Chapter 22

There was no way of telling how much time had passed when the darkness gave way and the sounds of the birds and muffled chatter that had broken through the hazy silence. No way of telling how long he had been out when he finally felt the sensation of his limbs again and what they were touching.

Everything was jumbled and hazy in his head, but more than that, it fucking hurt.

He had hit his head before and knew the aching pressure so well that a wave of nostalgia hit him before anything else did.
The throbbing pain was something he had woken up to many times before.
He tried to focus his thoughts, but no thought could seem to pass without getting muddled by the last. It made it impossible for him focus anything.

The familiar weight on his chest, the one that had him sleeping soundly every night, wasn't there. He couldn't smell her, couldn't hear her, he couldn't remember any reason why he would wake up without her being right there.
And he wondered if that what had brought on this feeling of dread and chaos? Had it been her absence in the night? Was that why nothing felt right?
No, he thought, that wasn't right either.

He flexed his stiff fingers and tried to force his eyes open, as the twisted mess in his mind worked to untangle itself.

When he managed to force his eyes open, he looked up at the roof of the tent, trying to assess the seemingly harmless area, but it only made him feel more disoriented as he took in the details.

As he starred at the red material, it hit him, that this was all wrong. Every bit of it.
This tent was red, his was blue and it wasn't Carol's weight that he had in his arms recently.
No. it was the kid. He'd had Sophia.
He had her gripped tightly to his chest before everything disappeared, but now his arms were painfully empty and that knowledge ran a shock through every bone in his body.

The heavy panting took over in seconds, until he was desperately trying to pull himself up, ignoring the pain that covered the back of his head and neck.
Before he had fully opened his eyes, he was coughing through his dry throat and trying to take in a breath that didn't sting his chest.

"Stay down, you're ok"

A womens unfazed voice spoke over his gasping. He ignored the voice and continued to try to move until the pain, that was a dull throbbing seconds before, reared up strong and forceful, quietening his panting to a low growl that flooded the tent. Suddenly the stranger had her hands flattened over his chest, forcing him back down.

"Stop being stubborn. You're hurt. Lay still."

He didn't have a second to question the strange ladies presence, or anything else, when he finally caught a glimpse of the kid beside him.

For the first time since he had met the Sophia, there was no blankness in her eyes, nothing in her expression he couldn't decipher. Right now, he could read everything written on her face. He could see her body slouch as her nerves eased, but it never effected the fear and the uncertainty, that was all exposed through her glassy red eyes and her lower lip that was firmly caught between her teeth.

She looked horrible, but that didn't stop the wave of relief from washing over him, that wave only growing stronger when his eyes scanned her for injuries and found nothing but a small graze on her arm.
I can fix this he thought, I just need to find Carol.

"What's going on" he mumbled out to the kid, looking around the tent and back to her again.

"You hit your head, but you'll be fine"

The trivialising voice came again and he glanced over to get a good look at the women, just as she shoved a bottle of water into his chest. He quickly snatched it from her hand and started drinking it down immediately, desperately trying to extinguish the burning in his chest and throat, while he continued to eye the stranger.
She had thick brown hair that hung freely over her shoulders, a tanned complexion and an accent he couldn't place. She seemed nice enough, but he still had no clue who she was. Or where he was.

"Where?" he said shaking his head lightly, as he leaned up on his elbows, still attempting to fully regain consciousness.

"Your head" the women said again, barely acknowledging him as she started going through her bag.

"No. Where are we?" he asked, trying to make his voice as clear as he could, directing his attention to the kid.

He had wanted Sophia to answer him, to tell him what had happened. But when he looked over, he watched as her eyes dropped, leaving him to wonder why she looked so god damn guilty.

His head snapped from the kid back to the women who started to talk again, though what she was saying didn't compute in his head. He couldn't understand how the words flowed so casually, yet each syllable hit him like a brick. The story she was telling him was something his brain couldn't accept any part of.
The women nodded to herself, satisfied she had told the story correctly, as she continued to sift through her bag that was full of medical supplies.

"So that's when my my husband brought you here. To Austin, with our group. It's safe, you – "

"What?" he snapped, cutting the women off and raising his rough voice, making her stop what she was doing to take in his hysterical state.

He clenched his fists, trying to stop his hands from shaking, but it didn't go unnoticed by the women, Unintelligible sounds erupted from his throat, making her hastily explain to him the very same story she had just finished seconds before. Once again she explained that Sophia had waved her husband down and begged for his help. She told him how members of her group had grabbed them off the side of the road, but then they continued their way home. They continued to flee from the mass of walkers that were surrounding them.

