Dixon's Daughter

Chapter 4: Morgan and Duane

Third Person's POV

Morgan and Duane were on the mattress on the floor and Rick and Sadie sat on the couch. Duane seemed to be sleeping and Morgan was sitting up, looking toward the two on the couch.

"So, how do you two know each other?" Morgan asked them and Sadie and Rick glanced at each other.

"We don't. Not really. We just met today when we woke up in the hospital. It was a coincidence, I guess. But we're gonna stick together until we find our families. Right?" Sadie looked up at Rick and he smiled down at her comfortingly. "Right." He confirmed.

"And Carl – he your son? You said his name today." Morgan asked Rick. "He's a little younger than your boy." Rick answered. "And he's with his mother?" Morgan questioned. "I hope so." Rick responded.

"What about you, kid? Where's your family?" Morgan asked Sadie. "It's just me, my old man, and my uncle. My mom died when I was just a little kid and I don't have any siblings. I don't know where they are. I haven't been able to check our place out yet, so I don't know if they're there or not." Sadie answered. "We'll go tomorrow, Sadie." Rick told her and she nodded.

"Dad. Did you ask them?" Duane wondered and Morgan chuckled. Rick and Sadie looked over at them. "Your wounds – we've got a little bet going. The gunshot, my boy says you're a bank robber." Morgan explained and the two men and Sadie let out a little chuckle.

"Yeah, that's me, the deadliest Dillinger. Kapow." Rick joked before saying the real answer. "Sheriff's Deputy." Morgan nodded and Sadie looked over at him. "What about me? Any theories?" She questioned.

"My boy thinks you were shot with an arrow while out hunting." Morgan answered and Sadie nodded. "He's pretty close, actually. It was a hunting trip, but I wasn't shot with an arrow. I was hunting with my crossbow and arrows and a buck pushed me off a cliff. At the bottom I landed on one of my own arrows." Sadie explained.

Suddenly, a car's alarm started beeping loudly and Duane shot up in the bed. "Hey, it's okay. Daddy's here. It's nothing. One of them must've bumped a car." Morgan comforted his son.

"Are you sure?" Rick questioned. "It happened once before. It went on for a few minutes." Morgan answered and Rick and Sadie got up off the couch. "Get the light, Duane." Morgan instructed his son and met the two by the window.

Rick turned off the other light and Morgan pushed the blankets back a little so the three of them could see through. "It's the blue one on the street. Same one as last time. I think we're okay." Morgan spoke and Sadie watched as a bunch of men – no, walkers, she reminded herself – stumbled across the streets, starting to head to the car.

"That noise... won't it bring more of them?" Rick questioned as Duane came over. "Nothing we can do about it now. Just have to wait 'em out until morning." Morgan answered and suddenly Duane gasped. "She's here." Duane spoke. "Don't look. Get away from the windows." Morgan told his son.

"I said go, go on." Morgan told his son again and Duane ran away from the windows and flopped on the mattress, sobbing. "Duane. Duane, quiet now. Come on. Quiet now." Morgan said, going on the mattresses next to him and trying to quiet him.

Sadie and Rick watched as a female walker started walking towards the house and towards the door. Once she was out of sight, Rick left the window and went to the door that was boarded up, looking through the peep hole.

"It's okay. Here." Morgan put a pillow over his son's head. "Cry into the pillow. Do you remember? Shh. Shh." Morgan tried to comfort his son while keeping him quiet. Then Rick, Sadie, and Morgan all looked over at the doorknob when it started to rattle, like a walker was trying to get in. And one of them was, as Rick could see.

After a few minutes, Duane had calmed down and was asleep and Sadie was back on her spot on the couch. That's when Rick came back to his spot too.

"She, um... She died in that other room on that bed in there. There was nothing I could do about it. That fever, man. Her skin gave off a heat like a furnace." Morgan let out a little cry.

"I should've put her down – I should've put her down, man. I should've put her down. I know that, but I – You know what? I just didn't have it in me." Morgan wiped tears off his cheeks. "She's the mother of my child."

Rick and Sadie just looked back at the rattling doorknob, Rick worrying about his family and Sadie wondering how the hell the world got this way.