Charlie jabbered, his grizzled features made even more horrific by the deep shadows cast by the mulcher's headlights. I screamed again, but managed to force my legs under his pelvis and kick up, catapulting him into the air. It was only when I heard a horrifying snapping sound and felt a shower of warm, crimson liquid rain down on me that I realised what had happened. Staring at the shredder above in disbelief, I gulped at the air, and then rolled to safety before the horde descended upon me. Charlie's broken body slammed into the floor, decapitated.
In a quick-witted manoeuvre, I retrieved my lost rifle and sprinted for the visitors' centre, smashing in the heads of three zombies on the way. Finally, I hit the noticeboard. The keys were on the loop! Again, I couldn't believe my luck. Snatching them up, I bolted for the pickup, opened the door and leaped inside, just as dozens of hands thundered on the driver's window. In an instant, I tore out of the compound.
Exiting the Necroville junction, I turned onto the road that had brought me and my friends to the site. The tarmac ribbon fitted snuggly to the contours of the mountain, a quarry wall on one side and a vertiginous drop on the other. Breathing steadily, I drove with the leisurely pace of a Sunday driver. After my traumatic experience, I didn't want to rush. I had been up half the night. I was twitchy. My senses were muddled. In short, I was at risk of making a fatal error, so erring on the side of caution was a wise move.
'Better to reach the police late than not at all,' I mouthed absentmindedly.
That was when the sound of static electricity filled the jeep, making me jump. Confused, I glanced down at the dashboard. '2:43 am' glowed in the screen panel. The radio was off.
'What...?'
When I heard the haunting moan, my stomach churned. I knew immediately that I had made a mistake. Words set hard in my throat like concrete. Zedd must have hit the dial on his wireless radio in the back seat when he reanimated. Before I could break, I glimpsed a flash of demonic eyes in the rear-view mirror. There was no time to react. All I could do was scream and veer wildly as he launched at me, his teeth sinking deep into my shoulder.
The whole vehicle jolted and I realised too late that I had smashed through the barrier at the side of the road and was ploughing into the void. Somehow, that seemed like a small mercy. Illuminated in a silver hue from the car's headlights, the rocky chasm below was littered with more wandering corpses. Their heads turned in one collective movement in reaction to the flying vehicle. As I experienced weightlessness and saw the ground rushing up to meet me, my conversation with Amanda – Necroville's owner – ran through my mind.
'There's nothing stopping us from spreading worldwide!' she had said with a devilish smile. For the sake of the world, I hoped she was wrong.
HELP AN INDIE AUTHOR TODAY!
Now that you’ve read this story I would love it if you reviewed Necroville on Amazon. Reviews really help indie authors to promote their work. Support me by writing a review today. It would be a massive help!
Also, if you like my work and want updates about me and my books then sign up to my mailing list. Signing up to a mailing list is one of the best ways to support your favourite indie authors. I really appreciate it!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
It takes many people working together to create a story that’s worth reading. This fact is just as true for shorter fiction as it is for novels. As a result, I have a few people to thank for helping me to craft Necroville into the best possible shape. Firstly, I would like to thank Verse Publishing. If it wasn’t for the invitation to be published in their anthology The Dead Files: Vol 5 then I might never have experienced the fun of writing a zombie gore-fest. Having them agree to print the original version of this story was thrilling as it gave me my first taste of being an author in a printed book. Secondly, I would like to thank my Twitter followers for their support, and my readers on Wattpad for their feedback and voracious hunger for stories. Their enthusiasm is contagious. And finally, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my work. Readers who are willing to try unfamiliar books are a blessing for undiscovered authors.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Daniel Parsons lives in South Wales, UK, where he writes fast-paced stories containing mystery and danger.
He wrote his first eBook The Winter Freak Show while at Cardiff University studying English Literature. A new edition was later published by Onion Custard Publishing Ltd. after being extensively revised and edited for a launch into print. The encouraging reception The Winter Freak Show got from the public spurred Daniel to write his second eBook, Blott, a full-length teen fantasy novel, which has also proved to be popular.
His horror story Necroville was originally published in an anthology called The Dead Files: Vol 5 by Verse Publishing but has since been revised for Kindle after it was posted on the story sharing website Wattpad and received rave reviews.
If you want to join Daniel’s 85,000+ followers on Twitter (@dkparsonswriter). He would love to hear from you. He responds to tweets personally.
Necroville
Copyright: Daniel Parsons
Published: 7th October 2015
Publisher: Daniel Parsons
The right of Daniel Parsons to be identified as author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, copied in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise transmitted without written permission from the publisher. You must not circulate this book in any format.
Find out more about the author and upcoming books on Twitter at @dkparsonswriter.
Necroville_The Necroville Series Page 4