CHAPTER TWELVE.
you're a bandit like me

EZRA WINDSOR was left frozen where he laid, his arm stretched out towards his knife resting beside him while the barrel of a gun pressed hard against his skull, the cool metal sending chills up and down his spinal cord. His breath hitched in the back of his throat when he heard her threaten his life — her. The person towering over him, his life remaining in their hands was nothing more than a young girl. If his father could see him now, he would laugh at his son for letting a girl overpower him when he was most vulnerable, now leaving him tilting on the tightrope between life and death. And now Ezra Windsor knew he had two choices; the safe choice and the risky one.

     He could take the risk and grab the knife beside him, stab the girl in the leg, and hope Joel, his mom and Ellie would follow his lead and take out the other two, or at least subdue them all to give them enough time to escape into the city fulled by chaos all over again. Maybe he would get a few bruises or a bullet graze to the shoulder. It was a risk he could take if it meant they all got out alive. However, if anything went wrong then they could all end up dead before the sun came up. So in that moment, Ezra chose the safe option. He raised his hands to show the girl he meant no harm before he turned around, coming face to face with the stranger who threatened his life.

     Ezra didn't quite know what he was expecting when his eyes met her own. But the girl standing in front of him, her jaw clenched with a stern look plastered across her face as she shoved a gun in his face, well, she wasn't what he was expecting at all. He noticed the way her dark eyes narrowed its sights down to his general direction, the way her dark complexion basked in the moonlit night, and the way her dark curls fell over her shoulders. Ezra then continued to stare into the girl's eyes. He could tell by a single exchange of looks that she was just as broken as he was. It made him wonder what must have happened to her in her lifetime, and what brought her to him on this dark night.

     "You don't have to worry about what to say." Ezra's attention suddenly drifted away from the girl towering over him to where the unfamiliar voice had come from. The boy turned his head to the side to see the eldest of the trio was speaking. He must be the one taking charge of things. "We don't wanna hurt you. We wanna help you." He then reassured them, his words of affirmation causing for Ezra to let out a loud scoff.

     "Holding guns to our heads is helping?" Ezra questioned in a rhetorical manner, his voice dripping in a thick layer of sarcasm in the process.

Ezra looked back at the girl pointing a gun in his face, his eyes narrowing into a sharp and hateful glare towards her. The girl didn't hesitate to respond to his stare with a glare of her own, her dark eyes burning with a kind of determination that Ezra has never seen before now. It was as if she was desperate. Ezra didn't know the exact reason why, but the look in her eyes left him more curious than ever. He couldn't help but wonder why the trio were desperate and afraid when they were the ones with the upper hand in this current moment and time. It didn't make any sense at all. He just hoped someone would explain sooner rather than later.

     "I don't know what the next step is with something like this, but if I lower my gun, we didn't hurt you, so you don't hurt us, right?" The eldest asked, sounding almost uncertain, his shaky voice bellowing off the walls of the small room they found themselves enclosed inside of. Ezra could tell they weren't the killing kind at all, unlike the monsters lurking around the streets of Kansas City.

     "That's right." Joel was the first to speak up, his voice low and intimidating.

     Nothing was said at first. The man pointing his gun between Ezra's mother and Ellie shuffled uncomfortably where he stood, his worried eyes darting over towards where Joel was, his voice shaking as he spoke, "That's a weird fucking tone, man."

     "That's just the way he sounds. He has an asshole voice." Ellie piped up, reassuring them while she had her hands raised to show she was no threat to them. The young girl then turned back to Joel, shooting him a look. "Joel, tell him he's okay." She encouraged, sounding hopeful.

     "Everything is great." Joel replied, his voice sounding exactly like how it was before. Ezra cursed underneath his breath, knowing the older man was not helping their situation by any means.

"Dude..." Ellie sighs, shaking her head in the process.

Ezra made an attempt to speak up, but his mom was quick to beat him to it. "Look, if you just lower the guns, we won't attack, and then we'll sit down and talk about what you guys want from us. The last thing we want to do is kill anyone, and I'm sure that's the case for you kids." Vienna reassured, her gaze flickering between each of them before she stared at the girl holding the gun to her son's head, nodding as they continued to exchange a series of looks.

