Odilia sat down on her new bed, the mattress creaking under her weight. On the other side of the room sat Athena. She was cleaning her long hunting knife. She wasn't very talkative but Odilia had to try and get through to her if they were going to be living together for a bit.
"So," she said, "What are you and Ares plans now that we're here?" Athena looked up at her and said
"We'll stay here, it's a big enough group, seems like a nice community." Odilia nodded and said
"Me 'n Georgette made a deal. If we got here and found her parents we would all head down south to Louisiana to rescue my mom." She had clearly captured Athena's interest.
"Just you three?"
"No probably not," she said, "I'm sure Georgette will wanna bring her father along. Hopefully he agrees to come."
"And if he doesn't?" Odilia hadn't really thought about it. She had a feeling Georgette would keep her word. She was a loyal person. But what about her father? If he didn't want to come would Georgette agree to leave him behind so they could head down south and rescue her mother? They could bring her mother back to the community and live there.
"I don't know," said Odilia, "Not somethin' to think about right now." They had just arrived. The only people in the community they had met were Daryl and Michonne. It was late and they'd meet the others in the morning. They'd all been assigned rooms. She blew out the candle sitting on the table next to her and then got underneath the covers, the flickering light from Athena's candle not bothering her slumber.
Georgette didn't forget she and Odilia's deal. She, Candice and her father were standing in the hallway outside of she and Candice's new bedroom. She wasn't sure whether now was a good time to mention the agreement. Her father looked exhausted and they were too. Georgette had a lot on her mind besides she and Odilia's deal. She needed to talk to Irving as soon as possible.
"I'll see you two in the mornin'." He was smiling at them. "We still got a lot to catch up on." He leaned in a kissed them both on the forehead. It brought back long forgotten memories of being tucked into bed and her mother singing her to sleep. "I love you both."
"We love you too." He smiled at them and before shutting it said
"It's amazing to have you two back, I've dreamed of this day for years."
"Us too." They then moved down the hall and went into their own room. Candice sat down on her already made bed and said
"I can't believe this is actually happening."
"I remember stuff now," she said, "I remember going to the park and playing at home." Sadly Candice said
"I wish I could remember." Georgette sat down next to her sister and put a comforting arm around her.
"You don't have to," she said, "We're starting out fresh; the past is behind us now. No more sadness or regret." Candice wrapped her arms around Georgette in return.
The familiar scene fabricated right before Odilia's eyes. It seemed so clear and real she found herself questioning whether it was really happening or she was dreaming. She peered through the trees, the scene unfolding before her as it had before. It was the first time she'd figured out something was off about Vince and his buddies. It was the middle of the night and she'd snuck out. She had been going to smoke behind her house when she heard a distant sound in the woods. It was someone yelling and screaming. She couldn't quite tell if it was male or female but it was definitely a person. It could be someone at the perimeter fence trying to get in and away from walkers. She walked off in the direction of the sounds. It wasn't long before she came to the fence. All was still and no one was hanging around. Then the screaming continued. It was much closer this time and she knew she would have to cross over. Carefully, she climbed up the side and then threw herself over, landing hard on her feet on the other side. As she moved on she started to see a glow through the trees. When the screams started up again she could finally identify them as male. They were full of pain and agony and she thought that she'd find someone being ripped apart by a walker but when she pushed some foliage out of her way and looked into the clearing she saw that was not the case. There was a bonfire going and knelt over next to it was a man. He was covered in blood and surrounding him and the fire were about six men. They were dressed from head to toe in alligator skins and body parts. She recognized the suits from their own village. The men often wore them suits for protection when they went out on runs but this was clearly not a hunting party. The suits had always creeped her out but now in the flickering light of the fire they horrified her. They looked like weregators, part human, part alligator. One stepped forward and grabbed the man by the back of his shirt and dragged him towards the fire. The man yelled out in fear.
"Please no! Why are you doing this?!" the man in the suit just laughed and picked the man up, holding him the flames like he was toasting a marshmallow for a s'more. The man screamed in pain as his pant leg caught fire. He further lowered him into the flames and when he came out he was completely lit up. His screams now sounded inhuman and high pitched, like a rabbit that had gotten its back leg stuck in a trap. The man dropped him to the ground and the others advanced on him. The man behind the gator head mask spoke and she recognized him as Vince.
