Walking Dead 1. Chapter 1

**This story will both a departure and return to the characters that I have been in my other Caryl stories. The basic premise to the Caryl story is that they are both damaged and that binds them together. I am writing a story in which Carol was reared by a loving grandmother. That Carol is not going to fall for an Ed Peletier but he sadly enough will be part of this story.**

**Expect to meet some old friends in this story. It is an Alternate Universe so expect some changes. So let the story begin.**

A Romance Novel

Carol McAllister finished logging all the important details of her patient and looked up to check the time. She was exhausted which seemed to be the new normal for her. Seven straight days of twelve hour shifts in the ER were enough and she was ready to go home and take a shower and sleep for twelve hours. She had two more hours to go and she hoped that for once things calmed down. Working at Charlotte General Hospital had given her lots of experience in handling all sorts of medical emergencies.

She checked on her patient who was being admitted with pneumonia and then stayed with him until the orderlies took him upstairs. Carol patted him on the shoulder and he waved goodbye to her rather gallantly. She smiled and waved back.

Carol saw that her favorite ER doc was watching her. Dr. Christina Alston was an island of calm in the sea of chaos that a big city emergency room could be. Carol walked over and asked her friend, "Is there anything wrong?"

Christie smiled and shook her head, "No, I was just appreciating how comforting you are with elderly patients." Carol had an air of competence about her and patients seemed to respond well to her. "Have you decided which medical school you want to go to yet?"

Carol shook her head, "I am looking at schools in North Carolina. Andrea loves Chapel Hill, and I think I might like to go there, but I don't know if I can get in. Maybe I'll go to one of those Caribbean schools and enjoy the beach life. Go to class, work on my tan, and drink Pina coladas at sunset."

Christie asked casually, "Still having that problem with the guy who won't take no for an answer?" She watched Carol's expressive face change from smiling to absolute stillness.

"I haven't had any card or phone calls since I changed my phone number. I haven't seen him on the street since last week. Grandma is driving me crazy. She wants him shot at sunrise and I can't convince her that sending me a card is not a capital offense. Andrea and I are going home tomorrow for a long weekend."

Christie liked Andrea. She could be bold and brash but she and Carol always had each other's backs. Best friends since their freshman year in college and destined to always be besties. She was glad that Carol had someone living with her with as much street smarts as Andrea. Sweet Carol had a stalker and that was never a good thing. Christie changed the subject to one more pleasant.

"So you're taking off to the mountains tomorrow morning? You need a break, Carol. You're working a lot of hours. Tell your grandmother hello for me and tell her I am looking forward to visiting the mountain next month". Nancy McAllister had been in Charlotte on some business matter and she had stopped by the ER to take Carol to dinner after her shift. Christie had tagged along at their insistence and had a wonderful evening. Nancy had invited her to the mountain then and Christie had promised to come ride up with Carol when they both took a week off in early June. Christie was looking forward to leaving the city behind and hanging out with Carol and Nancy. She wanted to ride horses and just chill for a while.

Carol was happy to see the next two hours fly by and as she signed out she was met by her favorite security guard. Charley Thompson was a happy go lucky guy but he was a comforting presence when she went out into the staff parking lot to get in her car to go home. Charley had given her a well-lit spot to park her car and there was always a security guard on the lot during the shift changes at night. Charlotte was a big city and it had big city crime. He walked her out to her car and waited with her until she got the car started. He walked around the car checking out the tires and he finally nodded.

Carol drove her Jeep Cherokee back to her townhouse apartment and was glad to see that Andrea's mustang was there. Andrea liked to party and she liked to hit the clubs on Friday night but they were driving to the mountain tomorrow morning and so she must have folded her tents and come home early.

Carol locked the Cherokee and hurried to the townhouse. She wasn't surprised that Andrea was still up. She was a night owl. Andrea was watching television but clicked it off when Carol came in. "Everything ok?

Carol sighed, "Don't be such a mother hen. I haven't seen hide nor hair of Ed Peletier since last week. He probably had found somebody else to stalk by now. Have you heard anything from your friend Rick?" She put her purse down and grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator and sat down in the living room and kicked off her shoes.

"Rick isn't my friend. He lives in the same building as one of the paralegal at work. We all had drinks after work one night and I told him about your problem. He just got a job with Charlotte PD and he wants to us to take a self-defense class offered by the police department. What do you think?"

Carol thought that Andrea sounded awfully defensive when she insisted that Rick wasn't her friend. That probably meant that Andrea liked him but was playing it cool. "I think it is a good idea. You need it to keep the wolves at bay and I need it because I am tired of feeling helpless. I am going to bed." Carol double-checked the locks on the front and back of the house and Andrea watched her with worried eyes. Carol needed to get the hell out of Charlotte and away from Ed. He wouldn't dare get near her on McAllister Mountain. All McAllisters had weapons and were not afraid to use them.

Andrea yawned, "I am going up too. I know you will be up with the damn chickens if we had chickens to get home as soon as you can. I'll be the one sleeping all the way there. Are any of your good looking cousins going to be there this weekend?"

Carol laughed, "Maybe you should ask Rick if he wants to go with you? Grandma would probably like to think that we have friends at the police department."

Andrea shook her head, "Bringing someone home to meet Nancy McAllister is serious business. Not to be taken lightly. I would to have him hooked before he gets to meet the family.

Carol was up early the next morning. She made coffee which she loved and which Andrea needed to kick her brain in gear. She still had time to finish packing and take a shower before they left. She tied her curly hair back in ponytail and thought for the millionth time that she was going to have it cut short one of these days.

Carol was carrying a small weekend case down the stairs when she saw that Andrea was on the telephone. It must be someone she liked because she was playing with the telephone cord. Andrea only did that when she was talking to someone she cared about. Carol carried her bag on out to the Cherokee and saw that Andrea already had her things inside. Carol felt that familiar creepy feeling that someone was watching her and wanted to run back into her apartment. Instead she walked slowly back as if she didn't have a care in the world.

Andrea was smiling as she hung up. Carol didn't miss the "I'll call you when I get back. Be careful out there."

"How's Rick?" Carol smirked.

"Go to hell, McAllister. His girlfriend back home called him last night and told him she wanted to date his best friend. He is heartbroken. Her loss is my gain." Andrea tossed her blond hair and her green eyes sparkled. "She must want to twist the knife in a little harder. They had agreed to give each other some space and Rick left Georgia to take a job here. The woman is an idiot but she did this on her own. No help from me. I just intend to reap the benefits of her foolishness."

"Do you want to stay here and hold his hand this weekend? I can find my way to McAllister Mountain all by myself".

"No, I want Rick to have a long and lonely weekend in a big city away from everyone he knows. Then when I come back he'll be really glad to see me".

"You'll make a good lawyer. Always three steps ahead of everyone else." Carol checked the lock on the door as they left.

"Rick checked out the self-defense classes for us. One of the instructors is his new partner, Michonne Carrington. New class starts next week. Go get your cell phone and make sure it's charged.

Carol started the vehicle, "I have it in my purse and it is charged too. So Rick has a female partner? She must be tough to be part of Charlotte PD."

"I hope she is forty and in a serious relationship with a woman on her softball team. Now let us fly the green earth toward the mountains."

"Let's go home, Andrea".

TWDTWDTWD

Daryl stood in the loft of the big barn at the Homestead leaning against the door frame waiting for Carol to come home. He had mucked out the stall of the horses. Carol would want to take a ride this evening and had cleaned the saddles. He was the stable boy and she was out of reach beautiful princess in this romance novel. Daryl wasn't going to go up to the house and greet her like Merle was. He was too afraid that his face would give away his love for her. It was better for him to wait here and watch her from afar. She was too good to be sullied by the likes of him.

He waited quietly with only Sammie the barn cat to keep him company. The cat ruled the barn and rats and mice knew it. They had left the premises when Sammie showed up and never darkened the door again. Sammie ignored everyone but him. She would sit in his lap and purr like the house cat that she could never be. Carol could usually coax her out but she wasn't here enough for Sammie to really bond with her.

Daryl had shared his feelings about Carol with the cat but she was unsympathetic. Sammie had no patience for his whining; she was a cat who believed that you acted to get what you wanted. The cat moved to stand beside him waving her tail and watching almost as closely as he did. "Oh, you're making your wants known now. She'll be along after a while with a treat for you, you cold hearted feline."

Just then Carol's Jeep came into view and the young man and the cat watched as the vehicle came to a stop and Carol and Andrea got out. He watched as Nancy McAllister and Merle hugged them. The little dog Tallie leaping and carrying on because Carol was home. Merle must have said something impertinent to Andrea because she laughed and then waited until Nancy had turned away to lead Carol into the house to give Merle the finger. Merle went to the Jeep and grabbed their bags while Carol paused and looked around until she saw him. She waved to him and he waved back casually as if his very heart wasn't pounding at the sight of her.

Daryl sat down on a bale of hay and patted his cat and thought over the events of the last two years. Merle had been in a VA hospital in Georgia recovering from a motorcycle accident when Nancy McAllister had been visiting a relative when she had wandered into the wrong room and met Merle. She had apologized and Merle had said something typically Merle and Nancy had taken a second look and stayed to talk. Somehow she had seen something in Merle that no one else had ever seen and came back later that day and talked to Merle some more.

She continued to talk to Merle every day by phone and when Merle was well enough to leave the hospital they had moved here to the mountain. There was a small cabin on the property and they had lived there ever since. It was the nicest place he had ever lived and he and Merle kept it spotless except for the occasional book left on a table. Merle liked to read and Daryl had found that the long winters here gave him more time to read.

Merle always referred to Nancy McAllister as "My Old Lady" or "My Lady" and he worshipped the ground that she walked on. Nancy and Merle were partners in crime. She was using her sight to make investments in businesses and the occasional wager. Together they were building a false front of legal businesses and an income trail that the government shared in but they were also stashing money in off shore accounts.

Merle had two wardrobes. One kept his mountain clothes and the other was filled with o one of those nice white collar prisons and he had feeling that Merle was never going to be caught.

Nancy McAllister had insisted that he call her "Grandma Nancy" and her sister in law Lydia had insisted on being called "Grandma Lydia" and after two years he was finally comfortable with it. The two grandmothers had signed him up for classes in construction, electrical work, and accounting and he had done well in each of them. He took care of their farms, the horses, and kept the machinery running. Grandma Nancy wanted him to run his own construction business but for now he and Emily McAllister were working on plans for a "green" home. Emily was in love with Brian McKenzie and the two of them were wanting a house that would stand through anything.

Daryl was twenty two and he knew that Carol would be twenty four at the end of this month. She had been finishing nursing school when he came here and now she was thinking about medical school. She was brilliant and ambitious and he was still the boy who couldn't put two sentences together and was content to tend to the horses and dream about building houses.

Daryl left the barn to go to his cabin to shower. Grandma Nancy and Lydia would be cooking for dinner for everyone and he would be expected to be there. He put on a plaid shirt. His arms were filling out in a way that made the shirts a little tight at the arms but Grandma Nancy frowned on cut out shirts at the dinner table. The wind had picked up and it was turning cooler and he decided on a long sleeved t shirt might be better. He laughed at himself for going through his wardrobe to find just the right outfit. He put on his cleanest boots and went to the Homestead to see Carol and Andrea.

Grandma Lydia met him at the door, "Daryl, will you go hunt down Carol. She went for a walk and dinner is nearly ready."

Daryl knew that they had planned their "dinner" to eat early and then later they would eat leftovers after everyone had a nice long horseback ride. He also knew that Carol would probably be up on the ridge looking at the mountains. "I'll find her and bring her home before we all starve waiting for her." He pretended to be annoyed and then on his way secretly delighted to be the one in search of her.

Grandma Lydia stepped out on the porch and watched her boy practically leap up the mountain. "Indeed you will, Daryl, go and find Carol and bring her home."

Daryl was walking up the graveled road that went to the meadow at the top of the mountain when he saw Carol at the family cemetery. She was sitting on a cement bench and he thought for a minute to leave her there with her thoughts but the family was gathering and they were waiting on Carol.

She turned as he opened the black iron gate to the graveyard and she smiled at him and she noticed that he was wearing a blue shirt that clung to his muscles and made his eyes seem even bluer. She sighed to herself; he got more handsome every time she saw him.

"How do you like your cross bow?" Carol had been looking for a Christmas present for Merle and Daryl last December. Merle was easy; she bought him a new motorcycle helmet. She had seen one too many patients brought into the ER that had been wearing the proper headgear. She got a black one that made him look more menacing. Merle did like to look like the bad boy once in a while.

She had wandered through a sporting store in search of something perfect for Daryl. He loved to hunt but she couldn't find anything that seemed to be just right for Daryl until she saw the crossbow on the wall. She knew that he would love it and fight until he mastered it. She bought the crossbow and all the various accouterments that went with it.

Merle had strutted around with his helmet to the laughter of all those present. Merle loved to be the center of attention and the Grandmas always gave him plenty. Daryl had opened his presents as if they might contain spiders; Carol had watched him out of the corners of her eyes. Daryl had thanked her shyly and then put it away. Her grandmother had told her that he worked with the bow all the time.

Daryl smiled shyly at the question and gathered his wits to answer, "I like it very much. Maybe sometime this weekend you'll have time to see me use it. Dinner is ready and you'd best come on now."

They walked together back down the hill. Carol asked about the horses and he promised her that they were ready for a good run. Daryl shortened his stride telling himself that he didn't want Carol to stumble on the gravel road. Carol changed her stride to a stroll and they walked through the spring sunshine as if there was no other place they would rather be.

AN

**A young Carol and Daryl in love but not knowing that the other in love with them. What do you think?**

**Please review. **


	2. Changing the Story

Most of the characters in this story are the property of The Walking Dead. I claim no ownership of them. I write for my own entertainment and for those others that read my story and reward me with a review.

Changing the Story

Nancy McAllister and her cousin Lydia McAllister stood on the porch and waved at the younger members of the household who taking the horses on a long ride. The weather was still clear but it was nippy enough that they hurried back into the house after that.

The two women went into the kitchen to get a cup of coffee and to talk. Both women were in their early seventies, proudly silver haired, and slender. They looked like sisters but were first cousins who married brothers. Nancy had married James McAllister and Lydia had married Robert McAllister. Nancy lived on half of the original McAllister farm and Lydia on the other. There were two dogwood trees at the edge of Nancy's yard that the two women called Lydia and Nancy. They had grown up together so close that their branches intertwined. You couldn't cut one down with bringing down the other. The trees were blooming now adding a bit of white to the green of the lawn and the purple of the lilacs.

Lydia's husband died young and she had never remarried. She taught English and Latin at the local high school. Lydia had no children of her own but she wasn't childless because Nancy's four children loved her like a second mother and their children thought of her as their grandmother. She was Grandma Lydia and Nancy was Grandma Nancy.

They settled down to drink coffee and to discuss Carol. Lydia remember that evening fifteen years ago when they had sat in the same chairs and discussed Carol. It wasn't long after James had been killed by a log truck and Nancy had just found out that her son Michael had been killed in some far away land while serving as a soldier. Nancy's hands shook as she tried to drink her coffee. Lydia had never seen her more upset. Their mother had passed not long ago and the "sight" was coming to Nancy as the oldest daughter of a "sighted" woman.

"I can't change what happened to James and Michael. They are gone from this earth and in two days I will bury the body of my son. I can change Carol's life but to do so I have to take her from her mother."

The two women had contemplated that for a moment. Lydia spoke quietly, "Cheryl loves Carol but she isn't good for her. We both know that. We know what should be done, but how are we going to do it?"

Cheryl and Michael had married ten years ago because Cheryl was pregnant with his child and Michael McAllister was a man of honor. He was an officer and a gentleman and he stayed married to Cheryl because he loved Carol. Cheryl kept her dalliances to a discreet minimum while he was around, but what would she be like if he wasn't? Michael had confided in Nancy at his last visit that he intended to divorce Cheryl when he came back from his next assignment. He was resigning his commission and coming back to the mountains with Carol.

Nancy had hugged him goodbye that day with a sense of foreboding. She had walked over to Lydia's house and they agreed that honorable men like Michael needed the help of women who step up and do something when it needs to be done. The next day they had traveled to a city not far from the base where Cheryl would be living when Michael went overseas. They met with a private detective and told him what they wanted him to do. Nancy had given him a substantial check and they had gone back home. They got their money's worth and more of evidence that Cheryl was a slut and a bad mother.

Nancy had spent those months on pins and needles as her "sight" got stronger. She would call Carol almost every evening to talk and she knew that Cheryl was usually not there. Carol would tell her that her mother was visiting next door or just left to pick up milk for breakfast tomorrow and Nancy knew that she was already starting to cover for Cheryl. Carol was the adult and Cheryl the perennial child. How long before Cheryl brought the men home to the house with Carol? So Nancy called Carol just to know that for this night that she was as safe as a nine year old could be in a house by themselves. She always called Lydia after talking to Carol because she had to talk to someone and Lydia loved Carol perhaps as much as she did.

Then Michael had been killed and now his brothers were up at the family cemetery digging his grave. It was the custom in the mountains that the remaining men of the family would dig the graves of the departed. His two brothers Patrick and John were there and his brother in law David Graham. Their young sons were there to help and to learn the proper way to handle a family death. Patrick Jr., Ashton, and Jesse were too young to really dig but the grave digging was a way to show respect to those who passed. Michael's grave was beside that of his father James McAllister and it was not lost on anyone there that Michael had helped dig that grave not six months ago. The grass was just starting to grow over their father's grave and now they were burying Michael.

Cheryl had not brought Carol to the mountain until the day of Michael's funeral. The funeral was held at the church and the body had been taken to the graveyard by a horse driven caisson because Michael had loved horses. The wailing sounds of the bagpipes playing "Amazing Grace" had accompanied the mourners as they walked to the cemetery for the service. Michael had been killed in combat and given full military honors with a volley of rifle fire that echoed over the mountains and a flag presented to Cheryl at the end.

Then it was over and Cheryl was telling them that Carol was too upset to stay any longer and she was going to take her home now. Nancy and Lydia had exchanged glances and Lydia had nodded. Nancy told her that there was something that they must discuss and Cheryl had agreed. Lydia had sent everyone else away. John and Patrick had homes on the mountain and what Nancy had to do was best kept quiet.

Lydia had stood on the porch and watched Carol with her cousins. Emily was holding her right hand and Jesse she left and Ashton was holding Emily's hand. They were walking to John's house and they looked so terribly young and vulnerable. Lydia wiped her tears and had walked back into the house to help Nancy do what was going to be done.

Cheryl was perched on a chair in the living room and the house was so quiet now that Nancy could hear the sound of the wind blowing in the gutters making that howling sound that had always unnerved Cheryl. Nancy smiled at Lydia as she sat down in the rocker on the other side of Cheryl.

Nancy's tone was matter of fact, "I have papers here giving me full custody of Carol. You will sign them and leave without her. You can visit here anytime you like but you will never take her off this mountain for any reason." She handed Cheryl a folder full of papers and a pen.

Cheryl's pretty face looked less attractive as she snarled, "I have put up with you two old bitches for ten years now. I ain't signing anything. I am taking Carol off this mountain and you'll never see her again."

Nancy sighed, "Cheryl, look in this folder." She shoved a folder at Cheryl who angrily opened it. Inside were photographs of Cheryl and the different men she had been with since Michael had left. There were also signed depositions from her neighbors that she had left Carol alone in the house night after night and sometimes not returning until the morning.

Cheryl's face hardened, "Carol is my daughter. You can't take her away from me. I have rights."

Lydia spoke, "This is Adair County and we have a judge's order keeping Carol with us until a hearing can be set. Do you really want this all out in the open? You can be charged with child neglect. Cheryl, for once do what is best for Carol and leave her here."

Nancy added, "Michael changed his will and his insurance policy before he left. You'll get a small settlement but most of the money will be put in trust for Carol's education. You like the good life too much to be a penniless widow. We're going to sweeten this deal for you. I will give you one hundred thousand dollars in cash if you sign now and tell Carol that you want her to stay with us."

Cheryl's eyes took on a calculated gleam, "That is not very much money. How long will that last? "

Nancy smiled, "I knew I could depend on you to be greedy. Read the second page."

They were all silent as Cheryl read that Nancy McAllister was going to give her one hundred thousand dollars in cash for the next five years for a total of six hundred thousand dollars over a period of six years.

"You promise that I can see her here. You won't keep her from me will you? This is your insurance money from your husband's death. Are you so afraid that Carol will end up like me?"

Nancy stood and looked at the family photographs on the mantel. There was one with a young smiling Michael holding his little girl and smiling at the camera. "No, I am afraid that she is so much like Michael that she ends up as one of those women who do anything to keep a bad marriage together. I am afraid that she will marry someone who treats her like shit and she'll be so determined to not be like you that she stays with him. That is what will happen if I don't do this. Lydia and I are changing Carol's story today. Carol is going to grow up here with us. We're going to teach her to be the strong woman that she is meant to be."

Cheryl looked at the two determined women. They would take better care of Carol than she would. Carol was broken hearted over her father's death. Cheryl knew that she would soon spend this money on good times with bad men. That is who she was and for once she could do the right thing for all the wrong reasons.

"You won't tell her that I did it for money? I do love her."

Both ladies nodded and Cheryl took the pen and signed and Lydia used her notary seal to make it official. Nancy handed Cheryl the thick envelope with the cash.

"I need to talk to Carol and tell her that she can stay here. She wants to I know. She loves you both and I know that you will take good care of her. She doesn't have any clothes here."

Lydia said, "She and Emily are the same size. We bought clothes yesterday and washed them. They are in her room upstairs."

Cheryl smirked, "I keep forgetting that you are three steps ahead of me. Will she grow up hating me?"

"She'll always love you, Cheryl. That is who she is, but she isn't going to spend her life taking care of you and your messes. You can take this money and build yourself a new life. I hope you do." Nancy's voice was kinder now. The deal was done. John had drawn the papers up like the good son and a good lawyer that he was. Cheryl was leaving Carol here and she and Lydia wouldn't be walking the floor night after night worrying about Carol.

Lydia shook herself away from all those memories and into the present time in which she and Nancy were still walking the floor worried about Carol, It was time to think about Carol the adult and not Carol the child. "You think that this Ed character is dangerous. What are we going to do about him?"

Nancy shook her head, "I don't know. Carol is in danger and she knows it. She has enough of the sight to sense that. The police aren't going to do much because Ed hasn't directly threatened Carol. They'll wait around until he does something terrible to her. I know it".

Lydia patted Nancy's hand. "We have never let legalities hold us back, my dear nefarious cousin. Our list of felonies grows longer every year. We certainly have the means and the will to change this story. We need some tough strong men to watch over Carol. We need men who won't be worried about the niceties of law but will protect Carol out of their love for her."

Nancy smiled, "You were always the smart one. Merle and Daryl Dixon. Merle loves Carol like a little sister and Daryl adores her but not in a brotherly way. He is so young but he is the man for her. "

"You were twenty and James twenty-two when you got married. Bobby and I were both twenty-two and fresh out of college. We had so little time together, and I am glad that we married so young. Daryl is young but he loves Carol and I see the way she looks at him. No other man quite measures up to Daryl in Carol's eyes and the girl doesn't even know that is why she can't seem to find the right guy." Lydia understood Carol. No man could take the place of her Bobby even if he had been gone for twenty years. Carol's heart was set on that Dixon boy and that was just the way it was.

Nancy was galvanized into action. "I better have a talk with Merle. He will sputter and complain and they'll be some creative cursing but he'll do it. He may be a career criminal but he isn't a killer, so he'll have to be creative at something more than swearing."

"Daryl will do what needs to be done if it comes to that, and I hope it doesn't. They can find someplace to stay while they are there. It is probably best if Carol doesn't know they are there. Ed won't make a move if he knows he is being watched. Don't you think Jesse could visit his cousin in Charlotte for a couple of weeks?"

Nancy was planning three steps ahead, "We'll hire someone to take over Daryl's work here. Merle can do some business while he is there. The Triple Crown races are almost here and I think I have a winner in that first race."

Nancy took Lydia's cup and poured out the cold coffee and filled her cup with hot coffee and fixed it the way she liked, "What are we making for supper. They'll come home cold and hungry especially Daryl and Jesse."

"We have left over roast beef for sandwiches so maybe some hot soup?" The two women drank their coffee and planned their evening menu with as much care as they did everything.

They had been working together in various enterprises since the "sight" had come to Nancy. They had invested enough to pay Cheryl off and to make sure that there would be enough to give the grandchildren the life that they wanted. They hadn't needed Merle as much as he thought they did, but they both loved that scamp. Nancy had changed Merle and Daryl's story when she met them and brought them here. Over the last fifteen years they had changed lots of stories when they helped people. They couldn't always change the story but they would always try.

AN

**I know I lured you in with a chapter of Caryl love and a young handsome Daryl in a blue shirt and now you have these all ladies sitting around plotting. Sorry for your luck but I love the old ladies and they are the ones pulling the strings. They are also Caryl fans and why wait around until the ZA to put Carol and Daryl together?**

**They changed the story but is Carol's fate to be profoundly affected by Ed. This Carol did not fall for his charm but Ed is a difficult man to escape. This time she had Merle, Daryl, and my favorite original character Jesse Graham in her corner and don't overlook that Andrea, Michonne, and of course Rick are all part of the story.**

**Please review. I hope you like this story. It has been lingering on the back of my mind since I wrote my first story. I love Carol and yes I wanted to change her story from abused wife to warrior by skipping the abused wife part.**


	3. Home Girl

**I do appreciate your reviews. Be warned that there will be some chapters that will go to some dark places. I will warn you before you read them but rest assured that this is not a dark chapter. It is in fact so sweet that all diabetics might want to take a glucose reading. You are warned!**

**Home Girl**

Carol woke up Sunday morning when the sun came peeping into her bedroom. This had been her room for as long as she could remember, even when her family lived on base housing she had thought of this as her room. She had always slept here for holidays and summer vacations before her father died. She had come up here the day her father was buried after Cheryl had told her that she would be staying here "a while" and had lain down on this bed and cried. She had wept for her father and her mother. Tears for a father that left her and tears of relief that her mother had left her here at her real home.

Carol thought back to the last two days and smiled. She had taken two long horseback rides and visited with her grandmothers and Uncle John and Aunt Ellen. Daryl, Merle, and Jesse had spent Saturday working on a barn on the property. She, Emily, and Andrea had taken the horses for a good run and then walked the horses most of the way back. It gave them all a good chance to catch up on each other's news.

Emily McAllister was happy. She would finish her Master's degree in environmental housing next year and then she would marry Brian McKenzie. She had her whole life mapped out for the next fifty years and Carol walking beside her on the road almost envied Emily. Carol enjoyed her job, but was thinking about going to medical school. She dated from time to time but she hadn't met anyone who she wanted to look at for fifty years. Unbidden, the image of Daryl on horseback came to mind but Carol was careful to push it back. Daryl was attractive but he was younger than she was. He was shy around her but Daryl was shy around everyone. He probably thought of her as a big sister.

Daryl had asked her at supper Friday night if she wanted to try the crossbow. That sounded an awful lot like he wanted her to see how well he could shoot so she had readily agreed. Then Andrea and Jesse thought they would like to try. Even Merle had shown up. It had been lots of fun. She and Andrea were hopeless and Jesse was just a little better than they were. Merle was decent but Daryl was amazing.

Daryl and the bow were one fighting machine. Daryl with the crossbow was different from the bashful boy who never made eye contact and hardly spoke. He was confident, and his bolts struck home with a satisfying thump, and yes it was incredibly sexy. Daryl had laughed at some horrendously bad shot from Jesse and Carol could never remember seeing Daryl actually laugh before.

Last night at supper Jesse announced that they were all going bar hopping that night. The grandmothers raised their eyebrows but said nothing. Merle told them that he had plans and they didn't included babysitting them for an evening. Jesse had turned to Daryl, "My man, you aren't going to leave me to protect the womenfolk by myself are you?"

Daryl flushed just a little, "I'ma probably gonna have to protect you too."

That had raised howls of laughter and the grandmas laughed harder than anyone else. Jesse called Emily and they decided that they would all meet at a local dive unoriginally called "The Watering Hole".

Carol had assured Andrea that blue jeans would be fine. Andrea was too beautiful to go dressed up to the "The Watering Hole". The local men would all fall in love with her and the local women would all try to beat her ass. It was better to go in and out of the dives like a stealth bomber and a done up Andrea was more like a dive bomber.

Carol tried her best but even an underdone up Andrea was spectacular. Carol wondered why she was best friends with this woman who made her look like a sparrow next to a peacock.

Jesse and Daryl were waiting for them downstairs and they had decided that they all could go in Daryl's old truck. Carol didn't even bother to mention that four in a cab of a truck in North Carolina was illegal. Everyone did it. Daryl got in the driver's seat, Jessie gently shoved Carol in beside him and Andrea next. He took the shotgun position and they were off.

Daryl drove carefully and said little, but part of him was just reveling at being out on the town with Carol. Sure it was a group outing but he was driving and she was sitting close enough to him that he could smell her shampoo. He couldn't steer around curves or shift gears without bumping into her. It was wonderful. Tomorrow night she would be back in Charlotte and he would be talking to Sammie the barn cat, but he was going to enjoy tonight.

Jesse knew someone might make a racial remark sometime tonight. He had an African-American father and a white mother and he had remarks made to him his entire life. He wasn't going to stop doing what he wanted to do because some asshole wanted to show how tough he was. Jesse had graduated from Adair County High School and had made a lot of friends. He hoped to see some of them tonight. Besides, Carol was going back to Charlotte tomorrow and it looked like Daryl was never going to get his game going. Daryl needed a bit of a push and this night might be it.

Andrea was just out to have a reasonably good time. She didn't think Mr. Right was going to be waiting for her at one of these bars. She just wanted to have fun and she was enjoying watching Daryl's face light up whenever he looked at Carol. Andrea had been waiting for Carol to fall in love for years. It was only when she saw Carol's face as Daryl was shooting the crossbow that she finally got the memo. Carol wasn't falling for every man in Charlotte because Carol had already fallen for Daryl.

The bar was a dump, but there was a juke box, a pool table, and cold beer. Emily and Brian were waiting for them at a big table. Daryl had gotten his game in gear enough to grab a seat beside Carol after remembering to seat her properly first. Carol eyed the pool table and said innocently, "Who wants to play pool?"

Jesse shook his head at her, "I think I'll just hang out a while.

Brian shook his head, "Maybe later".

Daryl had hung around enough beer joints in Georgia to learn how to play pool and Carol sounded so sweet and hopeful. "I'll play with you, Carol"

She grinned at him demurely, "I haven't played for a long time. I hope I can remember the rules."

Daryl wondered why the others all groaned about then, but he was too euphoric at the chance to show her how good he was at pool to think about much of anything.

She schooled his ass from her first break and every shot thereafter. Carol Ann McAllister was a damn hustler and he got his ass kicked like a red headed stepchild. He noticed that the group had gathered around to watch his humiliation.

Jesse handed him a cold beer, "Rookie mistake, don't ever underestimate Carol".

"Been there, done that, and have a t shirt that says don't play pool with Carol for money." Brian McAllister was philosophical.

Carol smiled at him, "I take no prisoners, sorry." Daryl thought that wasn't a sorry look on her face and he would have lost deliberately just to see her so happy.

Daryl smiled back, "Times get hard, you and me will just go around pool halls hustling for money."

Their moment was interrupted by a big guy who wanted to challenge the "little woman" to a game of pool. Carol would have declined but the whole "little woman" thing kinda pissed her off so she shrugged her shoulders and said, "Sure".

It was a close match. The big guy was good and Carol only won by a thread but she took her win and another cold beer from the loser. Daryl had sat on a stool and watched her take her shots with meticulous precision. She was playing to win. The best part was that after she made a good shot she would smile at him and he would grin back and when she won she walked over to him with her cold beer. A redneck dream come true and he wondered if it all went away at twelve o'clock like Cinderella.

The next stop was a lot like the first but it had a band. Not a good band but it was a band and they stayed there long enough so that Emily and Brian could dance and everyone else could have another beer or two. Daryl would have given his right nut to dance with Carol but he didn't know how to dance and if she got that close to him he would have a hard on for the rest of the night. Carol ran in to some people she knew and she talked with them for a while. Some girl that worked at a convenience store in Adair sat down in Carol's seat and tried to start a conversation. She was a nice enough girl but this might be his one chance to be out with Carol and he told her that he was here with "someone" and she left. Carol had come back to the table right after with two cold beers and they listened to the band. Jesse danced with every girl that asked him and everybody was having a good time, but Jesse said the secret to bar hopping was to leave when things were good. Andrea was attracting too much attention and they scooted out.

The last bar was more upscale which meant that all the commodes flushed and you got a glass to go with your beer. Jesse took the truck keys because he had only had one beer all night and everyone else had a few more. He dragged them out when Andrea and Carol got the attention of a couple of good ole boys who wanted to make their Saturday even more memorable.

The last stop was a bonfire party. Jesse had stopped to buy some beer at a convenience store and the party was in full swing when they got there. There was a guy with a guitar singing and they sat on the tailgate of the trucks and just listened. Carol had went to high school with Eric Stewart. He had thought that Nashville was just waiting for him and most everyone around here thought it was too. He had a beautiful voice but he had come back home and married his high school sweetheart Brandy. Eric had a job selling real estate and sang at bonfires on Saturday night. Carol had talked with him the last time she had been home when he had come to the Homestead for some business with Grandma. Eric had laughed and told her, "I am a home boy at heart and I wanted to be home more than I wanted to chase the dream. I have what makes me happy here."

Eric smiled at Brandy who was sitting in lawn chair by the fire and started an old Boz Scaggs song "Look What You've Done to Me". Carol knew the song well enough to know that Eric changed the line from "I never thought I'd fall again so easily" to "I never thought I'd fall in love so easily." She liked Eric's version better. She knew she would always think of this night when she heard that song from now on. It would always be the song that caught how she felt about Daryl.

_They might fade and turn to stone_

_Let's get crazy all alone_

_Hold me closer than you'd ever dare_

_Close your eyes and I'll be there_

_And after all is said and done_

_After all you are the one_

_Take me up your stairs and through the door_

_Take me where we don't care anymore_

Carol was sitting between Daryl and Jesse and she knew she was a little drunk but she was having a wonderful time. She might be living in the big city but at heart she was a home girl. She clinked her beer with Daryl's beer and Jesse's soft drink, "To good times at home". They solemnly clinked back. Carol was a little sad when the party broke up and it was time to go home. Eric and Brandy came over to say hello and tell her that they were expecting. Carol hugged them both and wished them well. She introduced Daryl to them and Daryl told Eric how much he liked his singing. He was so talkative that Carol knew he must be a little drunk too.

Jesse drove home, Andrea beside of him, then Carol and Daryl on the outside. Carol went to sleep on Daryl's shoulder and didn't wake up until they were on the mountain. They dropped Daryl off first and then went back to the Homestead trying to sneak in quietly so that Grandma wouldn't wake up. Carol lain in bed last night thinking about how it had felt to wake up to Daryl's arm around her in the truck. She just thought about that and let the remembered sound of Eric singing "Look What You Have Done to Me" carry her to sleep.

It was Sunday morning now and Carol rolled out of bed to go get a shower. The grandmas would want her and Jesse in church this morning. Carol got dressed and went downstairs to breakfast where a smirking Jesse was assuring the grandmas that he had been sober all night but he couldn't say the same to the rest of the crew. Carol stuck her tongue out at the snitch but just ate breakfast with a bit of a smirk of her own.

They ate Sunday dinner after church and Merle and Daryl were there too. Jesse had told the story about Carol beating Daryl and the other guy hands down and everyone laughed. Carol was feeling a little down. The weather was turning rainy and Carol knew she should head out before the fog covered the mountains. She wanted to take the horses for another ride or visit with the barn cat who had sat with her yesterday morning when she brought her a treat, or spend some time with Daryl without anyone else around. Instead Carol spoke to Andrea and they grabbed their bags, hugged the grandmas goodbye, invited Jesse to visit them, and were off before the fog made driving dangerous.

Merle had watched Daryl all weekend. The boy had it bad for Carol and she seemed to be reciprocating that feeling. Merle sighed. "Let's go do the dishes." He, Jesse, and Daryl cleaned up the dinner dishes and then he asked them to grab a seat at the table.

Grandma Nancy told what she knew about Carol's stalker. His name was Ed Peletier and he and Carol had dated two or three times before Carol told him that she didn't want to see him anymore. He had gotten angry and had broken a lamp at her house that night. Things might have been worse but Andrea had come home right then and he had left.

Carol had thought that Ed was just an unpleasant memory when the flowers and cards started arriving. He called her continually begging for another chance and then would get angry when she refused to see him again. The conversation would end with his final words, "You'll be sorry."

Carol had changed her telephone number and then she began seeing him as she went shopping, on the street close to her apartment, and just about anywhere she was except for work. Carol had spoken with hospital security about Ed. She was starting self defense classes this week and had talked with a police officer, but Ed had not done anything to Carol that posed a serious threat.

Nancy had paused for a minute and they all could see that she was struggling with her emotions. "He hasn't done anything yet. He is from some little town an hour or so north of Charlotte. Family has money and connections. There isn't anything on his record because the family has always found a way to make the problems go away. I know he is dangerous and I know he will hurt her if we don't stop him."

Merle took over the narrative from that point, "I have been busy planning what we are going to do. Daryl and I are going to be leaving for Charlotte in an hour. We have an apartment close to Carol's. We are going to be on Carol Patrol until we find a way to nail this guy. Jesse will decide that he wants to go visit his cousin and he'll be going to Charlotte tomorrow to stay in her apartment for a while. Daryl and I will rent cars so that Carol won't recognize ours. We can't let her know that we are there. We can't let Ed know that we are watching him either."

Daryl had listened silently. Grandma Nancy was afraid that this guy was going to hurt Carol and that was enough for him to drive to Charlotte and tear Ed apart. He would have fought those guys hitting on Carol and Andrea last night if Jesse hadn't taken a more peaceful route. He tried to slow his thought down. If he beat up Ed then his ass would be in jail and Ed would still be a danger to Carol. He would protect Carol and he didn't give a rat's ass if he had to kill Ed to do so. He knew what it felt like to be beaten senseless by someone so much bigger and stronger that you couldn't get away. His body and soul bore the scars of his violent angry father and he couldn't quite erase them even now. He would never let that happen to Carol.

Merle went on, "Grandma Lydia has someone in mind to take over your chores, Daryl. The kid is going to college and could use the cash. We will buy cell phones when we get to Charlotte and give all of you our numbers. I got some good friends in some low places that have already found Ed's address. They'll have the equipment that we will need too."

Jesse noticed that no one asked about the equipment and he thought it best that he didn't either. He had a permit to carry a concealed weapon and he would bring a pistol with him. He understood that they were going to whatever it took to protect Carol.

Daryl stood up and walked to the door intent on getting started when he remembered the grandmas. He walked back to them and hugged and kissed them for the first time. "I ain't going to let anybody hurt her. Don't you worry none. We got this." They nodded at him. He turned to Merle, "Let's get going. Time is a wastin".

Merle clapped Jesse on the shoulder. "I'll call you tomorrow and keep you up to date." He hugged and kissed his "Old Ladies" goodbye and followed Daryl out into the now pouring rain.

AN

**Yes, everyone on the mountain is a Caryl fan. I don't think either Carol or Daryl really knew that they were in love until that weekend. **

**Secret confession: I love the movie and most of the songs to "Urban Cowboy". I was trying to come up with a song that fit that feeling that Carol had at the bonfire and that song popped up, especially with the revised lyrics.**

**I love hearing from you. Please review.**


	4. The Brothers Dixon

The Brothers Dixon

Merle

Merle followed Daryl to their cabin in the rain and they were both chilled and soaking by the time they got there. Daryl had went into his room and was throwing things around in there when Merle stopped at his doorway. "I'm going to take a shower and then pack. Don't pack too much. We'll get what we need in Charlotte."

Merle showered and shaved and then dressed in a pair of blue jeans with a polo shirt. He and Daryl were going to be living in a nice condo in Charlotte. They needed to blend in to their surroundings. He was going with the young executive look and Daryl could probably look like an indulged younger brother. Tomorrow Daryl was getting a haircut and some new clothes. New wheels too, something nice but not too flashy. Flashy got noticed and they were only supposed to be background clutter.

Merle went through Daryl's pack and threw out most of his clothes while Daryl scowled. "This ain't about you, Daryl. This is about us watching over Carol. We gotta be chameleons and they fade into the scenery. We can't be looking like a couple of rednecks looking out of place in a good neighborhood. We don't do anything that will make anyone look at us twice. Understand?"

Merle packed his weapons carefully making sure that he brought extra ammo. He would find a shooting range somewhere and get in some practice this week. He had promised his Old Ladies that he would be careful to stay within the parameters of the law and he wasn't an assassin but he wanted to be ready for whatever might come.

They took Merle's Tahoe. It was bigger and more comfortable and Merle drove. Daryl was too wound up to drive in this fog. Merle loved the big heavy duty vehicle. It was the first nice ride he had ever owned. It fit in everywhere. He looked and felt like a success when he drove it. Merle didn't hurry; the last thing he wanted was to catch up with Carol's Cherokee. That might be awkward.

Merle decided to make the miles go easier by picking on Daryl. "So how was your big night out on the town? You and Jesse keep your womenfolk safe?" Merle had stayed home because he didn't want to risk the temptation of barhopping. It would be too easy to have a beer or maybe ten. He wanted to go and show those two boys how a man walked into a bar and roped out the woman he wanted. He missed the night life but he couldn't risk losing what he had, what Daryl had on a binge. Adulthood was shitty at times; you had to consider the risks before you decided if the reward was worth it. He had spent a lifetime grabbing the reward and ignoring the risks, but last evening he had sat with his Old Ladies and planned this out instead of going carousing.

