Family Ties

It had felt like an eternity since Merle left me alone, though it was probably closer to fifteen minutes. He led me somewhere, I walked blindly, no choice but to trust him with the thing over my head. Then he'd pushed me down by my shoulders, causing me to stumble back, not expecting to land in a chair as I did.

"Just go with it, I got it figured out." He told me before I heard his footsteps in the distance.

I had no idea what I was supposed to do, it took me a few minutes to realise I really was alone. I considered taking the thing off my head so I could see, my face was getting hot. But I didn't know if I was supposed to. I didn't even know if I was allowed to go anywhere, I guessed not.

"Glenn?" I tried, though I knew there would be no response. I didn't hear anyone breathing, or walking. Only complete silence. "Maggie?"

Where are they? Where am I?

Hesitantly, I reached up and gripped the rough fabric, slowly pulling it off my head. I took a deep breath, enjoying the unused and somewhat fresh air.

I was sitting in a somewhat large room, in a regular chair next to a dining table. The dining table was clean, with neatly centred placemats at each seat, and a vase of flowers in the middle.

I furrowed my eyebrows, turning my head to peer around the room. I hadn't been expecting something so normal, and clean.

The floor was wood-panelled while the walls were painted an ugly yellow. There were pictures, paintings, shelves with books and small decor statues all around. I was perplexed by the sheer normalcy of it all. It looked like a home.

Sure, I'd seen plenty while travelling with the group. But all the houses were dirty, bloody, ransacked or just plain trashed. At times they were still together but littered with dust and spider webs. The room I sat in was well-kept.

There were two doors and one large window, covered by a curtain. The first door was a few feet in front of me, it had a fancy glass doorknob, and a small window in the center. Comparing it to the plain-looking one behind me, I guessed it was the front door.

I stood up, still searching the room with uncertainty. The thing that was over my head was some kind of bag or sack with rough material, I kept a hold of it, in case I was supposed to put it back on.

After walking over to the window a few feet from the front door, I slowly pulled the curtain back. At first, I jumped slightly, startled at the movement I was seeing. Then I froze, calming myself as I realized the people I saw walking around were alive.

I leaned into the window, trying to get a better look. There were several people walking along the street, nicely dressed, calm, clean, and alive. No Walkers.

"The hell?" I mumbled the words unconsciously. Everything looked so normal I actually questioned my sanity.

I jumped out of my skin and spun around, eyeing the back door as it opened. I relaxed a bit when I saw who it was, the man with darker skin that reminded me of Guillermo. He seemed somewhat nice when checking me for weapons, but I kept my distance, untrusting of both him and the situation.

On his head, he wore a black cap backwards, a sleeveless shirt and jeans. My eyes went to the holster on his belt, but it was turned toward his back more so I couldn't see it well.

"Sorry," he smiled. "Didn't mean to scare you. Are you all right?"

I didn't answer, because I really did not know the answer.

"Yeah, this is weird, right? Caesar Martinez," he put a hand to his chest. "Everyone calls me Martinez."

Silence followed, it was my turn. I stared until he caught on that I wasn't going to speak.

"Right. Well. My job is to show you around, then get you a shower and clean clothes. How's that sound?"

My blank expression broke with just the widening of my eyes. I tried to mask my surprise by furrowing my eyebrows, then looking around the room pointedly.

"Oh, this is just one of our general meeting rooms. This is where the scouts usually hang out, have a beer, play some poker."

I couldn't think of anything to answer with, so just returned my gaze back to the ground.

"You ready then?" He nodded his head towards the door, placing his hand on the doorknob.

I looked over at the door he came from, expecting someone else to emerge. When my eyes looked back to him he already had the door open. I briefly wondered if Merle's instruction to 'Keep quiet' still applied. I felt lost and confused, with dozens of questions threatening to spill out of me. But if that man was supposed to lead me around, I would see the others soon and it would be fine. Merle said he had it figured out.

Merle also said to just go with it.

I walked past Caesar Martinez through the doorway, squinting into the sunlight.

"Welcome to Woodbury," he said as I heard the door close behind me. I stopped down the walkway that led to a street with a sidewalk. That wasn't unusual, what was unusual was how clean it was, and how many people were just walking around. There was no trash, no blood, no Walkers.

