Chapter 36: Everything Belongs to Negan

Two more days had passed and Riley was on the way home. Each hour she got closer and closer and things started to look slightly familiar. Road signs began to click in her brain and the woods she passed through jogged something in her memory. It made her excited and anxious at the same time and she tried her hardest to put the pieces together and figure out exactly where she was, but she was still a little bit out of the reaches of her memory. So she kept on going, trudging through the woods but staying somewhat close to the road. Her food supply was doing alright, but soon she would need to look for more food.

Unfortunately for her as night fell, she was unable to find a spot to nestle down in. The side of the road was too barren and unsafe and the woods were flat with no hills or crevices to burrow in. It was likely she would need to nestle herself in the trees and try to get a wink. Branches were never really comfortable and she hardly got sleep when she tried to sleep in them. Still, it was better than staying on the ground.

So she hauled herself up in the nearest tree, finding a good bundle of branches and distributing her weight across them. She used a rope she found to tie herself to the trunk so she wouldn't fall and took a few sips of her water before trying to settle down. Lately, she had been more anxious than usual, probably because she was in familiar territory but not familiar enough for her to figure out where she was exactly. She could practically taste home on her lips and feel Carl's warm embrace when she came running back to him.

A gentle sigh escaped her lips and she closed her eyes, trying to get comfortable and fall asleep so she could resume searching the next day. All was quiet for a while and she was nearly asleep when she heard something and felt a change in the atmosphere.

Her stomach suddenly clenched and her eyes flew open in an instant. Rustling and a booming voice almost out of earshot interrupted the silence. Someone was here. She couldn't make out the words from the voice, but that didn't mean whoever it was wouldn't get closer.

With all haste, she untied herself from the branches and gathered her things, dropping silently to the ground below. Using her rifle, she peered through the scope, staying crouched low in case anyone was nearby. The hair on the back of her neck stood straight up and through the scope she could see a bit of bright light across the woods. Bright light? Almost like car headlights.

Slowly, she shifted through the bushes, making sure to keep her figure behind cover at all times. The light got brighter and brighter as she neared and once she was close enough, she hunkered down behind a bush and used the scope again to get a better look. Now, she could make out some people. Quite a lot of them, actually. One that caught her attention was a man standing in the very center of the light. He had combed back black hair and a salt and pepper beard on his face. A leather jacket encompassed his torso with a bright red scarf tucked in at his neck. And the most noticeable thing was a baseball bat slung over his shoulder and covered in barbed wire.

Who was this man and what was he doing?

She shifted her attention to the people around him, many armed and circling another group that sat before the man. The first thing she saw was a brown Sheriff hat...

Carl?!

Her heart leaped to her throat and she turned her full attention on his figure, kneeling in the dirt with his head slightly bowed. He was here. This was her family. Being threatened by this man. What happened? Who were these people?

So many questions rapid fired in her mind, but her main instinct was to help. These people didn't know she was here and she could shoot their leader down without a second thought. She could save them.

Slowing down her breathing, Riley adjusted her aim to the man in the front who was walking slowly back and forth along the line of her family. Easy shot. He would never know what hit him.

Carefully, she loaded a bullet into the chamber and aimed right at his head. She put her finger on the trigger, waited for him to pause and fired. But as soon as she pulled the trigger, she felt someone tackle her to the ground and her head slammed against a rock, causing stars to swirl in her vision. Everything was quiet for a moment except for the scraping of her body against the dirt. She tried to gain her bearings, but all she could see was the trees above through the gaps in her hair. The light brightened and she winced, her head throbbing painfully with the new stimulation.

"Holy shit! You nearly blew my damn head off!"

Wearily, she reached up to push her hair out of her face and she was greeted with a shit-eating grin from the man she had just tried to shoot.

"Shit! You're just a kid! You got some pretty big lady nuts on ya! How old are you?"

She remained silent, blinking up at him for a moment before slowly pushing herself to a sitting position. Before she could be scolded for not answering, a man came forward. A man that she was unfortunately familiar with.

