CHAPTER FOURTEEN.
know it's for the better

( tw! suicide & mentions of r@pe )

     VIENNA WINDSOR felt disoriented. Not because she was in a life or death situation, nor was it because she felt responsible for the lives of the people in her care. But because Joel Miller had thrown himself into the line of fire to save them. To save her.

     It made the woman feel sick to her stomach. Each time she heard the violent sound of gunshots in the distance, she found herself flinching. Not enough to alarm the others. But enough to make her aware of how scared she was. Vienna was rarely ever scared. She has lived in a cruel and cutthroat world long enough to diminish even the smallest sprinkle of fear that resided in her bones. At least she was never scared when it came to her own survival. If she died, even if it was a death so violent, she wouldn't be scared for herself because she didn't value her life enough to believe it was something she should've been worried about.

However, when it came to the lives of the people she cared about most, Vienna would find herself trembling in fear, concern and panic flooding her eyes at every twist and turn that put the lives of her loved ones at risk. She felt it when her son was born. There was agonising fear that lingered whenever they were close to danger, whether it was the infected, bandits or his own father, it was a feeling the woman simply couldn't shake. She started to feel that fear with Ellie. At first it was her duty to protect her for the Fireflies. But now Vienna would do it regardless of her task from Marlene. It was like Ellie had become her family in just a short amount of time.

     And then there was Joel. There was a time when Vienna Windsor would've once died for Joel Miller. Then twenty years went by and when they found each other again, they weren't the same people. They had both been battered and bruised by the harrowing conditions of the new world. And Vienna hated the man he had become. If it came down to it he would've left them all in a heartbeat if it meant he would survive. That was the kind of man Joel Miller let himself become. Selfish. Cold. Violent.

     But something changed. He had softened with time. Vienna was starting to see a resemblance of the old Joel. In that moment, when he told Vienna he would throw himself into the line of fire to get to the sniper and take him out, she saw them before the outbreak. The same man who would protect her from her husband. He volunteered to protect them from certain death. So now every time she heard that godforsaken gun echo loudly through the air, she found herself jumping in her own skin, dread washing over her body, scared that Joel got himself killed for them. And that feeling was goddamn terrifying.

She just had to sit and hope he would survive tonight's events. If he didn't, then Vienna wouldn't know what to do with herself.

And when the shooting came to a sudden standstill, leaving a deafening silence weighing heavy in the nighttime air, Vienna Windsor felt her breath hitch in the back of her throat. It became quiet. Too quiet. So quiet that Vienna could hear her own heart beating rapidly, the unsteady rhythm of her heart pulsating harshly against the woman's eardrums. The desolate nature that marked the end of such violence left the others reeling in the aftermath, waiting for some sort of sign that Joel Miller had succeeded in his mission to take out the sniper. However, the weight of the silence never left them, and when they were just starting to believe all hope was lost and Joel Miller had failed, a familiar voice echoed loudly through the air. . .

     "It's alright!" Vienna felt the weight lift off from her chest when she heard Joel's voice, the fear washing away from her when she realised his dangerous plan had worked. "You can come out now!"

Vienna listened to the man's instructions and stood up from behind the old, rusted car along with the others. She stood beside Ezra as she lifted her gaze to see Joel standing in the window of the house from afar. A small smile brushed across her lips, but it was so faint that it wasn't prominent to the naked eye. But her son noticed, and for a moment, it was a glimpse of the woman he used to know. The kind and nurturing kind who did everything in her power to shield him from the evil in the world. And it only took Joel Miller to pull that side of her out into the open again. Ezra knew him and his mother would always have unresolved issues. But it brought him a spark of joy that burrowed deep into his own heart when he realised Joel was slowly bringing back the old Vienna Windsor.

     And it only took a brief moment to steal all that innocence all over again when the sound of a low rumble of an engine echoed from behind them. Vienna turned around to see a large truck heading towards them, the headlights quickly illuminating their surroundings as it violently pushed away the vehicles blocking their path. It caused for her heart to drop into the pit of her stomach, a lump forming in the back of her throat as she began to realise this battle to escape the city ravaged by savages was far from over. And if the sound of Joel telling them to run in the distance wasn't enough to make them move, then the sound of Vienna urgent would. "Go. You kids, run. I'll be right behind you," She instructed sternly.

Henry and Margo took Ellie and Sam and ran away into the opposite direction. However, Ezra didn't leave his mother's side, watching as she took out the rifle hanging over her shoulder and made sure it was loaded with plenty of ammo. "Go with them, Ezra. I'll hold them off before joining you," She ordered again, cocking the gun and raising towards the incoming vehicle. Her words were enough to make Ezra stare at his mother in disbelief, shaking his head in the process.

