Second update of the day! Yay! I hope you guys like it! The reason I haven't been updating so much in one day is because I didn't want to overwhelm you guys, but clearly, you can take it. Please review! :)
"There they go." Andrea smiled as Daryl rode off with Jamie seated on the back of his horse.
Carol shook her head- but she was smiling. It seemed ever since Jamie had come into their lives, Daryl had been a different person. Less reserved, more involved... she'd catch him watching her intently sometimes, as well, when she managed to hop around camp herself or stroke the fire. It wasn't just the watching her she'd noticed, though- it was the way he watched her. Quietly, reserved- he watched her like a father. That porcupine managing to attack Jamie seemed like it'd been the best thing that'd happened to Daryl, though she sometimes caught Jamie sighing and wishing she could walk around and run, most likely.
"He takes her everywhere with him." Glenn said, looking up and smiling from where he'd been holding hands with Maggie.
"You should be glad- he was such a loner before she came about." Maggie added.
"Yeah. But what happens if he looses her?" Rick asked himself, but they all heard it and stared.
Rick sighed. "All I'm saying is it's possible... I mean, any of us could. Daryl already lost Merle..."
"Dude. Have you SEEN Jamie? She's straight out of a Kick-Ass movie. She isn't going to die. Especially since Daryl has he back." Glenn said.
"Can we not talk about this, Rick?" Dale said, eyes darting over to where Carl was watching them. Rick suddenly realized his son was hearing everything he said.
"What?" Carl asked, looking up from the gun he'd 'borrowed' from Daryl. It seemed like Jamie was the only one who got to have an fun around here...
After he hide and seek incident, she'd stopped playing games. Like she was afraid fun was dangerous or something. And she'd killed that walker when he hadn't even been able to hit it. He needed to kill a walker. He needed to grow up.
And so he struck out into the woods that day, to kill a walker.
"This still doesn't settle how we're going to deal with Randall." Dale said. They hadn't spoken abut their prisoner in days, Jamie had arrived soon after he did. She didn't even know they had a prisoner.
"We're going to have to kill him, Dale. We just need to put it to a vote." Rick said.
"But what about Jamie- what makes him so different than her?" Dale said. "This is a LIFE, not some play toy!"
Rick whirled. "Jamie did not fire shots at us. Jamie did not witness rape going down and simply stand by. Jamie simply tried to run from us,which is perfectly natural, since we were strange men. She was an innocent, so we helped her..."
"You don't know that." Dale said. "You don't know a thing about that girl except her family is dead. She could've killed- she could've done worse things than Randall. All we know about her is that Daryl really likes her." Dale's eyes were filled with emotion. "I say before we kill Randall, we try and find out what she's done in the past."
"Jamie wouldn't commit rape. She wouldn't kill unless it was necessary..."
"Is it necessary to kill Randall? We should give the boy a chance..." Dale said firmly.
"Fine. Tonight, we'll ask her about what happened to her on the road. If she's done anything worse than Randall- then we'll set them both free. Randall will be dropped off on the highway, Jamie will be free to stay with us..."
"What makes Jamie so different than Randall? Why can't he join the group, too?" Dale asked.
"Dale. have a pregnant wife and son, there's Carol, Andrea, Beth, Patricia, Maggie, and Jamie to think about. I will NOT let a rapist live with us." Rick said firmly. "He'll be lucky if I let him live. Let's just leave it at that."
Dale nodded, satisfied the boy at least had a chance.
"Stupid cow." Daryl said. "How the heck did it even get out if the fences?"
Jamie shrugged from where she was leaning one foot against a fence post, keeping her injured foot off the ground.
"Dunno. Maybe it was just bored or somethin... oh shit. Daryl..." She lifted her chin. About a quarter mile ahead were walkers milling around in the pasture, and a broken fence.
"Looks like we found out how they came in." Daryl said, shouldering is crossbow. Jamie swung up onto the horse again.
"I'll distract them. You get the cow." Daryl ordered, and she nodded. She turned the horse around before jumping the fence on it, tossing a rope around the cow's neck and leading it towards the broken section of fence, to lead it back in.
"Come on, you bastards!" Daryl yelled. Of the six walkers, two were down, and he led the others in so they didn't notice her...
Jamie quietly led the cow in and dropped the rope, pulling her bow off her chest and notching an arrow, taking quick aim.
She dropped a walker behind Daryl, who grinned, stabbing the one in front of him... she nailed another one, and Daryl stabbed the last one, nodding to her.
He turned back to the fence, patching it up as best he could...
Around the fire that night, it was Rick who started it. "So Jamie- how'd you loose your family?"
She dropped the stick of venison she'd been holding, shocked.
"What the hell, Rick?" Daryl asked, looking slightly upset. Jamie just stared into the fire.
"I just want to know, Daryl. Jamie?"
