𝘼dalyn wasn't sure what she had been expecting when they pulled into Grady Memorial's parking lot. Hugs and tearful reunions, maybe. But not this. Never this.
Rick led the line of their people out of the hospital. Adalyn actually debated running to him, hugging him, but then she saw his face.
He looked... crestfallen. He caught Maggie's gaze, shaking his head. The message that little gesture conveyed was clear.
Something had gone wrong.
Sasha followed him out.
Tyreese was behind, leading along Carol, who blinked as her eyes adjusted to the sunlight.
Noah came next.
And then Daryl.
There were tears in his eyes. He was staring at the ground, looking as if he would start sobbing any second. In his arms was a girl, hardly any older than nineteen by the look of it. Her pale blonde hair hung over his arms, stained red with blood. Had it not been for the dark crimson that covered the back of her head, she might have just looked as if she were sleeping.
Adalyn stopped dead in her tracks.
Maggie crumpled inward as if she was both trying to run away and move forward at the same time. An anguished cry escaped her. Glenn dropped down beside her, pulling her close as she broke into sobs.
Rosita stared in shock.
Daryl started to cry then.
Adalyn, too, even though she didn't know this girl. Hadn't formed any lasting bonds with her. But seeing her friends, the people she cared about, so heartbroken... that was why she started crying.
This girl was Beth. Maggie's little sister. And she was eighteen years old. Her death was an accident, apparently, but that didn't matter. Daryl had killed the woman who did it.
It was a headshot, at least. No one would have to suffer through making sure that she didn't turn.
They buried her. What else could they do? Maggie was sobbing while Noah cried in silence. Gabriel read from his bible, and Adalyn listened with rapt attention. "'We look not at what can be seen, but we look at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary... but what cannot be seen is eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.'"
They had a new mission, now. Getting Noah by home. Rick briefed everyone on the idea. "It was secure," he said. "It has a wall, homes, twenty people. Beth wanted to go with him. She wanted to get him there. It's a long trip, but if it works out, it's the last long trip we have to make."
"And what if it isn't around anymore?" Glenn dared to ask.
"Then we keep going," Rick answered.
"Then we find a new place," Michonne agreed.
So it was off to Virginia. Beyond that, none of them knew. They could only hope that Noah's home was still standing.
Everyone gathered into vehicles. Adalyn found herself crammed into a van, stuck in the backseat with Glenn. Michonne and Rick had the middle row. Tyreese drove, with Noah in the passenger seat.
