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Chapter 10

Lost and Found

...

"Don't look. Don't look," Daryl kept repeating to Carol as he helped her up. But the woman was broken, she was sobbing and she didn't care anymore. She pushed Daryl away and ran to the RV. Nobody stopped her. They just saw her ran away. After all, what could they say after what had just happened? What do you say to a mother who just lost her child?

Daryl saw Carol disappear and then turned to Barbara. She was still standing in the same place, her eyes fixed on the sea of corpses in front of her. He couldn't tell if she was looking at Sophia or at her dad, maybe she wasn't even seeing them.

Isabelle, wrapped up in her brother's arms was sobbing really hard and it was the only thing that could be heard. Then she broke off from his embrace and stumbled past him toward the bodies. She walked past her sister and Rick, watching her approach, tried to stop her.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," he said but the girl pushed him away. There was another body on top of her father's. She grabbed its arm, pulling it off William Henderson's body. Her sobs intensified.

"Daddy, Daddy," she sobbed as she knelt in front of him.

Neither Barbara nor Brett could tear their eyes from her, and they knew they would never forget this moment as long as they lived.

"Daddy, Daddy," Isabelle turned the body on its back, but the walker opened his eyes, growling and grabbing both her arms tried to pull her in. Isabelle screamed terrified, trying to pull away from its grip. She moved just in time before the walker's jaws closed on her throat.

Everyone ran to her immediately, except Barbara, who was just frozen in place, watching the scene as if she wasn't able to move.

Rick, Shane and Glenn grabbed Isabelle and Daryl and Brett try to pin the walker's arm to the ground. But the corpse wouldn't let go. It was relatively fresh and strong. It was a miracle Isabelle hadn't been bitten already. They didn't want to pull too hard and risked a scratch on Elle's bare arms so they struggled for some stressing moments. Andrea looked around and grabbed a saw from the barn, but couldn't do anything because the walker had still Isabelle on its grip.

Elle was still screaming and the walker was still groaning so nobody noticed when Barbara approached. She didn't hesitate this time.

Shane and Rick finally pulled Isabelle out of the walker's grip and just as they stood her up, Barbara pulled off the trigger and shot her father in the forehead.

Everyone then stopped. All turned to her, while Isabelle was still sobbing, hanging from Shane's grip, but Barbara just felt like as if ice were slipping from her chest to the rest of her body, wrapping her in numbness. Her hand still gripped firmly the humming gun, her eyes hard and empty, watched the corpse on the ground.

Daryl let go of the walker then and stood up, stepping to her and extending a hand reaching for her hand. His fingers barely touched hers when she stepped back without even looking up to him. Blake walked to her too, but she just pushed him away and left without turning around, her sister's sobs ringing in her ears.

Daryl watched Barbara go and then left a little after. He just didn't see the point on staying.

He didn't follow Rick and the others to the house. He figured the old man would kick them out of the farm anyway. And goddammit, all he could see was Sophia. Sophia as a walker. Sophia being shot dead. Carol's broken face. Barbara's broken face, twice. When she saw her father and then when she saw Sophia. When she realized she had been dead all along. That their search party and risking their life was for nothing. They didn't bring her home. They left her to die in the forest.

Daryl huffed angrily. He had the urge to kick something, to destroy something but he couldn't. He had to go after Barbara and Carol.

He wanted to see Barbara first. He saw her entering the stables, but closely behind was Blake. And he knew he couldn't go. It wasn't his job to console her. She was nothing to him after all. Feeling even angrier, he walked to the camp, instead, looking for Carol.

He found her in the RV, sitting on the table, looking out the window. She turned to him when she heard him entering. Their eyes met and Daryl's softened when he saw her broken expression. He leaned back on the kitchen counter top and she turned back to the window.

When Barbara shot her father Brett was so close that some of the blood actually got his neck and face. He felt the arm and body, he was holding going limp and he let it go and then turned to her sister.

Barbara looked like she had been frozen. Like she couldn't move or make an expression. Her eyes were empty, but it was just a mask. She was like a time bomb and was already starting to crack. He saw that guy Daryl walking to her and then Blake, but she just brushed them off and walked away. He knew he had to go after her, but he just couldn't. He was just as dumbstruck and horrified as her and Isabelle. He then turned to his other sister.

