They stayed like that for a while, quiet. Then he stirred, and said, "You said, 'figure things out together'. Figure what out?" She knew from his tone that he wasn't just making conversation, not that he made a habit of idle chit-chat. They were done simply relaxing and being close. He'd read her like trail sign, took in all of her tells and knew there was more that she wasn't revealing. She chose to misunderstand his question, thinking she might distract him, give herself a little more time to get it all clear in her head.
"Figure out what to do about Rick. I needed you to stand with me, because I couldn't do it alone. You've said it yourself, we're no good on our own, that we need other..." Before she could finish he pushed her away and slid out from behind her, moving to crouch next to her. He leaned in almost menacingly, putting his lips next to her ear. "Don't bullshit me, sister," he growled. "I deserve better than that from you, after all this time. I ain't talkin' about supportin' each other, and you know it. I'm talkin' about whatever it is you're hiding, whatever it is we need to sort out. Together," he spat, like it was a curse. He rose and stood over her, waiting.
She kept her voice low, needing to explain herself to him before any of the others got involved. "I've made such a fucking mess of everything, Daryl. I thought I could deal with it myself and not have to drag you into it, but it all went wrong." After a minute he moved to sit on the floor next to her again, draping his arms over his knees, not touching her. Waiting. She bent over her own lap, talking to the concrete. "I should have come to you right away, instead of trying to handle it on my own. I should have known you would back me up, no matter what. That you would protect Lizzie, try to get her the help she needs."
He gaped at her. "Lizzie? You mean to tell me that Lizzie took out Karen and David? But, the bodies - there ain't no way she had the strength to pull them outta their cells." He stopped, and shook his head. "You covered for her. You burned the bodies." His voice didn't question; it was firm, like he completely understood why she would do such a thing. Even she wasn't as confident in her choice as he seemed to be.
"I think she hasn't been right for a while," Carol confessed, "maybe wasn't even before the Turn. It's not her fault, I think there's something wrong with her mind. She'd gotten some strange notions, like how she was with the walkers, wanting to give them names, treating them like they were oddball members of the family and not a constant danger to all of us." She took a deep breath, determined to carry it through. "She told me that Karen and David were suffering in their human bodies, and that she cut their throats so they'd bleed out more quickly, so they could turn and not be sick or afraid any more. The look in her eyes, Daryl... it made my blood turn to ice."
"If I'd only been there a few minutes sooner, maybe I could have stopped her. I put both of them down before they turned, and I burned their bodies so maybe it wouldn't show that their throats had been cut. I made her go back to her cell so she wouldn't see it. Maybe that was a mistake, too. Maybe I should have shown her, somehow, that they had been a real danger to her, not just people who were a little different. I don't even know anymore, what was the right thing to do. I just know I failed to keep her safe, even if it was from herself."
"I've made so many mistakes, Daryl. I didn't know how to help her, and I think I made it worse by trying to shield her." She turned panicky eyes on him, saying, "And now, God help me, she's out there, and what if she decides that someone else would be better off walking than living in pain?" She shuddered and slumped forward, sobbing, and he leapt to catch her, pulling her into his lap and holding her while he stroked her hair.
"Ah, Carol, I'm sorry you had to do that. Sorry you had to go through that by yourself. Jesus, what a clusterfuck."