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[RAISON D'ETRE]

1.04 || they were a threat

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Adaline stands beside Glenn, raising a brow when Daryl suddenly turns around, aiming his crossbow at T-Dog and Rick points his gun at Daryl. "I won't hesitate. I don't care if every walker in the city hears it." Rick says and after a moment, Daryl lowers his crossbow and Rick drops his gun.

"You got a do-rag or something?" Daryl asks and Adaline frowns as he takes the rag from T-Dog.

"Is he picking up Merle's hand?" She asks.

"I think so." Glenn responds.

"If he asks me to reattach that, I'm gonna throw it at him." Adaline says.

"No, you're not." Glenn says.

"Don't tell me what to do." Adaline responds.

"I guess the saw blade was too dull for the handcuffs. Ain't that a bitch." Daryl says as he looks at the hand. 

Adaline frowns when he steps towards her with the hand before moving away. "You ain't puttin' that shit in my bag." Adaline says and Daryl turns to Glenn before moving around him to open the bag and Glenn looks at Adaline incredulously. She shrugs slightly at him as Daryl puts the hand in the bag and closes it back up.

"He must have used a tourniquet. Maybe his belt. Be much more blood if he didn't." Daryl says.

"Well, at least we know he has common sense." Adaline remarks before they follow Daryl as he makes his way towards the other door on the roof, following the trail of blood Merle left behind.

Adaline holds her gun out in front of her as she walks behind Daryl, just in front of Rick, following Daryl down the stairs.

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Adaline grabs her knife as Daryl shoots the walker across the room, stabbing the one closest to them before they head back out into the hall, meeting Rick, Glenn and T-Dog. "Had enough in him to take out these two sumbitches." Daryl says. "One handed. Toughest asshole I ever met, my brother." Daryl says as he reloads his crossbow. "Feed him a hammer, he'd crap out nails." 

"I can guarantee he would not." Adaline remarks.

"Any man can pass out from blood loss, no matter how tough he is." Rick responds as he walks past them.

"Can anyone else smell that?" Adaline asks with a frown and Glenn glances at her. 

"Smell what?" He asks.

"Whatever that is." She responds.

"Merle!" Daryl calls.

"We're not alone here. Remember?" Rick says. 

"Screw that. He could be bleeding out. You said so yourself." Daryl says.

"When the two of you are finished," Adaline says as she steps past them both impatiently. She steps through into the next room, heading over to the stove when she sees the flames before turning it off.

"What is all of that? The burned stuff." Glenn asks as Adaline looks at everything on the counter.

"Skin." Adaline responds.

"What?" Glenn asks.

"He cauterised it to stop the bleeding." Adaline responds. "I'm impressed."

"I'm not sure impressed is the word we should be using." Rick says.

"But I am." Adaline responds.

"Told you he was tough. Nobody can kill Merle but Merle." Daryl says.

"Don't take that on faith. He's lost a lot of blood." Rick says.

"Yeah, but he can get further if it's cauterised. Without leaving much a trail either." Adaline says. 

"Didn't stop him from busting out of this death trap." Daryl says as he walks around the corner and Adaline follows him to see the broken window. 

"I take back any implication he was smart." Adaline says.

"He left the building?" Glenn asks incredulously. "Why the hell would he do that?"

"Why wouldn't he? He's out there alone as far as he knows, doin' what he's got to do. Surviving." Daryl says.

"You call that surviving? Just wandering out in the streets, maybe passing out? What are his odds out there?" T-Dog asks. 

"There were walkers in the building. More could get in. There's no supplies in here, we've been through this building. So, he probably has pretty even odds. He could have just gone to one of the other buildings. Lookin' for supplies." Adaline says.

"Exactly, no worse than being handcuffed and left to rot by you sorry pricks." Daryl snaps.

"He didn't know if anyone was coming back. He did the only thing that made sense to him. He left." Adaline says. 

