Well I hate to see that evening sun go down

Well it's lonesome coming down my trail

Well I know this train will take me where I'm bound

But I hate to see that evening sun go down

A forty-five minute search turned up nothing but a few walkers roaming the woods. The three men put them down quickly and headed back for the house.

"If nothing else, we did her a favor getting rid of those geeks," T-Dawg said when they had locked that door at the bottom of the stairs behind them.

Rick and Daryl both nodded, bidding the man goodnight. Daryl sat at the kitchen table, rubbing his hand over his forehead.

"Wish we could have searched for longer," he muttered.

Rick put his hands on his hips. "First light, we'll go out again. Macyn knows these woods. She'll be able to take care of herself."

"We told ourselves Sophia would be able to take care of herself, too."

"Sophia was a twelve-year-old, scared, little girl," Rick argued. "We told ourselves that to keep hope alive. Saying that about Macyn, that's just the way things are." He paused. "You want to tell me why she would go out hunting without you, anyway?"

"Do I ever want to talk about anything?" Daryl shot back. "Macyn's an adult – she went out on her own because she wanted to, end of fucking discussion."

For once, Rick decided he was going to push Daryl. "I don't pretend like you and I are old buddies, Daryl, but we've all gotten to know each other. We can tell when someone has something on their mind. Why don't you tell me what's on your mind concerning Macyn."

Daryl shoved out of the chair he was sitting in. "She came out of nowhere, Rick. I mean, fuck. After Merle, I didn't want to give a shit about anybody. Didn't want to act like I cared. Macyn broke that down like she was – I don't even know what. And I couldn't have that. Told her I needed distance – told her it was self-preservation. It's my fault she's out there on her own. It's my fault she could be one of them now."

"You did what you thought was best. I understand that more than anyone." He put a hand on Daryl's shoulder. "See you first thing."

Daryl nodded and watched while Rick disappeared down the hall to the room he shared with Lori and Carl. Daryl was torn between going back out on his own, but Macyn doing that was what got them in this predicament in the first place. Knowing he wouldn't sleep much, Daryl also walked down the hallway to his room.

.&.

"Wake your ass up, dumb bitch."

The rude greeting was accompanied by a foot pushing her over. Macyn groaned and forced herself to wake up. Her eye was nearly swollen shut, her lip was cut and bleeding, and she was pretty sure she had some cracked ribs.

Willy Slater had been less than thrilled to find that Macyn had done anything but either die looking for him or keep on the search every day until she found him. She had never shrunk down to his beatings before, and the night before had been no different. Of course, the more she fought, the worse it was. Hence her current physical state.

According to Willy, he had slid down an embankment and busted his head on a rock – Macyn figured it wasn't hard enough to do her any good – causing him to become disoriented. He fought his way out of the woods on the other side and found himself at the gate of a makeshift city, where they took him in and doctored him up. Once Willy was hydrated and had his strength back, he tried living in that city for a while before the man with him had convinced him that they should leave and go back to the underground paradise Willy kept talking about. Only problem was, past the woods, Willy had no memory of which direction he needed to go to get back home.

When he stumbled across Macyn's path, Willy thought he was home free. Once she figured out his game though, she refused to lead him back to the house. She didn't tell him anyone else was there – not that she had the chance before the fighting started.

"You better get her to tell you where we're goin'," the other man called. "I'm not waiting much longer before I try to find it myself."

"Be patient, Merle," Willy answered. "She'll break down. She always does."

Merle … Macyn knew that name. She knew that name and she knew it paired with that almost familiar voice; a voice similar to one she had come to know very well. She just had to put the pieces together; somehow she knew it would be her saving grace.

Macyn spent the whole day in a feigned catatonic silence. She had the puzzle pieces; she just had to put them together. It was closing in on sundown once again, and Macyn's injuries were growing in number, thanks to both Willy and Merle.

The realization came to her out of nowhere. Her head and her ears were ringing from a backhand from Merle when the name tumbled off her tongue.