"And leave you behind?" Ezra questioned, biting down on the inside of his cheek for a moment before he parted his lips to speak once again. "No. Not happening," He answered before he took out his pistol and got ready to point it at the vehicles heading their way. This caused for Vienna to place her hand on the barrel of the gun, pushing the weapon down.

     "Don't get yourself killed for me. Join the others and look out for Ellie," Vienna argued, squaring up to her son, whose tall frame nearly towered over her. The woman then placed her hand firmly on her son's chest and shoved him back. "Now, go!"

     "Not without you!" Ezra snapped back, raising his voice over the engine of the truck approaching them. The desperation in his voice was enough to shake Vienna to her core, forcing the woman to step back, her gaze softening when she saw the pleading look evident in his eyes. "I already lost my dad. I won't lose my mom too. If you stay, I stay," He elaborated, the fear of losing the only family he has left looming over him like a dark shadow, reminding him that he couldn't let go of the one person he still had left.

     And when Vienna realised her son wasn't going to give in, knowing well enough that he inherited her stubbornness, she sighed in defeat and lifted her rifle, aiming the weapon proudly towards the incoming vehicle. Ezra did the same shortly after, raising his pistol before he turned his head and made a moment of eye contact with his mother, the duo nodding at one another before they turned back to the vehicles heading their way. And without giving it another thought, both Vienna and Ezra pulled the triggers on their weapons, firing rapid shots at the truck in hopes of taking out the driver. If they could at least stop the truck, it may slow the others down just long enough to buy them time to escape towards the bridge and to whatever freedom they still had left.

It turned out luck was on their side because it didn't take long for a bullet to come flying out of Ezra's gun, spiralling through the air before it pierced through the windshield of the truck, killing the driver in the process. Ezra let out a shaky breath and lowered his gun, watching as the truck steered off the road before it crashed into one of the houses and the engine caught on fire. Relief soon washed over him when he realised he had helped save the others. But there wasn't enough time to soak it in before he turned to his mom and dragged her behind one of the busted down vehicles when he saw who he believed was Kathleen, leading the way with dozens of men following close behind, weapons in hand.

That was when Vienna and Ezra Windsor realised they were surrounded with little chance of escape. They just hoped the others made it out.

"It's over, Henry," Kathleen's voice bellowed through Margo Burrell's ears like a string of violence, the mere sound of her tone being enough to make the girl's heart drop to the pit of her stomach. There she was, hiding behind a rusted car with broken windshields, holding tightly onto Sam's tiny and dainty hand, hoping and praying that they could still make it out of this alive. They just had to escape Kathleen one last time. But something told Margo, like an itch that she couldn't quite scratch, that this was it. This was the moment she had been dreading from the second Kathleen had began to hunt them down.

Margo turned to her eldest brother, her heart weighing heavy in her chest when she saw the look in his eyes. It was the look of defeat. The girl shook her head at him. But Henry chose to ignore her. "I'll come out. Just let the others go," He called back, and Margo shut her eyes, squeezing them tight, and silently cursing at the universe for letting this happen to them.

"No. Sorry. The others were with the people who killed Brian," Kathleen apologised, but Margo could sense the insincerity laced in her voice. She didn't care. People like her lack remorse and when they lack it, they choose to fake it. "And Sam and Margo...well, they're with you," She deadpanned. Margo knew what the woman was insinuating. She was going to punish Henry by killing her and Sam in front of him first, and after he's watched his siblings be slaughtered right in front of his own two eyes, then she would put him out of his misery.

Margo glanced back at Henry, only to see her brother in a distress. Sacrificing himself would be easy, but sacrificing his siblings would be out of the question. "You don't understand!" He yelled back at the woman, tears forming in the corners of his eyes in the process.

"But I do," Kathleen retorted, pausing for a moment before she parted her lips to speak once again. "I know why you did what you did. But did you ever stop to think that maybe he was suppose to die?" She then asked in a rhetorical manner, not expecting an answer from the Henry, but then something surprised her.

     "He's just a kid, Kathleen. A fucking kid!" Margo snapped, remaining hidden behind the car while she clasped her hand tightly around Sam's hand again. Margo wondered how the woman could be so heartless to assume that Sam should've died, acting as if she wouldn't do the same if it was her brother instead. "How can you be so heartless?" She continued, her voice laced with a mix of venomous hatred.

     Kathleen let out a sigh. "Well, kids die, Margo. They die all the time. You think the whole world revolves around him? That he's worth everything? This is what happens when you fuck with fate," She argued, and truth is, Margo's brothers were her world. The world does revolve around them in her eyes because they're the only family she has left, and she wasn't going to let Henry or Sam go without a fight. A violent one.

