Is anyone still there? I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to write this final chapter, but it took a while to decide how to end it. Thank you all for reading and for the encouragement. I hope you've enjoyed it! X x x

"Gone?!" Carol wailed, her face wet with tears.

"And Oscar?" Carl asked, noticing the big man's absence. Rick shook his head and put a supportive hand on Carol's shoulder. "No."

Carl began to close the gates so Emily got to her feet, dusted herself off and began to head back to the prison whilst Rick and Carol walked with their arms round one another. She couldn't believe he had left her behind but also felt suddenly calm about the situation. She knew how much his brother meant to him and that for Daryl, family came first.

As Emily glanced ahead at the old friends walking arm in arm she realised that without Daryl, there was no place for her here at the prison. She had been accepted into the group because of him and now she had nobody again. As they retreated into the cool shade of C Block, she slipped unseen past the others, who were hugging each other in greeting, and headed straight to her cell. Nobody noticed her. She could already feel the hardness and determination returning to her soul as she lay down and massaged her temples where a headache was threatening to appear. Being with Daryl had softened her, both physically and mentally, and she would need to toughen up to survive out there alone again.

The sound of Judith's cry came echoing down the cell block and Emily couldn't help but think of how gentle Daryl had been with the baby. Instantly her mind filled with flashbacks of being in his arms, his soft lips against hers, his shy half-smile when he looked at her and dozens of other memories from the last few days that had reawakened her stagnant emotions and etched this man's name onto her heart. She could feel the tears coming but rubbed her eyes angrily, determined not to succumb. Enough with this fucking emotional shit. Look where it had gotten her; alone again with nothing but memories to taunt her consciousness.

She leapt to her feet, her mind suddenly made up. She would leave the prison today and continue her journey to New York, to her father. She was stupid to have delayed for this long, she thought as she crammed her meagre belongings into her back pack along with some water and a few fresh dressings for her shoulder. She took one last glance around the cell and stormed out before she could change her mind.

"Hey, where are you going?" Beth asked as Emily quickly headed for the exit. She stopped and turned to face the sweet girl.

"I have to go. I need to find my Dad in New York." She tried to leave again but Beth grabbed her by the arm, forcing her to stop.

"Is this because of Daryl? I'm mad at him for leaving too but it doesn't mean you have to go. Please stay?"

Her innocent blue eyes were begging Emily to stay. The others were watching her closely, waiting for a response.

She pulled Beth into a hug. "I wish I could stay sweetie," she whispered honestly, "but I need to find my Dad. You're lucky to have yours here. Take care of each other." She couldn't bring herself to admit that staying in the prison without Daryl would be more painful than she could cope with.

She smiled and touched the young girls face affectionately and waved a shy goodbye to the rest of the group. Most of them bid her farewell with sad smiles, handshakes and gifts of some supplies for the road. She locked eyes with Carol, who was keeping her distance. The older woman smiled sadly and nodded in empathy. Emily knew that Carol was in just as much pain as she was, so returned the nod with an understanding smile.

The last person to say goodbye was Hershel. "Are you sure about this?" he enquired gently, his eyes filled with concern.

She pulled the kind old man into a hug. Aside from Daryl, she would miss him the most. "I'm sure."

"Be careful out there," he implored before smiling at her one last time.

With that, she walked out into the blistering heat and headed for the road.

Hours later Emily was making good time, striding North through the woods and enjoying the renewed determination to make it home. Thoughts of Daryl kept slipping into her stream of consciousness but she quickly pushed them aside, slashing at the undergrowth with her machete to vent her frustration and anger at his sudden departure. It was physically and mentally exhausting. She stopped to take a drink of water and catch her breath. She would need to find some transport soon, preferably a motorcycle, to speed up her progress. She screwed the cap back on her water bottle and set off again at a faster pace, determined to reach a road as soon as possible.

She was kneeling at the side of a river refilling her bottle with cool, clear water when she first heard the gunshots.

Her hand immediately reached for the shotgun by her feet whilst she glanced into the woodland around her, scanning quickly for the source of the noise but seeing nothing. The faint sound of a crying baby reached her ears, followed by further gunshots. Her heart was pounding as she stood, gun raised, and set off in the direction of the shots, her feet moving quickly over the uneven ground.

She emerged from the trees at the side of the river to find a road leading to a bridge. A number of walkers crowded a red station wagon and more were clawing at two men who were doing their best to shoot them down. Emily's brain was screaming at her to slip back into the woods unseen, avoiding the confrontation but instead she found herself running onto the bridge, headlong into danger.

She approached one of the walkers, raised her shotgun and took aim at it's head. Before she had a chance to pull the trigger, the shambling biter was floored by an arrow to the skull. Her heart knew who the killer was before she even laid eyes on him. She watched in disbelief as Daryl reclaimed his arrow before plunging it into the skull of another walker.

He froze as he spotted her, his face a picture of confusion.

"Red?" he asked incredulously, almost not believing his own eyes.

