Chapter 33

Daryl had never been in a car with Eleanor driving before and he could see what Michonne meant. She drove fast and braked late, but she was good and he never really felt in danger. They drove in silence for a few miles.

"Got any idea where we're heading?" she asked, knowing he'd been studying the local maps.

"Follow this road, there's a town about forty miles out, another twenty miles after that. Should be able to check them out in a couple of days" he was looking out the window, not at her.

"What you thinkin'?" she asked him

"Don't it bother you?" he asked "What all them people are thinkin' 'bout us going on this trip alone. They know we aint gonna get many supplies in this heap o' junk car"

She laughed "I guess it did at first, then I though the hell with it. If it means we get a few days' peace and time alone, it'll be worth it"

He was quiet again, stealing glances at her when he thought she wasn't looking. He still couldn't understand why she wanted time alone with him. All his old insecurities came flooding back. He'd always been told he was a worthless waste of space. As a child his drunken father would beat him for no reason other than he was in the same room, telling him he was useless. As an adult he'd never been good with people, just blindly following Merle, doing what his brother wanted. He'd spent far too much time wasted, lolling around in the houses of the dealers Merle got his stash from. He studied Ellie again. She was beautiful, he decided, much better looking than any woman he'd ever been with. She was funny and feisty as well, she didn't stand for any crap from anyone. He couldn't see what she saw in him, she could have any man she wanted.

Eleanor knew he was watching her, she could see the conflict on his face and knew he was struggling with the situation. She knew some of his history, he'd told her odd things and Carol had filled her in on Merle and what Daryl was like when they'd first joined the group back in Atlanta. She knew he'd been led by his brother and he hadn't been a good influence on him. When Merle had been left in Atlanta Daryl had changed, become a better person. Carol told her how hard he'd searched for her missing daughter and how upset he'd been when she was found in Hershel's barn. Now he was a valued member of the group but he still couldn't see it.

It was midmorning when they arrived in the town. There were several walkers milling around on the street. She accelerated the car and sped past them, heading for the centre of the small town. It started to rain as they pulled up outside several stores. They had to clear a couple of walkers before they could enter the grocery store, but once they were inside it was easy enough to block the door closed. It smelt damp and musty and there wasn't very much left. All the perishable food had rotted away and there only seemed to be pet food left in the canned food section.

"aint that desperate yet" Daryl commented as they passed by. There were a few toiletry items left, a couple of pots of shampoo, some shower gel and, amazingly, a tube of toothpaste. Eleanor rummaged around and found a couple of twin packs of toothbrushes.

"Can't believe I'm excited about toothpaste" she shoved the items into her bag.

They moved into the hardware section and found some rolls of duct tape and a few small hand tools but again the shelves had been picked clean. Once back outside they tried the pharmacy and a diner, all were pretty much empty.

"Maybe we should try the houses, not the shops" She suggested, frustrated with the lack of items. It was still raining and they were getting soaked through, just moving between stores. They got back into the car and drove to the edge of town. There were several large, expensive houses, set back in once landscaped grounds. They drove to the first one and entered through the unlocked front door. The house had been trashed, furniture was overturned and smashed and there was blood everywhere. Carefully they checked the rest of the house out. There was no sign of anyone inside but they found the bodies of four men dumped in the back garden. All had bullet holes in their heads. Daryl checked over the bodies.

"These aint been here long, wounds are still fresh. Think we need to get out of here." He didn't want to risk running into those responsible for the execution style killings. They reached the car and set off, deciding to head out of town. As they were pulling away they heard a shout and a man ran from a nearby house, he fired his gun in their direction, yelling over his shoulder.

"Get us outta here!" Daryl yelled as Eleanor put her foot down. They flew down the street much faster than was safe, spinning around the corner. The car started to slide on the wet road but she steered into the skid and managed to regain control of the vehicle. As they raced away they saw a blue SUV in the rear view mirror. It was gaining on them.

"Shit!" Eleanor cursed, as she accelerated. "Hold on" She warned him. She threw the car into a left hand turn at the last minute, then immediately turned into the first right. The SUV was still behind them. The passenger was firing a hand gun out of the window and the rear windscreen shattered as he found his mark. Daryl pulled his gun and opened the window beside him. He twisted in his seat and got off a few rounds. One ricocheted off the trunk of the pursuing car and it slowed down, the driver trying to put more space between them. Eleanor tried to lose them by making several last minute turns but they didn't have the power. They reached the edge of the town and there were no more turns. The road ahead was straight and wide. There was no way they could outrun their pursuers.

"Got a plan, get ready to take out the driver" Eleanor told him with a wild grin. She accelerated as fast as she could and put some distance between the two vehicles. Suddenly she slammed the hand brake on and yanked on the steering wheel. Daryl cursed loudly as, with a squeal of tyres the car spun 180 degrees and was now facing the SUV. She raced towards it and they could see the startled expressions on the occupant's faces. They were now heading straight towards the SUV at high speed. The driver started to brake. Daryl braced himself against the dashboard and readied his gun. At the last moment Eleanor twisted the wheel and the car jolted to one side, passing the SUV on the driver's side. As it flashed by Daryl fired. The driver slumped forward and the car careered out of control bouncing off the road onto the grass. It hit a tree and bounced off, flipping over a couple of times before finally coming to a stop on its roof.

Eleanor gave a whoop and swung the car around driving back to the crashed vehicle. She stopped alongside it and looked at Daryl. He was staring at her, his expression unreadable. She gave him a wide smile.

"Told you I could drive" she said smugly. She pulled out her gun, climbed out of the car and advanced on the wrecked one. Shaking his head, not sure whether to be angry or impressed Daryl followed.

They could see the driver was dead, he was crushed against the steering wheel , a bullet hole in his cheek. The front passenger was unconscious but still breathing. A third man was trying to scramble out from the back seat. Daryl yanked open the rear door and pulled the man out, shoving him to the ground. Eleanor aim her gun at him.

"What's your problem?" she demanded "What'd you have to come after us like that for?"

He spat out a mouthful of blood and glared up at her.

"You were in our territory. Had to teach you a lesson." He tried to get to his feet, but Daryl shoved him back down.

He licked his lips and leered at her "Could teach you all sorts of things, darlin'", his eyes raked over her body. Daryl stepped forward and kicked him in the ribs.

"You don't even look at her" he snarled.

The man grinned "When the rest of the group get hold of you two, we'll all do more than look. Don't worry we'll let you watch before we kill you." He yelped as Daryl hit him with the butt of his gun.

"How many in your group? Where are they" Eleanor demanded. He laughed at her.

"More than you can deal with and they're somewhere nearby. Maybe if you start running now you got half a chance of escaping. The boss won't like that you killed his people. He aint nice to folks he don't like" he spat more blood, looking at her again. "Hey, you come with me and I'll forget I ever saw him" he winked at her. Daryl hit him again, this time he fell unconscious.

"Damn it, can't we ever get a break." Daryl was angry. Eleanor lowered her gun and went to him, putting her hand on his arm.

"Come on, We'll find a house or somethin' secluded, hole up there tonight. Decide what to do in the morning" She glanced at the man on the ground "Think we should finish him so he can't tell on us?"

Daryl nodded "Yeah, think that's the best idea." He walked over to the man and aimed his gun. He hesitated, "lt don't seem right, shooting a man when he's down." Eleanor stepped up next to him, aimed and fired. He looked at her in surprise.

She shrugged "Didn't like doin' it, but it was him or us. Know what I prefer" She turned and headed for the car. He followed silently.