A/N: First off, I apologize for the wait. I have been dealing with some personal/family matters that normally I wouldn't let effect my updating, but I also have had a lot going on with school as well with tests and about two tons of homework. Lucky for all of you I am almost done with school and we have state testing coming up soon so I don't have as much work now. Plus today I called in "sick". Don't judge me, I deserved a break. Anyway I asked for some suggestions and you guys came through. I am so glad I saw that everyone wanted to see a Daryl POV because that's something I wanted to do, but didn't know if you guys would want to read that. But everyone who left a suggestion voted for a Daryl POV so as the author I shall deliver!
Disclaimer: I do now own the Walking Dead. Just my OCs!
Special thanks to: Courtney-Tamara, Guest, Guest, and watchyourmouthsunshine
OOOOO
The first night after the fall of the prison, Daryl and Beth made camp in a clearing in the woods. Daryl started a fire, but was too tired to go out and hunt after running the day before for what seemed like hours. Running from the prison, running from walkers…running from Kayla. He closed his eyes at the thought of her. He saw her at the prison with Alex and tried to get to her, but there was so much going on he couldn't get to her. Then he kept getting pushed farther away from her and Alex was pulling her away from all the chaos. He couldn't get her voice out of his head when she screamed his name back at the prison when the walker came down on him. He heard her scream and then saw her terrified face when he stood back up. Then Alex pulled her and that little kid away to safety. That was the last time he saw her.
Daryl wanted to scream. He wanted to cry. He wanted to stomp a walker's skull in with his foot. She was gone. The one person he swore to always protect and the only person he was absolutely sure he loved in this world was gone. The only thing that gave him comfort was that she wasn't alone. She had Alex. But Daryl wanted to be with her. He wanted to kiss her good night like he did every night and hold her in his arms as she slept soundly next to him. Unable to do anything but mourn over the fact that his wife was gone, Daryl sat very still and stared into the flames.
The sound of Beth's voice brought Daryl out of his haze, but very barely. "We should do something." She said. Daryl didn't move or look away from the flames. "We should do something." Beth repeated. Daryl looked up at her. "We aren't the only survivors. We can't be. Rick, Michonne, they could be out here. Maggie and Glenn could have made it out of A Block. I saw Kayla and Alex get out through the side." Daryl's eyes went back to the flames at the mention of Kayla. Realizing she hit a nerve, Beth sat back and let a silence fall for a few seconds.
"You're a tracker." Beth reminded him as she stood. "You can track. Come on get up. The sun will be up soon, if we go now we can…" Daryl didn't move and kept staring at the flames. "Fine!" Beth snapped. "If you won't track em' I will." She grabbed the knife from the spot next to him and turned away, but then faced him again. "That's my sister, Daryl. And you're wife." After that, Beth stormed away into the woods.
Daryl continued to sit for a moment, but then stood up. He wasn't going to let Beth get herself killed and she was right. Kayla was his wife and he knew she was looking for him. He stomped the fire out with his foot before grabbing his crossbow and taking off after Beth.
For a few hours, Daryl and Beth trudged through the woods looking for any sign of anyone. It wasn't until late the next morning that they found some tracks that were made a few hours before. Then they found the same prints a bit later by some grape vines. The pair followed them down the trail until they came across two dead walkers and at least a dozen walkers footprints.
"They fought em' off." Beth reassured Daryl who was believing that whoever left the tracks they were following was dead. The sound of a twig snapping made Beth's instinct kick in and she whipped out her knife. Looking around for the source, Beth was completely unaware of the walker coming up behind her. It grabbed ahold of her and she let out a scream, alerting Daryl who was preoccupied looking at the tracks. He raised his crossbow, but couldn't get a clear shot so instead he rushed over and pulled it off of her. He fell to the ground with it and Beth took care of driving a blade through its skull.
A little while later after following some more tracks, Daryl and Beth came across some railroad tracks where up ahead, three walkers were making a meal of several bodies lying on the ground. Beth froze and Daryl's face became stoic. He simply walked forward and fired two arrows at two of the walkers, killing the third one by jamming an arrow into the skull of it. After retrieving his arrows, Daryl walked over to the tracks and turned around at the sound of Beth crying. He looked at her for a moment before turning away and walking a few steps until he stopped again. All he could think was at least none of them were Kayla.
OOOOO
About two miles up the tracks and a several hours before Daryl and Beth reached the tracks, Kayla, Alex, and Jonathan were pulled over on the side of the road. The car battery died. "Son of a bitch." Alex cursed as he slammed his hand on the steering wheel. "We'll have to walk from here."
Kayla and Alex got out of the car and Jonathan followed after them. They got their bags out of the trunk and got themselves situated before Alex pulled out the map. "It's too dangerous to follow the tracks straight through. We're too out in the open. We can go through the woods and follow the map down." All Kayla did was nod in response as she opened the car door again and opened the glove compartment. She pulled out the driver's manual and small black marker inside of it and ripped out a page. Alex watched as his daughter wrote something on the paper before sticking it under the one windshield wiper. It read:
Daryl-
Battery died. Moving through the woods, but staying close to the tracks.
~Kayla
Once the note was secure under the windshield wiper, Kayla took Jonathan's hand in hers and began walking towards the woods with him as Alex watched her from where he stood next to the car. He let out a breath before following them. Alex knew Daryl was as survivor and could last out there, but he could be anywhere and he didn't want his daughter to get her hopes up. There was always the chance they didn't find him or worse. They found him dead or as a walker.
Please R&R!