     It grew silent for a moment while Henry turned to Margo, the two exchanging a series of looks before the girl shook her head. "No," She managed to choke up, a thick lump lodged in the back of her throat as tears formed in the corners of her eyes. Henry was going to sacrifice himself for them and she had to just let it happen.

     Henry shuffled closer to her so they were mere inches away from each other. Margo's eyes met her eldest brother's, watching as his teary gaze softened. "I'll give her what she wants. I'll distract her just long enough for you to get the kids out of here," He explained, gesturing towards Sam and Ellie who were seated behind Margo. The girl continued to shake her head. She didn't say a word, but her eyes screamed at him to stay. Henry saw this and pressed his hand against the side of the girl's head, leaning forward before he pressed a gentle kiss to the side of her forehead. When he pulled back again, he traced his thumb underneath her eye, wiping away a tear. "Take care of Sam for me," was the last thing he said to her before standing up from behind the car.

Margo felt as if her heart was going to burst out of her chest the moment she witnessed Henry stand up from behind the car. She felt her breathing increase rapidly as she clutched the pistol in her hand with a tight grip. Henry was going to die. That was all Margo could think about. You can't let him die. So she turned to where Sam and Ellie were and let go of Sam's hand before gently placing it into Ellie's. Margo didn't have to say anything. Ellie simply nodded her head in an understanding manner before she laced her fingers with Sam. Margo then glanced at her younger brother, forcing a small smile, a stray tear rolling down her cheek before she signed to him. . . One last time. I love you, Sammy, she told him.

     And without giving it another thought, Margo stood up from behind the car and pointed her gun into Kathleen's direction, her eyes teary as a hardened expression washed over her dark complexion. Kathleen, however, could only stare at the girl amused. "Margo, what is this?" She asked, a ghost of a smile etched at the corners of her lips.

"Margo, what the hell are you doing?" Henry whispered, turning back to face his sister, but the girl ignored him.

     Margo's jaw tightened, hovering her finger over the trigger of her pistol. "You're going to let us go because that's the right thing to do. You can't take him away, Kathleen. You of all people should understand the loss of losing a brother. Why would you want to put someone else through that kind of pain?" Margo persuaded, hoping it would be enough to convince the woman to stand down. "Come on, you know your brother wouldn't want this," She pushed.

     Kathleen was taken aback by the mere mention of her brother, which only seemed to anger her even more. But she didn't dare let her rage become known to the naked eye. "Margo, you forget I know you, and I know you're no killer. You don't have the guts to pull the trigger. Even if you did, how long do you think it would be before my men opened fired on you and your brother? Then what would that achieve?" She questioned.

Margo parted her lips to speak, her hand beginning to shake as she struggled to keep ahold of her gun, but no words came out. However, she wasn't even given a chance to defend herself or her brother before there was an eery creak that erupted in the distance. Margo looked past Kathleen to see the truck that had previously crashed into the house and caught fire was now sinking into the ground. The sight unfolding in front of her eyes was enough to make her frown, a sense of dread flooding her veins when she realised how abnormal it was for a truck to sink further into the ground until there was nothing left of it at all, creating a sinkhole down below.

     And then she felt it — the violent rumble that ratted the ground beneath her feet. The sharp vibrations were enough to make Margo slowly lower her gun, her gaze drifting down to the ground for a moment. Her breath became caught in the back of her throat when she realised what was happening. The infected. They were never truly gone like they had thought. And now that they had disturbed the quiet solitude, Margo Burrell knew it was just a matter of time before they took back the city they once called their own. It made the girl realise they would have much worse to worry about than just Kathleen and her revenge schemes.

     Suddenly, when Margo lifted her gaze to look back at the sinkhole just a few feet away from where she was stood, she felt one last vibration as silence befell the group before her greatest nightmare came true. In just a small matter of seconds, the rumbling stopped and the dead started to rise, one after the other, others toppling onto each other as they proceeded to violently crawl out of the pit beneath them. Margo was taken aback by the sudden shock that coaxed her body into staying still that she didn't even acknowledge the loud gunfire and the chorus of yelling coming from Kathleen and her men. All she remembered was her brother grabbing her hand and dragging her away from the infected heading into their direction before they ran for cover.

On the other side of the crowded street, in the midst of all the chaos was Vienna Windsor, hiding behind a tipped over vehicle with Ezra at her side, both of them looking over at the mayhem that had erupted in just a short space of time. Vienna saw the herd of infected, attacking and feasting on the flesh of the living at every chance they got. She saw armed men firing their weapons before they were ripped apart, one last attempt at saving their own lives before they succumbed to the attack. It was complete and utter carnage. Everywhere she seemed to look, blood was spilled. And in the midst of it all, she knew Ellie and the Burrell siblings were somewhere, their lives in danger.