Shane had passed her to Hershel and Maggie and they walked to the house with Patricia, Rick and Shane. That guy Daryl left, but everyone else stayed. They all looked almost as bad as their sisters. He felt like breaking, but he knew he couldn't. He had to be there for her sisters. He had failed them already. Isabelle was unable to protect herself and Barbara was now trying to master every weapon she could put her hands off to protect them. She shouldn't. That was his job after their father passed and he wouldn't fail him. Not again.

He couldn't keep watching that thing his father had turned to, so he stood up and walked away from it. He took off his cap and let his hair dried in the heat. His scalp was sweating, especially after all that had happened.

He turned it around and saw the old Duke logo in it. It was vintage. It had been his father's. Brett brushed his hair back and placed the cap back on it. He looked up and saw Blake coming at him. He was his sister's boyfriend, but these past months had turned in one of his best buds.

"Are you okay?" Blake asked him and Brett nodded, clearing his throat.

"You shouldn't be asking that to my sister?"

Blake shrugged.

"I went after her, but she needs a bit of space. She wouldn't even look at me."

Brett looked at Blake and nodded. They joined Andrea, Lori and T-Dog among the corpses and then Shane and Rick joined them.

"You want us to start burying?" T-Dog asked Rick.

"We need a service," Andrea intervened. "Carol would want that." "Yeah, we all want that," Rick replied, his voice raspy for yelling at Shane earlier.

There was a long pause where everybody just watched the corpses unable to move.

"Let's- let's dig a grave for Sophia," Lori suggested, seeing that everybody seemed unable to move. "And for William and Shawn, uh, over by those trees."

She pointed the place and everybody looked at it.

"And we'll need a truck to move the bodies."

"I'll get the keys," Blake offered but Shane stopped him.

"No, no. I got the truck."

"And the others?" Brett asked them, looking at the scattered corpses. "That's a lot of digging."

"We bury the ones we love and burn the rest," Andrea replied looking at him. The guy met her eyes and slowly looked at her intensely and Lori stepped up.

"Let's get to work."

...

Shane, T-Dog, Bret, Blake and Andrea dig the graves, with Lori helping them with small things.

Brett felt good digging. It helped him to keep his head busy because he couldn't break apart. He needed to be there for his sisters. Now more than ever.

When the graves were done Brett left to fetch Barbara, Blake to fetch everybody else and Lori to get Carol.

She found her in the RV, with Daryl sitting on the kitchen counter top, keeping her company in silence.

"They're ready," she told Carol quietly. Carol not even turned. Her lower lip quivered and she shook her head.

"Come on," Lori insisted softly.

"Why?" Carol asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"'Cause that's your little girl," Daryl replied softly and Carol looked up to him. Her eyes blank and empty just like Barbara's earlier.

"That's not my little girl," Carol replied firmly. "That's some other... thing."

She then looked at the window and took a deep breath.

"My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought... She didn't cry herself to sleep. She didn't go hungry. She didn't try to find her way back. Sophia died a long time ago."

Lori, understanding she wasn't coming, left the RV. She couldn't even start to imagine Carol's grief, but Daryl just stared at her angrily. He saw red. He was furious. Even now. Even after everything had ended, Carol was still leaving Sophia behind. And he had enough.

He stood up and left.

Everyone went to the funeral except for Carol. Hershel had changed into a suit and they were separated into two groups. On the right was Patricia with Hershel and Maggie. Then Blake and Bret, his arms surrounding both Isabelle and Barbara. Rick's group was on the left and a bit far from them was Daryl, his arms crossed and his eyes on Sophia's grave. He only glanced once at Barbara and she missed it. But she watched him go after the funeral ended. Then she turned around and walked to the stables. Blake followed her again.

He leaned on the stable doors as she saw her saddling one of the horses.

"Where are you going?" He asked her softly but she didn't answer right away.

"Out." "Yeah, I figured," Blake replied, trying to not sound sarcastic. The girl didn't say anything else.

"Do you want to talk about it?" "No."

Blake straightened up and went after her. He placed a tentative hand on her arm.

"You'll have to. You cannot keep things to yourself or..."

"Or what?" She turned to him, snatching her arm out of his grip. "I'm gonna explode emotionally? Yes, I took the same bullshit psychology class than you."

The boy was taken aback by her aggressive.

"I just want you to be okay."