"Merle Dixon."

The man's raised hand stopped inches away from her. "What did you say to me?"

"I know who you are," Macyn told him. Her voice was hoarse but she knew Merle heard her from the look on his face. "Merle Dixon from north Georgia. You have a brother named Daryl."

Merle crouched in front of her. "Keep talking."

"He and his group are at the house Willy's been telling you about," Macyn continued. "I'll take you there – I'll take you to Daryl – but only if you and Willy keep your fucking filthy hands off of me."

Merle stood slowly and spit on the ground. "You got my word."

He extended his hand; Macyn shook it. Instead of releasing her hand, Merle helped her up off the ground.

"Did I tell you to stand up?" Willy snarled, making a beeline for where Macyn was now standing. Before he could get too close, Merle stepped in front of her and pushed Willy away. "The hell is wrong with you?"

Merle held up his hand. "She knows where my brother is. This bitch is yours, I get that. Till I find my brother though, you don't touch her."

He turned back to Macyn and tilted his head back as though he had already waited too long for her to start leading them to the house.

"I want my gun."

"No chance," Willy chuckled.

"You want to find that damn house, you need me alive," Macyn argued. "I want the gun."

Willy and Merle exchanged looks; it was Merle who finally handed her weapon over. She mumbled a 'thanks' before taking off in the right direction.

.&.

Another search had come up with nothing but some spattered blood. If it was Macyn's, they all knew what that could mean.

"So what, do we just stay here?" Lori asked. "It isn't our place."

"Who's going to kick us out?" Glenn asked, earning him glares from some and questioning looks from the others. "You guys were thinking it, I just said it."

"We should stay for now," Dale pitched in. "On the off-chance she comes back, we'll ask Macyn what she wants to do. But, I think she wanted us here – no harm in staying."

"I agree with Dale," Andrea nodded. "We've got a good thing here, and we were welcomed into it."

While the rest of the group discussed it, Daryl sat a few feet away, trying to figure out his opinion on the whole thing. Staying would mean daily reminders of Macyn, of what he could have had, even for that short time. Going would mean being back in constant danger, eating raw squirrels and hoping he woke up alive the next morning. His thoughts did little more than frustrate him.

"I'm going to get some fresh air," he excused himself, heading up the stairs and out into the house.

There was a rocking chair on the front porch; Daryl sat himself in it, wondering when the last time he took to just sit and think was. These days, there was never much time for thinking, just do, do, do. He looked out at the horizon to where the sun was setting and felt his hope decrease with every moment the sun slowly began to disappear from sight.

He had only been out for fifteen minutes when three bodies came into view. He ran back in the house and yelled down the stairs for the others to come up. He trained his arrow at the one in the middle – that person looked most like a walker. Not the other two, though. The other two looked like strong, capable men. One of them was familiar, even from a distance.

"Baby brother," Merle yelled as they got closer. "Put that weapon down, this girl's still alive."

Daryl frowned and tried to decide if what he was seeing was real or not. "Merle?"

The older brother laughed and rushed up the steps to embrace his brother. Daryl hugged him back, forgetting momentarily that there was another man and a woman in tow with Merle.

"Where have you been?" Daryl asked. "You disappeared from Atlanta."

Merle nodded. "Made for another camp, whatever I could find that would take me. Found a city, Daryl. They've got everything – a government, police – a foundation."

Daryl raised his brow. "So why'd you leave?"

"When have you ever known me to be able to follow the rules for long?" Merle returned. "Willy Slater and I left, came to find this utopia he said he's got. Make good on our own."

Daryl frowned. "Willy Slater? Was that the man with you?"

"Yeah, why?"

"He's not good people, brother. The woman who brought us here – she saved my life. She's Willy's fiancée, but he beats the shit out of her regularly."