"Negan. That's her," Simon spoke, raising a grey eyebrow.

"You serious? You mean to tell me this is the damn girl that killed over thirty of us by herself? The one that stole our own damn truck before you could get a hold of her?" the man, Negan, asked with disbelief.

Shit. Negan? She remembered hearing about him. The time when Simon and his group had tried to bring her back to him. The time at the hospital when she had to fight her way to safety. This was Negan?

The talk between the two shifted to the background when she finally locked eyes with that familiar baby blue that she had been longing to see for so long. His eye was wide in shock and his demeanor had changed completely. Before, he had been tense, but now? Now it was easy to see the confusion written all over his features. Instinctively, her fingers twitched toward him and she started to move with the intent of tackling him to the ground and hugging him so hard that they'd suffocate with each other. But legs blocked her and she looked straight up at Negan.

"Stay right here, Wonder Woman, I ain't finished with you just yet. I asked how old you are and I damn well still want an answer so I better hear that number come out of your mouth or there will be hell to pay," Negan growled.

Riley dug her fingers into the dirt and look down, finally able to see a little more clearly now that the dizziness was starting to fade.

"Sixteen," she replied shortly, peering at Carl from behind Negan's leg.

"Sixteen? Holy hell! And you took out all those men of mine by yourself? Shit! Look at me when I'm talking to you, princess, it's not polite to look away!"

His shoe lifted to yank her chin up and she drew in a shaky breath as her head was forced upwards. He slowly lowered himself to crouch next to her and he took hold of her chin firmly, grinning that same shit-eating grin.

"That's better, sweetheart. Now you know, it wasn't very nice of you to kill all my men like that. But I gotta say I am impressed. You're just a kid and yet you still managed to put up one helluva fight." He whistled and let go of her chin, rising once more to take a look around. "Damn, why do all of you look like you've seen a ghost? I'm assuming she's one of yours the way she tried to go all Rambo on me and save your asses."

Once again, silence settled between them as the others refused to answer. Maybe not the best idea since this only seemed to irritate Negan, but she was feeling the same way. She didn't want to talk to someone who was going to force their words out of them.

"Rick, I'd like to hear an answer before miss Lucille here gets even more thirsty than she already is."

He gestured to his bat and gave it a lazy swing, his eyebrows arching up as he waited.

Rick's lips parted slowly and he looked up to meet her gaze. "We thought she had died."

"Well ain't that interesting! You know, that gets me thinking..."

He started to pace, his lips forming into a bigger grin with each second that passed.

"I had an inside guy, you know. I've been hearing things, finding out a bunch of my guys were dying. Which is not okay. So I sent someone to yours to scout for me and you accepted him with open arms. And the funny thing is, he told me that there was someone he knew inside this place! So I said, hell, get the information you need and bring her over, she is more than welcome back at the Sanctuary," he rambled, slinging the bat over his shoulder.

"But you know what he told me over a month ago? He told me that she never returned from a supply run - told me the rest of 'em saw her go down in a herd. It seems to me like this story might be connected. Which would be a damn shame because after what you did to all my men? I wouldn't think you're welcome back at the Sanctuary. As a member, anyway."

Riley's eyebrows furrowed together as she tried to understand exactly what he was talking about. Inside man? Someone that knew her?

"But since I'm good to my people, I think it's only fair to let him come out and take a good look to make sure," Negan gestured someone from the back of the group.

It clicked in her brain just as he stepped into the light.

"So, Dylan, is this that sweet, badass cousin of yours?"

Everything around her seemed to collapse. Dylan? Spying on Alexandria? Betraying her? She couldn't believe it. But there he was in all his glory, standing right next to Negan looking as blank as a rock. There was no mistaking that dark hair and rounded face that she had grown up with. He was with this man? Her lips parted and she stared at him for a long moment.

She didn't even know what was going on. She had been forcibly thrust into the middle of this when she was trying to protect her group from what seemed to be a dangerous situation and now this? What was even happening? Dylan was with Negan, the guy who was threatening her family? And he had been spying on them and reporting information the entire time?