"You couldn't kill him. Ain't so worried about some dumb dead bastard." Daryl says to Rick. 

"What about a thousand dumb dead bastards? Different story?" Rick asks.

"Why don't you take a tally? Do what you want. I'm gonna go get him. Taking her with me. She's the only one with any common sense here." Daryl says, gesturing at Adaline.

"The hell you are." Rick responds.

"Oh, I'm definitely going with him." Adaline says. 

"Ada," Glenn starts. 

"Told him I'd help him find his brother. Not his severed hand." Adaline says.

"Daryl, wait." Rick says, pushing the man backwards.

"Get your hands off me! You can't stop me!" Daryl snaps.

"I don't blame you. He's family, I get that. I went through hell to find mine. I know exactly how you feel. Which is also why I don't want you to just take off with my sister." Rick says. "He can't get far with that injury. We could help you check a few blocks around, but only if we keep a level head." Rick says.

"He could be further away than a few blocks. We don't know how long he waited up there before cutting his hand off." Adaline says.

"I could do that." Daryl says and Adaline sighs impatiently.

"Only if we get those guns first." T-Dog says. "I'm not strolling the streets of Atlanta with just my good intentions, okay? Having Ada out there with us armed makes me a little more comfortable, but I'd still rather be armed." T-Dog says.

"I could use a little more ammo, honestly." Adaline says.

"How many rounds you got?" Rick asks.

"Nine. I gave J my last fully loaded clip in case they needed it at camp." Adaline responds and he nods.

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Adaline sits on the desk opposite where T-Dog and Glenn were sitting on the floor, spinning her knife in front of her idly. "You're not doing this alone." Rick says.

"Even I think it's a bad idea and I don't even like you much." Daryl says.

"It's a good idea, okay, if you just hear me out." Glenn says. "If we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. If I'm alone, I can move fast." Glenn says. "Look," Adaline looks at the map he'd drawn out on the floor as he moves a clip across that he'd gotten from one of the desks. "That's the tank, five blocks from where we are now. That's the bag of guns." Glenn says, tossing a crumpled up sticky note by the clip. "Here's the alley I dragged you into when we met. That's where Daryl, Ada and I will go." Glenn says. 

"Why me?" Daryl asks.

"Because Ada is the only person you're actually willing to work with and your crossbow is quieter than his gun." Glenn says.

"What about her gun?" T-Dog asks.

"I don't need it." She responds.

"Ada's really good with throwing knives." Rick says.

"You terrify me." T-Dog says and she shrugs.

"Anyway, while Daryl and Ada wait here in the alley, I run up the street, grab the bag." Glenn says. 

"You got us elsewhere?" Rick asks.

"You and T-Dog, right. You'll be in this alley here." Glenn says.

"Two blocks away? Why?" Rick asks.

"I may not be able to come back the same way. Walkers might cut me off. If that happens, I won't go back to Daryl and Ada. I'll go forward instead. All the way around to that alley where you guys are. Whichever direction I go, I got you in both places to cover me. Afterwards, we'll all meet back here." Glenn says.

"Why you? Why not Ada? I mean, if any walkers come after her, she'll be able to handle it better than any of us." T-Dog says.

"Because Ada prefers covering me than have me covering her." Glenn says and everyone else glances at her.

"What?" She asks before Daryl looks back at Glenn. 

"Hey, kid, what'd you do before all this?" He asks.

"Delivered pizzas. Why?" Glenn asks.

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Adaline drops down off the ladder, looking up and down the alley as she waits for Glenn and Daryl. "Are you sure you don't want me to go instead or with?" Adaline offers while they wait for Daryl.

"No, it's fine." Glenn says and she nods. "Why?"

"Just, you don't always have to be the one doing stupid shit and risking your own ass for the group." Adaline says.

"It's okay. I'll be faster alone and I'd rather have you covering me from here anyway." Glenn says and she nods as Daryl reaches the bottom of the ladder. 

