The Abandoned Trilogy (Book 1): Twice Dead (Contagion)

by Suchitra Chatterjee

  The Twice Dead male seem to swell in the door, he was almost in and then there was a blur behind me, a bellow of rage and a flash of linseed wood. Stevie smashed the two cricket bats he had duct taped together into the face of the Twice Dead male. The force of his blow was so powerful it sent the once human male flying over the tops of those below him.

  I screamed at Stevie to get back into his seat, that he would fall out of the vehicle, but he ignored me and when the coach swerved, I was terrified he would be thrown out and devoured by the Twice Dead, but miraculously he wasn’t, in fact, he only lurched on the balls of his feet slightly.

  It was then I realised that holding onto the back of Stevie’s jeans by his leather belt and lying on the floor of the coach was Cassidy and holding onto his legs in turn were Gabe, Percy and the girls.

  Stevie was like a demented cricket player, any Twice Dead head that tried to get in the door opening was smashed into a thick black glutinous jelly that luckily sprayed outwards as Stevie used the customised cricket bat to gruesome effect.

  I had to duck and flatten myself into my seat to avoid being hit by the bat and goo. Private Jasper had to duck as well which made the coach swerve back and forth across the road, but miraculously it remained upright and from then on no Twice Dead made it passed the threshold of our moving metal sanctuary.

  As quickly as it had happened, it ended though for all of us in our sardine can on wheels it seemed like an eternity. Then we were on an empty road and the Twice Dead were behind us and thank God, so were Adag and Mitch in their vehicles.

  Cold air, that was already blasting into the coach finally made me shiver. Stevie stayed where he was as Cassidy let go of his belt and along with the others behind him slowly crawled back into their seats.

  I heard whimpering, but I didn’t know if it was the dogs or one of the others. Stevie stood where he was, his bloody weapon covered in black sticky goo. He stared out of the coach’s windscreen as he slowly lowered it downward. He said nothing, just stared at the moving road before us. Empty, long and grey. Just the way we needed it to be.

  I leaned over and took the bat from his fingers, gingerly holding onto the rubber handles as I bent forward and let it fall out of the still open coach door.

  It hit the tarmac and rolled, splintered apart and then disappeared from our sight into a grass verge. There was a crackle from the walkie-talkie and I found myself speaking to Adag via Paul and then Mitch. We had been a battering ram for them, taking the brunt of the surge of the bodies with the bull bars, allowing them to get through before the Twice Dead could begin to regroup.

  I had just put the walkie-talkie down on the seat beside me when I saw in my peripheral vision a pair of hands creeping up onto the lower step of the coach. I screamed, shoved Stevie backwards with my free arm and fired my Glock, which fortunately I was still holding, into the face of the slender Twice Dead female who was by then hoisting herself up from underneath the high coach step. Her face was partly burned, both her arms had the worst case of road rash I have ever seen, right down to the bone, but this didn’t stop her from almost getting into the coach.

  Private Jasper had got his Glock from his holster, this time able to steer the coach with one hand and between us, we poured a reign of bullets into her. Her face exploded into black jelly as she finally fell onto the road, we all felt our back tires go over her body, followed by the Land Rover and then the van.

  We didn’t stop to shut the door of the coach; it was way too dangerous. I could hear Jasmine sobbing and Seb was cursing furiously as he had not been able to do anything to help.

  “Holy fucking shit,” it was Percy’s voice, “Holy fucking shit!”

  Phoenix who had been clutching his precious computer to his chest said calmly, “That was disgusting.”

  I turned my body to speak to everyone when the coach lurched violently from side to side, “Jesus Christ!” Private Jasper shrieked, I rocked in my seat, I luckily had not unfastened my safety belt or I would have been thrown out of the coach.

  Two Twice Dead were now hanging down the front of the coach from the roof by their broken and twisted legs, which were probably tangled in the front part of the roof rack and they were bouncing back and forth against the thickness of the windscreen.

