Edith turned behind her to see if she was being chased, Tina was nowhere to be seen, but Francis was further up the street and could smell her blood. He broke into a clumsy jog as he tried to catch her. Behind him, a woman half naked but covered in blood followed. She passed the village store, and the inhabitants looked out in horror at seeing her pursuers. Eve went to help but Suzie pulled her back.
“She’s nearly back, don’t you go out there,” Suzie said sternly.
Edith was nearly at the house when in front of her a hundred metres further down the road, a man and a teenage girl, pale grey skin and fresh blood stains stood looking at her. They sniffed the air and joined in to intercept the pensioner.
Edith arrived at the door and banged on it, ringing the doorbell in a panic. “Rose, please let me in, please, please!”
Rose opened the door and Edith burst in, slamming the door shut behind them. “It’s here. They’re here,” Edith was out of breath and in a panic.
“Where’s Edward?” Concern and sadness stained her voice, she knew she wouldn’t see the love of her life ever again.
Day Three
The previous afternoon and night had been less than restful. Few dared to sleep as the creatures on the street had doubled in their number. They roamed, knowing a tasty fresh meal was close. They just had to wait for it. The feeders were a mixture of familiar faces, now grey in tone and splattered with blood, and strangers with the same appearance. The sun was creeping up, offering a minor false relief that the light provided safety, when all it did was show the villagers the monsters who wanted to kill them.
Eve, Claire and Suzie had moved to the flat above the village store, to Suzie’s meagre living accommodation. Claire was in terrible shape, pale and sweaty, but with a hearty appetite. She could not keep still for long and Eve didn’t dare to speak her suspicions out loud, but every hour, Claire was less like herself and more like one of the things outside. Suzie and Eve shared concerned looks, but that was all they allowed themselves. Suzie had armed herself with a carving knife whilst Eve had upgraded to a large rolling pin. Eve couldn’t stop herself from looking out onto the street below and comparing her sister with the others.
“Eve, I’m still hungry.” Claire sounded weak, the words hard to get out.
“Help will be here soon.” She wished it to be true, but didn’t believe it. If their little village was already under siege, the entire country must be in awful shape.
* * *
Rose could barely look at Edith, one of her closest friends, and now all she felt was hate for the selfish cow. Had she stayed in the house, Edward wouldn’t have gone outside and the love of her life would still be alive and safe with her. Now she just had Edith, who was a mess. Her skin had gone pale and she wouldn’t stop eating, standing over the kitchen table with many empty dishes and open packets. Rose was ashamed that she wished her friend dead. It wouldn’t bring Edward back, but it would feel like justice.
“I am sorry, Rose. I don’t feel well, I think I will die soon.” Edith was calmer than her sweaty appearance or statement of imminent death would have suggested.
“Don’t be daft, you’re just being dramatic, as usual. The only thing you’ll die of is from overeating.” Rose didn’t have any patience, she wanted to be left alone to mourn.
“I don’t feel right, I’m so hungry.” Edith carried on eating. A spoonful of sweetcorn made her face grimace, not going anywhere close to hitting the spot.
“You need to stop it, now!” Rose raised her voice, the first time in many years. She even scared herself, but Edith looked at her with uncaring eyes pushing in another mouthful of food. “Just stop it!” Rose had grown into a fury at this woman, responsible for her husband’s death and now contributing to her own by eating all of their food. She hadn’t realised she had the meat tenderiser in her hand. She barely registered the impact as she struck Edith in the face, crushing her cheek and smashing her dentures. Even as her friend hit the kitchen floor, she failed to understand what she had done. Edith was flat on her face, as Rose looked down at the tenderiser in her hand, and Edith on the floor. She cried, dropping the steel mallet to the floor. It had all gone so horribly wrong. Rose sat herself down and shook as she took a sip of her tea.
Edith opened her eyes. A grey hue had overtaken them. She coughed, dislodging a few errant false teeth that had found their way into her throat, forcing them out onto the floor with her greying blood. She looked to her former friend, not with confusion but lust in her eyes. She moved quicker than she had done in years, pain or discomfort no longer limiting her movement. Rose was caught completely by surprise as Edith forced her to the floor. Try as she might, she couldn’t hold off Edith, the creature she had become. She desperately reached for something to help. It angrily snapped what was left of its dentures at Rose, eager to taste her flesh, to scratch that hunger itch that now consumed her.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Rose pleaded, unsure what had got into Edith but struggling to defend herself. She carried on edging away as Edith’s ferocious jaws snapped at her, catching her arm and nipping her, the scent of blood catching the creature’s nose and driving her crazy. Rose reached out and pulled on the tablecloth, dragging it and everything on it down to the floor. She flailed as she attempted to grab the metal cake slice, but it was too far away. A sharp pain travelled through her body as Edith’s broken dentures bit into her shoulder. A final desperate grab and she had something to defend herself, a dinner plate. It was hard but brittle, and she smashed it across Edith’s face. The last of the dentures flew out amongst the porcelain of the plate as it disintegrated. Edith was slowed but not stopped, Rose lashed out with the shard still in her hand and struck at Edith’s face and neck. The thick grey blood dripped from the wounds and finally she broke off her attack, scrambling across the room, pawing at each cut and sliced piece of flesh.
