Ch. 8
Sorry for the delay! Things are starting to move fast now!
Merle had been looking everywhere for Carol.
Yesterday morning had been a damn mess. First all the walkers in D because some kid caught a fucking bug and then the fences falling. He had almost ripped Daryl a new asshole for hopping into the back of that fucking truck and slinging those pigs out.
They had taken all the bodies out and were burning them at the moment. Beth had been put in charge of the kids and quarantined in the warden's office, and the two people who had symptoms had been quarantined.
Still, he couldn't find Carol at all, and even though they had a little spat a couple days before sure didn't mean that he didn't want to check up on her.
Finally, he opened up the door to the generator room and saw her standing over the utility sink with a bottle of water, washing blood from her hands.
"Ya okay?" He said and shut the door behind him.
Carol jumped and met his eyes. Hers were wide and glassy. As he got closer the smell of smoke and burned flesh filled his nose.
"I haven't seen ya out there at all," he said quietly and reached for the knife at her hip.
Her reflexes were delayed, and he managed to unsheathe the knife and see the fresh stain of blood against the blade.
"What the fuck did ya do?" He asked, staring at her in shock.
"I'm just tryin' to protect the rest of us," she answered back.
"Oh, sugar," he sighed and shook his head.
"It's for the best," she argued and her voice was tight.
The next deep breath she took a tear tipped over her eyelid and down her cheek.
Merle shook his head. "What the fuck are we gonna do?" He asked to no one but himself.
"How's she doin'?" Hershel asked Daryl through the thick glass separating them.
Daryl didn't like the idea of Hershel being in there alone taking care of the sick people. He didn't like that there was no one to protect him if someone turned. He didn't like that Hershel's damn leg was giving him so much fucking trouble that he wouldn't be able to get away.
"She's fuckin' mad," he said and started chewing on his thumbnail.
"About which part?" He asked, sighing a little.
"She's locked up in an office with a bunch of stir crazy kids that've already been exposed to the damn illness, and her daddy's now the doctor over the bunch that are sick. She's pissed that she can't go on this run and help Glenn out." Daryl shook his head then said, "She's just really scared Hershel."
He nodded and looked over his shoulder. "I think this is on its way out, to be honest. Everyone in here is pretty close to death anyway."
"Even Glenn?" He asked and tried to keep his face blank.
"Yeah," Hershel said and looked at the bandana clutched in his hands. "If ya don't come back with those meds and other things, we'll lose him."
Daryl closed his eyes. "Fuckin' figures, right? We do all this shit, survive for years after everythin' then get taken out by a damn cold."
"It's more than a cold," Hershel argued.
"I know," he said. "We're gonna come in a get some of the bodies out while Merle fills up the cars then we're gonna go to that vet school."
Hershel nodded and opened up the door. "Put that over your nose and mouth. Don't ya ever take it off."
"It don't matter none," he said but did as he was told.
Hershel watched for a few minutes as Daryl took some of the bodies and loaded them on a gurney. As he was about to wheel it out and down the back corridor, Hershel cleared his throat and Daryl looked over at him.
"If somethin' happens to me, you'll make sure she's safe, won't ya?" He asked, his eyes never leaving Daryl's.
Daryl sent him a shaky nod.
"I feel better knowin' that," he said quietly then turned away, walking back in to the quarantined cellblock.
Daryl pushed the bodies outside, all the while thinking about the outbreak and the last few days.
They still didn't know who had killed Karen and David, but Daryl didn't figure that one of their own had turned into a bloodthirsty killer. They were the first two that had shown symptoms, and Daryl had the feeling that whoever had done it was trying to stop the spread of the illness.
Didn't change the fact that it was fucked up, especially given how they were left outside, but the intentions behind it weren't that of a serial killer. Tyreese was tore up about it, and he was a little unsure of having him go on the run with them, but they needed the manpower.
Merle was going to stay back and keep a watch on the fence since it was still unstable, so Daryl would have Michonne, Tyreese and Bob with him to go to the college.
With the bodies piled up and ready to burn later, he went inside and washed his arms and hands as best as he could then went down the hallways to the warden's office. Once he was there, he slide down with his back to the door and called out her name.
"Is everythin' okay?" She asked immediately.
"Good as can be, I guess. Glenn's gettin' worse. Gotta make that run for meds in a few minutes, but I wanted to stop by and tell ya bye first."
"We don't say that, remember?" She asked and her voice sounded tense.
"I know, arrow. I know," he said quietly.
At that moment, her fingers poked out from under the door, and Daryl smiled a little before holding onto the tips of them. They hadn't even had time to enjoy their afternoon away before all hell broke loose. He wanted to hold her close to him again and feel that peacefulness that he had gotten used to so fast.
"It's gonna be okay," he said.
"Yeah," she said back, but he knew she didn't believe it.
He let go of her fingers and got on his stomach and dropped a kiss on her fingertips before leaning his forehead against them.
"I'll be back before ya know it."
Daryl stood up and walked away from Beth, leaving all his worries right there with her. If it was one thing he knew for certain, it was that he couldn't go into this run with his mind clouded over. A medical college, even a vet one, wasn't going to be empty of walkers. In fact, most of those places had been used as shelters during the early days.
There was no way of knowing what they were walking into.
