Winter Smith (Book 1): London's Burning

by Strange, J. S.

  They got to the back of the centre, the door they had sneaked through last night in view. It looked the same as ever. Winter couldn’t see any zombies yet. The inside was dark.

  “Someone turned off the light,” Zach whispered.

  They had left so quickly the night before they hadn’t turned off the light they had put on. Surely, if the place had remained untouched, it would still be on now?

  “That’s worrying,” Violet said. “Maybe the government know people have been sneaking in. Maybe this place is being watched right now.”

  “I think we would have been stopped getting this close if this was being watched,” Zach said.

  Winter led the way across the mushy, dirty ground and entered the poolroom. It was cold and eerily silent. Winter didn’t like that it was dark. She could see barely anything.

  “Turn on the light,” Violet whispered.

  “No,” Zach said. “If the light comes on again we’ll definitely be caught.”

  “How are we going to get to the rest of the building?” Winter asked. “That door in the changing room was locked remember?”

  Winter heard Zach walking by the crunch of glass under his feet. She could hear clothes rustling and as her eyes focused in the dark she could see Violet taking off the government clothes.

  “What are you doing?” She whispered.

  “Throwing these away.”

  Violet scrunched the clothes up, stained with Liz’s blood, and dropped them in the water where they sunk after a few moments. Winter did the same, finally glad to be rid of the government clothing and the smell of Donna’s blood.

  “Do you realise how dangerous that was?” She whispered. “We walked through streets smelling of blood. We were basically targets.”

  “Nothing came for us,” Violet said.

  “Shh,” Zach hissed.

  They listened. Over the sounds of disturbed water, they could hear footsteps on stone ground outside.

  Winter was frozen to the spot. She didn’t know what she was supposed to do. The footsteps were getting closer, accompanied by two male hushed voices. Just then, the sound of glass smashing, shattering, falling to the floor made Winter move.

  She had no idea what had happened. She thought someone or something had gotten in. Violet had gripped her hand and was pulling her towards the seating stands. Winter was pulled up onto a tiled bench, and she realised the glass that separated the seating area from the pool had been shot down. Zach had already climbed over, and was climbing the steps towards the door. Winter put her hand on the floor to hoist herself up and jumped back as shards of glass cut her palms. She had no time to waste. She could hear the footsteps outside running. Whoever it was would be inside in no time.

  She followed Violet up the steps, clutching her gun; aware her hands were pouring blood.

  “Get behind those seats.”

  Winter did as she was told. She lay across the floor, feeling something wet and sticky touching her skin. Looking down, she saw blood. She gagged, but before she could object or move she heard footsteps inside the building, echoing off the walls.

  “Whoever is in here, come out with your hands up.”

  Peering through the rows of seats, Winter could see two government workers. They were young men, holding up guns, which they moved aimlessly around the room. One started to move towards the lights.

  Then, with a slight whizzing sound, Winter saw one drop to the floor and lie in his own blood. The other cried out, reached for his walkie-talkie, but a second later he met the same fate as his friend.

  Winter looked behind her. Violet was retracting her gun from between the seats, looking slightly uneasy.

  “I had to do it,” she whispered. “We were going to be caught.”

  Winter, standing up from the blood she had lay in, suddenly realised that last night this area had been full of zombies. She looked around. The only sign of them ever being here was the stench of death and blood on the floor.

  Zach seemed to be thinking the same thing.

  “I don’t know where they are,” He whispered, looking at Winter. “But this door behind me is locked.”

  Winter groaned. They were still in the same place as before, only this time they were on the other side of the glass that now no longer existed.

  “Do you think we should move them?” Violet whispered.

  “I think they were only checking out the area,” Zach said. “No one called for help. No one heard us.”

  “But when they don’t turn up…” Winter said.

  “We won’t be in here long.”

  “I say we turn back now,” Violet said. Her voice was barely audible over the sound of a fierce wind outside. The echoing room was eerily silent.

  A shiver ran down Winter’s back. “Can we break down the door?”

  “With what?” Zach asked.

  Violet lifted her gun and shot at the door. The wood began to snap apart at the impact, scattering across the dark room. She kept shooting until there was a hole big enough to climb through.

  She walked over, kicking away at the wood until no loose, jagged edges remained. She climbed through and was on the other side of the door. Winter and Zach followed, both impressed by how ruthless she had been.

  They stood in a hallway, warm and welcoming compared to the pool area. It was dark, and had the same chilling feeling as the poolroom. On the wall were felt boards, with notices pinned up, advertising events that never happened or events that had happened months ago. To their left was a hallway, leading towards a children’s playpen. Cartoon pirates were painted on the walls. To their right was another door leading into a sports hall. Down the hallway, before an area full of vending machines and more steps, was a dance hall where exercise classes would have once been held. Standing at the end of the corridor, Winter felt vulnerable.

  She spotted a chain on the handles of the door they had just climbed through.

  “There has got to be people here,” she whispered. She didn’t know why. She felt like if she spoke louder something would happen.

  “I’m more concerned about where those zombies have gone,” Zach said. “If this door was locked, they could only be in the seating area.”

