Author's Note: This is the second post of the day (or I guess technically in the last 24 hours since the night has slipped away from me). Since it is kind of odd to post two so quickly, please make sure you have read the previous chapter (37) before reading this one.

Chapter 38

-DARYL-

On the second night they'd spent in the woods since their escape from Terminus, Daryl and Carol sat quietly in a small clearing, keeping watch. They each were lost in their own sorrowful thoughts and content with the silence.

Daryl was frustrated. He knew the more time that passed, the less likely he'd be to find Kate. He'd spent days following the signs, sure Kate would be with Glenn and although he was thankful he'd found Rick and the rest of them, he was terrified he'd lost her forever. He'd spent most of today breaking off from the group, trying to cover as much area as possible and looking for any sign of her, but he still felt he should be doing more. He picked a rock up off the ground and threw it angrily into the trees.

"This is so fucked up!" He growled.

Carol didn't seem alarmed at his outburst but instead said calmly, "I was thinking. If Kate and Beth got out with Hershel, they couldn't get too far. Not with Hershel's leg."

Daryl looked at her, his face still twisted in frustration, but he was listening.

"We are headed back towards the prison area. We can keep looking for signs of them on our way, but I don't think they'll be this far out. Once we find a place to stay it'll be easier. I'll help you, we can go out everyday, even camp if we need to."

Daryl thought about it for a second, feeling indescribably grateful that Carol believed there was still a chance and shook his head appreciatively. "A'right."

Carol fell quiet again and stared into space. Daryl watched her closely, resting his chin on the butt of his crossbow, and listening to the crickets. He thought about their time at the prison and how he and Kate had noticed a difference in Carol long before Karen and David and feeling guilty that he hadn't done something about it then.

"What's botherin' you?"

She continued to look off in the distance while he studied her face.

"I don't want to talk about it. I can't." She said finally. "I just need to forget it."

The silence stretched between them as he searched for something to say.

"A'right" He said finally, surrendering to the fact that he was failing her as he'd failed Kate too.

The next morning, Daryl broke off from the group to hunt. They needed to eat, but that wasn't it. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched and he'd shared his concerns with Rick. They decided that Daryl should circle back to the spot they camped last night and look for tracks. He returned with a string of squirrels, but there hadn't been any signs of people in the area. With no reason to stop, the group continued on as planned until a scream for help echoed out of the woods.

The group froze, unsure what to do and fearful they were walking into another trap. Finally Rick reluctantly waved them on and they went running towards the voice.

On top of a large, gray boulder was a priest, surrounded by hungry walkers. He flailed about, kicking frantically at the snarling creatures as his voice continued to beg for anyone to save him. The group advanced, making quick work of the dead until they were littered around the forest floor. The priest looked cautiously down at them from his spot above. He'd stopped screaming, but Daryl got the impression he was as afraid of them as he had been of the walkers.

"Come on down." Rick said. There wasn't a hint of menace in his voice, but the priest still slid off the rock cautiously, as if he was going to his death.

He stood on his feet and looked around at the bloody walkers his eyes wide with terror and his mouth pulled into a grimace.

"You ok?" Rick asked.

The priest held up a single finger before turning his head and vomiting onto the ground.

Father Gabriel's church was small and quaint, nestled in the shade of several Georgia pines and surrounded by a wood post fence. It was white and narrow, with a small steeple and two large oak doors. He was relieved they had found a place to stay, at least for a few nights. He'd been fighting against his instinct to go off on his own. He felt like he was wasting time picking slowly through the woods, but he saw the wisdom in Carol's suggestion. It would be good to have a home base, somewhere they could check in and replenish supplies if they needed to. Gabriel's church was further from the prison area than he'd hoped, but he and Carol had found a car on the side of the road when they were out collecting water and they could take it as far north as the roads would carry them and start their search in earnest.

The first night in the church was a good one for the group. They felt safe within the walls, and their reluctant host had led them to the local food bank. It had been crawling with walkers, but they were able to return with more food than they'd seen since the fall of the prison. Daryl sat sullenly on the hard wooden floor of the church with his back against an oak pew, shoveling a plateful of cold beans into his mouth and trying to ignore Sasha and Bob as they sat cozily across the aisle from him.