  I swore, as the snapped hands of the Twice Dead clawed at the windows, their eyes on the feast before them, mouths opening and closing, two men they had been once upon a time, but now they were Twice Dead.

  Private Jasper threw the coach to the left for a third time and this time it worked, the two Twice Dead became temporary birds, they flew through the air, gracefully I thought as my eyes briefly followed their flight, they flew over a hedge and hit a row of trees with such force their bodies literally exploded.

  “Bloody hell!” I drew my legs away from the black goo on the steps of the coach and I stared out of the grunge-covered windscreen before me, my heart was hammering so loud in my chest I was sure I was going to go into cardiac arrest there and then.

  “Duke you bastard I am going to rip your head off your shoulders and shit down your neck!” I said out loud.

  “Get in the fucking queue!” Private Jasper said without looking at me and he viciously hit the water jet button so the goo on the windscreen could be wiped off. From then on no one in the coach spoke until we reached Brocklease Bunker a couple of hours later.

  We had survived the first part of our Day of Days.

  We had to break through the steel gates once we got at Brocklease. Private Jasper was on tenterhooks, but I relaxed slightly for we were coming in via a private road that had wild garlic growing along the verges.

  We hit the MoD gates at speed, everyone bracing themselves for the impact and then we were through. We drove down the stone covered dirt track that looked surprisingly well kept, and used I thought for a place that was pretty much an abandoned wild life park of outstanding beauty.

  And it was. Carpet upon carpet of wild garlic and blue bells were everywhere, along with many trees and of course as we drove further in, the lagoon, crystal clear water that seemed to go on forever. It reminded me of the Monocot Lake at Thorncroft.

  The bunker was suddenly in our view, directly opposite the lake. It was an eerie sight, a concrete frontage, shaped like a half moon, built into the side of a hill. The door to the bunker were solid steel, impenetrable by the look of it I thought in dismay as we slowed down.

  Private Jasper purposely parked as near as he could to the lake, putting the front of the coach at a slight angle so there was space between water and land. The ground was quite firm and I was aware of the white flowers of the waterside wild garlic being nearby. Behind us, the other vehicles ground to a slow halt.

  Private Jasper didn’t move. He gripped the steering wheel tightly. He needed to compose himself, soldier or not. I knew how he felt.

  “There aren’t any of them on the roof?” Seb called out, “Are they?”

  If they had been they would already be in the coach, I said. I hoped I was right.

  Jasmine spoke, her voice wavering, “What were they?” she asked, “What were they?” I turned to look at my companions. This was going to be the hardest conversation I ever had, but it had to be done.

  Before I could speak Stevie spoke, clearly and calmly, “They were people,” he said, “They got sick and now they aren’t people anymore.”

  Cassidy frowned, “What are they then?”

  “We call them Twice Dead,” I said, “Once they were alive like Stevie said, then they died and they woke up again, only…only they woke up dead.”

  I didn’t expect Cassidy to understand what I was saying. He looked bewildered for a moment, and then he said, “They are bad then?”

  “Yes,” I nodded my head, “They are now...”

  “Very bad,” Stevie added, “They bit Gregory, and he became like them.”

  I heard a whimper from Jasmine. Eden said nothing, but her eyes were on my face and I gave her a sad smile. She didn't cry, at least not r
ight then.

  “We can’t let them bite us then,” Cassidy’s words surprised me more than Stevie’s. He had made the connection. It was a simple connection, but a connection all the same.

  “No, we can't,” I said.

  Cassidy looked at Stevie, “You were very strong.”

  Stevie said nothing.

  “You were amazing,” Gabe spoke from his seat and he reached over and squeezed the young man’s arm, “Braver than we were.”

  “Absolutely,” Percy said, “You saved us all.”

  “You all worked together,” Private Jasper suddenly spoke and he turned to look at everyone, and I saw in his eyes at that moment a grudging respect for the people he had seen as a liability even though he was trying to help.

  “Are we safe here?” Jasmine asked in a timid voice.

  “For the moment,” I said quickly before anyone else could speak.

