A howl outside told me the creatures where coming, I took aim with the rifle and shot the first one that charged at me, its skin flapping, its teeth ragged and snapping at me, wild rage flooded its eyes and it howled again at the scent of my skin. BANG! I shot it not a perfect headshot like my dad but it done the job taking it down. BANG!!!
I awoke startled by another loud bang, I sat up snatching the rifle and looking out the window, BANG! Looking over the dark countryside I couldn’t see any creatures roaming or trying to break into the house, the loud noise was coming from a gate that had become unhooked in the storm and was now hitting the side of a house in the still strong winds. Sighing I turned back to the bed, I hated it when I dreamed of my family and how they were taken from me but it did refocus me if I started to wonder from my path. The images of my mum, dad and Tanya flickered in my eyelids as I blinked, feeling shaken I grabbed my bag and chowed down on the chocolate to calm my nerves, well I deserved it right?
I watched as sun rose over the distant cliffs, rolling over the hills and warming the land that in the night had turned so cold. I didn’t want to stay here anymore than needed, I had made a promise to my dad to find Tanya and Brighton was where the ‘Big Guns’ where meant to be based, it was my only lead but I had to follow it, I couldn’t not go and then she be there scared waiting for a miracle to rescue her. Yes it might have been over a year ago they took her but I was still alive and so might she be, I couldn’t rest until I knew one way or the other…I had promised!
Chapter Two …
Sian had never been one for jumping at scary movies, nightmares had never taken over her dream state at night, even when this whole mess started her brain still kept her sane. The blood, the guts, the gore had been a whole new thing for her to have to cope with but she did it because she was strong, she always had to be strong. Sure she had trust issues but what 14 year wouldn’t in a world where people had gone crazy and started eating each other? Then again the people who hadn’t been eaten were just as crazy, doing stupid things and getting themselves and people killed. Her mother had been killed fairly early on in the outbreak of the disease, being an absolute waste of space and the world’s worst parent had mostly to do with her early demise, high on some sort of drug, cocaine Sian thought that’s what she liked. The word stung her tongue like a sour taste but she didn’t have to see it ever again, not now the world had gone to shit most of the druggie scum bags had been taken away with it. Her father she had never known, just a one night stand her mother had once when high and the same thing happened with her little brother Ollie, she never learnt that woman! One night stand after one night stand until she became known as the bike of Brighton. The tall tower block of social housing flats where they lived all knew what type of person she was and although some might have felt sorry for her children they too ended up being tarred with the same brush…scum. Deep down Sian knew she wasn’t, she was a good decent person she had brought Ollie up all on her own, fed him, clothed him, stayed up with him in the night when he had a bad dream, she had even been the one to teach him to walk and talk. Even now with the world in ruins and the adults running amok like useless idiots she took care of Ollie, keeping him safe and alive.
When the acid rain had first hit and the city went to pot the nice old man in the flat opposite felt sorry for them and made them go with him to the local community centre including their useless mother. Once there the adults had barricaded the doors trying to keep everyone safe inside until help came, only it never did. The days went past and the hunger set in although Sian and her brother were used to it because in their home drugs came before food. They had learnt to just live with the hunger so whilst they watched everyone going mad with the pain they just sat in a corner and played games together, with a few other children who thought playing was better than crying. Their mother who had been forced to go cold turkey was clucking away to herself in the toilets, being sick and falling in and out of consciousness as her body failed to adjust to the new way of life. Then they done it, the adults made the first and only stupid big mistake that cost them their lives, they went out to look for food which yes in itself is not stupid but what they did after was. Once they had found the food and come back they had been so consumed by greed over who got what to eat and who deserved this and that, they forgot to lock the doors properly. Sian noticed straight away and led her brother to the toilets locking the door behind them and climbing up to a small window, no one had noticed their mother dead on the floor from dehydration where she had been puking and sweating out the need for drugs but Sian felt nothing for her, for she wasn’t a mother, just a person who had given birth to them and left them to defend for themselves. Soon the creatures came, tearing the place apart and everyone inside, the blood curdling cries of people wishing they had been just a bit more careful, a bit less greedy but Sian and Ollie were already gone, running through the broken streets trying to find a new shelter, a new home.
