Tim came miraculously to my rescue. He was unbelievable, even though he kept on drinking. He grabbed his stick and without any fear, he jammed it right through Cindy's eye. I felt sick. I was inches away from being bitten. I had thought I was going to die! Now, thanks to Tim I would live. Of course, I now had Cindy’s blood on me. I felt it hit my cheek too, which, had terrified me. I was so thankful to Tim for saving me.
"How come she turned like that? I don't understand… I thought you had to get the virus before you turned into one of them... is it… is it because she was bitten?" I asked as I tried to calm myself.
"I think it was... I know... it doesn't make any sense, but it must be something to do with the virus that broke out. Whatever it is… it must have been in the air or something… you know… but I don’t think we’ll ever know Lydia." He said as he stared at Cindy.
I nodded feeling shaken. I wasn't sure if I could get used to this kind of life. I wanted peace. I didn't want to feel afraid all the time; fearing for my life.
"Come on." Tim said. "Let's get out of here before it gets too dark outside." I agreed.
"Yes we should. Hey did you find anything useful in here?" I asked.
"Not really. Just a torch, which we should use now and some tools that may come in handy along with some knives." He said with a coolness that amazed me.
"Tools? What kind of tools?" I asked.
"A hammer and some screwdrivers... I have a few tools in my van, but we need them now in case we run into any more of those dead things. We can hit them on the head with a hammer or poke them through their eyes with a screwdriver... you can use a knife if you prefer." He said laughing as if it were funny.
"Okay then... but I won't be getting used to it." I answered as he passed me a stick and a knife for protection.
I wasn't calm like he was, but then he must have had a lot to drink today. Maybe it was helping him cope with our dilemma and the whole apocalypse thing that was going on outside.
We opened the front door and made our way into the corridor. Tim led the way, as I followed him. He had a bag on his back and I could have sworn I could see an outline of a bottle inside.
We walked on and decided to take the stairs instead of the lift. We didn't want any more surprises and the lift was something that seemed to attract the mad people. It must be the noise I thought. Sound seemed to send them a signal that food was nearby. It was going to be a crappy way to live!
We moved down each step in silence. We were cautious. We got outside safely and reached Tim's van without too much trouble. I got into my car and followed Tim's van.
We drove out of London, but there was some traffic along the way. London Bridge was the worst. Car horns were blown in anticipation as we moved slowly along the bridge. It seemed people had the same idea as we did. Everyone wanted to get away from the city.
Eventually, after a while of slow driving, we got onto the motorway and drove all the way to Maidstone without any problems until we reached some small lanes on our way into town. I was driving along when something came out in front of me and rammed itself into my car. I panicked as I lost control of the steering wheel and the car swirled around. Eventually, the front of my car hit a tree. I could see the front was severely crushed and completely ruined. Steam rose from the engine. I could hear Tim shout.
"Lydia are you okay? Can you get out?" I nodded as Tim's horrified look gave me a chill.
I moved. I felt a little stiff, but okay. I got out of the car and looked at Tim.
"What came at me before I crashed?" I asked Tim.
"That over there. Don't worry I've killed it."
I could see another one of those mad dead people lying on the ground. I tried to breathe. Things were getting worse. Now, I didn't have a car. I thought we were safe, but these creatures seemed to be everywhere.
Another walker came out from behind some trees and then two more wandered onto the road coming for us. Tim opened the back of his van and took out two sticks, a hammer and a screwdriver. He gave me a stick and the hammer. I panicked. I just wanted to get inside his van and go, but they were near the passenger door. I stood behind Tim and saw him shove his pointed end of the stick into the eye of an dark man. He was getting good at this I thought.
One of them came up behind me suddenly and I turned and whacked it repeatedly on the head with the hammer. I finally knocked it to the ground and then, with all my might, I copied Tim and stabbed the stick into the eye of a middle aged woman; killing it instantly.
"Are you okay?" Tim asked.
