From the Shadows

Sunshine pierced through the dusty blinds into the room. The light hit Daryl's eyes, and woke him. He covered his face with his arm and breathed in deeply. He laid there, waiting for enough convincing to even consider moving his tired limbs. After several minutes, he sat up slowly; his eyes squinting from the invasive sun. Too damn hot this early in the mornin'. He stretched and yawned, and cracked some of his stiff joints. He looked over at Teagan, who was still fast asleep. Her breathing was shallow, and her hair stuck to her sweaty forehead. Daryl decided not to wake her yet, and started getting their things together. After a few minutes, he realized he'd need the bags from the car to carry all the clothes in the closet. He didn't want to leave her and have her wake up while he was absent, afraid she would panic. Daryl walked over to Teagan and knelt in front of her. He gently pushed her sweaty hair off her face. He stroked her shoulder and spoke her name softly. When she didn't respond, he gently shook her and said her name louder. Teagan groaned and covered her eyes from the brightness surrounding her.

“Hey, we gotta get going.” Teagan grunted and rolled over. Daryl shook his head. “None o' that now. We gotta go.” Daryl shook her again.

“Fine, fine. I'm up.” Daryl could hardly understand her as she muffled into the pillow. She sat up and felt drool on her face. She crinkled her nose as she wiped it onto her sleeve. She partly opened up one eye and looked at Daryl. “What time is it?” Her voice was foggy.

“Time to get up. We slept a good while. All we need ta do is carry these bags to the car, and grab those clothes. Then we head out.”

Teagan dragged her body to the edge of the bed. She tried to put on her shoes, but the injury in her hand made her take a lot longer. As best she could, she helped Daryl carry their backpacks and medical bag back to the car. They grabbed some empty bags, went back upstairs to grab the clothes. Daryl started dehangering all the clothes and tossing them into the bag.

“Wait. We should leave some here.”

“What?” Daryl stopped abruptly.

“Other people might come by and need some clothes. Least we could do is leave them a few.”

“We got our own to worry about. A lot more. Plenty o' houses in this neighborhood.” The bag of clothes was heavy. Daryl grunted as he swung the strap over his shoulder. “Go on ahead, I'm slow.”

When they got to the car, Daryl shoved the bag into the trunk and got into the driver seat.

“Where to now?” There was still sleep in Teagan's voice.

“Huntin'. Ain't sure where though.” Teagan had forgotten about hunting.

“Not sure how much help I can be.” She looked down at the blood-stained cloth on her hand and arm.

“You'll be fine. Got a better eye than I do anyway. We won't be out too long. Want to be long down the road 'fore it gets dark.” He paused for a moment. “Which way ya think we should drive?”

“Did we see any good hunting spots on the way here?”

Daryl crinkled his nose. “Can't remember.”

Teagan sighed. “Well, we can keep heading out for a short while, see if we see anything. If not, we'll circle around and deal with what we have on the way back to the prison.”

Daryl nodded. They both got in the car and drove out of town, and down the road. They drove for about half and hour before coming across a large thicket.

“Looks like our stop.” Daryl grunted, and pulled the car to the side of the road. “Ready?” He unbuckled his seat belt and looked over to Teagan.

She nodded. “As ready as I can be. How long you'll think we'll be?”

“Hopefully not long. I want ta get back as soon as we can.”

Daryl locked the car, and he and Teagan walked into the thicket, with Daryl leading the way. The area was quiet; birds hardly flew overhead, and it was almost an hour before they saw a walker. As usual, their hunts were fairly quiet. After walking around for awhile, Daryl stopped.

He breathed in heavily. “We ain't gonna find a damn thing.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked around.

Teagan didn't respond. Instead, she took the lead and kept walking.

“Where you goin'?”

“To find us food.” She stepped carefully, avoiding the loud crunches of twigs and leaves under her feet. Daryl rolled his eyes and followed her.

“We should head back.” Teagan shushed him and kept walking. After several minutes, Teagan spotted something in the distance and started to pick up the pace. Daryl continued to trail behind her. The hell this girl think she's got? Teagan slowed, and stopped suddenly.

“Why'd ya stop?” Daryl whispered.

“Ready your bow.”

Daryl scanned the area, until he saw what Teagan saw. In the distance was a medium sized deer, completely unaware of their presence. Daryl raised his crossbow and fired, hitting the deer in the head.

“Nice shot.”

“Didn't think it'd be so calm.”

“Must be used to walkers.”

“Or nothin' at all; ain't a damn thing in sight.”

“Let's grab it and get out of here.”

Daryl and Teagan walked over to the deer.

“She's a big'un.”

“Think you can handle it?”

Daryl grunted as he lifted the deer and carried it over his shoulders. “Yeah. She big, but ain't that big. Deer don't weigh in as much down here. Just keep me covered.”