"I don't even think I need a proper answer judging by the look on her face. This night just gets more exciting by the minute!" Negan cackled, patting Dylan's shoulder roughly.

This was the second time he betrayed her. Did she even really know him and could she consider him family anymore? She couldn't pick out a single emotion she was feeling. Anger, betrayal, disappointment, even fear - all of it was swirling in her stomach like a hurricane. No words escaped her lips even though they were parted like a fish out of water. What could she even say? That she hated him? That he had ruined everything for her?

A sharp blur of movement rushed past the corner of her eye and her head jerked upwards just in time to see Carl launching himself at her cousin, every muscle in his body radiating anger and hatred. Rick yelled out something and everything around her seemed to speed up, almost like a drama movie, and her limbs moved on their own.

Fists were flying between the boys Negan was growling and seething, and she had jumped up to latch onto Carl's arm to try and yank him away from the fight. A stray fist skimmed her jaw, but the pain didn't register in her frantic state as she used all of her body weight to pull Carl out of the scuffle. She landed on her back with Carl sliding on his rear beside her in the dirt. Negan came charging toward the two of them and Carl didn't hesitate to flip on all fours above her, a shield between her and anyone who dared get close.

Riley only had a moment to stare up a his bruised face, knitted in a serious expression, before Negan ripped him from the dirt and hurled him across the clearing. Again, he landed in he dirt, looking angrier than ever, and the man in charge stood firm in the middle of the line.

"That's unacceptable!" he roared, causing Rick - who had tried to scramble to his son's aid - to fall back on his knees. "Any shit like that happens again and there will be fucking consequences!"

Silence settled across the clearing and she quivered in the dirt, grinding her teeth together to try and distract from the fear that was now settling hard in her stomach.

"Dylan, you get your ass behind that boy and put a gun to his head to keep him in line. I like you, patchy the pirate, but you don't get to pull shit like that," Negan hissed, gesturing for her cousin to do as he was told.

Dylan slowly took a gun from his jeans and wiped the blood off his nose before doing as he was told and walking across the clearing to where Carl was. He stood behind and pressed the barrel of the gun to the back of his head, to which Negan gave a satisfactory nod.

"Good. Now girl, you better get your ass in line next to him and wait or he will shoot, got it?"

A shaky breath escaped her lips and she replied with a nod, eyes wide as she slowly got to her feet. In silence, she shuffled across the clearing, not daring to look at anyone as she carefully got down on her knees. She couldn't even look at Carl next to her in fear that it might set Negan off.

"Good. Now one of you still has to pay for killing all my men. And since you all seem to deserve it in some way or another, I'm gonna let Lucille pick for me with a little game. You move a muscle and she's gunnin' for you," he warned, circling around to the other end of the line where Glenn rested.

"Eenie." He started with Glenn.

"Meenie." Then Rosita.

"Miney." Daryl.

"Moe." Michonne.

She swallowed thickly, staring down at the dirt as he continued to circle around to each of them and point the bat right in their faces as he continued with his little game. One of them was going to die. Not everyone she had bonded closely with, but they were all family. How could she let one of them die? But she was too scared to say a word and kept firm in the dirt with her mouth shut. The most important person here was right next to her with a gun to his head and anything she might do could have consequences for him.

Every word and step was agonizing. And the worst part was he extended the word game, adding a few pauses here and there and running some words together for different people. The words started to blur together, echoing out of focus until she heard the very last few.

"You. Are. It."

In that moment, her eyes snapped up to land on Negan's victim. Abraham. No. No, not him. He was a soldier. A fighter. Did more for everyone in the family than most of them. He didn't deserve to be the one. But instead of protesting, she stayed silent, the words blocking her throat as she stared at the ginger man's rigid figure, almost like he was raised and ready to take the punishment with open arms.