"He's all yours boys." The others closed in and began beating the man with metal bars, sticks, knives and whatever else they could get their hands on. She heard Vince laugh again. It was evil and demonic. She couldn't watch any longer. She turned and ran as fast as her legs would carry her. She was sure she hadn't been spotted but she didn't slow down until she reached the perimeter fance. She quickly threw herself back over and ran home.
Odilia awoke with a gasp. That night had been about a week before Beau had abducted her and she ran away. She remembered running home and getting back into bed, trying to make sense of what she had seen. The next day she had gone to Vince and asked him about it. He had just smiled at her, told her not to leave the village walls again and said the man had broken into the village and tried to steal some of their food, talking as if that justified burning and beating a person to death. She didn't buy it at all and she was sure her suspicion was the reason Beau had suddenly decided to try and kill her.
She lay back down and tried to go back to sleep. She was hundreds of miles away from the village but she couldn't shake the terrible feeling it gave her, all she had to do was think about it. She'd be going back soon, she wouldn't leave her mother there.
Odilia wasn't the only one having a hard time sleeping. Daryl tossed and turned in his sleep. The arrival of the girls had set his mind reeling uncontrollably. His sleep was clouded with memories from long ago. From back when he and Beth were on the road, from their old village and from those lonely months that he'd spent on the road alone. His mind seemed to want to hone in on that and he found himself re-living the day Michonne and Carl had found him.
He was lying on his back on the ground. He could feel every bit of his aching, dirty body. He had managed to get a glimpse of himself yesterday in a car windshield. He was beyond recognizable. His face was completely covered with dirt and grim, his hair and beard had grown out into a scraggly mess. He was sure if Beth or his girls saw him now they wouldn't recognize him. He'd been walking around aimlessly for a long time, often going for days without sleep or a proper meal. All he wanted was to find his girls. He was determined to keep searching until he found them. He kept Georgette's little boot in his pocket. He often held it tightly in his hand, hoping it would bring him some luck.
Now he'd completely run out of energy. He'd collapsed and wasn't able to get up again. It'd just have to be his bed for the night. He knew it wasn't safe, that a walker could come up and take a bite out of him but he didn't care at this point. There was nothing left for him to live for. He closed his eyes.
It felt like hours before he opened them again but the sky was still light as it had been before. He felt a hand brush over his face and he turned his head slightly to see Georgette standing there. He tried to scramble to his feet but couldn't. His limbs felt weighed down and lifeless. Georgette came forward and he felt her brush her finger across his cheek again. He heard her little voice say
"It's you daddy." He smiled and said
"It's me sweetheart, I'm here." She knelt down next to him and said
"Why are you so dirty?"
"Been lookin' for you." Suddenly Georgette turned as if she had heard something and ran back into the woods. "Wait!" He felt fear pierce his chest as she disappeared behind the bushes. He felt the loneliness start to set in again. It was then that he heard her voice. He recognized the song as one that she had sung to him once while they were on the road.
"Beth." She emerged from the trees, holding Georgette's hand and Candice bundled in her other arm. She was wearing the white nightgown she had been the night they tried to escape the village, except it was pure white and no longer covered in dirt and blood. "Beth," he said again, reaching out to her as much as he could with his arm. She stopped singing and smiled at him. He repeated her name again and again, wanting her to come to him and prove that she was real, that she was still alive. But she didn't move, she continued to smile at him. He blinked and in a second everything changed. She was lying on the ground, covered in blood again, her long blonde hair soaked in it. Her dress was torn and dirty like he remembered. Both of the girls were gone and she was alone. He felt anger bubbling up inside of him and he started to scream and yell her name. It was then that he felt someone say his name. The voice sounded familiar but it wasn't Beth's this time. This time standing above him was Michonne and a much older Carl with shocked looks on their faces. They had to be fake too. There was no way they were there. When they grabbed onto his arms and tried to help him up he wildly pulled away from their grip.
"You ain't real!" He grabbed his crossbow and held it up at them. Michonne put her hands up and said
"Take it easy Daryl, it's gonna be ok."
"You're just another hallucination!"
