Angel

Chapter Thirty-Three: Angel

I had killed a man. He wasn't the first and he won't be the last, but that doesn't mean it doesn't destroy me a bit each time I have to do it. He was my third. It was a choice between either him or Daryl, and that meant he didn't stand a chance. Daryl would always be my first priority.

I could tell that even hunched behind the counter that Daryl thought he could take him, but sometimes he's a bit overconfident. There was a mirror that I could see what this guy was doing. His gun was out and Daryl's wasn't, plus his crossbow was on his back, so I'm not sure how he thought he could take the guy out. That's why I had to. It was the only option.

Now its hours later and a new day is starting. Daryl let me cry without making a big deal of it. It was something I had to just get out of my system. Now it's behind me and I can move forward. I had woken up a little while ago but hadn't opened my eyes yet. Daryl was awake, but he continued to hold me against him. The security I felt from him was something I had never experienced before. Even though I could hold my own in this world, having Daryl with me gave me a sense of relief that not one other person could.

"Did you sleep at all?" I asked softly as I finally turned up to look him.

"Yep."

"Are you lying to me?" I knew he was.

"Yep." Have to admire his honesty after the fact.

"Why didn't you sleep?"

"Because you needed it more than I did. I wanted to make sure that we were safe here. That loaded down SUV is just begging for attention that we don't need. No one's gonna take the time to go through it to see that it's only baby shit." Daryl gently kissed me. "You okay?"

"Now I am. It's...just hard," I admitted.

"How many?" he asked me.

"He was the third. How about you?" I knew he wasn't even close to my three. It could be three times, maybe even ten times what I have done. This was how we lived, how we survived.

Daryl was quiet for a minute. I noticed the slight tension in his body that came with my question. "You don't want to know." I could tell by his tone that's all I was going to get, but it told me enough. The number was high enough that he didn't even want to think about it.

"I could have taken him, you know," he said. "You didn't have to do it."

Now it was my turn to lie to him. "I know you could have, but I had a clean easy shot. Why chance it?" I wasn't as confident as he was about that, but I didn't want him to know I had doubted his ability. He was good, but not invincible. Then I added, "I like having you around. Got you broken in just right."

Daryl rolled his eyes at me, but I didn't miss the smirk he had on his face. "You're alright having around, too."

I leaned up and dropped a lingering kiss to his lips. "Guess we should get going. I'm excited to get everything back to Maggie."

"You got anything to eat left in your pack?" he asked.

I sat up on the bed and stretched. Daryl slid next to me. "I should have a few cereal bars. Let me find them." They were easy to locate in my bag and we quickly ate them washing them down with a bottle of water that we split.

Daryl checked out the front windows and didn't see any activity, so we were good to head out. The car was still where we left it in the backyard and Daryl checked the ropes holding everything down on top. They were still tight. It was time to head back to the Hilltop.