There were a few picnic tables lined up in the street, the people were either sitting at them or making their way over to one. I noticed one lady holding a plate, she was too far for me to make out the food, but I could make out the giant bulge that was her belly.

Something in my stomach dropped, I felt sick at the reminder of Lori. The thought of Lori conjured Jimmy.

A hand tapped my shoulder, "you okay?"

I realized I'd stopped breathing at some point. I took in a deep shaky breath, struggling to keep myself in check. I shrugged him off, avoiding eye contact while continuing to investigate the surroundings.

I smelt smoke, something was cooking. My eyes found the source on the other side of the street, a large back mechanism with a man behind it, smiling and laughing with the woman next to him. A barbeque?

"It's a lot to get used to at first. Some residents were rescued off the streets, it takes time to adjust. You hungry? Want a burger?"

My head turned to him, all resolve broken, "you don't have burgers."

He laughed, waving his hand, "come on. Stick with me, no wandering off. Merle will kill me if something happens."

Several people called out and greeted 'Martinez' as we passed. He led me to one of the tables to sit and left to get food.

There were two other people at the table on the other side, though they had just finished what was on their plate, packing it up to leave. Those people and a few others waved and I got some greetings. Everyone was smiling, it was weird.

Someone screamed. I jumped from the table and stood, searching for the danger. What I found was nothing, no one else even gave a reaction. Only when the sound came again did I figure it out.

It was from a little girl, not too far down the road, being chased around by more kids. Confused, I slowly sat back down.

Martinez returned with two plates and some condiments. I stared at my burger as he placed my plate in front of me. I poked the bun, it was soft and warm.

"Want ketchup or something?" I watched him put ketchup and mustard on his own, but I just wrinkled my nose and waited for him to start eating.

"Martinez! What's this I hear about you needing me?"

My eyes found a short older lady walking over with a very big smile. Her hair was thinning with a mix of grey and white.

"Helen," Martinez stood to lightly pat her shoulder. "I need some things from you."

"And does this have to do with this sweetheart right here?" Somehow her smile got bigger and she waved. I felt myself shrink into the bench.

"This is Merle's niece. She'll need some new clothes, a toothbrush, you know the usual welcome basket."

Helen's smile disappeared, "I'm sorry, do you expect me to skirt by what you just said?"

"You heard me right, that's all I can tell you right now. Can you meet me at Merle's place with all that when you have the time?"

She looked at Martinez with a disapproving gaze, "why wouldn't you let the poor girl wash up before parading her around?"

"You're a busy woman, I didn't know when I'd catch you, and I wasn't sure when the last time she ate was. I thought not having her pass out in the shower would be a good idea."

Helen shook her head, "I suppose you're right. I'll get what you need now. Do you know what size you are, hun?"

I stared, looking back at Martinez, hoping to get some kind of hint for the right answer.

"I'll figure it out," she waved me off. Then her eyes stopped under the table, "I'm going to find you some shoes. Those are just a tragedy."

Helen turned to leave, partly glaring at Martinez as if my terrible duct tape shoes were his fault, "and get her something to drink."

"Yes, ma'am," Martinez muttered, leaving and returning with a green and blue can.

"Is this the bubble stuff?" I blurted.

"Huh? That? It's soda."

After contemplating sitting and silence or just eating, I decided to just eat. I drank some of the can, the fizziness surprising me so much I coughed a few times. Then I started eating the burger. My stomach cramped at the idea of warm food.

After my first bite, I stared at the food, "this is deer."

"Shh, the kids don't know."

"The kids?"

"Yeah, some of them are young and don't totally understand. If they knew it came from a deer, some might not eat it."

I coughed again and my throat became scratchy, "Cows are better?"

"Pretty sure most of them don't even get that that's where hamburgers come from. We don't bring it up, they don't ask."

"They sound stupid."

"They're not . . . Okay, yeah, it is pretty stupid. But once someone let it slip in front of Emily, she's five, I think. Caused a scene and wouldn't stop crying, her mom had trouble getting her to eat anything for a while."