"No we're not," she said, "We're here for you, we wanna help you." Daryl's starved and dehydrated brain told him otherwise. He raised the crossbow again and as he was about to pull the trigger when he heard someone behind him. He turned just in time to see Carl swinging a large metal pole at him. It hit him hard on the head and he was knocked unconscious.
Georgette knew where to find Irving. As soon as Candice was asleep she quietly crept out of bed. She tip-toed down to the room he was staying in with Ares. She stuck her head in to see that they were both asleep, Thor snoring loudly from the bottom of Irving's bed. She came up next to him and lightly shoke him awake. He sat up abruptly, clearly ready for a fight. When he saw her standing there in the dark he smiled and said
"Sorry, thought you mighta been a walker." She ignored his slight sarcasm and said
"We need to talk." He swung his legs over the side and said
"Bout what?"
"About the fact that you didn't tell me your last name was Dixon and that you're my cousin."
"Didn't think last names were so important anymore."
"Well they are," she said, "If you had told me I probably would have thought you were my dad."
"You sayin' I'm too old for you?"
"No," she said, "I just don't know what to do." She took a seat on the bed next to him, keeping an eye on Ares, making sure he was still asleep.
"We don't have to do nuthin'," he said, "In my opinion with the way the world is why should it matter if we're related. We ain't brother or sister, I ain't your uncle, it's not a close blood bond." Georgette considered his words. It was true, he was her only her father's first cousin, that wouldn't make them to close. The only thing they shared were her great-grandparents which would make them his grandparents.
"Well what are we?"
"Whatdya mean?"
"What am I to you?" It was clear they had feelings for each other but so far all they'd done was fuck.
"Well what do you wanna be?" She definitely wanted to be more than just a fuck buddy but she wasn't quite sure how to tell him. She had never had this kind of interaction with anyone before. It made her red faced and nervous. He stared into her blue eyes, waiting for an answer. It was strange. She still felt like they barely knew each other, that they'd only scratched the surface. She leaned up and pecked him on the lips.
"I wanna get to know you more," she said, "Before we continue." Smiling, he climbed back into bed and held the covers up for her to get in with him. She got in next to him and propped herself up on her elbow on the pillow.
"So Irving Dixon," she said, "How do you and my father remember each other from so long ago?"
"His father was my father's brother," he said, "We saw each other a lot, he and Merle was way older than me so they looked out for me. We were kinda in the same boat so it was nice to have 'em around."
"The same boat?" Irving's eyes got dark and he said
"Guess your daddy didn't tell you then?"
"Tell me what?"
"We were abused as kids, both me, your dad 'n Merle." Georgette was surprised. "Both of our dad's were sick fuckin' bastards. Only thing I regret about is not bein' able to put a knife into his head myself. I left soon as I could, never saw him again. Hopefully he got torn apart by the walkers."
"Why wouldn't he tell me?"
"Probably is embarrassed," said Irving, "Or uncomfortable about it. Took me awhile to get over it but Shay helped me."
"Is that what's on your back? Scars?" He raised his eyebrows at her, surprised that she knew. She blushed and said "Sorry I saw them a few nights ago." He nodded and rolled over, tearing his shirt off over his head. They crisscrossed up and down his back, some deeper than others.
"He'd use whatever he could get his grimy hands on," said Irving, "Belts, chairs, whips, you name it." Georgette reached out and lightly ran her fingers over the raised skin. She let her fingers drift up to his tattoo that begin on his ribs.
"What's your tattoo mean?" He rolled back over, revealing the large black bear tattoo that stretched across his upper right chest.
"Got it right before the turn. Always liked bears, never shot at 'em when I saw them out in the woods. Wanted something on me that looked cool." He laughed and said "Was half drunk when I got it but I don't regret gettin' it." She spotted another on his arm of a demon and one just below his collar bone of two snake linked together.
They spent what felt like hours in bed just talking. Georgette told him about her childhood in Wyoming and escaping Georgia with Angela. When she was done she said
"What was it like before the walkers?" Irving shrugged and sarcastically said
"Didn't haveta worry about gettin' eaten." She laughed and gave him a playful shove.
"I'm serious."
