I know, Carol just won't sit still; we just got through saving America from neo-Nazis and now she is off trying to find Allen's family in the woods.
Finders Keepers, Loser's Weepers
Dr. Jamela Davis woke up cold, hungry, and needing to go to the bathroom. She and Alyssa had found a dry place to sleep under this fallen tree but the accommodations were limited. She had dreamed about Allen last night. In her dream she was asleep on their bed and she was so cold. Allen brought her a blanket and she felt warm all at once. She was trying to thank him and he wasn't there anymore. No need to over analyze that dream; Allen wasn't anywhere anymore. He had been in Charlotte when the ZA hit and that was that; end of story.
Jamela smiled at Alyssa; the story wasn't really over because she and Allen had created this wonderful person. She would do whatever it took to keep Alyssa safe. That wasn't getting any easier since their car had broken down and they had been hunted by a band of raiders. Last night she had left Alyssa here and went down to where she could see a distant fire. She had waited outside the fire until one of the men had left the fire and came close to her. He squatted down to shit and she had brained him with a good size boulder. She hit him again and again until she was sure he was dead. The other men were drunk and didn't notice. She had found her way back up the hill but they had to move on now. They were close and she knew that she was getting weaker. She had been able to whittle the number of hunters down to four. It was like a gigantic game of tag and everybody in the game was after Jamela and Alyssa.
Jamela and Alyssa had spent the first eighteen months after the ZA hit with a small group outside of Asheville. They had managed to make it through their first winter and second summer together before they joined a bigger band. Their new leader enjoyed having total control of the group and that included having his pick of the women. He had chosen Jamela and she had gone with him for Alyssa's sake. Jamela hated him but Alyssa had warm clothes and food to eat. It was when she overheard the leader plotting to trade Alyssa for guns and ammo that she finally broke free. She had stolen a car and took off with Alyssa; the leader sent his men after her. He would kill her for making him look weak and Alyssa would be traded or become his new "woman". Jamela was determined to find new transportation and escape from her hunters but all she found was more trees and no roads.
…..
Carol had picked out a big vehicle to travel in; there were four of them and she hoped that they could find Jamela and Alyssa before whoever was chasing them did. Daryl drove with Carol by his side as they left the compound and found their way back to the highway. Carol had helped load the supplies and realized that they needed warmer clothes and boots for Caleb and Allen. She gave Daryl directions to the outdoor clothing store that the girls had shopped in during their day out. Daryl took cover and she took the other two shopping. They picked out boots and warmer clothes while she grabbed warmer jackets and some clothes for herself and Daryl. She found warm clothing for Jamela and Alyssa and boots. Allen remembered her shoe size and said that Alyssa feet wore a size larger. She got the next two sizes for good measure.
Carol asked Daryl to stop at a dollar store and she found a couple of pans and some bowls. She found some hot cocoa mix and tea. She made a quick grab for some dried food mixes while she was there. There were matches in the car and some MRE and some basic medical supplies. They always carried portable water purifiers in their run vehicles and she packed that away with their supplies.
She directed Daryl to go through the town and to turn right. Jamela had been afraid when came through here and Carol could follow her that fear. It wasn't long before they found an abandoned vehicle; Carol thought it was the one that Jamela was driving. There was a beat up truck parked behind it. Daryl opened the hood and removed the distributor cap and siphoned away the gas. Jamela and Alyssa had left the road there and headed into the forest. Daryl hid their vehicle on a deserted road and they headed off on foot.
Daryl followed Jamela and Alyssa's tracks but the trail left by their pursuers was easier to see. Daryl showed Caleb what he was finding; the kid was interested in hunting and tracking. He and Carol were both quiet and Allen tried to be. They moved along fairly quickly since the hunters were marking a clear trail in the falling leaves.
They found where the hunters had stopped for the night; they were probably drunk by the amount of bottles left behind. The campsite was filthy and Daryl had a growing sense that they didn't care if they brought the women back or not. They just enjoyed the hunt.
Daryl called a halt at noon and they drank some water and had beef jerky. Daryl and Carol ate their lunch side by side talking quietly. Daryl wanted to know how much of a head start the women had had; Carol didn't think it was very long.
