The sound of a horn honking made Parker jump. Daryl was standing in the truck Rick brought back with him, impatiently waiting for the rest of the rescue party. "Come on! Let's go!" Daryl shouted. Parker grabbed Rick's arm.

"Be careful."

"I will," Rick responded. "Take care of Lori and Carl."

"I will," Parker said. "And for the love of god, don't let Daryl do anything stupid."

"I can't promise that. We'll be fine, Parker."

"You better be," Parker pointed a finger in his face trying to sound stern, before walking towards the van where Lori and Carl were sitting. When she saw Lori's expression she offered her a comforting smile, "It's going to be okay, Lori."

"How do you know that?" Lori asked. "He just came and now he's leaving again."

"He'll be back," Parker promised. "I mean, he found us after he was dead, right?" Lori didn't seem to be convinced.

"Although he wasn't really dead."

"Yeah, but we thought he was and he's still here, right?" Parker asked. "He entered that city alone and came out alive. I don't know many people who have done that." Lori sighed knowing that she was right.

"I'm still not happy about this."

"You don't have to be. I just know that when Rick says he'll be back, he'll be back." Later that day, with the sun high in the sky, Parker finally joined the women by the lake to help wash their clothes. Amy had convinced her that it wasn't as bad as it seemed. "I'm leaving." She already hated it, she stopped in her tracks, going to turn around.

"No, don't." Amy spun around, grabbing Parker's hand and pulling her along. "You'll miss all the fun."

"I'm fine with missing the fun if it means I don't have to do that," Parker whined, pointing at Carol washing clothes on a washboard.

"It's not that bad" Carol chuckled, shaking her head at how she was acting. "I do miss my Maytag."

"I miss my Benz," Andrea added, "My sat nav."

"I miss my coffee maker with its double drip filter and built-in grinder, honey," Jacqui said, wringing out a wet shirt. Parker now just wanted coffee. Parker stood next to Andrea and picked up a shirt that had not been washed, dipping it into the bucket of water. 

"I miss the food. I miss the pizza and even the vegetables."

"My computer," Amy said wistfully, "And the texting." Andrea smiled at the thought she had in her head.

"I miss my vibrator." Everyone slowly turned to look at Andrea. Carol looked back awkwardly, searching for her husband, who was watching from afar. 

"Me too." The group started laughing at Carol's revelation, and their laughter attracted Ed, who approached them with a cigarette dangling from his mouth.

"What's so funny?"

"Just swapping war stories, Ed," Andrea called back, the laughter quickly dying down. After that, silence fell over the group. Parker turned to look at him

"There a problem, Ed?"

"Nothin' that concerns you," Ed replied. "You ought to focus on your work. This ain't no comedy club."

"Comedy club?" Parker repeated.

"I'm just saying, with all the laughing, you're not working hard enough," Ed said, lighting another cigarette. "Those clothes don't clean themselves.

"Ed, I'll tell you what, you don't like the way we wash your clothes?" Parker asked, standing up. "You're welcome to do it yourself. Here." Parker threw the wet shirt at Ed, who threw it back at her face. 

"It's not my job, missy."

"Parker, don't," Amy pleaded.

"What is your job, Ed?" Parker asked, "Sitting on your ass, smoking cigarettes?"

"I know it's not listening to a stuck-up mouthy bitch telling me what to do," Ed responded.

"Well, no one else seems to have the balls to tell you that you're an idiot," Parker said. "You haven't done anything since you got here and all you do is complain about what other people do." Ed looked at Carol, ignoring Parker. 

"Come on. Let's go."

"I don't think she needs to go anywhere with you, Ed," Andrea cut in, taking a defensive step in Carol's direction.

"And I say it's none of your business," Ed said. "You heard me. We're leaving." Andrea and Parker were standing between Ed and Carol, trying to stop her from going with him. Parker placed a hand on Carol's shoulder. 

"You don't have to go with him."

"Parker, please. It doesn't matter." Carol whispered.

"Hey, don't think I won't knock you on your ass just because you're some college-educated cooze, alright?" Ed told Parker who scoffed, "You come now or you'll regret it later."

"So she can show up with fresh bruises later, Ed?" Jacqui asked. "Yes, we've seen them."

"And we think you're a piece of shit." Parker spat at him, and even though she knew it was a bad idea, she kept doing it. "You're just a lazy piece of shit who's a no-good husband and an even worse human being."

"Stay out of this," Ed spat, his tone full of malice. "You know what? This doesn't concern any of you. Don't keep pushing me, okay? Now I am done talking. Come on."

