Hey y'all! So...y'all are there huh? You've just been hiding in the shadows from me, reading but not reviewing. LOL. I may just have to do something drastic here to get y'all's attention somehow...My mind is a sneaky little bastard when it wants to be so don't get too comfy here. Lots more angst to come, I promise! ;-)

Merle stabbed his knife through the fence at a walker that wandered too close. He was tired, but he felt better than today than he had felt the past week. He had slept lightly through the night trying to be mindful if Beth made any noises in her sleep. He had wanted to sleep with her, but he also hadn't wanted to hurt her further. It seemed like the more he did, the more he hurt her and it was starting to get to him. This morning he had slipped out of her cell and asked Maggie to sit with her. Surprisingly the girl hadn't given him any lip and had merely nodded before going into the room with her sister. It had surprised the hell out of him to say the least.

He was on fence duty now, constantly walking the fences and stabbing at the rotting pricks that dared to drift too close. There seemed to be an increase in walkers lately and the others had noticed too. For the most part they were still manageable as long as someone was out there picking them off. If they didn't then it seemed like they all gathered in one spot and the pressure made the fences buckle dangerously. Merle had never seen anything like it. He reared back and shoved his knife through the links again, stabbing a female walker in the forehead. Thick, black, blood came oozing out and she slithered down against the fence with a thud.

He turned and flicked his blade to rid it of the black blood, watching as it sprayed across the grass. He was distracted momentarily by the sight of it and so he didn't spot Carl coming down the hill towards him until he looked up and the kid was halfway across the field. Merle stood still as Carl closed the gap between them.

"What's good lil' sheriff?" Merle drawled.

Carl grimaced at the term, "Maggie is asking for you. She's trying to get Beth to take a shower, but she's refusing. Hershel says the wound needs cleaning and a shower and a walk would do her good. She thought you might be able to talk some sense into her since you've been spending so much time with her and all," Carl said.

Merle frowned. So the girl was being difficult, hm? He almost wanted to grin because he could just imagine her in that bed with her arms crossed and a defiant scowl spanning her face. He sighed, "Keep an' eye on this damn fence. I'll send somebody down ta relieve ya," He said. "Gotta do every damn thing 'round here," He muttered as he walked away.

He glanced at Carl one time over his shoulder and saw the kid taking the spear they kept near the gate and stabbing at the walkers that had gathered while he had been occupied. He made sure the kid had it under control and then he continued on up the hill. Unfortunately the only person he ran into on the way towards Beth's cell was Glenn and he sucked his teeth, but stepped in front of the man, cutting him off.

He gestured with a jerk of his head towards the fence, "Carl's down there by hisself. I said I'd send someone ta back him up. Got some business ta tend to," Merle said shortly.

Glenn nodded and Merle moved to walk around him, but Glenn's hand on his arm stopped him. Merle paused, waiting for the man to say something. Finally Glenn cleared his throat, "I. Forgive. You," Glenn punctuated each word out through clenched teeth and Merle could tell that it had been hard for him to say it.

He eyed Glenn. He didn't know how to respond to that admission. It seemed like everyone in the group was acting like they had been dipping in the whiskey and he was having trouble keeping up with it all. "What changed ya mind?" Merle asked.

Glenn shrugged and removed his hand from Merle's arm. He didn't look Merle in the eye, "I just figured it was time. You've been here a while now and you seem different. I don't know what the cause is, but I hope it stays that way. I've also seen how you've been with Beth. Maggie loves Beth and well, I love Maggie. I need to forgive you for Maggie and for...myself," He stated and his eyes slid up to stare Merle square in the eye.

Merle sucked his teeth, "Takes a lotta balls ta forgive someone kid. 'Specially an' asshole like me who beat tha hell outta ya," Glenn winced, but Merle continued. "Ya know, tha whole time I was hittin' ya, I kept thinkin', What's it gonna take ta break this kid?, and ya never did. I seen bigger men than you go down a lot quicker an' that says a lot 'bout ya," Merle finished.

Something sparked in Glenn's eyes and he nodded once and then walked away, leaving Merle standing in the cell block alone. Merle sighed and continued down until he drew closer to Beth's cell and he could hear her talking.

"I'm fine Maggie! I can take a sponge bath or something. I don't want to go to the showers," She insisted angrily. "I just wish everyone would leave me alone!" She yelled.

Merle chuckled as he stepped into the doorway of the cell. Maggie was standing beside her bed with her arms crossed defiantly and her legs spread in a determined stance. Hershel was propped in the corner observing Beth having her fit with an expression of concern on his face. Merle's blade clanged gently against the bars as he leaned his head into the room. All conversation ceased and everyone's eyes turned to him. Maggie's showed mild relief and Hershel's brow furrowed and he sighed loudly. Merle looked to Beth and saw that indeed her arms were crossed and her eyes were spitting fire at the occupants of the cell.

It was Maggie who spoke first, "Merle, can you please try to talk some sense into her?"

Merle opened his mouth to speak, but Beth cut him off, "You called Merle? What is this, some kind of ambush?" She cried.

