Well this took longer than I had hoped it would to get posted. It was also a little hard to write. I am thinking there will only be one or two more chapters after this one. Thank you to everyone who has stuck with this story and for all of those who have reviewed. This chapter is pretty much filler and it will be shorter than most.

Disclaimer- I do not own the walking dead or its characters.

DPOV

"Hello Baby Brother. Peach." Merle said as we approached him in the parking lot of the little motel we spent the night in.

"How did you…"

"Been followin' ya for a while now Daryl. What the hell you get yourself mixed up in?"

"No aint gonna talk about it. You gotta go, Merle it's dangerous."

"No shit baby brother. Listen I am keeping my ears open about your little girlfriends problem." Merle said, his voice sarcastic.

"Merle you keep Shawn outta this."

"M' tryin' but he want's in so bad. No worries though, the Governor don't know nothin' 'bout the Greene's."

"How can you be sure?" Beth asked him. Her voice low as she slightly shook with fear. I reached out and wrapped my large calloused hand over her smaller smooth one.

"Can't be girl but you just gotta keep your head up." I looked to Beth to see her rolling her eyes at my brother. I fought the urge to smile.

"Merle?" Beth said forming it as a question.

"Ya peach?"

"Do you think this Governor person is going to want me dead?" Her voice sounded so small as she asked Merle about her fate.

"Don' know, he is a pretty decent guy when it comes to women and children so it is possible that he is going to forget about it."

She nodded her head in response to him, her hand in mine tightly. A shot rang out from behind us, using my body to block Beth I felt a stinging in my shoulder. I grunted as more shots rang through the air. Merle pulled a gun quicker than I thought he could and shot back. I moved to get Beth in the truck and pulled myself into the driver's seat and took off. Bullet's ricocheting off the bumper kept me awake as the pain in my shoulder intensified.

"Daryl?" Beth asked, the panic in her voice evident.

"M' fine." I grunted as I pulled onto the freeway.

"Who were those men?"

"I don' know but I'm hopin' Merle survived this and tells me." I pulled the truck off to the side of the road and got out. The pain was reaching excruciating levels as I slumped down the side of the truck, Beth reached my side in a second.

"Daryl? Oh god." I could feel her trying to pull me up as everything went blank.

…

Beep Beep Beep

"Daryl?" Beth's sweet voice seemed far away as she spoke my name. My eyes felt heavy as I tried to open them up. Brightness is the first thing that registered. "Daryl, babe?"

"Beth." I mumbled as her face came into view above me. The incessant beeping kept going in my ear.

"Yeah I'm here." She said smiling down at me. "You're in the hospital in Mobile Alabama. You were shot."

"Not safe."

"It's fine Daryl, we are safe. The men who were shooting were not aiming at us. They were after your brother. Apparently last time he was in jail who messed with the wrong gang leader and when one of the goons saw him at the motel they started firing."

"Merle?"

"He survived. He went back to Atlanta to talk to the Governor about our situation. Daryl you scared the hell out of me." She said grabbing hold of my hand and squeezing tightly. "I need you to get better so we can go home."

"Home yeah." I mumbled.

"Yes home. Our home in Mississippi." I could feel my lips turning up into a smile. I raised my hand up to her cheek, lightly tracing her cheek bone with my thumb. "I love you Daryl."

"Love you too Beth." I could feel sleep taking over again. Her big blue eyes were the last thing I saw before darkness took over once again.

…

"Come on get in the truck." Beth said, her voice sharp and her eyes staring at me like daggers.

"No Beth, I can drive."

"No you were shot and are still recovering. I will drive."

"You aint gonna budge are ya?"

"Nope." She smiled slightly hopping into the driver's seat of my truck. I slid in beside her and buckled my seatbelt as she started up the old beast and headed towards the highway. An old country song filtered through the speakers as the hot sun shone in the windows. Beth sat beside me humming along to the song, her eyes glancing over at me every few minutes. "You're staring." She said her sweet voice, music to my ears.

"I like what I see." A phone starting ringing startling me slightly. Beth pushed a button on the small phone in the cubby before speaking.

"Hello?"

"Peach it's Merle."

"Hi Merle." She responded to my brother.

"I talked to the Governor and he wants a meetin' with you and Darylina."

"No." I said loudly.

"You want this problem to go away baby brother you gotta come back to Atlanta and deal with it." He said. "Besides I think it will be good for ya to plead your case."

"Daryl we should go back, go and deal with it."

"Alrigh'." I agreed. At the next exit Beth turned the truck around and we headed off back to Georgia.

The hours passed as we drove in silence back towards the city. "Welcome back to Atlanta." She said grabbing a hold of my hand. I smiled over at her as we passed the city limits.