They were riding in the back of the cube van, nerves now calm after escaping the dead city.
Alice slept in Miri's arms as Andrea sat next to them and told Miri about her sister, Amy, and how she use to watch her show.
"She's gonna freak when she meets you, Carol too." Andrea's smile widen as she talked about her sister. "I think they talked all day once about the show and how something happened to it."
"Yeah, the writers just couldn't think of anything so we had to make a finale and end the show." Miri smiled sadly. "I loved doing that show and felt sad about ending it but it's given me more opportunities."
"Weren't you dating that guy that you worked with?" Jacqui tapped her finger against her chin, trying to remember his name. "The one that played the main guy."
Miri nodded. "I was dating him, but I broke up with him the day I left Australia."
"Your daughter is adorable." Andrea looked at Alice, giving a small smile. "How old is she?"
Miri laughed. "She isn't my daughter. I helped save her when I was passing by, looking for supplies pass my normal area." She ran her fingers through Alice's hair. "The men in the group… they were dragging her mother away for... in a different part of the house area." She paused, anger filling her voice. "And just leaving Alice alone in the streets for the walkers."
"Wow…" Jacqui, Andrea, and T-dog were listening to the story.
"I put her in a car and went to help her mom but they ended up taking her to a room where there was a man holding a walker." She looked down at Alice. "It had eaten her mother. Those monsters raped and let a walker eat her when they finish with her. I did the only thing I could think at the time." She reached for the machete on her belt. "I kicked the walker to one of the men, he wasn't paying attention and ended up getting attack while I attacked his friend. I grabbed this knife from the man's belt and threatened to kill him if he did not let me go."
"He agreed?"
She shook her head. "No. He opened his mouth to scream for more help but I got to him first." She put the machete back on her belt. "I stabbed him. I did not even think twice about it. My only thoughts were to get the little girl away from these people." She shifted Alice in her arms. "I ended up breaking into one of their cars, going back to the house area they were staying in to get my bag, and I drove quickly to where they wouldn't find me. I wasn't that far from my brother's house by car, so I stayed there." she licked her dry lips. "Apparently the walker and the guy he ate attacked the small group while they were sleeping."
Andrea smiled softly at the sleeping Alice. "She's lucky to have you."
The sound of a car alarm near the truck caught everyone's attention and they knew it was Glenn by the big whoop he let out. They drove until they came to a stop.
Morales looked to the siblings. "Come and meet everybody."
Everyone exited the truck except Rick, Alice and Miri.
Rick got up from his seat and crouched down near them. His eyes look so sad and tired. "I thought they'd be at Atlanta…" He exhaled sadly. "I really did."
"We both did." Miri gave him an understanding look and he hugged her head into his shoulder.
"Are we there yet?" Alice mumbled sleepily.
"Yeah, we're here. Come on, we gotta get out." Rick helps them both up and got their now full duffle bag.
Morales called out to them. "Hey, Copter crew! Come say hello!"
Rick jumps down from the back first before helping Miri down.
"It's okay. I got her, go meet the people."
Rick nodded and kissed her head before walking around the corner.
She had just put Alice down onto the floor when she heard someone yelled out 'DAD!' She took Alice's hand and the bags and turned the corner, nearly falling to the ground from the shock.
There was Rick hugging Carl.
"Carl?" She called out softly.
Carl looked up and saw her. He jumped out of his father's arms and ran to her. "Aunt Miri!"
She cried as she dropped to her knees and cried even more as they hugged each other. She pulled her face away from his shoulder and started to attack his face with kisses.
Carl screamed 'no' and tried to move away, but was laughing. "My little man!" She yelled as she attacked him with even more kisses, everyone starting to laugh at the scene. She stopped and turned to see Alice there, looking nervous at all the new people around. "Carl, I want you to meet Alice. I'm taking care of her now."
"Like her mom?"
"Yeah," She smiled "Like her mom. Alice this is my nephew, Carl."
Alice waved shyly.
"Do you want to play?" Carl asked her.
Alice looked at Miri to Carl. "Is it okay?"
