The explosion at the CDC marked the end of a chapter in their journey for survival. With the facility destroyed and their search for answers making them lose hope for normalcy, the group was once again thrust into the unknown of their long and arduous quest to stay alive in the new world.
Their path was uncertain, and the challenges which lays ahead are numerous, but the group is determined to navigate the dangers, protect one another, and continue their relentless pursuit for safety.
Daryl and Madeleine continue to ride together in silence, her arms wrapped around his waist as the wind attacks them with the velocity he's impending on the bike. They ride in front of the other vehicles, guiding the way toward the unknown, Fort Benning no longer being an option for them either at Madeleine's revelation.
The rest of the Grimes' ride in the car behind the bike with Carol and her daughter, the road stretching out with the challenges to find a new safe place for the group.
Lori smiles, turning away from looking out of the window. "I was just thinking about our trip to the Grand Canyon with Carl and Mads."
Rick's laught carries a bittersweet tone, reflecting on times when life was simpler and filled with happiness. He wished those moments could be relived, especially knowing that it was during those times when Madeleine had been her happiest.
For a brief period in her life, Madeleine had experienced a sense of normalcy, leaving behind the darkness of her past. It was a time when she had forgotten the hardships that had shaped her into the person she was, somehow Rick wonders how she went back to the way she was, yet, she's still different from her younger self.
Rick's memories stirs emotions of nostalgia and longing, reminding him of the simpler, happier days they had once known, after he had Madeleine back in his life. The desire to protect and preserve those memories was palpable in his laughter, catching Carl's attention from the backseat.
Carl frowns, looking in between his parents. "I don't remember that."
Lori slightly glances over her shoulder at her son, a joyful grin plastered on her face. "No, you wouldn't. You were just a baby. And besides, we never made it past Fort Worth."
"No, you got sick. I never knew a baby could throw up so much." Rick states, sharing a moment of laughter with his wife.
Carl scrunches his face in disgust, "Ick."
"Yeah, ick. The doctor in Texas said you'd live. You should've seen your sisters' face, I think that was the only time she didn't want to be around you. But she was a good nurse when we turned and drove back home." Lori tells him, the boy seeming disappointed they never tried to go on another family trip.
"That sucks."
Lori shakes her head, "No, it was a good trip."
"The best." Rick affirms.
"Can we go see it? The Grand Canyon?" He pleads, Lori and Rick sharing a knowing look, knowing in this new world they don't know where the roads will lead them. "I'd like to."
"I would too. Can we go?" Sophia chimes in, holding the doll closer to her chest.
"We'd never go without you or your mom. That's a promise." Rick concludes, Lori reaching her arm back to hold her son's hand in a comforting manner.
Daryl and Madeleine work together to find a way to drive the rest of the group through the parked cars on the road. The bike offered a sense of freedom, which Madeleine relished, even though Daryl typically didn't allow anyone else on it. But in this situation, he had made an exception, not like the women had given him much of a chance.
Madeleine points at an open exit, the man nodding his head at her before they indicate for the cars behind them to follow suit. As they make their way down the busy road, the unexpected happened – the radiator hose breaks, causing the RV to come to a sudden stop.
The vehicles park around the RV, the group approaching the RV and the disappointment and worry etched on Glenn's face was clear as he walks to stand beside Madeleine, the women crossing her arms at the predicament they found themselves in.
"I said it. Didn't I say it? A thousand times. Dead in the water." Dale calls out, walking toward the front of the RV where smoke is coming from.
Shane glares, "Problem, Dale?"
"Oh, just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of-" He cuts himself off, noticing Daryl scavenge the cars for supplies, and he sighs. "Okay, that was dumb."
"Can't find a radiator hose here..." Shane trails off.
"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find." Daryl points out, observing the comic books inside the car before chucking it to the side before moving on to the bags inside the trunk of the car.
"Can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start." T-Dog suggests, not hesitating to grab the tube to siphon the fuel from the cars around them and preserve it.
