Red River Blue

Chapter 60

"Try not to think about it and just eat," Carol suggested. Mika glanced again at the small slab of meat in front of her. All she could see when she looked at it was Harley and Daryl slicing the animal open and ripping off the skin and fur. It looked like her neighbor's dog from before the turn. The owner used to let Mika come over into her yard and throw a frisbee for the dog.

"It's really not that bad," Wren encouraged, taking another big bite of the gamey meat and showing Mika how it was done. She was chomping away, shoving more in even before she was done chewing on the last bite.

"What does it taste like?," Mika asked, looking at her piece with renewed bravery. Wren and Carl answered at the same time, speaking in unison.

"Tastes like chicken!"

Carol bit her lip, trying not to laugh. She wasn't sure how she would describe the taste of wild dog meat. But it sure didn't taste anything like chicken.

"Just shuddup and eat it," Harley suggested, "...or yer gonna be hungry later." This was clearly no time to be picky. Like Wren, the older girl was chowing down, ripping the tougher pieces of meat apart in her hands before shoving them into her mouth. When Harley got done taking the rest of the meat off the bone in her hands, she leaned over towards Carl and handed the large bone to Judith so she could gnaw on it. He was holding the girl in his lap. The little girl squealed in delight, waving her prize around in her hand before she brought the bone up to her mouth and started nibbling away on it.

"Are you sure she should have this?," Carl asked. Harley shrugged. Clearly the bone was big enough for Judith not to choke on. So Harley was pretty sure it was safe. Her mom used to let Wren gnaw on the bones when they had ribs for dinner. And she was clearly still alive. Mika smiled at the baby and picked up her slab of meat, lifting it to her nose and taking an experimental sniff.

"Don't want that I can dig ya up some more worms instead," Daryl offered. Mika looked at the man, her eyes widening. Then she took a deep breath and shoved the meat into her mouth. It wasn't really good. But it wasn't as bad as she was expecting either. She chewed it up and reached for another piece.

Once everyone had their fill, the group started walking again. Harley stuck close to Beth. The other girl was still upset about losing Noah and Harley could tell she wasn't paying much attention to her surroundings.

"Should split off and see if we can find any water," Daryl suggested, ticking his head and indicating for Carol to come with him. When it looked like Mika was going to try and follow them, he told her very firmly to stay with River. Carol smiled when River moved towards them and took the girl by the hand, offering to let her have a turn carrying Judith. Despite the little girl's weight, the kids seemed to get great enjoyment out of lugging her around. And when they got tired or bored with her, Tyrese would sling the little girl up onto his broad back, carrying her like she weighed nothing at all.

Carol walked behind Daryl, trying to step where he was stepping. He stopped without warning and she bumped into him. There was a small barn ahead of them, in a clearing. Daryl strung an arrow in his bow. Carol pulled her gun out of her holster. Then they both moved silently towards the barn.

Their precautions were unnecessary. There was only one crusted old walker in the barn, which Daryl quickly dispatched with his knife. They found a loaded gun. But still no water. Carol climbed up onto one of the stall doors, trying to peek and see if there was anything of use inside the locked stall. The wood gave way and nearly sent her flopping to the ground. Daryl caught her before she could fall. He set her back on her feet. But one hand was still lingering on the curve of her waist.

"Bet you're happy Beth's back," Carol announced. She grimaced at her own words. They just came vomiting out of her before she could even think about it. Daryl didn't remove his hand from her side. But his face twisted up a little, confused at the odd topic of conversation Carol picked. They finally had a few moments alone. The last thing he wanted to talk about was Beth. And Carol had a strange look in her eye when she mentioned the girl, like her feelings were hurt somehow. Daryl had been pondering the situation for quite some time. But he could never put a finger on what the issue was between him and Carol. She seemed receptive to him one minute. Then angry at him for no reason the next. Women were crazy by nature. But Daryl was starting to suspect that they were also having some sort of miscommunication. The look in Carol's eyes when she mentioned Beth just now was just strange. Daryl felt a bit like he was finally figuring out what was wrong with a stubborn engine that just kept stalling no matter what he tried.

"Ya think somethin's going on between me and Beth?," he asked.

"I saw you with her," Carol admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

"What?"

Daryl was even more confused now. There was no way Carol ever saw him with Beth because he was never with her. He never laid a hand on that girl. She was his niece's friend for fuckssakes. That would be like messing with his daughter's friend.

"At the prison," Carol added, "I saw you holding her outside her cell." Daryl did not look like he had any idea what in hell she was talking about. "After the run when Merle got all that glass in his back," Carol clarified. Daryl furrowed his brows. Then suddenly his eyes lit up with recognition.

"Her fuckin' boyfriend just died," Daryl said, his tone suddenly turning defensive. "She just hugged me. That's it. She was upset. Woulda been mean to shove her off and shit." The wheels in Daryl's head were really starting to turn now. He was putting everything together in his mind. Finally. Ever since that run, Carol thought he had something going on with Beth. No wonder she was acting so squirrelly.

"There's NOTHING goin' on between me and Beth," he added. Daryl wanted to make sure there was no further confusion on this matter. And he was actually a little angry with Carol. Beth was a fucking kid. Is that the kind of man Carol thought he was? Someone that would fuck his niece's high school friends?

"Oh," Carol said, her eyes widening. Daryl didn't show much outward emotion. So if she could tell he was angry with her, he was probably actually really pissed. "I'm sorry," Carol added, feeling silly and stupid.

They stood there in silence for a moment. Both of them were starting to realize that the issue between them was gone. Carol wasn't sure if she was relieved or terrified. She started to think back on all the little moments between them. Moments that it seemed now she hadn't just imagined or made too much of in her mind. She was also becoming more and more aware of Daryl's hand on her waist. His thumb was rubbing back and forth softly, touching her through the fabric of her shirt. Carol got up on her tiptoes and kissed him. Not on the lips, but on his forehead, using her hands to brush his hair back out of his face.

Daryl's hand that was on her waist, slid behind her. He pulled her close, his lips pressing down on hers. And that's when they heard the screaming.