But Maggie did not blame herself for what happened to Emma. Maggie was protecting Lori and Carl while Emma protected Addison. The situation was terrible. What hurt most was seeing Beth practically broken over Jimmy's death. She had dealt with death before and took it hard every time. The worse was when her mother died. Seeing her as a walker in the barn almost completely destroyed her but she powered through. But Beth was still a rookie to the new world. Maggie had experience before Rick's group came along. She made runs into the town to scavenge for supplies. She managed to sneak past most of the dead. However, on some runs she had to kill a few walkers. Maggie hid that from her father. She wanted to believe the people were sick but that was impossible.

Maggie and Glenn reached Lori's room. They could hear a walker nearby. Maggie thought her mind was playing tricks on her. It sounded like the groan came from behind the door.

"Let me go in first." Glenn said. "If she turned, I'll take her out."

"It should be me." Maggie told. "I practically killed her already."

"No. Let me do this." Glenn placed a hand on her shoulder. "You shouldn't have to see her like that." Maggie nodded looking towards her feet. Her brown combat boots had dots of red. The sight was once disturbing. Glenn crept into the room shutting the door behind him.

Patricia and Carl returned after a few minutes. They grabbed everything that was lying around Hershel's cell shoving it into Patricia's duffle bag. Emma was still unconscious. The group migrated to a shady area.

"I grabbed a blanket too." Patricia noted dumping the duffle bag's contents.

"Help me move this under her." Hershel instructed referring to the blanket. Daryl did as asked. Her body felt heavier than usual. Hershel sorted through the supplies.

"What can I do?" Daryl asked. He was willing to do anything. He caught the sight of Rick. The man had moved against a wall isolated from the rest. The baby was wrapped in his arms. Patricia was standing a foot away from him, another blanket in hand.

"Rick, this is for the baby." Patricia told. The newborn was covered in a torn piece of cloth. Rick continued ignoring the outside world. Patricia felt her patience withering away. The man's wife was possibly dead inside the prison. Yet, he was devoured in an unreal state of mind.

"Rick…can you hear me?" Patricia tried. No response. If the man was going to take no action, she would. She lifted the blanket about to cover the baby when Rick finally snapped. He gun found it's place directly in front of her face. Patricia froze in place.

"Don't…touch…her." Rick growled glaring into the woman's eyes. Her fear kept her frozen in place.

"Rick!" T-Dog shouted warning the others. Everyone's attention beside Daryl and Hershel's focused on Rick's gun,

"Get the fuck away from me." Rick muttered. Patricia nodded backing away with her hands up. She stayed in that defensive stance even after reaching the group.

"Are you alright?" Dale asked putting a hand on the woman's shoulder. She flinched at the contact spinning around.

"Ye-yeah." She stuttered. Her fast was beating rapidly. She honestly believed Rick was going to shoot her and though how ironic that death would be. She managed to survive the farm and the journey to the prison. She would have been killed by the so-called-leader of this group after attempting to care for his newborn. Patricia knew one thing for certain and that was whenever she would look at Rick from now on she would see this moment. All trust and faith in him was forever abandoned. Patricia recalled one other time she had been this scared for her life. When the group had been escaping the farm. The walkers were everywhere. She lived though. That taught her she was a survivor. She just needed to practice survival skills. In fact, Rick made her more determined to be handy with a gun and melee weapon. Someday, she would be fearless. Until this, she needed to put on front and be brave not courageous for courage would be the death of her.

"I need more supplies." Hershel informed the group.

"Whataya need?" Daryl asked jumping to his feet. "I'll get whatever it is."

"Not alone you won't." Dale said.

"Ya just slow me down." Daryl argued.

"The more people that go the better chance of finding the supplies." Jacqui told. "There's paper and some pens in the car. I'll go get them."

"Is she gonna make it?" T-Dog asked.

"Don't ask that." Daryl said. "She's going to be fine."

"She will be." Hershel agreed. "I just need those supplies."

"Someone else should go with you." Dale suggested.

"I'll go." Oscar volunteered.

"Why do ya wanna come?" Daryl asked. "Wanna make a run for it?"

"No man, I want to help." Oscar replied. "Seriously. If ya let me, I can be some help."

"Take him with you." Hershel said. "He'll be good help."

"I'm going too." Addison spoke up. Daryl just eyed her not wanting to say a word.

"It's my fault she's like that. I should help. And if I can kick your ass I can handle anything." She smirked.

"Here, take my bag." Patricia offered.

"Thanks." Addison nodded taking the backpack. Jacqui returned passing the pen and paper off to Hershel. He scribbled down the supplies he needed. Jacqui skimmed over them. She glanced towards Rick before looking back and Hershel and nodding.

"Let's go." Jacqui said. "The map's already in the car. The nearest town shouldn't be too far."

Jacqui, Daryl, Addison, and Oscar took their seats in the vehicle. Jacqui took the driver's seat as Daryl's mind was clouded with thoughts of Emma.

She'll be fine.