"Of course, just stay where I and anyone else can see you, okay? And Carl," She stopped them from running off. "Please take care of her."
Carl nodded and held Alice's hand. "Okay, I will!" Carl and Alice ran off, with her leaving Miri with her backpack.
She stood up and walked to where Rick had his arm around a teary eyed Lori and a shocked looking Shane.
Lori quickly attacked her in a hug, which she gladly returned. "We thought you died! We saw a blonde go down and thought it was you, Shane had to push me into the car just so I wouldn't go after you."
"I got separated when there was a giant crowd going to their cars and driving away, by the time I noticed where I was, you guys were gone and I was away from the house." Lori pulled away and wiped her face, going back to Rick.
"Hey Miri." Shane said with a goofy grin.
"Shane." She hugged him tight. "Thanks for protecting Lori and Carl."
"No problem." He patted her back and they pulled away. "Missed you guys."
"We missed you guys too." She smiled at Shane when Andrea came over. "Hey Andrea."
"Hey, you remember talking about Amy?" she had a smirk on her face.
"Yeah, your sister, what about her?" She gave her a confused look.
"Well she didn't recognize you since Carl covered your face. I want to surprise her. Do you think you can come with me please?" she gave the other blonde a hopeful smile.
She laughed, "Sure, let me just move my bags from the ground."
"It's okay, I got them. Just come to me when you're done meeting the camp." Shane told Miri while walking to the bags.
"Thanks Shane!" She ran off with Andrea to where a pretty blonde-haired woman and a woman with short grey hair were sitting by the fire talking while folding clothes. "Want me to just go up to them?"
"Yes!" she pushed her forward.
Miri laughed under her breath as she walked towards the women. She sat down on a log next to them so they were across from each other. "Hi, my name is Miranda Grimes, but you can call me Miri, please." They noticed she was there and looked shocked. "You must be Amy?" She pointed to the blonde. All Amy did was nod. She turned to the other woman. "And you're Carol?" she nodded too but she was smiling widely. "I heard you guys saw my show and are fans, very nice to meet you." she shook their hands.
"Oh my God…" Amy mumbled. "How do you know us?"
Miri pointed to where Andrea was. "I met your sister while I was in the city with my brother and my little girl. On the way over here, she told me that you guys are fans."
Andrea walked over laughing at her sisters shocked face. "Like your surprise?"
Amy bobbed her head up and down.
"Hey, Miri?"
She turned around and saw it was Glenn standing by an older man with a white beard and a fishing hat. "Hey Glenn." She stuck her hand out to the older man. "Hello, my name is Miranda, but you can call me Miri."
The man smiled and he reminded her of her stepfather with his kind looking face. "My name is Dale, pleasure to meet you."
"Anyways, I wanted to tell you that Dale here has an extra tent and sleeping bags in his RV. There were some people that left their stuff here, so he wants to give you a tent and sleeping bags."
"Really?" She turned to Dale.
"Yes." He smiled and patted her shoulder. "You and your little girl need a place to sleep."
"Thank you so much." Dale waved goodbye and walked to a RV.
"I'll get you the stuff now, hold on." Glenn ran to the RV.
Miri sat with the women, talking about the life here and they would ask her stuff about filming the show.
"Have you ever gotten injured while filming?" Amy asked.
She started to think of her time on set. "There have been a couple of bumps and bruises. I remember I had some chili peppers explode in my eyeballs once, which was really painful. They did little fake explosions during shootouts, as if the bullets are hitting the walls around you. We were in a marketplace, where they had fruits and vegetables and dried chilies in a basket. A 'bullet' exploded and chili pepper dust flew into my eyeballs. I had the run the rest of the way blind."
The women hissed in pain at the thought of chili pepper dust in their eyes.
"I got your stuff, Miri. Need any help?" She turned around and saw Glenn holding stuff for a tent and two sleeping bags.
"I can do it Glenn, don't worry, but can you watch Alice for me?" Glenn nodded and walked off, looking for Alice.
