A Survivor's Diary of the Apocalypse (TWD/Daryl Dixon)

S9Pt7 - Murder Investigation

"Call it out." Rick said over the walkie talkie.
"Grid one— clear so far." Jerry said.
"Grid two's clear." Daryl spoke for us.
"Three is clear." Rick then said.
"Grid four is clear." Maggie said.
"Grid five clear." Arat said.
"Piper One, anything up top?" Rick then asked.
"We're good." Dianne responded. "Nothing moving our way."
"Stay sharp, eyes open." Rick said. "We still got missing people out here."
"Got activity nearby. Gonna go check it out." Maggie then came through.
"We're headed your way." Rick said. "Grid five, do the same."
The radios then went silent, and Daryl revved the engine to his motorcycle. It was a decent length ride to Maggie's grid location, where we met up with Rick's group. Daryl parked his bike and we joined in the search. We heard a loud banging coming from the distance and followed the noise through the woods. In a clearing there was an abandoned shack with walkers flooding out of the front door at Maggie and Cyndie.
Maggie had over ten coming for her, and Cyndie was close to getting bit by another. Daryl shot an arrow at the walker above her and she tossed the body to the side. I ran up to Maggie and helped kill the remaining walkers, and pulled another one off of her. She was breathing heavily and stared at me, and then held her chest.
"Thank you." She said and nodded.
"Yeah." I sighed out and then walked away from her.
"What happened to grid five? They should've been here before us." Rosita pointed out.
Rick sighed and pulled out his walkie talkie. "Grid five, what's your status?"
The radio went silent, and we all got a bad feeling. Rick clipped the radio back on his belt and started walking in their direction. "Come on." He said and waved at us to follow.
We all left the house and walked through the woods to the boundary of grid five. After a few minutes of searching, Cyndie ran forwards and saw her friend lying on the ground. We all looked around as Cyndie checked her pulse and rolled her over.
"Bea." She said. "Bea, wake up."
Bea then groaned and felt the back of her head, and then slowly stood up.
"You okay?" Rick asked her.
"Yeah." She said. "Yeah, I think so."
"What happened?" Rick asked.
"Arat called in the all clear, and we headed towards the road, and then... I don't know." She said and rubbed her head, trying to remember. "I think something hit me from behind."
"And Arat?" Rick asked.
"I don't know." Bea said.
Daryl grabbed her spear weapon from off the ground and looked at it before handing it back to her. "Thanks." She said.
Maggie then walked back over to us and sighed. "Whoever did this, took her." She said and held up Arat's knife and walkie talkie.
Rick then sighed and looked all around us. "We stay out here until we find her. The Saviors don't know, and we keep it that way." He said.
"They know Arat's on night watch. They won't notice anything till the morning." Carol said, speaking for the Saviors.
"Then we have till then." Rick said and looked at all of us. "Pair up with someone you trust, search the grids, radio in if you find anything."
I just nodded and looked at Daryl, when we both heard our names called. Rick called mine, and Maggie called Daryl's. We looked at them, then each other, and I just shrugged.
"Do what you gotta do." I said.
Daryl just stared at me as I backed away and walked off with Rick. He nodded to himself and we headed into the forest and began a search. It was quiet at first, but once we were far enough away and no one was around, Rick started talking.
"I knew it'd be hard, but with all this?" Rick asked and exhaled sharply. "Should the Saviors be a part of this?"
I swiped a branch in front of us, and we stepped over. I then sighed and stopped walking, making Rick stop too. "The thing with the Saviors, some of them are changing, they have changed. But others..." I said and shook my head. "I've really been trying to change Rick, but today, I just wanted to pull that trigger. End it before it begins."
"It won't have to come to that. I won't let it come to that, for you, for me..." Rick said and sighed. "Every day since I put Negan in that cell... I have this moment, usually right when I wake up, this feeling... that I should.. go down there and kill him. To keep going, finish them all. And in that moment, it's all I want. But then, I remember everyone we've lost, not just to the Saviors, but the whole way. And I know I need to honor them. To build life not— not take it. Because it's us or the dead. And every life counts now."