"Nothing big, we played pool at The Watering Hole and Carol kicked by my ass and took names. Some guy bigger than the two of us put together came waltzing over and challenged Carol to a game. She schooled him and then went to that new bar out of town that has a band on Saturday night?"

Merle had been by there, "How was the band?" He liked to dance. His mother had taught him how to dance when he was in high school. She was usually mellow by the time he got home from school and she would put an eight track in and she showed him all kinda dances. Daryl would be out there with them and it was maybe the most fun they ever had. His father had come home drunk one night and broke the tape player like he destroyed everything that brought joy into that house. "Do you remember Mom teaching me how to dance? Man, she could dance even half drunk. Light on her feet and as happy as I ever saw her."

"I remember her dancing and you stumbling all over the house." Daryl remembered the dancing and the smile on Mom's face when Merle got the step right. He remembered putting his feet on Mom's and her waltzing him around the living room. That feeling of joyful movement wasn't one that he had a whole lot of memories so he had treasured that.

"Did she have time …to teach you?" Merle had been in juvie when his mom had died in the house fire. They let him go home for the funeral and then they let him go to the military to be rid of him.

Daryl shook his head, "Naw, she died when I was eight, remember?"

"Did you dance with Carol last night?" Merle just figured that Daryl had probably danced with his girl at the bar.

"I don't know how to dance. I just held up a few drunk girls at some bar a few times." Daryl would just as soon forget those encounters that usually ended with quick sex somewhere in the parking lot of the bar.

"It ain't all that hard. I'll show you how. You can dance with a pillow and I'll tell you what to do. Hell, you danced up a storm when you were eight."

Daryl looked to see if Merle was making fun of him, but he seemed serious. Dancing with a pillow seemed like a dumb ass thing to do, but last night he would have danced with a mattress if it allowed him to take Carol's hand and lead her to the dance floor and then…. He jerked himself from thinking any farther than that.

Merle was familiar with Charlotte. He was in and out on business here all the time and he found their new apartment easily. It was rented weekly or monthly mostly by corporations for those in Charlotte on a temporary assignment. He signed a contract for a month and paid for it with a credit card. He didn't like living a trail behind him but this wasn't the kind of place that dealt in cash. Way too upscale to actually put their hands on filthy lucre.

The apartment was very nice. Two bedrooms and two baths with a large living room and a kitchen. The utility room had a washer and dryer and there was an extensive list of places that delivered food to your door. Merle unpacked his computer and charged his cell phone. He glanced at the time and thought that they had time to make it to buy something they needed tonight.

Merle drove to a store specializing in electronics and purchased a cell phone for Daryl. Cell service in Adair was spotty and nonexistent on the mountain so Daryl never needed one. He picked up some food from a grocery store and then came back to find Daryl dressed in sandals, shorts, and a casual shirt. Merle was impressed; Daryl looked like a yuppie. He needed a new haircut but they could do that tomorrow when they went to a mall. They ate a quick sandwich while Daryl took Merle's contacts from is phone and put it into his new phone. Then they did a quick recon of Carol's apartment. It looked like she and Andrea were at home and everything looked quiet.

They drove to a used car dealership and bought two relatively new vehicles. He picked out a full size suv and Daryl chose an older model Mercedes with a sunroof and tinted windows. Merle was about to protest the Mercedes but it did go with the shorts and the sandals. It looked like the kind of car that a kid right out of college might drive and Daryl wanted it. They paid with cash which didn't seem to bother the owner and they arranged to pick up the suv in the morning.

Daryl left the car dealership headed toward Carol's apartment. He was going to park somewhere close and take a walk around the neighborhood. He had a general description of Ed as a tall, dark-haired man in his middle twenties that drove a green Ford sedan.

Merle watched him go and hoped that he would be careful.

Daryl

Daryl had noticed that there was a small park located on the other side of the street from Carol's apartment complex. He found a bench that faced her apartment and just sat there as if he was enjoying the evening. Carol had mentioned last night that she was working the midnight to eight o'clock shift this week and that sometimes she would have to stay longer because the hospital was chronically short handed. He intended to stay close until then and then follow her to her job. Hospitals always had lots of traffic around them and one more car circling the block wouldn't be noticed.

Andrea left in her car around seven thirty. Carol had mentioned that Andrea was dating a cop named Rick. That meant Carol was in the apartment alone and Daryl pulled out his cell phone and called her cell phone. His heart was pounding and it rang several times before she answered. He had practiced his opening line several times but he forgot most of it when she said "Hello."

"Hello, this is Daryl. Just thought I'd call and see if you all got back all right."

It wasn't smooth but she answered quickly, "Daryl, we got back without any problems. Is it still raining up in the mountains?" Carol cursed her own idiocy. She had just blanked out when she heard his voice on the phone and couldn't come up with anything else to say. "Thank you, Jesus" sounded a little too over the top but it had been her first thought. She had been sitting there feeling lonely and he just seemed so close as if he could come through the door any minute.

Daryl ignored the question about the weather on the mountain and went with his practiced speech. "I wanted to tell you that I had a good time last night even if you did take me to the woodshed at playing pool. It was a lot of fun and I hope we can do it again sometime".

Carol knew that her future rode on a proper response. Daryl, the feral cat had crawled out to her and if she scared him off now he might never try again. She wasn't alone in this. Daryl calling her up to chat if he didn't want to see her again was as likely as being hit by a meteor. She gave him the equivalent of a can of just opened tuna, "Daryl, I had a wonderful time last night and not just because I beat you at pool. I loved every bit of it. There is only one part of the night that might have made it more perfect."

Daryl had a moment's anxiety about something he did or didn't do, but her voice was low and teasing in his ear and he was distracted by that for a second, "What could have made it better?"

Carol smiled into the telephone, "You could have danced with me at the bar. Instead I had to chase off one of your admirer's when I got back from talking to a friend of mine."

Daryl smiled back, "I ain't much of a dancer but I promise to try if you'll give me a second chance. I chased that girl off myself so that you would have to sit beside of me when you got back."

The conversation went on nonstop for two hours until Carol looked at her watch. "Daryl, I have to get ready for work."

"Would it be alright it I called you tomorrow?"

Carol said, "Tomorrow evening would be better. I have to work until eight tomorrow and I know you are busy during the day and I am working all week from midnight until at least eight in the morning. Jesse is coming down tomorrow morning and we're going to our first self-defense class too, but call me whenever you get a chance. Goodnight Daryl."

"Goodnight, Carol. You drive careful now. I'll call you tomorrow. Goodnight." He hung up and wished he had called her sweetheart when he said goodnight.

Daryl got up from his park bench. He had kept an eye out for dark haired men in green sedans and hadn't seen anyone fitting that description. He needed to visit a gas station to buy a tank of gas and visit the rest room before Carol left.

His cell phone rang and he answered thinking it was Carol. "Sweetheart, is there something wrong?"

Instead it was the cold and merciless voice of Merle which rang through his ear, "The something that is wrong, Sweetheart, is that your phone has been busy for over an hour."

Daryl growled back, "I have been talking to Carol. She thinks I am on the mountain. What do you need?"

"Sweetheart, I was just worried that something was wrong. Now have been able to tear yourself away from the phone long enough to look for our bad guy?" Merle was laughing as he talked.

"Haven't seen anything here. I am sitting in a park across from the apartments and Andrea left a couple of hours ago and Carol is by herself. Jesse is coming tomorrow."

"You stay put there and I'll come by and follow our bird to its job. You can take the morning shift and follow her to her nest in the morning". Merle was smiling when he hung up.

Daryl walked back to his car and when he saw Merle cruise by he drove back to his new apartment. He would have liked to be the one to follow Carol to work but he trusted Merle to take care of her.

Merle had followed Carol's Cherokee to the hospital and into the visitor's parking lot at the ER entrance. Carol had walked in with an attractive Black woman that looked to be a little older than Carol. They were talking and laughing together so she must be a friend. Merle shifted in his seat to get a better look at the woman but they soon disappeared. Merle waited a minute and then pulled out. Carol wouldn't leave the hospital until morning and Daryl would be waiting her close to where she had parked her car.

Christie Alston had noticed that Carol was unusually buoyant and relaxed as they walked in, "The mountain air must agree with you. You look like you won the lottery."

Carol laughed, "I had a good time at home and we'll be up there for a week at the end of the month. I think you could benefit with some mountain air too." Carol didn't care if she worked twelve hour shifts every day until then. In two weeks, she'd be home again and she had a feeling that Daryl wouldn't be lurking down at the barn when she got there. She was glad that Christie was coming with her though; she worked too hard and needed to get away from the city for a while.

Carol had dug out her Urban Cowboy soundtrack and listened to it as she drove in, she was still humming to herself as she signed and started another shift of car wrecks, domestic abuse, accidents, heart attacks, and strokes.

AN

**I read an interview by Norman Reedus over a year ago in which he stated that Melissa McBride schooled him at pool. So I put that in.**

**Merle may be impossibly good in this one but remember he is only twenty eight and he has been sober two years. He does love Daryl but he is more willing to let Daryl find his own happiness. Merle is a bit lonely in this one but that can change.**

**A young Daryl sporting around the city in shorts and sandals driving a Mercedes. He is also clean shaven and absolutely spotless. Just saying.**

**No Ed sighting yet. I have to gear myself up before I walk into that dark heart. Yes, he is still around but I wanted to get our players in place before he slinks in.**

**Next chapter will have some Randrea. Andrea is off to see Rick and we'll see some of that. There will Ed. Know that he is included because it is Carol's fate to intersect with him and be taught some hard lessons. I know that it would be easy to write Ed out easily but that won't happen. He will get his, but sadly you can't find a walker when you need one.**

**Loving all your reviews. I do appreciate it**.


	5. Melange

**Melange is a French word meaning a mixture of diverse elements. Most of the elements of this story are about the course of true love, but there is one element that is different. It will give the reader an glimpse of the monster that is Ed Peletier. **

Melange

Andrea headed her Sebring convertible toward the restaurant where Rick was waiting. He had called her earlier this evening to see if she wanted to have dinner with him. He sounded lonely and depressed and she had to bite back her automatic laugh of triumph when she kindly agreed to meet him. She liked Rick despite all of her misgivings about getting involved with him. He was a good guy but he was all wrong for her.

She went down her mental list of Rick's Wrongs as she drove. One, he was still moping over an old girlfriend. Andrea did not like to play second fiddle to some memory. That wasn't her.

Second, he was a cop. She was working her ass off to get through law school and would be paying off student loans far longer than she liked to think about and cops liked to talk smack about lawyers all the time.

Third, Rick wasn't ambitious. He never wanted to be anything but the good guy who tried to keep the peace and protect those who needed his protection. He would never understand her need to achieve and to win. She didn't think he was wrong to be the way he was, but she wasn't either for being the way she was. They were just too different.

Fourth, Rick had probably never slept with anyone but his Georgia peach. He was born for monogamy and she had been sexually active since high school and things hadn't slowed down since. She could sweep him off his feet and fuck him senseless and he would enjoy it but he wouldn't respect her in the morning. She could pretend an innocence that didn't exist and let him seduce her but that wasn't who she was.

No matter how she parsed this out. Rick Grimes was wrong for her and she was wrong for him. His blue eyes and curly black hair were unfortunately attached to the wrong guy. She needed to go have dinner and let him talk his misery out and then she should tell him to go back to Georgia and win his love back. She should kiss him goodbye chastely (once she figured that one out) and send on his way to the life that he wanted and deserved.

There was only one little niggling thought holding her from doing just that. Andrea had had a good time last night with people just like Rick. Emily McAllister was joyous in her love for that big lug Brian Mckenzie. Carol had glowed last night just because she was sitting on some tailgate at a bonfire with Daryl. Brian McKenzie didn't spend his time looking around to see if someone better looking was at the bar because he was perfectly happy to be there with Emily. Daryl's shy look of delight when Carol scooted across the truck to sit beside of him had brought tears to Andrea's eyes. He looked like someone who just got handed Christmas all wrapped up in a Carol sized bundle. Andrea had seen that happiness at just being with the person that they loved and every look was a stab to her heart because she wanted that with Rick. She hardly knew him but she wanted to be the one he loved like that, because she was afraid that if she let this one go then she would never have that with anyone else. She could be a successful attorney, have lots of sex with powerful men, but she would not have that happiness because she had tossed it away because Rick wasn't just like her.

Andrea threw away her mental list of what was wrong with Rick and just let herself be happy that he was waiting for her. She pulled into the restaurant and checked out her hair. She had on blue jeans and a top that clung to her curves and if it was good enough for Adair it would work tonight.

Rick was waiting at a table and brooding. He didn't know what the hell he was doing with Andrea. She had big city success written all over her and he was a small town boy. He was just an ordinary guy and she was a damn goddess. He should get out of this while he still had a shred of dignity. Lori had walked all over him in their relationship, and he had spent the weekend facing up to that. Andrea wasn't a rebound from Lori. That had died a long time ago and he just got around to burying the ashes. Andrea scared the shit out of him because he had never felt so attracted to a woman so quickly. She was going to break his heart, but maybe it would be worth it. Hell, no guts, not glory.

Rick saw Andrea walking through the restaurant toward him in a pair of tight blue jeans and a top that showed off her tits and he knew it was going to always be worth it. He stood up and held her chair and tried to not stare down at her breasts. Unexpectedly, he kissed her cheek, "I missed you this weekend, Andrea."

Andrea looked up at his big blue eyes and said, "I missed you too, Rick".

They both smiled and sat at that table a long time eating and talking. Then, they went to his apartment and talked some more. When she decided that it was time to go home Rick followed her in his truck to her apartment and came in to check out the apartment to make sure that Carol's stalker wasn't anywhere around. She walked him to the door and they kissed so sweetly that they both regretted that he was leaving.

Andrea pushed him gently out the door and locked the door behind him. She would be with Rick when this thing with Carol and Ed got straightened out. She had seen Ed's face the night that Carol told him that she didn't want to see him anymore. She had seen pissed off men before but nothing like Ed's cold rage. He had picked up a lamp and hurled it against the wall. He had walked past her to the door and turned and said "You'll be sorry".

Andrea had been afraid for Carol ever since. Ed was bat shit crazy and he was not just going to fade away. Tomorrow night they were going to a self defense class. Rick was going to meet them there and this Michonne was going to turn them into fighting machines. Andrea was afraid that they might need that soon.

Daryl had been on Carol watch since seven thirty. He had found a parking spot fairly close to the hospital and waited until he saw her drive off toward her apartment. He followed at a distance until she pulled into her apartment complex. He parked close by and waited in the shadows of some trees while Carol talked with Andrea who was leaving for work by the way she was dressed. Carol was smiling at something Andrea was saying when Daryl got a call from Merle, "Our guy left about five minutes ago. Are you at our bird's place yet?"

"She and Andrea are talking. How far away is his place?"

"Fifteen minutes, maybe a little more with traffic. You hang there because I am following him. I want to know where this guy works. He is headed in your direction, but be cool. He doesn't need to know we are on him." Merle was in his Tahoe, and he was switching vehicles today. He wanted to hang close to Ed right now because he would be driving the other vehicle after this.

Daryl watched Andrea hug Carol and then get in her convertible and take off. Carol waved goodbye at her and stood for a minute in the morning light just enjoying the warmth. That scary feeling of being watched was gone and she smiled because Daryl was going to call her this evening. She unlocked the door and went inside. Daryl sighed. He wanted more than anything to cross the parking lot and knock on her door, grab her hand, and lead her to his new ride. Then they would go somewhere and have breakfast. Carol was a coffee junkie and would need a fix after working all night. He would roll the windows down and open the sunroof and then they would sweep up the highway toward home. He sighed again and waited in the shadows until a big dark haired man driving a green sedan pulled into the lot and parked in the spot that Andrea just vacated. He got out and put a single rose on the windshield of Carol's Cherokee. He left as quickly as he pulled in and Daryl saw Merle drive past still following Ed.

Daryl waited at his favorite park bench until Merle came back. They walked together in the park. Daryl wanted to go rip the white rose off the windshield but Merle had insisted that they leave it. It would remind Carol that Ed hadn't given up; she would be more cautious because of that rose.

"He has a job at a bank downtown. I think he'll be busy for a few hours. Let's go get breakfast and pick up the other car. We have some shit to do. You'll be back before you know it. Jesse is on his way to Charlotte right now. My Old Lady called me an hour ago when he was leaving." Merle wanted to talk to some people that knew how to get info about people. He wanted to know more about Ed Peletier and standing around here wouldn't get it done.

The two brothers spent the morning getting some new clothes, meeting with some computer geeks that somehow Merle knew from business, and some guys who handed over a couple of pistols that never could be traced.

Jesse called after he got to Carol's apartment. She had let him in and then went back to sleep. Jesse had shown her the white rose and she had tossed it in the trash with a word or two that he had never heard her use before. Jesse prowled around the apartment and then went outside and called the Grandmas. He talked to Merle and Daryl and assured them that he was with Carol and was going to stick close to her all evening. Jesse was going with her to class and yes he had a weapon in his suv.

Daryl and Merle went that afternoon to shooting range and practiced with their new pistols. Merle was usually better than Daryl with a pistol but today Daryl focused on his target and left him in his dust. Daryl took out his crossbow and practiced with that while he was there.

Andrea was home a little after five and she and Carol changed into workout clothes. Jesse drove them to a restaurant and they had dinner before they went to the class. They talked at dinner about the white rose. Jesse had did some research on Carol's computer and found out that white roses represented innocence and purity which was creepy enough without finding out that white roses were traditionally given to brides. Both Carol and Andrea looked unhappy with his research. They had no proof that it was Ed and giving someone white roses was not a crime in North Carolina.

Daryl decided to spend his evening close to Carol's apartment. Merle was going to follow her to the hospital and he wanted to make sure that Ed didn't come by while she was away. Daryl had been wound up since he had seen the white flower that Ed had put on the windshield. There was something about the sight of that flower that triggered his anxiety. Daryl wasn't really all that interested in flowers usually. He took a walk around the park trying to figure out what it was white flowers that filled him with such dread. It was a nice evening and the park was full of families letting their children run loose. Daryl watched a mother chase her toddler son through the grass and then hug him close while the boy laughed in delight. It was then that he remembered where he had seen white flowers. There had not been a lot of flowers at his mother's casket when he was led past but all of them had been white. Daryl took a seat at the park and shut his eyes for a second. That flower was a threat. White flowers were for the dead. He grabbed his phone and called Carol even though he knew she was at dinner.

This time he was calling her sweetheart. She answered right away, "Hello".

"Are you too busy to talk, sweetheart?"

Carol smiled into the phone, "We are just waiting for dinner. I have a few minutes," She excused herself and went out to parking lot to talk to Daryl. "How was your day? How are the horses?" Carol just wanted to hear the low rumble of his voice and not think about Ed.

Daryl only talked a few minutes. He just had to hear her voice and know that she was alright. He reminded her to call him if she needed anything. Carol decided that she would tell him everything about Ed tonight. "I'll call you back after class. I have something that is bothering me and I want to talk to you about it. Is that alright?"

Daryl bit his lip, "You can tell me anything, now go eat your dinner and call me later. I'll be waiting to hear from you. You call me if you need anything. I'll be there, sweetheart".

"I'll call you tonight, my dear jo". Carol had taken a vacation with the Grandmas to the Scotland and she had a pretty good Scottish accent and she used it on her last statement to Daryl. She hung up and went back inside to eat dinner. She knew Daryl would eventually use a computer to find out that "jo" was a Scottish word for sweetheart. Daryl was her sweetheart and she was his and that was what she was going to think about tonight.

Jesse drove them to the class site. It looked like an old elementary school building to him. There were only two cars in the lot and he thought he must have the wrong place, but Andrea had recognized the lanky guy waiting at the door of a small gymnasium.

Andrea introduced Jesse to Rick and his partner Michonne who sadly wasn't a day over twenty four, Black, beautiful, and well built. Michonne politely shook hands with them. Rick had told her about Carol's stalker and Michonne had scheduled them for a private lesson.

Michonne had heard quite a bit about Andrea from Rick and she had to agree that she was gorgeous. Carol was the one who was being stalked and she was beautiful too. They both looked to be in good shape and able to handle the rigors of the class.

Jesse …. was a surprise. He was Carol's cousin so one might expect that he would be white. Jesse was bi-racial with golden skin and blue eyes and he was even more gorgeous than Andrea. Maybe five ten and no more than one hundred seventy pounds of sinewy muscle. Graceful as a panther and with a smile that lit up the room. Michonne tore her eyes away and got back to the business of taking these nice well educated girls and turning them into dirty fighters.

Jesse sat with Rick while Michonne began to explain the basics of her brand of self-defense. They both winced as Michonne demonstrated the proper technique for groin kneeing and kicking. She made them do it over and over and the men winced every time.

Then there was eye gouging and throat smashing and all sorts of ways to equalize the battle between the sexes. Both men were exhausted by the time Michonne led her sweaty, hair all over the place, and none too clean pupils back to the waiting area.

Jesse had watched Michonne in between winces. She was fast and strong and he had never been so turned on in his life. Michonne was a lioness, a woman warrior, and he loved that about her. She was cutel and sexy in her police t shirt and sweat pants. He wanted to touch her dark skin to see if it was as silky as it looked. Michonne was shorter than Carol but she moved with such power that she looked bigger. She was focused on her job of teaching ways to inflict pain but now and then there was this hint of a smile that transformed her enigmatic expression to show a more tender side that she kept hidden. He wanted to make her smile at him and he had the next sixty years or so to make it happen.

Rick hugged Andrea. She looked wiped out and he figured she needed a hot shower and maybe a couple of aspirins. She leaned into him because it felt good and because it kept her from toppling over.

Jesse put an arm around Carol, but teased Michonne, "Look what you've done. You have broken them." He gave her his best cheeky grin and he was gratified by the effort she made to keep from smiling back. She lost the battle however and he got a little smile from her.

Michonne kept a straight face, "You two need to practice before the next class. I think these two guys will be perfect dummies for you to build up muscle memory on." She was gratified by Jesse's involuntary wince and Rick's "No way, no how". That led to her involuntary smile at Jesse and his wince soon turned to another smile. Jesse seemed to smile often as if he had some inner supply of happiness that he just had to share.

Carol watched the two of them with amazement. Michonne, the cold hearted creature with a thousand evil tricks to hurt your opponent was smiling at Jesse. She wasn't surprised that Jesse was grinning back; he had been watching Michonne all night.

Michonne went back to being enigmatic and ushered them out quickly. Rick offered to drive Andrea and Carol home when he saw that Jesse was lingering trying to talk to Michonne. He and Michonne were working the graveyard shift this week and he had until midnight before he went on duty.

Jesse turned and gave the others a look and they scurried to the car. "May I take you out for a coffee, Michonne?" Jesse really wanted to sit down and talk with her.

Michonne eyed him suspiciously. He was too damn handsome to be so nice. "I have to go on duty in a few hours. I need to go home and get ready for work. I have a boyfriend, Jesse."

Michonne had been seeing Terry off and on for a couple of years. He was tall, dark, and handsome but she wasn't in love with him. Lately, she was more annoyed with him than affectionate, but she wasn't the kind of woman who started a new relationship while she was with someone else.

Jesse's face fell at that news, but he wasn't a man that let challenges hold him back from his quest. "I don't want to be your boyfriend. I want to be your man. I'll see you Wednesday night." He made a graceful exit back to his suv that still had a Howard University parking sticker on it. Carol got in with him and Andrea and Rick left together. Michonne was left alone in the twilight suddenly craving a cup of coffee. Jesse Graham and Carol McAllister were close, more like a brother sister bond. He was here to protect her and there was something disarming about the affectionate way he treated Carol and Andrea. He was charming and she liked him more than she wanted to admit.

Ed Peletier had driven by Carol's apartment several times that evening. Her car and Andrea's were there, but he didn't think she was. She was out somewhere with her whore girlfriend picking up men. She had told him that she just didn't want to date anyone right now, and she had refused to listen to him. The bitch would be sorry for that soon.

His rage built as his mind went to the dark places that he hid from everyone else. She was a slut like Andrea. She were probably giving some guy head in a parking lot somewhere. Carol had come on so pure and good but like all women it was an act. Deep down they all wanted a man to hurt them and he was going to make her sorry. He knew where to take her while he showed her what she really was. It was ready for Carol. He just had to find the right time to grab her. He had the chloroform ready. One whiff of that and she would be out. He had the plastic handcuffs and the gag in the bag on the passenger seat. Andrea was always out whoring around at night so tonight might be the night but he was a patient man. He would wait for the right time and he would make his move, he would stash her at the place, and still be at work the next day. He wanted to make this last a long time. She was young and healthy and she wouldn't die quick. He smiled and said to himself, "You'll be sorry, you'll be so sorry, Carol".

AN.

Melissa McBride is a coffee junkie so I made Carol one too.

Ed is evil. I haven't completely decided what will happen to him but it won't be good.

Review please.


	6. Mutual Goals

**You must have guessed by now that this story is not at all interested in following the storyline of the show. I remember reading once an interview from one of TPTB on Lost in which he stated, "Jack and Kate could have seen each other on a street on New York and the connection would still be there." That sense of rightfulness (is that even a word) is what I want for Carol and Daryl. They aren't drawn together because they are both "damaged". I go for simple attraction and burgeoning love.**

**The other ships in this story are the same. All of the players are young, attractive, and for the most part available. None of them would ever have gotten together if Carol would not have been in danger. They all have the common goal to protect Carol from Ed. **

Mutual Goals

Carol regarded her curly mane of hair with dismay. There was just so much of it and every curl wanted some individual attention before it would behave. She finally gave up and tied it back in a ponytail. She wanted to call Daryl and not fight with her hair all night. She gave it another look and warned, "Either behave or I am going pixie."

She had come home from the class, downed some aspirin, and taken a hot shower trying to convince her muscles to overlook the abuse they had endured. Michonne was a take no prisoners kind of teacher. She believed that you really had to get past the girls don't play dirty mentality and embrace your inner savage by kicking and gouging with all your strength.

Carol ignored her bad hair night and her aching muscles to settle down in the armchair in her room with her cell phone. She was gratified by his answering so quickly. His voice soothed her and she relaxed in her chair and just talked to Daryl.

Daryl was sitting in his car in the parking lot of the apartment complex. The previous occupant of the space had carried out a garment bag and a carry-one bag and he looked as if he wasn't coming back tonight. Daryl had quickly driven into that space. He had a good view of Carol's apartment and her vehicle. He had seen Ed's green sedan drive past a couple of times and Daryl was on high alert even though Rick and Jesse were inside. He had called Jesse and Merle to tell them that Ed was in the neighborhood and Jesse was going to drive Carol to work.

Carol told him about Michonne's class and how her muscles were complaining. Daryl laughed and told her that he would never give her cause to use her knowledge on him. They kept the conversation light for a bit, until Carol said, "I want to tell you about Ed. We weren't in a relationship. I barely knew him." She paused.

Daryl searched for a proper response, "Just tell me what you want to tell me, Carol".

Carol sighed and started, "A friend of mine fixed us up. It was her idea and not mine to begin with, but I agreed to go to dinner with her and her boyfriend and meet him. Ed was nice, very well mannered and charming. I wasn't swept off my feet but I did agree to meet him for coffee that week. We met at a coffee bar and talked and he seemed nice enough and I went along with another date."

"We went to a movie. I was fine with that, but I hated the movie that he chose. All mindless violence and no plot what so ever, but that wasn't what let me see the man behind the curtain. The violence wasn't just explosions and gunfire; it was up close and personal and lot of it was directed against women. It wasn't the movie, but it was how Ed reacted to it. He stared at the screen through every bit of cruelty and I knew that it excited him. He was turned on by watching people inflict pain on someone else. I just knew that I didn't want to spend another evening with him again."

Daryl remembered his father as she talked. He had enjoyed hurting his sons and his wife and he loved the power that he had over them. Ed deep down was like his father and Carol had seen the monster in him.

She went on, "I asked him to take me home after the movie and he was glad to oblige. I was determined to end what little there was between us. He walked me to the door and I told him that I didn't want to see him anymore. He just nodded and stepped back and I unlocked the door and he pushed his way in. I knew Andrea was out and not likely to be home early."

"He was furious, called me a whore and a slut. Told me that women like me deserved everything they got. I knew that I was in real trouble. He was getting more and more angry and I don't know what would have happened if Andrea hadn't come home early. He threw a lamp and left then warning me that I would be sorry."

"He started calling and apologizing after that but I refused to talk to him. He sent cards and I found him following me at a mall one time. He never directly threatened me, and he doesn't go beyond the boundaries of the law. I am glad that Jesse is staying here."

Daryl has listened quietly. Carol needed to share this with him. "Jesse is a good man. If you want me there; I can be there before you know it. The grandmas will understand."

"Not right now, Daryl. Jesse is here and I'll be home in a couple of weeks. I have some decisions to make about what I want to do with my life and I don't think any of them involve being in Charlotte much longer. Andrea is just here in the summer and then she'll go back to Chapel Hill."

Daryl knew Carol was thinking of medical school. One part of him didn't want that to happen. Whatever was going on between them would die a natural death if she went to medical school. The other part wanted Carol to be safe and happy. "Right now you just be careful. You stay close to Jesse."

Carol chose to change the subject then, "Jesse is crushing on Michonne. He asked her out for coffee and she shot him down. She has a boyfriend already."

"Jesse ain't gonna let that slow him down, surely?" Jesse had never suffered for lack of female attention.

"He shrugged his shoulders and acted like it was no big deal. He doesn't want to make her uncomfortable so he will just let it lie for a bit. He takes me to class so he'll see her again Wednesday night". Carol had seen a flash of real disappointment in Jesse's face when he turned away tonight.

They talked until it was time for Carol to get ready for work. She threw on her scrubs and expensive athletic shoes and she and Jesse went off in his jeep. Daryl watched them go. Merle had went on toward the hospital. He wanted to get a good look at the place while Carol wasn't there.

The skinny cop came out right after Carol and Jesse. Andrea came out with him and they kissed at the door and the cop said something that made Andrea laugh and she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him again. The cop walked to his truck and sailed out onto the roadway and he left in the direction of the hospital and Daryl wondered if he was following Jesse to the hospital.

Daryl decided to go and check out Ed's apartment. He wanted to know if Ed was home for the night. The green sedan was parked close to his apartment door and Daryl hoped that he stayed where he was. He and Merle were going to check his apartment out tomorrow.

Rick followed Jesse's jeep to the hospital. He kept an eye for a green sedan. The white rose on Carol's Cherokee had given him the chills. He was glad that Jesse was here. The more he was around Carol and Jesse the more he liked them. Andrea's genuine love and concern for her friend had shown him her tender side and Rick knew he was falling in love with her.

Merle parked his vehicle off to the side of the hospital and walked in. He had dressed in khakis and a nice golf shirt. Merle looked successful and he moved confidently. He understood the importance of fitting into your environment. There were benches outside of the Emergency Room doorway and he bought a newspaper and sat down to wait. Daryl called him when Jesse left with Carol and he waited there watching the crowd. Daryl called him to say that the green sedan was home and he almost left then but he decided to just wait until Carol was safely in. Merle watched a tall willowy Black woman walk in and he thought it was the same woman who had walked in with Carol the night before.

Merle was still sitting when he saw Ed leave the hospital and walk toward the parking lots. Merle called Daryl, "Where are you?"

Daryl answered quickly, "Just watching over his car. He is still here."

"He fucking just walked by me. He is headed toward the staff parking lot that she usually parks. She is coming in with Jesse. That fucker had another ride. Do you have Rick's number?" Merle's voice was terse. Ed was on the move and he was going to come up empty handed tonight.

"No, I am on my way. You call Jesse and tell him I'll meet him there." Daryl needed to concentrate on getting there as fast as possible.

Jesse answered less than a mile from the hospital. Merle warned him, "Ed is lurking and he isn't in his sedan. I'm going to walk toward the staff parking lot. "

Merle walked in a leisurely fashion toward the parking lot and saw Ed moving back to the hospital through the side of the parking lot away from the streetlights. Merle started back toward the hospital using the sidewalk. He saw Ed standing in the shadows of a large van partially hidden from the Emergency Room entrance.

Merle watched Jesse drive in and stop in front of the Emergency Room. He got out and opened the door for Carol because his father had taught his only son that a man should show courtesy in every occasion. Carol got out and Jesse gave a hug. Ed moved from the shadows toward them and Merle saw the look of rage on his face. Merle called Jesse, "He is watching you. Get Carol inside now."

Jesse waved to Carol as she went through the door and he grabbed his cell phone and called Rick, "Ed is at the hospital. Meet us there."

Jesse drove off to the parking building and parked quickly and then ran back toward the hospital. Ed had walked back toward the staff parking and Merle followed him. He didn't want to lose him and Ed was moving fast.

Ed was moving left and Merle thought that he had parked off the lot on some side street. Ed crossed the main street and Merle was stopped by moving cars. Ed had disappeared and Merle answered Jesse. "I am crossing Court Street now."

Merle hustled across the street and turned at an intersection and ran up the side street. Ed stepped out from behind a parked truck and struck Merle on the back of his head with a baseball bat. Merle went down instantly and Ed hit him a couple more times in the head before he got in and started the truck. Ed was long gone before Jesse and Rick got to Court Street. Daryl got a call from Jesse telling him that Merle had been hurt and to meet them at the Emergency Room.

Daryl waited in the waiting room of the Emergency Room for what seemed like a very long time until Jesse and Rick came out. Rick had to go on duty and he was leaving. Jesse sat down by Daryl, "Merle was following Ed. Somehow Merle got hit in the head at least twice. He has a concussion and they are doing some tests. Rick is filing a police report, but we don't have any proof that it was Ed. The only person who saw Ed was Merle and he doesn't remember what happened. What do you want to do?"

Daryl said, "I want to see Merle and I want to see Carol. You go back to their apartment and get Andrea. She needs to be brought here. Have her pack enough clothes for a few day for both her and Carol." Daryl stood up, "We're going to see who is fucking sorry when this is over."

Jesse nodded, "Sorry about Merle. I'll get Andrea." He patted Daryl on the shoulder and took off for his Jeep.

Daryl had been in several emergency rooms with Merle in the past and all the other times Merle had done something wrong and gotten hurt. This time he had tried to do something right and in those times before the worry was always mixed with anger at Merle. This time the anger was directed toward Ed and the worry was mixed with the love that he felt for Merle. The asshole.

The Emergency Room was long room with patients separated by curtains. There were all sorts of medical personnel moving around but he saw Carol and he moved purposefully toward her. She turned and saw him and he could tell that she was still confused by Merle being hurt outside of the hospital and by Daryl's sudden appearance.

"Daryl, he is in there," and Carol pointed to the last patient cubicle.

Daryl walked toward the last patient bay wondering what he would find.

Merle was lying in the hospital bed. Daryl looked him over. Merle was pale and looked almost vulnerable. There was a doctor with him and she smiled at Daryl.

Merle said, "Hello, Lil' Bruther."

Merle seemed more focused on his doctor than Daryl. She was a good looking woman but hardly Merle's type. Merle had favored women looking for a good time and drugs in the past. He had given up the drug whores when he got off of drugs but never seemed to find anyone that held his interest for very long. This woman was Black, highly educated, and used to being the one in charge. That was the exact opposite of Merle's type.

Dr. Christina Alston spoke sternly, "Mr. Dixon, you have the hardest head of anyone that I have ever seen. That is a good thing because you have been struck three times with a blunt object on your skull. You should be unconscious and yet you are still almost coherent. Lie back and settle down or you will be sick again."

Merle smiled faintly at her, "Darlin, I need to talk to my little brother."

Dr. Alston appealed to Daryl, "He will be admitted after a few more tests. He has a severe concussion and there could be complications. He'll need to be in the hospital under observation for forty-eight hours."

Merle felt the world turn again and he vomited into the container but managed to splatter a little on his doctor's shoes.

Christina took a wet cloth and wiped his face, "I told you that would happen. Now will you just be a good patient and I'll leave you with your brother. Goodnight Mr. Dixon."

Merle whined, "You can't go off and leave me, I might have an aneurism or something. I'll buy you ten pairs of shoes. I promise. Didn't you wa take an oath or something?"

Christina sighed, "I'll be back in a bit. Your brother will take care of you." She gave Daryl a sympathetic smile, "So you are the brother, good luck".

Daryl eyed his brother. The Dixons did not hug and kiss like the McAllisters. Instead they just said something rude and crude. He punched Merle's shoulder lightly, "Leave that woman alone, you asshole. One head might be a little banged up but the other one is working fine."

Merle smirked, "That is one fine piece of ass. I am going to buy her ten pairs of shoes and some flowers too. She has the most beautiful eyes, did you notice. She is too damn good for this world. A woman that good needs a man like me to protect her from men like me".

"Just how hard did you get hit? She is Carol's friend and did you know that she is going to stay a week on the mountain with the grandmas in a couple of weeks. You might get a shot at her but you are going to have to stop puking on her shoes."

Merle looked at him, "He is big and strong and dangerous. Don't take him lightly. He knocked the shit out of me."

Daryl took Merle's hand, "We are going to circle the damn wagons. I'ma thinkin that the grandmas need a little beach vacation. Somewhere quiet and out of the way. I think you could use a little vitamin D too. Ed likes to hurt people. We had a father that hurt us because he liked to watch both of us suffer. It hurt you when he hit me and it hurt me when he hit you. We have to get our people somewhere he can't find them. I need to talk to Carol and from now she knows what I know and I don't make any decisions without her."

Merle squeezed his hand, "You finally found your balls. Good to know. Carol loves you. I knew that when she gave your that crossbow. Don't fuck it up."

An orderly came by to take Merle for another test and Daryl sat in the cubicle and thought about all that needed to be done. He saw Carol standing at the entrance and stood up. He stood up and pulled her inside the cubicle and closed the curtain. He kissed her gently and then pulled her closer and kissed her like a woman she should be kissed by a man that loves and wants her. Carol kissed him back and then pulled away.

"What is going on?"

Daryl answered, "I'll tell you everything that I know. I want you to call the grandmas at daybreak and have them come to Charlotte. We need to find one of those huge beach houses that rent by the week and have them stay there until this is over. Merle needs to be there when he gets out of the hospital. Merle needs a security guard on his room. Ed was here in the hospital tonight before you went to work. I don't want him slipping in to finish what he started on Merle. Andrea is on her way here and I think you both need a little beach time too. "

"I'm not going without you. We all need to clear out of Charlotte and start gathering some real information about Ed. Hire a detective and get some background. Will he get arrested for hitting Merle?"

Daryl shook his head, "Merle doesn't remember what happened. It would be his word against Ed's. Merle had a police record for drugs, fighting, and just raising hell. Ed works at a band and doesn't have anything on his record. Ed's car never left his parking lot and he probably could produce proof of that. Merle will probably get arrested for getting in the way of Ed's club. He'll have a lawyer and he is going to get away with this. Merle hired some computer geeks to dig up stuff on Ed, but a detective might find information that they can't. I want you to go to the beach today. I have to stay with Merle until he can travel, then I'll bring him to the grandmas."

"Are you staying here all night?" Carol's shift wouldn't be over until eight in the morning.

"I will be here all night because people that I love need me to have their back tonight. Is that alright with you?"

Carol kissed him, "That will always be alright with me".

AN

**Who doesn't think Merle would have a head like a rock?**

**Charlotte is only a few hours from beaches in North and South Carolina. **

**Daryl on the television show has been shown to be a follower and not a leader. Daryl grew up in this chapter and started taking on a leadership role. He and Carol will work together to bring down Ed.**

**Ed will have a miserable end. I promise.**

**I need a break from writing about Ed. So the next chapter will be pure fluff.**

**Review? Please.**


	7. Making It Through the Night

Making it Through the Night

Christie Alston recognized that Daryl wasn't leaving Carol alone that night and she gave him a cubicle to stay in. Christie has spoken with hospital security and they had put a guard on the door of Merle's room. Jesse would stay in the ER when Daryl made periodic visits to Merle's room to check on Merle. For the most part, Daryl stayed quietly in his space. Carol stayed in her space and there was only an occasional smile as she passed by his cubicle while she did her job.

Carol had a dinner break at 4:00 and she and Daryl had spent the time making plans with their friends. Rick and Michonne were on duty but had been assigned by Charlotte PD to stay at the hospital. Michonne had friends in high places that owed her a favor and she cashed it in that night. Michonne drank bad coffee and tried not to look at Jesse more than was necessary. Daryl had tasked Andrea and Jesse to find a beach house large enough to accommodate a large group at a quiet ocean side community. They had created a list of places and telephone numbers.

Daryl had went through the line to get food for himself and Carol. He handed her a club sandwich and a large coffee and she smiled her thanks. The others were already eating and he said, "Don't talk to anyone about where you are going. I am going to call Brian this morning and have the horses stabled at his family's place until things settle down. Make sure that the place that you get allows pets. We can't leave the pooch at home. Put the house in Rick's name and none of ours. We'll pay in cash. Get it for two weeks." He nudged Carol to remind her to eat and he began to eat his cheeseburger and fries with gusto.

Jesse asked, "We don't have that kind of cash on hand. Grandma can wait until the bank opens but that isn't until nine o'clock."

Daryl said, "I have enough cash to cover it".

"This will cost thousands of dollars." Jesse suspected that Daryl just didn't know how expensive large beach houses were to rent.

"Sometimes I went with Merle when he placed some wagers. I don't spend much money. Still have the same truck that I had when we moved here. I bet on horse races and games when I had a good tip. I have some money in the bank but I have enough cash to cover it." Daryl had been poor far too long to want to stay that way. He had never tried to make a killing at the horse races but he would bet more than one race. Too big a win only attracted attention. He had made some large bets with different bookies and collected big sums. Grandma Nancy knew all about it, but she had cautioned him about flashing money around and making large deposits. He had money in several banks and in safety deposit boxes.

