It was almost too good to be true. To find yet another familiar face, let alone someone from the Atlanta group, was absurd. Yet there she had been, cowering the bushes with the samurai-darkie. At first he had been delighted to see her, thinking she would know more about the whereabouts of his brother. And then he thought that if she were here, maybe she has been the only survivor.
She was sick, nearly to the point that Gabry had been. Once she was well enough, the Governor allowed him to go in and speak with her, since they were familiar with each other.
His first question to her was, "You seen my brother lately?"
She had a look of remorse when answering. "Not for a long time."
He had feared that. "What 'appened?"
"We got out of Atlanta. We went back for you, you know. Rick and Daryl..."
Merle wrinkled his nose at the mention of that cops name. "Daryl really stepped up. He became a key part of the group..."
"He's always been the sweet one, my baby brother." Merle grinned.
"I lost the group about...seven, eight months ago. We were at a farm, not too farm from here. Place got overrun...everyone scattered." The look one her face told Merle that she could remember that night in vivid detail.
"There's someone you ought to meet."
* * *
It had taken a few days for Andrea to feel well, and some convincing to get her and her silent-but-deadly samurai friend to stick around, but Merle had promised them that they were in for a surprise. He could care less about the black girl, but Andrea's reaction would be priceless.
"So, my brother really stepped up, eh? Came out of his shell finally?"
"He was one of the most helpful." Andrea said, thinking of how he had gone off in search of Sophia and almost lost his life, leading her to remember that she had almost accidentally killed him. She didn't speak of this to Merle.
"He ever mention a girl named Gabry?" Merle asked as he lead them down the street. Even after being here for almost three months, she only ever associated with one other person aside from him, and that was Milton, much to Merle's distaste. He was glad to see that she was at least talking to someone though, even if it was that shrew of a man.
"No," Andrea shook her head as she and her companion followed behind him. "Who is she?"
Merle grinned. She was a lot of things, but firstly she was "Daryl's girl," he said.
"Daryl? Your brother, Daryl? Had a...girlfriend?" She sounded as if she couldn't believe it. Andrea knew that Daryl was kinder than Merle, but she never saw him as the type to make a commitment.
"I told you he was the sweet one."
"It's just...in all that time he never mentioned her. Not to me, at least." Andrea said.
"Nah, he wouldn't. Took 'im forever to tell his own big brother," He smirked.
Andrea snorted, "Can you blame him?"
Merle rolled his eyes and knocked on Milton's apartment door. "There's more to 'er than that, though. We've not let many people hear about it, but..."
"But?"
Milton cracked open the door and winced when he saw who it was. "Oh, Mr. Dixon...afternoon," his eyes landed on Andrea and her companion (who shifted from side to side impatiently), "You, uh...need something?"
"Yeah," Merle said, "She's about five-ten with a pretty face, maybe you've seen her?"
Milton rolled his eyes, but then the girl Merle had just described walked up behind the little man. She was prettier than Andrea had expected. She touched Milton's shoulder and muttered, "We'll finish the match later," before stepping out next to Merle.
"Hey," she greeted casually. For once, someone was not offended just by Merle's presence, which surprised Andrea. She had expected her to have dark hair with even darker eyeliner, be tattooed up to the neck, and have a cigarette between her fingers. Instead she was that girl in every country song; tall, tan legs, honey blonde hair that cascaded down her back, green eyes that hid under long eye-lashes. She had it all.
She should have been on the cover of a magazine, not standing next to Merle Dixon. How she got mixed up with the brothers, Andrea hadn't the slightest idea.
"New to Woodbury?" She held her hand out for Andrea, "Call me Gabry."
"Andrea." She replied, still in shock. Gabry looked at the other woman standing behind Andrea, expecting a greeting, but all she received was a cold look. "That's Michonne, she's uh...shy."
Michonne snorted.
"Andrea was part of the group back in Atlanta."
Those green eyes flashed with anger. "The one's that left you cuffed to the roof?"
Andrea's cheeks went red, but she wasn't about to let this girl step all over her, especially when she hadn't been there in the heat of the moment. "Now wait a second-"
Gabry's eyebrows perked with anticipation, but Merle interrupted, "Yes, the very same. But we've let bygones be bygones. Everything's alright..." He cleared his throat. "Last Andrea saw of Daryl was eight months ago."
The irritated look on her face dropped, and she stood up straight. "Where at?"
"North of here, off of eighty-five. I could show you on a map." Andrea said.
Gabry looked from her, to Merle, then back to her. "What are we waiting for?"
* * *
They congregated in the library, except for Merle who had to depart for guard duty. Michonne lingered in between bookshelves while Andrea marked out the best route for her.
"It'd be suicide to go back there, you know?" Andrea said as she circled the areas that were now overrun by walkers.
"Why?" Gabry questioned her, and then realized that she had not been informed. "Creepers don't bother me."
"Look, that's awfully brave of you, but it's tougher out there than you think." Andrea said condescendingly, like any big sister would. She felt like she was talking to Amy.
Gabry chuckled, "Don't I know." She pulled her bracelets aside, the ones she had carefully chose based on thickness, and revealed her scar.