Abraham stood, holding up a glass of communion wine and proposing a toast. He blathered on about how he saw them all as survivors, and Daryl eyed him warily. He didn't dislike the man, but he was still trying to figure out what his story was. He knew Abraham had his own agenda and wanted to get Eugene to Washington, D.C., he'd made more than one plea to get back on the road and he and Rosita had spent the majority of the day getting the old church bus up and running. Daryl had a feeling that Abraham's plans would seriously conflict with his and he could feel his hackles rising as the big man launched into his pitch.

"Is that all you want to be? Survivors? Wake up in the morning, fight the undead pricks, forage for food, go to sleep with two eyes open, rinse and repeat? 'Cause you can do that. I mean, you got the strength. You got the skill. Thing is, for you people, for what you can do, that's just surrender. Now, we get Eugene to Washington and he make the dead die and the living will have this world again. And that is not a bad takeaway for a little road trip. Eugene, what's in D.C.?"

Eugene sat on a pew like a lump and in his typical flat affect he replied, "Infrastructure constructed to withstand pandemics even for this fubar magnitude. That means fuel, food, refuge. Restart."

Daryl looked away in frustration, catching Carol's concerned eye and shaking his head.

"However this plays out," Abraham continued. "However long it takes for the reset button to kick in, you can be safe there. Safer than you've been since this whole thing started. Come with us. Save the world. Save it for yourselves. Save it for the people out there who don't got nothing left to do except survive."

"I ain't goin' anywhere without my wife." Daryl growled, getting to his feet and pacing up and down the center aisle. "Man, we're still missin' people. Maggie's father and sister. Rick's daughter. We ain't goin' nowhere until we find them."

"So Daryl's out then." Abraham said, dismissing him quickly and looking around the room hopefully. "Who's gonna get on that bus with us in the morning and ride off to a better tomorrow?"

Like music to Daryl's ears, Maggie added her gentle voice to the debate. "I'm out too. My dad, my sister...Kate might as well be a sister to me. I'm not leaving, not now."

Glenn, at Maggie's side, shook his head in agreement. Abraham looked at Rick, hope and frustration mixed up into one intense look.

Rick looked at Daryl and nodded.

"Daryl's right. We're not leaving them behind. If you're willing to wait, we'll go with you, but not yet. We don't leave our family behind."

"And what if he can't find them. What if, and no disrespect, there is no one left to find."

"She ain't dead." Daryl said firmly, surprised that his voice didn't betray his own fears. "She ain't."

"If they're out there, Daryl'll find them." Rick said confidently. "And then, if you haven't headed out already, we'll go. All of us."

Abraham looked across the room at Daryl and the group held their breath as the two men stared off, waiting to see if the conflict would escalate. Instead, Abraham, his jaw set in frustration, offered up his glass in surrender and found his place next to Rosita in the pews.

Daryl shoved a pack full of water and food into the running car and slammed the trunk down. The exchange with Abraham had worked him up and the uneasiness carried over into his movements, making them quick, but inefficient. Carol stood at the passenger door and watched him walk over to the driver's side and pull up on the handle. It was still locked and he cursed in frustration before reaching his arm into the open window and pulled up the switch.

"You sure you don't want to wait for morning?" Carol asked.

"Naw. No point. Already wasted too much time." He said, falling heavily into the driver's seat and slamming the door shut. Carol nodded and got in.

The road was dark and empty and their headlights lit up the trees at every curve. Occasionally a walker or two would amble into the road and Daryl would swerve around it, but other than that they didn't see a single creature. They drove mostly in silence, both lost in their own troubles and comfortable enough with one another that they didn't feel the need to fill the void. Daryl chewed the inside of his mouth and stared down the road as if it were something to conquer. It had taken him days to make his way from the burning prison to Terminus, but only 6 hours by car. In the old days it would've been even less, but some of the roads were impossible to continue on, abandoned vehicles laying out bumper-to-bumper with the treeline so close to the asphalt it kept them from doing anything but figuring a way to turn around to find a new route. As they drew nearer to the prison, his months of going on runs started to pay off and he knew which highways were clear and which backroads would lead them in the right direction.

He'd been eyeing the gas tank for some time, wondering which would come first: an abandoned vehicle they could syphon from or an empty tank. When the car began to lurch, Daryl figured he had his answer and steered it towards the side of the road, behind a huge wooden sign advertising a firework warehouse. Carol had been sleeping for the last hour and as the car's tires went from blacktop to dirt she woke.

