Hey all! Here's another chapter! I've been really trying to spoil you guys with new chapters since I was away for a while! Hope this is good! Enjoy! Warning: mentions of suicide. I do not own any of The Walking Dead.
Chapter 31
The sun was beginning to peak over the horizon, the tragic remains of Atlanta finally casting its dark shadow in the distance. Daryl was sucking down the Marlboro he had, remembering that he had found a pack of Parliaments in the van Merle had abandoned. He was anxious and wanted to get to this farm. He made his way down the ladder and banged on the RV door once he'd reached the bottom.
"Les' go. Got shit to do today," he yelled, waking everyone from their fitful slumbers. They needed to leave supplies for Sophia and then they were going to make their way to the Greene property. Daryl walked to his brothers' bike and snagged his bag walking to one of the many abandoned cars on the highway. He dumped its content on the hood of the car, organizing them so it wasn't just a mess of supplies.
As he was organizing the granola bars, Gatorades, and snacks he'd scavenged from the other cars, Carol approached his side. "You found all this?" she said. He forgot what her voice sounded like but could hear her wail clearly in his head. He nodded sharply. "It's nothin'" he said. He couldn't leave the highway without leaving the little girl something to eat or drink. She's probably starvin' he thought.
"Thank you, Daryl," she said sweetly, placing her bony hand onto his arm. He tensed slightly but she had already removed her hand before she was hopping onto the hood of the car.
"Lady, I just organized this," Daryl said with a slightly annoyed tone as he kept a Gatorade from falling off the side of the car.
"I have to leave her a message," she said as she started to write on the windshield of the car. "Dale had some window markers in the RV…from his grandkids," she said with a tinge of sadness in her voice. She finished her message and slid off the hood.
Daryl read her note, "Sophia – We'll come here for you every day. Love, Mommy". Daryl's heart constricted at the note, it was so sweet yet it was so sad. They had to find this little girl.
"You guys ready," Dale yelled from the door of the RV. Carol let out a sigh, a stray tear leaving her blue eyes.
"We'll find her," Daryl said confidently.
"I hope so," Carol said, crossing her arms and looking at the sign one more time. She knew they had to move but she was so scared she might be leaving her little girl behind. At the sound of the RV spluttering to life, Carol made her way to the RV as Daryl made his way to his bike. With the rev of the motor engine, the group made their way to the Greene's.
"Come on, Bea. Don't be such a baby. You wanted to hang out with us, didn't you?" her older brother taunted.
She kept pumping her legs and they were beginning to burn. The longer she pumped the more she could stall on actually jumping off. She wanted to show Carl she was brave though, she wanted to prove that she could hang with the big kids. She continued to pump her legs, wondering if anyone on the playground was watching her.
Her brothers started bringing her to Central Park once they were thirteen. So for the past year, Carl has been allowed to bring both her and Tanyon to the park. Just last week Tanyon was allowed to go out on his own to Central Park too. But that was it. They weren't allowed to go anywhere else alone.
"Just jump! I promise I'll catch you," Carl said, his arms waiting for her to jump.
"I can't" Blake yelled, starting to feel tears well up in her eyes. She was so high up and she felt she was going to launch out of the swing. "I'm scared," she cried.
"You can do it. I promise I'll catch you," Carl yelled. Blake stared into eyes similar to hers, green with specks of grey and blue. His smile was genuine. She wanted to make him proud and hang out with the big kids. Little Blake was only six, but it would mean everything to her to spend more time with her big brother.
Blake took a deep breath and as she reached the peak of her flight she launched off of the swing, her fall seeming to happen in slow motion. Carl took a few steps back and caught her in his arms; just as he promised.
"See, sis? I always got you," he said as he held her close.
Blake comforted herself with the smell of her older brother and the soothing touch of his words as she nestled her head into his flannel. After a moment she glanced up at her brother, blood was pouring from his mouth as he dropped her to the ground. The woodchips had become asphalt and the clean New York City air smelled like gunpowder, rotting flesh, and fear.
