The next morning we all met in the cell block to have a meeting. I was sitting on the steps beside Hershel with Colt in my arms and Jamie was being held by Daryl. He's been trying to get me to look at him all morning, but I made sure I didn't look at him.
"We're not leaving." Rick said.
"We can't stay here." Hershel replied.
"What if there's another sniper?" Maggie asked, "A wood pallet won't stop one of those rounds."
"We can't even go outside." Beth said.
"Not in the daylight." Carol added.
"Rick says we're not running, we're not running." Glenn said.
"No, better to live like rats." Merle said from outside the block,
"You got a better idea?" Rick asked him.
"Yeah, we should've slid out of here last night and lived to fight another day." Merle answered, "But we lost that window, didn't we? I'm sure he's got some scouts on every road out of this place by now."
"We ain't scared of that prick." Daryl replied.
"Y'all should be. That truck through the fence thing, that's just him ringing the doorbell. We might have some thick walls to hide behind, but he's got the guns and the numbers. And if he takes the high ground around this place, shoot, he could just starve us out if he wanted." Merle said.
"Let's put him in another cell block." Maggie told Rick.
"No. He's got a point." Daryl defended his brother.
"This is all you. You started this." Maggie said to Merle.
"What difference whose fault it is? What do we do?" Beth questioned.
"I say we should leave." Hershel said. "Now Axel's dead. We can't just sit here."
Rick started walking away and Hershel stood up, "Get back here!" Once Rick stopped, Hershel went over to him, "You're slipping, Rick. We've all seen it. We understand why. But now is not the time. You once said this isn't a democracy. Now you have to own up to that. I put my family's life in your hands. So get your head clear and do something."
After Hershel finished, we all left to do our own thing. Rick went to take watch, and Carl followed him. Colt was starting to smell, so I went into my cell to change him. Once I was done feeding him too, Jamie came in and we started working on writing. I heard Daryl and Glenn arguing a few minutes later before I saw Daryl walk up to the perch and he walked over to my cell and leaned against the doorway.
"Good job, Jamie." I told the boy when he wrote his name.
"Daddy, look! I can write my name!" Jamie exclaimed, showing Daryl the paper.
"That's great, kid." Daryl smiled at him.
And for some reason, Colt started crying.
"Shh. It's okay. Stop crying, sweetheart." I whispered, bouncing him slightly, trying to calm him down.
Daryl came in further and took him from my arms, cooing at the baby until he calmed down.
"I can look after him for awhile." Daryl offered.
I sighed, "Okay."
Daryl gave me a small smile before leaving to go to his cell.
"Mommy, are you okay?" Jamie asked, looking up at me.
"Yeah, baby, I'm fine." I answered.
"Are you mad at daddy?"
"No, I'm not mad. Now let's get back to work." I told him.
Once we were done with math, I let him color and I left him alone in our cell. I went into Daryl's cell and saw him playing with Colt.
"I can take him now." I told him.
Daryl looked up at me with a smile, "Okay."
He stood up from his bed and walked over to me, slowly handing me Colt. I turned to leave the cell when he stopped me, "Are you still mad at me?"
"No." I answered.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"I was never mad at you." I replied.
"What were you?"
"Hurt." I turned around to face him, "You left when I needed you the most. You're lucky you came back, 'cause I have no idea what I would've told Jamie."
"I'm so sorry." Daryl whispered.
I smiled sadly, "I know."
I leaned up and kissed him softly. When I pulled back, he gripped my hips and kissed me again. Then Carl came into the cell block, telling everyone that Andrea was here. Daryl let go of me and grabbed his crossbow before following Rick, Merle, Michonne, and Beth.
Rick told me to stay inside with the kids and Hershel and I brought them all to my cell. A few minutes later, everyone came in, including Andrea. I put Judith and Colt in their boxes and Jamie, Hershel, and I went to greet her. After I hugged her, we sat by Daryl.
"Hershel, my god." Andrea said, looking at his missing leg. "I can't believe this. Where's Shane?"
None of us answered her, we just looked at each other and she got the message, "And Lori?"
"She had a girl. Lori didn't survive." Hershel answered.
"Neither did T-Dog."
"I'm so sorry." Andrea looked at Carl, "Carl. Rick, I-. You all live here?"
"Here and the cell block." Glenn answered.
"There?" Andrea asked, pointing at the doorway. "Well, can I go in?"
"I won't allow that." Rick replied.
"I'm not an enemy, Rick."
"We had that field and courtyard until your boyfriend tore down the fence with a truck and shot us up." Rick said.
"He said you fired first." Andrea replied.
"Well, he's lying." Rick responded.
"He killed an inmate who survived in here." Hershel said.
"We liked him. He was one of us." Daryl added.
"I didn't know anything about that." Andrea told him. "As soon as I found out, I came. I didn't even know you were in Woodbury until after the shoot-out." Andrea said, looking at Glenn and Maggie.
"That was days ago."
"I told you, I came as soon as I could." Andrea turned to Michonne, "What have you told them?"
"Nothing." She answered.
"I don't get it. I left Atlanta with you people and now I'm the odd man out?"
"He almost killed Michonne and he would have killed us." Glenn replied.
"With his finger on the trigger." Andrea said, pointing to Merle. "Isn't he the one who kidnapped you? Who beat you? Look, I cannot excuse or explain what Phillip has done. But I am here trying to bring us together. We have to work this out."
"There's nothing to work out." Rick replied "We're gonna kill him. I don't know how or when, but we will."
"We can settle this. There is room at Woodbury for all of you." Andrea responded.
Merle chuckled, "You know better than that."
"What makes you think this man wants to negotiate? Did he say that?" Hershel questioned.
"No."
"Then why did you come here?" Rick asked.
"Because he's gearing up for war. The people are terrified. They see you as killers. They're training to attack." Andrea answered.
"I'll tell you what. Next time you see Phillip, you tell him I'm gonna take his other eye." Daryl said.
"We're taken too much shit for too long." Glenn told Andrea, "He wants a war? He's got one."
"Rick. If you don't sit down and try to work this out, I don't know what's gonna happen. He has a whole town." Andrea looked at all of us, "Look at you. You've lost so much already. You can't stand alone anymore."
"You want to make this right, get us inside." Rick told her.
"No."
"Then we got nothing to talk about." Rick replied, walking towards the cell block.
"There are innocent people." Andrea called after him.
Andrea and Michonne went out into the courtyard to speak in private. Jamie left to go see Colt and I followed him. A few moments later I heard a knock on the wall,
"I heard you had a boy." Andrea said.
I smiled at her and showed her Colt, "Yeah. He was a surprise."
"He's so tiny." She cooed and held him in her arms.
"I didn't know I was pregnant until I went into labor. I had the symptoms, just not the baby bump." I replied.
"What's his name?" Andrea asked.
"Colt. Like the gun." I answered.
"That's fitting." She replied.
"Did you see Judith yet?" I asked.
"Yes, I did. They're both so precious." Andrea said.
"You're not the one who wakes up to the crying at four in the morning." I joked. "Jamie loves him. He was so excited when Hershel said I was pregnant."
"Oh, I bet. I was about twelve when my mom had.. Amy. I was happy to get a little sister."
After catching up with mostly everyone, Rick got a car to give to Andrea so she could get back to Woodbury.
"Can you spare it?" Andrea asked Rick when he got out of the car.
"Yeah." He answered.
Andrea looked at all of us, giving us silent goodbyes, "Well, take care."
"Andrea." Rick said before handing her her gun, "Be careful."
"You, too." She replied before starting the car and driving away from the prison.