That had been over a year ago or at least that’s what it felt like in Sian’s mind, she had tried to keep track of days and months on an old calendar but once the New Year started it ran out so she guessed after that. After finding that most places were not safe anymore they had gone back to their block of flats barricading the main entrance, there were a few creatures in the building but Sian had managed to lure them to one flat so they had the rest of the building as a safe zone. Working together they got all the food from the other flats, extra clothes and blankets, Sian had even moved them into another flat which had been decorated much nicer and didn’t have the memories of their broken childhood. They had almost any toy they had ever wanted to play with, the stories Sian could now read to Ollie as she actually had hold of some books were amazing, she taught him to read and write, they had so much spare time she taught him almost everything she could. The food they found lasted ages as she took to rationing it daily, they weren’t used to eating a lot so small portions weren’t a problem. Then as the months went on they noticed when the food did lessen and the portions became smaller as the hunger began to return, they also noticed when the building began falling into disrepair and things started to leak or fall off into the street below. Making up her mind Sian knew she had to find them somewhere new, somewhere safer and with food. Leaving the warmth and good memories of the flats behind them they set off into the city to look, the place looked so different to how they remembered, some buildings had fully collapsed from weather damage sped up from being rattled and unsteadied by the bombs. Debris and rubbish was strewn all over the place, papers, food packaging the lot, stuff that would take years to disintegrate. She lead Ollie carefully making sure she kept her ears spiked to listen for any threats that might be lurking in the dark shadows of the streets. They looted shops, homes, businesses but most of the stuff had been taken, eventually they came across the old hospital, it stood rotting away like the rest of the city, the windows broken and shattered, the bricks crumbling, the tower of one of the main buildings swayed in the clouds making Sian feel slightly nervous about this place, something about it gave her the creeps. As she was about to tell Ollie to turn away they heard it, a screech like no other, they had heard it a few times from their flat and they had looked out to find the culprit but they never saw it but she saw it today and for once she felt truly terrified. Snatching up her brothers hand like she always did in situations where words would be too slow she bombed for the main entrance to the hospital, pulling on the doors she opened them and shoved Ollie in head first not thinking what terrors might await them behind it but it couldn’t be any worse than what she had just seen right? Slamming the door shut behind them and turning to scan the new area they stood like sitting ducks, she let out a sigh of relief, it was clear. The corridor they stood in was very dim only lit by light streaming in through some broken windows and the odd crack in the brickwork but it felt safe, safer than outside at least. Looking at the site map which was still attached to the wall if not a little faded and grimy she tried to see where might be safest
to set up camp or look for food. A sight caught her eye in big letters it read Café!
“Ollie look it says there’s a café not far from here”, she showed him pointing to the map.
His eyes lit up at the thought of food, “Let’s go!” he went to run but she grabbed his arm, being only 10 meant that he forgot how to be careful sometimes.
“Remember what I told you, stay with me and only run if I tell you to”, she said.
Nodding he took her hand and they made their way through the hospital to where the café was located, they had to go down some stairs, out some doors back out into the open and then through another door into what was a restaurant type café. The place had been trashed, chairs overturned, blood splattered all over tables. Some countertops with ways to keep food warm had been smashed to pieces, not feeling too hopeful she took lead and made her way through the mess, reaching the kitchen area she was even less hopeful as the place had been burnt, the fire had been put out but everything inside was ruined, there was nothing.
“What now?” Ollie asked looking deflated.
Feeling his pain she wracked her brain, “Well the hospital must have a main kitchen otherwise how would they have fed all the patients?”
Nodding Ollie knew this made sense, “Back the way we came then?”
She nodded, “Yeah come on”.