Carol wraps an arm around Sophia, "Maybe some water."
"Or food." Glenn mutters.
"Look around, find what you can!" The women calls out and the group goes on to explore the area. "I'm sure you'll survive, Glenn." Madeleine states, reaching into her pocket and holding out a chocolate bar, which he gratefully take it from her. "And I'm pretty sure you're still hangover from the other night."
Glenn smiles, devouring the entire bar of chocolate within a few seconds. "Thanks, Mads. I knew you cared."
Madeleine gives him a pointed look, "Don't need you to be a problem if you collapse, Glenn. Need you at your best. Don't mistake my intelligence for kindness."
"Whatever you say." He smiles and she rolls her eyes, not cracking her facade when she adverts her eyes around the group splitting around to find more supplies from the cars.
"This is a graveyard. I don't know how I feel about this." Lori states, running a hand through her hair, approaching the women with Carl.
"Come with me, Carl. Let's find you some cool stuff." Madeleine proposes as Daryl looks back at them, handing the young boy the comics he found inside the car, Carl smiling back in response.
The two of them share a look, Carl grinning down at the comics before Madeleine breaks Daryl's intense stare and taps her brother's shoulder as a sign to follow her.
As the group splits to go look through cars, Madeleine, Lori, Carol, Carl and Sophia pass a car, a dead female in the passenger seat, flies buzzing around her. Madeleine forces her brother to look away as she keeps glancing around with caution, trying to find any food for her brother and Sophia, and whatever else for the group.
"Where are we going after this?" Carl questions, the women sighing at his question when she's not sure for how long they'll be searching until they can find a safe refugee somewhere.
"I don't know, but it doesn't matters. All that mattes is that you know you won't be alone." She reassures, ruffling his hair and he let's out a small chuckle before walking ahead of his sister.
Madeleine removes her knife from her waist and approaches one of the abandoned cars, where a deceased family seats inside. The walker in the driver's seat lunges toward her, attempting to grab her, but she swiftly drives her knife through its skull.
Once the threat was neutralised, Madeleine reaches for the car keys and proceeds to unlock the trunk. A victorious grin spreading across her lips as she discoveres a bag of groceries, containing bags of fruit and other supplies. Without hesitation, she seizes the bag.
With a sense of determination and resourcefulness, Madeleine removed her knife from her waist and approached one of the abandoned cars, where a deceased family sat. The walker in the driver's seat lunged toward her, attempting to grab her, but she swiftly drove her knife through its skull, ensuring her own safety.
Madeleine walks over to Carol, who's holding a shirt up to her chest with a smile. The women holds out a piece of fruit and Carol gratefully takes it from her, placing the shirt down in slight embarrassment.
"Nice shirt." She comments.
"Ed never let me wear nice things like this." Carol looks back at the suitcases inside the trunk of the car, shoving the shirt inside the suitcase before grabbing it. "We're going to need clothes."
"Hey, Carl." Madeleine calls out, not liking the distance her brother is imposing between them as he walks around the cars with Sophia. "Always within mine or Lori's sight, okay?" The boy nods back at her, the women handing out an apple for Lori and leaving one of bags of fruit with them for the kids. "I'm going to check on the RV. We're too exposed out here."
With Dale positioned on top of the RV as a lookout, Madeleine climbs up to join him. From her vantage point, she observes Glenn working on repairing the RV on his own, likely following instructions from Dale on how to address the necessary repairs.
Glenn feels her stare on him, causing for him to look up at her. "I'm getting good at this."
"I'll praise you when we get the hell out of here." She concludes, chucking an apple at the man who nearly gets hit by it on the face.
She turns around, focusing on their surroundings as Dale places the binoculars down and turns his attention to her holding an apple for the man to grab and he smiles at the small gesture.
Madeleine sharp eyes catch onto a moving figure in the distance, her eyes glancing away for a moment when she notices Rick walking past the RV, perhaps having noticed the imposing threat in front of them.
