A/N: Ehh..this chapter pales in comparison to the last, but I still like it. Sorry for no update yesterday, school is crazy right now. Here's a long chapter to make up for it though, so enjoy! Please leave a review, I love hearing from you all. A special shout out to Best Buy Seasons, Audry Whyte, and Zale136 for their continued support.
The next morning came slowly. Shane and I stayed up on the roof of the RV all night, talking and crying and laughing about our childhood. When the sun peaked over the clouds, I looked out at the beautiful sunrise.
"You know, with all the ugly mess that's been going on, it's been a while since I saw beauty in something. But it's not that the beauty is gone, it's that I'm too busy looking over my shoulder for the ugly that I don't have time to focus on the good," I said to him, watching the clouds turn pink and orange with the awakening sun.
"My sister the philosopher," he joked and stood up, stretching. He held his hand out to me. "Wanna go and see what's for breakfast," he asked.
"No, I think I'm going to sit for a while," I told him, pulling my knees up to my chest and hugging them to me.
"Suit yourself," he shrugged and climbed down, our peaceful time together coming to a halt.
I watched him walk over to the group of tents where the rest of our people slept. I saw Rick emerged from the tent with no sign of Lori. Carol and Andrea were already starting a fire to warm themselves, winter getting closer each day. The days were still scorching but the nights had begun to get brutally cold. Daryl climbed out of his tent then, pulling on a jacket as he did. T-Dog was sitting under a tree, holding his arm and Andrea walked over to help him put on clean bandages.
By now, the sun had finished its ascension and the breeze was ruffling my light brown hair. I breathed in the fresh air before climbing down to meet up with everyone. A while later, Lori emerged. Carol had moved to doing laundry by then and Lori quickly went to helping her.
"Morning everyone, let's get moving. We got a lot of ground to cover today. All right, everyone's getting new search grids today. If she made it as far as the farmhouse Daryl found, she might have gone further east than we've been so far," Rick said, leaning over the map Maggie had provided.
"I'd like to help. I know the area pretty well and stuff," a boy with fair hair said. I remembered Hershel calling him Jimmy, his daughter's boyfriend.
"Hershel's okay with this?" Rick asked him. The boy was only seventeen and I seriously doubted he knew how to shoot a gun. He was scrawny, nothing but skin and bones underneath those clothes. Carl could probably beat him in a wrestling match.
"Yeah, yeah. He said I should ask you," the boy said, looking a little nervous but I didn't say anything. We needed every body we could get combing those woods.
"All right then, thanks."
"Nothing about what Daryl found screams Sophia to me," Shane said and I looked at him sharply. "Anybody could have been holed up in that farmhouse."
"Anybody includes her right," Daryl retorted and I saw a small smile tug at the corners of his mouth. "Whoever slept in that cupboard couldn't be any bigger than yay-high," he continued, holding his arm out to illustrate the height he meant.
"It's a good lead," Rick affirmed and I was still looking at Shane with disbelief.
"Maybe we'll pick up her trail again," Andrea added.
"No maybe about it. Ima borrow a horse, head up to this ridge right here, take a bird's eye view of the whole grid. If she's up there I'll spot her," Daryl said, pointing to the map.
"Good idea," T-Dog said. "Maybe you'll see your Chupacabra up there too," he laughed at that and I saw a tinge of pink color Daryl's cheeks. I was smirking too.
"Chupacabra?" Rick asked.
"You never heard this? Our first night in camp Daryl tell us how this whole thing reminds him of the time he went squirrel hunting and saw a Chupacabra," Dale explained and I was biting my cheek to keep from laughing. Jimmy wasn't so smart and a chuckle escaped him.
"What you braying at jackass?" Daryl barked at him and the smirk disappeared.
"You believe in a bloodsucking dog?" Rick asked him.
"Do you believe in dead people walking around?" Daryl quipped and I laughed out loud. I saw Daryl grin too when Rick had turned away. Jimmy reached for the rifle that was lying on the hood of the car.
"Hey! Ever fire one before?" Rick asked him, pushing his hand away.
"Well if I'm going out I want one," the boy protested and I rolled my eyes.
"Yeah and people in hell want slurpees," Daryl said, slinging his crossbow over his shoulder and walking towards the stables.
"You should come to training tomorrow. If you're serious, I'm a certified instructor," Shane told him and he nodded.
"He can come with me for now," I said, figuring I would be the best at babysitting him. Not too harsh but not too gentle.
"He's yours to baby-sit then," Shane said and I nodded, walking off to grab my bag from my tent.
"Let's go," I barked and shoved an ax into his hands. He stuttered then jogged to catch up with me. Rick had given us rags, a hammer, and some nails. Each group had a different color rag so we could mark trees. This way we wouldn't get lost and it would stop us from wandering into another grid.
