Daughter of the Fallen

Try

The car was silent the entire way home. Eugene drove while Glenn and I kept a watchful eye over Tara. The air was heavy with Noah's absence.

We got out of the car as soon as we rolled in.

My parents were waiting for me and I ran over to them after giving Maggie a quick hug.

My dad immediately saw the look on my face and put a hand on my shoulder.

"What's the matter, darlin'?" he asked, the sound of his voice soothing me a little.

I took a deep breath. "Noah, he's..." I couldn't finish.

My parents seemed to realize what I meant and my dad softly pulled me into his side and my mom went tense for a moment before hugging me, as well. I sniffled, feeling comforted in their arms.

"Bree?" I heard a voice say.

I turned to see Carl walking up to us. There was a look of fear and relief in his face.

I swiped a tear off my cheek and walked up to him, pulling him into a hug, as well.

"Why didn't you come say goodbye to me?" he asked, his voice muffled.

"I didn't know where you were," I answered, finally pulling away. "And I didn't want you to talk me out of it."

"So what happened with Noah?" my mom asked, her voice rigid as her and my dad walked up to us.

Steadying myself, I recounted the whole story to them.

My mom's hands curled into tight fists as she glanced at Nicholas. "I'm gonna kill him."

I softly grabbed her arm. "Don't. Deanna's already wary of us. And besides, Glenn might end up doing it for you."

She sighed and the four of us walked to find Rick.

•••

The next day, I was on gate watch with Carl when I saw my mom walking out the gate again.

I wanted to go down and stop her but Carl grabbed my arm, stopping me.

"Let her go," he said softly. "Arguing with her is only gonna make things worse."

I signed but finally relented.

I was getting more and more worried about her.

Soon enough, I saw Michonne and Rosita running towards the gate.

Getting down from my position, I ran over to them.

"Guys, my mom went out a while ago," I told them. "She hasn't come back."

"We know," Michonne responded. "We're gonna go look for her."

"Okay, let me come with you."

Rosita shook her head. "That's not a good idea. Not so soon after Noah. He just died."

I pressed my lips together. "I know," I reminded. "I was there, remember?"

Michonne sighed. "Honey, just stay here, okay? We'll bring her back safely."

"Please," I pleaded softly. "She's my mom."

"All the more reason for you to stay here," Rosita protested. "Your mom will kill us if anything happens to you. So you're staying."

I looked at Michonne. She didn't say anything but I could tell she agreed with Rosita.

I exhaled deeply. "Fine," I relented. "I'll stay. Bring her back quickly."

"We will," Michonne promised.

And with that, they walked out.

I sighed and made eye contact with Carl. He knew what I was about to do. There was no way I was gonna let them find my mom without me.