Chapter Seven

"You've gotta be fuckin' shittin' me!"

Carol frowned, on the cusp of sleep and waking, Daryl's angry voice was the only one she could discern. She opened her eyes and dragged a hand over her sweaty brow, wondering how she'd come to be in the tent once again. The last thing she could recall was sitting next to Daryl outside. Her gaze trailed over the nylon floor of the tent over to the zippered entrance and tried to focus on the voices outside.

"Daryl, man, you've got to calm down. Killing Ed isn't going to help anything, and then you'd have to look that little girl in the eye every day knowing you killed her father." She recognized Shane's voice next, trying to diffuse the situation. Good Lord, what had Ed done now, she wondered.

"I really don't have a problem with that!"

"Well, if'n you won't let us kill 'im, what say we send 'im on his merry way and let 'im fend fer 'imself," Merle hissed angrily. "Mouse has been through enough without th' fucker makin' it worse."

"How much worse could he do, brother?"

"Look," Dale intervened. "We cannot send a defenseless man out into that. Don't look at me like that, you three. You have to admit he wouldn't last five minutes out there alone. It would be murder!"

"That's th' point, old man," Merle retorted, grinning maliciously.

Shane raked a frustrated hand over his face. "We're all going to have to make sure Ed stays away from Carol and her girl."

"Yeah, that's goin' to be easy, ain't it? How're we goin' t' watch them every minute?".

Carol could hear the threat in Daryl's voice, and frankly she was frightened. "Daryl!" she called. She needed his reassurance just then, and to find out what had started this up again. It should be over. Ed had been warned off in the most pointed way imaginable. He should no longer be a problem. Apparently, the man had a death wish.

He couldn't meet her eyes when he entered the tent. He stayed near the entrance, shuffling with nervous energy on the balls of his feet.

"Tell me what's going on, Daryl. What's happened?" she asked, her eyes demanding answers no matter how badly they might upset her.

"Ed needs t' fuckin' die, that's what!"

Merle came in behind him, his features twisted into a mask almost as dark as the one his brother wore. "Hi there, little darlin'."

Carol arched a brow at him. "What happened with Ed?" she asked calmly, reaching out to take the two duffel bags from Merle. Or she would have if he hadn't pulled them back. "Are either of you going to tell me, or do I have to go ask Ed?"

"You ain't goin' nowhere, woman!" Daryl growled, his voice rising. He knew it was an empty threat. She would never willingly put herself in that situation again.

Merle grimaced and tossed the bags down beside her before sitting on his own bedroll. Thankfully, Sophia wasn't there to witness this new travesty. Daryl had given her permission to go on down to play with Carl and the Morales children as long as she didn't leave Lori or Teresa's sight.

When neither of them would give her the answers she sought, she pulled the first of the two bags towards her, pulling back the zipper. Inside were the remnants of everything she owned, each and every article of clothing left of her former life shredded with what looked like Ed's buck knife. Despite her resolve to be strong, Carol promptly burst into tears.

"Awwwww, fuck no!" Merle cursed, bounding out of his bedroll and heading for the exit.

Daryl caught his arm, blocking the tent flap with a panicked gleam in his eyes. "Where th' hell y' think you're goin'?"

"I don't do tears, bro. You're on yer own. Lemme know when yer ready t' fix this shit an' I'm there."

Shit shit shit! "Carol?" He took a tentative step towards her. She cried harder. It was a mistake … he knew it was the moment the thought entered his head, but it was too late. He couldn't stand to see her hurting. He dropped to his knees next to her and reached out to lay a hand to her shoulder, patting awkwardly. "Don't cry, please?"

She leaned into him, and he waited for the familiar ache to break out in goosebumps over his skin at her touch. He waited for his limbs to freeze and his heart to race, for the air to grow stagnant in his lungs with his inability to breathe. But it never came, even when her arms wrapped about his waist and her tear-stained face burrowed against his chest. She felt good. Right. Made for his arms alone. He forced himself to breathe and was assailed by her scent as his arms rose of their own accord to wrap around her. God, she smelled good … all ivory soap and sweet musk. He bit back a groan. What the fuck was wrong with him? She was hurt – both physically and emotionally – and here he was thinking about how good she felt in his arms. Really low, Dixon. He just couldn't remember touch without some form of pain. He could have gone the rest of his life without another's touch. Yet here he was at the end of the world, finding something else to fuck with his head. He had to do something …

"I'm gonna fix this, Carol," he found himself promising. "I'm gonna make this right, ok?" He surprised himself by brushing his fingers over her damp cheeks to dry her tears. "No more tears, woman; no more pain from that bastard. I will fix this."