I frowned. It was stupid not to eat something because it came from a different animal, especially now that there was less food. Those kids didn't understand that they needed to eat what they had because there was nothing else, and that's really dumb.

My gaze was locked on the table as I continued to eat in silence, and Martinez also started eating his own meal. I didn't even realize that he was looking at me until I heard him speak again.

"What's the pendant for?"

"Wha?" I turned to him, pausing my chewing.

"Your necklace," he motions to it offhandedly before taking another bite. "What's the number for?"

I held the food in my mouth for a long time before remembering to chew again. I thought over my answer and thought over whether I should give one. I could feel Martinez's eyes on me, watching me expectantly as he waited for an answer. When it was obvious that I wasn't going to give one, he dropped his food on his plate.

His hand slipped under his jacket, and he pulled out a silver metal chain that was concealed under the shirt he was wearing. I noticed a small loop in the middle of the chain, which looked like it was meant to be holding a charm, but there wasn't one in sight.

"It was my dad's. We weren't on speaking terms when the world ended. Even so, his place was the first I went to, Biter's got there first though. It had a cross. Buried it with him."

I swallowed thickly, looking up from the chain to meet his eyes. In them, I didn't see pity or guilt, or even confusion, only understanding.

"It's not mine," I said, and he nodded because he knew that.

Martinez glanced to the side, thinking of something else to say. "Are you Christian? Merle doesn't seem like the type."

"The type?"

"Christian," he clarified.

I furrowed my eyebrows, rolling the word and its meaning around in my head. "I'm white."

His mouth opened and his head tilted to the side, but he couldn't seem to find the words. "I can't tell if you're joking."

"Why?"

Again Martinez sat in awkward silence, and he looked off to the side in thought. I wasn't sure what else to say, so I looked around and continued eating.

"Your dad," he spoke carefully a few minutes after the silence, "Is he alive?"

"I dunno," I told him, finding it odd that the subject of my dad was easier than Shane.

"Separated then? You know when you last saw him?"

I narrowed my eyes, I didn't really care about telling him, I just didn't understand the prying.

"Merle's been searching a long time, anytime we meet someone or bring in new people. First thing he says, 'you meet anyone named Daryl?'"

"Daryl," I repeat, trying to put the info together. He thinks Daryl is my dad. I had no idea whether I should correct him, he'd already referred to me as Merle's niece. "Where's Merle?"

"Merle and your friends are with the boss, he's gonna meet us later. Anyway, you're gonna have to clean that."

"Huh?"

He pointed to my neck, "it's all tarnished."

"Huh?" I repeated a little louder.

He chuckled, "tarnished, happens to silver when you don't take care of it. I have some cleaner if you want it."

I expected him to wait for an answer, but he didn't, instead, he went back to eating and we sat in silence for the rest of our meal. When we were both done, he stood up and grabbed the plates. He told me to wait there while he took them to be washed.

"Okay, come on," he said when he got back.

I nodded to follow him, but as I was following him I realized that I forgot something.

"Oh, wait!" I spun around and ran back to the table, grabbing the bubble drink and rushing back to Martinez.

He smiled and shook his head before walking ahead.

I trailed behind him slowly, my eyes wandered uncontrollably as we walked down the sidewalk, still unnerved at the sense of normalcy surrounding me. When my eyes caught a figure across the street, my head whipped back and forth in a double-take.

I felt my stomach turned to stone and made myself look away again, knowing that my mind was playing tricks on me. But as my pulse quickened and muscles went weak, I had to look again, once I did I couldn't look away.

Martinez and surroundings were completely forgotten, I rubbed my eyes with my free hand, the other squeezing the soda can tightly while trying to make sense of it, it wasn't real. I only became more sure of the opposite as I neared the figure. Their back facing me while their side leaned against the brick wall of a building.

I stopped a few feet behind, my core trembling, I couldn't bring myself to get near, or walk around their front.

"Daddy?"

He turned quickly, practically tripping over his own feet.

Daddy's eyes were wide and his mouth agape in obvious shock. I noticed his throat bob up and down as he either swallowed or tried to speak, but there were no words. I had none either.

His hair was longer, his cheekbones stuck out much more than before showing he'd lost weight.

