All Nightmare Long
Chapter 417
Author's Note: Let's check on Alexandria and how they are doing a few days after the battle and still thinking Summer is missing. Lots of stuff going on. Thank you for commenting after all this time, it makes me very very happy. You know what else will make me happy? More reviews! Please review.
Five Days after Battle
Glenn, Jes and Joey's POV:
Jes looked up at the sun, as she adjusted her weapon, and looked over at Joey as he kept killing walkers' as he looked for Summer. She glanced at Glenn as they both looked at each other. "Joey, we need to head back if we're getting back to Alexandria before it's dark," she called after him.
"Just another hour," Joey said.
Glenn walked over to him and grabbed Joey's arm. "It's not going to do anybody any good if they have to worry about us too," he said. "I want to find Summer as much as you do Joey, but we need to get back," he told him.
Joey pushed him. "I'm not going back without finding something to take back to Jewel, even if it's her corpse," he told him.
"Back off, Joey," Jes told him as she pushed him away from Glenn. "We've been out here three days in a row, we care about her as much as you do."
"And if we stay out here, someone else is going to have to come out and look for us, endangering them too," Glenn said.
"I don't want to have to tell Jewel we came up empty handed again. For the past two days, we've came back and she's been standing there at the gate, waiting for us to come back, and for two days, I've had to stand there and see the look in her face when I tell her that we didn't find her. My brother was the one who was supposed to be protecting her, I vouched for him, to bring him into our family, and now it's possible he's responsible for her missing and possibly being dead," Joey said.
"This isn't your fault," Jes said.
"She's right, it's not your fault. You did what any one of us would do if we found a relative, one of our siblings. He didn't give us any idea that he would do this. We have to find both of them, and maybe we're all wrong. I'm hoping that we are wrong about David," Glenn said.
"Innocent men don't sneak out in the middle of the night and steal friend's cars and supplies," Jes pointed out.
"She's right, whatever happened to Summer, David had a part of it. I'm not going to go back to Alexandria without finding something," Joey told them.
"You're going to get in that car, Joey. It's your decision if you are conscious or not," Jes warned him.
"We'll be back out here first thing tomorrow, and if it's not us, someone else will be. We aren't giving up on finding her, one way or another," Glenn assured him. "I'll talk to Jewel today, it doesn't always have to be you, we're family," he said as he opened up the door.
Jes let him get into the backseat before getting in the car and closed the door.
"So, are we going to have to admit the fact that she may not be alive? If she was alive and not injured, she would have made it back by now," Joey said. "I'd rather her be gone than with what type of people are out there," he said.
Jes and Glenn looked at each other thinking the same thing.
Jewel and Carl's POV:
Jewel changed Hope's diaper as she had her back toward Carl, who had woken up a day before. Her and Rick had spent most of the night with him, only to leave to check on the girls'. Some one had always stayed with him, but she hadn't been able to sleep between Carl being here and Summer still missing and possibly dead. She closed her eyes momentarily and took a breath. She didn't want to think of it like that, but she didn't want to think about the alternative. She didn't want to think about her daughter being in the hands of men that made this world more dangerous.
"Mom?" Carl questioned from the bed.
Jewel put Hope in the bassinet and wiped her eyes as she turned around. "Stop scratching at the bandage Carl," she said as she came over and kissed his forehead. "I made your father go lay down, he was practically falling flat on his face," she said. "He'll be here later, and bring you some dinner. Lexi stopped by earlier, she sat with you so I could feed Hope and check on Judy. I should check on that bandage, we need to keep it clean. How's the pain?" she asked.
"The same as before," Carl answered. "Summer isn't back, is she?" he questioned.
Jewel looked at him. "Sit up, sweetheart," she told him.
"Mom," Carl said as he started to sit up and winced in pain.
Jewel grabbed some water and a pain pill. "Here baby, we don't have a lot, Daryl and Tara are out looking for some more. And, no Summer hasn't returned yet," she told him as she got the bandages out. "If she was, you know she'd be here, she wouldn't leave your side. You know how she is, about all you kids, especially her siblings. She would have punched you in the gut for scaring her," she told him as she unwrapped his eye. "Maybe I should do it for her, huh?" she teased.
"Dad said he's worried about you," Carl said.
"I worry about him, he worries about me and we worry about all of you, that's how it works," Jewel answered. "This eye is looking pretty good under the circumstance. Mitch was telling Tara and Daryl to look for an eye patch so you could look like a pirate," she said as she rinsed out his eye.
"Mom, I'm worried about you too. Lexi, dad, Maggie, Beth they all told me you haven't been sleeping at all. You look like you're barley holding it together. You don't have to be strong all the time, mom, you can break down...I'm here, we're all here," Carl said as she wrapped his eye back up.
Jewel sat down next to him and took his hand. "If I break down, I'm never going to stop crying, and I can't allow myself to do that right now. You need me, your sisters need me, your dad needs me. So, I'm keeping my mind occupied by that," she said.
"If you broke down, we'd all be right here to support you. We've got enough people that can help with the babies, and I don't need you to worry about me," Carl told her.