  “Or could they?” Violet challenged. She was stood by the door to their left, leading into a sports hall. The door was locked, but she could see through a pane of glass. “They’re in there.”

  Winter moved closer. She looked and saw a group of zombies trailing across a basketball court. They were oblivious to the humans watching them, which Winter was thankful for.

  “So there must be another door they can get through that leads into the stands,” Violet said.

  “If they find that they can get to this corridor now we’re goners,” Zach said.

  “Well let’s get out of here then.”

  “Which room do we go in first?”

  Winter messed up her wet hair. She was aware too late that she had blood on her hands still.

  “Let’s find a first aid kit,” she whispered. “These hands are losing too much blood and it’s making me woozy.”

  Zach looked down to their left, towards the children’s play area, labelled ‘Treasure Island’. “There’s a first aid kit there.”

  Mounted on the wall was a small, plastic green box. Walking towards it, Winter couldn’t wait to bandage her hands and stop her blood pouring onto the floor. Before they got to the doors, however, a figure stepped out of the shadows.

  It hissed and screeched; so loud it was all Winter could hear. The stench of death filled her sense of smell, and she suddenly caught sight of decaying flesh. An echoing bang made her scream and the zombie fell to the floor. Another two bangs went off before the zombie moved no more.

  “Oh fuck,” Zach gasped. He was the one who had shot, yet he had forgotten to put the silencer on his gun.

  “Don’t worry. You saved our life.” Violet gasped. Even in the dark light she was pale. It had been a close call.

  “Who are you?”

&nbs
p; They span around, coming face to face with a woman dressed in lifeguard gear. She was looking at the three teenagers sternly. She looked unkempt and dirty, with her greasy hair tied back, her body thin.

  Violet held her gun at the woman, but Winter gave her a look that told her this wasn’t the way to be trusted. Violet lowered it, but had it at the ready. As far as Winter could see this woman was unarmed.

  “There’s no time. You just made a huge racket. Those things will be in here if we’re not careful. Come on, we need to lock off this area.”

  The woman began walking away down the hallway, looking slightly hassled. Winter exchanged looks with Violet and Zach before following. Zach picked up the first aid kit off the wall before leaving, stepping over the dead zombie.

  Once at the end of the hallway and in the stairwell full of vending machines, the woman pulled together two doors. They shut with a bang, and Winter was sure a second loud noise would alert the dead hiding out in the sports hall. From her pocket, she took out metal chains and a padlock, and began wrapping the chain between the two door handles.

  “Get those cuts sorted out,” she said to Winter, spotting her blood dripping onto the floor. “That’s going to entice them.”

  Zach led Winter to the stairs, where she sat down. He opened the first aid kit and took out bandages, unwrapping them and gently coiling them around Winter’s palm. She winced but was glad pressure was finally being applied.

  “What do you think?” He whispered. “Do we trust her?”

  Winter looked over at the woman. Violet was staring at her back, her gun in her hand in case the woman tried to attack.

  “I don’t know…” Winter replied. “She doesn’t look particularly dangerous. I think we could take her.”

  “I can hear you, you know,” the woman said. “And you don’t have to hold me by gun point. I’m not going to hurt you.”

  The woman stood up, admiring her work of the chained doors. She turned to Winter, looked at her bandaged hands.

  “You ought to be extra careful,” the woman said. “They’ll have smelt and tasted your blood.”

  Winter’s heart flipped.

  “Follow me.”

  She began walking up the stairwell slowly, waiting for them to follow. Violet moved first.

  “How long have you been here?” Violet asked.

  “About three weeks.” The woman shrugged. “I’ve lost count.”

  “And how many people are there?”

  “Four. There were more, but they got infected.”

  Violet stopped.

  The woman, aware that nobody was following her anymore, looked down at them from the flight of stairs she was on.

  “Nobody is infected now.”

  “Are you sure?” Winter asked.

  “Of course we’re sure.” The woman laughed.

  She got to the top of the stairs, where two doors were situated. Winter looked at Violet and Zach, to see that they were both looking slightly apprehensive. Could this woman be trusted?

  “Are you coming or not?” The woman snapped, tiring of the time they were taking. “The hallways aren’t safe.”

  Violet led the way once more, striding confidently up the steps, refusing to show anyone if she was nervous about what would happen.

  Up on the narrow corridor, Winter could see outside. Government workers battled against billowing winds and heavy rain. It seemed the storm had increased since they had been inside. The windows were flecked with running water, making it difficult to see out. Winter hoped the government workers didn’t see them inside.

  The woman left the door open for them and they walked through a small corridor before coming out into a room that was a small office. Stacked against the walls, piled high on bookcases, were newspapers, files, folders and useless junk. In the middle of the room sat a table, again piled high with files and folders with one odd desktop lamp perched precariously on the corner. There was only one window, right at the back of the room. It was blue and small. The one they had spotted from outside.

