New Meanings To Old Words: Love
Alright, so this would be part 1 (of apparently three- 'cause I'm fucked up in the head or something) of the infamous Barn-mageddon that we've all be looking forward to. I'm hoping to do it justice, and hoping that you follow the flow. I promise not too much of a CLUSTERFUCK goin' on here.
As always read, review and most of all enjoy (as much as you can)!
~michelle
Disclaimer: I own nothing, except Callie and the crew of misfits (Danny, Miles, Jenna, Mike, Nina, Ben and Gracie).
Bang, Bang - My Baby Shot Me Down
"There had to have been another way, Rick." Callie said reaching out her hand as he pulled away from her. "There had to have been a way for both of them-"
"You weren't there," Rick returned lifting a hand and trying to ward off the words as they flew from her mouth. "We can't assume to know-"
"Miles was, Rick. Miles was," Callie said on a sigh - a ragged, frustrated, utterly exhausted sound that had hit him hard. She had looked at him then and shook her head as he explained that he'd talk to Shane, get his side of things. "You're looking for an excuse," Callie said as she ran her injured left hand through her hair. "You're desperate for there to be some excuse, some explanation for his actions that will make it all better." She looked at him and he stared at her as she let her shoulders fall in defeat. "He doesn't have one. He doesn't think it was wrong. He doesn't care, Rick."
"You don't know him," Rick had returned his head shaking as she rolled her eyes and lifted a hand.
"I can't do this," Callie said her hand reaching out and landing on his shoulder. A hand that she'd pulled away as he shifted from her. An action that he regretted more and more with each moment as his memory brought that hurt look that had crossed her features into sharp focus in his mind's eye. "You're in denial, Rick. I don't know the man that you knew," her head nodded and she lifted a hand to him. "That I will agree with you on. But I know this Shane. And I know that where his head is, where he's let himself go, is a dangerous place. Not only for him, but for you."
"You don't know him," Rick repeated as she walked towards the ladder. She had waved her hand over her head then and slipped down the ladder, and right before her head disappeared she speared him with another hard look.
"Maybe not, Rick." Callie said quietly her eyes filled with unshed tears. "And honestly, I hope you do know him better. I really do." She wiped a hand down her face at those tears in her eyes that shone so bright in the pale moon light overhead. "I need you to understand that the only reason I'm telling you this, is as a warning. It's a warning that you need to promise me you'll heed."
"You don't know him," Rick said quietly his eyes imploring her to understand, and he could tell when she sighed that soft shuddering exhausted sigh of hers again, that she did. Somewhere deep down she did understand. But she didn't agree.
"You remember that time I brought you home shitfaced," Shane said quietly and snapped Rick out of his memories of the previous evening. Rick blinked twice in the bright sunlight filtering down through the leaves of the trees overhead and focused on Shane as he wove his way around a few felled logs. Shane's eyes slipped up off of the ground the amused tilt to his brow causing Rick's head to shake as he worked to get back to the here and now.
"I remember a few of those," Rick said lifting a hand and rubbing at his temple a small tilt to his own lips as Shane chuckled and pointed his knife at him before flipping it in his hands and wiping the blade off on pants. Rick grimaced at the sight of the Walker that Shane was straddling and watched his friend not even spare another glance to it as he kept on walking, his knife now safely back in place at his belt.
"Nah, man, c'mon, you remember the one I'm talkin' 'bout." Shane said as he shifted and sidestepped another large branch. "The one. Few years ago, right before Carl's school-conference thing." Shane's hand waved out in a non-committal gesture and the moment clicked in Rick's mind.
"Parent-Teacher conference," Rick corrected with a slow nod and a smile. "Third grade. I think I vaguely remember that one. Carl's favorite teacher ever. God what was her name?" Shane chuckled and Rick shifted around the carcass of the Walker to slide into step next to Shane. Rick's chin dipped to his chest and he stared at the slightly smiling Shane through his lashes. "What 'bout it?"
"Man I was just rememberin' the look on Lori's face when I dropped you off on that couch," Shane said still chuckling and shaking his head. It was almost instant, that bit of boil to Rick's blood at Lori's name on his lips. His lips. But just as quickly as that boil started, it ebbed away along that pulse behind Rick's eyes.
Rick shook his head, knowing that his anger at this point was moot. He'd let that ship sail when he'd chosen to let the affair fall to the wayside. He'd known about it, and he'd chosen to let it go. Chosen the good of the group over the quick fire burn of his jealousy. Chose the group over his marriage in a way. And it had been the right choice; one there wasn't any going back on now.
"Man I thought for sure she was gonna kill you," Shane continued as Rick's steps came to a slow halt. Shane's head was shaking and his eyes were wandering the horizon. The campsite visible now that they'd made their quick sweep after Ben had spotted the single Walker off in the distance only moments ago. "That look on her face, man, when she saw your staggerin' drunk-ass fall onto that couch. I swore the next time I saw you was gonna be at your fuckin' funeral."
Rick tried to chuckle, and the small bit of a smile that made it on to his lips by the time Shane shifted his eyes over his shoulder had Shane again wagging a humored finger at him. Rick shifted his feet in the underbrush and watched Shane shake his head and chuckle, the tension in the air between them palpable. Yet as always, as of late, it went by as if it wasn't there.
Ignored for the good of the group.
"Well it wasn't one of my finer moments," Rick said lifting a brow at his friend. "What's with the trip down memory lane?"
"Not two fuckin' days ago," Shane said still wagging his finger at Rick in what should have been that continued friendly manner. Should have been, except the edge to Shane's voice and in his eyes destroyed whatever remained of that friendliness from moments ago. "Two fuckin' days ago I saw that same look on her face when you two were discussin' things behind the house." Shane's brows and hands lifted in a surrendering motion as Rick lifted both of his brows at him. "Hey, man, I wasn't tryin' to pry. I was just worried when I couldn't find her. Went lookin' and-" Shane shrugged and Rick sighed as he put his fingers to the bridge of his nose.
"You got a point you're gettin' to?" Rick said as he worked to push the headache pounding to life behind his sleep-deprived eyes far away.
"Just wonderin'," Shane said his hands falling to his sides as Rick glanced up at him. "I mean, more times than I can count I have seen that woman wish death upon your ass with that glare of hers. But it always just fizzles away. Swear to God, this mornin' when I saw you two together it was like the sun never shined brighter over your heads, yet two days ago..." Rick felt the muscle in his jaw tick and fought against the pull of that slow flowing anger. Shane stared at him and shifted around so he faced him fully, hands on his hips, finger idly tapping his knife. "How you do that, man? How you always get her to love you again?"
A single beat of silence flowed while Rick just stared at Shane.
"I guess she just does," Rick said quietly, his voice a bit more gravely and harsh than he really wanted it to be. Shane's mouth slipped down in a grimacing frown as his head nodded at Rick's words. Rick continued to stare at the man and wondered if this was the moment he'd been dreading since the CDC. The moment when Shane dragged him into that war that he'd been avoiding since he got back.
"Yeah, man," Shane said again lifting that finger and pointing it at Rick as he turned his back. "Must be it." Shane's head shook just a bit as his hand raked over what remained of his short cropped hair. Rick watched the muscles in his former partner's forearms tighten and ripple as he grasped the back of his neck and squeezed at the tension settled there.
