"Daryl! Hey, Daryl…wake up!"

At the touch of Beth's hand on his shoulder, it only took a moment for Daryl to shake off the chains of sleep and sit up. She wasn't panicked, but the undertone of worry in her voice was like a splash of cold water, clearing his mind and focusing his vision on the small blonde at his side. "Tell me."

"You have to come see," she insisted, pulling him by the hand over to the window, where early morning light was painting the sky in pale pink and gold.

But the sunrise wasn't the most noticeable part of the view. The vista before them was marred by a wide column of thick, black smoke off to the east. It obscured the sun and rose up in a greasy pillar to dirty the pristine sky, emanating from some unseen source on the ground. Daryl judged it to be about eight or nine miles away from where they stood watching.

He understood Beth's concern. The year had been a little dryer than normal, and it wasn't hard to imagine how easily a wayward lick of flame could start an inferno in the neglected stands of pine trees blanketing the area surrounding their hideaway. There was also the question of who had started it—and why. From the look of things, the smoke was rising from one fixed location, suggesting that it was a localized burn of some sort rather than a forest fire. But who would start a fire so large? And would they be coming this way next?

As he silently chewed the problem over in his thoughts, Beth stepped closer and leaned against him, waiting patiently for him to speak. Tentatively, he slipped his arm around her waist, drawing her more tightly to his side. It had been a week since they had acknowledged the changing nature of their relationship, but the easy way Beth showed her affection still often caught him off guard with its sweetness. He'd never been the object of anyone's genuine pleasure before. To his brother, he'd been a nuisance. To his mother, a burden. To his father, a scapegoat. But the delight that shone out of Beth's eyes when he was with her was slowly and steadily eclipsing those narratives with a new one. He was the man who loved Beth Green. And in the greatest reversal life had ever thrown at him, she somehow loved him, too.

"Maybe I should get a closer look," he said after a few minutes. "If I go in on foot, I can slip in without bein' seen and find out what's goin' on."

"That's a good idea," Beth nodded. "Ash and I can come along and watch your back."

Daryl opened his mouth to object, but closed it again as he remembered how easily their group had gotten separated after the escape from the prison. If they were in danger, whether from fire or foes, their best chance was to stay together. "Okay, trouble. You can come. But we need to get our packs loaded just in case something happens and we can't come back here for a while."

Beth started for the door, but before she could take a second step, Daryl caught her wrist and pulled her into a hug.

"Good morning," he mumbled into her hair, planting a soft kiss on her temple and inhaling the sweet smell of her skin before finally releasing her to her task. She smiled over her shoulder at him as she left the room, and he did his best to push down the sudden fear that gripped his heart as he thought of leading her back out into the walker-infested darkness.

It was nearly noon when they finally shouldered their packs, secured the gate behind them, and set out walking toward the smoke that was still steadily streaming into the sky. Daryl was thankful for Ash trotting along beside them. As if he knew the danger they were in, the dog's usual playfulness had given way to the wary watchfulness he always displayed when they went outside of the fence.

It was Ash who sensed the presence of the first walker they encountered before it was even close enough for Daryl or Beth to see. His hackles raised, his low growl was quiet, but loud enough to alert Beth, who tugged on Daryl's sleeve and pointed silently in the direction that Ash was looking. Daryl raised his crossbow.

Nothing moved for several seconds, but then a fresh-looking female walker in the tattered remnants of a Ramones t-shirt stumbled out of the trees and made a beeline right for them. Though she was gnashing her teeth, she wasn't reaching out for them, and it wasn't until she went down with Daryl's bolt through her eye that Beth saw that her hands were handcuffed behind her. At the sight of the cuffs, Beth's memory of the "cops" who had tried to take her came rushing back, and she shuddered. Who cuffed this girl? Were there others out there from the same twisted group, hunting down survivors? Before she could voice any of her thoughts aloud, Daryl's hand reached out for hers and squeezed it gently. Looking into his eyes, she saw that the memory of that encounter was also haunting him. They didn't speak of it, perhaps feeling that it was better to say nothing than to cover it with meaningless reassurances of a safety that could never be guaranteed.