     So Vienna turned to her son, her gaze meeting Ezra's for a moment before she parted her lips to speak. "We have to move. We need to find the others and get to safety," She instructed, her words causing for Ezra to nod his head in agreement.

     "We should split up," He suggested, and Vienna made an attempt to speak, trying to protest against her son's plan, but Ezra was quick to interrupt. "We'll cover more ground that way. The sooner we get out of this mess, the better, but we can only do that if we split up," He then elaborated further, and although Vienna was hesitant on the plan, she nodded her head and allowed Ezra to stand up before he left her alone behind the car.

     Vienna then lifted the rifle from the ground, holding it close to her chest for a moment. She then inhaled, her entire body starting to tremble as the fear started to pulsate sharply through her bloodstream. Vienna wasn't scared for herself. She was scared for Ezra, for Ellie, for three Burrell siblings, and even for Joel. They had to all make it. They just had to. And so as Vienna exhaled, her breath trickling past her quivering lips, she stood up from behind the car, aiming her gun high before she pulled the trigger repeatedly, shooting clickers left and right, piercing through the growths on their skulls and killing then almost instantly. When she saw that it was clear, she moved ahead in search for any familiar faces amidst the many faces of the dead.

     That was when Vienna turned and found Ellie climbing into a vehicle, trying to escape the large hordes of infected going after her. Vienna threw her rifle over her shoulder, taking out her pistol shortly after before she ran towards the car, shooting any infected that came her way, each one going down after the other. Once Vienna had reached Ellie, the woman could see the girl trying to outrun a clicker from within the car — a little girl dressed in pyjamas with growths sticking out of her skull. This caused for Vienna to jump into action and open up the door to the car, pulling Ellie out of the vehicle and slamming it shut behind them, trapping the infected child inside.

     Vienna then turned to Ellie, looking down at her with concern. "Are you okay?" She asked worriedly. It wasn't like Ellie could get infected, knowing a bite or a scratch wouldn't do damage to the girl. However, in that moment, Vienna allowed her instincts to kick in and protect Ellie, just like how she used to protect her son when he was younger.

     But before Ellie had the chance to respond, she looked past Vienna, her eyes widening in horror when she saw a clicker coming up from behind the woman. "Look out!" She warned Vienna. But before either of them could comprehend what was happening, a gunshot went off from above and when Vienna turned around, she saw the clicker was down screeching and thrashing around on the ground before it became limp.

Vienna let out a shaky breath, the woman lifting her gaze to see where the lucky shot that saved her life came from. Her eyes soon locked with Joel Miller's, who was aiming a sniper down below. He nodded his head, and looked almost relief to see the clicker hadn't torn into her flesh and bone. Vienna shot the man a grateful glance before she nodded back, communicating with just their eyes that he should be their eyes above while they tried to regroup down below in the midst of all the chaos and carnage surrounding them. Vienna then clenched her pistol tightly in her hand, her finger hovering over the trigger, her eyes scanning over her surroundings, but the woman quickly froze when she saw something frightening emerge from the sinkhole.

A creature she thought only existed in scary stories — a bloater.

Vienna listened as the large monster clawed its way out from the pit, its heavy and grumbling growls echoing through the air over the violent sounds of screams and gunfire. She wasn't the only one to notice the monster either because it didn't take Ellie long to curse in fear. "What the fuck is that?" She exclaimed.

"Our cue to leave...come on, let's go!" Vienna ordered in a hurry, placing her hand on Ellie's back and moving her forward through the crowd of infected.

     Margo Burrell didn't know what to expect when she saw the bloater, but it was enough to force Henry to pull both her and Sam away from the terror in the distance. But when the siblings were left cut off from any chance of escape, Henry pushed them down and told them to get underneath the car. He followed after them, but it wasn't enough to get them away safely. Margo kicked her feet at clickers who grabbed and latched at her feet and ankles, screaming in fear whenever they got too close, or when she felt their bony fingers touch her body. And when she looked at her brothers, she saw that they were struggling to get the monsters away too. Margo couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe they had gotten this far, only to die at the hands of the vicious infected creatures in the end.

And after Margo was starting to believe all hope was lost. She heard a series of gunshots and all at once, one after the other, the infected clawing at her legs were gunned down. When she lifted her gaze to see who her and her brother's saviour was, she was surprised to see Ezra Windsor, gun in hand, towering over them, breathing heavily. "Any of you bitten?" He asked, raising his voice so he could be heard.

