VIVIAN SAT ON THE PORCH STEPS, WAITING FOR THE MEETING TO END.

She didn't have to be in there to know what was going to happen. She knew what everyone wanted to do.

Vivian understood.

None of them felt safe with Randall being on the property. And with him being out there, even if Rick did drop him off fifty miles away, the unknown would still scare them.

 Liam was in her arms as she rocked him to sleep. The door opened and Dale stepped out,

"Well..." He sighed, "We tried."

"I'm sorry." Vivian clutched Liam closer to her chest, "I know you really wanted to save him."

Dale patted her shoulder, "Don't let this world change you, kid."

She gave him a sad smile and he walked down the steps, "Where are you going?"

"I just... need to take a walk." The older man answered, placing his hat on his head,

"Do you want me to come with you? Might be dangerous out there." Vivian offered,

"Nah... I won't be out long. I'll be back soon." He gave her a slight wave before walking away.

Vivian watched him for a second before standing and kissing the top of Liam's head, "C'mon, kiddo. Bedtime."

By the time she got Liam changed and to sleep, it was dark. Most of the group were gathered around the campfire. She left Liam in the tent and moved to sit by Marcie,

"Is it done yet?" Vivian asked with a straight face, staring at the flames,

"They left a little bit ago. Not sure how long it's gonna take." T-Dog replied,

How long it's gonna take... she hated hearing that. What's worse, putting time in taking a human life, or taking it instantly, as if it doesn't affect you?

Maggie spotted something over Vivian's shoulder and she stood, which caused the others to follow.

Rick and Carl approached the camp and Lori went over to her family,

"We're keeping him in custody for now." Rick addressed the group,

Andrea stood with a small smile on her face, "I'm going to find Dale."

She walked off and Lori stared at her husband, "Carl, go inside." She stated seriously, not breaking eye contact with Rick.

Vivian and Marcie shared a look with each other. They didn't know if they should stay or walk off and leave the couple alone. But Carol, T-Dog, and Glenn were still hanging around, so they decided they wanted to stay and hear what happened.

Rick stepped towards his wife, "He followed us. He wanted to watch." He broke his gaze away and locked eyes with Vivian, "I couldn't."

Lori grabbed his jaw and forced him to look at her, "That's okay." She whispered, "That's okay." She wrapped her arms around him and Vivian looked away from the intimate moment.

There was a scream in the distance and Vivian shot to her feet. Lori called out for Carl as everyone reached for weapons,

Vivian went to check on Liam, gently lifting him before taking him and Carl towards the house,

"What's going on?" Hershel asked from the porch with Jimmy and Patricia as she approached,

"I'm not sure." Vivian placed a hand on Carl's back to led him into the house and set Liam on the couch, "Stay here. I'm serious, Carl. Stay."

Carl nodded before Vivian sprinted out of the house, heading towards the field. In the back of her mind, she remembered that Dale went on a walk and didn't go back to camp yet.

The group came to a pause in the field and Vivian stopped behind Rick, who was bent over a figure.

Dale.

Marcie gasped, staring down at all the blood. Dale's torso was ripped open, his intestines spilled into the grass, "Oh, my god." She felt nauseous, but couldn't look away.

Daryl stood from his place next to the dead biter and stepped towards Marcie, "Don't look." He grunted, grabbing her shoulders and turning her so his torso was blocking her view,

She stared up at Daryl for a moment before burying her face in his chest and gripping the side of his leather vest. 

"He needs blood. We gotta operate now." Rick stood, and Andrea kneeled down beside the older man, "Where's Hershel?"

The farmer finally made it to the field and Rick approached him, "What can we do? Can we move him?"

Hershel shook his head, "He won't make the trip."

Vivian knew what he was saying. There was no way for Dale to survive this.

"You have to do the operation here." Rick stated, "Glenn, get back to the house."

"Rick." Vivian stepped towards him, shaking her head. As much as she hated to say it, but Dale couldn't be saved.

He stared down at her, "No!" He sobbed, turning his back from the scene.

"He's suffering." Marcie whispered into Daryl's chest, hearing Dale's cries.

"Do something!" Andrea begged, gripping Dale's hand.

Vivian stood there, watching as Rick pulled out his gun and kneeled next to the dying man. He aimed the gun at his head with a shaky hand, but he couldn't pull the trigger.