"I... we were holed up in our basement, on a farm like this, in South Carolina. Except it was smaller. A horde came while my Mom was tending the horses at dawn, they just... they ripped her apart. The horde passed by, though, we buried my Mom- what was left of her, anyways. Then, one night a few weeks later, another herd came through. My Dad and little sister, Lily, got bit. We waited until The horde passed by- Dad rode out to the field with Ryder, and asked Ryder to shoot him. He did. It's what my father wanted. I waited until Lily was asleep, she was only six... I carried her outside and laid her on the grass and ended it."
"After that, Ryder and I knew we couldn't stay there. We shot the horses, we didn't want them to be alive when Walkers managed to get them, and we loaded up my dad's pickup with all the guns and ammo and stuff we could carry and left."
"Did you kill anyone?" Rick asked.
She swallowed and nodded.
"Who?"
"I... I don't know his name..." Jamie said finally.
"Why did you kill him?" Rick asked.
Jamie sighed. "We were on the highway, Ryder left me to guard the truck while he siphoned some gas, and this bastard came up to me and threw me down..."
"So you killed him." Rick said.
"It was either that or let him keep unbuttoning his pants and rape me." Jamie snarled.
"That's enough, Jamie." Daryl said calmly. "You don't have to tell them nothin'."
"Who else did you kill?" Rick asked.
"A woman who pulled a gun on Ryder. And a boy who had a bite wound and was unconscious in the woods. Ryder killed two men who tried to screw around with me, too."
"How long did it take you to get here?"
"Three months. We left the farm five months in."
"Dd you ever witness a crime?" Rick asked.
"Yes. Theft, I guess, if you count looting, but Ryder and I did that too..."
"How was the state line? Rick asked.
She sighed. "It was hell. Walkers all over the broken cars, they were... everywhere. A kid had been killed there, it was a feeding frenzy..."
"How did you get out?" Rick asked.
"Ryder and I crawled under the bodies of some walkers we'd killed and stayed there all day, I just clung to him, until they moved on."
"How long were you on foot before you came to this place?" Rick asked.
Jamie shrugged. "Twenty days or so. We just combed the woods, killed meat, found berries, ate plants and stuff. Who'd you kill?"
"I..." Rick looked shocked.
"I told you everything. You need to return the favor."
"I killed three people. Two tried to draw on me, and the other..."
"That's all need to know." Jamie said, picking her venison up off the ground. She brushed it off before taking a bite. The grit caught between her teeth, and Lori and Andrea wrinkled their noses.
"You can have a new piece if you want, Honey." Carol offered.
Jamie looked up for a moment. "No thanks. Don't waste food. 'Sides, tastes better when it's got dirt on it." she took another bite. Daryl was eying Rick dangerously. What was Rick doing, messing around with Jamie like that? He noticed Dale looking interested and realized it. This was about Randall.
"Come on, Jamie. I ain't playing this game, Rick." Daryl glared at him before heading for his camp.
"Wait. Daryl. Meeting for adults tomorrow, in the house. Leave Jamie outside." Rick said firmly.
"I'm not coming." Daryl said.
"It's for the boy's life, Daryl." Dale said, pleading.
Daryl simply walked away, Jamie beside him.
She could practically feel the heat rolling off her companion, and looked to see he had his fists clenched tightly, and was looking angry.
"What was Dale talking about? The boy's life? And- why'd they make me spill my guts about... about my family?" her voice shook at the last part.
"It's complicated." Daryl said finally, controlling his rage. "Our boys were attacked by a gang in the city, a horde of walkers broke up the fight. This kid, Randall, got left behind, hurt... We saved him. But he knows where we are, now, can lead the gang back to us. They're thinking about killing him."
Jamie nodded, "So- why'd they make me talk?"
"Because Dale is being a pussy and doesn't want to kid to die. He must've struck up some deal with Rick about how if you'd done anything worse than Randall, they'd let the boy live. They made you a part of their game..." Daryl was still looking angry.
"Did I do anything worse than Randall- or his he going to die?" she asked, relatively calm. "It seems like we have to kill him. But if I screwed it up by doing anything worse than he did..."
"You didn't, Jamie." Daryl assured her. "You could NEVER do things as bad as he's done..."
She nodded, still looking unsure about the whole situation. "What did he do, Daryl?" she asked quietly.
"Things I will NEVER let happen to you. Now go to bed." Daryl said, nodding to the tree. "I'll be up in a minute. Need to make a few more arrows."
She nodded, swinging up into the tree and getting into her normal place. In the darkness, though, Daryl looked down towards the woodshed where Shane and Andrea had been alternating standing guard.
He didn't want Randall to ever leave that woodshed, to ever see the light of day... Not with Jamie and Carol to think about, anyways. And he wouldn't let him, if it came to that...