Better Days

Chapter 329

Author's Note: Deanna is going to hold to her convictions. I think she's to proud to admit that she's wrong, but will admit that she handled things wrong. It'll be an interesting ride. Plus, she will have opposition from Quinn. I need to check in with Aaron and Daryl, but so much is happening in Alexandria! Plus Jewel and Rick needs a chapter of there own. Ack! So much stuff to get to. I'm really going to hate season 7 when there's three freaking communities. Please review.

Ronnie's POV:

Ronnie knocked on the door of the house that Pete was being kept in. This was the last place she wanted to be but she had taken an oath, and even now that oath meant something.

"Ronnie," Pete greeted as he opened the door. "What do you want?"

"To check your wounds," Ronnie simply answered.

"I don't need you to check my wounds. Your group has done enough, don't you think?" Pete questioned.

"You're still alive, so maybe we haven't done enough," Ronnie stated. "I'm a doctor, I took an oath, you took the same oath. Unlike you, I haven't forgotten what that means. I'm not here as a member of Rick's group, I'm not here to tell you what a coward I think you are, but I'm here as a doctor. A doctor who wants to make sure those wounds don't get infected. As a doctor, I can't let my personal feelings interfere with taking care of you," she told him as she walked in and closed the door. "Sit on the couch."

"How do I know you aren't here to finish up the job that Rick started?" Pete asked.

"Do no harm," Ronnie answered. "Sit down," she told him again.

Pete sat down and looked at her. "So you being here and not with Rick means you think he's wrong."

Ronnie took out the gauze and crème. "It doesn't mean any such thing Pete. I think it's best for me not to tell you what I think about you. Right here, right now, I'm being professional. Rick has Jewel to take care of him. No one wanted to touch you with a ten foot pole. I didn't want to touch you with a ten foot pole, but as I mentioned, I took an oath. So I patched you up, and now I'm here to recheck my work," she said as she pulled off the gauze, not so gently.

"Yeah, you got a good bedside manner," Pete hissed at her.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about," Ronnie answered. "I should check your hand. You didn't come to me to stitch it up, so you did it yourself. Or did you have Jessie do it?" she asked.

"You going to go when Rick gets kicked out?" Pete asked.

"What makes you think Rick is going to get kicked out, Pete?" Ronnie asked as she redid the gauze on his face.

"Look at what he did to me! He came into my house and he pushed me through the window. You don't think Deanna is going to do something about that?" Pete demanded to know.

Ronnie zipped up her bag and looked at him. "I think I remember something about you having your hands around Jewel's neck. I distinctively remember hearing something about you banging her head against the wall two or three times. Some of those bruises you're carrying aren't from Rick, they're from Jewel. Did you just expect Rick to overlook you trying to kill his wife?" she questioned calmly.

Pete looked at her. "She was in my house, telling my wife lies, having her turn against me."

Ronnie met his gaze. "You really believe that don't you? You really believe that you've done nothing wrong."

"What I do in my house is no bodies business. Not Rick's, not Jewel, not yours," Pete told her as he started to raise his voice.

"Pete, you need to calm down, right now. I told you that I didn't come here to discuss the situation, I just came here to check your wounds," Ronnie said as she stood up. "You aren't going to make me see your side of things, Pete, so just don't waste your breath," she told him as she turned around.

"I'll be over to check on Tara in a bit," Pete told her.

Ronnie turned. "No, you won't. If I see you near Tara, I will call Jewel over to kick your ass again. She didn't look all that happy that Rick took over. I think she wanted that pleasure all to herself," she warned him as she walked out the door and let the door slam.

Rick and Jewel's POV:

Jewel helped Rick put on the clean t shirt. "You ready to face the music?"

"No time like the present," Rick told her as he kissed her. "I want you and the kids' safe, I don't want you at that meeting tonight."

"Rick, I know. But you and me, we're a team. We were a team out there, and we are a team in here," Jewel told him. "I'm not going to let you face the firing squad. If any man wants to know what it's like to protect his family, they just need to look at you, Mr. Grimes. Deanna is going to make this about you, and I'm not about to let this happen. Do you understand me?" she told him as she kissed him softly.

"I understand, Mrs. Grimes," Rick told her.

"Remember what you said in the train car? That they're fucking with the wrong people? This isn't any different. I don't want bloodshed, but I know that's the likely outcome. But, I need to be there because I'm going to remind this isn't about you. This is about how they all turned blind eyes to Pete abusing his family. I'll show my back if I have to. I'll make them understand that I wanted to kill him when he grabbed Summer. And when Summer went to Deanna, the leader, all she did was try to turn it on us. We did what none of them were capable of, we were trying to protect Jessie and the boys, that I was doing nothing but talking with Jessie when Pete entered. He got angry, he grabbed me, and we fought, then you saw and you came over to protect me, your wife. You got angry because a place that was supposed to be safe, was supposed to make us feel safe, was another con. You did what should have been done ages ago, with Pete. And, if she's even trying to throw you out, Pete better be right beside you, then Deanna. The leader needs to be held responsible, and she's wanting to deflect the blame. And, I'm not letting that happen. We are here, right now, because Deanna can't make the hard calls," Jewel told him. "I'm going to say all that, because it needs to be said, repeatedly, until these idiots hear it."