Jamela had been able to throw them off their trail for at least a while. The chasers had followed a trail made by some deer for a while before they back tracked. Jamela had gained some time with that and she and Alyssa continued trying to find ways to evade them. Daryl admired the women; he wished they had some real weapons.
Daryl stopped at dark. The hunters were a half day ahead of them. They would start early in the morning and they might make up some time. They each ate a MRE, wrapped themselves in their jackets and went to sleep. They were out of the pathway and no one kept watch. Carol moved close to Daryl and soon both of them were asleep.
They took off early the next morning refreshed and ready to go. They found the hunter camp within two hours. It was the usual mess but Daryl kept picking up another nasty smell. He went looking for it and found a dead body not far from the campfire. The head was mashed in and he figured that was the reason he hadn't turned. His pants were pulled down and he must have come out here last night to shit and somebody brained him. Daryl's guess was that Jamela and Alyssa had come back her to check them out and found this guy all alone.
Allen looked at the dead body. He couldn't imagine Jamela who had refused to take the dead mouse out of a trap doing this. Daryl stood beside him and spoke in his low tones, "She won't be the same, not inside or outside, you need to know that. See my hands. I was so mad when I saw you kiss Carol on that porch that I punched a pine tree. Michonne talked to me and made me realize something. It didn't matter what Carol had to do to stay alive; it might change her but it wouldn't change how I felt about her. I still intended to kill you though." Allen looked at Daryl and knew that he was giving good advice. Jamela needed him to man up and accept her as she was now. Allen nodded and said, "Thank you for not killing me and thanks for helping me find my family."
Daryl brought the group together. "They know that Jamela and Alyssa aren't all that far away. We need to move faster today and Caleb and I are going ahead. We will leave a trail for you, but we can't wait for you." Allen looked as if he wanted to protest but Carol shook her head at him. This was not time to allow pride to get in the way of saving the women. Carol warned Daryl, "Be careful, if you get in too big of a hurry you could walk into a trap".
Caleb and Daryl moved quickly through the rough brush for a couple of hours. Eventually the trail led uphill and he was glad that they weren't being slowed down. Caleb was strong and in good shape. He had to struggle to keep up with him. Daryl heard something behind them but didn't see how Carol and Allen could be that close and he stopped to listen for a little bit while Caleb went on to the top of the hill. Daryl saw a bear crossing the trail behind him and he guessed that was the noise he had heard. He waited for a bit and heard nothing else so he started up the hill going a lot slower than Caleb. It was time to quit smoking when a kid ran you ragged in the woods he thought. The trail went along a creek bed and there were thick rhododendron bushes on both sides. He heard voices up ahead and automatically hit the ground. He stayed there while he tried to figure out what was going on. It sounded liked Caleb had caught up with the hunters; he cursed himself for letting the boy go by himself.
He crept closer while keeping the thick green rhododendron bushes between him and the hunters. They had Caleb tied to a tree and were enjoying kicking and hitting him. He could take out one or two but these were tough guys. Carol and Allen were behind them and he didn't need them getting caught too. He slid backwards and went to find Allen and Carol. They were just minutes behind and they were ready to do anything to save Caleb. They hurried back up the hill and waited while Daryl checked it out. They were drinking and making plans for Caleb. One man wanted to sell him as a slave, and the others just wanted to play with him a little and then kill him. Daryl brought Carol and Allen up close to the camp. He motioned for Carol to stay there and use the pistol though it was a little far. He would use his crossbow and Allen could use the rifle. Carol moved closer; she needed to be closer to make the shot. Allen slid to the left and Daryl to the right. The men were so close to Caleb that Carol was afraid to shoot. One man imitated the music from "Dueling Banjos" and laughed raucously. Carol thought he was the one she wanted to shoot first. Daryl was closer now and could hear one of the men ask Caleb to beg for his life. Caleb's face hardened and his voice was cold and strong, "I am not begging for anything you piece of shit. Not now or not ever. Caleb Dixon doesn't beg". Daryl saw and heard Merle at that moment. The kid said his name was Caleb Dixon, and Daryl knew that while he hadn't saved Sophia and Merle; he was going to bring Merle's son out of this right now. He stood up and shot an arrow between the eyes of the man that had asked Caleb to beg. Allen shot the man beside him and Carol nailed the guy who had made the banjo sounds. That left one big guy who fired at Daryl and ran toward the trail. Carol stayed down and when he turned to fire again at Allen she used her sword to take out his legs. He went down hard and she jumped up to take him out, Daryl was already there and put a bolt through his brain. Allen used his knife to get Caleb untied while Carol and Daryl put the raiders down to stay.
