𝙴𝙿𝙸𝚂𝙾𝙳𝙴 𝙵𝙸𝙵𝚃𝚈-𝙴𝙸𝙶𝙷𝚃 - 𝚃𝙾𝙿 𝙾𝙵 𝙷𝙸𝚂 𝙻𝙸𝚂𝚃
𝙰 𝙵𝚎𝚠 𝙳𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝙻𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛
It had been a few days later and Tyreese had died after being bitten by a walker. He was bitten on his arm so the group tried amputating it off to save his life but unfortunately, it was too late. Tyreese's death had taken a toll on the group. That was the second death of their group in just a few days. It was a scary time. The group were still on the road, looking for a safe place to stay. They were starving, exhausted, dirty and they had no idea what to do. Everyone was looking for food. That was the main priority right now.
Madelyn sighed as she sat on the ground with her knees brought to her chest. She had scoped a large area of the woods for some food but all she found were two or three berries. They didn't help with her hunger at all. Daryl approached her and held out a few worms he had dug out from the ground. "No, don't you dare eat those." Madelyn said.
"They're for you." Daryl said.
"I'm not eating worms." Madelyn said as she shook her head.
"Well, you may not have a choice." Daryl said.
"I can live without it." Madelyn said, making Daryl sigh and throw the worms away.
"Come on, we have to keep moving." Daryl said. He helped Madelyn up and the group began walking down the road again. It didn't help that it was very hot and sunny out.
"Rick, we find to find food. I don't think the group can hold out for much longer." Madelyn said as she walked alongside Daryl and Rick who was holding Judith.
"We will. It's gonna rain sooner or later. Hopefully cool us down." Rick said.
"I'm gonna head out. See what I can find." Daryl said.
"Do you need any help?" Madelyn asked.
"Nah, I got it. You're tired and hungry. I don't want you to waste any energy." Daryl said to his wife.
"It's really no trouble." Madelyn said.
"I got it, Maddie. You stay with the group." Daryl said.
"Okay." She sighed. Daryl kissed her forehead and went off into the woods to look for some food.
"Is it me or has Daryl been acting different ever since Atlanta?" Rick asked Madelyn.
"He has. Losing Beth got to him more than I thought. I know he cared about her a lot." Madelyn said. "I've been trying to get him to talk to me but you know what he's like."
"Yeah, I get it." Rick said as Miles approached the two.
"Rick, there are walkers behind us." He said, making Rick turn around and see a few walkers following them.
"It's fine. They won't catch up." Rick said as everyone continued walking. Nobody had the energy to run anymore. The sun was still beating down on the group like an oven. It was only a matter of time before they lost the motivation to keep moving forward.
When the group arrived at a bridge, they stopped to catch their breath. Things really were not looking up and everyone was starting to lose a little bit of hope. When the walkers caught up to the group, they sighed and began killing them one by one before walking again.
"Dad, look." Carl said, pointing to three abandoned cars on the road as Daryl came back and joined the group, having not found any food. The group looked through the cars but found nothing. Nothing to eat, nothing to protect themselves with. They were still tired so they sat down by the side of the road.
Madelyn sighed and rested her head on her brother's shoulder. Things couldn't possibly get any worse, that was until they heard a sound. They looked around and saw four dogs come out of the woods. Everyone pulled a knife out as they barked and soon enough, everyone was having dog for dinner.
It felt wrong but they were hungry. The group were willing to eat anything. Daryl began feeding Madelyn liked he always did. He liked feeding his wife whenever he could. It may have seemed weird but Daryl saw it as an intimate moment with his wife. All he wanted was to look after Madelyn and just keeping her well, fed and healthy, that was on the top of his list. It didn't matter if he didn't eat or he got less food than her. Madelyn always came first. Miles smiled as he watched his new brother in law take care of his sister.
He remembered how Landon took care of her and was glad Madelyn found someone new, someone that made her happy and someone that wanted to look after her. Miles knew he didn't have to worry about Madelyn. He knew she could take care of herself and if she couldn't, Daryl would always be there. Miles and Daryl hadn't spoken much, not since Beth's death. No matter what, Daryl was now family and Miles wanted to get to know him a little better.
After eating and gaining a little bit more strength, the group were off once again. Miles noticed Daryl looking into the woods, looking for anything useful, any at all. He pulled out a half empty water bottle from his bag and offered it to him. "No." Daryl said.
"Hey, we're family. Have it." Miles said. Daryl looked at the bottle before looking at Madelyn. "I offered it to her already. She already had some if that's what you're worried about."
Daryl nodded and took the bottle from Miles. "Thanks." He said before drinking some of the water. "Come on, let's go see if we can find some more water."
Miles nodded and he and Daryl went off into the woods in search of some water. They knew they wouldn't have much luck though since everything was pretty much dried out. "So, how did you and my sister meet?" Miles asked as they walked through the woods.
"Rick brought her back to the camp after coming back from the city. I was hunting at the time and didn't return till the next day. That's when we met." Daryl said.
"I can't believe she was alone for two weeks there." Miles sighed. Maybe if he had left his dorm, he would have found his sister, he would have been able to protect her.
"She's a fighter. She's been through a lot but she still keeps pushing." Daryl said.
"That's my sister, all right." Miles said. "By the way, I should tell you, my sister is happy with you. I can see it. I know she talks about Landon a lot but that was because they knew each other for a long time. They met in college and were together ever since. But I know she loves you now."
"What was he like? Landon?" Daryl asked. He never really asked Madelyn what her first husband was like. Maybe it was because he was worried he couldn't match his standards.
"He was cool, you know? He hung out with the family, he looked after Mads, everyone liked him." Miles said. "But none of that matters now. She's happy with you. You need to trust me."
"Do you...like me?" Daryl asked.
"I can't lie, man. When we first met in Atlanta, you looked like one scary dude but you're cool. I know I can trust you with my sister's life. I know you're the kinda guy that fights for his loved ones." Miles said.
"Thanks, man." Daryl said before giving him a bro hug.
"Well, would you look at that?" Miles said, making Daryl turn around to see an old, abandoned barn not too far away.
"You think we could stay the night there?" Daryl asked.
"I think we could." Miles said.