Winter Smith (Book 1): London's Burning

by Strange, J. S.

  “I don’t expect you to. But I don’t expect you to do what you’re doing now in Paris. I don’t want my daughter to be so vulnerable.”

  Winter heard Violet sniff and thought the tears must have begun to flow.

  “Mum, you’re going to be alright. Everything is going to be fine.”

  “Don’t make yourself small, Violet,” Ashley whispered. “Do what you want to do, and do it well.”

  “I’ll try, mum.”

  There was a sound of something smashing outside. Winter, stood near the window, glanced through it to see what it was.

  Nothing.

  Then something else smashed. A window, glass scattering over stone floor.

  “What’s happening?” Violet asked.

  Winter craned her neck so she could see what was possible from the flat’s window.

  “I can’t really see-”

  There was a scream from outside. Violet ran to the window as her brothers cried out.

  From an apartment window above a shop, a man leapt out of the window into the street below. At the same time, an old woman opened her front door to put out milk bottles. She was pounced on in seconds, her neck being ripped open and blood pouring to the floor. Her eyes looked at Winter’s before they started to turn red, her skin flaking.

  “No…” Violet breathed. “No, no, this can’t be happening.”

  The woman fell to the floor, screaming in pain. The man who had bitten her was stumbling through the street, his skin decaying and his eyes searching for his next victim.

  “What is it? What is it?” One of the brothers cried, running towards the window.

  Violet spun around, knocking Winter slightly off balance as she did so.

  “Go back to mum,” Violet told the boys, moving them away from the window. “It’s okay, there’s nothing wrong.”

  Violet’s eyes looked into her mother’s. Their eyes were so similar, and both of their understanding fear was reflected.

  “Get back inside,” Winter said to herself.

  She watched a woman open her front door to see what was happening outside. A few others were beginning to appear on the street. It was too late. The man launched himself on three people, successfully biting them, drawing blood. These people fell to their knees, where they screamed in pain and twisted on the floor. The old woman was standing up now, running with surprising speed to the nearest open door and pushing her way through.

  The street was beginning to flood with blood before Winter’s very eyes.

  “Violet, we can’t stay here,” Winter said. “Violet, look.”

  Violet joined Winter at the window again. They watched as those bitten began rising, looking like they had been dead for years rather than a minute. The hisses of zombies began echoing throughout the street, drawing the attention of those still alive.

  There was a commotion outside Violet’s flat. The thin walls made footsteps in the hallway echo loudly around them.

  “Oh fuck,” Violet whispered.

  She darted towards the front door, telling the boys to stay where they were.

  Winter looked at Ashley.

  “Follow her,” Ashley said. “Boys, come here.”

  Winter ran after Violet, catching the front door in mid swing before it closed. Violet stood in the hallway, shouting at the small group of people passing.

  “Stay inside, don’t you fucking dare go downstairs. They can’t get in if we stay in here. Fucking lock yourself in your room!”

  The people looked shocked, but turned back. However, the stairwell was full of people scurrying down the old steps, carrying bags they had packed a long time ago.

  “Idiots,” Violet cried to herself. “They’re all fucking idiots.”

  Violet set off down the steps, joining the throng of people clearly panicked.

  Winter ran forwards, aware that Violet’s door snapped shut behind them. She felt confident that for now Ashley and the boys would be safe. She spotted a young woman with a child, the mother’s instinct urging her through the crowd.

  “It’s going to be alright,” Winter tried saying to her. “Turn back, get back in your house. Lock yourself in.”

  But it was no use. The woman took one look at Winter’s blood splattered dress and ran.

  She could hear Violet shouting floors below, urging people to stay inside.

  Winter turned away from the steps and spotted a small lift tucked away behind the stairwell. She punched the button, waiting for too long until the doors opened slowly. She hurried into the lift, feeling claustrophobic as a metal grid shut her in before the main metal doors did, and pressed the ground floor button.