Miri took her dark green and sliver tent and put it in a free spot, across from a dark blue and silver tent that had some cameo stuff around it.
She quickly set up the tent and put the sleeping bags inside. Next, she went to hunt down Shane so she could get her bags. When she got them, she was on her way to the tent when Alice came up to her.
"Is that our tent?" she pointed to the tent, excited.
"Yup, go in and choose a sleeping bag." Alice ran into the tent. Miri walked in and saw Alice was on the black and orange sleeping bag that was on the left side of the tent.
"I pick this one!"
"Good." Miri put her bag at the end of the sleeping bag and put her bags at the end of her burgundy and black sleeping bag.
"Miri?"
"Hmm?" she hummed as she looked through the back pack.
"Are we staying here now?"
She looked at Alice and saw she was sitting on her sleeping bag hugging Burnie, who was safely in her book bag during the travel. "Yeah, do you like it here?"
Alice nodded excitedly. "There are other kids here, and people! It's weird to see so many people!"
"But it's nice." She told her as she set up the dome gear loft above them in the center of the tent. She tested the gear loft to see if it would stay before she went into the bags to put the items in. She pulled the small hygienic things they had gotten at the department store.
"Hey Miri?" Lori called out from outside the tent.
"Come in! I'm just putting stuff together."
Lori unzipped the doorway of the tent and walked in. "Hey! I was just wondering if us girls go down to the lake and take a swim." Lori fanned herself. "This heat is killing me."
"I want to finish setting everything up, but Ali," She turned to look at Alice. "Do you want to go with Lori and the girls to take a dip?"
"Yeah!" she said enthusiastically.
The women laughed. "Alright, get some clothes and underwear, I'll be back to get you with my clothes and a towel for you." Lori said before she left.
Alice started to search through her bag, clothes flying everywhere.
"Hey! Keep the tent clean!" Miri said as a shirt hit her face.
"Sorry!" Alice took back the shirt and put the clothes she was taking on her sleeping bag and tried to neatly put the other clothes back into the bag.
"I'm back!" Lori called into the tent.
Alice took her clothes, gave Miri a hug and kiss on the cheek and went out with Lori.
Miri looked around the tent, and noticed the bow case.
'I should set up the bow now, since I have time…'
Miri walked out the tent hours later satisfied with herself for putting the bow together with a smile on her face. It was near dark when she left the tent to see everyone sitting around the fire.
Alice was the first to see her, jumping up and pulling her over to the fire with everyone.
"Hey, we were wondering if you were alive in there." Andrea joked as she handed her a knitted blanket.
"Sorry," She laughed as Alice sat in between her legs as she hugged her, wrapping them both in the blanket to keep them warm. "Was off with the faeries." She joked, only Rick, Lori, Carl and Shane understanding the small joke.
"You came in right as dad was talking about him waking up." Carl then turned to his father. "Tell the story, dad."
Rick messed with his son's hair, "Sure." He paused as he started to remember what happened. "I felt so disoriented, I guess that comes closest." He looked at Lori who was cuddled up next to him as Carl was in between his legs as Alice was in Miri's. Miri looked around the group and saw everyone was looking at Rick, interested in the story, expect for Shane. He just kept staring at Lori. She didn't question it and turned back to Rick. "Disorientated. Fear, confusion all those things, but disorientated comes closest."
"Words can be meager things. Sometimes they fall short." Dale said as he put his cup down.
"I felt like I was ripped out of my life, put somewhere else. For a while, I thought I was trapped in some coma dream, something I might now wake up from, ever. However, when I found Miri in the house, she told me you guys went to Atlanta. So we decided to come and find you."
Carl looked up at his father. "Mom said you died." He commented softly.
Rick looked over at Lori to Carl before smiling softly at his son. "She had every reason to believe that. Don't you ever doubt it."
Lori flashed her eyes to Shane for a moment out of the corner of her eye, trying to be sneaky but Miri saw. "When things started to get really bad, they told me at the hospital they were gonna med-evac their patients to Atlanta, but it never happened."
"Not surprised since Atlanta fell. And from the look of that hospital, it was over run."