Carol wondered if she really knew Daryl at all. The sweet stable boy had morphed into a man who would do anything to protect the people that he loved. He was far more complex than she had thought but she still trusted him. He had kissed her tonight like a man who knew what he wanted and she had responded in kind. She had thrown her lot in with Daryl when she kissed him and they both knew it.

Jesse smiled, "Good, we are definitely going to get a house on the ocean then. No back row houses for my man Daryl".

Rick filled them in on the police investigation. "Ed was home when the police got there and insisted that he had been there all night. He doesn't have a second vehicle according to DMV. The police ran the calls that you say came from here but they were all made from a cell phone. One of those burner phones that can't be traced to anyone. Ed is insisting that you are the stalker and make these things up to get him in trouble. We have nothing on him if Merle doesn't remember and even then it will be his word against Merle's," he sighed, "We may have to operate a little outside the box here, but I am in for whatever needs to be done."

Rick looked at Andrea, "Are you going to work today?"

She shook her head, "I am calling my boss and telling him that I need some time off. I answer the telephone and make coffee. They'll make it without me. I talked with him last week about what was going on with Carol. He'll understand." She looked at Daryl, "I won't tell him where we are going." He nodded.

Michonne knew the smartest thing she could do would be to ask for a different partner. Rick was going off the reservation here and she needed to get out before she was involved. Michonne was ambitious; she wanted to become a detective. She needed to get out now, but she already in it. "I am going to take off a few days and go with you. I can always work on my tan at the beach and swing back here if I need to."

Michonne met Jesse's eyes and smiled at his look of delight, "Somebody has to teach you people how to protect yourself."

Daryl finished his cheeseburger, "I'm going upstairs to check on Merle." He looked at Jesse, "You won't leave her, not for a minute".

"Her is right here, and her is going upstairs with you to check on Merle." Carol stood up and Daryl grinned at her.

They walked hand in hand out of the cafeteria and onto an elevator that would take them to the fourth floor. Carol hit the button to the floor and moved into Daryl's arms. She kissed him, "Her wants you to be careful".

Daryl kissed her and let his tongue caress her lower lip and the kiss deepened. He pushed her against the elevator wall and his hands moved down so that he could squeeze her ass. Then the elevator chimed and they broke apart and ignored the smiles on the faces of two nurses that had worked with Carol in the ER.

Merle was awake as they went in, cranky and lonely up here all by himself, and generally being an ass. He demanded to know what was going on and they took a few moments to share their plans with them. He then ordered Daryl to stay with Carol and not worry about him. He finished with a grin, "You tell Dr. Alston that I do expect that she will come and visit me before she leaves. I promise to not throw any chunks her way and that I will not make any sexual advances toward her. I am open for anything that she has in mind as long as she will do all the work".

Daryl growled at him, "Shut up, Merle" but there wasn't any anger in his voice. He patted his brother on his arm and Carol bent and kissed Merle's cheek, "Thank you, Merle. You took that hit for me and because you did I will tell her what you said".

Merle smirked, "Is my brother treating you right? You tell me if he isn't and I'll whip his ass good."

"Just get better soon so that you can get out of this place. I am sorry that I can't stay longer but have to go to work. Daryl can stay with you a while." Carol patted his arm and met Daryl's eyes.

"Daryl is gonna stay with your tonight. I have that rent a cop out at the door. He will keep the boogie man away from me. Now get back to work and don't forget to talk to the lady doc. "

Daryl followed Carol out, "You heard the man. Let's take the stairs down."

Carol glanced at her watch, "I have five minutes, but let's take the stairs".

They didn't have time for much more than a few passionate kisses but they were both smiling when they got back to the ER. Daryl went back to his cubicle and Carol went back to work.

Daryl had been attracted to Carol from the first moment he saw her; she had come into the stables to see the horses and her hair was wild from the wind and he had fallen in love. Carol was in and out on the mountain all the time but he had never really spent much time with her. There was always family around and he had been too shy to seek her out. He loved her but it was easy to love someone you don't know. They could just be what your wanted them to be. It was easy to imagine a happy life with a beautiful loving Carol. He got to dream about his farm and his horses and a wife devoted to just making him happy.

Carol was different at work and Daryl took careful note of how efficient she was and how confidently she did her job. There had been a wreck on I-85 involving some drunken teens and he saw how the staff responded with life saving techniques that he didn't really understand. Carol and Christie were in the midst of it and their sure hands worked together to save two of the boys. He moved so that he could see Carol's face and he saw that she was completely calm and focused on the task. That ability to think clearly and to act confidently to do what had to be done to save lives was part of her. That was why she wanted to go to medical school. Carol wanted to be able to more than she could now.

Daryl contemplated what that would mean to their relationship. How much did he love Carol McAllister? He wanted her, wanted to have sex with her, and to spend time with her, but did he love her? Could he put her before himself? He knew he was a better man than his father, but was he the right man for Carol? Carol deserved an equal partner that supported her in whatever she tried to do. He had no idea how to be that guy.

The night wore on and Jesse came in to tell him that he had called the grandmas. They had left at six o'clock with their clothes and their dog. Ashton was driving them and his parents were on a trip and wouldn't be back for week. Emily was staying with Brian's family and they would come down in a couple of days. Brian would make sure that the horses were moved to his family's farm and that the barn cat had food. Daryl nodded.

Carol was tired at the end of her shift but she made sure to give Christie the message from Merle. Christie was exhausted. Too many heart attacks and car wrecks one night. The last thing she intended to do was go upstairs to listen to some more bull shit from Merle Dixon, but had laughed when Carol told her that "she would have to do all the work". What a jackass.

Carol had talked to Christie and told her that she needed to go away for a few days. Christie nodded. She had already filled Carol's slot. No one would be as good as Carol but she didn't need to be here with Ed hanging around. Christie was on her way out the door when she made a detour to the elevator. She would just go by and check his chart to see if there was any change.

Christie checked the chart and was relieved to find out Merle was doing fine. The nurses at the station were laughing at something he had said to them. Christie smiled and thought Merle is always entertaining and I'll just go check to see if he is asleep.

She went to the door and the guard looked at her credentials. Merle opened his eyes and gave her an evil grin, "My medicine woman has arrived at last. Thought you were going to leave me to rot."

"Sounds like you have been keeping the nurses occupied. How are you feeling? Still vomiting?"

"Damn romantic talk. I'm going to have to tell our grandchildren that you were very concerned over my puking on your shoes and didn't give a rat's ass that my head was splitting". She had come closer and Merle captured her hand. It felt cool and smooth in his hand and he wondered how long he could keep her there. His head didn't hurt nearly as much when he was close to her.

Christie ignored the talk of future grandchildren and his grip on her hand and concentrated on his headache, "You can take something for the headache".

Merle looked at her, "No drugs. I told you that when I was in the ER. I am clean and sober and I am going to stay that way. One is too many and a thousand is not enough. They gave me some pills a while ago, but nothing to put me into dreamland. I need you for that. I can't go to sleep now. I can't let go."

Merle hands were calloused but they were clean and well kept. He was an enigma all the way around. He didn't pretend to be a saint but she suspected that there was a good deal of good to the man. "You need to just think about someplace else and imagine that you are there."

"Are you with me there? 'Cause that makes me want to stay awake and enjoy myself." Christie tried to pull her hand away, "I promise to be good. Just talk to me for a few minutes, please."

She was still holding his hand ten minutes later when two spry elderly women showed up. Christie recognized Nancy McAllister and Nancy came toward her to hug her hello. The other woman moved toward Merle and kissed him on his forehead.

Christie knew no scientific explanation for the current of energy that she felt when Nancy hugged her.

Nancy smiled at her, "So you are looking over my boy? How is he doing?"

"He is disturbing the nurses, refusing medications, and generally being a nuisance. He is as good as anyone can be who had been struck on the head three times with a blunt object. He has a concussion but so far that is all". Christie used her doctor voice, but she was well aware that she had never held hands with a patient before. "I have to go now. You two ladies will straighten him out in no time."

Christie pulled her hand away from Merle's, "Behave yourself, Merle, and you may get out earlier for good behavior."

Nancy said, "We'll get this taken care of and I am looking forward to your visit. Carol's birthday party will be on the 29th."

Christie was aware that Merle was still watching her, "I'll see you soon. Be careful." She made a graceful exit.

Nancy McAllister smiled at her favorite scamp, "She is way too good for you. You are going to have to change your ways to win that one. She's special, Merle, and she deserves a man who really loves her."

Merle said, "My first loves are you two, but since you are forty years older than I am? I could have gone twenty but forty is a stretch. I know she is too good for me, but maybe some of her goodness will rub off on me. You ladies have ruined me. I used to be quite satisfied with women of low degree but now I want women of substance."

His visitors didn't stay long. Merle was curious about how Carol and Daryl were getting along.

Grandma Lydia snorted in a ladylike fashion, "Those two are in serious heat."

"Crudely but honestly stated. I want to throw cold water on both of them. A beach trip with all those young couples around. It will be like some terrible afternoon soap opera. Andrea and the cute cop are making eyes at each other and Jesse is hanging around the cute cop's beautiful partner. A damn soap opera. You might as well invite your lady doctor down too. Well, we have to go. Jesse and Michonne are walking Tallie. Ashton is going to drive us down. Carol and Andrea are driving together and Jesse and Michonne are going together. I think we are renting a hotel by the sound of things."

Merle had gone to sleep in the middle of her rant but Grandma Nancy kissed him goodnight anyway.

Daryl and Carol had gone for a walk together. "Have you made up your mind where you are going to medical school?" Daryl thought he might as well get it out there.

Carol shook her head, "I'm leaving Charlotte. I can get a job at the hospital in Adair. I am ready for a change." Daryl thought about that. Carol was telling him that she would move to the mountain. They could be married and live happily ever after. He could have her, a mountain farm, and some day children. His dream come true and all wrapped up in her choosing him over her ambitions. It was enough for him that she would do that.

"You're good at that emergency stuff. You'd be better if you went to medical school. I ain't going to do anything noble and give you up so that you can go be a doctor. I'm saying that if you want to be a doctor that I'd be willing to go with you while you are in school and whatever else you have to do." Daryl glanced at Carol. He would feel like an idiot if she wasn't serious about this.

"I am going to take these days to think about what I want to do about medical school. It is a bit commitment in time and money. I don't have to think twice about wanting to be with you. You know how I feel about you." Carol looked back at Daryl.

"I love you, Carol. That is how I feel about you. I will always love you." Daryl pulled her close to him. She smelled faintly of blood, vomit, and disinfectant. "I know that you'll busy in school but I would rather have a little bit of you than doing without you."

"I love you, Daryl. Now stop being so serious and just kiss me." Carol knew they were leaving for the Sunrise Beach in a few minutes and that she might not see him again for days.

Daryl just held her close, "No, I have kissed you enough today. You have to promise me that you will just stay at that house. Send Michonne and Jesse out to do the shopping. Rick and I are going to do some stuff while you are gone, but we'll be bringing Merle down and staying a day or two."

Carol realized that she actually had to promise to stay at the house. "I promise". He had just offered to follow her where ever she went to school so it might be an even trade. He kissed her then and she could feel his erection pressing against her belly. She could feel her body respond to him and she rubbed against him just a little, "Are you going to miss me?"

Daryl pulled away. "You terrible woman. Leave me alone now. I have things to do and I need to think of something other than you right now."

Andrea was waiting at the Cherokee with a big cup of coffee and Daryl kissed her goodbye. He and Rick waved them goodbye. Daryl went up on to the hospital to sit with Merle a while and Rick was going to talk to the computer geeks that Merle had hired to find out everything they could find about Ed Peletier.

Jesse and Michonne were leading the McAllister clan to the ocean. He had put the top down on the jeep and they were listening to music and having a good time. Ashton was driving the big Suburban with both grandmas and the dog Tallie.

Carol and Andrea were last and they talked the whole way down. They agreed that they loved Michonne. She just seemed to click with them as if they had always been friends. The mood was surprisingly light as if they were just taking a quick trip to the beach to get some sun.

They got to Sunrise Beach by noon and the grandmas went in and signed the lease. They kept cash at the house for emergencies and this was an emergency vacation.

The house was set at the end of the beach and had a private driveway. There was a walkway from the house through the sea oats and wild vegetation to the beach. There was a small pool and the recreation room had a pool table. The grandmas took a room with twin beds and its own bath on the lowest level. The beach side had a screened in porch overlooking the ocean and the second and third floors had balconies that ran the width of the house.

Carol snagged a room on the third floor with a view of the ocean. Andrea took the room beside her and Michonne took the last one. There was a lounge area between the three bedrooms with a refrigerator. All three women stood on the deck watching the ocean. It just right that they would be together.

Michonne and Jesse went grocery shopping with the grandmas. Michonne had seen fun Jesse all the way to the beach, but now she saw a different side. He adored his grandmas and he was sweet with them. She had called Terry up the night before and told him that she didn't want to see him anymore. He didn't care enough to pretend that he was hurt.

Carol was relieved to find that they had cell service. She called Daryl from the balcony. He was back at his apartment and was happy to report that Merle was still doing fine. Carol described their house and her room. "You do know that I am willing to share right?" she teased.

"Don't be sharing anything until I get there. Merle might get released tomorrow afternoon and we can be there by evening." They talked until Andrea demanded that Carol go with her to the beach.

Jesse, Ashton, and Michonne went with them to the beach and the grandmas took a nap. Tallie viewed the ocean with suspicion and took a nap under Carol's beach chair. Jesse and Ashton challenged Carol and Michonne to a game of Bocce Ball while Andrea and Tallie slept. They trudged back to the house and washed the sand off at the outdoor shower. Just another happy family vacation.

AN

**Merle was not allowed to go to sleep for a period of time after his injury. That is not the treatment now with modern technology. You are allowed to sleep but if there is a problem waking it could signal a more serious brain injury.**

**I know the relationship between Carol and Daryl is developing very quickly, but remember Carol has not been in a long term abusive relationship or lost her daughter. Daryl suffered abuse from his father but he has had two years to develop better social skills than in the show. **

**Daryl watched Carol in the Emergency Room and realized that she would regret not going to medical school. He loves her enough to let her be the person that she can be. Remember Carol keeping Hershel alive and trying to dissect a walker to learn how to do a C-section? That Carol would make a good doctor.**

**I do appreciate your reviews. These characters might be ooc but eventually they will encounter the ZA. Their personal stories are changed but they will still have to find their way to a safe haven and live in a world filled with ravenous walkers and men like the Governor.**

**Review please.**


	8. Together Again

**I must give a warning that this chapter will involve Carol and Daryl becoming intimate. Get your imagination in gear and you can make up all those details that I will leave out. Enjoy your version of the event.**

_Buck Owen wrote this, but Emmylou Harris sings my favorite version_

_Together again the gray skies are gone_

_You're back in my arms now, where you belong_

_The love that I knew is living again_

_And nothing else matters now we're together again_

_And nothing else matters now we're together again_

Together Again

Daryl had called the next day to say that Merle was being released but his doctor wanted him to stay close to the hospital one more night. He and Merle were staying in their apartment tonight and then they would come down the next morning with Rick. Carol pushed back her disappointment; Daryl was a man who took care of other people and right now Merle needed him.

Emily and Brian were leaving Adair early tomorrow morning so that they could be here in time to enjoy the beach tomorrow in the late afternoon. Her cousin and Brian had moved the horses yesterday evening and were going by the Homestead to check on everything this afternoon. Grandma was anxious about Emily and she spoke coldly to Brian, "I trust the young man who I hired to keep the place safe. You have no need to be there."

Emily wanted to go by her house to get some things to take to the beach that she forgotten yesterday and Brian ignored Nancy McAllister's warning. They had gone by and picked up Emily's things and checked the place out and then gone to the Homestead. Everything was quiet there and the stalls were clean. Brian drew Emily close, "Let's go up in the loft."

She smiled, "I'm sure that the loft is perfectly fine, Brian McKenzie."

"That is why I want to go there. There is no privacy at my parent's house and I want to be with you. Don't be coy, girl."

Emily had been in love with Brian McKenzie since she was fourteen. He had been over six feet by then, black hair and brown eyes with thick dark lashes. He could have been an axe murderer and she would have still loved him at fourteen. A decade later she loved him because of who he was but she also loved how looking at him made her feel. "There are blankets in the tack room. You grab one and I'll go on up."

Brian had watched her go upstairs knowing that Emily liked to set these things up just so. She was a brilliant student of science and logic but there was a hidden romantic side to her. She would be waiting for him but she wasn't a girl for a mindless roll in the hay. She liked to set the stage and she wanted a horse blanket for this scene. Brian had the blanket and was half way up the stairs when he heard the sound of an engine. "I hear somebody coming. Stay put and I'll take care of this."

Brian left the blanket on the steps and walked to the door. His truck was parked in front of the stables and whoever it was would head that way. He was surprised to see a man on foot walking down the lane toward the barn. There was something odd about that because the lane was wide and graveled. He looked for a vehicle but it must be parked behind the copse of pine up on the road.

He was a big guy though he didn't quite match Brian's six feet, four inches, but suddenly Brian was afraid of this man. There was something not right about him and Brian remembered Nancy McAllister's, "You have no need to be there." She had warned him away and he had been too full of himself to listen. He was listening now and Brian saw that the man's feet were soaked in his boots. It had rained hard several days ago and it was still wet in the tall grass and woods. This man hadn't gotten that wet walking down the roads.

Brian had the unsettling thought that his life and Emily's depended on his convincing this man that he was not very bright. He settled his face into a rather blank look and hoped that he didn't look as frightened as he looked. Brian had always been the big guy that no one picked on but he had never been in a real fight.

Emily had slipped to an open vent in the loft. She could see Brian standing in the yard and the man coming down the graveled road from the main road. He was dressed for the mountain, green quill pants, boots, and a green jacket over a dark shirt, but he looked wrong here and she looked again. Emily wondered if this was Ed Peletier. Nothing good would come from him being here and she looked for a weapon that she could toss down to Brian. If Ed Peletier had almost killed Merle Dixon then Brian McAllister was in trouble. There was a pitchfork on the other side but she would have to pass by the open loft to get to it. Emily pushed herself off the wall and back toward the loft stairs and then along the edge of the stairs. She skirted the hay bales and slipped to the vent on the other side of the loft where the pitch fork was leaning against the wall.

Brian instinctively braced himself to meet the dark stranger and jumped when the barn cat rubbed herself against his legs. Everybody knew that cat would come only come to Daryl and once in a great while to Carol and now she was acting as if they were best buds. The cat stared at the stranger and Brian had the strangest notion that the cat was there to protect him.

Ed had slowed down when he saw the cat. He was allergic to cats and he avoided them like the plague. He stopped and said, "I am looking for the people who live in that house. I am an appraiser for an insurance company and I need to speak to Nancy McAllister. She wants a quote for house insurance. We had an appointment."

Brian thought all of that sounded plausible, but the cat was having none of that. The cat was waving its tail and hissing a bit at the stranger. "I work here for Missus McAllister. Her and her sister lit out for Virginia yesterday. Said that she wouldn't be back for a while. I forgot to feed the cat don't ye know and I hada come do it."

Ed's lip curled a bit. Another inbred hillbilly who didn't have enough brain cells to remember much about this. He wanted to kill him out of frustration but he prided himself on following his plan on kills and this moron wasn't in his plan. "Is there a telephone number that you can reach Mrs. McAllister? I can just call her and set up another appointment".

Brian looked confused, "She didn't get me no number. She said she wanted me to keep the grass cut and keep an eye on the place. That is all I know."

Ed tried again, "Is there anyone who would have her number?"

Brian said, "Ain't no one home. Missus McAllister and her sister keep to themselves. Don't have much to do with the rest of us, don't ye know."

The cat gave Brian's leg one more rub and seemed to steel herself for something. She put one delicate foot closer to the man and Brian saw that the man moved one step farther back. The cat stopped and stared balefully at the man.

"Well, I guess I will have to come another day." The man was perturbed but Brian kept his look of innocent confusion and shrugged his shoulders. The man turned and started back up the lane toward the road that ran by the farm.

Brian picked up the cat, and walked back into the stables. The cat seemed almost tame and glad for once to be picked up. Brian looked out the open door and watched the man until he was close to the road and then he bolted to the stairs. Emily was at the vent closest to the road and he joined her looking to see what vehicle the man drove. Brian knew trucks but he only had a quick glimpse before the truck was hidden by the trees along the road. It was a black Ford Truck not more than two years old and had a tonneau covering over the back of the truck. Brian had a friend with a covering like that. His friend liked it because it kept his gas mileage down and covered the contents in his truck bed. His friend liked to hunt deer out of season and he had boasted that he could drive with the carcass of the deer in his truck and no one could see a thing. Brian wondered what a man who worked in a bank in Charlotte would want with a tonneau covering and he didn't like where his mind went.

"Let's get out of here." Brian put the cat down gently and less gently grabbed Emily's hand. "I don't like the looks of that man. Do you think that is Ed Peletier?" He urged her down the stairs and grabbed the horse blanket as they went by the stairs. "Wait here while I back the truck up".

Brian took a long look around but he wasn't sure that the man wasn't somewhere watching. He backed the truck up and pulled the seat all the way back and motioned for Emily to get in the floor. She crawled in and he put the blanket down over her. He drove out of the barn and went back and locked the doors. Brian tamped down his fear and turned the radio up louder. He drove back to the main road and got out and locked the gate to the stables. He couldn't see the man but he suspected this man was good at hiding.

Brian was glad for once that his parent's farm was down on the river bottoms and off the mountain. He asked to Emily stay under the blanket until they were in Adair. They went by the 911 center and had the dispatcher to send someone to Nancy McAllister's place. He gave a description of the man and his vehicle and they waited at the center to hear what the deputy reported back. The deputy had driven out and made note that the locks were on the gates without getting out of his patrol car and he gave an all clear message and went back to running radar along the highway into Adair. He saw a truck going by that fit that description that evening but he was busy with a speeder and there was no law against driving the speed limit.

Emily had made a few calls while they were waiting. The first call was to her grandmother who was not happy that they had been to the Homestead, but was relieved that they were alright and would see her tomorrow. She called Daryl next and he wasn't surprised that Ed had shown up. She gave him the descriptions of the Ford truck "He is looking for Carol and that would be the first place to look. He must know now that she isn't working, not at her apartment, and seems to have disappeared. Emily, you and Brian need to take him seriously. Stay the hell away from him."

Fear had overtaken Emily at the barn. It had been all she could do to move toward the pitchfork. She was now taking Ed Peletier very seriously, "He scared the shit out of both of us this evening. We are both going to be careful. I know how to shoot a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol but I think I need to have a heart to heart with Carol's friend Michonne."

That night Brian was very quiet and after Emily finished her packing for the beach she talked with him on the porch. He scooted over so that she could see beside him on the swing. "Brian, I want to talk about what happened. I was scared, but I knew you would try to protect me. I had a pitchfork to throw down to you. You were brilliant playing the good ole boy hired hand and maybe that was the only way we got out of there."

"Don't placate me. I played the dumbass country boy because I didn't know what else to do. We got lucky. He thought about killing me but decided I wasn't worth it. Emily, if he had seen you. I know he would have killed me and taken you somewhere. He has a somewhere he takes people I think. You look more like Carol than you know. Same eyes and same smile and the same skinny build. I couldn't have protected you and I always thought I could because I am big and strong. I am going to learn how to be a fighter. Never thought I needed to but I do. It's no good loving someone if you can't fight to protect them." Brian pulled her closer, "So no more Mr. Nice Guy. The new Brian is going to be Chuck Norris."

Emily nestled closer, "Not just you, Chuckie. Both of us are going to get tougher. Tomorrow we have hours to talk about all this, but tonight let's just cuddle and be glad that we both got a wake-up call."

He kissed her hair, "I still have that blanket in the truck."

She shook her head, "Not tonight, do you think the cat will be alright? We left plenty of food and water."

"That cat will be fine. I think it saved my ass today somehow and I will have to pay up in tuna. It's an outside cat and they have good instincts about danger. I am bringing the blanket to the beach, you know."

She slid away from him, "Sounds like a plan". She went to the door, "Goodnight, Chuckie".

Brian followed her into the house and made sure that the door was securely locked behind him.

The next day, Rick, Daryl, and Merle drove to the beach house and were there in time for lunch. The grandmas fussed over Merle and he ate it up. He was feeling much better and he leered at the Carol, Andrea, and Michonne, "Where are the bikinis? Show some tits at least. I have a wallet of dollar bills and I am not afraid to use them."

Grandma Nancy gave him the evil eye but there was a glint of amusement in Grandma Lydia's eyes. Merle just grinned when Daryl threatened to take him back to Charlotte and leave him.

Carol laughed, "It's good to see you too, Merle. How are things between you and Christie?" Daryl had told her that Christie had visited Merle in the hospital at least twice and that they had talked on the phone since he was released.

Merle gave an oddly vulnerable look but managed to bluster out, "The woman won't leave me alone so what can I say. She is my doctor and I have to stay on her good side." His voice was pure Merle, full of bluster and swagger, but he gave himself away with his blush. He gritted on trying to stay casual, "Christie has one more night shift and then she has three days off. I was thinking that maybe she could come down here and stay with us. I still have these headaches, you know."

Nancy McAllister gave him her best smile, "Let me have her number and I will call and invite her. You had a severe concussion and those headaches could be something serious. Who is ready for lunch?"

Andrea snickered to Carol, "I didn't think Merle Dixon could even blush. You got him good. He must have some real feeling for Christie."

Later Carol and Daryl walked on the beach. The tide was out and the sand was littered with the occasional sand castle and Bocce ball game. The beach was never crowded because there were no hotels or condos at Sunrise beach. He was wearing a pair of blue swimming trunks and a tank top and Carol was finding herself distracted by having so much Daryl on display.

Daryl loved it. This beach and the house were perfect in his eyes. He liked the wide open spaces of sunlit sand, the wooden pier, and the dancing waves of the sea oats that held the ocean back from taking the little island out to sea in a storm. He loved walking hand in hand with Carol on this beach; he was grabbing this little bit of happiness while he was here. He wasn't going to talk about Ed or anything that might take that smile off of Carol's face.

The water was cold but they walked barefoot at the edge of the water looking for sand dollars. A whole one was hard to find but he found one and gave it to Carol. She solemnly took it and knew that she would keep it forever. They walked for miles and ended up at end of the island which had been reinforced with large boulders in another attempt to keep the island above sea level.

They sat on the boulders and talked. Carol had brought sunscreen and they lovingly applied it to each other. It was the most physical contact that they had had and Carol found herself incredibly horny. She wanted nothing more than to drag Daryl into the dunes and let him ravish her. Daryl had woken her dormant sexuality and she wanted to be with him. It wasn't like her at all.

Carol was cautious about sex. Her mother was way too free with it and she had always been slightly afraid that she would be like her easy mother. She had not lost her virginity until college and then with a steady boyfriend. She had liked him but the sex wasn't all that impressive. They had broken up her senior year of college and she had come to realize that was when Daryl had moved into the little cabin at the Homestead.

She had taken another lover the first year she worked at the hospital. He was finishing a residency in orthopedic surgery and he had been in love with her. The sex was better with him but she could never convince herself that she loved him no matter how perfect he was for her.

He finished his residency and asked her to marry him. Carol had looked at him and the large diamond and been very tempted. He was attractive, successful, and he loved her. He was everything that a woman was supposed to want but she kindly refused him. He was good but not right and she knew it.

That was the subtotal of her sexual experience and she had never wanted either man the way that she wanted Daryl. She yearned for his intimate touch and the feel of him inside her. She knew that it wasn't just sex because she loved him, but she knew that for her want and love needed to be together for her to be fulfilled in a relationship.

Daryl kissed her even though there were several groups milling around the rocks. "Let's go back. I need to get the charcoal ready for the steaks tonight."

They talked about Merle on the way back, "He isn't kidding about the headaches, but he does play it up when he is talking to Christie. I asked him if he wanted me to call 911 and he gave me the finger. He likes her and as crazy as it seems I think she likes him. We know that he can be a complete asshole but he is also the brother that took a lot of hits for me. My father would come home drunk and Merle would protect me even if it meant that he was in for it. I love him and for a really long time in my life he was the only person that I loved." Daryl couldn't explain the bond he had with Merle. It had been forged by their fear and hatred of their father. Merle had been pushed into the army when he was seventeen and Daryl was nine. The time between when Merle left and when he came home from the army had been hell on earth for Daryl. This time when Daryl left he took Daryl with him. Merle was using and selling drugs but it was still better than his life before. Then, one day Nancy McAllister had wandered into their lives and their lives changed.

Daryl had told Carol that his back was scarred and you could see the edges of the scars around his shirt. She had felt the scars when she had put her arms around him. They were part of him and she wanted to Daryl to know that she loved him as he was. He had hidden them away even from Merle for a long time. Daryl had told her that he showed them to Merle when Merle had almost backed out of going to rehab after Nancy had found a place that took veterans. He had taken his shirt off and showed Merle what their father had done. Daryl had said, "He hurt me over and over and I thought I couldn't hurt any more than that. I was wrong though, losing you to a drug overdose or a deal gone bad is gonna hurt worse than that. I love you, Merle, and if you love me. Go to rehab."

Dinner was steak, baked potatoes, and a salad. The mood was upbeat fueled a little by wine and lot by their contentment in being together. Carol and Daryl did the dishes while the grandmas sat on rockers in the screened in porch and talked to Merle. The other scattered. Andrea and Rick had taken the Cherokee to the grocery store for more food. Michonne and Jesse had taken his jeep for a ride and Emily and Brian had gone for a walk.

Carol packed a basket with a glass of wine and a blanket. Daryl watched her silently. They left together telling the grandmas that they were going to watch the sunset at the boulders. The grandmas wisely said nothing. Merle smirked but for once kept his mouth shut. He stood up and watched them until they were out of sight. "He loves her. He always has and he always will."

Nancy and Lydia rocked in silence until Lydia said, "Merle, she loves him. They need a little time alone and I just hope they watch out for those sand burrs."

Nancy burst out laughing. The children and grandchildren would step on those burrs in the dunes and scream until someone pulled them off. Lydia laughed with her, "Those were good times."

Nancy patted her hand, "We will have a bunch more before we are through."

Daryl carried the basket and hoped that he didn't mess this up. He wasn't too experienced and he had been drunk every time he had had sex before. He wanted it to be perfect for Carol, but he thought that he would take one look at her and just blow the whole wad.

Carol was more nervous than she wanted to admit. She wasn't a virgin and Daryl wasn't either but this was their first time and they both wanted it to some glorious emotional and sexual experience and it might just be ordinary sex. She comforted herself with that thought and they walked along the beach happily.

They turned from the ocean toward the dune and walked through them until they found a sort of little space between the dunes that seemed to be just right. They spread the blanket out on the sand which was warm and soft. Carol kicked off her flip flops and sat down on one side of the blanket and Daryl sat down on the other.

The evening sun lit their faces with a soft glow and they smiled at each other and he leaned in to kiss her. They eased back on the blanket and kissed more deeply and they began to explore each other. Daryl took a deep breath and took off his shirt. He had never taken off his shirt with a woman before. Carol took off her blouse and Daryl kissed her neck. She touched his back and met his eyes. She moved behind Daryl and traced his scars with her fingers. "I love you and we'll be happy together. I can't take the scars off your back but I can promise you that I trust you never to hurt me or our children." Her hands rested on this shoulders and she moved them to massage his neck.

Daryl made little sounds of pleasure at her touch. He turned around slowly and unhooked her bra and then sat still as he looked at her breasts. He pushed her back gently and then he unbuttoned her capris and pulled them down. Daryl bit his lip and then slid her panties off. He was kneeling between her legs and Carol lying on her back could only see his silhouette because the sun was setting directly behind him. Daryl pulled down his shorts and his briefs in one swipe and pushed them all the way off.

He settled over Carol and they kissed and fondled each other. Carol could feel the wetness between her legs and his fingers caressing her there. She moved his hands to show him what worked for her and his touch at her secret places made her moan. She could feel herself tense with her own need for release and knew that he must be very close. She whispered, "I am ready." Daryl awkwardly put on a condom and then pushed himself between her legs.

Carol loved the feel of his hard dick moving inside her. She wanted it to never end and she could feel her body began to pulse to the beat of Daryl's thrusts. Her world narrowed to just the two of them and she began to ache for release and her body demanded more than slow thrusts and she said, "Faster, Daryl" and he immediately answered her by quickening his pace and her world narrowed to the need to come apart. She shook and jerked and finally came in an explosive spasm and her body continued with aftershocks as Daryl climaxed inside her.

Later they put the blanket up against the dune and they sat side by side watching the sun set as they shared the bottle of wine. Carol had been thirsty and she had drank more than her share of the wine. She was pleasantly buzzed between the sex and the wine. "Well, can you do that again sometime soon?"

Daryl grinned at her. He might live to be a hundred and he would never be happier than he was right now. They were naked and enjoying a sunset together. The woman he loved wanted him to make love to her again. It just didn't get any better than this. "Right now is good for me."

Carol took one more swig and put the bottle against the dune. There had been a poster in one of her elementary classrooms that she hadn't understood then. "Be here now". She understood it now. She wanted to remember this evening for the rest of her life.

She took his hand in hers. "I love you, but right now I just want to do that again."

AN

A tonneau covering goes from the top of the truck to the other side creating an enclosed space in the truck.

Sand burrs really hurt too.

I appreciate your reviews.


	9. Kin

Kin

Daryl was always to remember that time in a haze of golden sunshine suffused with laughter and being with Carol in their high room that faced the sea. He would always think of himself married to Carol McAllister from their time in the dunes on and that time as their true honeymoon even if they shared it with all their kin. Even John and Ellen McAllister came to stay for a few nights. The house was crowded but there was the infinite space of their bed and its accompanied pleasures that made them feel at times as if their world consisted of just the two of them.

Everyone came and went during the day without much fuss. They only came together as a family for the dinner meal. The grandmas would draft help for the cooking and they would eat together even if together meant that the dining table was full and the chairs in the great room were filled as well.

Daryl would let his eyes drift around the room and he feel this sense of belonging to these people. He who had so often thought of Merle as is only relative was suddenly gifted with a slew of loving cousins, a kindly aunt and uncle, and two grandmas. They had always been good to him but he knew that for the McAllister there was a difference between friends and kinfolk and now he had become kinfolk and so was Merle. He was "married" to Carol and that made them kin for life. Not blood kin, but kin nonetheless.

Grandma Nancy had called Christie Alston to invite her to stay with them. No one but Lydia knew what Nancy had said but Christie had promised that she would drive down after her shift and stay for at least two days.

Their house was set up off the sandy soil on tall pillars. The space underneath the house had storage and an outdoor shower and had a concrete floor. The sea breezes kept it cool and there was a swing there and Merle had sat in the swing waiting for Christie. Grandma Lydia had sent everyone off so that Merle could welcome her in peace. She and Nancy had professed a great interest in antiquing and they drove off after sternly warning the others to stay away. The old ladies knew well enough that their grandchildren would sneak back in to take advantage of an empty house but they wanted them to stay away long enough for Merle and Christie to have some time to themselves.

Merle sat in the swing with a glass of sweet ice tea and he watched Christie's car enter the private late that led to this house. He stood up when she parked her car and walked to her car and his gift of gab momentarily vanished and he had to resort to the truth, "I am glad that you are here."

Christies smiled, "You are looking much better. Thanks for the shoes." UPS had delivered ten pairs of her favorite shoes the day before.

Merle smirked, "I always keep my promises to beautiful women." He grabbed her luggage over her protests and led her up the stairs to her room which was beside of his own on the main floor. He deposited her luggage on the bed, "Are you too tired to take a walk on the beach? I know you have worked all night and drove all this way. My Old Ladies have ran the riffraff out so that you can sleep." She had noticed that the house was empty.

Christie looked at him, "You and I are going to cause a stir in this neighborhood." It was the end close to the end of another century and the New South but she was a Black woman in a white neighborhood. You got noticed even if no one planted a burning cross on your lawn.

"Darling, I ain't going to crawl up in some hole because some shit for brains cracker looks at me and makes a face. I am big enough and bad enough to smack that look off his face and he'll know it. You ain't going to melt into a puddle if someone calls you a name, but they'll answer to me. I just want to walk on the beach with you."

Christie changed into shorts and a t-shirt. She found a new pair of beach shoes in her size on the bed. The note was surprisingly sweet, "Cinderella, I'm no prince but you are my princess." She laughed and knew that he would be particularly obnoxious to make up for his slip into being a "damn pussy."

Merle and Christie found Carol and Andrea sitting in beach chairs reading while Daryl, Rick, and Ashton tried to master boogie boards. Daryl was the getting the hang of it but Rick and Ashton were equally terrible. Daryl picked his board and came over to talk. Andrea laughed, "Michonne and Jesse are parasailing today. Michonne has always wanted to try it. Those two aren't happy unless they are risking their neck. Good thing a doctor is in the house."

Merle shook his head, "Those two will always land on their feet. Let's go look at the Atlantic." He casually took Christie's hand and they walked down to the wet flat sand that was easier to walk in. Merle looked back and laughed. Carol and Daryl were packing up to go in and Andrea was standing and Rick was moving toward her. They had stayed out of the house until Christie got here but they were going to go bump uglies for a while. Lucky shits.

Christie had followed his look, "Carol looks happy."

Merle snorted, "She oughta be happy. She has turned my sweet brother into a bigger pussy than he was before. He used to be as tough as a pine knot and now he is a marshmallow." He shook his head in mock dismay and he went on, "Daryl just kept watching her and she kept smiling at him. She never made a move though, guess she wanted him make the move. Once he figured that out. Hell, now he is a redneck Lothario."

The ocean breezes were cool and the sun was warm and they walked a good way before they turned to go back to the house. Christie needed a nap. Merle had a book that he was reading.

oOo

Carol and Daryl had washed sand off in the outdoor shower together. They had quickly stripped off their bathing suits and scrubbed each other to get rid of sand. They had shaken out their beach towels and they wrapped themselves in those and scrambled up the stairs to their room. Carol paused to wave to Andrea and Rick coming up the wooden walkway toward the house. Daryl gently pushed her on inside the house and up the two flights of stairs to their room.

They flung their towels off and kissed. Daryl was already hard and he pushed her toward their bed. She settled back on the bed and reached for him but he was standing at the foot of the bed and he pulled her toward him. He kissed both her feet and massaged them, sucking her toes. He held each foot in each of his hands and stood between them his erection on full display. Carol could feel the wetness building between her legs and the combination of touch and sight had her wondering if she really wanted anymore foreplay. She was ready now.

He began to nibble his way up her legs, kissing and sucking the inside of both legs. He kept pulling her closer to him as he moved closer to her wet center. He sank to his knees on the floor and into her cleft. He explored her while Carol moaned her appreciation. Daryl let his tongue tease her clit and then his tongue became demanding and he sucked harder and she cried out softly in her pleasure. Daryl could feel her shake and jerk as she came. She was barely through when he pushed her back on the bed and settled himself between her legs only stopping to put the condom on. He sucked hard at the nipples and thrust into her at the same time. He wasn't going to last long but her legs were around him and he could feel her hips responding to him and he let himself push as hard and fast as he could and he came in a big rush.

He fell back on the bed exhausted and spent. "Did I leave you behind? Couldn't wait."

Carol tried to catch her breath. "I got the wave and went with it. You never leave me behind, Daryl. I do want a bottle of water. I wonder if I can sneak out to the lounge area and get a bottle. Rick and Andrea should be busy. "

"Put the towel on. I don't want Rick to see what you've got to offer. I would get it for you, but I am not sure I can walk right now." Daryl sat up so he could watch Carol cover herself with a beach towel and slip out. She was back quickly with two bottles of water. They drank the water and listened to Carol's CD player as they talked. They took a shower together and got dressed in time to be downstairs talking with Merle when the grandmas got back.

Eventually Jesse and Michonne came back from parasailing still excited about their flying experience. John and Ellen came back from golf with Brian and Emily in tow. Ashton had met a girl on the beach today and tomorrow he and Jo were going to go sightseeing at a nearby historic city.

They had decided to do Chinese takeout for dinner that night. Ashton volunteered to go and he came back with bags of food and the girl he had met that day. Daryl and Carol had found their favorite seats at the kitchen counter sitting so they could see everyone in the room. They were an odd bunch, Black and white and a fifty year gap in ages. They were his kin and he loved them and he would do whatever it took to protect them.

Carol smiled at his serious face. "Eat up, Daryl. We still have time to catch the sun set." He finished his dinner and opened his fortune cookie, but waited until Carol read hers, "Trust your dreams and ambitions and your future is assured."

Daryl showed Carol his fortune, "You will watch over those you love".

They grabbed another bottle of wine and headed for their spot in the dunes.

ooOOoo

Ed was feeling pissed off. He had waited patiently for a McAllister to raise their head and they were still hiding in a hole somewhere. He was going to smoke them out of their comfortable hole and make them sorry. He had left his apartment before midnight and walked the two miles to the little house that had he had rented. It was a dump but it had a two car garage and he kept his truck there. Both the house and the trunk were in another man's name but he had found it useful to have another identity from time to time.

He checked the truck. The gas tank was full but he put in three full gas cans. Ed pulled out and made sure that the garage was closed again. He drove swiftly through the night arriving at the McAllister farm by 3:30. The place was still deserted but he moved quickly with his gas can and the log structure was burning nicely in almost no time.

He used bolt cutter to cut the chain to the barn and hurried up to the loft to set the barn on fire. The hay bales caught fire quickly and he hurried down the steps and shut the barn doors. He hoped the cat was trapped inside.

Carol's Uncle John's house was just down the road and he broke in to the house through a back door and poured gasoline in a long trail from one end of the house to the other and then threw in the match. It would have been lovely to stay and watch all the fun but he had work tomorrow.

