Burn Burn [Daryl Dixon]

Black Ash [Chapter 6]

                “Why did ya bring me here?” Alice asked, fuming.

                Brady looked over at her and sighed, “I need to know the truth. Merle said-“

                “Merle?” She asked, “Merle Dixon? You’re believin’ what comes outta his mouth?”

                Brady shifted awkwardly. “I’ve known him longer than you.”

                “You mean he’s been dealin’ to you for longer.”

                “It’s medicinal.” Brady stiffened.

                “Right.” Alice rolled her eyes.

                “Get out of the car, let’s go for a walk.”

                Alice obeyed his command simply because she had no way of getting out of this. The ground below her shoes was black ash, and it swirled in the air when swept up in the wind. Alice wished that the winds would take her away, far from this place. But she was stuck; she was not free like fire or wind, she was stuck like mud. She felt like mud; all thick and groggy, unable to break free from the strong grasp it had on her.        

                Alice knew what Brady was getting at; hoping that she would crack when she saw the ashes and remains of the one place she hated more than anywhere in the world. That house had only brought misery to her life. It was there that she came crawling, desperate for a home when she discovered her pregnancy. It was there that she terminated that pregnancy, risking her own life in the process. It was there that she recovered, mending herself with Jack Daniels. It was there that she began to lose consciousness time after time using any substance she could. It was there that she became ultimately trapped.

                Even with Johnny and the house gone, Alice was still there.

                “Look, Alice, I’m going to cut you a break because I know Merle and Daryl.” He began, “I don’t want any trouble for you, I just need to know.”

                Alice didn’t trust him; he was a corrupt cop to begin with. Cunning and deceptive in his own ways. But Alice knew better.

                “I was at work.” She said truthfully. “Johnny never came to pick me up. I was walking home when I saw the smoke in the air, by the time I got close, it was too late.”

                “And you are guessing he overdosed?”

                Alice nodded, “That was the usual reason for forgetting me.”

                “Because the autopsy of what was left of him said there were dangerous levels of heroin in his system, but not enough to kill him.”

                Alice shook her head; she had felt his pulse and it was non-existent. This was just a trick to get her to confess that she had seen him before the fire started, thus making her the main suspect in the investigation. Her head was clear now, clearer than it had been all day, and she was not going to become a player in this twisted game of cat and mouse.

                “So, he died of smoke inhalation?” She asked, feigning innocence again.

                Brady saw his game was up, and muttered, “Yeah, seems like it. But, he was too doped up to feel much…”

                “That’s a damn shame.” She nearly grinned, almost giving herself away, but confessing nothing. “Can you take me home now?”

                “Don’t count on callin’ it home for too long, darling.”

                “Don’t call me ‘darling’.” She grimaced, getting back into the car. The useless journey of coming back here made her feel sick. It was done; Johnny was dead and she was technically homeless. It was supposed to be her ticket out, but the drugs kept her. She needed Merle to supply for her, even if there would be dealers everywhere, she had no money. Favours were all that kept her high. She needed Daryl too. She wasn’t sure why, but she knew that she needed him.

                Once she was dropped off at the Dixon household, Alice went in without knocking. By this point, she knew that she had certain rights to come and go, but she also knew that these rights wouldn’t extend too far without some compensation. Merle would want something from her. The bike was gone from the driveway and Alice knew Merle was gone, but the truck was there and she hoped Daryl was home. When she searched the house, she couldn’t find him, so she showered quickly to wash the sweat, tears, ash and dirt from her fragile body.

                She opened the drawer in the bathroom and saw the bag. White and powdery. Like Christmas morning. She slammed it shut and bit at her lip. That was too much; cocaine was not something she had done often. It was an upper, and would bring her some life, but she knew the drugs were only going to bring her to hell. Without them, she might be able to break the chains that held her down to this back alley town in Georgia.

                Tears welled up her eyes as the memories of her entire, pitiful life flooded back into her mind. As they began to stream down her cheeks, Alice felt her stomach churning and her body shaking. She hadn’t been messed up her entire life, no, it had started when she met Johnny when she was the young age of fourteen. Fresh into grade ten, the young girl felt as though the small town offered nothing for her, and even if she kept her grades top notch, she would never make it to a university. She could never afford that, and her parents didn’t have the money either. When she met Johnny, he was a few years out of high school. His natural red hair was something you didn’t see much around these parts, and Alice was completely entranced by him.

                Her friend Callie had introduced the two when Alice said she wanted some marijuana to try. She’d gone to parties and had drinks before, but drugs had been off the table until that point. Johnny, it appeared, took a great interest in the young teen as well, and gave her the pot for free, the only catch was that she smoked it with him. She had remembered feeling as if she was jumping through time as the smoke fluttered up into the air, twirling and dancing like a ballet. She remembered looking through the smoke at Johnny, knowing that she was not entirely in her right mind, but craving him.

                It was her that crawled through the thick smoke that clogged the cab of the truck they were in.

It was her who brought her lips down on his. 

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