Daryl and I sat awkwardly in the field, redressing ourselves quickly. I glanced over at him as I pulled my shorts back on, blushing. Daryl smiled at me warmly, reaching over and brushing a strand of hair from my face.
We stood and began walking back to the farm. Daryl took my hand in his as we walked and I looked down at it, a warmth filling me. The other had gathered down y the barn, where three graves had been dug. I looked up to Daryl and he squeezed my hand.
The funeral was short, eerily quiet. Hershel didn't give a eulogy like he had at Otis' funeral. The man seemed broken, like something inside of him was destroyed when we slaughtered his family. I swallowed hard, glancing around at the group. Carl was crying, huddled with his mother. I stood next to Daryl, his arm around my waist. I noticed that there was a face missing, Carol hadn't come and I frowned looking up at the RV.
After the funeral everyone split off. I began to walk over to the barn and Daryl stopped me, holding my hand.
"I'll help them. Ya don't have to." I shrugged, frowning up at him.
"It's okay, I'd like to feel useful for the first time in a few days." I smiled tightly and he nodded, leaning forward to kiss my forehead. We saw Carol emerge from the RV and I gestured to her. "Just make sure that she's okay."
Daryl left me in the direction that Carol headed and I walked over to where T-Dog and Andrea were diligently carrying a body to a blue pick up truck. They through it in the back with a loud thud, dusting off their hands.
"It's a good thing they're weren't anymore in that barn. We woulda been over run." I chimed in. Andrea nodded at me, smiling tightly. T-Dog sighed.
"Good thing Shane did what he did when he did." Shane's name left a bitter taste in my mouth and I grimaced, looking at Dale.
"You can't tell me this was right." I said bluntly. The three looked at me, brows raised.
"It wasn't, It'll cost us with Hershel." Rick chimed in, agreeing with me.
"He's grieving, he'll come around." Andrea reassured us sighing. "We had no choice." She looked to each of us, her eyes resting on me. "Look I shot to, and so did you Beau. This wasn't all Shane."
"Look I got no qualms about it. Walkers in my backyard? No thank you." T-Dog said, agreeing with Andrea.
"It's not to be said that we shouldn't have taken care of the problem, but creating a panic?" Dale came to my aid now that T-Dog and Andrea had turned on me.
"There's no point in arguing about it. It's done." Lori chimed in from off to the side. She stood with her arms crossed, obviously not happy with today's turn of events.
"Better get moving." T-Dog said pointing to the sky He was right, it was getting dark and now they had bodies to burn. I stood next to Dale, arms crossed, as they got into the truck to drive away.
'C'mon, we got bodies to pile up." I said, pointing over by the barn. Dale sighed, following me to the corpses. We bent over, picking up the nearest one and shoving it to the side.
"Your step mothers things?" Rick asked as he went through a brown box on the bed. Maggie nodded, arms crossed. I stood silently in the corner, watching as the men went through some of the things Hershel had presumably packed up.
"He was so sure she'd recover. They'd just pick up where they left off." She explained. Everyone on hand rushed to the house when Maggies sister, Beth, fainted. Now we were searching Hershel's room, becuase he had gone missing.
"Looks like Hershel found an old friend." Shane had found a flask on the dresser and he tossed it to Rick.
"that belonged to my grandfather, gave it to dad when he died."
"I never took Hershel for a drinker?" I asked bluntly. Maggie shook her head.
""He's not. He quit when I was born. He wouldn't even allow liquor in the house." Maggie stated. A look of realization came over Rick's face and he glanced at me.
"What's the bar in town?" he asked. I saw where he was going and my mouth dropped. Hershel went in town to drink. I shook my head thinking how stupid of an idea that was.
"Hatlin's." Maggie replied, coming to the same realization. "he practically lived there in his drinking days."
"Betting that's where he'll be."
"I know where that is, I'll take you." Glenn offered. Maggie looked to Glenn shaking her head.
"No." she stopped him, placing a hand on his chest.
"It's an easy run." Glenn argued. Maggie stood firm in her decision. She did not want him going.
"Maggie, I'll bring him back." Rick promised but still she shook her head.
"I don't want you to go alone with no protection." She stated finally.
"I'll go." I chimed. Shane scoffed and I glared at him. Rick turned to me, eyeing me carefully. His eyes darted to my head and I chuckled. "I'm fine. I wont be a liability. And I can shoot a bow, much safer than firing off rounds." I looked over at Maggie and hesitantly she agreed.
