Snatchers (Book 14): The Dead Don't Hate

by Whittington, Shaun

  “Miserable day,” she murmured.

  “I’m dreading the winter, chap,” Rowley confessed.

  “Aren’t we all?” Karen huffed.

  “But at least I’ll be able bodied by then.”

  “Hopefully. If you keep the weight off your ankle.”

  The sound of an engine could be heard and everyone remained silent and could hear the sound growing in volume.

  Findlay looked at Karen and wasn’t sure if it was going to be Pickle or not. His walkie talkie came to life and Roger announced that he could see the prison van approaching.

  Everybody relaxed, and Findlay and Karen stood near the gate and could see a large vehicle turn into a road and all could see the INVESCO van heading towards them.

  Findlay smiled and opened the gate, allowing the vehicle to drive through without stopping.

  The van pulled over as soon as it entered the grounds and Pickle, Drake and Vince immediately got out.

  “Nice ride out?” Findlay asked them.

  “Adventurous,” Pickle remarked.

  “We had a few obstacles to contend with,” said Drake. “But we managed to sort them out.”

  “What he means,” Vince chipped in, “is that Pickle sorted it out.”

  “Sounds like you have a story to tell,” Findlay remarked.

  “Later,” said Pickle. “Let’s get our guys and get these birds out the back o’ this van.”

  “You managed it then?” said Karen.

  “We sure did.”

  Pickle opened the back of the van and Stephanie and Mildred were the first to step out. Karen greeted the pair of them with hugs and could see Mildred looking at Drake in a funny way.

  Karen was about to ask what was wrong, but was thrown by the emergence of a man she had never met before.

  Pickle introduced Quint to the group and the surprise never stopped there. Richard and Tracy stepped out and Karen released a laugh, giving Tracy a cuddle.

  “What happened to you two last week?” she asked them.

  Even though Pickle told the group that he would tell them the story at a later day, Richard gave them the shortened version.

  “Me and Tracy were staying at Gnosall. We didn’t realise the guys running the place were bad ‘uns.”

  “Two jeeps blocked the road,” Vince chipped in. “Some of the guys in the jeep got out, including Richard, and a fight broke out.”

  Stephanie said, “Pickle did most of them and we went back to Gnosall to get Tracy.”

  “Richard’s being humble,” Pickle intervened. “He and Stephanie saved ma life, yer see. If it weren’t for them I’d be brown bread. Anyway, we’ve got about forty or so hens in the back.”

  “I’ll get some kind of pen for them set up,” Darren spoke up.

  “Nice one, Double D,” Drake chuckled. “As soon as you get that done, we can throw them out on the grass. We can keep them in the shed on a night and during the winter. Let’s hope the fuckers mate. How many cocks in the van?”

  Karen said, “There were three when you, Pickle and Vince were in there.”

  “Ha, ha, ha. Very fucking funny.”

  Karen looked over at Mildred and could still see her giving Drake daggers.

  Something was wrong. She didn’t know what, but she was determined to find out what it was that was bugging Mildred Huxtetter.

  She looked over at the woman and signalled her to come over. Mildred walked over as the rest of the guys were helping to move the birds out of the van.

  “You okay?” Karen asked Mildred.

  She nodded unconvincingly.

  “You sure?” Karen persisted. “You were giving Drake a funny look.”

  “It’s okay.”

  “Come on, out with it.”

  “I don’t trust him.” Mildred nodded over to Drake.

  “Why? What’s he done?”

  “Forget it.”

  “Okay.” Karen decided to pester her no more. “I’m going to have a word with Pickle, seem as though you’re not in the mood for talking, and get the full and detailed story of what you lot got up to while you were away. Talk later?”

  Mildred shrugged. “Yeah, maybe.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Peter and Roger had passed one another outside the wall and were suffocated by boredom. Staying at the hospital seemed a good idea at the time, but both men were used to being on their own, being ‘free’, and going from one place to the next.

