Rick was running along with a heavily bleeding Carl in his arms, gasping for air as he pushed himself forward. Y/N was beside him, Shane and a large overweight man a couple of dozen yards behind them.

The large man fell to his knees, horribly out of breath and Shane rounded on him:

"Hey, you move, shithead! Come on, get us there!"

"How far? How far?" Rick yelled as he stopped and puffed, struggling to breathe with his unconscious boy in his arms.

"Another half mile, that way! Hershel, talk to Hershel- He'll help your boy. I'm sorry" the large man yelled back. Y/N looked at Rick and said firmly:

"Give him to me, Rick!"

Rick began to move forward slowly and Y/N spoke again:

"Rick, you're gassed out and every moment counts. Give him to me!"

Rick nodded as Shane pulled the large man to his feet and handed Carl to Y/N. The boy looked even smaller against Y/N's large torso but the moment he had a firm grip on Carl he was gone.

He sprinted towards a farmhouse, Carl as good as weightless in his arms, Y/N's only concern was getting the boy to help.

A young woman, Maggie, was sitting on her porch as she looked up and saw a large figure running toward her house with a limp boy in his arms.

She lifted her binoculars and noticed his arms were covered in blood.

"Dad!" She yelled, rushing into the house before emerging moments later with others.

There was an older man with silver hair at the front, a blonde middle aged lady next to him, as well as a tall skinny male teen, and two young women.

"What he bit?" the old man yelled as Y/N arrived at their porch.

"Shot, by your man" Y/N replied.

"Otis?" the older woman asked and Y/N nodded.

"He said to find Hershel, please tell me that's you."

"In, now" Hershel nodded and turned, walking into the house and rolling up his sleeves. Y/N rushed behind him followed by the others as Hershel called out calmly:

"Patricia, I need my full kit. Maggie, painkillers, coagulates, grab everything...clean towels, sheets, alcohol. In here." he concluded, leading Y/N into a bedroom. He ripped the quilt off the bed and Y/N laid Carl down. Hershel asked as he pulled a stethoscope from a chest of drawers behind him:

"Pillowcase, make a pad, hold it there, apply pressure."

Y/N did so, holding the pillowcase against Carl's stomach as Rick arrived at the doorway. He made eye contact with Y/N and asked:

"Is he... is he?"

"He's alive. Your names?" Hershel asked.

Rick stood and stared at his unconscious son as Y/N answered:

"I'm Y/N. He's Rick, Carl here is his son."

Rick stood in deep shock and replied as Maggie and Patricia rushed past him. Hershel replied:

"Rick we gonna do everything we can for your boy. Can you give us the room?"

Y/N nodded as Maggie brushed against him and placed her hands on the pillowcase Y/N was holding, saying to him:

"Excuse me, we've got this" with a smile. Y/N stood and stepped back, walking over to Rick. He placed a hand on his friend's shoulder before pulling him into a hug as Rick broke down and began to cry.

"C'mon Rick, let's give them the room" Y/N said gently, leading the shell shocked father out the front door to let him breathe and try to compose himself.

"They're experienced medically, Rick, they're doing everything they can for Carl" Y/N said reassuringly.

Rick nodded, wiping his face, leaving a trail of blood across it as Shane and Otis arrived at the farmyard. The two out of breath men reached the former pair, Otis looking at them and asking fearfully:

"The boy, he's alive?"

Y/N nodded at the man, who sighed in relief.

"You, you got blood man, let me" Shane said as he wiped Carl's blood from Rick's face.

"Where is he?" Shane asked, turning to Y/N.

"He's in here" Y/N replied, leading the other men inside Hershel's house and to the doorway of the room Carl was in.

Patricia rushed over to Otis, hugging him and asking "What happened?"

"I was tracking a buck. Bullet went through it. Went clean through" Otis said as he fought back tears.

"The deer slowed the bullet down, which certainly saved his life, but it did not go through clean. It broke up into pieces. If I can get the bullet fragments out... And I'm countin' six" Hershel replied from Carl's side.

"I never saw him. Not until he was on the ground" Otis added before everyone in the room heard a loud call of "Daddy!?!"

