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Full Time Job

"Merle's gone, Gia..."

Everyone was bustling around the cell block, preparing for this Governor to finally come, which Michonne had scouted that they were actually coming, and I was trying to help Rick and Maggie load all the ammo into the available magazines that we had, my fingers were starting to blister from the pinches of the metal when my finger got stuck in the slide. I had loaded the last clip for a nine millimeter pistol and handed it to Rick, who popped it into the bottom of a black handgun and handed it to me.

“Now, you have to follow the plan, Gianna,” he said solemnly, looking over at Daryl who had walked into the cell block and picked up Vinny who had ran towards him, slung him on his hip and continued looking for whatever it was that he was searching for, but he clearly was looking around for something. “We’re going to put you out in the SUV with Hershel, Beth, Carl, Vinny and Judith. No matter what you hear, no matter what you see going on, you are to stay outside of the prison grounds, Gia. Do you understand?” he said, looking directly at me and I nodded. Daryl walked up to the table Rick and I were standing around and placed Vinny in my arms.

“Merle ain’t here, Rick,” he said in a low voice. “…and Michonne’s gone too,” he continued, looking down at me. I held Vinny close to me and just knew immediately that they were going to leave to run after him. What if the Governor came before they got back? Were we going to be able to make it through this without them? Would I be able to make it through this without Daryl?

I made my way up the metal stair well in the cell block, starting to pack up somethings for Vinny before I had to pack for Judith. I set Vinny down and he started playing with his toy cars on the tiled office floor of the perch. I stood in the doorway, tossing extra clothes and things into an oversized duffle bag. I felt Daryl’s hands rest on my hips and turned to face him.

“I’ve got to go after Merle,” he said in a small, frustrated voice, looking directly into my eyes and tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear.

“I know…” I answered softly. I turned around to face him and hesitantly looked up towards his face.

“You’re going to be fine,” he said, his rough Southern drawl trying to sound gentle. “If they come before we get back, just listen to Hershel, he’ll take care of you.” I nodded hesitantly and he kissed my forehead and wrapped an arm around my back.

“I just hope you find him and come back before they get here… I’m scared, Daryl…” I said quietly, my voice muffled slightly as he held me close to him.

“Don’t be, I ain’t going to let nothing happen to ya. Just listen to Hershel, darlin’…” he said, hugging me tighter. “I gotta get gon’…” he said, kissed my lips, and ruffled Vinny’s hair.

“You listen to your Zia, okay buddy? I’ll be back before ya know it,” he said down to Vinny who nodded and continued playing with his cars on the ground. He kissed my cheek again before walking down the steps and leaving with Rick. After I had finished packing all of our things, I headed down to pack things up for Judith and had Beth watch the two kids as I made my way out to pack the things into one of the cars in the inner prison yard. I returned and we played the anxious waiting game for Rick and Daryl to return with Michonne and Merle. I helped Maggie continue to barricade the outside inner prison yard with Carol for the rest of the evening, and dusk was quickly approaching. Michonne and Rick had returned to the cell block hours before Daryl did, and I felt relieved when he walked in alone although he was covered in blood. He walked silently into the cell block, straight up the metal stairwell and pulled me into a tight hug, not saying a word to anyone. Vinny had fallen asleep and I looked at his blood covered hands and immediately pulled him towards the bathroom with the cold showers down the hallway, away from everyone who was watching Daryl curiously. He leaned against the counter, still silent, watching me wipe his hands down with a clean wet towel.

“What happened to Merle, Daryl?” I eventually asked quietly and he exhaled slowly.

“Merle’s gone, Gia.” He said simply and I met his gaze and saw the sadness radiating from his eyes.

“Oh no, baby, I’m so sorry,” I said, feeling terrible immediately, and also a little sad myself, I hoped that Merle being with us would make Daryl a little happier. I didn’t even get to know him really and he was gone. Already. I wrapped him into a close hug and he held onto me for a while until Rick quietly made his way into the small bathroom for the prison staff. I looked over at Rick as Daryl released me.

“I, uh, I’ll get you some fresh clothes, Daryl,” I said quietly, leaving to give them privacy to talk and walked back to the perch and pulled a clean set of clothes out for Daryl, and returned to the small bathroom, setting them in an empty sink and walked out without another word.

“Thank you, sweetheart,” I heard Daryl say to me and I smiled a little at him as I left the room and left to lay down in our bed, brushing the hair from Vinny’s face as he slept soundly next to me. The cell block was quiet as everyone started to go to bed. Daryl had climbed into bed some time later, and held my closely to him as we slept that night.

Early the next morning, we were woken early, Carol shaking us awake.

“Gia, it’s time for you guys to get moving, they’re less than a mile out,” I heard her say frantically and I sat straight up in bed, Daryl sitting up right next to me. I dressed quickly, putting the glock that Rick had insisted on me keeping in my waistband and woke Vinny awake as Daryl was getting dressed also. Before I could walk down the steps, Daryl pulled me into a tight hug.