He had been knocked out for two days, exactly how long it took them to get here… two straight days of driving... Bringing them to FUCKING AUSTIN.

He knew he should thank the women, or show at least some kind of gratitude for saving their lives. Hell, just acknowledging that she had spoken would be good at this point.
But he couldn't stop gawking at the kid. How could he say anything when he just found out how incredibly fucked he was.

A part of him was waiting for the kid to laugh and tell him it was a sick and twisted joke, but as he took in her demeanour he knew this was no laughing matter for her either.
As his eyes locked with hers, just as he felt something building in his gut and seeping into his blood, but he couldn't get a good enough sense of the feeling to register what it was.
It lingered just below the surface and out of his reach. Whatever it was, it was growing fast and it was getting stronger with every second that he was forced to sit and wait. He was sure the only thing that would ease the sharp edges this feeling would be him out there, looking for Carol.

When the lady, who he now knew as Mary, left them to sleep, he decided to leave the entry open for a few minutes and get a look at the people. When he watched for long enough he could see they were no different than his own group. There was maybe twenty of them, a broad mix of men, women and children, all of which looked harmless enough.
Even with that thought, he still found himself inspecting the very non suspicious members, looking for a sign that they weren't safe, even when everything told him they were.

He decided he had to relax, ignore the pain in his gut, and just lay down. He could hear people on watch, patrolling the small space carefully, but still he felt wired and unprotected. He was sure in that moment, that if it was just him out here, he would already be on the road, heading back home…from fucking AUSTIN!

"What do we do?" her voice was weak and tired when she snapped him into reality. The tone she used didn't make the situation better. No, that fear building in her voice was the last thing he had needed to hear, because it matched his own. That left them as two people in the middle of nowhere, alone and shitting themselves.
What do we do? He thought sarcastically.
Kid we are beyond screwed.

"What if they're looking for us?" she whispered firmly into the darkness of the cool tent. He didn't answer her.
He realised he hadn't said anything in hours.
He still didn't know what he was meant to say.
Does he give it to her straight or sugar-coat the shit out of it? Neither seemed like a good option.

Yeah, they were probably looking for them, but they weren't going to find a fucking thing, he yelled out in his head.
She would be wondering what happened to them and knowing that made the ache grow and begin to tear a hole for the searing pain to finally burst through. She would be-

Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop this shit now! He cured himself before he could continue on thinking about Carol.

I can't do this, he thought. The simple fucking idea of Carol began breaking everything that he needed to get them home. He couldn't function like this, he had to stop, right fucking now.

He pushed her away, every scenario he had created, every memory and sweet moment, everything about her was roughly thrown to the darkest pits of his mind. Leaving him to focus on nothing, but what was happening right here and right now… IN FUCKING AUSTIN.

"Daryl?" she questioned nervously when he didn't respond once again.
"Go to sleep. I'll sought it in the morning" he mumbled, hoping it would be enough to get her to stop asking questions he didn't have answers to, to stop her from revealing all the dread that she so obviously felt.
He wished his tone wasn't so cold and dismissive of those feelings, she had every right to be horrified, he'd think she wasn't very bright if she wasn't, but that didn't mean he knew how to deal with it.

Adrenalin was pumping through his veins before his eyes had even opened, readying him to get moving and moving as fast as he could.

He began going through his bag, checking the weapons and questioning how far they could get with what little they had. That's when the doubtful voice reared up and honestly, he wondered what took it so long.
Not far, but it doesn't matter, you'll fuck this up like you fuck everything up, the voice said nonchalantly, making his jaw tighten.

He began counting the bullets and shoving the water bottles into his bag, when the kid stood up beside him.
"Where ya goin?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the discarded bullets that he was pulling from the bottom of his bag.
When he didn't get a reply, he looked up to see her anxiously shrug. He dropped his gaze back down to his hands.
"Then sit" he ordered firmly nodding to the empty space beside him as he started packing away the small bundle away. Quickly, he went back to searching through his things, praying that he had more bullets in the front pocket as he pulled the last one from the bottom of his bag.

She dropped down beside him and watched him trying to move his shaky hands, wondering if she knew that he was entering in to a state of severe shock, something so chaotic that even he couldn't fully comprehend it.