*.*.*

"Y'all have lost your minds," Dale screeched, his voice carrying through the camp as Daryl loaded the truck. Carol and Sophia were already in the cab and Merle was readying his bike. "You can't take them out there not knowing what to expect. Sophia is a child!"

"Back off, old man," Daryl growled as he put the extra fuel can in the back with two more empties. "I'm not gonna let anything happen t' them. We'll be back in a couple of hours."

Shane leaned against the open window on the passenger side. "Carol, you don't have to do this. We can pull our resources together – "

She glanced down at Sophia's dirty pants – the children had played rough that day – and her own borrowed jeans. Daryl had ripped the back of the shirt he'd given her the night before and Andrea had tied the trailing ends in a flattering manner, making it fit much better, but she needed more and so did her daughter. "Not like I have a choice here, Shane. Everyone is already down to the bare necessities. We'll be fine. Daryl and Merle will protect us."

"This is insane!" Dale's meltdown continued as Merle turned the key on the bike and throttled the engine, drowning him out.

"Shane, just trust we'll be back," she tried to reassure him.

"But you and Sophia can stay with us while they're gone," he continued to argue.

"Daryl doesn't trust you to keep us safe." There, she'd said it. His crestfallen expression made her feel a bit guilty. She grabbed his wrist before he could step away from the truck. "Watch Ed while we're gone, Shane. Don't underestimate him just because he's injured."

"C'mon, boy, we goin' or what? Daylight's burning!" Merle called, revving the bike impatiently.

"We're comin', Merle … soon as Deputy Dawg here gets up offa my truck." Daryl gave Shane a quelling look until the man glared back and took a step away from the truck.

Carol watched him as he climbed into the truck and stuck the key into the ignition. It rumbled to life and with a "Roll the damn window up in case we run into any walkers," they set off down the mountain and onto the highway.

"Where we going, Daryl? Is it going to take us long to get there? What kinda stuff are we going to get? Merle wouldn't tell me nothin' before we left." Sophia went on and on until Daryl was chewing anxiously on his thumb.

"Sophia, stop. I'm sure we'll find out soon enough," Carol admonished gently as she stroked her daughter's hair. "Don't be scared."

The girl shook her head. "Oh, I'm not, mom. Daryl won't let anything happen to us." She turned her face up to grin at her mother. "He's our hero."

Daryl kept his eyes on the road, making sure he kept Merle in his sights. "I ain't nobody's hero, girl," he mumbled. All his life it had been drummed into his head, and worse yet … into his flesh. Worthless, no good, useless, no woman would ever want him because he was filthy white trash. No, he would never be anyone's hero.

He couldn't escape the soft look in those big blue eyes. "You're my hero … and mama's. You made us a part of your family, and that makes you much better than all those superheroes in Carl's stupid comic books."

Daryl felt his chest tighten as he forced his eyes back to the road. The little princess already had his brother wrapped around her finger, and if he wasn't careful, she'd do the same thing to him. He flinched when she laid her head on his arm, but he didn't snap at her for touching him. Just like with her mother, it didn't send him into a wild state of panic. In fact, it was kind of nice.

*.*.*

"What is this place?" Carol asked as Merle led them into a gravel parking lot outside a rustic looking store on the outskirts of a small town. When they'd driven through, she'd been able to make out a church, post office and even one small gas station, but not much else. The rest of the buildings consisted of rather run down residential homes, most of them mobile. Not surprisingly, there had been very few walkers. She'd been glad Sophia had dozed off and didn't have to see them shambling along the road. Merle hadn't been concerned apparently, driving around them instead of stopping to dispose of them.

Daryl nudged Sophia awake and opened the door of the truck as Merle approached. "We should be able t' get what we need here. Owner's a friend of ours. He's a closet survivalist. If he made it." He sighed and shook his head. "Never thought his conspiracy theories held much weight." He felt like a dumbass to think he'd scoffed – repeatedly – at the man's wild stories. Weren't so wild now, he supposed.