"Wait." She demands with an assertive tone, after hearing her father prepare his gun to shoot at the walker.
"What do you see?" Rick calls out to her, recognising the look in her eyes and causing for Dale to place the binoculars back over his eyes when he finds himself dumbfounded by the exchange between father and daughter.
Madeleine's eyes widen in raising alarms as she notices that there are more than just a few walkers approaching them. The situation had taken a turn for the worse as a larger group of undead threatened heads toward them.
The urgency and tension in the air escalates as the women realized the increased impending danger. They would need to act quickly and decisively to fend off the approaching walkers and protect themselves from the relentless death they bring with them.
"Get down! Get down!" She whisper-yells to Dale and Rick, snapping her body around and shooting an alarming arrow toward her brother, before diving down on the RV's roof.
Carl jumps back at the arrow landing beside him, after recognising the arrow and his sister's voice of their secret code rush to him. He grabs Sophia and crawls underneath one of the cars. The Grime siblings having imposed a danger code between them, Madeleine wanting to keep her protective order over her bother even from far.
The group gets under cars and stays silent as a horde of walkers glide past them. All you can hear is the shuffling of feet, groans of walkers and the silent cries of Carol. Andrea is inside the bathroom of the RV while a walker is climbs in, the women unaware of the danger around as she is trying to put her gun back together, and ends up dropping a piece.
Madeleine notices the commotion surrounding the RV and she crawls over to the roof's visor, noticing Andrea struggle to keep the bathroom's door close. The women slides the visor to the side and makes a hushing sound, gaining Andrea's attention. Madeleine grabs the knife from her waist and hands it over to Andrea, the women allowing the walker inside the bathroom to stab it through the head.
Whilst the horde passes by, the tension in the air intensives and when it's all done, a scream is heard, the next thing Madeleine notices is Sophia running into the woods with two walkers after her and Rick rushing after them. She climbs down from the RV and joins the group as they can simply watch the scene.
Carol cries, Lori holding onto her figure of despair, "There's two walkers after my baby."
A meaningful look passes between Lori and Madeleine, an unspoken understanding of the situation they now found themselves in. The exchange of glances conveyed their shared concern for the kid and the need to ensure Carl's safety even more.
Madeleine's eyes shifts over to her younger brother, and she felt a wave of agony wash over her even as she saw him safe and sound, she couldn't help but to think if Carl was in Sophia's place instead, fearful and weak.
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In the wake of Rick adverting the walkers from Sophia's tail, he came back to find out Sophia didn't make it back as he had instructed her to do. A few of them followed Rick into the woods, precisely the hidden spot he told her to take cover whilst he killed the walker. Rick had argued for Madeleine to stay with the rest of the group, concerned for her safety, but she chose to ignore him, determined to take part in the search.
Daryl jumps down and looks inside the spot for any signs of the girl, whilst the rest scatter around to find a trail. "Sure this is the spot?" Daryl confirms, glancing back at the man.
"I left her right here. I drew the walkers way off in that direction up the creek." Rick explains, pointing off into the direction he went.
"Without a paddle- seems where we've landed."
Madeleine kneels down, wiping away a few leaves as she looks off into the direction the footprints leads toward, the highway road. She tunes out of the conversation and heads toward the next print.
"Hey, short round, why don't you step off to one side? You're mucking up the trail." Daryl calls out for Glenn, the man rolling his eyes and approaching Madeleine who doesn't pay attention to him.
"Got clear prints right here." Madeleine announces, Daryl's suprise is evident as he walks over to Madeleine.
He can't help but notice how skilled she seems to be at tracking, and it raises the continues questions in his mind. He now wonders if Rick had taught her these tracking skills or what other reasons might have led for her to become proficient in this area.
The quiet observation speaks volumes about the complexities of Madeleine to everyone present, as well as the layers of her past that Daryl was still determined to discover another piece of the puzzle that made her who she was.
