Cherokee Roses {Daryl Dixon's Daughter}

t h i r t y e i g h t

It takes a while to realize what has happened. I think I'm in shock. Our home is gone. Our family is split up with no clue if we're going to find each other again. What if that was the last time I'll ever see my dad? That's the only thing that goes through my mind at this point. 

Carl walks ahead of Rick and I. I'm only a few paces behind him and Rick struggles to keep up. 

"Carl, slow down." Rick pleads before yelling at his son. "Carl stop!" 

Carl stops in his tracks but doesn't turn to face his bloodied father. 

"We need to stay together." He reminds his son. His speech isn't the best seeing as him and the governor got into a fist fight and his mouth is swollen. Well, everything is swollen.  "We've got to find a place with food and supplies. Hey, we're gonna be-"

He stops in the middle of his sentence. I know he wanted to say 'okay', but that would be a lie wouldn't it. We don't know if we're going to be okay. Hell Rick's injuries might be life threatening and we might not even know it or how to treat them. We're not doctors, we're teenagers. We should be freshmen in high school right about now.  

Carl takes off walking again leaving Rick and I in the dust. I simply look at Rick before following the angry boy in the cowboy hat. We come to what looks like an old bar. 

There are motorcycles laying on their sides in the parking lot making my heart ache for my father once more. Walking up to the door I run my hands over one of the leather seats. Biting my lip I ignore the empty feeling I have and meet Carl and Rick by the door, my crossbow ready to. fire.

"Wait outside, okay?" Rick tells us. As if. The man can barely speak, let alone kill any potential walkers. "Keep watch." 

"You keep watch." Carl objects. 

"Rick, you can barely stand. You're not going in alone." I say before gesturing to Carl and I. "Carl and I, we can watch each others backs."

"Excuse me?" He questions us. 

"We've done this before." Carl tells his dad. "We're gonna help you clear it." He then mumbles under his breath. "You should just let us do it by ourselves."

Hesitantly Rick opens the door and we check our surroundings. There's one walker and Rick points to a shelf full of hot sauce behind it. 

"That might be all thats left." Rick says and I think he may be right. 

"Think I can get it from here?" Carl questions aiming his gun at the walker.

"No, it's weak, I'll draw it out." He's probably right. The walker is trapped behind a stack of chairs and if I fired a bolt into its brain I most likely wouldn't get it back. You never know, I might need it later. "Stay back." 

The chairs come toppling over and Rick is too weak to bury his hatchet fully into the walkers brain. Carl raises his gun to shoot it. 

"Don't" Rick tells him but its too late. Carl has already fired a bullet into the walkers head and it falls to the ground. "I said not to!" 

"You couldn't do it with an ax!" Carl yells. The tension in the room is high. 

"I had it." Rick snaps. "Every bullet counts. What if you needed that one later? See what you can find. Then let's move on."

Carl and I head to the back room where bagged chips and various cans remain. We stuff it into our bags.

"Carl." I say grabbing his hand as he places things violently into his bag. "Talk to me."

"There's nothing to talk about." He snaps and I look at his face. He's angry, has been since we left the prison. His shoulders are tense and his mouth is in a firm line.