(A/N: Well, I can say this is WELL over due but what can I say, life got in the way lol. On top of a very, very busy work schedule from the month of November onwards, there was the damn holiday season to contend with, and on top of THAT I had a baby two weeks ago so I've been a little swamped lol. Anywho, I have returned and fear not, I will get to some new material an through these re-writes as soon as possible but please forive me if updates are a little sporadic! Enjoy!)
Chapter Five: Vatos Pt: Five
"Daryl, for Christ's sake, hold your goddamn voice down for once in your life." Rick seethed through clenched teeth.
"I won't." He snapped, posturing in typical fashion, pacing a tread in the floor with eyes set in a dead glare to match the soured jut of his lower jaw.
"Analeigh is right there in the other room in case you just so happen to have forgotten."
"So?"
"You want her to hear you?"
"Fine. Let her. You think I care? Gotta be kiddin' me…either that or ya'll are outta your damn minds."
"Look, we don't exactly have much choice okay?" T-Dog leaned back against a desk and folded his arms across his chest.
"The hell we don't." Daryl scoffed. "Don't have much choice…are you serious? Please…someone tell me ya'll don't actually think this is a goddamn good idea…the girl can barely walk…"
"She's coming with us Daryl," Rick laid it on the line. "All your opinions aside we're leavin' here with her, it's up to you to like it or not."
"Is that right?"
He nodded with finality. "That is that."
Though he knew there was no real point in questioning things, there was absolutely no way Daryl could find fault in giving it an honest try never the less. He was the only one who seemed to remember what the exact point was in risking their collective ass and coming into the city. Bit by bit, everyone else had lost sight of the end goal or had just plain stopped caring that things had gone completely off the rails. He should have just up and blown Rick off when he had offered to take him to come and get Merle. Odds were if he had, both he and his brother would be back at camp now, safe and just as unconcerned with everyone else as they had always chosen to be. There in was the problem, however, because Rick apparently never just offered anything. Rick apparently jumped into everything as he saw fit head first without asking for anyone's two cents before he did. All for the greater good of course, like some superhero come to save the day whether people wanted to be saved or not and a fat lot of good it did anyhow. For all Rick's good intentions, all Daryl could see was the fact that the group was now stuck with a bleeding heart as a self proclaimed leader who did nothing but make everything more difficult and complicated than it needed to be.
The goal was, and had always been, to get Merle back. But as far as Daryl could see, with Rick's new revelation, that had been blown completely out of the water and there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell of getting things back on track.
"Why don't you just calm down a minute and give yourself a chance to think this through rationally." Rick suggested, quiet suddenly sorry he had even made the decision to approach the topic at hand.
"Think rationally…" Daryl snarked. "I'm the only one of you assholes that is thinkin' rationally. Ya'll can't see this ain't nothin' but askin' for trouble that's your own damn fault."
"It'll be fine…it's no skin off your nose and it doesn't concern you anyhow."
"The girl can barely walk." He reiterated.
"Dude, where is it you think we're going to walk?" Glenn asked, taking a little more pleasure than he probably should have in Daryl's displeasure. "We didn't walk here and it's not like we'll be walking back."
"There's tons of room in the back of that van and you'll probably bother her more than she'll bother you. We get the guns, we have a look around for your brother, and once we find him we come back here for her." Rick tried to sweeten the deal through whatever means he could. "Easy as that, we'll before dark I can guarantee it."
"She don't even want our help." Daryl grumbled, kicking the toe of his shoe against the ground as his tempered slowed to a simmer as opposed to an outright boil. "I thought we were gonna give her a gun and let her go home, let that be the end of it."
"Home is about four hours out from the city by car. You wanna take a guess at how long that's gonna take her to walk?"
"On her own," T-Dog added. "With a busted up leg."
"Without enough food or water to get by on." Glenn furthered the argument.
"She needs our help Daryl." Rick finalized the conversation. "I'm willing to offer it."
"Yeah?" Daryl stepped towards him, his words laden with insinuation. "And just what did she offer you to get so much damn support huh? She give you a little somethin' special to make you change your tune?"
"I'll let that slide once because I know your head don't process what comes flyin' out of your mouth too well at the best of times." Rick warned. "But you'd best watch what you're implyin'."
"Just sayin'…" He needled.
"That's enough."
"Pretty girl like that who wants to get her way as easy as possible…
"I didn't do nothin'…" Catching the men off guard, Analeigh joined the conversation looking none too impressed as she stood her ground in what used to be the office doorway. "I didn't ask for nothin' neither…and no damn charity case neither."
"Yeah? Well just what are you then?"
She shook her head silently and dodged any form of answer. Whatever she could find to say it was more than likely Daryl would find a way to turn it around on her and shove it in her face if he could.