He heard the fire trucks as he went through Adair. Some nosy neighbor had seen the fires and had called it in. Ed stopped for gas along the highway. The sleepy attendant just took the money and didn't notice that he had filled his gas tank and the three gas cans. You just never knew when you might need gas.

Ed got back to his house and parked the truck. He changed into jogging clothes and trotted on back to his apartment. No one noticed joggers and he was soon showered, shaved, and dressed for another day at the bank. He did stop for a large cup of coffee on the way to work. Ed smiled and said good morning to his co-workers and they smiled back. He was such a friendly guy.

ooOOoo

Nancy had woken from a bad dream in the night and wandered to the great room. Lydia had woken when she left the room and she followed her, "Are you sick?"

Nancy had shook her head, "I think he has done something to my house. I dreamed he was walking around inside the house. He is angry and wants to draw us out. I am so scared that he is going to hurt her. I love her and he is just like a cat waiting to pounce on her or Emily or Andrea. He wants to hurt her and he do something to someone to make her suffer."

Lydia sat down beside her. "A house is just a house. You can build another house. We aren't helpless mice. We need to crush him before he does something worse." Her voice was firm. They had tried to play by the rules, but if Ed was in their houses it was time to break bad on his ass.

Nancy and Lydia got up and made coffee and weren't too surprised when John came downstairs. He had kept his cell phone charged while he was away because he was a lawyer and his clients might need him. "Sheriff Tucker just called me. Someone set fire to your house, the barn, and my house tonight. The house and barn are gone and my house might be a total loss. The only houses left standing is the cabin and Lydia's place. I need to go back in the morning and handle this." He held a hand up, "I'll be careful and I won't sleep on the mountain. Ellen will stay here and don't tell the others. They are safe here and this son of a bitch is hoping to draw us out."

Nancy nodded at John. He was right. They would stay here a little longer and then it would be time to deal with the loss of the home that she and her husband had built. She would make it bigger and better. It would be a damn fortress for whatever threatened those she loved.

AN

**Merle's racist rants on the rooftop in Atlanta always interested me. He said something like, "Your kind and my kind aren't supposed to mix". So I made him love a Black woman in this one and Mutual Benefit. There was a sort of pain in his voice so I change that "aren't" to "are".**

**I love to write fluffy and I am gearing myself up to write the next chapter. It won't be fluffy, but Ed Peletier was part of Carol's fate. She was destined to meet him and while she escaped an abusive marriage Ed is still in her life.**

**I push an envelope or two in my stories. Carol has been called upon to do some things that seem questionable (like in the show) and this story has some rocky shoals ahead for Caryl.**

**Please review. I appreciate your responses. I really do.**


	10. Intersection

**I will procrastinate no longer. This is a have to chapter that seems so out of place; there is nothing that seems "meant to be" in this. Yet, I am writing it as part of Carol's story. She was fated to meet Ed Peletier and have her life profoundly impacted by that meeting. This chapter has violence and sexual assault. There is also a racial slur that I would personally never use but Ed would so I put it in. Ed reveals the depth of his depravity. You are warned.**

Intersection

Ed Peletier had known he had gone too far when he torched the Homestead, the barn, and John McAllister's house on McAllister Mountain. He had come down off of his arson induced high that day at the bank and began to plan his next move. He expected that all of the McAllisters would crawl out from their hidey-holes and run to view his work on their homes. They would suspect him and he had to maintain his story of being home all night. Worse than that the police might come here to his place of work and talk to him. He didn't want his employers to start doubting him and begin to scrutinize some questionable actions he had taken at work.

Ed had money that he had inherited from a generous grandparent. His grandfather had left a million dollars to each of his grandchildren and his silly sisters had taken their money and squandered it on building Mcmansions. Ed had bought an old farm on the edge of nowhere and if the deed was recorded in another name that was his business. There was cash stored there but most was scattered in different accounts. Some in this country and some not.

Ed knew that he should have accepted that Carol wasn't interested in him. He should have parted from her on good terms. Revenge is a dish best served cold and all. If Carol McAllister disappeared six months from now then the police would not connect a prosperous young banker to her disappearance. Young women disappear all the time. Instead he had stalked her like some loser. He had tried to kill the big man who had followed him at the hospital. He had burned her family's home in Adair County. Ed starting to look at his personal exit strategy.

This morning he had jogged past his house and had seen the police cars parked on his street. They would get a warrant and then find the gas cans. Maybe talk to all night gas station attendants. He had thrown the clothes that he had worn in the trash but not the boots. Ed jogged on past and knew that the noose was tightening around his neck. He had driven to work this morning and had sat down to contemplate his options.

He could just stay cool and force the police to prove something, but his employers at the bank would start sniffing around his accounts. Ed decided to get out while the getting out was still good. He knew where they kept the keys to the repossessed cars and where they were parked. Ed lifted the key to a repossessed car and took an early lunch. He knew he would never be back and he spent most of the time moving money from the bank into accounts that he controlled and then erasing as much of the evidence as possible. Ed took his laptop with him when he left.

He left by a back exit and waited to see if anyone followed. He walked to the parking garage where the possessed vehicles were kept and drove off in the one that matched the information on the key ring. He drove to the other side of Charlotte and left the bank's car. He suspected it would be stolen and chopped up for parts before it was reported missing. He walked a couple of miles before he called a cab using his burner cell phone. He had smashed his old cell phone and put it in the trash at work. He had burned bridges all day.

Ed bought a minivan at the used car dealer and paid cash for it. His next step was an apartment complex close to Charlotte General Hospital. He asked for an apartment on the bottom floor. He went to a medical supply store and bought a wheelchair. The apartment was furnished and he bought only what he had to have for a few days. Carol would think that he had disappeared and then she would go back to work and he would be ready.

He knew he should have just ran but Carol McAllister had ruined all his plans. He had wanted to marry her; she would be the perfect banker's wife. She was beautiful, sweet, and had the social skills that would advance his career. He would be a good provider for her and he could still have his weekends at his hunting cabin. Ed knew that it would take time to mold her into submission but it could be done. He would start with a slap and then gradually work up to real discipline. They could have been so happy and it was all Carol's fault. She would be sorry.

ooOoo

The McAllister family left Sunrise Beach when the grandmas broke the news that their homes were burned. Ashton drove his grandmas and mother back to the mountain. Emily and Brian had followed them. Merle had ridden back to Charlotte with Christie. Carol and Daryl went back to the apartment that he and Merle had rented. Andrea and Rick had finished emptying out their old apartment. Carol had cancelled her lease on that apartment and hired a maid service to clean it.

Carol and Daryl had taken a quick trip back to the mountain the next day and Carol had wept when she saw the ruin of her grandmother's home and the barn. They visited the Nancy and Lydia at Lydia's house which was thankfully untouched. The barn cat had been sitting on Lydia's porch when they got there. Daryl had picked it up and cuddled it. He had carried it inside with him and the cat had left his lap and settled on Lydia's lap looking surprisingly comfortable. Lydia gave her a friendly pat, "The outside cat has decided to be an inside cat. She stays out during the day but usually comes in to stay at night."

Carol was amazed at how well her grandmother was taking losing the Homestead. "Grandma, I am so sorry that you lost your home."

Nancy declared, "It's worth it, the police have found a witness that places Ed buying gasoline that night at an all-night convenience store in the foothills. There is security tape showing Ed filling his truck up and three gas cans. We have people tracing every house, storage facility, and building ownership in a three mile radius around his apartment. Something hinky will show eventually. You just need to lie low a few more days and we'll have him". Nancy was going to live with Lydia until her new home was built and she wasn't in a big hurry, "I am letting Emily design it. I want it built to last no matter what may come."

Carol and Daryl went back to Charlotte that evening. They were working on finding Ed's lair. He had to keep the truck somewhere close and they sat down with Jesse and created a grid of a three mile radius around Ed's apartment. They wanted to find the truck and build the case that Ed had committed arson. Their computer geeks hacked in to the utility companies and created a list of new hookups in the area. None was listed to Edward Peletier but they were getting closer to his hideout all the time.

The computer geeks had found that Ed had inherited a million dollars two years ago when his grandfather died. Five years ago there had been some sort of payoff to a family in his hometown. Ed had beaten a girlfriend and Ed's family had paid her off to not press charges. Ed had also been involved in some "incidents" when he was a juvenile but those were sealed. He had graduated from college three years ago and then moved to Charlotte to begin a career in banking.

Jesse had created a map with the all the places gridded in and he had driven through the area. He highlighted those places he thought most suspicious. One was a slightly rundown ranch house with a large garage. It just seemed too empty and he saw that a lawn service was cutting the grass. It just seemed odd and he found a friendly gardener in the house across the street willing to gossip about her reclusive neighbor. "He just comes in and out all hours of the night. I never see him drive in but he does have a truck because I saw him drive in one morning really early."

Jesse got the police interested and eventually they got a warrant. They found the truck inside and three full gas cans. There was a pair of boots that matched the boot prints found in John McAllister's partially burned house and around the McAllister home.

In the meantime Ed had disappeared and the computer geeks had found that he had been siphoning money from accounts at the bank recently. He had money and apparently different identities because he had rented the house under a different name and had paid all the utility bills from an account listed in that name.

Daryl and Merle had driven to Ed's hometown one day leaving Carol and Christie in Christie's apartment. It was a nice town, clean and fairly prosperous and the Peletier family home was a mansion sitting gracefully on a little slope outside of town.

Daryl stared at the house and thought about the shitty places he had lived in his life. Carol should live in a place like that house. She should be with some college educated man who had the right manners and not some dumbass redneck like him. Carol loved him though and not the man who had grown up here. Carol belonged in a place like this but somehow it didn't fit Ed either. Ed who had a separate places to live in Charlotte. Ed who had money of his own.

He grabbed his phone and called the computer geeks. "I need something else. I want you to start making a list of all real estate transactions in and around this county starting three years ago. We are looking for a remote farm or hunting cabin. The location has to be out of the way and the owner will not be from this town."

Merle looked at him, "You think Ed has a lair here too?"

Daryl nodded, "I think he took part of his inheritance and bought a place around here someplace. Not a nice place but a place he could be himself in. Look at that house. It is all about being seen, but Ed does things that he wouldn't want the rest of the world to know about."

"There is still a lot of open land here this far from Charlotte. Good hunting and if you bought enough land you wouldn't have any close neighbors. You aren't just a pretty face, Derlinda. I think you found your balls and your brain." Merle said, "Let's stop and get something to drink. A mom and pop kinda place. Where they are glad for business and want to talk".

Merle bought sodas and junk food and chatted up the bored woman at the counter. "My brother and I like to hunt and get away from the big city. How is the hunting around here? We know a guy from here….is name is Ed but I he has some kinda weird last name Pella something?"

The woman looked less friendly, "You know Ed Peletier?"

Merle smirked, "That's his name. Now I'm telling you that he is a number one asshole but we're just looking for a hunting cabin and he said he had one someone around here."

The woman snorted, "I see him driving by ever now and then on the weekend. His family don't have much to do with him. I justa soon that he didn't stop in here. He's a bad one. Hurt that girl real bad and his family bailed him out. The girl and her family left after that."

Merle looked alarmed. "Maybe I don't want to have a cabin around here. Sometimes our wives come with us. Wonder where Ed has a cabin because I don't want here near my Christie."

"There are a lot of hunting camps out this way. I did see him turn in on the left hand side of the road one Friday night. He drives a green Ford truck. I remember because it has that tonneau covering on it. He gives me the creeps." The woman looked unsettled now.

Merle smiled, "I think that I'll look on the other side of the road. How far away is his camp?"

"Maybe seven or eight miles in that direction. Lots of little side roads out that way." Her eyes met his and he knew this woman wasn't falling for his fake charm. "Thank you, ma'am".

The next morning Daryl brought Carol to Christie's apartment. Merle was there but then he usually was. Christie had been called to work because there wasn't enough doctors. Jesse arrived to stay with Carol and Merle had business to do downtown. Daryl was going to drive back and start looking for the needle in the haystack that might be where Ed was hiding. Merle would drive out there when his work was finished.

Daryl kissed Carol goodbye, "I'll see you this evening."

Carol and Jesse hung out at Christie's apartment. Her apartment was located on the second floor close to the hospital. Christie liked it because she could walk to work when she was on day shift. Carol's cell phone rang. It was Christie, "Things are really busy here, I could use another pair of hands. Do you think you and your keeper could work today?"

Carol laughed, "Sounds good. We'll be over in a minute." Carol called Daryl and left a message on his cell phone. She and Jesse walked to the hospital.

A minivan pulled out of the apartment building lot and drove slowly to the hospital. It parked in a handicapped spot close to the hospital. Ed pulled the wheelchair from the second row of the minivan and wheeled it toward the hospital. He was dressed in the uniform of an orderly and the credentials that verified that he was employed at Charlotte General Hospital. He entered the hospital and went to the men's room. He took off the loose scrubs of an orderly and dressed a hospital gown. He had applied makeup to look pale and sickly. He was completely bald. He wheeled himself out in the corridor wearing glasses and waited outside the Emergency Room door.

Carol and Christie were busy all morning. Jessie had went downstairs to pick up lunch so that they could eat in the office area. Ed saw Jesse leave and he made his move. He wheeled back to the rest room and he came back wearing the orderly uniform. He wheeled the wheelchair into the Emergency Room and saw Carol entering a cubicle. Christie was nowhere to be seen. He moved the wheelchair into the cubicle that Carol was in. She turned as he walked in and he plunged the hypodermic into her arm. He also put a hypodermic into the patient. He stripped Carol's clothes off and put the hospital gown on her. He looked out and didn't see Christie and he wheeled Carol out of the ER and to his waiting vehicle. He deposited her into the minivan and folded up the wheelchair. He drove away and was soon on the interstate heading toward his hometown.

Jesse came back from the cafeteria with lunch. The cafeteria had been crowded and it had taken him longer than he had expected. Christie was filling out paperwork and she looked up as Jesse came back. "Let's eat." It only took a minute for them to figure out that she was gone.

Daryl stopped at the mom and pop store and checked his messages and listened to Carol tell him that she was going to work with Christie at the ER. He had stopped at the computer geeks to talk with them about the search for Ed's hunting camp on the way. They had a map of the area and they had marked the places that had changed hands in the last three years. He had left then and drove to Ed's hometown and checked the real estate purchases against the map.

It was early afternoon before he got to the store. He picked up two bottles of water and some beef jerky and put them on the counter in front of the same woman who waited on him yesterday. She smiled, "You were in here yesterday with the big guy."

Daryl smiled and ducked his head at her, "Still looking for a hunting camp."

Daryl drove seven miles down the road and stopped and looked again at his map. A red minivan passed by and Daryl watched it go by. There was a bald man in the driver's seat and there was something familiar about him. Daryl watched the vehicle disappear out of sight and then he finished the first bottle of water. His cell phone rang and a nearly hysterical Christie, "O, thank God, Daryl. We have been trying to get you for an hour. He got her, he got Carol at the hospital."

Daryl got out of the car. Ed had Carol and he could have taken her anywhere. She might be dead right now. He had failed to protect her. He didn't know where to look. Daryl had always been scornful of people who believed in God. He sneered at praying to an unseen God, but now he was felt completely helpless. He asked God to help him and felt like a fool when nothing happened.

Suddenly Daryl thought of the man in the minivan. Bald as an eagle but looking familiar. He was Ed and for some reason their paths had intersected today. He jumped into his car and gunned the engine. He looked at his map. He didn't know which left hand turn to take. He had a moment of indecision and then chose the one that was closest to where he was right then. It might not be the right one but he had to start somewhere.

ooOOoo

Carol woke up inside of a rundown house. She had no idea where she was and she felt dizzy and was unable to focus. She looked to find Ed looming over her. "Wake up, princess. Daddy is home."

Carol tried very hard to think clearly. She remembered seeing Ed at the hospital. She saw that she was naked and she wished she could cover herself from his piggy eyes. Ed hit her once and then again. He pulled her up against the wall and slapped her again. She hit the floor hard and she knew that she had broken her left wrist. Ed smiled. Her pretty face was already marked and he was just getting started.

He dragged her to the table and bent her over the table and took her brutally. He bit and clawed at her body and when he was finished he turned her over and hit her again, "Are you sorry yet?"

Carol knew that she wasn't going to last very long. Ed was too strong and she was too weak. She must be out in the middle of nowhere and Daryl was never going to find her. She was going to die out here but Ed was going to toy with her first. Ed kicked her and she rolled away from him instinctively and saw an old rusty knife under the edge of the sofa. She reached for it but Ed grabbed her hair and dragged her away.

He grabbed her broken wrist and she screamed in pain, "Hurt's doesn't it. Are you sorry yet? Do you want to know how I found you? I just got an apartment in your old friend Christie Alston's building and waited until you showed up. I have been in and out of the hospital all the time when you were missing. I knew you would show back up. Saw your and your Black boyfriend walking to the hospital this morning and knew that you were going to work. And I knew I was too."

Carol realized that Ed thought Jesse was her boyfriend. Ed picked her up and threw her on the sofa. "You turned me down and then your fucked your nigger boyfriend. You fucking whore. We could have had the perfect life and you had to fuck it up." He hit her again and she saw that he was getting aroused by her pain. He was going to rape her again very soon and he wanted her to suffer. He fell on her and bit her breast so viciously that she screamed again but let her right arm fall down the side of the old sofa. He pulled her up by her hair and hit her again. She fell back against the sofa and let her hand dangle again.

"I'm going to take you again, you whore. You can't stop me." He pushed himself back and hit her face again. Her nose and lips were bleeding and she could hardly see. Carol realized that she couldn't use her right arm to defend herself or she would lose her chance to grab the knife.

Ed pulled his orderly uniform pants down again and released his erect cock. He pushed her legs apart and Carol knew that she had to let him. She couldn't waste the little strength she had fighting him. He slammed his body on top of her and thrust his penis into her. Her hand touched the knife and she grasped it and started bringing it up slowly as Ed continued to bite and claw at her. She waited until she had a clear shot at his carotid artery and she used the last of her waning strength to bring the knife up and she severed the artery and Ed's blood gushed out and covered her. He tried to get up but he collapsed on her again and she was too weak to move him. She dropped the knife and checked for a pulse. He was dead. She tried to pull him off but she was too weak but she managed to scoot far enough so that she could breathe.

Daryl hadn't found anything at the first property and he turned around and went to the second property. It was farther away and he was more and more afraid that he would never find her and that this was a fool's errand. He pushed the car as fast as he could but the road was narrow and rutted. He rounded a curve and saw the driveway to the house and he saw the red minivan. He got out of the car and grabbed the gun that Merle had given him. He ran toward the house saying over and over again, "Please, please, please just let her be alive". He burst through the door and saw blood everywhere.

Carol was lying on a sofa covered in blood and he was sure that she was dead. Ed was on top of her and Daryl grabbed him and pulled him off of her. Carol opened her eyes and looked at Ed. "Are you sorry now?" She looked up at Daryl and he saw that she was alive.

Daryl picked her up and carried her to the car. He took off his shirt and put it around her. There was a beach towel in the trunk and he got it out and covered her with it. He gave her a drink of water and he drove her out of there. "Take me home and have Christie come and take care of me. I don't want to go to a hospital. I don't want to talk to the police. He is dead and gone." Carol's voice was weak but sure and Daryl nodded.

Daryl called Merle. He was closer to the mountains here than he would be in Charlotte. He told Merle where Ed was. He called Christie and told her that Carol needed her. Carol spoke to Christie and outlined her injuries in a cool detached voice. She had a broken wrist, bruised or broken ribs, lacerations, she had been raped and sodomized, and needed stitches.

Christie stopped at a pharmacy and bought everything she needed and headed toward the mountains. She called the hospital and told them that she was starting her vacation early because there was a family emergency.

Merle followed Daryl's directions to the farmhouse. He dragged Ed out of the house and buried him beside of two other shallow graves. He pulled the red minivan behind the house and wiped it down. He took anything that could belong to Carol and locked the house up. He started down the road and he threw the rusty old knife deep into the woods a mile away from the house. Merle took off for the mountains after that. He had thought of burning the house down but that would only attract attention.

Daryl moved Carol into the cabin. She asked him to give her a shower and he held her up and washed her. She asked him to cut her hair short and he propped her up and cut her hair with a pair of scissors. It looked awful but it seemed to please her.

Christie arrived and she stitched and bandaged Carol. She started a round of antibiotics and a painkiller and she set Carol's wrist. She laughed at the haircut until she cried and then she couldn't stop crying. The grandmas showed up and wanted to take Carol to their house but she said that she wanted to stay here. They left but kept coming back with food and clothes for Carol.

Merle came in and took a shower. He and Christie sat on the front porch and talked most of the night. Christie continued to check on Carol all through the night. Daryl was lying on the bed beside her wide awake and Carol was sleeping fitfully. She would wake and he would soothe her back to sleep.

Daryl fell asleep as the morning light began to filter into the room. Carol had woken up in pain and Christie gave her another pain pill. Carol looked at her beaten and bruised body and was glad to be alive. She had killed someone yesterday and had no regrets, no feelings of remorse or pity. She had faced her enemy and defeated him and she was never going to be the same again. She was a lot stronger than she thought she was and somehow she knew that she would need that strength in her life. Right now she only needed to lie here beside of Daryl and she smiled as she went to sleep.

AN

**Go ahead and pile on the hate. It was a terrible chapter to write, but I wanted Carol to kill Ed in this story. Daryl can be a hero but she is going to save herself.**

**Daryl was very antagonistic about belief in God and the power of prayer so in this version he asks for help but doesn't recognize when it comes. Albert Einstein has a quote that applies here. "Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous." Daryl looks up at the very instant that Ed passes by? He finds the right road so quickly? Coincidence?**

**Carol recognizes that she is stronger than she thought she was. She doesn't fight being raped because she needs Ed to be close enough to kill. Now that is the pragmatism that is Carol.**

**Review.**


	11. Surviving

Surviving

When Carol woke again Daryl was gone and Andrea was sitting in the chair beside her bed staring at the wall. Carol gave a little squeak of pain as she shifted in the bed and Andrea turned toward her with her face carefully set. Carol recognized that look. She had seen it often enough in the ER. Andrea didn't want her to see how upset she was that Carol was hurt.

Andrea bent her head and kissed Carol's right hand and Carol thought, _that's the hand that cut Ed's throat._ Carol could feel Andrea's warm tears flowing on that hand. Andrea sat back up after she wiped her face.

"How are you feeling? Can I get you anything?" Andrea's wanted to be able to do something, anything to make this better.

Carol smiled and found new muscles in her face and they all screamed, "Don't smile." She needed to go to the bathroom and she wasn't sure she could walk. "I need to go."

Andrea nodded, "I'll get the bedpan".

Carol wanted to get up. Andrea with a bedpan would probably only make her smile again and that hurt like hell. "Maybe I can get up."

Andrea looked terrified. "Let me go get Christie. She is just outside."

Andrea soon came back with Christie who regarded her with those bottomless brown eyes. "Carol, this is going to hurt."

Carol smiled again but this time she was prepared for the pain. "It already hurts. I want to try."

Christie and Andrea got her to the bathroom and back again. Every part of her body hurt but she refused to give in to her pain. She saw that someone had covered the bathroom mirror and she was glad. Carol knew she had to face one hurdle at a time.

Later after she was propped up in bed with pillows and the pain eased a bit. Christie talked to her, "The wrist is broken. Your grandmother is arranging for a portable X-ray so that I can check to see if it is set correctly. You will need to take the antibiotics and we'll decrease the pain medications as soon as possible. I gave you the morning after pill this morning. We'll test for STDs and we'll treat that if we need to. We have to monitor for internal injuries but I see no signs of it so far. Your blood pressure is fine and you don't have a fever."

Christie switched from physician to friend, "Oh Carol, I am so sorry that I called you to work. I had no idea that he was around."

Carol took her hand, "Ed had an apartment in your building. He was watching you because he knew we were friends and it worked out the way it was supposed to. He could have disappeared and then came back later. I did what I had to do and it's over." Carol wasn't reassuring herself; she wasn't wracked with guilt over killing Ed. He was a rabid animal that had to be put down. _I stepped up and did what I had to do. I either killed him or he was going to kill me._

Carol went to sleep after that and when she woke up the grandmas were there. She saw the same careful control of their emotions when they looked at her.

"Daryl, Merle and Jesse are working in the fields. Christie is taking a nap and Andrea and Michonne drove into Adair to get some hair cutting tools. So it is just us." Grandma Nancy gently touched her face, "I remember how rough the boys always played with you and Emily. You two were always coming in with bumps and bruises and you gave as good as you got. Made you tough when it counted."

Grandma Lydia touched the cast on Carol's left wrist. "You broke this arm when you fell off your horse when you were eleven. You and the other wild things were on a long ride. I remember standing on Nancy's porch and watching all of you walk your horses in. You couldn't ride and they wouldn't leave you." The old lady lost her control and burst into tears.

Nancy turned to Lydia, "She is alright. She is here." There was a fierceness in her voice that Carol had never heard. "Now sit up, girl. It is time for you to eat something."

Lydia helped her up and Carol ate the soup that her grandmother had prepared. She wasn't hungry but she wasn't going to argue with Nancy McAllister. They took her to the bathroom when she needed to go. They washed her face and put some soothing lotion on her dry lips. Then she went back to sleep.

Daryl was there when she woke up. He smiled at her and took her hand. "The grandmas have been keeping me busy today." He looked sweaty and tired and very handsome. Daryl bent forward and gently kissed her lips, "How is my girl today? Are you ready to go bale some hay? I could use some help."

She looked at him, "Soon".

Daryl nodded, "I had to fight my way in here and Andrea and Michonne are on their way back from Trinity. Seems they couldn't find what they needed in Adair. I know that you are hurting and if you want me to sleep on the couch in the other room I will. I don't always sleep peacefully, I know."

"I won't sleep if you aren't with me." _I don't care if you bump me, I just want to feel you beside me._

Daryl bent and kissed her again, "I love you, but you'll have to behave yourself tonight. I am too damn tired to chase you around the bedroom."

She laughed even if it did hurt, "That's a deal. Are you going to make an honest woman of me anytime soon? The grandmas don't take kindly to you smooth talking Georgians trifling with their granddaughters."

Daryl laughed, "Let's get married when you get the cast off, and before we go wherever we are going to medical school." He bent and kissed her again. "I love you, Carol Ann McAllister and I always will."

Andrea opened the door, "Get the hell out, Daryl. Carol doesn't need you right now. It's girl time." She was carrying several shopping bags.

Michonne was right behind her and she had on her enigmatic expression, but she brightened a bit when she saw Daryl, "The grandmas said to run your ass back to the fields. Merle and Jesse need your help. Those are some mean old women and they don't want the help in here trying to sex up their beautiful if a bit battered granddaughter."

Daryl kissed Carol again, "You two probably kick puppies and pinch babies to make them cry. I was just leaving. How much therapy do they think we need anyway?"

Carol eyed their bags, "I get the shit beat out of me, commit crimes that I won't mention given your jobs and future jobs, and you two go shopping. Did the stores close early?"

Michonne came over and touched her face with her cool hands, "You took a hell of a beating, but you survived. You've been to war and defeated your enemy. You're a warrior now." She stepped back. _At least Michonne gets it. Sweet Carol left the building and New Carol is a hell of a lot tougher._

Andrea came closer. "I love you, but your hair looks like it was cut with garden shears. Michonne and I are going to cut your hair and give you a shower. The grandmas are washing pajamas and night clothes for you." She opened the bags and Carol saw scissors and combs.

Carol thought about how much this was going to hurt, but she saw their faces. Andrea wasn't much of a nurse and nurturing and Michonne were not listed as synonyms in any published dictionary, but they wanted to do something. They wanted to fix what they could fix.

They sat Carol in the chair and put a towel around her. Andrea wet her hair down, "I am actually good at this. I always wanted to give you a short haircut and now I get to."

"I want it short and I remember you used to cut hair in the dorm in college. You trimmed mine too."

Andrea began cutting and measuring. Her eyes were focused on her task. She cut quickly and confidently. Michonne was watching and smiling. "Damn, Andrea you can cut hair. Maybe you should give up this lawyer business and just open your own salon."

"I would give you a mirror but you are on a no mirror alert until your black and blue bruises go yellow, but trust me your hair looks fabulous." Andrea was smiling.

"How bad do I look?" Carol knew it was bad because one eye was swollen shut. Her face felt swollen and bruised and even talking hurt.

Michonne looked at Carol. "You look beat up, but the redneck still loves you. I work security at a women's shelter and usually they let them see themselves battered. They want them to face the reality that someone they love did that to them. You're different. You aren't a victim, but let's give it a few days." Carol nodded. She would look when she was stronger.

Andrea went into the shower with her and washed what was left of her hair. "This is more fun when Daryl does it." Carol tried to snicker.

"It's a lot more fun when Rick washes my hair too."

"Where is he?"

"He doesn't know anything. Merle called Christie as soon as he found out you were alive. We told the police that you had left with Daryl without telling anyone. They were pissed but they left. Rick doesn't need to know. He takes his job way too seriously. Michonne on the other hand is more flexible." Andrea wanted to keep talking because she was afraid that she would break down after seeing the extent of Carol's injuries. Her back was full of bite marks and scratches. She wished that Ed was still alive so that she could kill him as slowly and as painfully as possible.

The grannies showed up with some silk pajamas and Carol was soon back in bed. The grandmas loved her hair. "It looks stunning. It really does. It really highlights your eyes and your smile." They also forced her to eat more. "Daryl says that the wedding is on whenever the cast is off. Don't worry. Andrea is staying here and helping us get the wedding together. You just get better."

Carol took another short nap and woke up to hear Daryl and Merle come back from the fields. Daryl tiptoed in and got some clean clothes. He professed to love her hair stroking her neck and tugging gently at the short curls.

He came back in after he showered, "We're going to go eat at Grandma Lydia's. Then I'll be back to take care of you the rest of the night. Christie and Andrea have already eaten and they'll be here.

Christie sat on one side and Andrea sat on the other and they kept her entertained until Daryl and Merle came back. Daryl came in first and smiled at her. "There's my girl."

Merle followed him in. He stared at her for a long moment and Carol knew that it had hit him harder than he thought it would. He gave her his most obnoxious leer, "Well, if it ain't the Dixie Pixie. Looking good over there, Maybe it is time you threw that brother of mine out of your bed and let a real man in there. He only knows what I told him and I left the good shit out because he couldn't handle it." He strutted over and elbowed Andrea out. "Blondie, move on out and let the man get a better look at those tits. You don't appreciate them as much as I do."

Daryl looked thunderous but Carol laughed, "Don't bother, Merle. You are just too much man for me. I'll just stay in the kiddie pool."

Merle sighed and took her hand and pulled it toward him, "Don't be so damn hasty. Just take a grope at what I have to offer." He looked down at his front. "Some men are just average like Daryl and some are extra special."

Carol laughed again and so did everyone in the room. Merle bent and kissed her cheek so gently that it didn't hurt. He whispered in her ear, "You did good." He straightened up. "I guess I'll just go outside and lick my wounds."

Christie stood up, "I'll go with you and inflict a few wounds on you for running your damn mouth." She followed him out to the porch and stood staring off at the mountains. Merle stood beside her trying to gauge her mood. "Didn't you say there is a path out back that goes to a meadow? Let's go for a walk and grab a blanket from the couch." She started around the house.

Merle stared after her, "Yes, ma'am". He grabbed a blanket from the couch and hurried after her. He led the way in the woods and when it opened up to a little glade he spread the blanket out on flat rock that was at the edge of the woods.

Christie sat down. "Here's the thing. You are all wrong for me. Wrong race, wrong job, wrong attitude, wrong everything. You even live in the wrong place. But I love you, Merle. I trust you to do right by me. So I think we should get married now because you love me even though I am all wrong for you in every way."

Merle sat down hard, "Well, hell. I just had the best damn proposal all planned too. He pulled out an engagement ring from his pocket. He got down on his knees in front of her. "Will you please marry me, Christina Delcie Alston and give me the joy of being your husband?"

"You can re-propose to me on our first wedding anniversary. No need to waste whatever you planned." She kissed him, "Of course, I'll marry you. Anyone else would bore the hell out of me."

Merle pushed the enormous ring on her ring finger, "Dear God, Merle. It is too big, too flashy, and just like you. I talked with Nancy and Lydia. I'll get a job in Adair. You belong here and I belong with you."

"Do I get to say something? Because I always have something to say. I would move to Charlotte if that is what you want." Merle had been near tears since he saw Carol and he knew he was going to completely pussy out and cry at any moment.

"I don't want to work sixty hours a week. I want to practice medicine, have a husband, and have children. I want all of that with you." She kissed the tears that were rolling down his face.

"Can we just fuck now? You might have designed our house, named our children, and bought our side by side burial plots but I have my plans too. I intend to enjoy the fuck out of my life with you. I plan to screw you every time you let me. I plan to wake you up with a kiss and tell you goodnight from the next pillow. But right now I want to be inside you and see the way your eyes change when you get ready to come. I want to hear you say my name and I want to feel you clench around me." Christie laughed and drew him closer to her.

Later they sat on the rock and watched the night fall on the mountain. "They are giving you the farm across the road from where the Homestead was. They want you close, so let's build the house there." Christie rubbed his back.

"You and Emily can design the house together. I just want a big house because I had to live in falling down shacks and shitty trailers most of my life. Too big and too flashy. That is what I want." Merle kissed her. "When is the wedding? Is your side of the family going to show up? "

Christie smiled, "The wedding will be this summer. I want a honeymoon before it snows up here. I don't have anybody left but my brother Gabriel and he'll come. So I guess we could have it here. I haven't been home since my mother died and that was ten years ago."

ooOOoo

Jesse had come to see Carol after dinner. He asked to see Carol privately and the others had gone outside to talk on the porch. He sat beside her and she looked at his weary face. She and Jesse had always been more like siblings than cousins. "So did Grandma's therapy work?"

He shook his head, "I can't forgive myself for leaving you there. I just thought that nothing would happen there in front of all those people." He put his head down on the bed beside her and she played with the tight curls on his head.

"Jesse, it was meant to be. Daryl was on the side of the road looking for Ed's cabin when we went by. He had a list of properties to check out and that is how he found me. I did what I had to do. You'll always be my baby brother. Now how are you and Michonne getting along?"

He looked up, "Grandma will still make us work in the hayfields tomorrow. Her idea of therapy is always work. Michonne is still pretending to be immune to my charm, but we have fun together. She is only afraid of one thing in this world that I know of." He waited until Carol looked at him, "The grandmas. She says that they are scary as hell when they get mad."

Carol grinned at him, "I am going to marry Daryl this summer and Christie has a ring the size of Texas. So be careful or you'll be next."

Jesse pretended to be afraid, "Now that is scary. I just got out of college and I am going to the army in September. The last thing I need is to get married."

"Do you want to go through your life without her?" Carol asked quietly. Jesse was young, but Michonne was special.

Later that night Daryl slipped into bed beside of Carol. He was careful not to bump her but she looked at him, "Be close."

He inched closer, "Do you need to go to the bathroom, Drink of water, Any thing?"

She said again, "Be close. Tell me about your day." _Just be close enough to keep my nightmares away._

He kissed her ear, "Merle and Jesse in a hayfield. Some total of my day. Merle's got an idea for a business, a legitimate one too. That is a step in the right direction. He thinks we should open a store that sells hunting, fishing, camping supplies here in Adair. He wants to sell prepper type products too. He thinks there is a market for end of the world survival tools. What do you think?"

Carol thought for a minute. Adair was a long way from a major market but it had its share of preppers and survivalists. Merle and Daryl were expert hunters. They would be going with products that knew something about. "I think it is a wonderful idea. So are you going to stay here or go with me?"

Daryl nuzzled her neck, "Well, it is your call, but there is a medical school in Lewisburg, West Virginia. That's in the Greenbrier Valley close to Virginia. Merle is thinking that would be a good place to open a second store. I can run that one and he'll run the one in Adair. You smell wonderful and you are my Dixie Pixie by the way."

"I'll look online tomorrow. It's probably too late to get in this year. " Daryl was going to sleep and he hadn't gotten too much rest the night before. Grandma's therapy had worn him out. Jesse was asleep on his feet and even Merle was looking a little worn out this evening.

Carol smiled. Merle had made her laugh today. She had watched Christie's face when he was strutting around pretending to be hot for her. Christie had understood immediately that Merle did all that to cover up how much it hurt him to see her banged up.

Daryl was letting her decide when they needed to talk about what had happened. She wasn't quite ready to discuss it. They had time.

She had slept most of the day and she still felt tired. Carol thought of all the work her body was doing to heal all that Ed had done to her in a few minutes. Her body would heal in a few weeks but she wasn't ever going to be the same person. She had been close enough to dying to stop fearing it, but she feared something happening to those she loved. She was going to learn how to be protect those she loved. Nothing was more important than being ready for whatever might come.

AN

**Carol is too battered for a big romantic evening and poor Daryl would be too tired anyway. The grandmas helped to relieve all that post- traumatic stress with a day in the hayfields. It will be a while before Carol will be ready to be with Daryl even as much as she loves him. **

**So Merle and Daryl in business together?**

**Review please**.


	12. The Day

The Day Carol Looked in the Mirror

Christie checked Carol's bites and contusions every day and had been pleased that the torn flesh was knitting back together. Her broken wrist had been set correctly and was now healing at a healthy rate. Carol was able to walk and move more normally and she wasn't taking any pain medications. It had been a week and Carol was looking forward to when it would be a month, and then a year. She hoped that there would come a time when she didn't count time by how long ago she had been captured by Ed. She dreamed about that at night sometimes but she had learned to jerk herself out of the dream and into reality. Daryl was always there beside her and he somehow knew to wake up and hold her close to him. He would listen to what she needed to say and never offered a solution. He let her cry or rant as she needed to and he never said, "It's over, it's alright now" because he knew it wasn't over until you could let it be over. She would love him forever for that, just letting her own her feelings without trying to make them go away.

She had slept all the way through the night and this morning she felt stronger. It was raining hard. She and Daryl had walked to Grandma Lydia's this morning in the rain jumping in every puddle of water like six year olds. They kicked their muddy shoes off on the porch and came into Lydia's living room with its shelves of books and family photos. Grandma Nancy might have lost some photos but she had always had duplicates made for Lydia and there were plenty on display.

It was a goodbye breakfast for Christie who was going back to work this evening because she was giving a month's notice to the hospital. Merle was going back with her to meet with some suppliers for the new store and because he couldn't quite bear to think of her in Charlotte without him. Jesse was driving to Charlotte tomorrow to see Michonne. She had gone back a few days ago and he had been quiet ever since. Andrea had become a permanent fixture at Lydia's and she dried Carol's hair with a towel and then handed it to Carol's to give Daryl's short hair a rubdown.

Carol hugged her grandmothers, "It smells delicious". Nancy nearly wept at the strength of her embrace. Lydia had fluffed Carol's wet curls and laughed, "You got your feathers wet" which made Carol smile because she had always said that when they came in from the rain or snow.

They ate in the dining room with its tall ceilings and stained glass windows. Robert McAllister had been a math teacher and a farmer but somehow he found time to create beauty with stained glass. He had filled his home with color and light and even this morning's watery light the dining room was transformed by his art. Lydia always sat at a certain place at her dining room table because she could see all of the windows from that seat. She would miss him every day of this life but she believed that she would see him again and there would be this marvelous light filled with color all around him.

Carol ate enough to please her grandmothers and for Daryl to tease her about it. She felt good to be alive and moving today. It had been a week. Both eyes were opening though the one was felt slightly swollen to her touch. After they ate, the men did the dishes while the women talked in the living room.

Carol had decided that today was the day that she stopped hiding from mirrors. There was an antique mirror over the fireplace in this room that Lydia had covered with a colorful scarf. She announced, "I want to take the scarf off the mirror."

Christie smiled at her, "You still have some bruises but they are faded."

The grandmothers nodded and Andrea looked at her critically, "Let me fix your hair." She fussed with Carol's hair but Carol suspected it was more to give her that final hug than the combing the curls down.

They stood with her in front of the mirror. The grandmas on either side and Andrea and Christie on the other side of the grandmas. Carol stepped forward and brought the scarf down and then looked at her reflection.

She had felt different and now she saw a different woman standing there. A woman with faint bruises on her face and one eye a little swollen. The short auburn curls framed her face and brought out crystal blue eyes. Her neck was long and graceful and when Carol smiled at her reflection she could see the women standing with her smile back at her. She was a happy woman and well loved, but there was a certain strength in her face that hadn't been there before.

Carol could see that the women with her loved her. The mirror showed that to her. It was in their eyes and their smiles and the way they stood as she watched them. She had a moment of sadness because she knew she would lose her grandmothers someday, but they were still feisty and active and she pushed that away. Andrea was so beautiful. Her blond hair was a halo but there was nothing angelic about Andrea except her surprising kindness and loving ways. Christie's eyes were windows to her strong and loving soul. They loved her. She was loved.

Daryl came into the room to find all the women standing before the mirror and for a second he was afraid for Carol. He thought that she looked beautiful but there were still bruises on her face and neck that she hadn't seen before.

Christie had seen him standing there and she took Lydia's hand and they went toward the kitchen with Andrea and Nancy following.