He climbed out of the truck and reached for his crossbow, shouldering the strap before nodding to Sophia. She dropped to the ground and hurried over to Merle, tucking her fingers in a belt loop on his jeans. Daryl had made it clear she was to stick with him, so he could keep her safe until they knew there was no danger. Carol would be with him.

"This is a store?" Carol asked dubiously. It looked like a large log cabin, the windows boarded up, the steps crooked. There wasn't even a sign with the business's name on it.

"It ain't th' Walmart, darlin', but it'll do," Merle smirked.

Carol smiled tightly, her muscles wound tight with nerves. She did as Sophia had done with Merle and slipped her fingers through a belt loop on Daryl's jeans. She felt him shiver as her hand brushed over the bare skin above his waistband under his shirt. Well, if he doesn't like it, maybe he should tuck his shirt in. Not my fault, she mused.

Before they'd taken more than a half dozen steps, an arrow - much like the ones Daryl used for his crossbow - struck the ground at Merle's feet. "Th' fuck?!"

"I'd hold it right there if'n I was you, mister."

"Woman! Th' hell y' doin' up there shootin' at people for?" he shouted to the young woman on the roof of the building. At least she'd lowered the bow.

"Merle?" she called down, trying to shield her eyes from the sun at their backs.

"Yeah, it's me, Sugar."

"That Daryl with you?"

Merle rolled his eyes. "You gonna let us in, or stand there jawing all day?"

Daryl swung the crossbow around until it was aimed at his brother. It wouldn't be the first time he'd shot him. "Merle, we're fuckin' exposed out here, y' ass! Do your damn sweet talkin' later and get us inside."

"Oh, quit yer naggin'," he grumbled. He turned back to the woman, his grin widening. "Come on, darlin', and let us in."

Daryl scanned the trees, outbuildings and the vacant street while he waited, nervously chewing on the inside of his lower lip. What the hell was wrong with him, he wondered. Then he felt Carol tremble at his back and he instantly knew. It wasn't himself he was so worried about, but her. Her and Sophia, though the girl was in no immediate danger. He was rather certain Merle wouldn't let any harm come to her. Otherwise Daryl wouldn't have entrusted her into his care. Finally, a rope ladder descended over the side of the building and his brother was pushing Sophia towards it.

"There y' go, Peach. Show ol' Merle how y' can get up that ladder faster than a spider monkey." After she was on her way, he practically had to rip Carol off of Daryl's back – her grip was so tight – and send her clambering after Sophia. He gave Daryl a look in askance. "We good?"

"Yeah, go. Right behind y'."

Carol stared at the young woman. She must've been in her mid-thirties with long coal black hair and dark green eyes. The woman wore tight faded jeans, combat boots and a camouflaged t shirt under a worn leather vest. Carol knew she wasn't going to win any beauty contests, but she felt downright frumpy next to this girl. She was further surprised to see her sling her bow over her shoulder and practically leap into Merle Dixon's arms as he cleared the roof.

Daryl grumbled something derogatory under his breath as he pulled himself up and witnessed his brother with his tongue half way down their friend's throat. He ignored them and made his way over to Carol. "Y' ok?"

"Um … yeah, we're fine." A blush stained her cheeks but otherwise she truly was fine. "Is that Merle's girlfriend?"

"Nah, jus' a friend. That's Martine; Marty for short," he supplied. "Merle knock it off. We need t' be back before dark."

Marty broke off the kiss and grinned widely at Daryl. "I expected you boys weeks ago. Thought sure y'all would at least come out to check on us. Haven't even seen your daddy or Drew."

Carol saw how Daryl stiffened at the mention of his father and couldn't help but wonder over the story there. He turned away from the girl who was still standing there with Merle's arm around her waist and marched across the roof to the open hatch which led down into the store. "Soph, Carol, c'mere."

"Did I say somethin' wrong?" Marty asked as Merle sighed and moved to follow.

"They didn't make it," was all he said as he pushed past her to watch Daryl descend through the hatch.

"What happened?" One look from his flinty steel blue eyes had her recoiling and changing the subject. "So, what's been going on? Y'all got a place to stay 'til all this dies down?"

