Winter Smith (Book 1): London's Burning

by Strange, J. S.

  “You were the one who saved my life?”

  “I saw he was about to…to hurt you, so I needed to do something.” The boy shrugged. “I didn’t mean to kill him. I thought if I injured him you could get away.”

  “Why didn’t you come forward then?”

  “I was too shocked at what I had done,” Zach sighed. “I never meant to kill anyone.”

  “Do you have anything for this ankle?”

  Zach nodded. He hurried over to his sleeping bag and dug in the plastic bag next to it, dragging out a first aid kit. He came towards her with it, and began taking out bandages.

  “Anyway, I thought that if you were alone, you could come with me here,” Zach said as he began applying the bandages. Winter winced. “But then I saw you go into the flats, and I thought you were living there. There was no point if you weren’t moving. As I was leaving I heard the commotion, spotted that man kill that woman, and I knew you’d need to escape.”

  “You came back to save me?” Why had this boy followed her? Why was he set on joining her?

  “Big fan,” he said, not looking at her.

  Winter laughed. “Brilliant.”

  “I didn’t think it was you at first,” Zach said, still avoiding her eyes. “Winter Smith couldn’t be alone travelling through Borehamwood. She would have been saved first, I thought. Then, of course, I spotted the dress, thought it looked too designer. I knew it was you as well by your hair.”

  “Well, thank you,” she said. “You saved my life…twice. Violet will come around, you just have to give her time.”

  Zach nodded. He tightened the bandage and sat back, admiring his work. “I wouldn’t put any weight on it for a few days.”

  “That’s fine by me.”

  “I’m not sure how long we will have here. We’re not that far from that street. It won’t take long for the dead to travel here.”

  “We’ll leave here as soon as possible,” Winter nodded. “We’ll make our way to the Thames.”

  “Do you think we’ll get out of here?”

  Winter didn’t reply straight away.

  “It’s just, I read in the paper that everything is basically collapsing in the UK. The TV signal has been destroyed, so there’s no more television.” Zach explained.

  “We’ll get out of here. We’ll ring the evacuation squad tomorrow, get them to take us out of here.”

  “We can’t do that, either. The telephone lines have gone down, too. There is no signal.”

  Winter couldn’t believe it. Never before had she felt so trapped. Everything that had always been there, everything they had taken for granted, was gone.

  “We’re losing.” Zach sighed. He sat on the sofa next to her. “We’ve got no chance of getting out of this city.”

  “How many people are here? In this little community?”

  Zach bit his lip. “I have no idea. All I know is this building we’re in is empty.”

  “So we could be next door to somebody who is infected right now?” Winter asked. The thought of the occurrence at the diner was fresh in her mind. “That’s how it all starts, Zach. One bite.”

  “I know,” He sighed.

  “Have you got food?”

  Zach jumped up from the sofa and hurried over to his sleeping area. The rustling of a plastic bag filled the dreary attic room. Winter heard his feet on the floorboards; spotted his worn Converse shoes first, and then saw the loaf of bread in his hands.

  “It’s not much…” He said.

  “It will do.”

  Winter allowed Zach to open the loaf. Her mouth watered at the sight of fresh, white bread. He held the loaf towards her, and she took out the first slice.

  “The shop opposite us sells food and weapons,” Zach explained, taking a bite out of the second slice. “We can get some stuff and sort out a way to leave here.”

  “We left someone behind,” Winter sighed.

  Zach looked at her, waiting for her to elaborate.

  “Connor,” She explained. “He left to get weapons. He said he would be back tonight. He never came back.”

  Zach’s mouth slanted. He didn’t meet Winter’s eye. The same thought was shared by both of them.

  “Was he an old friend?”

  “I only really met him a few nights ago. He was a potential boyfriend.”

  “What happened?”

  “Zombies.”

  Zach laughed. It was quick, and if she hadn’t been watching him at the time Winter would have missed it. He looked at the plaster wall in front of them, breathing in, his feet fidgeting.