"No," Parker argued, stepping between Ed and Carol as he went to grab her arm. She slapped his hand away. "She's not going anywhere with you." Ed's fist came out of nowhere, and before Parker knew what was happening, she was lying on the floor and the rest of the women were screaming, pushing Ed away as he tried to get to Carol. Parker could barely see properly and could already taste the familiar metallic taste of blood on her tongue. Her ears were ringing and she felt like she was going to pass out.

"Parker!" She heard Andrea shout, although her voice was muffled when she reached Parker, it was as if someone had put cotton in her ears. 

"Son of a bitch!" Shane, who had been watching from afar, felt anger overcome him when he saw Parker get punched in the face and fall to the ground, nearly taking Amy down with her. He watched her head hit the ground hard when she fell, and that was when he exploded. He walked straight up to Ed, grabbed him by the shirt, and dragged him away from the women. Amy knelt next to Parker.

"My god, are you okay?"

"Is my nose bleeding?" Parker asked, her hand feeling for blood. "I feel like my nose is bleeding."

"Yeah. Yeah, it is." Amy said, taking out a handkerchief, "Here, use this." As Amy helped Parker sit up, she saw Shane punching Ed, hitting his face with blow after blow. The rest of the women yelled at Shane to stop, and he finally listened, pulling Ed closer to him so he could hear what he had to say.

"You put your hands on your wife, your little girl, Parker, or anybody in this camp one more time... I will not stop next time." Shane threatened. "Do you hear me? Do you hear me?"

"Yes." Ed sputtered.

"I'll beat you to death, Ed," Shane promised. With one more punch and kick for good measure, Shane stood up and approached Parker, who was still sitting on the ground. He crouched in front of her, and when he reached out to place a hand on her knee, Parker flinched slightly.

"You didn't have to do that." She said, still holding Amy's handkerchief to her nose.

"Yeah," Shane answered with a small shrug. "Come here, let me take a look at you." He had Parker follow his finger to check that she didn't have a concussion, and when he realized she might have a small concussion, Shane helped her to her feet and walked her back to camp while Carol sobbed over Ed's body.

"You didn't have to do that," Parker repeated. "I know he's an asshole, but you didn't have to do it." Shane looked over at Ed, Carol still sobbing over him. 

"I wish I did that a long time ago." Lori almost had a fit when Shane returned to camp with Parker hanging on his arm. Despite repeatedly telling Shane that she was fine and could handle it. When he let go of her, Parker stumbled and almost fell. After that, she accepted Shane's help, and his arm around her waist was currently the only thing keeping her from getting a face full of dirt.

"What the hell happened?" Lori asked. "Did you get a chance to do the laundry, for god's sake?"

"Ed." Parker and Shane answered her question simultaneously.

"Did Ed do that to you?" Lori asked. "Parker, you have a black eye."

"Yeah, thanks for pointing out the obvious. It would have been Carol." Parker responded. "Instead, it was me, and I'm fine with that."

"Aunt Parker, it looks like you just fought with Rocky Balboa," Carl said, standing next to his mother.

"And I would have won that fight." Parker chuckled. "Because I can't feel my face, so it wouldn't hurt if he hit me."

"She might have a concussion," Shane informed Lori. "He hit her pretty hard."

"Parker, you should go to bed," Lori suggested, trying to help her over to a tent. Parker shook her head before grimacing, putting a hand to her head as pain exploded behind her eyes. 

"Ouch. That was a bad idea. But, no, I'm fine." She waved them off.

"Rick is going to be extremely angry." Lori shook her head disapprovingly at how her sister-in-law looked. "He's going to flip.".

"And Daryl," Carl added.

"Daryl?" Lori echoed, looking to Parker for some answers. "Why Daryl?"

"He's, like, Aunt Parker's best friend," Carl told his mom, his voice making it sound like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Parker smiled at Carl.

"I'm not too sure about that. I just need to sit for a while, then I'll be fine." Parker laid down on one of the seats that had been taken out of a car, with her head on a rolled-up sweater and one leg hanging over the edge, with Carl sitting on her stomach. He looked at her and laughed.

"Hey, I almost look like a panda," Parker said, raising her head a little. Carl laughed once he realized.

"Yeah."

"Great," Parker said, laying her head back down. "Panda Parker." She stayed there most of the afternoon, while Amy and Andrea went fishing at the lake, she and Carl played a few rounds of cards and Lori played with them for a while. After a few hours, Amy and Andrea returned with at least two dozen fish between the two.

"Oh, baby. Will you look at that? Hey, check it out." Morales cheered, and Andrea handed him the huge bundle of fish. "Ladies, because of you my children will eat tonight. Thank you."

"Thank Dale," Andrea replied, looking over her shoulder at him. "It's his canoe and gear."

"Mom, look!" Carl said excitedly. "Aunt Parker, look at all the fish! Woah." He mused, poking one.