A young woman rushed into the room, hugging tight against Otis.

"It's ok, honeybunch. It's ok" Otis reassured his daughter. Hershel yelled out next:

"Do you know his blood type?"

"No I don't think... no we've never had cause to..." Rick stammered before Y/N said quickly:

"Take mine."

"We don't... if yours isn't compatible then-"

"My blood's universal. Donated it to my gr.. grandmother a lot during her cancer treatment. It's compatible. Trust me" Y/N replied, cutting off Hershel.

Hershel nodded to Patricia, who rushed over. She attempted to insert a needle but Y/N's long sleeved top was in the way.

"Have you got a shirt under this?" she asked. Y/N shook his head and quickly yanked the blood soaked top off, exposing his chest and abdomen.

The two younger women stared, wide eyed and lasciviously, before Hershel interrupted their stares:

"Charlotte, could you please get a seat for Y/N here?"

Otis's daughter nodded, looking at Y/N again with reddened cheeks before leaving the room. She returned with a chair as her mother finished with the IV transfusion equipment, Y/N sitting next to Carl as his life fluid drained into the boy.

"Y/N th-th-thank you" Rick stammered, still a mess.

"No thanks needed, buddy" Y/N smiled, relieved to be able to help Carl, even in a small way.

"Lori doesn't know" Rick said suddenly. Shane replied: "I know" and Rick continued:

"My wife doesn't... my wife doesn't know."

"Maggie, if you could" Hershel asked, motioning to Rick, Shane and the others. Maggie nodded and walked over, leading them out saying:

"Let's let my Daddy and Patricia work."

Shane, Rick, Otis and Charlotte exited the room to a dining room, Rick sitting on a chair as he broke down again.

—~—

The rest of the group were walking through the forest, heading back to the road. As they walked Lori and Amy were looking backwards repeatedly.

"Still worried about that gunshot?" Clementine asked her best friend. Amy looked at her and nodded.

"Me too, Amy" Lori sighed. "I mean why one, why just one gunshot?"

"Maybe they took down a walker?" Daryl suggested. Lori rounded on him:

"Please don't patronize me."

Amy added:

"You saw what Y/N did earlier with twelve of them and a knife. There's no way he, or Rick or Shane would risk firing a gun for one walker. No way."

The others nodded. Carol asked:

"Shouldn't they have caught up with us by now?"

"There's nothing we can do about it, anyway" Clementine replied. Daryl nodded.

"The girl's right. Can't run around these woods chasing echoes."

"So, what do we do?" Andrea asked.

"Same as we've been. Beat the bush for Sophia, work our way back to the highway" Daryl replied.

"I'm sure they'll hook up with us back at the RV" Clementine added with a nod. Amy looked over at Carol who was still fretting.

"I'm so sorry for what you're going through" she said with genuine empathy. Carol smiled.

"Thank you. The thought of her, out here by herself... It's the not knowing that's killin' me. I just keep hopin' and prayin' she doesn't wind up like Margaret."

A look of horror appeared on Carol's face, at the same time as a pained one appeared on Amy's. Carol instantly apologised:

"Oh, God! That's the worst thing I ever said. I'm so sorry."

Amy smiled through her grief and replied:

"We're all hoping and praying with you, for what it's worth."

"I'll tell ya what it's worth- Not a damn thing" Daryl quickly interjected. Carol looked at Amy horrified before Daryl continued:

"It's a waste of time, all this hopin' and prayin'. We're gonna locate that little girl. She's gonna be just fine. Am I the only one zen around here? Good lord."

He walked off, Clementine chuckling to her best friend as the rest of the women and Glenn followed Daryl.

—~—

Dale and T-Dog were standing over the engine of a car Dale had removed the gaskets from.

"We are gonna have quite a collection of spare parts, I tell ya" he said happily to T-Dog.

"Shouldn't they be back by now?" T-Dog asked with an annoyed tone.

"It's still light. Let's not worry, just yet. How are you feelin'?" Dale replied.

T-Dog shrugged his shoulders and began walking off but Dale persisted:

"T-Dog? I asked you how you were feeling just now. Please don't blow that question off."