  “How did you get here alive?”

  Zach shook his head. “I have no idea. Just luck. I think…if I were to be alone any longer…I would probably not survive much longer.”

  “Have you tried ringing evacuation squads?”

  Zach opened his mouth to answer, and then seemed to think better of the decision. He shrunk away from the question, before swallowing.

  “They threw me off the truck,”

  “What?” Winter asked. She wasn’t sure she had heard correctly.

  “They said there was a higher priority.” He said softly. “So they threw me off the truck.”

  “Couldn’t you catch the next one?”

  “They’re pretty hard to find. They’re not as helpful as they make out to be.”

  “They tried to save Violet’s mum,” Winter told him. “They were there, but they came at the wrong time.”

  “How dead was that street an hour before those zombies attacked?”

  Winter looked at Zach. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, licked his lips, but didn’t look at her.

  “What do you mean?”

  Zach’s mouth twitched.

  “I mean, you were out, not even an hour before that street was overrun with those monsters.” Zach said. “Did you see anything odd as you walked back to Violet’s house?”

  “Only the man who tried beating up the other,” Winter said. “But why would I need to see anything odd? They were there.”

  “But don’t you see how slow they are physically? And haven’t you seen how fast an infection takes control and spreads? Where did that infection come from, if there was no zombie in the first place?”

  Winter sat up.

  “They’re not slow, Zach. They run.”

  “When blood is spilt, yes.” He nodded. “But there was no blood spilt until that man became infected. There was no sign of those beasts until that infected person killed. And if that was the case, how did that man become infected?”

  “How did anybody become infected, Zach? How did any of this suddenly happen?”

  “I don’t know. All I’m saying is, we need to start thinking more into this to find the answers.”

  “Tell him to shut the fuck up!” Violet yelled from downstairs.

  Chapter Ten

  That night saw Violet bully her way into sleeping in Zach’s sleeping bag, while he searched around for old blankets in boxes piled at the back of the room. Winter insisted on helping, but he told her to remain where she was.

  “You need to rest that ankle if we want to leave here any time soon,” he said.

  He was rooting in a cardboard box labelled displays. Violet was clicking her tongue, rolling her eyes, evidently annoyed with everything Zach did.

  Winter knew she was trying to keep her casual, carefree personality in place. She was trying to appear cocky, rude and arrogant to cover up the pain, guilt and sadness she was feeling after the death of her whole family.

  In seconds, everything Violet had worked hard to get had been ripped away from her.

  “Oh my god, look what I just found.”

  Winter craned around in her seat to see what Zach was holding. She saw in his hands a dusty, purple box. Black, curled letters read ‘OUIJA’.

  “Fuck,” Violet whispered.

  Zach brought the box into the centre of the room so both girls could see it. He dusted it off, so the display was clearer. Symbols of all kinds w
ere dotted around the letters; eyes, triangles, inverted crosses.

  “Is there anything inside?” Violet asked, leaning up from where she was lying down. She was eyeing the board with curiosity.

  Zach braved a glance at her. He looked away quickly, blushing. Winter noticed his hands trembling slightly.

  “Pass it here,” she said.

  Zach passed her the board, and Winter brushed a finger against his hand. He didn’t acknowledge it, but something shifted between them. A developing friendship.

  Winter placed both hands on the corner of the boxes and pulled the lid up.

  Violet and Zach craned their necks to get a good view. Below, wrapped up in plastic cellophane, was a wooden board. The alphabet was written all across it in curled, purple lettering. Near the bottom were the words Hello and Goodbye.

  Winter unwrapped the board, aware that all eyes were on her. A wooden triangle fell out of the wrapping, and Zach flinched away from it.

  Violet scoffed and picked up the planchette.

  She stood above Winter and eyed the board. “Looks cheap. Looks like the wood has been burnt, too.”

  “Oh, no, that’s not a good sign, guys!” Zach gasped. “Oh no, put it away.”

