There were a lot of reasons to be afraid in the world as it currently was, and a lot of them were perfectly logical reasons. There were a lot of dangers out there, and inside the walls for that matter, Carol knew. There were some fears and dangers that were not logical, and were not necessary in any way. Those were the ones that pissed her off. Especially when she saw someone use their fears against someone she thought of as one of her people.
She was walking to one of the homes down the street, bringing a casserole to one of the elderly that had live-in help, when she saw something that made her stop in the middle of the sidewalk. She had been about to wave to Eric when she saw him in his yard, but there was another neighbor that had his attention, leaning over the fence and speaking too low for Carol to hear. She saw the expression on Eric's face though, and it made her freeze a little on the inside. His face had gone from wary to confused to completely blank in seconds.
She saw him glance down the street toward the walls and then shake his head, throwing down the garden tool that he had been holding before spinning suddenly and stalking toward the house. He was inside before she started walking again, and for the few seconds that she was still standing there she looked at the neighbor and saw the smirking satisfaction that he had on his face. In that instant she knew exactly the kind of things he had been saying, and why, and her jaw clenched.
Carol continued on her way, finally, to drop off the food and left again without staying for a visit. She stopped to visit Eric instead. He answered the door quickly enough, but he was quieter than he usually was.
"I saw what happened, just a little bit ago. I was passing by outside." She hesitated but he nodded so she continued. "What did he say to you?"
Eric shrugged, "The stuff he usually says."
"Want me to beat him up for you?" She was mostly joking, but if he had actually wanted her to do something she'd pull out all the stops to get it done.
He snorted, giving her a smile finally, "Only if Aaron doesn't do it first. Of course, since I'm not going to tell him I guess Mr. Winters will get a pass."
"Maybe Mr. Winters has already had enough passes." There was an edge to her voice and Eric seemed to hear it too, becoming serious again. "He shouldn't be saying anything to you that makes you look like you did out there. I saw that, Eric, and I saw the look on his face when you went inside."
"I know." He fidgeted and started for the kitchen, Carol following slowly. "I think I need a glass of water. Would you like some water?"
"Sure, that would be nice." She leaned against the opposite counter and watched him get the glasses down. "I don't want to overstep any boundaries, but I don't think it's right that he can harass you and nothing is done about it."
"I don't think that anyone would do anything about it, not officially. You know what Pete was doing to his family and no one did anything to stop that until Rick stepped into it." Eric handed her a glass of water, "Winters hasn't even physically assaulted me, or anyone else, so what would be done? Besides, it isn't the first time I've heard that sort of thing. I've been insulted and threatened by much scarier people than him."
"Me too, but that doesn't mean that he should get away with it. Bullies get braver over time when no one stops them. He might just be using words now, but you are alone here a lot, and he knows that. I worry."
"Aaron worries too, which is why I don't want him to know. He might do something, and I'm not sure if we would be protected from trouble the way that others have been in the past." Eric looked at her intently for a few moments, "I don't want you to get into any trouble on my behalf either."
Carol smirked, "If I got into trouble it would be on my own behalf, and I can take it. I could even stick to words, at least at first."