Thank you all so much for your awesome reviews/faves/follows. I promise I'll respond to each of you in the next chapter, as I wanted to get this up before I left for MI tonight. Ch 20 will be up by next weekend, I hope. Please keep reviewing and reading, it means so much to a writer!
Thank you for sticking with me through this adventure!
Here we go!
Natalie socked Daryl in the arm, pointing frantically. "There! There's my truck! Oh God please let them be there!" Daryl put his foot into the floorboard; a high pitched whine screaming under the Jeep's hood. He slung the Jeep in behind Natalie's truck, jumping out with his bow at the ready. Natalie rushed around the side of the truck, seeing a pair of feet on the ground under the truck.
"Jesus! Kyle!" Natalie knelt down next to the man her daughter had a crush on, gently pulling his hands away from the wound in his abdomen. Kyle's eyes fluttered open, a grimace crossing his twisted features. Kyle grabbed Natalie's hand, holding tightly. Natalie gasped at the sudden movement, her eyes meeting Kyle's pained stare.
"Natalie, I'm so sorry. They…they took Allie. I tried to save her." Kyle struggled to breathe between words. He felt like he was drowning, he couldn't get enough air. Kyle thought to himself that if this was what dying was like, he'd much rather been shot in the head.
" Shh.. Shh..It's okay, don't talk. Just let me see ok?" Natalie felt tears welling in her eyes, as she studied the wound. It was now fatal; had they gotten to him sooner than they had, Natalie may have been able to save him. Natalie's fingers trembled as she pressed Kyle's hands into the wound. "Keep your hands there. Don't talk, just breathe, it'll be ok." Natalie's watery smile told a different story that couldn't be hidden.
"It's okay Natalie. I know this is the end for me. Daryl, please don't let me turn into one of them. I tried my best to save her, but they got me too." Kyle nodded at Daryl standing behind Natalie, his eyes fixed on the older man.
"Promise you won't go that way. I know you did what you could, don't feel bad about it. Couldn't find their tracks past leaving the driveway. Which way they'd go?" Daryl felt bad about giving the kid a hard time before, even with shooting him. Kyle had been following Allie all over the farm, helping her do chores and riding the horses with her. Kyle had shown guts helping around the farm, even more by going with Allie this morning and trying to keep her from getting taken.
"They went west. White Camaro, Texas plates. Said something about a camp, and a clinic. Two guys grabbed her while she was picking berries. They shot me when I shot them. I'm sorry Daryl, I tried to save her. I'm sorry." Daryl nodded as he knelt next to Kyle, pulling back the slide and thumbing off the safety before placing his Glock in the kid's hand.
"I know ya did. Allie's been watching you since you came to the farm ya know that?" Daryl forced a smile at Kyle, giving him one moment of happiness, while hoping Kyle still had enough in him to pull the trigger on his own.
Kyle grinned weakly at Daryl, "Thanks Daryl. When you find Allie tell her I really liked her ok?" Kyle tightened his grip on the pistol, setting it in his lap.
Daryl moved in front of Kyle, patting his shoulder. "I will. You want to do this here next to the truck or somewhere else?"
"Could you help me out to the yard? I don't want to put a round through the truck. You know how bad a shot I am." Kyle chuckled at his own joke, as Daryl slowly pulled him up to stand, lacing under his arm and stumbling for the yard. Natalie watched from the driver's seat of her truck, it was more than she could bear watching this man who tried to save her daughter end his own life. She rested her forehead on her arms, the tears falling freely over her skin. Natalie struggled to breathe, between Allie being taken, Kyle's impending suicide to prevent turning, the stresses of the situation were wearing on her.
Daryl set Kyle down in the soft grass, making sure he was sitting down. He wasn't going to leave the kid to take his own life alone, not when he was one of their own. Daryl flinched when he heard the shot ring through the air. His eyes dropped to Kyle lying in the grass, an entrance and exit wound clean through the temple in his skull. Daryl gathered Kyle up in his arms, carrying him over to the bed of Natalie's truck and carefully laying him in next to the deer.
Daryl strode over to the driver's side, slowly opening the door. Natalie sobbed quietly; startling when Daryl's hand began to lightly stroke her back. Natalie turned her head, locking eyes with the man she loved, the look on his face was anger mixed with hurt. Daryl was now dangerous, God help the boys who took his daughter when he found them. There would be no forgiveness for their souls.