T-Dog nodded.

"It really, really hurts. It's throbbing something awful."

"Oh, let me see" Dale replied, gently pulling back the makeshift bandage on T-Dog's arm being held in place by duct tape. T-Dog jumped in pain.

"Ah, don't-don't touch it!"

"I'm sorry- I'm sorry. Listen, your veins are very discolored. You got a hell of an infection there. You could die from blood poisoning" Dale said in a panic. T-Dog shocked him by cracking up laughing:

"Oh, man. Wouldn't that be the way? World gone to hell... The dead risen up to eat the living... And Theodore Douglas gets done in by a cut on his arm."

"Yeah, that would be-that would be stupid. I-I've been saying since yesterday, we gotta-we gotta get you some antibiotics. We've been ransacking these cars the whole time. I can't believe that we have not found some ampicillin, or something in the in the whole place. Can you?" Dale asked.

"Seems like there would be" T-Dog responded weakly.

"Yeah, that's what I think. We, uh, we haven't been thorough enough. So, let's look some more" Dale said to his injured friend resolutely.

—~—

Rick and Shane were sat in Hershel's lounge room, sitting silently.

"Why'd I let him come with us? I should've sent him with Lori" Rick said despondently, his head in his arms. Shane gave him a look and replied:

"You know, you start that, you never get that monkey off your back."

"Little girl goes missing, you look for her. Simple. You said, call it- Head back."

"Doesn't matter what I said-" Shane began to answer before Rick cut him off.

"Carl got shot because I wouldn't cut bait. I didn't back you up when Y/N's guilt overtook him. It should be me in there."

Shane chuckled.

"You've been there, partner, right? And you pulled through, So will he."

"Is that why I got outta that hospital? Found my family for it to end here, like this? This kind of sick joke?"

Rick was getting more desperate and despondent with each passing moment. Shane snapped fiercely:

"You stop it. Just stop."

"A little girl goes missing... You look for her. It's plain and simple" Rick continued, his mind on a loop before the bedroom door opened.

"Rick, Shane, we need help" Maggie said quickly. The two men rushed in- Y/N was sat looking a lot paler, one arm trying to hold Carl down as Patricia tried to stop the vein bleeding on Y/N's arm and set up a temporary IV drip for when Carl needed more blood.

Hershel was at Carl's injury with medical pliers, trying to extract a piece of the bullet. Carl had woken up and was screaming and thrashing.

"You, help hold him down" Hershel said to Shane, who rushed over and placed one hand on Carl's upper chest, one on his low abdomen.

"You hang in there little man, you hang on"  he whispered.

"Dad!" Carl cried in agony. The pliers went deeper and he screamed even louder.

Rick panicked, as any parent would:

"Stop! You're killin' him!"

"Rick, do you want him to live?" Y/N said firmly to the officer before the three men, Y/N, Rick and Shane, panicked as Carl went limp.

"Carl... Carl?" Rick asked, Hershel answering immediately:

"He just passed out."

Hershel successfully pulled a bullet fragment out and placed it on the tray next to him, sighing in relief.

—~—

Y/N was sent out of the room, Maggie helping him walk as he was a little shaky on his feet.

"Never felt this shaky after a blood donation before" Y/N chuckled. Maggie could tell how awkward he felt, leaning on the arm of a woman half his size as his other hand guided himself along the wall as he walked.

"There's no need to be embarrassed, like Daddy said, you gave a lot, a lot more than a normal donation. You just need to take it easy now."

They reached the dining table and Y/N sat, Maggie looking up to see Otis and Charlotte standing there looking concerned as were her sister Beth and Beth's boyfriend, Jimmy.

"Shar, could you fix Y/N here a sandwich and a nice big glass of orange juice? I just need to see if Daddy needs help with anything else" Maggie asked with a smile. Charlotte nodded happily and let go of her dad's arm.

"Sure thing, be back in two shakes, sug" she said with a beaming smile to Y/N, walking past him to the kitchen. Otis came over and sat next to him, asking with wide, worried eyes:

"The boy, how is?"