"Well, I'm just damn fine. Peachy."

"What's with the cursing and the attitude?"

"Nothing. I'm just emotionally exploding, am I not?" The girl said, tightening the saddle on the horse and checking everything was in place.

"Fine. Apparently that guy showed you more than just use the crossbow. Now you're an ass too."

His snap surprised her and just made her angrier. She turned, glaring at him.

"Don't call me that again. Ever. Do you hear me?" She spat, grabbing the saddle, ready to mount the horse.

"I just want to help you!" The boy snapped exasperatedly. Barbara turned to him, her face emotionless.

"Why?"

"Oh, I don't know, because I'm your freaking boyfriend!"

"Yeah, a hell of a boyfriend," she replied sarcastically.

"What's that supposed to mean?

"Nothing. Forget it. You never get it."

"I'm sorry. Would you like me to be Daryl?"

His response didn't take her by surprise and just angered her. She was freaking tired about his worries about Daryl. She didn't want to hear him anymore. And especially not now.

"Screw you!"

She put her foot on the saddle stirrup and mounted the horse. But Blake stood in the middle blocking her way. She looked down at him and saw the hurt and sadness and felt a little bad. She felt like a heartless bitch. He didn't deserve it. But she couldn't break either in front of him, so she held to her blank face for dear life.

"I don't know what to do. I just want you to be okay."

"I'm fine, okay. I'm fine. I can take care of myself. I don't need you or anyone else," she stated coldly taking the reins and the guy was taken aback by his admission.

And without looking back, she spurred the horse, leaving the stable and disappeared in the woods.

Maggie had been talking to Glenn, about the possibly of him staying. He wasn't sure so she tried to convince him when Isabelle, who had been washing the dishes behind them in the kitchen fainted, knocking the dish rack down.

They ran to her and took her upstairs to her room. Once there they noticed she hadn't fainted per say. She was awake or at least had her eyes opened, but she didn't move or responded. She just lay there.

"Sweetie, can you hear me?" Maggie sat down next to her, frowning worried. She had no idea what had happened to her.

"What's wrong with her?" Brett asked, his arms tightly crossed, looking at her sister intently. He hadn't protected her yet again. And he had no idea what to do.

"She might be in shock," Lori suggested from the door. "Where's Hershel?"

"We can't find him anywhere," Glenn responded, looking at the blonde girl in the bed, as worried as anyone else.

"Where's Barbie?" Lori then tried and just then Blake came in, looking tired and beaten up. "Nobody had seen her either?" "She took a horse, but didn't say where she went. She hadn't returned either."

Brett closed his eyes for a moment. Great, just great. One of his sisters was in a comma or God knew what and the other was missing. How much of an idiot he was?

"I think she may be in the lake," Blake said after seeing Elle was in the same state he left her. "I'm going for her. You try to find Hershel."

"Your stepmother's things?" Rick asked Maggie as he searched something around the room that told him where Hershel might have gone. There were also Shane, Lori, Glenn and Bret.

"He was so sure she'd recover," Maggie replied with a sighed, leaning on the vanity. "They'd just pick up where they left off." "Looks like he found an old friend," Shane commented, finding the flask on the dresser.

Shane shook it, noticing it was empty and then tossed it to Rick. He caught it midair. But Maggie took it from him, watching it closely.

"That was my grandfather's," she told them. "Gave it to him when he died."

"I didn't take Hershel for a drinker," Rick said.

"No, he gave it up on the day I was born," Maggie told them, looking up from the flask. "He didn't even allow liquor in the house."

"What's the bar in town?" Rick asked, walking to her.

"Hatlin's," Maggie said. "He practically lived there in his drinking days."

Rick nodded.

"Betting that's where I'll find him."

"Yeah, I've seen the place," Glenn told him. "I'll take you."

"I'm going too," Brett told them and Rick nodded.

"All right, I'll get the truck," Rick told him, going to the door but Maggie stopped Glenn.

"No."

"It's an easy run," Glenn told her.

"Like the pharmacy?"

"Hey, Maggie?" Rick called her and she turned to him. "I'll bring him back."

Rick left the room and Lori and Shane followed him closely. They didn't Rick to go after Hershel. They said he had to worry about their problems first, like Carl.

