VIVIAN STOOD IN THE BED ROOM, ARMS CROSSED AS DARYL POINTED TO THE MAP RICK HAD LAID ON THE BED,
Hershel was on his other side, stitching up his wounds,
"I found it washed up on the creek bed right there." He spoke about the doll, "She must have dropped it crossin' there somewhere."
"Cuts the grid almost in half." He informed them looking over at Vivian before he made eye contact with Shane,
"Yeah, you're welcome." The hunter grunted,
"How's he lookin'?" Rick asked the veterinarian,
He cut the excess string from his finished stitches, "I had no idea we'd be going through the antibiotics so quickly." He walked over to a bowl clean his hands, "Any idea what happened to my horse?"
"Yeah, the one who almost killed me? If it's smart, it left the country." Daryl answered,
"We call that one Nelly, as in Nervous Nelly. I could have told you she'd throw you if you'd bothered to ask." Hershel shook his head and walked over to Rick, "It's a wonder you people have survived this long."
Daryl glanced over at Vivian, "Where's Marcie?"
Vivian and Rick shared a look before she glanced out the window, "Um..." The sun was going down and she had yet to return, "She's not back yet."
"What?" Daryl began to sit up and the men had to hold him down, "And yer all just sittin' here? She could be lost, too."
"Daryl, you're in no condition to go out there." Rick warned him,
"Don't touch me." He growled at them, "Just go out 'n find her."
Vivian, Rick, and Shane left the room, meeting up with Lori who was sitting in the hallway with Liam. Vivian took the toddler from her arms,
"He'll be all right." Rick told his wife before he continued down the hallway,
"I hate to say it, but I'm with Hershel on this one." Shane spoke up, "Can't keep going out there, not after this."
"You'd quit now? Daryl just risked his life to bring back the first hard evidence we've had." Rick insisted,
"That is one way to look at it. The way I see it, Daryl almost died today for a doll." Shane replied,
"Yeah, I know how you see it." Rick spat before walking away,
Vivian glanced between Shane and Lori before going towards the kitchen, where dinner was ready. Liam and Vivian sat at the metaphorical 'kid's' table with Glenn, Jimmy, Beth, and Maggie. The young boy sat on her lap as she fed him vegetables and chicken.
It was quiet as they ate. Only the sound of forks clinking on plates and Liam's babbling filled the air.
"Does anybody know how to play guitar?" Glenn asked with a small smile, "Dale found a cool one. Somebody's gotta know how to play."
"Otis did." Patricia stated.
"Yes. And he was very good, too." Hershel replied,
Vivian kicked Glenn's foot and he winced, "Dude... shut up." She whispered,
In the woods, darkness had taken over. Marcie sat on the horse's saddle, her flashlight guiding them back to the farm.
The lights were on at the house, which helped her find her way. Marcie made sure to drop the horse back off at the stable, removing the saddle and giving her some treats before leaving.
With a hand gripping the strap of her backpack, Marcie opened the door. Everyone stopped eating and stared over at her,
"Where have you been?" Rick asked, standing up and wrapping an arm around her,
"I found a horse in the woods. I just wanted to make sure Daryl didn't hurt himself, so I've been looking for him." Marcie pulled away from the sheriff, "Is he here?"
She glanced around at all the faces, everyone quiet. She noticed Andrea staring down at her plate, avoiding eye contact.
But Daryl wasn't there.
Rick placed a hand on her shoulder, "He's fine. There was an accident."
"What happened?"
"He fell off the horse and pierced himself on his arrow. But he's fine, Hershel stitched him up." Rick explained,
"We made dinner if you want to sit-"
"I'm good. He's upstairs?" Marcie ignored the table full of food and rushed up the stairs,
She opened the first door on the left and paused when she spotted the dirty, inured Daryl laying in the bed,
"Where the fuck have you been?" Daryl spat out, covering up with the sheets,
"Looking for you!" Marcie stepped further into the room, analysing his body with her eyes from a yard away,
"What?"
"I found the horse you were riding but no you. I assumed you were hurt, which I guess was right." She sat down on the chair next to the bed, "I've been looking for you all evening. Are you okay?"
