by Hatchett
Shauna looked into Mamba’s eyes and could see he meant every word. “I won’t,” she promised.
Mamba let go of Shauna’s left arm and she quickly grabbed the other side of the window. She then slowly wiggled her way through the gap until she was through. She sat in the seat and, for the first time, noticed the zombies on the other side of the driver’s cage, arms reaching through the gaps trying to grab her. ‘No different to Mamba then’ she thought to herself. For some reason, Shauna was not afraid of the zombies. She knew what would happen if they could get to her, and whilst she was scared of that, she was actually more afraid of what Mamba might do. As she sat in the seat familiarising herself with the controls and noted that there were only two pedals; the brake and accelerator, so it had to be an automatic. Indeed, she could not find any gear stick. She found the ignition, placed her foot on the brake and started the bus. The diesel engine roared into life as she continued to look at the various buttons and knobs around her. She found the door switches and the handbrake. The indicators, were the same as a car, not that she would need them! In fact, it was simpler than a car’s instruments.
Shauna turned to Mamba who had been watching her intently. He passed her a walkie talkie and a knife. “In case you need it,” Mamba advised, “but remember what I said and don’t get any ideas.”
“I won’t,” Shauna replied.
“We’ll go the other side of the bus. Open the doors and we’ll make a noise to see if it gets them off it.”
With that, Mamba gave the instruction to Dodge, who passed it on to Daniel. The truck moved forward before reversing until it was about five metres from the bus’s doors. Daniel kept the vehicle in gear so that the reversing beeps continued. Shauna opened all the doors; at the front, middle and back, and slowly the zombies headed for the exit and the beeping noises outside. To help them along, Mamba took a few pot shots at zombies along the road, the noise helping to grab their attention.
The zombies on the upper deck were also attracted by the noises but just moved towards the windows.
Mamba looked at them and motioned for Isaac and Bird to help him take them out. “Doesn’t matter if the upstairs windows are broken,” he advised as he shot the first zombie, glass shattering and exploding in all directions. Isaac and Zak followed suit and within a couple of minutes there was no further movement on the upper floor, and not much glass left in the windows. Mamba checked the lower floor and was annoyed to see a couple of stragglers who hadn’t left the bus. It looked like they were stuck so Mamba decided that he would deal with them later. He picked up the walkie talkie and told Shauna there were still a couple of zombies on board so not to do anything stupid. He told her to close the doors and follow. Shauna did as she was told and waited for the truck to move off.
Daniel set off again, heading East along the Commercial Road. It was not long before he turned right into Arbour Square which led to Arbour Street and then Aylward Road. Mamba kept a close eye on Shauna following behind and was pleased to see she seemed to know what she was doing and was following orders. Mamba told Dodge to head for the barrier at the Green Park Estate before he contacted the Judge on a different frequency.
19
Day 4 – 10:30
Green Park Estate, Stepney, East London
The gates were opened to cheers from all around, and the truck entered the Dead Zone, closely followed by the double-decker bus. Both vehicles parked, and the engines were turned off. The gates were then quickly closed behind them.
Mamba unclipped himself, jumped down and walked straight up to the Judge and Jury, both of them smiling wildly and clapping their hands. Bill and Ben were either side of them, their faces impassive.
“Well done Mamba,” the Judge commended him. “I knew you could do it, but lookin’ at the vehicles, you’ve done even betta than I expected. Is the castle secure?”
“Yeah Judge, we have a hundred or so people currently under lock and key.”
The Judge looked over Mamba’s shoulder. “So, who are these?” he asked, indicating Daniel and Shauna.
“That’s Danny Boy. He used to be in charge of the Tower until I relieved him of his duties, and that’s Shauna, someone we rescued on the way, and my new girlfriend.” The frown on Shauna’s face said it all.
“How did the youngsters get on?” the Judge asked, referring to Isaac, Zak and Grace.