"Carl said he would've shot Sophia himself," Lori told Rick upset. "That's your son. He's getting cold. He's growing up in a world with... He's growing up in a world where he needs a father like you- around; alive, not running off, solving everybody else's problems."

"It's not just his problem I'm trying to solve," Rick snapped at her upset. "We need Hershel for the baby. And Barbara too."

He looked at her, letting that sink in.

"I'm going after him," he said firmly and then left.

Blake returned after two hours. He had reached the lake and searched for her, but couldn't find her. So he went upstairs, hoping Elle may be better, but she wasn't. His heart dropped to his knees. He hadn't known Elle much before everything happened, but now it was different. Now he considered her like her sister and, see her like that, unable to do nothing was messing him up. And he felt guilty. Maybe if he hadn't yelled at Barbara she would have said where she was going. Or maybe she wouldn't have run off.

Lori entered the room and Maggie looked up.

"Where is she?" Maggie asked him as soon as she spotted him and Blake shook his head.

"She wasn't there. I can't find her. She's not in the farm either."

Andrea, who had been watching her walked to Lori.

"We need to find her," Maggie said, frowning, worried sick for both her cousins. "Elle needs her and it's dangerous outside once it gets dark."

Andrea spotted Lori also and walked to her.

"Her heart's racing and she's burning up. We need Hershel or Barbie," she told the brunette. "They'll know what to do."

Lori paced a bit more and looked out of the window, thinking about something she could do. Then she turned to Andrea.

"Would you watch Carl for a while?" She asked Andrea.

"Of course."

And then Lori left.

Lori found Daryl by the trees on the edge of the forest. Apparently he had moved as far as he could from the house without leaving the farm.

"Moving to the suburbs?" Lori joked as he walked to him. But he didn't look up. He continued to sharpen an arrow he was making so Lori went to the point.

"Listen, Elle's in some kind of catatonic shock. We need Hershel."

"Yeah. So what?" He replied nonchalantly. Lori squatted next to him.

"So I need you to run into town real quick and bring him and Rick back."

He didn't answer.

"Daryl?"

He finally looked up to her and he didn't look happy.

"Your bitch went window-shopping," he snapped at Lori. "You want him? Fetch him yourself. I got better things to do," and he went back to sharpening his arrow.

Lori looked at him exasperatedly. He wanted Rick back and they needed Hershel, but maybe she could convince him to go for Barbara instead. She had seen them a few days back, even if they hadn't noticed her and she could swear he cared for her. Maybe he knew where she was or at least she could go and get her.

"Fine. You know where Barbie is?"

His hands stopped for a brief moment and he made an effort to not look up. He felt his blood boiling at her ridiculous nickname.

"Why don't you ask her brother or her boyfriend?" He snapped, trying to look as disinterested as before, but he practically spat the last word.

"Brett left with Glenn and Rick to go after Hershel. And Blake tried looking for her at some lake, but he didn't have luck. Nobody knows where she is."

"Well, I don't know where she is either," he replied, keeping with his work. But he tightened his grip on the arrow at the mention of that jerk.

Lori frowned at him, but kept pushing from a different angle.

"It's getting dark and it may be dangerous for her to be outside alone." "Well, she shouldn't have left."

"What's the matter with you?" Lori finally snapped. "Don't you be so selfish."

But just as her, Daryl also lost his temper.

"Selfish?" He stood up, glaring at her. "Listen to me, Olive Oyl. I was out there looking for that little girl every single day! I took a bullet and an arrow in the process. Don't you tell me about me getting my hands dirty! You want those idiots or that brat? Have a nice ride. I'm done looking for people!"

And he sat down again, this time agitated. Sharpening the arrow with anger. He didn't look at her, dismissing her. Lori made a last try.

"Elle is Barbara's sister. She would want to be there for her. I thought you were friends with her."

"Well, you thought wrong. I taught her how to use a crossbow, that's it."

Daryl kept sharpening the point of the arrow without looking and heard Lori walking giving up. When she was gone, he looked at Lori's tiny form returning to the house and huffed torn apart.