"We're all good, man," Henry reassured, standing back up before he helped Sam back onto his feet. "We should get out of here," he quickly added, just as Ezra held out his hand for Margo to take, helping the girl back onto her feet soon afterwards.

Ezra nodded his head in agreement before the group took off towards the clearing where Joel had previously gone to take out the sniper from before. Once they got there, only just managing to escape the carnage alive and unscathed, that was when they saw Vienna and Ellie, and Joel, alive and just about ready to leave for good. However, a voice quickly stopped them. "Stop!" Margo turned around to see Kathleen now standing in front of them, gun in hand as she aimed it at Henry's head.

But, suddenly, out of nowhere, a little girl with growths sticking out of her skull leaped on top of the woman and attacked her, clawing into her flesh and muscle until she was unrecognisable, her pain riddled screams ringing through the air. But instead of gawking and watching as the woman slowly died a painful death, the group took that as the time to run for their lives, leaving Kansas City and all of its horrors behind for good.

━━━━━━━━

Shortly after escaping the city alive and unscathed, Vienna had suggested the group hold up somewhere for the night to rest up before sunrise the next morning. A simple gesture that everyone quickly agreed to. They later found an old abandoned motel far out of the city, so no infected would follow them and they could sleep peacefully for at least one night. Maybe for the first time in a long time. So Vienna rested against some old wooden drawers, finishing off the last of her rations for the night while she watched Ellie and Sam from afar, watching as they joked around and conversed with one another in the next room. She wasn't the only one either. It seemed the kids had caught the attention of the small group of adults.

      It was enough to bring a small smile to Vienna's lips. And it warmed her heart a little more when she saw Margo stand up and join them, conversing with Ellie and signing with her hand to her little brother. When Vienna saw that sweet smile break out across Margo's face, she knew the girl was going to be okay. After what Margo had confided in Vienna about earlier that same day, she was worried the young teenage girl would never move past the horrors she endured under the crushing thumb of FEDRA. But now they were all out of the city, safe and sound, Vienna was starting to believe this could be a fresh start for Margo. The woman hoped this new start would be the beginning of the girl's healing process. From what Vienna had witnessed, Margo Burrell was a survivor. She was strong enough to beat this. At least she could with her brothers still by her side.

     "You think they'll be okay?" Henry asked, his voice snapping Vienna out of her thoughts. The woman glanced over at him to see the man staring worriedly towards his younger siblings. It reminded Vienna that Henry still didn't know about Margo's assault, and she couldn't help but wonder if she would ever tell her brother what had happened to her. If not, Vienna was okay with being the person Margo could lean on in the future.

     Vienna looked back at the kids, specifically the two youngest Burrell siblings with her gaze softening. "They'll be fine. Kids handle all of this better than us anyways..." She paused for a moment before she turned her attention back to Henry, who was staring at her. "Margo and Sam will be fine. You got them out of that city safe and sound. You'll a good brother, Henry. They'll always remember that," Vienna then reassured him, in which Henry offered a grateful smile in return for her compassionate words.

"Hey..." Ezra piped up, a curious look burning in his eyes as he turned around to face the other, his brows knitting together in the process. "That comic book they were reading earlier, what does the hero always say...endure and survive?" He asked, a hint of amusement evident in his voice as he took a seat next to Vienna.

Henry snickered quietly as he nodded his head in response. "That shits redundant," He commented.

"Yeah, it's not great," Joel added, agreeing with the others and Vienna let out a quiet chuckle as she looked over at Joel, his amused gaze meeting her own for a moment, and for whatever reason, their glances seemed to linger on the other for a little longer than either intended, both smiling at one another. It almost felt like old times, before the world was ravaged by an uncontrollable and violent epidemic.

     However, when Vienna came to her senses, she quickly turned her attention elsewhere, ignoring the tingling feeling in the pit of her stomach before she glanced back at Henry, a thought crossing her mind. "Hey, you guys should come with us. We're looking for Joel's brother, Tommy, who lives out west. It's still going to be a long journey, but once we get there, I'm sure there's a place for you, Margo, and Sam," Vienna offered, believing that if Tommy was in a small settlement somewhere, then there should be room for three more people — ones who are looking to start over.

Henry grew quiet for a moment, looking down at his hands before his gaze met Vienna's once again. "Thank you, Vienna. I think we would all like that...but if anything happens to me, promise me you'll look out for Margo and Sam," Henry spoke up. He wasn't asking either. It was a request. Their survival was tested everyday and Henry needed to know his family would be taken care of if he somehow didn't make it to the settlement with the rest of them. The part that surprised Vienna most of all was that he wasn't saying this to all of them, he was speaking directly to her and only her.

