SARAH
Sarah paced the house, staying near the windows and straining to look outside for any signs of movement. Randall couldn't run due to his injured leg—Hershel had said it would take weeks to heal. Daryl was very good at tracking; he should have found him by now.
She didn't like this. Not at all. The thought of the four of them out there made her stomach churn. Anything could happen, and they would be locked inside, helpless to do anything about it.
"Maybe you should sit down," Maggie suggested, moving closer to her.
"Gladly," Sarah replied, turning to face the girl. "You'll sit with me?" But Maggie shook her head. Sarah rubbed her arm, sensing their shared worry. They were both on edge.
"They'll be back soon, right?" Maggie asked, her voice shaky. "I mean, they have to." Sarah bit her lip, the anxiety gnawing at her.
"I'm scared too," she admitted, glancing away before turning back to Maggie. "We should look for them—maybe in half an hour."
"Rick said to stay put," Hershel reminded her gently.
"What if they need help?" Sarah countered, her desperation rising. At that point, Andrea nodded from where she was sitting on the couch.
"I'm going after them," Sarah declared, taking a relieved breath as she checked the gun tucked into her pocket.
"I'll come with you," Maggie said, sharing a concerned look with her before moving toward Andrea.
"Don't— they could be anywhere," Lori said, her tone filled with worry. "And if Randall comes back, we're going to need both of you here." Sarah knew they needed them, but something felt off about the situation. She couldn't shake the unease that settled in her gut.
Andrea was about to respond when the sound of a door opening made them turn. Sarah breathed a sigh of relief as Daryl and Glenn appeared in the doorway. She glanced at Maggie, who wore a similarly relieved expression.
"Rick and Shane ain't back?" Daryl asked, scanning the room before stopping next to Sarah. His gaze lingered on her for a moment, a hint of concern in his eyes.
"They're not with you?" she asked, frowning. He shook his head.
"No, they're not here," Lori answered, getting up.
"We heard a shot," Daryl said, confusion creasing his brow.
"Maybe they found Randall," Lori suggested, but Daryl shook his head again.
"We found him," he replied.
"Is he back in the shed?" Patricia asked from across the room.
"He's a walker," Daryl's words made Sarah's eyes widen. If he had turned, why were they taking so long? And why had they heard a gunshot? Was that how they had put down Randall? Daryl had said he and Glenn found him, so Rick and Shane must have been the ones who shot. But who?
"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel asked, standing next to Patricia.
"No, the weird thing is he wasn't bitten," Glenn said, causing them all to exchange confused glances. If they hadn't seen a bite, then why had he turned?
"His neck was broken," Daryl added.
"Couldn't he have twisted it after he turned?" Sarah asked, frowning in confusion.
Daryl shook his head. "There was no bite, Sarah," he said firmly. "He died because of the neck." But why had he turned?
"So he fought back?" Patricia ventured, her brow furrowing. This only confused Sarah more. Who was he fighting? Walkers only attacked people, but there were no bites. And he certainly couldn't have snapped his neck on his own. Someone must have done it. But who? It didn't make sense for anyone to do that, and Sarah could only think of one person who might want Randall dead.
"The thing is," Daryl continued, "Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other, and Shane is no tracker." Sarah felt her confusion deepen.
"What does that mean?" she asked.
"That he didn't come up behind him," Daryl explained. "They were together."
A frightening thought came up in Sarah's mind. If Shane was the one behind Randall's death, the strangeness about how the guy had escaped from the shed would make sense now. He didn't need to break free if someone with the key had opened the lock. If that was the case, what was Shane's plan? Did he want to kill Randall? Did he really get hit by Randall and then kill him to defend himself? But why not tell them what had happened?
What the hell was going on? What was Shane up to? Why orchestrate all of this? He could have talked to Rick. Sure, they would have had a heated argument, but Rick would never have sent Shane away. Why stage this?
"Would you please get back out there and find Rick and Shane? Find out what on earth is going on?" Lori begged Daryl, her voice urgent. Maybe she was right to push him. What was Shane really up to?