Carol stared down into the darkened hole and felt the air stutter painfully in her chest. All she could see was the top of Daryl's head and the faint glow of his cobalt eyes as he called up to her. "C'mon, woman. We got shoppin' to do. Carol, what's wrong?"

God, how she hated to appear so weak in front of him. Thankfully, she had Sophia there at her back and Daryl climbing back up to get her. He'd suddenly remembered her fear of small dark places.

"Mom, it's ok. I'll come down after you. You go ahead with Daryl," Sophia encouraged her.

She still felt like an idiot. It wasn't her fault she was this way, but she hated it nonetheless. Then there was Daryl, taking her hand and steadying her on the ladder. His arms came around her and she shivered, the warm weight of his chest searing her back. She bit her lip as his breath tickled her ear and his voice woke a desire within her she doubted she'd ever felt before. At least she couldn't remember ever feeling such need before.

"I've got y' … one step at a time," that sinful voice purred low and sweet in her ear. She faltered when Sophia looked down and blocked out the light.

A whimper escaped her throat, and her fingers white-knuckled around the rungs. "I-I can't," she managed in an agonized whisper.

"Oh shit! Merle!" Daryl yelled, seeing her distress. "Merle, she's hyperventilating. What th' fuck am I s'posed t' do?"

Merle stuck his head in the hatch, blocking even more of the light. "How th' hell am I s'posed t' know? Let 'er pass out an' then carry her th' rest of th' way down."

He inched back up the ladder until his body was flush with hers. Oh, so not a good idea, he groaned inwardly as she aligned perfectly with him, her soft curves hitting him in all the right spots. "Calm down!" he growled a little more harshly than he'd intended. Why did she have to feel so damn good? He took a deep breath to calm his own pounding heart and maneuvered his lips right next to her ear. "Carol?"

His only answer was her panting whimper in the dark.

"Breathe, woman … deep breaths. Close your eyes an' lean back into me." She stopped breathing altogether as his warm palm settled over her belly. "Breathe." At least she wasn't hyperventilating any longer.

She felt inflamed as she leaned back into him, but she finally dragged air into her lungs. "D-Daryl …"

"Good girl," he praised, keeping his voice low so his brother couldn't hear from his vantage point above them. "I want y' to listen t' me, ok?" She nodded, her head lolling on his shoulder until her face nestled into the crook of his neck. "Picture th' lake back at th' quarry," he cajoled, low and deep, almost a monotone of reassurance. "Can y' see it?"

"Y-Yes."

"It's wide an' open, isn't it?" God, he felt like a fucking idiot, but he couldn't just let her pass out on him. He had to help her, but he had to wonder if it was just to get her down the damn ladder … or something which ran a bit deeper. They were definitely going out the front door. He didn't give a good goddamn if he had to wade through an entire herd of walkers to get her to the truck. Crap! She wasn't relaxing. "Carol, keep picturin' the water, ok. You can almost reach out t' touch it."

*,*,*

She gasped as his hand slid down the length of her thigh to hook behind her right knee. It was getting difficult to do as he asked when his hands were wandering, but she didn't resist when he moved her foot down to the next rung. How long – if ever – had it been since she'd felt a gentle touch from a man? "There … see, you're dipping your foot into th' water. You can almost feel how warm it is, cain't y'?"

Carol began to move with him, the velvet texture of his voice and the strong arms wrapped around her, guiding her to do his bidding. "So good," she murmured, and she was sure he couldn't mistake her lips curling into a smile against his warm neck. Hand under hand, one step after another as she let her mind play into Daryl's little fantasy.

Daryl's voice dropped in timbre and he rested his head briefly on her shoulder. Whether he needed the respite or had only paused that infinitesimal moment for her benefit, she didn't know. He gave her focus and the strength to push aside her fear, to be brave with him at her side. Ed couldn't hurt her here with Daryl, no matter how dark, no matter how small the space. It was actually possible for her mind to let go of the fear.

"Almost there, woman," he whispered roughly, never breaking stride, keeping to the steady pace he'd set for them in their descent. "Just remember the lake, the sun on your skin, the warmth of the water … What else do you see? Are you content? Happy?"

"Mmm … yes. So happy."

His hand fell away from her belly, and she instantly missed the comforting contact. "Open your eyes. We're down."