Daryl walked to the mirror and after taking Carol's hand stood beside her. She looked at the reflection. He was a good looking man. Blondish brown hair cut short, clean shaven, and dressed in a long sleeved blue t-shirt. He smiled at her in the mirror and she thought, _Those two look like they belong together. She likes the way he looks, smells, and moves. She looks into his eyes and he never avoids her gaze the way he does other people. Those two are intimate. He talks to her in the middle of the night and she rubs her sore face against this shoulder and is comforted. She loves him. She will marry him because he is the one she wants by her side when she wakes up at night. She has never felt that way about anyone before and she never will feel that way about anyone else. His eyes are full of love for her and desire too. He wants her and that is a good thing because when she is healed completely they will be together in every sense of the word._

Daryl had never been articulate. Never been able to come up with words to express how he felt. He had shown Carol his love that evening in the dunes and then it had been easier to show her than to talk about what he felt. He had had so little love in his life that it was like a second language. He had to struggle to find the right words and he never sure how to express how he felt. Then Carol had been taken by Ed. He had been filled with rage and love that day that he found her in that shack. He had managed to bring her back here and to tamp the rage down because Carol needed tenderness that night. Nancy McAllister had let him work his rage out on the hay bales and when he came back in the late afternoon to Carol it would be controlled until the rage was dissipated by the thankfulness that she was alive. It had taken several long hot days in the hayfield but the rage was over. Sometimes he was overwhelmed by the depth of his love for her. He was still amazed that he had the capacity to love anyone that much. He just couldn't find the words to say how he felt.

He put his arms around her and pulled her in for a real kiss. She kissed him back and then he released her. Carol looked at the mirror. Her face was flushed and her eyes bright and she looked like a woman in love.

Daryl whispered in her ear, "I wish you could see what I see."

She met his eyes in the mirror, "I see enough to know that we will be happy together."

AN

**Review please. I love knowing someone is reading my story.**


	13. Seven Years and Counting

**There has been a seven year time jump since Carol and Daryl got married, so they aren't the dewy eyed young lovers anymore. Seven years of a happy marriage has made Daryl a more confident man. Daryl loves his life and he has a lot to lose. Old characters will show up in this chapter, and some new ones too. I hope you like it.**

Seven Years and Counting

Dr. Carol McAllister-Dixon paused in her unpacking to look at her husband who was still carrying boxes up the stairs and into their bedroom, "Don't pick anything up, I'll get it." Daryl sounded grumpy but Carol knew that he just knew how tired she was. Carol smiled at Rick who was carrying another box into the room. He and Andrea and their son Carl were here to help finish the move and to join the family celebration of her finishing her residency. The last seven years had been hectic with children, medical school, and a residency in family medicine. Carol was finally ready to open her practice in Adair with her sister in law Christie.

Andrea appeared with her bossy face. "Merle, go help Christie finish Sophia's room. Jesse, Michonne wants you to help her with Michael's room." Her voice brooked no opposition and even Merle left without a rude statement.

Andrea came over to put her arm around Carol. "The downstairs is finished even the grandmas say so. This room is the last of it. Let Daryl and Rick handle it and we'll go outside and sit on the deck."

Carol looked at Daryl and he nodded, "Rick and I will take care of it. You go on down and rest."

She crossed the room and kissed him, "You are such a good husband."

He smirked, "Got you fooled, now get on outa here."

The grandmas were waiting on the deck of their house. Their house was the first of three houses on the right side of the road. The middle house belonged to Carol and Daryl and Jesse and Michonne lived in the last one. Merle's house was on the other side of the road it was set sideways and far enough beyond Jesse's so that it did not block the view of the mountains.

The four houses were set a polite distance apart but they had all been designed and built by Emily's company. They looked like traditional houses but the first floor was elevated higher than normal and the windows were set up higher. The houses were built of concrete, space age insulation, reinforced steel and then covered with a stucco like covering. The houses were heated and cooled using geothermal energy and the solar arrays were set on automatic timers so that they followed the path of the sun throughout the day.

It had taken seven years to finish all three houses. The grandma house was finished first, then Jesse and Michonne's, and finally Carol and Daryl's house was completed. Merle's house was just across the road and while it was larger and flashier than the other three houses that it faced it had also been designed and built by Emily. The true secrets to the compound were buried in their extensive network of basements and tunnels. Both grandmas were insisting that an apocalypse was coming and that they wanted their homes to be as safe as possible.

Carol and Andrea stopped by Michael's room. Jesse promised to finish the bedroom if they would take Caleb, James, and Michael with them because they were more of a hindrance than an help. Michonne had laughed, "Let's go, boys". The three boys were a handful. Caleb, the oldest was six years old. He had Merle's build, tough face, and ready tongue, but his mother's dark eyes. Caleb was already a prolific reader like his father and a natural leader.

James Andre Graham had just turned five. He had his father's outgoing personality and both parent's athletic ability. He was already learning martial arts but his mother had outlawed James being trained in weaponry until he was older. Michonne wanted her son to be a boy and not a killing machine. Besides that James was wearing the furniture out with his constant kicks and punches. She feared he would bring the house down on their heads if he was given a sword. Michonne had refused to join the herd that dragged their "phenol" around to tournaments every weekend. James could do what his parents did; camping, hiking, rock climbing, white water rafting, skiing, waterskiing, martial arts, and flying airplanes.

Michael McAllister Dixon had been born the summer after Carol started medical school in Lewisburg and he and Caleb were both six. Michael was a happy accident caused by an extensive backpacking expedition that she and Daryl had taken that year. They had packed the tent, food, and everything they needed. It had rained a lot that week and they had spent too much time in the tent and they ran out of condoms midweek. They hadn't run out of want to and Michael was born nine months later. Michael looked and acted like a miniature Daryl and that made him perfect in Carol's eyes. He loved to hunt and fish with his father but neither of his parents was handing him a weapon yet. That would come soon because Michael was mature for his age.

Their daughter Sophia was five and another happy accident. Daryl had done more than his share of parenting. Carol had offered to quit school when she found out she was pregnant with Sophia. Daryl was running the Dixon Brothers store in Lewisburg and it had its own day care, but two babies and a store was too much. Daryl had insisted that he could handle it and he had. He had hired an assistant to help run the store and he had handled it. He adored his baby girl but he hadn't babied her. He might have bit his lip a few times but the shadow of a mother who had not been strong enough to defend herself and her children haunted him. Daryl wanted his daughter to know that you have to depend on yourself. Sophia was tough enough to handle herself around the boys. Michonne was already showing her a few moves. Carol and Sophia would practice those moves though Carol always made it more of a game than practice.

Sophia and Carl were helping Christie and Merle finish her room. Christie was four months pregnant and Merle was openly advocating for a daughter. There were four bedrooms on this floor. The grandmas had told Carol that she would have another child someday. The extra room was just a guest room right now.

Carol gathered up the Sophia and Carl, and Merle sent Christie outside to get some fresh air. He was just going to finish hanging the curtains and then join Christie outside. Merle was still Merle but nobody doubted his devotion to Christie and Caleb.

The grandmas were waiting on the deck enjoying a warm spring day. The boys all hurled themselves in the direction of the family playground. Sophia followed them more sedately, but she was soon caught up in the swirling mass of children playing. Carol knew that Michael would take care of his little sister if the game got too rough.

Andrea watched Carl run as fearlessly as the others. She knew she was too protective of her only child but she just felt as if she needed to have her eye on him at all times. She wanted more children and so did Rick but it just didn't seem to be in the cards.

Grandma Lydia patted her shoulder. "That boy is fine out there. You need to move up here and let him run wild for a while. When are you coming home?"

There was a hint of yearning in the older woman's voice and Andrea put Lydia's hands in hers. "I am ready. The Georgia store is taking off, but Rick likes his job too much to leave right now. So we'll be staying for a while."

Carol knew that Andrea was not happy with the move to Georgia. Rick was working as a police chief in a town not too far from where he had grown up. His best friend Shane Walsh was a deputy sheriff in their home town and his wife Lori had dated Rick through high school and college. Lori and Rick had decided to take a "break" and she had started dating Shane not long after that. Rick had renewed his friendship with Shane and Lori since he moved back to Georgia a year ago and Andrea hadn't been happy about that.

Lori liked to confide her problems to Rick and that drove Andrea crazy. Shane loved Lori but he had wanted children and Lori had two miscarriages already. Carol had met them at a cook out last summer and she noticed that Shane was good with children and flirty with all the women. Carol just wanted Andrea and Rick to move to Adair. Andrea could work here as a lawyer or for Dixon Brothers.

Andrea wasn't working as a lawyer now. She was running the newest Dixon Brothers store and she had liked being the one in charge. She made more money than Rick and he occasionally hinted that if she became a fulltime homemaker they could adopt another child. That had infuriated Andrea who wanted another child but didn't want to give up her job. Rick and Andrea loved one another but there were cracks in the foundation.

Grandma Nancy asked, "How is the store doing?" Nancy had invested heavily in Dixon Brothers and had enjoyed the hefty profits it was bringing in. Their two stores in Adair and Lewisburg had expanded to five stores. The last three were in Tennessee, Ohio, and Georgia.

"The new store is doing fine. The first commandment is still true." Andrea recited Merle's first commandment, "There is profit in paranoia". Andrea went on, "The formula is holding true. The Georgia store is not in a city. It is close to an interstate in a rural setting. We hire local people who know how to fish and hunt. The prepper items are flying off the shelves even better than they were during the Y2K frenzy at the turn of the century and the online purchases have doubled in the last year."

The men came out with complaints about bad backs. Merle enlisted Daryl to help him make the steaks and Carol and Andrea made the potato salad while Christie and Michonne made the dessert. The grandmas were making the rolls.

They ate that evening on Merle's back deck. The mountains seemed to stretch on forever in the background and they sat that night beside the fire pit and talked. The grandmas had gone back to their house to rest. The children started drifting back from their adventures to nestle close to the parents and the world seemed at peace. Carol wanted to believe that the dire prophecies of the old ladies seemed impossible in such a perfect world, but she thought it best to be prepared for whatever came your way.

Andrea and Rick were staying with the grandmas. It was understood that the grandmothers wanted their house to go to Andrea. Both women were in their eighties and accepted that their time left was limited. They loved Andrea and wanted her to have a place at the Homestead. They were both concerned about her being so far away from them.

That night Carol put the children to bed while Daryl did a last minute check of the perimeter of the fence. The houses and barn were all heavily fenced. He went downstairs and checked everything in the basement and all the security cameras were working. He liked making sure that everyone was safe and he could access the cameras on every part of the compound from here.

Carol was upstairs in the new room getting ready for bed when Daryl came upstairs. He checked on Michael and Sophia who were soundly asleep before he went into the master bedroom. Carol was sitting on one of the armchair beside the western facing window and Daryl took a chair on the other side of the window.

"It is a lot bigger than the bedroom we had in Lewisburg". Daryl smiled as he said it. That old house was their first real home. Grandma Nancy had bought it and he spent four years fixing it up and they split the profits.

"How did we make it through the mess of renovation, two babies, your work at the store, and medical school?" Carol was still amazed that Daryl hadn't taken off for the woods and refused to come out until she finished school.

"Cause there isn't anything we can get through as long as we do it together." It was their mantra and though they had both been tested by the last seven years they still believed it to be true.

"I love the windows." Grandma Lydia had taken the stained glass windows from her old home and spread them out among the four houses. Jesse had found old designs that Robert McAllister had drawn but had never gotten them to do them. Jesse had left the army after four years and had retreated to the mountains. He has seen and done too much that haunted him and he needed the peace of the mountains to heal him. He had picked up those old designs and it kindled something in him. He took a stained glass class and with the help of the teacher he created a window for Lydia. Then another and another. Jesse had created two windows for this room. One faced the morning sun and it was a large tree with more than a few almost lime green leaves showing. Jesse had created the feeling of rain by adding glass crystals against the blue of the sky. There were flowers in the grass at the bottom of the glass. The one that faced the west was the same tree in autumn. The tree was a riot of color and leaves littered the ground underneath. The leaves echoed the colors of the sunset and they glowed in the evening sun.

Daryl nodded, "Jesse is still working on the dining room design. He has shown it to me and I know that you will like it."

"What is it? He told me that it wouldn't be finished for a long time, but that he would finish it sometime."

Daryl looked at the now dark window. "Don't tell the others. It is a four panel piece. The two dogwood trees in our front yard that everyone calls the two grandmothers? Jesse is making a window with four dogwood trees and they are all connected together like those two trees are. They represent you, Andrea, Michonne, and Christy. He won't finish it now because he thinks it represents that you four women are taking the place of the old ladies. That it would be bad luck or something."

Carol brushed back her quick tears, "Tell him I understand. That I hope that it never get finished."

"He is going to finish one for our anniversary and it can go in the living room. He is keeping that a secret but given that he has used trees in every other piece." Daryl shrugged his shoulders. "Are you ready for the big camping trip?"

"I hope so. Four days of backpacking with just you and our children. Sounds good."

Daryl shifted in his seat, "Have you thought about having another child? I ain't pushing the idea, but I wouldn't hate it either."

Carol knew Daryl well enough to know that he would love another child. She was finished with school and her residency. She and Christie had talked about adding another doctor to their staff if they got too busy. She had been thinking that she might like to have another child. "I love the idea. Let's get started right away."

"Tonight is as good as time as any. Do you wanna screw around?" Daryl came around behind her chair and rubbed the back of her neck. He bent and kissed the soft curls.

"You've been hanging out with Merle too much. That sounds more like him than you. You know that I love you, but I appreciate that you always treat me like your lover in bed. That I am not just your wife and the mother of your children, but that you see me separate from those roles. Like I am still your girl and never your property. Do you know what I mean?" Carol took one of his hands and kissed it. "I love you."

Daryl looked down at Carol. She was still facing away from him and she looked vulnerable from this angle. "You are still my girl. I wouldn't have traded not one moment of our marriage for another life. I don't know what our tomorrows will bring but I do know that I want you by my side. I love you, always have and always will. "

Carol stood up, "Yes".

"Yes?"

"I wanna screw around." Carol's voice was definite and she drew him toward her. She kissed him and said, "Go brush your teeth and don't forget to floss. I'll go check on the children and meet you in bed. Bring your "A" game."

Daryl laughed, "Just try to keep up, Carol."

Later they watched the moon come up and light up the spring window with its green leaves and flowers. Carol kissed Daryl's shoulder, "I kept up."

"You left me behind a few times. Four nights in a tent with two children. Can we drug them at bedtime?"

"No, we aren't going to give our children drugs so that they won't wake up while we are having sex. We'll wear them out during the day and they'll sleep through it. Probably better if we just move our sleeping bags outside too."

Daryl said, "I am still bringing the Benadryl. They might get stung by a bee or something. First night in our final home. Can we get a puppy?"

"Yes, you can have a puppy. What kind of puppy do you want, little boy". They had both decided to wait until they moved to the mountain.

"I want one that will be a guard dog, but still be good with children." Daryl moved his leg over hers. "We could try again for a baby."

Carol bit his shoulder, "Right now? Aren't you tired from lifting all those boxes?"

"Well, I thought that I would just lie there and let you do most of the work".

She giggled, "You have to make breakfast tomorrow morning." She shifted herself so that she was half lying over him. "Now prepare yourself to be amazed."

Daryl looked around at the moonlit room and at naked Carol lying in his arms, "Honey, I am amazed every day of my life. The stable boy wound up with the princess and that shit only happens in fairy tales."

AN

**I wanted a happy chapter and while most of it was giving information so that you would understand these characters when the ZA hits. There will be another time jump of seven years for the next chapter. There will be lots of action then.**

**Please review. **


	14. Boys Will Be Boys

**Another seven year time jump. This is the beginning of the "Turn" chapters. The group is separated and my chapters are going to focus on one group at a time. The first chapter will concentrate on the boys and we get a bit of Mistie. (Christie and Merle). So let the story move on.**

Boys Will Be Boys

Caleb, James, and Michael were ready to go but they knew they couldn't leave on their three day backpacking trip until Merle gave the last minute instructions. "We're leaving the truck at the trail head. You are not to drive home unless there is some emergency. You keep your sat phone charged up and you check in with us every morning, noon, and night. We'll be here three days from now to pick you up. Now don't do anything stupid." He gave all the boys and affectionate hug. He had a sudden twinge of fear for them, maybe they were too young to go out there. Maybe they should just go back with him and later the whole family could go. The trail head was more than fifty miles from home and they weren't even old enough to drive. He berated himself for being such a pussy. He and Daryl could survive in the woods from the time they were ten. These boys could survive three days by themselves.

Christie gave them a good bye kiss and that left the two "baby girls" of the family to give the boys a kiss. Caleb dropped his pack and picked up his baby sister Alia and have her a kiss and a hug. She returned the favor and said, "Caleb, I love you."

Caleb blinked back the sting in his eyes, "Behave yourself, squirt and stay out of my stuff". Alia grinned and hugged the other two boys.

James bent and kissed his sister Cara Ann. "Listen to Uncle Merle and Aunt Christie. I'll be back in five days and Mom and Dad will be back in couple of days." Cara Ann nodded. She smiled at James and hugged him goodbye.

Michael accepted all hugs and kisses from his family and swallowed the lump in his throat because his parents and sister were visiting Aunt Andrea and Uncle Rick in Georgia and weren't here to see him off. He missed them but he was excited about the camping trip too.

The boys picked up their backpacks and shifted the weight around and they waved goodbye as they started up the trail. They were lost in the trees in a matter of seconds and Merle and Christie stood silently watching them go. Merle noticed that Christie had a slight frown on her usually placid face, "They'll be fine. Those boys know how to handle themselves." He put his arm around her and hugged her close to him, "Now if we could just rid ourselves of the baby girls then I would have you all to myself".

She laughed at him and the frown left her face, "Let's go home and you can make lunch,"

Merle picked up the two girls who were looking after their brothers and looking woebegone. "Would you two girls like to eat a greasy, unhealthy fast food hamburgers and get a prize to go with it?" He grinned at Christie who gave him a look but said nothing.

Merle made up for it by making dinner and he kept pointing out the health benefits of the meal as they ate. The boys used the sat phone to check in and Alia and Cara chatted with their brothers for a bit. The boys promised to call the next morning. Merle and Christie took the girls to ride their ponies. A local boy named Elijah Wright helped keep up the farm and stables. He lived in the small cabin that Daryl and Merle lived in during the week and usually stayed with his parents on the weekend.

Merle and Elijah walked the perimeter that evening and everything seemed quiet on the mountain. He unlocked the gate that led to his house. It was dark enough for the solar landscape lights to come on and he could see Christie waiting for him on the porch. He lengthened his stride when he saw her outside. That odd sense of wrongness was back and he wanted to make sure that the people that he loved were tucked inside the house. He wished again that he hadn't let the boys go on this trip.

The boys were having a grand time. They had pushed up the trail with all the energy of three teenage boys let loose on their own could muster. They had found a good camp site close to a stream. Their tents were put up, the water filtration system was set up, and they went fishing. Michael used their tiny camp stove to fix dinner and every drop was eaten. It was time for weapons practice and to demonstrate their skills with different weapons.

Caleb's weapon of choice was a rifle. He was good with a pistol too, but Aunt Michonne was fond of reminding him that those weapons were only as good as number of bullets in them. He was practicing with a short sword. He was over six feet and could swing the sword with a lot of power. He wasn't as quick as James or Michael but he was much stronger.

Merle had allowed Caleb to bring a pistol and a box of ammo on this trip, but he had told his son that he wasn't to use it unless there was an emergency. He reminded his son that target practice was not an emergency. The pistol was to stay in the pack. Caleb left it there. His dad didn't play about stuff like that.

James brought out a longer sword though not as long as the one that his mother used. He was strong and agile and he liked to boast that his body was his best weapon. He had been in martial arts training since he could walk and he felt like he could take care of himself. He did like the long sword though and he moved a good distance away from the other two give himself room to move and swing over and over. He wanted to be as good as Michonne and he never let himself loaf in working out.

Michael used a cross bow like his father. He had packed plenty of bolts and he practiced short and long distances completely focused on his target. He had also packed several knives. He didn't trust the knives the way he did his crossbow but they usually landed close to his target with a satisfying thud. Michael wasn't as big as Caleb or as graceful as James, but he had the ability to shut the rest of the world out when he focused on his target. Michael had used the bow to hunt and he knew it was more difficult to bring now his prey than shooting a stationary target.

They worked until they were covered with sweat and then they stripped down and jumped into the cold mountain stream to cool down and clean up. They went to sleep that night like the tired boys that they were.

Merle was jarred awake early the next morning by a call from his source in Homeland Security. "Merle, don't have much time. Something got loose that should have stayed caged up. It's some sort of airborne virus. It came out of Fort Detrick and it is bad. Merle, you get it and you become a monster. You bite and claw at everything living and once you're bit or scratched then you become a monster too. Gotta be a head shot and we had a guy here die of a heart attack last night and he went monster too. I am sneaking out of her and going home. I think we're done here."

Merle had sudden overwhelming desire for a drink. He could taste the whiskey and feel the burn all the way to his belly. _Just one drink,_ he thought, _and I'll calm my nerves enough to handle this. Those boys are out in the fucking woods. Everyone else is in Georgia. There is just me and I am the one who can't handle the pressure. I am the one who gets drunk or high when the going gets tough._

"What is wrong? Merle, is somebody sick_?" _Christie got out of bed to stand beside him. Merle brought her close and knew that had he had been wrong about think that he was alone in this. He had Christie and together they would handle the pressure.

"Darling, I think the whole world is sick." They sat on the bed together and he told her everything he knew. Then he called the boys. He told them to pack some water and some snacks and go back to the trail head and drive home. Don't wait, he told them, and don't waste time. Kill anyone who tries to get stop you and that they may be attacked at any time by real life zombies who would infect them with a bite or a scratch.

Michael had answered the phone and he had the other two up and out within minutes. He made sure that they brought the truck keys and plenty of water. It felt strange to leave their stuff just sitting there but Merle had been insistent. The adrenaline flooding their system propelled the boys to move quickly and purposefully. Merle was not going to meet them. For the first time in their lives they were on their own and would have to depend on their own wits and strengths to get home.

They were at the trail head in a little over two hours. It was still early and they were relieved to see that there wasn't any other vehicles in the small parking area. Caleb drove and Michael got in the back seat with the weapons. James sat up front and tried the radio. The only station that they found was an emergency broadcast system advising everyone to shelter in place. All vehicular traffic was forbidden.

Caleb drove slowly. Michael could see that his hands were shaking and he handed his cousin a bottle of water, "Just have some water and a protein bar. Nothing can kill a Dixon, you know that."

James turned and smirked at Michael, "Not much comfort to a non-Dixon, but hey we're going to kick zombie ass and take names." Michael laughed and handed him some water and a protein bar and drank some water and a snack himself. He kept thinking that this was some elaborate nightmare and he would wake up soon.

Caleb seemed to be calming down and Michael pulled out his pistol and put in a clip. He handed it to Caleb, "The clip's in but the safety is on."

He handed James one of his knives, "I know you have a pocket knife but this is a little longer. I have two more. I am putting your katana where you can reach it with your left hand. Good thing you are a lefty."

They were beginning to breathe a little easier by the time they left the graveled road and entered a narrow paved road that would bring them to two lane road about ten miles away. Caleb had moved the pistol so that it rested between the seats where any of them could reach it. They met a couple of trucks coming at them at full speed and Caleb was barely able to get out of the way.

Things got worse as they came onto the two lane road that wound for forty miles through the mountains of North Carolina. Obviously, no one was obeying the shelter in place command or any other law. There were armed men and women standing around their houses staring at them with fearful eyes. There were few houses out this way but what was in all of their mind's was the fear that something would block their way home.

Caleb was driving through a little town when they saw their first zombie. He came staggering out from a side street and stepped out in the road in front of them. Caleb swerved a bit and hit it a glancing blow that threw it into the other lane. Michael looked back and saw that the zombie was still moving and struggling to crawl toward a man walking down the street.

He told the others. "I guess that a body shot won't do it. So if they look to be infected we have to hit the brain and if they die any way they go zombie on our ass."

They were slowed down for a car wreck when a big guy with a pistol came running toward their truck on the driver's side. Caleb had grabbed the pistol and somehow remembered to take the safety off. The guy stuck the gun at the window and ordered Caleb out, "Get outa the truck or I'ma going to blow your fucking head off."

Caleb held his left hand up in a conciliatory gesture, "I'll get out." He brought the pistol up with his right hand and shot the man. The big man fell back and Michael jumped out and grabbed the pistol and put a round through his head. Michael got back in and Caleb accelerated around the wreck almost hitting another man standing there.

Michael tried to control his panic. He had just shot someone and stole their pistol. You went to jail for doing that. He was thirteen years old and he had just killed someone and he knew he might have to kill more before they got home.

James said, "Give me the pistol, Mike. There might be someone running up on this side."

Michael checked the chamber, "We got five bullets left so we had better be careful. Leave it where I can get to it. Someone jumps on the back of the truck and I'll have to use it."

The next few miles were a blur but it was just woods on both sides of the road as they crossed a mountain. The road coming down on the other side seemed clear and they were half way home. There was another town coming up and they automatically tensed.

Caleb handed Michael his pistol, "I am not stopping for anything if I can help it. You take the pistol."

James grabbed the other pistol, "I have this side." Caleb barreled through the town and swerving his way onto parking lots when he saw that the street ahead was blocked. Caleb figured that they were safer if they kept moving. Stores were being looted and they could hear gunfire. There were more of the monsters roaming around and Michael knew that he had to watch the side that Caleb was on. One of them might lurch out at any second and bite or scratch Caleb. There was just so many people running and screaming that you couldn't tell who was a monster and who was just trying to get away from one.

Caleb drove onto a street that paralleled the main street. There was less traffic but there were monsters coming toward them and Caleb went through another parking lot and then back to the street. James had fired at a monster lurching their way and he just kept coming at them.

Caleb finally was able to get clear of the business district and back on open road though they were driving through a residential area. Houses meant people and people meant monsters. "I'm only going to shoot the ones that are coming right at us. We don't have the ammo to go after them all." James had used up two bullets in the town and that only left three in the pistol.

Michael checked his watch. "We've been on the road for an hour already and it took us two to get out of the woods. Another hour and we can be home."

Michael noticed that there were more zombies in or around the road now. If they clumped up on the road they might not be able to get through. "If we go another five or six miles there is a turnoff that goes out to an old logging road. We can take that road and walk the rest of the way through the woods."

Caleb said, "I'm taking the truck home. It will take hours to get home that way. We shouldn't leave the truck". He recognized that the truck offered the only protection that they had.

"Michael is right. We might not get through Adair. It's getting worse. We take the turnoff. Mike and his dad know every inch of the woods around McAllister Mountain. We can use our weapons out there. It will take longer but I would feel safer off this road." James was thinking about Adair and the bridge construction that was slowing traffic before this happened.

Caleb drove the truck into the other lane to miss three monsters. He hated the thought of leaving the truck, but he had time to think about the way ahead. They had barely made it through the last town and being out in the woods sounded safer than this hellish road. "Mike, just tell me before we get to the turnoff."

"Look out for that stalled car, Caleb. We still have a ways to go." Michael was looking around the truck to see if there was anything they could use. They had water and some protein bars. He had his crossbow and a knife. They probably should travel as light as possible.

Caleb was starting down a winding mountain road when he saw the jackknifed tractor trailer in front of him. It blocked both lanes and there wasn't enough room to drive past it. "Looks like a great day for a hike. Lead on Macduff".

Michael handed them their packs. "The driver may be a monster now." He loaded his crossbow and the other boys got their swords ready. They ran in a line past the truck and saw the driver trying to get the door open but they didn't slow down. They were off the hill before they met a car. The driver slowed down and stuck his head out, "Need a lift."

Caleb shouted, "There's a tractor trailer overturned up there. Better turn around." The boys kept running. A minute or so later the driver blew his horn at them as he passed them. Michael noticed that he had his hazard lights on. He could see their turnoff ahead.

The boys were exhausted before they got to the turnoff but they kept on going. There was a couple of miles of paved road and they passed a few houses with people standing out front with guns. They avoided eye contact and just jogged past. The road changed to gravel and then to dirt and they slowed down to a walk.

Finally, Caleb called a halt and they stopped to drink another bottle of water and to eat a protein bar. Michael checked his watch and was surprised at how quickly the day was passing. He knew where they were. It was time to get moving but it would be slow moving for most of the way.

They had only been walking a few minutes when they heard the sound of a vehicle coming down the hill. A pile of brush provided cover and they scurried behind it. It was an old truck with two guys in it and they waited until it was safely past to get back on the logging road.

"Those guys in the truck might not know. They could have been checking for ginseng or hunting out of season." James felt sorry for whoever was in the truck. They might never get home today but he hadn't jumped out to warn them either. His world had shrunk today to just the three of them. They were at war and his band of brothers consisted of Caleb and Michael. Everyone else was the enemy in the war.

Eventually the road ran out and the walk through the woods was brutal. They had been running scared all day with little to eat and walking up the steep terrain had taken what little energy they had left.

Michael led the way. He skirted some steep hills that might have been quicker because he was afraid of a fall that might slow them down. He was calmer now. This was his territory and he understood it. They were making decent progress and they would be home soon.

It was late in the day when they got to the top of McAllister Mountain. The pastures seemed as smooth as glass to walk on after pushing up steep hills. Too tired to hurry they trudged along with their weapons. They passed a barn and then the houses of the homestead came into sight. They were home. Everything was locked up but they stood at the gate and waved at the security camera.

Merle had been sitting on the front porch by himself. Elijah had gone home and had never returned. Christie was keeping the girls occupied with a dvd. He hadn't gone after the boys this morning because he couldn't leave Christie and the girls alone on the mountain. Merle had thought that they would have been home by noon at the latest. He was second guessing every decision he had made that day.

Then Merle saw Caleb at the gate with James and Michael and he hurried let them in. He hugged Caleb and then the other two. He locked the gate and walked with the boys back to the house. He could see Christie come out on the porch and she flew down with Cara and Alia right behind her.

Everyone ate sitting on the porch that evening and they saw Elijah trudge up the hill. Merle went down to check to see if he was bit or scratched. No one said anything when Merle checked the pistol at his side before he left.

"My parents and sisters are gone. They had been bitten and I had put them down. Don't have anywhere to go." Elijah looked at Merle. "Don't get any ideas but I am going to take my clothes off and you can see that I haven't been bitten or scratched." He stripped and turned around so that Merle could check him out.

Merle let him in then. "Come on in, you have a place with us. We need you and you look like you need us."

The boys told their story and Elijah told his. Merle stood so that he could get a good view and listened. Three boys had gone into the woods yesterday morning and now those three boys were young men. Their boyhood was gone now. They weren't going to make the football team or walk Mary Sue to class. That was something that boys did. The world had changed overnight and they would never be boys again.

**AN**

"**Lead on Macduff" is a misquotation, but it sounded right there. I always thought it was odd that we had all those thirty something people in the group and only two kids. So I added some young men to the mix.**

**The next chapter will be what happened in Georgia.**

**Review? Please, I love to hear from you. **


	15. No Good Choics

No Good Choices

Carol was frustrated with the whole Andrea/Rick/Lori/Shane mess. She and Daryl had driven the company Suburban from McAllister Mountain with Sophia just to help Andrea pack for a move to the mountain. Andrea and Rick's marriage had been shaky for years, but the last nine months had wrecked it. Carol wished she had obeyed her first instinct and left Sophia at home but Sophia wanted to come along for Carl's sake.

Sophia and Carl were close; they were always texting, chatting on line, or actually talking to each other on their phones. Carl was tired of his parent's constant arguments and he was ready to move to North Carolina. He and Sophia had packed everything he thought he would need in three boxes. Carol helped them put the boxes into the Suburban and then they went on a farewell walking tour of their neighborhood. She squared her shoulders preparing to help Andrea get through this the way Andrea had been there for her fourteen years ago.

Michonne and Andrea were in the master bedroom going through Andrea's closet. Jesse and Michonne had flown down yesterday in the company plane to help out and to bring Sophia and Carl back with them tomorrow.

Andrea was laughing at something Michonne had said but there were tears in her eyes. Carol knew that Andrea still had feelings for Rick but she was ready to move on. "Stop playing around. You two were supposed to be packing".

Andrea was flippant," I am just taking my personal things. Rick can have the furniture and the house. I just want out. I have everything I need on the mountain." Carol's grandma's were both gone now and Andrea was moving to the home that they had left her.

Carol nodded, "Let's pack your clothes that you want to take and Daryl and Jesse can take the rest to Goodwill. Rick can sort out what he wants later."

Andrea snorted, "Rick doesn't know what he wants. He says that he doesn't want a divorce, but he runs to Lori every time she has a hiccup. I am more done with that than the Thanksgiving turkey."

Later Daryl and Jesse came back from dropping the boxes off at Goodwill with three pizzas and some beer. They decided to eat on the back deck and Carl and Sophia were getting the paper plates and Dixie cups. Carol thought_, this time tomorrow we'll be eating dinner on the mountain and Andrea and Carl will be with us_.

Rick came home from work and Andrea invited him to eat with them. He was still living in the house until the divorce was final. Rick, Jesse, and Daryl sat on one side of the deck. Sophia and Carl sat in the middle. Michonne, Andrea, and Carol sat on the other side as far away from Rick as they could get.

Carol could see the sadness in Rick's eyes. He wasn't a bad man but he had hurt Andrea over and over again by staying involved with Lori and Shane. He was always trying to patch those two up and in the end it hadn't worked. Shane was a skirt chaser and he had chased the wrong skirt and her husband had gotten wind of it. He came after Shane with a gun and Shane wound up in a coma. Rick had been there holding Lori's hand and trying to help her every step of the way. Finally, Shane's doctor had warned them that Shane might never come out of the coma. Lori was devastated, and Rick called Andrea and told her that he wasn't coming home again that night.

Rick had taken Lori home and held her while she cried her eyes out. Sometime that night he offered more than comfort to the almost widow. They had sex and both Rick and Lori agreed never to let that happen again. Shane survived but took months to recover. Lori was pregnant and it was probably Rick's baby. Andrea found out and she started divorce proceeding immediately. Carl was barely speaking to Rick now.

Shane wasn't happy about it, but he had told Rick that Lori's baby was going to be Shane's baby. Lori almost lost the baby a couple of times and the doctors were scheduling a C-section because they didn't think Lori could have the baby naturally. The baby was due in a couple of weeks. Rick was worried about Lori and the baby and Carol felt sorry for everyone involved.

Carol figured that Andrea still loved Rick but she didn't like him very much right now. Rick always tried to do the right thing but it always seemed to wind up with Andrea being hurt.

Rick was still living in the house. Andrea had booted him to the den months ago. Rick spent the evening talking to Daryl and Jesse and trying to talk to Carl who continued to ignore him.

Carol put Sophia to bed early. She and Daryl were sleeping in the master bedroom while they were there and Andrea and Sophia were sleeping in the guest room. Andrea had joked that she knew the two of them would just be all crabby if they were separated into twin beds, but Carol knew that Andrea had moved out of the master bedroom when she found out about Lori and Rick.

Carol was pacing the floor when Daryl came out of the bathroom. She had become increasingly wound up for the last twenty four hours. Daryl had talked her out of calling Merle this morning and asking him to cancel the boy's camping trip. "Let's go home tonight." Carol wanted nothing more than follow the biblical warning to gather her family together and flee to the mountains.

Daryl frowned, "Carol, it's late and we'll leave at first light in the morning. Jesse won't fly the plane back until daylight anyway. You've been jittery for days now. We'll go in the morning. We'll be home by tomorrow afternoon."

Carol burst out, "We could be there before daylight. Daryl, I keep having these visions and they frighten me."

Daryl put his arms around her. "We'll go before daylight, and I'll go talk to Jesse now."

Carol took a shower and packed their things. She hoped that she could convince Daryl to leave very early. She went to Andrea's room and asked her to call her sister Amy who was coming with her boyfriend to visit Andrea in her new home. Andrea laughed and called her sister who was already in the mountains camping. Amy promised that she and her boyfriend would leave in the morning. Carol took the phone and warned Amy that she should start early and watch what was going on around her. They were camping in mountains west of Adair and Carol told her to take the Culloden Mountain Road and not the highway. It might take longer but it didn't go through Adair. They could catch the road up the mountain off of that road.

Jesse was talking to Rick on the back deck when Daryl and Carol came down to talk to Jesse about an even earlier start than what they had planned. Jesse had grown up with the grandmas and their visions and he took what Carol had to say seriously. He went upstairs to make sure that Michonne was packed.

Carol was watching Rick as she talked. She knew that he had a disdain for anything mystical. He was pretty much the stereotypical cop. "Just the facts, ma'am" kinda guy. She expected him to be scornful but he was listening intently.

"You'll get Andrea and Carl out in the morning?"

"Jesse is going to fly both Sophia and Carl home at daybreak. He will land at the private airstrip on the outside of Adair. Jesse has a vehicle there and he and Michonne will get them home."

"What is going to happen?"

Carol held her hands up in a helpless gesture. "Something is going to make people act violently. I don't know why or how long it will last but from what grandma Nancy told me they will bite and eat anything that moves. She said that once you are bitten or scratched then you turn into whatever they are. The police will be overrun and infected in no time. It's in motion now and we can't do anything but warn people and hope that they will listen."

"I should go to work and call everyone in to help handle it." Rick was overwhelmed. He wanted to go with Andrea tomorrow. He wanted to go be a leader at work. He wanted to help Lori and Shane because Lori was due to deliver in two weeks. He turned to Carol, "Will you take Lori and Shane with you? Please."

Carol knew that Shane was now permanently disabled. He could walk and talk normally now but he was never going to be as quick and strong as he was. Shane Walsh had emerged from his coma with a determination to be a better husband to Lori and wanted to be a good father to their child. That innocent baby didn't deserve to die and for a minute the mad visions that were haunting her slid away and she saw Andrea holding a baby and Rick leaning over her shoulder smiling. "Call them and get them here early in the morning. They can follow us home."

Rick talked to Shane who thought that he was crazy, but Lori had gotten on the telephone and she promised that they would be there before daybreak. Carol went upstairs to face Andrea. She didn't know what the morrow would bring but telling Andrea that Lori and Shane were coming with them took all the courage she could muster.

Andrea did not take it well, but even a wrathful Andrea understood that the baby was an innocent bystander in this. She packed again and this time she was now to one bag.

Carol never went to bed. She just kept packing things that they needed. Food, water, weapons, clothing, and she made Rick go get the family backpacking gear. Rick had a pistol and shotgun at the house. There were boxes of shells for both. Rick, Daryl, and Carol went through everything in the house that looked useful for survival.

A very pregnant Lori and Shane were there before dawn. They had packed hastily and were prepared to drive to the mountains. Carol looked at Lori and knew that she would not be able to travel that distance without stopping continually. "Jesse, take Lori with you and Michonne. Carl and Sophia must go with you too. I know that you can't take more than that."

Jesse agreed, "I might be able to handle one more."

Michonne said, "Take Shane in my place. I have weapons and I can use them. Shane won't be much good if things go to shit." Jesse started to protest but he saw the determination in Michonne's face.

They all left together and drove to the private airport. It was barely light outside. Carol hugged her baby girl and prayed that she would see her again at home soon. Andrea and Rick were both hanging onto Carl. Jesse warned them, "I just go a message that there is no fly order today. I either go now or I might not get out at all."

They waited outside the vehicle until the plane was airborne and out of sight. Then they took their places inside the Suburban. Rick drove and Daryl took the other front seat with a shotgun. Michonne sat behind Daryl with her katana in the cargo area directly behind her. Andrea sat in the middle and Carol sat by the other window with a pistol.

Rick tried the radio and they listened to the emergency broadcast in silence. They had tried to call Merle and Christy early this morning but no phones seemed to be working. Rick was a good driver and they were soon on a highway that would take them to mountains eventually. The sun was coming up and it was a beautiful morning with the mists rising above the pine forests.

They had been driving for less than an hour when they saw the first sign of the lurching monsters that Michonne referred to as "Walkers" because they couldn't seem to travel much faster than a walk. The road was becoming clogged and Rick suddenly swerved the vehicle off the highway. "There is something blocking the road up there and we're going to have to find another way."

Daryl took the map out. "I think we better get off of highways and we might have to find some more weapons. Take this road for another five miles or so and we'll find a secondary road that goes in the right direction. We need to find a gas station and fill the tank."

They found a convenience store that was open though the owner had a gun on the counter. Rick filled the tank while the women collected paper plates, plastic silverware, cups, bread, water, and cheese at the store. Andrea grabbed a disposable cooler and some ice. She grabbed some soft drinks and some wine. Carol picked up some very overpriced over the counter medicines and some questionable pasta and some canned chicken. Michonne grabbed an armload of candy and added it to the pile. Andrea picked up all the tampons and pads. Rick got peanut butter and crackers and Daryl took all the jerky that he could find. Daryl paid for it all in cash and Carol waited until Daryl had gone outside though she could see him waiting for her just outside the door "You need to take everything you need and just go home. If you have anyone that you care about, go home to them."

The man behind the counter sighed, "You all got any guns?"

She nodded, "We have a couple of pistols and a shotgun."

"Here take this." He brought out a pistol and two boxes of shells from behind the counter. "I have more weapons at home. I live less than a mile away and I think you have a long way to go. Do you need anything else?"

Carol shook her head, "Thank you for the pistol and the shells. It was very kind of you."

"Get on out of here, you got miles to go before you sleep."

She smiled, "And promises to keep. Goodbye."

Daryl had purchased a couple of gas cans at the store and had filled them before they left. Carol could smell the gasoline in the cargo hold and she put the window down a little to get some fresh air. She saw a walker head their way. Blood was still dripping from his mouth and she knew that her grandmother's visions were coming true. She put the window down and aimed the pistol at the walker but it fell down before it got any closer.

They spent their morning trying to find a road that led to the mountains that wasn't blocked by stalled cars and by walkers staggering around. Carol saw walkers that had visible bites and ones that didn't. They had managed to evade them so far but by noon they were too exhausted to do anything but look for a safe place to stay until things settled down.

Daryl spotted a for sale sign on a house up a side road and he asked Rick to check it out. The house looked empty. He and Rick opened the door and found a clean empty house. They parked the car behind the house and the women got out.

