Skin Deep

The next day was spent recovering from our hangovers in the morning and fishing in the afternoon. Merle continued to smirk at me, as if he could just tell that something had happened last night after he had left. I did my best to act normal, but it was hard to not feel absolutely blissful whenever Daryl smiled or casually made contact with my skin. I constantly thought throughout the day how lucky I was to have found these two men.

A few days later and our luck ran out. I went to a window in the lounge to simply check the time using the position of the sun and instead I spotted the colossal horde. Countless Biters were stumbling towards the cabin from the lake, and the sight almost made me hurl. I called for the men and they arrived at my side, staring out the window at our possible death sentence.

“What should we do?” I wondered, not wanting to leave our slice of paradise but unsure if it would hold against the horde.

“We’ve gotta go,” Merle said simply before turning on his heel to head to the kitchen.

“We can’t! This is a great, secure place to survive,” Daryl countered with a frown. I already knew that he loved the secluded cabin, mainly from the forest that surrounded it because he could properly hunt again, and it had really given his mood a positive boost.

“They’ll smell us and tear the place down!” Merle yelled as he flung open a cupboard and started loading cans of food into a nearby backpack. “Let’s take as much as we can and then get the hell out of here!” I didn’t dare argue, and instead gave Merle a helping hand. Daryl ran throughout the house collecting the bags that contained our clothes and when he returned I followed him towards the garage, taking as many bags with me as I could while Merle remained in the kitchen grabbing more supplies. Once we had finished securing our gear to our bikes, Daryl pulled up the garage door and was taken aback by how close the horde now was.

“Merle! Hurry up!” he shouted with a frustrated growl. He then turned to me and nodded towards my bike. “Get out of here, we’ll be right behind you.” Daryl then bolted back inside the cabin and I stole another look at the approaching Biters. I decided that I had enough time and ran after Daryl. I met the brothers halfway, both of them lugging a bag each, so I gladly sat back on my motorbike and started the engine. It roared to life and suddenly there was a huge weight thrown onto my back. I turned and saw Merle ridding himself of his bag of food.

“Take it. I’ll cover you,” he ordered as Daryl’s engine began to rumble. Daryl left the shed as I swung the heavy bag onto my shoulders, and the Biters seemed to gain speed and head towards the source of the noisy motor. I inched forwards, checking over my shoulder to keep an eye on Merle who was having difficulty starting his bike.

“Get on mine!” I hollered over my shoulder, but Merle didn’t budge. With an exaggerated attempt, the motorbike finally started and Merle joined my side just outside of the garage.

“Go!” he insisted while pulling out his gun. He killed a Biter that was a few metres away from me and the shock was enough to make me drive. Merle shot a few more and cleared a safe path for me to turn around and follow the dirt road that Daryl had left on, his dust cloud still not completely settled. As I was leaving I heard Merle shouting a stream of insults at the Biters, and when I stole another look over my shoulder I saw that he too was speeding away from the horde. With a sinking stomach, I forced myself to not look at the luxury cabin and instead concentrate on catching up to Daryl.

We soon found ourselves back in the desert and free from any Biters. My heart didn’t stop pounding heavily for quite a while, and I found myself gazing at the brothers to reassure myself that they were still alive. After a while, Merle began to slow down and I was constantly glancing to my right to try to meet his eyes. Eventually I signalled that I needed to stop, and we pulled up next to a rare patch of vegetation.

“Gotta take a leak,” I justified as I slung my leg over the motorbike. Merle nodded with agreement and approached a cactus. I followed his footsteps and grabbed onto his hands as he fiddled with the fly of his jeans.

“Hey!” he yelped, tearing away from me and shielding his body. Daryl gave me a puzzled look but I simply raised my hand and showed him the fresh blood on it.

“Are you bit?” I asked quietly, fear dripping from my voice. Daryl was suddenly at my side, and when Merle kept his silence, Daryl wrestled with him until he got a good grip on his right arm. Merle’s hand had a gash out of it and was still leaking blood despite the sun having caused scabs to form.

“I had to get you out of there, Jo,” Merle mumbled and I exhaled a trembling breath. “I had to reload but then there was one next to me, so I stabbed it and as I pulled the blade out, another bit me.” Daryl shoved his brother and Merle stumbled to the side, giving him a glare.

“You should’ve said something! We could have amputated it before it was too late!” Daryl shouted, pure fury evident in his voice.

“And where the hell would we have done that, huh? In the forest as the horde comes at us?” Merle retorted loudly and Daryl ran his hands across his face. “Can’t live this life without ya good hand anyway. I’d be screwed and you know it.” Merle spat on the ground, his voice now quieter and calmer. I was unable to meet either brother’s eyes and I felt my own begin to dampen.

“This is it, huh? You’re going to turn…” I said softly and Merle nodded.

“God damn it,” Daryl growled as he turned his back on us and stormed towards our bikes. Merle slung his backpack off and then pulled a map from it, unfolding it and gesturing me to come closer.

“We were here, and since we’ve been going east…” he trailed off as he dragged his finger across the map.

“We’re near Las Vegas,” I finished for him. “We should go elsewhere. Last time I got close to Vegas there was a ton of Biters.” Merle shook his head and I met his gaze.

“I want to go there. I’ve never been, but I want to go,” he said and I knew that I couldn’t deny him that wish, even if it was risky. “If we can find this road, then we should be able to find a nice casino.” I took in a shaky breath, wishing that this wasn’t the end for Merle.

“Yeah, okay then,” I agreed with a tiny nod.

“Convince my baby brother for me?” he requested gruffly and I glanced across at Daryl who was rubbing his head viciously.

“Of course.”