"I'll get the truck." Rick said walking out of the room, followed by Lori. Shane watched me carefully before standing to walk past me.
"She said protection. Not sure you quite fit the bill sweet cheeks." Shane passed me by with out another word and I swallowed, waiting for him to leave. I looked at Maggie and Glenn respectively.
"I promise I will bring him back."
The town was quiet as we drove through it. My eyes darted in every direction, but there wasn't a walker in sight. I glanced behind me, towards the front of the truck to watch where we were going. Rick had opened the back window and I peaked my head in.
"I've never had a women say that to me before." Glenn said shaking his head. I cocked my head, eyebrow raised.
"Say what?" I asked, inserting myself in the conversation. Glenn's head snapped back to look at me and his face went red. Rick looked at me in the mirror.
"Maggie told Glenn she loved him." I sighed.
"Finally." I muttered, setting my bow down in the truck bed.
"This is a good thing. It's something we don't get enough of these days." Ricks words had me thinking and I sat back in the bed of the truck. Love. My thoughts immediately went to Daryl, but I shook my head, pushing those thoughts aside. I hadn't known him long enough. There was no way.
Then I thought back to what happened today in the cornfield. My whole body flushed again as I thought of the way it felt went he touched me, how it felt knowing that he had had me in one of the most intimate ways.
My heart sank. What if he felt nothing? What if I was just a casual fuck to him? What if I was just the last woman in the world and he had to because his choices were limited?
Rick took a right, pulling up to small building. I climbed out of the truck bed, hoping to the ground, trying my best to push my feelings aside for the time being. I'd have to worry about what happened later. Right now I had to be alert.
Rick approached the door first, gesturing for me to take the right side. I did as I was told, putting my back up against the wall. I brought my foot up, kicking the door open wide with a loud bang.
Inside the bar was dark and Rick moved in first, me behind him, bow drawn. It smelled musty and old, like it had been forever since it was used. Something was rotten and I assumed there was a body somewhere. When the world shot to hell lots of people lost their lives in bars.
As my eyes adjusted I could see Hershel down at the far end of the bar, sitting alone in his thoughts.
"Hershel?" Rick called. The man didn't turn around.
"Who's with you?" He spoke, barely acknowledging our presence. I dropped my bow, but we approached cautiously all the same.
"Glenn and Beau." Rick answered him.
"Maggie send Glenn?" Hershel asked, still not turned around. Rick looked at both of us, around carefully.
"He volunteered. He's good like that."
"And I assume Beau volunteered her services as well?" Hershel asked again.
"Course, someone's gotta protect these fools." I called back, smiling. Hershel chuckled and sighed, finally turning to look at us. Glenn and Rick walked up to the bar but I hung back, looking through the barred windows for any sign of movement.
Rick and Hershel conversed at the bar, I barely paid them any mind, and my thoughts wandered back to Daryl. The more I thought about the more hesitant I was to return to camp. What if he stopped talking to me all together? I wasn't sure I could handle that.
Rick rejoined me with Glenn. Hershel wasn't leaving and I shook my head, opening the door to peek out. We had already been here for an hour, something that made me feel incredibly uncomfortable.
"So what do we do? Wait for him to pass out?" Glenn asked.
"Just go!" Hershel shouted from down the bar. Our heads snapped up to look at him and he sobbed. "just go."
"I promised Maggie I'd bring you back!" Rick said, not wavering.
"What? Like you promised that little girl?" Hershel words were sharp and Rick recoiled something fierce as he spoke them.
"So what's your plan? Finish that bottle?" Rick quickly walked back over to Hershel. "Drink yourself to death and leave your girls alone?"
"Stop telling me how to care for my family, my farm." Hershel stood, tired of hearing what Rick had to say. "You people are like a plague! I do the Christian thing, give you shelter, and you destroy it all!"
"The world was already in bad shape when we met." Rick reasoned, their conversation becoming heated.
"And you take no responsibility. You're supposed to be their leader!" Hershel pointed at Glenn and myself.
"Well I'm here now, aren't I?" Rick growled. His words caught Hershel off guard and slowly the man made his way back to the barstool.
"Yes, yes. Yes you are." Hershel retook his seat and I sighed again. We didn't have time for this, it was getting dark outside and we had to leave soon or we were bunking for the night.
Rick and Hershel stood arguing more and again I drowned them out. I couldn't take anymore bickering and I sighed heavily, putting my compound bow down on the bar top. The door opened behind me, and I turned finding two men standing there. They looked at me, astounded, then to each other.