Ch. 13
There were some walkers at the college, but dispatching them wasn't the hard part.
The hard part was getting Rick inside.
He had seemed calm enough when they'd packed up, and he had sat quietly on the drive over, but once they arrived, he began to freak out once again. It had taken Maggie and Carol to drag him in, and they were only able to do it after Carl had handcuffed him.
Both women felt bad about that. Carl had been through so much as it was, to have to handcuff his own father while the man ranted and raved about people who were long dead seemed exceptionally cruel. The boy seemed calm, though. He went about it as if it were business as always.
Once inside, the group quickly found a place for Rick - a small classroom that was set up like a hospital room. The handcuffs were used to bind him to the bed. It would work for the present, at least. Would keep him safe while they unloaded their supplies.
They finally finished just as the sun was starting to rise. Carol even managed to set up a room for Daryl's arrival. It was another classroom-hospital type place, but it had a decent looking bed. She found some spare blankets and pillows and made it up, wanting to make sure that Daryl would be comfortable.
Now, all they had to do was wait. No one dared to sleep.
00
Glenn, Michonne, David, Elena and Daryl pulled into the college parking lot about an hour after sunrise. Everyone was pleased to note that there seemed to be no walkers - apparently the group had taken care of them previously.
David parked the car in the large parking garage, ensuring that it was hidden from view in case the Governor passed by. Then he looked into the backseat. Daryl was still unconscious. The young man began wondering if any permanent brain damage had been done, when the hunter cracked open his eyes.
"Where the fuck are we?"
"Somewhere safe," David assured him.
Daryl shook his head and groaned. The back of his skull was throbbing.
"Who was it that hit me?"
David glanced at Michonne, but didn't say her name. Daryl got the message though.
"Seriously? What the fuck?"
"It had to be done," she replied.
"We can discuss this later. We need to get inside," Glenn said.
Everyone opened their respective doors and stepped out, except for Daryl. Still dealing with the combination of pain and exhaustion, he rested his head on the back of the seat and closed his eyes once again.
00
"They're back!" Carl called out.
He had been standing near one of the windows in Rick's room, and had seen the car pull into the garage. Beth stood nearby, holding Judith.
"Lori?" Rick asked, hopefully.
Carl's shoulders slumped.
"No, dad. Glenn and Daryl and Michonne are back."
Rick stared at him for a second before mumbling something under his breath. The only thing that Carl and Beth could make out was '...kick that fucker Shane's ass.' Both of them shrugged it off. They had more important things to deal with right then. Once the rest of the group was settled, they'd see if there was anything available at the college to help Rick. Anti-psychotic medication, or something. It had functioned as an urgent care clinic as well, after all. Probably had a pharmacy somewhere.
Carol, Maggie, Carl, Beth and Hershel all came outside. Michonne and David were supporting Daryl, pulling him along, Elena following closely behind. Carol quickly moved to help them inside.
Once there, Beth spoke up.
"We set up a room for him down the hall. Figured he might be kinda tired. We'll move him upstairs when he's feeling better, but for now, it should be okay."
"Great," David said. "Show us?"
Now that Carol was helping Michonne with Daryl, David took hold of Elena's hand. The girl was very well behaved, all considering.
"Of course."
Maggie led the group down the hall.
00
Shortly after walking into the room, Michonne and Carol deposited Daryl on the bed. Michonne seemed content leaving him there, but Carol wouldn't have it. She fussed around, trying to pull blankets over him to keep him comfortable.
The others gathered in the corner, going over everything.
"Why's he unconscious?" Maggie asked, glancing at the man. Carol was trying to place an extra pillow behind his head.
"Had to knock him out. Wouldn't calm down," Michonne answered.
"Merle sacrificed himself," David explained. "He had it all planned. He knew what was going to happen. He caused a distraction, gave us enough time to get Daryl out. Daryl didn't want to leave him behind, but… There would've been nothing that he could have done, anyway."
Maggie frowned.
"They were pretty close. Really close, actually."
David sighed.