The girl swallowed thickly and turned to the eldest of them, the pair looking at each other before she turned back to face the youngest standing on the other side of her. She then raised her free hand and moved it around, almost like she was communicating with him. Ezra quickly realised the youngest must be deaf and she was communicating to him through sign language. Ezra read about it in a book once. But to see a deaf kid surviving in the apocalypse, well, it was unheard of, that's for sure. The boy communicated back in which the girl responded with a nod. Then slowly, they all lowered their guns and allowed them to rest comfortably without the fear of being shot down.

     "We're sorry about that. We just needed to know you guys wouldn't kill us first." The girl spoke up once again, shoving the gun back into her holster before she sighed. "My name's Margo. These are my brothers, Henry and Sam." She introduced herself and her brothers. Ezra looked between them for a moment before focusing his attention back on the girl in front of him when she parted her lips to speak again. "And we're the most wanted fugitives in Kansas City. But after the stunt you guys pulled today, well, we reckon you guys are coming in at a close second."

Later on that night Ezra Windsor found himself sitting between Ellie and his mom, biting down on some food, crunching it in between his teeth while he stared at the siblings sitting across from him. Ezra didn't expect many things to come out of this night, but if there was one thing he didn't expect, it was sitting around an old light illuminating the space around them, sharing his rations with complete strangers. It shocked him even more when he saw someone as closed off as Joel Miller was sharing his rations with the little kid with orange paint smeared across his face.

The boy signed back to his siblings before the eldest, who Ezra learned was called Henry turned back to face them, a small smile etched at the corners of his lips. "He says thank you." He informs.

Ezra nodded his head, chewing on the last of the food in front of him before he scrunched up the old tinfoil and dusted off his hands. That was when he heard his mom's familiar voice from beside him. "How old is he?" Vienna asked.

Margo smiled back at the woman. "He's eight." She confirmed.

"Cool." Ellie nodded, a mouth full of food. Once she had swallowed the contents in her mouth, she parted her lips to speak once again. "I'm Ellie." She introduced herself.

"And I'm Vienna. That's my son, Ezra..." Vienna piped up again, gesturing towards herself and the teenage boy sitting beside her. The woman then turned to look over at Joel who was completely ignoring the conversation erupting in the dimly lit room, like he was in his own little world. This caused for Vienna to nudge the man.

Joel glanced back at Vienna for a short moment, forcing Vienna to shoot him a look before he sighed in annoyance and turned to the siblings sat across from him. "I'm Joel, look, you ate, we didn't kill each other, let's call this a win-win and move on." He concluded, hoping it would be enough to make the three complete strangers leave them alone once and for all.

"Well, we can't do that." Margo retorted, shaking her head.

"Why the hell not?" Ezra replied, his brows furrowing in confusion.

"Well, because we're betting, you came up here to get a view of the city and plan a way out." Henry interjected. "And when the sun's up, we'll show you one."

Ezra Windsor was weary of his words at first, not knowing if he should trust them or not. It could be a trap, or maybe it wasn't and he was just being paranoid. Living in a messed up world like this one was more than enough of a reason to remain paranoid and uncertain. However, regardless of his doubts and what they were telling him, Ezra and the others were trapped in a lion's den, and if three strangers were the key to their escape from a horde of hungry savages, then by sunrise, he was willing to hear them out.

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By sunrise, Ezra Windsor was sitting on the floor of an open room, the morning sun piercing through the glass and into the room where their small group were scattered. Ellie, along with Margo and Sam were sitting at the long table while his mom, Joel, and Henry were looking out over the dead city below them. Ezra remained on his own, holding his knife in his hands, lightly poking the sharp tip of the weapon into his pointer finger. Not enough to cut into his flesh and spill blood. But enough to make him wince every now and then whilst he continued to concentrate on the serrated edge reflecting his face back to him, revealing the dirt that covered his face and the many old cuts that scarred over into thin white lines imbedded into his skin.

Ezra didn't sleep much after he was awoken suddenly by the three siblings searching for a way out of the city. He may have been paranoid, but he didn't fully trust the two eldest of the three siblings. A part of him believed they were hiding a lot more than just being wanted fugitives, believing there had to be a reason why there were dozens of search parties scattered all over the city in hopes of finding them. He was once again scared to fall asleep, worried he would wake up and they would rob them, or kill them for everything they got if they chose to put up a fight. Either way wouldn't have a good outcome, and could result in the people he cared about getting hurt, and Ezra was sick and tired of losing the people he cared about most.

