‘But have you not tried to get to safety?’ asked Ellis. ‘There is an army base nearby.’
‘There is, my dear,’ the Reverend said. ‘A patrol came by the day before yesterday and offered to take me with them but I politely declined. Now more than any other time, I told them, my parish needs me. They left shaking their heads.’
‘Why did you do that?’ asked Abe. ‘Why didn’t you go with them? Why are you sitting here waiting to die?’
‘That’s a good question, young man. The only answer I can give you is that after a lifetime of fear, I am no longer afraid of death. Once you lose that fear then living is made all the more bearable.’
‘You’re crazy,’ said Abe. He chewed his sandwich.
‘Probably,’ said the Reverend, ‘but I’m old enough to be fine with that.’
‘What now?’ I said. ‘You can’t do this forever.’
‘I don’t intend to,’ the Reverend said. ‘I have one more parishioner to take care of and then my mission is complete.’
‘Take care of?’
‘I have managed to help seven of my eight parishioners find a new place for themselves in the afterlife. That’s what I was doing when we met earlier. Mr. Lamb had been bedbound for the last few months and being the shepherd that I am …’
The Reverend laughed at his own joke.
‘I only have dear old Mrs. Heseltine left. I’m afraid that she turned yesterday afternoon, but I managed to trap her in her bedroom. I’m heading back that way later today.’
‘To do what?’ I said. I didn’t really understand.
‘I will bring some comfort in these troubling times to the poor old thing. I will stay and pray with her. I will help her face the end of the world with dignity and grace,’ the Reverend said.
‘Then I will bury her next to her husband.’
The Reverend shuddered. He was remembering nasty pictures in his head.
‘I’ve seen those things in action. It’s such a messy business. All that gibbering and ripping and chewing. The whole thing crosses the boundaries of all known decencies.’
He put his cup and saucer down.
‘That’s simply no way for a God-fearing, jam-making, little old lady to spend the rest of eternity.’
Killing
Later we went with the Reverend to Mrs. Heseltine’s house.
‘She only lives down the lane,’ the Reverend said. ‘You’re welcome to stay behind.’
We all wanted to help him. He was nice. Vinnie said it was a good idea.
‘It’s the least we can do,’ he said. ‘He might need our help.’
‘He hasn’t needed it so far,’ said Amber. ‘That old man is a holy killing machine.’
‘I heard that, young lady,’ said the Reverend. ‘Personally, I prefer to think of myself as the ultimate Good Samaritan.’
Mrs. Heseltine’s house was pretty. It had white flowers in the garden. The Reverend had his Bible in his hand. He also had his shovel. He opened the red front door.
‘Please wait here, everyone. I won’t be long.’
I felt strange. We were outside a nice house. We were waiting for a priest to kill an old lady. He said she was a viro. Weird.
The front door opened again later. The Reverend was dragging a dirty duvet. It looked heavy. He was out of breath. Vinnie helped him.
‘Please would someone be kind enough to push this back to the graveyard?’ the Reverend said.
I saw his sleeve was ripped. There was blood coming out. He was hurt.
‘I’m afraid that old Mrs. Heseltine has got her revenge for all those dreary sermons I made her sit through,’ said the Reverend. ‘I don’t have long now so we had best hurry back.’
We took turns digging a new hole. The ground was hard. There were lots of roots. It took ages. The Reverend sat on a crooked stone. He was singing softly. Then he spoke to us.
‘I’m awfully sorry but you boys will have to dig another one for me. You get started on that while I fetch something from my study. I won’t be long.’
We finished the first hole. We put the old lady’s body in it. We started making another hole. I was working so hard. I didn’t hear the gun. Ellis and Amber ran towards us. They were crying.
‘We asked him if he wanted a cup of tea and he said he did,’ Ellis said.
‘He told us that he was just getting something from his desk,’ said Amber.