Instead, Beth returned Daryl's squeeze, lacing her fingers through his for a moment before releasing him and turning away to take point as they crossed the field, Ash sniffing along at her side.

Due to their cautious pace and frequent stops to take down walkers or navigate around obstacles, the sun was low in the sky as they drew nearer to their destination. They had left the fields behind and were slowly working their way through woods dense with underbrush. Soon it would be too dark to see the smoke or to pick out a safe path over the dead leaves and past the tangled branches. They weren't going to solve the mystery tonight. It was time to find a place to hole up until morning. Daryl's eyes swept the woods as they walked, squinting into the fading light. Beth assumed he was looking for something with four walls, so when they passed up a flimsy shed without checking it out, she was puzzled, but she held her peace. Finally, Daryl stopped her with a hand on her arm and pointed up into the forest canopy. "There."

She couldn't tell what she was seeing at first, but as they got closer, she could make out a small platform suspended high up in the crook of a strong tree. There were short pieces of lumber nailed to the trunk beneath it to form a ladder.

"What is it? A treehouse?" Beth asked. She came from farmers, not hunters, so Daryl had to explain to her what a deer blind was.

"So you just sit up there and shoot at things?" she teased, a smirk playing across her lips. "That doesn't sound very sportsmanlike. Those poor deer probably never even see it coming."

"Well, let's hope it lets us see what's coming," he said with a wry grin, and she instantly sobered. Sliding her machete into the sheath hanging from her belt, she gripped one of the rungs and started climbing. Daryl followed after her.

Standing on the platform, Beth thought it seemed even smaller than when she'd been looking at it from down on the ground. "What should we do with our bags?" she asked as Daryl heaved his body up onto the stand. There was a single rail made of two by fours running around the perimeter of the platform. Daryl secured his bag and Beth's to it with a short piece of rope and hung them down over the side. They held on to their weapons.

"You okay down there, Ash?" Beth said quietly, peering down at the ground. The dog looked up at her, wagging his tail. Fishing around in his pack, Daryl located a wrapped piece of dried venison. He pulled off the paper and tossed the chunk down to Ash, who promptly picked it up in his teeth and retreated to the safety of the concealing shadows under a nearby juniper bush.

"I guess that takes care of Ash," Daryl chuckled. "Are you gettin' hungry?"

"I could eat," she said, scooting closer to him until her knee was pressed against his. She peered into his pack. "What's for dinner, Mr. Dixon?"

They both slept that night, trusting in their hidden position and the presence of Ash on the ground below to keep them safe from unwelcome surprises. The tiny platform was just long enough for Daryl to stretch out, but barely wide enough for two, so they slept curled together like two spoons. Not that Beth minded.

Sleeping outside again felt at once familiar and strange after weeks in a real bed. Beth lay still, Daryl's warmth coiled around her, and watched the stars winking at her through the shifting leaves above and around them. The small noises of the forest filled the silence: crickets softly chirping, leaves rustling in the breeze, the branches of the tree creaking a little as it swayed. They washed over her and lulled her, and she felt the tension seep out of her muscles for the first time all day. Just as she was on the cusp of sleep, Daryl's low voice spoke from the darkness behind her.

"Beth, you asleep?"

"Not yet," she whispered.

There was a moment of silence in which Beth wondered if that was all he was going to say, but then he continued, sounding so uncertain and worried that she longed to turn over and look into his eyes. Unfortunately, there was no room for that kind of maneuver, so all she could do was slip her hand into his where he had draped his arm over her to hold her close.

"Listen, Beth, I don't know what we're gonna find tomorrow. I don't know if we're walkin' into a trap or if we'll get mowed down by a random herd of walkers."

Beth opened her mouth to speak, but he preempted her.

"I know you're gonna say that we never know whether we'll have tomorrow. Believe me, I heard it the last few times you said it."

She smiled in amusement. She could almost hear him rolling his eyes.

"What's that phrase people used to use before? Gettin' their affairs in order? Well, if somethin' happens to me, I want to make sure you know the important things."

What is he talking about? wondered Beth. He already trained me on the crossbow, and I'm nearly as good as he is at finding shelter and killing walkers.