Carol did as he instructed as he took a step away from her. Not only had they made it down through the shaft, but he'd led her out into the dimly lit open space of the main floor of the store. "Daryl … how did you know – "

"Wasn't nothin' … just somethin' my counselor in school used t' use on me when she was tryin' t' get me t' talk about m' feelin's." He smirked down at her. "Always made for th' best naps. Just … don't tell nobody, ok?"

Nobody meaning Merle, she thought. "I won't and thank you."

Daryl nodded and ventured further into the store as Sophia came bounding into the room to find her mother. "Mom, are you ok?" the girl asked, throwing her arms around Carol. "Even I felt a little cramped in there."

Before she could answer, Merle and Marty finally made their way into the room. And what a room it was. There were racks of clothes, mostly what looked to be hunting apparel, and the walls held any and all manner of weapon anyone could want. Then there were display cases with more knives and ammo than she thought possible. It had to be the equivalent of freakin' Disneyworld to the Dixon brothers.

"So, whatcha of a mind for, Merle … and one better," the svelte raven-haired woman purred. "Whatcha got t' trade?"

Carol blushed at the blatant invitation in the woman's voice, her cheeks flaming as she averted her gaze. She was taken aback when she noticed her daughter, however. Sophia had crossed her arms over her chest and was glaring at the woman with so much heat Marty should have burst into flames on the spot. What further stunned her was when her daughter stalked across the distance separating them and planted herself at Merle's side, slipping her hand into his much larger one.

"Whatcha need, Peach?" Merle asked, dragging his gaze away from Marty's ample cleavage, shaking himself mentally. "Somethin' wrong?"

Carol covered her mouth with her hand as she watched Sophia turn a doe-eyed look on her favorite redneck. What the hell was she playing at, she wondered. "No," her daughter said. "I just feel safer when I'm with you is all."

Merle grinned down at the girl, his lips stretching into something warm and genuine instead of the caustic smirk he usually reserved for everyone else. "Ain't got a problem with that. Y' can stay wi' me as long as it's a'right with your mama."

Carol nodded jerkily as Sophia turned to ask permission, knowing for a fact – especially from what she'd just witnessed –she would be safe with him. So lost in her newest quandary, she nearly jumped out of her skin when Daryl touched her shoulder to get her attention. "C'mon, I know where th' good stuff is hidden. Let Merle haggle with Martine for a while."

*.*.*

Merle watched them go before turning back to the woman in front of him. It had been a while since he'd seen her – months, in fact – but he was not finding her as alluring as he once had. Fuck knew she was still as gorgeous as she had always been, but apparently his desire for her had waned. He wasn't as stupid as people seemed to think either. He knew very well what she wanted to 'trade', and now she was silently fuming because Sophia – god bless her – had thrown a monkey wrench into her plans. He needed to be focused on his family. Gawd! I'm goin' soft, for fuck's sake.

"Sorry, darlin', ain't got nothin' t' trade on me right now," he drawled. "And considerin' that favor we did y' a while back, I'd say y' owe me."

"Fine," she pouted, crossing her arms over her breasts as her mind went briefly back to the time the brothers had saved her ass from her abusive ex-boyfriend. She'd thought Daryl was going to kill him that night. "Take whatcha need. Not like I'ma be able t' sell it."

"That's th' spirit," Merle chortled. He glanced down at Sophia. "Go an' tell 'em t' stock up on everythin' we need, a'ight, Peach? Then come right back."

Marty stared after the girl as Sophia ran off to do as Merle had asked. "Not like you t' be babysittin'," she stated bluntly, arching a brow at him. "What's th' story with th' kid?"

Merle leaned a hip against a display case, perusing the knives inside. "Daryl."

"That's all yer gonna give me? 'Daryl'?" she grumbled, making air quotes with her fingers.

"You know what he's like when 'e sets 'is mind t' somethin'." He sighed. "Carol and her daughter were in a bad way, an' he just sort of adopted 'em into th' family. They're Dixons now, if y' can believe it."

"And you're ok with that?" she asked incredulously. "I thought it was jus' you and him against the world."

Merle frowned darkly and let his eyes search out the girl who'd wrapped herself around his heart in such a short time. "Yeah … well things change."