"Outta gas." Daryl explained, putting the car in park and turning the key.

"Where are we?" She said through a yawn.

"Not too far from the prison, 15 miles or so. We got a couple hours before dawn."

"You look tired. We shouldn't be out on foot in the dark. Why don't you try and get some sleep, I'll keep watch."

Daryl complied, leaning the driver's seat back, and demanding she not let him sleep past first light, he threw his arm over his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

The sound of something falling against the hood woke him up and he watched through the windshield as Carol sent her knife through the skull of a walker.

"Hell of a way to start the day." He said as he climbed out of the car, rubbing his face and eyeing the dead at Carol's feet.

"How'd you sleep."

He grunted a reply, as he reached in and popped the trunk. They gathered their supplies and headed off into the gray, misty morning.

The day was long and they covered a lot of ground, but they had nothing to show for their search except a dozen downed walkers and a couple skinny squirrels. They'd combed through neighborhoods and crisscrossed through the tall trees, picking through abandoned camps and houses that had long ago been ransacked for supplies. Like his first few days after the prison fall, Daryl grew more frustrated and hopeless as the day trickled away. He was overwhelmed by the number of neighborhoods they'd have to search through and wondered what Kate and the others could possibly be living on when food in the area was so scarce.

It was nearing sunset when they spotted a figure 50 yards out, a walker's uneven gait. They continued on their path, undeterred by a solitary threat. As they drew nearer, Daryl raised his crossbow and aimed to take it down. His finger was on the trigger and he was about to squeeze it, when the remaining light of the day filtered through the trees and glinted off the blonde hair of the walker. Daryl's gut clenched and the air left his lungs. His bow fell uselessly to the ground. Carol stared at him, bewildered and could only call after him as he took off running across the forest floor.

The walker had its back to him and was moving slowly in the opposite direction. Its clothes were caked in mud and blood, but he thought he could still make out the familiar flower pattern that dotted the blue shirt. He was aware of Carol calling his name, the confusion in her voice giving way to a sorrowful plea. He was almost on the walker when it turned to investigate Carol's calls, its face twisted into a snarl. It spotted Daryl and with outstretched arms and snapping teeth lurched towards him. Even though decay had disfigured the thing's face, he could tell it wasn't Kate. He pulled his knife and buried it deeply into its rotting skull, it fell to the ground with a thud and he sank to his knees beside it.

"Daryl?" Carol came up behind him, her single word full of question.

"It ain't her." He said, his head hanging down low and his voice thick with tears. "I thought...the shirt, the hair. It ain't her."

Carol turned away from him, keeping watch on the woods and giving him some room to collect himself. Finally he rose from the ground, wiping his eyes with the back of his forearm. Carol handed him his crossbow, collected from the spot he'd dropped it and watched him carefully.

"Daryl, why don't we call it a day. It'll be dark soon, we should make camp."

They sat around a tiny fire and roasted the two squirrels. They'd set up a warning perimeter pieced together from rope and a wind chime they'd found in a backyard. Daryl pulled his squirrel from the flames and began to pick at the meat.

"Thanks for comin' out here with me." He said, his mouth full and his eyes not meeting her's. "You didn't have to. You could've stayed with the group, roof over your head and food to eat."

"I don't mind. Not sure I'm ready to be around everyone again, not yet. Besides, Kate made me promise I'd look after you."

Daryl snorted. The idea of being looked after was absurd to him, but it didn't surprise him that Kate would try.

"When you had me looking in on her when you were off fetching medicine for the flu. She was worried about you."

"Kate and her promises." He shook his head, remembering that first promise he made to her when they'd started living at the prison. "Remember that day we had to go rescue Maggie and Glenn at Woodbury?"

"Hard to forget, it was the same day you found me in the tombs. Same day Michonne showed up at the prison."

"Ya. What a fuckin' day." He stared into the flames and remembered. "Kate and me, we weren't nothin' then. But right before we left she comes runnin' up to me, all out of breath and worked up. She starts tellin' me I gotta promise her somethin', that I gotta promise her that I'll come back. I had just spent the last couple of months tellin' myself I was an idiot for letting a prissy girl like that get under my skin, that that was the last sort of woman that would want a man like me, but there she was lookin' scared to death because I was headin' out. And even though I knew I shouldn't, I promised her, even though I knew I might die, I promised her I'd come back."