So Vienna nodded her head, a small half smile tugging at the corner of her lips before she parted them to speak again. "You have my word. I promise," She replied with the kind of response Henry desperately needed to hear on that very moment. And just like that, they had gained three more travel companions.

Vienna then turned her head back around and watched as Margo embraced her younger brother, holding his smaller form close to her own for a moment before she pulled away. The young girl then offered Sam a kind smile before she stood up and walked back into the next room where the rest of them were. Margo looked around until her lingering gaze found her older brother, a sheepish smile washing over her face as she stuffed her hands deep into the pockets of her jacket. "Hey...could we go and talk outside for a moment?" Margo asked Henry, who peered back at his sister with a puzzled expression plastered across his face. But he still stood up and followed Margo outside the motel reluctantly.

     When Margo knew her and Henry were alone, she looked out over the metal railing, looking up at the night sky as a heavy breath found its way past her quivering lips. Her shaky hands then clutched the metal railing with endless fear and anxiety coursing through her bloodstream. She had decided to take Vienna's advice and tell her brother about the worst thing that happened to her — the day she was rendered powerless in that FEDRA officer's office. Margo believed she could leave Kansas City and all of its horrors behind in her past after they had successfully escaped. But Margo realised she would never be free until she admitted it to the one person who she had wanted to tell since the moment the harrowing event occurred.

     "Vienna and the others agreed that we should go with them. Joel's brother has some sort of small settlement and thinks we could start fresh there. That's good, right?" Henry's voice filled the void of the everlasting silence. Margo smiled slightly at the news, but her brother could see she was still holding onto some dark secrets — secrets he knows she's been hiding for a while now, but never wanted to force the truth out of her. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked sincerely, sounding concerned for Margo as he gently placed his hand on her shoulder, turning her slightly so she was now facing him. She was on the brink of tears.

Margo bit down on the inside of her cheek, swallowing thickly. It felt like someone was stuffing barbed wire down her throat and choking her from the inside out. It was an excruciating feeling. "Do you remember a couple of years ago when FEDRA arrested you for stealing food for Sam and I?" She reminded him, her voice beginning to shake in the process.

     Henry nodded his head, removing his hand from Margo's shoulder before he left out a quiet scoff. "Uh, yeah. It's pretty hard to forget considering the fuckers told me I was going to be executed the next morning, which didn't even happen because they sent me home. Why?" He replied, sounding confused about why Margo would bring something that happened years ago up again.

     "Yeah...did you ever wonder why FEDRA just let you go suddenly?" Margo questioned in a rhetorical manner. Henry remained silent, allowing his sister to continue speaking. Margo then inhaled sharply, ignoring the feeling of her heart pounding against her chest before she parted her lips. "When I found out you were arrested, I was terrified of losing you and being left alone to take care of Sam. You do the whole taking care of us thing so well. I didn't have a clue on what to do without you. So I went to our sectors commanding officer, stood there in his office and begged him to let you go. It was just a stupid mistake and it would never happen again. That's what I told him. He then told me He could let you go and brush it under the rug like it never even happened, but he said a favour that big required a big payment in return..."

Henry listened to his sister's words carefully, watching as she started to shuffle uncomfortably where she stood, and the way the tears started to fall down her cheeks. It made his stomach turn and twist into knots as he already started to fear the worst. Margo wiped away her warm tears with the sleeve of her jacket, sniffling quietly. "I didn't want that so I tried to leave — I tried fighting him off, but there was nothing I could do. And he... he raped me," She admitted, her voice cracking in the process.

     Once Henry had heard those dreaded words leave his sister's lips, he let out a deep sigh and lowered his head, closing his eyes shut as he tried to comprehend what Margo had just told him. His whole life had been about protecting his brother and sister. After the siblings lost their parents, Henry vowed to protect them from every cruel aspect of their harrowing lives. It was his duty as the eldest of the Burrell siblings, and now knowing Margo was forced to sacrifice her innocence in order to save him from a public and brutal execution, it made him feel like a failure. More than that. . . Henry Burrell felt as if he had let Margo down by not being there at a time when she needed him to protect her most of all.

     "Then you came home and I thought maybe some good can still come of this. So when you sold out Kathleen's brother and put that target on our backs, I was angry, but only because I didn't want my loss to mean nothing," Margo elaborated further, trying to hold back the sobs crawling their way up her throat.

      Henry lifted his gaze to meet Margo's eyes once again. "Margo, why didn't you tell me this sooner?" He asked her, his fractured voice barely above a whisper.