Walking back out into the fresh air she noted how this part looked untouched other than the smashed up café and fire hit kitchen, there were no cars, no dead bodies and no mess. Maybe this place was safer than she had thought, heading back into the main building they started their search for the kitchen, the hospital was like a maze they would walk in one door come out another and be on another level then thinking they were retracing their steps they ended up in a completely different part of the building. Looking for over an hour they then came across the room they were so desperately searching for, pushing open the doors she again took lead looking all over the room to make sure no creatures were waiting for them, not that she would know what to do if one was, she had never killed one before and never wanted to. The kitchen was a stainless steel heaven, a large worktop covered most of one wall with matching cupboards, a large fridge sat in one corner along with a sink, an industrial style dishwasher and a lift filled with trolleys which must have gone up to the patients. Wasting no time they set to work ransacking the cupboards and coming up a treat, this place was stocked up to the nines, tins upon tins all arranged neatly, packets of rice, noodles, stale crisps, chocolate, the works, something bugged at Sian’s brain at how neatly they were sorted but she didn’t care, she was so hungry. Then before she knew it she heard them, the footsteps but they weren’t creature steps they were adult and she had made a mistake like most adults with greed for food, she had hit on someone else’s patch and now they were coming.
Not saying a word to Ollie she just grabbed his arm and used her eyes to tell him to stay quiet then she turned to scan the room, she spotted an air vent at the base of a wall near the cooker running to it she pulled at it, as she hoped the nails holding it in had rusted to dust and it came away easily. Ushering him inside she then passed him her bag and then climbed in behind him, it was a bit of a tight fit but it would be ok for a while, lifting the grate to the vent she gently leant it back in place and had just managed to whip her fingers back inside unseen when the owner of the footsteps rocked up. Peering through she could see him, a doctor in a dirty white lab coat, he was still human which was probably not a good thing, his hair was dark and long gelled back in a sweep of a comb, well it was either gel or grease not that Sian really cared to know but what she did care about was what he was all about. It didn’t take too long for her to find out, as he searched the wide open cupboards for what had happen to his food he began to shake with anger. Lifting his arms above his tall frame he smashed them back down on the stainless steel counter, then screaming out in pure fury which was a good thing as the noise had made Ollie jump making him let out a cry of fear but the doctor didn’t hear over the noise of his own frustration. Sian grabbed her little brother placing her hand over his mouth to silence him but the doctor was none the wiser. Feeling her brother scared and shaking she stroked his hair which she had done every night since he was really young to sooth him. Suddenly the doctor went crazy smashing up plates from a shelf, sending pots and pans flying all around the room, cutlery clattered to the floor in a jangle of metal and noise.
Then the doctor began looking around the room opening doors to cupboards, the fridge and even the oven looking inside, muttering to himself he sounded crazy. Walking past the vent Sian froze in terror hoping he wouldn’t think to look down to it, luckily he didn’t and he turned smashing in another door to a store room but again he didn’t find them. Turning back to room he let out a loud laugh which sent shivers up her spine, “I will find you little brats who stole my food, yes I know who you are I saw you on my cameras I’ve installed all around the hospital, I will find you both, the two little red heads coming in and stealing from my personal food store, well how wrong were you in thinking you will get away with it!” He turned smashing some more things to the floor and then spying out around him trying to see if they made a noise to give away their position, “When I find you little bastards you will be begging for forgiveness!”
Sian lifted her hand to her red bobbed hair which she had cut herself using some old kitchen scissors then turned to stroke in silence her brothers choppy red hair, she had cut his too to make sure he still looked like a little boy because when it grew too long he looked a spit image of Sian which she liked but disapproved of as he needed to be a boy. They waited ages as the doctor continued on his fit of fury and continuing to ruin the nice clean kitchen, by the end of it there was nothing but broken rubbish on the floor and in a final burst of rage he shouted to them, “I will find you, no one escapes Dr Death!” with a final brutal thump of his fist on the fridge he strolled out the double doors which led to the corridor his dirty lab coat swishing behind him like a cape.