Point of contention came to mind, however. Outsider, outcast and flat out burden to the group were secondary self labels looming in the back of her mind to go along with the first despite efforts to find some random optimism. Daryl had already made up his mind about her, and Analeigh could do nothing to change that. She had learned a long time ago that there was no sense in trying to control and that was fine, but if that was how it was going to be if she were to take up with the camp, she might as well just ditch the idea and ask to be take as far out of the city as possible and dropped.
Analeigh had heard more or less the entire conversation, and though he went about it in entirely the wrong way, Daryl did have a point. She would be nothing more than an extra mouth to feed at that point, a drain on whatever strapped resources the group could scrape together. There wouldn't be anything much in the way of real labor or chores that she would be able to carry out with her leg in the shape that it was, and her injury stood just as great a chance at getting worse as it did getting better. If it did happen to get worse, there was no telling what would be come of her and even if there was it was probably better left unsaid. Rick's offer was beyond kind but what it came down to was how long they would truly want her around if she couldn't pull her own weight. Sympathy and acceptance were entirely different from pity and tolerance, and even in her current state, Analeigh didn't want to be dependent on anyone.
"I don't know I am." She answered with somewhat dejected shrug of her shoulders. "But I can tell you I ain't anytihin' think you've got worked out about me."
"Right." Daryl remained steadfast in his skepticism.
"She's human," Rick offered. "Nothin' more, nothin' less and that's enough for me. You want more, Analeigh has a bummed leg and your brother is missin' one of his hands. So where is there difference in that?"
"Blood is blood." Daryl snapped. "And with or without that stinkin' hand…"
"Merle can take care of himself, I know." He interrupted. "Analeigh cannot, not here and not anywhere else neither. You might be the most redneck, backwoods son of a bitch in the world but even you have a conscience Daryl, even if you don't wanna listen to it much. Your brother damn near killed us last time we were here, Analeigh more than likely saved our ass. You weigh that in your mind and tell me I ain't right."
Daryl clenched his jaw and looked away, knowing full well Rick was right and hating every second of it.
"Blood is blood yes, you are right in that." Rick continued. "What you've got to realize is blood ain't the only bond that'll keep us together and now is not the time to be turning our back on anyone."
"Fine."
"Analeigh is comin' with us and that's the final word on the matter."
"I said fine." Daryl growled, poor sport sneer still plastered on his face. "Let's just…figure out what to do about these damn guns and get the hell outta before we're stuck another night."
"I think I might have something that could work." Glenn informed the group. "It might be a little risky but, I was plotting it out last night when I was trying to fall asleep and I think I've got it worked out enough that it'll be the fastest way to get our hands on the guns without drawing too much attention."
"Go on." Rick encouraged.
"I'll go get them." He laid it out bluntly. "If you let me go out on my own, I can get them and get back to you guys in five, maybe six minutes tops."
"You?" Daryl arched a brow.
"Yeah."
"Alone."
"That's what I'm saying." Glenn nodded.
Analeigh stifled a chuckle.
"Not to butt in and make any broad assumptions or nothing', but don't you think it should be someone with a little more body mass?" She asked. "I mean at least so as if one of those things knocks you down…you know…you'd have a fighting chance to get 'em off before you get bitten? One chomp on you, and you'd be through."
"One chomp on anyone and they'd be through." Glenn snarked.
"I'm just pointin' it out is all…" Analeigh smirked and held up her hands in mock defense. "You're sorta a little dude."
Daryl faltered for a moment, just a spit second, and flashed her a half smile. Their eyes met, again only for just a moment, before Analeigh's darted away and she scolded herself for such a silly reaction. This certainly wasn't high school and by all accounts, Daryl was little more than a redneck douchebag, now wasn't the time or the place to be going all to pieces just because a guy gave her a bit of a look that wasn't even the sort to be going all to pieces over, and especially not over someone like Daryl. He was so downright hostile and aggressive that there was no telling if was two seconds away from snapping and busting her one right in the mouth. It wouldn't surprise her in the least if he did, Analeigh knew the type well enough and she knew all the more she'd do better to have little, if anything, to do with him full stop.
"You're not doing this alone." Rick drew collective attention away from quick quips and back to the subject that needed to be of focus.
"Even I think it's a bad idea and I don't even like you much." Daryl agreed.
"It's a good idea okay?" Glenn protested. "If you just hear me out. If we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. If I'm alone, I can move fast."
"Fast ain't gonna help you when you're one and you can't say how many of them are between you and the guns." Rick reminded him.
"But see, I won't be alone, alone." He continued, laying out an action plan using bits of things on the desk and a roughed out diagram of the streets. "Look, that's the tank, five blocks from where we are now. That's the bag of guns, here's the alley I dragged you into when we first met. that's where Daryl and I will go."
"Why me?"
"Your crossbow is quieter than his gun."
The more the plan was laid out and explained, the more sense it started to make and the better Glenn's idea started to seem. Though it was still a risk, he was fairly certain and probably right in the way that splitting up and having two points of coverage while one man made a dash for the guns was the best bet.
