Chapter 13: Make A Deal With God

Blurb: Hi. So, here's another one! I hope you guys continue to enjoy it. I certainly love exploring these characters. :)

~ This chapter is titled after the song Running Up That Hill by Placebo. ~

As soon as Dale left the group meeting, a heavy sadness fell over the room. Ellen felt it almost instantly. No one tried to stop Dale from leaving the house. It was clear to everyone the boy's fate had been settled.

Rick broke the silence, "I need Shane and Daryl. The rest of you can go about your usual business."

Daryl began moving toward Rick as others in the group stood from their seated positions. Ellen was suddenly overwhelmed by the situation. They were going to… take action… just like that? "You expect us to just go back to our usual schedules like nothing is happening?"

Rick turned to answer Ellen, "You heard the conversation, Ellen. There's nothing else to be done about it."

Ellen shook her head in protest, "This isn't right."

She stood from her stool and raised her head high, "You know this isn't the only way. You just don't want to see it."

None of the men answered her. So Ellen turned on her heel and made for the front door of the house. The door hit the frame a little too hard in her wake, and she stomped down the porch steps. Ellen then began her march toward the shed.

Ellen decided that if the men wouldn't voluntarily involve her in the boy's fate, she would have to make them. So, she stationed herself right outside the shed's front door. And she waited like a loyal centurion for the men to come for the boy.

The boy noticed her sitting outside the shed. Apparently he could see through the slants in the wooden frame. He called out to her once, asking why she was there. "Hey, Ellen! What are you doin' out there? Is something happening? You won't let them do anything to me, will you?"

Ellen didn't turn toward the voice. She stood completely still as he spoke to her. She had to keep her emotions in check if she was going to be strong now. So, she maintained a mask of stone as he attempted to gain information from her.

Eventually, the boy gave up and there was silence again. Perhaps he felt safer with Ellen there. Ellen wasn't sure how she should feel about being this boy's protector at that moment. All she knew was she had to be there.

The men were not happy to see her near the shed. As they approached, Ellen could see the anger boiling in Shane, whereas Rick merely looked irritated. Daryl, however, was absolutely livid. Ellen could see it in the way his gait took on a new sense of purpose when he saw her stationed outside the shed door. She was on unholy ground.

Shane was the first to yell across the field toward Ellen, "'The hell you think you're doin', Ellen?"

Ellen squared her shoulders and set her jaw, "I won't let you take him."

Shane let out an amused chuckle, "So it's like that again, huh? Do we gotta duke it out in front of every building on the property?"

Shane looked like he was half serious about preparing to fight Ellen away from the shed door. The realization both terrified and infuriated her. But Daryl cut in before Shane had time to act on his words.

Before Ellen could register what was happening, Daryl had stalked across the few feet of grass that separated them. He was on her in moments. His broad hands gripped her arms and pushed her back until she was flush against the door of the shed. His voice seethed down at her, "What do you think you're doing here?"

Daryl had never been this physical with her before. Ellen was in a state of shock as she stared up into his now hostile eyes. But she recovered quickly and stood firm in her determination, repeating her first statement to him, "I won't let you take the boy."

Daryl nearly spit the words out in frustration, "You cannot keep doing this, Ellen. You are only making it harder for all of us."

"It should be hard! It's wrong."

Daryl looked pained by her statements. He shut his eyes briefly and furrowed his brows, continuing to pin her against the shed and prevent her escape. "I don't expect you to understand, but we do have to do this."

Ellen didn't respond. She just let the moment drag on between them. She didn't know how to make the situation right.

Rick interrupted them deliberately, "Move her, Daryl. We'll get the boy."

Daryl nodded and nudged Ellen to the side, attempting to move her from the doorway. Realizing that she was losing fast, Ellen decided she would not go down without a fight.

Ellen began thrashing and pushing at Daryl, attempting to get free. "No! You can't take him! You CAN'T DO THIS!"

Despite Ellen's efforts, Daryl moved her from the path of the door. They were now to the side of the shed. Ellen could easily see Shane and Rick as they passed to enter the shed and unchain the boy. Seeing them enter- one step closer to killing the boy- sent a renewed fight through Ellen. She used all of her might to force Daryl back and away from her, pushing on his chest with full force. He stumbled backwards slightly, and Ellen had just enough time to twirl around and make for the shed entrance.

She wasn't sure what she would do once she was in the shed…. Fight Rick and Shane until they agreed to leave the boy be? Unlikely.

Daryl didn't give Ellen the chance to find out if that was even a possibility. He grabbed her roughly by the arm and jerked her backwards, slamming her against the paneling of the shed. "By all that is holy, girl. I will keep you still! Even if I have to tie you to a tree myself."