"Looks don't deceive." Shane's raspy voice called their attention. "I barely got people out of there."
"I cannot tell you how grateful I am to you, Shane." Rick smiled at Shane. "I can't even begin to express it." Shane didn't smile or say anything.
"There goes words falling short again." Dale said trying to lighten the mood.
Alice cuddled into Miri, trying to stay warm when crackling was heard from next to them.
Miri looked over and saw Carol hugging a young girl with short blonde hair. A mean looking man had put a log into the fire, making it crackle.
"Ed, you wanna re-think that log?" Shane said in his cop voice.
"It's cold, man." The man named Ed said as he sat back own into his chair.
"Cold don't change the rules, does it? Keep our fires low, just embers so we don't be seen from a distance, right?"
"I said its cold." Ed commented back. "Why don't you mind your own business for once?"
Shane got up and walked over to Ed. "You sure you want to have this conversation, man?"
Ed instructed Carol to pull it out. Ed glares as Shane bids Carol and their daughter Sophia good evening. More thunder boomed as Shane walked back to the group.
"Has anyone given thought to Daryl Dixon?" Dale asked everyone. "He won't be happy to hear his brother got left behind."
"Merle had a brother?" Miri asked the group.
"Yeah, he's out huntin' now, he's the one that provides us with meat." T-dog informed her. He sighed and rubbed his face. "I'll tell him. I dropped the key, so it's on me."
"I cuffed him," Rick said. "That makes him mine."
"Guys," Glenn cut in. "It's not a competition. I don't mean to bring race into this, but it might sound better coming from a white guy."
T-dog looked away. "I did what I did. Hell if I'm gonna run from it."
"We could lie." Amy lifted her head from her sister's shoulder.
"Or tell the truth." Andrea shook her head. "Merle was way out of control. Something had to have been done or he would've gotten us killed." She turned to Lori. "Your husband did what was necessary. And if Merle got left behind, it is nobody's fault."
Dale didn't like that idea. "And that's what we tell Daryl? I don't see a rational discussion to be had from that, do you?" Andrea put her head down. "Word to the wise, we're going to have our hands full when he gets back from his hunt."
Miri pulled Alice closer to her to keep her warm when T-dog spoke. "I was scared and I ran. I'm not ashamed of it."
"We were all scared, we all ran, we're not ashamed either." Miri told him.
"What's your point?" Andrea asked him.
"I stopped long enough chain that door." Everyone looked at T-dog confused as he continued. "Staircase is narrow, probably half a dozen geeks can squeeze against it at one time. It's not enough to break through there." T-dog shook his head. "Not that chain, not that padlock." He took a breath. "My point, Dixon's alive, and he's still up there, handcuffed on that roof. That's on us." He gets up and leaves, grabbing his sore side tenderly.
Miri felt Alice slowly relax against her. "I better put this one to sleep." She said goodnight to everyone as she carried Alice away and tucked her into her sleeping bag after she took off her shoes and placed Burnie in her arms.
She untied her laces to her boots and pulled them off, flexing her toes. She went into her sleeping bag and knocked out, the sound of thunder not bothering her.
Miri ran her fingers through her wet hair, scrubbing the shampoo into her hair. The smell relaxed her as she rinsed it off, taking the sweat and dirt that gathered from the stressful time in the city. She grabbed the conditioner and massaged it into her scalp. She washed off the bubbles and started to rinse off her hair.
There was three soft knocks on the door.
She turned off the water and got a towel, wrapping it around her. "Yes?" She called out as she opened the folding door a bit so they could see her face. She saw Carol with a soft smile on her face.
"Hello Miri, I was wondering if you have any clothes that need washing. We're going to wash clothes in a few."
"Thank you, Carol." Miri beamed a smile at her. "I do have some clothes, not a lot, just some of mine and Alice's." She bent down and gave her the dirty clothes she used. "Is my brother awake?"
Carol shook her head as she took the clothes and put it into a basket on the floor. "We're letting him sleep in, he needs in. We're surprised you're awake."