"A warning, Rick."
Callie's words again echoed in his head as Rick let out a long low sigh he hadn't realized he'd been holding in.
"So you plannin' on clueing me into the real reason you dragged my ass out here with you?" Shane said as he stopped a few feet ahead and again shifted his eyes over his shoulder to Rick.
Rick stared hard into Shane's eyes, Callie's words about Otis and what Miles saw echoing low in the back of his mind. He felt the throbbing pulse of his own heartbeat behind his eyes as Shane worked to stare him down. And as Rick held his best friend's steely gaze he came to a very horrifying realization.
He didn't want to ask. He stared at Shane and realized he didn't want to ask that question he'd dragged the man out to ask. He really didn't want to know what Shane had done.
Because he honestly didn't know what to do with the truth.
In the world they lived in before all of this happened, before the dead started walking and the rules of nature got flipped upside down on them, the answer would have been clear and easy. Shane would have been guilty of murder, and he would have been convicted by jury of his peers and justice would have been done.
But now…
Now, they lived in a world where those laws didn't seem to have a place. A world where things just didn't work that way anymore. Now, it was kill or be killed. Rick understood that. He did. Deep down he got that. He didn't like it. Didn't want Carl, or this new baby, to grow up in a world that worked that way, but there really wasn't the luxury of a choice anymore.
That world where Shane's guilt was cut and dry just didn't exist anymore. And Rick felt the guilt of his decision to not hold Shane accountable for his actions settle on his shoulders right along with every other decision he'd had to make since he woke to this new fucked up world.
Both of Shane's hands were settled on his hips as he stared out over the field that separated them from the rest of the group. The black specs that were Ben, Dale and Danny settled atop the RV stood out in stark contrast to the bright blue sky behind them. Rick stared at what he knew to be Dale's form and he swore he could feel the older man's gaze settle right on him through those binoculars held up to his face. Rick held that distant gaze until Ben reached up and took the binoculars from the other man. Shifting on his feet Rick again dipped his head to his chest and tilted his head sideways to look at Shane as he spoke.
"If it were Carl out there," Rick said his gravely voice echoing a bit in his own ears. He firmed his lips and bit at the inside of the bottom one as Shane slowly turned to face him. "If it were Carl-"
"If it were Carl out there we wouldn't be havin' this conversation, Rick." Shane said cutting him off and turning to face him with a grim set to his features. "If it were Carl, we'd be the ones needing the reality check that Carol, Callie and apparently Daryl need. I mean fuck, Rick." Shane's head shifted side to side but his eyes bored a hole down into Rick's stomach. "Carl. Man," Shane looked off into the woods and Rick slipped his hand over the butt of his gun. And the moment Rick realized he'd done it his hand shot away from his gun as if it had burned him. He shook his hand and slipped it down to his hip and held there before Shane's eyes returned to him. "Man, when it's your kid out there, ain't nothin' gonna keep you from lookin'. Head wounds, fucked up legs, arrow in the gut, nothin'. Nothin' keeps you from savin' your boy."
"So why-"
"Because man, it ain't Carl," Shane said waving his hand in thick air between them. "It ain't Carl." Shane shifted and sent his eyes over the field again. "I get what's motivatin' them. I do. Daryl and Callie, after what happened with Jenna, I get it. I know it don't seem like I do," Shane's eyes slipped over his shoulder. "But I get it what you're sayin'. Role's reversed, shoe on the other foot, I get it. And if it were Carl, shit yeah we'd be out there every day and night lookin'." Shane nodded his head and turned to face him as Rick just continued to stare. "But it ain't. And it is time that someone took the initiative and started talkin' sense to those fools who are holdin' out hope for something that ain't gonna end well." Shane shifted and tossed his arm out over the field. "Callie and Miles ran into Walkers yesterday. She tell you that?"
"No," Rick said shifting his eyes across the field.
"How many more people we gonna send out on there, man?" Shane asked quietly the sincerity in his voice actually shocking Rick as he turned his attention back to him. "How many more people we gonna almost lose chasin' after that little girl's ghost?"
"If it were Carl," Rick said his eyes flaring as he pierced Shane with a look of horror. "I don't see a difference. If it were Carl-"
"It ain't Carl man," Shane said with a note of finality. "It ain't never gonna be Carl. It's always gonna be Jenna and Sophia who we lost out in them woods. Time to stop chasin' ghosts and tryin' to make amends for shit that you couldn't control. Time to get your shit together, get back on the road and get to real safety."
"We can't," Rick said shifting his hands through his hair and pulling lightly at the strands.
"C'mon Rick," Shane's head tipped to the side and his mouth opened to say something else. To rage on about what a horrible leader Rick was for this group. To bring up every mistake he'd made and shove them into his face, but he didn't. Instead Shane just stared at him and waited for the reason, the one that he just couldn't figure out.
Because Shane knew him.
In that moment Rick wanted to trust his friend with the secret he was holding in. Wanted to trust that once Shane knew that Lori was pregnant he would do whatever he could to make things work here. That he'd understand their need to stay, not for the group at large, but for Lori and the baby.
Jesus. Rick's brow furrowed and he felt his vision narrow to a pinprick as he stared at the ground below his feet. Was that it? God, it was. Another weight shifted onto Rick's shoulders as he stood in that field staring at his dirt covered boots.
Not one part of him truly believed that they would find Sophia. Not one part of him was holding to that hope, not one part was set to keep them there for that girl's sake. It was all for Lori, and Carl, and that baby.
Shane's mouth opened as he advanced and Rick shook his head and pushed past him. Rick's mouth lifted in a bit of a snarl and he continued to shake his head as he walked past his friend.
Rick wasn't any better than Shane when it came to the true welfare of this group. Sacrifice one for the life of another. He was just as guilty as Shane when it came down to it, just in a different way. And realizing that fact made Rick sick to his stomach. But there wasn't really anything he could do about it. They needed to stay on at the farm. For Lori and the baby they needed to.
If that meant he had to propagate a meaningless search for a dead girl to accomplish it, then so be it. People would understand in time. He'd make sure of it.
"Let's get back," Rick said quietly to the man shadowing his steps. "Everyone's probably startin' to worry."
Daryl sat up and rubbed furiously at his eyes with his palms. He rubbed until he saw those familiar little black and white dots scatter over his closed eyes and then scrubbed a bit more. Shifting on the mass of rumpled bedding he growled low in his throat and dove his hands towards where his shirt had been discarded last night.
He grimaced at the thing, lifted it to his nose and snarled at it same as he did yesterday. And same as he did yesterday he tossed the sleeveless piece of shit gray-blue button over his head and down on to his shoulders, shoving his arms through so that beat old fabric covered his bare torso.
Shifting his sore shoulders and neck Daryl let his eyes roam around the now empty tent, his eyes lingering a bit on the mess of blankets he found himself in. He growled at that unkempt mess and what had caused it-and more specifically what hadn't caused it.