The three of them run down the alley, ducking behind a dumpster as Daryl pulls back the string of his crossbow. "You got some balls for a Chinaman." Daryl says.

The other two both share a look before looking at Daryl and saying, "He's Korean," and "I'm Korean," at the same time.

"Whatever." Daryl responds and Adaline rolls her eyes as Glenn tosses his shirt behind him before running out onto the street. 

Adaline glances behind them briefly before ducking behind the dumpster, pulling Daryl with her. "Someone's coming." She whispers, grabbing her gun. 

The two of them listen to the footsteps getting closer before getting up, pointing their weapons at the guy approaching. "Whoa, don't shoot me!" 

"Then don't fucking move." Adaline says. 

"What do you want?" The boy asks.

"We're looking for my brother. He's hurt real bad. You seen him?" Daryl asks.

"Ayudame!"

"Shut up!" Both of them snap at the same time. 

"You're gonna bring the geeks down on us. Answer me." Daryl says as Adaline glances behind them briefly. "Answer me." 

"Ayudame!" The boy shouts again.

"Shut up! I will pull this fucking trigger." Adaline snaps as he keeps shouting before Daryl hits him with the crossbow. "Jesus fucking Christ." Adaline says, looking around. 

Daryl moves to cover the boy's mouth and Adaline turns around when she hears footsteps, grabbing her knife before stabbing one of the approaching guys in the chest as the other kicks Daryl. "You bitch!" He exclaims before she hits him just as Glenn runs back into the alley. 

"That's it. That's the bag, vato." They say and Adaline fires a shot at the guy that moves first.

"Jesus, Ada!" Glenn says.

"Sorry!" She responds before the guy she'd stabbed pushes her back into the wall behind her. "Really? You wanna do this? I already stabbed you once." She says before kneeing him in the stomach and he shoves her back again before running towards the other two members of his group as Daryl shoots one of them in the ass.

Adaline grabs her gun from the floor before shooting at the guy who'd hit her, hitting him in the shoulder. "Get off me! Ada! Daryl!" Glenn shouts as the two guys drag him back to the car while the guy Adaline shot drops against the fence. 

Then Adaline shoots at one of the guys who climbs out of the car that pulls up, watching him drop to the floor as both her and Daryl rush down the alley, reaching the gate as the car pulls away. "Come back here, you sumbitches!" Daryl shouts before the walkers in the street move towards them and the two of them pull the fence towards them. 

"Shit." She mutters before grabbing the guy on the floor as Daryl moves towards the guy still lying in the alley.

"Ada!" Rick calls when she jams her thumb into guy's bullet wound, making him shout. 

"Where'd they go?" 

"Ada!" Rick says, running over to her as T-Dog stops Daryl. "Stop it!" He says, pulling her away from the guy.

"I'm gonna kick your nuts up in your throat!" Daryl snaps. 

"Stop whining, you little bitch!" Adaline snaps at the guy opposite her and Rick. 

"They took Glenn. That little bastard and his little bastard homie friends. I'm gonna stomp your ass!" Daryl snaps, pointing at him. 

"Guys, guys! We're cut off!" T-Dog says pointing past them.

"Get back to the lab!" Rick says, pointing at T-Dog who grabs the guy Daryl had tried to attack.

"You two, move." Rick says to Daryl and Adaline as he grabs the bag of guns and the guy on the floor. 

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"Those men you were with, we need to know where they went." Rick says as Adaline leans against a desk to the side, her arms folded across her chest. 

"I ain't tellin you nothing." The kid responds. 

"Jesus, man. What the hell happened back there?" T-Dog asks.

"I told you, this little turd and his douchebag friends came outta nowhere and jumped me and Ada. She was handling that one and I had two on me." Daryl says.

"And you shot him?" Rick asks.

"No. I stabbed him. Then he tried to run for it with the other and then I shot him." Adaline corrects.

