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Chapter 6

Kill or be killed

Daryl was out the prison gates before anyone could stop him, crossbow slung over his back and buck knife strapped to his side. He found their tracks almost immediately. Looking at the ground, he stopped to determine which way they had gone.

Rick and Glenn stopped at his side, guns in hand ready to follow him into the woods. Daryl could see the panic all over Glenn's face; it was clear that Maggie had been keeping her training from him also.

"They went this way," Daryl pointed. They nodded following him into the woods and hoping the women were alright. Daryl had been tracking them for no longer than ten minutes when he realised there was now more tracks then there should be. He stopped abruptly.

"What's wrong?" Rick asked worried

"They're not alone anymore, they have geeks following them."

"You sure?," Glenn asked hoping Daryl was wrong. But when both Daryl and Rick turned to look at him, he realized just how stupid his question had been. When was Daryl Dixon ever wrong when it came to tracking?

"This way."

They moved deeper into the woods. They had only been walking another five minutes at most when they saw Carol, Maggie and Beth, their backs against each other, weapons in hand with eight walkers around them. Daryl felt panic, fear and dread smash into him like a tidal wave. He moved to run but what he saw next stopped him dead in his tracks.

All three women moved at once, both Maggie and Beth went right in for the kill stabbing one walker each straight in the brain. Maggie backhanded one that lunged for her and pulled a second knife from her waistband. She stabbed the walker that had lunged and another walker in the head.

Beth and Maggie were all about the quick kill, but Carol seemed like she wanted to play a little. He could see the smile on her face as she killed the first walker, knocked the legs out from the second, and kicked the third in the side of the head. Daryl's jaw dropped in shock. "How the hell did she know how to move like that?," he couldn't help but think. It was like watching something out of a martial arts movie.

"She is good isn't she?," he heard Andrea's voice. Turning to look at her and Michonne, he glared at them.

"Are you out of your mind to bring them out here?," he hissed his voice low and angry.

"Ssshhh watch," Michonne whispered pointing back at the women. He saw that Maggie had killed three walkers, Beth had killed two and they were both now standing up on higher ground watching Carol deal with the last two.

She felt strong, powerful; she knew she could have killed the last two walkers quickly but she was having too much fun. These monsters had taken her little girl from her but she would make sure nothing like that happened to her again. They weren't getting her and she would make sure they never got the only person left on this earth that she loved.

Daryl.

She decided it was time to stop playing and put these things to rest. One was up and heading for her again. Grasping it around the neck with one hand, she plunged her knife into his skull and let its body fall to the woods' floor.

Daryl felt his heart pounding in his ears when he saw the geek get up and come up behind her. "Look out!," his mind screamed but for some reason the words froze in his throat, choking him. She turned fast though, something silver slipping from out of her coat sleeve. He realized as she spun it was a long blade, possibly a katana like Michonne's.

Slicing through the walker's neck, it fell to the ground, head rolling near her feet. She looked for a moment as its mouth continued an attempt to snap at her, and she brought the long blade down fast thrusting it through its skull, officially putting it to rest. They watched as the three women jumped around excitedly, hugging each other and Daryl felt his blood boil.

"Carol Peletier, are you out of your god damn mind," he bellowed causing all three women to look up surprised.

"Busted," Carol muttered to the other two women. "Daryl, what are you doing out here?," she asked trying to sound casual.

"Looking for your dumb ass," he hissed, getting in her face.

"Maggie, you lied to me, you said you weren't feeling well," Glenn said, moving to Maggie's side trying to assert himself like Daryl was.

"I'm sorry are you my father? My husband?," she snapped and Glenn knew right away he was in trouble. Maggie was strong-willed and stubborn, he should have known better than to come at her that way.

"Um, no," he stammered.

"Right, so until you are I don't have to answer to you. If I wanna go into the woods and kill walkers, I will," she snapped and stormed off with Beth following her closely.

"You sure told her," Daryl laughed at the young guy.

Glenn threw Daryl a dirty look before following Maggie and calling out to her, "Yeah well your father wants a word with you when you get back to the prison." Maggie spun to face him.

"You told my dad?"

"He told me," he replied smugly, crossing his arms across his chest and watching her huff as she stormed off again. Daryl and Rick looked at each other in a silent understanding. Rick lead Andrea and Michonne back to the prison so Daryl and Carol could talk alone. Once they were out of ear shot Daryl turned to face her.

"What were you thinking? Were you thinking at all?," he spat at her.

"I was thinking I wanted to learn to defend myself, you know that thing you said you were going to teach me," she replied, the annoyance clear in her voice as she moved past him. She stepped over the fallen walker bodies and up the slight hill, moving towards the prison, but he was hot on her tail stepping in front of her and forcing her to stop.

"Oh so this is my fault now?," he hissed.

"It's no one's fault Daryl but I refuse to be a burden any longer."

"I told you, you're not a burden. You do as much as anyone in the group," he sighed.

"Yeah cooking and cleaning, tending to people's wounds but I'm useless when a walker stumbles upon us, I mean what do you want me to do throw a powdered egg mixture at them? See if they need their clothes washed?," she replied sarcasm thick in her voice.

"Carol we all have our strengths and weaknesses."

"Yeah and I don't want that to be mine," she replied. Taking a deep breath she continued, "I'm tired of screaming in the corner when a herd blows through, of hiding behind everyone else while they risk their lives to save mine, I'm done Daryl."

"Don't I get a say in this?," he snapped and she felt anger take hold. Who the hell did he think he was?

"A say in this?," she hissed. "We have gone over this Daryl I'm not your responsibility, not your wife, not your girlfriend, not your sister and not your god damn problem, so no you don't get a say in this," she snapped. Her words cut him deep, he knew she wasn't his girlfriend or his wife; hell they hadn't even kissed yet but he loved her, he wanted her.

She went to push past him but he stopped her. He wasn't sure what he was going to say or do, all he knew is he wanted nothing more than to kiss her but he couldn't seem to move. Licking his lips, he was moments from moving in to place his lips on hers when she pushed him to the ground with a strength he never knew she had.

She stepped forward thrusting her katana blade up through the open mouth of a walker and out the top of its head. How had he not heard it coming up behind him? But he already knew he had been distracted, and their arguing must have attracted it. Pulling the blade free from the walker, it fell to the ground next to Daryl. He looked from the walker to her, stunned speechless.

She had just saved his life.

"You're welcome!," she smiled smugly storming off towards the prison. He was still speechless for a moment before he finally spoke.

"Yeah well my ass wouldn't have needed saving if you weren't out here acting like some sort of walker ninja," he yelled at her retreating form. She made no attempt to stop and instead chose to ignore his words.

He knew she had heard him; he had seen her back stiffen slightly but she didn't stop. Looking down at the walker she had just put down to save his life, he sighed. He got up off the ground and brushed himself off; he just knew she was going to be more of a handful from now on.