It was odd still to think that all Daryl had wanted to do was hold Callie to him when she blurted out her thoughts on the fate of Hershel's family. He'd listened with a slow growing horror dawning in the back of his brain, a slow growing realization that she was right. He'd seen the photos on the wall, the looks on the faces of Maggie and Beth, hell he'd even seen it in the old man's eyes when they buried Jenna in his yard. But he hadn't put it together.
Because he hadn't been focused on anything but finding Sophia for a long time now. Found that was the only way to keep his mind off of the insanity going on 'round camp. Focus on what needed to be done in order to get them off and movin'. Focus on findin' that girl so that Carol didn't have to look at him the way that he felt Callie sometimes did.
Livin' with one woman he failed was good 'nough for him, he didn't need to make it two.
So when he'd finally got her settled in his arms in their makeshift bed, and wrapped himself as tightly around her as he could he'd wanted nothing more than to kiss away her worries. Pussy. To let her lose herself in him the way he lost himself in her and burn up that horrible sense of foreboding that lingered in her stiff shoulders away with the quick fire blaze of the passion they had between them. And he would have too, if not for the sleepin' baby-girl settled up on his cot.
The one who's little snores had echoed in his head as he held Callie closer and felt her hands softly rubbing along his skin. He remembered the feel of Callie's hand squeezing into his arm and shoulder as she sought that bit of security. No matter how much she kept repeating the words 'It'll be okay', he could tell she didn't mean a damn word of it. He'd been about to kiss her, just to shut her up, when the tent zipped open and Ben bounded in like he fuckin' owned the place.
The boy took one look at them on the ground and his sleepin' sister on the cot before stalking over and slipping into the mass of blankets between Callie and Daryl. Between them. Not fuckin' beside, but between. And then to make matters worse, the kid's hand had shot out as he got comfortable slapping Daryl hard in his dick while the boy muttered 'move over' in a more than annoyed voice.
"Brat," Daryl grumbled now as he shifted and pushed up to his feet, his hand moving to adjust his dick as if the pain were still fresh. He cracked his neck and winced at the pull in the stitches at his side. Running his hands through his hair he worked his way over to the cot and sat on it as he bent to retrieve his boots from underneath.
As soon as Ben had snuggled himself deep into the covers between them, Gracie that big fuckin' faker, slipped off the cot and hurdled-fuckin' hurdled- Daryl's prone form landing right beside her brother in the mass of blankets. Callie had chuckled, and he'd speared her with a look that shoulda shut her up but instead just made her laugh harder.
Losin' your edge, baby brother.
"Shut up," Daryl muttered as he pulled on his boots and then held his head in his hands for a bit. He stared at the rumbled mess of blankets and sleeping bags through the slats of his fingers and felt that edge slipping just a bit more.
No. Not slipping. Changing.
He'd realized it after a few hours in the dark listening to them breathing with his eyes closed. Callie had told him to sleep, told him he needed his rest. And in the back of his head he'd known she was right. He was close to healed up enough to go out again, but knew if he pushed it he'd be back at square one. So he tried to sleep. Tried and fuckin' failed. And when he'd opened his eyes and let his vision adjust to the bare hint of light provided by the low-turned almost dead battery operated lantern in the corner his eyes met Callie's wide open ones. And he'd realized he wasn't the only one changing.
For as long as he could remember Callie had been focused on saving the lives of her kids; on keeping them safe and protecting them. On working her penance through, nothin' more. But as he lay in the dark starin' into her eyes, he saw the change in her. She wasn't focused on just helpin' them to survive anymore. She was focused on giving them a life, a family, love.
With him.
Which in and of itself settled harder on Daryl's chest than those fuckin' dog tags had when he'd put them around his neck.
And the idea that out there on the farm somewhere a threat loomed ready to take away her chance at providing that for them had burned bright in her eyes. She was on guard, just as he had been since the moment she told him her theory. It was at that point that his fingers met hers atop the bodies of the two kids settled between them. The hand under his head had shifted out and he reached, putting his hard calloused thumb to her forehead. He worked his thumb and smoothed that line of frustration and worry that had appeared between her furrowed brows and continued to do it until she sighed.
He'd rubbed that worry away from her face all night, watching her slowly drift off snuggled into the bodies of the two sleeping kids between them. Her fingers had entwined with his at one point, pulling him closer to the mass of warm bodies and he remembered letting out a disgruntled sigh as he finally gave in and moved those few inches closer. Losing that space he'd kept between them all. He'd rubbed away her worry all night and stayed on guard as the rest of them slept. Kept himself awake to the world around them, listening to the sounds of the farm and the camp and the night.
Listening for that threat that was waiting somewhere along the horizon.
Daryl's head suddenly felt heavy as he held it in his hands and stared at that mass of bedding. The exhaustion from his sleepless night, and everything he'd finally fuckin' come to terms with settled heavy on his shoulders. Shifting he let himself fall onto the cot and instantly rolled onto something. His hand dug behind him and he pulled up one of his bolts. He stared at it long and hard, realizing now that Itty-Bitty Gracie musta been sleepin' with it before she tumbled down onto the ground with them. Musta been usin' it to keep herself safe.
Daryl's eyes skipped to the mesh screen of the makeshift window in the tent and he shook his head.
"Girl shoulda said she was scared," Daryl grumbled as he poked the tip of the arrow through the mesh. "I'd a let her sleep down with us," Daryl poked the arrow through the mesh again and shook his head. "She knows that."
Fuck, she curled up like a kitten next to me in the house an' he hadn't said a damn thing.
Daryl poked the arrow through the mesh one final time and then turned towards the open flap of the tent. The one that Callie had left wide and free when she exited earlier, tellin' him the place smelled worse than the pig sty and needed to air out. He'd slapped half-heartedly at her and apparently fallen asleep not long after her laughin' ass had left with both kids in tow just after sunup. His brow narrowed as he heard the distinct sound of footsteps again, steps that halted and started as if the person wasn't sure whether they should enter or not.
And then Andrea's blonde head poked into the tent and he shifted so that the arrow he was poking through the mesh window settled on his chest.
"Hey," Andrea said, her eyes shifting around the interior of the tent before finally settling back on him. He watched her shift all the way into the tent. "You talking to someone?"
"You eavesdroppin'?"
"Sorry," Andrea said letting out a long sigh as she worked closer towards him. Daryl snarled a bit and shook his head at the both of them and watched her lift a hand. "Callie said you were on bed rest still," Andrea said with a smirk that he felt himself growlin' at. She held out her hand and smiled. "Figured you could use this. It's not great but," Andrea shrugged and Daryl reached out for the book.
He watched her as he flipped the pages, scoffing a bit as she sighed and shifted the small camping stool over so she could sit near his cot.
"What no pictures?" Daryl said earning a bit of a laugh from the obviously uneasy woman. He shifted his eyes away when hers landed on him and he flipped through the pages again.
"Callie and Dale said its Ben's favorite," Andrea said nodding at the book. Daryl flipped the book closed and squinted at the cover 'The Case of The Missing Man'. He lifted confused eyes back to her and she smiled. "Apparently they've both read it to him four times. We figured maybe you'd be able to explain the kid's reasoning, because we're all lost on the appeal." Daryl huffed out a breath and set the book on his stomach. He watched Andrea wring her hands between her knees and felt a bit of unease settle over him at what he knew was comin'. "I feel like shit," Andrea said quietly.
