Between the Thorns
Chapter 43
Rosita waited at the cabin for longer than she really felt comfortable with. By the third day, she was pacing back and forth inside the small space like a tiger in a cage. The image of Sasha being gunned down outside the Saviors complex played over and over again in her mind. And the mixed emotions that she felt over the woman's brutal death weren't helping. Sasha was part of their group. She was a good shot. Strong. And loyal. She was a loss to the group. But Sasha was also the reason that things went bad between Rosita and Abraham at the end. She was the reason that Rosita's last words to the man she loved were fuck you. And the petty little voice inside Rosita's head kept telling her that bitch got what she deserved.
When Rosita woke up on the morning of the fourth day, she packed her bag. She trusted Daryl. And believed that he meant to meet her there. But she couldn't wait on him forever. Her people were in the middle of a war. And she was needed there. Not here. She decided if Daryl hadn't shown up by midday that she was just going to have to leave. Rosita was sliding the note she left for him under a can of green beans when she finally heard the creak of footsteps on the porch outside. Rosita grabbed her gun, aiming it at the door. But she was quick to lower it when she heard the sound of Daryl's voice.
"S'me don't shoot," he warned.
"Took you long enough," Rosita griped. "I was ready to bail."
Daryl entered the cabin. But he wasn't alone. Rosita was surprised to see that he had a young girl with him. She looked to be about Carl's age. Oddly enough, the girl bore some superficial resemblance to Daryl. Especially her eyes. But Rosita assumed that it must just be a strange coincidence. Because Daryl had only been gone a month or two. Which certainly wasn't enough time for him to have and raise a child.
"Rose," he said, ticking his head towards the girl before he added, "...my stepdaughter." He would normally just say the girl was with him. But after Ezekiel's men assumed that with him implied a sexual relationship, he'd decided to alter his method of introduction.
"Stepdaughter?," Rosita repeated. "You got married?" She'd never even seen Daryl with a woman. And it wasn't due to lack of interest from them. She had honestly assumed he was either gay or weirdly asexual. Negan sent Rick a tape of Daryl having sex with some woman. But Rosita didn't see it. She just assumed that whatever happened on the tape wasn't consensual. At least not for Daryl. And the idea that he'd somehow managed to obtain a wife in the short time he'd been away was blowing her mind.
"Maybe we can save that talk fer another time," Daryl suggested. Never sounded like the best time for them to have another discussion about his personal life. The shit with the tape was bad enough. And he knew that it poisoned the well. In a perfect world, he'd hoped that he would be able to eventually introduce Jean and her girls to his extended apocalypse family. Now everyone was going to think of her as some sort of paid whore that Negan used to buy his loyalty. Daryl swiped his hair from his eye, reminding himself that they were pretty goddamn far out from having a family dinner together. What his people thought of Jean wasn't something he needed to worry about at the moment.
"Sorry," Rosita said, switching back over into business mode. "What can you tell me?"
"You've got a leak that ya need ta plug up," Daryl said, watching as Rosita's eyes widened slightly. Daryl had no idea where the information was coming from. But wherever it was, it was flowing freely. Daryl wasn't partial to everything Negan knew. But he heard enough to know that the man knew a lot. Much more than he should know. He knew Rick was stirring up trouble, inciting the other communities to join together and fight.
"Fuck," Rosita cursed. "How much does he know?," she asked.
"Enough," Daryl replied in his usual blunt clipped way. Rosita asked if Daryl knew who was passing information. He didn't. But there was more that he did know. "He's gearin' up. To attack Alexandria. Ya got a few days at most."
If they were smart, they would run. Daryl knew firsthand how much fire power Negan was about to rain down on his people. They had no chance. None at all. They would be lucky if anyone made it out alive. Rick ought to send Carl away at the very least. Because Negan promised Rick he would kill the boy if Rick made any further trouble. And while he may have many other undesirable qualities, Negan was a man of his word.
"You've gotta convince Rick ta run," Daryl urged. They'd be gunned down like fish in a barrel if they stayed. Unless Rick had gone totally delusional, he had to know that.
"He won't run," Rosita said. "You know he won't." Daryl nodded. He knew Rick well. They'd made it through more impossible situations together than one could possibly imagine. But eventually, Rick's luck was going to run out. This wasn't a band of thugs that was jumping them by the roadside. Or the governor with his group of poorly trained militia. Who, by the way, still got the jump on them and destroyed the prison. This was an entire army. More guns and men and armored trucks. Rick hadn't even seen the half of the type of power Negan wielded.
"There's somethin' else ya gotta tell Rick," Daryl added. And this time he had to fight for control over his emotions as he spoke.
"They've got Carol."
