𝑩𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝑺𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒔 | ᵀᵂᴰ

9: New Girl

"You still worrying about it?" Andrea asked Lori.

"It was a gunshot." Lori said.

"We all heard it." Daryl said. "Why one? Why just one gunshot?" Lori asked. "Maybe they took down a walker." Daryl said. "Please don't patronize me. You know Rick wouldn't risk a gunshot to put down one walker. Or Shane. They'd do it quietly."

"Shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?" Carol asked. "There's nothing we can do about it anyway. Can't run around these woods chasing echoes." Daryl said. "So what do we do?" Lori asked. "Same as we've been. Beat the bush for Sophia, work our way back to the highway." Daryl said. "I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the R.V." Andrea said.

We kept walking. "Sorry for what you're going through." Andrea told Carol. "I know how you feel." "I suppose you do. Thank you." Carol replied. "The thought of her out here by herself... it's the not knowing that's killing me. I just keep hoping and praying she doesn't wind up like Amy." Carol said.

No, no, please don't mention her. Not here, not now.

"Oh, God. That's the worst thing I ever said." Carol said to Andrea. She shook her head. "We're all hoping and praying with you for what it's worth." Andrea said.

"I'll tell ya what it's worth- not a damn thing. It's a waste of time all this hopin' and prayin' cause we're gonna locate that little girl an' she's gonna be just fine. Am I only one zen around here? Good lord." Daryl said.

➳

"We'll lose the light before too long." Daryl said. "I think we should call it."

"Let's head back." Lori said.

"We'll pick it up again tomorrow?" Carol asked. "Yeah, we'll find her tomorrow." Daryl whistled, and we turned around to head back to the highway.

➳

"How much farther?" Lori asked.

"Not much. Maybe a hundred yards give or take." I answered.

Andrea took a different path way. We stopped and looked around for her. Her screams began to rip through the trees. "Andrea?" Lori called out. We ran towards her screams.

A short-haired brunette girl came over on a horse. She's no Amy but she's just as gorgeous.

"Lori? Lori Grimes?" She asked. "I'm Lori." "Rick sent me. You've got to come now." "What?" "There's been an accident. Carl's been shot." Carl's been what!? "He's still alive, but you've got to come now." Oh my god. "Rick needs you. Just come." Lori took off her bag.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. We don't know this girl. Ya can't get on that horse." Daryl said. I don't know. If she's on that horse, I'd go too. "Rick said you had others on the highway, that big traffic snarl?"

"Uh-huh." Glenn said. I guess he was in just as much love as I was. "Backtrack to Fairburn road. Two miles down is our farm. You'll see the mailbox. The name's Greene. Hyah!" She said before taking off.

Greene.

The walker sat up and started breathing loudly. "Shut up." Daryl said, shooting an arrow through its head.

I took the arrow out and followed Daryl back to the highway.

➳

"Shot? What do you mean shot?" Dale asked.

"I don't know, Dale. I wasn't there." Glenn said. "All I know is this chick rode out of nowhere like Zorro on a horse and took Lori." "You let her?" Dale asked.

"Climb down out of my asshole, man. Rick sent her. She knew Lori's name and Carl's." Daryl said. "And I heard screams. Was that you?" Dale asked Andrea. "She got attacked by a walker." Glenn said. "It was a close call." "Andrea, are you alright?"

She climbed into the R.V. and I walked away and hid behind one of the cars. I closed my eyes and took deep breaths.

Sophia's gone. Carl's been shot. Why take these kids? Why not me? I'm still a kid. Even though I'm seventeen, I'm still a kid. Why not take me?

I grabbed one of the candies I took from the building we went to, to go get Merle out of my pocket and put it in my mouth to try and distract my mind from everything that's going on.

I stood up and looked at myself in the driver's side windows reflection. I balled up my right fist and punched the window. It shattered. My knucked started to bleed, and my hand stung from the impact. I then punched the side mirror, causing it to break off the car and fall to the ground. I kicked the door so many times there were several dents. I rested my arms folded on the top of the car and let my head fall down.

I felt someone's hand on my back. I looked up, and it was Glenn. "Everything's gonna be alright, Isabela." He said. "You don't know that." He pushed his lips together and looked down before looking back up at me. "Let's clean your cuts. We don't need you and T-Dog both having infections." I laughed lightly as I followed him to the R.V.

➳

"I won't do it. We can't just leave." Carol said.

"Carol, the group is split. We're scattered and weak." Dale said. "What if she comes back and we're not here?" Carol asked. "It could happen."

"If Sophia found her way back and we were gone, that would be awful." Andrea said.

"Okay, we got a plan for this." Daryl said. "I say tomorrow mornin' is soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig a big sign, leave 'er some supplies. I'll 'old 'ere tonight. Stay with the R.V."

"If the R.V. is staying, I am, too." Dale said. "Thank you. Thank you both." Carol said. "I'm in." Andrea said.

"Me too." I looked at Daryl. "No, yer safer on that farm than ya are 'ere." He said. "I'm safer wherever you are." I replied.

"Well, if you're all staying, then I'm-" Glenn was cut off by Dale. "Not you, Glenn. You're going. Take Carol's Cherokee." "Me? Why is it always me?" "You have to find this farm, reconnect with our people, and see what's going on. But most important, you have to get T-Dog there. This is not an option." Dale said. "That cut has gone from bad to worse. He has a very serious blood infection." I smacked Daryl's arm lightly and motioned to the bike. "Get him to the farm. See if they have any antibiotics because if not, T-Dog will die, no joke."

Daryl walked over to the bike and took a rag off of it before grabbing Merle's stash. Daryl threw the rag at Dale. "Keep your oily rags off my brother's motorcycle." He sat the bag on the hood of a car and dug through it. "Why'd you wait till now to say anything? Got my brother's stash." Daryl said. "Crystal, C. Don't need that." He pulled out a bottle. "Got some kick ass painkillers." He threw the bottle at Glenn. "Oxycycline." He threw a bottle at Dale. "Not the generic stuff, neither. It's first class. Merle got the clap on occasion." He walked back over to the bike and put the bag away.

I hated Merle's love for drugs. He tried to sell me for some cocaine once. Turns out it was just some powdered sugar in a bag. He beat that dude almost to pieces, then took me out for ice cream and a beer. He made me promise not to tell my dad or Daryl. I was nine.