Rick gave a laugh as he kissed her. "Calm down Mrs. Grimes, we don't need another fight breaking out."

"You ready?" Jewel questioned.

"I am," Rick told her, as he put his arm around Jewel's waist. They both walked outside together to see three men with guns. "Hey Tobin," Rick greeted.

"Hey Rick, Jewel," Tobin greeted as they passed.

Rick and Jewel both glanced up at Deanna who was staring at Rick. Jewel stopped and looked up. "You told Quinn and Joey that you wouldn't have anyone standing guard on Rick. Should I go see if someone's guarding Pete? Don't even try to answer, Deanna. Just another thing that I'm going to be pointing out tonight at the meeting. Be prepared to answer for your wrongs Deanna," Jewel told her. "And never try a staring contest with a Dixon, we were born with a glare on our faces," she added as Rick held out his hand to her. Jewel gave a backward glance at Deanna and stared at her until they got to the house.

"Dad!" Carl said as he ran to hug Rick.

Rick hugged Carl close to him, holding on for a minute.

"Are you OK?" Carl asked as Summer came over.

"Yeah," Rick answered as he put his arm out for Summer to hug him.

"We're glad you're home. Mika, Lexi and Mitch were worried, about both of you," Summer told them.

"We're alright," Jewel assured them. "Judith and Hope?"

"Both asleep," Carl told her.

"Look I'm sorry," Rick told his two oldest children. "It shouldn't have went down the way it did, but after what Pete did to Summer, then seeing him fighting with your mom, I was just seeing red," he told them as he started to walk upstairs.

"Summer told me about the meeting," Carl told them.

"He had a right to know. Honesty, that's what you always told us to be with each other," Summer told them.

Jewel turned and nodded. "He does have a right to know," she agreed with her daughter.

"You're staying home, both of you," Rick told them.

"That's what it is now right? Home?" Carl asked.

Jewel looked at Rick who slowly nodded. "Yeah," he answered.

"They need us, they'll die without us," Carl told them. "Mom tried to show them who might be able to survive, but they'll all die eventually."

"We need to be here," Summer told them.

Rick walked off the stairs and went to face the two of them. "I might have to threaten one of them, I might have to kill one of them," he told them.

"I'm going to be there to remind them this isn't about your father, this is about bad leadership," Jewel assured them.

"But someone still might have to die," Summer added.

"Yeah, someone might have to die," Rick answered.

"You won't," Carl insisted.

"I might," Rick insisted right back.

"You have to tell them," Carl told Rick.

"I tried to tell them last night," Rick informed him.

"It may be more effective without a gun, dad," Summer told him.

Jewel looked at both of them, they weren't kids anymore. They were adults, forced to grow up in this world, but still trying to keep they're humanity.

"Summer's right, you have to do it with out the gun. You have to tell them so they can hear you," Carl insisted.

Rick looked at him and lowered his voice. "I don't know if they can," he said. "Does that make you afraid?"

"Just for them. You have to tell them," Carl repeated.

"I know you don't us there, but maybe I should be there. I could speak for you, I could tell them from not quite an adult's point of view, what we went through. I know we've tried, but now that we're here, if we left, then there's deaths' would be on our heads. I don't want to feel guilty about anything else if it can be helped. They aren't evil like the Governor or Terminus, they're naïve, and misguided. We believed in not killing people at first too, about keeping our humanity," Summer told them.

"Summer, I need you to be back here with Carl, to help him watch the kids," Rick told her.

"Lexi and I've got it dad. Summer's an adult, she needs to speak for Judith, Hope, Mika, Mitch, Lexi and me. She's still our voice. I'll stay, but she needs to be there, to remind them that if we aren't here that they're kids are going to die," Carl told them.

Jewel nodded. "It couldn't hurt Rick. Plus it could remind them that not only did Pete hurt her, but she got hurt because of Aiden and Nicholas and that a decision that Deanna made caused that."

Rick nodded. "If you're sure about this Summer. My only goal is to keep you kids safe. I know that you are more grown up then we were ever at that age, but you are still my daughter and I want to keep you safe."

"We work together dad, we protect each other. That's how we survive," Summer said as Mika and Mitch came down the stairs.

"Are you alright Rick?" Mika asked.

Rick hugged her then Mitch. "I'm all right."

"Sam told us about the meeting, Uncle Rick. Are we going?" Mitch asked.

Jewel smiled at the adopted Dixon and adopted Grimes. "You both are staying here with Carl and Lexi."

"Are you going to make them understand they need us?" Mika asked.

Rick shook his head. "It seems that all of you feel about the same. I'll do my best, I give you my word on that," he told the four young people in front of him.