Last One Standing ~ TWD Daryl Dixon

6

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Jo

As we drove away from the CDC I sat next to Daryl, wedged between him and my sister on the narrow seat. I shook with the stress of getting us out alive. I felt cold, which was odd considering it was the middle of summer. Part of my brain told me I might be in shock, but the other part wouldn't even consider that. I had to hold it together. I had to keep moving.

I glanced over at Kate. She had her hands clasped together on her lap and was watching out the window calmly as though we were out on a Sunday afternoon drive. God, she was innocent. She had no idea. I felt the overwhelming, crushing wave of responsibility rise and threaten to pull me down. She didn't belong in this world, and it was my job to keep her safe. It shocked me to find out I could shake harder.

We drove for less than an hour. But by that time I had gotten myself pulled together. We trusted Jenner and that was a mistake. We survived and now we were moving again. That was what was important.

We were away from the heart of the city, on the fringes in what looked like an industrial complex. The buildings here all looked like they were falling down, the grass and trees surrounding them were overgrown giving the place a wild look. Rick parked the RV and everyone started piling out. Kate followed suit without question, but I turned to Daryl.

"Do you know where we are?" I asked.

He nodded. He had been silent the whole drive and even now seemed distant. I wondered if the incident at the CDC had shaken him up more than he realized.

"Is it safe?" I wondered, leaning forward in the seat to get a better look out the windshield. It didn't look like it. To me the buildings looked like they would be a perfect maze for Them to hide in, and impossible to secure.

He nodded again and reached down to pull his crossbow up and got out of the truck. I slid across the seat and got out behind him. He turned back to the truck and leaned in and pulled two guns out from under the seat. He handed his shot gun to me and slipped a handgun in his pants against the base of his spine. I checked to be sure the shot gun was loaded and then slung it over my shoulder and followed Daryl towards the rest of the group.

As we caught up to the group Daryl strode to the front while I hung back. I pushed Kate forward so she was in the middle of the group near the other women and kids. I walked slower, keeping my eyes on our rear. I didn't like still being in the city, and I didn't necessarily trust Rick to be making the right decisions for us.

"Looks like they are barely hanging on." Andrea observed in a surprisingly quiet voice. "What makes you think they will take in strangers?" she asked from her place in the middle of the group.

"All those guns we gave 'em they will probably throw us a party." Daryl replied, he turned it Rick. "It was a good call...for once." He added in a harsh voice.

We all climbed through old windows and dropped into what looked like a court yard of sorts. There was graffiti everywhere. T-Dog reached back and helped Kate climb down while I waited for everyone else before following once more. As the group crossed the yard Daryl suddenly tensed, and raised his crossbow, swinging it around.

That put me on edge and I stopped and turned a slow circle, straining my ears to pick up anything beyond the noise our group was making. There were just too many of us to be quiet.

"Where are the lookouts?" Glenn asked in a tight voice.

Before the group turned the corner I could hear them.