Ellen felt tears blur her vision and drip down her cheeks slowly.

Daryl wasn't totally deterred by her emotion. He was silent, and took a few long breaths to calm himself. Inhale…. Exhale…

They watched one another for a long moment as Ellen listened to the sounds of Shane binding the boy's hands and ordering him to stand up. Ellen seemed to realize then that she could not help the boy. His fate had been decided.

Ellen's voice was weak when she spoke, "You're really going to do this?"

Daryl searched Ellen's face. He seemed to acknowledge that she was done. She had given up the fight. He answered her quietly, "I'll do what I have to."

Ellen's attention was diverted away from Daryl when Shane exited the shed, followed closely by Rick, who had the boy closely in tow. The boy wasn't blindfolded, only his hands were bound. He looked to Ellen in panic, "Please please please, don't let them take me. Please, Ellen!"

The boy might not know exactly what his fate might be, but Ellen's reaction must have made it pretty clear. This boy knew he was in for something terrible. Ellen could only turn her eyes away from the boy, denying him her aid. She could not do anything for him.

Daryl realized Ellen had succumbed to the reality of the situation. He took one last look at her, "You going to cause trouble?"

Ellen didn't face him. She just shook her head.

Daryl grunted in approval, "Go join the others, Ellen. They're back at camp."

He released his hold on Ellen and backed up a few paces from her. Ellen looked up at him then, half expecting him to drag her to an awaiting tree and leave her there, as he had threatened. But he made no move to handle her further.

When Ellen didn't take the necessary steps to propel herself towards the camp, Rick spoke up, "Daryl, give her some space. Come take the boy. We'll head toward the barn now."

Daryl continued to study Ellen as he moved away from her, coming closer to the boy. He took the boy's arm in his hand, securing him from any attempts at running off. The boy continued to plead with whomever he thought might listen. The boy's chatter set Daryl's fuse short, and he quickly became irritated with him. "Shut up!"

Still, Ellen did not move from her position by the shed. She watched in hopeless defeat as the boy was held captive, about to march to his death. She couldn't bring herself to move forward.

Shane turned to begin walking down the dirt path toward the barn. "Let's get this over with."

Rick took one last look at Ellen and nodded, turning to follow after Shane. It seemed he was comfortable with leaving her by the shed now that the boy would no longer be staying there.

Daryl, however, gave one last attempt to shake Ellen out of her daze, "Ellen, you gotta go to camp. Don't stay here."

It was getting dark now. Ellen would not be safe here by the shed without a light… or a weapon. She needed to be with the others.

Acknowledging this, Ellen gave Daryl a slight nod in affirmation. She would go to camp. But she would watch them go first.

Daryl looked torn. But he forced his body in motion, pushing the boy forward to follow after the other two men. They began walking down the path, "Get goin'."

Ellen watched as the group of men grew further away from her. They were almost totally covered in shadow now. Only the faint light from Rick's lantern offered a silhouette of the men. Ellen thought she saw Daryl turn his head to look back at her, perhaps to make sure she was making an effort to get to camp. She decided she should do as he asked.

She began making her way across the fields of grass towards camp, where she could see a campfire burning in the darkness. The group must be waiting for the deed to be done.

When Ellen reached the group, they looked surprised to see her there. They had expected her to be with the boy.

Unwilling to explain the situation, Ellen opted to speak as little as possible in regards to the boy. She made a spot for herself near the fire and waited for the inevitable gunshot.

She wondered briefly who would pull the trigger. Ellen hoped it wouldn't be Daryl. He beat himself up for so much already. This was one extra responsibility he didn't need. Especially when she could not fully support him for it.

But the shot never came.

Instead, Carl and Rick came into camp. Rick gave an explanation for the boy's current state. "We're keeping him in custody for now."

Andrea stood up happily, "I'm gonna find Dale."

Satisfied that the boy would not be killed, Ellen stood up as well. Rick was talking to Lori in hushed tones. Putting the pieces together, Ellen assumed Carl had wandered over to the barn during the execution and Rick hadn't been able to follow through.

They probably had no idea what to do with the boy now.

Ellen was relieved there would be more time to decide now. She made to leave camp, making her way across the field and toward the house. Once she reached the porch steps, she decided to sit on the banister. This would give her a good vantage point incase Rick came back to deliver news about the boy.

Ellen noticed a light near the shed. The door was open, and there was movement inside. Someone must be chaining the boy back up. Ellen wondered if it was Daryl.

Ellen was peacefully scanning the property with her eyes when she heard it… A guttural cry rang out across the fields. Panic laced its way up Ellen's spine and put her into motion. Suddenly, she was on her feet and running down the porch steps. She wasn't sure where exactly the cry had come from, but she knew she had to run- and fast.

