I'm really sorry I didn't post this when I posted the other chapters on Friday. I've been busy and preoccupied and I must have spaced it. Hope you're all enjoying your weekend and thanks for reading!

Chapter Twenty Seven

Daryl leaned forward in the seat, squinting at the sight before him. He heard Merle say something but Daryl was jumping out of the SUV before it even stopped all the way. He sprinted towards the chaos that was going on right in front of the cabin. His eyes took everything in at once. Sophia was on the small porch roof, looking down with wide eyes. Carol and Katherine were standing on the porch with Piper. And Damon... Well, Damon looked like he was in the middle of ripping Richard's son apart. There was blood on Damon's face and Daryl winced when his fist came down on the boy again, rocking his head to the side.

The kid lashed out, trying to buck the bigger boy off of him but he couldn't do it. He was far outmatched but he was able to land a solid blow to Damon's ribs. It may as well have been a little slap because Damon didn't even flinch. His dark eyes weren't wild but intently focused on the damage he was inflicting, his face, blood smeared and grim. Daryl knew that the boy didn't even realize that him and Merle were there, so intent on the pain he was inflicting. If Daryl didn't do something soon, Damon could very well kill this kid and even though Daryl didn't like the boy, he wasn't going to let his cousin do that.

"Goddamn it!" Daryl barked. He hooked an arm around Damon and tried to haul the boy off but he was big and was able to wrestle free easily. Suddenly Merle was there and between the two of them they were able to haul him up and back towards the cabin, but it wasn't easy. Him and Merle had been through a lot tonight and Damon was strong as an ox.

Richard knelt on the ground next to his son. The boy raised his head and Daryl looked away. His face was a mess. Much worse than Damon's. Richard stood up, eyes flashing as he took a step towards Damon. "Who the hell do you think you are?" He bellowed.

Damon broke away long enough to throw a punch at the man, clipping him in the face and landing a powerful blow to Richard's midsection before Merle swept his foot out from under him and took Damon to the ground. Daryl stepped in front of him, shoving Richard back and away from the boy just as he was trying to straighten back up.

"You ever even act like you're gonna lay hands on that boy and next time we won't stop him you son of a bitch," Daryl glared, his blood boiling with anger, so close to the other man that his forehead nearly slammed into him. Richard turned his head, his hands going up in a gesture that told Daryl that he didn't want a physical fight. As far as Daryl was concerned, that was a damn shame too.

"He fucking hit her!" Damon roared, still trying to get away from Merle so he could get back at Brody. Merle grunted and cursed as he tried to restrain him but he held on, breathing heavily from the exertion. Lucky for him Damon had expended a lot of energy already because there was no way Merle could have held him down otherwise.

"Hit who?" Daryl asked, glancing around. The headlights were still shining on everyone and his eyes instantly landed on Carol. He saw a small trickle of blood at the corner of her mouth. His feet were suddenly moving towards her. Her blue eyes were huge as she regarded him. He felt his hands start to shake. He didn't make a move to touch her, even though he wanted to look her over. He would have time to do that later.

"If he ever touches my son again-" Richard's voice trailed off weakly.

Daryl spun around and something in his face seemed to still the others. Damon stopped fighting so Merle could pull him up off the ground. Richard didn't finish his sentence. Instead he took a step away from Daryl, fear clear on his face. Daryl glanced over his shoulder, meeting Carol's eyes. He turned his back on the others again and reached around, handing her the gun he had tucked into the back of his pants. She took it wordlessly. He looked over at Piper who was watching him with a strange look on her face. "Go get one of those flashlights."

She nodded and disappeared into the cabin. No one seemed to breathe until she returned handing it to him, her green eyes wide and searching.

He held it out for Carol to take. "Go down to the shack," he growled.

She swallowed and took the flashlight. "Daryl we need to ta-"

"Go to the goddamn shack and wait," he said from between clenched teeth. He couldn't keep his hands from shaking. "Please," he added, needing her to go.

She opened her mouth to say something but he cut her off.

"Please don't fuckin' argue with me. You can be stubborn tomorrow. Go to the goddamn shack and wait for me." If he had to look at that small smear of blood on her face for another second someone was going to die tonight. More than one person.

She finally nodded. "What about-"

"I'm fine mom. Go," Sophia said, coming out the door.

He waited for her to go and then he turned on Richard. The man was knelt down again, helping his son sit up. Daryl needed to think. He needed to clear his head before he made any rash decisions. He didn't know how he was going to handle this.

"Hey," Merle said, his voice low and his hand clamping Daryl's shoulder roughly. "I got this, alright. You need to go."

Daryl's jaws ached but he couldn't ease that tension. "No. This shit needs to be handled now."

Merle nodded. "That kid ain't doin' no more damage to anybody tonight, little brother. I can handle this. Go make sure she's alright."

Daryl wanted to argue with him but he wasn't going to. Merle could handle this. He really did need to go make sure she was alright. He pointed to Richard and Brody, who was now standing with the support of his father, but his right arm was hanging at an odd angle. "You fucking watch them. Make sure Damon stays with the girls."

Merle nodded, for the first time in their lives, not giving Daryl any shit. Daryl met Damon's eyes and gave the boy a slight nod. Damon returned it and then walked back into the cabin, the girl's trailing after him. Daryl walked away, for once, letting his brother clean up the mess.

