Beth woke from a dream she knew had been about Daryl, but the whispers of it faded as she opened her blue eyes to the morning light filtering through the room. She rolled over and noticed that she was alone in the bed; she sat up and looked to the bathroom door, which was slightly ajar and clearly empty – Beth could not help but pout. She hated waking up alone, knowing Daryl had got up and gone out without her. She put her hand down onto the white fabric of the bed sheet beside her, feeling the cool touch and knowing that it was not cold enough to suggest he had been gone for very long. The pillow just above her hand still held the dent of his head, and the sight of it made Beth smile. There was an ache in her chest, n ache that the empty bed had produced, and she knew she needed to get up and go and find him.

With a sigh, she rolled out of the bed and began to dress, pulling on a pair of the new leggings they had picked up, and revelling in how much more comfortable they were than her jeans. She understood the practicality of denim, but with the growing heat and her own growing stomach, leggings were suddenly even more practical.

Beth headed out of her room, glancing across the hall to the closed door opposite, the door to the bedroom that belonged to her sister and Glen. She had no idea whether they were in there or not, but knowing Maggie, she was already up and fighting the day.

The house downstairs was empty and quiet, so Beth headed for the one next door, figuring it was the best place to look for any of her family.

Her assumption was proven right; Beth was greeted by the low tones of Daryl's voice as she pushed open the door into the little porch area, and she was instantly warmed by the sound of it. She looked across to the dining table, where the two men were sitting, engaged in conversation and unaware of her arrival.

'He told me about the men he met,' Rick was saying seriously, his elbows leant on the table at outward angles, his bearded chin resting on his hands and his own blue eyes pensive as he looked at the man before him.

'The W's,' Daryl replied gruffly. 'Like the walkers we saw.'

'We need more watch points,' Rick said.

'What's going on?' Beth asked, surprising both men as she approached the table. They turned to look at her, their eyes widened.

'Beth,' Rick said, whilst Daryl just looked at her.

'What's up?' Beth asked again, making her way towards the table, a smile playing on her full lips at the look of surprise on both the faces – she guessed Daryl had taught her more about being a quiet hunter than he thought.

'What y'doing here?' Daryl frowned.

'Looking for you,' Beth said to him. She pulled out a seat beside him and sat down, as Rick looked at her with a face of bemused curiosity.

'Is this about Morgan?' She asked.

Rick glanced to Daryl, assessing the other man's response, before turning his face back to Beth and slowly nodding.

'Where is he now?' Beth asked.

'In the holding cell,' Rick said, 'just 'til we're sure.'

Beth nodded.

'You think he's dangerous?' Beth asked, glancing from Rick to Daryl, before settling her eyes back on Rick.

Rick ran a hand through his bead, thinking for a moment. Then he sighed.

'Nah,' he said slowly. 'But he met some people out there that could be.'

'What kind of people?' Beth frowned.

'Men who ambushed him and tried to take his stuff,' Rick said. 'Then tried to kill him.'

'They had W's carved onto their foreheads,' Daryl said gruffly, and Beth grimaced. 'The place Aaron and I got trapped was full of walkers like it too.'

'Walker's with W's on their heads?' Beth frowned.

Daryl nodded.

Beth looked to Rick, her eyes wide.

'What does it mean?' She asked him.

'I'm not sure,' Rick admitted. 'But I think we need to bump our defences, and speak to Deanna about not letting new people in for a while.'

Beth looked to Daryl; his face was impassive but she could tell he was not too happy about the decision. She nodded slowly. The safety of their family inside Alexandria was more important now.

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door. Beth pushed her seat back to see around the wall, as Rick stood. Whoever it was was not family, for they had not let their-selves in.

Rick opened the door to Deanna, who looked a little flustered.

'Rick,' she said, 'you need to see this.'

'What's up?' Rick frowned.

'Some people have just arrived.'

'People?' Daryl asked.

'Just – come with me.'

Beth, a little confused and ever so slightly wary, followed the two men out of the house and down to the front gate; through the gates, Beth could see a giant red fire truck, and plenty of the Alexandrian's before it.

Maggie and Aaron were there, too, their faces grave as they waved them over.

'How on earth did we miss this?' Aaron said, exasperated.

Daryl shook his head.

'Guess we're bad at our jobs.' He said.