We made it to the grid without incident and I marked the tree quickly.
"You know, I'm surprised they let you and Andrea out here to help," the boy said as I ducked to avoid a large tree branch.
"What do you mean?" I asked him, trying not to grow irritated. His talking was distracting, and loud. Any nearby walkers wouldn't have a problem finding us with his incessant chatter.
"I mean, you are girls and this is men's work. Both of you should be back at the house with Lori, Carol, Maggie and Beth," he said and I turned on him, causing him to stumble.
"Excuse me? I don't know what century you're living in, but we have just as much right and ability to be out here as Daryl, Rick, and the other guys. You are, in fact, the weak member of this team. Now shut up before I rip your tongue out of your mouth," I was speaking in a harsh whisper, one Shane always said was scarier than me blessing someone out. I had no tolerance for sexist idiots, especially ones compromising our mission. His eyes grew wide but he didn't say anything as I turned back around and started walking.
Our grid was small and flat, following the beginning of the creek. I periodically marked trees, hoping that maybe Sophia would see some of the rags and follow them back to the farm. Once I saw a tree with a yellow rag, I knew we had reached the end of our grid and wandered into Andrea and T-Dog's. I saw the two of them walking towards us and waved, not wanting to be mistaken for a walker.
"Hey," Andrea said once they reached us. "We just finished up the grid, ran into Shane and Rick. We're heading back to the farm."
"So are we. Did you see anything?" I asked. With each day we didn't find her, her chances got slimmer and slimmer.
"Nothing. Maybe she never came this way and headed further north," T-Dog said and I nodded, clinging to hope.
We walked back in silence, not needing any words to convey the disappointment we felt. Rick and Shane were already back, having taken another route.
"Anything?" Rick asked once we were in earshot. I could tell by the look on their faces that they hadn't found anything. I shook my head and Rick looked down, hitting the car with his fist angrily.
"Is everyone back then? Maybe we could take another grid today," I needed something to keep busy. Ever since the previous night, my mind kept wandering back to my past. I had worked for years to build up these walls and didn't want them crumbling now, when it could get me killed.
"Daryl's still out. He had the grid farthest from the farm so it'll probably be a while. We'd loose the light if we tried, it's too risky. We're just going to have to wait for morning. I sighed heavily and handed Rick my gun.
I decided to walk around the property, to check how secure it was and to clear my head. I started to the small grove of trees directly beside our campsite. I saw Lori walking over with a bucket of water and Glenn sitting on a bench, looking nervous. I slowed a bit, making sure everything was okay.
"Mind your own business Glenn," Lori snapped before the boy had even opened his mouth.
"You're pregnant," Glenn said it as a statement rather than a question and my jaw dropped. I couldn't believe it, and I didn't want to. I ran to get away from the conversation behind me, like if I didn't hear the rest then it wouldn't be true. I made it to the field farthest away from the house and flopped down. I stared out into nothing and thought.
I was the only one who knew about Shane and Lori, how they'd been together before Rick got back, when we all thought Rick was dead. That meant that this could be his baby. I wasn't sure which option was better. On one hand, the baby was his and that was a lot of responsibility, especially now. Rick would hate him and their friendship would be ruined. On the other hand, the baby wasn't his and my brother was heartbroken and bitter. He loved Lori, I'm not sure why, but he did and he thought he could still be with her someday. This baby would ruin any chance of that.
Before I realized it, the sun had began to sink, once again casting orange and pink hues across the sky. I got up and looked around. Andrea was on top of the RV keeping watch. I didn't see Lori or Carol, they were probably inside helping the other women with the laundry. Rick was pouring over the map while Shane and T-Dog worked to chop some wood for firewood. I walked back over to everyone else, seeing Glenn sitting on the porch, strumming the guitar Dale had found.
"I can take over if you're tired," I told Andrea on the way back to our group of tents. Dale walked out of the RV, holding a book.
"No, I'm fine," she said and I nodded and walked off.
"Where have you been?" Shane asked when I walked over to him.
"Just taking a walk," I shrugged nonchalantly, trying to hide my nervousness. I definitely wasn't going to talk to him about the situation in front of all these people.
"Walker!" Andrea yelled and we all turned around.
"Just the one?" Rick asked as Andrea picked up the binoculars to look out. She nodded and reached for the rifle lying on the roof.
"I bet I can nail it from here," she seemed excited as she took aim.
"No, Andrea. Put the gun down," Rick ordered and she looked over her shoulder. Shane, T-Dog, and I had grabbed the axes lying around the lumber pile.
"You'd best let us handle this," Shane said as we started out to kill the walker. Even though we outnumbered it, I was still afraid, not sure what may happen.