"I spent last night in the woods with that woman. Willy and I were trying to get her to tell us how to get here. She is the most stubborn cooze I've ever met," Merle laughed. "Willy's just handling his own. Show me what we're working with here. Come on now, welcome your brother properly."

Daryl looked back at the group before following Merle into the house. Rick and Andrea were helping Macyn into the house; he could see she was in bad shape – and that was putting it lightly.

"Macyn …"

When she turned to look at him, he could see even more injuries. She lifted her arm from Rick's shoulders momentarily to wipe the blood from her lip and shook her head.

"Don't, Daryl. Just … don't."

.&.

Lori was coming out of Macyn's room when Daryl came down the hallway. Lori looked at him and gently shut the door behind her.

"She isn't ready for visitors," Lori told him plainly.

"How is she? She gonna be okay?"

Lori folded the wet washcloth in her hands. "She's pretty bruised and banged up, but I think her ribs are only cracked. They'll heal in a couple weeks if she takes it easy."

Daryl nodded. "That's good. I just wanted to see that she's gonna make it."

"Daryl," Lori called softly after him. He turned back. "Macyn said it wasn't just Willy beating her out there. Merle had a pretty good hand in it, too."

He rolled his eyes. "Y'all know how Merle is. What do you want me to do – say something to him? He's my brother for fuck's sake. What's done is done."

With that, he stormed off to his room and slammed the door behind him. Daryl wasn't about to let on that the moment he saw Macyn and realized Willy Slater had his claws in her again, he became torn between – if he was honest with himself – killing Willy Slater and telling Merle to fuck off, and letting the whole thing be. Obviously he had chosen the latter, but he couldn't help regretting his decision.

He slept restlessly throughout the night. He kept dreaming about Macyn in the woods, getting knocked down over and over by Willy and Merle, and Daryl unable to stop them. He had dreams about her dying and then reanimating; those were the worst. When he woke, he realized that pushing her away may have more detrimental than opening up to her would have been.

Steps in the hallway finally pulled him from his bed much earlier than normal the next morning. He pulled a shirt over his head and slipped into his boots before opening the door. Lori was there, outside of Macyn's room with a glass of water.

"Bringing her medicine?" Daryl asked.

Lori shook her head. "She had some pain killers a couple of hours ago. She's dehydrated though, so I'm trying to keep her drinking a glass or two of water every hour."

Daryl nodded. "Mind if I take that one in there?"

Lori considered him carefully; she had watched Daryl and Macyn closely over the first couple of weeks the group was staying in the underground refuge. She thought that maybe the younger woman would breakthrough his rough exterior, but that was before Daryl pulled back from her.

"I just want to talk to her," Daryl continued. "Please."

With a hesitant sigh, Lori handed him the glass of water. Daryl gave a curt nod as a thanks. He knocked lightly on the door before entering.

Macyn was staring at the ceiling; he could see the silent tears falling down her cheeks. At the light coming in from the hallway she hurried to cover herself and sat up as best she could.

"What are you doing in here?" she asked.

Daryl frowned. "The hell, Macyn? You've had people coming in and out of here at all hours – they couldn't even get you in clean clothes?"

Macyn couldn't look at him. "Just leave the water, all right?"

"There's something else, isn't there?" Daryl was putting the pieces together. She was weak with her injuries and dehydration, and now he walked in to find her naked? "Tell me I'm wrong in what I'm thinking."

Macyn glared at him. "You don't know what you're thinking, Daryl. You pushed me away, remember? Now you want to care because Willy Slater showed back up? You sure as hell didn't give two shits when I showed up with Merle and Willy, beat all to fuck."

"I thought he was dead," Daryl argued.

"What was it you told me after the pond that day? 'I ain't your concern.' Well, guess what. I ain't your concern, neither. Leave the water and get the hell out."

"Macyn, I'm trying."

"You're trying too late," she bit back.

Daryl knew she was right. It might keep him from trying now, but it wouldn't keep him from trying altogether. Slowly and averting his eyes, he set the glass of water on her nightstand and left the room.