Before Y/N could answer Hershel did, as he brought the others from the bedroom onto the dining room and held a hand out to Rick and Shane to have a seat.

"One down... Five to go. His pressure's stable, as good as we can help for the moment. How are you feeling?" Hershel asked Y/N.

"I'm fine doc, a little shaky but fine" Y/N replied.

"Lori needs to be here. She doesn't even know what's goin' on. I got-I gotta go find her, bring her back" Rick said suddenly, still in shock.

"You can't do that" Y/N replied. Rick snapped back:

"She's his mother! She needs to know what's happened. Her son's lying here, shot!"

"Exactly! Carl's lying here shot. When he wakes he needs his dad, man. I'll go look for her" Y/N replied.

"No. The boy's going to need more blood. You can't go more than 50 feet from his bed" Hershel replied, looking at Y/N. Y/N nodded, looking at Shane who smiled.

"Y/N's right, Rick. She has to know, and I'm gonna handle that, but you gotta hold up your end. You understand that?" Shane asked calmly.

"My, my end?" Rick replied with furrowed brow, still in shock and not thinking clearly.

"Yeah, your end, Rick. Your end is being here, for your son. He needs Y/N's blood to survive, but he needs his dad just as much. I'll break your legs if you try to leave, you know that right? If something happened to him and you weren't here... If-if he slipped away while you were gone, you would never forgive yourself for that, and neither would Lori, man" Shane said calmly. Rick nodded.

"You're right"

"When was I ever wrong?" Shane laughed. He continued:

"You know, when... When you were in that hospital, the one you were never supposed to leave, man... You should've seen Lori. She was like- The strength of that woman... You can't imagine it. See-see, that's what you gotta have now. I mean, Carl, he needs that from you. So, you wire yourself tight, my friend. Hmm? You hear? You've got the hard part, Y/N's got the blood part, and you just leave the rest to me, okay?"

Rick nodded and Shane winked at Y/N just as Charlotte entered with a plate and a glass, placing them in front of Y/N and pulling up a seat next to him as the others looked at Hershel:

"He's out of danger for the moment, but I need to remove those remaining fragments."

"How? You saw how he was" Rick replied.

"I know, and that was the shallowest one. I need to go deeper to get the others"

"Oh, man" Y/N sighed. The screams of Carl were heartbreaking to hear. Hershel wasn't done though.

"There's more. His belly's distended, his pressure's dropping, which means there's internal bleeding. A fragment must have nicked one of the blood vessels. I have to open him up, find the bleeder and stitch it. And he can't move while I'm in there. I mean, at all. If he reacts the same as before, I'll sever an artery and he'll be dead in minutes. To even try this, I have to put him under. But if I do, he won't be able to breathe on his own. Same bad results."

The news hit the three men before Otis spoke up.

"What'll it take? You need a respirator. What else?"

"The tube that goes with it, extra surgical supplies, drapes, sutures."

"If you had all that, you could save him?" Rick asked.

"If I had all that, I could try" Hershel responded.

"Nearest hospital went up in flames a month ago. The high school..." Otis trailed off as a look of realisation crossed his face.

"That's what I was thinking" Hershel nodded. The three men looked puzzled so Otis explained:

"They set up a FEMA shelter there. They would have everything we need. Place was overrun last time I saw it. You couldn't get near it... Maybe it's better now?"

Shane chuckled nervously:

"I said, leave the rest to me. Is it too late to take that back?"

"I hate you goin' alone" Rick answered. Y/N added: "Yeah, so do I."

Shane smiled.

"Come on. Doc, why don't you do me a list, draw me a map"

"You won't need a map. I'll take you there. Ain't but five miles" Otis said firmly.

"Otis, no" "Daddy?" Patricia and Charlotte said at the same time. Otis looked at his ladies with a smile as he stood and they both rushed over to him.

"Honey, Honeybunch, we don't have time for guesswork and I'm responsible. I ain't gonna sit here while this fella takes this on alone. I'll be all right" Otis said calmly to his wife and daughter.

"Are you sure about this?" Shane asked.

"Do you even know what any of the stuff he's talking about looks like?" Otis shot back.

