The Virus by Lee, Damien (summer books txt) 📕

crowd spilling into the alley after him. She aimed the rifle at the closest one and fired. The shot dropped the undead woman instantly, causing all those behind it to stumble.

Lisa felt a wave of relief wash over. But the feeling quickly diminished when Adam suddenly stopped in his tracks.

“What are you doing?” Lisa cried.

She fired again as the zombies drew close. Adam whirled around, looking up both sections of the alley.

“Adam!”

“Help me!”

She fired at another zombie, and another, until Adam’s terrified eyes met hers. He remained still, staring in horror. Lisa quickly found the cause of his fear. She looked down his escape route and saw a series of undead men, women, and children dashing towards him. He was trapped. With only three bullets left, Lisa felt as helpless as he did.

“No!”

She shot the first zombie reaching out for him. The corpse fell at his feet. She looked the other way and fired at a child. Its head exploded, showering Adam in gore. She looked on, aghast, as the crowd closed in. Adam cried out as she swept her sight back and forth along the alley. Bodies packed both sides tightly as they grabbed their prey.

“I’m sorry.”

Lisa looked down the scope with gritted teeth. She lined up her target and shot Adam in the head. His body crumpled to the ground as a sea of hands and mouths consumed him. With a parting look at the grotesque display, Lisa left him behind and rushed to the top of the stairs.

“Guys, Adam’s dead. Get in the van now!”

“What?” Tina shouted back.

“The back door is still open and the zombies are gonna get inside. Get in the van now!”

She didn’t wait for another response. Instead, she sprinted down the corridor and burst into the room with the broken window. She looked down at the van, relieved to see an empty car park below her. Using the butt of the rifle, she smashed away the rest of the exposed glass and stepped on the windowsill. The drop was a lot higher than she remembered. Yet, her fear was short-lived as a distant screech brought her back to her senses. Lunging forward, she soared out of the window and landed atop the van. The impact caused her to stumble. She pitched forward, rolling from the roof to the ground.

She hissed in pain as she landed awkwardly on her leg. Yet, a nearby growl left her no time to contemplate her injury. She limped towards the driver’s seat and slid behind the wheel.

“Are you in?” There was no answer. She rapped on the back of the van. “Guys, are you there?”

A horrified cry came in response as a series of urgent taps sounded on the partition behind her. Lisa put the van in gear and raced forward out of the car park. She looked in the side mirrors at the diminishing depot, hoping she hadn’t left her companions behind. A series of bodies poured out of the broken window. The undead creatures had got inside, but she was too far away to identify whether Tina and Simon were among them.

“Guys, are you back there?”

There was no response. A sick feeling formed in the pit of her stomach as she drove towards the designated meeting point. Part of her wanted to stop and check the back of the van, but she knew it would be too dangerous without a weapon. Despite her reservations, she continued to drive.

28

Frank drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. Their rendezvous point had been deserted for the past ten minutes. With an agitated groan, he looked at his passenger. “How long since we split up?”

“Almost an hour,” Ben replied.

“Let me know when it’s exactly one hour.”

“What difference does it make? We can’t go looking for them in this.” Ben motioned around the cab of the LGV.

“Looking for them? Who said anything about looking for them?”

Ben stared at him blankly.

“If they don’t turn up, we’re heading back to the farmhouse,” Frank continued.

“Like hell we are!”

“Hey. We told them one hour. After that, we turn back.”

“I’m not leaving Amy behind.”

“Fine, then you can wait on the street while I drive back.”

The pair fell silent as a transit van turned onto the street ahead of them. Frank recognised it as the vehicle Lisa had left in. He felt a flicker of relief as she came into view behind the wheel.

“Took your time!” he yelled out of the window as Lisa rolled to a stop beside him.

“Fashionably late,” she replied. “Nice wheels, by the way.”

“You can thank Benny for that. He’s the one with all the good luck.”

Frank jabbed a thumb towards the stone-faced security guard. Lisa drove past them before performing a U-turn. It was then that Frank caught sight of the zombie clinging to the back.

“Hold up!”

Producing a handgun from within his jacket, he blasted the creature in the back of the head. The van slowed to a stop and Lisa got out of the driver’s seat. He frowned when he noticed her subtle limp as she walked around the back of the van. Jumping from the cab, he strode over to her.

“Have you been bitten?”

“No, I think I’ve sprained my ankle.”

They both looked down at the motionless corpse. The gaping hole in the back of its head offered a clear view of its brain. The skin on its legs was gone, exposing muscle and bone in places.

“What happened to this guy?”

“If you’re referring to its legs, that’s a result of being dragged for a mile and a half.”

The pair looked into the back of the van as Tina came into view. She shuffled past the pile of wood and leapt to the ground. Simon followed her out.

“You’re okay?” Lisa gasped.