  The lift moaned as it went down, before it opened to pandemonium in reception.

  What Violet had been trying to stop happening had turned out to be unsuccessful. People had charged through the doors leading outside, and a body left the doors propped open. Those who had stayed inside were fighting to shut the door, while a mass group of the dead barged against it, desperately trying to push the door open and make a feast.

  Reception was over crowded with people fighting to get up the steps. It all proved unsuccessful, as it seemed everybody who lived in this building was now on the stairwell. Winter stayed where she was between the lift doors, making sure it didn’t go up without her and leave her stuck.

  She screamed with everyone else when the reception door fell off its hinges and the zombies leapt at the nearest living people. Her heart broke when she saw a child no older than three being ripped from a pram.

  In no more than a few seconds the reception was splattered with blood. Those that were already infected ran at the living, and Winter noticed some were heading to her.

  “Winter!” Someone called from upstairs. “Where are you?”

  Winter had no time to reply. She jumped back into the lift and repeatedly pushed floor 3. The gold metal grid door shut, but the main doors were stopped by the arrival of the zombies. Their arms stretched through the metal grid, only inches away from Winter.

  She didn’t know what else to do but scream. She wished the back of the lift had more depth, so she could feel safer. She pressed the third floor again and the metal doors began to slide, crushing the zombies, sending blood flying through the air and once again covering Winter.

  The lift began to move upwards, but Winter could still hear the commotion around her. Nothing in this building was sound proof. Winter wished she could stop the lift halfway, stay in safety for a while.

  Before she was ready, the doors opened on floor 3 and Violet was stood in front of the doors, covered in blood and looking panicked.

  “Fucking hell, Winter, what were you doing?”

  “Trying to find you!”

  Winter spotted a person being ripped apart on the stairs to the side of them, then a second later the zombie doing it spotted Winter and Violet.

  “Run,” Violet screamed.

  She grabbed Winter and they ran, racing the zombie to the hallway. Winter spotted Violet’s door, open slightly. She felt relieved, knowing they could get in quicker. The hallway was full of blood, people lying on the ground, twitching, halfway between humanity and infection. The zombie behind them screamed at them, intent on killing them like he no doubt had others.

  Winter felt only a little relieved, until she realised that the door had been open when they had ran in. She remembered that she had let it shut.

  “Violet,” Winter gasped. “Violet, I shut this door.”

  Violet turned to Winter, her eyes wide. Winter wasn’t sure if it had sunken in. She didn’t even know what she was saying.

  “Violet, I fucking shut this door.”

  Violet spun around and pushed open the door leading into the living room. Winter already knew the outcome before running in.

  The room was on fire; everything from the walls to the ceiling burned. It licked the side of the walls, crackling and melting the things it had managed to latch itself on to. Ashley was screaming in the wheelchair she had been left on. Winte
r spotted her through the flames, sweat dripping down her worried face.

  Violet ran through the flames, leaving Winter stood alone.

  Winter ran forwards, not wanting to be left alone in a burning room. She was panicked. She could only see Ashley and Violet. She couldn’t see the boys. Their bed was on fire, their luggage burning on the floor.

  Winter was only a few feet away when the ceiling above them collapsed. Winter ran across the room, hoping she wouldn’t be hit, spotting another way to get to Violet from the other end of the room. As part of the frame from the building fell into the middle of Violet’s burning home, blocking Winter’s pathway, she spotted one of Violet’s brothers, Ben.

  “Violet!” Winter screamed. She was by the window now, coughing as she inhaled the smoke around her. “Violet, Ben!”

  Violet spotted her brother and began making her way towards him. The glass next to Winter smashed, cutting her shoulders and snagging her already ruined dress.

  “Get out of here, Winter!” Violet called through the flames.

  “I can’t leave you alone!”

  “Get out of here!”

  Before Winter could move, she spotted the door leading to the burning room fall down. Zombies began pouring in, Ashley began screaming louder and Violet began to cry.