"I've always been an early raiser." Miri laughs. "I'll be right out, I have to test out my new bow."
Carol bent down and got the basket and started to walk to the door of the RV. "Okay, enjoy your shower!"
Miri put on her clothes before walking out of the bathroom and out of the RV. "Thank you Dale for the shower." She called to the top of the RV, where he almost always was.
"No problem!" Dale waved at her and went back to look out.
She grabbed her bow and started to gear up. She put on the leather arm bracer on her left wrist and put the shooting glove on her right hand, thankfully Gus had small hands. She pulled an arrow from the leather quiver that was strapped to her back. She placed the arrow on the string and pulled the string back. She remembered her training and stood with her feet shoulder width apart with her left leg slightly forward, kind of like a fighting stance. She pulled the string back to the point where her middle finger touched the corner of her mouth, her anchor point. As soon as her finger touched the side of her mouth, she relaxed the back of her hand, releasing the string and let the arrow fly.
She put her bow down and looked to see where her arrow hit. She managed to hit a poor squirrel in the middle of its body. She went over to the arrow and pulled it from the tree, pulling the poor animal with the arrow. "Poor thing, I didn't know you'd run in the way." She told the dead squirrel.
"Nice shot." She turned around and saw Shane. "Didn't know you could shoot a bow."
"Had to learn for a movie, wanted to do my own stuff, you know?" She shrugged her shoulders.
Shane clapped. "You're good though."
"Thanks." She smiled at him and showed him the small animal. "What do I do about this little guy?"
"You could give him to Jacqui, she's learned how to gut them since the Dixons like to bring squirrel and other animals for meat to camp." They walked over to Jacqui, who quickly started to gut it.
She was going to go back to her spot and start shooting arrows again when she saw Glenn walk by her with a pout on his face. "Glenn? What's wrong?"
He shook his head and told her to follow him. They walked towards the RV until she saw what made Glenn sad. They were stripping his new stolen car for parts. They watched in silence as it was being stripped away. Miri felt a hand touch her upper back, making her turn her head and saw it was Rick. She patted his back in return as Glenn spoke, not looking at them.
"Look at them," he motioned to Dale, Jim, and Morales stripping away the car. "Vultures." He grumbled. "Yeah go on, strip it clean." He told them.
Dale had a full tank of gas in his hand as walked by. "Generator need very drop of fuel we can get," he patted Glenn's shoulder as he walked by. "Ain't got no power without it, sorry Glenn."
"I could've at least driven it a few more days." He grumbled.
"Maybe we'll get to steal another one someday." Miri patted his back and went to go look for Alice. She must've looked around camp when suddenly she heard the kids screaming. She ran towards the screaming and saw Alice standing near Carl and Lori. "Ali!" She screamed to her. Alice ran at her and she hugged her. She looked passed her and saw Dale chopping the head off of the walker. She heard some rustling near them and readied her bow, just in case it was another walker. She moved Alice towards Lori was as she got closer to the rustling.
A man in a sleeveless t-shirt emerged from the woods with a crossbow and jumped back slightly when he saw an arrow aimed at his face and the others pointing their guns at him.
"Ah, damnit." Shane motioned for everyone to put their weapons down.
The man relaxed and looked over at the dead deer that the walker was chewing on. "Son of a bitch. That's my deer! Look at it. All gnawed on by this... filthy, disease-bearing, motherless proxy bastard!" he kicked the body of the walker with every word, a nasty swishing noise sounded every time he kicked it.
"Calm down son, that isn't helping." Dale tried to calm the man.
The guy snapped his head in his direction and stomped over to Dale. "What do you know about it old man? Take that stupid hat and go back onto 'On Golden Pond'." He turned back to the deer and started to pull the arrows from its body. "Been tracking this deer for miles. Drag it back to camp, cook us up some venison." He went over to the neck, where the walker had started to eat from. "Do you think? Do you think we could cut around the chewed up part right here?"
"Let's not risk that" Shane told him.
The man, Daryl, sighed. "That's a damn shame. Well I got some squirrel, about a dozen or so. That'll have to do."
