The Walking Blind: Chapter Eight
It had been a few hours after Tyreese's plea to stay, and for the most part, some of us were outside. Myself, Carol, Carl, just enjoying the sweet air, the warm feeling of the sun on us in the courtyard.
"It's so quiet," Carl said, almost blissfully. I could hear someone walking around, the gravel crunching under their feet. I hummed in agreement.
"It's easy to forget how loud the world used to be. I used to complain about it all the time. Traffic, construction, car alarms, noise pollution. Oh." She seemed to laugh and sigh together in a second.
"What I wouldn't give for the sweet sound of a jumbo jet." I laughed, also somewhat missing all the wonderful sounds of the city.
"Or a boat, with all their horns, and the ocean, and the birds." I laughed, secretly wishing I'd wake up from this mess on a yacht somewhere with my family.
"It'd be even sweeter if we were all on it," Carl added. We all took a second to agree on that, it would be nice to be in the air, away from all this craziness.
"Your mom was proud of you," Carol told him, I half smiled, feeling the same despite barely knowing him and not knowing his mother at all but Carl seemed to take the change of humanity in the world fairly easy, even with his young age.
"For what, being mean to her?" Carl scoffed, kicking at the gravel. I furrowed my brows, and suddenly I felt like I was intruding on this conversation. It wasn't meant for my ears.
"No, you can't think about that." She told him. They were pacing now, I stood still by the cement post.
"It's all I think about," Carl muttered, and as suddenly as the conversation had started it was ending.
"Do you hear that? It's a car or something." I said, walking closer to the fenced area ahead of me.
"Please be them." I prayed to whoever was up there.
And it was closer, the sound was heavy now, my eardrums bustling.
"It's them, hurry," Carol ordered, I stayed off to the side, waiting for the news. They opened the gate, closing it immediately after the car drove in, stopping right in front of me. I heard doors open and close and my heart was drumming quickly.
"Drive em' up. I'll meet you there." Rick asked.
"Ok." It was from Maggie. And I felt my chest feel lighter, she was safe.
"Thank god." Rick breathed, gathering Carl in his arms. I heard them breathing each other in, thanking everything they believed in that they returned to each other for another day.
"Where's Hershel?" Rick asked.
"He's in the cell block," I answered, I didn't mind that Rick was impartial to my presents but I tried to make myself known at least.
"Where's Daryl?" Carol asked. I turned so fast I thought I had whiplash.
"What do you mean?" I asked, walking towards her. "Where is he?" I questioned, needing an answer.
It's all right. He's alive." Rick answered, walking towards us, comforting Carol.
"Then why isn't he here? Where is he?" I cut him off. I felt better knowing his life had been spared but it still didn't settle the now very queasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. I felt sick.
"We ran into his brother. They went off." Rick told us both now, his voice sharper than it was a moment ago.
"He left? Daryl Left? So- so what? He's gone?" I questioned. My stomach lurched with every confirmation I got that Daryl was indeed no longer here.
"Is he coming back?" Carol asked, but this time Rick didn't have an answer and after a moment Carol scoffed, pulling me away with her.
Carl and Rick followed behind us, talking amongst themselves.
We all walked in silence then, closing the gate and walking towards the prison, the sounds of hungry walkers fading away from us the further we got.
We got to the rest of the group, all reuniting. Beth was snug with Maggie, thanking god they came back ok.
"You came through like always. Sounds like we have a new problem on our hands." Hershel told Rick as Carol and I walked inside, I stopped pausing in the doorway.
"Yeah."
"You get a good look at him?"
"He had Daryl and Merle pitted against each other. A crowd cheering for them to fight to the death. What kind of sick mind does that?" Rick asked him.
"The kind this world creates." There was a pause.
"What's wrong? The baby?" Rick's voices changed into one of urgency.
"No, not the baby. Eats like a horse, sleeps like a rock." Carol and I walked away now, no longer interested in the conversation.
"We need to find Daryl!" I told her as we kept walking, Bear hot on my heels.
"He'll find us, Monet. He'll find us." She rubbed my back as tears slipped down my cheeks.
We walked back into the common room where we kept our guests. Carol, Carl and I were sitting and waiting to hear Rick's ruling. Soon the loud sound of the metal doors opening for Rick and Hershel perked us all up.
He walked right past us really, and we followed, leaving and locking them back up. Rick went to Beth to pick up his daughter, her immediately crying. It was quiet besides a small comment Beth had made and the babies constant crying. He gave her back to Beth.
I could barely listen let alone participate in Carol and Beth's newfound conversation about babies until Daryl was mentioned, then my heart started beating a little faster.
"I don't see why he had to leave. Merle sounds like a jerk." Beth mentioned to Carol and suddenly I was interested again.
"Men like Merle get in your head, make you feel like you deserve the abuse," Carol told her, and that gut-wrenching feeling was back.
"Even for Daryl?" Beth asked, and now I was on the edge of my seat, desperate for Carol's knowledge of this man who had convinced Daryl to leave us. To leave me.
"I'm hardly the woman I was a year ago, but if Ed walked through that door right now, breathing and told me to go with him, I'd like to think I'd tell him to go to hell." Carol sighed.
"You would." I piped up, giving her a weak smile.
"Doesn't matter." She breathed, taking a few steps before Beth spoke.
"We're weak without him." I hated the need in her voice as she longed for Daryl the same way I did. I bit my lips so hard it started to bleed.
"We'll get through this, too. Tyreese and his friends seem capable." Carol told her, or us.
"I'm pissed at him for leaving," Beth said and before I knew it I was standing, marching away from the lovesick girl. A small part of my brain called jealousy was uneasy with how openly Beth expressed her feelings for Daryl.
She didn't get to be mad at him, what about me? Daryl is the only person who wanted me around and he left me. Vulnerable to the wolves, or better known Rick possibly throwing me out to the walkers on my own.
I stopped in a random hallway, stopping and listening to the silence for a moment be alone finally. It wasn't long before I could hear more voices, echoing throughout the halls. I followed along to the sound, down by more cells.
It was Hershel and Glenn.
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