“You know it.”

They went back to the car with little dilemma. Teagan managed to kill a handful of squirrels, and there were no walkers in sight. Daryl strapped the deer to the roof of the car and they got in. Daryl started the car and drove down the road back to the prison.

“Left later than I wanted to, but we'll make good time.”

“As long as we don't have to stop, we should be fine.”

The drive was quiet. Teagan rolled her window down, and leaned against her arm to watch as the scenery zipped past her. The day was hot, but the group made it a rule to not use air conditioning to save on gas. Teagan was kept cool by the wind whipping through her hair and over her face. She closed her eyes and started to hum to herself. After awhile, Daryl swore to himself under his breath.

“What's wrong?”

“Shoulda known better. 'Bout ta run outta gas. If we don't find some, we ain't making it back.”

“Think we can make it back to that town?”

“Let's hope.”

Daryl drove towards the town. His eyes kept flickering between the road and the gas gauge. Over a mile away from town, the car began to sputter, and the car slowly rolled to a complete stop.

Daryl hit the steering wheel. “Sonuvabitch!”

“We'll be alright. It's a short walk.”

“Yeah? We ain't got gas cans. An' it's hot as hell out there.”

“We'll find some. We can make it there and back in no time.”

Daryl scoffed. “Might take us awhile ta find gas.”

“There were plenty of supplies yesterday; it's likely that at least a few of the cars haven't run dry yet.” Teagan opened the passenger car and started to get out. “Come on, let's get going.”

Daryl took the keys out of the ignition and stepped out of the car. He leaned on the car, looking at Teagan. “Sure yer up ta this?” His voice was quiet.

Teagan was taken slightly aback by the question. “Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?”

Daryl shrugged. “Can't imagine yer feelin' too good.” He quickly glanced at her hands. “'Sides, it's hot out here.”

“I'm fine, really.” She closed the passenger door. “Besides, it'll be just as hot in and around this car.” She smiled. “And someone's got to keep an eye on you.” She cocked her head in the direction they needed to walk. “Let's go.”

Daryl smiled slightly, shrugged, grabbed their emptied backpacks, and locked the car. After about a half a mile, the effects of the scorching heat were taking it's toll. Both Daryl and Teagan were sweating profusely, and Daryl could feel his pulse in his ears.

“How ya holdin' up?”

Teagan tried to swallow the dryness from her mouth. “Oh, you know, hanging in there. You?”

“'M fine.” Daryl squinted as the sun pierced his eyes.

Their thirty-minute walk in the sweltering heat felt more like an hour, but they successfully arrived in town. They went back to the store they went to the day before in hopes of finding a gas can and a tube for siphoning.

After several minutes of searching, they came out empty-handed. “Don't think we'll find it here. Maybe we can find a gas station or a mechanic?”

“Have any idea where either of 'em might be?”

“Not a clue.” Teagan stood from her crouched position. She turned her back to Daryl, and started to look for something else.

“Let's go. Ain't got time ta waste.”

“Just give me a minute. We can spare at least that much.”

Daryl huffed. The heat, on top of everything else, was getting to him. Got ta get her outta here quick, get her ta Hershel, get her checked out. Goddamn this heat. After a few minutes, Daryl grew more impatient. “Come'on now.”

Teagan rolled her eyes and walked over to him with what she found.

“The hell is that?”

“Sunscreen.” Daryl furrowed his eyebrows. “In case you didn't notice, it's a sauna outside. Protecting our skin should help us from dehydrating anymore than we already have.” Teagan spread a generous amount on her arms, face, and neck. She handed the bottle to Daryl, who stared at it without taking it. “It doesn't bite.”

“Smells like shit.”

“So does blistered human skin. Stop being an ass and take it.”

Daryl mumbled under his breath, and lazily applied sunscreen. They left the store and walked further into town, catching as much shade as possible. After awhile, Teagan stopped in her tracks to catch her breath.

“Why don't towns have any maps anymore?”

“Did they ever?” Daryl almost chuckled.

“Well, if they didn't they should have. If Disneyland has a map, so should everywhere else.” After a few minutes of silence, Teagan met Daryl's eyes. “Maybe we should split up?”

Daryl scoffed. “No way in hell. That'll be guaranteed trouble fer the both of us.”

“I don't like it either, but if we don't find gas soon, we'll be stranded her another night with our car more than a mile away from us. And a deer rotting on top of it, might I remind you. The only plus is that we haven't seen too many walkers.”

“Don't that worry you more than actually findin' some?”

“To be honest, yeah, a bit. I've never seen a town this empty, unless the town was empty to start with.” Teagan sighed. Silence fell, and then suddenly, Teagan's eyes widened with an idea. “Did you see a bus stop?”