"She did like you said, headed back to the highway." She points out, standing up straight to face them. "Let's spread out, make our way back. She couldn't have gone far. She must've been smart enough to leave more of a trail."
Rick nods his head, "Yeah, we're gonna find her."
They follow Madeleine and Daryl throws the woods, the duo paying close attention to the young girls' trail when they notice she swayed off the path she was meant to follow. They come to a sudden halt, sharing a knowing look before turning around to face them.
"She was doing just fine 'till right here. All she had to do was keep going." Daryl points toward the direction she diverted. "She veered off that way."
Glenn frowns, "Why would she do that?"
"Maybe she saw something that spooked her, made her run off." Shane suggests, the women rolling her eyes in annoyance at the mere sound of his voice.
"A walker?" Glenn guesses, whilst Daryl kneels down to observe the rest of the trail the young girl left behind.
Madeleine shakes her head, replying before Daryl has the chance. "I don't see any other footprints. Just hers."
"So what do we do? All of us press on?" Shane wonders, glancing back at Rick in search for answers.
"No, better if you and Glenn get back up to the highway. People are gonna start panicking. Let them know we're on her trail doing everything we can. But most of all, keep everybody calm." Rick replies, feeling the overwhelming guilt travelling through his veins.
Shane nods his head in agreement, "I'll keep 'em busy scavenging cars. Think up a few other chores. I'll keep 'em occupied. Come on."
The group splits up, with two of them strolling over to the highway to break the news to Sophia's mother, while Madeleine, Daryl, and Rick set out to find the missing girl.
Madeleine's determination to help find Sophia and her tracking skills were evident as she forged ahead, following the trail and leaving no stone unturned in their quest to locate the missing girl.
Rick sighs, his eyes travelling around the woods when he doesn't seem to find any more footprints. "Tracks are gone."
"No." Madeleine and Daryl state at the same time, they look at each other for a second before the man awkwardly glances away.
"They're faint, but they ain't gone." The women mentions, kneeling down to try and show her father who narrows his eyes in confusion.
"She's right. Sophia came through here." Daryl adds, pointing off into the direction the faint tracks head toward.
"How can you two tell? I don't see anything. Dirt, grass."
Daryl snaps his head toward him, a look of annoyance and frustration at the question. "You want a lesson in tracking or you want to find that girl and get our ass off that interstate?" He looks in between both of them, pointing at the women. "How's the daughter of the sheriff better than the actual sheriff?"
Madeleine and Rick exchange a glance with each other, the weight of unspoken conversations affecting him by each day. Just as the older man opens his mouth to say something, Madeleine turns away and walks off, leading them behind as she follows the trail.
The man exchange a knowing expression, carrying on with their search through the woods. Suddenly, they hear a rustling sound and kneel down to obstruct being seen by a potential threat.
The women looks back at them and signals ahead at the walker, mentioning with her head for them to go the other way. They part ways and Madeleine runs ahead, whistling to gain the walker's attention who groans at her, but Daryl quickly shoots an arrow through the skull.
When the walker's body drops to the group, both of them are left to share an intense look which is broken by Rick walking over to the walker's body and kneeling down beside it.
"What are you looking for?" Daryl questions with furrowed eyebrows, both of them joining Rick who puts on a pair of gloves to investigate the walker.
"Skin under the fingernails." Rick replies, flipping the body around as he opens the walker's mouth. "It fed recently. There's flesh caught in its teeth."
"Yeah, what kind of flesh?"
Madeleine removes her knife from her waist, kneeling down to open up the walker. "Only one way to know for sure."
"Here, I'll do it." Daryl interrupts, her knife mid-air, ready to cut through the walker's stomach. "How many kills you skin and gut in your life? Anyway, mine is sharper." He insists, taking his knife out of his waist and stabbing the walker through the chest before driving the knife down to his stomach. "Now comes the bad part." He mentions, placing gloves over his hands before diving his hand inside the walker's body. "Yeah, Hoss had a big meal not long ago. I feel it in there." He removes the gut bag and places it to the side, Madeleine cringing at the smell of the rotting body. "Here's the gut bag."