"You an' me both," Daryl responded, opting for sarcasm to lighten the heaviness of the words. He wasn't used to people seekin' him out to apologize for shit, and it just wasn't something he wanted to deal with.
"I don't expect you to forgive me-"
"You were tryin' to protect the group," Daryl said cutting her off and nodding slightly as he continued to twirl his bolt between his suddenly restless hands. "We're good." He watched her nod and squinted. "You and Callie…"
"She pretty much said the same thing when she passed me on my way here," Andrea said shaking her head. "We're good." Andrea quoted as she lifted her eyes to him and smiled.
"Yeah, well," Daryl shifted in his prone position and put one hand behind his head. "That's probably as good as you're gonna get."
"Yeah," Andrea said scoffing and shaking her head at him. The moment was light and that weight of her stilted apology suddenly wasn't so heavy on his chest. But something else nagged in the back of Daryl's mind as he watched Andrea shift and rub her hands on her jean-clad knees. Something about the way she was huffin' that made him remember just how fuckin' annoyin' she could be when she had a point to make. "Callie and Miles are going back out to look for Sophia, did you know that?"
"Yeah," Daryl said tiredly watching the bit of shock play over her face at his nonchalant answer. "She told me. That really surprise you?"
"No, I guess not," Andrea said shaking her head and running her hand through a few of the loose strands of waving blonde that had freed themselves from the clip at the back of her head. She stared at her boots for a minute and then shifted her eyes out the flap of the tent, all the time lettin' off those fuckin' sighs that told Daryl there was more to come.
"Spit it out, blondie. Got shit to do," Daryl said shifting and sitting up, his hand holding his injured side.
"It's been eight days, Daryl." Andrea said finally and Daryl felt his brow furrow as his field of vision narrowed to slits. His mouth curled up into a snarl as she lifted a hand at him and he threw the damn book she'd brought him across the tent. "Listen—"
"We been through this before," Daryl said as his feet shot over the cot and onto the floor. He woulda stood up but she was movin' and he couldn't get to his feet without knockin' into her or possibly knockin' her down so he remained seated. "I ain't got time for your woe-is-me-"
"Callie ran into Walkers yesterday," Andrea said cutting him off and holding his gaze. "Did she tell you that?" Daryl growled in the back of his throat and jutted his chin, not wanting to admit that the woman had left that part out of her little share-time last night. "She did. Only a couple, nothing they couldn't handle, but still. They were lucky." Andrea let out a breath and slipped forward a bit more on the little camping stool, her knees brushing off of his and causing him to lean back away from her.
Pussy.
"Daryl," Andrea began calmly her hands clasped together between her knees. "We both know the type of person that Callie is. We both know that she will do anything to save someone even if it means her own life." Andrea's hands unclasped and landed on her knees as she stared at him and he bit at the inside of his cheek as he watched her. "In the past few days Callie has searched harder for that little girl than she ever did for her own brother.
"Don't—"
"Hear me out," Andrea said raising a hand and standing up before him. "She has. And you know it. And that could be for Carol. It could be because of what happened to Jenna. But you and I both know why she's really heading out there."
"She ain't doin' that shit for me," Daryl spat back at her. "She knows we're gonna find her-"
"But has she ever told you that she thought you were gonna find her alive?" Andrea said quietly and Daryl's eyes flared wide. He pushed up to his feet then not carin' if he knocked her the fuck down and stared down at her. Andrea didn't back down she just stared right back, nodding her head in that way that she did when she thought she'd made a fuckin' point.
"Get the fuck outta here, Blondie. Ain't got time for this bullshit," Daryl growled low in his throat.
"It's been eight days, Daryl." Andrea repeated as he pushed past her his shoulder spinning her around as it hit off of her. He turned around and glared at her and hunched down digging his hands inside his packs to keep them from lifting up and wringin' her neck. "I know why you're searching so hard. I get it. Your story in the woods," Andrea continued and Daryl glared over his shoulder at her. "You identify with her. But she's not you, Daryl. Sophia isn't you." Daryl's head snapped back to glaring at the inside of his bag and he growled as he listened to Andrea take a tentative step towards him. "She's not. She's a survivor, yes. She's tough. But so was Jenna."
"Don't-"
"Jenna was a survivor. She was tough. She was smart," Andrea shifted and he looked up in time to see her wipe a hand over her mouth, unshed tears shinin' in her blue eyes. Andrea took in a deep breath and let it out, her shoulders square and her mouth drawn in a tight line. "Jenna was a survivor, Daryl. And she was dead on day one."
Daryl's head lifted and snapped over to where Andrea stood staring down at him. He glared at her as she stared at him, workin' those baby blues of hers to try and convince him to see things her way. He heard the sound of running footsteps and watched Gracie fly by the front of the tent off towards where the group was gathering for breakfast.
"You're wrong," Daryl said as he turned back to Andrea. "Callie ain't doin' this for me. She ain't got no problem tellin' me what she got on her mind. There ain't no secrets between us. Her brother, that's shit you don't understand," Daryl said pointing a finger at her and advancing. "Shit you and your feeble little 'me-me-me' brain couldn't comp-re-hend." He stretched out the word as he pointed to his own stitched up head. "She ain't out there because she thinks it'll make me happy. She's out there to find that little girl. Which is exactly what the rest of you all should be doin' instead of harpin' on how impossible it is for her to have survived. Impossible shit happens every fuckin' day, Andrea. Look around."
Andrea backed up as Daryl advanced and she lifted her hands in surrender.
"You think that it's a fuckin' waste of time to look," Daryl said shakin' his head. "Fine. Sit around, play sentry on the RV, and shut the fuck up. But don't you come in here all high-and-mighty 'cause you fucked the sheriff an' tell me to stop."
"Honestly Daryl," Andrea said with a shake of her head and a look of pure anger and confusion on her face as she bristled just a bit at his last statement. "How naïve can you be? Someone's going to get hurt by all this hope you and Callie keep swinging around."
"The fuck outta here," Daryl spat swatting at the air between them. Andrea shook her head and made her way out of the tent leaving Daryl glaring at the sunlight beyond the open flap. His hand lifted and raked harshly into his hair, the pain of his fingers against his beat to hell head dull compared to the painful thud of his heart in his chest.
Hope's for fools, little brother. Wishful thinkin' ain't nothing but a fool's excuse for avoidin' the truth.
Daryl scratched his hand at the back of his head and took in three deep steadyin' breaths. He closed his eyes to try and quell the pounding in his head that had rippled his vision and continued to take in those deep breaths. Finally, after what seemed like too long, his eyes opened and he nodded.
Pushing out of the tent his eyes bee-lined for the campsite. He could see Carol's form bent over the fire as she poked at something in a pot. He clenched and unclenched his fists a few times and pushed his feet forward, eyes on target.