"'M fine."
They made eye contact and Daryl quickly moved his gaze to the window, staring at the night sky, "What happened out there, Daryl?"
"Stupid horse bucked me off. Fell down a cliff, hit my head. Arrow went right through me. Made my way back here after a while, then Andrea shot me-"
Marcie stood, "Andrea shot you?!"
"'M fine. Just a graze." He stated,
Daryl watched with wide eyes as Marcie stormed out of the room. She stomped down the stairs and paused in the dining room, her eyes landing on the blonde,
"We made you a plate-"
"You shot him?!" T-Dog stood up and wrapped his arms around Marcie as she lunged at Andrea,
"Marcie-" Rick tried to calm her down,
"This is exactly why you shouldn't have had a gun in the first place! First chance you get and you shoot one of us!" Marcie yelled, not bothering to fight to get out of T-Dog's arms,
"Calm down!" Rick exclaimed, "What's done is done. She feels bad enough and Daryl's going to be fine."
"Better watch your back." Marcie spat, "Maybe I'll mistake you for walker next time I get my hand on a gun."
"Hey." Rick stepped up to her, blocking her eyesight from Andrea, "Knock it off."
She stopped and looked up at Rick, "She shot him." Marcie whispered,
"I know." Rick spoke softly, "She'll be punished, and we'll train you guys properly so this won't happen again."
Marcie nodded and T-Dog removed himself from her. She gave Andrea one last glare before grabbing the plate they made for her, "Thank you for dinner. I'm sure it's delicious." She mumbled before heading back upstairs,
She went back into the room Daryl was in and awkwardly stood in the doorway until he turned to look at her, "Have you eaten?"
He nodded, biting at his nails. He watched as she went over to the window sill and sat down, slowly eating her meal. Daryl cleared his throat, "Did they tell you?" She glanced over at him, "I found Sophia's doll."
The fork fell from her hand and clattered loudly on the plate, "What?"
Daryl proceeded to tell her about finding Sophia's doll, and that they were close to finding her. But in Marcie's mind, it confirmed that Sophia was truly gone. That doll was a lifeline. She wouldn't just drop it.
But she didn't tell Daryl that.
Marcie gave Daryl the rest of her food, telling him she wasn't hungry. And with that, she went back to their tent, avoiding talking to anyone on the way.
She laid on her sleeping bag, staring up at the ceiling of the tent, her butterfly knife twirling between her fingers.
She did believe Daryl when he said they were close to finding Sophia, but Marcie had a feeling she wouldn't be alive when they would find her.
If she was still alive, Sophia would be severely dehydrated, probably starving. She would be scared, skittish. She had gone through such a traumatic situation, it would be hard to know if the little girl would ever recover.
Would it make her stronger? Or would it break her completely?
Outside, Marcie heard shuffling footsteps. She gripped her knife tightly and sat up. The zipper on the tent door unzipped and she grabbed her flashlight and shined it towards the opening and Daryl stumbled slightly after being blinded, "Jesus, woman."
"Daryl?" She quickly moved the light away, "What the hell are you doing? You're supposed to be resting."
"I ain't sleepin' where I ain't wanted." He grumbled, sitting on his sleeping bag,
Marcie crawled closer to him before leaning back on her heels, "You could've ripped your stitches. Lemme check 'em."
"'m fine." Daryl responded,
She narrowed her eyes at him, "Daryl, seriously." Marcie grabbed her flashlight again and tugged on his shirt, "Next time at least wait for someone to come help you."
He tensed as Marcie gently lifted his shirt and unwrapped the bandages from his side. She raised the flashlight and poked at his stitches slightly. Daryl held his breath as she grabbed a rag and dabbed away some blood delicately.
"You should let the wound breathe tonight." Marcie commented, moving back towards her side of the tent, "I can rewrap them tomorrow."
The two went to their sleeping areas and laid down, Daryl a little slow, trying not to tug on his stitches any more. Marcie slipped her knife under her pillow before facing the tent wall.
"Daryl?" Marcie whispered and he grunted in response, "I'm glad you're okay."