"I got this." Rick opens up the gut bag and removes the processed meal the walker had with disgust clear on his face.
"This gross bastard had himself a woodchuck for lunch." Daryl concludes, removing his gloves as he stands back up.
Madeleine sighs, "At least we know."
"At least we know."
They head back toward the highway, knowing that returning to the group without Sophia was going to be a heartbreaking moment for Carol as they notice the night sky settle in.
As soon as she saw Madeleine, Daryl, and Rick, Carol broke down, her emotions overwhelming her as the harsh reality of the situation sunk in.
The absence of Sophia and the inability to bring her back weighed heavily on everyone, and the group shared in Carol's grief and despair. In the face of such a painful loss, Madeleine manages to spare her a sorrowful look.
Carol cries out, "You didn't find her?"
"Her trail went cold. We'll pick it up again at first light." Rick bargains, the mother of the missing girl shaking her head in despair.
"You can't leave my daughter out there on her own to spend the night alone in the woods."
"Out in the dark's no good. We'd just be tripping over ourselves. More people get lost." Daryl tries to reason with her, a soft tone laced with his voice at the sight of her.
"But she's 12. She can't be out there on her own. You didn't find anything?" She desperately cries, Lori placing a comforting hand on her shoulder to console her, knowing she would do anything if Carl was missing.
"You have to trust us. We'll find her. She can't have wondered off too far, she's smarter than that. You know that." Madeleine attempts to reassure the women.
"I know this is hard. But I'm asking you not to panic. We know she was out there." Rick chimes in, holding his hands out as he speaks with caution.
"And we tracked her for a while." Daryl adds, his crossbow resting on his shoulder.
"We have to make this an organized effort. Daryl..." Rick glances at his daughter, her eyes strained on the mourning women before her name being mention snaps her back to reality. "and Mads know the woods better than anybody. I've asked them to oversee this."
Carol sniffles, pointing at the blood on Rick's shirt and Daryl's shoes. "Is that blood?"
"We took down a walker." Madeleine bluntly states, not beating around the bush when she knows the women will panic no matter how they say it to her.
"Walker? Oh my God." Carol breathes out heavily, Lori rubbing a hand on her back to try and calm her down.
"There was no sign it was ever anywhere near Sophia." Rick reassures the panicking mother, the guilt drowning him more but he knows there was not another way to have saved the girl.
Andrea frowns, "How can you know that?"
"We cut the son of a bitch open, made sure." Daryl explains, Carol seating down on the barrier at the side of the highway as the weight of his words is more heavy than she can carry.
"Oh God." She snaps her head to Rick, Lori taking a seat next to her. "How could you just leave her out there to begin with? How could you just leave her?"
"Those two walkers were on us. I had to draw them off. It was her best chance." He carefully states, trying to comfort the concerned mother and he feels the responsibility he possesses to find the girl now.
"Sounds like he didn't have a choice, Carol." Shane pipes in.
"How was she supposed to find her way back on her own? She's just a child. She's just a child." Her voice cracks, Rick kneeling down in front of her as Lori embraces her.
"It was my only option. The only choice I could make."
"I'm sure nobody doubts that." Shane speaks, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder for support.
Carol cries, "My little girl got left in the woods."
"Lori, why don't you take Carol inside? Make sure she gets some rest." Madeleine suggests, the women nodding at her words as she guides Carol inside the RV, trying her best to support her grief.
Madeleine watches them enter the RV, turning back to Rick at the sound of his voice, the group scattering back to what they were doing.
"That was nice of you. You do believe we'll find her?"
"First 72 hours you find the person, after that you find the corpse. You taught me that." Madeleine points out, the man looking down at his shoes.
Daryl looks in between the two of them, wondering what happened for the girl to hate her own father when he sees much nicer than his own dad, but he knows looks always deceive.