He had been honest. He was done doing favors for people, caring. Finding Sophia that way had just broken something inside him... but Barbara had suffered too. She had cared for Sophia even when she never met her and then she had to shoot her own father. He had seen her there and he didn't like what he saw. She was almost cold and emotionless. She didn't flinch during the funeral. What would happen to her if something went wrong with her sister? Or more like it, what would happen to her if she didn't return before nightfall? He knew she wasn't in her right mind and she took a horse and took off. What if the horse threw her off like to him? What if she was attacked? No, he tried to stop his worry. He had seen her. That girl could take her of herself. Better than any other women in his group actually. But the doubt remained. What if she couldn't defend herself in her state? Why if she was attacked by surprise again? And then he imagined her, like Sophia, walking suddenly from the woods, with grayish skin and skull-like face, milky eyes. With a bite on her neck... Or what if he found her later in the woods, torn apart? He couldn't take it. He knew he couldn't. He cared for her too much now. He liked her well enough to worry. And had some kind of feelings for her if he was being honest. And those feelings were the ones that made him leave the arrow alone and take his crossbow.

Sighing and angry with himself, he went after Barbara.

Daryl knew Barbara had taken a horse because he had seen her when she left so it was easier to follow her trace. He was relieved to notice that so far she had had a smooth ride. No blood. No signs of a fight or that she had stopped. And after a while he knew exactly where she went, but he kept following the trace in case something had gone wrong.

It took him a while to reach the house, even when he was practically running. He calculated they had one more hour of light at most. The house seemed empty, just like when they found it, but when he went to the back, he found the horse tied to a window and the girl sitting on the grass next to those damn flowers.

If she heard him, Barbara didn't move. Just sat there, her arms around her knees, her chin resting on them, staring ahead.

Daryl would never admit it, but at that moment he was almost overwhelmed by the relief of seeing her well and there. All the way to the house had been torturous for him. Imagining the worst and trying to pick noises of a fight, or screams. He didn't feel completely at peace until he saw she hadn't any bites or scratches either.

"There you are."

He said when he finally reached her side, but she didn't look up or acknowledged expression was just blank and it bothered him. He wanted her to react somehow. He reminded him of Carol. How the woman suddenly said those things about Sophia and his anger quickly built up. His anger for looking in vain for Sophia, because of Carol not showing up for her daughter's funeral, for his idiotic hope, and of Barbara, because she had no clue how close from a heart attack he was while looking for her. Because she had no clue that he cared that much for her. And why would she? She was Daddy's little princess and he was a damn back-wood redneck. Why would she ever notice him if not for his damn crossbow? But he would never say any of those things. He would rather be torn apart by walkers than admit his insecurities. So he lashed at her with the only thing he could.

"You knew about Sophia?" He asked her aggressively. His tone was ferocious.

Barbara finally reacted. She snapped out of her state and looked up at him, taken aback and startled.

"What?" "Did you know Sophia was there?!"

From her expression he knew she hadn't the slightest idea, but he needed a reason to leash on her his anger.

"No. No. I... I didn't. How can you...?"

Her voice suddenly broke and she started crying.

Well, damn, Daryl thought taken aback. His anger disappearing just as quickly and he just stood there, not knowing what to do.

"My dad was there," she sobbed. "My dad was there the whole time..."

"Hey," Daryl said, kneeling beside her, dropping his crossbow to the side and reaching for her shoulder awkwardly.

She kept crying and he was a lost.

"You knew he was dead," Daryl tried, regretting his words immediately knowing it wasn't the best thing to say. But she had told him so. Barbara said she knew his father had died on that rooftop.

She shook her head.

"I knew... I knew he had died," she sobbed and then looked up to him. Her teary eyed-face was breaking him. "But don't you get it? Otis didn't go to that damn high school and got him to the barn... He must have stumbled upon him in the woods and... If he was in the woods... He must have escaped the school... but he got bitten... and he died in the woods alone... like..."

He felt like she had just punched him. The like implicit. Like Sophia, she had meant. Both her father and Sophia wandered those woods agonizing, until they died and Otis found them and put them in the barn. He understood now. She cried because her father had suffered. Because he never made it to the farm alive. But he also suspected that she hadn't mourned him. And he could totally see that. She had felt the need to be strong for her siblings and kept things inside. And finally she had snapped.

She buried her face in her arms and he let her cry. He didn't know what to do anyway. So he just rubbed her back.

After what felt an eternity, she looked up to him, tears falling from her red-rimmed eyes.

"I'm sorry," she told him, her voice shakily. "I didn't know... about Sophia. I'm so sorry... I really thought we were going to find her..."