Low rasping came from the floor. "Oh God." Andrea moved her sister away from the moving head.
"Come on people, you gotta-" Daryl readied his crossbow, ready to kill it but was cut off by it being killed by an arrow. "The hell?"
Miri walked over and placed her boot on its head and pulled the arrow out. "It's scaring the kids." She wiped the blood on the walker's shirt before putting it into her back quiver.
Daryl walked passed them and started to call for Merle. "Merle! Merle! Get your ugly ass out here! Got us some squirrel, stew them up." He put down his crossbow. The others followed him.
"Daryl, slow up a bit man." Shane called out to Daryl, making him slow down. "Need to talk to you."
"About what?"
"About Merle." Daryl stopped and watched Shane like a hawk. "There-uh-there was a problem in Atlanta."
Daryl looked at everyone, mostly Rick and Miri since he didn't recognize them. He turned back to Shane. "He dead?"
"Not sure." Shane told him.
"Either he is or he ain't!" Daryl yelled at him as they circled each other.
"There's no easy way to say this, so I'll say it." Rick walked up to Daryl.
"Who the hell are you?" Daryl squinted his eyes at Rick.
"I'm Rick Grimes."
"Rick Grimes." He said mockingly. "You got something you wanna to tell me?"
"Your brother was a danger to us all." Rick told him calmly, use to this type of attitude from years of being a cop. "So I handcuffed him to a pipe on the roof. He's still there."
"Hold on, let me process this." Daryl wiped the sweat from his eyes. "So you handcuffed my brother to the roof? And you left him there?!"
"Yes." Rick told him in a low voice.
Daryl frowns but then throws the string of dead squirrels at Rick, who dodged them and Miri caught them. Daryl went to attack Rick when Shane side tackled him, knocking him to the ground. Daryl pulled a knife from his belt.
"No!" Miri panicked and moved to disarm him before he stabbed her brother. She held onto his hand and pressed a muscle on his inner forearm, making his hand go weak. She pulled the knife from his hands before Shane held him in a sleeper hold.
"Miri!" Rick yelled. "Move away!"
"You best let me go!" Daryl struggled against Shane as Shane moved him away from her so he could not kick her. "Hey! Choke-hold's illegal!"
"You can file a complaint." Shane grunted, as he still held onto Daryl tighter.
"Shane, you're going to knock him out, loosen the grip a bit." Miri told Shane as she saw Daryl trying to take in some breaths and was turning purple.
Shane did as she said and Daryl finally took in some air, looking at Miri from the corner of his eye, but he stopped looking when Rick knelled in front of him.
"I'd like a calm discussion on this matter. Do you think we can have that?" Rick asked him, but Daryl was busying taking big gulps of air. "Do you think we can manage that?" Rick asked him again. Shane and Rick looked at each other and nodded. Then Shane pushed Daryl onto the floor and moved far away from him. Daryl glared at him until Rick pulled his attention. "What I did was not on a whim. Your brother does not work and play well with others."
"It's not Rick's fault." T-dog said, gaining everyone's attention. "I had the key… I dropped it." He looked down guilty.
"You couldn't pick it up?!" Daryl yelled at him as he took deep breaths.
"I dropped it in a drain." T-dog still looked down.
Daryl snored in anger and got up with some dirt in his hand. He threw it to the side as he walked away. "If that's supposed to make me feel better, it don't!"
"Maybe this will." T-dog said making Daryl stop walking and listen to him. "I chained the door to the roof so the geeks won't get at him, with a padlock."
"That's got to count for something." Rick told Daryl.
Daryl looked like he was going to cry but changed his face to anger. "Hell with all of y'all!" his voice shook a bit. "Just tell me where he is, so I can go get him."
"He'll show you." Lori said softly, looking at Rick. "Ain't that right?"
Rick looked at Lori for a couple of moments. "I'm going back." Rick pledges.
Lori went back into the RV and Daryl walks by them.
Miri started to walk to her tent and saw Daryl was the other tent across from her. She remembered that she still had his knife and went over to him.