  The tension in the coach was palpable.

  “Don’t touch any of the black shit anywhere on the coach,” Private Jasper choose that moment to stand up, “Be careful when you get off, move away from the coach, but stay near enough that you can get back on quickly if you need too, and no one fall in the fucking lake please, because I’m not going in after you.”

  There was a giggle from Eden. I giggled as well, then there was a snort from Gabe, Percy said “silly bastard,” and within seconds, we were all hysterical with laughter. The tension dissipated, with every hysterical belly laugh our bodies and minds became our own again. We all laughed so hard it hurt. Even Private Jasper laughed. It was hysterical laughter, but we needed to release the tension that all of us were experiencing at that moment.

  It reminded me of the time when Mitch and I had seen the dentures and the slippers outside the café, and that memory made me laugh even more, yes, I know it wasn’t funny, but like said, valves of pressure have to be released one way or another.

  “I think I have finally lost the plot,” I gasped as I wiped my cheeks with both my hands.

  Private Jasper choose that moment to take a flying leap from where he was standing to the grass outside. Everyone followed his example other than me, as there was no way I could do that with my leg and I said as much.

  The side of the coach wasn’t as badly splattered at the front was, the bull rings had strips of torn flesh hanging from them and the tires were covered in disgusting black Twice Dead goo. Percy and Gabe kept the dogs on their leashes and I limped down the back of the coach to join Seb.

  “Don’t want to jump out of the coach do you?” Seb grumped, his cheeks red from laughing, but now he was sombre, “Want to join the cripple in the back seat?”

  “Yes,” I said sitting down on a seat near to him, “It’s the only cheap thrill I am ever going to get.”

  “This is so going to rat-shit.”

  “Twice Dead shit don’t you mean?” I said.

  “Be serious.”

  “I don’t really want to think about it,” I said, “I can only deal with what I can deal with and right now…” my voice trailed off and I exhaled.

  “Stevie sure as hell kicked Twice Dead butt.”

  “Yeah,” I couldn’t deny the truth of that statement, “He sure as hell did.”

  “You didn’t do too bad yourself, pretty good for the leader of the pack.”

  Leader of the pack? What was he on about? Before I could respond, Mitch had the back doors of the coach open in order to get the electronic lift working so that Seb and I could get out of the coach.

  Lewis of course had no problem with the rough terrain and moved over the lumpy and uneven grass with ease.

  Mitch helped me off the lift and I limped off to join the others who were hovering near to the coach, but not too near.

  Phoenix was sitting cross-legged on the grass with his computer open. He had a large complex looking solar battery pack feeding it power.

  “How’s the Bee-in-the-SKY?” I asked him.

  “Still working,” he grunted.

  Eden and Jasmine had gone to sit by the lake, huddled together, arms linked.

  Percy and Gabe played with the dogs, Cassidy had lumbered over to them and they let him hold both leashes and walk with them.

  Mitch was talking with Adag. Private Jasper and Corporal Peters were checking their weapons and talking in low voices whilst Paul sat quietly in the front seat of the Land Rover. His eyes were closed. How long did he have? With no medication other than painkillers, he was living on borrowed time, but then weren’t we all?

  Stevie was standing by the water’s edge away from everyone else. Though he had laughed along with all of us when Private Jasper had spoken, I could see that he was greatly affected by what he had witnessed and what he had to do.

  I joined him, standing at his side. He was staring across the lake. It was a lovely lake, flat, barely rippling in the soft breeze of the day.

  There was a good-sized island in the centre. It was filled with trees and heavy foliage and by the look of it there was some sort of building there as well, hidden partly by the trees, but the stonework was a vivid red against the greenness of the landscape. I wondered what it had been used for? It looked newer than the bunker.

  “You were very brave Stevie,” I said.

  “And strong,” he said. He spoke quietly.

  “Very,” I agreed.

  “Bad people made them bad,” he said, “Very bad people.”

  “They did,” I nodded my head, and because I felt he had the right to know more, I said quietly, “One of them was a soldier.”

