Everyone gets a bit more information to help their plans to take down Negan come together, but it's not all good news.

"Another little piece of my heart..."

Oh, come on, come on, come on, come on
Didn't I make you feel like you were the only man? Yeah.
An' didn't I give you nearly everything that a woman possibly can?
Honey, you know I did
And, and each time I tell myself that I, well, I think I've had enough
But I'm gonna, gonna show you baby, that a woman can be tough.

I want you to come on, come on, come on, come on and take it
Take another little piece of my heart now, baby
Oh, oh, break it
Break another little bit of my heart now, darling, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Oh, oh, have a
Have another little piece of my heart now, baby
Well you know you got it, if it makes you feel good
Oh, yes indeed...
-Janis Joplin - Piece of My Heart

Sanctuary: Savior's Compound

When she felt the hand on her arm Carol grabbed the scalpel she had stolen from the Clinic from under her pillow and hissed out a warning, poised to use it on whoever had crept into her bedroom. A strong hand slid down and grasped her wrist, keeping her from using the small sharp weapon and she struggled against it.

"Get off!" she hissed.

"Shhh—it's me."

Carol immediately recognized the husky whisper, blinking in the darkened room to make out the form of the man kneeling beside her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked quietly, afraid for him, "If Negan finds out—"

"You sent me a note." Daryl whispered with a slow grin, holding out the piece of cloth on which she'd written her short message.

"The note said it was too dangerous for you to be here and to go home!" Carol said, frustrated with him for putting himself in such danger, "Negan will kill you if he—"

"Negan just made me your new body guard." Daryl interrupted her.

Carol looked at him in disbelief and then couldn't help herself; laughing softly, she flung her arms around him in a crushing embrace, burying her face in the hollow between his neck and shoulder as his arms came around her.

"Oh my god...I don't know who is more insane, you or him..." Carol finally sighed, resting the side of her face against his shoulder.

"I'm his limp dick harem eunuch." Daryl explained and when she looked shocked, he elaborated. "Carson spilled the beans on my physical results."

For once his haunted past had actually worked in their favor.

"He prides himself on being a quick judge of character." Carol said, pursing her lips in distaste. "He took one look at me and made me his number one wife."

"He didn't..." Daryl began, a look of pain crossing his face as he held her close, his guilt at not being able to keep her from being taken by Negan and fear for what he may have done to her already apparent, "He hasn't ... hurt you? You're okay?"

"I'm okay." she responded, unsure of how to answer his first question. Every time Negan gently but possessively touched her he hurt her; every time he claimed the child she carried as his own she wanted to kill him; every time he kissed her she imagined the blood spurting hot against her hands as she cut his throat...

Carol leaned back and took both of his hands and placed them on her belly.

"We're okay." she told him and smiled when they both felt the baby move, kicking or punching up into Daryl's grip.

The series of emotions that moved across Daryl's face were heartbreaking for Carol to see; relief, amazement, joy, abject terror and fear for them all and then just pure love. She lifted her hands to his face, pulling him in for a comforting, reassuring kiss.

Daryl clung to her like a drowning man; his strong arms her sanctuary as he wrapped them around her and deepened the kiss. The passion that flared between them took them both by surprise.

"You can't stay." Carol breathed regretfully, resting her forehead against his after reluctantly breaking the kiss.

"I know." Daryl said, sounding resigned, his right hand rubbing soothingly up and down her back, "I was only supposed to check that you were still resting."

"After this? Unlikely..." Carol drawled and sighed, turning her head and rubbing her cheek against his jaw in a cat-like gesture.

Daryl gave a little snort that after everything she could still tease him. He turned his face so he could give her another brief kiss and then moved his hands up to cup her face, focusing her attention on him.

"We'll get outa here." he promised, his voice low and sincere, "All of us."

"Have you seen the others?" she asked him, "Besides Erin?"

"No—are they all together?" Daryl asked, releasing her face and dropping his hands, "Carl too?"

"Carl?" Carol looked stricken, "He took Carl too? When?"

"We think he hid in one of their trucks—he was missing after you all left." Daryl told her.

"I haven't seen him," Carol said, shaking her head in dismay, trying to recalculate her plans to factor in both Daryl and Carl. Getting all of them out of Sanctuary had just become that much harder...

"He could be in hiding, or maybe dropped off the truck before they came in here—maybe he's on the outside waiting with Aaron, Michonne and Morgan." Daryl said hopefully.