Caleb had been beaten and kicked but he was able to get to his feet with some help. The weather had been turning colder and darker all day and they needed to find some shelter before it started to rain. Allen wanted to take care of Caleb and he wanted to find Jamela and Alyssa. Carol said she would stay with Caleb. He needed to stay warm and have something to eat and drink. Daryl and Allen took off following the trail left by the two women.
Jamela and Alyssa paused when they heard the gun shots. They heard two shots and that left at least two hunters behind them. The hunters were yelling but they couldn't hear them clearly. They were at the top of a large rock, and there were boulders around. Jamela decided to make a stand here. She could drop a rock on them from here. She was too weak and tired to keep running. The voices came closer and she could hear that there were two men calling.
Jamela was so weary that she didn't notice at first that one man kept calling for Jamie and Allie. It finally sank in, the only person to call her Jamie was Allen and he sometimes called Alyssa Allie. The voice sounded like Allen, and she wondered if she were starting to hallucinate. She tried to stand up to get a boulder to drop on them when Alyssa started to climb down the rock. Jamela tried to stop her but the sky seemed to whirl around and she collapsed.
Alyssa ran to Allen and he hugged her close. Daryl asked where her mother was and she pointed to the top of the rock. Allen followed him up to the top where they found Jamela unconscious. Allen couldn't find any wounds but she appeared dehydrated and exhausted. He and Daryl got her back down from the rock. They needed shelter and Daryl remembered that they had passed a rock cliff with a significant overhang back down the hill. He and Allen carried Jamela back down to the overhang and found that it was dry and that there was room to stand up in it. Allen started a fire while Daryl went back and got Carol and Caleb. They had left most of their supplies behind so that they could travel faster.
Allen was worried about both Alyssa and Jamela. They looked as if they were ready to collapse and needed food and water. Carol came up the hill first with the medical supplies. It was beginning to rain and she put the pots out to gather water in and used their water for Alyssa. Jamela roused a bit and Carol got her to drink some water. Daryl was carrying the supplies and helping Caleb. The rain was starting to come down harder and Daryl and Allen were grabbing all the dry firewood they could find. Carol used the fire to heat up some hot chocolate and gave Alyssa, Caleb, and Jamela some to drink. She heated up a dried soup mix with some rain water. She asked Alyssa to help her put some dry clothes on her mother and to change into something warmer herself. Carol went through Caleb's pack and found a pair of dry sweatpants and sweatshirt. He was able to change his own clothes. Carol put warm socks on Jamela and Alyssa and gave them all some hot soup.
Daryl insisted that she change her clothes and she realized that she was wet and cold too. They both changed into clothes that she had found in the store days ago. Allen had changed and was taking care of Jamela and Alyssa. Daryl motioned for Carol to come sit beside of Caleb with him. She moved to beside of Caleb and listened to Daryl ask him about his name, Caleb Dixon. Caleb laughed and told enough of his story to confirm Daryl's hope that he was Merle's son. Carol left Daryl to talk with Caleb about Merle. She wanted to check on the weather which didn't seem to be getting any better.
It got dark early that evening. It kept getting colder and colder and the rain began to turn to snow. Daryl was worried about that, the leaves were still on the trees and a wet heavy snow would bring down trees all over this place. They needed to stay here under this rock until it stopped and hope that the roads weren't blocked with downed trees.
Daryl and Allen dragged in some pine branches to close the overhang off from the wind and the rain. They ate the last of the MREs and drank hot chocolate as they heard the sound of timber cracking all around them. Their rock home held firm and gradually they fell asleep by the fire close to the ones that they loved the most.