He stopped then, thinking about how she'd kissed him. How that kiss had given him more hope than anything in his whole life and how close he'd come to blowing it all.

"I always wondered how it began between the two of you." Carol said, a wistfulness in her voice that Daryl didn't miss.

"I'd had nothing for my very own my whole life, nothing good. And then I had her. I should've known it was too good to be true."

"Stop that." Carol said. " You'll find her Daryl, you will."

Daryl eyed her doubtfully, before dropping his stick to the ground and standing to kick dirt onto the fire.

"Get some sleep Carol, I'll take first watch."

The prison loomed in the distance, a crumbling and broken structure. There were still walkers wandering the grounds and the tank sat in the courtyard, a giant reminder of their enemy.

Daryl and Carol stood in the woods a safe distance away and looked at the place they'd once called home.

"Governor had that tank, don't think he could've gotten to us without it."

Carol's mouth was pursed into a tight line. It was hard for Daryl to come back, to see the ruins, but it was the first time Carol had been this close since it fell. Since Rick sent her away. Daryl got the impression she was remembering more than just the good memories, but he kept silent.

They didn't think Kate would have returned, it would've been too dangerous, but it made sense to come back to the last place they'd all been. Maybe she'd think to do the same.

They moved west, following the path of the bus once again and finding it right where Daryl had left it weeks ago. Carol looked sadly at the rotting corpses of people they had lived with.

"Which way did you go? Before."

Daryl pointed in the direction he'd headed that day, when he thought he could easily catch up to them, "That way. Eventually though, I turned back and followed the stream."

"Ok, let's go in the opposite direction of the stream. Cover that area, do you remember if it's more woods or are there neighborhoods?"

"Woods stretch on for a bit, maybe 8 miles or so, then you start seeing some houses. We sent groups out that way on runs a few times. Mostly cleared out"

"Alright. How are you on water?"

Daryl held up his canteen and shook it. "Could use more."

"Me too. Maybe we head to the stream first."

The fast moving creek twisted through the woods and they could hear it long before they approached its muddy banks. The trees that grew alongside it dipped their branches down low until they skimmed the surface of the clear water and large rocks studded the shore. Daryl knelt down and filled his canteen. He watched a hellbender scurry out from under a rock and make its way down the bottom of the creek. He pulled the crossbow off his back and aimed it at the slimy creature.

"I won't eat it." Carol warned, drinking deeply from her water bottle and looking at Daryl with her eyebrows raised in disgust. "I won't."

"Why not?"

She rolled her eyes and sighed, leaning against a boulder inches from the water. A twig snapped somewhere behind them and they wheeled around frantically to find a man making his way out of the trees, a white dog by his side.

"That's far enough." Daryl commanded from behind his crossbow, aimed to kill.

The man raised his hands in submission and followed Daryl's orders. He was tall, but not particularly threatening, and although he looked uncomfortable with having weapons pointed at him, there didn't seem to be any fight in him. His pants were stained with dirt, but he looked like a man who had a regular place to stay.

"Daryl?" The man questioned, testing the name out like it was a foreign word.

"DO I KNOW YOU?" Daryl snarled back.

"Um, no, but I know Kate."

At the sound of her name on another man's lips, Daryl stormed across the few feet that separated them and grabbed the man's jacket in his fist. The man flinched, but made no move to run. The dog growled at his side, but the man hushed him.

"WHERE IS SHE!?" And without giving the man a second to respond he shouted again, grabbing the man tighter and pulling him towards him. "GODDAMMIT! TELL ME WHERE SHE IS."

"She's...she's safe. I'm a friend. She's in a house. I'll take you there."

Daryl's body was heaving with each breath and the adrenaline bubbled out of him angrily.

"How do I know you aren't full of shit?"

"She's with others from your group...and my wife." The man was shaking ever so slightly, but he didn't break eye contact with Daryl. "We've been looking for you."

"Daryl?" Carol said, the only calm voice among them. "Daryl. Let's hear him out."

Daryl's eyes bored holes in the man's skull, but he begrudgingly pushed him away.

"Others from our group?" Carol started the interrogation. "Who else?"