"Yeah, woah." Parker chuckled from her chair.

"Thank you," Lori said, bending down as Morales brought the fish to her face. "Where did you two learn to do that?"

"Our dad," Amy responded, sharing a soft smile with Andrea.

"Can you teach me how to do that?" Carl asked.

"Sure!" Amy answered cheerfully. "I'll teach you all about nail knots and stuff. If that's okay." The question was directed at Lori, who shrugged.

"You won't catch me arguing."

"Hey, Dale!" Andrea called to him. "When was the last time you oiled those line reels? They are a disgrace."

"I... uh, I don't want to alarm anyone, but we may have a bit of a problem," Dale said, pointing towards the ridge, where Jim was still digging his holes. The group headed out to talk to Jim, but Parker stayed behind. 

Her face still hurt and her headache had not gone away. Touching her nose felt like she was pricking it with red-hot needles and pain shot through her face. Lori had given her a cloth soaked in cold water to cover her nose because they didn't have ice, and it relieved the pain a little. 

Parker didn't know what happened, but she knew that when they returned, Shane tied Jim to one of the camp trees. Carl appeared next to Parker.

"Can you do my homework with me?"

"Carl, honey, let's let Aunt Parker rest," Lori suggested. "I'm sure she needs it."

"No, my face is fine.." Parker lied, sitting up a little too quickly. Black dots danced in her vision. "Woah, or not." Carl laughed at his aunt as she sank into the seat.

"See you later, Aunt Parker." As Carl ran out to join Sophia and Carol, Lori crouched beside her sister-in-law. 

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Parker was downplaying it but she honestly didn't need everyone watching over her. "My face hurts and I feel really tired."

"Then get some rest," Lori said, feeling Parker's forehead carefully. "I think you might have a concussion."

"That son of a bitch hit me hard," Parker grumbled.

"Well, get some rest," Lori instructed. "Hopefully, that will help." Parker went out like a light the moment she was alone and slept until dark. When Carl woke her up by shaking her leg, the smell of cooking fish caught her attention and she realized how hungry she was.

"Is the food ready?" Parker asked, still a bit out of it.

"Yeah, mom sent me to look for you." Carl grabbed her hand. "Let's go." They headed towards the campfire, sitting with Lori. She gave Parker a plate that was fuller than any she had been given in recent weeks, and she dug into the fish hungrily. Before the end of the world, she was never a fan of fish, but now it was that or nothing, she suddenly enjoyed the taste.

"God, this is good," Parker said through a mouthful of food. "Thank you, Amy and Andrea."

"You're welcome." The girls answered in unison, proud smiles on their faces.

"I missed this," Shane said happily.

"I've got to ask you, man," Morales said, looking up at Dale from his plate. "It's been driving me crazy."

"What?" Dale asked, the smile never once leaving his face.

"That watch," Morales pointed to it.

"What's wrong with my watch?" Dale asked, looking at the silver piece around his wrist.

"I see you, every day, same time, winding that thing like a village priest saying mass," Morales explained to him.

"I've wondered this myself," Jacqui added, leaning forward a bit.

"I'm missing the point," Dale looked at everyone with a smile.

"Unless I've misread the signs, the world seems to have come to an end. At least hit a speed bump for a good long while." Jacqui pointed out.

"But there's you, every day winding that stupid watch." Morales continued.

"Time," Dale answered simply. "It's important to keep track, isn't it? The days at least. Don't you think, Andrea? Back me up here." Andrea shook her head, so Dale continued. "I like... I like what, um, what a father said to his son when he gave him a watch that had been handed down through generations. He said, 'I give you the mausoleum of all hope and desire, which will fit your individual needs no better than it did mine or my father before me. I give it to you not so that you may remember time, that you may forget it for a moment now and then, and not spend all your breath trying to conquer it.' Ay?"

"Am I the only one extremely confused?" Parker asked after there was a pause. "Or is it just my concussion?"

"No." Amy agreed with her, shaking her head as she looked at Dale. "You're so weird."Dale laughed with everyone.

"It's not me. It's Faulkner. William Faulkner. Maybe my bad paraphrasing." Amy stood up and Andreas' eyes met her sister's.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to pee," Amy responded, looking uncomfortable. "Jeez. You try to be discreet." She headed to the bathroom while the group laughed and Parker shouted after her.

"Discretion no longer exists!" Amy returned a moment later.

"We ran out of toilet paper." Then she screamed. Everyone turned to her, all eyes widening in horror as they saw a walker bite into Amy's arm. As they watched the scene take place in front of them, more walkers crept out of the shadows and Parker heard Carl scream for his mother amidst the other terrified screams of her friends. They had found them. The camp was under attack.