Survival in Numbers (Daryl Dixon/The Walking Dead)

Chapter Three - The Cube Van

Since their run in with the injured redneck over an hour ago, the car had broken down; forcing both Emma and Adam to walk. The red head carried her medical kit and the large duffel bag that held their food and other supplies in, whilst the rocker carried Emma's rifle and his cigarettes.

"Come on!" He snapped, walking back a few steps and yank her along to keep up. She winced at the pain in her abdomen from where he had kicked her, but tried to hurry her pace nonetheless so that she wasn't slowing them down. The bag on her shoulder feeling as though it was getting heavier by the second.

"Can we, please, take a breather?" She asked carefully, clutching her stomach.

"Seriously? Fucking period pain?" He snapped, sighing in annoyance.

"I'm not on." She replied in defence, "It's from...earlier."

"Oh, so it's my fault?" He grabbed hold of her arm and shook her. "If you hadn't have been so fucking clumsy with the fuel, I wouldn't have done it!"

The sound of a van reached their ears, and he gestured towards the vehicle heading towards them, "We could've still been in my car if you hadn't have fucking wasted it!" He growled, referring to the spilled petrol.

"It was an accident-" She screamed when he backhanded her.

"Don't fucking talk back to me!"

A groan reached their ears, and Adam stepped around the female to lift the rifle and shoot the cannibal that appeared from the tree line; first in the chest, then in the shoulder, then he missed, before he finally got it in the head. The cannibal let out a final groan before its body slumped to the ground at their feet.

Then, from out of the trees came several more.

"Fuck!" The rocker exclaimed, turning on his heel to run away - his shoulder knocking into the red head from their close proximity.

The momentum from the collision and the weight of the bags sent her crashing to the ground.

"Adam!" She screamed for him, reaching out her hand so that he could help her up from the ground...he glanced at her from over his shoulder, and returned only to snatch up the bag of food from the ground in front of her before he took off into the trees on the other side of the road, without a second glance.

The red head felt dread wash over her - consuming her from the inside along with his betrayal. Turning onto her back, Emma lay there trembling with silent tears running down her face. Her eyes squeezed shut. She knew this was the end. Fear gripped her, and the sounds of moans from the horde that was closing in on her grew louder and louder...until they were replaced with rapid gunfire.

But she didn't dare move, not until everything fell completely silent.

She waited a good few more minutes before she opened her blue eyes and sat up. Taking in a deep breath of decayed air, Emma found herself choking on sobs.

Her boyfriend of six years had left her to die.

She cried, running her hands through her long hair and resting her head against her knees as she pulled her legs up to her chest.

"Hello?" A man called out.

She remained where she was sitting, one of the cannibals laying dead beside her.

Footsteps neared her, and stopped a few feet away.

"Are you alright?"

She looked up then, eyeing the man in the sheriffs uniform. "No." She whispered, looking back down once more.