Big thank you to everyone reading and reviewing, I promised to set warnings as I go as things are getting a little dark (for a time) so WARNING: Violence, language and big angst (please don't hate me ) Huge thanks to Jaded79 for going over this chapter for me. So please let me know your thoughts

Chapter 18

Leaving me behind.

Carol couldn't believe it; he had left her, he had left them both. She felt cold and sick at the thought, at the look on his face as Rick had dragged him away. She looked over at Michonne who was sitting calmly facing ahead. How was she so calm? Carol's insides were jumping around like crazy and she just wanted to scream.

She could handle being chased by a herd of walkers into the woods in the dead of night, but not this. Walkers were predictable, if they got hold of you, you knew what they were going to do to you. But this was different, they were people and people were unpredictable; they could be cruel on so many different levels, Ed had shown her that.

Her heart was pounding and her hands were sweaty, and all she could think about was the little life that was growing inside her belly. Was the baby okay? She could feel dull cramping in her lower stomach and felt worry flood through her.

Michonne must have been able to sense her concern cause she shifted closer to her grasping her hand. She looked up at Michonne trying not to look scared, but clearly Michonne could see her fear and the woman smiled gently trying to calm her. They were only driving ten minutes when they came to a stop. Carol could see someone opening the gate as they drove onto what looked like an army base.

"Don't show them your fear, whatever you do stay strong, be brave, Carol," Michonne whispered to her. She nodded a silent promise before they were both grabbed by the hair and jerked out of the car. Carol refused to scream even though the pain was raw and real. The Governor came to stand in front of them.

"Lock them in the cells," he ordered before storming off. They dragged the two reluctant women into a holding area with about ten jail cells. Most were empty except a few that held some women and… "Oh my god Merle!" Carol's mind screamed recognising one of the prisoners before they opened the cell next to his and tossed them both inside, slamming the cell door closed and leaving them.

"Merle," Carol spoke up, looking through the bars of the cell at Merle. His head jerked up at the sound of his name. He was skinnier, and had fresh scars on his face and arms.

"You're the woman with the young kid right? From the camp?," he spoke moving closer to the bars.

"Yes, Daryl, he's been looking for you," she told him.

"Is he okay, safe?" his voice desperate.

"Yes," she whispered still not able to curve the betrayal she still felt.

"This is Daryl's brother?" Michonne spoke up; Daryl had spoken of Merle before on their hunts. Carol nodded before moving away from the bars and across to the other side of the cell. Curling up into a ball on the cold ground she tried to get some rest; she was going to need it if she hoped to get out of here alive.

"I don't think I remember you," Merle whispered not wanting to disturb Carol's rest.

"No, I'm new to the group but I hunt with your brother a lot, he misses you."

"But he is safe? He's alright?"

"Yeah he's fine… he was with us when we were taken by the Governor, we had a child and a heavily pregnant woman with us and he threatened to unleash walkers on them if Daryl didn't let him take me and Carol," she explained to him.

"He had no choice," Merle nodded understanding.

"But he'll come for us, he promised he wouldn't stop till he found her," Michonne informed him nodding over at Carol's now sleeping form.

"Why would he promise to find her?" Merle asked confused.

"They're engaged and she's pregnant with his baby… about nine weeks I think."

"Oh god," Merle gasped, worried his baby brother had finally found a woman who he loved and who loved him, was starting a family, and it was taken from him. He knew he had to do something to make sure she survived this so when Daryl came, it wasn't just to retrieve a body.

Carol woke aching all over after sleeping on the hard cold ground. She sat up looking over to see Michonne was awake, still looking straight ahead. Merle was curled on the ground in his cell asleep.

"How long was I asleep?" she asked groaning at her aching limbs.

"All night, the sun is not long up," she replied.

"Did you sleep?"

"On and off, I wanted to keep an eye on you," she informed her.

"Michonne, you need your rest," Carol sighed.

"I rest once I get you out of here," Carol smiled softly at the woman. She didn't know Michonne well but she knew enough to trust her with her life.

Carol could still feel the ache in her lower back but noticed that the cramps in her lower stomach had stopped. She needed to know. Standing, she turned her back to Michonne and a now awake Merle, slipping her hand inside her underwear.

"What are you doing?" Michonne asked confused, but when Carol turned back around two finger tips red with blood she had her answer. "Carol," she whispered her guts twisting in knots.

"The baby is gone," Carol cried sliding back to the floor.

"You don't know that for sure," Merle spoke up "The blood could be from anything."

"I've been having stomach cramps since he hit me in town… the baby is gone," she explained tears slipping from her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. "I failed to keep another child safe in this world," she sobbed into her hands, feeling the weight of losing another child to this cruel world.

"This is not your fault, not by a long shot." Michonne tried to comfort her but when they heard footsteps enter the room, Carol's head jerked up. Merle scurried back in his cell like he was trying to become invisible and Carol knew if Merle Dixon was that scared of these men, she was in serious trouble. They jerked open their cell door.

"You come with us," they demanded pointing at Carol.

"No take me instead," Michonne spoke, stepping forward only to be backhanded for her troubles. She fell to the ground as they moved to kick her but Carol jumped up standing in front of her trying to protect the woman.

"No please, I'll come, just stop," she begged. They nodded grabbing her arms hard and jerking her out of the cell.

"Be strong, Carol and remember everything is a potential weapon." Michonne yelled. Carol could only nod as they slammed the cell door closed and dragged her from the room.

They had led Carol into a room. It had a desk in the centre and a cage in the corner that held two walkers. When the governor had come in, he had chained her to the desk and stripped her to her underwear, he spent the better part of the day torturing her for the location of her group's camp, cutting her, burning her, whipping her legs with a thick leather belt but no matter what he did and no matter how betrayed she felt, she refused to tell him and put the group in danger.

After a few hours, he left her there chained and near naked sobbing in pain from the cuts, burns and welts that littered her body. She prayed he would just end it, she was never going to talk and she had nothing left to live for. Her baby was gone and the man she loved had abandoned her, she just wanted to die.

Night was starting to fall and she was starting to shiver, cold, alone, hungry and badly injured; she wished her hands were free so she could try and warm her skin. She looked around the room noting her bow and knife sat in the corner but she knew she would never reach them, then she saw pens and pencils that sat on the corner of the large desk she was tied to. "Everything is a potential weapon." Michonne's words echoed in her head, if she could just get her hands free.

Her thoughts where cut short when the Governor entered the room with one of his men. The other man entered the room but kept to the side; it looked like he was hiding in the corner of the room near the door. The Governor moved, untying her and jerking her to her feet, wrapping one arm around her waist and the other around her neck, a knife grazing her skin.

"Looks like your boyfriend and his people found us," he whispered into her ear. "We're just going to wait for him to come to us, and then the real fun will begin," he laughed in her ear filling her with fear and dread. She just hoped and prayed that they would get out of this alive, as angry as she was if she had to watch Daryl die, she knew she would never being able to go on.