Merle narrowed his eyes and walked into the room. Maggie backed away from the bed and exchanged a glance with her daddy who shook his head at her. "So I leave ya fer a lil' over an hour an' ya actin' like a two year old?" Merle said to her. Beth opened her mouth to spit out a retort no doubt, but Merle cut her off this time. "I ain't done talkin'. Way I see it is ya got two options. One, ya can getcha ass up outta that bed an' down ta tha showers or two, I can make ya," He said.

"I dare Merle Dixon!" Beth spit out.

Merle smirked. That had been the wrong thing to say and Beth's eyes widened as she came to that realization herself. Merle had never turned down a dare and he definitely wasn't going to start now.

He turned to Hershel and Maggie who were observing the scene with interest, "Give us a minute an' I'll have 'er up an' on her merry way ta tha showers. I'll escort 'er there an' Maggie can go in an' help 'er while I keep watch," He said.

Maggie nodded and cast one last look at Beth before she walked out. Hershel paused next to his daughter's bed before leaving, "Honey, it's for your own good. The more you move around, the better you will feel," He said.

"I feel just fine!" Beth hissed.

Hershel shook his head and turned to Merle, "She's never been the best patient in the world. She gets it from my mother I suppose. The medicine I've been giving her has probably worn off by now and she's bound to be a little irritable," Hershel explained.

Merle nodded. So that was why she hadn't been like that last night when she had asked him to sleep with her. Well, well, she was in for a rude awakening this morning then because he wasn't going to have her spitting bullets at everyone when she needed to try and get well.

He waited until Hershel had left the cell and then he walked over and yanked the curtain all of the way over the cell so that they had privacy. He turned back to the bed and found her eyeing him suspiciously. Ignoring her, he reached over and removed his blade, slipping it into the pocket on the leg of his pants for later. He cracked his neck and stopped at the edge of her bed.

"Last chance darlin'," He said gruffly.

"Humph," She replied, but it didn't sound as convincing as it had before.

He chuckled, "Have it yer way."

He reached down and yanked the blanket away from her hands that tried desperately to clutch at it. He swore as he saw that she wasn't wearing any pants. Her panties were barely visible underneath the hem of her shirt and his eyes darkened considerably as he focused on the lacy material. While he was distracted she made a grab for the sheet and almost had it too, but he caught it just in time and flung it out of her reach. He glanced around and spotted some pants on the floor that he scooped up. She eyed him as he approached with the pants and he caught the mischievous glint in her eyes.

He tsked, "Ya wanna play rough? We can play rough darlin', but I promise ya this...I'm gonna win," He drawled.

He let that sink into her brain as he tucked the pants under his arm and grabbed her foot with his hand. It was warm and soft and he groaned silently to himself as her shirt rode up further with the movement of her leg and her blue panties were bared completely to his roving eye. His eyes fixed to hers and he saw that moment when she realized the predicament they were in. She reached down to fix her shirt, but it was too late. The image of her in those lacy blue panties was burned into his memory. He rested her foot against his chest while he worked the leg of her pants over her. Once he had the one leg started, he grabbed up her other foot and slid the material over that leg too. He placed her feet on the ground one at a time and she lay there quietly, her chest heaving as she watched him. He helped her sit up on the edge of the bed and he knelt in front of her. He slid his hand up one of her legs and then repeated the action for her other leg, making her breath catch. Grinning wickedly, he didn't stop at her thigh this time and instead kept going until his hand was palming her heat. She sucked in a breath and he glanced at her and winked. Knowing exactly what he was doing, he flicked his finger across the center of her panties where her slit lay beneath. Her eyes fluttered closed and he removed his hand to slide her pants up as far as they would go with her sitting on the bed. She still sat there with her eyes closed, breathing heavily, and he gripped her chin with his hand and tilted her face up to his.

He waited until she slowly opened her eyes and stared at him, "Ya think 'bout that while ya in tha shower, alright?" He whispered gruffly.

Her lips parted and she nodded slowly, her eyes taking on a glazed look. He smirked and brought his lips to hers for a rough, demanding, kiss. He pushed his tongue into her mouth and swirled it with hers, tasting her before pulling away. He grabbed her arm with his hand and pulled her up from the bed.

"Ya gon' have ta pull ya pants up tha rest o' tha way darlin'," He whispered near her ear when she made no attempt to move.

She blushed and quickly pulled the pants up over her hips and bottom. He watched as she zipped them, but left them unbuttoned so as not to apply too much pressure to the wound. She followed along behind him to the doorway and he whipped the heavy sheet away with a flourish and gestured for her to exit. She did so and Merle followed behind her. She shuffled along and Merle pretended to ignore her as she moved tentatively, but his eyes were watching her discreetly for any signs of distress. They met Maggie in the kitchen and Merle watched as Maggie took stock of Beth and then Maggie nodded at Merle, the relief in her eyes evident.

Merle brushed past them and headed for the hallway and the showers. He called over his shoulder, "I'll be waitin' ladies. She give ya any trouble, ya be sure ta let me know an' I'll take care of it," Merle winked at Beth who flushed furiously.

Maggie glanced between the two of them, but remained silent and Merle could see the questions in her eyes. She wasn't a fool. She would know that there was something going on between him and her sister, but Merle didn't care. It wasn't like they could hide the fact that he was sleeping with her any longer, whether people believed there was more going on between them than sleep or not. It might be wrong on so many levels, but then again Merle hadn't ever been right.

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