      "Are you kidding?" Margo scoffed, shaking her head. "Your whole life after we lost mom and dad was us — me and Sam — taking care of us. I knew that if I told you I was raped by a FEDRA officer, you would've killed him with your bare hands. You're not a violent person, Henry. But you would've turned into one if you knew the truth. I'm sorry," Margo explained, turning away from her brother soon after she had spoken.

     "Why are you apologising to me?" Henry questioned, sounding shocked by Margo's apology when she never owed him one to begin with. "You don't need to say sorry to me. Margo, I should be the one apologising to you," Henry then paused for a moment before he grabbed Margo's hands with his own, holding onto her tightly as their eyes met. "Margo, I'm sorry I didn't notice something was going on. I'm sorry I didn't realise how much pain you were in. And I'm sorry for almost getting us killed because of my choices. But I promise you that from now on, things will be different. I'll be here to look out for you when things are tough, and I promise to never leave you alone. It's you, me, and Sam...always. No one is going to tear us apart again."

     Margo managed to crack a smile when she heard Henry's long string of promises, his voice laced with sincerity. Without saying another word, she pulled her big brother into her embrace and held him close. It was a quick and sudden gesture, but one Henry quickly reciprocated in response, burying his face into his sister's curls while Margo cried on his shoulder, soft and muffled cries leaving her quivering lips. Henry comforting his sister, running his hand down the back of her head while he continued to reassure her things would be different from now on, that they would be okay.

     And for once in her life, Margo was starting to believe it. What she didn't think was possible was the possibility of losing her family for good. Little did she know, her fears would soon become her reality.

     Come morning light, Margo stirred quietly in the midst of her groggy slumber, slowly waking herself up to the morning sun peaking through the windows. She laid comfortably beside her older brother, using her old jacket as a pillow while she wrapped her arms securely around herself for the closest thing to warmth. For the first time in a long time, Margo had been gifted the best nights sleep the girl could've possibly asked for. She hadn't been forcing herself to keep her eyes open in case Kathleen and her men found her. She didn't even think to hold her gun or knife close to her. She placed them where she couldn't reach the items because Margo wasn't afraid of loss, death, or any form of danger threatening to hunt her down. Margo couldn't believe she was finally at peace with herself and her past.

      Margo felt as if a massive weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She woke up floating like a feather, like there was nothing to be afraid of this time around. It was a strange feeling of tranquility that surrounded her and the others in the room. Margo let out a quiet yawn and stretched out her arms before she sat up straighter, looking around to see Ezra sleeping peacefully in the corner behind her, and Vienna and Joel, who seemed to be lying incredibly close to one another. Margo smiled at the sleeping pair before she let out a sigh of relief, thinking she should get up and check on Sam and Ellie in the next room, and make sure they were both okay before possibly making breakfast for the others. They had limited rations between them, but Margo was feeling optimistic that she could scrounge up a decent first meal before they set out on their next journey. She knew they would all need it after the night they had.

However, before Margo even had a chance to move, she heard a loud and concerning thud from the next room where Sam and Ellie were. This forced the young girl to furrow her brows together in confusion, and when she saw Vienna lift her head up, looking towards the door with worry of her own, that was when Margo started to fear the worst.

And then Margo heard Ellie's frightened screams. Within seconds, Ellie came charging out of the other room, falling to the ground screaming in fear and dread. But that wasn't what scared Margo. What left the young teenage girl in a state of shock was when she saw Sam — her little brother — chase Ellie into the room, growling and clawing at the girl as he crawled on top of her, snapping his jaws as he tried to get a bite of her warm flesh. The loud and panicking commotion was enough to force the others to wake up and quickly jump into action. Joel made an attempt to grab a gun, but Henry was twice as fast and pointed the gun towards Joel and Vienna, all while Margo kicked herself further away, her back hitting the wall behind her with a hard thud, forcing Ezra to crouch down beside her, like he was trying to shield her from what was going on in the room.

Margo watched with horror in her eyes, tears forming in the corners of her gaze while Sam clawed and growled at Ellie like some feral beast. She saw the foamy drool splutter out of his mouth, and caught glimpses of his bloodshot eyes, vein-like bumps eroding from beneath his skin. She was frozen in fear and disbelief, paralysed and rendered helpless. She knew she should stand up and help Ellie, but all she could think about was Sam, watching as he turned into one of the monsters he had feared since the beginning. The monsters Margo and Henry had done their best to protect him from. She listened to the strangled growls that clawed their way out of his throat, tearing through his vocal chords while he fought tooth and nail to tear into Ellie's neck.

     That was when Margo realised her brother was infected — they were now left with only one option.

