A/N: Don't own (although I'd love to have my very own Norman Reedus :D) don't sue!
Lyrics are from 'Rain' by Patty Griffin
Rain
Chapter Twenty Four
It's hard to listen to a hard, hard heart
Beatin' close to mine
Poundin' up against the stone and steel
Walls that I won't climb
Sometimes a hurt is so deep, deep, deep
You think that you're gonna drown
Sometimes all I can do is weep, weep, weep
With all this rain fallin' down
Strange, how hard it rains now
Rows and rows of big dark clouds
When I'm holding on underneath this shroud
Rain
It's hard to know when to give up the fight
Some things you want will just never be right
It's never rained like it has tonight before
Now, I don't wanna beg you, baby
For something maybe you could never give
I'm not lookin' for the rest of your life
I just want another chance to live
Strange, how hard it rains now
Rows and rows of big dark clouds
When I'm holdin' on underneath this shroud
Rain
The afternoon sun was beating mercilessly down on every inch of her body as she sprawled on her front on the rather disgusting roof. In the few hours since Daryl and herself had seen those men, they'd done their best to make Rick's plan work. They'd removed the boards from all of the rooms. Each person was secreted in their assigned room, weapons at hand in case it came to that. Carol, Beth and Carl had taken a small supply of food and a gun for emergencies and had retreated to a sheltered clearing a little way into the trees where Cassidy could still see them from her vantage point on the roof. They'd been waiting in silence for nearly two hours and there was no sign of them yet. Through the scope of her rifle, Cassidy could see the tense faces appearing every few minutes in the dirty windows below her. Sweat trickled down her back and into her cleavage, running across her scalp and staining her shirt. It was unbearably hot, the roof offered no cover whatsoever but if she sat up she'd be visible from the tree line which would pretty much ruin her advantage.
Rick and Daryl were sitting in the centre of the block of rooms, working on the squirrels Daryl had caught. He'd gathered some more to back up their plan to pad their numbers. Cassidy shifted slightly until she could see them clearly through the scope. Every few seconds his gaze would flicker upwards, scan the surrounding area, then return to the squirrels. His dirty vest was sculpted to his back with sweat and she could see the muscles rigid with tension. She knew he hated presenting himself like a sitting duck, completely exposed apart from her protection, but their plan had more chance of succeeding if they looked unprepared for the attack. As if he sensed her scrutiny he cocked his head slightly in her direction. Movement caught her eye and she adjusted Vera. Three of the guys they'd seen were strolling in as if they owned the place. Rick and Daryl rose to meet them. Where were the other five?
Cassidy scanned the surrounding area. Eventually she saw a flicker of movement at he tree line behind the occupied rooms. She adjusted Vera until she could see them clearly. One of the men were scoping out the area. She found another behind the five rooms they had adapted. Three more were hunkered down between the trees waiting patiently for a signal. Cassidy felt her stomach twist uneasily. This wasn't what they'd expected. They'd expected them to barrel right in, not plan an ambush. She wiped her sweating palm on the back of her jeans. It could work. They could buy it and leave. Swivelling Vera she focused on the group. All five of them were bundles of tensed muscles. Daryl was silent, letting Rick do all the talking, exuding menace. She wished she could tell what they were saying, how it was going. Were they buying it?
She checked the others but they hadn't moved. She searched through the trees carefully, ensuring there were no others ready to spring. She swivelled back. They were still talking. She felt the hair rising up on her neck. Something was wrong. Rick should have signalled the others to show themselves by now. She focused in on the clearing where the others were hiding. They were bunched together tightly, their lips moving as they reassured each other. What was going on? Her bad feeling was getting stronger. She stared through the crosshairs at Daryl, then Rick. Rick was still talking, his gun was still tucked into his holster. She needed a sign, anything to indicate what was going on.
She watched Daryl. She knew him, knew his expressions and his tells. Rick signalling her would be glaringly obvious. She started counting, checking each group of men at regular intervals. They fidgeted and snapped at each other but didn't move. She felt wariness creeping up along her neck. Something was definitely going on. Where was that other guy? Her heart was fluttering like a trapped bird in her chest, she wasn't used to having others relying on her. Rick held up his hands plaintively, clearly saying something entreating. Daryl was fingering his knife, his brow drawn down and his frown glaringly obvious even from her distance.