Rose took her chance and slowly climbed to her feet and hobbled to the front door. Outside was bad, but she couldn’t remain inside. She turned back to see Edith recovering to her feet. The survival instinct that had driven her away from her prey replaced once again with the desire to feed. Rose didn’t stop again as she threw herself out of the front door and slammed it shut. Two creatures on the street saw her and moved in her direction at a pace Rose knew she couldn’t possibly match. Rose was certain this was it. She would be with Edward again soon. She just hoped it would be quick. Her eyes closed as she cried, readying herself for the impact. Half a dozen gunshots rung out and the sound of meat hitting the pavement prompted Rose to open her eyes. Two empty military trucks rolled into the village, with an SAS Land Rover DPV leading the way. Heavily armed, it looked out of place not patrolling a desert in a Middle Eastern war-zone. The men aboard were ready with their rifles or manned the general purpose machine guns, prepared to strike out if required. The front machine gun’s barrel still smoking from its initial bursts. The vehicle had barely stopped as the soldiers hopped out and covered the streets.
Front doors opened, and those inside began to gingerly leave the safety of their homes, ready to be rescued. Several soldiers engaged the handful of creatures still visible in the streets. Every gunshot caused a flinch amongst the civilians. Eve and Suzie leaned out of the window above the shot with a full view of what was happening. Rose stepped forward, shaking, raising her hands in the air but pleased to see her saviours.
“I’ve been hurt.” Rose wasn’t embarrassed and dropped her blouse just enough to show the teeth marks on her shoulder. The mark was distinctive, even through the blood.
“Sarge, she’s been bitten,” the soldier called out the wound. A colleague stepped closer.
“Confirmed. Take it.” The other soldier didn’t need a long look to see it was a bite.
The first soldier put a burst into Rose’s chest and she hadn’t hit the ground before the first shocked screams cried out. The soldier took half a step closer and put a single round into Rose’s skull, spreading bone and brain across her front door.
&
nbsp; A soldier emerged from one of the trucks with a loudhailer. “You are to be evacuated to a rescue camp. You are permitted one small bag of belongings and clothes, you have five minutes to present yourself to us, otherwise, you will be left behind.”
The civilians quickly disappeared back indoors to follow their orders.
“They just fucking shot Rose.” Eve held her sister close as Suzie packed a bag.
“We have to go Eve, I’ll pack a bag for you girls. It won’t fit, but it’ll be clean.” Suzie was throwing clothes into bags, not paying attention to what she was packing.
“They won’t take Claire. You heard him, Rose had been bitten. Claire’s been bitten!” Eve was upset. “They’ll kill her!” Eve held Claire tighter.
“We can’t stay, they might be able to help.” Suzie didn’t believe it, but offered a hopeful smile.
“I’m not going, you go, but please let us stay here. I’ll look after her,” Eve begged Suzie, she couldn’t risk what might happen to her little sister.
Suzie nodded. “Here are the keys. Keep yourselves up here, you should be safe until the army return.” Suzie felt some shame in even thinking of leaving the girls, but she knew how stubborn Eve could be. She would never leave her sister, and it wasn’t worth the time trying to make her. They smiled at each other, unsure they’d ever see each other again. “Just look after yourself and stay safe.” Suzie left and made her way onto the street below.
Eve gently lay Claire down and covered her with a blanket before she made her way to the window, looking out at the fuss below as several villages spilled from their homes and heaved themselves onto the trucks. Suzie stopped to talk to a soldier and pointed up at Eve. The deceitful cow ratted us out. The soldier made his way to the shop and entered. Eve could hear him coming up the stairs. There was a brief pause before he knocked.
“I need to come in.” He was loud, authoritative, but calm.
“Okay,” Eve replied. She knew she didn’t have many options.
The soldier was in his late twenties; he was tired but remained professional, keeping his rifle ready without ever pointing it at Eve or Claire.
“We’re heading off in two, are you coming?” He looked around the room, eyeing up the scene. “What’s wrong with her?” He gestured to Claire, who was mostly under a blanket, just her head poking out.
“She’s got a cold, she’s just sleeping it off.” Eve was shifty, but she would have been nervous even if Claire wasn’t ill.
The soldier carefully edged closer to Claire. Her pale skin and sweat rang alarm bells. “I’m going to have to call this in.”
Eve knew she only had one hope. “Please don’t. I’ll suck you off.” The soldier froze, surprised by the eighteen-year-old, Eve started to remove her top to entice him further.
“Don’t. Look, you shouldn’t say that, these aren’t safe times. I won’t call it in, but if she’s infected, you can’t stay here with her. She’ll turn on you and she won’t be herself, a bite or scratch and you’re proper fucked.” A truck gave a big blast of its horn and the soldier edged back to the door. “There will be patrols every few days, make yourself known, and they’ll pick you up once you’re ready.” The soldier dashed back out to the street and boarded a truck. Little over twenty villagers had decided to leave, those that did on the back of the trucks, and many who stayed waved them off.
The small convoy left the village and as if on cue, a few of the creatures again let their presence be known, emerging from the side streets and open doors.