Everyone grabbed the food and water and went inside. They spent that day huddled in the house and going over maps. The electricity had been on when they first got there but had flickered three times and went out. Carol used Rick's camp stove to cook dinner and they ate chicken and pasta on paper plates with plastic forks.

Afterward they drank wine out of a plastic cup and talked. Carol had been gathering information all day about walkers. A few had wandered by in the afternoon and she had watched Daryl and Rick put them down. Daryl had used his crossbow and later Rick had killed one using his pistol. She began, "Walkers don't die unless there is major trauma to the brain. They don't have speech, good motor control, or any human emotions that I saw. They just want to feed on flesh. They react to sound and we have to be careful using anything that makes a sound. Michonne and Daryl use weapons that are quiet. The best way to impact the human brain would be to stick something into the brain through an eye socket."

Rick had been sipping his wine and listening, "Carol's right. I used my pistol and we had three more on our doorstep. We'll have to sometimes but we need some long bladed knives or machetes or something like that. Another thing I want to say is that we know to look out for the walkers but we can't trust people either. I called in early this morning and told my police officers to go home and protect their families. We have three desirable women here and they'll every shitbag out there with a gun is going to try to take what they want. We need to keep away from other groups too. If they find out Carol is a doctor, they'll never let her go. So keep that quiet."

Andrea was next, "We aren't going to get home tomorrow, or the next day, but we'll get there if we work together. I'm worried about the Suburban. It is big and safe but it isn't very maneuverable. We will have to go join the looters to get what we need."

Michonne drank a big swallow of wine and held her cup out for a refill. "The shit has hit the fan. We only have each other. We don't need to kill every walker in Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina to get home. We just have to kill the ones who are trying to stop us from getting home. I can do some damage with my katana but I only have so many swings before I collapse. I am going to run every chance that I get."

All their eyes turned to Daryl and Carol knew that he and Michonne were their best chance to making it home. Daryl was tough. He wouldn't hesitate to act and that might be their fatal flaw. She had been trained to save lives and Andrea and Rick had been trained to follow ethical codes. Michonne's training had taught her to act swiftly and decisively to put the threat down.

Daryl looked at them, "Forget all those societal codes that this world had beat into you. They ain't gonna be no cops coming to save our ass. Don't think the army is coming either. Everything you said was true, and the only thing I can add is this. The tribe comes first. Anything that endangers the tribe must be eliminated. Everything we got, somebody wants. They want our food, our vehicle, our weapons, and our women. They are going to kill me and Rick to get what they want. All that training with weapons won't mean shit if you won't use it. I am going to do what I need to do to keep you alive and so will all of you."

Daryl and Carol could took first watch. There was a high deck off the living room and they watched from out there. Daryl had his crossbow and Carol had a short sword. She had packed it thinking that they could work out with Andrea while they were there.

They didn't talk. Carol wasn't sure what the protocol was for being on watch but she was sure it didn't include chatting about your day. She felt exposed out here but she wasn't going to let Daryl do this alone. She sat close enough to him that she could lean on him from time to time.

Michonne and Andrea relieved them. Daryl trusted Michonne to know how to protect herself in any situation and Andrea seemed determined to be useful.

Daryl put one of the landscape solar lights in the house so that they could find their way to the bedrooms. He and Carol curled up close to each other on the carpet. Daryl whispered, "I'm sorry that I didn't listen to you last night."

"Jesse couldn't go until it got daylight. We took the time to pack what we needed. Don't dwell on that. I think they made it home. Don't think it was easy, but I get the feeling that Jesse got everyone back on the mountain in one piece."

Daryl kissed her. "Get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day." He rubbed her back until she went to sleep and they both slept until morning.

AN

**I needed this chapter to establish the groups. I will write of Jesse's adventures another time, but rest assured that his group made it to McAllister Mountain that day.**

**I would love a review. Thank you for reading.**


	16. Moving Like Pond Water

**Moving Like Pond Water – Moving so slowly that a unique term is required to describe it (Source-Military Terms) This is day two of the ZA.**

**Moving Like Pond Water**

Carol handed out water and cheese sandwiches for lunch. Rick had parked the Suburban behind a clump of pine trees on a little knoll. They had a view of the narrow two lane road that they were traveling on, but they didn't want to try to eat out in the open. Daryl was eating turned around from the car facing the woods.

It seemed to Carol that time was moving faster than usual, but that they weren't getting anywhere very quickly. They had eaten breakfast at dawn and started out six hours ago but they had spent the morning retracing their route when something got in their way and something kept getting in their way. Either a herd of walkers or some sort of traffic jam would block the road and they would have to turn around.

Michonne stared out at the road and said to no one in particular, "We gotta get our shit together." There was a silent chorus of agreement in all of their nods.

Daryl shifted his weight and announced, "We need gasoline."

Carol piped in, "More food and water, and we really need toilet paper, soap, and some larger pans. The water filtration system will provide water to drink but it's slow, and if we can get to a pharmacy we should get some antibiotics."

Michonne stretched herself like a cat, "We need to get some weapons. A farmer's store would have some things that we could use. We need a bolt cutter. We are going to have to start gathering things from stores or houses." It went unspoken that they were going to be out here awhile.

Andrea found herself watching Rick and that annoyed her but she spoke up, "There is food in gardens and we should get what we can. Daryl can hunt for some meat and we can make some sort of stew. I think all of us need to kill some walkers too. Maybe if we can find some wandering on their own we can take turns. We all have to know how to do it."

Rick said, "You're right, Andrea. I see one wandering down the road now. I am gonna hit the horn and she'll walk this way. You grab something and I'll walk you down to meet it."

Andrea grabbed a wooden stick that Daryl had whittled a sharp end on during the morning ride. It wasn't too long, only about five feet or so and she felt like she could control it.

Rick and Andrea walked to meet the walker who had headed their way as soon as Rick hit the horn. Michonne was worried about Andrea, but played it cool, "The family that slays together, stays together."

Carol moved beside her and took her hand, "Andrea will do all right. Rick will be backup."

Andrea's first move was a clumsy push at the walker's face that didn't stop the walker from moving closer to her. Rick lifted his pistol but Andrea motioned him back. She stepped back herself and then lifted the wooden stick again and this time she shoved it hard into the walker's eyeball. The walkers seemed to hesitate for seconds and then it fell down. Andrea jumped back away from it. Rick waited a moment and then gave Andrea a thumbs up.

Michonne drove the vehicle down to meet them and Carol and Daryl walked down. "I need to do that too, maybe we should all take the rest of the day and just work at learning how to put them down. We could get swarmed at any time." Carol spoke softly.

Daryl sighed, "I was hoping that you and Andrea wouldn't have to fight."

"I think we'll need all of us working together. Do you think my short sword will work?"

The short sword would work and took a couple of hours of practice. Michonne was a graceful killing machine with her katana. Daryl could use the spear or his crossbow. Rick could use the spear but he wanted to mount a knife on it. Andrea was gaining confidence with the spear. Carol could use the sword and a spear.

They decided to risk going through a little town. They bypassed an already looted supermarket and found a farm supply store. There were tools there that they could modify to use. A good offering of knives was on display and they took the larger ones. Carol found trail mix, jerky, and some sturdy clothes. Daryl found bolt cutters and a tube that could be used to siphon gasoline.

They went through the place quickly as possible and found walkers out on the parking lot when they got out there. Daryl used his crossbow, Michonne her katana, Rick a metal pole with a sharp point, Andrea the wooden spear, and Carol her sword. They got out without anyone being hurt but Carol figured it was only because it was a relatively small group.

"We need to spread out a little more, Michonne needs more room. Maybe in a circle so walkers can't come in on our backs." Daryl had taken the bag of cleaning rags that Andrea had picked up and was cleaning his bolts.

"We still need to look for a grocery store. Hey, how about a dollar store? We'll have to be frugal with our dollars now that the US mint is non-operational." Andrea was trying to be funny and Michonne and Rick had chuckled. Michonne had grabbed the driver's seat and Rick had taken her spot.

Carol was thinking about the formation they had automatically jumped into back there. Daryl had been on the end, she had been to his right, then Michonne in the center, then Andrea, and then Rick. It really was the best grouping. Michonne's weapon covered a lot of territory. She and Andrea were the two weakest but they were buttressed between the Michonne and Daryl or Michonne and Rick. It was time to check your ego at the door, she wasn't as strong as the Big Three but she could do her part.

"Let's pull the vehicle close to the door and leave a couple of people to guard it. It's not just the geeks we have to worry about. Somebody might want our ride." Rick wiped his hands as clean as he could get them and took a drink of water.

They found a dollar store and went in even if it had been looted. Rick, Daryl, and Michonne cleared the store and by the time they got back Carol and Andrea had put down three geeks. The first one together and the other two on their own. Michonne and Rick stayed outside while Daryl and the two women went through the store. Andrea went down one aisle and got toothpaste, soap, razors, shampoo, wash cloths, tampons, pads, and some towels. She grabbed some light blankets and met Carol who had scarfed some more paper plates and a couple of pans. Carol also had filled her cart several bottles of bleach, all the batteries that had been left behind, and some battery operated lanterns and flashlight.

Daryl had grabbed candles, fire starters, a small oil lamp and a bottle of lamp oil. He also found four one use barbecues. He had found rubber gloves and a child's swimming pool. Daryl had several boxes of extra arge trash bags. He had grabbed some underwear and socks for him and Rick but figured that he would let Carol and Andrea get their own. He found some canned meat on the floor and another jar of peanut butter.

Carol went through the medicines and took as much as she thought they would need. She left the rest for the next desperate person. She laughed at Andrea who was looking a little desperate in the clothing section. Carol grabbed t-shirts of all sizes, some shorts and sweat pants for both men and women. Andrea grabbed socks and underwear. She grabbed some flip flops too.

Rick and Michonne had an impressive pile of walkers on the parking lot when they got back. Michonne helped them load while Daryl and Rick brought down walkers. Michonne laughed at the swimming pool and Daryl had warned, "Keep that up, and you're not getting a bath."

The drive out of town was scary. The Walker Welcome Wagon blocked the street that they had taken on the way in. Michonne was able to find side streets that paralleled the main streets and eventually they were through the town.

They decided to find a place to stay for the night. Michonne drove about ten miles out of town. It was another ten miles or so until they went through any kind of town. This was rural Georgia and that was a good place to be.

Daryl and Rick went through the farmhouse and cleared the two teenage walkers inside. They dragged them outside and Daryl put their bodies in front of each door and covered them with their own blankets.

Carol was horrified, but she understood. These things did not feed off of dead flesh. The smell was bad but it might mask the smell of the living. Daryl washed his hands in a bleach/water solution and went hunting and Andrea and Carol went through the family garden to gather fresh vegetables.

Daryl came back two rabbits that he had skinned and cleaned in the woods using a plastic bag to bring the meat back. He washed his hands in the bucket of creek water that Carol had put the bleach in. "We can drink that water if we strain it first. Put about five drops of bleach to cold or cloudy water for each quart. Three drops to clear water."

Carol nodded, "I found a large washtub and Michonne and Rick filled it with creek water. I thought we could each take a bucket full. Rick filled up the swimming pool too and it has bleach in it."

Daryl carefully kissed her mindful of their mutual blood splatter gore. "I'ma gonna wash up and put on some clean underwear. I'll let you know if there is too much bleach in the water by my manly screams."

Carol teased, "We need someone tough like you to try it out first. Why don't we grill the rabbits and the vegetables. It will be faster."

"We'll take the grill away from the house and eat out there. Just let me get cleaned up first. Let me pour this water from the swimming pool into those extra buckets. You wanna take a shower with me?"

"Let me grab some clothes from my bag and I'll meet you in the barn."

Michonne rolled her eyes, "Seriously, you two are gonna go fool around in the hayloft? I'll keep watch but don't take all day. I want to clean up too."

Carol went through their bags. They still had some clean clothes and they could wash out their old dirty clothes and hang them up to dry. It took Daryl two trips of get four buckets of water and the swimming pool to the barn. Carol brought another bucket of water, wash rags, soap, shampoo, a towel, and their clothes.

Daryl shut the barn door after they got everything inside. They stripped their clothes off and took one bucket and washed themselves from head to toe. After that they stepped into the swimming pool and Daryl took one bucket and poured part of it over her hair and used the shampoo to wash it. Then he rinsed it with the rest of the water. The combination of a wet naked Carol and the warmth of the barn had him rock hard by the time he was finished. He kissed her but she pushed him back, "Not yet."

He bent down and she poured enough water to get this hair wet and she soaped his hair slowly. Daryl growled, "Cock tease". She bent and kissed his shoulder. "You are so wrong about that." She ran the rest of the water slowly down his head making sure she rinsed his hair and as much of him as possible. She kissed him then and he slid his tongue in and put his hands on her breasts kneading them and tugging at the nipples. Her hands were on his ass pulling him closer when she said, "Not yet".

They washed each other with the soapy shampoo water in the pool and Daryl took the last bucket and poured it over them slowly to rinse the soap off. They got out of the pool and shared the towel to dry off with. Daryl looked at her, "Now?"

She grinned at him and Daryl knew that he loved her more than he wanted her, but right now it was time to enjoy a naked Carol.

Daryl had been looking for a place and there was an old barrel over against one wall. He picked Carol up and she put her legs around his waist and he bent and got the towel. He carried her to the barrel and put the towel over the top of the barrel and put her on it.

He kissed her again and then kissed his way down to her center. Daryl slid his tongue into her and felt her hands go to his wet hair. She was wet and warm and she gave a low moan. He slowed himself down until she was begging, "Now, really now is good". He entered her then and found that place that was just theirs. It didn't matter where it was as long as he was with Carol. He moved to her need and kept going until he heard her muttered, "Oh, God" and felt that clench around him that was signaled her release. She gave one final jerk and relaxed in his arms and he let himself finish.

They held each other for a bit. The dust motes in the evening sun filtering through the barn falling upon them. They cleaned themselves again and dressed. Daryl poured the water out and Carol combed her hair out with her fingers.

Andrea was waiting to take the next bath. She looked at them and shook her head, "Can't take you two anywhere. You both look so damn glowy. Now help me carry my water and go fix dinner."

They help carry the water and they fixed dinner on the other side of the garden. Andrea, then Michonne, and then Rick got cleaned up. The three of them cleaned everything up and washed out the towels and hung them up to dry in the barn by the time dinner was ready.

Dinner was set up on a picnic table. Daryl had brought over some chairs that had been on the deck and everyone ate until there was nothing left. They finished the last bottle of wine as they talked over tomorrow's schedule.

Rick and Daryl went on a perimeter stroll. Rick threatening to make Daryl kill every walker that they found because he didn't want to get dirty. Daryl had sighed, "Get some water ready, Carol, we may need to take another shower."

Everyone laughed and Rick who had more than his share of that last bottle said, "Hey, I'll kill them if Andrea will take a shower with me."

Everyone but Andrea laughed. She snorted, "I'll get the water ready, Rick, and I'll decide how much bleach I put in it."

Rick held his hands up, "You would blind your son's father?"

Andrea smirked, "Your eyes weren't going to be my target."

Rick winced but said, "I'll take my chances, Andy."

Carol remembered that Rick's favorite nickname for Andrea was "Andy." Andrea's face had softened when he called her that.

The three women packed the vehicle when they got finished. They more or less would be sleeping in the clothes and they just left out what they would need in the morning. Breakfast was going to be peanut butter sandwiches and they made those and put them in a plastic bag.

Michonne said innocently, "Rick's shower must have been a good one. He was quite chipper at dinner. Not as chipper as Daryl and Carol Hot Pant but maybe it was the wine."

"Some of us know that two can shower more quickly together. We were just saving time." Carol smiled. She and Daryl were just being good citizens of the ZA.

Andrea knew she might as well take the ribbing. "Rick jerked off in the shower. He was too damn chipper afterwards for it to be anything else."

"I know I am going where angels fear to tread, but he does love you, Andrea. I know that you still love him and considering that the world has officially gone to hell, well, think about forgiving him." Carol folded the last of her clothes in the bag and put it in the vehicle not quite daring to look at Andrea.

Michonne said, "He might be the last man left. Carol isn't going to share her favorite means of recreation with you. Christie owns Merle's balls and we all know it. There is Shane, but ewww. And girl, I love you like a sister, but if you ever look at Jesse the way you still look at Rick I am going to cut you."

They were still giggling like girls at a slumber party when Daryl and Rick came back. They decided to sleep in a room upstairs that opened up to a deck that faced the road. Michonne said that that she would take the first watch and she thought she could do it by herself, Rick could take the second, and Daryl the third.

Carol and Daryl made sure the doors were barricaded and then went upstairs to the room off the deck. Andrea and Rick had moved the bed out so that there was more room to stretch out. Andrea had found a linen closet and had put some clean blankets on the floor. One bed for Carol and Daryl. One bed for her and one for Rick.

Carol and Daryl snuggled close together and went to sleep. The French door was open to the deck and Michonne was sitting on a chair just outside on the deck. Soon they were asleep. Rick had a timer on his watch and it buzzed when it was his time to go on watch.

Michonne came in and settled down on the blanket. Carol had woken up when Rick had gone out on the deck and hadn't gone back to sleep when Andrea got up and went out to sit beside him. "Do you think they made it to the mountain?"

Rick looked out at the fireflies and the stars, "Jesse is a good pilot and he is an expert at anything military. They were coming in to that private airport on Culloden Mountain Road. Sophia and Carl aren't your typical American kids who only know how to fight using controllers. Michonne has been working with Sophia since she was seven. Carl knows how to use weapons too. Shane isn't an invalid and he can is an expert with weapons. Lori can shoot a pistol but she couldn't do much else. Shane will protect Lori and Jesse will protect the children."

"It's all gone isn't it? There is nothing back there for either of us. We just have to make it to the mountain so we have a chance to start a new life. I can't sleep Rick, I am too wired up so why don't you go on to bed and I'll keep watch. I'll wake you if I hear or see anything."

Rick shifted in his chair, "Let's us watch together tonight and if either one of us gets sleepy then that one can go to bed."

Carol who had been shamelessly eavesdropping smiled and turned over to get some more sleep before it was time for watch.

**AN**

**Bleach can be used to purify water so I added that in. **

**I don't think anyone would be moving very quickly in the ZA, and I wanted to show how they learned how to survive.**


	17. Black

**Another military term: Black. 'Black' on ammo, fuel, water, etc. – A common phrase which denotes that a particular resource is gone.**

Black

Three days later they were still in Georgia, but they had gathered enough food, water, gasoline, and weapons to make a big push for distance without having to stop for supplies. A successful run on an untouched pharmacy had filled Carol's black bag with medicines. They had bypassed Atlanta and all heavily populated areas. Carol was surprised at how normal it felt to be grabbing weapons and attacking walkers and that you could still find something to laugh about. They were just leaving the barn where they had spent the night when a group of walkers came around the barn. There were maybe a dozen walker and there wasn't much room to fight.

Daryl shoved Carol toward a truck, "Get up there." She and Andrea jumped on the truck bed and began yelling at the walkers. They had learned that walkers were attracted to sound and they needed to fight their share so that the others were overwhelmed . In seconds they had five walkers swiping at them.

Andrea looked down at one and said, "Do you kiss your mama with that mouth?" Then she took her new bayonet and stabbed it in his eye.

Carol said, "It's time for your shot, sir. No, it won't hurt a bit." She took her sword and thrust it through the male walker's eye.

Michonne had come up behind the walkers, "Seriously, those shoes with that dress?" She swung the katana and decapitated a woman. "Just call me the fashion police."

Carol had missed on her first attempt and she scolded the walker who kept lurching around just out of reach, "Don't make me come down from this truck or you gonna be sorry." The walker seemed to focus on her voice and she came toward Carol again, "Hasta la vista, baby". That time Carol nailed it.

The last walker was a big male and had long arms so that his reach was extending up into the truck bed. His hands were like claws and he kept snapping his teeth at them. Andrea said, "I think I went out with this asshole in high school." Carol used all her strength and was able to take off an arm and Michonne sliced off the other arm easily. Andrea put the bayonet through his eye. Carol and Andrea scrambled down to high five Michonne.

Daryl grumbled, "Better stop celebrating and start concentrating." He came over and helped Carol and Andrea down from the truck bed. "Good job, ladies."

Rick got behind the wheel whistling "Homeward Bound". The group mood seemed lighter today. They were hitting a highway this morning hoping that being this far out of a city might mean that they could get around any roadblock in their way.

The highway was clear and for the first time since the turn they found themselves moving along smoothly. There were cars pulled off the road but both lanes of the road were clear. Rick was driving cautiously but the feeling of progress was contagious but Carol seemed immune. She was becoming more and more anxious and Daryl turned to her, "What's wrong, Carol?"

She shook her head, "I don't know but I have the heebie-jeebies."

"How many years of specialized schooling did you take? And you can't come up with anything better than heebie-jeebies?" Rick was a little pissed that Carol was raining on the first parade that the group had had since this started. He also saw that the others were shooting daggers at him especially Andrea. He decided that he had been an ass, "I'm sorry, Carol. I should know by now to trust your sight."

"Let's not drop our guard. Being cautious keeps us alive and headed toward home." Carol was surprised. Rick wasn't quick to apologize, but maybe he was finally getting that he needed to more often.

They had clipped off fifty miles or so when they went up a little rise and saw the massive traffic jam ahead of them. Rick stopped twenty five yards back and they all got out. The only sounds were those of birds and insects who didn't seem to care that the world had changed overnight.

Rick and Daryl volunteered to go check out the road block to see if they could edge the way through on the side of the road. They were still standing there talking when the saw four people walking through the stalled cars toward them. They seemed peaceful enough but Carol could see that Daryl and Rick had their hands on their weapons.

The strangers walked in a line led by an older white man, next came a big Black man with a sweet smile, then an Asian-American young man, and finally a middle aged Black woman. Their leader held out his head and smiled, "We come in peace. My name is Dale, this big guy is Theo, this smaller guy is Glenn, and the lady of the group is Jacqui."

There was a general round of introductions. Carol had zeroed in on Theo's left arm. "What's wrong with your arm? Have you been bitten?"

Theo shook his head, "Naw, I cut it on a piece of glass yesterday. It's a deep cut. Bled a lot."

Daryl had already started back to get Carol's black bag. "Let me look at it."

Theo smiled and Carol thought that he was a man born to smile. "Yes, ma'am. Are you a nurse?"

She smiled back, "Something like that."

The older man opened the door to a rv that was at the of the pileup, "Come in here. There is a table that you can use."

The wound was deep and showing signs of getting infected. She shooed the others out of the rv. "Theo, this is going to hurt. I need to clean the wound and sew it up. We have to not want to."

Theo nodded, "God provided someone to take care of this wound, and I won't lose this blessing by not doing my part."

He was stoic, but Carol moved as quickly as she could. Theo had turned his head and was reciting Bible verses. He held his arm rock steady though through it all. When it was finished, she went through her stock of medicines and gave him a round of antibiotics. "Take two now and one every six hours from now. Do you want something for the pain?"

"Naw, I have to have my wits about me. Glenn and I do most of the fighting for our group."

"Take this then, it will help a little." She smiled at him, "You are a tough guy, Theo."

Daryl and Daryl were fiddling with something on the rv engine when they came back out. Andrea and Jacqui were chatting. Rick and Glenn were checking were looking through a car trunk.

Michonne had climbed up on the rv and was keeping watch. She scrambled down, "Big herd headed our way. We need to get clear of this." Carol grabbed her bag. She had a squirt bottle of water and bleach in there and she misted Theo's arm and as much of him as possible before Daryl dragged her under a car. Rick grabbed Andrea and they crawled under a van. Michonne and Jacqui moved forward a few cars before they crawled under a car. Glenn and Dale were beside them and Carol didn't know where Theo went but it was much farther up.

She hugged the ground and Daryl hugged her. She could hear the sounds of the staggering walkers and it seemed to go on forever. It was a big herd and they hadn't seen many along the road. They were beginning to clump up. No wonder she had the heebie jeebies. Daryl's heart was racing and she felt like hers was ready to jump out of her chest. The herd finally went through but they waited for a while before crawling out.

Carol was still dusting herself off when she heard the unmistakable sound of a car starting on the highway behind them. Daryl whirled around and saw two men in the front of seat of the Suburban as the vehicle was roughly turned around and headed the other way. The thieves stopped the vehicle and began firing at them and everyone hit the dirt and started crawling away. The rifle fire stopped and they could hear the car pull away.

Daryl realized that the gunfire was going to bring the walkers back toward them, "Come on we gotta get to the woods." He led them down the embankment and into the woods and kept the group moving parallel to the highway. "Those guys saw that we had women. Might just be two of them or might be more. We need to find a place to get ourselves together."

Dale said, "We went through the cars yesterday and this morning. We're carrying the weapons we found and there wasn't much. I think some people stayed in their cars until they ran out of water and food and then just took off."

Daryl looked at Dale, "That rv ain't gonna make it. It's old, bulky, and uses too much gasoline. I'ma thinking those guys are going back to their buddies and telling them that there are women here and lots of supplies. We ain't going back there."

Dale looked around at his little band and they nodded. "Will you take us with you?"

Daryl looked at his little band and they all nodded, "Let's get moving. This is farm country and those farmers have wells and supplies. We just need to get outa here and find a place to hunker down and get stocked up."

There was an exchange of war stories as they left the woods and began traveling along a paved road. Daryl stayed at the back to listen for vehicles coming up on them and Rick went ahead of them to make sure that there wasn't any unpleasant surprises.

Dale and Jacqui had been next door neighbors for years. Jacqui and Theo went to church together and they had spent the morning of the first day transporting church members to an evacuation site. They had gone back to the pick-up site to find it empty and the streets almost impassable. Jacqui lived closer and they had traveled back to her house to find Dale and his friend Glenn. In a matter of minutes all four of them were in the rv and headed out of town. They had been traveling together since then.

Glenn had been a pizza delivery boy and he had navigated them out of town. They had stayed at a quarry outside Atlanta for two days but then moved on when it was obvious that Atlanta was a lost cause.

Carol was stunned at the turn of events. Losing the Suburban was a setback, but the loss of their supplies was disastrous. Their water, food, clothing, and extra ammo was in that vehicle and now they were on foot in unfamiliar territory with only what they had been carrying. The only plus was that they had the medicine bag and their weapons.

There was an old white frame church on the side of the road and Rick, Theo, and Glenn cleared it out of a few walkers. There were several vehicles in the lot and one car had the keys still in the ignition. Their group had expanded to nine and Andrea and Carol had gone back inside to look through purses for keys. Andrea found keys and Carol looked at driver's license to find addresses. Most people went to churches fairly close to their homes and they might find supplies in those homes.

They wound up with a minivan because it had a full tank of gas, and two trucks. One truck had an expanded cab and Rick, Andrea, and Michonne took it. Carol and Jacqui found water and soft drinks in the church left over from some social event. Daryl and Glenn used pans from the church kitchen and put holes in the remaining gas tanks and drained the gasoline out and added it to the bigger truck.

Rick's truck led the caravan, then the minivan, and Daryl and Carol were at the rear. Carol drove so that Daryl could watch behind them. "What are we looking for?" She glanced at Daryl who was sitting sideways in the seat.

"We need to put some distance between us at that traffic pileup. They'll be back. That's a good place to ambush people." Daryl shifted a bit, "Do you think the new people are alright?"

Carol knew Daryl was naturally distrustful of people. He refused to let his children go to sleepovers anywhere but on the mountain or at Andrea's house. Carol felt the same way. Working in ERs and as doctor had only shown her that there were far too many pedophiles that appeared perfectly normal but were still preying on children. In the old world and this new world you had to be careful who you trusted. "I think they are good people."

"Dale is gonna be preachy. Did you know that Jacqui is a civil engineer? Works for the city of Atlanta. Dale told me that Theo ran a construction business. Lost his wife and children in a car wreck and after that he quit the business and works for Habitat for Humanity. Glenn goes to Georgia Tech part time and works part time delivering pizzas. He's a bit of a nerd I guess, but he is fast on his feet. Michonne will make a warrior out of his young ass."

Carol smiled to herself; Daryl obviously liked them, but he wanted her opinion before he committed himself. There was a small sign beside of a mailbox and she slowed down to read it. Apparently there was or had been a Dr. Hershel Greene, DVM living near here. She stopped, "Get rid of that sign, please".

Daryl jumped out and threw the sign in the back of the truck. "Vets have meds that our bad guys might want." Daryl had figured out why Carol wanted the sign gone.

"Do you think we should go look around? I wanted to go farther before we stop, but a vet probably would be fairly well off and his place isn't close to the road." Daryl wanted suddenly to get off this road. He could see that the others had stopped and waiting. "Blink your lights and bring them back and let's go check out Dr. Greene's place." While they were waiting for the others to turn and come back he pushed the mailbox down and threw it in the back of the truck and tramped the ground down where it had been.

The narrow lane was graveled and forked into two roads about a half mile from the turnoff. Daryl jumped out and pulled up the sign to Dr. Greene's house. They traveled another half mile before they came to the first gate. Daryl pulled it open and let the others through. The next gate was had a chain with a lock on it but it wasn't locked.

Daryl pulled it open, "I'll go check it out". Rick joined him and they slipped through the trees. They were in an open field and they moved their vehicles so that they could go forward or back down the road.

Daryl came back and motioned them through, "He's home and he is going to help us get stocked up."

Dr. Hershel Greene was waiting on his front porch with Rick. Carol could see that this farm hadn't been touched by the ZA. Cattle were grazing placidly in the fields, there was a garden plot, and she saw horses in another field.

Dr. Green had white hair but seemed sturdy and healthy. Rick introduced each of them and Dr. Green who insisted on being called Hershel shook hands with each of them. Carol liked him immediately but she wasn't surprised that Hershel said that he would help them get supplies but that they couldn't stay.

He directed them toward a barn on the other side of the yard. The barn had a couple of stalls for horses but it was clean enough and they could sleep in the loft. They didn't have much to unpack, but they were just getting settled in when three women drove in with boxes of supplies.

The oldest woman was Patricia. Carol figured her to be about her age, late thirties. She carried in a box of supplies easily. She had a down to earth quality that Carol liked. Patricia worked with Hershel and she had made her way here when everything happened.

Patricia introduced the Hershel's two daughters. Maggie was in her early twenties, dark haired and athletic looking. Carol thought that she looked relieved to see knew people and she asked about what was going on in the rest of the world. She exuded confidence and she didn't seem to recognize how completely the world had changed. Carol noticed that she looked at Glenn the longest and gave him her sweetest smile.

Beth was in high school and looked no more than fifteen or sixteen. She had a sweet if somewhat forced smile and Carol suspected that Beth was the one member of the Greene family who was afraid of this new world. She might be the youngest but Beth was smart enough to recognize that the shit had literally hit the fan.

Jimmy showed up to help. He was Beth's boyfriend apparently and a cutie. He was quiet but he listened to everything they had to say. Maggie invited them to dinner that evening at six and showed them that the barn had lights and running water. There was even a small bathroom in the back that was still usable.

Hershel had given Daryl permission to hunt and set snares and they were welcome to anything they wanted from the garden and orchards. There was fresh homemade bread and some sliced beef and Carol made sandwiches and they sat down to their first meal together after Theo had said grace.

Carol found a pen and notebook in the boxes and started taking notes as the group talked about what they needed for the journey to the mountain. Dried foods like pasta, rice, and beans would provide energy and not need refrigeration. Pots to cook food and boil water. Soap, portable plates, silverware, and lots of gasoline. Weapons and ammo and sleeping bags.

Maggie came back with a gallon of sweet tea and some Dixie cups. She was on her way to the orchard and invited Glenn along. Glenn blushed but grabbed a bag and followed her down the grassy lane.

Rick nudged Daryl, "That kid is gonna get lucky."

"Well, he damn well better come back with some peaches." Daryl grumbled.

Carol laughed, "You two leave Glenn alone. He'll remember to get the peaches. You two have work to do. Daryl, go check out the place. Rick, you and Dale need to go talk to Hershel about where we can get supplies in a couple of days."

Daryl put his arm around her, "Yes, ma'am." He pulled her close, "We got lucky, Carol. I think they did too. They are clueless on how to protect themselves. I don't think they can stay here but maybe it will work out."

Carol took a moment to lean on him, "Something is missing, where is Mrs. Hershel? It feels safe here but we know better. I am glad that we burned all of our identification cards and all the car's records a couple of days ago. The last thing I want is those jokers to show up on the mountain."

They had went through all their luggage and personal belonging and burned everything. Andrea had suggested it. It was strange to watch it all burn but they realized it made sense. They didn't need them anymore. Those cards belonged to someone else now.

Daryl had come back late and only had time to take a quick shower before they went to dinner. Beth and Jimmy had shown up with some clothes. They even had jeans that would fit Theo. Carol and Andrea had washed the old clothes and hung them out on the fence.

Glenn had come back from his trip to the orchard with a dazed smile on his face and Carol was glad for his sake that Rick and Daryl were busy. She had to admit he looked as if he had been doing more than gathering peaches.

Dinner was fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and greens. There were biscuits and butter and Carol hoped that she could still get in her clothes after this meal. Hershel had given the blessing over the meal and he had asked that God, "protect the sojourners on the way home".

There was peach cobbler for dessert and afterwards the women cleaned up the dishes while the men sat on the porch. Andrea raised an eyebrow at that but Carol would have done a mountain of dishes after that meal.

Patricia was a widow. Her husband had died five years ago of a premature heart attack. The doctor in Carol made her think that eating Patricia's fried chicken and mashed potatoes probably sent him home early. There was no mention of the girls' mother and they didn't ask.

They all sat on the porch and talked after they finished. Carol noticed that they formed little groups. Maggie, Glenn, Beth, and Jimmy were on the far side of the porch talking. Dale, Hershel, and Jacqui were sitting in rockers and chatting comfortably. Patricia and Theo were talking on the porch swing and they seemed to have a lot in common. Carol guessed that Patricia was a little older than Theo but they looked good together. Patricia was laughing at something Theo was saying and he looked relaxed with her.

Her core group sat together and Daryl made up some excuse about looking over their vehicles for any problems. The five of them walked back to the barn and Daryl and Rick put the hoods up. "There are walkers in that barn out back. I checked it out. Probably seven or eight walkers in there."

"Trouble in Bucolic Paradise. That's why Hershel wants us gone. He knows that we kill walkers. Why would he have them here close to his children?" Michonne looked frustrated and Carol knew that she wanted to be home with Jesse and their children.

"Because he loves them. That is where his wife is. Might be other children or their friends. He can't bear to put them down." Carol knew that was the answer. Hershel couldn't face the truth that the people that he loved had become something vile and violent.

"I can do it for him." Andrea was ready to do it now.

"No, it is his place and he has been good to us. We get our supplies and we leave in a couple of days. That's the plan." Rick was trying to calm everyone down.

"We have to tell the others. I think we should keep watch. There are live assholes wandering around looking for what they can take and walkers in the other barn." Daryl was calm and Carol knew that he wouldn't really rest until he got home. He had dark shadows under his eyes already.

"The others deserve to know, Rick is right. Hershel is doing what he thinks is right. He is in denial. He just needs to have some time to process it." Carol took Daryl's hand. "Let's take a walk out to the orchard and I'll see if I can make you look as dazed as Glenn looked when he got back from his trip to the orchard."

Daryl grinned, "I love me some peaches".

Carol and Daryl walked along the path to the orchard, "You need to get some rest, Daryl."

"Woman, I am out here to get laid. I can rest later."

They bypassed the orchard and found a shed. Completely bare except for a table and some baskets stacked against the wall. Daryl was hesitant, "Is this alright?"

Carol grinned, "Man, I am out here to get laid, it is fine."

They stripped their clothes off and Daryl pushed the table against the door. There was a dirty window that let enough light so that Carol could see that Daryl was definitely ready, but he smiled at her, "I'ma not in a hurry, sweetheart. I just need to be inside you and feel you moving against me. Just want to shut the rest of the world away from this place and just be your m for a bit."

"No talking, just doing" She looked at him in the dim light. He was strong and manly and she kissed his neck and nibbled at his nipples. He sat on the table with his legs open and she stepped between them. Their mouths came together while their equally greedy hands sought to bring pleasure.

Daryl groaned, "Better not touch me there anymore or we can call the party over." They pulled apart for a second and smiled.

The world did go away for a little while.

Review?


	18. Sky Out

**Sky out-to flee or leave suddenly… source Glossary of Military Terms & Slang from the Vietnam War**

Sky Out

The farm was a quiet haven of peace after being on the road but Carol never forgot that it was an illusion. Carol stayed close to Daryl; he took her with him when he hunted, set snares, and on runs. He kept her in his line of sight at all times. They took watch together every night and then went back to the truck to sleep.

Dale had volunteered to talk to Hershel about the walkers in the barn. He and Hershel had a lot in common; both men were widowers and both had served their country in Vietnam. They spent hours every evening on the porch talking about 'Nam and the experiences they had had "in country". Hershel was more religious than Dale but both men seemed to have a strong moral code.

Dale talked to the group the first evening in the barn. Hershel had admitted that he was storing all the infected that wandered into the farm in the barn so Daryl's news was not news to him. Dale had listened quietly, but warned Hershel that the infection had killed her they were and that there would never be a cure for those already dead. Hershel had listened to Dale and said that he would pray about it.

Theo and Patricia had joined the conversation. Theo had sat quietly for a bit, but then gently reminded Hershel, "That to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord". Theo's command of the Bible seemed to impress Hershel and the big man quoted verse after verse regarding heaven. Hershel finally agreed that it would be an act of kindness to let the infected rest in peace. Dale said that he knew that it could be done humanely and that his group would bury the bodies.

The next morning Hershel used his backhoe to dig the graves in a distant corner of his farm and then he and his daughters walked to the gravesite while the others emptied out the barn. Theo, Glenn, Rick, Jimmy, and Daryl had discussed how to do it quietly and quickly. Theo let the prayers, "Dear Father, we ask your understanding of what we must do. We are going to release these bodies from their torment. We don't know if their souls are trapped inside the prison of flesh, but we ask for your mercy on them and that you welcome them to your kingdom. In the name of your son, we pray."

Theo would open the door just enough to let one out and Daryl would shoot a bolt through their head. Jimmy and Glenn helped him hold the door back as the walkers inside tried to scramble out. Rick stood by with a long crowbar. After each one fell they checked to make sure they were fully dead and then wrapped them in a sheet. It took less than ten minutes.

Jimmy had a wagon hooked up to a tractor and the bodies were loaded on the wagon. He drove the tractor toward the newly dug graves and everyone walked behind that. Carol had found two long water hoses and added them to the well. The water in the hoses was warm from the hold Georgia sun and Daryl washed when he was finished.

Carol waited so that she could walk with Daryl. "I'm sorry that you had to be one to put them all down." She had helped clean his bolts so that the family wouldn't see anything on them.

"I tried to do it quickly. At least the family didn't have to see it." Daryl hated funerals. It reminded him of losing his mother when he was a boy.

Beth was still singing when they got there. Carol could see how distraught she was. Glenn was holding Maggie's hand and she was leaning on him. Jimmy was watching over Beth and both Dale and Jacqui were standing by Hershel. Patricia was standing by Theo.

Theo spoke briefly reminding the family that their loved ones were in a better place. Hershel gave a final prayer and the family walked back to the house while the men filled in the graves. It was simple but sweet.

Daryl walked back with her. They took their truck and followed a farm road that Daryl had explored the day before to another farm close by. There was an almost new suv in the yard. Daryl went to the farmhouse and pounded on the door. An old walker came lurching out the door and Carol put it down. Daryl search his pockets but there wasn't a key. Daryl went in the house first. There was a bowl on the counter and the keys were in that. Daryl came back with some pasta, rice, and beans. He shut the house back up and dragged the walker out of the yard.

There were useful things in the barn, gas cans and large water cooler. The cattle could take care of themselves right now but Daryl opened the gates. "Maybe they'll be able to stay away from walkers."

Carol kept hearing something, a faint whining sound and she followed it to a little shed. The door had been shut tight. Daryl opened the door slowly and a puppy came crawling out. Daryl picked it up, "Someone put it in here with water and food, but didn't come back."

"Let's take it to Hershel." Carol took it from Daryl. "It's adorable. I think it's a collie."

Daryl drove the suv and bogarted the puppy to ride with him. Carol followed in the truck. They parked at the farmhouse and scrambled up the steps with the puppy. Patricia answered the door, "My goodness, what have you two found?" She smiled, "I'll see if the doctor is in."

Patricia disappeared upstairs and came back down in a few minutes with Hershel. He picked up the puppy. "Where did you find this little girl?"

"We found her in shed just next door." Daryl looked anxiously at Hershel. "She gonna be alright?"

"Joe Benson's new dog. He brought her in to the office a couple of weeks ago. She has had her shots and I think she'll be fine, but I'll give her an IV to replace some fluids. Got some puppy food here too." Hershel squinted at him, "Is Joe dead?"

Daryl nodded, "He is. Didn't see anyone else."

"His family is gone and he lost his last dog a couple of years ago. This one is just two months old or so. He called her Bonnie. Collies are from Scotland and Bonnie is a Scottish word for "fine". Guess you can call her what you want."

They followed Hershel to a room off the back porch. Patricia was already there getting things ready. Hershel put the IV gently and checked the squirming puppy for problems. "She's hungry and she needs to be kept hydrated. You said she was shut up in a shed?" They nodded and Hershel's face was sad. "Joe kept her in the house. I guess he got bit and was afraid that he would hurt the dog."

They stayed with the pup until Hershel decided that she would be alright. Carol smiled at Daryl, "You know who is going to be taking care of her, right?"

Daryl grinned, "It won't be those worthless children of ours. They were both heartbroken when we lost Buster, but that was three years ago."

"Can we get Bonnie home? She might bark when we need her to be quiet." Carol wanted to be practical but she couldn't imagine leaving the dog behind.