"Anybody moves, anybody says anything, cut the boy's other eye out and feed it to his father, and then we'll start," Negan warned. "You can breathe. You can blink. You can cry. Hell, you're all gonna be doing that."

Snap!

The bat swung down forcefully on Abraham's head, causing her to flinch. Her body went rigid and she couldn't breathe as he tried to recover from the hit. Blood pooled down his face and she squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately to tune everything out.

"Look at that! Taking it like a champ!" Negan exclaimed, the grin clear in his voice.

"Suck. My. Nuts," Abraham growled.

Another snap.

And another.

Her muscles got tighter and tighter each time he brought the bat down on his head until she felt as if she would suffocate herself. Even if she wasn't watching, the noises were enough. They started out hard thuds and soon became squelches as his head became a mess on the ground. Every moment was agonizing and she could feel the tears building up in her eyes as the fear and sorrow washed over her like crimson blood from a wound. Why had she missed the shot?

It was over way too quickly. She wasn't sure if it was the shocked state she was in or the actual quickness of Negan's kill, but the noises stopped and Negan let out a laugh.

"Did you hear that? He said 'suck my nuts.'"

And just as quickly as the noises stopped, they started up again. Abraham was already dead, but that didn't deter Negan one bit. A quiet sniffle escaped her lips and she desperately tried to hold onto the dirt beneath her to ground herself - do something to make everything tune out. Was this real? Could it even be real?

She clutched onto the dirt and hoped with everything in her soul that it was just a dream, but as her fists got tighter and tighter around the earth, she knew it couldn't be anything but. Some of Negan's words slipped past her comprehension. She could only hear certain words when her shocked consciousness allowed.

"...dirty girl..."

"...eyes on this..."

"...were you together...?"

Finally, she opened her eyes, the realism flooding in her eyes and soaking into her soul. This was real. Abraham's mess of a bloody head was real. Everything she was feeling was real.

Her heart jammed against her ribcage and she found herself unable to look away as Negan waggled the bloody bat in Rosita's face and told her to look. To take a damn look.

And again, everything happened in the blink of an eye. Daryl couldn't take it anymore. He leaped to his feet and socked Negan right across the jaw, not getting much further before some of his men grabbed onto him to pull him away. They wrestled him to the ground and she could see it in Negan's face that he was livid.

"No!" he growled, pointing the bat at Daryl on the ground as he writhed. "That? Oh my...that is a no-no. The whole thing. Not one bit of that shit flies here!"

No one dared to move as one of the men with Daryl's own crossbow came running forward to point the weapon right in his face, asking for his leader's approval.

"Nah. No you don't kill that. Not until you try a little." He grinned, watching them with a sparkle in his eye.

Her stomach churned and the slow creeping of bile rose up her throat. There was going to be a consequence for that. And she couldn't see anyone else die. Not the way Abraham had. Daryl was off the hook, but everyone else was fair game. What would he do? Anxiety smothered her and she couldn't tear her eyes away as Negan rose and smiled.

"That's not how it works. Now I already told you people, first one's free. Then what did I say? I will shut that shit down! No exceptions. Now I don't know what kind of lying assholes you've been dealing with, but I'm a man of my word. First impressions are important. I need you to know me."

Every word sent anxiety and fear rippling and crawling across her skin. And she drew in quick, short breaths to try and soothe her racing heart.

"So. Back to it."

He spun on his heel and hit the nearest person - Glenn.

Riley couldn't help it. The shock, fear, and dread was too much. The cry escaped her lips before she could hold herself back.

"Glenn!"

And someone next to her grabbed her hand. Carl grabbed her hand. The tears came pouring down her face and she wanted to desperately run across the clearing and so something. Anything. Not Glenn. Not him. Ugly sobbing forced its way from her lungs and she tried not to scream, each sob shaking her shoulders as Maggie cried out and Glenn gurgled and spit blood from his lips. Carl's grip on her hand grew tighter and she tried to focus on his warmth.

"Buddy, you still there? I just don't know, it seems like you're trying to speak! But you just took a helluva hit! I just popped your skull so hard your eye just popped out! And it is gross as shit!" Negan laughed.

