TWD- Little Heart Of Iron

15. Remember.

When Maggie and Daryl made it to the farm, Daryl jumped down from the horse before even made a full stop. He wanted answered about why or how the hell Blake was shot.

He stomped over to Rick when he saw him walking down the front porch stairs. "Where is she?! She gonna live?!" He shouted, pacing back and forth in front of Rick, looking at him like he was hunting for pray.

Rick put his hands out in front of him, "She's gonna live. Shane and Otis are out getting surgery supplies- they're gonna fix her up-"

"You better hope they do," Daryl stopped pacing, and walked up until he was right in Rick's face. Rick just stood there, accepting Daryl's anger. "I swear if she dies, Rick-"

"Calm down, son," Hershel interrupted as he stood next to the front door. "Being violent won't help anyone, especially Blake. Come on, she's in here." He nodded toward the inside of the house.

Daryl stared Rick down for a good few seconds, his breathing was heavy and angry, like a dragon breathing out fire. "I ain't done with you, or Shane, or whoever the hell this Otis guy is," He growled before walking past Rick and following Hershel into the house.

"She's just in here. She's sleeping, but she'll want to see you, when she wakes up," Hershel explained as he led Daryl into the room Blake was in.

When Daryl was finally able to see Blake, he froze, staring down at her tiny body. How could he have let this happen? He was supposed to protect her. And he failed. Again.

A few tears formed in his eyes, but he wiped them before they could fall.

"I assume you're her only family? Rick only mentioned you, when we asked," Hershel asked as he stood in the doorway, giving Daryl and Blake space.

"Yeah," Daryl murmured as he walked to the side of Blake's bed. He reached down, moving a strand of her hair so he could see her whole face. He stayed like that for a few minutes, just caressing the side of her face, hoping that it would somehow wake her up quicker. It didn't. He was so sorry. Sorry that he promised her she'd be okay. It was stupid of him to lie like that, he thought, especially to a head-strong kid, like Blake.

"Sorry to interrupt, again, but...do you know your blood type?" Hershel spoke up.

Daryl blinked a few times, snapping himself out of his thoughts. "O negative," He said.

"That's good. Rick already gave her some blood. Possibly saved her life. Now it's your turn to be there for her. She needs you." Hershel said solemnly. "I'll give you two some time together," He said before walking back outside.

After Hershel left was when Daryl let his tears flow. He stroked Blake's hair over and over to let her know that he was there. "I'm sorry," He mumbled, his voice shaking up and down. "I'm sorry, baby."

He remembered back when he tried to stop her own father from beating on her. He remembers pulling George away from Blake, he remembers George punching him, over and over, beating him to a pulp simply because he was trying to protect his niece. He remembers Blake's screams. And he remembers not coming around as much, after that day a few years ago. He remembers how guilty he felt leaving Blake with her father, thinking she would be better off there than with CPS or in foster care.

Now, here he was, standing over his little niece's body, praying that he wasn't too late.

🔮

A while later, after the sun had mostly gone down, Daryl was sitting in a chair across from Blake's bed after giving her some of his blood. He was a bit dizzy, but not so much. He would give her as much blood as he needed. If he passed out a thousand times, he would still come back, and give her even more, if it meant saving her life.