"You're the ones who jumped me, puto, screaming about trying to find his brother like it's my damn fault." He says.

"I will knock your ass out, you little fuck." Adaline says impatiently. 

"They took Glenn. Could have taken Merle, too." Daryl says.

"Merle? What kind of hick name is that?" He asks. "I wouldn't name my dog Merle." And Rick catches Daryl when he tries to kick him, dragging him backwards. 

"Listen to me, you little shit, you tell me where they went. You saw me shoot your buddy over there. I'll shoot you too." Adaline says, moving towards him.

"Ada, you're not shooting anyone else." Rick says. "Damn it, Daryl! Back off!" Rick says as he manages to push him back.

"Fucking try me." She snaps. "Look, you don't want to fucking talk, then fine. We can make you talk." Adaline says. 

"What are you talking about?" He asks.

"I say we torture them." Adaline says and his eyes widen.

"Ada!" Rick says.

"Right. She's right. You want to see what happened to the last guy that pissed us off?" Daryl asks as he opens up Glenn's bag, grabbing Merle's wrapped up hand before dropping it in the kid's lap and he screams, jumping backwards. "Start with the feet this time." Daryl says, moving to grab him and Rick pulls him backwards.

"Look, I can't." The kid says, looking at the other guy next to T-Dog and Adaline glances at him. 

"Why because of him?" She asks, gesturing at him. "Alright, fine." She says before grabbing her gun. 

"T!" Rick says and T-Dog moves to grab the brunette, lifting her up to move her away from the other guy. "Ada, do not shoot that man again!" Rick says.

"They're not gonna fucking talk!" She snaps, pushing T-Dog back.

"You'll kill him." Rick says.

"Fine by me!" She snaps.

"Yeah, she already killed one of our guys! I saw him go down." The guy she'd shot says and Rick looks at her.

"What? They'd have gotten the guns too if I hadn't. Get off your high horse." Adaline says.

Rick sighs before turning back to the kid. "The men you're with took our friend. All we want to do is talk to them, see if we can work something out." Rick says.

"We're not telling you shit." The other guy says and Adaline elbows T-Dog out of the way before walking over to him and jamming her thumb into his bullet wound again and he screams in pain.

"Change your mind yet?" She snaps.

"Ada, stop it!" Rick says, moving to grab her. 

"No, you're not getting anywhere. The kid isn't gonna talk in front of him because he's scared this asshole is going to tell the group he betrayed them. So, I'm gonna get it out of this prick." Adaline says.

"Fuck you!" He says.

"Ada, stop," Rick says.

"Neither of us are telling you shit." He says and Adaline hums.

"Okay. Let me get this clear," She says, moving back. "You won't talk. You won't talk in front of him. Got that right?" Adaline asks, looking between the two guys. 

"Ada, what are you doing?" Rick asks.

"Fixing the problem. I'm gonna kill that guy so that one will talk and he's not gonna tell his friends what I did because if he does, I'll kill him too." Adaline says. 

"Works for me." Daryl says.

"Ada, you can't just kill him." Rick says quietly.

"No, Rick. You can't kill him. I can guarantee we untie him, he'll kill us first chance we get." Adaline says. "Right?" She asks, looking at the kid and he hesitates slightly before nodding a little. "Okay, so," Adaline pulls back the slide of her gun before pointing the gun at him and Rick pushes her arm to the side as she pulls the trigger. 

"You can't just kill someone. We're better than that. Walkers are one thing. He's a living person." Rick says.

"I don't care. If we don't go to them, they'll come to us. They want the guns, Rick. We need them to keep our group safe. He is the only reason we aren't on our way to them right now. And I don't think killing one scumbag is gonna make that much of a difference in the world." Adaline says. 

"Ada, you cross that line, there's no going back." T-Dog says.

"I already crossed it." She responds.

"Ada, this is not the way we should be doing things." Rick says.