She could hear Rick yelling orders to the others. "T-dog, get a shot gun!"

Maggie could be heard distantly behind Ellen. She was instructing Glenn to go after the noise, just as Ellen was doing. But Ellen didn't pause to wait for him. She was determined to reach the source.

Ellen could hear Andrea calling from her right, "DALE!"

Lights danced across the field as members of the group made their way toward Dale. Ellen prayed they would make it in time to help him.

Lacking a light herself, Ellen fumbled with the waistband of her jeans in an attempt to grip her pocketknife in her hand. She was running at full speed across the jagged surface of the grassy field, but the terrain slowed her down significantly. She let out a slight growl in frustration. She would be no help to anyone if she didn't make it there in time.

But then she heard another voice across the fields. It was Daryl, yelling at the top of his lungs, "Help help! Over here! Help!"

A few of the others reached Daryl before Ellen did. She could see them clearly despite the darkness from her distance. A woman's voice called out for Rick.

Ellen heard Rick reply, "Get Hershel!"

Ellen cried out then, "I'm here! What happened?"

She had reached them now, and she could see Dale on the ground. He was covered in blood, and Ellen could make out the horrible gash in his abdomen. He was wailing and crying out in pain. A look of shock and horror struck his face.

Ellen was overcome with pain and grief. She pushed past the other members of the group to kneel down by Dale. "Dale, just look at me, ok? Look at me. We're going to help you. I'm right here and I'm not leaving you."

She closed her pocketknife as she spoke, gently putting it back in the waistband of her jeans.

Ellen looked down at the horrible gash in Dale's abdomen. His intestines and inner organs were fully visible. This was not something Dale would be able to come back from easily, even if they had adequate surgical equipment. But she had to try. He was loosing a lot of blood.

Ellen was wearing a tank top and flannel shirt at that moment. She decided to strip herself of the flannel and use it to block as much of the blood as she could. Ellen pulled the long-sleeved flannel off and balled it up in her hands. She took a deep breath and forced her hands forward until they covered Dale's open wound.

But her flannel shirt was saturated in minutes. As soon as Hershel made it to the scene, Ellen had to remove the shirt from the wound.

"What happened?" Hershel asked.

"What can we do?" Glenn asked in reply.

Rick made a suggestion, "Can we move him?"

"He won't make the trip." Hershel stated with a grim nod.

"We can do the operation here. Glenn, get back to the house-!" Rick insisted.

"Rick!" Hershel reached out for Rick, trying to get his attention. When Hershel finally had Rick's attention, all he could do was shake his head. Dale wouldn't make it long enough for them to operate.

Rick cried out in grief, "No!"

Andrea was sobbing to Ellen's left, watching Dale as he took his final few breaths.

Dale was grimacing and moaning in pain. Ellen realized then that she was crying with renewed vigor. They were being forced to watch their friend die, and there was nothing they could do to help him.

Ellen reached for Dale's hand, and he gripped her small, blood-soaked palms with an iron grip. His gaze faltered between Ellen and Andrea.

"He's suffering! Do something!" Andrea cried out.

Rick and Shane looked torn. They hesitated to make a move toward Dale. But finally, Rick pulled out his pistol.

Ellen noticed immediately, and was overwhelmed with compassion and grief. She decided she needed to be an asset now. So, she gripped Dale's hand a little tighter and stroked his forehead with her free hand. Dale looked to her as she spoke, "Shhhh, it's ok, Dale. Help is here. We're going to make it better. You won't have anymore pain, I promise."

He seemed to calm a bit when Ellen spoke, and his respirations became less heavy. But he continued to moan, as the pain persisted.

Rick raised his gun until it was level with Dale's head.

"Oh God," Andrea cried.

Ellen moved her hand away from Dale's head so she would be out of the line of fire. Dale turned to look up at the gunpoint before him. Rick hesitated as he stood before Dale with a life in his hands.

Ellen closed her eyes as she waited for the shot to fire.

When the shot didn't come as Ellen expected, Ellen looked up to find Daryl was switching places with Rick. The gun was now in Daryl's hands.

Daryl sent one look towards Ellen before returning his focus to Dale. Daryl kneeled down near Dale, then. He placed the gunpoint to Dale's forehead, allowing little room for error.

Dale looked up at Daryl with horror. And Ellen gripped Dale's hand like it was her only lifeline in that moment.

Daryl let a few final words fall between them before relieving Dale of his misery, "Sorry, brother."

Then, BANG! The shot echoed across the property, and Ellen's ears rang from the proximity of the gun. When her head cleared, Ellen realized that Dale was really gone.