She dared a glance, which only made her unable to look away. Blood coated his face and sure enough, his left eye bulged out of its socket. No...he could recover from this. He would be okay. He was going to be okay.

She tried to tell herself everything she could, but she knew deep down that tonight he would breathe his final breath. The man she looked up to as a father figure, the one who had taken her in and treated her like a daughter - gone. Just like that. All because of one mistake. The cruelty of this world was often easy to forget.

"Maggie...I will...find you," Glenn gurgled.

Her heart shattered into a million pieces. He wasn't going to live to see his child grow. A stabbing ache grew each passing second and the voices around her grew muffled and faint. Once again, reality smacked her right in the face and tears stung her skin and pooled at her knees.

She vaguely heard voices, but she couldn't make out the words and everything around her began to spin as Negan continued to beat Glenn to death. This time, everything went much more slowly. Each time she heard a faint squelch, memories with him flashed in her mind. Little things. Big things. Conversations between them. Everything. 'I'm not dying that easy, I promise.'

Just like a herd of walkers piling on her, the pain hit her hard and she bent forward, falling beneath the herd and letting it drown her as she sobbed into the dirt. She couldn't...she couldn't...

Each shaky breath flew in and out of her lungs until the strength left her and all of her tears were gone. Her fingers traced the pool of wet dirt in front of her, almost like sand on her fingertips. And as the world started to come back into focus, she heard the crunching footsteps nearing. Slowly, her eyes raised and she drew in an ugly sniffle, locking eyes with Negan as he held a little trinket up in his hand.

"Darling, you seem almost as upset as the widow. Shit, was he your dad? That's too bad. But I'm a man of my word like I told you. So I'm going to ask you one more time..." He bent down to become level with her and she held her breath, eyes flickering to the necklace in his hand. "Is this yours?"

Right between his fingers was that necklace. The one with her birthstone in it. Opal. The one she had seen the last day she saw Glenn before she got injured and separated from the group. The one she had told Glenn about before they were confronted by a walker.

He took it. Kept it...

And just like that, her pain rushed into anger. It still hurt every fiber of her being, but now she was angry. Negan had taken Glenn from her and Maggie. Her breaths became short and quick and she clenched her fists. You will regret everything you've done to us.

Her eyes jumped up to his and she reached out to take the necklace, prying it from his fingers. "Fuck you."

Her words were broken from sobbing, but she kept her chin high. Negan's brows shot up and a small smirk flickered onto his lips. Even through the faux amusement, there was a dangerous edge to his features.

"You better watch what you say, sweetheart," he said, voice low but amused all the same.

With calculated movements, he stood and headed over to Rick. Her fingers curled tightly around the necklace and she held onto it like it was a lifeline, trying to hold back the angry tears once more as she glared into the dirt. Fire licked at her insides and she boiled and brewed for several minutes, each word of Negan's adding more fuel to the fire.

"I'm gonna kill you. Not today. Not tomorrow. But I will kill you," Rick swore.

Negan would die. After everything he did, he would. She tried to steady her breathing as their captor corralled Rick into the RV to take him somewhere and everything grew silent once the truck had peeled away. No one said a single word, but the crying was evident of one thing. Everyone had lost someone today.

Riley tried to focus on the burning anger inside of her chest. How she was going to make things right. Get revenge for Glenn. But after moments of brooding and glaring and focusing internally, she was brought back to the present and her eyes wandered to the gory mess in front of her. A pang of sharp pain shot through her chest again and she felt the lump form in her throat once more. Seeing his body once the threat had left made everything come rushing back. She didn't have to be strong and for a moment, she stared, eyes glassy and chest throbbing painfully with each heartbeat.

For a while, it was all she focused on, clinging to the last bit of him that was left and trying not to shrivel up and die inside. The crying from everyone soon slowed, but a distinct sorrowful feeling clung to the air like plastic wrap.