  “Duke,” Stevie said taking me by surprise and then he added, “He called me a Mong.”

  My stomach boiled. I clenched my fists at my sides.

  “You are a million times the man that he is Stevie, everyone in that coach owes their life to you, you are the real soldier not that piece of hate mongering shit!” I said fiercely, “And don’t you ever forget it!”

  “Lucy,” Stevie said softly, not looking at me, his voice trembled as he spoke, “Are my family now Twice Dead?” I had been dreading this question, so far, no one had asked it, though, everyone other than perhaps the girls and Cassidy knew it was more than likely their family and friends were now no longer human.

  “More than likely,” I said and I also stared across the lake, as I could not bring myself to look at him because I knew he was crying. Not hysterical crying, just a trail of tears sliding down his face, glistening on his freckled flesh, his bright eyes awash with silent and unspoken grief.

  I reached out and took his hand, closing my fingers firmly around his. We stood there together until Mitch shouted at us to help clean the coach. Time to keep busy whilst we waited for the Colonel to arrive.

  Cleaning the coach was surprisingly done with a mop, a broom and two buckets that were kept in the boot of the coach. Mitch liked to keep his coach clean and tidy, but that wasn’t always possible with some residents who had accidents with food, drinks and bodily fluids.

  As some of us helped clean off the gore and bits of flesh with water from the lake, Private Jasper and Corporal Peters set about making a fire with foraged dry wood and bracken. They had their rifles hoisted over their shoulders and they were on edge, barking out orders and scanning the exposed land around them with worried eyes.

  Eden and Jasmine collected pinecones from nearby trees to put on the fire and Seb and Adag had gone over to the steel doors of the windowless concrete bunker and were inspecting them with interest.

  Phoenix was working on the computer; his Bee-in-the-SKY was searching for Wolf. I had asked if we could use the Walkie-talkies in our vehicles to contact the Colonel, but Private Jasper said they weren’t compatible which was a bit of a bummer.

  Gabe and Percy had got the food I had bought with me and set about doing the best they could in sharing it out. Only Cassidy was hungry, but we all tried to eat something. The dogs had settled onto the grass and were chewing happily on two chew sticks.

  We all gathered around the fire, it was burning
merrily. It was still light, but when the night fell, it would be as creepy as hell.

  Corporal Peters had his arm around Jasmine’s shoulders and she was leaning against him, her own arm across his back. She was quiet, as was Eden.

  “Will we have to sleep out here?” Cassidy asked the question. He was munching on an apple I’d given him.

  “Not sure,” Private Jasper said and he moved his gaze to Phoenix and called out, “Any sign of the Colonel and the others?”

  Phoenix looked up briefly from his computer, “No,” he said shortly.

  I limped away from the fire, heading for the lakeside. Adag had gone to give Paul some water and to keep him company in the Land Rover.

  Mitch followed me to the lake and tapped me on my shoulder. He motioned with his head for me to follow him, which I did. We went to his van. He opened the back doors and he pulled out a wooden box from among the many things he had packed into the space. There was a strong smell of petrol and it got stronger when he prized opened the lid of the box.

  Inside were a variety of jars, taken from our recycling bin outside of the Home’s kitchen and filled with a combination of petrol and dried wild garlic. Mitch had drilled holes into the lids and then pushed a homemade wick into each one.

  For a moment I wasn’t sure what I was looking at and Mitch reached out for one of the jars, wild garlic infused petrol swished back and forth.

  “Not sure what it will do,” he confessed, then he grinned “Garlic Petrol Bombs, known now as a GPB!”

  That made me smile, Mitch tossed the jar into the air so it spun, before catching it and putting it back into the box. I sucked in my breath and he grinned, “It’s safe…until it’s lit, I sealed the lid rims to make sure, and I only used the best quality jars on offer!”

  “No denture containers then?” I said and he snorted back a laugh.

  “I considered Paisley slipper shoe boxes,” he said, “But the Petrol soaked through the cardboard.”