"I think so... I just didn't think I could do it until I did."
"You'll have to come with me Lydia. Come on. Get your stuff out of your car and put it in the back of my van. Quickly. We need to get out of here." Tim was getting very bossy lately and it was starting to wind me up.
"It's getting worse... isn't it?" I asked him.
"Yeah... it seems that way. It must be the virus. It's making people turn into something weird and mad. They're violently crazy when they see us. They're like bloody biters!" He said sarcastically and smiled at the same time.
"Okay... whatever you say..." I wasn't in the mood for his humour.
I moved my stuff into the back of his van and Tim drove to my parents house, as I gave him directions. They lived on a quiet street in a detached bungalow with a huge caravan parked on the side of it. I was pleased the caravan was still there.
As we parked up I noticed the front door was open. I panicked.
"Tim... the front door is open."
"Right... I think you should stay behind me. We'll go in and check it out or do you want to wait here. Just in case." He asked.
I knew what he meant, but I was prepared for anything. I wanted to deal with it now. The thought of seeing something awful made my body ache.
"No. I'm coming in with you." I was determined to be tough and calm just like Tim.
Tim pushed the front door and stepped inside. I was right behind him. We went into the living room. There was no one around. I was relieved. Then we heard a noise. It was coming from upstairs. We stared at one another. Tim put his finger on his lips telling me to be quiet, but I was terrified. I wanted to see my parents again. I wanted them to be alive. I didn't want to deal with anymore biters!
6. Lydia Brown - Lydia’s Parents
I followed Tim as he went up the stairs. I could hear movement coming from one of the bedrooms. I hoped it was mum or dad being normal.
We got to the top and I watched as Tim stood outside one of the them. There were three bedrooms up there and a bathroom. He put his hand on the door and opened it slowly. The room was empty.
I pointed to the other room, which I knew was my parent's. I thought I heard a moaning sound coming from it or something like that. Tim opened the door and went in. I followed him.
There on the bed was my mum. She was asleep. She seemed ill. Her face looked pale and she was so still that I thought she had died.
There was another door that led to the ensuite bathroom. Tim walked in there to look around. He came out shaking his head.
"What's wrong?" I could see his expression. He seemed off I thought.
"Don't go in there Lydia. You don't want to see." He pleaded.
I ignored him and ran in to see. There I saw my dad laying in the bath tub. I touched his hand. He was dead, but only just, as he was still warm. I started crying and fell to the floor beside the bath, but Tim helped me up and took me into the bedroom. My tears streamed down my face. I could not bare the awful sadness that had struck my heart.
I sat on the bed next to my mum and Tim touched her pulse to see if she was still alive.
"She's breathing, but she seems very ill." He said wincing at me.
"Do you think she has the virus? She looks so pale." I shook my mum's arm.
"Yes... it seems like she's got a temperature." Tim said as he touched my mother’s forehead.
"Mum... it's me... Lydia... can you open your eyes?" I asked hoping she could hear me.
I watched as I saw her slowly open her eyes. She was still alive. I felt relieved.
"Lydia... is that you?" She asked.
"Yes it's me mum. How are you feeling? What happened?" I hoped she could tell me.
"Oh dear... I feel so tired and... I... I hurt everywhere. Where's your dad? He said... he... was going to get... some... some medicine for me.... but I haven't seen him... for ages." She said, coughing as she spoke.
"Um... I'm not sure mum... he's not back yet." I lied.
I couldn't bring myself to tell her. It was too painful. I couldn't believe that he had died. I hadn't said goodbye to him.
"Mum... do you think you can get up? We have to leave here."
"No... Lydia... I'm... too ill. Why... do we... have to leave?" She asked in a slow, weak voice.
"Don't worry about it... just sleep. We can talk about it later." I answered as I thought how ill she looked and knew she probably wouldn't make it.