  They had had a discussion the evening before about leaving and going elsewhere, despite the winter only being a few months away. The hospital provided supplies and security, and most survivors would assume that both men were insane to go elsewhere, but the truth of the matter was that they were bored. They weren’t used to this, and being put outside the wall to keep a lookout was mind numbing.

  Peter and Roger slowly walked around the perimeter of the wall in opposite directions. It took a while to walk the whole circumference of the wall and eventually passed one another again.

  Peter stopped walking and decided to sit on the kerb of the pavement he had been walking on. He pulled out a protein bar out of his pocket, which was given to him by one of Drake’s men after raiding an abandoned shop, and unwrapped the bar. This was the first thing he was going to eat since yesterday morning. He looked ahead of him, at the abandoned streets, and wondered what life had in store for him and his brother over the next few months.

  The bar was full of nuts and covered in chocolate, and he took a small bite from it, savouring every chew from the bar that was only four inches in length.

  He ran his fingers through his beard. It was getting thicker, and was in dire need of a trim. He took another bite, dropped his head, and thought about his mother.

  He had no idea how long he had his head lowered, maybe just a few minutes, but a sound alerted him and he quickly looked up to see what was approaching.

  A smile stretched over his face when he saw a dog, a mongrel, tentatively heading towards him.

  The canine had brown fur and looked like a descendant of the Alsatian. He took another bite from his bar, leaving an inch of it left, and held out the rest of it with his fingers and beckoned it over.

  The dog seemed unsure and paused for a moment. Peter could see it was malnourished and could see its ribs poking out. It must have been starving.

  It then began to move again and Peter said, “There you go, boy.”

  He stretched out his hand further and the nervous dog took a vicious bite, taking the chocolate and injuring Peter’s hand.

  “Jesus!” he exclaimed, and could see the canine running away after getting its treat.

  He looked at his hand, stood up straight, and held it up. It wasn’t bleeding heavy, but six red teeth marks could be seen on the top of his hand. “Little bastard.”

  He stood up straight and could see Roger coming towards him, on the right.

  “Had enough of walking?” he asked Peter.

  Peter pointed over at the canine that was trotting away in the distance. “Tried to give it my last bit of my bar and it fucking bit me.”

  “Must have been hungry,” Roger gently chuckled.

  “Just hope it doesn’t have rabies.”

  “Better get it checked out by Karen.”

  Peter nodded in agreement and looked at his hand once again.

  Annoyed by his brother’s hesitancy, Roger snapped, “Like now.”

  *

  Peter was let in through the gate by Findlay and asked what was wrong.

  “Nothing,” was Peter’s short reply.

  “You can’t leave your brother out there on his own.”

  “I won’t be long.”

  Peter could hear Findlay say something else as he walked away, but it was inaudible to his ears. He went into the building and headed for Ward 22. He could see a guard of name he didn’t know, and said he was here to see Karen. The guard opened the door and Peter stepped inside and could see Karen sitting at her desk.

  “Hello again,”
she said with a smile. “Everything okay?”

  “Don’t know yet,” Peter sighed and sat himself down in the opposite chair.

  “Why? What’s up?”

  He held out his hand and Karen’s eyes widened. “How?”

  “It was a dog.”

  Karen looked at him suspiciously. “Are you sure?”

  “Come on, Karen.” Peter looked annoyed at her suspicious query. “Do you think I would get bitten by a Snatcher and hide it or pretend it was something else. That’s a horror cliché.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “It’s just...”

  “What?”

  “How did you let a dog get near your hand? Did you pet it?”

  “I gave it the rest of my protein bar.” Peter was getting annoyed with all the queries and said, “Look, I just came here to get it cleaned and wrapped up. Do you think you can do that?”

  “Okay.” Karen stood and went over to the box of dressings and grabbed some disinfectant. “You don’t need to speak to me like that.”