Their reunion would have to wait. The sound of the baby's cry drew their attention to the station wagon, where walkers were desperately clawing to get to the distressed woman and her baby who were trapped inside.

"I got it," Daryl muttered as he approached the car and smashed a biter's skull against the window with the stock of the crossbow before pulling a second walker out through the trunk and slamming the hatch door down onto it's head producing a shower of blood.

Emily spotted a walker shambling towards Daryl and quickly unsheathed her machete and began to approach. She'd only taken a few steps before a man's voice stopped her cold.

"Daryl, I gotcha!" A bullet took down the walker but Emily barely noticed. She knew that Southern drawl. She would recognise it anywhere. Her body felt strangely numb and prickled with fear as panic gripped her and threatened to knock her out cold.

The store was empty when she looted it, of that she was sure. She'd found some decent supplies and wasn't being as vigilant as normal when she emerged from the store, still stuffing the food into her backpack.

She had smelled him first. The stench of whiskey and sweat offended her nostrils and made her skin crawl.

He must have approached in silence and she jumped in fright when she turned to find him standing right behind her, a drunken grin evident on his face.

She instinctively took a few steps back but found herself against the wall of the store, trapped. He closed the distance, leering at her and licking his lips as he looked her up and down.

"Oh baby, I've been waiting for a hot piece of ass like you for a long time!" he slurred drunkenly. He was inches from her and she was frozen in fear. There was no space to reach for her weapons and she didn't even know whether her shaking hands would have been able to pull the trigger.

She couldn't take her eyes off of his right arm. In place of a hand there was a stump with a blade crudely taped to it. It spurred her into action and she shoved the stranger and tried to dodge around him to escape. Despite his drunken state, he was faster and pushed her back against the warm bricks, knocking the breath out of her.

"No need to run," he said, breathing hotly in her ear. "I ain't gonna hurt ya. Just want us to have a little fun..."

She struggled again, causing him to pin her to the wall with his muscular body and press his right forearm against her throat. The blade that replaced his hand glinted menacingly in the sun, mere inches from her face.

"Don't fight it sugar!" he slurred as he pressed his lips against hers...

She was brought back to the present by Daryl's voice. "Get outta the car."

He had his crossbow aimed at his brother's head and looked like he meant business.

"I know you're not talkin' to me brother," the redneck replied from the back seat of the car where he was evidently in the process of helping himself to the family's supplies.

"Get in your car and get the hell outta here," Daryl instructed the man he had helped rescue. "GO. Get in your car!"

The strangers ran to get in the station wagon and Daryl's brother turned to face him as they drove off.

Daryl glared at his brother before lowering his crossbow and storming off angrily, picking up his backpack and arrows as he went.

"Come on Red, let's go." He grabbed her hand and pulled her with him as he headed back into the woods.

Emily was too stunned to speak as they delved deeper into the trees which offered some welcome shade from the heat of the sun. She'd found Daryl again. But the man who had tried to assault her all those months ago was Daryl's brother. She was still trying to process the information when Daryl stopped suddenly and turned to face her, holding her face in his large hands.

"What are you doin' here?" he asked, searching her eyes for an answer. "Are you okay? You hurt?"

"I'm fine," she replied, not wanting to approach the issue of his brother just yet. How could she tell this man that his brother, his own blood, was the same asshole who'd been giving her nightmares for months? "I didn't want to stay at the prison without you so I'm heading for New York."

"I'm sorry I didn't come back. But Merle's my brother. He wasn't welcome at the prison and I couldn't leave him again. You understand?"

She nodded sadly before replying. "What about now? I saw what happened back there..."

He scuffed the ground angrily with his toe and frowned but didn't respond. She could tell he was struggling to choose between his loyalty to his brother and his own moral code.

They were interrupted by the sound of someone crashing through the undergrowth and suddenly Merle came into view. Emily immediately shrank back behind Daryl in fear.

"Shit you doin? Pointin' that thing at me?" Merle asked as he approached.

"They were scared, man!"

"They were rude that's what they were. Rude and they owed us a token of gratitude."

"They didn't owe us nothin'."

"You helpin' people outta the goodness of your heart even though you might die doin' it. Is that somethin' your sheriff Rick taught you?"

"There was a baby!" Daryl yelled angrily.

"Oh, otherwise you woulda just slipped 'em to the biters then," Merle replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Man I went back for ya," Daryl yelled. "You weren't there. I didn't cut your hand off neither. YOU did that. Way before they locked you up on that roof. You asked for it."

Merle laughed. "You know what's funny to me? You and Sheriff Rick are like this now, right?" he observed as he crossed his fingers to indicate their closeness. "I bet you a penny and a fiddle of gold that you never told him that we were planning on robbing that camp blind."

Emily had stepped away from the confrontation but gasped as she heard Merle's revelation. It sounded as though Daryl had been a completely different person before his brother disappeared. The Daryl she knew would never have taken from anyone.

"It didn't happen," Daryl replied.

"Yeah it didn't. 'Cos I wasn't there to help you."