He felt the blow again, but this time he pulled her to him. She buried her face in his neck, and he held her tightly. He would never admit it, but seen her like that was tearing him inside. Then her sobs started to come short and her breath quickened. She was hyperventilating. He pulled back and held her by her arms.

"Hey, hey," Daryl told her. "Breathe. Breathe. Come on." Barbara looked at him and tried to do it. She couldn't at first, but slowly her breathing normalized and she could cry normally. Again Daryl hugged her and she hugged him back tightly, burying her face in his neck. As she was afraid he would disappear. He put a hand on her head, and petted her trying to soothe her. Her scent like lavender hit him and he found himself burying his nose in her hair. He knew he shouldn't. This was only going to make things worse later, but he couldn't help himself. She was in his arms, her breath on his neck and she was holding him tightly.

"I'm sorry about your dad," he told her, but she just kept crying. He didn't want to tell her about her sister after seeing her like this, but she wouldn't forgive him if he didn't.

"Shh, come on. I need you to stop, please," he asked her as gently as he could and the girl looked at him surprised, still sobbing a little. He had never talked to her that way. Daryl pulled a string of hair behind her ear and looked at her, and then cupped her face with his hands, wiping off her tears with his thumbs. She held onto his wrists, holding them in place. He sighed and leaned over placing a soft kiss on her forehead, his heart almost racing out of his body. Damn, he was so screwed, he thought, but it felt too damned good.

He pulled away and the intensity of her look struck him. She was looking at him like she had never seen him before. And like she liked what she was seeing. Her eyes roamed his face, her hands holding tighter to his hands, which were still on her face. And she was so damned close...

She held his stare, blushing lightly and Daryl swallowed slowly. His heart pumping harder if that was possible. She leaned to him and now she was even closer, her eyes closing. He felt her breath on his stubble and he knew he wasn't going to stop. Screw Blake, he thought. Screw everybody, he wasn't going anywhere. If she liked him as much as he liked her... but somehow thinking about her boyfriend made him thought about her brother and her sister... Isabelle, right. And before he could give in and kissed her, those thoughts stopped him. He had to tell her. He had to.

He regretfully cleared his throat and pulled back lightly. Barbara looked at him confused but embarrassed, so he quickly said, trying to save the situation.

"Listen, something happened to your sister."

He didn't save the situation, he made it worse. Barbara eyes opened in fear and she pulled away in shock.

"WHAT?!"

Almost with a sigh, he let go of her face and looked at her seriously.

"Lori thinks she's in shock, but... they're not sure what's wrong with her. It sounded serious. And they need you. Your sister needs you."

She started getting up and Daryl helped her get to his feet too.

"What-what about Hershel?" She asked him, her hands starting to shake. She couldn't help but think of Sophia and her stomach twisted with fear.

"They can't find him either. Rick, Glenn and your brother went out looking for him."

Barbara looked around like she didn't know what to do. She seemed lost for a moment, and she closed her eyes taking a deep breath, running her hands through her face. When she finally looked up, her eyes had hardened, not a single trace of grieving left that surprised even Daryl.

She wiped off her tears with her hands and Daryl stepped back, giving her space now that she had pulled herself together. The moment was gone and wouldn't come back anyway, he thought as he watched her crossing the lawn decidedly to her horse.

"Let's go," Barbie told him, mounting the horse and then turning to him, extending a hand.

"Good God, can you go any slower?!" Barbara snapped at Daryl and the guy just buffed, rolling his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to get us killed. I can try harder though," he replied sarcastically as he hurried a bit more the horse. He hadn't let her ride. It was already a bit dark and in her state, she would get them killed. He was going as fast as he could, but being careful and the girl had started to bitch.

"Ha-ha," she responded upset.

Finally they cleared the forest and Daryl then went full speed. They crossed the farm in less than two minutes.

He barely pulled in front of the house when she was already jumping out. She tumbled and Daryl held her arm to keep her upright.

"Hey, watch out. Don't need you hurting yourself in the way," he replied grumpily and she turned to him, looking at the horse.

"Can you get the...?"

Daryl nodded and waved her off.

"I got him," he said, patting the horse's head. "Go."

The girl smiled at him gratefully before running to the house.

Daryl sighed, imagining already Lori would eventually find out he did go, find her and get her here. Like he cared, he thought as he rode to the stables.