  “I knew what you were insinuating.”

  “And what was that?”

  “You think that maybe one of the dead did this. How could one of them get near me without my knowing?”

  Karen shrugged her shoulders and said, “Did you go for a nap? Or...”

  “No, I didn’t go for a fucking nap!” Peter stood up and the guard from outside entered, asking Karen if everything was okay.

  “Fine.” She nodded and waved the guard away. “It’s okay.”

  “Do you know what?” Peter kicked the chair across the room and snarled, “Stick your fucking bandage.”

  He stormed out and marched towards the exit of the building.

  Karen could see a radio attached to the guard and asked him to contact Drake. She needed to see him. He did as she asked, and both Drake and Pickle turned up at the clinic within minutes.

  “What is it?” Pickle was the first to ask what was wrong.

  She sat down and rubbed her head. “Peter was in earlier.”

  “And?”

  “He’s been bitten on the hand, but he said it was a dog.”

  “A dog?” Drake queried. “How the fuck—?”

  “He reckoned he gave it some of his bar and it bit his hand.”

  “Unless he fell asleep?” said Pickle.

  “I mentioned that and he went off his head.”

  Drake and Pickle looked at one another and were lost in thought for a few seconds.

  Drake turned to Karen and questioned her once more. “What about Roger? Have you spoken to him?”

  “I’m not sure he was present when it happened,” said Karen. “But would he back his brother up anyway?”

  Pickle rubbed his head and told the pair of them, “I’ll go and look for him.”

  He left the ward and headed for the building. He walked around the grounds of the hospital and decided to go into the reception and outpatients building once he reached the main gate where Findlay stood.

  Pickle was whistled over by Findlay and went over to the guard standing with the baseball bat.

  “That’s two more people we’ve lost,” Findlay said with a sigh.

  “What?” Pickle exclaimed. “Dead? How?”

  “No, not dead,” Findlay laughed. “Left. Happens once in a while. People don’t like the enclosure, think they can find something better.”

  “Who’s left?”

  “Peter and Roger just did.”

  “Fuck.”

  “Roger said they were thinking about going anyway, and Peter was apparently not happy about an accusation by Karen.”

  “For God’s sake.”

  Findlay hunched his shoulders and rested the bat on his left shoulder as if he was waiting for someone to pitch.

  Pickle rubbed his face and groaned, “Nice one, Karen.”

  *

  “Hi, Drake.”

  Drake had decided to stretch his legs outside after hearing the news of Peter and Roger’s departure. He wanted some peace and quiet, but it didn’t last long, as he heard his name being called. This was the last thing that he wanted: to be bored to tears by David Marshall about the state of the vegetables. Drake continued to walk on and the man called after him.

  Drake stopped walking and groaned. He turned around and snapped, “What is it?”

  “I wanna show you something,” David said.

  “You’re not gonna whip out your dong, are you?”

  “Um ... no.”

  “What is it?” Drake rubbed his temples and wondered if this was going to be the start of a migraine. “I don’t really have time for your shit.”

  “Just come with me,” he said. “There’s something I’m really concerned about.”

  “Come on then.” Drake released a sigh. “Show me.”

  David walked to the first greenhouse and both stepped inside. Drake followed the annoying man and both stopped when they reached the tomatoes and David pointed.

  “Look,” he said.

  “What am I looking at?” Drake hunched his shoulders and was clearly annoyed by this pointless distraction.

  David Marshall leaned over and specifically pointed at two tomatoes out of the hundreds that were almost ripe enough to eat.

  “They don’t look too clever,” Drake admitted.

  “You know what that is?”

  Drake shook his head.

  “It’s greenfly.”

  “In September?”

  “I killed two of the rascals just.” The man nodded. “I came here yesterday afternoon and noticed that someone had left the door open.”

  “So we have two tomatoes that are almost inedible?”

  “Yes, Drake.”

  “And you thought that was worth dragging me in here and bringing it to my attention?”