The day started to creep upon them, bringing with it anxious movements and tense muscles. Rick had been long gone for a while now and no one knew what to do. Would he be returning? What would happen when Negan came back? The only hint that he would return was his men still keeping them in line, silent but present. Sunlight slithered through the branches, casting light upon the scuffle that happened in the night and making them much more aware of how much time passed.

Just when she thought it was going to go on like this forever, faint tires crackling over the dirt and gravel echoed through the trees. She blinked, watching as it neared and neared and then pulled back up right in the spot where it had been before it left. But no one exited. The inside remained quiet and no movement could be seen through the curtains on the windows.

She was expecting Rick's dead body to be dragged out, so she was surprised when ten minutes later, he was forcefully tossed out. Alive, but shaken. He only made it a few steps before Negan grabbed his jacket and forcefully dragged him to the center of the clearing.

"Here we are," Negan started, looking at each of them. "Let me ask you, Rick. You even know what that little trick was about?"

Silence.

"Speak when you're spoken to."

Rick's lips twitched and he looked up. "Okay... okay..."

The dark-haired man didn't seem satisfied with this answer. "That trick was about the way that you looked at me. I wanted to change that, I wanted you to understand... But you're still looking at me the same damn way. That's not gonna work. So... Do I give you another chance?"

This time, Rick didn't hesitate to answer in a shaky voice. "Y-yeah. Y-yes..."

Negan patted his back and stood. "Okay. Alright well here it is. The grand prize game. What you do next determines whether your crap day becomes everyone's last crap day or just another crap day. Get some guns to the back of their heads."

Riley stopped breathing as she felt the cool metal press against her head. Is he going to kill someone else? She stared at Rick with bated breath, watching, waiting for him to do something. Anything.

"Alright. Kid, come here," Negan ordered.

She almost turned her head to look at Carl beside her, but before she could move, he looked directly at her, warning her not to do anything. He was trying to protect her, but her heart couldn't bear to lose someone else she cared about today. As he stood, she became increasingly twitchy and that familiar plummeting feeling settled in her stomach as she latched onto every spoken word.

"You a southpaw?" Negan asked, unhooking his belt from his jeans.

"Am I a what?" Carl snapped.

"You a leftie?"

"No."

"Good." Negan grinned, wrapping the belt around his left arm and tightening it up as much as he could. "That hurt?"

Carl replied with a sassy negative.

"It's supposed to... Alright, get down on the ground, kid. Next to daddy. Spread them wings."

She shifted again, eyes wide as Carl carefully got down on the ground. Her constant shuffling got her a nice jab in the head with the gun from behind her, but the only sign she showed of noticing was a slight grimace. Her mind raced with every thought possible of how this was going to go. What was the belt for? Why was he laying in the dirt?

Everything clicked as soon as Simon threw Negan a pen and he marked his arm with a fat line. No. No, no, no, no.

Rick started to plead and she couldn't sit still for a second, waves of panic rising in her throat. Another jab knocked her in the head and she reeled forwards, the world twirling around her as she tried to blink and get her bearings through her throbbing head.

"Rick, I want you to take your axe, and cut your son's left arm off right on that line. Now I know, I know, you have to process that for a second. That makes sense. Still though, I'm gonna need you to do it or all these people are gonna die. Then Carl dies. Then the people back home die. And then you, eventually. Keep you breathing for a few years just so you can stew on it," Negan threatened.

"Y-you don't have to do this, we...we understand, we understand," Michonne begged, voice cracking.

"You understand, yeah. I'm not sure that Rick does... I'm gonna need a clean cut, right there on that line. Now I know this is a screwed up thing to ask, but it's gonna have to be like a salami slice. Nothing messy, clean, forty-five degrees. Give us something to fold over. We got a great doctor. Kid'll be fine. Probably. I need this now. Chop, chop! Or I'll crush the little fella's skull."

"It can be me," Rick tried. "It can be me."