"Hershel, his daughter and the baby." The man said, taking a deep breath and adjusting his clothing.

"How'd you find them?"

"Kate was out looking for him." He said, looking briefly at Daryl before turning his attention back to Carol. "Came onto my property. She was looking for food and water too. We helped her."

Carol caught Daryl's eye and motioned for him to join her. They spoke in low tones, keeping an eye on the man.

"What do you think?" She asked Daryl, squinting. "He seems like he's telling the truth."

"Somethin' ain't right. He said he found her out searchin' for me. Why ain't she here now? Why's she in some house?"

"Why would he be trying to trick us? What could he possibly gain from leading us back to some house?"

"Those people at Terminus sure seemed anxious to keep us around and it wasn't for anythin' good."

"So you think he's a cannibal?" She chided.

"I ain't sayin' that, I just find it weird that some guy walks out of the woods, knows my name and claims to know Kate."

Carol snorted. "She probably just told him to keep an eye out for a grumpy guy in need of a shower and a haircut."

Daryl scowled and looked off towards the man who was squatting down and petting his dog. Uneasy as he was, he knew they would go with him, but that didn't mean he had to let his guard down.

"Why's it just you?" Daryl started. "You said they were back at the house, why'd they let you search for someone you don't know all on your own?"

The man stood and faltered for a second, looking back down at the dog, when he raised his eyes back to Daryl they were apologetic.

"Man, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but it seems like Kate lost her baby."

Daryl didn't respond, his teeth worked at the inside of his mouth and he fought the emotions that threatened to make him lose control.

"Is she ok?" Carol asked with concern.

"I think so, my wife is with her. She has some experience with that stuff."

Carol stepped forward and shook the man's hand.

"I'm Carol. Can you take us to them?"

The trio trudged through the woods, but Daryl was barely aware of his surroundings. Lost in the prison of his mind with pain, guilt and loss over a baby that just a month ago he didn't think he wanted. Carol continued her line of questioning. The stranger's name was Josh and he seemed perfectly willing to answer every question she had, but Daryl was still suspicious. It was hard for him to believe that there was anyone left that would do something so unselfish for a total stranger.

"So Josh, where are we headed?" Carol asked.

"Maybe 10-15 miles south of here, off of route 9. Guess they headed through the woods when they left the prison and stopped at the first house they found."

"Are they all ok? Was anyone hurt?"

"The other girl, Beth, twisted her ankle pretty bad and her old man has a bad leg, right? He was having a hard time getting around out here. Kate was out searching on her own the day I found her."

The thought of Kate being out here on her own panicked Daryl and it must have shown because Josh quickly explained, "She didn't have much choice, they didn't have any food or water. We joined her after that, she wanted to search for you. My wife and I went with her. "

"Why? What do you care?" Daryl spat, finding this man an easy target for his anger. He was having a hard time understanding Josh's motivations and he found it easier to be defensive than to hope.

"If I got seperated from my wife, I would hope someone would help her. Is it so hard to believe someone would want to?"

"We've seen a lot of unkindess lately." Carol explained, shooting Daryl a look that clearly communicated she wanted him to behave himself.

Daryl scowled and scanned the trees.

"It was your vest." Josh said.

"My vest?"

"That's how I knew it was you. Kate said you'd probably have it on. When you turned and pointed that crossbow at my face I was sure. She told us a lot about all of you. She likes to talk."

"That sounds like Kate." Carol agreed.

Daryl didn't respond, just glared at the man.

"Goddamn, I guess it's true what they say." Josh said under Daryl's withering gaze. "Opposites attract."

Carol tried to hide her smile, but Daryl caught it.

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?" He challenged.

"Kate, she's just so different than you, friendly. You're…"

"An asshole?" Carol filled in the word Josh was too cautious to use, a good natured smile on her face.

Josh laughed. "Ya."

"Man, what's your problem?" Daryl demanded, moving aggressively towards the man. Josh's face fell.

"My problem? Look, I know you people have been through hell, but I don't even know you and I'm out here risking my life so you can get back to your wife. Well guess what? I want to get back to my wife too - I left her to find you. So don't be such a dick."

Josh's words were meant to convict, and they hit their mark. This man was his best bet to find Kate and if he wasn't careful, Daryl's self-destructive habits could destroy that chance. He had to make a decision, trust this man and control his anger or go back to searching the woods aimlessly. Daryl nodded his head in understanding and the three of them moved on.