They both let out sighs of relief before Ollie turned to her, “Sian I’m scared, I want to go back to the flats”.
“We’ll be fine no doctor scares me”, she said firmly trying to give him all the false belief that she thought they would be fine, she needed to keep him from freaking out as that would not help their situation especially if he bolted at the wrong moment. But for the second time in one day Sian had been scared truly scared and she couldn’t let him see because if she was frightened then there might be no hope left for them. She had always known that the adults left in the world scared her more than the creatures that roamed it, the creatures were predictable they hunted, they bit, they ate and howled whereas the adults were incredibly unpredictable, she never knew what they were thinking and when they did think they made stupid decisions or mean ones that meant people suffered, some had flipped completely in this madness turning crazy, freaky and dangerous…definitely worse than the monsters she thought “We need to move on in case he comes back to search the vents”.
“Ok”, he said making his way towards the metal grate.
“No not that way this way”, she pointed further into the vent, “We need to follow this and find another way out he could be waiting out there for us”.
He looked scared and as he spoke Sian hated that she wasn’t making him feel safe at this moment in time, “Will we be ok?”
Giving him her best ‘Give me a break’ look she said, “Have I ever let you down before?”
“No”, he replied.
“Well there you go, come on chop, chop get those legs moving”, she said tapping his bum to make him move over so she could pass him, “Ladies first remember”, she smiled at him forcing it to reach her eyes so he couldn’t sense the falter she felt at their impossible situation, if the mad doctor had cameras everywhere he could be on them in seconds and there would be nothing she could do about it, making a little exploration first to find out the weak spots in his viewing system might just be the way to go, o
nly then could they make a run for it.
Crawling through the air ducts was a dusty and dirty business, the air itched at their noses and skin but they made sure not to cough or sneeze as it might alert the mad doctor to their where bouts. After what seemed like miles and miles of metal tubing Sian heard a noise and motioned for Ollie to stop, light was creeping in just ahead from another metal covering, silently crawling up to it she peered through trying to see what had made the noise…the sight that greeted her almost brought a scream to her lips but freezing in pure terror she kept it in, swallowing it back down…What the hell was the mad doctor doing in there?
~
Searching my bag for the map, I unfolded it whilst looking around me to get my bearings for where I was, no road signs stuck out maybe hidden by over grown greenery or blown away by the storms that battered the coastline. The storm last night had done some major damage and I was thankful I had found the cottage to stay in, trees lined the road that was ahead of me, some had fallen and hit abandoned cars, others had hit the sides of houses, the children’s play area near the church looked like a hurricane or tornado had swept in, the swings had been tangled and mangled together gently rocking together in the now much gentler wind. Taking one last look at the place I had called home for one night I set off in the other direction to what I had come from, hoping to go more inland to find a main road to follow. As I plodded along I came across a sort of crossroad section of road, an eerily large manor house sat on one side hidden partially by trees, the other was just a path that led up a large steep hill following the steep road, on the opposite side was a row of cottages which had been built in recent years but they had been made to look old but the lie was in the weathering of the stone even without people to maintain it, it still looked almost as new. Behind the house sat a row of shops, a butchers which I knew I wouldn’t be exploring as blood had been splattered all over the windows, a convenience store which I would have to check for supplies and a hairdressers. Suddenly spotting a road sign in the bushes I could see I was on the right track, the steep hill was the way I had to go, apparently I had reached a small village with the name of East Dean, just up the hill and what looked like a long walk on the map was a town called Seaford if I was lucky I would make it there before dark and stay the night then venture on, even if it didn’t take me long to get to it was better I stopped at most places as I would never know what lay after that and if it was a place I couldn’t stay and night was dawning I would be in big trouble. Looking at the map I saw that Brighton was still quite a distance away and I knew it was going to be another few days journey seen as it had taken me all day yesterday to get here and find shelter, especially if anymore storms hit I would be locked in for a while.
Alone Page 4