I'd known, or at least, I felt I'd known all along he was alive, but seeing the proof was not at all what I'd hope for. There was no relief, no crying and running to each other as I'd seen with Rick and Carl when they'd found each other.

Only shock, disbelief, and confusion. I didn't know what to say or do, I felt the need to run at him, squeeze him tight, punch him hard while I screamed and cried for not finding me sooner.

Two people that were supposed to be gone, possibly not dead, only gone, and they were both in this town.

I watched his expression ease into one of relief after we stared at each other for several moments, his shoulders slumped as the tension left his body.

"I . . . You're alive."

Daddy's eyes looked wet when he finally smiled, only to have his eyes leave me as Martinez called out.

"Damn, kid. What did I tell you about wandering? Merle will take my head if I lose you."

I don't care, he didn't matter, Merle didn't matter, nothing did at that moment.

"Davies, what're you doing out here?"

"You found her?" Daddy ignored the question.

"Merle did, it's his brother's kid. I'm taking her to his place to clean up."

Daddy looked at him then, "His brother's what now?"

"I don't think I owe you any answers, who the hell relieved you? I know you can't be on break."

Daddy frowned and I noticed one of his hands tighten briefly into a fist.

"I don't think you want me to tell the Governor you're shirking your job. You think he's gonna like finding you another one?" Martinez's attitude had completely turned when talking to Daddy. I looked over at him, trying to figure out what was going on.

"CLYDE!" A man yelled.

"Hold on!" Daddy replied.

I tilted my head to see the man far down the road.

"No, man! I need you now, what the hell?"

Martinez's arm went around my shoulder, turning me away, "let's go."

I was so shocked I did nothing, I watched Daddy struggle with himself before cursing and turning to hurry away.

"We'll talk after." I heard Daddy say loudly.

I tried to turn but Martinez kept a firm grip on me and replied, "Yeah, don't count on it! Asshole . . ."

I had a feeling his words weren't meant for Martinez. "That's—"

"—Don't worry about him," Martinez stopped me. "He shouldn't have been bothering you. I really don't need him causing me more problems." He muttered the last part.

I bit my lip and tried to keep my breath even, blinking fast every so often to stop my tears. I tried to put it together in my head, but nothing fit, nothing made sense. I had to talk to Merle.

"Are we meeting Merle now?"

"Soon, he shouldn't be much longer."

As we walked along I kept looking back, trying to find Daddy, expecting him to pop back up at any moment.

He didn't.

I kept my head down and didn't pay much attention as Martinez led me around, then into a building and up a flight of stairs. Soon we stood in front of an apartment door. I finally looked up and saw the apartment number.

22.

I clenched my jaw and followed him inside.

"This is Merle's place," Martinez pointed down the hall to my right, "bathroom's down there. You can wash up, he should have soap and stuff. Leave your clothes outside the door, I'll take them out and put something clean there for you to change into."

Merle's apartment was small and bare, there wasn't much to look at. A large, cushioned recliner chair on a beige carpet. Some empty beer cans on the floor beside it.

Martinez took the soda can from me and placed it on the kitchen table before I walked in the direction he pointed.

Down the hall there were two doors, one was closed and the other was open, I peered in to see a bed. I opened the closed door and stepped into the bathroom.

When I saw myself in the mirror I stopped. I couldn't remember the last time I'd actually seen my own reflection. My hair was knotted and so greasy it looked wet. My face was covered in dirt and other dark smudges I assumed to be Walker blood or regular blood.

It was hard to tell, but I was sure the shape in my face had changed, was it because so much time had passed, or because I'd lost weight. Or maybe it was a trick of the eye and I'd just forgotten what I looked like.

After undressing I opened the door a crack and placed the dirty clothes on the floor outside of it before closing the door.

It took me a few minutes to adjust the water how I wanted it. Afraid to use too much hot water, I kept it only partially warm. I kept wanting to make it hotter but restrained myself.

Merle had three bottles on the shelf in the shower. I examined each one, trying to figure out what to use. Was I allowed to use any of it?

I chose a bottle randomly and squeezed it into my hand, the odour from it was strong, but not bad. I scrubbed the soap into my hair, then my arms and legs. I washed as much blood and dirt off my hands as I could, but I couldn't do much about what was caked underneath my fingernails.