He needed to talk to her. Find out if he was the only fool still clinging to hope. Find out if it was even worth it anymore. He walked a few paces and suddenly stopped at the feel of fingers gripping his waistband and pulling him back just a bit. He turned wild, angry eyes to whoever the fuck it was and was met with the slightly amused and now concerned hazel eyes he'd come to -
"Hey," Callie said tilting her head to the side as she pulled again on his pants. He shook his head at himself for not recognizing the gesture that he'd done to her so many times he'd lost count and again raked his hands through his hair. Callie stared at him and took another step closer her fingers slipping away from his belt loop and sliding into her back pockets. "You alright? You look pale."
"Fine," Daryl snarled his head turning towards the campsite. Callie huffed out what he figured was a sigh of frustration and he looked back at her. "You leavin'?"
"Not yet," Callie's eyes were following something just off to his right and he turned to see Miles smile and wave. "Miles needs to get some breakfast. I wanted to check in with Rick." Daryl nodded and reached out as she began to work her way past him. He stared at her and she raised a brow at him in confusion. "Something up?"
Daryl's mouth opened to say something, but then snapped shut again as he realized he didn't know what the fuck he was gonna say to her. Three words seemed to float around. Don't go yet. Please be safe.
I love you.
"C'mon, Gracie," Miles' voice rang out and woke him from his stupor and he looked to see Miles crossing the field behind him smiling at the little girl who was chasin' after a chicken. Miles shifted his eyes back to them and Callie shook her head.
"I got her," Callie said patting Daryl's arm and moving off to follow behind Gracie as she picked her path behind the chicken no doubt heading for its coop down by the barn. Callie's eyes lingered on him for a minute before she smiled again and jutted her chin at Miles. "You take this one," she said mockingly as Miles chuckled and shifted beside Daryl.
Daryl watched Callie head off after Gracie until they all but disappeared down towards the barn before he began walking with the still chuckling Miles. Daryl's elbow flew out and clocked the kid right in his gut, causing him to sputter and cough.
"Ow, fuck man." Miles said as he worked to catch up with Daryl.
"Shut up, chuckles," Daryl grumbled as he turned to face the kid. He held Miles' eyes and waited for the kid to stop next to him before pointing his finger into Miles' chest. "You keep her in line out there. You get me?"
A single beat passed between them in which Miles simply stared at Daryl. Daryl felt his cheeks warming with a fuckin' blush as he watched the kid's lips tilt up in a bit of a smile before his hand lifted.
"I got you man," Miles said slapping his hand on Daryl's shoulder and removing it before Daryl could pull away from the friendly touch. "I got you."
Daryl nodded and followed behind Miles towards the little eating area that Carol and Lori had worked up. He took the offered plate of eggs from the kid and sat down on a chair nearby, his eyes flitting up to where Ben was situated on top of the RV with Danny. Dale was workin' his way around the RV and nodded his head at Glenn and Daryl shifted his eyes between the two for a second.
"Everything okay out there?" Dale asked Rick as he sat down next to Lori and Carl. Rick nodded and rubbed at the bridge of his nose while his eyes followed Shane's movements around the camp. Daryl's fork dove into his eggs and his eyes shifted to where Carol was bent over the pot on the fire.
"Need ta talk to you," Daryl said quietly to the woman. She stared at him in shock for a moment before blinking and nodding.
"Alright," Carol said shifting her eyes to the pot and then him. "After breakfast."
Daryl nodded once and shoved a forkful of eggs into his mouth. A heavy sort of silence fell over the group for a minute and again Daryl let his eyes roam over the assembled people. Something was clinging to the air as Daryl again watched Dale nod at Glenn. His head tipped to see Danny getting to his feet with the binoculars set firmly to his face as he stared down towards the barn.
"Guys," Glenn's voice barked out rough and unsure and Daryl's eyes flicked to him briefly before returning to Danny who was fidgeting on his bum leg with Ben right beside him. "The barn's full of Walkers."
Daryl's fork hovered over his plate, his eyes shifting automatically to where Glenn stood dancing on the balls of his feet. It took a second for his brain to fully process what the kid had just said. A second for it all to click into place, as his eyes shifted to where Rick was now slowly getting to his feet. A second for Callie's words from last night about Hershel's beliefs to click.
A second to register the image of Danny starin' down at that barn. A second to remember Gracie's dark curls bouncing as she chased after that chicken, Callie right on her heels.
A second for the clipped sound of a very shrill scream to pierce through the fog of the silence that had once again fallen on the group.
The plate fell from his hands as Daryl pushed to his feet, his response immediate and lightning quick as he ran towards that fuckin' barn. He could hear Miles on his heels, followed closely by Rick and the rest as that scream -Gracie's scream- came to an abrupt and heart-wrenching halt.
Callie smiled a bit as she watched Gracie reach out her hands towards the little chicken she was following. A part of her wanted to reach out and tell the girl to leave it be and head up to get breakfast. But another part, a much stronger part, was enjoying the smile on the girl's face far too much to actually do it.
Running her hand through her loose hair she let her eyes slide over her shoulder for a second picking up on Daryl and Miles as they made their way towards the breakfast area near the RV. Her eyes slid over Daryl's familiar form, drinking in the silhouette of his broad shoulders against the sunny backdrop behind him.
Her eyes slipped to the bustling area the two men were heading to and she caught Rick's familiar lean silhouette followed closely by Shane's as they returned from taking care of that lone Walker Ben spotted out near the woods. Her eyes followed Shane as he stalked around near the RV. Callie felt her lip curl up in a snarl as she continued to watch his dark shape make its way around. Shifting her eyes to where Gracie was up ahead and she wondered if she shouldn't have let Miles follow the girl so that she could check in with Rick. The conversation that she figured had gone down between the two men couldn't have been comfortable, and she felt she needed to be there as Rick no doubt reeled from all of the weight he'd settled on his shoulders.
Or at least to back him up when and if Shane made another dumbass move.
She shook her head and turned back towards where Gracie was slowly trotting a few feet ahead of her, still hot on the heels of the chicken that had somehow escaped its coop.
Poor thing looked like it was hurt too, one leg lifting strangely with each hopped step it took. Callie's head tilted at the sight of the injured chicken and her eyes instantly darted around her, wondering what could have caused it. From everything she'd seen, Hershel and his people took good care of the livestock on the land. It just seemed odd to have an injured chicken bustling about.
Gracie's giggle caught Callie's ear and she watched the girl topple just a bit as she tripped over a rock. A bit of dust stirred up in front of the girl whose hands had spread over the small bit of gravel and dirt. Callie's pace picked up a bit seeing the little girl looking at her hands with a bit of a pout on her face. Just as Callie was about to reach out to the girl Gracie's smiling face shifted over her shoulder then and Callie smiled back just as the girl lowered her nicked up palms and took off again. The chicken was heading towards the doors to the barn and Callie frowned as she watched Gracie continue towards the doors of the rickety looking building.
"Gracie-baby," Callie called out, remembering Hershel's request that they not bother with any of his outbuildings. "Time to head back and get some breakfast, kiddo." Gracie was in front of the doors now her back to Callie as she approached; the chicken hobbling off to the side forgotten as it pecked at the ground. "Gracie," Callie called out again her hands sliding out of her back pockets where they'd been resting and falling to her sides.