~H~

Carol was shivering as she lit the lantern and turned off the flashlight. The ache in her arm and the sting from the slap she had taken were opening up more of those dark windows in her mind. How many more times was she going to be forced to endure a blow like that? How many more times was she going to have to hide a bruise from someone? Did everyone have a monster hiding inside of them? Why did so many people think it was okay to hurt others? Was there a monster hiding inside of her? She wasn't sure. She didn't think so. She cared about people. It made her feel good to help people and she liked to do what she could to make people happy. Why did she keep getting hurt?

She leaned into the counter, staring down into the chipped porcelain sink, willing her hands to stop shaking and her lungs to work properly. She felt the sting of tears in her eyes and tried to blink them back. The tears were bitter, making her feel weak. She hated feeling weak. It was one of the worst feelings in the world and she had spent too much of her life feeling that way.

She felt a touch on her back and she spun around, imagining that Ed would be behind her, glaring, ready to grab her. Before she had a chance to scream she realized that it was Daryl. She remembered then how scared she was that he wouldn't come back at all. He was hours late. He could have gotten bitten or he could have gotten into an accident. He could have died out there but he was here, standing right in front of her, staring at her worriedly.

"I was afraid you weren't coming back," she whispered.

His eyes held hers steadily but he didn't say anything.

"Is Damon okay?"

He nodded but still didn't say anything.

"I didn't mean for any of that to happen. I don't even know how it happened, really." She wrung her hands and tried to blink back tears.

He shook his head. "Wasn't your fault."

"Yes, it was my fault. I shouldn't have talked to the boy like that. I made it worse than it could have been. He just made me so mad. I couldn't sleep so I got up. He must have still been awake and he followed me outside. It was stupid. If I'd just stayed in bed then it wouldn't have happened."

He frowned and then his eyes slid down to her mouth. She didn't mean to do it but when his hand came up she flinched. Her mind refused to stop asking the same question over and over. Was there a monster in everyone? His thumb moved to the corner of her mouth and then he pulled back. It came away wet with blood. "Ain't nothin' your damn fault." His voice shook with anger.

She pressed further into the counter.

"Stop. Stop lookin' at me like I'm gonna do somethin' to you, goddamn it," he muttered, still angry.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her heart hammering hard and fast.

He shook his head but he was still crowding her. "Carol?"

She looked up. "What?" She breathed.

"What else did that boy do to you?" He asked in a low voice.

She shook her head.

"Then why are you so goddamn scared? Of me, for fucks sake."

"It isn't you. It isn't him. I think it's just me. I've been nervous since you left this morning. A lot happened. I don't wanna talk about it tonight."

"You're sleepin' here," he said quickly, leaving no room for argument.

She nodded and tried to step around him but his hand shot out, stopping her. She froze but her eyes slid up to meet his.

"I'm an asshole, okay? I know that. You know that. But I ain't never put my damn hands on a woman. I wouldn't do that. I'll yell and scream and I'll even break shit on occasion but that's it. You understand that?"

She nodded.

"Then tell me why you're afraid of me for fuck's sake!" The tone held a desperate edge.

He looked so worried about her that she forced herself to take a few deep breaths and calm herself. He was right. But those old fears were hard to shake. Hard, sure, but maybe not impossible. She offered him a small smile. "I'm not scared of you."

"You're a bad liar, you know that?"

"I'm not," she insisted, as she pulled off his shirt she was wearing for warmth and draped it over the chair. "Let's just go to bed, okay?"

He ran a hand through his hair and sat down on the edge of the bed, toeing his boots off and sighing heavily. She rubbed her arms to try to fight off the chill and then raised her brow when he scooted in by the wall.

"I thought you refused to be smashed," she said, unable to resist the allure of the thick quilt and the promise of body heat. She felt cold all over, inside and out, and knew his warmth would chase it all away.

"Just kill the light and shut it. I've had to deal with Merle for hours. I just wanna go to sleep. We got a lot to deal with tomorrow."

She did just that, sliding in and turning onto her side so she wasn't hanging off the edge. She was surprised when she felt his hand on her waist. She covered it with her own and pulled so his arm was around her. She felt ridiculous for being afraid of him. He didn't pull his arm away and he didn't mutter or grumble when she fit herself against him snugly. "I know you're not like Ed," she said suddenly.

He shifted slightly to accommodate her better . "Who's Ed?" He whispered.

"My husband."

"He beat the fuck out of you, didn't he?" His voice wasn't cold, just inquisitive and from the sound of it, he already knew the answer to that question.

"Yes. He did. But I know you aren't like him. It's just hard sometimes. Since he died, I haven't exactly been close with anyone. It's just been Sophia and me. So after tonight, I kind of felt afraid all over again. But I don't think you'd do the kind of things he did."

His arm tightened around her middle, pulling her tighter against him and then she felt his warm breath blow across the back of her neck. "That's the last time anybody is gonna lay a fuckin' hand on you as long as I'm alive," he growled.

She stared off into the dark, her throat feeling tight as she ran his words through her mind. "I'm glad you're home," she whispered.

He didn't say anything else but his arm tightened around her and he relaxed against her. Just like the night before, she fell asleep quickly.