  A woman, older than the woman dressed in lifeguard gear, was reading the bookshelf. A young boy looked at them approach, and when Winter caught his eye her heart seemed to shrink. For one, strange moment she thought he was Connor. Hope rushed into her, disbelief that they had met in such an odd place. Yet the longer she looked, the more she realised it wasn’t him. In fact, it looked nothing like him. The third person, a foreboding man, sat at the desk.

  “Who are these, Judy?” The man spat, lounging in the office chair.

  “They were the ones making the racket,” Judy said. “We’ve lost access to the sports hallway.”

  “Oh, have we?” The man asked. “Because of these?”

  “Because of these.” Judy nodded.

  “Actually, we were almost attacked by a zombie in the hallway,” Violet said. “That’s why we had to kill it.”

  “That hallway was free of the dead. They’re all locked away in the sports hall,” the young boy said.

  . “Well you missed one.”

  “And how did you get in?” The man asked.

  “Hi, my name is Violet. It’s nice to meet you.”

  The man just stared at her.

  “This is my friend Winter, and this is Zach. And you are?” She turned to the young boy, who looked a little bit confused. He seemed to think he was witnessing a break down.

  “I’m Michael,” he said, shaking Violet’s hand slowly.

  “And you?” Violet asked, looking over at the woman stood by the bookshelves.

  “Deana.” Her voice was quiet. She looked a little scared. At a glare from the man at the desk she looked away.

  “There, introductions are out of the way from the rest of these people,” Violet said. “What is your name?”

  “How dare you come in here with an attitude so filthy it could belong to the dead?” The man boomed. His anger had flared, and it was pretty scary, yet Winter was sure this wasn’t even the worst of this man’s temper. From the look of awkward fear exchanged between Michael and Deana, Winter thought they had been living in fear in this centre for three weeks.

  “Well, unlike some people, I like to have a bit of formality when I’m meeting new people,” Violet said. “We’re not going to tell you anything about us if you don’t even tell us your name.”

  The man leant back in his chair, observing Violet like he had never seen a girl before. His eyes seemed to x-ray every part of her body, lingering on her breasts. Violet stood her ground.

  “I’m Jason. Now, how did you get in?”

  “Nice to meet you Jason,” Violet said. Judy was staring at Winter, and Winter tried avoiding her eyes. “We came in here last night, and we used the showers…”

  “Ah, so you let those things out of the changing room?” Jason asked, leaning forwards. He placed his chin in his big hands, glaring at Winter and Zach with cold, black eyes.

  “We didn’t even know they were in there,” Winter said. “We had a shower, and then we heard them.”

  “And you let them out?” Jason asked her.

  “They got out.”

  “They were locked up pretty well.”

  “Not well enough.”

  Jason laughed. “Where did you find these people?” He rhetorically asked Judy. She shared a laugh, but glared at Winter once more. Winter caught her eye and she looked at Jason, then back at Winter. Winter didn’t understand.

  “Winter noticed that the door out of the changing rooms was locked…” Violet said.

  “Lucky that.” Jason interrupted.

  “So we thought we would come back to try and find whoever was inside.” Violet spoke, as if Jason hadn’t said a word.

  “Why?”

  “We thought you might need help.”

  Jason laughed a big booming laugh that seemed unnatural and forced. He swiped at his nose with the back of his hand, running a hand over a bearded face. Judy caught Winter’s eye and nodded slightly towards her gun, then at Jason. Winter looked at Zach
and saw that Michael was looking at her, too, not smiling or laughing at Jason’s joke.

  “You’re the ones who brought the government here,” Jason said, his voice low and stern.

  “Yes,” Zach said.

  “Cut your hair.” Jason fired. “You lot bought the government here because you let out that there were zombies inside.”

  “Well, isn’t that a good thing?” Violet asked, holding out both hands. Jason’s eyes flickered to the gun she was holding. Judy nodded at Winter.

  “No, it’s not a good thing.” Jason shook his head. “We locked them up for a reason. So we could observe them.”

  “Why would you want to do that?” Zach asked.

  “Because we want to know how they got here.”

  “They’re everywhere, not just here.” Violet told Jason, as if he was stupid and unable to understand a sentence.

  “I know that. But I’m aware people are running from these things, fearing them. I want to know why they’re here, who got them here, and what makes them do what they do.”

  “Well, haven’t you got a death wish?” Violet smirked.

  “Say what you want, but we’re overlooking something here,” Jason said, holding out his own hands and shaking his head. “These people here agree with me. We need to observe these beings, don’t we?”

  The room was full of half-hearted mutterings of agreement.

  “So you’re locking them up and watching them?” Zach asked.

  “I just said that!” Jason bellowed. Winter flinched. Jason laughed.

  “But why?”

  Jason sighed. “I want to know how smart they are. I want to know if they die of their own accord. I want to know how they interact with each other. I want to know how long infection takes place. I want to know if they get bored, if they can live without flesh, if their habitat has an effect on how they live. I want to know if they get stronger, or weaker, or if their humanity comes back to them. They’re my new experiments.”

  Suddenly Winter realised why there was less of them now. She realised why there were only four of them hiding out in here, all scared of this man, all locked in a prison whether they knew it or not.

  “You’re feeding these people to them,” Winter said.