Glen removed the chain with shaking hands. They were finally inside. Daryl stopped and didn't realize he's holding his breath while he was scanning the survivors. Maggie was supporting her father, who was exhausted after his narrow escape, and smiled at Daryl. Glen gaped at Daryl in disbelief and after a while his relieved laugh broke out. Rick took Carl, lifted him off the ground and kissed him on the head. Beth was holding Judith, who was roaring her lungs out. Beth was the first one to broke the tension. She took a step towards Daryl, got on her tiptoes and kissed Daryl on the cheek.

"Welcome back."

Daryl looked down at her in astonishment and felt the heat running into his cheeks. He grumbled and brushed his hand against his face. Beth was amused, she didn't expect anything else. She showed him Judith.

"Lil' Asskicker missed you too." Daryl carefully caressed baby's cheek and looked around. He couldn't see Carol and Alex.

'Carol and Axel stood in the courtyard when it all started,' Rick's words echoed in his ears again.

His throat went dry.

"Carol and Axel?" he didn't manage to say more.

Maggie bowed her head. Daryl didn't know what's happening to him but his head started spinning and his knees got weaker.

"Carol's OK but Alex is dead."

It took a while before Maggie's words started making sense to him.

"She's all right? And where the hell is she then?"

The world stopped spinning and suddenly the fear was taken over by anger. Why the hell she isn't with the rest of the group? They have barely survived a vicious attack and this crazy woman took a stroll all by herself! The thought was still going through his mind, when he suddenly saw her coming towards them. She held her head down but he could still saw smudged blood covering her neck and part of her face. When she spotted him, she stopped and looked at him in astonishment.

Before he managed to say anything, she took a few quick steps, stopped right in front of him and looked up. Daryl breathed a sigh of relief when he realized that the blood was not hers. She looked all right and uninjured. The blood on her face and neck must have been Axel's. He looked into her eyes and gulped. He saw mad anger and pain written all over her face and he didn't have a clue what to expect from Carol and such combination. What he surely didn't expect was a stinging pain after she slapped him hard with her right hand.

"Where the hell have you been?"

She didn't wait for an answer, turned on her heel and paced back into the prison. Daryl stroke his cheek for the second time within five minutes and shook his head in disbelief.

"Women," he grumbled.

Maggie wanted to comment to that but suddenly Merle appeared at the gate.

And the hell broke out.