“Not bad,” Mamba acknowledged, “but they’re still learnin’.”
“Let’s go get some drinks and talk some more,” the Judge suggested, and he took Mamba by the arm and entered the building. The Jury eyed Daniel before indicating he should follow, then turned to follow the Judge, Mamba, and the rest of the entourage.
Grace and Shauna were standing next to Isaac. “I’m goin’ up to see my mum, you two are welcome to come along.” Both girls had nothing better to do, so they followed Isaac into the building.
20
Day 4 – 11:00
Green Park Estate, Stepney, East London
Samata was thrilled to see Isaac and Grace and gave them big hugs before releasing them. She was introduced to Shauna, who was immediately accepted as part of the extended family.
“Where’s Zak?” Samata asked with concern.
“Don’t worry Ma, he’s fine,” Isaac advised. “He stayed at the Tower.”
Samata disappeared into the kitchen to make some drinks while Isaac, Grace and Shauna moved into the lounge where there were several other family members sitting around talking.
Once Samata had brought the drinks, and the new arrivals had found a space to sit, Isaac recounted what had happened since he left the previous Saturday. The family listened with rapt attention, asking loads of questions as he went along. Isaac answered the questions, although he skirted some of the things that had happened, mainly anything involving Mamba. The girls took his queue and avoided referring to certain events.
When Samata went to the kitchen to refresh the drinks and see if there was anything to eat, Isaac followed her.
“Are you goin’ to come to the Tower with us when we return?” Isaac asked.
Samata was silent for a while before she turned to face Isaac.
“I can’t,” she replied, “and if I’m honest, I don’t want to. This is my home and I want to stay here. Most people will need to stay here in any case. But, that doesn’t stop you from fulfillin’ your destiny, I want you to go, and look after Zak at the same time.”
Isaac nodded. “It’s only a coupla miles and I’ll be back here on a regular basis in any case. I think the Judge will want everyone over there eventually, there’s plenty of room.”
“In time, maybe,” Samata allowed.
21
Day 4 – 11:00
Green Park Estate, Stepney, East London
The Judge and his entourage were sitting in the rooms they had seconded on the tenth floor, and, while some of the helpers were preparing food and drinks, Mamba started going through his version of events and his various acts of heroism.
Daniel listened carefully, making sure he kept a straight face, and took in his surroundings and the various players and their interactions. He had been interested to hear how Mamba and the rest had managed to get to the Tower and now he knew. He was also getting a better understanding of what he was dealing with; untrained thugs, but highly dangerous thugs with few morals.
“So, the Castle is secure?” the Judge asked.
“Yep.” replied Mamba, “and there’s no fuckin’ chance anyone can get in or out unless we want them to, not with thousands of zombies fillin’ the moat and surroundin’ streets.”
“A bit like here then,” mused the Judge.
“You’ll love the ramparts and we haven’t even had a decent look in all the buildin’s yet.”
“Why not?”
“We’ve kept the middle closed off to hold in all the people and we haven’t had the time or the numbers to do a proper search.”
“We’ll go back this afternoon and get things movin’,” t
he Judge advised.
“Have you heard anymore from those people at the airport?” Mamba asked.
“Yeah, I was goin’ to tell you about that,” the Judge replied.
Daniel’s ears perked up. ‘This was an interesting development’ he thought to himself.
“They sound like a bunch of fuckin’ snobs. Like politicians,” the Judge said in disgust. “Still, they have weapons and say they can help us. Help us? That’s a fuckin’ laugh! They wanna meet up and see if there’s anythin’ we can do which is ’mutually beneficial’. What the fuck is ‘mutually beneficial’? I’ll tell you what mutually beneficial means; it means I take what I want, when I want it. Those fuckers are in for a helluva surprise. So, we need to get the castle sorted asap so we can invite them across in a day or so.”
“Do you know who you were speaking to?” Daniel enquired.
The Judge paused as he was about to take a drink and stared at Daniel for a few seconds.