“You’re going to be fine. I love you, Gia,” he said quietly and quickly trekked out of the cell block. I pulled Vinny onto my hip and rushed down the stairs to Carl who was trying to calm Judith who was crying loudly in the lower cell block. Carl looked apologetically up towards me and handed me Judith who I held close to my body, my other arm cradling Vinny to my hip.

“Carl, come on, we gotta get out of here with Hershel, we’ve all got jobs to do,” I said gently down to him, reciting Hershel’s words. I made my way to the door of the cell block and looked over towards Beth, who nodded at me with a small fake smile before she followed Hershel and I from the cell block, Vinny fussed until I let Beth hold him as we quickly walked to the car and out of the cell block. I cradled Judith close to my body as Hershel climbed in the driver’s seat and I hopped in the back with Beth and Vinny, giving Carl the front seat so he could see and shoot if necessary. The car rumbled to life and Hershel slowly drove towards the gate to exit the prison yard and Rick solemnly watched us drive by and down the grounds where the other truck was parked and Daryl’s motorcycle.

We sat near the cars in a small wooded area that overlooked the prison grounds, waiting and waiting until finally we heard a loud explosion that shook the ground beneath our feet. Judith start screaming and Vinny was frightened also, running to hide in between my legs as I covered Judith’s ears and rocked her in my arms, trying to soothe her as gunfire cracked loudly in the distance. Abruptly it was quiet and I looked towards Hershel who was watching the prison yard through a set of binoculars. Carl was watching guard twenty or so yards away. Hershel’s face didn’t really show any anxiety, it looked like things were going like he expected them too, or at least I hoped.

“Vinny, it’s okay baby,” I said gently down to him and Beth knelt down next to me, pulling him from my legs and picking him up and he immediately laid his head on Beth’s shoulder. Off in the far distance, I could see a military looking truck inching closer and closer to the prison, and to Daryl, Rick, Michonne, Glenn and Maggie. It was quiet around us save the wind rustling the leaves in the trees, Judith had finally calm down as I gave her the bottle of formula that Beth had prepared. I sat in the front seat of the SUV, with the door propped open, cradling Judith in my arms as she drank from her bottle.

“Is that Rick?” I heard Beth ask quietly to Hershel and I glanced over towards the prison grounds in the distance, seeing someone from our side messing with the big gun that The Governor and his people had brought in.

“No, that’s Daryl,” I heard in Hershel’s tired voice and I watched, my heart beat rising slightly as they each took their positions outside of the prison to surprise the Governor and his men as they ran out of the trapped and rigged cell block. I was starting to grow so nervous, as right now was the time that any one of our family members could be hurt or killed. I was sending silent prayers up as I held and fed Judith, Vinny sprawled across the backseat of the SUV behind me, reading over his favorite comic book.

The waiting was starting to make all of us, including Vinny, obnoxiously anxious until we started hearing gunfire exploding again in the distance, and Hershel was still watching intently through his binoculars. It continued for a few minutes until Hershel hollered out triumphantly.

“They’re retreating!” Hershel exclaimed. “It worked!” Relief flooded over my entire body and I was trying to rock Judith to sleep, sitting on the back floorboard of the opened hatch of the SUV. We saw a teenaged boy run towards us and Hershel and Carl both drew their weapons.

“Alright son, just put the gun down,” Hershel said calmly, the kid couldn’t be any older than Beth. I watched as the kid was moving to hand his rifle over to Carl before Carl shot him with his silenced weapon and I looked towards Beth incredulously. We didn’t say a word after Hershel instructed everyone to climb back into the car so we could drive back to the inner prison yard.

We pulled into the wrecked fence that Glenn and Maggie were mending and I continued to hold Judith and grabbed for Vinny’s hand as we walked back into our silent cell block that we had made into our home. Rick, Daryl and Michonne were already inside, Rick grinned down to Judith and kissed her head as I held her and I handed her off to Beth and sat down on the top of the metal stairway with Daryl who was cleaning his crossbow arrows. Vinny and Carl were playing together in the center of the concrete floor in the open cell block. We were all fine.

“Are you alright, darlin’?” Daryl asked in his gruff voice after he had wrapped an arm around my back.

“I’m fine, are you alright?” I responded and he gave me a small grin before nodding.

“I want to go after him, we need to end this…” he said quickly and I looked at him incredulously.

“Daryl, c’mon, he’s gone,” I responded, the anxiety that had left my body was already building back up again.

“Gia, he killed my brother… and after what he did to Glenn and Maggie… I can’t risk it. What if in a few months from now he comes back? Takes you? Takes Vinny? Or Little Ass Kicker?” he started and I just looked at him. I had never met this Governor, but all I knew about him was that he was dangerous… a bad guy… but he was gone now.

“I’m terrified of losing you…” I said quietly and he sat in thought for a few seconds.

“I have to do whatever it takes to keep you guys safe, Gia… do you understand that? I can’t just let this go…” he finished and I sat in silence until Rick called out for Daryl to join him, Michonne and Hershel who were talking in a huddle near the door to the cell block.

“Please don’t…” I started and he interrupted me by kissing my lips roughly.

“I have to, babygirl…” he said quietly, and kissed the top of my head as he stood up. “I’ll be back tonight…” he finished and quickly descended the stairs, leaving me alone again in the cell block.