"Says you. The world ended, Rick. It's kill or be killed. And sooner or later, this is what everyone is going to have to do. Be willing to kill other people. Don't act like you're better than me because I went there before you did. We need to get Glenn back, find Merle and get back to the group. This asshole is in the way." Adaline says, gesturing at him.

"Doesn't make it okay." He says.

"No. But it makes it necessary." Adaline responds and Rick stares at her for a moment before Adaline turns back towards the other guy and pulling the trigger as Rick and T-Dog look away. "Okay, now you're gonna talk or I do the same to you." Adaline says, looking at the kid and he nods quickly. "And you're gonna tell your friends the walkers got him or I'm gonna kill you and all your buddies." She adds.

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Adaline stands next to Daryl as Rick looks down at where the kid was saying his group was. "You sure you're up for this?" Rick asks and T-Dog nods before grabbing the bag of guns. 

"One wrong move, you get an arrow in the ass. Just so you know." Daryl warns. 

"G's gonna take that arrow out of my ass and shove it up yours. Just so you know." He says.

"G?" Rick asks.

"Guillermo. He's the man here." He says.

"Okay, then." Rick responds before cocking his gun. "Let's go see Guillermo." He says before stepping through the window, followed by Daryl and Adaline nods for the kid to step through before she does.

The three of them walk behind the kid, Rick aiming at his back while Adaline and Daryl aim at the door as it slowly opens. "You okay, little man?" The guy who walks out asks.

"They're gonna cut off my feet, carnal." He responds.

"Cops do that?" He asks, looking to Rick.

"Not him. This redneck puto here. And the girl." The kid says. "Cut off some dude's hand, man. He showed it to me."

"Shut up." Daryl says.

"Hey, that's that vato right there, homes. Him and the girl. He shot me in the ass with an arrow. What's up, homes? Huh?" The guy who walks out of the building asks, pointing his gun at them and Adaline shifts her aim towards him. 

"Chill, ese, chill. Chill." The guy who Adaline was assuming was Guillermo asks. "This true? He wants Miguelito's feet? That's pretty sick, man."

"We were hoping more for a calm discussion." Rick responds.

"That hillbilly jumps Felipe's little cousin, beats on him, threatens to cut off his feet, Felipe gets an arrow in the ass and you come back short a man, and you want a calm discussion?" Guillermo asks. "Where's our other guy?" He asks, looking at Rick again.

"Walkers got him." Rick responds and he looks back at the kid who just nods.

"Saw them take him down." He responds.

"Guys who came back said some girl shot him and one of our other guys." He responds.

"At him. She missed." The kid says. "They got him through the fence." 

"And the other guy?" He asks.

"I panicked. Your people attacked us and took one of our friends." Adaline says.

"Even then, with everything else and now you want a calm discussion? You fascinate me." Guillermo says.

"Heat of the moment. Mistakes were made on both sides." Rick says.

"Who's that dude to you anyway? And the girl. None of you look related." Guillermo says.

"He's one of our group, more or less. She's my sister." Rick responds. "I'm sure you have a few like them." He adds.

"You got my brother in there?" Daryl asks.

"Sorry, we're fresh out of white boys." Guillermo responds. "But I've got Asian. You interested?" He asks.

"I have one of yours, you have one of mine. Sounds like an even trade." Rick says.

"We were expecting two guys. Don't sound even to me." He responds.

"G. Come on, man." The kid says.

"My people got attacked. Your sister killed one and another died. Where's the compensation for the pain and suffering? More to the point, where's my bag of guns?" He asks.

"Guns?" Rick asks.

"The bag Miguel saw in the street. The bag Felipe and Jorge were going back to get. That bag of guns." Guillermo says.

"You're mistaken." Rick responds.

"I don't think so."

"About it being yours. It's my bag of guns." Rick says.

"The bag was in the street. Anybody could come around and say it was theirs. I'm supposed to take your word?" Guillermo says.