“It speaks! Why do you wanna know that?”
“No reason,” Daniel quickly replied, “Just interested.” ‘So much for keeping a low profile’ he thought to himself.
The Judge considered the question and could see no harm in answering. Plus, he wanted to find out more about this Danny Boy.
“The guy I have been speakin’ to is Jack Robinson. He’s the boss there apparently. You know him?”
“Never heard of him, but that’s hardly surprising.”
“So, Danny Boy, what do you do?” the Judge asked.
“I manage the Tower, the tour guides and other staff,” Daniel replied.
“Sounds fuckin’ borin’ to me,” the Judge muttered, “dealin’ with fuckin’ foreign visitors. All them Yanks and Japs with their fuckin’ cameras around their necks.”
“Yes, it’s not always easy.”
“You should fuckin’ hang them or chop their heads off, or whatever they used to do there. That would stop them botherin’ you.”
“I think the idea is to make money.”
“Nothin’ wrong with that,” the Judge agreed.
“So, what do you want with the Tower?”
“Me and the Jury just fancied ourselves a castle. Somewhere well protected.”
“It’s well protected all right, a moat and two large walls. It’s stood for centuries and no army has ever managed to take it over.”
“Until us!” the Judge added, laughing.
“Yes, until you,” Daniel agreed.
The group continued to chat over some food and more drinks.
“Mamba,” the Judge called.
“Yeah boss?”
“We leave at 2pm, so let everyone know. The gang members go first, but leave a dozen here to keep guard and keep order. Friends and relatives take a later bus.”
“Got it boss, will do what I can.” Mamba left the room with walkie-talkie in hand.
22
Day 4 – 12:15
Green Park Estate, Stepney, East London
Mamba walked down the stairs towards the ground with Skelly, Bird and Dodge in tow. They reached the ground floor, opened the door to the Dead Zone, and were surprised to see a few dead bodies lying around and a handful of wounded gang members.
“What the fuck happened here?” Mamba screamed and was quickly answered by a gang member nearby.
“Coupla fuckin’ zombies came off that bus and managed to take some people out before we could restore order.”
“Fuck!” Mamba shouted. He’d forgotten about the two zombies on the bus and they’d obviously got free. The Judge would have his balls for this unless he got the mess cleared up quickly. He turned to his three colleagues.
“Skelly, make sure they’re dead and get some guys to move them into a pile. Dodge, get any injured in one group near the pile. Bird, get some petrol.” The three moved off quickly. They were as aware as Mamba that this needed to be dealt with and contained immediately.
Skelly went around the four bodies, plunging his machete into their heads. Once he had done so, the gang members with him hauled the bodies to a corner of the square.
Dodge, gathered up three wounded people and took them close to the pile of bodies where Mamba was waiting. Mamba nodded and he, Dodge and Skelly plunged their machetes into the wounded people’s heads and dragged them onto the dead pile. Mamba nodded to Bird, who started splashing the bodies with petrol before setting them alight.
Mamba turned to the gang members standing nearby. “Anyone bitten gets infected. Anyone infected has to die immediately, before they turn into those monsters.” There were nods all around as the dead bodies caught fire and started to burn ferociously.
Mamba had already forgotten the incident as he approached the bus. “Skelly, Bird, count the seats upstairs and chuck any bodies out the window. Dodge, you count the seats downstairs.
Mamba turned to the other gang members. “Any bodies come down, add them to the fire.”
Once they had finished their jobs, Skelly confirmed that there were forty seats upstairs and Dodge advised there were twenty-two seats downstairs. There was also standing room downstairs for around fifteen to twenty people if needed.