"We'll take her home and she can herd the kids around the yard." Daryl held her up, "She is a bonnie dog, sure enough".

Bonnie was admired and petted by everyone at the barn, but she seemed to know that her people were Carol and Daryl. They left her with Michonne while they went to check the snares but she scampered to them when they came back with some rabbits. Carol was hoping it just wasn't the rabbits.

Dale's next step was to convince Hershel to leave with them. The two of them drove off that afternoon and came back in time for dinner. Dale had taken him on a short trip around his neighborhood. Hershel walked back to the graves that evening with his daughters, and spent the evening in his room.

The next morning Carol, Andrea, Rick, and Daryl took the new suv out on a run to more fully checkout the neighborhood farms and a nearby town. They needed more gasoline and at least two more vehicles. Daryl had traded the old truck for the suv because it had newer, had more room, and better gas mileage. Michonne was meeting them in the town with Glenn, Theo, Jimmy, and Maggie. The two groups met outside of town behind a church. Maggie drove the lead car and she guided them to the car dealership on the outskirts of town. They parked behind the dealership and there was a bay still open.

They worked together to take out the walkers and to shut the place down. The keys to the new vehicles were all neatly organized and they picked out three suv hybrids and got them ready to go. There was a backup generator that provided enough power to fill the cars up with gasoline and they found a few gas cans in the shop and filled them as well.

Carol spent the rest of the day with Daryl organizing and planning to leave the next day. Rick and Theo had found burnt out farmhouses on a run the day before and they were all too aware of how vulnerable they were. Hershel had shown Rick the natural boundaries that protected his farm but his gates wouldn't hold back a herd of walkers or the men who had stolen their vehicle.

Michonne came back from a run with a bottle of Southern Comfort that afternoon. Carol, Michonne, Andrea, and Jacqui gathered behind their barn to enjoy the sunset. Carol was celebrating that they had found vehicles that could accommodate everyone at the farm on the way home. Michonne just wanted to get the hell out of Georgia and back home. Andrea and Jacqui just wanted to drown the troubles.

Andrea raised her Dixie cup, "To better times on the mountain."

They clinked their plastic sups together, "Better times".

Carol wiped the sweat off her face, "To cool mountain breezes." Everyone held up their glasses and took another sip.

The liquor flowed slowly but surely. Daryl came by and took a sip of Carol's drink. "Ladies, you know that candy is dandy, but liquor is quicker. Who found this bottle?"

Michonne snorted, "Rick."

Daryl grinned, "Better watch yourself, Andrea. Old times, may not be forgotten in Dixie cup land. Miss Carol, when you are finished visiting with your friends, I would appreciate you coming to see me. I'll just be over there". He picked up Bonnie who had been sleeping on Carol's lap. He pointed to their suv.

He left before Andrea managed to hit him with a piece of firewood. He was saved by her bad aim.

Theo came by and held up the bottle, "Southern Comfort tonight, Southern Discomfort tomorrow morning."

Jacqui teased, "Oh, please like you aren't going to go over to Hershel's and play a little "patty-cake" on the front porch with Patricia."

Theo laughed, "Maybe a little. It's cold in those mountains and maybe I better bring something to keep me warm up there."

Carol thought that shouldn't have been so funny that they almost fell out of their camp chairs laughing. She made a mental note to slow down. "So Rick found the bottle and gave it to you to bring back?"

Michonne snickered, "A clear case of entrapment. He knows that alcohol brings out two characteristics in our Andrea." She let the suspense build. "Bitchy and horny. Guess he is willing to put up with the one if he can have the other."

Andrea turned to Michonne, "Screw you."

Michonne nodded her head, "I rest my case. Obviously she is both bitchy and horny."

Andrea would have chucked a piece of firewood at Michonne but she was afraid that she might actually hit her, "Speaking of horny, where is our little Bethlita this evening? Chasing Jimmy around the orchard or is she kissing Rick on the damn cheek like she did today?"

Carol knew that kiss was perfectly innocent. Beth was thanking Rick for bringing back things that the Greene family needed, but still the girl managed to touch Daryl every time she got around him. Carol got up to make sure Daryl was hanging out at the truck. She trusted him but Bethlita? Maybe not so much. Rick and Daryl waved to her. She waved back.

Jacqui took a deep swallow of her drink, "What am I going to do up there?"

"You are going to live in my house. There is plenty of room in our house and in our hearts. I will share everything in that house but Jesse Graham. He is all mine." Michonne decided that she was going to stop drinking. She was so homesick for her real life and all she wanted to do was grab the keys and plow her way home.

Carol leaned toward Jacqui, "I know it is hard to lose your house and all your possessions, but we want you to be with us."

Jacqui nodded, "Can Glenn tear himself away from Maggie?"

"Maggie will be on the bus out with Glenn. She isn't as naïve as Bethlita. Sounds like Theo wants Patricia to go with him." Carol winced when she realized that she had called Beth "Bethlita".

Andrea turned and grinned at her, "Someone else is showing their claws."

Carol drank a little more and laughed a lot more. She hugged every good night. "I am going to go take a nap. Daryl and I have watch this evening." She made her way to the truck and found Daryl and Rick sitting on the tail gate of the truck. Carol handed her cup to Rick, "Go have a drink on me. Andrea is lit up in all kinds of ways."

Rick took the cup, "I do love her."

Carol settled beside of Daryl and put her head on his shoulder, "Might be time to tell her that. Everyone has the blues tonight. We want to be home.."

Daryl rubbed her back. "We're on our way tomorrow morning before daybreak.

Carol nodded, "Everyone has their stuff ready. Theo is driving Jacqui, Dale and probably Patricia. Glenn is driving Maggie, Beth, and Hershel."

"We moved our stuff in the other suv this evening. So I think we're good to go.." Rick walked back toward the barn.

"So are you feeling no pain?" Daryl had never seen Carol really drunk.

"No, just a little buzz. Sitting here on the tailgate remind me of that night we hit all the bars in Adair with Jesse. I always think of it as our first date." She put her hand on his thigh, "You didn't even kiss me goodnight."

Daryl kissed her ear, "You went to sleep on me and Andrea and Jesse were in the truck with us. If you had put your hand on my thigh that night I would have blown my wad in my pants."

"Guess you aren't so turned on anymore." Carol sighed, "Fourteen years later the magic is gone." She squeezed his thigh, "I still think you're hot for an old dude."

Daryl kissed her neck and then her lips, "You taste all spicy and sweet. I could use a little Southern Comfort right now." Daryl took her hand and put it over his erection, "I am very turned on and the magic is still there. Let's move our ride to a more secluded place and we can revisit that night."

Rick and Andrea toasted Carol and Daryl leaving in their truck. Michonne and Jacqui had drifted away to make sure that they were packed. Andrea was fairly sure that she was going to have a fight with Rick and then have make up sex. Maybe just skip the fight and go straight to the sex. She had been celibate for seven months and probably Rick had too. Yeah, they could always fight in the truck tomorrow. Michonne could go ride with Carol and Daryl and she and Rick could just revisit the endless loop of arguments without a winner. Or maybe they would just skip past that and just concentrate on staying alive.

"Let's go for a walk," she said abruptly.

Rick stood up, "Let's take the suv. It's getting dark and I don't want to step on a snake or a walker out there. You want the bottle? There is a little left in it."

Andrea shook her head, "Leave the bottle. The truck is fine. Let's go up on the hill and check that place out. We just have to look out for walkers, murderers, and the Dixons who have probably bogarted the best parking spots."

Rick opened the car door for her, "Let's break this baby in right." He was a happy man. They were going to have a fight but there was always the hope for makeup sex. You had to have something in this world to make you happy. "You look beautiful."

She looked at him drily, "Don't bother with the blarney. I know that I look like I slept in a hayloft for a week and took a shower with a water hose."

"That is the amazing thing. You still look good." They found a nice spot in an open spot above the farm and they sat on a rock and talked. Andrea looked at the way the sun glinted off of Rick's black hair and how blue is eyes were. Carl looked like his dad. She loved them both. She leaned and kissed him. "No more talking."

He smiled at her. "Okay."

Afterwards they got dressed and walked back to the vehicle hand in hand. They sat for a few minutes with Michonne planning their day tomorrow. Carol and Daryl weren't back yet, but they could see their vehicle coming down the pasture. Rick stood up, "He wouldn't be driving that fast unless something is wrong."

Daryl stopped the truck. "We need to get out now. There's at least fifteen guys lining up at the first gate. They are talking about what they're going to do. They have a shitload of heavy duty weapons. We're out manned and outgunned. We can take the back way out."

Rick bolted for the farmhouse and Daryl got the people in the barn out and ready to go. Theo and Theo had been putting Patricia's bag in their car and he pushed her in the seat. He helped Jacqui into the seat.

Rick came back with Glenn, Maggie, Beth, and Jimmy. "Hershel and Dale are going to stay here and hold them off. They told me to "Sky off" just like back in 'Nam. They want to buy us some time. Let's go."

Daryl nodded, "Maggie knows the best way out, I think. Let Glenn lead."

Carol looked back at the farmhouse and saw a line of vehicle coming. She held Bonnie close and gave a silent prayer for the two old warriors who had been to war as young men and had come home. They had chosen to sacrifice themselves tonight to save the others. She knew that this story would have to be told over and over again to Hershel's grandchildren. They should know what kind of men Dale and Hershel had been.

AN

Review please.


	19. Homesick

Homesick

Daryl kept glancing in the rear view mirror and Carol knew he was checking to see if the marauders were following them. They were the last car in this four vehicle convoy. Maggie was driving the lead car with Glenn, Beth, and Jimmy. Next was Rick, Andrea, Michonne. The third car had Theo, Patricia, and Jacqui. She and Daryl were in the last car and they were all careening down a dirt track as fast as they could go.

Maggie had veered off the main dirt track to another grass and weed covered road. Daryl was grateful for the rain forest like jungle of a Georgia summer. The trees and the brush was providing some cover from anyone following them.

They were on a straight stretch and then to a gate and Glenn sped to the gate and left it open. Carol closed it and locked it behind her. Daryl hit the gas to catch back up. The road became more twisty and narrow and then there was a curve that seemed to be set between two large rocks. Theo and Patricia had grabbed their bags and ran toward their car. Jacqui was getting in with Rick and Andrea. Glenn moved their vehicle that they had been driving sideways in the road and poured some gasoline on it.

Carol moved to the back so that Theo's could sit up front. The convoy started again and Maggie led them to the main road for a couple of miles and then off again on a gravel road. They drove that for miles and miles until it intersected with a paved road.

Daryl followed them. He just concentrated on trying to miss the occasional walker and to keep the vehicle in the middle of the road. It was full dark now and they got back on a highway for another fifteen miles or so. Then, Maggie pulled off on another gravel road.

They all got out of their vehicles and stood and listened to the sounds of a Georgia summer night and there wasn't any sound of approaching vehicles. "It's about five miles on this road. Just follow me." Maggie led the way and they passed by driveways and mailboxes for at least five miles before they turned off onto a driveway that wasn't marked at all. The road had been going up a gentle slope and there was abrupt turn to the right down the hill.

Daryl was the last car to make the turn and he followed the others down a graveled road that went through a meadow and then climbed up the hill to a house. The road widened to become a large driveway and Daryl could see that the road stopped there. Maggie led the way toward the log cabin with a flashlight and everyone grabbed their bags and followed her. Maggie used her flashlight to dig out the key which was in a little box under the top step. Rick and Glenn opened the door and went through the small house to check it out. There was a large kitchen and living room downstairs with a small bathroom. The upstairs had two bedrooms.

Carol noticed that the windows had been covered with plywood and nailed close. "What is this place?"

Maggie found an oil lamp on the mantel and lit it. "Come on in and shut the door. This place belongs to a friend of mine. It was her father's pouting house. She played basketball with me in high school and the team would come out her once in a while and have parties. We went to the state's our senior year and we were planning for a team reunion out here this summer." Maggie looked around the dusty cabin, "Guess we would have had to clean the place up." She moved to Beth who was looking lost and Carol followed her with her medicine bag.

"How is daddy going to find us?" Beth asked. Her words fell like a stone and it stilled the motion of everyone there for a few seconds and then everyone began moving at once.

"We better go and check the place out. That porch is so high that I think we can do watch out there. The windows are secured and we can check to see if there is any light showing." Daryl picked up his crossbow and went outside and all the men in the group followed him.

Andrea, Michonne, and Jacqui went into the kitchen to give the others room to talk to Beth.

"Beth, your daddy stayed behind to make sure those men didn't hurt you. He sent you here so that you could be safe. Hershel and Dale were good men and they did what they had to do. Do you understand?" Patricia put her arm around Beth, "Do you understand?" She asked again.

Beth's face contorted, "Daddy's dead?"

Patricia hugged her, "He has passed from us, and we won't see him again in this world."

Carol handed Beth a pill and a bottle of water, "Take this, Beth."

Carol would normally have let Beth cry her grief out, but their situation was too precarious for high volume grief. Beth swallowed the pill and cried into Patricia's shoulder.

Maggie looked a bit dazed but she had held it together long enough to lead them to this place of safety. Glenn came back into the house and sat down beside her and put his arm around her. She leaned on him for a few seconds and then stood up. "There's a cistern out back and that will flush the commode in the bathroom. The water is good in the well. There is probably something to eat and drink in the cupboard."

Jacqui handed Maggie a small glass of whiskey, "Here you take a drink of this. You saved all of us tonight." Jacqui put her arm around Maggie. "He'd be proud of you."

Maggie nodded and took a drink of the whiskey and then finished it. "Beth and I need to go upstairs and lie down. I think. There are blankets and sleeping bags up there enough for everyone. Come on, Beth". She held out her hand and Beth grasped it. They went upstairs with Patricia who came back down stairs with an armload of blankets and sleeping bags.

That night all the women slept upstairs in the two bedrooms. The men took turns on watch and stayed downstairs.

Carol lay on top of a sleeping between Andrea and Michonne. Jacqui and Patricia had stayed with Maggie and Beth in the other room. Andrea had taken one look at the bed in here and said, "The floor will be fine". They had opened the sleeping bags up to make a mattress and then slept on top. The windows up here were screened and there was a little fresh air coming into the room. They had a blanket for a cover and they huddled together on the floor. Daryl had taken wee Bonnie for a walk and she was cuddled up between Carol and Michonne.

"We're going to get home. We have people counting on us to get home and we're going to get there." Carol spoke aloud what was in all their hearts.

**Michonne**

Michonne patted Carol's arm. "We'll be there soon, and don't take all the blanket. Yes, I am looking at you, Andrea." Michonne gave a tug on the blanket and heard Andrea's chuckle. Michonne turned away from the others to stare at the wall. She could feel the tears running down her face and didn't want Carol and Andrea to know that she was crying.

She was just so miserable. She could handle the miseries of their life on the road, but she longed for home. Jesse cooking dinner with her and James and Cara crowding around full of the news of their day. James all arms and legs at thirteen but still her baby boy. Cara, her baby girl perched on a kitchen stool showing them what she made in art class today. James could take care of himself; he was born to be a warrior. Cara was not. She was strong and quick but she lacked the kill instinct.

Michonne longed for her house designed by Emily and Jesse to be sustainable and beautiful. They had created a house that looked like it belonged in Santa Fe more than Adair, North Carolina. Thick twelve foot high walls made of tires filled with soil and then then covered with a thick stucco like substance enhanced the feeling that this house was strong and spacious. The windows on the bottom floor were smaller than normal and very thick, but they were designed to fit into a larger shape. The great room windows created a hexagon with a window at each point in the shape. He had designed niches to fit in the center of his shapes and he filled them with his collections of art that they had gathered on their travels. The niche was subtly lit by lights and the mirror over the fireplace reflected the hexagon and the niche. It like everything that Jesse designed functional and marvelous.

The kitchen windows formed a square and Jesse had designed a back lit stained glass window of flowers. Jesse had built the dining room table in the shape of a large oval and the windows were in the same shape. The niche was a built in buffet that held their best dishes and silver. The chandelier was in that shape and Jesse had used his collection of rubies and sapphires from nearby valleys to create that.

James had complained that the house was more museum than home but he had named their home, "Casa de Luz" which translated from Spanish was House of Light. James had helped build the house and had worked with his father in every bit of design. James loved to work with metal and wood and he had a table in Jesse's studio.

Cara fluttered between her father's studio and her mother's office. Michonne had married Jesse when he finished basic training. She smiled now thinking what a leap of faith that had been. Jesse was only twenty-two and barely out of college. She had been on her own since she was eighteen and the foster system let her go. Michonne had finished college and then taken a job with Charlotte PD. She had her life mapped out and it didn't include throwing that all away to follow a soldier from base to base.

A year later she was pregnant and Jesse was overseas. Grandma Nancy had been persistent and she had lived with her in the old homestead. Grandma Nancy and Lydia had held her hand when James was born and they had been the first to welcome him into the world. Their tears of joy had baptized this boy into being a mountain man and he had been given the name promised to his father when he was born. James McAllister Graham loved the mountains and he would take an occasional short trip with his parents; he invariably would be homesick within three days and would advocate for a return home.

The old ladies had been at the hospital when Cara was born and they had baptized her with more tears of joy and had prophesized that this daughter would be a warrior like her mother. Michonne thought that they had missed that one. Cara was artistic and dreamy and given to flights of fancy. Nancy and Lydia were both gone now, but occasionally Michonne would look at her daughter and wonder what they had seen when they looked at Cara that day.

Michonne thought about her office with its comfy chairs with their view of the mountains. The windows in there were round and the niche held photographs of people and places that Michonne had visited. It was her space and Jesse had yet to put any stained glass window in it.

The second floor bedrooms had larger windows and Jesse had painted an oil painting of her with her katana and she stood strong and proud in the forefront. Behind her was their home and she was standing guard over it and she had to admit that she looked both dangerous and beautiful in that painting.

The only other art work in the room was a stained glass piece of a black bird sitting on a window sill poised for flight. Jesse had used iridescent glass to create a bird of extraordinary beauty. He had explained to her that he had loved the Hans Christian Anderson fairytale about a nightingale who sang so sweetly that an emperor had kept her in a cage. Jesse said that she was the bird and that she couldn't be held in a cage and that he had accepted that she needed to be free but that she would always return.

Michonne had written a book about empowering women and then another. She traveled promoting her books and speaking to women's rights groups all over the world. Jesse had never complained and as he said the window was always open. Sometimes he would travel with her and she could look out at crowded auditoriums and find him immediately. He would wave at her and she would wave back and feel that rush of love that seeing Jesse always stirred into life.

Michonne wiped her tears off her face and reminded herself that Jesse was waiting for her. The window was open and she just had to take flight and get there. He would protect their children from whatever was coming their way up there in the mountains. She was needed there to protect their home as she had in the painting. Jesse was waiting and her children needed her. It was time to go home.

**Andrea**

Andrea knew that Michonne was crying and she rejected the thought of comforting her. Michonne needed to cry once in a while. Andrea turned her face to the other wall and thought about Carl. He was all alone up there in the mountains and he must be thinking that his parents might not be coming. He might think that they were dead. Andrea felt the tears roll as she thought about Carl and how much she loved him.

She was glad that he was there and not with them. Andrea knew that the Homestead was built as a fortress and that it would take more than an occasional walker or a lone marauder to get inside. She had stood for a second by the cars and seen the many vehicles headed toward Hershel's farm. Her first thought was that there wasn't enough fighters on the mountain with them gone to defend it. They needed to get there now.

Andrea stretched out a little and thought about Rick and how it had felt to be with him this evening. She wished that they could have spent the night out there watching the stars and having sex, but she has insisted on going back to the others. She had kissed Rick tenderly and promised him that they have another fifty years to catch up on the seven months that they had missed. Rick had agreed and they had made their way back to the others and it they had stayed out there they would probably be dead now. You have to go with your instincts in this world.

Andrea wanted to be home, not the unhappy McMansion in Georgia but their home on the mountain left to her by the grandmas. She and Rick had stayed there on vacations in the mountains before and after the grandmas passed on. They had left a blank canvas because they hadn't been interested in home decoration anymore. Lydia had told her that they had been there and done that. This house was for her because she was part of their family.

So gradually over the years she had bought sturdy strong furniture that looked right in the space. The house had two bedrooms downstairs and three upstairs. The windows were thick glass and protected by steel shutters. The doors were reinforced steel and the walls were concrete with a steel covering. That house would not be easily overrun but she saw again that line of vehicles and worried about those that she loved there.

Amy and the new boyfriend who was literally the boy next door should be in the house watching over Carl. Andrea remembered visiting her parent's home and watching Amy play with Joaquin Castillo. They had been thick as thieves until Joaquin became a total nerd and Amy became a cheerleader. Joaquin had gone to college at Georgia Tech and Amy at Florida State. They had reconnected in college through e-mails and social media. They had planned this camping trip as a celebration for finishing their master's degrees and a way to spend time together before they started looking for a job. Andrea wanted to be home in that kitchen cooking with Amy and then watching the sun go down on the deck as everyone ate dinner.

Andrea wanted to be home; she knew it would not be the same as it had been. Merle and Jesse would have the place locked down with military precision. The three older boys would be doing watches and guarding the perimeter and Carl and Sophia would be expected to fight when necessary. Christie would be taking care of the two youngest girls but there would be a gun or knife beside of her at all times. Lori and Shane would be there and Shane would protect her.

Andrea realized that her long established resentment of Lori was gone. It wasn't important anymore because her priorities had all changed. Lori's baby was going to be Shane's. Rick wanted that and there was a slim chance that it was Shane's biologically. Rick loved her and their son and he was committed to their family. She was just taking that as a win and moving on.

Emily and Ashton's family would be protecting their own walls, and Andrea had always thought that they were ready but she saw that the place was too big to protect with that limited number of fighters. They were needed at home and tomorrow they were hitting the trail early and only stopping when it started to get dark.

**Carol**

Carol stared up at the ceiling. They had barely made it out of the farm this evening. She would have to do better in recognizing danger. She and Daryl had driven off that evening and a sudden awareness of danger had struck her. She told Daryl and they had left the truck at the edge of a field and walked toward the gates. Daryl had heard the intruders before she did and they had crouched down and saw the first truck approach.

Daryl had grabbed her hand and they had slipped away together and then ran full tilt to the truck and they had only gotten back in time to give the slimmest of warnings. Hershel and Dale had made their escape possible and she was a little horrified at how easily she had accepted their sacrifice.

Carol thought about how she had killed Ed. Clinically and dispassionately. She had that in her. It had been a part of why she had been efficient in the ER. She could keep her head under pressure. She needed it that now, and she was thankful that Daryl was a tough and resourceful man.

She wanted to be home with Michael and Sophia. She wanted to hold them, smell them, and look at them for hours and hours. She wanted to watch over them while they slept and make sure that they had food to eat. She was their mother and she wasn't doing what she should be doing and she wanted to be doing that with Daryl beside her because he was their father and her man.

Carol had always rolled her eyes a bit at the expression, "He was her man or she was his woman". She understood it now. Daryl was her man. He was going to be at her side every step of the way. She was his woman and it was never about ownership. They didn't own the other; they belonged with the other.

She rubbed Bonnie's little head when the dog whimpered in her sleep. Carol whispered to the puppy, "Don't worry. We are going to make it home and you'll have people who love you all around you. Soon, very soon."

Andrea said, "Soon, very soon."

Michonne said softly, "Soon, very soon."

AN

**Pouting house? It's a mountain expression for a place that a man goes when he wants to be away from the wife. It could be a barn or a shed, but the cabin that they are staying in was used by the owner as a "pouting house". **

**Michonne being interested in empowering women sounds more like my version of her. The nightingale story is one of my favorite fairy tales. It's a little more complicated than I used in this story but I like the image of the bird poised to take off but knowing that they will always be welcomed on their return. Jesse is my favorite original character and he usually get paired with Michonne in my stories.**

**Jesse's chandelier? North Carolina has Ruby Valley and other places where gemstones can be found if one looks long enough. **

**This story is a little action and a lot of their longing for home.**

**Review. The muse had been too quiet lately.**


	20. Separation

**Walker Stalker 2014 and the last two episodes has given me enough Caryl feels to get started on this again. **

Separation

Carol and Daryl cooked breakfast the next morning. Carol had found some Styrofoam bowls in the cupboard and she decided that considering the earth could bear another dose of Styrofoam considering that humans were no longer going to be adding much to the carbon footprint for a bit.

There was sugar for the oatmeal and everyone but the Beth and Maggie ate heartedly. Maggie was pushing food in with little enthusiasm but Beth was completely uninterested in food or the conversation around her. Carol nudged Daryl, "We need to keep an eye on her. She is so young to go through so much so quickly."

Daryl nodded, "We need to get started as soon as we can. More people now. More cars. I'ma thinking we need to show them where the Homestead is in case we get separated. So they know where to go. What do you think?"

"Let's talk about it with the others, but I think we should." A quick discussion with the others and Rick brought out the map and showed them Adair. Daryl drew a map of roads that would lead them to the Homestead when they got close to Adair. It was made clear that if you were separated that the others would move on without you, and you would have to find your own way to the mountain.

They left at dawn. Theo and Patricia wanted their own truck and strangely enough there was one parked at a house nearby. A truck was useful for hauling suppies too. Carol requested that Michonne drive their vehicle while Daryl slept. He had protested but he not too seriously. He hadn't slept for more than an hour the night before.

Carol and Daryl sat in the back seat and Daryl went to sleep with his head on Carol's lap. Michonne drove and Jacqui sat beside her. Andrea and Rick took the lead and with no one else in their vehicle they had some privacy to talk.

Daryl slept until the noon stop. Glenn and Theo went on a gasoline run while Patricia and Jacqui heated up some soup. Daryl and Michonne scavenged through some local houses. Maggie, Andrea, and Carol kept watch. The walkers came by steadily but fortunately they were able to deal with them without using pistols.

Carol watched Maggie. She was a natural athlete, strong from farm work and playing sports, and tough enough to realize that this wasn't a game. Every walker that ambled by was a killer with no other thought but to devour the living. Maggie and Glenn were well matched. He was quick and deceptively strong. Glenn's greatest strength was his agile mind. He had transitioned from video game playing slacker to ZA survivor quickly. Maggie was lucky to have him by her side.

Beth was still sitting on the ground staring with disinterest at the world around her. Jimmy was watching over her but she seemed even less interested in him. The teenage flirt had disappeared and now she was just another lost little girl wondering how she could find her way home.

The problem for the afternoon was crossing the large river that blocked their way north. Most of the bridges were in towns and cities and they wanted to avoid those so the path they chose went west to a bridge that was on the outskirts of a town. The road continued into the town but there was clearly a side road that took a wide berth around it and then intersected with a highway that went through South Carolina for a short distance and then into North Carolina.

Michonne continued driving while Daryl watched beside her. Carol chatted with Jacqui and watched the miles roll by bringing her closer to her children. Michonne called out, "There's the river so we should be coming up on the bridge in a few minutes."

Soon Rick signaled that he was pulling over. They all converged at the edge of the bridge to look the situation over. The bridge was old and floored with steel grates. There was construction trailers on both sides of the river and a large crane blocked one lane completely and left just enough room for a vehicle to edge by. Carol could see a few walkers along the river and on the bridge. There was a lane of traffic on the other side of the river she wondered if the townspeople had tried to escape this way and had gotten slowed down by the traffic snarl.

Rick and Daryl decided to drive as far as they could to see if vehicle could get through. Carol watched them cross the bridge and skirt around the crane. They jogged back in thirty minutes leaving their vehicle on the other side of the river.

Rick laughed, "Southern courtesy rocks. They lined their vehicles up in one lane and then something happened and they didn't get through. They stayed in that single file line on the bridge though the sign says that no more than one car on it at a time. We can squeeze through the opening and take the other lane. It's rickety but if we go one at a time we can make it. The road forks off up a mile or so ahead and we can go around the town."

"The road forks at this bridge too. It continues on along the river upstream from the bridge too. We don't need to go that way though because it is clear as far as the bypass around the town." Daryl came over to hug Carol, "Getting closer, sweetheart." She hugged back but wished this part was over. This felt all wrong to her, but the other side was in clear view.

Rick and Daryl walked back across the bridge taking out walkers as they went. There were signs on both sides of the bridge that only one vehicle could cross at a time and there was line of traffic on the bridge and a crane. Theo and Patricia followed them across and Carol could see the two vehicles parked in the roadway off the bridge.

"I want to ride in another car." Beth walked Carol and Michonne, "I need a break from Jimmy. Please." She directed her question toward Michonne who looked at her and shrugged her shoulders.

Andrea scooted over, "Get in the back with me and Jacqui. Beth." Andrea remembered high school. Yesterday's hot guy wasn't hot today, and they hadn't got the memo yet.

Carol sat up front with Michonne. Glenn had gotten through and Michonne had just passed the crane and was starting to pass the stalled cars on the bridge. She could see the others waiting on the roadway. Daryl and Rick were standing by their vehicle. There was a sudden movement ahead to her right and she saw the herd of walkers that were almost upon the others staggering along the roadway. She started hitting the horn and Michonne cursed, "Shit, Carol. What are your doing?"

The herd must have hundreds of walkers and Carol saw Daryl and Rick run toward their vehicle and take off with the others right behind them. The herd swarmed over the bridge toward them and Carol heard Michonne curse again.

Then Michonne laughed, "Hold on, ladies. This shit just got real." She put the car in reverse and started back around the crane.

Carol said prayers and curses and meant them both. Somehow Michonne got them backwards and only scraped the mirrors and lots of paint off the vehicle. Once she was past the crane Michonne turned the car around and drove off the bridge. There was no sign of the others but Carol was sure that they had gotten away.

Andrea was turned around looking behind them, "They are still coming across the bridge."

Michonne drove for several miles before she pulled over. "Anybody got a plan?"

Carol said, "I don't think we can cross that bridge for a while."

"That bridge is a disgrace. I'm not sure that it will hold the weight of the crane, the stalled cars, and hundreds of walkers. I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't come crashing down." Jacqui had a degree in civil engineering but she didn't need it to know that they couldn't go back.

"Do we have a map?" Andrea kept seeing that herd move relentlessly toward them.

Then Beth laughed shrilly, "My day just keeps getting better and better. The only family I have left in this world is on the other side of a river and I am stuck with a bunch of women who probably don't know shit about making it out here. My life sucks."

Michonne eyed Beth and Carol pondered letting Michonne skewer her with her katana. Michonne smiled her most evil smile, "Beth, shut the fuck up or I will drive your entitled ass back to the bridge and throw you into the herd."

Beth looked at Michonne, "I'll shut up."

"We can't stay here. Daryl and Rick have to go on with the others. That was what we agreed on this morning. We are just going to have to make it home by ourselves. Let's look at the map and start making some decisions about where we are going to spend the night." Carol was decisive.

The next bridge that spanned the river was twenty miles away but they would have to travel in a wide circle to get there. Carol began to make a mental list of what supplies they had and what they would need.

Michonne stopped at a gas station. There was a car parked at the pumps, everyone got out. Carol got out the gas can and a hose and went to the car. Andrea and Michonne had their weapons ready and they handed machetes to Jacqui and Beth.

Carol was able to suction ten gallons of gas out of the car. Daryl had taught her how to do that years ago and she still threw up when she got a mouth full of gasoline. Michonne and Andrea had killed two walkers. She put the gasoline into their vehicle while Michonne cleared out the gas station that had a small convenience store. Jacqui and Beth gathered up supplies while she and Andrea kept watch. Michonne came out with a soda and handed it to Carol, "You're not supposed to swallow it."

"You can do it next time," Carol swished the soda around her mouth and spit it out and then did it again. "Do you think our princess is in there looking at magazines?"

Jacqui and Beth came out with a couple of cases of water, and Carol and Andrea went back in with them to gather supplies. They were in and out as fast as they could go; their goal was to get across the river today. There were the inevitable holdups from random walkers and blocked roads but it was still light outside when they saw the bridge ahead of them.

Michonne drove across the rickety bridge in plenty of time to find an empty house with an adjoining garage to park their suv in. The house was empty but it looked as if the family that lived here had left in a hurry. Carol scavenged for food and supplies while Andrea and Michonne barricaded the doors. Jacqui covered all the windows with blankets and Beth carried water from the hot water heater to the bathroom so that they could flush the commode.

There were candles for light that night and Carol had found peanut butter and crackers for dinner to go with all the snacks from the convenience store. Beth had scarfed up some teen magazines and Carol smiled as she watched Beth read them by candlelight. The kid was sixteen and had lost both her parents, her home, her sister, and everything that was home to her. Reading a magazine probably took her mind off her troubles.

Beth looked up from her magazine, "I'm sorry I was a bitch today."

Michonne looked at her, "Next time I leave your sorry ass" but she smiled when she said it.

They all gathered around the map to discuss the next day. Their discussion was all matter of fact. This is what we have and we need to get more of this. This is where we are and we need to get this far by tomorrow night.

Jacqui asked, "How do you three know so much about survival? You were doctors, lawyers, and writers before this, right?"

Carol smiled, "I've been married fourteen years to a man who loves the outdoors. Daryl is more comfortable in the wild than anywhere else. Our idea of a vacation is living in a tent somewhere fifty miles from a hot water tank."

"She isn't kidding. Go visit Carol and Daryl and you find yourself walking through wilderness with a fifty pound pack on your back. I'm not positive but I think when Michael and Sophia turned seven they took out to a national forest somewhere and left them. The kids had to survive out there for a week before their parents would go and get them." Andrea teased.

Carol shook her head, "That is a lie. It was only three days and we left a water filtration system." She laughed with them, but there was a kernel of truth to it. Daryl had made sure that Michael and Sophia could handle themselves in the wilderness like he had made sure she could too. Daryl had called her "Sherman" once because she "marched" through the woods. A Georgia boy calling you Sherman sounded like an insult and she had learned out to be as silent as Daryl.

Andrea was telling Beth and Jacqui about last summer's backpacking trip to the Grand Canyon. The whole family had traveled there and Andrea had thought that she was staying with Christie and watching Alia and Cara while the others took a week to explore the canyon. Merle wound up twisting his ankle and he had stayed with Christie and Andrea had gone in his place.

Andrea described her week of horror well. She was still traumatized that she had to pack her poop out and that her skin turned to the consistency of leather from the sun. Carol and Michonne just smirked at her. Beth and Jacqui laughed until they cried when Andrea described finding a snake in her sleeping bag one night.

"Don't listen to her. We crawled back up out of the canyon after seven days and Andrea was the one who got to the top and looked out at the canyon and said, "Let's do this next year." Carol remembered how happy Andrea had been on that trip once she got past the heat, discomfort, and carrying your poop around. It made Carol sad to think that they would never be able to travel that far again. It was taking forever to get from Georgia to North Carolina and they weren't close to home yet.

Carol took first watch that night and Beth had fallen asleep beside her. Carol pulled a blanket over the sleeping girl. Beth was just a little older than Michael and not much older than Sophia. Michonne would have to train her and Jacqui how to protect themselves. Those two would be ninjas by the time Michonne was through with them.

Michonne was sleeping between Jacqui and Andrea. Michonne had lost her grandmother when she was twelve and her mother the next year. She got thrown into foster care and then out of that when she turned eighteen. Michonne had a tough façade but the inner true Michonne was a woman driven to protect those weaker than herself and to train them to be protectors of others.

Carol watched and listened for every sound or sight that could be a danger to her friends but part of her was worrying about Daryl. His instinct would be to look for her and that would put him and the others in more danger. He needed to take the others to the mountain and trust that she could manage out here with Michonne and Andrea. Their children needed him and he would have never forgiven her if she went back for him.

Carol looked at each of the sleeping women and promised them that she would do whatever it took to get them home. She accepted that she would have to kill both walkers and the living to make that happen. She had killed before to save herself and now she pledged to kill again in defense of herself and others. She would do what had to be done.

AN

**I love the Grand Canyon but haven't quite dared to back pack there. You do have to carry out your poop though. "Leave only footprints and take only memories" and all that. **

**Bridges all over this country are in disrepair and the one I described was just replaced this year in my state. **

**Review please.**


	21. Amazons

Amazons

Breakfast was oatmeal and beef jerky the next morning. Carol ate looking out at the front of the house. The yard was looking a little unkempt already and there hadn't been any vehicular or walker traffic. Andrea had taken a seat by a back window and every once in a while she pulled back the blanket and looked around. No one was talking much this morning. Bonnie had taken a walk outside this morning and had went back to sleep.

"Are any of you on any medications that need refilled? We still have my medicine bag but it is mostly first aid stuff and some antibiotics. We should start looking for pharmacies; you can tell me later if you were taking anything before." Carol turned slightly to look at her companions.

"I was taking water pill for my high blood pressure, "Jacqui admitted.

Carol grabbed her medicine bag, "Let's go to the bathroom and I'll check your blood pressure this morning."

Jacqui's blood pressure was a little high and Carol looked through her bag for a diuretic. There wasn't any in there and Jacqui hadn't taken any medication to lower her blood pressure since she had ran with them on the highway. Carol had asked when they started doing runs at the farm if anyone had needed any medications but Jacqui hadn't said anything.

Jacqui's weight wasn't a problem and she had no previous problems with diabetes. Carol gave her a quick but thorough checkup. Jacqui went back to the living room and tapped Beth. "You're up."

Beth didn't seem to have any problems though she asked Carol about birth control. She insisted that she wasn't sexually active but she wanted to be protected just in case that "something" happened. Carol promised her that she would add birth control pills to the list.

Carol sat for a moment thinking about "something". Her group could be overpowered at any time by marauders. They could be raped and held in captivity. Carol had went off birth control since she finished her residency. She and Daryl had hoped to have more children but it hadn't happened.

Andrea came back to the bathroom. "What's up, Doc?" Andrea's Bugs Bunny imitation was only funny because it was so terrible.

"Hopefully, not your temperature or your blood pressure. Sit down and let me check you out." Andrea's temperature and blood pressure were both fine.

Andrea laughed, "We are dodging walkers and human monsters and you are worried about my blood pressure?"

"Are you on any medications?" Carol was relieved to see that Andrea was dealing with the stress by being trying to be funny.

"I was taking an occasional over the counter sleep aid before all this happened, but after a day of being chased by blood thirsty walkers I am too tired to stay awake." Andrea smirked at her. "And those ten pounds that I just never go around to losing seem to have melted away on the ZA diet of oatmeal and barbecued squirrels and rabbits. Gotta find that silver lining. How are we doing on tampons because Martha Monthly should be visiting soon?"

Carol nodded, "I have a couple of boxes but with four women? And there is Michonne to consider." Michonne had a heavy flow for the first three days and painful cramps. "Oh, shit, do you think the walkers will smell us when we are menstruating? More than they usually do?"

Andrea grimaced, "It just keeps getting better and better. This whole end of the world thing is pissing me off big time. Lucky you, getting to talk all this over with Michonne. She seems a little on edge today. Oh shit, what if she has pms? She gets a little tense."

Carol decreed to Michonne that she was a marvel of health and asked if she had tampons packed.

"Andrea told you that I was going to start, didn't she?"

"She said that you might be, yes. I am making a list of things that we might need from a pharmacy and tampons is one of them. Can walkers smell menstrual blood?"

Michonne shrugged, "It's possible. I am due soon so we shall soon know. I am on edge because of where we are right now. Now if you can stop playing doctor, let's get started this morning."

Carol took Bonnie for another walk and then put the dog in the car. She was the quietest dog she had ever been around. Bonnie seemed to know that she needed to be quiet.

They were in farming country but they were going to be passing through small towns. Michonne cruised the main street looking for a pharmacy and they chose the one at the edge of town that seemed the least looted. Michonne and Andrea stood guard as Carol went through the medicines. She took all the blood pressure medicines that she could find and loaded up a cart with other pharmaceuticals that they might need later. Beth and Jacqui were gathering tampons, pads, toilet paper, and toiletries of all kinds.

Michonne had searched the parking lot and found a larger suv with a full tank of gasoline. The keys were still in the ignition. She and Andrea transferred their stuff to it while they stood guard. Carol grabbed some charcoal and a portable grill on the way out. They skipped the large superstore and looted a smaller grocery story. Carol and Michonne stood guard and they were kept busy killing walkers and Carol was exhausted by the time that the three women emerged with their carts.

Carol heard the sound of approaching vehicles. "We better hide." That all ran to the car and woke up Bonnie who had gone to sleep in the vehicle.

Michonne drove the vehicle onto the street and back toward a housing development they had just passed. She drove the suv into an open garage door and they all slid out of the vehicle and into the house. Carol put down the first walker inside and Andrea the second. They dragged them down the hall and went back to the dining area that had a view of the highway. Michonne had the rifle out, but Andrea took it from her. Andrea was the sharpshooter of the group. Beth and Jacqui were standing in kitchen but far enough back so that they could see out without being seen.

The raiders had pulled into the grocery parking lot. Three full size trucks carried six men and they were looking at their abandoned vehicle and the put down walkers scattered around the parking lot. Two of the men went in the store and came back with some carts of supplies. The others stood guard and Carol was very conscious of the open garage door. They couldn't risk pulling it down now because of the noise. Michonne had moved to the garage to make sure that walkers didn't get in there.

The men hung out on the parking lot and Carol assumed that they were waiting for someone. Their noisy weapons were attracting the local walkers and that was good to see. Finally, a blue truck pulled in and a tall man got out and there was a discussion. The tall man climbed into the bed of his truck and looked around. Carol held her breath. He was the smart one, the one to be feared, and he might have sensed that someone was watching him.

They had all stepped back even further into the shadows but eventually the tall man got back into the truck and all four trucks disappeared in the direction that they were traveling. Michonne came back into the house. "Let's go back the way we came in."

Carol shook her head, "There may be others. I think we need to stay put for a while. They are looking for us. Let's get that garage door down."

"I wish we were farther away from the road". Michonne had pulled into the closest house with an open garage.