Gracie didn't move, she just continued to stare at the doors to the barn. Her little head of curls blocking Callie's view of the door handles, but not the sounds. The sounds of chains rattling as the wind pressed upon the building and shook the old wooden doors with a fierceness that was just out of place. The wind just wasn't blowing hard enough to have caused those doors to move that way.
"Gracie," Callie called out again as she moved closer, her eyes finally catching upon the chains wrapped around the handles and the lock that was banging on the doors. The large two by four that had been placed across the door bent and bowed and it wasn't until Callie opened her mouth again to call out to the girl that the sounds of the chains ebbed away, leaving only one sound behind.
One chilling, heart-stopping sound that had Callie's hand reaching out and her fingers curling in the fabric of the little hoodie settled on the girl's thin trembling shoulders.
The moans and groans of the dead filtered out through the split in the large wooden door. Sounds so haunting and so deeply ingrained into her that Callie's mind instantly went back to the CDC and that horrid lower bowel of hell she'd had to escape with Ben and Carl. The groans of that hungry undead horde on her heels echoing in the back of her mind as she watched that door get pushed upon by the unknown number of the dead inside. The smell hit her next, a smell that she should have picked up on immediately but that bit of wind that was blowing had sent it off in the other direction making it so that you had to be right on top of it before you actually picked it up. It was a stench that she'd never be able to forget and one that had her almost hyperventilating as more visions of those darkened glass rooms and that fucking dark hallway assaulted her.
Instantly she realized what-who was in there, and her hand shifted pulling the still frozen in place girl backwards. Callie's eyes opened wide, and she slipped her eyes over her shoulder back towards the house and the campsite. An act of stupidity that she immediately regretted.
Gracie's scream pierced the air and had Callie shifting her attention back towards the barn doors just in time to wrench the girl away from the grasp of the reaching hand that had slipped through the small space between the doors. Such a small arm, thin and low and at the perfect height to grab onto Gracie. Callie pulled Gracie away from that reaching hand turning so that she could ram her body into the doors and knock whatever was behind that door away.
And that would have worked if Gracie hadn't squirmed and continued to scream, enticing the unknown mass of bodies behind that door. Callie's hand slipped over Gracie's mouth cutting off her scream. She turned again, feeling the pull of fingers on her long sleeved shirt. Callie's body tensed and she had to use all of the self-control she had not to scream as she felt her arm being pulled back by those reaching fingers. Fingers that were higher than the last set.
Callie looked back over her shoulder and stared right into the undead eyes of the owner of the large hand that had snaked out through the space between the doors. She stared and felt Gracie struggling against her bandaged hand as it covered the girl's mouth. Callie wrenched her arm hearing the tearing of her shirt and feeling the jarring pain as she fell hard to her ass on the ground. Gracie was still between her legs, and she wrapped her arm now free arm around the girl as she scooted back in the dirt away from that door and the reaching fingers.
Gracie's face was in her chest now, muffling the sound of the little girl's panicked cries as Callie sat and stared at that door. The blood was pounding in Callie's head too fast, too hard and her breathing was too erratic as she struggled to drag in deep breath after deep breath. She didn't even register the voices yelling at them, not until Daryl and Miles skidded to a stop at either side of her.
"Oh God," Miles' voice broke Callie out of her stupor and she shook her head as Daryl's face swam into her field of vision. His eyes were wide and worry etched his features as his hands wrapped almost painfully at her upper arms. "Jesus." Miles continued and Callie lifted her head to watch the boy pace in front of her. His eyes angled over her head and she turned slightly to watch the rest of the group come to a stop.
"Did it get-" Daryl's voice cracked as he dragged in a deep painful breath, his feet shifting as he no doubt pulled his injured side as he crouched before her and reached for Gracie's trembling body still snuggled into Callie. "Did it get her?" Daryl's eyes remained on Gracie as they both worked to pull the girl's hands from their grip on Callie's shirt. Callie's head was shaking but she couldn't seem to form the words yet. "There's blood."
"She fell," Callie said finally. She lifted her hand from the back of the little girl's head and put it over top of Daryl's stilling his frantic movements and catching his eye with hers. "She cut her hands." Daryl stared at her for a long second before sniffing and settling back on his heels. She watched his eyes roam behind him, catching Rick's figure as he slipped up to them and looked down.
"Everyone a'right?" Rick asked quietly, his own voice hoarse as he struggled to catch his breath. His gun which had apparently been pulled at the sound of Gracie's screams sat limp in his hand at his side. Daryl ran a ragged hand through his hair and glared at Rick as Callie nodded and finally got Gracie away from her chest. "Callie-"
"Gracie-baby," Callie said quietly dipping her head and taking the opportunity to stand the little girl up and give her a once over. Her hands hovered over the girl's still shaking body as she looked for any signs of injury and she let out a ragged breath as she slipped her eyes up to Miles who stood by waiting. "Miles, take her up to the RV-" Gracie's head began to shake and she rammed herself back into the still sitting Callie. The stares of the group fell heavy on to her shoulders then and Callie stared at Daryl as she worked to steady her nerves. Gracie's head was shaking back and forth and then the little girl lifted her tear stained face to Callie. "It's okay baby, go with Miles."
Callie nodded up at Miles and the boy stepped in and peeled the scared girl off of Callie's shirt. He tucked the tiny girl around his torso and held her tight, his eyes immediately lifting to the scared and running form of Ben and Danny making their way towards them.
"Go," Callie said putting her hand to the ground and slowly working to her feet. Miles shifted his eyes around, catching Daryl's nod and waved hand before making his way off towards the approaching pair. Callie's legs were trembling beneath her as she worked to her feet, and as Daryl gripped her arm and helped her up she grabbed his hand for support.
"Callie," Rick's voice was in her ear as he helped her up on the other side and she turned to look at his face.
"I'm fine," Callie said brushing him off and shaking her head as she finally let go of Daryl's arm and dusted at her pants. "Really, I'm -"
"Your shirt," Rick said in as cool and as calm a manner as he could. Callie slipped her eyes down to the front of her shirt, slightly stained with blood from the cuts on Gracie's hands. Her head began to shake as she lifted her eyes to Rick, but the motion stopped as her right arm was suddenly and painfully wrenched forward by Daryl.
"What-"Callie's question was cut off as Daryl's fingers slipped over the large rip in the fabric at her elbow. His eyes darted to hers briefly before he let out a growl and ripped the sleeve the rest of the way so that it pooled at her wrist. He roughly turned her arm this way and that, his fingers digging into her flesh as his breathing grew ever more erratic. "Daryl," Callie said as calmly as she could watching him lift her arm and stare as he ran his calloused fingers over her skin again and again. "Daryl." Callie tried again and she heard Rick let out a relieved sigh before pushing off to fend off the stalking Shane. "Hey, dumbass," Callie said over the Shane's rants. As she dipped her chin to her chest, Daryl's eyes finally lifted to her. Those piercing blue orbs were wide and angered and she felt her lips twitch with a smirk that she knew would do nothing but annoy him further. "I'm okay," Callie said calmly feeling his hand tighten just a bit on her arm. "We're okay."