"Shane! Hershel wants to deal with walkers!" Rick called after us but we didn't slow down.
"What for? We got it," Shane dismissed him and I heard Rick swear before running to catch up to us.
Glenn, T-Dog, Rick, Shane, and I ran as fast as we could towards the walker. I was the fastest so I was a couple steps ahead of them. I squinted as I thought I saw the walker dragging something behind it. A crossbow. My brain was spinning and I realized I was way ahead of the guys now. I'd meant to ease up the closer we got but my legs were going at full speed now.
"Addie! Slow down!" I heard Shane yell but I was already to the walker now. Only it wasn't a walker, it was Daryl. He was covered in mud and blood, his jacket ripped to shreds. He was limping badly, his ankle at an odd angle.
"Daryl?" I asked dumbly, not sure what to say. I came to a standstill immediately so the others caught up quickly, Shane first. He ran directly between Daryl and me, not realizing there was no danger. Then, the others stopped too, seeing what I had. Rick had his gun pointed at Daryl's head.
"Is that Daryl?" Glenn asked.
"That's the third time you pointed that thing at my head. Are you gonna pull the trigger or what?" Daryl said, his breathing heavy. Rick lowered the gun and we all tried to catch our breath.
A loud crack rang out and a spray of blood hit me in the face before Daryl collapsed to the ground. I screamed and everyone looked back at Andrea.
"No!" Rick shouted as I ran over to Daryl's crumpled form. He was breathing, the bullet had only grazed his head. I breathed a sigh of relief.
"What on earth's going on out here?" I heard Hershel scream and turned to see that everyone who had been in the house was outside now.
Rick and Shane came over to Daryl and lifted him off the ground.
"I was kidding," he murmured before passing out.
"Oh my God. Oh my God, is he dead?" Andrea asked, her and Dale sprinting across the field.
"Unconscious, you just grazed him," Rick said, he and Shane pulling Daryl between them.
"But look at him. What the hell happened? He's wearing ears," Glenn said, pointing to something around his neck. It looked like a shoelace with walker ears attached to it. I gagged once before composing myself.
"Let's keep that between us," Rick whispered, yanking the string from Daryl's neck and stuffing it in his pocket.
"Guys, isn't this Sophia's?" T-Dog called and we all looked back. He was holding a small doll, the one Sophia had with her when she went missing.
Daryl was still hanging limply between the two guys.
"Would you two go get him some help?" I yelled at them and they started moving again. Hershel instructed them to get him inside and they dragged him up the porch.
"Is he going to be okay?" I asked Hershel, following them into a bedroom where they laid him on the bed.
"Let me take a look. Looks like something stabbed him, he pulled it out. He's lost a lot of blood. His ankle looks sprained. Maybe some broken ribs, but he'll live," Hershel deduced quickly, fluttering over his limp body.
"Thank God," I said, sliding to the floor to catch my breath. So much had happened today, it was a wonder I hadn't had a heart attack yet. I got up, though, and walked back onto the porch. Andrea was sitting in one of the rocking chairs, head in hands.
"Is he okay?" She asked me when I walked out.
"Hershel says he'll be fine," I told her curtly.
"I feel horrible."
"You should. Rick told you not to fire that gun. Even if it had been a walker, you could have drawn a whole herd here. That's exactly why Rick and Shane said you couldn't carry. You realize you could have killed him, all of us actually," I spat at her, venom dripping in my words. She literally recoiled from me, like I'd reached out and slapped her.
I walked back in the house, changing my mind on the fresh air and needing to see that Daryl was okay. I walked back in and he was awake, holding a cloth to his head, Hershel stitching up his side. He was pointing where he found the doll on the map.
"That cuts the grid almost in half," Shane said, sitting in a chair in the corner. I walked over and stood beside him, feeling Daryl's eyes follow me.
"Yeah, you're welcome," he said sarcastically, flinching a little as Hershel prodded his side.
"How's he looking?" Rick asked.
"I had no idea we'd be going through the antibiotics this quickly. Any idea what happened to my horse?" Hershel asked Daryl.
"Yeah, the one that almost killed me. If it's smart it left the country," he said and I smiled.
"We call that one Nelly. As in Nervous Nelly. I could have told you she'd throw you if you'd bothered to ask. It's a wonder you people have survived this long," he said, wiping his hands and walking over to Rick. I stiffened but Shane grabbed my arm, shaking his head. I took a deep breath but calmed down. Rick and Shane walked out after Hershel, leaving me alone with Daryl.
"Hey," I said shyly. He pulled the white sheet over himself even though it was warm in the house.
"Hey," he said, still holding the cloth to his head.
"You okay?" I asked, walking over to his bed.
"I'll live," he said with a shrug, wincing at the movement. I felt like a small child, not knowing what to say.