  “You found it.” Winter grinned.

  “No, I’m serious.” Zach urged. “If the board is burnt, it means something has set it alight. A poltergeist or something! An evil spirit is attached to it or something.”

  Violet cackled.

  “Don’t be so ridiculous.” She sat down and glared at Zach. “Are you joining us or what?”

  “No…No, no, no. I can’t do that!”

  “Stand in the corner on your own then,” Violet flicked her hair. “Be an easy target.”

  Zach’s eyes widened behind his black rimmed glasses as he hurried forwards, sitting close to Winter. She could feel his nerves making him tremble even more.

  “What do we do first?” Violet whispered. She was eyeing the board suspiciously, almost as if she thought at any minute it would jump at her. Her finger traced over the wooden planchette in her hand.

  “Place that down,” Winter said. “And ask a question.”

  Violet did as she was told. She placed the planchette delicately on the wooden board, and at its contact the mood in the room changed.

  “If there is anyone here, please spell out your name using this wooden device in front of me,” Violet said. She had one finger placed on the planchette. Winter and Zach quickly did the same. “Please move towards the first letter of your name.”

  There was nothing. No sound at all except for their breathing. Winter met Violet’s eyes and she grinned.

  “Do you want to talk to us? Yes or no?”

  Again, nothing. Zach was shivering next to Winter, breathing in deeply and slowly.

  “Can’t you shut up?” Violet asked.

  Zach said nothing.

  Winter was about to ask another question when the planchette moved an inch.

  “Aah!” The three of them screamed, lifting their fingers off the planchette and moving away from the board. Winter kicked with her good foot and felt the sofa roll away a few feet.

  “Who the hell was that?” Violet asked, suddenly spooked. “That was you, wasn’t it? Oh my god, that was one of you!”

  “That wasn’t me!” Winter gasped.

  “We shouldn’t be doing this, guys, we really shouldn’t be doing this!” Zach moaned. “Throw it out of the window!”

  “Come on,” Winter said, leaning forwards. She placed a shaking finger on the plachette and asked another question, just as Violet and Zach’s fingers joined hers. “Are you a boy or a girl?”

  “There’s no yes or no,” Violet said.

  “Move this to the first letter of yes or no. Are you a boy?”

  Winter thought she could feel the heart shaped wood move below her fingertip. When it didn’t move she was sure it was all part of her mind.

  “Move to the letter N if you are not a boy.”

  Zach whimpered next to her as the plachette began to move forwards. It stuck to the board, juddering, before momentum was picked up. It slid forwards, and stopped above the letter N. By now Zach was moaning, and Violet looked pale.

  “Good,” Winter said. “Move to the middle once more.”

  Nothing. Then it moved, slowly.

  “Please start spelling your name.” Violet said.

  “Oh no, oh no,” Zach whispered to himself.

  The wood began to move, dully scraping against the burnt surface of the Ouija board. Winter eyed it, unable to believe her eyes. She tried to ignore Zach next to her, infecting her with nerves. She watched the letters move from M to O to L and then something happened that made her heart flip.

  “RAGH!” Violet screamed.

  Winter’s scream was drowned out by Zach’s, who rolled backwards over the floor and came to a stop by the wall. Winter found herself a distance away, having propelled herself backwards with her good foot once more.

  Violet was laughing to herself, her eyes watering.

  “You horrible, horrible girl!” Zach called, leaning against the wall. His face was pale.

  Winter tried composing herself, but Violet pointed at her, laughing.

  “You idiots,” Violet gasped. “Oh my god, you both fell for it!”

  “I didn’t, it was Winter that made me jump!”

  “Shut up,” Violet laughed. “You screamed louder than her!”

  Zach jumped up and strode over to the board while Violet laughed, lying on her back on the floor. She was wiping tears from her eyes as Zach stepped over her carrying the board, walked to the window and threw the board out into the street below. Winter heard it clatter on the floor, heard Zach breath in deeply. An owl called through the night as Zach turned back to face the room, his face paler than the silver light of the moon above.

