Rage (Book 2): The Infected Read online

  Jack looked up at that, meeting the other man’s eyes. Kyra hadn’t seemed to notice but Jack had. Deacon nodded slowly, acknowledging that he knew Jack understood. Not everyone in that block of flats would survive to leave in the spring and of those that did survive, not all would be able to go.

  Chapter 2

  Denis scowled as someone’s shoulder bumped his as they brushed by him. It wasn’t the first such person to do that to him as he made his way down the stairs to the ground floor and it likely wouldn’t be the last.

  A good third of the block of flats had been put at risk when he blocked the stairwell on the sixth floor, and they weren’t happy about it. His chances of ever actually wrenching power from the hands of the fool, Jack, were pretty much gone.

  No, he was persona non grata and he knew that put him in a perilous situation. The world had gone to hell and the only way for someone of his age to survive against the hardship to come would be to have friends and allies around him.

  He needed the little community of the tower block to be on his side. Which was why he kept his face neutral as he was roughly jostled from all sides. He didn’t acknowledge the nod from Seth Barnes, as he passed, either.

  Seth was supposed to have been an ally, someone he could rely on for support and when Jack had grabbed hold of him, those supposed allies had done nothing. No, Denis knew that he couldn’t truly rely on anyone which left him with few options.

  The fat man, Dobbs, was directing people in the small lobby when Denis made it down to the ground floor, wrinkling his nose at the rank odour of smoke and death. It was a mess, with burn marks on the walls along with the blood and other bodily fluids the infected had left there.

  A large area before the entrance was stained almost black with the blood of those infected that had died and charred bodies still lay, piled, in the doorway. There was no glass left in that door, which was a problem as that would make it harder to secure it.

  “Get all these bodies outside,” Dobbs was saying, waving his crowbar like a sceptre. “Move fast because there’ll be more of them coming.”

  “I ain’t touching them!” someone said, and the fat man scowled at them.

  “Get some gloves and get to fucking work! If they’re left in here, then we’re gonna be fucked when more of them come. Either you move them or you’re on your own!”

  Harsh, Denis thought, but fair. Some of the lazy sods in the tower block had never worked a day in their life and they needed to learn that they couldn’t just sit on their backsides and let others do all the work for them. Not anymore.

  “Once the doors clear, we need furniture, heavy stuff to block them. Tim,” he pointed at a tall, bearded man near the stairwell doors. “You got your tool kit?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Start taking off all the cupboard doors. Pull apart the units and take the boards from the base of the beds.”

  “What for?” Seth asked, squinting at the younger man.

  “We’re gonna need all the wood we can get to cover the windows,” Dobbs replied, not looking at the older man. “Once we’ve blocked all the ways in, we’ll go up to the next floor and start again, clear?”

  A chorus of ‘ayes’ came in response and the crowd began to disperse, people forming into small groups as they went to begin their various tasks. Denis remained where he was as he considered what he should do.

  Clearly no one wanted to work with him, and he doubted that anyone would welcome him into their groups, so he stepped forward and approached Dobbs.

  “The fuck do you want?”

  Denis forced back the reply he wanted to give and managed something close to a smile. He stopped beside the pile of stinking bodies and tried to breathe through his mouth as the stench was almost beyond his ability to withstand.

  “How can I help?”

  The large, red-haired, man, glared down at the somewhat smaller Denis and sneered, mouth twisting in disgust as he spat a response.

  “You can help by pissing off and keeping out of my way.”

  “I can be useful-“

  “You’re as much use as a case of the clap, so sod off and let me work.”

  Denis stared daggers at the other man’s back as he turned away, ignoring the laughter and mockery from the other people in the small entranceway. His hands curled into fists and he was almost shaking with anger and he stormed away, leaving the others to their task as he went back to his flat.

  Once there, he sat on his couch and stared at the carpeted floor as he tried to come up with some way to get the people back on his side. The problem was that he wasn’t a young man anymore and he knew it.

  His career as an accountant wouldn’t be much use in the days and weeks to come and he had neither the energy nor the strength to keep up with the younger men. If he didn’t have any power in the group, then all he would have was the hope that they would be compassionate enough to look after him.

  Somehow, he doubted that.

  ****

  At the top of the tower block, on the fifteenth floor, Dec let the two newcomers into the flat he shared with his best friend, Jack. He tossed his keys onto the worktop in the small kitchenette and nodded at the closed door that led to the bathroom.

  “In there, love.”

  “Do you have towels?” Sarah asked as Claire marched straight over to the door, pulling off her soiled clothing as she went.

  “Probably have some somewhere. Hold on.” Dec opened the door to Jack’s room and stepped inside, coming out a moment later with a couple of heavy, thick, grey, towels. “These’ll do you.”

  She smiled her thanks as she took them. The door to the bathroom slammed shut and she heard the sound of the shower starting so she sank down to the couch to wait her turn. In truth, she was exhausted.

  A sleepless night spent on the roof of a primary school in the cold, and then a frantic dash through the city to the army reserve base before another panicked run for safety had taken their toll.

