The Sharpest Lives

At the viewing, Ace felt even more out of place. But at least this time she doesn't think she's the only one.

No one knew Otis here, and barely even knew the people who mourned him. But it was out of respect that they all came, even if it left them awkwardly standing by.

Ace stood at the end of the circle, silently looking down as Hershel read from a bible. It was almost ridiculous, preaching God at this point... Or so it seemed.

Every now and then when Ace would glance up, she'd make eye contact with Daryl whom stood across from her on the opposite side of the pile of stones that were collected. Whenever she did it was as he was reading was she was thinking, being able to see the words scroll across her eyes. But other than that he seemed very bored and uninterested, flicking his head to the side to swat off the fly that landed on him.

Ace knew Daryl would probably be the only other one who would be curious about Shane. He was the only one who wasn't obsessed with something over dramatic like the rest of the group. And he's smart.

But it was hard not to notice. The whole time Hershel spoke about Otis, Shane could barely keep still. He was shifting on his feet and darting his eyes around. His face was scrunched, almost looking in pain as guilt creased his forehead. And he just gave off a weird vibe..

It's like Ace and Daryl, in their quick glances, were communicating, both asking each other what went down with Shane and Otis?

It wasn't until the woman, who Ace found out was named Patricia, asked Shane to speak for Otis that Ace put the pieces together.

Patricia was Otis' wife and as she wiped her nose with a tissue, she pleaded for Shane to share her husbands last moments. He jumped when they called his name, snapping out of his own head that he was lost in. His eyes seemed far away, living in a thought.

"You were with him in his last moments," Patricia cried, her voice thick. "Will you speak for him?"

Shane could barely keep eye contact with her for more than a few seconds. He was too guilty to. But Ace couldn't keep her eyes off him. She was trying to finish the puzzle of what happened, thinking real hard about it. "I'm... I'm not good at it," he mumbled, barely audible. "I'm sorry."

"Please, I need to hear... I need to know his death had meaning," she pleading. A pained sadness rushed over the group.

Shane opened his mouth, having trouble getting anything out. He kept glancing down at his feet, his hands begging to hold onto something, like he wanted his shotgun so he didn't feel so defenseless.

"We were about done..." He struggled, pushing out a breath. "Down to pistols, almost out of ammo by then.. I was limpin', it was getting real bad, my ankle all swollen.."

Ace sucked in a breath at his sudden story. His face was out of it, thinking real hard. His eyes barely twitched, but he never made eye contact with anyone for them to tell.

"We've got to save the boy, see that's what he said," Shane's voice hardened, his face twitching. "He gave me his back pack and shoved me ahead. Run, he said. He said, I'll take the rear, I'll cover you... But when I looked back..."

He trailed off, starting his limp toward the pile of stones. "If not for Otis I would have never made it out alive. And that goes for Carl too," Shane said, like he was convincing himself. "If any death ever had meaning, it was his..."

Shane placed the rock down, sitting it on top of the others. And when he did this, he looked right up and met Ace's intense look. It was at that moment he could see that she knew.

Everything about his story was too forced, too fast. He went right into it, trying to be convincing but only showing Ace how big his lie was. And even a deaf man could see he was lying.

And a blind man could see how much it was changing him.

Shane never looked away from the eye contact, not even as he stepped backwards, walking back into his spot.

His eyes were cold, his face dark, and his look gave Ace a bad feeling. A really bad one at that.

Eventually the group started retreating, heading back to the house, Hershel's people following.

Ace stayed back, using this time alone to take one last rock from the wheel barrow to place on the pile for Otis. She kept her hand on it, thinking about what really happened and how his death was probably a lot less graceful than Hershel and his people believed. She wished death didn't have to happen so much like this, but that was ridiculous to even think in the world they're in now...

"Ya ain't believin' that story he cooked up, huh?"

Ace looked up, letting her hand fall back down to her side. She hadn't realized Daryl stayed back too, but wasn't that surprised. She shook her head no at him. She was getting used to his company.

"Look like ya got a theory," he stated, his head nodding in her direction as he adjusted the strap of his crossbow on his shoulder.

Ace looked at him out of the corner of her eyes, shrugging.

"Well? Lemme hear it, I know it's in there. Can see you figurin' him out all over ya face so spit it out," he pointed at her face, spinning his finger around before letting it swing at his side again.

Ace glanced down at the memorial for Otis, feeling odd talking about it here. She already felt weird for being here in the first place.

She stepped away, glancing at Daryl and signaling him to follow her as she started to head slowly back to the house. He adjusted his crossbow again and caught up with her, walking at her side and only giving her quick glances as they went.

"He killed Otis," she said flat out, her voice a mumble.

Daryl glanced down at her. "That sure, aye?"

Ace was. She just nodded, looking in front of her.

She thought back to when Shane told her about Rick when they were driving to the CDC. He confided in her, telling her that he had a moment where he almost killed his best friend who had just come back from the dead. Held a gun up behind him...

Shane would have done it, especially with a guy like Otis who he probably thought deserved it. He loves Carl like his own son, as dangerous as that is.

Daryl knew that too. Shane's a hot head and a mess of one at that. "Makes sense, I guess," he shrugged. "Showed up with the dead guys gun, too."

Ace looked up to Daryl, unaware of this.

"You think they actually got hit by walkers?" Ace asked him. She was deciding how bad this made Shane. If he actually did it to save himself or if he just murdered him with only his reasoning... Either way, murder is murder.

Daryl looked down and met her eyes. "Dunno. Don't think it matters."

Ace agreed and looked away. "He's gonna cause problems this group ain't ready for," she said quietly after a few moments of walking in silence. This group is broken, Ace has said that before. And when a guy like Shane causes the types of problems he will, the group won't know how to handle it. It will be a mess.

It was weird how she referred to the group as a group not including Daryl. Not because he was that much of an outsider, but because he was smarter than them.

Here she was, bouncing ideas off Daryl. Conversing with him like they've been partner investigators or something. She doesn't know when the line of disliking each other was crossed, or when they started to team up. She doesn't know what did it. Maybe it was at the CDC, when she helped him, or maybe it was Sophia... She doesn't know. Neither of them do.

Daryl was the one agreeing this time, nodding at her. They were arriving up to the house now and growing awkward without anything left to say.

"Gonna talk to Rick, then head out," Daryl mentioned, scratching his the back of his head.

Ace nodded, both off them coming to a stop. "I'll be ready."

"Alright," Daryl said, satisfied enough. He was fine with her comin' along, liked it better than the others really. She didn't talk as much, was a good tracker, and was a hell of a person to be stuck with in a horde of walkers. As long as she didn't pass out on him again, he didn't care. And if she did, he'd keep her down until he got some answers.

"Meet ya out here," he said.

They both gave each other a nod and with that headed their separate ways, wondering what's in store for them.