Daryl's hand fell from her arm and he backed away a step before letting out a growl and turning to glare at the barn doors behind him. He began to pace around in front of that door, his hands clenching and unclenching with each step and his shoulders rising and falling with deep breaths that just weren't helping to calm his unsettled nerves.
"Okay?" Shane's rants finally reached her ears as the blood pounding in her veins slowed and she shifted to watch him stalk up to her. His head was shaking and he glared at the barn before his angered eyes slipped over her. His hand shot out and waved in an arc around the area, his eyes slipping from her to Rick before he spoke again. "You cannot tell me you're a'right with this?"
"I'm not," Rick said tiredly, his eyes slipping from Shane's angry figure as he paced around behind them and over to Callie. "No one is."
"Jesus Christ, Rick," Shane sputtered his arms shooting out again. The shock of the entire situation was sitting heavily upon all of them and Callie took a moment to let her eyes shift over everyone. Slowly she looked back towards the house, catching sight of a lone figure standing on the porch.
"We can't just sweep this under the rug," Andrea said coming up to stand near Callie and putting a hand to her shoulder. "Look what just almost happened," Andrea continued in an incredulous voice as she slipped her eyes over the group. Callie spared her a small smile before shifting her gaze to see the figure on the porch heading into the house and disappearing from sight. "If you hadn't been here with Gracie," Andrea said and Callie held up her hand with the fabric pooled at her wrist and waved it.
"I know," Callie said shifting her hand and running it through her hair as she glanced back at the door that was still pulsing with the movement of the bodies behind it. "I know. God I know." Callie stared at that door for a moment before starting at the feel of Rick's hand on her shoulder.
Callie let out a low breath and let her eyes again roam over the faces of everyone. She caught Carol's worried gaze and smiled at the woman before she moved towards where Daryl was still pacing by the doors. Daryl leaned in close and put his eye to the slat of the door, pulling back immediately when Callie's hand rested at his shoulder. He glared at her hard and let his eyes roam over her arm again before shaking his head and continuing his pacing.
"This ain't right," Shane was saying now, his voice calmer but still obviously perturbed. Callie watched him toss a hand at the barn door she was by and she crossed her arms over her chest as he returned his glare to Rick. "It ain't right. Not remotely," Shane said and Rick let out a ragged sigh as his hand worked through his hair. "We either got to get in there and make it right. Or we have to go," Shane said coming to a stop in front of Rick. Rick shook his head and shifted his eyes from Callie back to Shane. "We have been talking in circles 'bout Fort Benning-"
"We can't go," Rick said forcefully, the exhausted sigh that slipped through his lips sparking yet another angered outburst from Shane.
"Why?" Shane practically seethed as he worked himself into Rick's face. Callie's feet started working towards Shane and the man spared her a glare before shifting his face back into Rick's. "Why, Rick?"
"Because my daughter's still out there," Carol said stepping up to Rick's side. Her eyes slipped between the two men, and then over to Callie. "She's still out there," Carol's eyes shifted from Shane who was shaking his head and pacing as his hands rubbed at his face and over to where Daryl was staring at her. Callie watched Daryl and Carol stare at each other, watched a silent conversation being held between the two and felt her head nodding.
"She's right," Callie said looking at Rick who looked anything but convinced. She shook her head at him and then looked to Shane who was scoffing out a laugh and working his way towards them.
"Carol," Shane said almost incredulously his hands falling from his face as he danced around a bit on his feet. "Carol, honey. I think it's time to start considering-"
"We are not leaving her behind," Rick said forcefully, his hand lifting to settle on Carol's shoulder for a second before he gave Callie a nod. Shane's head shook around and his hands again flew out in utter confusion.
"We're close to finding that girl," Daryl spat stepping forward and getting himself into Shane's face. "We're close," Daryl said looking to Callie who nodded and crossed her arms over her chest as she stood by and watched Shane glare at Daryl. "I just found her fuckin' doll."
"You found her doll," Shane spat back lifting a finger into Daryl's chest and pushing him back. Daryl growled and Callie stepped forward putting her hand to his shoulder and pushing him back while Rick moved in on Shane's side. "You found her fuckin' doll, Daryl. Down at the bottom of a ravine full of fuckin' Walkers." Shane seethed as he pushed against Rick's hand to get closer to the now frothing and foaming Daryl as he bounced around behind Rick's back looking for an opening. Callie's hand was dislodged as Daryl rocked on his feet glaring at Shane and Callie shared a helpless defeated look with Rick.
"You don't know what the hell you're talkin' 'bout," Daryl seethed his hand shooting out and pointing a finger at Shane. "But go 'head, keep on runnin' your mouth, bitch. I owe you one for all the shit you been pullin' round here."
"Enough," Rick said shifting his eyes over his shoulder to Daryl quickly and then back to Shane. Callie's eyes shifted over her shoulder to the creaking doors of the barn and she shook her head at Rick. "Stop." Rick said pushing Shane away from Daryl who was pressing his chest up against Rick's back.
"Daryl," Callie called out again and put her hands to his shoulder only to have them shaken off again. Daryl glared at her and she threw her hands up in annoyance before crossing them over her chest again.
"I'm just sayin' what needs to be said," Shane said shifting his eyes around the group. "What everyone's thinkin', and no one's fuckin' sayin'. Sending people out to search for that girl is a waste of time. You know that," Shane said poking his finger into Rick's chest hard. "No leads after forty-eight hours-"
"Stop," Rick said again more forcefully, his own hand pushing out at his former partner and propelling the other man back. Shane stared at Rick hard, shock written on his features as his eyes moved from Rick to Callie and Daryl close at Rick's back. "Shane, stop. Just stop."
"Tell you something else man," Shane said, his eyes boring right into the still seething squinted glare of Daryl directly behind Rick. "If Sophia was out there, and she saw you comin' all methed-out with your Buck-knife and geek ears round your neck, she woulda run the other direction." Shane spat the words at Daryl and Callie watched Daryl's face contort in outrage and anger. Shane smiled just a bit, knowing he'd hit home, but he wasn't quite ready to stop there. "Man, Jenna was lucky she was already dead when she stumbled upon you. Fuck, woulda died from shock anyway huh," Callie dragged in a harsh breath and slipped her own eyes to Shane.
She witnessed the moment that Shane realized he'd stepped too far over a line and watched him try to backpedal away from it. That split second of horror that had been written over his face, was swallowed hard by the man in the Police ball cap, and Callie watched it burn its way down his throat. In the next instant Daryl was moving, unhindered by Rick who was sharing in the group's moment of disbelief.
"Shut your mouth," Daryl growled as he lunged forward. One hand landed in the fabric of Shane's shirt while the other met his jaw and sent them both men toppling sideways. Callie rushed forward along with Rick and surprisingly Lori and Dale. Rick and Callie worked to get Daryl off, as he landed another punch and ducked away from Shane's hand as it hit home on his shoulder.
"Back off," Rick said as he pushed Shane away while Callie wrapped her arms around Daryl and dragged him backwards. T-Dog came to her aid and helped her get him further away as Rick continued to push at Shane. "Cool down. You were outta line. Back off." Lori and Dale were pulling at Shane, and Shane's eyes slipped down to Lori who was pushing at his chest.