‘I was filling the kettle at the sink when the Reverend came back into the kitchen. He said that he was just popping into the church for a moment and that I was to warm the pot first and then when I was ready to pour that I was to put two sugars in his tea.’
‘A little while later,’ said Ellis, ‘we heard a gunshot. We found the Reverend lying face down in front of the altar. Blood was coming from a hole in the side of his head.’
We all stood still. The bad things kept coming. Again and again.
Eventually, Vinnie spoke. He was sensible.
‘He knew that he would turn just like all the others.’
Vinnie put his arms round Ellis and Amber.
‘I know it’s horrible but it was his way of avoiding what he called all that messy business.’
Vinnie turned to Abe and me.
‘You two finish the grave while I go and get the crazy old man.’
Vinnie picked up the wheelbarrow and headed back towards the church.
Soup
We buried the Reverend Timothy Hooper in his own graveyard. We went back to the house. It was getting dark. We didn’t want to be outside. I thought there was death everywhere. But it felt mad to be in a dead man’s house. Vinnie tried to help. He said the Reverend was a kind man. And generous. He wouldn’t mind. He would want us to be safe.
I found four tins of chicken and vegetable soup. I poured them in a pan. Vinnie got a tin of hotdogs. He chopped them with a wonky breadknife. Vinnie put the pieces in the soup.
‘It’s hardly cordon bleu,’ he said, ‘but it will do nicely for now.’
We buttered the bread. The soup bubbled. The others were exploring.
‘Are you ok?’ I asked Vinnie. ‘You know, about Fran and John?’
‘I’m not sure,’ Vinnie said. ‘I am and then I’m not. I feel bad that I couldn’t rescue them but realize that they were probably already dead.’
I nodded.
‘We see lots of death. It’s everywhere.’
‘It will be like this from now on,’ said Vinnie. ‘The world is broken and can never be fixed. Death is almost everything now.’
I felt sad. Vinnie could see. He was strong.
‘That doesn’t mean that we should give up,’ said Vinnie. ‘The best way to fight death is to keep on living.’
He laughed.
‘I sound like one of those crazy inspirational speakers who tell you that they know the secret to being successful and will happily share it with you but only if you give them ten thousand pounds.’
‘I know,’ I replied. ‘We have to keep going. We can’t give up.’
Vinnie smiled at me.
‘You’re a brave kid, Jake. I’m glad that you found Ellis and brought her back to me. I thought that I had lost her forever.’
I blushed. I hoped Abe didn’t hear.
‘No problem, Vinnie. Ellis saved me first. I owed her.’
‘I think the debt has been paid in full now. You’re a good friend to her, Jake, and that is important to me, especially now that our parents are gone.’
Vinnie stirred the soup. I spread more bread. We didn’t speak. Ellis came in. She looked in the pot.
‘Look’s good. What is it?’
‘Soup of the day with sausage croutons,’ said Vinnie. ‘Now go and get the others as we’re ready to serve, aren’t we, Jake?’
‘Yes,’ I said.
I gave the plate of bread to Ellis.
‘Put that on the table, please.’
We both held the plate. We didn’t let go. Abe walked in.
‘How very sweet,’ he said.
He took the plate out my hand.
‘Here, let me help you, Ellis.’
Ellis let go of the plate.
‘Thanks, Abe. Jake and I will bring the bowls and spoons over.’
Box
We finished eating. Vinnie wanted to go to the church. He had an idea.
‘I’m going to go and lock the front door,’ he said. ‘Now that the Reverend has gone there is no one to look after the building so the least we can do is make sure that it’s secure.’
Amber and me washed up. Vinnie came back soon. He dragged a great big box.
‘Look what I found,’ he said. ‘There are two more of them in the vestry.’
The boxes were full of clothes. It said ‘CHARITY’ on the side. One box was for boys. One box was for girls. The other box had shoes in it.
Amber and Ellis dragged their box into the study. We looked in our box. I found a pair of jeans, a red shirt and blue hoodie. They still had the labels on.