"Come to think, no" Shane chuckled. Otis replied:

"I've been a volunteer EMT. I do. Now, we can talk about this 'till next Sunday, or we could just go do it real quick."

"I'll take right quick" Shane nodded.

"I should thank you" Rick said as he stood, shaking Otis's hand.

"Wait 'till that boy of yours is up and around, then we'll talk. I'll gather some things" Otis smiled and headed off.

"Where is she, your wife?" Maggie asked Rick suddenly.

—~—

The group continued walking though the forest. Daryl looked up, holding his hand up towards the sun before turning back to the others.

"We'll lose the light before too long" he said gruffly.

"I think we should call it. Let's head back" Lori said, nodding in agreement and exhaustion to Daryl.

"We'll pick it up again tomorrow?" Carol asked, barely holding back a sob.

"Yeah, we'll find her tomorrow" Amy replied with a warm smile. Daryl whistled and turned the group around, back the way they had come from.

—~—

At the farm Shane and Otis exited the house and headed towards a blue pick up truck. Y/N had said his good lucks at the table, Hershel making him stay there. He was already pale, his skin taking a slight grey tone and his eyes growing black bags underneath them.

Otis hugged his wife and daughter, smiling at the pair of them.

"You need to help Hershel watch that boy" he said to wife smiling.

"And you watch that young fella in there. It's brave of him to give his blood but he doesn't look the best. Keep an eye on him?" He asked his daughter who smiled and nodded.

"We've all got jobs to do" Otis smiled before heading over to Shane and Rick next to the pick up.

"Just get what you need and get out of there" Rick said with a worried tone. Shane smiled:

"You stay strong, all right?"

Rick then pulled his Colt out and held it out to Otis. Otis looked down at it:

"That's a fine weapon, Rick. I'll bring it back in good shape."

He placed it carefully in a supply box in the tray before climbing in the driver's seat, laying his hunting rifle between the pair.

Shane looked down at it, then up at Otis. Otis understood his meaning and answered:

"Only one I got."

Shane chuckled as the car started:

"Man, this turned into one strange day."

"Didn't it, though?"

"Let's check on your boy" Hershel said to a worried Rick as they all reentered the house.

—~—

Dale approached the side of the RV where T-Dog was sat with a resigned look on his face.

"Found some more batteries, a bottle of very trendy pink water, an excellent new machete, and I thought Glenn might like this guitar. Maybe he plays. No drսgs. You?"

"Yeah, ibuprofen and these" T-Dog replied as he puffed on a cigarette. He turned back to Dale and asked:

"What are we doin'?"

"Pullin' supplies together."

"No, I mean... What are we doin'? People off in the woods, they's looking for that poor girl and we're here. Why?"

Dale shook his head, completely befuddled as to T-Dog's meaning.

"Cause they think we're the weakest. What are you, 60?"

"56"

"Uh-huh... And I'm the one black guy. Realize how precarious that makes my situation?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Dale asked even more confused.

"I'm talking about two good-old-boy cowboy sheriffs and a redneck whose brother cut off his own hand because I dropped a key. Who in that scenario you think is gonna be first to get lynched?"

"You can't be serious. Am I-Hey, am I missing something? Those cowboys have done all right by us. And if I'm not mistaken, that redneck went out of his way to save your ass, more than once."

"And don't forget about Y/N. Kills his own grandmother"

"She was already dead."

"Then goes kamikaze and takes down what, a dozen walkers single handedly? Yeah, he's all there."

"He's havin' a tough time. What is wrong with you?"

"The whole world's havin' a tough time. Damn, man, open your eyes. Look where we are- Stuck in this mess here!" T-Dog yelled as Dale attempted to quiet him.

T-Dog rolled his hand over his forehead and continued, more quietly:

"Let's- Let's just go. Let's just take the RV..."

"You've gone off the deep end" Dale gasped.

"I mean it, man. Why are we on the side of this road like live bait? Let's go, you and me. Let's go before they get back."

Dale stood up and leant over with his hand outstretched. He quickly felt T-Dog's forehead.

"Oh, my God! You're burnin' up. Give me that. Come on. Here, take these. We've got to knock that fever down" Dale gasped as he took the ibuprofen from T-Dog and gave him a few.