Daryl's arm tightened across her midsection, and he must have leaned in closer, because she suddenly felt his warm breath brushing against her ear. She could feel her heart thudding in her chest.

"I love you, Beth Green," Daryl whispered.

Tears welled up in Beth's eyes and slid down the side of her face into her hair.

Daryl went on, "I ain't never said that before. Not to anybody. And even though it's probably obvious how I feel about you, I… I just wanted to make sure you knew. That's all."

Beth pulled Daryl's hand up to her face and pressed a tender kiss to his knuckles. "Me too," she said, smiling into the night sky. Then, as an afterthought, "And nothin' better happen to you, do you hear me, Daryl Dixon?"

Daryl chuckled quietly and pulled Beth's hair out of the way so he could touch his lips to the back of her neck. She hummed in pleasure.

"You're lucky there's not much room to move around up here," he teased, resuming his position as the big spoon and pulling the blanket up over both of them.

Within minutes, they were both asleep.

Beth woke to the startling sensation of a hand pressed over her mouth. Before she could react, Daryl's familiar whisper breathed into her ear. "Don't. Move."

She froze, her eyes flicking around wildly as she tried to locate the source of the danger. The palest streaks of dawn were starting to show through the leaves, but the forest was still deeply shadowed. The sound of footsteps rustling across the forest floor below made her blood run cold. Then she heard the voices.

"When we find them, nobody touches the sheriff. He's mine," came a growl from not very far away. "I owe him for this." The voice was tight with rage.

Sheriff? Could it be…?

Daryl must have had the same thought, because she felt his body go tense behind her.

The sound of hocking and spitting was followed by another voice, this one with the thickest southern drawl Beth had ever heard. "Wahl, I want a few minutes with the purty one. She had some fight in 'er, she and that man o' hers." He laughed darkly. "Didja see how mad that chink got when I pushed her into the boxcar? Maybe I'll make him watch."

Beth had to squeeze her lips tight against a gasp. Are they talking about Maggie? Her stomach flipped over at the casual way the man spoke of his horrific plans.

"Now, you know we don't play with our food, Randall," the first voice chided.

Randall grunted. "Jus' seems a waste is all. Ain't that many good lookin' women left in the world now. 'Sides, wouldn't damage the meat none."

Beth felt her gorge rise at the implications of what she was hearing. Just when she thought mankind had reached its lowest ebb, the living kept proving her wrong. She grasped Daryl's hand tightly and felt his answering squeeze of comfort.

The sound of footsteps slowly passed by their hiding place and receded into the forest. When the light of dawn had grown golden and they could no longer hear anything but the sounds of the forest around them, Daryl sat up, pulling Beth up beside him. She turned to face him, and for a long moment, they just stared into each other's haunted eyes.

She was the first to speak.

"Do you think…?" she started.

"Yeah. I do," Daryl replied to her unfinished question. "It's gotta be them."

The hope of seeing her sister again flared within her. "Daryl, we have to find them! We have to find them before—"

"We will," he said firmly, "but we have to be smart about it. Those men are dangerous. And I counted seven of them."

"How did you do that?" Beth asked in astonishment.

Daryl pointed to his ear with a smirk. "I ain't taught you everything I know yet."

Beth grinned, but refused to be sidetracked from the mission at hand. "What do we need to do? How will we find the others? We have to go now!" Every beat of her heart filled her with urgency now that they had a lead on their people.

"First we have to do some pokin' around and find out what we can about who we're up against. Let's go check out that smoke."

He untied their packs, then climbed down so he could catch them when Beth dropped them. Soon they were geared up and ready to go again. Ash bounded out of the woods and fell into step beside them.

"Good boy," Daryl said warmly, bending to scratch him behind the ears. "Ash here heard our visitors before I did and woke me up with a bark or two before he took off for deeper cover." He reached into the side pocket of his pack and pulled out a piece of beef jerky for the dog. "You sure are a smart one, aren't ya?"

Beth stood back and watched them, thankfulness welling up inside of her. She couldn't say why, but she just knew that they were going to find their people and get them back safe. She said a silent prayer, shouldered her pack, and bumped Daryl's hip with hers.

"Saddle up, cowboy. Let's do this."