  “Um ... well, yes. I did.”

  “Right.” Drake released an angry breath out and said to the man, “I’ve told you many times not to bother me with mundane shit like this, haven’t I?”

  “I know, Drake. To be fair, you told me not to say nom, nom, nom anymore, and I haven’t.”

  “I’m going to say this one more time.” Drake cleared his throat and placed both hands on the man’s shoulders. “If you keep bothering me with this horseshit, I’m gonna have to boot you in the nads before throwing your arse out of here.”

  “But Drake...”

  Drake shushed him and wagged his finger. “No more. Unless the greenhouse is on fire, I don’t want to be bored of this shit anymore. I don’t care if the peas grow a funny way, or if the cucumbers are shaped like a rhino’s cock, or a cabbage looks like Charles Manson if you look hard enough. I don’t care.”

  “I’m just trying to keep you updated, Drake.”

  “You’ve spent a lot of time in these greenhouses, and I appreciate it. And, yes, maybe you’ve gone a bit mad over the last month or so, but no more, please. Otherwise I may have to kill you. Compronde?”

  He then walked away and cussed under his breath. “If ever a prick needs kicking to death it’s him.”

  David watched as Drake made his way over and said under his breath, “It’s comprende.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  September 9th

  David MacDonald was the first individual in his ward to wake up. He brushed his teeth and tried to flatten his hair by spitting in his hands and slapping down the ‘sticky up bits,’ as his mother used to call them when she used to wet and comb his hair before going to school.

  He put on the clothes he had worn the day before and headed for outside. He stepped out and, like the day before, the day was dry but murky.

  He could see a guard at the gate and guessed that it was around 7am. Other people could be seen. He saw three males sitting on their mopeds and it looked like they were about to go out on a run. The red pickup pulled up by the men on the mopeds, and the guard pulled back the gate. The three mopeds and the pickup exited and the guard that David didn’t recognise closed the gate.

  David smiled wh
en he saw Stephanie appear from round the corner of the building, and she waved once her eyes clocked him. She had no bow or bag with her for a change and he wondered why she was up so early.

  “You okay?” she asked him.

  He nodded and asked, “Fancy hanging out today? I was wondering if you could show me how to shoot.”

  “No can do, Dave.” She playfully slapped the fourteen-year-old on the shoulder. “Going out on a run in an hour or so with Pickle, Vince, and a few others.”

  “Another one?” David was hurt that he never got an invite. Pickle had promised he would take him out one of the days.

  “We may as well use the vehicles whilst there’s still petrol. After the winter, we might have to resort to horse and cart,” she joked.

  “Are you taking the van?” he asked her.

  She nodded.

  “And where are you going?”

  “Not sure.” Stephanie scratched the side of her head and then tightened her ponytail. “Some place two miles away called Workout World.”

  “What’s the point in that?” David scoffed. “Are they bringing back dumbbells and barbells back with them?”

  “No, don’t be silly,” she laughed, and David immediately felt annoyed and small when she did this. “One of Drake’s biker guys checked the place out two days ago. The place is supposed to be full of protein powders, multivitamins, protein bars, glutamine, meal replacements, as well as clothes and footwear.”

  “I just thought...”

  “Don’t worry about it,” said Stephanie. “We can hang out when I get back. That’s what friends are for, eh?”

  “Friends?” David groaned.

  “Yeah. That’s what we are, aren’t we?”

  “I suppose,” David mumbled.

  “Alright, kids?” a familiar voice was heard from behind.

  Both Stephanie and David turned around to see Vince Kindl heading towards them.

  “Ready, Steph?” he asked.

  “Are we going now?”

  “Won’t be long.”

  “Just waiting for everybody else to get up,” she said.

  “Oh.” Vince scratched at his grey hair and said, “I thought we were meeting by the gate. I tell you what. You go and get the rest and I’ll stay here with David.”