Catch Fire | Daryl Dixon

THE CAVE

Kennedy's POV

The following morning was tense from the moment I woke up. Dante's confession echoed in my mind. He'd been a Whisperer spy all along, sent by Alpha to destabilize us from the inside. That revelation had shaken me to my core. I never saw it coming. None of us did. We trusted him. He'd been there when we were at our most vulnerable, treating the sick and comforting the dying. He looked after Rosita, after Coco, after everyone. And yet, he'd been working against us the whole time. The betrayal gnawed at me, a deep, unsettling sickness that I couldn't shake.

I couldn't stop thinking about it. How many times had I let him close to us, to Willow, to Lydia? What if he'd done more damage than we realized, made more cracks in our walls that we couldn't even see? And if someone like Dante could slip through, what else were we missing?

To make matters worse, Aaron had shared some news of his own. He'd been in contact with a Whisperer at the border who had finally given up the location of Alpha's horde. The woman wanted to see the baby Connie had saved at Hilltop, her nephew, and in return, she gave up what might be the Whisperers' greatest weapon. That was supposed to make us feel better, but I was only more on edge. The Whisperer could've been lying, could be sending us straight into a trap. But Daryl had promised me that after we checked it out, we'd search for Lydia. That was the only reason I agreed to this plan.

By midday, I was leading my horse toward the gate; the reins clenched in my hands like I could control something, anything, with how tight I was holding them. I wasn't sure how I felt about the mission itself, but the promise of looking for Lydia after kept me moving. I was going to keep Daryl to that, no matter what.

But then I saw Carol, sitting on her horse, fully ready to go, and the frustration hit me like a punch to the gut. She wasn't supposed to be here.

My eyes snapped to Daryl, who stood there leaning against his bike, avoiding my gaze like a kid who just got caught doing something he knew was wrong. He knew I wasn't going to be happy. And he was right.

I stormed over to him, the anger boiling up with every step. "Why the hell is she here?" I hissed, keeping my voice low but making sure he knew I wasn't playing around.

Daryl shifted, rubbing the back of his neck. He didn't even try to meet my eyes. "I tried to make her stay back, but she wouldn't listen," he mumbled, like that was supposed to make it better.

I clenched my teeth, trying not to let my anger boil over. "Of course she didn't," I spat, glancing over at Carol, who sat there like she hadn't caused us all enough grief already. "This plan just went from stupid to dangerous."

Daryl looked at me then, his voice softer, like he was trying to calm me down. "I'll keep an eye on her."

I shook my head, my frustration growing. "You've said that before," I muttered. And where had that gotten us? One reckless move after another, each more dangerous than the last. How many more times could we keep doing this before it cost us something we couldn't afford to lose?

Daryl sighed, clearly not wanting to argue. "You gonna ride with me on the bike?" he asked, trying to deflect, trying to ease the tension.

"No," I said, flatly, mounting my horse without another word. The frustration bubbled inside me. Daryl should've kept her back. We didn't need any more wild cards in this plan.

Aaron clapped his hands together, trying to rally everyone. "Alright, let's get on the road."

I threw one more look Daryl's way before turning my horse toward the gate. I didn't care how guilty he felt, he let Carol come along again, and I wasn't about to pretend that didn't piss me off. I dug my heels into my horse, leading the group out of Alexandria, trying to focus on what we had to do.