Analeigh hoped for their sake that Glenn was right in the fact he could be quick enough to not draw the dead towards them. If they swarmed again, they'd be cornered in the office building with no good chance at making it back to the van and for how long was anyone's guess. Worse yet, little hope would be non-existent hope if there just so happened to be a swarm while the men were divided in the allies. If there was a swarm and even one of them made it back alive it would be lucky, two or more would be a small miracle and if it came down to it, Glenn would be the one to be right in the thick of it.
She gave her head a shake and fought off a shudder as the men continued to lay out their plan. All she could think about was worst case scenario and swarming dead, maze like alleys, and everything going to hell in a hand basket were things she didn't really want to think about in great detail. She hadn't been outside in days and even leaving the relative safety of the building was something that made her a little stiff with apprehension. Not knowing what was happening outside as the plan unfolded only amplified the fear.
"What about me?" She asked quietly, rocking on to her toes to try and peer over the men for another look at the map.
"What about you?" Rick arched brow.
"Where is it I'm gonna fit in to all of this exactly?"
"What, draggin' your gimpy ass all around out there?" Daryl snatched his crossbow from its spot against the wall. "How 'bout nowhere?"
"Was I talkin' to you?" Analeigh snapped.
"Answer's gonna be the same all round…or it better be anyhow."
She turned her attention towards Rick, who had only but a sympathetic shake of his head to offer.
"He's not wrong." He sighed. "All else aside from you stayin' put is just askin' for it. You go out there, you gotta be able to keep up if we get caught up in it, and keep up faster than you took to those stairs yesterday. That leg the way it is I cannot see that happenin'."
"So I sit here blind waitin' for whatever happens to happen?"
"Best I got." Rick smirked. "Unless you manage to think of something else that won't end up gettin' yourself killed."
Analeigh chewed her lip and mulled over the miniscule amount of options she had. It was quite clear, unfortunately, that both Rick and Daryl were in the right in that she was about as useless as anything and more of a dangerous hindrance than a help. Not that she actually wanted to be a part of the game plan so much as she wanted to keep an eye on everything and everyone in order to make sure that Rick's promise to come back for her wasn't just all talk and no follow through; benefit of the doubt only went so far after all. Now that she had let them bunk down for the night, there really wasn't anything left in the deal that would be of benefit to them. In all honestly, she wouldn't even hold it against them if they turned tail and left her hanging. Self-preservation was key and tacking one more on to their ranks defied common sense as far as she was concerned.
"The roof." Analeigh offered.
"The roof?"
"It's safe enough up there." She explained matter of factly. "Nothin's gong get at me and this way I get a birds I view of anythin' that goes down."
"I can live with that." Rick agreed. "But I'd feel better if you had a gun all the same."
"Well unless you plan on pulling one out of your ass, I don't see that happenin'. Can't exactly give me yours."
"All the same, I'd feel better if you did. Somthin' happens out there you're on your own again, and if we draw a crowd we don't have any place to lead them other than back here. If there's enough of 'em they might just sniff you out."
"I still have my bat, it'll do in a pinch." Analeigh reminded him, she wasn't completely useless after all and she'd managed to sneak under the radar the last time a swarm was stirred up. "At least up there I'll get a heads up if ya'll do get swarmed or torn to bits."
"That's…very encouraging." Glenn groaned, suddenly wishing he could withdraw his ingenious plan. "Thanks for that."
"Just being realistic."
"Best hope we don't." Daryl eyed her somewhat wearily. "Got a lot of stairs to make it down from the top before you can lock in safe. You sure that leg can handle it?"
"Didn't stop me from almost givin' you the slip did it?"
"You got 'bout a dozen more floors to make it down this time."
"I'm aware."
Daryl slung his crossbow over his shoulder and made his way towards the door. "Just don't expect no one to come savin' your ass if your ass cornered on the roof by a pack of geeks."
"Who said I ever did?"
"Guys, come on." Glenn rolled his eyes and heaved a sigh.
As much as she hated to back down from asinine comments and direct jabs from anybody, especially someone like Daryl, it was quite clear they weren't going to get anywhere. Occasional back and forth was one thing but just as soon as there was a lull between them, one or the other just couldn't resist the urge to stir the pot. Like oil and water, they just refused to mix for longer than a few seconds at a time and that was only if they could muster that much. It was yet another aspect to going back to camp with the group that Analeigh wasn't exactly looking forward to. If things were a little tense at present, she imagined living day in, day out with him around and in her face would more than likely push her well past the point of breaking.
With clenched her teeth, she forced her attention away from a brewing bicker. "Ya'll best get to it."
"Ten minutes, at the most." Rick assured her. "We're ain't back you lock yourself in again."
"Let's hope it doesn't come to that."
"But if it does…"
Analeigh nodded. "I will."