“What?”

“You know, a bus stop. A place where a city bus will pick you up or drop you off.”

Daryl grumbled. “I know what a bus stop is. What's it got do with findin' some goddamn gas?”

“Well, a bus is designed to take a person from their home, or near their home, to businesses and such to the downtown area.”

“Get to yer point.”

“It'll cover major businesses in the city. Grocery, restaurants... maybe even a gas station or mechanic.”

“What does a person on the bus need a mechanic for? They ain't drivin'.”

“No... but it could be among other businesses. Or maybe the person broke down, much like we did, and needed a faster way to get there than walking”

“So... we follow a bus route and hope it works?”

A slight concern spread of Teagan's face. “Got a better idea?”

Daryl shook his head and sighed. “Let's go find yer damn bus stop...”

After a few minutes, Teagan found a bus stop. “Route 86. This should do it.”

“What if it's headin' more towards home 'n' less towards town?”

“I thought about that... well, uh... we might be looking at a few hours walk if we walk the whole route.”

“We ain't got that time.”

“Well, we don't know which direction to go, or even if this bus route will even take us to where we need to go. Without splitting up, this is our best bet.”

Daryl gritted his teeth. “Then we need a better plan.”

“By all means, have at it.” Without any words, Daryl picked a direction and walked. “That's your big solution? Spin, point, and go?” She jogged to catch up to Daryl. “We'll have better luck with the bus route.”

Daryl turned around abruptly and pointed in the direction he was walking. “See that? Neon sign. Either gamblin', motel, or gas. Can't read it from here, but in any case, it'll have a parkin' lot.”

Teagan followed Daryl without another word. The heat was draining enough without arguing, or running around in endless circles. The flat ground made the mystery sign look closer than it was. No matter how long they walked, they never seemed to get any closer. The farther they walked, the less shade they encountered. The hot, blaring sun beat down on their necks, sapping energy and moisture from their bodies. It was hard to see behind the glare and the sweat. After about twenty minutes of walking, they could read the sign.

“'World Gas'? Not very creative.”

“Don't need ta be. Let's get in 'n' go home.”

They walked up to the store to see it locked. “Weird.”

“Mmm?” Daryl grumbled.

“No break-in, no windows broken... this place is a ghost town.”

“All the better. Move.”

“Wait... if you break a window, you could set off an alarm.”

“So? Said so yerself, ghost town with no walkers. Well, almost none. That legless one don't count.” Teagan didn't like the idea, but didn't argue. Daryl grabbed his knifed, turned it around, and hit the glass door with the handle of his knife. An alarm started to blare, and he quickly broke a hole big enough for him to walk through. He tried yelling over the alarm. “Shut that damn thing off!” Teagan carefully walked through the broken door, looking for the alarm. She looked above the door and saw what she was looking for.

“Hey, I need a boost!”

Daryl could hardly hear anything. “What?” Teagan pointed above to door to the alarm. Daryl nodded, and interlaced his fingers to give her a boost. He lifted her up, and she carefully removed the alarm from the wall. Once off, she motioned to Daryl to let her down.

“What tha hell are you doin'? Turn it off!” She quickly unscrewed the back panel, popped out the batteries, and the incessant ring ceased. “Jesus christ, took ya long enough.”

“What would you have done differently?”

“Smashed the damn thing.”

“It's metal, not plastic. Would have taken you just as long, if not longer. Besides, we got working batteries this way.”

Daryl rolled his eyes. “Let's be quick about this.” In less than a minute, both a gas can and a siphoning tube were found. Daryl grabbed them and started to leave.

“Wait.”

“What now?”

Teagan showed him a long-neck funnel. “Easier to put gas into a car.”

Daryl nodded. He went outside and found the nearest car to him. There were a handful of cars in the lot. Bound to be some gas in here somewhere. The first two cars he checked were dry. The third car had too little gas in it. The fourth car was successful. Daryl siphoned the gas into the can, spitting the gas from his mouth onto the ground. “Get another can, just in case.”

Teagan grabbed the last two cans, and came back outside. She turned to look down the street, and down several blocks from the gas station she saw something. After her eyes adjusted, she saw that their bad situation got worse. “Daryl, we need to hurry up.”

“Oh, now you wanna hurry. Well, I'm goin' as fast as I can. Can't make gas siphon any faster.”

“No, really, we need to go.”

“Why, what's wrong?”

“I know where all the walkers had disappeared to. They must have heard the alarm.”

“Shit. How many?”

“Too many to take. If we want a head start, we have to go.”

“You keep siphoning. I'll keep a look out. I'll let ya know when we go.”

“Daryl-”

“Listen. We need as much gas as we can get. Those only hold 5 gallons each, and we need ta get back ta camp. We can run, they can't. We can't be stoppin' fer gas again. Just go.”