Mamba figured that the Judge and Jury would want to travel in the truck. Daniel could drive again, and Mamba could put himself in the area behind the cabin with Skelly and Dodge. Shauna could drive the bus and Bird could keep an eye on her. Isaac and Grace could also go on the bus. He would then fill the bus with a further sixty-five gang members and the rest would have to stay put. He gave the order to start filling the rear compartment of the truck with weapons and food then identified the gang members who would be going to the Tower and those who would be staying. He figured that there would still be around twenty-five gang members left behind, but thirteen could make their way across using the zips, leaving the twelve guards behind. There were thirty-two gang members already at the Tower, including Ahmed, who was temporarily in charge, so once they arrived, they would have just over a hundred gang members.
At a quarter to two, people started arriving in the Dead Zone, ready to make the journey to the Tower.
The Judge and Jury arrived, flanked by their bodyguards Bill and Ben. Mamba had forgotten about those two big bastards. ‘Never mind; he thought to himself; there was room on the bus and he and Dodge could go on that and leave Bird on the truck to relay any messages.
“What is that smell?” the Jury asked, looking towards the burning pile in the corner.
“We had a few dead zombies on the bus which we needed to clear,” Mamba responded quickly, omitting the fact that he had also left a coupla live ones on there as well.
“Let’s get goin’,” the Judge ordered, and Mamba directed people to where they would be travelling.
“You not comin’ with us Mamba?” the Jury asked.
“I didn’t think you’d need me with Bill and Ben around.” He noticed that they were both getting into the area behind the cabin with Bird.
Daniel jumped into the driver’s seat as the Judge and Jury got in the other side. Shauna got in the bus’s driver’s seat and Mamba made sure he had the closest seat to her. Dodge and Skelly sat next to him, but Isaac and Grace made their way upstairs. Isaac surveyed the crowd below and started to wave when he spotted Samata. He could see she was crying and was holding a hankie to her nose.
Once everyone was ready, Daniel started the truck and turned it around before leaving it idling just in front of the gate. Shauna did the same, but the size of the bus meant she needed to complete a three-point-turn.
The gang members on the scaffolding next to the gates fired a few shots at stray zombies before the gates were opened and Daniel shot through the gap, closely followed by Shauna. The gates were rapidly closed once the bus was through.
Daniel steered the truck across the barren ground back onto Aylward Road and retraced the route he had taken to get here. Although he had to deal with thousands of zombies attracted by the noise of the vehicle, at least he knew there would be no more vehicle blockages as he h
ad removed them on the way. The Judge and Jury thoroughly enjoyed the journey, especially when Daniel had no option but to plough into groups of zombies.
At the top of St Katharine’s Way, the Judge and Jury got their first glimpse of the Tower.
“What a fantastic sight,” the Judge commented. “Our new home. And just look at all these fuckin’ zombies around here.
As they went down St Katharine’s Way, the Judge looked up through the windshield and spotted the zips that Mamba and the others had used during their original journey.
At the bottom of St Katharine’s Way, Daniel turned onto the side road leading to the embankment, and as he was about to go through the East Gate tunnel below the road leading to Tower Bridge, he realised that the tunnel was too low for the bus and that it would never get through, unless it wanted to lose the upper floor. He stopped the truck and turned to see the Judge and everyone looking at him with suspicion.
“I can get through there, but the bus can’t,” he explained. Everyone looked ahead and could see what he meant.
“What do we do now?” the Judge asked.
“I think we should try accessing from the Tower Hill side.”
“I thought you said there were bollards and metal gates that way,” Bird noted from behind him.
“I did, but there’s no other way unless people want to get out of the bus and walk.”
There was the sound of a horn from behind and Bird quickly radioed through to Mamba to tell him the problem and what Danny Boy had suggested.
Daniel saw Shauna reversing the bus into a side road opposite where he sat, which was used as access to the Tower Bridge Hotel. He then reversed the truck and set off back up St Katharine’s Way, the bus falling in behind him.
Daniel reached the main junction and turned to the left to join Tower Hill. There were more vehicles across this part of the road, so he shunted some out of the way to make sure there was enough room for the truck and the bus behind him.