I'm sorry again, fellow Bethyl lovers, for taking so long to update. As you might be able to tell from the length and simplicity of this chapter, I'm having a great deal of trouble finding enough inspiration to continue this story. This is by no means saying that I'm done! Hell no! But I should warn you not to expect regular updates. The characters and the story itself will tell me when and what to write, as it normally goes with my stories. I hope you can forgive me. And I hope I left enough of a teaser at the end of this to make you stay loyal to this story. :)

So enjoy this chapter! More excitement to come! :)

The sand between her toes was squishy and wet and grainy…She didn't like it at first. She'd never been to the beach before. Lakes, yes, but they were slimy and gross. The ocean was amazing, like a giant swirling ball of water, except it wasn't really a ball- Serenity didn't know what to make of it. She liked the water, but not the sand. It was getting in her swimmy suit! No, she definitely did not like sand.

But the sun was shining and she wasn't locked up in her room doing school work. Serenity could care less about anything else. The sun was always guaranteed to brighten up anyone and lately she felt like her mama could use some cheering up. What might have happened if Mr. Dixon hadn't come along? Serenity shook her head- she didn't want to think about that possibility, not when the sun was out and she was walking hand-in-hand with her mama and Mr. Dixon at the edge of the water, the place where the blue turns to white and it's all foamy.

Serenity smiled. It was a good day in her little world.

"So…I planned lunch. Just a picnic basket but it's all my favorite picnic type food, and I think it's stuff I enjoyed when I was a kid. 'Course that was a long time ago and I'm sure every kid is different…" Daryl handed Beth a neatly folded napkin and some plastic silverware. He was keenly aware he'd been the only one talking for nearly five minutes, rambling actually, but Beth didn't seem to mind. She just smiled, sitting cross-legged on the threadbare checkered blanket he dug out of the closet. She really does have a great smile. Those pictures are going to be even more beautiful in print than on the camera screen.

"You didn't have to. I could've pitched in and made something too."

Daryl shook his head. "Nope. This one's on me, for allowing me to take pictures and all."

Serenity was digging into the potato salad with as much ferocity as a lion cub digging into its first kill. Daryl couldn't help but wonder if the kid had ever seen potato salad before. "You like that, huh kid?"

Serenity, mouth full replied with a solid and enthusiastic "Uh huh!" and continued shoving spoonful after spoonful in her mouth, a continuous motion, it now seemed.

"Serenity Ann, do NOT talk with your mouth full." Beth admonished her daughter, though it was clear, to Daryl at least, that it wasn't out of embarrassment or because of a lack of manners but more out of love. He saw beams of love in Beth's eyes, and he took a moment to think if his own mother had ever loved him that much. Maybe when he was that small…maybe.

"You're a fantastic cook, Mr. Dixon," Serenity said after swallowing the giant mound of smashed potatoes.

"Not as good as your mama, I'm sure." Daryl looked over at Beth who seemed to be blushing. Maybe it was embarrassment? Or happiness? He'd never seen a woman blush so much.

"I'm really not that great, Daryl." Beth politely wiped her mouth with a napkin. Her eyes were glued to his the entire time- Daryl swore he might get lost in them if he looked too long. Is that necessarily a bad thing?

"So…" His attempt at conversation thus far was lacking substance. Rick told him to find out all he could about Beth and her history, because it's pretty obvious she had one given that she was a pretty young woman and a talented mother without a man in her life. "So how'd you get into music?" Great. Fantastic start, Dixon. A real thoughtful question.

"Um…It was just something I always did." Daryl sensed caution in Beth's words. She seemed so trustworthy a minute ago, yet now she closed a portion of herself off, carefully choosing what to tell and what not to tell him. "My mama taught me piano and I just kinda picked up guitar along the way."

"Your mama must have been extraordinary." In his limited experience with women, Daryl still understood that complimenting a woman's parents, especially when they mean a lot to this particular woman, was always a good thing.

Beth smiled a small soft smile. "Yeah, she really was."

Daryl sensed sadness there. He didn't mean to pry, but perhaps getting whatever was hurting her out in the open would be better than continuing to bottle it up inside. At least it'd be a start. "Been a while, hasn't it? Since you've seen them?"

Beth's eyes moved from her focal point on the checkered blanket to stare into his. She gave the smallest of nods and whispered, "Over six years."

Six years? Well that was nothing in Daryl's world. He walked out of small-town Georgia and never looked back, and that was a lifetime ago. His old man beat the shit out of him and Merle, didn't deserve any of his sons' love. But the same could not be said for Beth and her relationship with her parents, he knew.

"Why?" That was his only question. Daryl wanted honesty- He didn't believe he could spend time with a woman who kept secrets. Daryl was much too perceptive to bear that kind of crap.

She took a deep breath, as if willing her mind and body to tell him the truth. "Lots of reasons, Daryl. Perhaps the biggest one is that I was young, and naïve, and willing to fall for whoever paid attention to me. That attitude cost me dearly."

Daryl raised one quizzical eyebrow in her direction. He let this information digest a little bit, not wanting to overwhelm Beth or lead her to believe he was just prying because he could. Sure, he was curious, but Daryl was much more of a gentleman than that.

"That's all in the past. Sometimes, it's better to just move on and forget that stuff and live a little than try and fix it over and over again."

"Are you speaking from past experiences, Daryl?"

His gave half a smile, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah ... but like I said, it's all in the past." Maybe someday soon he'd open up more to Beth. Perhaps it wasn't really fair he expected her to tell him all her secrets and problems while he kept silent. But he couldn't bring himself to say anything, not yet.

Beth's smile wasn't condescending; it was genuine and kind. Inside, his chest was constricting, pushing more blood to his face than he would have liked. But it only made Beth giggle, a sweet chirping kind of sound he actually didn't mind. It reminded him of birds, and she was in fact a songbird, the best kind. Daryl didn't verbally answer her, didn't feel like he needed to. And Beth seemed to get the message, standing and stretching as her shirt rose just slightly to expose pale and porcelain skin, absolutely beautiful.

"Hey munchkin! Let's go build sandcastles closer to the water. Okay?"

Serenity smiled, childish and so innocent of everything. Good. Keep her that way. Daryl understood the pain of growing up all too well. His father was the devil and his brother wasn't a saint either. As he walked down to the water to meet the two most amazing women he'd ever met in his life, Daryl wished more than anything that Serenity might have a better life than he did.

In the parking lot of San Marina Bay, a black SUV was watching, very closely, two blond women splash in the surf, one older but still young and the other no more than a small child. A man this driver knew all too well snuck up behind them and tackled the older one into the wet sand. The little girl was cheering, completely unaware of his presence a few yards away.

The driver took a deep puff off his cigarette and flicked it out the window. He picked up a disposable phone from the passenger seat, preset to dial only one number.

He waited through four rings before hanging up and redialing again, waiting another four rings before the line on the other end was answered.

"Yes?" A throaty, sinister, and commanding voice answered the line.

"It's me," the driver responded. "I found them. They're hiding in L.A. with another man."

"Do you know this man?"

The driver paused a moment, then replied without emotion, "Yeah…He's my brother."