"And Rick?" Carol asked, she couldn't imagine Rick not coming after his son.

"No—he took everyone else to Hilltop." Daryl said.

"They left Alexandria?" Carol frowned in surprise, trying to understand why they'd leave their home. "They couldn't fix the gate?"

"No time—didn't know when Negan would come back." Daryl shook his head no. "Safer to head for a secure site."

A soft knock on the door, three distinct taps interrupted them.

"Gotta go—that's Erin's signal—someone's comin'." Daryl said, starting to rise, but Carol stopped him with her hand grasping his forearm.

"I have to..." she paused, searching his face for his understanding of what she had to let Negan do, the liberties she had been forced to allow the other man: the kisses and touches.

"I know." Daryl sighed. "I don't like it...no...I hate it... but I know."

"And you know I love you." Carol said fiercely, pulling him close and hugging him one last time.

"I know." Daryl said, kissing her forehead before pulling away. He looked down at her sleepwear and gave her a corner of the mouth smile, "Nice shirt."

When he slipped out her door, Carol pulled Daryl's flannel shirt tighter around her.

"We need a plan." Carl said stubbornly, refusing the soup that Dwight had brought him. Sitting in the storage container all day he'd been so bored he'd actually been reading the stack of old magazines that had been stored there. The Playboys hidden at the bottom of the pile of Popular Mechanics had made him blush in adolescent interest and then sort of feel sorry for the girls... the women inside. The women he knew were strong, good fighters, valued for their contributions to the group, not how decorative or sexual they were.

"You need to eat first." the bowman ordered, "Pass out from hunger you're no good to anybody."

"Are my friends okay?" Carl persisted.

"Your boy's got himself a new job watching over your mom." Dwight shoved the thermos of soup at the boy again and this time Carl was too stunned to refuse it.

"What?"

"Personal bodyguard to the Queen, though if you ask me she's got more than enough brass to take care of herself." Dwight said, huffing out an impressed breath. Digging in his jacket pocket he pulled out a spoon and handed that to Carl as well.

"Carol's smart—she'll have a way for us to take out Negan." Carl agreed, handing him a thinly folded piece of paper and then setting the spoon down on his thigh and pulling the cup off the thermos so he could unscrew the lid. "You need to tell her I'm here and give her this so I can see what she wants me to do."

"You got a lot of faith in your friends, don't you?" Dwight asked, watching the kid pour out the rabbit and vegetable stew into the cup while he stuffed the note into his dirty vest pocket.

"You got any crackers?" was all Carl said in reply.

Dwight snorted and tossed him a baggie of matzo, the thin unleavened bread made in the Sanctuary kitchens for the patrols to carry along with jerky as supplies.

"Tell her it's from the kid in the hat." Carl said, pointing at the note, talking around the big bite of stew in his mouth.

Hilltop

"You think that he's crazy then?" Abraham asked, his cheek bulging with a wad of chewing tobacco he'd traded some apples for, standing leaning against the wall of the room in the big house where they had gathered for the meeting. He, Eugene, Claire, Eric, Heath, Rick, both Hilltop doctors, Maggie and Jesus sat or stood around the meeting room, used as a classroom during the day.

"Not crazy—eccentric." Jesus said, looking a bit uncomfortable. He'd known the leader of the other nearby settlement for a couple of years. A formidable fighter, he was also way over the top in the way he ran things there, like a royal court.

"You said he keeps a fucking tiger as a pet?" Rick asked, leaning forward in his chair, "Sounds pretty damned crazy to me."

"Kingdom's our best bet as an ally." Maggie argued. "With their numbers we'll have almost as many fighters as Negan does."

"Ezekiel is willing to meet with us, Rick." Jesus said, looking at the other man "We need this."

"It has to be on his turf? They can't come here?" Rick asked, worried about having more of their best warriors off on another risky mission. He keenly felt the absence of Daryl, Carol and Michonne. Even with his pacifist tendencies, Morgan was a good man to have in a throw down.

"How about a neutral site?" Claire asked, "That's traditional for negotiations."

"Ezekiel doesn't like to leave his people." Jesus told them. "It's always been just me going there to talk with him."

"We have other people still out there." Eric reminded them impatiently, "Whatever we do, we have to consider them." He'd tried to keep silent about his fears, knowing he'd likely just be seen as a worried spouse, but almost a quarter of their number were either being held by or waiting near Negan's compound, in constant danger.