Andrea's eyes went wide as she looked from the scar to Gabry's face. "You were...bit?"
Michonne was then looming over her. "How?"
"It was a few months ago. Long story." She pushed the bracelets back in place. "Creepers don't notice me anymore."
"So you can just...ghost right through them?" Michonne stared down at her in disbelief.
"I'm something of a shadow to them."
"So is there a cure?" Andrea urged hopefully, "An antidote?"
Gabry shook her head, "I was told when the fever didn't kill me, the virus didn't take over my brain. As far as why it didn't, I don't know. God's will, maybe?" The two women stared at her in silent disbelief. Gabry leaned in and spoke lowly, "You two look very sensible. You've seen what's out there, so you know it ain't the biters you've got to worry about." Michonne glared down at Andrea, who pretended not to notice.
Gabry took the map, gave the two women a small smile, and departed.
* * * * *
"I'm going to find him." Gabry said with revived determination as she began to pack a backpack of canned food. Merle was in his chair, pinching at his chin whiskers.
"Darlin', you know that ain't gonna fly to well with-"
"Fuck the Governor!" She snapped. "You know he isn't even a Governor, right? His name's Phillip, but you people practically worship him..."
"Hey!" Merle snapped back at her, "That man would sacrifice half this town to keep you here. You know how he is. Sorry for trying to keep your ass outta trouble."
Gabry knew all too well how he was. That day in the food mart was nothing compared to what she knew now about the Governor. Even after the incident with the blind man she continued going out on runs with them to prove she could not easily be shaken.
At one point the Governor had been cornered, held at gun point by a man simply trying to defend himself. Gabry had come up behind him and drover her knife through his back. The gun went off and grazed the Governor's shoulder, but other than that he was unharmed. He looked up at her, genuinely surprised she had done that for him. All she had to say was, "Whatever it takes."
Gabry had regretted that decision. She should have let him be killed. But for the time being, she had gained a bit of his trust.
"So what if he sends some men after me? They won't be able to get past the biters."
"They'll catch you. They won't kill you," Merle said, "but you'll wish they had."
Gabry plopped down on the bed, covering her eyes to clear her mind. There had to be some way to fly under the radar. "What if...what if I snuck out after dark?"
"The Governor would come find me." Merle said. "You can guess what he'd do then."
"Then come with me."
"You heard Andrea. Place was overrun. I can't slip in and out like you can, so you'll have to go this alone."
"Then stay and pretend you don't know where I went." Gabry sat up, a wonderful idea having come to her. "Play up to him! When you learn I'm gone, tell him, and lead him in the wrong direction." She pulled Andrea's map out of her back pocket. Her eyes searched for a landmark, drifting to the next town over. "Here..." She stood and walked over to him, her finger marked just to the West of where they were.
"Yellow Jacket Creek?"
"This is where you and I will meet up. If I'm not back in three days meet me here. It'll mean I've found something." Merle looked up at her and studied the determination in her eyes.
"And if you don't, you think you'll just come waltzing back in here like it's nothin'?"
"I expect to find something, Merle. I know it, I can feel it. Daryl would leave something for me if he was there."
Merle gritted his teeth. All this time with him, and she was still hung up on Daryl, who may or may not be alive. He may not even be in the state of Georgia anymore. Eight months since Andrea had seen him, he could be anywhere. He wanted her to stay with him, but he knew as long as the Governor was around, she would never settle down.
"Why don't you stay? I mean, just for a few more days. Wouldn't want Phillip connecting the dots between you and Andrea..." It was a lame excuse, but it was all he had.
Much to his surprise, she said, "Yeah, alright." She didn't see him take a sigh of relief. "I'll go see if I can scrounge up another map..."
* * *
"What're you doing with those?"
Gabry nearly cut her hand on her throwing-knife as she caught herself before falling out of her chair. She looked up in a bewildered state and there was the black woman looking down at her disdainfully. She realized that Michonne's eyes were not fixed on her, but rather the knives she had been twirling a moment earlier.
"Nothing. They're mine. What are you doing in here?"
"I thought weapons weren't allowed inside the walls?"
It was a sickening thing to lie. Even more sickening for Gabry was knowing that this woman would potentially suffer the same fate that she was: stuck in this hellhole with Phillip the pervert.
"You seem like a sensible woman, and by that I mean you know what's really going on on the outside of the walls. You don't strike me as someone needing refuge, either." Michonne eyed her warily and Gabry continued, "You need to get out of here as fast as soon as you can."
Michonne pressed her lips together, as if she hadn't already though about that. "I would, but Andrea-"
"Both of you need to go as soon as you can."
The dark woman's eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"The Governor. He's not...he's not right." Gabry bit her lip. "You're safer out there with the creepers. They're black and white. People in here are the gray."
"How'd you get your knives?"
"I got them back from him. We have an, uh...understanding." Yeah, sure. "Look, let's pretend we didn't have this conversation. You're honestly the first person to catch me with them, but you don't seem like the snitchin' type."
Michonne didn't laugh.
"Just do yourself a favor and leave this place." Gabry warned her on a more serious note, before hastily brushing by her with a spare map in hand.