Yet again, they could've killed them earlier when they were left unharmed and caught off guard, but didn't. So maybe, just maybe, Ezra had nothing to worry about this time around. At least that's what he hoped. And if these people could help them get out of the city safe and without any trouble from the crowds of people hunting them down like they were wild animals, then Ezra Windsor knew he had to be willing to trust them. He had to put his life into their hands and hope they would guide him and the others to safety, far away from the city. But it didn't mean he liked their company by any means. If he had a choice and knew the city well enough himself that he could find a way out, then he would gladly take his people and run into the opposite direction.

Suddenly, the girl — Margo was her name if Ezra remembered correctly — came walking over to him, a sheepish smile ghosting across her lips before she took a seat on the ground next to him. Ezra did his best to ignore her presence next to him. He saw her as nothing more than his key to getting out of the city. Nothing more, nothing less. The last thing he wanted was to engage in a conversation about their lives and bond. He didn't need that. He didn't want it. But the longer Margo remained next to him, sitting in silence whilst she occasionally glanced over into his direction, the more difficult it became to ignore her.

So, in the end, Ezra Windsor let out a loud sigh and dropped the knife down to his side, turning his attention to the girl, their eyes meeting. "What?" He questioned bluntly. But his cold tone was met with bubbly optimism and shimmering wit.

     "Wow..." Margo nodded, her smile never faltering, not even for a second. "Do you speak to everyone like there's a stick shoved up your ass?" She inquired, amusement laced in her voice. Ezra couldn't believe it. She was finding all of this funny, like their situation was one big joke. He didn't understand how someone could be so happy when they were all being hunted.

Ezra then let out a sarcastic chuckle, looking down at his hands for a moment before he turned his attention back to the girl. "Just to the ones who hold a gun to my head." He answered, and the longer Margo stared into his eyes, she quickly noticed the glimmer of resentment and burning hate that only seemed to shine bright when he stared into her direction. It didn't take a genius to realise he didn't like her one bit.

And the truth is that Margo couldn't blame him. She did hold a gun to his head while he slept peacefully and threatened to blow his brains out in front of his people. She wouldn't have done it. Her gun was empty, and it wasn't even in her nature to take a life unless they attacked her first. She didn't even go into that building with an intent to kill or hurt anyone. But Ezra didn't know that. In his eyes she was just the girl who threatened his safety and the safety of the people he cared about. However, the girl knew that if they were going to work together to escape the city safe and sound, then they had no choice but to make sure they were on the same page.

"First of all, my gun was empty, and I didn't even intend to kill you." Margo argued, her choice of words causing for Ezra to let out an agitated scoff.

"Then why hold a gun to my head?" He countered, raising a brow in the process.

Margo frowned at the boy in response, shaking her head. "Uh, I don't know. Maybe because we didn't know you guys and by holding guns to your heads we had the upper hand so you wouldn't think to attack us." The girl elaborated. Ezra simply shook his head, a smile of disbelief breaking out across his face. Margo raised a brow, scoffing, "Would you have done it any different?" She asked.

     "Probably not..." Ezra admitted, shrugging his shoulders in the process. "But just a reminder...if you're looking to make friends, don't threaten to blow their brains out first."

Margo nodded, pursing her lips into a thin line for a moment before she clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "Well, it's a good thing I'm not here to make friends. Like it or not, we have a similar agenda; getting the hell out of the city alive. So stop sitting here and sulking like a child and do something worth while. Then we can go our separate ways, got it?" She explained, a venomous tone dripping from her mouth.

Ezra didn't even get the chance to respond to the girl because shortly after Margo had spoken, she pushed herself back up onto her feet and walked towards the long table in the centre of the room. The girl then stood beside her older brother, Henry. When Ezra saw his mom, Joel and Ellie join them, the boy slowly stood back up and joined them to see Henry was drawing out a makeshift map for them to follow as he began to explain the plan to them. Ezra just hoped that whatever this plan was, it wouldn't be one so reckless that it would get them all killed. The Burrell siblings might be willing to take that risk. But he definitely wasn't.

"Highways, downtown. Us." Henry begins to point at different areas labelled on the makeshift map lying across the table. "This whole area belongs to Kathleen."

