A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.
Chapter Seven-Twisted
Danielle held her hand still as Hershel removed the stitches. Her hand was still sore but there was no infection and it had healed nicely. After he removed the last one, he washed her wound with alcohol.
"Can you close your hand?" He asked her. She made a fist, flinched a little at the pulling sensation and nodded. "Good. You'll be ready to go back out on the road in no time." Danielle shook her head.
"I doubt it. Daryl and Rick are not going let me back out there, not after last time. They think I'll get people killed." Hershel rose carefully on one foot and balanced on his crutches.
"Well, now you have to admit that what you did wasn't the smartest thing to do. You were living in Woodbury through the worst of this. You haven't seen everything that we've seen. But don't worry. Rick's a smart man and he won't let someone with your abilities go to waste stayin' inside keeping house." Danielle rose and walked with him outside. Hershel reminded her of her granddad. He didn't say much but when he did speak, you were wise to listen to him. She ran her hands through her hair and scanned the yard.
"He isn't here." Maggie walked outside with her laundry, Beth right behind her with hers. Maggie stopped by Danielle and motioned back to the cellblock. "C'mon. Go get your clothes. We're heading down to get these washed." Danielle hurried inside and grabbed the clothes she had worn when she left Woodbury. She hadn't washed them yet, hadn't even looked at them, since Maggie had given her a pair of jeans and a tank top. Carol had sworn that she didn't need her long sleeved flannel shirt anymore and Oscar had given Danielle a couple of small prison issue white t-shirts he'd taken from the prison laundry along with a pair of oversized sweatpants that, despite being a medium, were still too baggy on her. Eating the rationed diet at the prison had caused her to lose more weight so Maggie's jeans weren't near as snug as they had been that first day. She ducked into one of the cells, stripped off the jeans and tank top and pulled on the clean sweats and t-shirt. She pulled the drawstring tight and rolled the waistband down to pull the legs up higher. Danielle was by no means a short woman but she couldn't believe how long the sweatpants were. Grabbing all of her clothes, she walked quickly down to the water to catch up with Maggie and Beth.
Rick and Carol sat with Judith under a makeshift tent to keep the sun off the baby's face. Rick glanced around the yard in awe. He could hear the girls laughing as they did their laundry by hand. Axel and Oscar were arguing good naturedly over a game of chess while Carl watched nearby. Glenn and Hershel were having a semi-serious conversation by the fence. Rick knew that with Daryl out hunting, there was no one in the tower but for once he wasn't worried. He felt that he could squint just a little bit and be in a park on any normal, sunny day. If only Lori were here to see it. Carol looked over and saw the far away expression on his face.
"Are you thinking about Lori?" Rick nodded and smiled.
"She would have loved it today. For the first time since Hershel's farm, it feels normal again." Judith started fussing. Carol picked her up from the blanket.
"And what about you sweetheart? Are you enjoying the nice day too?" Judith looked at her and yawned. "Well, that's ok honey," she laughed, "You can sleep if you want to." She lifted the baby to her shoulder and rocked back and forth, humming softly. Rick watched his daughter's relaxed face and smiled as her eyes struggled to stay open for a moment before finally closing. His head turned at the roar of a motorcycle.
"Daryl's back!" Rick got to his feet and walked over to join Glenn and Hershel. There weren't as many walkers at the fence. They took them out easily while Carl opened the gate. When Rick looked at the bike, he saw a large bird tied to the front along with five squirrels.
"Holy shit is that a turkey?" Carl's eyes bugged out of his head and everyone laughed. For once, Rick didn't bother to get on to him about his language. Daryl untied the turkey and held it up proudly.
"Not bad. It's a little scrawny but it'll do. First one I've seen around here." He handed it to Carl. "What do you think? About ten pounds?" Carl raised the bird up and quickly handed it back to Daryl. Axel was near gleeful as he started back to the prison.
"I'm gonna get the water boilin' so we can scald them feathers off." Rick looked at Oscar and Carl.
"Why don't you go see about working on a spit for the fire so we can roast him up tonight?" Carl's face broke out in a grin and even Oscar looked happy. Glenn clapped Daryl on the shoulder.
"Good job man." Daryl rolled his eyes.
"Whatever." Glenn looked at Rick, saw he was suppressing laughter and turned red. Daryl handed Glenn the turkey and the squirrels.
"Go on and take these inside. I'll be there in a bit to gut 'em. I think Axel wants his hands on that turkey. Tell him he screws it up I'll kick his ass." Glenn took the turkey and string of squirrel and headed into the prison. Daryl looked around the yard then knelt by Carol and the baby. He stroked Judith's cheek and she sighed in her sleep. He stood up and walked with Rick.
"Where are the girls?" he asked. Rick pointed down by the water.
"Doin' laundry." Daryl nodded.
"Dani with them?" Rick glanced over at him but Daryl's face was expressionless.
"Yeah, why?" Daryl looked at Carol and motioned with his head for Rick to walk with him. When they were out of earshot, he spoke quietly.