"Keep your hands off me," Shane said breaking Lori's hands away from him and stalking off. Lori stood there shocked for a moment, her eyes following Shane's stalking form before slipping back to where Rick was watching her.
Callie let her hands fall as Daryl pushed away from her and T-Dog muttered as he steadied her on her feet. She reached out to Daryl and he stared hard at her as he raked both hands through his hair. His body was tense and no doubt in pain from the fight but the only pain showing on his face was a deep-seeded internal one that she knew he'd never let out. She looked away from him as he continued to pace and ran her own hand through her hair as she caught Rick's eyes.
"Let me talk to Hershel," Rick said keeping his eyes locked on Callie. She nodded, knowing that he had come to the same realization as she had about who was settled in that barn. Rick nodded back and then sighed as he looked out to the rest of the shocked group. "Let me figure it out. If we're going to stay," Rick said and then shook his head when Shane let out a disgruntled 'fuckin' idiot'. "If we're going to clear this barn," Rick said over Shane's outburst as he continued to address the group. "Let me talk him into it."
"Hershel thinks of these things as people," Dale said quietly his hand arcing out towards the barn.
"They were people," Callie said quietly to him and he nodded at her before lifting a hand in apology. She stared at him for a minute and then really processed what he'd just said. "God," Callie said running her hand down her face as everything started clicking into place. Hershel's odd behavior with Jenna, his words that hadn't made sense before finally finding an odd home in her head. "Oh God, he thinks they're still alive," Callie muttered into her hands as she turned back to the barn and took a few steps towards it. The creaking and groaning of the doors was now being overpowered by the moaning and groaning of the dead inside. "How many-"
"You knew," Shane's accusing voice echoed out and Callie barely registered Dale responding that Glenn had found out and told him and Danny yesterday. Callie's mind was so intent on the Walkers in the barn that she didn't realize that Shane wasn't addressing Dale until a rough hand grabbed her shoulder and turned her around.
"Hey, motherfucker," Daryl's voice rang out just as Callie's wide eyes caught Shane's angry ones.
"You knew," Shane repeated as he worked himself up so that he loomed over her. Callie heard Rick's angered voice call out to Shane and heard Daryl's footsteps but was frozen by the unfiltered hatred that was burning in Shane's eyes. "How long? Huh? You been behind closed doors with Hershel more times than I can count since we been here. So how long you known about it?"
"Jesus, Shane," Dale's utterly disbelieving voice called out as Callie shook her head.
"I didn't know," Callie said her eyes shifting over his shoulder to where Rick was working to calm Daryl. She caught Rick's eyes and then Daryl's and her head shook. "I should have," Callie said quietly looking back to Shane. "I had a feeling-"
"A feelin'," Shane spat turning away and then spinning on his heel to get back into her face. "Don't give me that shit." He looked over his shoulder then at Rick. "You knew too, huh? That's what all those late night conversations have been about? And here I just thought you were finally giving in an' fuckin' her." Shane spat.
"Hey," Callie pushed at Shane's shoulders hard spinning him around. She advanced on him her hands again pushing hard into his chest propelling his unprepared body back again. "Fucker. I don't know where this is coming from but you need to get your head out of your ass." Callie shoved again. "He didn't know. We didn't know. I put two and two together yesterday that things weren't right here. And I went to Rick to figure out what the next step should be," Callie shoved again and this time Shane didn't move back. "That's it douche-bag. God," she pushed again and again he snarled but didn't budge. "Don't pull that useless bullshit about Rick fuckin' me out. Fuck, Shane. Unlike you I've been fuckin' payin' attention to my surroundings and figured shit out."
"Get my head out of my ass, she says." Shane said shifting his eyes around the group. "Get my head out of my ass." Shane's hands shot out and pushed Callie back a step and this time there were more shouts. Callie caught Rick and Daryl moving forward and she braced herself as Shane's hands shot out but instead of pushing her he grabbed a hold of the waistband of her pants and pulled her forward. "Fuck you Callie," Shane seethed his face an inch from hers. "You know what? You ain't the only one who knows how to fuckin' read situations and people. Shit honey I been readin' you like a book for a long time," he pulled on her again and her hands lifted to brace against his chest as she tried to back away. "Take the way you wear this gun of yours," Shane said in harsh whisper at her face. "Just begging someone to fuckin' take it from you. Beggin' someone to fuckin' do what you ain't had the guts to do since you had to kill your family. Maybe I should do it for you, huh?" Shane's fingers slipped to the gun settled at the front of her pants.
Callie's hand balled into a fist at the same time her foot jammed down hard on the top of Shane's foot. Just as he bent with the pain and his hand slipped from her gun she raised her knee and clocked him in his groin. In that moment Daryl's form tackled into Shane's and the two men went down leaving her fist to hit nothing but air. Callie stumbled back as Rick and T-Dog both moved in to work the two men apart. Glenn was at her side and the both of them slipped backwards as the scuffle intensified. Daryl was pounding on Shane's side as Shane landed a few good hits to Daryl's injured thigh and Callie was left to stare in wonder at the entire thing.
"Are you okay?" Glenn asked in a rushed tone as he put a hand to her arm. Dale worked his way towards them and she waved the older man off angrily and he shook his head at her while running a hand under his bucket hat. "Hey," Glenn's voice called out and Callie nodded at him as she shifted her eyes watching as Rick held Daryl back and T-Dog pushed Shane away.
"Cool it, man. I ain't above knockin' your ass the fuck out for that shit." T-Dog spat at Shane who was wiping his hand over his bloodied lip.
Callie and Glenn backed up more as Rick and the still struggling Daryl moved towards them. They backed up until their backs were pushed up against the door. The door pushed back and both Callie and Glenn turned to watch gray fingers curl out at them.
A shot rang out and Callie and Glenn both spun on their heels as they darted away from the door. The moment of fear was quelled instantly by the sight of the three people settled not far off from them. Hershel stood staring hard at the group, Maggie at one side and Danny at the other with the rifle pointed in the air.
"Ya want to get the fuck away from the damn barn now?" Danny called out in a tired voice his eyes skipping towards Hershel. "Some people's children, huh?"
"Shut up, Danny." Maggie muttered tiredly as she shook her head at him. "Just please, shut up."
I was five and he was six
We rode on horses made of sticks
He wore black and I wore white
He would always win the fight
Bang, bang he shot me down
Bang, bang I hit the ground
Bang, bang that awful sound
Bang, bang my baby shot me down
~Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)/ Nancy Sinatra
AN: I felt the need to let this end on a bit of a humored note, because I know that there's a lot of not so funny. I hope you guys liked Daryl and Shane finally getting to have a go at one another. It's been a long time comin' and while you didn't get a full on play-by-play ('cause I'm just not good at writing out that much fun action) I hope you used your imagination and made it everything you wanted it to be.
Shit's gonna be hitting the fan in the next chapter peeps. To quote a great movie…hold on to your butts. (points if you know where that's from)
Not much left to say here other than yet again, thank you for all your support and love and all the new alerts and faves. You guys fuckin' ROCK. Get settled in for the fun of the mid-season finale and I'll try to keep y'all in the happy TWD world with my story as we settle in for that break.
Much Love!
See ya next chapter~