The house was hot and they were soon sweating. Michonne had oiled the garage door hinges and gotten it closed almost quietly. The tall man's blue truck did not reappear but they did see two of the other trucks pass by within an hour. Carol held the pup knowing that if she began barking she would have to muzzle her. Bonnie whimpered and burrowed her face into Carol's armpit.

Jacqui said, "We need to find if there is another way out of this development. Walkers don't mess with other walkers. They might walk with them but they don't touch or try to kill them. It's all smell I think. If we could smell like them we could walk around and see if there was a way out. I can do that."

She went back to the hallway and found a housecoat and covered it with walker blood and intestines. Michonne vomited and everyone else was close. Carol found some rubber gloves in the kitchen and helped Jacqui who managed to turn herself into a presentable walker.

Michonne walked back to them, "I'll go with you."

Jacqui shook her head, "Walkers are lone creatures even in a herd. You are needed here. I'll be back but it will take a while. Walkers don't get in a hurry unless there is something to eat." She put on the long housecoat and put walker blood and intestine parts on her hair and face. "See you later." She cautiously opened the door and lurched out. Carol was amazed at how well Jacqui blended in with the walkers outside. She had the stagger and the blank look. They watched her from the front window until she went out of sight.

Hours passed and their fear for Jacqui increased. The world seemed to be sweltering in the heat and Carol wondered if the raiders were somewhere trying to stay cool during the hottest part of the day. Michonne was watching from the front window and she suddenly straightened up and eased toward the front door. She had oiled the hinges so that they were barely making a sound as she opened the door for a worn out Jacqui who threw off the housecoat and collapsed into a chair.

Carol handed her a glass of water and took a washcloth and wiped her face, hair, and hands. Jacqui looked dangerously close to heat exhaustion to her and she wanted to cool her down as fast as possible.

"I'll be alright once I get cooled down. There is a way out and I went down that road for a few miles. Most of the roads lead to the town of course but there was a sign for another highway out there. Nothing out that way but scattered farms, and I don't know it's safe but I think we better go now while it's so hot.

Carol looked at Michonne who nodded. The other women nodded too. "Let's go then, but we need to keep alert."

Carol sat in back with Jacqui and Beth while Andrea sat beside Michonne. She checked her vitals and Jacqui seemed reasonably fine. Carol was urging her to drink the warm Gatorade that they found in the refrigerator. Beth held Bonnie and watched through the back glass and reported that there wasn't anything moving but a few walkers.

It felt good to be out of the house and on the move again. They were soon traveling through pine forests and occasional small farms. Carol was relieved to see that the area looked run down. She wouldn't have picked this place to loot. Andrea had navigated them farther west than the route they had previously chosen but they would intersect in a couple of hours with a highway that would take them northwest.

They stopped before they entered the highway. It was getting late enough to think about stopping. There were hours of daylight left but Carol was beginning to trust her instincts. The highway would be busier and she wanted to scout it out a little before they jumped in.

Michonne pointed at an old dilapidated farmhouse with a barn nearby that looked as if a good wind would blow it down. Carol nodded. There was nothing in that dwelling to attract a walker. It had been abandoned from the looks of things. There was a gravel road and their vehicle wouldn't leave any signs to a casual passerby. Michonne parked behind the barn and they got out. There was water from the grocery store to drink and it looked as if it might rain later on. Carol gave Bonnie water and gave her some puppy food. Beth promised to keep her from barking. It was very quiet here and sounds would carry.

Carol and Michonne left the others to prepare the camp and they walked toward the highway through the pine forest. Carol was glad that Michonne was with her. Carol's spidery senses were raging and she was hyper aware of her surroundings. A quick look at Michonne assured her that she felt the same way. They moved stealthily but steadily and Carol could smell smoke before she saw anything. Michonne headed right toward some thicker brush at the side of the highway and Carol followed. The four trucks were parked in front of them and she could see the tall man off to the side watching the others. The other six men were laughing and drinking while they watched four women build the fire. The women's ankles were bound with rope and they were obviously being held captive. They were more girls than women to Carol and she imagined from the looks of their clothing they had been raped already.

The tall man stood didn't seem interested in the carousing men. He was looking over their supplies. Carol knew he was the leader of this group but there was something about him that told her that he wanted more than to lead a bunch of rapists and killers. He was a war lord in the making. He would gather more men and then one day he would settle somewhere and send his men out to pillage at will and they would bring their tribute to him, their leader. He would start with a small town and then leap to a county size kingdom and then more because he would never be satisfied until he had real power. He was clean on the outside but inside he was worse than any of those men. He was Ed posing as an aspiring banker and hiding his trophies in his secret hideaway. She had killed Ed all those years ago and she would kill this man today because he stood between her and her family.

Carol took one more look at the camp site and wondered at their bravado to stay out here in the open. These men were going to ambush anyone that came along. She backed away not even waiting for Michonne and headed toward their campsite. She moved quickly now and Michonne kept pace. They didn't talk until they were back at the old farm.

"We are going to have to kill them." Carol met Michonne's eyes.

"Better get to it while they are getting drunk and sloppy. The tall man has to die first. He is the only one with any brains." Michonne was matter of fact.

It took a few minutes to gather their weapons together. Andrea took one rifle and Beth took the other. Michonne took her katana and a pistol. Jacqui had a pistol and knife. Carol had her pistol, a knife, and a jug of gasoline and a match. The plan was set. Carol hugged Bonnie goodbye and put her in the vehicle. They wouldn't be gone long.

They slipped back in the woods. There was loud music now which helped to mask their sounds as they moved through the woods. They had discussed the plan but Carol was worried about Andrea and Beth. Michonne was solid and Jacqui seemed resigned to it. Her part was first, create a distraction and then the others would do their part.

Carol hugged them goodbye and slipped off to the right. She had her jug with her and her lighter. There was a truck facing south and she moved toward it. One of the men was standing at the truck's tailgate having what she would believe to be non-consensual sex with a woman. For a second Carol was staggered with a vivid memory of Ed raping her and then she pulled herself together.

The woman's eyes were squeezed shut and he was grunting and cursing, "Fuck, this feels good. Big dog is just gonna take what he wants." He was thrusting savagely and Carol closed the gap between them with her knife ready. She grabbed his long hair and pulled him backward while her right hand moved up and around his body to his neck. Carol cut his throat as he had Ed's. He fell down behind the truck and the woman opened her eyes.

Carol held her finger to her lips and helped the woman off the truck. "Please go back into the woods and be quiet." The woman grabbed her clothes and stepped back from the truck. Carol went back and grabbed the jug of gasoline and poured a line of gasoline to the gas tank and she got underneath the gas tank and put the jug there. She crawled back to the woman and lit the gasoline line. She pushed the woman toward the woods. "it's going to blow". The flame moved up toward the gas tank and Carol took careful aim and put a bullet into the bottom half of the tank. She ran toward the woods and there was a resounding boom and the gasoline in the jug ignited the gas in the tank.

Carol used the trees as a cover and ran to the main part of the camp. There was the sound of steady rifle fire to reassure her that her friends were doing their part. She stopped at the edge of the woods when she saw one of the men come out of the truck with his rifle. She aimed carefully at his body and hit his arm and leg. He fell down and there was a burst of rifle fire at him and then everything was silent.

The man she had killed was staggering their way and Carol cursed herself for not putting him down. She put one more bullet to his brain and he lay still. Michonne was walking around the dead men stabbing her katana through their eye sockets.

Michonne had decapitated the tall man and finished off one man that Andrea had shot. Andrea had taken down one on her own and finished off the man Carol had wounded. Beth and Jacqui had killed one each. All seven were dead.

The women had been taken captive from a town about an hour away. Carol had given each of them a "morning after pill" that she had collected that morning and all the help she could render on the side of a highway. Michonne handed the women two rifles and two pistols and the truck they left in was loaded with supplies. The women had been in a camp ground while the men of the group were out looking for a safer place to stay. They wanted to get back there to rejoin their group.

Michonne drove one of the trucks back to their campsite. It had weapons and ammunition and gasoline stored in it. Walkers had been attracted to the gunfire and they quickly moved the new supplies into their vehicle. Michonne drove to the highway and they headed north for another hour. The North Carolina border was less than an hour away when they decided to quit for the night.

Home that evening was a log cabin set back in in the woods. Michonne had veered away from the main highway and down a side road to find it. The cabin was clean enough and the outhouse was functional. A thunderstorm raged overhead but they collected rainwater for washing. They cooked dinner on the porch while it was still daylight. They heated water to wash with and then settled down inside the cabin. Their vehicle was stashed behind and out of sight.

The cabin had some blankets and they settled inside. Beth had confiscated a bottle from the raider's loot and she insisted that she wanted a drink. She poured everyone a cup and they all toasted each other. Beth wound up drinking two cups and getting drunk but after all she was still a kid.

Bonnie decided to play and her antics delighted all the women. The pup had been penned up most of the day and being able to scamper around the room wound her up. She stopped once and looked intently at Carol and then went to the door and whined softly. Carol handed Bonnie to Andrea and she and Michonne went to the door. They stood on the porch for a bit and then saw the walkers coming up the driveway. Andrea came out with her machete and they worked together to clear them out.

Bonnie needed a walk after that and she insisted on moving toward the walkers. She sniffed them and growled and Carol knew that the dog instinctively was learning the scent of the enemy to her people. Michonne and Andrea watched over Carol and Bonnie as they walked in the dusk. Beth was on the porch puking as they came back to the cabin. Carol gave her one of the gatorades and sent her to bed. The kid had had quite a day.

That night Jacqui took the first watch. She had recovered from her walker stroll today and Carol saw a new confidence in the older woman. Jacqui had lathered herself in walker blood and guts to find a way out. She had used a weapon to kill for them today. Jacqui had chosen to fight for her own survival today.

Carol took second watch and Bonnie slept on her lap. She had been too busy today staying alive to be lonesome but now sitting in the darkness listening and watching for trouble she found herself talking to Daryl in her mind.

_You were with me every step of the day, Daryl. You taught me to trust my instincts and how to use weapons. I had to kill people and I may have to tomorrow. We are going to make it home soon and I will fall asleep close to you. Protect our family, and I'll be home soon. I love you and I always will._

**AN**

**Apparently gas tanks don't blow up just because you shoot them with a gun, but I think Carol's method would cause enough of a distraction.**

**Beth wanted to drink and Carol didn't stop her. Beth got drunk and threw up. It happens.**

**I just wanted Philip Blake to die an early death by Michonne's hand.**

**Review please.**


	22. Ranger

**Definition of Ranger from Wikipedia: A Ranger (also known as Hunter, Archer, Scout, or Tracker) is an archetype found in many fantasy fiction and role-playing games.**

**Rangers are usually associated with the wisdom of nature. Rangers tend to be wise, cunning, and perceptive in addition to being skilled woodsmen. Many are skilled in stealth, wilderness survival, beast-mastery, herbalism, and tracking. Archery and (often dual-wielding) swordplay are common to rangers, though there are many instances where rangers use a variety of weapons, skills, and sometimes magic or have a resistance to magic.**

Ranger

Daryl glanced up at the review mirror to check on the other two vehicles in their little convoy. He and Rick were taking the point position and Theo and Patricia were two hundred yards behind them and Glenn, Maggie, and Jimmy were not far behind them. It had been hot as the hubs of hell today and it was just starting to cool down for the evening.

Daryl had seen a truck going the other direction about an hour ago. Four women in it and they were barreling down the highway as if the devil was chasing them. That had put him on high alert but he hadn't seen anything that warranted their flight.

Rick hissed, "Something on the left up ahead."

Daryl slowed down, and saw a faint trail of smoke coming from a truck ahead. Rick checked the rifle and hit the walkie talkies that they had looted after the bridge fiasco. "Something is wrong up ahead. You guys hang back".

Daryl drove closer. It didn't look like an ambush because the road was clear. There were two trucks by the side of the highway. One was facing south and was still faintly burning. The other faced north and the door was open. There were dead men lying around the trucks, and someone had started a fire but it was almost out.

Daryl was waiting for that spidery feeling that someone was back in the woods watching but the pine forest felt empty of danger. He pulled off the highway on the other side of the road and got out. There were seven recently dead men killed in different ways. Decapitated, stabbed, shot with rifle and pistol and all had been put down after death with almost surgical efficiency. Daryl tried to tamp down his rising excitement. It was probably the work of the women in that truck, but he moved off the pavement to look for footprints and found a familiar bootprint in the soft ground under the pines. Too small for a man and too big for a child and just right for a woman. It was Carol's boot and she had been here not long ago.

Rick walked toward him and Daryl showed him the print, "It's Carol's. She came in from that direction." He pointed toward the west. Daryl and Rick walked back to a bushy area. He showed Rick the different foot prints, "That one is Michonne's because she has that odd shaped heel. That one is Andrea's because she and Carol have the same kind of boot but she is a size bigger than Carol. The others must be Jacqui and Beth."

Daryl told Rick to stay put and he walked into the forest alone. He leaned against a pine tree and wiped the tears from his eyes. Carol was alive and had been here not long ago. His Carol was alive and he was never letting her out of his sight again. Daryl read the story in foot prints. Carol and Michonne had scouted this place and then went back and got the others. Carol had cut the throat of the man back at the burning truck. Michonne had decapitated the tall man and stabbed another. Andrea had used a rifle to take out at least one and probably more. All five of them had used their weapons. These men had posed a threat to them and they had eliminated them as efficiently as possible. Then, they had taken a vehicle and left.

Daryl went back to Rick, "I wanna drive down that road that meets up here. They came in from that direction. Have Theo and Glenn to pull off the road and out of sight. They were walking so they couldn't have been far."

The abandoned farmhouse was less than a mile away and there was a truck parked there. Daryl got out and looked the trampled ground over. "They loaded some stuff from this truck into their vehicle and took off north I think. No blood in this truck so I don't think they got hurt. It was getting late and they would be looking for another place to stay tonight. Look over there, puppy shit for sure. Bonnie's size shit too."

Rick looked at the map, "They stopped here to check things out before they got on the highway. Pretty damn smart women. They must have crossed the river further west they we did. You were right to look for them this far west."

Rick drove and Daryl watched the road. Daryl knew that Carol would find a place before dark and well off the road. He figured that she was at least an hour or two ahead of them. He kept urging Rick on even when it got a little late. Carol would be coming down this road tomorrow morning and he wanted to be ahead of her.

Daryl talked with the others that night, "I know we kept moving longer this evening than usual, but I don't know how far they traveled before that pulled off for the night. I think we are ahead of them and maybe we can find them tomorrow." He hesitated but then went on. "They killed those men back there. They'll talk to you about that when they are ready. Might be a while."

Rick said, "No watch for you tonight, Daryl. You haven't slept since we lost them at the bridge. You haven't eaten enough either. Carol is going to take one look at your scrawny ass tomorrow morning and give me hell. I mean it. Maggie and Glenn are taking first watch, Theo and Patricia are doing the second one, and Jimmy and I will do the third. You'll be up before daybreak." He handed Daryl some canned beef stew that they had heated over the fire.

Daryl nodded. He ate the beef stew and then went to sleep for six hours waking when there was the faintest of lights in the eastern sky. Daryl packed up quickly and walked to the highway and found a rock to sit on. It would probably be hours before they got here but he couldn't sleep any longer and he needed to be on watch now. Needed to be here when she went by. Needed to hold her and know that she was alive and well.

Slowly the dim early morning light began to gain some strength and he saw Rick ambling toward him with his pack. "Andrea never gets up too early. I had time." Rick scooted onto the rock beside of him.

They waited for another hour. There was no talking. They listened for the far off sound of an engine that would bring the women they loved back to them. The birds seem particularly noisy this morning and still they sat and listened until finally Daryl heard something. He stood up. Rick stood up.

Daryl finally saw the big suv coming. It wasn't them. Different color and different make and it wasn't them. The sun glittered off the windshield and he couldn't see who was is it and he realized that they sitting ducks out here. He was too disappointed to be afraid and a little pissed off too.

The vehicle stopped just past them and Rick and Daryl grabbed their weapons. The door opened and Carol got out, "You guys need a ride?" Then she was running toward Daryl who had dropped his weapon and was leaping toward her. They crashed together and Daryl lifted her off her feet in exultation. "Love you, scared the hell out of me. Stay close."

Carol hugged him, "Love you more." He kissed her tears and she wiped his away with her hands.

Maggie and Patricia had cooked breakfast for everyone and Daryl ate his with his arm around Carol. Maggie sat with Beth. Theo and Glenn sat with Jacqui between them. Rick kept touching Andrea as if to make sure she was really there. Bonnie scampered around everyone getting petted and an occasional treat.

Michonne shook her head, "It's a damn romance novel here. Can we please get out asses in gear and go home now?"

Everyone laughed and they sorted themselves into vehicles and started north again. They stopped at the North Carolina border and took a selfie of all of them standing in front of the sign. Carol holding Bonnie and Daryl holding Carol. Daryl thought that was a dumb ass thing to do but he made sure that he got one on his phone too. Glenn had rigged up a solar charging station and their phones had enough juice to take photographs and everyone had wanted to keep the photos on their phones even if you were never going to send a text again.

Daryl was worried that the group might let their guard down; you could almost smell the jubilation in the air. They were in North Carolina now and the line they had drawn back in Georgia was now a series of squiggly lines going all the which way but the they were close now.

There were traffic jams and walkers herds and they had to scavenge for fuel but they were able to push on to a four lane highway that would take them into the mountains by noon. It was time for a break and they stopped at a rest area and ate at the picnic tables. Daryl nudged Carol's shoulder, "You ladies better go to the bathroom before we hit the mountains. Rick and I will clear out the place."

Carol teased him, "We'll let you this time." The women enjoyed flush toilets and Carol handed out hand wipes when everyone finished. Daryl waited at the door holding Bonnie. He didn't want to get too far away from her.

Michonne smirked at him, "You know that we can potty by ourselves? We really don't need you to tell us to wipe our butts and wash our hands."

"Hey, I wanna use the bathroom too and I want you women to stand guard". Daryl handed Bonnie to Carol. "We can walk her when I get finished."

Michonne grinned, "We'll watch from outside." All of the men were waiting to go in.

Carol, Andrea, and Michonne were watching when Daryl came out. Carol handed him a wipe and he cleaned his hands while he looked at them. They were different after being separated from the group, more wary but more confident too. "You know how men hate to ask for directions. So we'll have to take this road into the mountains but what do we do when we get close to Adair?"

Carol smiled, "How about we get off the highway at Chandler's Fork? There is a gravel road that winds around some hills and then it meets airport road. What's the best way home when we get there?"

"We could try going through Mcglothlin Gap. That road will come out halfway up our mountain. Michael and I came through there on four wheelers about a month ago. It's rough but it's passable." Daryl looked at Michonne. She nodded her agreement, but added. "We can walk if we get that far."

Daryl and Carol were going to lead the way in the smaller suv with Bonnie sitting on Carol's lap. Theo and Patricia were next. Glenn, Maggie, Beth and Jimmy were in third place. Michonne, Andrea, Rick, and Jacqui were in the last vehicle. Daryl reminded them that they were going to be on some narrow bumpy roads. "Keep your weapons handy. We may have to stop and fight so pay attention to everything."

The highway had some traffic snarls but they were able to drive through the median or the side of the road to get through. Daryl thought it looked as if other travelers had made cleared the road out before this. The farther they traveled the clearer the road and they were able to make better time. "It's cooler here. There's a breeze too. It's good to be in the mountains."

Carol inched closer to him, "We're going home. I may never leave that mountain again." She put her hand on his shoulder and rubbed it, "They are alright. I knew that you would find me sooner or later."

Daryl glanced at her, "You did fine out there. I was the one who fell apart. Guess I am the weak link in our chain."

"That's no way to talk about my husband. He is the strongest man I know." She leaned closer, "You stink to high heaven and yet I would so do you right now if we didn't have three vehicles following us." She kissed his ear and the car wobbled slightly.

"Move back in your seat before I run off the damn road. I gotta concentrate here and you either behave or I am sending you to ride with Michonne." He took her hand and brought it to his lips and kissed it. "No, I won't. Can't let go of you today."

Carol slid all the way back into her seat, "Bonnie and I will behave ourselves. I can put her in my pack if we have to walk."

The highway narrowed to two lanes but it was wide open. There wasn't any other vehicles on the road and he saw clumps of put down walkers. The locals were clearing out the dead here. He was glad to see that the living were taking control of the place but he knew the living could be dangerous.

It was late afternoon when they got to the turnoff at Chandler's Fork. Daryl eased onto the gravel road and the others followed him. The gravel road was dusty but the clouds were promising a thunderstorm later on today. He hoped that got home before it hit.

The houses along this way had their windows covered with plywood or planks of lumber. He didn't see anyone but that didn't mean they weren't still alive and hunkered down to protect their families.

The Airport road was paved but he drove slowly and had to weave in and out a few times. It was a relief to see the unmarked McGlothin Gap turnoff. It was more of a trail than anything else, dirt based and if it rained it would be slicker than owl shit. It wound around these hills and one fork led to Adair and the other intersected with the McAllister Mountain road.

Carol was silent. Her eyes were focused on her surrounding and he saw again that she had adapted to this way of life. She had put Bonnie in the back seat and had her weapons ready. The trees and brush didn't give you much warning and when a walker stepped out in front of him he drove into it. He stopped and Carol jumped out with her knife. He scrambled out the other side to guard her as she put it down. She stepped back and watched as he dragged the walker out of the road. "Watch yourself now. " He followed her to make sure she got inside safely. Theo was out by his door with a rifle making sure that he got back inside. Daryl waved to him and Theo smiled back. It was good to have someone watching your back.

Bonnie was growling. "She doesn't like walkers." Carol stated. Her voice quavered a little.

"Bonnie is going to be wooled to death when we get home. Those kids won't leave her alone, you wait and see." Daryl took her hand again. "We'll be home soon."

Carol squeezed back. "It's going to storm. See the way the leaves are lifting up and turning over."

"We better get a move on to get home before the storm hits."

The trail was rocky and he needed both hands to keep the vehicle out of the deep ruts and holes. Theo was close behind him now and Glenn was right behind him. He knew that they were following his path through this trail that had become an obstacle course. Another walker crashed out onto the trail behind Theo and Glenn used a machete on it. Beth and Maggie had jumped out to watch over Glenn.

Daryl saw the paved road ahead of them with relief. He waited on the others and they lined up again. There were more walkers here drawn he figured by the smell of the living. The grandmas had visited their neighbors and had encouraged them to build strong fences. Many had trusted the old ladies had the "sight" and had fenced in their homes and barns. The old ladies had bought fencing for those who needed it and most had fenced in their garden spots to keep the deer from eating their crops. Here and there he saw men and boys watching from their porches.

Finally he made the last long turn and then they were passing Ashton and Jo's house. Emily and Brian's house was within that compound and their houses seemed fine. The Homestead was just ahead and he saw that the high walls were up. Years ago he and Merle had designed the fences. Holes were dug and cemented in and they had put attractive fences around the houses. The taller, heavy duty fences were put in around the gardens and the storage buildings, and barns but they stored enough heavy tall fences to go around the houses. Those fences were up now. You plopped the lighter fences out and put the heavy duty fences in the same holes and cemented them in. It looked good but he was walking that fence line tonight and making sure it was strong.

"We're home. Now if they will just let us in." He stopped at the gate and honked six times. One for each of the children of the mountain and their prearranged signal. Merle, Caleb, and Michael were running down the road toward them and he grabbed Carol. "Not til they let us in. There's walkers out there."

Jesse and James were right behind Merle. There were two gates to pass through now, but Merle opened both doors because there were four vehicle to get in. Daryl drove far enough in to let all four through and he got out. Carol spilling out from the other side and he had to hold her back again. Merle and Jesse were putting down the walkers that had slipped in with them and the boys were helping. Michael wasn't their little boy now. He was a defender of the Homestead and right now he was doing what he had to do.

Michael ran to them as soon as he was finished. Sophia and Carl raced down the driveway to hug their parents. A clap of thunder reminded them that a thunderstorm was coming and they hurried into Merle and Christie's house.

It was a happy but chaotic scene inside. Gradually everything settled down. The storm raged outside but Christie made the newcomers feel welcome.

Andrea hugged Amy and Joaquin. They had been taking care of Carl for her and living in her house. Carl was smiling ear to ear and Rick was holding Andrea's hand.

Michonne introduced Jacqui to Jesse. "This is my new mother Jacqui. She is going to live with us forever. Are you fine with that?"

Jesse hugged Jacqui, "Good, I need some help taking care of Michonne. She wanders off all the damn time."

Jacqui hugged back, "No wonder Michonne was always in a hurry to get home. You are a doll baby."

Carol had conferred with Daryl on the long drive today, "Daryl and I would like if Beth and Maggie lived with us and I think Glenn comes with the deal." Beth had been forthright in expressing that she didn't want to be linked with Jimmy.

Elijah Wright had been standing there, "I can give up my little cabin to Theo and Patricia". The horse barn has a two bedroom apartment on one side and Jimmy and I can move over there. Jimmy seemed fine with the arrangement.

Shane had walked in carrying a baby, "Now people I want you to meet my son, Sawyer Allen Walsh." Daryl took one look and knew that the baby's father was Shane. It looked too much like him not to be. Carol smiled at the baby, "He's beautiful, how is Lori?"

Shane looked more serious. "She made it through the C-section because Christie is a miracle worker. She is taking a nap, Sawyer has his days and nights mixed up."

Rick patted Shane on the back, "Congratulations, Shane. " Both men were smiling and Daryl hoped that they could put this behind them.

That evening Daryl walked the perimeter of the fence with Merle. They pushed and prodded on the fences and they seemed strong. He and Merle talked as they went along, catching up on what had been going on the hill and on their travel. Caleb came down to tell his father that dinner was ready and Merle went back to his house. Elijah and Jimmy would have first watch. Caleb and Merle were taking the second watch. He and Glenn were on the third watch. He was home but the world was still a dangerous place.

Everyone was in their own house now. He had three more people living in his house but that was the way it was now. Tonight he could shut the door and be alone with Carol. It seemed like forever since they had been together in their own bed and he was really hoping that there wouldn't be a lonesome child needing their company tonight.

Maggie and Glenn had moved into the basement where there was an extra bathroom. Beth was in their guest room and she and Sophia were getting along great. Michael was crushing a bit on Beth, but she was close to Michael's age.

Daryl opened the door and smelled whatever Carol was cooking. It smelled wonderful and he went toward the kitchen where she was and said, "Honey, I'm home".

She looked up from the sink and smiled at him. "Take Bonnie for a walk and we'll gather the crew together and have dinner."

Bonnie nipped at his toes because he had taken his boots off when he came in the house. "Dinner is ready?"

Carol nodded and he put the leash on the dog. "Let's walk the dog together and then have dinner?"

She smiled again, "Yes". He put Bonnie's leash in one hand and Carol's hand in the other and they went outside and walked in the golden light of a mountain sunset.

AN

**That sounds like an end but there will be more. I wanted a Daryl chapter so that we could see things from his point of view. **

**Daryl warns Carol that the children will "wool" Bonnie. That is an old fashioned term for playing too rough and not allowing the animal to rest. Trust me, Bonnie is not going to be "wooled" too much.**

**Review?**


	23. Never Get Used to Loving You

I **haven't forgotten this one, but I have been distracted by another story. This chapter will finish the coming home part of this story. Their story is not over because their present circumstance while better than most is still precarious. Every character is strong but are they strong enough?**

**This chapter will be fluffy. They deserve it. You loyal readers deserve it. Be prepared to use you active imaginations in a few scenes. I'll write the scene and you supply the lurid details. Is that a deal?**

Never Get Used to Loving You

Rick and Andrea

Rick had walked around the perimeter of the fence with Carl that evening. Rick wanted to know what weaknesses and defenses this Homestead had and he wanted sometime with Carl. His son had been angry with him for months before this; Carl had accepted that his parents were divorcing. Rick wanted to tell Carl that his parents were together and that he wanted to mend fences with him as well.

Carl was different. He wasn't playing video games in which he wiped out imaginary creatures with electronic weapons. Carl was packing a pistol and a long knife and wore both with the casualness of confident use. The boy was gone and wasn't coming back. He and Andrea would have to accept Carl as he was now.

"What happened on the day you left Georgia?" Rick wanted to know and he wanted his son to talk to him.

Carl glanced at him and then put his eyes back to scanning the area outside the perimeter. "The flight was cool. Sophia and I sat in one seat and watched the world. It looked peaceful from the air. There were other airplanes that day. I guess it was the best way to get anywhere.

We landed at the airport out of town. Jesse had parked his Tahoe there. Jesse gave Sophia a sword and me a pry bar. Shane helped Lori and he had a pistol. Jesse grabbed a long wrench. He used the key to open the door of his Tahoe.

Jesse saw the walkers coming toward us and he told us to stay in the plane. He taxied the plane toward a gate in the fence close by to the Tahoe. He gave Shane the key and Shane helped Lori out and Sophia and I jumped out. We fought our way to the Tahoe and got in and waited for Jesse.

Jesse drove the plane away slowly and most of the walkers followed the plane. It was noisier I guess and we would never have made it if he hadn't done that. He parked the plane out in the middle of the runway and left it running.

Dad, he jumped out of that plane and began running to the fence avoiding walkers as he went. Jesse played football in high school and it was like he was running toward the goal line. The fence around the airport was eight feet high and he was over it in two moves. He landed on his feet and got in the back seat of the Tahoe in seconds. It was amazing.

Shane got us out of there but we got into trouble with jammed up cars. Jesse started driving and Sophia and I sat up front with him. Shane and Lori got in the back seat so that she could lie down.

Jesse finally stopped at an old barn and locked us in. He went out the barn loft with a sword and dropped to the ground and starting killing walkers. Sophia and I took our weapons and followed him. We saw some more coming and he needed us. We worked together. Sophia in the middle and me and Jesse on either side of her. She knew how to fight, Dad, better than me, really.

Jesse went into the house and got water and food for us. The people were gone and they never came back. Lori was tired and he let her rest as long as he could. There was a rifle in the house and he took it but he said that the noise would bring more in.

It was late afternoon before we got started again. We had to stop and fight our way through twice. It was still daylight when we made it home. Michael, Caleb, and James hadn't been home long. They had fought their way home from another direction. Aunt Amy and Joaquin got there the next day."

Rick had listened quietly. Jesse had saved them all by moving the plane and taking most of the walkers with them. "I am proud of all of you. You are tough. We'll need to be tough to hold this place, you know that."

Carl nodded, "I'm glad that you all made it back and brought more people. We can't lose the Homestead. The walkers are bad enough but we have had to fight off raiders already and that will get worse as the supplies out there dwindle."

Rick nodded, "We ran into some bad people out there. We had to kill to get here and we have to kill to keep it."

"What is going on with you and Mom?"

"We had time to talk out there. Lots of things that used to be important weren't important at all. I love her and I always have. She loves me. We love you. We want to be a family again. I know you don't trust that yet, but just give us time to prove that to you."

"I want us to be a family. Lori's baby is Shane's."

"It was always going to be Shane's. He and Lori love each other and he will be a good dad to little Sawyer."

They walked on, and soon came back to their house. They had dinner together as if this was just another family reunion. Joaquin and Rick cleaned up after. Andrea had disappeared with Carl. Joaquin sat down with Amy at the dining room table with some complicated diagrams.

Rick took a shower and shaved. He looked less like a wild man of the mountains and more like himself. He had clothes he could wear in the closet. He always left clothes behind on trips and Carol always added clothes he could wear from the Dixon Bros. store. He put on a blue denim shirt and dark blue cargo pants and new boots.

Andrea was on the deck watching the sun go down. She turned to him, "We made it home."

Rick put his arms around her and she leaned back into him. His cock showed its approval and she said, "I guess there is a pistol in that pocket."

Rick kissed her neck, "No, I am just glad to see you."

"Don't get too frisky. Your son is watching us from his room."

"We don't have watch tonight. Let's go to our room so I can show you some frisky." Rick slid his hands under her top and cupped her breasts. He kissed her ear, "Or the boy is going to see how much daddy wants mommy."

Andrea laughed, "Put your hands down before we turn around." Rick withdrew his hands and they went into the house and by Amy and Joaquin who both looked up and laughed, "I'll lock up," Joaquin called.

Their bedroom was downstairs and they were inside with the door locked before they started taking off their clothes. Rick kicked off his boots and pulled down his pants and underwear before Andrea got her sneakers off. She sat down in the chair and laughed at him. He tore off his shirt and waited for her on the bed. She stood up leisurely and stood at the foot of the bed with last rays of the sun providing the only light. Rick grinned; she knew how to make a presentation. She slipped off her top and folded it on the chair. She pulled down her slacks and took them off turning to put them on the chair and giving him full view of her ass.

Andrea stood again at the foot of the bed and pulled down on bra strap and then the other and then sat down beside of Rick to have him unhook it. She shrugged away from his grasping hands and walked over to the chair and turned giving him his first full view of her breasts with their telltale signs of her arousal. Andrea watched his face and put her hand in her panties and stroked herself. Then she turned around and pulled them off.

Rick said hoarsely, "Please."

She smiled then, "Yes, please me."

Rick nodded, "Come here" and Andrea moved toward the bed and he pulled her gently toward him.

Jesse and Michonne

Michonne had been busy since she got back home. Cara wouldn't let her out of her sight and James had hovered close. Jacqui needed to be settled in. Jesse had made dinner and Jacqui and James had did the dishes. It made her smile to see how quickly James had made her feel at home. He was his father's son.

Cara looked like Jesse but her little girl was a little shy with strangers. Cara was like Michonne. It took her longer to trust people. Gradually Cara warmed up to Jacqui. James had loved the "grandmas" and had mourned their passing as much as any of them. Cara had never had a grandmother and Jacqui was going to be perfect at it. Michonne loved Jacqui. She loved her tough demeanor and her kindnesses.

Jesse was waiting his turn to have her attention. Michonne knew he loved her, but he was the most grown up man she had ever me. She remembered the good looking boy who had watched her that first night in that gym. He had asked to go get some coffee and she turned him down. He hadn't sulked or pouted but he was waited his turn.

She hadn't taken all that long before she fell in love with him. He had accepted her as she was; he let her be Michonne. She had traveled far away from him before and she always returned. She would never leave him again; this long journey back to him had taken the wanderlust away for good.

Jacqui loved their house. "It is a monument to all that is beautiful." She and Michonne had taken a walk with Cara and she told Jacqui about the grandmas and what they had meant to all the people who lived here.

"I might have given up after Dale and Hershel died if you hadn't kept dragging me back. Telling me that you needed me." Jacqui said as she smoothed Cara's curls.

"I lost my mother and grandmother when I was young. I miss them and I miss Nancy and Lydia, but I don't want to miss you. You'll be busy here. The whole group needs you, but I need you the most." Michonne wasn't always comfortable with discussing her feelings but she knew Jacqui understood.

It was late that evening before Michonne was able to break away from her children and Jacqui. Jesse had been busy with all sorts of chores in and out of the house. He would smile at her and she would smile back as they passed each other.

Cara was asleep and Michonne had had a chance to have a long talk with James. He seemed to have grown up while she was gone, but there were traces of the boy that she loved. He was still loving and affectionate. He had let Cara monopolize her; James could wait his turn and she was blessed to have a son like him.

Jesse was waiting in their bedroom and she paused in front of the open doorway. He was drawing on a sketch pad and for a moment she watched him. He was completely absorbed in his vision that he was trying to bring to life and then he saw her and he put the pad away.

She closed and locked the door behind her. "I am never leaving this mountain. I would stare at the stars every night and just wish I was here."

"I was looking at them too, and praying that you were safe. Did Cara get settled down? And James?"

"They are fine. You took good care of them. I knew you would. You take care of everybody. I didn't know how much I loved you until I couldn't just reach out and touch you." She was weeping now.

Jesse went to her and kissed her tears away. "I wanted to come after you. I started for the fences a thousand times and pulled myself back. I had to protect Cara and James and all the others. I had to trust you to make your way back. Let's make a pact, if we have to leave the mountain from now on, we go together."

Michonne buried into his arms, "I love you. Yes, you are right. We go together from now on."

Jesse picked her up and carried her to the bed, "I wait my turn, but I demand all of you when it is my turn." He deposited her on the bed none too gently and pulled her boots off.

Michonne said, "I thought you were a patient man."

Jesse tossed her pants aside and took off his shirt and pants quickly. "I am patient, but it is my turn."

Michonne watched him undress. He was one of those men who managed to look better with his clothes off. He had a flat stomach and just enough muscles to make you want to touch him. He was lean and sinewy and she loved his golden brown body. His blue eyes were dark in this light and he was her man. No one else could ever be what he was to her.

He turned on the stained glass lamp by their bed, "I definitely want lots of light, the better to see you with, my dear." She laughed because that was the same scratchy voice that he used to tell Cara "The Little Pigs".

He sat down on the bed beside her and raised her top to kiss her stomach with its stretch marks. He always did that when they had been apart for a while. It was his way to show her that she was the mother of his children and that he respected that. He was just too damn good for her and she quickly sat up and threw off her top and bra.

"Somebody was making some big talk about demanding all of me". She pulled him toward her lips and they kissed greedily.

Jesse pulled back, "Love you, my nightingale." He kissed her again and Michonne knew that he heard her when she whispered, "Not as much as I love you, my sweet prince."

Carol and Daryl

Carol wasn't sure if she was really home or that it wasn't some happy dream that would disappear when she woke up. It was good to be home. Michael and Sophia were safe but she saw that they were different. They both had told her about what they had done that first day. Michael had killed a man because he had to and Sophia had fought walkers with her sword. They needed to tell her because was their mother and loved them. She couldn't make it not happen but they needed her to know what they had been through.

Sophia had used a sword to kill walkers, "I would swing that sword and remember all the times that you and Aunt Michonne would make me practice. Sometimes I didn't want to, and you made me. I never knew why. Remember when we backpacked out the Grand Canyon. I was tired and you just kept pushing me to keep going. When we got out I was so tired and I said that was the hardest thing I have ever done. Do you remember what you told me then?"

Carol pushed Sophia's bangs back from her face, "I told you that I hoped that was the hardest thing you ever had to do, but you could do more than that."

Sophia held the Carol's hand to her face, "You were right. That was a long day and you and dad weren't there to baby me. Uncle Jesse was amazing but he needed us to watch his back. I work the fences because it needs to be done. We all have jobs to do and they have to be done."

Carol hugged her close while Michael talked about his trip back with Caleb and James. They made it back because they knew how to fight and protect themselves. Michael was going to be on watch with Daryl tonight and she wished that there would be one uninterrupted night home in their own bed. Daryl and Michael were Dixons and it seemed that they would always pick up the heaviest load. Daryl would always go work harder than anyone else.

Michael went to bed early because he had watch later. Daryl and Sophia had talked for a long time on the porch this evening while Carol talked with Christie. Lori looked tired but happy. The baby was healthy and Lori and Shane were comfortable staying with Merle.

Beth was downstairs with Maggie and Beth. The kid had been a trooper but she needed to grieve with Maggie. Beth had lost so much but she was tougher than she looked.

Carol spent quality time in the bathroom with a soap, shampoo, and a razor. She was putting on lotion when Daryl came into the room eyeing her appreciatively, "Not a chance, Daryl. Go take a shower, wash your hair, brush your teeth and shave. And don't take all night."

Daryl had laughed, "You don't love the real me. You just want your version of me."

"My version being the one that isn't crawling with vermin and covered with unmentionable filth? So just hustle in there and clean up. There will be another crisis soon."

Daryl grabbed some shorts, "I'll be thinking of you in that shower".

Carol laughed, "Don't think too hard or start without me." He turned the water on in the shower and she looked at herself in the mirror. She was turning gray early. She wandered back to their bedroom a little depressed about that. She put on a nice nightgown and settled herself in their bed. It was still the same room, but she was different. Her children were different and so was she. Carol got up and wandered around the bedroom. It felt strange to lie in a bed alone. She hadn't been alone since this thing started. The window was open and Carol looked out at the moon rising over the mountains. It looked the same and gradually she began to relax. She was home.

Daryl came out of the bathroom with only his shorts on and put his arms around her. "What is out there that is so interesting?"

"There is not one new thing out there. It's absolutely the same."

"Do you feel like you're home yet?" Daryl rubbed her shoulders.

She turned to smile at him. Of course he would understand. He had always understood. "I am beginning to get there. When you are on watch with Michael tonight, talk with him about that first day. He had to do some tough things that day."

Daryl nodded, "Sophia did too. They have grown up some, but they still need us."

Carol said, "I am going gray. I am only thirty eight and I am going gray. This is a crisis."

"Our world is collapsing under the weight of the ZA and you are going gray. Which crisis should I handle first?" Daryl kissed the top of her going gray head.

"Will you still love me when I am completely gray headed? Will you think I am old and washed up?" Carol asked.

"You do have gray hair and I have a hard on looking at you, so what does that tell you? I must get turned on by gray hair because I think you are hot." Daryl was ready to show her how hot she was.

"You don't get bored that you have been with the same woman for fourteen years? You were only twenty-two when we got married."

Daryl led her toward their bed, "You are familiar to me. Like house and this mountain. But I love every inch of you. I never get used to loving you. It still surprises me that you love me. Part of me is still the stable boy in love with the princess. I never got much love growing up but I am smart enough to soak up all I can now. It took you all evening to start feeling at home. I was home the second I put my arms around you this morning."

Carol smiled radiantly at him, "You can always talk me off the ledge."

"Well, there is a bed right beside the ledge so can I talk you into climbing into bed now. I will show you just how much I love gray haired you."

Carol giggled, "I am so insecure. I may need multiple examples of your attraction to gray haired ladies.

"You aren't the princess you once were, now you are the queen and I still love you."

**AN**

**Lots of fluff and stuff. I hope you added all the details that you wanted to see in the story.**

**Review?**


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