"Say it wasn't ours. Which it was, but say it wasn't. We got there first. It's ours." Adaline says.

"Well, what's to stop my people from unloading on you right here and now and I take what's mine?" Guillermo asks.

"You could do that. Or not." Rick says, looking towards where T-Dog was before Guillermo glances over his shoulder slightly, shouting. 

The three of them look up to see two men lead Glenn to the edge of the roof, pulling the bag from over his head. "Let him go or I empty this entire clip into you and your men before your body hits the ground." Adaline says.

"Big words from a little girl." Guillermo says.

"Try me." Adaline says.

"I see two options. You come back with Miguel and my bag of guns, everybody walks. Or you come back locked and loaded, we'll see which side spills more blood." He says before walking back inside and Rick briefly places a hand on Adaline's arm when he sees her shift slightly. "No more killing." He says quietly.

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"Are you kidding me? We can't give them the guns, Rick!" Adaline says. 

"She's right. Them guns worth more than gold. Gold won't protect your family or put food on the table. You willing to give that up for that kid?" Daryl asks.

"If I knew we'd get Glenn back, I might agree. But you think that vato across the way is just gonna hand him over?" T-Dog asks.

"I think if he tries to screw us over, we've got Ada." Rick says.

"You calling G a liar?" Miguel asks.

"Are you a part of this?" Daryl asks, hitting the side of his head. "You want to hold onto your teeth?"

"Question is, do you trust that man's word?" T-Dog asks.

"No, question is what are you willing to bet on it? Could be more than them guns. Could be your life. Glenn worth that to you?" Daryl asks.

"What lift I have I owe to him. And Ada." Rick says.

"No, just him. I wanted to leave you for dead." Adaline says. 

"Right. And I was nobody to Glenn, just some idiot stuck in a tank. He could have walked away, but he didn't. Neither will I." Rick says.

"So you're gonna hand the guns over?" Daryl asks.

"I didn't say that." Rick responds.

"You're being quiet." T-Dog says.

"You all know what I think we should do. Don't see the point in getting lectured again." Adaline responds. 

"Look, Ada's obviously going to come with me. But there's nothing keeping you two here. You should get out, head back to camp." Rick says.

"And tell your family and Jason what?" T-Dog asks and Daryl nods after a moment before moving to grab a gun. 

"Here." Rick says, holding out a shotgun and an extra clip for her pistol towards Adaline.

"Thanks." She says, swapping the clip in her gun over before sliding it in the back of her jeans to load the shotgun. 

"Come on, this is nuts." Miguel says but Daryl stops him when he moves to get up. "Just do like G says." He says.

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The four of them walk Miguel up to the building after tying his hands and gagging him. Guillermo walks to meet them as the guys behind them slide the doors shut. "I see my guns, but they're not all in the bag." He says. 

"That's because they're not yours. I thought I mentioned that." Rick says. 

"Let's just shoot these fools right now, ese. Alright?" Felipe says and Adaline raises a brow, shifting her aim to him as she cocks her gun and he slowly steps back, watching her as he says, "Unload on their asses, ese." 

"I don't think you fully appreciate the gravity of the situation." Guillermo says.

"No, I'm pretty clear." Rick says before cutting the strap tying Miguel's hands together. "You have your man. I want mine."

"I'm gonna chop up your boy. I'm gonna feed him to my dogs. They're the evilest, nastiest man-eating bitches you ever saw. I picked them up from Satan at a yard sale." Guillermo says.

"Yeah, I wouldn't do that if I were you. See, my sister's pretty trigger happy. You hurt him, you're not gonna have the chance to regret it." Rick says and Guillermo glances at Adaline.

"I'm supposed to be scared of a little girl?" He asks.

"I would be if I were you." Rick responds.

"I told you how it has to be. Are you woefully deaf?" Guillermo asks.

