Please hold my hand || Daryl Dixon

23.

Lori settles the crutches, steadying the pieces for Hershel. I lend him a hand to stand from the bed. "Up and at it, old man." He swats me away for that one.

After a few seconds of Hershel testing himself for the first time, Lori- who is worried, asks, "That's a good start. Wanna take a rest?" Not wanting him to over exert himself. Honestly, I kinda want to see how far this man can take it.

"Rest? Let's take a little stroll."

"Let's see how the stairs treat you, shall we?"

"You cleared all those bodies out? It's starting to look like a place we could really live in."

I keep quiet, glancing at our surroundings every other moment. This is this first time I've come out since we got here, it doesn't feel any safer outside than it does inside.

Glenn cheers for Hershel, only adding to the pressure in my chest. It's all too surreal. Nothing is ever this okay now. Something horribly wrong is going to occur- I can feel it deep embedded in my bones, tattooed on the inside of my skin.

"Ready to race, Hershel?" Carl jokes.

"Give me another day- I'll take you on." Hershel then turns to me, "What is it? You don't have anything to add?"

I shake my head, "I just have this horrible feeling that something is going to happen and I don't know what."

He nods in understanding, "Some may call that a mothers intuition-"

Ryder runs up to me, panting and heaving. "Daphne's gone."

Panic erupts in my chest, I can practically feel my nerves shaking. "What do you mean gone? Like she crawled for the first time and you can't find her or-"

"Walkers! Look out!"

No- what- Walkers can't be out at the same time my daughter is missing. I pull the gun from my shoe and sprint, pushing any walker in my path out of my way.

I get chased back by three of them, shooting them all on my way over to the cell block. There's nothing. No blankets, no pacifiers, no toys- nothing. It's as if she was never here.

I run back out just as an alarm blares, making me stumble as I didn't expect it.

In the distance a running figure darts into the creek, the water slowing them down. The cries of my baby sounding from their arms.

My eyes widen and I run faster than I even have before. Track from high school never came in more handy.

Records of before break as I speed towards the fence, I leap onto it and climb up, using the gaps as foot holes to hoist up faster.

As I reach the top the barb wires slice my skin and embed the spikes into the open flesh like a fishing hook.

The wails of my baby send me down, gashes provide blood down to my fingertips, leaving a trail.

I hasten my speed, wind whipping by my face but my vision focuses on the intruder with my girl. If I shot the person, at the pace they're going it could be fatal to Daphne.

This movie plays on repeat in my mind, sinking further and further into my memory every time I blink. I think I've seen this in my worst nightmares.

I could chase them around the world all over an infinite amount of times without stopping as Daphne glances over the individuals shoulder.

But as I see a rumbling vehicle not too far from them, I can already see my reason for living slip through my fingers.

"No, no, no, no," A mere murmur from my lips as he whips the door open, carelessly sitting her in his lap.