‘Wow,’ said Vinnie as he buttoned up a green checked shirt he had found. ‘This stuff is brand-new.’
‘It’s a shame,’ I said. ‘This stuff was for other people. People in need.’
‘True,’ said Vinnie, ‘but it is for us now. We’re the ones in need. We can’t wear these baggy overalls for the rest of our lives.’
I got some white high-tops. They were lovely. I sat down to do the laces.
Ellis and Amber came back. Ellis was wearing a red dress and black leggings. Her hair was tied back. She looked amazing.
‘What do you think?’ she said.
Ellis held the edge of her dress. She twirled.
‘Amazing …’ I started to say.
Abe interrupted.
‘You look lovely, Ellis. The colour of that dress really suits you. It’s the same shade as my new hoodie.’
Abe stood next to Ellis.
‘We make the perfect couple.’
‘Aaah, thanks Abe. That’s really sweet.’
Ellis turned to me.
‘What about you, Jake? What do you think?’
‘Great,’ I said. Badly. My mouth was full of tongue. Abe gave a funny smile. I stopped speaking.
‘Thanks, Jake,’ said Ellis. She didn’t seem pleased.
‘It’s nice that you noticed.’
‘You look just like my annoying little sister again,’ Vinnie said. ‘It’s good to have you back!’
Amber had black jeans, black shirt and black hoodie. She also wore black lace-up boots. She had a woolly black hat.
‘I know what you’re thinking,’ she said, ‘but this is how I feel right now.’
‘No one is thinking anything,’ said Vinnie. ‘Everyone has the perfect right to wear whatever they want, especially now the world has fallen apart.’
It was later on. Dinner was finished. We sat the table. We talked about what to do next.
‘As nice as it is here,’ said Vinnie, ‘we can’t stay much longer as we have very little food left.’
‘I agree,’ said Amber. ‘Plus, it’s beginning to creep me out staying in that old man’s house.’
‘The Reverend said that an army patrol had come through here the other day,’ said Ellis. ‘That means the base can’t be too far away.’
‘It probably isn’t,’ said Vinnie, ‘but we’ve still got to get there on foot which could mean at least another three days walking.’
Abe groaned.
‘I’m all walked out. Couldn’t some of us stay here while the rest of us went to find the soldiers and then brought them back here to pick us up?’
Amber started to laugh.
‘That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard you say in a long time, Abe.’
Abe stood up. He was angry with Amber. He was really angry. He shouted.
‘Nobody laughs at me.’
He didn’t look at us.
‘I’m going out for a walk.’
Abe slammed the front door.
Passengers
It was very early morning. I heard the door open. Baxter started barking. I went into the kitchen. Vinnie was talking to a tall man. He was wearing green and black camaflouge clothes. He had a rifle.
‘What’s going on?’ I asked Vinnie.
‘Nothing, Jake,’ said Vinnie. He sounded nervous.
The tall man smiled. I didn’t like his smile. It was not nice. It was a mean one.
‘So, you must be Jake. Your friend has told me all about you.’
The tall man spoke to Vinnie.
‘So that’s why I simply must insist that all the able-bodied men in this area join my army. Your friend Abe has already agreed to join us and he told me that you would too. The two girls can also come along. We’ll find plenty for them to do.’
‘What about me?’ I said. ‘Can I come too?’
The tall man laughed.
‘Sorry, lad but there’s no room for passengers. Able-bodied only, I’m afraid.’
Vinnie got annoyed.
‘If Jake’s not welcome then the rest of us aren’t joining either.’
The tall man pointed his rifle at Vinnie.
‘Oh, I think you will,’ he said. ‘In fact, I know you will.’
The tall man looked at me.
‘Go and wake your friends, little man. Tell them to get dressed and come out here straightaway.’
I knocked on the bedroom door. Ellis and Amber were dressed.
‘What’s going on?’ Ellis said.