"I'm sorry, but this is bigger than that, Eric." Maggie said. "If we're going to have a snowball's chance in hell of taking Negan out, it's going to have to be a coordinated attack, and soon, before he realizes what we're doing."

"How do you know he's doesn't already know?" Heath asked Maggie, his face coldly skeptical. "You already have one man in the bastard's pocket—you trust all your people?"

"The plan stays in this room." Maggie said quickly. "No one else knows. As far as they're concerned, Jesus is back to reconnaissance and recruiting. Rick and a couple of his people make a trip to start work surveying the damage so they can start repairing the gates at Alexandria."

"As cover." Rick nodded. "Kingdom's about the same distance."

"In the opposite direction," Abe said dryly before spitting out a dark stream of chew into the Sweetwater beer can he held. Denise made a disgusted face at him and Abe grunted and winked at her.

"Jesus will be my proxy—I can't leave in case Negan shows up here—I've got to stick close to Gregory." Maggie said. "Let Jesus arrange the meet with Ezekiel and then we go from there."

"We'll need tactical info on Sanctuary." Abraham sighed, including Eugene in his gaze and then looking at Jesus. "Weaknesses, strengths..."

"I'll get you all the stuff I have." Jesus agreed. "Aaron and his bunch will have even more—we need to hook up with them too."

"We need to come up with a way to take the Saviors out for good." Maggie said. "We've seen the pure evil that leaders like Negan can do..." she'd lost her father to Blake, her sister to Dawn at Grady and Glenn to this latest monster. It was no wonder Maggie was out for blood.

"But we're going to get our people out of there before we do anything, right?" Eugene asked, speaking for the first time. Tara and Rosita were the best friends he'd ever had, Enid and Carl were just kids, and then there were Erin and Daryl and Carol and their baby—Maggie couldn't be suggesting they just let them all die?

Maggie and Rick's eyes met. The burden of decision would fall on them. God help them if they made the wrong one.

Sanctuary: Savior's Compound

"She's beautiful isn't she?" Negan asked softly from behind him, coming to a stop beside Daryl, standing in the doorway of Carol's room. Both of their attention was focused on Carol who was sitting up in bed, propped up on several pillows, waiting patiently while Dr. Carson took her pulse.

Daryl gave a little noncommittal shrug of one shoulder and tightened his grip on his crossbow.

"They say pregnant women glow—'n all those extra hormones give 'em a soft sweet taste—taking her mouth is like sippin' fine wine..." Negan said with satisfaction, bringing his fingers to his lips, "Ambrosia."

Daryl felt himself go cold, the hairs on his nape rising.

"And their big titties... they got that extra little bounce when you're inside of them too." the other man chuckled conspiratorially, giving Daryl a nudge, "Gotta fuck 'em from behind when they're this far along though..." he mused and sighed.

At that Daryl jerked his head to Negan, his eyes angry slits.

"Oh, no, not her." Negan frowned a bit petulantly, "Strict orders from Carson. She's havin' trouble holding on to this one. So I'm letting her be for the duration." he sounded extremely proud of himself that he wasn't going to let his lusts possibly kill a woman and child.

Daryl nodded, afraid to speak for fear he'd be unable to stop himself from eviscerating the other man.

"If she survives the delivery though, I'll put another one in there soon as I can." he chuckled again, "She's gorgeous and fertile and tough 'n I bet she's a spectacular fuck..."

With that parting comment the ruler of Sanctuary went to the bed to act the solicitous spouse, holding Carol's hand and pressing a gentle kiss to the back of it. Playing her part, she smiled at him benignly, but as soon as Negan turned away to speak to Carson she let her eyes rise to meet Daryl's. The fury she saw banked there made her give him a little frown of warning.

Daryl forced his face into a blank mask, feeling a piece of his heart break at what they were both being forced to do to survive.

Negan's plans for Carol are the same as for any of his wives, but she's impressed him enough that he's willing to bide his time, unknowingly giving her would be rescuers more time to plan. Now if Daryl can just keep from losing his shit on Negan-we know he's a patient tracker and hunter-but with Carol and their son's lives on the line that's asking a lot of him.

Yay Ezekiel-he's a fun character in the comics, and yes, he really does have a pet tiger!

Thanks for reading!