"Tell your dad... to come up here... when he gets back... would you dear? I need to talk to him. You see... I... don't think I'm... I'm going... to make it. I... I'm feeling very... weak and... I..." I could hear the weakness in her voice. She was dying. I just knew it. I had only just got here, but I was too late to help them.
I started to cry as I watched her eyes close. I shook her, but she didn't move.
"Mum... mum... !" I shouted for her to open her eyes.
Tim came closer. He put his hand on her neck and then on her wrist. He got closer to her face too. I knew what he was doing. He was trying to see if she had a pulse.
"Has she..." I couldn't bring myself to ask him the dreaded question.
"Yes." He said sadly, knowing what I meant.
I screamed and put my head on my mum's lap letting my tears fall.
"I'm sorry Lydia, but I think you should move away from her just in case."
I looked up at him not understanding what he meant until I saw my dad appear behind him. That's when I screamed and shouted. I tried to warn Tim, but I couldn't speak when I saw my dad's vicious expression on his face.
"Tim!" I managed to shout.
He turned quickly as my dad grabbed him. My dad's pale face had said it all. He was trying to bite Tim. He had turned into one of those mad biters.
Tim got hold of him and hit my dad's head repeatedly until he fell over and then, Tim, with all his strength, shoved the stick he was holding through my dad's eye. Now, he was truly dead.
The minute that happened, my mum sat up and tried to bite me, but Tim saw what was happening and quickly rammed his other stick through her skull. Blood squirted out at me. I screamed hysterically and cried loudly at the sight of my mum's blood. I couldn't believe what had just happened to my parents. I felt bile rise up to my mouth and then I threw up everywhere.
I watched as Tim tried to pull his stick from her head, but it just snapped in half. I couldn't bear it, so I ran out of the room.
7. Tim Spark’s - Joe the Axe Man
We packed up as many things as possible to take with us. I watched Lydia carefully as she helped out. She was going to drive her parents caravan and follow me to my brother's place. It wouldn't take long to get there. Of course, Lydia looked worn out already. She had been through a lot; watching her parents die like that couldn't have been easy.
I, also, felt worn out, but that's because I was drinking far too much at the moment, but I felt it helped me to cope. I couldn't get accustomed to this way of life that had been put upon us so suddenly. I knew that one day, I might get stuck. Until then, I would continue to have it and when the time came for alcohol to be non-existent, then I would stop.
Of course, I was sure that there were still plenty of shops where my brother, Joe, lived if they hadn't been broken into already. On our way to Maidstone, we had seen a lot of looting going on. Shop windows had been smashed; people were now taking what they wanted. It was chaos.
I had a feeling, at some point there would be no alcohol left. How would I survive without it? I'd been drinking for so long that I didn't know how to live without it anymore. For now I had plenty. I had found six cases of red wine in Lydia's parent's home. It was now safely packed away in the back of my van. It would last for ages, because I would now have to be careful that I didn't over drink. I needed to pace it out and make it last, just in case I couldn't get anymore for a long time.
Lydia packed up the caravan with food, bottles of water, blankets and all the equipment she needed for the caravan.
"Are you ready to leave Lydia?" I called out to her.
"Yes. I'm ready." She said as she looked up at her parents house one more time.
"Come on then. Better go." I said with a slight smile, but Lydia hadn't even looked over at me.
Lydia followed me as I drove towards Broadstairs. That's where Joe lived in a bungalow. My sister, Ellie, lived around the corner in a house with her husband. They had one son who was 12 years old and a daughter who was 14. I hoped that they would all be okay. I knew it would be hard for me if my family turned into one of those biters just as Lydia's had. But I was ready for it. Whatever turned up, I knew that I would deal with it by drinking more red wine, which was the only way I could deal with it at present. Sad, I know, but what could I do at this stage. No one would be around to help me come off the stuff now. Not in this world or in the future. I would just have to be careful from now on and cut down.