‘Trouble.’
We went back to the kitchen. Vinnie and the man had been arguing. Vinnie’s eye was swollen. It looked very sore. The man looked at us.
‘I was just explaining to young Vincent here how bad an idea it would be to upset me. I get very angry when people don’t do exactly what I tell them to do.’
The tall man pointed his rifle at me.
‘I’m going to make this very simple. You three leave with me now or I will shoot your friend in the stomach and leave him to bleed out on the floor.’
I froze. Ellis and Amber look terrified. Vinnie stood still.
‘I will count to three,’ said the tall man.
He fired at the ceiling. The noise was deafening.
He reloaded.
‘One.’
‘Two.’
‘Alright,’ said Vinnie, stepping in front of the rifle. ‘We’ll go with you but leave Jake alone.’
The tall man smiled.
‘I knew you would see sense. Now hurry up.’
Ellis and Amber didn’t want to go. They started to say. The tall man looked angry. I thought he would shoot them.
‘You’d better go,’ I said. ‘I’ll be fine.’
‘I know you will, Jake,’ said Amber.
She hugged me.
‘I know you’ll be fine.’
Ellis hugged me too. She was crying.
‘I don’t want to leave you, Jake. We’ve been through so much together.’
I hugged her hard. She felt warm.
‘I’m fine,’ I said.
Vinnie shook my hand.
‘Take care, Jake. I’m sorry that things have come to this.’
‘Don’t worry. Look after everyone.’
‘That’s enough,’ said the tall man. ‘We’re leaving now.’
‘I really hope to see you again one day,’ said Vinnie.
He winked.
I didn’t reply.
I understood.
Different
Baxter was barking. I let him out the bedroom. I sat down. He nuzzled my leg. I patted his head. I rubbed his ears. He was my only friend now. I saw my tears. They fell on his fur.
I cried for a long time. I was lonely. I wanted Mum. That feeling soon passed. I ran out of tears. I was different now.
I used to cry when too many people spoke at once.
I used to pretend to be ill so I could miss school.
I wasn’t that boy now. I wasn’t him. I was stronger.
I had rescued Baxter. I killed a viro. I had new friends.
I thought about Abe. He really annoyed me. It was okay to like Ellis. I met her first. He made me feel so angry. It had frightened me. It also made me feel powerful. That power killed the viro.
I was angry with Abe but I was now angrier with the Tall Man. He took my friends away. He said I couldn’t join them because I didn’t have an able body. He didn’t know me. I would rescue my friends. He took them away from me. I wanted to see his face when I took them away from him.
‘Come on, Baxter,’ I said. ‘We’re going to find our friends.’
I waited until morning. I filled a flask with water. I made some jam sandwiches. I looked for a good weapon to bring. I couldn’t find the Reverend’s gun. I took a knife from the kitchen. I didn’t know if I could fight with it. Maybe I could just wave it around.
I washed up my breakfast things. I left them to dry. I opened the front door. The morning was grey. I locked the front door. I put the key in my pocket. I wondered what do next.
It sounded easy in books when people hunted other people. They looked for broken twigs to follow. They found bloodstains or footprints. There was always something. The clues were always there.
This wasn’t like a book. I looked around. I didn’t know what to look for. I saw nothing to help me. There were no clues. It was silly.
A long hill stood near the church. It had knobbly trees on its side. I thought I would climb to the top. I would see better there. I might see some buildings. I might find the army base. That would make it easier. Perhaps the army would help me? This made me smile.
‘Come on, Baxter,’ I said. ‘We’ll go up the hill.’
Baxter ran ahead. He was quick. It was fun for him. I plodded behind. The hill made my legs ache. I didn’t know it would be so hard. I bent my knees. It was a struggle. There was no fun for me.
Baxter stopped ahead. He was by a small clump of trees. They leaned together like thin old men. I sat on a log. I bit my sandwich.
Viro (Book 2): Viro Page 4