  Some of the zombies didn’t survive the flames, others did.

  They were heading towards Winter, and if she didn’t move she would surely be killed.

  Violet grabbed Ben and wrapped him in her arms. She was crying, telling him everything would be okay, knowing it wouldn’t.

  Too many things happened at once. Part of the wall broke apart, cascading to the floor. Ashley was jumped on, screaming as the zombies bit into her flesh, and from behind the burning bed came Violet’s other brother, running towards Violet, screaming for safety.

  Violet turned and reached out for him, but with harsh reality he was yanked away from her and ripped apart by the dead, like a lion that had successfully caught a gazelle.

  Violet’s scream was heart wrenching, and as Winter jumped out of the third floor window it reverberated inside her head.

  She landed on the floor and felt her ankle twist. The pain was instant, and all the hope of getting away Winter had was gone. The street was carnage, those alive helplessly running for help. There were too many zombies, too many lying in their own blood, too many trapped. The evacuation squad that had come to get Ashley and the boys lay on its side, the engine on fire. Winter saw the zombies were avoiding it.

  From behind her, she heard Violet scream. She looked up and saw Violet at the window, holding her last remaining brother who was crying.

  “It’s going to be alright, Ben,” Violet said, for what felt like the millionth time.

  “Jump!” Winter screamed, stumbling to a standing position, ignoring the searing pain in her ankle. Gunshots echoed through the street. “Violet, get out of there!”

  But as Winter watched, she saw Violet’s world crumble.

  Violet jumped from the window, her eyes full of panic. Her arms moved backwards with her brother, who had been grabbed by a zombie and had been pulled away from Violet as she jumped. Her head turned, as if in slow motion, and her features turned from fear to worry. As she fell through the air, she watched her brother being pulled back up to the flat, screaming, crying, reaching out for Violet.

  Winter heard him scream. She saw his arm ripped apart by the ravaging beasts.

  Violet landed on the floor, falling to her knees, sobbing, screaming for her brother.

  Winter made to help her up, knowing they needed to move otherwise they would be killed, when someone ran at her, lifting her off her feet.

  She was transported by someone through the street, weaving in and out of the commotion, knowing he was human as she wasn’t dead yet.

  She tried to look at him but he had a hood that blocked his face. She made out he was young, probably the same age as her. He turned into an alleyway and dropped Winter on the floor before turning back.

  Winter lay on the floor, her ankle forbidding her to stand. She had no idea what was going on. She was even sure she could still hear Violet screaming over all of the commotion.

  After what seemed like a few seconds later, the boy was back with Violet, dragging her towards the alleyway as she screamed out, tears rolling down her face.

  Once in the alleyway, the boy lowered his hood. Winter was right in guessing he was young. He was scrawny and looked ill. His eyes were wide and looked fearful, and as he observed the two girls before him he looked like he couldn’t believe he had brought them here. His hair was long, sweeping over the glasses he wore in odd tufts, and it looked like it hadn’t been washed for a few days. His jeans were baggy and ripped, his top was covered in blood.

  Violet screamed at him and began punching his chest. He tried to move away from her, and as he did so Winter spotted he was holding a gun. She stood up, suddenly worried. Not only because they were only feet away from a commotion, but also this stranger had a gun he could turn on them in seconds.

  “Get away from him, Violet,” Winter said, stumbling over to her. Her ankle was screaming out in protest at the weight she put on it.

  Violet had also spotted the gun, but she didn’t seem to care. Instead, she took the gun, which was still strapped to her leg and pointed it at the boy.

  “You try and use that on us and you’ll be dead,” Violet screamed at him. There were gunshots in the street they had just hidden from. Winter saw that Violet’s building was on fire.

  “Listen, I’m not here to harm you,” the boy cried. “We need to get away from here. I know where we can go.”

  “We’re not going anywhere with you!” Winter shouted, just as there was a bang of something being hit over in the street. She leant against the wall, unable to keep balanced on just one foot.

