virago|c.g.|

xxvi

Clary approached the silent town as the sun beat down on her, the only sounds to be heard being that of the hoofbeats against asphalt and her own breathing. It was in the heat that she slightly wished for the calm and cool of her overnight travels, the thoughts fading as she knew the passing of time only meant moving closer to saving Glenn.

Rummaging through the small pack attached to her horses saddle, she saw a bottle of water and a protein bar. Worry grew in her stomach as she could only hope the meager supplies would be enough to hold Glenn over until they made their way back home.

Clary had made it to the town over night, staying in one of the buildings as she knew it was too dangerous to search at night. At the first break of day, she had begun searching through the town for a good thirty minutes, each second passing by leading to her hope dwindling. She didn't know how she could return home without Glenn, all she knew was that if she couldn't find him—

Clary's thought fell silent as she heard the clatter of plastic and grunt close by, so faint she could have missed it had she not been on high alert. Flicking the reigns of her horse, he moved a bit faster as she made her way to the source of the noise.

As soon as she saw the figure, his hands on his knees and his head bowed, she let out a shaky breath of relief. "Glenn!" Slipping off of her saddle, the man's gaze met hers. However, he didn't get to say anything as she collided into him, holding him tighter than he thought humanely possible. "Clary? How— what are you doing here?" The two pulled away, Clary looking to him with gratefulness in her heart as she saw he was okay. "Michonne made it back to Alexandria and she told us what happened. I— I had to come find you." Glenn looked at her, his mouth slightly open in shock as he realized how fearful he had been of not seeing her or Maggie again. He pulled her back to him, placing his chin on the top of her head, grateful that he was alive.

Although wanting to stay in his embrace, Clary knew they had to get moving. She supported Glenn on the quick trek back to her horse where she handed him the water and protein bar. "What happened at home?" Glenn asked as he began to eat, savoring the nutrients. "A group got in, The Wolves. I don't know how many they killed or what they took but they're gone." Glenn nodded slowly in thought before looking to her once more. "Maggie? Is she okay?" Clary nodded, quelling the worry he held for his wife. "Yeah, I found her towards the end of it. Michonne had told both of us what has happened and I couldn't just wait for you to come back. I'm sure Maggie's pissed about it but—" Glenn shook his head, resting his hand on her cheek comfortingly just as Maggie had done, the rough skin of his fingers touching the bumpy skin of her scar. "Maggie will be okay as soon as we get back. She's probably worried out of her mind about you—" Clary cut him off. "And you. That's why I couldn't just stand around and wait for a signal." Clary stepped away from the man. "We're burning daylight. We should head home."

After much debate, Glenn finally allowed the girl to help him onto her horse, Clary holding the reigns and leading Montu as they slowly made their way back towards Alexandria. The trek back home was slow, silent until Clary questioned Glenn. "What happened? Back there, I mean. Michonne said you and Nicholas were going to start a fire to distract the walkers." As Clary looked up at Glenn, she saw his face fall. "The building we were going to burn had already been destroyed. Nicholas led us down an alley but we got cornered by walkers." Clary but the inside of her cheek, noting that Glenn was alone. "And Nicholas?"

Silence. Clary grew surprised as she saw his eyes glaze over, looking to everywhere but her. "He killed himself, right in front of me. He brought me down into the walkers that were surrounding us, but he landed on top of me so they ripped into him. I was able to slip under the dumpster and wait it out till you came." Clary's eyes softened seeing the man in the fragile state. "I'm sorry that you had to see that. As much of an asshole as he was, he didn't deserve to die like that. No one does" Glenn nodded before Clary looked forward once more.