"Nuthin' special," he said, "Once I left my dad I lived in an apartment for awhile, had different jobs on 'n off. Ended up just dealin' drugs in the end. Didn't do much of the stuff myself but it was quick 'n easy money." Georgette had no idea what 'dealing drugs' meant. She assumed that maybe it was some kind of medical position.
"What was that like?"
"Pretty easy, would meet up with people, give them what they needed 'n get the money."
"What kind of sicknesses did they have? Did you heal them?" He gave her a look of confusion and then he broke into a wide grin and started laughing. Georgette was surprised and she shushed him. "don't wake Ares up!" He continued to laugh and said
"You think I was some sorta doctor?" Georgette shrugged, not understanding the humor.
"Well you said you gave people drugs, like medicine so ya, that's what doctors did right?" He wiped the tears from his eyes and said
"A drug dealer ain't no doctor. You got it all wrong." Georgette felt slightly insulted, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Well then what is it?"
"There are two kindsa drugs. The kind that you get prescribed by a doctor if you're sick 'n then the kind that are sold on the street."
"Who bought them then?"
"People who wanted 'em to get high. It only hurt 'em in the end but it made 'em feel good so they got addicted to it. When they wanted the drugs they couldn't go to a doctor so they came to me for 'em." Georgette understood but she wasn't sure she liked what she was hearing.
"You sold people drugs knowing that they would be bad for them in the end?"
"Didn't matter much to me back then, I just needed money. Had to eat and pay the rent."
"You never did the drugs?"
"Nah," he said, "I smoked once in awhile but didn't much like it. I preferred alcohol when it came to doin' damage."
Georgette had snuck back to her room in the early hours of the morning. She couldn't fall asleep with Irving and risk someone finding them. They had decided to work on getting to each other a bit more before jumping into any kind of relationship and keep it all a secret. Although her body wanted him she refused to let that get the best of her. She got back into bed and slept until the sun came up. She found herself being shaken awake by Candice who had a wide grin on her face.
"They've got bacon!" and with that she ran out of the room and back up the stairs. Georgette rubbed her still tired eyes and got up to get dressed. She went up the stairs towards the main lobby and found everyone sitting at the table. Most of the people there were from her group but others were not. She forgot that she had yet to meet everyone. Her father stood up and came over and pulled her into a hug.
"How was your sleep?"
"Great."
"Come meet the others." When her dad pulled away she saw that the unrecognizable people had stood up to greet her. Clearly she was the last one left to meet everyone. The only person not there besides her was Athena. Her father led her over to the first person in line. It was Michonne, the woman whom she had met last night. She smiled and said
"Nice to see you again." Georgette nodded, the woman's stoic demeanor made Georgette feel safe in her presence. She went down the line, meeting Judith officially. She could tell that the girl was excitable and peppy by the way she greeted her with enthusiasm. Then came her brother Carl.
"Sorry for tying you up," he said looking shyly at his feet. Georgette had to admit she had been pretty pissed at him but she knew he was just trying to protect his home.
"Don't worry about it." She then met Pedro, her father's close friend. Then came Talmidge and Carlotta. The last woman was elderly and had a kind smile. Before Georgette could say hello the woman gently touched her still healing face wound.
"You're gonna need some antibiotics put on this." Georgette smiled and said
"Thanks that would be great." She went to sit down at the table but Sarah grabbed her hand and said
"Oh no, we better do it now, don't want to risk that cut getting infected any longer." Georgette smiled and said
"Alright." She brought her into a small office off of the lobby. She opened up a drawer on the desk and pulled out a container.
"We found this when we came here," she said, "The whole place was nearly untouched, we couldn't believe it." She unscrewed the cap and then lightly dabbed the Neosporin over Georgette's cut. Georgettte kept her mouth shut about the other wounds on her body, not wanting the woman to spend the next half hour slathering her entire torso with Neosporin. When Sarah was done she capped the container, took out a clean white bandage and put it over the wound. Georgette thanked the friendly older woman and they headed back out to the lobby.
When she sat down at the table she was handed a platter of bacon like Candice had told her. She piled her plate up with it along with fruit and other pieces of meat. A few minutes later, Athena appeared from the hallway, fully dressed.