'They arrived a few minutes ago.' Deanna explained. 'I wanted to speak with you before we opened the gates.'

'Good,' Rick nodded, his own face serious. He looked to Daryl, then made his way through the small crowd to the gate. Beth peered after him, noticing for the first time the three figures stood on the other side of their fence.

'Welcome to Alexandria,' Rick said. 'I'm Rick Grimes. Who are you?'

'Sergeant Abraham Ford,' the man said gruffly, reaching his hand through the gap in the fence and out towards Rick. Rick did not take it.

Beth looked the man over as Rick did; he was a large, burly man with a strong, muscled chest and arms that stood proudly from his vest top, a crop of shockingly red hair with a matching moustache and army trousers. His face was grave and serious, but beneath his heavy brow, his eyes seemed earnest.

A woman, who until now had been silent, stepped up from behind him.

'Rosita Espinosa.' She said. 'Are you going to let us in?' This woman looked even sterner than the man, and she too was dressed in a military type outfit, with a khaki hat atop her dark hair.

Rick chuckled.

'Not just yet.' He said. 'We don't know you.'

The red-headed man nodded with a smile.

'Makes sense.' He said. 'I'm Abraham, this is Rosita, and this here is Eugene Porter.'

A third man stood behind them both, nervously watching the people around him. He showed none of the tough or grave exterior of his companions, but his exterior was equally as strange. In camo shorts and a blue shirt, the weirdest part of the man was his hair – a mullet that Beth had only ever seen in old photographs.

Rick turned to look at Deanna, who had held back during the initial meet and greet. He nodded to her, and she nodded back.

'A'right,' Rick said slowly, 'we're gonna open up these gates and let you in, but you're gonna have to give over your weapons and follow Deanna here.'

Abraham turned to look at his companions; the woman remained stony faced, but she shrugged a single shoulder after a moment.

'Deanna will take you through to the interview process,' Rick said.

'Interview?' The woman named Rosita asked, raising one delicate eyebrow.

'If you wanna stay here, we need to know you can fit in,' Rick said. Then he paused, and looked at all three of them individually. 'That is, if you do want to stay here.'

The Sergeant looked back at him. He nodded.

'Yes, sir,' he said.

'Then follow me,' Deanna smiled.

'So much for not letting new people in,' Beth said below her breath as Spencer began to pull open the gates.

Daryl just grunted.

Rick made his way back to them, his face dark.

'Daryl, come with me to Deanna's. We need to keep our eyes on them.'

Daryl nodded.

–

Beth, Maggie and Judith were sitting out by the lake, taking in the initial sun of what promised to be a long, hot summer. Beth held Judith on her lap, singing softly to the back of her light brown hair, bouncing her ever so slightly. Maggie sat beside her, her legs stretched out before her and her ankles crossed leisurely, as they both looked forward to the glistening lake.

The three new arrivals had been with Deanna and Rick since they had arrived, and no one had heard any more from them. Beth and her sister had discussed them, their graves looks and their odd vehicle, but there was very little to guess. No one knew what anyone else had been through out there.

Glen approached them and crouched down beside his wife; his face was lined with concern.

'What's up? What's happened?' Maggie asked.

'We know now why the people here have been so lucky.' He said.

Both Beth and Maggie looked at him, as Judith cooed.

'The guys that turned up here passed by an old quarry,' Glen said. 'It's full of them.'

'Of what?' Maggie frowned.

'Walkers,' Glen said. 'They must be falling in there and getting trapped. It's what's stopped them getting here.'

Beth took an intake of breath.

'He – that Abraham Ford – doesn't think it's going to last. Rick is going to ride out there now and see.'

'Ride out? With him?' Beth frowned. It seemed rash. 'What if it's a trap?'

Maggie turned to look at her.

'A trap?' She questioned.

'I heard Daryl and Rick talking this morning about a group of people with W's on their heads, saying they were bad people and that we need to up our defences. Then suddenly these new people turn up, claim they've seen a quarry, and everyone just accepts and rides out there with them?' She spluttered.

Maggie looked at Glen.

'Did you know about this?' She asked.

Glen shook his head.

'No,' he said, 'but Rick and Deanna have been talking with them all morning. Rick's smart. He wouldn't walk blindly into a trap.'

'What if he is?' Beth asked.

'If he is, he'll have a plan,' Glen said.

'Who's going?' Maggie asked. 'Are you?'