This was a living, breathing person. Not only that, but this was Dale. A respected member of their group. Everyone's grandfather figure.

It was one thing killing a man you didn't know. But it was another to hold the gun to the head of a man you care for.

Daryl saw Rick struggling and reached for Marcie's hands, prying her fingers from his vest. She watched with wide eyes as Daryl stepped over to the sheriff, taking the gun from his hand.

Rick stood, not knowing where to go. Vivian reached for his hand, trying to keep him steady. He glanced over at her, tears running down his face,

"It's okay." She whispered, "Let someone else bear the weight."

He squeezed her hand and watched as Daryl kneeled over Dale,

"Sorry, brother."

Marcie flinched as Daryl pulled the trigger. Everyone was sobbing, No one knew what to do at that point. 

What to do with his body. Leave it there until the morning or move it now.

Daryl was the first to walk away, leading Marcie towards their camp. The moment they made it to their tent, Marcie kicked off her boots and crawled into her sleeping bag. She laid with her back to Daryl, who was sitting on his side, staring at her.

Tears began falling from her eyes, and she tried to stay silent, but he could hear her sniffles. He stared at her for a moment, contemplating.

Daryl wasn't the fuzzy, feely type. He ignored his feelings, always have. But with Marcie, he's felt forced to show something other than anger.

This was one of those moments where he felt like he needed to do something. He didn't want to see her cry, to see her upset.

Daryl moved to lay behind her and gently placed his hand on her arm. Marcie immediately gravitated towards him, turning around and burying her face into his side.

"He died disappointed in us." She whispered, 

He wrapped his arms around her, keeping her close to his body to give her comfort. He wasn't good at it, but he was willing to try.

Eventually, Rick led his family away from the field, same with the Greene's. Vivian went to put Liam back to bed before grabbing a blanket and laying it over Dale's exposed body.

"What are we gonna do with his body?" T-Dog asked,

Vivian sighed, "Help me put him in the truck? We'll bury him next to Sophia."

T-Dog nodded and the two moved to lift Dale's body, placing him in the back of the blue truck the was moved into the field.

He drove it towards the tree that Sophia and the Greene family were buried under. After that, he went to bed, since it was so late.

Vivian stayed up, grabbing a shovel and began digging. It was the least she could do for the old man.

Even when she was exhausted, she kept digging.

Rick had eventually left his wife and son in their tent, checking on Liam before approaching Vivian,

"You should take a break." He stated, watching her push the shovel into the hard dirt,

"Yeah, well, I should've gone with him." She grunted, throwing a clump of dirt into her growing pile, "I let him go off on his own and look what happened."

"It's not your fault." Rick told her, "It's no one's fault. We can't change what happened."

Vivian paused, "God, he didn't even know." She wiped the sweat from her forehead, "He didn't even know you weren't going through with it. He died thinking we were the monsters, we were murderers."

"We're not-"

She threw down her shovel and stepped out of the shallow grave, "Who shot first?" Vivian asked, moving to stand in front of the sheriff,

"What?"

"In town, with Randall's group... who shot first?"

Rick paused, staring at the ground for a moment, "...I did."

"Did they aim at gun at you or anyone in the group?" She asked,

"Fuck." Rick hissed at himself, placing his hands on his hips, "... not technically, no."

"Jesus, Rick." Vivian shook her head and began to walk away, still facing him, "I'm not raising Liam like this, I'm not raising him to be a murderer."

"Viv-"

"You just admitted that you shot first!" She approached him again, poking her finger into his chest, "What happened to 'that was before the living tried to kill us', Rick! You've been shooting first, asking questions later. Just like Shane."

Rick clenched his jaw, her words hitting him hard, "I need you to calm down." He stated, grabbing her hand,

"Or what? You gonna lock me in the shed with Randall?" She stepped closer to him, "Put me on my knees and put a gun to my head? Tie a noose around my neck?"

"Stop." Rick growled,

"When are you gonna make the decisions without Shane whispering in your ear? This group looks to you but you're not the one making the rules. Don't let him step all over you."

He smirked down at her, "Like you are right now?"

"I'm not telling you what to do. I'm just giving you advice. You don't have to follow it, because you're the leader. You get to decide to listen to me... or not. And I'll have to deal with it either way. So... are you going to kill Randall or let him live? Either way, the rest of us have to deal with your decision." Vivian stated coldly before walking towards her tent.