I wake up and quickly get out of bed. I run down stairs to say good morning to Carl and then I go to see Hershel. He’s in the kitchen eating a piece of toast and drinking a cup of coffee when he notices me he waves me over.
“Good morning Gemma.” He says to me and stands up
“Morning Hershel I was wondering if you could check my stiches so I can go out today.” I say and he gets up and leads me to a room and I partially lift my shirt so he can look at them.
“So why so eager for me to check you out.” He asks
“I just want to go out with Daryl and help find that little girl.” I say and when he finishes I put my shirt down.
“Well everything looks good one more day and they’ll be able to come out. But, please while your out there be careful not to rip your stitches.” He tells me and I head back to the room I was in and Daryl is still asleep. I go and sit on the bed.
“Daryl, Hershel said that I can go out.” I whisper in his ear “I’m ready to go.”
He rolls over and wraps his arm around my waist and says “Five more minutes.”
“You can sleep for five more minutes just let me go.” I say and he releases me.
I get up from the bed and notice the frame on the night stand. I take it in my hand and walk over to my bag and grab the picture of Mavie and I place it in the frame. Then I look through my bag and put my gun in the back of my pants and put the knife in my boot. When I turn around to wake Daryl up he’s gone. He must have left while I was getting ready.
I walk down the stairs and say good-bye to Carl. I walk onto the porch and I see Daryl on a horse as though he is something out of a fairytale book. He approaches me and puts out his hand out and I reluctantly take it as I get up on the horse and we start to run off.
----
Daryl shoots another squirrel and removes it from the tree. My arms are wrapped around his waist as tightly as I can with every step the horse takes.
“Your gonna have to loosen up or I’ll pass out from no air.” He tells me and I loosen my grip but only slightly.
“Sorry not the best experiences with horses.” I say and he laughs
“Hey stop that’s not funny once a horse bucked me off for no reason and another time one broke my foot.” I tell him and he laughs harder and I playfully swat his arm then we stop and he gets off the horse.
“Stay here.” He says and I obey and he walks down the ridge. I pet the horse and I see Daryl come back up the hill and he holds up Sophia’s doll and I’m filled with excitement for the thought that Sophia is close and we may find her today.
Daryl gets on the horse and we ride until we slow down on the side of a hill. The horse becomes slightly startled by the birds but then I hear a hiss and I know what’s next. Then suddenly the horse bucks us off and me and Daryl go sliding down the hill made of rock and plummet into water.
I pull my head up from the water and notice blood in the water and I check my stitches and there fine, then I notices an arrow in Daryl’s side and he’s face down in the water.
He must have hit his head on a rock in the way down.
I lift his head out of the water and cradle it in my arms.
“Daryl! Wakeup.” I yell but he doesn’t move for a moment I think he’s dead but then I put my ear to his mouth and I hear slight breathing.
I grab his arm and stand up and start to pull him out of the water when I suddenly get a huge painful sensation in my side. When I look down I see red on my shirt that keeps growing.
