Heartless ➳ TWD² [COMPLETED]

Chapter XVII ➳ Obliged

"HEY, Tess," I heard Carol call out to me just as I looked up at her. "I know that you want to get back to Alexandria for your girls, but I was just wondering if you wanted to help me take my people back to the Kingdom. Sanctuary's got to figure out who they want to be. Then again, Rick might have other plans for you."

I was really surprised that Carol had offered the job to me, especially since we weren't all that close. Still, I was probably someone she could trust — which is saying a lot. I smirked and went to say, "Yeah, that sounds—"

"Nah, I got something that she could do," a very familiar voice said from behind me. That grunt of a voice belonged to, none other, than Daryl Dixon, himself. "Come on."

With that said, I touched Carol's arm before departing with Daryl. I didn't understand why he needed my assistance, but I was more than eager to follow since I've been wanting to talk to him alone for some time now.

"Maybe now's the time that we finally talk, Daryl," I claimed, following behind him. "The way that you've been treating me isn't fair."

He didn't speak, just kept walking to where we were now on the outskirts of Oceanside and alone. He sat down on a trunk of where a tree was sat, now peering up at me and nodding. I suppose this is the part where he wanted me to speak now.

"Okay," I breathed out, suddenly not knowing what to say. "Well... Look, I've tried really hard to forgive and forget what you did. You made Dwight leave and, if he ever chose to come back, he would be killed on sight. How is that even fair?"

"He killed Denise—!"

"And we have killed a lot of people, too," I squeaked back, interrupting him. "Maybe they deserved it. Maybe they didn't. Either way, nobody is perfect anymore. How is it right for Negan to stay in a cage and for Dwight to leave?"

Suddenly, Daryl jumped up to his feet and got right in my face. "At least, your old boyfriend got the chance to leave and be free! That other asshole is in a cage and will stay there the rest of his pathetic life!"

I shoved him back and yelled, "No, because of you, I will always be alone and Tory will never know who her real father is!" Again, I shoved him hard and stumbled backwards. "We'll always have Negan around, but not Dwight and that isn't right."

With that said, he turned his back on me and suddenly mumbled out, "And that's why Maggie's done talking. She's headed to Alexandria right now to take him out."

"What?"

"It's over for him, Tess," he simply and calmly replied, shaking his head and his cold blue eyes meeting mine. "Negan's done. Hope you got to say your goodbyes."

I held my breath and looked at him in disgust. "Rick won't ever forgive you if you let Maggie go through with this!"

He faced me and barked back, "Yeah? Who's gonna tell him? You?"

I gulped down the fear and confusion, biting my bottom lip from what I really wanted to say. I was almost too afraid to speak up to Daryl; but, suddenly, I thought that I had nothing left to lose.

I stepped up and yelled, "I get it, Daryl. I get why you feel so guilty. You got up and punched Negan; and, then, Glenn was killed. I get it. You think that I don't share that same guilt with you? I mean, I was right there beside him before I was moved. I could've saved him! I could've, but I was too weak and broken. Negan liked that. He picked up on my scent immediately."