Daryl nodded at Lori. "You got it." He turned briefly toward Sarah, and for a moment, their eyes locked—hers filled with concern and uncertainty, his steady and determined. She knew he had to go, but the thought of him stepping into danger made her stomach churn. In that instant, a sense of something unacknowledged hung between them, making her worry for his safety all the more intense. That sudden surge of worry caught her off guard; she hadn't realized how much his safety meant to her until now.
As he turned to leave, she felt a pang of reluctance. Then Daryl headed out, followed by Glenn and Andrea, and Sarah was left standing there, her unease growing as the door swung shut behind him.
Sarah ran a hand through her hair, letting out a heavy breath. What was happening?
"Lori, Sarah," Maggie's voice made her turn toward the windows. The girl was looking out, her face pale with fear. Sarah quickly moved to see what was happening, and terror gripped her as she spotted hundreds of walkers emerging from the woods. They were so numerous that the fence couldn't hold, and now they surrounded almost the entire barn. She had never seen so many walkers all at once, not even during the outbreak in Atlanta.
"Beth," she said, "go call Nicki and Carl." Then she and Maggie dashed outside to join the others.
"Patricia," Hershel was saying, "kill the lights." The woman nodded and hurried inside.
"Maybe they're just passing, like the herd on the highway," Glenn suggested, eyeing the approaching mass. "Should we just go inside?"
"No, unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about," Daryl replied, turning to Glenn. Sarah covered her mouth with her hand, panic rising within her.
"A herd that size would rip the house down," Daryl insisted.
"What should we do then?" Sarah asked, her voice trembling as she feared his answer. When he turned to her, she sensed that he thought they should leave the farm. But to go where?
"Carl's gone!" Lori burst out of the house in a panic. "And Nicki, too!"
Sarah's blood ran cold, a shiver coursing down her spine. What did it mean that Nicolette was missing? She wouldn't go outside; she couldn't have put herself in danger like this.
"What?" Sarah whispered, her voice barely above a breath.
"They were upstairs," Lori said, her voice trembling. "But I can't find them."
"Maybe they're hiding," Glenn's voice sounded distant, as if he were miles away. She could hear Lori and Carol, but their words blurred into a haze around her. Nicolette couldn't have left the house. Yet, deep down, Sarah knew her sister well enough to realize she might have.
"I'm going to find her," she declared, a fierce determination igniting within her, but before she could take a step, someone grabbed her arm.
"Where are you going?!" Daryl exclaimed, pulling her back toward the house. Panic surged, and she tried to shake his hand off, but he wouldn't let go. "Sarah!"
"Move aside!" she shouted, desperation spilling over. "My sister is out there! I have to find her!" But his grip tightened, and he stepped in front of her, blocking her path.
"Stay here!"
"I have to find her, Daryl!" she argued, tears threatening to spill over. "I'm not leaving without my sister!"
"I'll go!" he insisted, his voice steady but urgent. "You're not moving!"
"I'm not staying here!" she protested, her heart racing.
"Ya're goin' to stay in the house with Carol and Lori," he said firmly, the look in his eyes leaving no room for argument. "I'll find yer sister and bring her back!"
Tears streamed down her cheeks, and she felt a wave of helplessness wash over her.
"Daryl..." she whispered, her voice breaking.
"Don't wander around," he said, his tone softer than when he had yelled at her in front of the CDC. "Go inside." She nodded, wiping her tears as she turned to head back.
"It's going to be alright," Glenn said, trying to sound reassuring, but the weight of uncertainty hung heavy in the air. Sarah met his gaze briefly before entering the house. As she passed, Hershel and Maggie brushed by her with rifles in hand. Hershel wanted to defend the farm, but Daryl was right; the herd was too large for them to remain unnoticed. They had to leave. But she would be damned if she left her sister behind or hid inside the house.
When no one was watching, Sarah grabbed some extra bullets and quietly took the back stairs to leave the house.