Maggie stood at the gate watching, tears streaming down her cheeks.
She watched Daryl punch the brick of the guard tower yet again. She was sure he was breaking his fists. He was screaming curse words at the sky, cursing God and all his cruelty. He mumbled things about Sophia, and his new daughter, and the fact that for some reason, Carol and her girls couldn't be alive together! He was cursing himself for putting her in this situation.
"God! Glenn, stop him!" Maggie cried.
Rick appeared by her side a moment later. Both he and Glenn rushed towards the guard tower. Rick picked up Daryl around his shoulders, Glenn grabbing his feet as they drug him kicking and screaming back to the prison.
They got him inside their cell and Rick grabbed him around the shoulders.
"DARYL STOP!" the sheriff screamed into the grief stricken man's face.
Daryl looked at them with wild eyes, tears streaking down his face.
"Daryl. She's alive." Rick grabbed his shoulder. "She's ALIVE" he whispered.
Hershel appeared behind Rick just then.
"Son, she's alive. She's very weak, but she's alive. She needs all your strength right now." Hershel sighed and took a step towards him "Let me take a look at your hands, get you bandaged up, and you can go see her. Okay?" He asked, looking him in the eye.
Daryl just nodded and followed the older man head down.
As Hershel bandaged up Daryl's bleeding fists, Merle Dixon walked in the cell, carrying his newborn niece.
"Brother, Dixie wants to see her Daddy." He said softly.
Daryl turned and looked at his older brother. In his arms he was carefully holding Daryl's tiny daughter.
"She ain't got a name yet." He spoke with a tremor in his voice. "Her Momma needs to name her."
Merle smiled "Nah, Carol'll like it. Dixie Dixon? That's her name." Merle looked at his brother and then to his niece.
Hershel finished his bandaging his hands and Daryl stood.
"Going to see my wife." Daryl walked away without another word.
Daryl slowly entered the cell where his wife lay. She was pale and silent. He saw her chest rise and fall and breathed a sigh of relief.
He knelt down beside her bed and took her hand, inhaling her scent.
"Baby." He whispered. "Come on and wake up now." Daryl's tears fell onto their jointed hands.
"The baby's beautiful." Daryl whispered. "Like her Momma, you just need to get up and see her. She needs her momma."
Daryl slept that night huddled on the floor of the cell. His head resting on the bed, his hand twined around Carol's.
Merle came in the next morning, holding the baby yet again.
Daryl jerked awake, turned to see his daughter in his brother's arms.
"You still ain't put her down?" Daryl asked. He'd never seen his brother take to any young'un.
"Nope, but I will now. Dixie needs to meet her Momma. Might be good for Carol. Give her a reason to quit that slumber."
"I done told you, her name ain't Dixie. Her Momma might not like it." Daryl received his daughter in his arms, marveling at the way her little mouth yawned.
"You don't even know what Dixie means!" Merle stood back, leaning against the wall.
"Sure I do." Daryl looks up from his daughter's face. "The South, Civil War an all that." Daryl frowned. "Awful close sounding to Dixon too."
Merle laughed. "Boy, Dixie means more than 'The South'. It means 'lookout'. Figured I'd be nice to name her something that says she'll be on her toes." Merle chuckled "It's a little classier than 'Ass Kicker' too."
Daryl had to laugh at that. Merle touched her head. "That was Momma's name too..."
"Huh?" Daryl's faced wrinkled in confusion. "You been drinkin' Merle? Cause Momma's name was Mae." Daryl looked back down at his daughter, who was starting to fuss.
"No, Momma's name was Dixie Mae. She went by Mae and dropped the Dixie when she married Pa." Merle scratched his face with his good hand.
"Huh" Daryl slowly started to sway his baby girl back and forth, trying to soothe her. "Dixie Dixon."
"Give me my baby Daryl." Carol opened her eyes and whispered.
"Carol!" Daryl rushed to her side and kneelt down kissing her lips. "Ya sure your up to holding her?" Daryl asked.
"Give me the baby, she's hungry. I need to feed her." Carol smiled.
"Are you up to that…" Daryl worried
"Just give me THE BABY!" Carol sighed laughing.
"Okay, here." He carefully placed their daughter in her arms. "I'm going to go get Hershel! I'll be right back. I love you Carol!" Daryl kissed her once again before shuffling by his brother in search of the old vet.
"Are you here for a free show Merle?" Carol asked amused. "I need to nurse her. You need to scoot." Carol motioned him out the door.
"Just glad to see Dixie's Momma's doing better." Merle smiled as he walked out the door.
Carol looked down at her daughter. "Who's been calling you Dixie?"
I sat up in Momma's lap. "So you didn't argue with them?" I asked.
"No, I mean…by then your Uncle Merle wouldn't stop calling you Dixie, and your Daddy, he liked the idea of naming you after his Momma." Carol smiled "Ann is for your sister, Sophia Ann. So you became Dixie Ann, my sweet baby girl." Momma kissed the top of my head and stood up.
"I need to go check on the baby. Carl and Beth should be back soon." Momma smiled at me. "Feel any better?"
I thought about it for a moment.
"Yeah, yeah I do Momma. Thanks." I smiled at her as she blew me a kiss and left the room.
So I was the lookout, named after Daddy's momma.
Dixie Ann Dixon. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all.