Jewel raised an eyebrow. "Says the kid in the infirmary," she teased. "I'm your mom, Carl, I'm going to worry about you til the day I take that last breath, and there's nothing you can do to make me stop," she said as she kissed the top of her head. "So I'm taking care of you so I don't break down about my intense worry about your older sister."
"Do you think she's still alive? I mean if she is and she isn't injured, she would have been back by now," Carl reasoned.
Jewel looked over to Hope sleeping as she took a breath. "I know, I was thinking about that too," she told him trying not to cry.
"And, if she is alive, maybe she found good people, like us," Carl said.
"Yeah, I'm sure she did, have to think positive right? I'm thinking that maybe I'll go out in a couple days myself if she isn't back, look for her," Jewel told him. "If you're sure you'll be alright?"
"Mom, I've got everybody checking up on me, and no one is leaving me alone, I'll be more then fine. I'd be out there with you if I could," he told her.
"I know you would, but right now, you have to concentrate on getting stronger, then you can come home. It's going to be an adjustment, living with one eye, and you'll have to learn to shoot using one eye. It's going to be hard, and I can't even imagine how hard it is going to be for you, but you aren't alone. Don't ever forget that, OK?" Jewel questioned.
"I won't if you don't," Carl said.
"We won't let her forget," Michonne said as she came in with food. "They should be back soon, I'll sit with Carl and Hope," she offered.
"Go on mom, if they found her, you'll want to be there," Carl said.
Jewel kissed his forehead. "Eat then rest," she ordered. "Thanks Michonne," she said as she squeezed her shoulder.
Michonne hugged Jewel. "Anything for family. I brought comic books for Carl and I to look at after he eats,"she said with a smile.
Team family:
Jewel walked outside to the gates, seeing most other members of the family waiting by the gate. Jewel raised an eyebrow as she walked down to the gate. "What are you all doing down here?" she questioned.
Mar looked at Jewel. "Waiting to see if they found Summer."
"She is our family too, you shouldn't be waiting here by yourself everyday," Beth informed her.
Jewel looked at Rick and Daryl. "I'm sure you all have something else to be doing then waiting around," she said.
Rick carried Judith over to her and kissed her. "She's my daughter too, she means something to everyone standing here. If she is with them, we all want to be here to welcome her back," he told her.
"And, if she isn't, we're here too," Carol told her.
Jewel sighed and took a breath. "Carl was telling me it's alright for me to break down," she said.
"It is, you don't have to be strong all the time," Daryl told her.
"Did you and Tara find any medicine?" Jewel questioned.
"We did, things that weren't even on the list,"Tara answered. "We took it over to Denise," she added.
"You are ignoring what I said," Daryl pointed out.
"Doing what Dixon's do best," Jewel said as she kissed Judith's hand.
"Carl's right, about you not having to be strong all the time, none of us expect you too," Rick told her as he kissed her again.
"Maybe we'll have good news and it'll be tears of joy," Carol said as she squeezed her hand.
"They're coming," Axel said as he went to open the gate.
Jewel turned and looked as the car coming in, noticing only three people in the car. She closed her eyes and took a breath, really wishing everyone else wasn't there. She fought back the tears as Joey, Glenn and Jes got out of the car.
"Any leads?" Abraham asked as he cautiously glanced at Jewel.
"If we had any leads, we would have still been out looking," Joey snapped.
"Joey, he's just asking a question," Glenn told him. "Jewel...", he started to say.
"Glenn, don't say you're sorry alright? I know that you, Jes and Joey have busted your butts off out there. I don't blame any of you, it's not your fault," Jewel said as she looked at them.
"You three can take a break tomorrow, I'll go out searching," Daryl said.
"I'll go out with you," Abraham said.
"I'm off shift, I'll go too," Rosita offered.
Jewel took a breath and closed her eyes. She opened up her eyes. "Rosita, Denise needs you here, Abraham, you need to be working on the wall, Daryl, you haven't stopped since you got back plus you're injured. I'll go out tomorrow," she said.
"You aren't going alone," Daryl told her. "I'm going, and that's final. Rick you're needed here. And then we'll make up a roster on people going out,"he said.
Jewel looked at him and shook her head as she finally lost the battle of not crying. "We go out tomorrow, we go as far as we can, past where she was last seen, and if we don't find anything...if we don't find her, we need to admit that maybe...we have to face..." she said as she started crying harder. She took Judith from Rick and walked toward the house kissing the top of her head.
Glenn looked after her. "I never though that I would see Jewel giving up on Summer,"he said.
"She's not giving up, she's trying to be realistic," Carol said.
"She's hoping that she's dead rather than being with a group like the Wolves or the Claimers, or the group I was with. That's one of the hardest things she's ever done, and she isn't giving up, she's hoping her daughter isn't suffering," Mar said as she walked away.
"If it's the last day she wants an official search, I'm going,"Joey said.
"Me too," Jes said. "Rick?" Jes called to get his attention.
Rick looked at them. "I'm going to go too. If we don't find anything, I need to be there. Daryl, Abraham, Joey, Glenn, Jewel and I will go, he said. "I'm going to go talk with her,"Rick said.
TBC
Author's Note: A Rick and Jewel chapter next chapter. Please review.