'Yeah,' Glen said, 'and Daryl too.'

Beth nodded, she had thought as much. Daryl was Rick's right hand man.

Beth took a deep breath; either way, it wasn't good news. Her family were about to walk into danger with a bunch of strangers, or there was an unstable quarry full of walkers on their doorstep.

Balancing Judith carefully, Beth got herself to her feet; she wanted to find Daryl before he left, so along with Glen and her sister, they headed towards the front gate. Maggie was equally as pensive, and Beth believed what she had said had shaken her.

Daryl was there already, checking over his bike, whilst Rick and the new man, Abraham, stood nearby in conversation. Beth kept her eyes on the new man as she approached Daryl.

'Hey,' She said gently, walking over to Daryl with Judith on her hip.

He straightened himself, wiping his hands down his shirt.

'Hey,' he replied, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek, then ruffle Judith's hair; the baby giggled and buried her face in Beth's neck.

'You're going out to see this quarry?' She asked.

'Mm,' he nodded, 'Glen told you?'

'Yeah,' Beth said, 'what do you think?'

Daryl shrugged.

'Gonna go find out,' he said.

Beth nodded slowly, biting her lip.

'What?' Daryl frowned.

'What if it's a trap?' She said. 'Rick said this morning about being more careful. We don't know these people.'

Daryl turned to look at Rick and Abraham. Then he turned back to Beth and placed a hand on her shoulder.

'Rick ain't stupid,' he smiled. 'And he don't trust no one, not really. But if what this man says is true, we're all in a hell of a lot o'danger. We gotta find out for ourselves.'

'What if it's an ambush?' Beth asked, fretful. 'By the men with the W's.'

'Tha's why they're takin' me,' Daryl grinned, but then he sobered up. 'Me, Rick, Glen, Michonne an' Sasha can handle ourselves. We walk into an ambush, we take every sorry fucker out.'

Beth sighed; she supposed he was right. She had seen all five of them in action. Abraham was a big man, but they weren't stupid.

'Be safe,' she said, hitching Judith up.

He nodded.

Beth hung back then to watch as the small convey made their way out of the gates, with Rick and Abraham in lead. She hated watching Daryl go, whatever the weather. She hoped he was right, and her feelings were no more than paranoia, but she still felt queasy as she watched him go. He seemed so vulnerable on that bike. Danger lurked around every corner in this new world, and stepping outside of those gates put him directly in it. Cuddling Judith close to her, she bit her lip. She guessed she understood why Daryl was so mad whenever she left, now.

Maggie approached her, and gently slung her arm around her shoulders.

'It's horrible when they go, isn't it,' she said with a smile.

'Uh huh,' Beth smiled back.

–

Beth had been thinking about the new man within their walls since she had learned of his presence. There was something about him that intrigued her, so whilst Daryl set out in search of this quarry, Beth made her own way to the holding cell.

The holding cell was really just a room in one of the unfinished houses; Carol stood guard outside of it. She smiled as Beth entered the house.

'Beth,' she said, 'what brings you here?'

'I was wondering if I could talk with Morgan?' Beth said.

Carol looked her up and down for a moment, seeming to turn the idea around in her head. Then she nodded.

'I don't see why not,' she said. 'He doesn't seem dangerous. I'll be right out here if you need me, though.'

Beth nodded, and smiled her thanks as Carol opened the door for her.

The room within was small and relatively dim, for the only window it had was higher up. The man, Morgan, was sitting on the mattress that lay on the floor, reading. He looked up as Beth walked in, and raised his brows in question.

'Hi there,' Beth said, coming to a stop before him. 'I'm Beth.'

'Morgan,' Morgan smiled. 'Good to meet you, Beth.'

'You too,' Beth nodded. She paused for a moment, not too sure what to say. The man before her was calm and still, watching her with big brown eyes.

'I wanted to come and meet you,' Beth said, 'and thank you for saving both Daryl and Aaron.'

Morgan nodded with a smile.

'Would you do that for anybody?' Beth asked him. 'Save them like that.'

'Of course,' Morgan smiled.

'Why?' Beth asked, tilting her head.

Morgan chuckled lightly, nodding his head.

'As I said to Daryl, Beth. All life is precious.'

'Do you really believe that?' Beth asked.

'I do,' Morgan said. 'Don't you?'