"What do you want?" he snapped at her.
"I came to return your knife." She spun the knife around so she could hand it to him by the handle. "Here."
He looked at the knife to her a couple of times, wondering why she came back to give it to him, until he took the knife. He watched as she gave him a small smile and walk to the tent across from him. So she was new. She had to be, he'd remember her and her accent since he'd never heard it before around Georgia.
Miri pulled on button down shirt and rolled up the sleeves passed her elbows. She planned on going with Rick. She placed one of her guns in the holster on her thigh and put her hair in a messy bun because of the heat. She put the extra ammo in her back pocket and stepped out of the tent. She moved over to the RV, where everyone was.
"We left him up there like an animal caught in a trap. That's no way for anything to die, let alone a human being." Rick told Shane.
"So you and Daryl? That's your big plan?" Lori asked.
Rick didn't say anything as he turned to Glenn, a look in his eyes that made Glenn quickly realize what he wanted.
Glenn groaned. "Oh, come on!"
"You know the way. You've been there before, in and out. No problems, you said so yourself." Glenn took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. "It's not fair for me to ask, I know, I'd feel a lot better with you along, I know they would too." He turned and pointed to Lori and Miri.
"So what? You're gonna risk three men's lives?" Shane asked annoyed.
"Four." T-dog spoke up.
Daryl scuffed. "Great, my day just keeps getting better and better." Daryl went back to cleaning his arrows.
"You see anyone else stepping up to save your brother's cracka ass?" T-dog told him.
"Me." Miri stepped forward.
"What?" Rick asked, spinning around to face Miri.
"I'm not letting you get out of my sight, Rick." She stepped forward and crossed her arms.
Rick walked over to her and looked at her in the eyes. "Miranda," She scrunched her nose. "You don't have to go with us."
"She ain't going, Rick!" Shane yelled behind him. "Don't let her go."
She never took her eyes from Rick as she spoke to Shane. "Shane, this is between my brother and I, and I am going." She smirked at Rick. "You really think I'm just going to let you go without me?"
Rick sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "You're so damn stubborn, Miri."
She laughed lightly. "It's a Grimes trait, I believe."
"Fine." Rick agreed, when Shane went to go fight him to go against it, he stopped him. "She's a grown woman, Shane. She knows how to shoot and take care of herself. Hell, we've seen her take care of others." Shane sighed but didn't fight back.
"That's five." Dale said
"It's not just five, you're putting every single one of us at risk, just know that Rick, and you're letting your own sister go into that infested city!" Shane huffed. "You saw that walker, it was here, and it was in camp! If they move out of the cities and into the camp, we'll need everybody we got, and we need them here. To protect camp."
"Seems to me what you really need are more guns." Rick told Shane.
"The guns!" The group looked at Miri as she started to ramble. "The guns that we left by the tank when we were attacked! They have to still be there!"
Shane raised an eyebrow at her. "What guns?"
"Six shotguns, two high powered rifles, and about a dozen handguns. We cleaned out the station before we left. I dropped the bag in Atlanta when we got swarmed." Rick listed off the guns.
"It's just there on the street, waiting to be picked up." Miri popped her hip out to put her weight on her right leg.
"Ammo?"
"About a hundred rounds." Rick told him.
"You went through hell to find us, you-you just got here and you're just gonna turn around and leave?" Lori asked Rick.
Wasn't it her idea for Rick to show Daryl where his brother is?
"Dad? I don't like the idea." Carl said in a low voice. "I don't want you and aunt Miri to go."
"To hell with the guns, Shane is right. Merle Dixon? He's not worth one of your lives, even with guns thrown in." Lori stood up as Rick walked closer to her. "Make me understand!"
"Miri?" Miri felt a small hand enter hers. She knelled down to look at Alice in the eyes. "Are you going to get the mean man?"
"Merle, his name's Merle, sweetheart." She pushed some of her bangs from her face and behind her ear. "Yeah, we're going to get him."
"But why?" she tilted her head to the side and held Burnie close.
