Sunlight

by Ryan Casey

  He couldn’t hear the doggie barking anymore.

  “Come on. We should go before they see us.”

  Jenny was standing at the side of the manhole cover. It was only when Sam looked that he realised where they were—in the middle of a big field. In the distance, there were chimney towers, like those Mum used to tell him he’d have his nose thrown in for picking it when he was younger. It smelled better out here than down in the horrible sewer, but the taste of lots of nasty things was all over his soaked clothes.

  He could feel the warmth of the sunshine warming them up already.

  His finger hurt bad. Or where his finger had been. It still felt weird. Weird that he was missing a finger. And the pain was worse than anything else he’d ever felt.

  But he remembered what Dad said. What he said about him always being here. About him being in his memory.

  And his dad would have told him he was a strong boy, and they’d find someone to look at his finger and clean it soon.

  Jenny struggled with the manhole cover as the bad people continued to shout and make nasty noises below. Sam helped her push it into place with his good hand, heard it clunk against the ground, heard the sounds of the bad people disappear.

  He looked down at that manhole cover and he knew he’d never see his dad again.

  Jenny and Sam just sat there for a little while not saying anything. Sam looked at his sister. Saw her scratching her arms, shivering and looking around like she was waiting for someone.

  “No one’s coming for us,” Sam said.

  Jenny nodded. Looked around at the field. Squinted at the chimney towers in the distance, the sea just beyond that. “I know,” she said.

  Sam heard her sniff and he knew she was still crying which was weird because Jenny never cried in front of him. Made her look weak, she said. She once cried in the playground when Annette Silver was pulling her hair and Sam had laughed at her for ages after that.

  He felt kind of bad for that now.

  He stood up. Put his good hand out to his sister.

  “We… we need to do what Dad would do. Find… find somewhere safer than here. And—and some food.”

  “I’m not hungry,” Jenny said. But Sam thought that was weird too because his sister was much skinnier and the white shirt she was wearing hung off her bony shoulders and they hadn’t eaten for ages.

  “But we have to eat,” Sam said.

  Jenny let out a shaky breath. Looked at her brother’s hand. Then at the hand that had had the finger chopped off. “Are you… Is your finger okay?”

  “I don’t know. The bad people took it.”

  Jenny smiled at this. Wiped the tears and the pooey sewer goo from her cheek.

  “And… Your weird vision dream things. You… you haven’t had any for a bit?”

  Sam shook his head. He hadn’t had any dreams for a while. The last one he’d had had given him a nosebleed when they were in the middle of the woods with Dad. But even then, he saw nice things. He felt warm. He felt like someone was holding him, or no—pushing him. Pushing him on a swing. Pushing him on a swing and giggling in the middle of the night where the stars danced above. And he was asking them to push him higher and higher.

  “I’m okay now,” Sam said.

  “You… We might not be okay forever. Your dreams might come—come back.”

  Sam nodded. “I know.”

  They waited a few more seconds before Jenny grabbed Sam’s hand and pulled herself up.

  She wrapped her arms around her brother and he hugged her back.

  “You’re all smelly,” Sam said.

  “So are you. You’ve got a bit of poo in your hair.”

  “Have not!”

  They pulled themselves apart. Realised they were smiling, even though they were still crying.

  “Dad would want us to be strong and tough. And… and Mum would too,” Jenny said, shaky-voiced.

  Sam looked at the manhole cover. Half-expected his dad to come climbing up with the doggie in his arms, like that film Mighty Joe Young where everyone thinks the monkey is dead but it wakes up.

  Like all the films.

  He waited. Waited some more.

  Felt his sister’s hand on his back, and his shoulders slumped.

  The films lied.

  “Come on,” Jenny said. “We’d better move.”

  Sam stared at the metal manhole cover some more. Imagined his dad smiling at him, or rustling his hair, or fighting to keep him alive and doing the Ticklemonster and making him laugh so much.

  He blinked away some tears, turned around and walked hand-in-hand with his sister towards the smoky chimneys way across the fields.

  “I love you, Dad,” he whispered.

  A breeze rustled against the rich green grass which the sunlight lit up with glistening beauty.

  What Next from Ryan Casey?

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  About the Author

  Ryan Casey is the author of over a dozen novels and a highly successful serial. He primarily writes post apocalyptic fiction, and also has a series of mystery novels. Across all genres, Casey's work is renowned for its dark, page-turning suspense, unforgettably complex characters, and knockout twists.

  Casey lives in the United Kingdom. He has a BA degree in English with Creative Writing from the University of Birmingham, and has been writing stories for as long as he can remember. In his spare time, he enjoys American serial television, is a slave to Pitchfork’s Best New Music section, and wastes far too much of his life playing Football Manager games.

  For more information go to ryancaseybooks.com

  About this Book

  In the Brightest of Light, Darkness Resides.

  Jack Simm is a man with no responsibilities. He has a cushy job, drinks a lot, and hasn't seen his two children in several years. A life of freedom is everything he's ever wanted.

  But when an unexplained and devastating event turns the majority of the population into genocidal maniacs, Jack is forced to protect his two estranged children and escort them to a rumoured safe haven at the other side of the country.

  Reunited with his children, Jack must finally step up to the responsibilities of being a father while adapting to a horrifying dystopian world of violence and bloodshed. As the makeshift family encounters nightmarish dangers and hellish scenarios, Jack fast learns that being a moral compass in a world stripped of its morals is more difficult than anyone could possibly imagine...

  Sunlight is a gripping post apocalyptic suspense thriller from the author of the bestselling Dead Days series about the lengths a parent would go to protect their children. Both thrilling and subtle, horrifying and heartwarming, Sunlight is a riveting journey through a dark and dangerous world quite like no other.

  Copyright

  Sunlight

  by Ryan Casey

  Published October 2014 by Higher Bank Books

  Edited by: Martin O'Hearn

  Cover by: Cormar Covers

  This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your preferred retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fictio
n. All characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2014 Ryan Casey