The closest guy took a threatening step towards Rick. The Sheriff held his ground although his grip tightened fractionally on the handle of his gun. Cassidy scoped the other two. Both of them were eyeing Daryl warily and she felt a small flush of pride around her navel. Just as she was about to check on the other guys again, she saw a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. Searching rapidly she managed to locate the missing guy darting around like a jack-rabbit. As he paused, glancing around the corner and peering at the five men grouped in the centre of the hotel rooms. Silver glinted in the bright sunlight and she felt goosebumps prickling all over her bare skin.
He had a gun with a silencer. He could creep up on them and they'd be dead before they even figured out what had happened. She weighed up her options. Rick was still trying to talk the other three around. The group in the trees were still shuffling from foot to foot, waiting for something. The guy who had been scoping it all out had vanished. He must be the signal-man. She searched the tree-line on a hunch until she found him crouching in the upper branches watching the five men like a hawk. The guy with the silencer was getting closer, he was almost close enough to shoot accurately.
She took a breath, counting her heartbeats until her mind was completely clear.
"Sorry, Rick." She muttered.
She searched for the signal man but he was gone. It was only the faintest shadow crossing her scope that saved her from the heel of a gun to her temple. She rolled away, as the signal man struck out again with a grunt. She was at a disadvantage, sprawled on her back as he flailed above her. She drew her foot back and slammed it as hard as she could into his crotch. He opened his mouth in a silent scream, staggering backwards on unsteady feet. He lurched for her in a furious haze, one hand gripping her neck in an iron grip. She felt his fingernails digging in, her delicate skin breaking against the pressure. The furious expression only had a split second to falter to surprise as she gripped his chin and the back of his neck and snapped sharply. The hand around her neck spasmed and then went slack.
He landed with a thud on the roof besides her but she was already scrambling back towards Vera. No one had noticed the mostly silent struggle. She found the man with the gun again and he crumpled to the ground in silence. The group in the clearing were next, one emitted a surprised grunt as the other dropped and the third one leapt to his feet before folding over like a puppet with the strings cut. She focused in on the three still arguing with Rick. They were completely alone now, just the three of them. The belligerent leader had a smug grin on his face but the mousy one besides him was squinting into the distance with narrowed eyes. She frowned. His eyes were darting suspiciously, he was searching for the signal man!
He dropped without a sound, the other two men shouted in surprise and then anger. Panicked shouts were ringing out as they realised their back up wasn't coming. Guns were drawn but Rick and Daryl shot them first and they landed heavily in an ungainly pile on top of their fallen friend. Rick peered down at them with an inscrutable expression on his face for a moment, then he looked up and glared at her. She sighed, turning away to dismantle Vera.
"All disposed of?" She asked over her shoulder, sensing Daryl's presence behind her.
He grunted but didn't reply. He stood behind her in silence as she carefully cleaned all of the parts and tucked Vera into her case. He was still leaning patiently against the wall, arms crossed watching her, when she locked the case and put it away.
"Did you need me to help?" She frowned, confused by the serious look on his face.
"We chucked 'em in with the walkers." Since this didn't answer her question she didn't reply. "Come here." He ordered.
Too surprised to argue she found herself rising from the bed and moving to stand before him. His hands encircled her face, forcing her chin up. She was trembling and she had been since she'd killed those men. And he'd known that. His hands were warm and rough against her skin. He was staring at her as if he could bore a hole straight into her thoughts. She knew he was looking for something, some explanation for why the shootings had affected her this way. And honestly she didn't have an answer to give him. She had killed people more innocent than those men and it had never affected her. She slipped out of his grasp, leaning around him. He growled questioningly.
"I'm putting my hat on the door knob."
"Why?"
She closed and locked the door.
"Do I have to spell it out for you, Dixon? How disappointing."
He opened his mouth then closed it, frowning at her. She stripped him of his shirt while he was still groping for something to say, sliding her small hands over his sweat and dust streaked torso. She nuzzled against his neck and inhaled deeply, sucking in gulps of his scent. He slipped his hands up under her shirt, pressing gently against each rib until she shivered. He lifted her up, cradling her tightly against him until every inch of their bodies were squashed against each other. He tossed her onto the bed rather unceremoniously and she giggled. She'd never tell him but she loved it when he got a little macho like this; throwing her around as if she weighed nothing and she really was just a waify girl looking to be rescued.
He was pleasantly heavy on top of her as he attacked her neck with vigour, struggling to get her shirt off at the same time. She gasped when the thin material came loose in the midst of a loud tearing noise. He grinned at her, flashing his teeth, his eyes glittering brightly in the half light of the room. She traced her fingers over the muscles in his back, sliding them under the band of his jeans and dragging her nails lightly over the delicate flesh swelling there. He shuddered, pressing his pelvis a little more firmly into hers.