"I always had you, Blake," Carl screamed at her as he was being torn open by walkers. She stood up, stepping back in paralyzed fear as the dead swarmed her brothers body. They were ripping into his throat and stomach. "I always had you, where were you," he screamed before gurgles replaced his words.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Blake yelled, putting her hand up to her mouth, tears spewing from her eyes like a faucet. She was holding her gun, not knowing whether to drop to her knees and give up or to run.
"Bea!," her name rung out from the other direction. "Help!"
She spun around quickly to see her other brother, Tanyon. He was being surround by walkers. She could save one of them. She checked the chamber and saw her weapon was full. She could save him!
She sprinted towards her brother, gun raised. She aimed at a female walker closest to her brother and pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. She pulled the trigger again. Nothing.
"What?" she yelled. Looking at the gun in disbelief.
"BLAKE!" Tanyon screamed one last time before being over run.
Blake was rooted to the spot. She didn't know what to think. She didn't know what to do. She just stayed there. Nothing mattered anymore. The walkers got distracted and saw her standing not too far away. They started to scuffle over to her spot and she didn't budge. She wanted to die. She thought if she had offed herself earlier she wouldn't have to suffer such a horrible death or watch her brother's slow demises. She dropped her gun to the floor, her vision blurry from the tears. She should've done it years ago. Her brothers wouldn't have died if they didn't feel the obligation to protect her.
"Blake, come on!" a voice yelled from above. This was it, God was finally calling her home. She closed her eyes and looked up, preparing for a pain she never thought she would experience. She hoped it wasn't too slow
"Blake, open your eyes, hoodrat! Over here!" Blake snapped her eyes open again. Daryl? She thought to herself.
"The ladder, come on!" Daryl yelled over the roof top edge.
Blake looked back and saw the walkers were only a few feet away. She screamed as she started to run towards the ladder, the walkers on her heels. She kicked one away as she gripped the metal of the ladder. A walker was about to grab her leg when an arrow pierced its skull from above. Blake hustled up the ladder, more than relieved to see Daryl Dixon. She reached the roofs edge and went to stand, about to squeeze that redneck into the tightest hug imaginable. She looked up and Daryl wasn't the only person she saw. Daryl wasn't Daryl anymore, but a walker….her brothers, her parents, Rick, Andrea, Amy, Derek, Kris, Shane, Lori, Dale, T-Dog….they were all walkers.
"How many are you going to let down," Carl said as he walked toward her, his face rotting, his once white teeth cracked, a nasty bite mark right in his jugular where blood squirted every time he spoke. He was a male version of Blake. "Can you even protect them?" Carl asked, "Like you did me?"
Blake was terrified, ashamed….guilty. "I didn't mean too…..I wanted to save you. I didn't act in time," she said as she started to back up. Before she knew it she tripped over the ledge of the roof, falling into the walkers that killed her family. She tried to scream but nothing came out, the frenzied walkers ready to catch her as she plummeted. This was it, the ground wa-
She screamed, shooting up from her resting position and immediately howling in pain as she pulled her stitches. Her breathing was violent, her skin in a cold sweat.
"Blake! Bea! I'm right here," a voice said, trying to calm her. "It's fine, sis. You're ok," Tanyon spoke as he laid his sister back down on the bed. Tanyon looked at his sister's horrified and pale face, wondering what kind of dream she was having to wake up in such hysterics. His sister finally made eye contact with him, her eyes red, deep bags rooted under her eyes, her lips chapped.
"I'm not ok, Tan," she cried, "I'm not, ok" she said, sobbing. Tanyon immediately stood and grabbed her in his arms as his sister sobbed into his shirt. His heart broke at the pained wail of his little sister but also was relieved to hear her voice again. He soothed her by petting her head and letting her cry. It was all he could do.