—~—

The group were closing in on the highway. Amy and Clementine were just behind Daryl and Glenn. Lori was just behind the two women while Carol and Andrea had fallen behind.

"Where the hell are they? How much farther?" Andrea yelled out, tiredly.

"Not much... Maybe a hundred yards as the crow flies" Daryl replied.

"Too bad we're not crows" Clementine added, causing Amy to giggle.

"As the crow flies, my ass" Andrea replied with a grumble before she screamed. A walker had stumbled up and grabbed her, pulling her down to the ground and landing on her, trying to attack her. Carol screamed as well, glued to the spot in terror.

The others turned and bolted towards them, Amy screaming:

"Andrea!" before a horse with Maggie on its back rode up out of nowhere, smashing the walker in the face with a baseball bat and saving Andrea's life.

The others arrived in shock as Maggie said fiercely:

"Lori? Lori grimes? Whoa!"

"I'm Lori" Lori replied in shock, the woman continuing instantly:

"Rick sent me. You've got to come now. There's been an accident, Carl's been shot. He's still alive but you've gotta come now. Rick needs you."

The group stood shocked before Maggie continued:

"Just come!"

Lori dropped her bag and jumped up on the horse.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa! We don't know this girl. You can't get on that horse" Daryl warned. He was ignored as Maggie continued, looking at Glenn.

"Rick said you had others on the highway, that big traffic snarl?"

"Uh-huh" Glenn nodded.

"Backtrack to Fairburn road. Two miles down is our farm. You'll see the mailbox-- Name's Greene-- Hi-yah!"

With that she took off as abruptly as she had appeared.

The group arrived back at the highway, Glenn first as he explained to Dale what had happened.

"Shot? What do ya mean shot?"

"I don't know, Dale. I wasn't there. All I know is this chick rode out of nowhere like Zorro on a horse and took Lori" Glenn replied.

"You let her?" Dale asked Daryl who just arrived.

"Climb down out of my asshоlе, man. Rick sent her. She knew Lori's name and Carl's" Daryl snapped back. They were both distracted by Andrea who rushed up and threw her arms around Dale. He hugged her tightly.

"I heard screams, I was worried. Was that you?" he asked looking down at her tenderly. Andrea didn't reply but Amy did, as she approached and rubbed her sister's back.

"She got attacked by a walker. It was a close call. Andrea, why don't Clem, Carol and I take you into the RV while the guys talk? Get you a drink?" Amy smiled.

—~—

Y/N was sat in Carl's room, giving another transfusion. He looked even worse, his skin even greyer.

"I think that's enough. Have something to eat, and drink. You need to keep your strength up. Jimmy can you help Y/N get to the dining room? I'll let Rick know we're finished" Hershel smiled.

His youngest daughter's boyfriend nodded as Patricia began to unhook Y/N and close off his vein. Charlotte, who had been stood behind the pair, placed her hand on Y/N's shoulder:

"I'll make you some food."

Hershel walked out towards Rick who was stood on the patio looking out at the property. He'd told Rick they needed some space. In truth he'd figured Rick needed some fresh air.

"This place is beautiful" Rick said with a smile.

"Been in my family 160 years" Hershel replied.

"I can't believe how serene it is. How untouched... You're lucky."

"We weren't completely unscathed. We lost friends, neighbors. The epidemic took my wife, my stepson."

"I'm sorry."

"My daughters were spared. I'm grateful to God for that. These people here, all we've got left is each other. Just hoping we can ride it out in peace till there's a cure."

Rick sighed.

"We were at the CDC... It's-it's gone now. There is no cure."

"I don't believe it. When aids came along, everyone panicked. One boy in town came down with it, and some parents pulled their children from school, so they didn't have to sit in the same room."

"This is a whole other thing. That's what we always say, This one's different."

"Well, this one is."

"Mankind's been fightin' plagues from the start. We get our behinds kicked for a while, then, we bounce back. It's nature correcting herself, restoring some balance."