It was there, that feeling, those knots, all the bad shit that would slow him down. But he couldn't slow down, he didn't have time for this shit. He had to get this done, even if he had to carry the kid the whole way…
Nah, Kids gonna die and your gonna have a front row seat, the emotionless voice spat out, making him cringe as he shook his head firmly.
He yanked opened the front pocket, seeing the carefully placed packet of smokes. He knew he hadn't packed them, he had left them in the tent... he was sure of it.

He became motionless as he looked at the old crinkled pack, sitting there, protected by the crap that surrounded it, assuring the few smokes he had left didn't get broken. She always done shit like this, he thought, nice crap just because she wanted him to….
"STOP" he choked out, making the kid jump at his side.

Instantly his hand reached to his face, covering his mouth so he could breathe into his palm. He released the pressure just enough so he could talk, though he kept his eyes tightly shut, as if he thought the darkness could help calm him.
"Not you" he said, trying to lighten his tone, so he didn't scare her any more than he had.
"I'm the only one here" she said, making him open his eyes and glance in her direction.
No, he thought,
There's you,
me,
the doubtful asshole,
the heartbroken moron, that was losing it over a carefully placed pack of smokes.
Oh, and the lunatic who couldn't think straight…. that was a lot, too much to have jammed into this two-man tent. The tent that he had to get out of, before the walls closed in on him.

"C'mon" he mumbled as he snatched the bag up and crawled out.

He looked around the busy camp, for the Mary, only spotting her when she called out to him.
"Your just in time for breakfast" she declared as he approached, though her good mood was quickly diminished when she noticed the crossbow hanging from his shoulder and the bag in his hand.

"Is everything all right?" she asked cautiously, as he quickly responded with a sharp nod, while he glanced over at the man she was talking too.

The guy was easily twice his size, with the same tanned completion and thick, dark brown hair that Mary had, though his was tightly tied back.

"This is my husband Hector" Mary announced, while she eyed the bag in his hand.
Daryl instantly reached out and shook the man's hand, thanking him for saving them and letting them stay.

"You and Sophia, are more than welcome to stay longer. We have plenty to go around" Hector said confidently with a warm smile. Daryl quickly shook his head at the offer and he could tell they were concerned with his eagerness to flee the camp, but it seemed like an impossible thing to hide, especially when he couldn't stop his feet from inching away from them as they spoke.

"We gotta go" he told them firmly, watching as she glanced at Hector before she swept a soft expression across her face and turned her attention to Sophia.

"Why don't you go and get something to eat" Mary suggested, pointing over to the small group of people serving out breakfast. He looked down as Sophia's head snapped up, awaiting his approval, something she had never done before, it was a simple thing for someone her age to do, though he couldn't tell why it made the overwhelming ache expand.
"Stay where I can see you" he mumbled firmly, wishing his words didn't have such a sharp edge to them, but for some reason the kid was bringing it out in him.

He watched the kid wonder off until Mary said his name, drawing his attention back.
"It's reckless. Leaving like this." Mary said harshly, folding her arms sternly across her stomach.
He didn't appreciate the condescending tone one bit, but they had saved his life so he decided that he would let it slide.

"We've gotta find our group" he said, watching as Mary nodded at his answer.
"Then leave the child here"

He felt his face scrunch as he took in the request and he thought the urge to chuckle at it.
"You don't even know us" he said cagily, wondering why someone would willingly take that kind of responsibility on.

"You're not the child's father" she added, locking her gaze with his.

"What's that got to do with it" he asked, becoming irritated with the strangers questioning.

"Frankly, I don't think you're up to it. Taking her out there when you obviously have no experience with children and are so willing to make irresponsible decisions"

There was truth to what the women was saying to him, but it still provoked a defensive and hostile response inside of him. It hit on every insecurity he had. He had messed up so many times and he felt like the women could see all of that, just by looking at him. He wondered for a moment just how much Sophia had told the women, before concluding that it was probably not a whole lot, seeing as the kid rarely spoke.

"Sophia" He yelled out across the camp, watching as the kid shoved something into her pocket and ran back over to his side.
"Thanks for ya help" he said, barely meeting Mary's eyesight again before he turned away. He wanted to know who the hell she thought she was, assuming he would fuck up and why her husband had stood by her side without a word, when he obviously didn't agree with his wife's words.

They had barely made it to the edge of the campsite when he heard Hector calling after him.
Daryl spun around, ready to argue, until he saw the man's calmed expression.

"I'm sorry she didn't mean to…" he stopped himself and shook his head, smiling widely. "Well, she did. But I assure you her intentions are good"
Daryl was unconvinced by the claim, though he still nodded as he leaned into his right heel.
"Here" he said holding out a key to him. He looked at the offering, confused by it until Hector pointed over to the parked car.