"And what you're doing is right. Why you're doing it is right. But not everyone is going to understand. Like Daryl, Maggie..." I said and shrugged.
"So what can I do Kelley?" Rick asked. "I don't know."
"We compromise where we can." I said and tilted my head at him.
Rick then nodded and just stared at me as the sun slowly started to set. I nodded back and put my hand on his shoulder.
"I never asked for anyone to follow me." Rick said.
"I know. But you wouldn't have had to ask anyways. In the end, we stand with you Rick. We live, and we'd die, for you."
"I know that." Rick sighed.
I then sighed and pulled Rick in for a hug, and he wrapped his arms around me. I patted his back and I felt Rick finally relax for a minute.
"You are a good man, Rick, doing great things in this world. I see that." I said and hugged him tighter. "I know that somehow, everything is going to work out in the end... We can't get there without you."
Rick nodded and sighed as he pulled away. "Thank you Kelley."
"You're welcome Rick." I said and sighed. "Now let's find Arat."

~~~~~~~~~~

It was past midnight and Rick and I headed back to camp. We saw the others were already back, but nobody had seen Maggie or Daryl. We were inside Rick's tent, looking at the blueprints on the table, and I slammed a paper back down in frustration.
"They should be back by now." I said under my breath to Rick.
Rick just sighed and nodded. "With those two gone, who knows.." Rick said.
"You know what they're doing?" I then asked, hoping that Rick knew what I was thinking about.
"I think I do. Ever since Negan's capture—" Rick said.
"How they'd talk alone, with Jesus too—" I said.
"They're planning something." Rick finished our thought.
I just sighed and shook my head. It finally settled in, but after more than a year of Negan's capture, Daryl and Maggie still conspired behind our backs, and who only knows what they are talking about this time.
The flaps to the tent door then flew open and Daryl walked in. I stared at him and Rick walked forwards.
"What happened?" Rick asked. "Find anything?"
Daryl nodded and I took a step forwards, too. "Cyndie, and a few other girls from Oceanside, picked off some people. Settled their issues." Daryl said.
We were quiet and Rick anxiously scratched his chin and beard. "So— so, you're saying that Justin.."
"Yeah." Daryl nodded.
"The others missing?" Rick asked too, and Daryl nodded.
"They just... killed them. For the hell of it?" I asked.
"They had their reasons. Those people did them dirty. Got what was coming to them." Daryl told me, and then looked between both of us. "Arat was the last one. It's done now."
Rick just sighed and looked at me, and I just nodded. There was nothing we could do, and Daryl said they were done now. Plus, I knew Cyndie, and some of the girls from Oceanside, and I knew they weren't evil, but they just had a different way of serving justice.
"What are you gonna do about the rest of them?" Daryl then asked.
Rick looked at me and I nodded, then looked at Daryl. "We talked to Carol. Alden is taking anyone who wants to go back to the Sanctuary tomorrow, and then they're gone. We tried to help them, but they clearly don't want it." I said.
"Good." Daryl said and scoffed. "I was tired of seeing them assholes."
Rick then sighed and rubbed his eyes and his temple. "Okay, get some rest. They're off in the morning."

~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning came quickly and by the time I got out of my tent, I saw a large group of Saviors walking through the camp. They were quiet as they left the camp, led by Alden, and I saw Rick, Daryl, and others watching. It was a mutual feeling between each of us that we were happy with the decision. Yet, that only meant more work left for us on the bridge construction.
That morning, Daryl stayed behind at the camp and I went for a walk by myself. I found myself going towards the bridge, just to see it, and remind myself what we're working towards. Yet, when I arrived, I saw the river was a lot higher and rushing through, and it was hitting the support beams of the bridge hard. With the new construction, I doubt the bridge was meant to take that much stress.
I then knew this was going to be a problem, and I dreaded the entire walk back as I prepared to give the news to Rick. The news was that, what we were all working for, what we had many fights over for a month now, might have not meant a goddamn thing.