"There's so much to fill you all in on. There's more to it than that - Daryl… Daryl really thought that Merle had betrayed him."
"Hmm."
Everyone turned to Hershel.
"We do need to know what happened with Merle, but for now, it might be best if we check Daryl over. Check his injuries, see what supplies we might be able to get to help. There's one thing, though."
Everyone continued to stare.
"If what David is saying is true, maybe we ought to tie him down. Like with Rick. For his own good, of course."
"That seems like torture… after all he's been through," Beth said, softly.
David shook his head.
"Hershel is right. Daryl's going to try to escape as soon as he can. He won't leave Merle there. We ought to keep him secure until we can convince him that there's no point going back, for lack of a better way to put it."
Maggie frowned, but looked at Carl.
"Got an extra set of cuffs?"
"Yeah," the kid replied. "I'll go get 'em."
00
Despite everyone's lack of rest, the group managed to work together quite well.
Hershel acted as leader, giving everyone specific orders to follow.
Beth, for instance, was sent to sit with Judith and Elena. Carl was guarding his father's room, standing nearby in case the man needed anything.
David and Maggie were sent to search the hospital for a number of items that Hershel felt he needed, while Michonne and Glenn guarded the entrance to the hall.
Carol, meanwhile, sat by Daryl's side, doing her best to keep him calm as Hershel cleaned him up and looked him over. He cataloged Daryl's injuries mentally.
He seemed to be fairly emaciated, for one, though he showed small signs of quick weight gain. It looked as if he had been starved for weeks then forced to eat for a few days. There were little stretch marks on his skin.
Besides that, the chains that had held him in place had left marks. His wrists were scarred, and a sliver of skin around his neck was chaffed. Hershel guessed that a chain or collar had rested there.
The worst of it wasn't Daryl's physical injuries, though. It was the terribly sad look in the man's eyes. When told of Merle's actions, the hunter had become absolutely devastated, blaming himself for it. He couldn't hold back from crying.
Hershel had looked away, but Carol, of course, did her best to comfort him. She remained next to him, wiping away his tears and holding his hand and hugging him as best she could.
00
David and Maggie came back into the room about half an hour after they set off on their mission, bringing a box of medical supplies with them.
"Got several bags of saline. Should be okay to use," David said, pulling a few out of the box. "IV lines, found a stethoscope, sterile gloves, rubbing alcohol, a few needles…" he went on.
"Great. Those will all be helpful."
"There's some medicine as well. Tylenol, some anti-nausea medicine… Found some stuff that might help Rick, too."
Hershel turned his attention back to Daryl, who had finally started to calm down.
"Have you been getting sick a lot? Vomiting?"
Daryl nodded 'yes'.
"It happens pretty often," David said, knowing that Daryl wasn't in any mood to talk. "Almost daily."
"I see. Well, we'll do our best to make sure that he's comfortable," Hershel replied. "Make sure that he's got enough to eat and he's rested."
"I can hear you, you know," Daryl said, glaring at the older man. "I'm not fucking deaf."
"Since you didn't want to answer my question, I figured you didn't feel like talking."
"Can you fucking blame me? My fucking brother's dead, because of me, and I'm chained to the fucking bed - again -", he pulled on his arm, which was handcuffed to the railing, to emphasize his point. "And to top it off, I'm not only a genetic freak, but I'm carrying -" Daryl stopped himself, just in time. He didn't want to tell Carol, or anyone else about the baby just yet. He was sure that Hershel knew, David must have told him, but the secret was probably safe from the rest for the present time.
"...How the fuck would you feel?", Daryl finished, tone softer now.
Hershel frowned.
"I know it's hard for you, Daryl. I cannot imagine how much pain you must be in," Hershel replied, sincerely.
Tears once again started pouring from Daryl's eyes, but he didn't say anything else.
"Maybe it would be best if you guys go see if there's a kitchen here. Most colleges have cafeterias, maybe there's some stuff that can be used," Hershel instructed, quietly.
Maggie and David both nodded and left the room.