"I was scared. I wasn't sure you were going to make it. What happened?" I asked him, my face heating at my admission. He looked at me for a moment, a strange look on his face.
"Damn horse threw me, I fell down the ridge. One of the bolts from by crossbow ran through my side. Hurt like a bitch but I got up and started climbing up. It was slippery and muddy, so I fell back down. I must have passed out because I woke up with a walker chewing on my boot. I was able to take down him and his buddy. I pulled the arrow out, bandaged the wound as best I could and made the climb again," he said. I sat by the bed, listening to his tale with fascination and horror.
"Wow. It's a miracle you're okay."
"I guess so," he said, something seemed to be bothering him but I wasn't sure whether to pry or not.
"Is something wrong?" I asked, deciding I'd try. He shook his head and I looked at him intensely, trying to let him know he could talk to me. He sighed, grimacing in pain as he did.
"I saw Merle today," he said and my eyes grew wide.
"What?"
"Well, it was a dream or hallucination or whatever, but he was there," Daryl trailed off and I understood. I placed my hand on his bare shoulder. His skin was warm and a spark of electricity ran through my hand.
"Addie?" I heard Shane call as he opened the door. He looked at us, confused, before settling his gaze on me. "Dinner's ready."
"I'll be right there. See you later," I told Daryl and followed my brother out the door. He was looking at me the whole way downstairs but I wouldn't meet his gaze. We sat in the dining room, eating the pot roast Carol and Lori had made.
"It's really good," I told them, meaning it. It was the first real meal we'd had in a long time, and it was heavenly. We all cleaned our plates.
"Adeline, would you mind helping clean the kitchen?" Lori asked, picking up the plates as the guys started leaving.
"Actually, Addie was just going to help me with something," Shane said, looking at me harshly, daring me to argue. Lori rolled her eyes but waved me away.
"Bitch," I muttered under my breath as I walked past Shane outside.
"Watch your mouth," he warned, walking right behind me.
"What did you want?" I asked him, folding my arms over my chest in the nippy wind.
"Just to talk."
"You didn't get enough last night?" I asked him sarcastically. I really didn't think I could handle another heart-wrenching night of family drama.
"Fine. I'll be blunt. What's going on between you and Dixon?" He asked.
"What do you mean?" I asked him, not liking where this conversation was heading.
"I mean is there something going on between the two of you that I should know about. You've been awful chummy with him lately, spending a lot of time together," he trailed off and my jaw was hanging by now at the implication. I felt a blush on my cheeks from being approached by Shane on such a personal topic.
"Why do you care?" I asked, trying to dodge the questions I didn't have any answers for.
"Because I'm your brother and I want what's best for you, and Dixon definitely isn't it," he was leaning against the porch rail now, looking intimidating, but I glared up at him defiantly.
"There is nothing going on, but even if there was, I'm a grown woman and I can make my own decisions," I hissed at him.
"I'm just looking out for you. He's bad news, Addie. Redneck trash. He's useful to have around, but nobody you should keep company with," he said and I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"Excuse me Shane Walsh, but I suggest you watch your mouth. That redneck has saved our lives on more than one occasion. I don't know what's gotten into you lately, but fix it because you're really starting to piss me off," I said, turning around to storm off but he grabbed my arm to stop me.
"They're turning you against me too. It's bad enough Rick and Lori hate me, I can't take you hating me too," he said, looking sad and my anger melted.
"I don't hate you, I hate how you've been acting. Something's changed and you won't talk to me about it, even after I opened up to you last night. Tell me what it is so I can help you," I pleaded with him, grabbing his hands.
"I can't. You'll really hate me then," he said, sounding utterly defeated. I led him over to the rocking chairs and gestured for him to sit. He did and I sat beside him.
"You can tell me anything. I'm always going to be here for you, I'm on your side."
He sighed heavily and stood up, pacing and rubbing his bald head. "I killed Otis," he said and I looked at him, waiting for him to continue. "That's it. I killed him. We weren't going to make it out of there alive and it was either him or me. I shot him and left him for the walkers so I could get away."
"Oh my God," I said, my heart pounding and I felt sick. "Oh my God." He was looking at me, anguish all over his face. I stood up and walked to him, feeling like I was floating. I hugged him tightly and I felt his arms around me, clutching my shirt.
"It's okay. You did what you had to do, no one can blame you for that," I told him, meaning it. I would always pick my brother over someone else. Otis was the reason Carl had gotten shot and Shane was at that school to begin with, it was only fair for him to get him out. We stood like that for a while and I felt a new resolve for being loyal to my brother.
"Go get some rest," he told me and I nodded. I walked to my tent and crawled inside. I fell asleep with dreams of everything but sugarplums dancing in my head.