"I wish I could believe that" Rick replied before their attention was drawn to a horse approaching. Rick caught sight of Lori on the back and rushed forward. Maggie brought the horse to a stop and Lori jumped off, seeing the blood on Rick's police shirt, and she broke down, the realisation of Carl actually having been shot finally sinking in.

The two embraced tearfully before Rick led her inside the house. They approached Carl's room but stopped as Y/N was being assisted by Jimmy out of the doorway.

"Oh my God, Y/N?" Lori asked horrified at his greying sunken appearance.

"I'm fine, I'm ok" Y/N said as he offered a weak smile.

"He's given his blood, a lot of it. We weren't sure what Carl's blood type was" Rick explained.

Lori rushed forward and hugged Y/N, who couldn't stand on his own volition, thanking him profusely. His arm that wasn't around Jimmy's neck was brought around, hugging Lori back.

"It's fine, Lori. I got universal blood, so Carl's safe with it" Y/N replied.

"Well no more. You need to recover" Hershel added matter of factly.

Jimmy helped Y/N continue to the dining room as Lori braced herself and entered the bedroom, breaking down again once she had seen Carl's pale little body.

"I'm sorry" Rick whispered as she rushed in and kissed her son, lying next to him. She whispered:

"My baby boy. Baby boy. It's okay. Mama's here. Mama's here. You're gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay. We're gonna make you okay."

Rick approached, gently placing his hand on her hip. He was relieved when Lori reached back to hold his hand, having been terrified she would blame him for Carl's state.

Jimmy had left Y/N at the table once he had sat, rejoining Beth who was sat nervously in the lounge room. She had always been intimidated by strange men, and now there were two in her house, one of whom was huge and muscular and topless.

Charlotte didn't have the same problem, and walked up to Y/N, sitting across from him as she placed a plate of meat and salad and a large fresh orange juice in front of him.

"Eat, and drink, you need it" she smiled. She had changed, now in a tight shirt that showed off her midriff, the type she would argue with her mother over, as it showed off her shapely feminine curves.

Y/N looked up tiredly and thanked her, not noticing the change.

"Rick's wife is here now?" Charlotte asked with a smile.

Y/N nodded, swallowing some beef and replied:

"They're in with Carl now. I forgot to ask if Amy was ok, damn" he cursed himself.

"Is Amy your girlfriend?" Charlotte asked, a little disappointed. Y/N was oblivious to her tone as he shook his head:

"No, fiancée. I better-"

He tried to push himself up but struggled, and Charlotte pushed him back to his seat.

"Stay here, you need to rest. I'll ask."

She smiled and walked towards the guest room where Carl was laid and knocked on the open door quietly. Rick and Lori looked up, Rick surprised at her change as she smiled:

"I'm sorry to interrupt, hi Lori I'm Charlotte. Y/N was just asking if Amy was ok."

Lori wiped her eyes and smiled, replying:

"Yeah, she's fine. Amy's sister had a close call with a walker, but Maggie saved her. They're both ok. Thank him again for me, please?"

Charlotte nodded and smiled, leaving the doorway.

"She's Otis's daughter" Rick explained. Lori nodded and looked over to Hershel.

"Okay, so I understand, when Shane gets back with this other man, Otis. The idiot who shot my son."

"Ma'am, it was an accident" Hershel replied.

"I'll take that under advisement later. For now, he's the idiot who shot our son"

"Lori, they're doing everything they can to make it right" Rick interjected. Lori sighed and nodded apologetically. She continued:

"Okay, as soon as they get back you can perform this surgery?"

"I'll certainly do my best."

"Okay... I mean, you've done this procedure before?"

"Well, yes, in a sense" Hershel replied. Lori looked at him puzzled.

"In a sense? But, I mean, you're a doctor, right?"

"Yes, ma'am. Of course. A vet."

"A veteran, a combat medic?"

"A veterinarian"

A sense of dread filled the couple.

"And you've done this surgery before on what? Cows... pigs? Completely in over your head, aren't you?"

"Ma'am, aren't we all?" Hershel smiled.

—~—

The sun was setting and Shane and Otis were at the High School, still overrun with walkers. They were hiding behind a car.