"Like when we were kids? Huh? Who left who then?" he shouted angrily.

"What, huh? Is that why I lost my hand?"

"You lost your hand 'cos you're a simple minded piece of shit!"

With that accusation, Daryl turned to walk away but Merle grabbed his shirt in an effort to stop him. The shirt ripped, baring Daryl's back. Emily gasped as she saw the marks. She had felt the scarred ridges with her fingers when they had slept together but she hadn't been prepared for how bad they would look. Long, raised scars ran across his muscular back in different directions. Only deep welts could have left such marks, a permanent reminder of some abuse he must have suffered. Her heart ached for him but the presence of Merle stopped her from running to embrace him.

Merle himself looked down onto his brothers back in shock. Pain was etched on his face making him appear human to Emily for the first time.

He stuttered as he tried to speak. "I...I didn't know he was..."

"Yeah you did," Daryl responded, his voice full of hurt as he self-consciously pulled his backpack onto his shoulders to hide the scars. "He did the same to you. That's why you left first."

"I had to man. I woulda killed him otherwise."

Daryl turned his back on Merle, grabbed Emily by the hand and began to walk away from his brother.

"Where you goin'?" Merle yelled.

"Back where I belong."

"I can't go with you," Merle implored. "I tried to kill that black bitch. Damn near killed the Chinese kid."

"He's Korean," Daryl stressed in Glenn's defence.

"Whatever!" Merle said dismissively. "Doesn't matter man. I just can't go with you."

Daryl stopped and turned to address his brother.

"You know, I may be the one walkin' away but you're the one that's leavin'...again."

With that, he turned his back on his brother and walked away, taking Emily with him.

They walked in silence for a while, Daryl's breath still coming fast as his body pulsed with adrenaline from the confrontation. Unable to stand it any longer, Emily stopped and pulled him into her arms. His embrace was still so new and yet so familiar. She could feel the tension drain out of his shoulders as they held each other and kissed him gently on the lips.

"You comin' back to the prison with me?" Daryl asked as he looked into her eyes.

Before she had a chance to reply, they were interrupted by a cry from the woods behind them.

"Daryl!" Merle's voice drifted through the trees. "Daryl, wait up!"

He appeared before them, sweating and breathing hard. "Don't leave like this, little brother. You're the only family I got left."

"I'm goin' back to Rick and the others. I don't know whether you'll be welcome."

Merle suddenly appeared to notice Emily for the first time and she stepped behind Daryl, wanting to put someone or something between her and this man.

"Hey, do I know you?" he asked her with a look of vague recognition on his face. "Who the hell are you?"

"She's with me" Daryl replied, saving her from having to answer.

"Woah! Is my little brother finally getting' some action?" he smirked before looking Emily up and down with a slow whistle. "I gotta hand it to ya Daryl, she's a cute one."

"She's with me," Daryl repeated possessively.

"Calm down man!" Merle replied, raising his hands in a show of innocence. "It's good to know ya finally got some balls."

Daryl grabbed Emily's hand again and started walking away from his brother again.

"I'm kiddin' ya!" Merle said jovially. "Wait up."

Daryl stopped and turned to his brother. "If you're coming back to the prison you're gonna have to tow the line. Do whatever they ask and try not to piss anyone off. Me included."

Merle smirked but when he saw that Daryl was serious, he nodded reluctantly.

"I'm gonna take a piss before we head off," Merle said before heading further into the woods.

Emily knew she had to talk to Daryl now before she lost her courage. After just a few days she had fallen for this man completely, but knew she couldn't co-exist alongside Merle. She also knew she couldn't tell Daryl about her last encounter with his brother. Merle was the only family he had left and she couldn't put him in the position of having to choose between them. So she knew what she had to do.

"Daryl, I'm leaving," she said gently as she cupped his face in her palms and looked into his beautiful blue eyes which immediately filled with hurt.

"You have meant more to me in these last few days than any man I've ever met. But I need to go to New York to find my father. You've found your brother again, I need to find my family too."

His mouth opened as though to speak but he found no words.

"You understand, right?" she asked him, her green eyes imploring.

He paused before nodding. They stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Eventually Emily knew she had to say goodbye, preferably before Merle returned.

She pulled him into a tender hug, drinking in his smell one last time in the hope that the memory of it would stay with her forever. He gripped her tighter than ever before and she knew he didn't want to let her go. Suddenly they were kissing urgently and desperately, both wanting one last memory. The kiss slowed and he wiped away her tears with his thumb as they reluctantly broke away from each other.

There were no words necessary. They knew what they had meant to each other and saying goodbye was too hard. She pulled away from his embrace and blinked back tears as she headed into the trees.

"Hey Red," he called to her. She turned to face him one last time and he smiled. "If you don't find what you're looking for, come find me?"

She nodded and smiled, before turning from him one last time and walking away.

So that's my final chapter in the bag! I haven't closed the door on the Daryl/Red story for good. I have a few ideas I'm playing around with. So...

….to be continued (maybe!)