"I think we're gonna have trouble tonight. When I was out in the woods, right after I got that turkey tied up, I heard someone comin'. I hid out in the brush and heard some guys talking about scoutin' us out. I thought they might be just a couple of guys tryin' to find a place to crash but when I finally saw them, there was about ten of them. They were talkin' about Dani like they knew she was here. One of them called the other Cash. Wasn't that one of the guys Dani said…" he didn't finish the sentence but Rick nodded.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was." Daryl frowned and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand.
"I thought so. If it had just been the two I'da killed 'em on sight." He paused for a second and looked at the ground. "Merle was with 'em." Rick flinched, looked around and leaned closer.
"Are you sure?" Daryl nodded.
"I saw him. One good hand and the other arm with some knife thing on it." He crossed his arms. "Rick, they've been watchin' us for a while. I followed 'em back to their truck and they headed back off to Woodbury." Rick shook his head. His peaceful day was gone.
"We've got to tell everyone. They have to be ready, especially Danielle." Rick looked towards the water and saw the girls were bringing their clothes back up to the cellblock. He could hear their laughter across the field.
"Daryl, you know she's barely hanging on. She puts on a tough front but she's bottled up a lot over the past week. You even mentioned she's not sleeping well at night plus that stupid stunt she pulled the other day. Seeing those men, knowing what they did to her and the part they played in killin' her daughter. That might very well break her." Daryl nodded.
"I know." He turned and saw her watching him. He turned back to Rick.
"We need to tell Glenn and Hershel first. Figure out what we're gonna do before we say anything to anyone else." Rick agreed and they headed back into the prison.
"God it's felt so good to have one good, quiet day." Maggie stretched back on the grass, smiling up at the sun. Beth was lying on her back spinning a clover flower in her hand.
"I know. It's so nice out here." She rolled onto her stomach. "I just want to stay here forever." She glanced over at their clothes drying on the rocks.
"Do you think they're dry yet?" Danielle reluctantly got up to check.
"Nope. Not quite." She flopped back down on the grass. "We can go back to forgetting where we are." All three of them laughed. Beth looked over at Danielle.
"So what's with the 'Danielle-Dani' thing you and Daryl have goin' on?" Danielle covered her face with her hands and groaned.
"Would y'all give it a rest? It's no big deal. He said that Danielle didn't sound like a redneck name and I told him people called me Dani before I moved to California." Maggie leaned her head back, looking at her upside down.
"Yeah, but he was calling you 'Dani" the other day until we were heading back and then you were 'Danielle' again." She rolled her head to look at her sister. "It was like when Dad used to get mad at us and he'd use our full names." She lowered her voice. "'Elizabeth Greene you know better than that young lady'." The sisters laughed. Danielle sat up.
"Knock it off you guys. Seriously, there is nothing between me and Daryl." She laid back and covered her eyes with her arm. Maggie rolled over onto her stomach.
"Ok, seriously, we'll stop. We were just giving you a bad time. We're sorry." She suppressed a giggle. "Dani." She snorted and both she and Beth started laughing. Danielle tried to be mad but she found herself joining in. She got to her feet and walked over to check her clothes.
"If y'all want to call me Dani you're free to do so. The name is not exclusive to Daryl Dixon." Beth looked at Maggie with a mock serious expression.
"She used his full name." Maggie sat up.
"I know. He must be in trouble for something." Danielle started folding up her mostly dry clothes.
"I hate you guys. Seriously, I do." She tried to keep a straight face but the three started laughing again. "C'mon. The clothes are almost dry. We can hang them over the second tier rail inside. They'll be dry by morning." Beth groaned.
"Does this mean we don't get to stay here forever?" Maggie got up and pulled her sister to her feet.
"Nope. It's back to the salt mines for you little one." As they folded up their clothes they heard the motorcycle roar up the driveway.
"Guess who's back." Maggie said nudging Danielle. Danielle kicked her with her bare foot. They picked their clothes up, gathered the soap and washboard and started back towards the cellblock. As they got closer, they saw Rick and Daryl talking. Daryl glanced over at her and then turned back to Rick. They spoke a little longer then went back into the prison.
"Something's up." She said, watching them walk away. Maggie frowned.
"You're trying to ruin this day aren't you?" Danielle looked over at her and smiled.
"Sorry. Paranoia attack I guess." She dropped back to help Carol fold up the sheet they had used as a tent for the baby and carried it back inside. The cellblock was quiet. Carol laid Judith down on a bed and the girls climbed up to the second tier to hang up their clothes.
After a dinner of fresh turkey and canned peas, Rick announced that they needed to discuss a situation. Fear gripped Danielle. She hoped he wasn't going to ask her to leave. She looked over to the stairs where Daryl sat, a worried frown on his face. He had his hands pressed together and he looked extremely agitated. Looking around at Hershel, Glenn and Rick, she thought she could see genuine fear in their eyes.