A voice called through the door, followed by a tentative series of knocks.
"Fuck off!" Daryl growled in his meanest voice, tossing one of her boots at the door for good measure.
Cassidy giggled as Glenn beat a noisy hasty retreat, sounding like a herd of elephants trying to escape.
"What took you two so long? I thought you were going to hibernate in that room for winter." Lochie grumbled the instant Cassidy made a starry-eyed completely satisfied entrance back into the world.
"I'm thinking about it." She sighed when she saw the marks on Lochie's lip where she'd been chewing on it worriedly. "I don't want to know what crisis has hit now."
Lochie stuck her tongue out at her, examining her from head to toe. She'd only pulled on her jeans and, since hers was a mess of ripped fabric somewhere on the floor, Daryl's discarded shirt. Her boots weren't properly laced up and her hair was a bird's nest of tangles. Lochie pursed her lips.
"You whore." She announced succinctly and Cassidy rolled her eyes.
They were still squabbling like teenagers when Rick marched past looking as if he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He avoided Cassidy's eye and she frowned.
"He's a bit upset." Lochie explained pointlessly, watching his retreating back and gnawing on her lip again.
"He'll get over it." Cassidy stretched and yawned, wanting very much just to retrieve the water she'd emerged for and then crawl back into her warm waiting bed currently containing a deliciously naked Daryl Dixon.
Lochie seemed to be completely lost in her reverie so she left her to it. It was almost a full five minutes later when Lochie finally realised that Cassidy had gone and she was alone staring into space. She glared at the once again closed door. Everyone was busy, either sorting through the food Cassidy and Daryl had recovered or working on the hotel. She couldn't see Rick though. Lori and Carl were cleaning bedding in one of the bathrooms but no Rick. Working on a hunch, she wandered a little way into the trees. Rick was sitting near where they'd burnt the bodies, hunched over staring into the distance. He leapt a mile into the air when she touched his shoulder lightly.
"Sorry." She sat down on the scrubby grass next to him. "It had to be done."
He cocked his head towards her, furrowing his brow.
"Those creeps you're beating yourself up over." She clarified. "If any of them had gotten away they'd have come back. Who knows what they'd have done." She shivered at the thought. "I know you can't forget about it but at least cut yourself some slack." She nudged him with her shoulder. "Think of me as the bad angel sitting on your shoulder."
His lips tweaked despite himself and she grinned. Sighing she lay back, peering at the sun peeking through the branches.
"Do you remember when we could lie here and look at the sky without being afraid of becoming lunch?"
Rick shrugged.
"I never had much time for that kind of thing."
"Oh come on, Sheriff. Before you became a badge I'm sure you had plenty of time for it. I bet you had plenty of girls looking up at the backs of trees too."
Rick flushed and laughed awkwardly, trying to wave it off.
"You're too modest, Sheriff!"
She continued to tease him until his face was redder than a stop sign and she finally relented. She glanced at him after a few moments of silence, hoping that she wasn't imagining that his face was a little lighter than it had been. He really did take too much onto his shoulders.
"So how are-" She swallowed, the words sticking in her throat. She really didn't want to know but she couldn't be his friend and only talk about the problems she could deal with. "How are things going with Lori?"
He averted his gaze, quite clearly not willing to talk about it.
"I know she's being difficult." Now she was choking on her words because she couldn't say what she actually meant without offending him. "She just needs time."
He scrubbed his hands over his face, his palms scratching loudly against his stubble.
"When was the last time you slept?" He shrugged. "Here."
She patted the grass besides her, indicating for him to lie down. He looked at her uncertainly but she repeated the motion.
"I'll keep watch. It's comfier out here on this grass than on that floor she's got you on."
She held up a hand to stem the flow of excuses, pushing his shoulder down gently but firmly. He looked completely bemused but he found himself obeying, the lure of a few hours of blissful ignorance too tempting to ignore.
"I'll just rest for a few minutes." He said firmly, leaning back until he felt the body heat of her thigh warm besides his cheek.
LadyLecter47 – you have to hope that eventually she'll get what's coming to her. Cow. Hope you like the update :)
XxNeverxLosexHopexX – thanks
JDMlvr1 – Rick is just too cute, he always looks like he needs a hug.
Katara Melody Cullen – thanks