  “We are never doing that again.” Zach breathed. “Never.”

  “Oh, it’s all bull anyway.” Violet waved her hand. “That was probably designed to look burnt. It’s just a board with letters on.”

  Zach looked at Winter. She gave him a look that told him not to say a word. He did just that, instead walking over to the piled boxes and looking for blankets once more.

  When he found some, he handed a thick blanket to Winter and kept a ragged looking one for himself, which he set up on the ground. He managed to find another blanket, one that looked a little warmer, and would prevent him from sleeping on the rough floorboards.

  Violet curled up in Zach’s sleeping bag and turned her back on them. When she thought they were asleep, she began to cry. Winter met Zach’s eye and they said nothing. They listened to Violet cry until sleep washed over all three of them.

  The next morning, Winter woke up to weak sunlight shining down on her, making her sweat. She realised she hadn’t taken off any of her clothes last night, and the blanket she was under was very heavy and itchy. She threw it off her, feeling a slight draft from the window play over her skin. Violet was leaning against the window in her laced underwear, looking at the town below.

  Winter made to stand up, then realised her ankle had twisted last night. She thought back to how everything had happened so quickly. She looked over at Zach, his bare back turned to her, and thought how lucky they were that he had followed them. Without him they probably would not have survived.

  Winter stumbled up, breathing in as pain shot up her leg. She limped across to Violet and was relieved to find herself against the wall.

  “Shouldn’t be walking on that,” Violet shook her head slightly. She didn’t look at Winter because her eyes were puffy and red.

  Winter placed a hand on the bottom of Violet’s back. Violet didn’t flinch at the touch, she smiled.

  “I couldn’t do anything, could I?”

  Winter shook her head.

  “There was nothing to be done.” Winter said softly. “You tried. You really did.”

  A tear rolled down Violet’s cheek. She dropped her head, sniffing.
<
br />   Winter tried to give her privacy by looking out at the town below. By day it was much prettier. The sun shone on golden coloured cobbles and pearly white cottages. A few towns’ people hurried across the courtyard, glancing up at the clock tower in the centre of the town. Hurried words were exchanged, but many people had their eyes on the little shop open in the corner of the town, full of supplies.

  Winter noticed newspapers, bread, baskets of water bottles, shovels and spades, fruit and vegetables, various confectionaries and, if she wasn’t mistaken, weapons hung at the back of the shop.

  “There are weapons.” Winter remarked.

  Violet was looking at the shop.

  “You’re thinking of Connor, aren’t you?”

  “Do you think he’s…?” Winter couldn’t finish the sentence.

  “I don’t know, Winter,” Violet sighed. “If he stayed where he was then he could still be alive. But even so, we don’t know if he got attacked on the way there. We don’t know if he made it to the weapon shack at all.”

  “I just hope he wasn’t heading back to us. I hope he knew to run, to find somewhere else to go.”

  “If he spotted any sign of trouble he would have escaped. I don’t think he would have been eager to find us.”

  Winter sighed. She kept her foot off the ground as she leant against the wall, turning away from the window.

  “I don’t know what we’re going to do, Violet.” Winter whispered. “I just don’t know if it’s worth it anymore.”

  Violet said nothing. Winter listened to her tapping her fingers on the side of the window frame.

  “Where ever we go, we get chased out.” Winter said. “I wish we could just go and get out of here right now.”

  “At least we’re alive,” Violet said quietly.

  She didn’t sound angry, but her tone shamed Winter. It made her feel guilty. There she was moaning about being far away from the river Thames and missing Connor, when Violet had only last night lost her whole family.

  “I didn’t mean that, Violet…” Winter sighed.

  “I know.” Violet said, turning away from the window and looking at Winter. Her eyes were red. “But it’s no use to moan. We get out of here because we have to. We can’t let them win.”