For Those You Love

Chapter 23

Within half an hour, everyone had managed to get inside. It was almost dusk, though. And, despite Kenny's pleas, Lee had made it clear that none of their people were leaving the mansion until morning. And, even though there was a lot of fighting, the older man had eventually agreed.

"Alright!" He had huffed, glaring slightly at the taller man. "Fine! Whatever you say! But I say it's better we get out there and scope the place out! Y'know, to find a boat. The thing we came here for!"

"And I've said no." Lee said, almost tiredly, running his hand through his goatee and sighing. "No arguments. We'll set out and scope the place tomorrow. But for now, we set up for the night."

Kenny seemed to consider speaking up for only a second, glancing at Carley and Clementine, who were sitting on the sofa and hugging each other tightly. Carley was muttering soothing words to the girl, whose eyes were locked onto her mother's. It broke his heart to see that.

Kat had done that so many times throughout Duck's short life… No. He couldn't think of them. Not now.

Lee grunted, frowning at Kenny sympathetically before starting off, starting to make his way to the closets.

Carley took that moment to stand, kissing Clementine's head and moving after her husband, a frown on her face.

"Lee!" She exclaimed quietly once she'd found him in one of the bedrooms, checking the closets for anything useful. "Lee, What the hell is wrong with you?! You can't just go screaming at Ben!"

Lee just continued to look, an expression of tiredness evident on his face. He was so sick of everything. And he was sick of getting no thanks at all for all the work he was doing to make sure the group was safe and cared for. And for Carley to outright blame him for something he wasn't responsible for, back on the train…

"Oh for fuck's sake!" Carley eventually said when she received no reply. She moved over to where he was and harshly turned his shoulder so he had no choice but to look at her. "Will you just talk to me?!"

"I'm not ready to grovel yet…" Lee replied lowly, his voice low and hoarse as he stared at the wall behind her. "Isn't that what you said? Come talk to you when I'm ready to grovel?"

Carley bristled, narrowing her eye at him and growling slightly. "Cut the bullshit, Everett. I know there's something going on in your head right now. So spill."

Lee frowned, closing his eyes for a second before looking down at her, sad resignation on his face. "Carley, someone's been talking to our daughter. Some stranger's been telling her that I-" He cut himself off, unable to continue without either raising his voice or welling up. "He's been telling her stuff that's not true."

Carley could tell exactly how this was affecting him. He was… He was upset. No, he was more than upset. He was almost broken. She sighed and crossed her arms, shaking her head.

"Lee, whatever that guy's been saying to her… It's complete bullshit. I promise you. Although I don't see why I have to say that. I mean, fourteen years of marriage should be enough proof for you." She said, her voice never losing its soft edge. "Look… Whatever's happening isn't Ben's fault. I know you're angry about someone knowing your… problem. But all Ben's done is try to do his best for everyone."

Lee frowned at this, but immediately corrected his expression with one look at her eye patch. She didn't need any more stress on her. "…Yeah. I know. But Carley, you realize what he did back there, right? He left our daughter. Our baby girl. If Chuck hadn't come along-"

"I know what he did." Carley said sharply, tensing her brow in distress. Her voice was shaking at the mere suggestion of what would have happened if Chuck hadn't been there. Of if they'd been two seconds late.

"And trust me; if – god forbid – it had played out that way, I'd be reacting just like you. But it didn't, Lee. She's fine. And as long as we're here, she will be."

Lee just grunted, frowning outwardly now. "That's the point…" He said lowly, looking at her with obvious conflict in his expression. "I don't think we are safe here."

In response to this, Carley just stared tiredly at him, resting a hand on her hip, shifting her weight to one side and furrowing her brow as she always did when she was sceptical of something.

"I know it sounds stupid. But… Carley it's too dangerous. You saw how fast those walkers crowded us out there. How fast things went to shit. One false move and we all end up as walkers."

An Hour Later

"Okay!" Lee said, stepping up in front of the fireplace and stuffing his hands in his pockets. "So, rooms are all assigned. Kenny, you're taking watch, right?"

"Yeah." The older man agreed, nodding shortly with a small smile on his face.

"So Christa and Omid are taking the guest room; Carley and I are in the master bedroom; Chuck's on the sofa and Ben and Clem are in the kids' room?" Lee asked, looking out at everyone who was gathered. Christa was sitting beside Carley, her hands resting comfortably on her knees, which were crossed in front of her. Omid was resting in the armchair, keeping his leg elevated on the footrest.

"You got it, boss." The man joked, attempting to stand from his seated position and earning a glare from his girlfriend. "Uh, I think I'll wait a while before climbing Mt. Everest, though." He said sheepishly, once again relaxing with a grimace.

"Go on, Clem. Go get yourself upstairs. I'll be up in two minutes." Carley said, gently tapping her daughter's shoulder and nudging her from her seated position on her knee. Upon earning a hesitant look, she raised an eyebrow. "Don't make me tell you twice, young lady. Bed. Now."

"Yes mom…" The girl said, hanging her head and hopping down. She made her way out of the room with a disappointed look, only looking back after giving her father a hug, where her gaze focused on the walkie-talkie on his hip.

She had to get it back. Somehow or another. She had to.

A/N – Okay! So, sorry for the lack of an update! But I'm not having a really good time right now. Only a handful of people know whats wrong, so I'd really rather not say. But yeah, Christmas was NOT the best in the world. And recently I've been going through some shit at college too, so I've really not been in the mood.

I AM still doing this fic! I promise! My updates may be short (like this – SORRY) But like I said, I've got a lot going on.

I apologize if this isn't very good, but I'm going to try and update ASAP.

Love ya's!

HarryPotterTwin (AKA Amy)