"Get some rest. We'll pick it back up at sunrise."
Daryl heads away from them and Madeleine attempts to follow suit when Rick grabs her arm and she winces as she snatches her touch away from his hand.
Madeleine and Rick stare at each other for a second, processing her reaction to his touch as if it was foreign, the memories haunting them before he regains the courage to speak.
"Um, Carl would probably want you to tuck him in, like usual. He says he misses you singing to him to sleep." Madeleine scoffs, sensing the way he's holding back from saying what's truly on his mind, and he recognises for the first time in a while, the look in her eyes. "You've changed. The little girl who cared too much, just doesn't care at all anymore. I can see it in your eyes, feel it in your touch, hear it in your tone. You're not the same."
"I'm not and she's never coming back." She retorts, stepping up closer to him unaware of the figure watching them from the top of the RV. "Do you think you can come back into my life and act like nothing happened? Apologise and think we're all good?"
Rick looks down, "I don't know how to fix it."
"Ain't shit need fixing." She shakes her head, a deadly glare in her eyes when she stares into her father's orbs. "Apologies don't mean anything to me when it's coming from you or Lori. Nothing you do will make me forget it. Nothing you say will make it right."
Madeleine's feet rush away from him with her thought, heading toward the car where her brother is peacefully resting. The silent gesture of care and tenderness was evident as she approaches the car, noticing the boy stirring awake as she opens the car door, but she shushes him softly, not wanting to disturb his sleep. With a kiss to the boy's forehead, she conveys a sense of comfort and protection before gently closing the car door.
Madeleine proceeds to make her way to take the night watch on top of the RV, keeping a vigilant eye on their surroundings. She narrows her eyes, noticing Daryl on Dale's chair and she wonders why he chose to take over the watch.
The silence settled between them when she takes a seat at the edge of the RV, but the man seems to detest the pure silence which was once a shared agreement between them. "Why do you give your old man such a hard time?"
"Go to sleep, I'll keep watch." She replies, not looking back at him.
"Not tired." He watches her back, seating back comfortably and the two of them stay silent as they keep watch the whole night.
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"Everybody takes a weapon." Rick demands, rolling out the satchel filled with knives, machetes, and daggers.
Madeleine doesn't hesitate to grab the machete, smirking at the sharpness of it and tracing a finger over it, sensing the perfect weight of the weapon on her hands.
"These aren't the kind of weapons we need. What about the guns?" Andrea argues back, shaking her head at the weapons Rick instructed them to take with them on their search.
"We've been over that. Daryl, Rick and I are carrying. We can't have people popping off rounds every time a tree rustles." Shane calls back, leaning against the RV as Glenn walks to stand next to the women, shooting her a smile and she gives him an acknowledging nod.
"It's not the trees I'm worried about." She mutters under her breath, loud enough for the group to hear her complains.
Shane takes a step forward, observing the weapon in his hands as he speaks, "Say somebody fires at the wrong moment, a herd happens to be passing by. See, then it's game over for all of us. So you need to get over it."
"The idea is to take the creek up about five miles, turn around and come back down the other side. Chances are she'll be by the creek. It's her only landmark." Daryl explains, the women smacking the back of Glenn's head when he swings his weapon around as if it's a toy.
"Ouch!"
"You brought that one on yourself."
"Stay quiet and stay sharp. Keep space between you but always stay within sight of each other." Rick instructs with a sharp tone before turning to the man seating on the RV's steps. "Dale, keep on those repairs. We've got to get this RV ready to move."
"We won't stay here a minute longer than we have to. Good luck out there. Bring Sophia back."
Rick nods his head, placing a hand on his son's shoulder. "Keep an eye on Carl while we're gone."
"I'm going with you. You need people, right? To cover as much ground as possible." Carl persuades, causing for Madeleine to step up before either Rick and Lori can agree with the insane idea.
"No, he stays." Carl opens his mouth to argue back when Madeleine turns to face her father. "You think he's actually going to stay by our side? Do you want him to disappear like Sophia?"