Beth bit her lower lip, watching the steady man before her. She sighed.

'I used to.' She said. 'I'm not so sure any more.'

Morgan nodded like he understood.

'Rick seems about the same,' he said. 'Says he doesn't take chances any more.'

Beth nodded.

'I was like you once too,' he said. 'Lost and angry.'

'I'm not lost and angry,' Beth said.

'But you've lost your faith in people,' Morgan answered.

Beth swallowed.

'Not entirely,' she said, honestly. 'It's just hard to have faith when the world is so full of darkness.'

'But it is full of so much light, too.' Morgan smiled. 'And there are still good people around. And we need people now, more than ever. Look at what you have here, what you've built here.'

Beth nodded.

'I was lost too once,' Morgan said softly. 'I came back from it. I think everyone can.'

Beth pursed her lips. It was an interesting sentiment, and part of her respected Morgan for it, but she was no longer sure if she could agree. She used to always be so sure about people, but since the Governor, since Grady, her thoughts had changed.

'You think everyone can come back?' Beth asked.

Morgan nodded.

'I do,' he said.

Beth sighed, and Morgan looked at her steadily for a moment.

'Are you talking to me about this out of curiosity – or are you worried about someone?' He asked.

Beth looked at him; this man was a stranger. She couldn't open up to him. Could she? She sighed.

'I used to think like you,' she smiled. 'I used to have faith in people, every person.'

'And what changed your mind?' Morgan asked.

Beth sighed again, absent-mindedly placing her hand on her belly as she thought back to Grady, back to her discovery of the baby inside her.

'I've killed people,' she said.

Morgan nodded.

'Me too,' he said.

Beth nodded.

'That doesn't mean you're a bad person. Doesn't mean that is who you are. You can come back from that.'

Beth nodded again, but she wasn't so sure.

'What if I can't?' She asked quietly. 'What if I don't want to?'

Morgan nodded; he understood, he had gotten the same vibe from Rick. These people had been through a lot as a group, and they had their own way of surviving. But Morgan had intrigued Beth – his peaceful view on the world seemed to give her another option. Ever since she had taken lives, she had felt wrong. She no longer felt like herself, and she found herself disagreeing with herself. She didn't know who she wanted to be any more.

'Life is still precious,' Morgan smiled. 'We can still give life a chance. We can live and survive without killing.'

'Take risks,' Beth murmured.

'Take chances,' Morgan said instead.

Beth nodded. She smiled at the man sat on the mattress, then took a deep breath.

'Well, it was good talking to you Morgan,' She said.

Morgan smiled back.

'It sure was,' he said. 'Hope to speak to you some more, outside of this room.'

'You going to stay here?' Beth asked.

Morgan paused for a moment, nodding slowly as he thought it over. He smiled.

'I think so,' he said.

–

Beth saw Morgan again sooner than she had expected – that evening inside Deanna's house. Rick seemed to have decided he was not a risk, and so had allowed him to join the group as he gathered them to break his news – Sergeant Abraham Ford had been telling the truth.

Beth sat next to her sister, who was between herself and Glen, as Rick explained to the room around them that there was a quarry nearby, and that it was full of walkers, and that it was starting to fall apart.

'They get out of there – and they will get out of there – they're coming straight for us.' Rick said.

Beth looked at her sister, her heart in her throat.

Rick looked over them.

'I got a plan,' he said. 'I'm gonna need volunteers. A group of us to go out there and draw them out, lead them far away from here. If we don't act, it's going to give way – after one hard rain it could all fall through.

'Can't we build up the weak spots?' Someone asked. 'I worked with Reg on construction.'

'We could,' Rick said slowly. 'But the sound of them is drawing more and more walkers each day. It's too risky.'

'We're going to do what Rick says,' Deanna said then, speaking up over the people who were beginning to murmur.

'Daryl is going to lead them out,' Rick said, 'Sasha too, and two teams either side of the forest keeping it in check. We can do this.'

Beth turned to look to Daryl, biting her lower lip. He was stoic and still, his dark eyes on Rick.

'I'm in too,' Glen said.

Maggie leant herself in to Beth, gently nudging her arm into her, and Beth knew she was not only comforting, but needing it herself.

'They'll be fine,' Beth said, taking her eyes off of Daryl to smile at her sister.

'Yeah,' Maggie said. 'Course.'