Daryl watched the last girl walk across the lobby towards the table. Something about her seemed familiar. She had brown hair that reached a little past her shoulders, fair skin and Asian features. But what really caught his eye was what she was wearing around her neck. It was a large silver watch. He had seen it before. For the first time a long time ago when he first arrive at Hershel's farm. Hershel constantly used it until he gave it to Glenn who always had it on him. He got up out of his seat and moved towards the girl. She gave him a weird look and he said
"Can I see your watch?" Confused she slowly took it from under her neck and handed it to him. He flipped it over and sure enough on the back the words Finnegan Greene were engraved in fancy cursive letters. He remembered Hershel saying that it was his grandfather who had owned it. He looked back up at the girl and then over at her brother. It couldn't possibly be who he thought it was but all the evidence was out in front of him. He and Beth had never seen Maggie nor Glenn after the prison fell. Of course Beth had always held hope that one day they'd somehow turn up at the village safe but it had never happened.
"Where did you get this?"
"My father gave it to me."
"Glenn Rhee? Was that his name?" Instead of shock or surprise the girl got hostile.
"How do you know that?" He ignored her harsh tone and said
"I knew him. He was my brother-in-law." The girl still looked hostile and she said
"What are you talking about?" By now everyone in the room was looking at them, wondering what was going on.
"My wife Beth was your mother's sister. Maggie is your mother right?" By now Ares had joined them. In a much calmer voice he said
"What's going on?"
"He says he's our uncle." Daryl felt Michonne walk up next to him and say
"How do you know it's them?" Daryl handed her the watch.
"Says her father gave it to her." Michonne looked at the engraving and then looked up at Ares.
"Is it true? Were your parents Glenn and Maggie Rhee?" Ares nodded and said
"How do you know them?"
"We used to live with them in the prison," said Michonne, "Until it fell and we scattered."
"They told us about that."
"Are they still alive?" Daryl held his breath, hoping at least one of them had made it through and somehow, somewhere they were still out there. But he knew what the answer was. If they were still alive chances are they would be here with their children.
"Not they died," said Ares, "A long time ago when we were little." Michonne then asked
"Was it the walkers?"
"For my dad it was," said Ares, "But my mom committed suicide after we were born. My dad said the depression ate her alive." It had been years since he'd seen Maggie or Glenn, but the conformation of their deaths was a new blow to him. In his mind he mentally crossed their names off of the list. Now twenty two years later, everyone from the prison had now been accounted for. He heard Candice's voice bring him out of his thoughts.
"So they're our cousins?" She and Georgette now stood next to him.
"I guess it does."
Georgette's mind was spinning. The past twenty-four hours had been crazy. She had wanted to find her family but it was moving far too fast for her mind to wrap around. Not only was Irving related to her but Athena and Ares were as well. She heard Candice talk with excitement.
"This is so awesome!" Ares had a smile on his face to. But Athena had a look of confusion and shock that matched Georgette's. She watched as Ares put a hand on Daryl's shoulder and said
"So what should we call you Uncle Daryl?" She knew he was thrilled to have found some family that was still alive. She saw his face get red and he said
"Sure, whatever you want."
Thanks DarylDixon'sLover and Eliza for commenting :) Some people have been asking when they will find Beth lol I'm not going to give anything away, you'll just have to wait and see. The next chapter will have Georgette & Candice in it and be the last chapter of Into the Unknown. After that I will be starting straight away with the next book. It won't be that much of a time jump so everything will be familiar to you. I must warn you guys though I will be away this coming weekend and then after that I will have finals Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday so I might not be able to update as much. I will try to get the first chapter of the next book out before that though but no promises.
I also have posted Beau's childhood pictures on my website. You'll find them on The Dixon's page under the Characters drop down bar. I also posted Irving's banner in my profile on here and on the website. I made a banner for both Irving and Georgette which you can also find on my profile here and website. It was pretty easy to make a banner for the to of them considering Alexandra Daddario and Woody Harrelson actually have done a sex scene together in the show True Detective lol. you can also view what Irving's tattoo looks like under his name on my website.
Also I just wanted to say that my heart goes out to those affected by the tornadoes and storms that are moving through the southern U.S. :( Hopefully it will stop soon and people will be able to start picking up their lives again.
Thanks for reading,
Wanderlustt