Rick sighs, "Listen, Carl, your sister is right. It's safer."
"We have to focus on finding your friend, can't be distracted by having to worry about you. I tell you what..." She hands him her bow with a sly smile. "you can practise on the cars."
"Won't you need it?"
"I have my new friend." She indicates to the machete on her hand. "Deal?"
Carl nods, "Deal. Promise you'll find her?"
"I promise to try my best. Why won't you make more arrows as well like I taught you?" He nods with a smile as he grabs the bow from his sister, feeling a sense of trust built between them.
"He never listens to me. You always manage to get him to listen to you so easily." Madeleine's response to Lori's attempt at conversation was more in actions than words. She ruffles her brother's hair, conveying her love and care for him, and then walks away, her actions saying more than her silence.
As she strolls away, Madeleine notices Andrea and Dale talking in the distance but pays them little mind. Her independent and self-reliant nature often led her to find solace in her own company, particularly in the quiet moments of the day.
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The group ventures into the woods and stumbles upon a campsite with a set-up tent. The discovery was a reminder of the transient and uncertain nature of their world, where they encountered remnants of others who had struggled to survive in the new world.
"Could be a whole bunch of things in there." Daryl points out, heading inside the tent with caution as Madeleine notices a trail of footprints and follows it, separating herself from the group.
Madeleine silently moves through the woods, her footsteps carefully measured to avoid making noise, she ventures deeper into the forest, following an unknown trail. Her senses were on high alert, and she was prepared for whatever she might encounter.
She glides one foot after the other across the ground, attempting to keep her presence unknown as she continues to follow the trail, no insurance of who she could be trailing.
After the discovering of the tent being empty, Rick looks around in search for his own daughter in worry. In the midst of their search for Sophia, the group's collective worry for her safety was evident as they call out her name.
The distant sound of church bells beckoned them, and they ran toward it in hope of finding a lead to either of them.
Madeleine, with her eyes briefly closed, focused on the direction of the sound before making her way toward it, driven by a relentless determination to reunite Sophia with her family.
When she reaches the clearing of a small graveyard, her eyes land on the group heading inside the chapel. Madeleine rushes inside to see the group come to halt at the sight of the walkers sitting down looking at the cross.
Glenn frowns, "Where were you?"
She doesn't reply as she tightens her grip on the machete. The walkers rise when they hear the chattering and growl at them, attempting to attack the group. However, they move around the chapel faster and easily take the walkers out.
Madeleine slowly strolls toward one of the walkers, smirking at the snarling undead corpse as she easily drives her machete forward and chops the walkers' head clean off, groaning as she raises it back up and drives it through its skull.
"Gross! Remind me never to piss you off." Glenn states in pure disgust, scrunching his nose at the smell inside the chapel.
"You already have." Madeleine points out, removing the machete and cleaning the blood off with her sleeve before pointing the weapon at Glenn. "You're walking on a thin line now, Glenn."
The man smiles, knowing she's joking and she'd protect all of them within a heartbeat even if they all managed to piss her off and made her walk away, she'd come back for them.
"Sophia!" Rick's voice echoes through the chapel.
Daryl staring at the cross with Christ nailed to it at the front as the rest of them look around the now empty church. "Yo, J.C., you taking requests?"
"I'm telling you, it's the wrong church. It's got no steeple, Rick. There's no steeple." Shane points out, amidst the tension and concern for the missing child.
Madeleine glances around, noticing the lack of the steeples which was a distinguishing feature they heard from the other side of the woods. The absence of it defined to her that they were at the wrong location, causing for her to walk out just as the church bell rings once more.
The initial wave of hope which dawned over the group fades, the women pointing out at the speaker as soon as they walk out of the chapel.
"It's on a timer."
Carol sniffles, rubbing her nose as her head hangs low, "I'm gonna go back in for a bit."