I can't let this happen. I can't let this happen... Riley swore to herself to protect Carl at all costs. She...she loved him. She loved him in a way she hadn't ever loved anyone before. Not just a familial love. A romantic love. A bonded love. A necessary love. She needed him more than anything and she couldn't let this happen.

"W-wait! Wait please," she begged, shaking her head. "Please don't. I'll do anything. You can kill me if you want to just please, please don't hurt him. Please, please, please..."

She choked on a sob and tried to hold back even more emotions as they clogged up her voice and threatened to erupt on the ground.

"No, Riley," Carl shot back. "Don't listen to her. Don't touch her, okay? I can do this. Just do it."

"Well I'll be damned," Negan roared with laughter, looking between the three of them. "All three of you are willin' to take one for the team. I got to ask cause I've been seein' the signs all night. Are you two together? One of those sappy-ass teenage romances?"

She clenched her trembling jaw, only able to respond with a nod for fear of breaking down if she opened her mouth. This caused him to laugh again and he put his hands on his hips.

"Damn. That's the most tooth-rotting, sweetest shit I think I've ever seen in my damn life! The daddy, the son, and the son's girlfriend, all tryin' to protect each other. Damn. But unfortunately, I'm still a man of my word and I need you to cut your son's arm off. No exceptions. Now pick up the axe. Not making a decision is a big decision. Do you really wanna see all these people die? You will."

"It's okay, Riley. It's okay," Carl murmured. "I'm okay."

Her face crinkled up and she let her shoulders slump forward. Please no, please. Stop this please... Rick was crying, Negan was shouting and counting down and she couldn't even process everything happening so quickly. She slammed her hands over her ears, broken whimpers cracking through her teeth as Rick grabbed the axe and raised it high above his head. Squeezing her eyes shut, she waited - waited for the agonizing moment when she heard Carl scream and shout in pain.

But it never came.

Rick's breathing slowed and she dared to open an eye to see that Negan had gotten down on Rick's level, stopping him from carrying it out.

"You answer to me. You provide for me. You belong to me. Right?"

Rick nodded quickly, only to have the man grab his face and shout at him. It was the most broken and scared she had ever seen him and the thought alone terrified her. And even though the relief of Carl not getting hurt washed over her, there was still a fear wafting in the air.

"Dwight, load him and lover girl up in the truck. They got some spirit and I'd love to break 'em like a horse," Negan cooed, flicking his wrist.

Daryl barely gave them room to get him going, but with weapons pointed in his face, he had little to do but get in. Dwight then moved across the clearing, straight for her, and she ducked under his reach, trying to grab Carl's arm. No way in hell was she being taken. Not after everything. She needed him now more than ever.

"Don't take her! Please," Carl begged, jumping forward and grabbing onto her arms.

She held onto him tightly as Dwight wrapped his arms around her middle to pry her off. Someone else grabbed Carl and the two were locked in a hold, the message between them clear. I just got you back, I can't lose you again.

Dwight finally pried her off and she squirmed, keeping her gaze locked on Carl as he quite literally wrestling himself in the grip of the man holding him and shouting for her. She tried with all of her might to get free, but Dwight was too strong and she ended up floundering on the bed of the van as he tossed her in beside Daryl. The doors shut behind her and she sat on her heels for a moment, listening to Carl's screams get quieter and quieter as the van started up and drove away. Her eyes locked with Daryl's and she couldn't help but lurch into his side, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his side to cry into his warmth, letting everything out.

And today, he cried with her.


A/N: Realized I was supposed to update this next week, but decided to post anyway. A week early, woo! Sorry for the intensity of this chapter. Things will calm down more in a few chapters but it's all hectic with Negan, so kinda hard to stay calm when he's the main focus. So many things happened so if your mind is reeling I apologize xD Were you expecting Dylan to be with the Saviors? I hope that was a good twist. It'll be explained more in the next few chapters! I have so much to say and yet I can't really find the words so I think I'm gonna leave it at that. I thank you soooo much for all your reviews and awesome feedback and support! You're the best! I hope you enjoyed this extra long chapter!