  “Don’t you want to rest that ankle?” The boy asked.

  “Why did you drag me away from my flat?” Violet asked him. She still had her gun pointed. “I still had a chance to save my family. Now you’ve made me lose them for good.”

  “I didn’t…I didn’t know you lost your family. I have no idea what is going on here. You have to trust me. I know a place we can go.”

  “Where?” Winter asked. She was watching the boy, realising how nervous he seemed to be, how timid. She thought if he tried to hurt them, they could do a lot more damage to him. The pain in her ankle was unbearable, and she needed to get somewhere safe.

  “It’s in Elstree,” the boy began, but Violet cut him off.

  “We can’t get to fucking Elstree, mate. Have you seen her ankle?”

  “I know a village just a bit away that is deadly quiet. We can stay there, then when you’re better we can go to Elstree.” He was looking at Winter.

  “Yes, okay,” Winter nodded.

  Violet glared at her as the boy supported Winter. They hurried down the alleyway together, Violet keeping her gun on the boy. The walk was too long for Winter’s liking, and they were all slowed down by her being unable to walk.

  Slowly, the sounds of the commotion back in the street began to disappear, until it was barely audible. The boy led them down a dark street with boarded up windows just as it began to rain. They stopped in the middle of a town square. All the shops were boarded up, except for a shop on the corner where a metal grid stood. In the middle of the town was a clock tower, the time displaying it was ten fifteen. Flowers sat in plant pots around the clock, swaying slightly in a breeze Winter could not feel. The town was posh in standard, and if the shops surrounding it were not boarded up, Winter would have thought it would have been a respectable cosy town. With homes breaking off down side streets, she thought it must indeed be a very neat community.

  The boy let Winter lean against a wall as he pulled back a sheet of wood with enough space for a person to crawl through.

  “Go on in.”

  Violet glared at him and refused to move. The boy looked slightly out of place, looking from Winter to
Violet and back again. Deciding it was too dangerous to wait around, Winter ignored the searing pain in her ankle and crawled through.

  She found herself in a small café, white walls and white titles on the floor. Metal tables and chairs were stacked against the wall where another door stood, and Winter noticed the building had also been boarded on the inside, too. Violet crawled through next, and the boy was last in. He shut the wooden sheet behind him, tacking it back onto a nail.

  He awkwardly brushed past Violet and led them up a stairway. They found themselves in an empty room. The floor had no carpet, instead bare floorboards lay, and the odd couple of boxes were stacked at the back of the room. The ceiling sloped upwards, and Winter realised this was the attic. It was cold, a draft coming in from somewhere. The window hadn’t been boarded up in here; a tall rectangle window had a good view of the clock face. A lone sofa sat on the dusty floor in the middle of the room.

  “This is where you’ve been staying?” Violet asked unkindly, as she spotted the sleeping bag in the corner of the room, nestled in with a bag full of supplies.

  “I came from my home in Elstree, and wanted to make my way towards the docks. I’m Zach.”

  “Wrong way,” Violet spat, ignoring the introduction.

  “I know. I took a wrong turning.”

  “Well, I’m glad you did,” Winter said, falling onto the sofa. Her ankle ached and throbbed but she was relieved to be somewhere quiet. “I’m Winter, she’s Violet.”

  Zach smiled at Violet, but she grimaced at him.

  “I’m going to sit downstairs,” Violet said. “This place is depressing.”

  Violet turned back and made her way downstairs again. Winter was sure she heard her cry. Zach looked at her, looking upset and confused.

  “Ignore her,” Winter whispered. “She just lost her whole family. They were supposed to be evacuated tonight at ten.”

  Zach nodded slowly.

  “Thanks for helping us,”

  “It’s okay. I followed you when I saw you at the back of the chef’s kitchens. I didn’t like being alone, and thought if you were lost you’d be glad to have someone to travel with.”