"No, my hearing's fine. You said come locked and loaded." Rick says before cocking his gun, followed by Daryl, T-Dog and all of Guillermo's men. "Okay, then, we're here." Rick says, pointing his gun at Guillmero's face.

"Felipe! Felipe!" Adaline glances past them briefly at the new voice.

"Abuela, go back with the others. Now." Felipe says.

"Get that old lady out of the line of fire!" Daryl demands.

"Abuela, listen to your mijo, okay? This is not the place for you right now." Guillermo says.

"Mr Gilbert is having trouble breathing. He needs his asthma stuff. Carlito didn't find it. He needs his medicine." She says.

"Felipe, go take care of it, okay? And take your grandmother with you." Guillermo demands before Felipe starts speaking Spanish as he tries to lead the woman away.

"Who are those people?" She asks, moving forwards. "Don't you take him."

"Ma'am?" Rick asks.

"Felipe's a good boy. He have his trouble but he pull himself together. We need him here." She says.

"Ma'am, I'm not here to arrest your grandson." Rick says.

"Then, what do you want him for?" She asks.

"He's helping us find a missing person. A fella named Glenn." Rick says.

"The Asian boy?" She asks.

"You've seen him?" Adaline asks, stepping forwards.

"He's with Mr Gilbert." She responds, looking at Adaline. "You must be the pretty girl he mentioned. Ada. Come. Come, I show you." She says, grabbing her hand before pulling her with her and Adaline looks at Rick with a confused frown but he just shrugs before following them. "He needs his medicine."

"Let 'em pass." Guillermo says and everyone moves to the side so the woman could lead them through. 

Adaline frowns as the woman leads them outside and into another building that looked like a care home of sorts. "Abuela, por favor. Take me to him." Felipe says before the woman leads Felipe through without letting go of Adaline's hand. 

"Rick!" Adaline whispers and he nods as they walk slightly behind them.

"He's over here." Felipe's grandmother says, glancing at Adaline as Felipe walks towards the small group of people. "See," She says, patting Adaline's hand as Glenn turns around and Adaline hugs him when the woman lets go of her hand. 

"Hey." Glenn says, slightly surprised. 

"Are you okay?" She asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine. He just started having an asthma attack." Glenn says as she steps back and Adaline glances at the man. 

"An- We were worried about you." Adaline says.

"I'm fine." Glenn says.

"We didn't know that. Last we saw you were being held at the edge of a roof." Adaline says.

"Oh, right. I'm fine." Glenn says with a shrug. 

"We thought you were being eaten by dogs, man." T-Dog says and Glenn frowns slightly before glancing behind him and Adaline follows his gaze to see the chihuahuas lying in a dog bed behind him. 

"Could I have a word with you?" Rick asks, looking at Guillermo.

"So, you told the old people about Ada." T-Dog says lightly and Glenn frowns at them. "She recognised Ada as the pretty girl you mentioned." He says and Glenn goes slightly red. 

"I just figured she could help, that was all. She was in med school." Glenn says.

"Why'd she call her the 'pretty girl'?" T-Dog asks.

"Shut up, man." Glenn responds.

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They all follow Guillermo into a separate room after the man's asthma attack has been handled. "What about the rest of your crew?" Rick asks.

"The vatos trickle in to check on their parents, their grandparents. They see how things are and most decide to stay. It's a good thing, too. We need the muscle. The people we've encountered since things fell apart, the worst kind. Plunderers, the kind that take by force." Guillermo says.

"That's not who we are." Rick says.

"How was I to know? My people got attacked, some died, and you show up with Miguel hostage. Appearances." He responds.

"Guess the world changed." T-Dog says.

"No. It's the same as it ever was. The weak get taken. So we do what we can here. The vatos work on those cars, talk about getting the old people out of the city. But most can't even get to the bathroom by themselves, so that's just a dream. Still, it keeps the crew busy, and that's worth something. So we barred all the windows, welded all the doors shut except for one entrance. The vatos, they go out, scavenge what they can to keep us going. We watch the perimeter night and day and we wait. The people here, they all look to me now. I don't even know why." Guillermo says.

