Daryl returns from the Tombs eventually, lips pursed and his gaze somehow further away. I see him walk through the cell block just as I return from putting Judith down for a nap. The block door clanging open and shut tells me that he's gone again.
For a second, I linger inside Judith's designated "nursery" and listen to the sounds of Hershel reading to Beth and Maggie in the common area. He speaks from the Bible, of deliverance from pestilence and the mighty hand of God. Maybe if I were in a better mood, I'd join them. Glenn and Carol were doing more war prep last I saw them, packing emergency "run for your life" bags and making Molotov cocktails. I haven't seen Michonne or Merle in a while and I've caught glimpses of Rick as he patrols our perimeter.
I find myself going back outside. I'm restless, I know, and I'm just trying to find something to focus all that nervous energy on. The easiest target, probably to his chagrin, is Daryl.
He's back on the guard tower, pacing with a rifle in hand, crossbow on his back. For the second time today, I climb the stairs to join him.
"Did you find Merle?" I ask as I emerge from the stairwell.
He turns to face me, jaw clenching for a second before he realizes that it's me. He lets out a breath and nods, resuming his pacing. "Yeah," he says.
"Everything okay?"
He shrugs. "You don't gotta keep asking. Answer's the same."
I exhale. "I'm sorry," I say, coming closer to him as he paces in my direction. "I'm all...anxious."
"That's fair," he replies. He still isn't looking me in the eye, like he's humouring this conversation but isn't really listening.
I cross my arms over my chest. "You'd tell me if there's something I'm missing here, right?"
"Why d'you say that?"
"Because everything's been off ever since you got back from that meeting with the Governor. We're..." I pause, trying to stop the sudden flood of emotion in my chest. "We're gonna have to fight for this place and...and I don't know, I'm scared. I don't think there's any way we can win but no one's talking about it."
He stops pacing, his gaze softening, and he finally enters my personal space.
"We might not," he says, like he's telling me a secret. I blink and he must see my confusion, because he adds, "We might not have to fight. Rick...the Governor made him a deal."
My stomach twists, maybe from cautious hope, maybe dread. "A...a deal?"
"He wants Michonne. Give her up, he'll leave us be."
Dread. Definitely dread. I don't know what I was hoping for, but I'm pretty sure this is the opposite. "We can't."
"Think Rick's already decided."
My stomach's still twisting and Daryl's looking at me with an emotion I can't place in his eyes. Not malice, certainly not that, but it's resigned nonetheless.
"You aren't okay with that," I say, shaking my head. "You can't be."
"I'm not, but if it's her or us—"
"He'll kill her."
"He's gonna kill us anyway."
I blink hard, voice pinched. "You really think he'll leave us alone? Rick can't be naïve enough to think he will."
"We're damned if we ignore it," he insists. "But...if there's a chance, then maybe..."
I wish I had stayed inside. I wish I had stayed blissfully unaware, because now all I'm thinking about is when and how and why. "He'll kill her," I repeat.
YOU ARE READING
Daryl's Angel (10th Anniversary Edition)
Fanfiction"You know, I think everyone who's ever loved me is dead." "That makes two of us. Fuckin' cheers." When the dead rose, Hope Tremblay found herself trapped, woefully unprepared for the rapidly changing world before her, and worst of all, alone. Day by...