These Awkward Moments

Chapter 44 Hidden

Daryl's POV
We stood on that roof for about twenty minutes discussing the pros and cons of moving on the grey house now versus waiting for back-up from the Kingdom. I wanted to go immediately and bust the door in. Roe and Max were for watching from another vantage point to see if there were any more clues before we moved in. "We don't even know for sure that's it. What if those clothes have been flappin' there for years brother?"

I shrugged. "Well if it ain't him, it won't hurt ta bust the door down and have a look around then, will it?"

Roe scowled at me. "It'll make a huge difference if us bustin' the door in makes him put a bullet through Delilah or Mercy! Think with yer head Dixon, not yer heart."

I nodded, knowing Roe was right. "Ok then. How 'bout you and Max go back ta the house and wait for the fellas to return. I'll see if I can get into the back door of the house across the street and watch what's goin' on. Y'all come find me when the boys from the Kingdom get back."

I liked Roe's plan and nodded in agreement. Max and I headed back to the house to wait while Roe headed towards the house across from the grey house. Justin and Dean finally returned in our truck about an hour after dark. A dark van pulled up behind them with four more well armed men. They carried various bags and boxes of supplies including food and ammunition. "Wow! That's a lotta shit!" I exclaimed.

Justin chuckled. "Yeah, King Ezekiel felt really bad that this happened in his community. He wanted to give you every opportunity to find your wife and daughter. He said if you need anything else at all, just let him know and he will be glad to provide it. We also did a little snooping around while we were there. The only person that no one has been able to account for since this happened is Carlos. Billy said he just disappeared along with a bunch of his shit."

I nodded. I told him what Max had seen earlier, and what Roe was up to. Max and I grabbed some food to eat quickly. We packed some food to take to Roe. We spread out the map and tracked to where Roe was watching. We loaded the vehicles and drove a few blocks over, then got out and walked the last three blocks. We didn't want to alert anyone to our presence. We went in the backdoor of the house Roe told us he'd be in. He had been waiting and heard the boards creak as Ezekiel's men came up the stairs. He gave a low whistle to signal his location to me, and I whistled back the right sequence so he didn't make the mistake of shooting one of us.

Roe was seated at a window with the drapes pulled across it. I peeked across the street where he was watching and could see lantern light flickering in a first floor window. My head jerked back towards Roe. We both whispered at the same time, "Carlos."

He looked surprised. "How'd you know?" he whispered.

I explained to him quietly what Justin had told me. "You saw him?"

Roe nodded. "Yeah. He walked back and forth close enough to one a the windows with just a sheer curtain on it that I could make out who it was. But Daryl? No sign a Delilah or Mercy yet."

I grunted. "You know yer sister. He's prolly havin' ta keep her locked up somewhere just ta keep her from killin' him."

He shrugged. "Or maybe he's not the one that took her."

I didn't even want to think of the possibility that we could be making a mistake, that maybe Delilah was miles and miles away from here by now. "I'ma go take a look around at the back side and see what we got for access before we start plannin' how ta get in."

Max stood. "I'm going with you Da,"

I nodded. "Ya remember the signals and whistles I been teachin' ya?"

He nodded. "Yessir."

We headed out the back door and walked over several houses before crossing the street. We realized that the houses on this side of the street all had fenced backyards. We had to go along the back of the fence row, realizing that this would increase our chances of running into walkers. We counted houses and got close to the right fence. I put out a hand to slow Max. There were several walker bodies along the fence line there.