  If not for Declan and Kyra stopping their car to let them in, it was entirely likely that Claire and Sarah would be wandering the streets along with the other infected. She shuddered at the thought and managed another smile for Dec as he handed her a mug that steamed slightly.

  “Only coffee, love. All the food’s downstairs.”

  “Why?”

  “To keep it all together so we can share it out. Lot of people in this block and not like we can nip down to the shops, is it?”

  “I guess not.”

  “You okay to wait here while I scrounge you up some clothes?”

  “Yeah, I’ll be fine, thanks.”

  She settled back on the sofa, checking out the flat as the funny, looking man, left in search of clothes. Sarah remembered him from the hospital and his friend too, the tall fellow who had been so considerate of the woman he’d brought in.

  Their flat was neat and tidy, in a typical, Batcheler pad type of way. It was clearly lived in by guys with the large TV and games console set up so that it could be played while sitting on the couch. There were no pictures of friends or family and the only ornamentation was a drab calendar that hung on the wall.

  Clearly, the living area was shared, and the two bedrooms might have a little more personalization, but somehow, she doubted it. She took a small sip of her coffee and almost sighed with something close to happiness.

  It was the first warm drink she’d had in what seemed like days and, for the moment, she was safe. The infected were all outside and she had a lot of floors between her and them. But, since she was safe, she found herself with a new question to ask herself.

  What next?

  The soldiers she had been with had, according to Claire, not had her best interests at heart. There had been a dozen of them and just the two women and it was pretty clear that with the collapse of their command, they were looking to find somewhere safe to hide away.

  Claire had been sure that they would have been expecting the two women to take turns with the other soldiers and that wasn�
�t acceptable. They’d left them to the mercies of the infected and, as safe as she was in the flats, she still had no intention of being some sex object for the men there.

  She’d seen the movies, those apocalyptic stories where women were valued for what was between their legs and for that only. She also knew her history and in times of trouble, women would offer themselves to men for protection.

  Sarah had no intention of doing any such thing. She still had the small knife that Claire had given her and would ensure that it was kept close to hand so that she wasn’t put in a position where she had to choose between her dignity and her safety.

  Claire stepped out of the bathroom with a thin, white, towel wrapped around her waist. Without her uniform, she looked a great deal less intimidating with her freckles, warm brown eyes and mouth that seemed made for smiling.

  Not that Sarah had actually seen her smile.

  “All yours,” Claire said as she padded across to the kitchenette.

  Sarah didn’t need telling twice and she went into the small, neat, bathroom and closed the door before pulling off her nurse’s scrubs. She’d been wearing the same underwear for days, so those went straight into the hamper beside the door.

  The shower was luxurious. High water pressure, and hot enough to make her skin sting. She stood for several long minutes beneath the showerhead, just letting the water run down across her skin as she tried to forget about the past few days.

  Eventually, though, reality returned with the thump of the front door being opened and then closed, and she sighed before shutting off the water. She dried herself and wrapped one of the large towels around her body before stepping out.

  “Oh! Hi,” she said, as Jack turned his head towards her.

  Tall and good looking with blue eyes that seemed to pierce her through to her very core, she very clearly remembered him, and a flush caught her cheeks as she tugged at the bottom of the towel, wishing it was a little longer.

  “My apologies,” he said, turning away so that his back was to her and Claire who leant against the countertop smirking. “Where’s Dec?”

  “Here,” his friend said, coming into the flat. He carried a bundle of clothing in his arms and didn’t hide his admiration of the two women, as he flashed a grin at them. “Got you some clothes.”

  “Thanks.” Sarah took the small pile her offered her. “Where can I change?”

  “My room’s the door to your left,” Jack said. “Take your time, no rush.”

  “Thanks, again.”

  She pushed open the door and stepped inside, pausing on the threshold as she looked around. It was neat, like the rest of the flat, with a desk in one corner and bookshelves along the wall. The double bed in the centre of the room had its headrest up against the wall that had the one window.

  The bedsheets were a clean, grey and the bed had been made. Closet and chest of drawers took up much of the spare space and there were a few pictures in frames on the surfaces. Family, she thought, as she looked at each in turn.

  “Shift,” Claire muttered, pushing past Sarah into the room.

  “You could use the other bedroom.”

  “The weird guy’s room? No thanks. I don’t want to be the first woman to ever be in there.”

  Sarah shook her head at the other woman’s mean comments and turned her back as she quickly pulled on the clothing. Just blue jeans, a t-shirt and a thick wool sweater. No bra or knickers, which she was fine with since she didn’t really want to wear anyone else’s underwear.

  She stepped back out into the main living space and looked around, seeing just Declan sitting alone on the couch. He held the remote to the TV in his hand and was flicking through the channels hoping to find one that was working.

  “He’s in the shower,” Dec said, not looking at her. “Will be out in a minute.”

  “Ah, okay.”

  With a restless energy inside of her that came from too little sleep and too much worry, she wasn’t ready to sit and wait around, so crossed to the window and looked out over the city. It wasn’t a pretty sight.

