THE LOVELY BONES, daryl dixon

vi. strangers

  "We can send some people out with you to find him, to save time," Rick replied, his voice soft and kind. "Take Glenn, and make sure you're back before dark." Ellie attempted to pick up her daughter, but was stopped as Rick motioned for her not to, "Is that safe? She's too young."

  "As much as I am grateful to you, Rick, for allowing us to stay... I don't know you, nor do I trust you with my daughter," Ellie replied awkwardly, her cheeks flushing red of humiliation, "She'll be fine with me."

  Ellie noted Rick's hesitancy, but observed how he nodded at the girl, flashing Coda a playful expression to earn a small giggle. Sheepishly, the man Ellie has presumed to be Glenn approached her, nodding awkwardly at both Ellie and Coda. Though she had been babbling away, Coda hadn't needed an audience to her own voice. The small child was independent in the best ways, and ensured to remain busy as she discussed her surroundings with her small toy in her hands. The woods had been bountiful in anecdotal stories for the young girl.

  Ellie grinned across at Glenn, but subsequently let out a sigh, "I'm grateful for you helping; it means a lot."

  "Of course, it isn't too much bother," he responded, loading his gun up idly, "You helped save Sophia, so..."

  Cautiously, Ellie strode into the forest, feeling entirely disoriented. Like the woods had been a trap — to be almost blinded, but given the ears of a wolf. Even the soft susurration of the branches felt heavy in the ears. Her sense of smell was sensitised, the loam in the earth and the decomposing leaves made the atmosphere close and thick. The blackness nurtured a sense of claustrophobia inside her, even though the woodland stretched unbroken for miles. The narrow path, which was made uneven by the knotted roots that crossed it, branched at intervals. There was no map to follow, but even if there was, the perpetual dark would prevent her from using it.

  Glenn held a small flashlight in his hands, and then turned to face her through the dark, "So, Ellie, what's your story?"

  "Mom worked in the local church here, Dad was a retired military nut," Ellie shrugged her shoulders, "Dad died about fourteen years ago, Luke and I didn't like the idea of Mom moving on, but she did, and out popped our little sister. I had Coda six years ago, and have been disgraced pretty much since then."

  Glenn nodded and smiled warmly as he questioned in confusion, "Where's your little sister?"

  "We were looking for her the last two weeks," Ellie started, feeling a lump forming in her throat, "We can't find her anywhere."

  "Maybe we can help you find her," the man declared warmly, shooting her a hopeful nod as her eyes twinkled with gratitude.

  Ellie smiled and poked Glenn's arm playfully, "Thanks, Glenny."

  "Glenny?" Glenn chuckled lightly, although her use of a nickname had entirely warmed his aching heart that had barely been beating.

  "It suits you," Ellie winked at him teasingly, observing as his cheeks flushed with a pink tinge of embarrassment, "So, what were you before all this?"

  "I was a pizza delivery guy," he murmured, the pink tinge on his cheeks suddenly shifting to humiliation at his profession, "What about you?"

  Ellie broadcasted a contemplative sigh, before nodding slowly, "I worked in rehabilitating ex offenders, trying to reach out to them and help them not reoffend. I chose to do that, but I'm a scientist."

  "Sweet... That's pretty cool," Glenn smiled at the girl, ensuring she had been praised in her career choice, "I feel like being a pizza guy is nothing compared to that."