The sun was setting, and Beth shifted Judith around on her lap.
She hadn't heard back from Daryl, but that didn't mean anything had gone wrong. They had to go a ways to the college then who knew how long it would take to find what they were looking for. It didn't mean anything at all that he wasn't back yet.
A short knock on the door drug her out of her thoughts. "Yes?" She asked and walked closer.
"Hey, Bethy," Maggie said quietly.
Beth sat down with her back to the door and held onto Judith. "How's Glenn?" She asked, praying the answer was a good one.
"He's still hangin' on."
"That's good," Beth said and tried to keep the tears at bay. "And daddy?"
"Stubborn," she laughed. "He said that y'all could come out again."
"What?" Beth asked and turned her head towards the door.
"If we were gonna get sick, we would've already. The kids were already around the people in D. Daddy said to get everyone settled in cells and try and get the kids back to a normal routine. Keepin' y'all locked up ain't helpin' them."
Beth looked across the office at the kids sitting around in a little circle drawing on some paper she had found. She stood up and placed Judith on her hip.
"Okay. Can ya send Carol to help me get 'em situated? I need to know if I should put Mika and Lizzy in her cell now."
"She's gone with Rick," Maggie said and turned the doorknob. "He wanted to see if there was anythin' nearby for the sick."
"Oh," Beth said and moved back as Maggie opened the door. "I'll just put 'em there anyway. She won't mind."
It didn't take long to get everyone in their new cells and dinner started for the children. Maggie had gone back into the quarantine area to be with Glenn, and some of the remaining Woodbury adults sat around the dining area and outside.
As she was feeding Judith, Merle came in and looked over the group. He spotted Beth and went to where she was sitting.
"Ya seen Carol?" He asked when he reached her.
Beth shook her head. "Maggie said she went with Rick a while ago. Where've ya been?"
"Rick wanted me to burn the bodies out back and then check Daryl's snares for game. I just got back."
"Oh, well, I'm sure they'll be back soon. It's almost dark."
As if on cue, the door opened and Daryl walked through, looking madder than she had ever seen him but he didn't stop and talk to her, instead he went straight to the hallway that led to where the sick were.
"I'm gonna go holler at him," Merle said then left without a second look.
It was a few minutes later that Rick walked through the door. He looked tired but caught Beth's eye and nodded his head toward his cell.
Once she was inside, he took Judith and sighed heavily. "Can ya get Daryl and Merle to meet me over in D?"
"Sure," she said and looked over him before asking, "Is she dead?" Her heart was hammering in her chest, and she didn't know if she could take losing any more people at that moment, especially Carol.
"No," he said and looked down at his boots. "Get 'em for me?"
She nodded and took off down the hallway. When she reached the quarantine area, she gasped and ran. Once she was through the broken visitation window, she palmed her knife and walked cautiously forward.
Everything had already been taken care of though. The walkers were put down, the sick were in their cells and Glenn was intubated.
Daryl leaned against one wall and Merle against the other, watching as Maggie pumped the small bag that was breathing for Glenn.
"What happened?"
"It's rainin' shit on us," Merle answered but didn't look her way.
She turned to Daryl, but he was rubbing his face with his hands.
"Rick wants to see y'all," she said and walked toward Daryl. "He's in D block."
"He say what he wants?" Merle asked.
"No." She reached out and touched Daryl's hand, and he down at her. "Ya okay?"
His eyes were tired, and he looked so defeated. "Just worn out."
He squeezed her hand and looked up at Merle. "Let's go."
"I should get Judith from him before y'all go," she said and started to walk with them, but Daryl shook his head. "Carl can look after her. Stay with your daddy."
She wondered just how close things had come when he had shown up in the sick bay, but she wasn't about to ask. Her dad was okay. Glenn had a better chance than before, and Maggie was still alive.
"Okay," she whispered. "I'll be here."
He looked like he wanted to say something else, but in the end, he dropped her hand and followed Merle.
Merle's head was running wild, and he charged Rick. Daryl stepped up between them and pushed him back.
"Just wait. Calm down," his brother tried to reason with him.
Rick went on about how Carol could survive on her own and that she would be fine, but all Merle could see were the tears that had fallen down her cheeks in that generator room. He knew she wasn't prepared to be on her own, especially not right now.
"That's her, but that ain't her," Daryl said. "She ain't a killer. She was tryin' to protect us."
Rick shook his head. "She can't make decisions like that. That puts us all at risk."
Merle brushed his brothers hands off his chest and squared his shoulders. "Ya don't know shit about her. Tomorrow, I'm gonna get her and bring her back."
"If ya go lookin' for her, ya stay gone," Rick said. "Can't have her here. I gotta tell Tyreese. It was either she comes back, and he kills her himself, or I let her get away. This wasn't done to hurt Carol. I'm tryin' to keep her safe."
"I'd like to see that mothafucker try and hurt her," Merle said to Rick. He tried to calm down his racing heart and get his hands to stop shaking, but it was no use.
Rick just shook his head. "Let's just give it the night. Then we'll talk to Tyreese, okay?"
Merle pushed past Rick and ran down the stairs and out into the yard. He wanted to scream or hit something, but in the end all he could do was close his eyes and let the pain fill his chest.