"It's on its last legs. But it might get you close enough to find something that isn't"

Daryl instantly shook his head and gripped his bag tighter, as Hector stepped closer to him and lowered his voice.
"This is no time to be proud son. There's food and supplies in it. You won't make it far on foot. Take the god damn car."

Daryl glanced down at Sophia who was oblivious to the hushed conversation. He chewed at his lip, accepting this was more for the kid than himself, he doubted the offer would even be made if there wasn't an child at his side.
He'd be stupid to pass this up.

"Thanks" he said with a nod, taking the keys and watching relief appear in the Hector's eyes when he finally accepted the offer.
He assumed the man could see how uncomfortable he was, because he gave no more than a smile before he left them.

"Are we going now?" Sophia asked with obvious impatience fuelling her tone. She was too eager to leave and he knew right then that she didn't know what they were walking into. That's when he had to wonder if this was the right thing to do.
Was he being reckless? was taking her with him more irresponsible than leaving her here in Austin? nine hundred miles from home.

He led her over to the car when he heard someone coming up behind them, he rolled his eyes, wondering when these people would let them leave.
He turned expecting to find Mary or Hector, but instead he watched as Women he hadn't met drew closer. She was younger than him, though not by much. She looked exactly like the girls he used to pick up in bars, black hair, bold make-up, tight jeans. Hell, he wouldn't be surprised if he had slept with her before.

"Your leaving" She asked looking at him and the kid. He found himself just starring at her, wondering why she wanted to know.

"I'm Daphne. This isn't my group. My family, there in Nashville. I need too-"

Daryl quickly shook his head at the ramblings, seeing exactly where this was leading.
"I've got enough on my hands" he admitted, opening the passenger side door and using his hand to start shoving Sophia into the car.

"I don't need a babysitter. But I can be one."
He closed the car door and leaned into it, really wishing the girl would see this for the shit show that it was and wait for a better option to arrive.

"Your gonna need to sleep, I can take watch when you do. Plus, I can drive when you're tired, we can cover more ground together" she reasoned, bringing up a very important issue that he hadn't taken the time to consider. Sleep.

The words reckless and irresponsible rang through his mind again, accepting that he might need Daphne's help.

"Fine" he spat out in a frustrated defeat, "Get ya shit. We're going now." He growled out reluctantly, before quickly heading over to the driver's seat and dropping himself roughly into it.

"We don't need her" Sophia said, glaring at him as she spoke. He didn't know why she instantly disliked the women, but he reasoned that she was most likely upset and acting out. But the point was, he didn't know. He didn't know anything about doing this on his own and she made him just as nervous as she had, every day since he met her.

What if he was dragging her from the only place that was safe and leading her to her own death. He knew he couldn't handle it or he wouldn't have just told Daphne to get her bags. He was good on his own, he was used to it. But a kid… he was out of his depths and every part of him knew it.

He ignored her question and starred at her, knowing he should at least give her the option.
"You know how far from home we are right?" he asked keeping his voice low and steady. "Cause its far, kid, maybe too far"

Her disapproval of the statement was obvious, as her eyes became wide and infuriated. "You wanna stay here?" she rasped, as her brow furrowed and her mouth hung open in enraged disbelief.

"Maybe you should. we can come back and get you, after I find them" he said, forcing himself to keep his tone as soft and understanding as possible.

"What makes you so sure they'll be here." she accused coldly, leaving him stunned as he took in her dark assessment of the people's fate.

"I'm not staying" she grated out low and firmly, pressing her body back into her seat and folding her arms across her stomach.

"Ok, I'm ready" Daphne said as she suddenly jumped into the backseat with her bags, though he didn't move an inch, he was still starring at the kid in complete shock.

It wasn't the idea that the people would be killed or moved along, no, it was the fact that she had said it, the quiet kid who never said shit.
It made him realise just how little he knew her, he in no way thought she was cruel or unkind, she was scared and he knew that, but he didn't know she could conjure up a thought like that, let alone say it so harshly.

"I'm Daphne" the women offered from the backseat to the motionless kid at his side, who kept her eyes fixed straight ahead, leaving him still staring at her, wondering what the hell was going through her head. Her mother often had him in the same state. But when he had wondered what Carol was thinking, his mind had never conjured up such disturbing theories.
"Let's just go" Sophia demanded in a low and stern voice, ignoring Daphne and letting the emotionless expression, that he hated, cover her face once more.