Double Crossbow (Daryl Dixon) [The Walking Dead]

Chapter 6 ↣ You interested?

"Some women are lost in the fire. Some women are built from it."

— Michelle K. Some

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Kathryn

I QUICKLY PUSHED away any thoughts or feelings that were clouding my brain. After years of practice, it was a skill which came fairly easy to me. It was more important now than ever to be able to set any sort of feelings aside. It was one of the only ways to ensure survival.

The small group jogged across the field until we reached a fence. Glenn retrieved a bolt cutter from within his bag and cut through the wire. Rick climbed through first, and once everyone was on the other side, he asked Glenn, "Merle first or guns?"

Daryl interjected, "Merle! We ain't even having this conversation."

"We are," Rick snapped. He then turned back to Glenn. "You know the geography. It's your call."

"Merle's closest," Glenn started. "The guns would mean doubling back. Merle first."

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The trip to the department store proved to be an easy one. There were a few walkers loitering outside the storefront, but they were easily taken care of with a few bolts to the back of their heads. As I passed the still walkers, I ripped my bolts out and placed them back in my quiver. The glass of the doors had been broken, so there was no need to try and open the doors, risking excess noise. Lifting my bow above me, I slipped inside the doorway sideways. Once inside, my ears instantly picked up on the sound of faint shuffling footsteps.

Rick was ahead of the group, and he raised his hand for us to stop. Looking over his shoulder, I saw he was gesturing to two walkers who were a few aisles down. Rick glanced over his shoulder at Daryl and I. We understood the signal and moved to the front of the group, crossbows raised. 

"Damn," Daryl muttered. "You are one ugly skank." He then fired a bolt which landed in the center of its forehead. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him and fired a bolt of my own. Daryl moved quickly after that, grabbing his bolt and racing away in a blur. The rest of the group chased after him. I didn't feel the need to go running after him, so I ended up in the back. Besides, we didn't know if there were still more unwanted guests taking residence here. I'd cover the others' sixes while they went after the emotionally compromised archer.

Walking up a set of stairs that led to the roof, I was greeted with chaos at the top. Daryl was screaming 'no!', and it became clear why as I saw a bloodied saw and a disembodied hand lay atop the asphalt. It was a gruesome scene. Approaching said scene, I tried to put together what had happened. The saw had apparently been too dull to break the handcuffs, so he took the next way out. Luckily, he left a trail of little blood drops.

"Guys, we can just follow his trail," I called over my shoulder. When I didn't hear a reply, I turned around to see Daryl pointing his crossbow at T-Dog, Rick pointing his gun at Daryl, and Glenn looking as if he might vomit. "Hey, idiots!" I yelled. They all turned towards me. "When y'all are done there, I'll be following the blood trail he left. Feel free to join me whenever your little hearts' desire."

With that, I went inside the stairway the trail led to. I was almost to the bottom of the steps when Daryl yelled, "Merle? You in here?" I jumped slightly at his sudden loudness.

"Could you be any louder?" I hissed back at him.

"Well, I could," Daryl replied, falling into step next to me.

As we walked into a room, a walker turned and moaned. Daryl took care of it. The room led into dark hallway, which was always promising. At the end of the hallway, there was another room that contained two dead walkers.