A Marauder's World

Part 4

Daryl stepped soundlessly through the brush after his missing brother and that little ass-kicker, resisting the urge of paranoia to glance behind him and make sure Carl wasn't trying to follow.

"You're in charge while I'm gone," he'd told the teenager solemnly, words he hoped to impress the value of what Daryl really needed, they'd all be here when he got back with Rick and Judith. "Need you to be the man while I figure out why he ain't back yet."

Carl had wanted to argue, he'd seen it in his eyes, but then he'd looked back at Michone rewrapping her leg that hadn't stopped bleeding since Terminus, Bob and Sasha were talking quietly, Carol was trying to fuss over Tyreese to eat as he kept trying to sneak his portions to Tara as some kind of welcoming gesture, while Glenn and Maggie were arguing with Abraham about not splintering and going off to DC now in not-so- hushed tones.

"Glenn won't leave until Rick's back and safe," Carl had tried anyways.

"And you're going to back him on that gun first," Daryl agreed quietly. He wasn't letting some moral obligation drag them farther apart when they hadn't even been back together a full day before it all went wrong, again!

So Carl had dipped his head but nodded his frustration as Daryl shifted his crossbow more securely onto his shoulder and given a nod, a quick gruff he'd be back soon, and stepped into the night, sorting through every scenario he could of what had gone wrong.

It was the day after the full moon, the bright orb in the sky giving light but not that particular threat that night. Carol had been on watch, and her shout of Walkers incoming had been drowned out by Judith crying.

She'd been almost sleeping through the night, those last few days at the prison, safe and full every time she was laid down. Under the starry canopy though, she'd awoken them all with her loud vocals. Maybe sounds of nature had disturbed her, perhaps she'd had a nightmare, or wanted to be held, or was hungry, but in the end, they had not put out the fire fast enough to hinder the beacon of noise and light that drew the Walkers.

The first few that had stumbled out had been no match for their large group, but as more and more came upon them and Carol finally managed to shout above all it was a full hoard, Rick had made the call as he scooped up Judith and bellowed he'd lead them away.

Daryl had started after him on pure instinct, but Rick had waved him down, shouting for Carl to watch Daryl's back until he circled around. Daryl knew what wasn't being said, Rick trusting him to look after his firstborn while he shielded his infant.

That cowboy hat had brushed at his shoulder as he stepped up to the challenge, pride shimmering with fear as his father finally looked to him as more than a child while his baby sister vanished into the night.

They weren't dead, he assured himself as he paused to assess the scene before him. There were cracking roots and jagged rocks all over this area, a splash of blood, the indent of where Rick must have fallen and gotten right back up, but no bodies, no impressions in the mud where anything would rest, no signs of Walkers descending on prey.

The distraction and disbursement had given them the chance to fend off the majority, but Rick had never circled back around. He wasn't dead either, and Daryl was going to find them.

He made it all the way to the tarmac before his hope began to waver. Carefully peeling apart every blade of grass for his next clue, Daryl assessed one side of the road, then the other before being completely confident Rick had not doubled back, or kept going. Rick's tread had been slow, but steady up to a few miles from here, and he'd long since outstripped the shuffling gate of the dead, he should have tried getting back by now.