"You see that big mobile medical trailer across the way?" Otis asked.

"That's where we gotta get to?" Shane asked in horror. About a hundred walkers were between them and the trailer.

"Yeah" Otis replied with a sigh.

—~—

"I won't do it. We can't just leave" Carol said sadly with her arms wrapped around her chest.

"Carol, the group is split. We're scattered and weak" Dale replied. They had been joined by the others, a shot of Dale's hidden bottle of scotch had calmed Andrea's nerves.

"What if she comes back and we're not here? It could happen" Carol replied.

"If Sophia found her way back and we were gone, that would be awful" Amy nodded in agreement.

Daryl nodded:

"Okay. We gotta plan for this. I say tomorrow morning is soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig a big sign, leave her some supplies. I'll hold here tonight, stay with the RV."

"If the RV is stayin', I am too" Dale added.

"Thank you. Thank you both" Carol smiled.

"I'm in" Andrea nodded, joining her hand with Dale's.

Amy didn't answer and neither did Clementine, noticing her best friend's apprehension. Glenn looked at the pair and spoke up:

"Well, if you're all staying then I'm-"

"Not you, Glenn. You're going. Take Carol's Cherokee" Dale interrupted.

"Me? Why is it always me?" Glenn snapped in annoyance. Dale replied quickly:

"You have to find this farm, reconnect with our people and see what's going on. But most important, you have to get T-Dog there. This is not an option. That cut has gone from bad to worse. He has a very serious blood infection. Get him to that farm. See if they have any antibiotics. Because if not, T-Dog will die, no joke."

T-Dog was sat at the back of the RV, a blanket wrapped round him and looking like death. As Dale had spoke Daryl listened and turned to his bike.

"I'll go with you, Glenn. I need to see if Y/N is ok" Amy said worriedly. Clementine added:

"Me too."

Daryl meanwhile had pulled a plastic bag full of medical bottles from his bike. He picked a rag off and threw it at Dale.

"Keep your oily rags off my brother's motorcycle. Why'd you wait till now to say anything? Got my brother's stash. Crystal, X, don't need that. Got some kick ass painkillers."

He threw a bottle of painkillers to Dale and continued rummaging before finding what he wanted.

"Doxycycline. Not the generic stuff neither. It's first class. Merle got the clap on occasion."

Dale smiled at Glenn and the four women, all of whom were shocked at Daryl's instant generosity.
—~—

Shane snuck quietly to a police car and opened the boot that Otis was next to, they pulled out a number of flares and lit them, trying to distract the walkers, throwing them away from the medical trailer.

—~—

Hershel was checking Carl's blood pressure.

"Pressure's dropping again. We can't wait much longer."

"Take some more. Whatever he needs" Y/N said from where he sat, having come back in to check on Carl with Jimmy's help.

"I'm gonna go" Rick added.

"Go? Go where?" Lori asked.

"He said five miles. They should be long back by now. Something's gone wrong" Rick replied.

"Are you insane? You're not goin' after them. I need you here."

"If they got into trouble-"

"I'll go" Y/N interjected. "Stay with your boy and I'll go."

"No! You're not going either!" Lori snapped at her young friend. Hershel nodded:

"Lori's right, Y/N. You're in no condition to do anything about it. You've given too much blood. You're barely on your feet. You wouldn't make it across the yard."

Y/N sighed in acceptance. Rick though said firmly:

"Something happened, I have to go!"

Lori had had enough:

"No, your place is here. If Shane said he'll be back, he'll be back. He's like you that way."

"I can't just sit here."

Lori snapped:

"That's exactly what you do! If you need to pray or cry or tell God he's cruel, you go right ahead, but you're not leavin', Rick. Carl needs you... here."

Her voice softened:

"And I can't do this by myself. Not this one. I can't... I can't."

—~—

The two men were in the medical trailer operating by torchlight.

"This one?" Shane asked. Otis nodded:

"Three" and Shane placed the oxygen cans in his backpack. They got the last of the supplies they needed and exited the trailer but were spotted instantly. They turned and ran, walkers growling and heading after them as the men's escaped route was cut off and they ran deeper into the high school.