Teagan breathed in sharply and didn't argue. She topped off the first can, and quickly started on the second. The siphon ran dry with half a gas can to go. “Moving cars. This one's dry.”

“Be quick. Ain't got much time.”

Teagan tried the last car and started to siphon. Gas poured from the car, through the tube, and into the partially-full gas can. Teagan spit the gas from her mouth. Come on, come on. Little faster.

“How much more?”

“Just a little more-”

“Hurry up!”

“Done!” Teagan carefully and quickly shoved the 30 pound gas can into her backpack. Daryl did the same with his bag.

“Can you run?” Daryl looked concerned.

“Do we have a choice?” Teagan tried to sound playful, despite the undead doom just around the corner.

Daryl shook his head lightly, looking at Teagan with apologetic eyes. “Not really.”

“Then let's go!” Teagan started to jog, the most she could do with her current level of fatigue and the added weight to her back. Daryl followed closely behind her. He eventually passed her, gaining a distance of about 30 feet. When they reached the middle of the town, Daryl realized just how far behind Teagan had fallen. He stopped suddenly to catch his breath and waited for her.

When she caught up to him, he could barely push out words between heavy breaths. “Hangin'.. in... there?” Teagan nodded. They looked behind them to see they gained some distance between them and the horde, but the undead still relentlessly followed. “We're near the... end of town... Just got a lil' over a mile left.” He swallowed hard. His the sweat made his clothes stickily cling to his body.

“Water?”

“Yeah. You out?” Teagan nodded. “Here.” He handed her a near-empty bottle. “It's all yours.”

Teagan only took a swallow, and handed the rest back. “You need... some too.” Daryl wiped the sweat from his face and drank the last of the water. They had more in the car, but they had to get there first.

Daryl put the empty water bottle in his backpack. He flung the heavy bag back over his shoulders. Without a second thought, he grabbed Teagan's hand. “Let's go.”

They both started to run. The last stretch of run had no shade. With the last of their energy, they ran as fast and as hard as they could, trying to cover as much distance as possible, and to leave the walkers far behind them. They passed the bus stop, the convenient store, and kept running. Teagan remembered the last time she ran this hard, when she was running from the Governor. But I'm not alone this time. I'll make it this time. We'll both make it. They got to the edge of town. Teagan was swimming in her own clothes. She could feel the spots on her feet where blisters were forming from the wet friction in her shoes. The soles of her feet were hot as the blazing asphalt's heat seeped through. The chafing on her shoulders from the heavy backpack was rubbing her skin raw. Sweat dripped into her eyes, and the ground in front of her was wavy from the heat. She kept pushing; she had to. There was no other option than to outrun the walkers and make it back to the car. They needed enough head start to give them time to fill the gas tank. They only had 10 gallons; more than enough to get them back to the prison, as long as both cans made it into the tank. Finally, the car became visible in the distance. The road was flat, so it was still far away, but it gave Daryl and Teagan a visual goal to reach. Daryl was used to the southern heat; he grew up in the sweltering, humid summers. But this was too much for him. A sharp pain started to form in his chest. The hot air didn't satisfy his lungs, and he felt like he was suffocating. If I feel this shitty, can't imagine how Teagan's feelin'. He remembered the cuts on her hand and arm, and realized she must be miserable. Just a little further. I'll drag ya if I have ta. Daryl finally reached the car, and tried to catch his breath. The air raggedly entered his chest. Teagan was close behind him; her momentum nearly drove her into the car. She set her bag down and collapsed onto the pavement, leaning against the car.

Daryl breathed heavily. “Don't gotta move. Just hold this steady.” He guided her hand to the funnel that led into the gas tank. He grabbed the first gas can and carefully poured it into the tank. He grunted at its heavy weight. Her hand started to shake towards the end. “One more. Then we go. No more running, no more moving. Not 'til we get back. Deal?” Teagan nodded slightly and groaned. Daryl carefully poured the last of the gas into the tank. Ten gallons oughtta do it. He grabbed the keys from his pocket and unlocked the car. He tossed the empty gas cans into the back seat. Daryl walked back over to Teagan and lent her a hand, and smiled. “We made it.” A smile spread across his drenched face. “Let's go.” She took his hand and stood onto shaking, fatigued legs. Daryl escorted her to the passenger side, made sure she got in, and then went to the trunk. He grabbed out a gallon of water, and got into the car via the driver's side. He handed Teagan the gallon, and started the car. Daryl looked at the sun in the sky. “Might make it back before it gets pitch dark. If we're fast.”

“At least late for dinner.” She was chugged some water, and offered Daryl some. Daryl and Teagan rolled down their windows, and started to drive back to the prison.