I tried to keep my head clear, to focus on washing. I continuously lost that battle as thoughts about Daddy surface, it was so surreal I was beginning to think I'd imagined seeing him.

Martinez knocked on the door, interrupting my thought and tears to announce that Helen had brought the clothes and he'd left them outside the door.

Once I was done I spotted a towel hanging up and dried off best I could. I opened the door a crack and grabbed the clothes.

"Jeez," I mumbled, holding up the bright orange shirt. It reminded me of the bright orange reflective vests people wore when hunting. After slipping it on, I felt my hair soaking into the back of it. It was a bit big and long on me, making it look baggy.

The pants were beige and had large, long pockets. After I put them on they were very short. I thought for a moment they might be too small, but they felt fine, maybe a bit big but they didn't fall down.

I looked down at my bare arms, it was odd not to have them covered. I always wore something over a t-shirt, I always covered up. I didn't feel like asking for more clothes, everything was already so awkward. I decided to deal with it, it was hot as hell outside anyway.

In the hallway, my old clothes had disappeared. Martinez was sitting in the recliner chair, waiting for me.

"Feel good?" He asked. "Whenever I get back from a scouting mission I always shower, just to wash the outside off me."

When I didn't say anything he stood and looked around awkwardly, "All right . . . Well, you don't need me anymore. There's some more food in the kitchen there, Helen brought it in case you were still hungry. Some other stuff for you there too, toothbrush, toothpaste. Merle should be here soon."

After giving me a smile and a wave, Martinez was gone.

I let out a huff of air, finally relaxing the blank expression I'd been holding. I blinked and felt tears roll down my cheeks. I walked into the kitchen wiping away the tears and trying not to sob.

I wanted to run out of the apartment, scream for Daddy. I found him, he's alive, so what was I doing waiting for Merle?

He's alive. How the hell is he alive?

Why am I here anyway?

Where were Glenn and Maggie?

Merle knew what was going on, he would show up with Glenn and Maggie soon. I'd tell him about Daddy, tell him how people thought I was his niece. Daryl as my dad. I scoffed through the tears at that thought. Then the anxiety and apprehension I felt increased. Did he even know I was gone?

I sat on a tall stool at the weird table in the kitchen. I called it weird because it had no legs, it looked as if it was held up by a small wall.

As Martinez said, there was a small bowl of blueberries on the table and two peaches. I hadn't seen fresh fruit since we were on the farm. I saw a plastic bag too, and assumed that was what held my toothbrush and whatever else was brought.

I sat alone in silence for several minutes. I wasn't sure exactly how much time had passed when the door finally opened. I let out a small breath of relief when Merle walked in, I was getting antsy and tired of waiting. Our eyes met and he didn't say anything, he looked confused at first. I looked at his bandaged nose, there was blood soaking through the bandage and down the side of his face.

"Oh that," he waved at his face. "Hurt it earlier today, just bust it open again. It's fine."

I wondered why Glenn and Maggie weren't with him, maybe we would meet them after. There were so many things to tell him, to ask him, I struggled with what to say.

"I know the place is a lot ta get used to, but it ain't that bad is it?" Merle tried a friendly smirk.

"I saw my dad." I blurted, my voice shaking with each word.

"What?" He stared at me blankly while giving his head a shake.

"My dad . . . I saw him." I repeated. "He's here."

Again, Merle didn't seem to understand. His eyes searched mine and I watched them move rapidly back and forth. Then, his expression softened to one of realisation.

"Holy fuckin' shit." Merle exclaimed suddenly. "You've got be fuckin' shittin' me! Really?!"

So I am sure there are tons of mistakes, I didn't proofread. I've been on this chapter so long just didn't want to go through it, I might later. I am sorry this took so long. I have had to deal with a medical issue, even got leave from work and can't go back for a while.

I've been soo happy to have Merle back. And Martinez was fun to write, Toby's illiteracy strikes again haha. The part with her dad was difficult but I hope you all enjoyed.

Thank Bobbie once again for all her help!

Been trying to get more into Instagram. Trying to post some walking dead content, fanart and such. Give me a follow! wheresmypenn

Leave a review, let me know what you think!