A/N: It's a little short but school and work are kicking my ass, so yeah...
Chapter Eleven
Different animal pelts were laid out in different states of mending and treatment, a blanket made of deer skin in its last stages.
It was organized and practical like his twin, even if the some of the objects seemed to contrast what he knew of the other.
Murphy slipped into the tent, returning with three large pillows, and handed two to them to sit on. He sat on the other, leaning beside the machine gun with wary storm colored eyes.
"Guess it's time for us to catch up."
*/*
"You don't sound too eager to see us, Murph."
Daryl stared at his twin, unsure of how to respond.
Years previous, he would've been joking along with the slightly older man, lips curled into a mischievous smile. He'd be wearing his rosary and doing the lord's work as they had so long ago…
But now-
He wasn't that man anymore. His faith had dwindled over the years, and Sophia's death at the farm had destroyed what was left after Mazurka's imprisonment. He didn't smile as easily as he once had, his humor dark, almost bitter and he knew it.
It was jarring to see the differences in a man that, once, he had shared so much in common with.
"Murphy?" Their father questioned and he sighed.
"Those Mazurka bastards caught me after your friend betrayed us. Merle's ol' man owed them money so he came to pay the debt and he found me. Living in the town he did, it was better to adopt his accent and play at being his father's illegitimate kid." He shrugged, gnawing lightly on the nail of his thumb.
"Was easy enough. Hell, his whole town knew tha' his ol' man couldn' keep it in his pants, so they jus' shrugged it off. Was with him for a few years then the world went to shit."
"That doesn't answer why you're staring at us like we're leadin' ya to the gallows."
The younger snorted quietly. "It's not that. I jus'-" He shrugged again, ducking his head slightly so that his hair fell into his eyes.
"I'm not that man anymore. I don' remember the last time I had a word with Him, let alone felt the faith that used to be so strong before. I've killed more men than I ever did as a Saint, and-"
His father cut him off by pulling him into his arms. "We know. We know you've changed. We know and we understand that. Grief, it changes you. Pain, grief, suffering, they all bring their own changes and you've had to experience them alone. We've changed as well, maybe not as drastically, but we have."
He pulled back. "And now, we have time to learn those changes."
A small, tumultuous smile danced across his youngest son's lips while the elder nodded empathetically in the background. And deep down, he felt a small ember sparking to life, one he dared not give a name to.
With little thought, Daryl allowed himself to speak the words he knew he'd never say otherwise.
"I missed you."
Conner snickered. "You're such a little bitch."
His smile sharpened into a glare. "I'll stomp you too."
The huff of laughter that left his father made that little spark burn just the slightest bit brighter.
*/*
He wasn't worried.
Nope.
Not even a little bit.
Coal black eyes glanced in the direction a certain hunter had vanished in almost thirty minutes earlier with one of the newest residents of the prison.
A resident who was his twin.
Of all the things that stunned him, it was probably the fact that the beautiful- ahmn- that Daryl had a twin and was originally irish. Merle had been very over protective of the hunter when they'd first arrived in the quarry but had eased back as Daryl took to slipping off into the woods at every opportunity.
Then, when Merle had disappeared from that rooftop in Atlanta, the taciturn man had finally started to step out of Merle's shadow, his quiet a balm to the fraying nerves between him and Rick. The quiet strength in him was enthralling, captivating Shane's attention like nothing he'd ever encountered.
They'd learned so much about the man in the past few months and now there was this.
He cocked his head, wondering, what exactly the other sounded like with his original accent.
"You're drooling."
Jumping startled, he turned to Rick who was smirking at him like the fucking asshole he was, blue eyes dancing with mirth.
"Am not."
His brother snickered, rolling his eyes. "Sure you weren't. Don't worry I won't say anything."
"Especially since he was drooling too." Carl interjected and Beth giggled when Rick blushed faintly.
Before he could comment, Merle entered the room, steely gaze roving the room for Daryl before landing on their table, specifically Rick.
"Hey Officer Friendly, you see m' brothers?"
Brothers?
As in Merle had claimed the other twin as a sibling too?
Why did that sound dangerous?
And vaguely concerning?
"They're catching up. Most likely on the roof."
The man frowned incredulously, so Carol elaborated.
"Daryl doesn't like the cells. Said he feels caged."
Something dark flashed in Merle's gaze before it settled into the understanding. After a moment, he settled in beside Glenn and offered him a handshake.
"We good, chinaman?"
The kid sent him a dangerous glare, the likes of which Shane had never seen on that friendly face. "Look. I don't like you. In fact, I don't understand how anyone can like you. But Daryl is my friend and he wants you here so you are. So yeah, we're good, but we aren't friends."
Damn.
Dixon stared for a moment, then chuckled. "I like ya, Stirfry. Ya got yourself a deal."
*/*
How dare they.
A single eye narrowed into a furious glare, lips twisted into a snarl.
HOW DARE THEY!
He'd taken them in, granted them all sanctuary and they dared to betray him.
Steal from him?
They would pay for this.
Storm colored eyes flashed behind his eyelids, full of defiance and rage, and he knew.
He knew exactly how to hurt them.
Now, now he just had to set his plan in motion.
A slow, wicked grin curled across his lips, a bark of laughter ripping from his throat.
Yes, he knew exactly how to make them pay.
TBC...