Daryl wiped his woman's red rimmed eyes; she had every reason to be upset. Their daughter had been taken; one of their own was dead. Daryl took hold of Natalie's chin, touching his lips to hers tenderly. "Get the deer and Kyle home. I'm sure Glenn and Rick will help you. Just get the deer strung up in the cooler. I'll take care of it when I get back. I'm going to head out and try and find her Natty. I ain't giving up till the sun goes down."
The promise in Daryl's eyes assured Natalie his words were true. Natalie rested her forehead against Daryl's, her arms laced around his neck as the tears fell. "You find her Daryl, and you bring our baby girl home." There was another request left unspoken, but Daryl knew Natalie well enough to know what she wanted.
"Every last motherfucker that had anything to do with it. Promise you that Natty." Daryl kissed Natalie one more time before jogging off to the Jeep. Natalie watched him head west out of the driveway, her heart pounding in her chest.
"I love you too Daryl. Please be safe. I can't bear to lose you too." Natalie knew he was the toughest asshole out there, but armed with two pistols, a rifle and his crossbow, if he ran into a group of any size the odds were not in Daryl's favor. Natalie pulled out onto the road, heading for home with a heavy heart, dreading telling the others what happened.
Daryl followed the road west; turning down other roads that looked promising. He had grown up in the area, if anyone could find where Allie was it would be Daryl. The problem was that the abductors could have taken Allie anywhere in the rural community. Daryl beat his fists against the steering wheel as he saw there was a quarter tank left in the Jeep. It would take just about all of that fuel to get home from where he was. Daryl cut a tight u-turn in the road, heading towards home. Natalie would be pissed that he was coming home empty handed, but even she knew the odds of Daryl finding Allie out there. Fuel was hard to come by, Daryl had another plan. Tomorrow when the dawn broke, he'd saddle up Zip and continue the search. At least then he wouldn't be burning through fuel, and Zip could go for a long time without needing to stop. He wasn't about to give up on his daughter, especially now that she was a part of his life.
I woke up to a throbbing pain in my head, dizzy and the feeling I needed to throw up. My arms hurt as I pulled myself up into a sitting position. The room was spinning a bit in the darkness; I rubbed my eyes to try and make what I saw clearer. My hands came away dirty, I still had ash from my hunt on my face. It dawned on me then what happened, the assholes taking me, Kyle trying to save me, oh poor Kyle. I choked back the sob in my throat as I heard shuffling outside in the hallway, my eyes darting to the light under the door. Voices started talking but I couldn't make out exactly what they were saying. Fear rose within me, my hands started shaking, with my body following shortly after. I felt a hand grab mine as a voice whispering in my ear grabbed my attention.
"Shh. Just be quiet, they will think you're still unconscious. It's safer that way for now. If you make a lot of noise or fight they will throw you to the walkers. I'm not going to hurt you. I'll take care of you." The face that went with the voice flooded my line of sight, almost scaring me. It was a girl about my age, dark hair pulled back from her face, her eyes bright in the darkness.
"I'm Emma. What's your name?" Emma held my hands in hers, stroking the top of my hands with her fingers.
"Allie. Where am I Emma?" My voice broke in the middle, my lips parched with thirst.
"You're in a camp outside the town. I can't say it will be a nice stay here, for as short or as long as it may end up being. The men here take women they find, use them for whatever they need, and then either kill them off or trade them for things they want sometimes. Luckily I'm useful to them because I'm an EMT. So they leave me alone. Hopefully you have some skill that they can find use for, at least for your sake. Here in awhile after I get you cleaned up they'll come for you to bring you in front of the head honcho. Marcus will decide what happens to you then." Emma spoke as if she had seen this happen more than once before, I shivered violently.
"I can hunt, shoot, and do some medical stuff. Maybe that will grant me some immunity." I chuckled, trying to cut through my nerves. Emma gently started wiping down my face with a damp cloth, her smile weak.
"Maybe they will pair you up with Agron; he's the lead hunter for the camp. That would be the best for you. Hope that Marcus decided that for you Allie." Emma closed my eyes as she wiped my eyelids clean.
Whoever Marcus was, I was fearful of his decision for me. My hope was that Agron would be my salvation; I didn't want to end up the camp whore and fed to walkers. I prayed my Dad would find me soon, I was sure he was out looking for me. Dad wouldn't give up till he found me, God have mercy on their sorry souls, because damn sure Dad wouldn't.