     First Margo heard the begging trickle past Vienna lips, her main focus being to protect Ellie first and foremost. Then the girl heard Ezra telling her to look away from the horror unfolding in front of her glassy eyes. And then she heard the gunshot, the violent sound ricocheting off the four walls of the motel room. When Margo heard the gargling sounds followed by deafening silence, she snapped herself back to reality to see Ellie was safe and her screams had come to an end. But when she peered past the girl, she saw Sam — her brother — lying lifeless beside Ellie, who looked down at his body speechless. And When Margo realised what had happened, her eyes darting between Sam's body and the smoking gun in Henry's trembling hand, she put two and two together. Not only did Henry shoot Sam to save Ellie, but now her little brother was truly dead — gone forever.

     "No, no, no..." Margo whispered, her voice starting to shake as she pushed herself back up onto her feet, and despite both Ezra and Vienna telling her not to look, Margo found herself making her way closer towards Sam.

When the girl reached her brother, she choked up a strangled sob that had been suppressed in her throat for far too long before she collapsed next to Sam, her finger carefully touching the gunshot wound in the side of his skull, her hand becoming coating in fresh blood in just a matter of seconds — Her brother's blood. "Sam..." Margo cried as she pulled his limp and lifeless body into her arms, beginning to cry uncontrollably as she held him close to her chest. She had blindly hoped for some sort of proof that he was still alive. She begged to hear him breathe close to her ear, or feel the thumping of his beating heart. She silently prayed that Sam was okay and this was just some sort of twisted nightmare — that she would wake up all over again and they would all be safe and sound.

But when Margo heard and felt nothing other than the weight of her brother's corpse in her arms, she rested her forehead gently against her brother's, starting to realise Sam was dead. He was dead and she couldn't do anything to reverse the damage that had been done the night before.

"What did I do?" Margo heard the quiet and heartbreaking cries come from her other brother from behind her. Margo blinked away the tears in her eyes and gently placed Sam's body back down on the ground before she turned around to see Henry was pointing the gun at Joel, his eyes drifting to where Margo was kneeling beside the dead body of their little brother. "What did I...What did I do? Sam?" Tears were beginning to flood his dark eyes, his delirious state of shock taking over every fibre of his being.

     Margo listened as Vienna did her best to talk Henry into giving her the gun, watching as he ignored her, his eyes focused primarily on Margo with an apologetic look burning in his eyes. Margo didn't quite understand what it meant at first, but when she saw Henry's gaze shift to the gun clasped in his trembling hand for a split moment before turning his attention back to her. That was when it clicked for the girl as she started to shaky her head. "Henry, don't," She begged, her voice hoarse and strained from her crying. She couldn't lose both of her brothers. She just couldn't.

     However, her pleas weren't enough to stop Henry from moving the gun closer towards his skull. "I'm sorry—" That was it. That was the last thing Henry Burrell said to his sister before he pulled the trigger, a loud and agonising gunshot echoing through the air before Henry dropped dead in the middle of the room, a loud thump bouncing off the walls, followed by a heart wrenching scream that fell past Margo's lips.

Margo let out a shaky breath, warm tears rolling down her cheeks before she crawled her way towards Henry's body, peering into his lifeless eyes just as she clenched the collar of his jacket. "No, you don't get to do this to me," She whispered, shaking him as she started to sob, a agonising throbbing pain pulsating sharply through her chest. "You promised!" She exclaimed. Margo then felt a gentle hand fall upon her shoulder. She could see it was Vienna from the corner of her teary eyes. "You promised things were going to be different. You promised you were going to be here for me!" Margo continued to cry helplessly and she clung to her brother's corpse.

"Margo, sweetie, I'm so sorry," Margo heard Vienna say from behind her. The older woman then did everything in her power to gently pry Margo away from Henry's body, but she was no match to the grief-stricken girl.

"Please..." Margo sobbed uncontrollably, resting her head against Henry's chest, her cries tearing through her vocal cords as her screams of pain bellowed throughout the motel room. "Please, don't leave me. I can't do this without you. Please..."

And as the grief stripped the innocence from her bones all over again and clawed its way into her chest cavity, Margo realised, without her brothers, she was completely and utterly alone in this world.

━━━━━━━━

authors note.
Me: doesn't update this book for nearly a year
Also me: comes back with the most painful chapter imaginable 😁
BUT this book is back and better than ever, I'm so sorry for kinda abandoning it, I honestly just didn't want to write Sam and Henry's deaths and I think I just kept putting it off by writing my other stories instead so that's my bad, but I've honestly missed writing for this book so much so I'll hopefully start writing more frequently again especially with the ending of act one right around the corner!!

Until then I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I'll update again soon!!