Surviving. (Book Two.)

Chapter Thirty Eight.

Daryl; 

As disappointed as I am that we couldn't find the man; at least we'll be bringing back food. And lots of it. 

There are numerous tricks and I climb up onto what was the loading bay and crouched down to pull on the lock, "Ready?" All I got in reply was an enthusiastic nod so I pulled it open, not noticing until the last minute that there's a string connecting all the other trucks and they all start to open. 

"Oh shit." 

There are walkers in every one of them. Walkers that all have Ws etched onto their heads and I turned back to Aaron, "Run, go!" 

The two of us leap down off the bay, running down the space between two of the trucks. The empty courtyard was now jam packed with walkers and began using my knife, knowing that my crossbow would take too long to load and wouldn't be of any use. I then realised that with walkers coming in from both ends, we were trapped.

"Under here!" Aaron yelled and I followed his lead; dropping to the ground so I could ease my way under the closest trick and as my mind desperately tried to come up with a plan which of course fails but I spot a chain as we crawl so I grabbed it, getting prepared to use it as soon as I was out the other side. 

Hearing Aaron yelp behind me, I turned my head to make sure that he's okay, seeing that he's now kicking at some of the ones that had followed. 

"Come on!" I yell, pushing myself up when I made it out, getting ready to use the chain when I saw that the freaks were now slowly making their ways around on both sides. 

I swing it at a few near me, letting out a quiet sigh of relief when it seemes to do it's job and takes of three of their heads. 

Using my knife to kill the one attacking Aaron, I grab hold of his arm and drag him towards the courtyard again. 

I use my elbows to push through the walkers, managing to avoid their jaws and grips to get to a car that sits in the middle of the yard. 

Aaron gets in behind me and slams the door shut on one of their heads then firmly after. 

"The glass," he says, "It'll hold, right?" 

"For a while, maybe," I nod, "Maybe we can make it so they can't see us. In a couple hours, somethin' will come by 'nd they'll follow it out." I quickly looked into the back seats, "We can cut up these seats." 

As I finish, Aaron plucks a crumpled up piece of yellow paper from between them, glancing at me as he opens in. 

TRAP. BAD PEOPLE COMING. DON'T STAY.

*************

We sit there and I don't know how long passes before I shake my head, letting out a pathetic laugh. 

"What?"

"I came out 'ere to not feel all closed up back there. Even now, this still feels more...like me than back at them houses." I chuckle again, "Pretty messed up, huh?" 

"You were trying." he persisted. 

"I had to," I sighed, looking out the window at the walkers pressed against it, "For the group. For...for Sarah." 

"Listen," he said softly, "I saw you with your group on the road. When you went off on your own at the barn. Then when that storm came, you led your group, your wife, to safety. That was it. That's when I knew I had to bring you people back." 

I sighed and looked down at my hands, coming to the acceptance that we're probably not going to make it out of here. That I'm not gonna get back to her. 

I think about her smile and how I'm never going to see it in person again. Or get to hold her again, kiss her. If I had known that this was going to happen, I would have savoured those last few minutes I had with her.

I look at Aaron, knowing that he's thinking about Eric and I sighed again, pulling my last cigarette from my pocket, bringing it to my lips. Maybe I couldn't get back, but he could. May as well have one last smoke before dying. 

"Ye' tell Sarah tha' I love her, 'kay?" 

He turned his head to look at me, "What?" 

"I'll go," I mumbled, "I'll lead 'em out. You make a break for the fence." 

"No. No, no, no. This was my fault," he insisted, "I'll go." 

"Wasn't a question. And this ain't yer decision, it ain't no one's fault. Jus' let me finish my smoke first." 

"No." Aaron practically growled, "You don't draw them away. You've got a wife back there, who let's face it, could easily kill me if I go back there without you. I'll go." 

"'nd wha' 'bout Eric?" I argued, "Wha' the hell am I supposed to tell him? Tha' I couldn't stop ye'?"

"We go together," he said in a much more calm voice, "That way, if we make it, we make it together." 

I may have been staring at him, but I was thinking about Sarah. If we did it together and both got out, then we'd both get to see our loved ones again and without even realising it, I was nodding. 

If I made it out alive, I'd ask Sarah to -officially- be my wife. I wasn't gonna go another day without her being an actual Dixon. 

"Alrigh', ye' ready?" 

I see his hand trembling as it clutches his knife but don't mention it, "Yeah. Yeah, I am." 

"We go on three. One," I instruct, gripping the handle to the door, "Two..."

Aaron jumped in his seat when a loud smack came from outside and one of the walkers on his side dropped dead before the door was pulled open. 

Our saviour is a black man with some sort of stick in his hands, using it as a weapon and the two of us quickly climbed out of the car and fought with him to the fence. 

It wasn't over and we had him to thank for that.