  From where she was, she could see a wide swathe of the city of Leeds. Smoke was rising into the air from several areas and even though it was daylight, she could see large numbers of the infected running through the streets.

  If they were out in such numbers during the daylight hours which they tended to shun, she dreaded to think how many would be out at night. She just hoped they would make the block of flats secure before it got dark.

  Down in the area between the block of flats she was in and the two others, that formed a rough triangle, people were moving about, carrying bodies of the dead. She chewed on her lip as she watched that, unable to shake the feeling that she should be down there helping.

  “It’s a mess out there,” Jack said from behind her and she jumped, before spinning around to face him.

  He’d cleaned himself up and changed into black trousers and a grey t-shirt that fitted his athletic body quite snugly. Her cheeks heated once again as he smiled at her and she turned back to the window.

  She couldn’t quite believe that the world was falling apart, and she was going all red in the face because she found some guy attractive. It was almost enough to make her laugh.

  “Yeah, will be worse when it gets dark.”

  “No doubt.” He sighed, softly. “Well, you’re welcome to stay here tonight, and we’ll try and figure out something more permanent for you in the morning.”

  “Here?” she asked, turning back to him and glancing at the two-bedroom doors.

  “Yeah, you two can stay in my room. The bed will be big enough for you both and I’ll take the couch.” He paused and glanced back at his door. “There’s no lock, but you can push the dresser in front of it if you want. I know it might make you feel a bit safer.”

  “Ah, thank you,” Sarah said, surprised that he’d even considered that. “I appreciate it.”

  “No worries. I don’t know what your plans were or if you have people out there waiting for you. If you need to leave, we will see what we can spare to help you, but if you want to stay, you’re welcome.”

  “I don’t have anyone,” Sarah admitted. “Not sure about, Claire.”

  “Right, well we can sort out details in the morning. Till then, we’ll get you something to eat and let you get some rest.”

  “Is there anything we can do to help?”

  Not that the idea of rest wasn’t appealing, but she had been expecting anything else from him and his casual thoughtfulness was surprising to her. She felt the urge to not be seen as a burden, but to be actually useful to him.

  “I’m a nurse and if you have anyone who needs help, I will do what I can.”

  “Thanks.” He nodded thoughtfully. “We have a few issues that I’d like to discuss with you but for the moment you should just rest. Now, if you will excuse me there’s something I need to do.”

  With that, he headed to the door and went out into the hall. Sarah watched him leave, admiring the way he walked, before looking at Declan.

  “Don’t worry about him,” Dec said. “He’s got a lot on his mind.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. He’s just gone to tell a girl her boyfriend died downstairs.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  “Yeah, well, I don’t think he’s gonna be the last, is he?”

  Sarah couldn’t help a shiver at that thought. It didn’t help that she agreed with him and she was sure that before things got better, they would become a great deal worse. For some, she thought as she looked out at the streets overrun with infected, death would be the best option.

  Chapter 3

  Peter shifted on his bunk, trying to ignore the pangs of hunger that had his stomach aching. It had been days since the door had been opened and just as long since he’d had anything to eat. His only sustenance had been the water from the small, steel, basin bolted to the wall.

  He considered moving, climbing down from the top bunk, and drinking his fill of w
ater once again in an attempt to fool his belly into thinking it was full. It wasn’t the best option, but it was the only one he had.

  But even the thought of moving was almost too much effort and he twisted on his bunk, turning to face the wall, staring at the chipped paint in the half-darkness and wondering what the hell was going on.

  “I can hear it! You telling me you can’t?” a voice said from below him and he turned his head, listening for a moment.

  Form all around were the usual yells and wails of his neighbours and beyond that, the occasional siren from the streets beyond. Fewer now, than there had been, which he was sure meant something was wrong.

  As if the lack of food wasn’t a big enough give away about that.

  “I can’t hear nothing,” he said, voice hoarse. “Just your mind playing tricks.”

  “Nah, mate.”

  A face appeared over the edge of his bunk and he didn’t need to turn to look back at it. After almost three years, he knew every line of the other man’s face. He knew more about him than he did his own wife.

  Trevor snored, loudly, and talked in his sleep. He had a preference for heroin over oxy but would take anything that was available and if he got hold of coke, then it was best to avoid him and his violent temper.

  Tattoos covered his upper body and arms, a thousand different images that all meant something to him, or so he said. Given the chance, he would explain the disgusting meaning behind each and every one, but there were some stories Peter didn’t want to hear, and so he never asked.

  “I can hear it,” Trevor continued. “The scratching of little nails from inside the pipes. It’s rats, I bet ya!”

  “So what?”

  It wouldn’t have been the first time they’d had pests. Rats were bad, but the slugs had been worse and even they paled in comparison to the year they had cockroaches.

  “Well, if there’s a rat, and we catch it, we can eat, yeah?”

  “Why the fuck would you wanna eat a rat?”

  “Gotta be better than nothing, innit?”