The yellow candlelight flickered and Kate squinted down at the small print,

"Insert the point of the right needle, from front to back, into the stitch just created and under the left needle."

There was a tangle of blue yarn in her lap and knitting needles in her hands. It had been four nights since Josh had gone off in search of Daryl, four nights since she'd lost the baby. She wasn't in pain anymore, at least nothing Advil couldn't take care of. She was still bleeding, but Allison told her that could go on for a couple weeks. The emotional effects were a different story and the pain was compounded by the fact that Daryl was gone. She held out hope that Josh would find him and that kept her from completely giving into the misery that threatened to pull her under.

The night was quiet, they all were. This was a blessing and a curse. They'd managed to keep to themselves in this place they'd been holed up in, but Kate knew it wouldn't last forever. They were all anxious for Josh to return.

Allison had remained with them and Kate glanced over at the couch where the woman was curled up, a large knit afghan thrown over her legs, nicer than anything Kate would be able to produce with her loose and sloppy stitches.

Beth sat in the recliner next to Allison, a soundly sleeping Judith on her chest. She and Allison were talking softly, getting to know one another and Kate could hear Beth talking about her mother. Allison's defenses had fallen away the night Kate miscarried and they'd found her to be incredibly kind and likeable. She did her best to keep her anxiety about Josh's long absence to herself, but Kate could tell with each passing night that her unease grew.

Hershel was on the other side of the couch Kate was on, a candle perched on the table at his side and his nose buried in some book he'd found.

"Hershel, looking at you reading by candlelight with that beard and those suspenders, I could seriously believe we were living in the prairie days."

"More like the wild west." He chuckled, patting the gun at his side. He was still joking, but the twinkle in his eye had dulled and she knew he was dealing with is own fears about the prospects of never seeing Maggie and Glenn again.

Kate turned back to the knitting instructions apathetically. She must be bored if it had come to this. Her grandmother had tried to teach her to crochet once and had quickly given up. She wasn't any good at braiding hair either and she swore it was for the same reason.

The silence of the evening was suddenly shattered by a rhythmic series of knocks on the front door. They were all on their feet in an instance, weapons in hand and alarm written all over their faces, all except Allison's. Instead of panic, a smile had spread across her pretty face.

"Josh!" She said, moving towards the door. "That's Josh's knock."

She scrambled up onto the couch they'd been using as a barrier and looked through the peephole as Hershel and Kate stood cautiously behind her, knives at their side.

"It's too dark, I can't see." Allison complained.

"Allison? Sweetheart, it's me." Josh's muffled voice came through the door and Allison let out a cry of joy and leaped off the couch to push it out of the way.

Kate stood frozen next to Hershel, unable to sort through the feelings that were suddenly buzzing through her body. Afraid to hope, she steeled herself for disappointment, reminding herself that Josh deserved a gracious welcome even if he returned alone.

Allison flung the door open and Josh's towering figure filled the entryway, his arms wrapping around his wife as she flung herself into him. He moved into the house quickly, lifting Allison off her feet and dragging her clear from the door.

Directly behind Josh, standing in the shadows of the dark porch, stood Daryl and Carol. Daryl's crossbow was in his hands and he was craning his neck, trying to see into the house.

At the sight of him, Kate's eyes widened and she brought her hands to her face, covering her mouth and smothering a sob of relief.

"You found him!" She started to smile, but her face crumpled instead and she laughed and cried at the same time as Daryl let his crossbow fall to his side and rushed to her, pulling her to him with such force she lost her breath.

He kissed her and then let his head drop, his lips brushing against her collarbone as he repeated his humble apology again and again.

Her fingers wound their way through the long strands of his hair and the smell of dirt and sweat filled her nostrils as she kissed his head. Her hands grasped onto either side of his face and forced him to look up at her. Her cheeks were wet and her eyes shining with tears, but her smile was wide with relief. She shook her head at him, his apologies were unnecessary, although she should've known he'd find a way to blame himself.

He kissed her again and then pulled away just enough to examine her face.

"The baby?" He asked in a quiet voice.

She felt a frown pull involuntarily at the corners of her mouth and she just shook her head. Daryl's lips formed a tight line and he swallowed hard, pulling her to his chest.