For Those You Love

Chapter 16

Lee entered the boxcar after making sure Kenny made it to the driver's cab up front and approached his wife, who was seated next to Clementine. Her legs were dangling over the edge and her eyes were downcast.

"You wanna talk, honey?" He heard Carley ask as she squeezed the girl's shoulders supportively. He saw Clementine shake her head and sat down next to her. The woman's eye turned to him. "Can you take care of Clementine? I'm going to go check on Ben. God knows how he's feeling."

"Yeah..." He mouthed, nudging Clem's shoulder and smiling in what he hoped was a supportive way. "We'll be fine, won't we?"

The girl nodded and Carley sighed before standing up and kissing her forehead. "Don't hesitate to hit him if he gets annoying, okay?" She laughed, moving towards the door and eventually exiting, leaving the father and daughter alone.

"Now mom's gone, you wanna talk?" Lee asked softly once he was sure his wife wouldn't hear. He was always better at getting her to open up, so why should now be any different?

"Uh-uh."

"You understand what happened? Why it happened?" He asked, truly worried for his daughter's sanity. Never had he seen her like that: Truly depressed. She didn't look at him and kept her head down when she answered.

"Yes."

"Alright." He muttered. Obviously, it was worse than she was letting on. He decided to have one last try at getting her to talk. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"I'm just... I'm thinking about what Chuck said." She eventually answered. Only now did he notice that her eyes were full of tears and were slightly red.

"What did chuck say?" He said softly, happy that she had finally opened up to him. He knew that Carley would be upset that she didn't want to talk to her, but he didn't care. "You can tell me, sweet-pea."

"He..." She said, her voice only cracking slightly. She seemed to shrink slightly before she continued. "He said that I'd end up like Duck."

Lee's felt rage stir from his very core. His brow crinkled in anger and his eyes darkened with fury.

"The fuck he did."

"Swear, dad." Clementine said offhandedly, as if she was used to it. Lee's face softened slightly at the sound of his daughter's voice but he still felt the anger towards the homeless man.

"Sorry." He quickly apologized before standing. His fists were clenched and his shoulders were square. "I'm, gonna go talk some sense into him."

"Don't be mad." He heard as he slammed the door shut behind him. He passed Ben and Carley, who was looking shocked. Never had she seen him this angry. The last time he was even remotely angry was at the St. John's Dairy. She felt a shiver go through her at the thought of those... bastards. She sent an apologetic look in Ben's direction before setting off after her husband.

"Lee!" She shouted as she neared him. He continued walking, his hands clenched and his jaw set. This only panicked her more. "Hold up a second, Everett!"

"What?" He spat when he stopped, mere feet from the driver's cab. He turned to face her, his eyes ablaze. The only thing that stopped him from shouting was the grieving man he knew would be able to hear every word they were saying.

"Don't take that tone with me." Carley snapped as she approached him. "I'm not the bad guy here. Something's bothering you and it's not me."

"Damn right it's not you." He growled as she walked around him to face him fully. Her good eye was narrowed in suspicion.

"Well what's got you like this, huh?" She asked, getting frustrated now. Never had she had to deal with him so angry.

"Chuck. He's told Clem that she's gonna-" He cut himself off and lowered his voice so his friend wouldn't hear. "Chuck's only told Clem that she's gonna end up like Duck."

"HE SAID WHAT?!" Carley shouted, truly shocked. The sudden noise made Kenny turn with a curious look. Lee dismissed it with a shake of the head and took Carley's biceps in his hands in an effort to keep her in place. By now she had gone on a full-length-angry-rant. "Why the fuck would he tell her that?!"

"I don't know." He said lowly, slowly moving her around so he was nearest to the door once again. "But I'm gonna go and talk some sense into him."

"Do you want me there?" She asked, realizing just how much he had been effected by it. She knew how much he would do for that girl. She knew it would kill him if anything happened to her. Hell, it would kill both of them.

"No." He muttered darkly, shaking his head. She knew that look. It wasn't good. "I want to talk to him man-to-man."

Five Minutes Later

He found the man he was looking for outside, leaning against the railing that the front of the train with his hair flying around his head madly. He was completely oblivious to Lee's presence and the thunderous expression on the younger man's face.

"Hey." Lee growled, crossing his arms and leaning against the railing next to him. He was fully aware of Carley's stare from the other side of the glass. She had insisted upon overseeing the conversation, even if Lee didn't want her there with him.

"How 'ya doin'?" Chuck replied, a smile on his face. He seemed happy with himself. This only fuelled Lee's rage.

"Look, I'm just gonna tell you straight out." Lee spat, standing up to his full height, which was a reasonable 6'2". "I couldn't give two shits what reasons you had for telling Clem what you did. But if I even catch wind that you tried it again, you're dead. You understand?"

Chuck stayed quiet, giving himself some time. He didn't want to anger the man before him. He could tell that Lee Everett wasn't one to be messed with. From his booming voice to the way he stood. Everything screamed 'force not to be reckoned with' .

"Look, son." He said eventually, deciding to not anger him even more and simply get to the point. "What I said was true."

"Do you have any idea what you said has done to her?!" Lee asked, shaking his head in frustration. "She's completely broken! I was lucky she told me as much as she did!"

"She'll need to get used to the idea." Chuck interrupted, holding his hand up to silence the younger man. Lee was about to respond when he continued. "I don't want it to happen, but if you keep goin' the way you are... It will." He said lowly, allowing despair to take over his features. "I don't wanna tell you how to do your job, but you should think about teachin' her to defend herself... with a gun."

Lee listened intently to the old man. He didn't like it, but he actually made sense. It also helped that the woman she was closest too was the group sharpshooter.

"That makes sense." Lee nodded, leaning his forearms against the railing and looking at Chuck, who was smiling to himself. "Is there anything else I should do?"

"Cut her hair." He answered quickly, obviously knowing safety precautions. "Just short enough to not be grabbed, but still long enough that she feels comfortable. God knows she doesn't need sunburn on her head through all this. Oh, and map out what you're gonna do when you get to Savannah. Only in case the boat plan doesn't come up trumps."

"That's actually good advice, old man." Lee chuckled, smiling slightly. "I'm sorry about going off on you."

"Don't worry about it, son.

A/N- This IS going to continue until the end of episode 5! I promise! It may have a few more chapters than I was expecting, but I wanted to get this out to you as fast as possible. Yep, those PMs were bad, but you guys mean so much to me. NOTHING is gonna stop me updating again!

Until next time!