We arrived at Joe's bungalow. I parked my van on his driveway and Lydia parked the big caravan in front of the bungalow. The caravan would come in handy. It was big enough to hold at least 10 people if needed.
"It's very quiet here Tim. Is that normal around here? Or do you think something might be up? I mean, I haven't seen any biters around this way." She stated.
"I'm not sure. Let's go in and have a look." I still had a key so I knew it would be better to let myself in just in case.
"Joe." I called for my brother whilst we stood in the hallway.
"Tim? Is that you?" A voice yelled.
"Yeah, it's me Joe. Where are you?" I asked walking further down the hallway.
"In the kitchen." A man's voice said.
We went into the kitchen and there Joe was, sitting at the table eating, as usual I thought. I looked at him and thought to myself that he seemed more bigger than before.
"Are you okay?" I asked him. He seemed to be oblivious of anything that was going on.
"Yeah course... why shouldn't I be?" He said flippantly.
"Because... " I said wondering if I should explain what was going on or not.
"Don't you listen to the news Joe? Haven't you seen what's been going on lately in the world?" I asked as he just stared at me whilst he chewed on some chicken.
"Of course I have. I wondered if you were going to come here. Ellie called me and told me... that there are weird looking people walking right outside her house. They are trapped and can't get out of there. They wanted to come here, but I've told her that they should stay there until I can get to them... but now you're here, so you can help me get them out." He said before he started eating again.
"Where's Janice?" I couldn't see my brother's girlfriend anywhere. She was always here with Joe.
"Oh she was at her place when all this started. We have to get her too and Molly." Great I thought.
I watched Lydia as she walked over to Joe’s cordless home phone that was placed on a cabinet. She touched it.
"Hey, how come your phone is working?" Asked Lydia.
"I don't know it just does." Joe said sarcastically.
"Oh... I'm Lydia by the way..."
She picked the phone up and then she replaced it on the receiver.
"Well... it doesn't work now." She said.
"I know, it doesn't work now... it cut off the last time I spoke to Janice to see if she was okay." Joe said and then glanced at me before speaking. "Janice told me that Molly had gone outside in the garden to get the dog in... when something grabbed her. She fell over and hurt her leg."
/> "Has she been bitten?" I asked Joe.
"I don't think so. Why? Who would bite her?" Joe asked innocently.
"Don't you know?" I asked. Joe seemed to be oblivious to all that was going on.
"Joe... I thought you said you knew what was going on!" I yelled feeling irritated by his stupidity.
"Yeah... that a virus has broke out and that we should all stay indoors. Don't worry... I know about the biting going on and I've got it sorted." Joe yelled.
"Okay... that's right... but you haven't seen what we have and it's bad out there. The virus has made people go mad. It's done something to their brains. So, now, people are walking around like crazy mad biters! Haven't you seen anything like that yet?" I shouted at Joe. He was always so cool about things.
"No. How could I? I've been here the whole time. I haven't gone out for two days, because Janice stayed here last night and the night before. Then, she went home this morning, because Molly was getting dropped off by her Dad, where she stayed for the last two nights... and Janice was supposed to come back with her, but now... she's stuck indoors and can't get out. So, we haven't seen anything or anyone for two days. Anyway... don't worry cause I've got my big old axe that will chop down all those crazy weird bastards." Joe said as he lifted a huge metal axe up into the air with both hands swinging it about.
"Hey..." I shouted at him. "Put that down before you hurt someone!"
"Okay bro... keep calm." Joe said with a small laugh.
"Joe, why don't you go pack a bag... and we'll all go to your sister's and then to your girlfriend's. How old is Molly, her daughter? Does your sister have anyone else there with her?" Lydia asked.
Lydia took over asking the questions whilst I sat down for a bit. I was starting to feel very tired.
"Molly is 14... And there's my sister, Ellie and her husband, Simon, and her son, Sean, who is 12 and Rebecca who is 14. I just hope they're all okay." Joe replied.
The Biters (Book 1): Time to Run Page 3