* * *
Mark hadn’t let his Ruger 10/22 out of his sight since they had secured the livestock. The semi-auto small calibre rifle was dependable and accurate. It lacked the punch of a 12-gauge shotgun, but it was more precise and lightweight. He’d never pointed it at a person before, but had bagged many a bunny and pigeon, and sent more than a few rats to their final resting place. Mark watched the courtyard from the safety of an upstairs window, two twenty-five round magazines, a couple of ten rounders and a few boxes of loose ammo lay on the windowsill ready for use. From his vantage point, he could clearly see the road and the main approach to the house. It had been quiet, not unusual for a country road, the only cars travelling at speed not paying the farm a second glance. The sky had been far more interesting. Jets and helicopters flying over at speed in all directions, often accompanied by distant explosions. When he had gone out to check on the cattle first thing in the morning, he was sure he saw a small group of people crossing their fields. They were too far out to see what they were doing, but as long as they kept moving, Mark wasn’t concerned. His dad had told him the priorities, the family, the farm and then anything else.
John was in the kitchen with his wife, Annie. They had been together since they were eighteen, their love was quiet and often unspoken. As Mark was with his rifle, John hadn’t let his double-barrelled shotgun go beyond his grasp since this mess had begun. Annie knew how to shoot and a shotgun propped up in the kitchen’s corner was ready for her should she need it. Unlike the boys, lugging the heavy tool around made her more tired than it made her feel safe.
“I think we will need to slaughter the cattle.” It had been playing on his mind since he had brought them closer to the farmhouse. He had wanted to keep them safe, but the scale of the problem was emphasised with every passing warplane and accompanying explosion.
“No, John, you can’t! They’re our livelihood, they are this farm, just like we are.” Annie was as much a farmer as her husband, she cared for the animals and hated the idea that they might need to be killed.
“It’s not what I want, but they’re big, noisy and smelly. Whatever is out there will find us quicker with them here.” John was getting increasingly angry with himself.
“Take them down to the far field, give them a chance to survive. Please, John.” Annie was nearly in tears and she was swaying her husband.
“I can’t protect them down there, we don’t know what’s coming. What if something happens to us? They’ll starve to death, better we do a kindness so they don’t suffer.” John replied. He had been thinking it through. There weren’t any good options.
“Just give it a day, maybe two to see what’s going on, let’s not do anything rash.” Annie was trying to be a voice of reason in a world that, unknown to them, was increasingly without it.
“We’ll see.” He wanted to agree with his wife, he wanted her to be right. The least John could do was agree to a single damn day. What harm could that possibly do?
“Dad, out front,” Mark called from upstairs, not wanting to leave his post.
John looked out of the window. Two army trucks with a handful of civilians in the back had pulled up on the road. A couple of soldiers were examining the makeshift roadblock preventing entry to the farm.
“Can I help you?” John emerged from the farmhouse, shotgun resting in his arms, assuring them he wasn’t a threat, but he wasn’t to be fucked with either.
“Is this your farm?” one soldier shouted from the road.
John looked around as if checking. “It looks like it. What do you want?” He stopped short and looked up at Mark in the window, checking his son was ready if anything happened.
“We’re evacuating civilians, are you ready to leave?” the soldier stated, expecting these farmers to eagerly join them.
John wouldn’t leave the farm, it hadn’t even crossed his mind, but Annie, maybe it would be best for her to go with the soldiers. He and Mark could protect the farm, but Annie, he’d struggle to do his job and worry about her. “Where are you evacuating to?”
“A rescue camp, five miles from here. They’ve been setup all around the country, soldiers, big sturdy fences and medical staff. They’re protected, but you can’t bring the firearms.” The soldier looked at the farmer’s gun as he spoke.
John looked down at his shotgun. He didn’t like the idea of being defenceless, no matter how many soldiers there were protecting him. “Can you give me two minutes?”
“That’s
all we can give you, we’ve got two more communities and I want my men back for lunch before their afternoon patrol.” Despite expressing a desire to move on, the soldiers seemed happy to have a few minutes in the countryside to relax. It had only been a few days, but they were all tired of being in built-up areas constantly having to keep their guard up. The small country road surrounded by open fields was a nice place to be.
John trudged back to the farmhouse. “Annie, I want you to go with the army, they’ll keep you safe and in a few days’ time when sanity has been restored, they’ll bring you back.”
“I will only say this once, John. No! This is as much my farm as yours, I can look after myself and this farm.” As if to illustrate her point, Annie picked up her shotgun from its resting place and held it close.
“God damn it Annie. There are war planes flying over every hour dropping bombs on our own country, soldiers are literally rescuing people as it’s so dangerous out there. It’s not about how capable you are, it’s about me not wanting to lose you. Please, please go with them,” John had a tear in his eye. He placed his shotgun on the table and hugged his wife. “Please go with them. I love you.”
Annie cried. She didn’t want to leave her home and family. She genuinely believed she could help, but it was John. Her staying would put pressure on him, and Mark, they didn’t need that. However much she knew she could help, she also knew she would be a distraction.
Deadweight | Novella | Thornhurst Page 3