Madeleine's cautious approach takes her around the church, ensuring the safety of the rest of them before she notices Shane and Lori engaged in a conversation. She decides to ignore it, her decision to stay out of their business was a reflection of her knowledge of their complicated dynamics, and she chose not to interfere.
She finds her way inside the church, finding Carol deep in prayer for her missing daughter. Madeleine takes a seat beside the grieving mother, offering her silent support. The simple gesture of placing her hand over Carol's and giving it a reassuring squeeze conveyed a message of empathy and solidarity toward her during this difficult time.
Their moment of solace was interrupted when Shane calls out for them from the outside, pulling them back into the present. Madeleine's actions were a testament to her role as a source of strength and support within the group, especially during moments of hardship and grief.
"Y'all gonna follow the Creek Bed back, okay? Daryl, you're in charge. Me and Rick, we're just gonna hang back, search this area another hour or so just to be thorough."
Daryl glances around the group, furrowing his eyebrows. "You're splitting us up. You sure?"
Shane nods, "Yeah, we'll catch up to you."
"I'll stay as well. I promised Carl." She calls out, Lori attempts to open her mouth to argue back with her decision, but the younger women walks away with a roll of her eyes.
As she heads away from the group for a second, observing their surroundings and not paying attention to their conversation, she notices the trees rustling but pays no attention, figuring the wind is picking up as night approaches.
When she snaps back to the group, she notices them heading off but the women can't help the rattling questions as she runs up to them.
"Hey, Lori."
"Go ahead, I'll be right behind." Lori informs, Daryl and Madeleine exchanging a look as he walks past them. "Are you okay?"
"What did Shane do?" She accuses, Lori freezing for a moment at her words in wonder of her knowledge of their situation.
"What are you talking about?" She speaks, the younger women knowing she's trying to play dumb as if it would ease her questions.
"I saw the mark on his neck, I know you two spoke the day before. Did he hurt you?" She shoots back, the women admiring the caring words and she would smile at it if it wasn't a complicated situation she got herself in.
"It's fine. It doesn't matter. Just be safe. Carl needs you more than you realise." She walks past Madeleine, the group heading back to the highway.
Madeleine locks eyes with Shane, her glare communicating her disapproval and dislike toward him. Her emotions regarding Shane's actions were evident, and their strained relationship added to the tension between him and the Grime's family.
Rick walks out of the church and Madeleine shares a look with him before heading off in front of them. Both of the man sighing and sharing a short conversation, following after her into the woods.
In the quiet area, Madeleine hears a noise that seems to go unnoticed by Rick and Shane who are engulfed in a conversation she doesn't waste time to care about.
Her keen senses and sharp eyes allows her to spot a deer, an opportunity for a substantial meal for the group.
She approaches the deer cautiously, the machete ready to make the kill just as both of the men notice her cautious steps toward it. Standing just a feet away from the deer, a tense silence hangs in the air as the animal looks back at her, seemingly undisturbed. Madeleine smiles at the sight of the majestic animal, reaching her hand out to touch the animal's head whilst she holds the machete tightly ready to slash it's throat.
Just then, a peaceful breeze waves over them.
And then, all hell breaks loose.
A sudden gunshot shatters the tranquility, and Madeleine gaps out for air, bring her hand up to her stomach as she spits out blood, feeling the open wound on her body. Her body falls to the ground with a thud, her life slipping out of her hand.
The stunned expressions on Rick and Shane's faces are evident as they race toward her unconscious body, a mix of confusion and concern clouding their thoughts.
"MADELEINE!"
☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎☠︎
Long chapter, nearly 7000 words.
I really loved writing this chapter and I love Madeleine's character. She's simply so fearful and such a badass. I can't wait to show more of her growth and past *wink wink* to you all.
It seems the tension between her, Rick and Lori amplifies and no matter what they do, the women seems like she does not want to forgive any of them at any cost. What do you think happened?
I really hope you enjoyed the start of season 2 journey, I appreciate all the votes, comments and reads ❤️