"While Daryl was out hunting, he across a group of men from Woodbury. Several of them were the ones who attacked Danielle. Merle was with them too." Danielle was shaking and she heard Maggie gasp behind her.
"One of the things they were talking about was coming here to cause trouble tonight. They've been scouting out the prison and they know that Danielle is alive and here." Danielle almost fell over but Glenn helped steady her. Rick continued.
"We're not going to lose anyone else. We're going to lock this place down tonight and see if they show up or if they were all talk. We've got the heavy stuff from the armory. We're going to map out positions so we know what to anticipate if they try getting around the walkers in the back or if decide to cut their way in through the fence. We'll be ready for them."
The attack was the biggest surprise of all. They didn't try to sneak in the back or cut through the fence. They drove both of their trucks up to the front gate. Merle climbed out of the passenger side of one of the trucks, killed a nearby walker and then began yelling for Daryl.
"Hey baby brother! Get out here and open this goddamned gate!" They started to close the door to lock everyone else in the cellblock when Danielle held the door open and joined them. She took the key out of Rick's hand and locked the door behind her. Daryl called back to her.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" She pulled her Colt out of her holster and nodded towards the door.
"I'm not going to sit in here and cower like a little bitch." She started towards the door.
"Get your ass out here boy! Bring that big bad sheriff out here too!" His voice sent a cold chill down her spine and she stopped. Rick walked up behind her.
"You don't have to go out there," he said. Danielle took a deep breath, turned around to meet Daryl's eyes.
"Yes I do." She turned back and walked outside. Rick, Daryl, Glenn and Oscar followed behind her. They all walked towards the headlights to meet them. Merle was sitting on the hood of the truck. When he saw Danielle at the front of the group he laughed.
"Well, well, well sweetheart. How's it goin'?" She didn't respond. She was aware that Rick has stepped up on her left and Daryl on her right. She could hear Daryl breathing hard. When she glanced over at him, he looked scared to death.
"Merle, you and your boys need to just go on back to Woodbury." Rick said, raising his gun. Merle turned around and addressed his crew.
"Did you hear that? We need to just go on back to Woodbury." The guys laughed. "I'm sure you understand if I don't until I've had a word with my brother. I mean, it's been such a long time since we saw one another. We have a lot to catch up on." A walker stumbled close to the truck and Merle pulled a gun and shot it.
"You see baby brother, I just don't understand what happened back near Atlanta. There I was, up on that roof, cutting off my own hand, and you don't even care. Who was always lookin' out for you? Who was always there for you?" Daryl wiped the sweat off his face. He was pale and shaking. Seeing him like that pissed Danielle off. She raised the Colt and pointed it right at Merle. Rick immediately put a hand on her arm to stop her.
"Put it down Danielle." Merle jumped off the truck hood and walked to the fence. The guys behind him continued to shoot the walkers to keep them on the outside of the truck barricade.
"Yeah bitch. Why don't you put the gun down before you hurt yourself." He looked back at Daryl. "Now get over here and open the goddamn gate!" Daryl spoke but he couldn't be heard.
"What was that boy? Speak up!" Daryl took a deep breath and glared at his brother.
"Get the hell out of here Merle. I've got nothin' to say to you." Merle smirked at him and turned to address his crew.
"You hear that boys? It sounds like my baby brother finally grew a pair." He backed away from the fence and pointed his blade at Danielle.
"I owe you one bitch. Don't think I've forgotten you. In fact," he turned around and motioned to Cash who pulled a something out of the truck. He set it on the ground. It shuffled forward and Merle walked over to it and pulled the burlap sack off it's head. "The Governor felt it's time for a family reunion!" Danielle gasped.
It was Abigail.
"Oh shit," Glenn breathed. As everyone stood in shock, Danielle lowered her gun and dropped it on the ground. She started to walk towards the gate.
"Abigail? Baby?" She could see her daughter was alive. The Governor had lied to her. She hadn't died after all. She smiled and started to cry. "Oh my god baby. They told me you were dead!" Abigail smiled and walked towards her.
Rick stared at what was left of Danielle's daughter. The little girl had turned and was growling like the other walkers but Rick could see her teeth had been removed and her fingernails had been pulled out. It registered a second too late that Danielle was seeing her daughter, whole and alive. She made it to the fence and tugged on the lock.
"Rick! Toss me the keys! I have to get my baby!" Abigail reached her arm through the fence and Danielle grabbed her hand. Suddenly, she was being pulled away. Daryl had grabbed her and was dragging her back.
"No goddamn it! Let me go!" Abigail stopped smiling and dropped her hand off the fence. Suddenly, Merle Dixon was there pointing a gun at her daughter's head.
"No! Daryl stop him! Don't let him kill her!" She struggled to break free but he wouldn't let go. "Daryl please! Help her!"
Merle pulled the trigger.
Danielle sank to her knees as she saw her daughter fall.
Merle turned around and climbed back into the truck, ordering his crew to head out. As the truck pulled away, he yelled out the window.
"The Governor sends his regards."