"Because they can." Rick says before holding out the gun in his hand. 

Adaline stands off to the side as Rick starts pulling out guns from the bag, putting them down beside Guillermo, tapping her thumb against the gun in her hands. 

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·. .·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·. .·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.

Adaline walks towards the back of the small group, just behind T-Dog as they make their way back to where they left the van and Rick slows down slightly to match her speed, letting the other three walk up ahead. "I don't need another lecture about morals, Rick." Adaline says.

"Are you okay?" He asks and she glances at him. "You've barely said anything since we left." Rick says.

"I'm fine." Adaline responds.

"Ada,"

"I said I'm fine." She says, cutting him off.

"Yeah, that's what I'm worried about." He responds.

"Great, a lecture on morals." She says dryly.

"You killed two people, Ada. Living people. You telling me that hasn't affected you at all?" Rick asks.

"I did what I had to do. So, no." Adaline says. 

"Ada, that's not right." Rick says quietly.

"You don't think I know that? But I can't do anything about it. I've always been like this. You know that. I know it's not normal but I can't make myself care if I just don't. And I really don't care I killed those men. I don't feel sorry for them. As far as I was concerned, they were attacking us, so they were a threat. So, just leave it alone, Rick." Adaline says and he sighs.

"I'm just worried." Rick says.

"I'm not going to hurt anyone in the group unless they turn. You're fine. Leave me alone." Adaline says.

"I'm sorry, okay? But you jumped to that conclusion far quicker than anyone else would have. I just had to make sure." Rick says.

"Fine. Whatever. You had to make sure. Are you sure I won't hurt anyone?" She asks and he nods. "Then leave me alone." Adaline says before walking away from him and past the rest of the group. 

"She okay?" T-Dog asks as Rick catches up to them.

"She's fine. Just wants some peace and quiet. She doesn't love dealing with people much." Rick responds and T-Dog nods.

"Admit it, you only came back to Atlanta for the hat." Glenn says after a moment, breaking the silence.

"Don't tell anybody." Rick responds.

"You've given away half our guns and ammo." Daryl says.

"Not nearly half." Rick corrects.

"For what? Bunch of old farts who are gonna die off momentarily anyhow?" Daryl asks. "Seriously, how long you think they got?"

"How long do any of us?" Rick responds before they all stop when the see the empty space outside the gate where the van had been parked. 

"Oh, my God." Glenn says.

"Where the hell's our van?" Daryl asks.

"We left it right there. Who would take it?" Glenn says.

"Merle." Rick says.

"He's gonna be taking some vengeance back to camp." Daryl says.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·. .·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·. .·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.

The five of them slow slightly as they run towards camp when they hear gun shots. "Oh, my God." Rick says before they all start running again, picking up the pace slightly.

They run up into the camp and Adaline shoots one of the walkers as Rick shoots the one closest to him before the five of them make their way towards the rest, shooting at all of the walkers, clearing out the rest of them as Rick starts shouting for Lori and Carl. 

Adaline looks around, kicking a few of the walkers to make sure they were definitely dead before lowering her gun. "J, you okay?" Adaline asks when he moves towards her.

"I'm fine. Didn't miss." He responds.

"First time for everything." Adaline responds as she puts her gun away. 

"You okay?" He asks and she nods. "No Merle?" 

"Nah, he wasn't there. Cut his hand off, cauterised it and fucked off. Took the van. We had to walk back." Adaline responds.

"Glad I didn't come." Jason says and she nods as Andrea shouts Amy's name between sobs. 

"I remember my dream now, why I dug the holes." Jim says and Adaline frowns, glancing at Jason.

"Long story. Tell you later." He says and she nods.

.·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·. .·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·. .·:*¨༺ ༻¨*:·.