The Saints
Chapter 2

Beth groaned as she rolled over, pulling the blankets over her head and burrowing deeper into them. It was nice to have a somewhat comfortable bed for a change. The bed she'd been sleeping on in the MacManus' apartment hadn't been all the comfortable, especially since she'd had a wrist cuffed to it all night. Connor and Daryl seemed to think it was alright for her to roam the house free since she hadn't tried to run from them. They weren't the only ones surprised by her behavior.

She rubbed his eyes and rolled over, staring up at the ceiling. What the hell was happening to her? Knowing she wasn't going to go back to sleep she tossed the blankets back and pulled on the jeans Connor had brought her the day before. She slipped her feet into her socks and boots before walking out to the kitchen. She sighed when she was only met with silence. It sounded like the boys were still asleep. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn't eaten in over twenty-four hours. She walked over to the fridge to see what kind of food Connor had brought back. She was praying there was more than cold pizza and beer in the fridge.

She smiled when she found eggs and some bacon. She pulled them out and searched around for a couple of pans to fry them in. She found some, but they looked like they hadn't been washed in a few months. She sighed and filled the sink, washing the dishes before she could use them. While she washed dishes and let the pans heat up, looking for some seasoning and bread she thought about what had happened the night before.

She still couldn't believe she'd slept with Daryl. She had to be crazy. They had kidnapped her for crying out loud. Who the hell willingly slept with their kidnappers, and enjoyed it? She shook her head, putting some bacon in the pan. There had to be something wrong with her. As far as she was concerned, the only reason that had happened was because of the adrenaline going through them. She'd almost been killed and they had saved her life. That was the only reason. She tried to reason with herself that if Daryl had been the one who'd left, and Connor the one who stayed, she would have slept with him instead.

She tried to tell herself that, but she knew it wasn't true. She wasn't attracted to Connor the way she was to Daryl. "What the hell am I saying?" she complained to herself. She shouldn't be attracted to either of them. They were murderers. She'd seen them kill people. She made a promise to herself right then and there; she was not going to sleep with Daryl again, ever. She couldn't let that happen. She needed to get away from them. She needed to get back home to her daddy and her sister. They were probably worried sick. She doubted Connor or Daryl had actually called to tell them where she was or who she was with.

Then again, those men said they'd known her father and they had known where she was, who she was with. So maybe her dad did too. She sighed and moved the bacon to a plate, putting more in the pan as she cracked a few eggs into the other pan and put some toast on a back burner turned on low. There was no toast, so she had to make do with what she had available.

"Something smells good," Connor muttered, walking into the kitchen, scratching his head. He sat at the table and grabbed his pack of cigarettes, lighting one before looking at her. "You sleep okay?" he asked.

Beth nodded her head. "Yeah, thanks." She blushed a little and looked away. For being cold blooded killers and kidnappers, they sure as hell didn't act like it. They'd been nothing but nice to her since Daryl had taken her from her house. That had to be part of it too. They didn't act like kidnappers, so she didn't think of them as kidnappers. "Is Daryl awake yet? Breakfast is almost ready."

"He's taking a shower." Beth nodded her head and refused to look at him as he cracked open a beer that had been left out overnight. "You want to tell me what happened last night?" he asked.

Beth glanced at him. She wasn't stupid; she knew what he was talking about. "Last night was a mistake." She shook her head, moving more bacon from the pan to the plate before putting more in the pain. "It shouldn't have happened, and it's not going to happen again." She didn't know if she was saying that for Connor, or herself. "When are you going to let me go home?" she asked. She needed to get the topic off of sleeping with Daryl. The more she thought about it, the more she thought about how good it had felt, and how badly she wanted to do it again.

Connor sighed and rubbed his face with his hands. "I don't know darlin'," he answered. "Things are a bit more complicated now." He put his cigarette out and looked at her. This time, Beth met his eyes. "Someone tried to kill you yesterday, wouldn't feel right lettin' you go without knowin' you're safe."

Beth sighed, but she didn't press the matter as Daryl walked into the room. She wanted to tell him that she would be safe if they hadn't taken her in the first place, but she let the matter drop. She put all of the food on the table, taking note of the silence that stretched out between the three of them, getting more and more awkward by the minute. No one said anything as they ate and Beth wouldn't look at Daryl, she couldn't, she knew if she did she wouldn't be able to look away and then she'd break the promise to herself.

"Boys, you're causing trouble again." They looked up at an older man and a redheaded woman walked into the house. The man smirked and held out his arms. "Miss me?"

The boys both smiled and got up, hugging both of them. "And who is this adorable little thing?" the woman asked, looking over at Beth.

"Beth Greene, it's a long story." Daryl looked over at Beth. "This is Paul Smecker and Eunice Bloom, they're friends," he assured her.

"We actually know who she is, why she's with you, well we got a pretty good idea." Smecker sat down at the table, Bloom beside him. "That's why we're here."

"We did some digging around for you boys." Bloom sighed and pulled out a file. "Her father was working of the Italians and the Russians, but neither side knew that. Well, when they found out, they decided he needed to go. They killed him." She put a picture of Beth's father on the table and she stared horrified as the decapitated head. She covered her mouth, tears forming in her eyes.

"They didn't just kill Hershel, they killed her sister too. That's why they came after her. They want to make sure that no one can talk, ever." Smecker sighed and put a piece of paper over the photo and Beth was grateful, she hadn't been able to take her eyes off of the carnage. "Both families have put a price on her head, half a million to whoever brings her in, dead or alive."

Daryl swore and lit a cigarette. "She doesn't know anything."

Bloom nodded her head. "That's what we figured, but they don't care. As far as they're concerned, she knows something and she needs to be removed from the picture."

Connor ran a hand through his hair. "Don't worry, we'll look after her." He finished his beer and threw the can into the sink. He shared a look with Daryl. Things were about to get a whole lot worse for them, and they both knew it. They also knew it was their fault she was in this mess in the first place. It was their responsibility to make sure she was safe. Daryl rubbed his face and thanked Smecker and Bloom for stopping over with the information before walking them to the door.