"She's in charge?" Ellie asked, standing beside Ezra.

     Henry nodded in response, his eyes meeting the younger girl's. "She's the leader of the resistance." He confirmed, his choice of words earning a quiet sigh from his sister in response.

     "That's code for, she's batshit crazy." Margo piped up. She appeared almost proud of her comment, the bold expression on her face being enough to make Ezra roll his eyes in response to the girl's remark before he allowed for Henry to continue his explanation.

     "You can see the way we're bounded by highways. They got people posted all around the inside perimeter. If we get close, we get caught. No question." Henry paused for a moment, inhaling sharply as he began to look around at the others. "So how do we get across?" He asked in a rhetorical manner.

     "The tunnels." Margo answered, earning a nod from her brother and a click of his fingers.

     "Since when did Kansas City have subways?" Ezra lifted his gaze to glance over towards his mother who stood tall, her arms folded over her chest with a puzzled look plastered across her face. She was listening intently and carefully. Ezra's only guess was that his mom was ready to trust them if it meant escaping the city unscathed. And despite their fractured relationship, Ezra trusted his mother, which gave him another reason to trust their new allies.

     "Not exactly..." Margo trailed off, catching Ezra's attention once again. "But they do have maintenance tunnels. There's a ton of buildings that were put up by the same developers. So if we go through the tunnels from here..." She points at a place on the makeshift map, brushing her finger across the tarnished piece of paper until it reached another point. "And come out through here, we should land in a residential area. It's completely cut off. Kathleen won't find us there."

     "Then we go along here and over the bridge." Henry adds, clapping his hands together, a proud smile breaking out across his lips. "Free as a bird."

     It was silent for a moment while Ezra continued to stare down at the makeshift map and then back towards Margo and Henry. The boy then let out a shaky breath, nodding, "I have to admit...it's a good plan. But I don't get where we come into this." He countered.

     "You guys noticed anything strange about this city?" Henry questioned.

     Ellie soon straightened her back, realisation washing over her. "No Infected."

     Margo let out a scoff, amusement twinkling in her eyes. "Oh, there's Infected in the city, that's for sure. FEDRA drove them underground around fifteen years ago. It seems to be the only good thing those monsters did." She retorted, looking down in shame, like she had experienced their FEDRA's cruelty first hand once or twice in her lifetime. No one else noticed, but Ezra did. "But everyone thinks it's full of Infected. No one will follow us down there." She added, sounding almost certain.

     "But we know it's empty." Henry nods.

     "So you've been down there?" Joel spoke up, raising a brow suspiciously.

     "No, but the FEDRA guy that I worked with told me it's clean, completely clean. Maybe one or two at most." Henry admitted.

     "What if there's more?" Joel asked, sounding agitated when began to learn more about the very risky plan.

     Ellie nods, "Like the blind ones that can see like a bat."

The girl's words were enough to stun both Margo and Henry, the pair staring back at them in surprise and astonishment, like they were impressed. "Wait. You've ran into a Clicker? And you're still alive?" He inquired curiously.

Margo chuckled, placing her hands on her hips. "Holy shit. We might actually be able to do this." She chimed excitedly,

Ezra looked down at the ground for a moment, inhaling sharply before he swallowed thickly. "I'm starting to think this is a terrible plan." He muttered quietly underneath his breath, but loud enough for the others to hear.

"No. It's our dicey-as-fuck plan. But it's our only shot." Henry corrected. Then, all of a sudden, Ezra turned to his right to see the youngest of the siblings, Sam, staring back at them, communicating with his hands. Henry smiled, lifting his hands to sign back to his brother, his lips parting to speak in the process. "They're saying they're gonna help us escape."

Sam smiled in response, and Ezra sighed once again, turning away from the others with frustration pulsating sharply through his bloodstream. Then he reminded himself that he wasn't here to make friends. He just wanted to get the hell out of Kansas City and back on the road as soon as possible. And that meant putting his faith into a plan that may or may not even work. And that's exactly what Ezra Windsor decided to do.

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authors note.
This chapter is soooo short compared to what I normally write but I wanted to get these characters introduced to each other and get Ezra and Margo interacting, but the next couple of chapters are going to have so much going on emotionally when we learn more about Margo's time in the QZ...so grab your tissues 👀🥺

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