All he could think about now was how close she had been, his breath already rubbing his face. And what she had said. That she had broken up with her boyfriend. She didn't seem so sad about that. He wondered if he had told him because she had been also sad about that... or just to let him know.

In the house, everyone was getting ready for dinner. Carl and T-Dog were already at the table and Dale was placing napkins when Shane and Andrea entered the dining room and sat next to them.

"They should've been back by now," Andrea said.

"Yeah. Well, we'll head out first thing in the morning," Shane replied calmly behind him as Patricia put a plate of food next to him. He looked up to her and smiled.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Blake entered the room, passing around forks and knives and Carol and Maggie brought the rest of the food.

"Carl, I want you to keep your head up, okay?" Shane told the little boy when he saw his fallen face. "Your old man, he's the toughest son of a-"

"No cursing in the house," Patricia interrupted him with a warning stare and Shane nodded, suppressing a smile.

"Sorry."

At that moment Maggie heard a horse galloping. She looked through the window and saw Barbara and Daryl arriving on a horse. She felt a wave of relieved washing over her.

She saw Barbara running to the house and bursting through the door. Everyone in the dining room stopped and stood up as she ran to them, looking around frantically. Barbara's eyes fell on Maggie.

"Where's Elle?" She said out of breath. Maggie walked to her.

"Upstairs in her room." "Thanks."

She ran upstairs, followed by Maggie, who told everybody to stay in the dining room and kept eating.

Barbara burst into her sister's room and sat next to her carefully, not wanting to upset her.

"Ellie, baby, can you hear me?" She asked her, taking her pulse. It was a bit faster than normal. She also was a bit warm.

"What's wrong?" Maggie asked, entering the room. She turned to her cousin who had just come in.

"She has catatonic depression. Do we have some Benzodiazepine or N-methyl-D-aspartate?"

Maggie shook her head.

"No. We used all the drugs we had with Carl," Maggie quickly replied.

"Shit," Barbara cursed surprising both her brother and cousin. "Where Hershel put the meds? In the pantry?"

Maggie nodded and Barbara went down, followed by her cousin. Everyone seemed agitated, dinner completely forgotten.

"What happened?" Barbara asked, looking around.

"We can't find Lori," Carol replied, placing her hands on her hips. "She's not in the house."

"Did you see her when you came here?" Shane asked Barbara and then girl shook her head.

"No. And neither Daryl did, or he would have said something."

Blake turned to her at that, but the girl didn't meet his eyes.

"Shit, we need to find her," Shane snapped before leaving the house abruptly. Barbara exchanged a look with Maggie both thinking the same. Shane seemed way to worry about Lori.

But either way they agreed to split and go looking for her.

"I'm gonna stay here and see if I can do something for Elle, you go," Barbara told the girl and left to help the others look for Lori.

Barbara went straight to the pantry and cursed to the left medication. Aspirin, pain killers, and vitamins. Nothing she could use on her sister. Nothing she could do. She cursed again and hit the pantry door, frustrated.

Carol found Daryl on the edge of the forest by a small brick wall, sitting in front of a campfire. He was picking on the logs to make the fire bigger.

"We can't find Lori," she said without preamble, a bit breathless. "And the others aren't back yet either."

"Yeah. That dumb bitch must've gone off looking for 'em," Daryl said, matter-of-factly, without turning to her.

"What?"

"Yeah, she asked me to go. I told her I was done being an errand boy," he said with disdain.

"And you didn't say anything?" Carol said exasperatedly but Daryl didn't even look up.

Carol turned around and left, but she stopped when she noticed he had moved his tent there. She sighed and walked back to Daryl.

"Don't do this. Please. I've already lost my girl," she pleaded with him. Daryl threw the stick he had been poking the fire with and stood up angrily. He still hadn't forgiven her.

"That wasn't my problem neither," he snapped at her before walking away. But before he could go too far, Carol told him: "You brought Barbara, didn't you?"

That made him stop, but he didn't turn around.

"You did. And that wasn't your problem either," Carol continued, sure he wasn't listening. "But you cared."

He turned around, glaring at the woman, angry she had thrown that in his face.

"No, I don't. She's hot. I may get laid. That's it."

And he turned around, ignoring her flinch after his crude lie. Carol just turned around exasperated and disappointed, and left.