"Because we can't leave a person like that, that's a bad thing to do, and we aren't bad people." Alice nodded but still looked sad. "Don't be sad, we'll come back, and when I do, I'll read you that book you picked out."
She looked a bit happier and hugged her. "Be careful."
"I will." Miri kissed her head. "If anything bad happens, I want you to stay near Shane and Lori okay?" She looked over at Shane. "Can you watch over her, until I'm back?" Shane nodded but still looked mad.
She stood up and went to turn to Rick, but saw Daryl looking at her—who was watching the blonde, listening in on her conversation with the little girl.
Alice walked passed Miri and stood in front of Daryl with her hands on her hips, a determined look on his face. "You! I want you to watch her."
Daryl raised an eyebrow at her, surprised at her attitude. "Your momma has other people watchin' over her."
"But I want you to watch over her too." She glared at him as best she could—looking adorable still—and Miri tried not to laugh at the scene. "If she's hurt, I'll beat you up!"
"Fine! I'll watch over your momma, jeez." Daryl went back to cleaning his arrows.
She held up her pinky. "Pinky promise?"
Daryl huffed, annoyed. "Seriously?" She pushed her pinky closer to his face. "Alright! Pinky promise." He wrapped his dirty pinky around her small one. He got up and left, not before looking at Miri in the eyes, never breaking eye contact until he passed the corner of her eyes.
"Happy?" Miri asked Alice as she came back.
"Yes." She beamed up at her.
Miri rolled her eyes playfully at her. "Go on and play with Sophia, I'm sure Carol will let you play with her." Alice went on her tippy toes and puckered her lips at her. Miri laughed as they kissed each other's cheeks, then she ran off.
Glenn and Daryl went off to turn the cube truck around, so they could enter by the back of it.
Miri went and got Glenn's backpack that he left by the RV, putting some water for them, some ammo, and some power bars from her bag for Merle when they find him. She heard honking from the cube truck as she was walking towards it. "Come on! Let's go!" Daryl shouted from the van.
"I'm here." She threw the bag into the truck and was about to climb in when a dirty hand came to her view. She stared at the hand confused, why was he helping her up?
Apparently, Daryl thought the same. He didn't think, it just happened. "Well? Are you just gonna stare at it?" He grunted.
She grabbed his inner forearm as he grabbed hers and pulled her in easily. "Thank you."
"Well, I did promise your little girl I was gonna watch you." He turned away and leaned against the wall of the truck.
"Got your bag, Glenn." She threw the bag onto the passenger seat.
"Thanks, why did you need it?"
"Had to get some water, ammo, and power bars for Merle when we find him. He has to be delirious with all that sun and no food or water for so long."
"Right." Glenn nodded.
Daryl closed the back door as T-dog came into the truck and Rick sat in the passenger seat.
She sat against the wall next to T-dog and across from Daryl.
Half-way there, Daryl opened his mouth. "He better be okay, that's my only word on the matter."
"I told you, the geeks can't get at him. Only thing that's gonna get through that door is us." T-Dog told him.
Glenn stopped the car and turned to the rest in the back. "We walk from here."
They all got out the truck and walked over some train tracks through a gate that was chained. They ran until Glenn stopped them and moved part of the gate away, letting them go through.
"Merle first or guns?" Rick asked as they patrolled for any danger around.
"Merle! We ain't even having this conversation?" Daryl growled.
"We are." snapped Rick. "You know the geography, so it's your call." Rick told Glenn as they started to run.
"Merle's closest. The guns would mean doubling back. So, Merle first."
They ran to the department store and entered by the back. Rick stopped them and pointed to a walker.
Daryl walked forward and stood in front of her. "Damn, you are one ugly skank." He shot it in the head with his crossbow.
They searched the rest of the floor before running up the stairs, Rick in the lead with Glenn, Miri, Daryl, and T-dog in the back. They got to the door and T-dog cut the chain with the bolt cutters.
Daryl kicked the door open and ran through it with the others following him.
They faltered when they saw Merle wasn't there…
However, his hand was.