Killing the Dead (Books 4-6)

by Murray, Richard

  “They were right.” She said, “It was a risk and while I had faith in you, they were shocked and scared and needed me to be here.”

  “You didn’t need to come after me.”

  “If I didn’t you would likely be dead.” She said, “It doesn’t matter anyway. I’m no longer in charge and until they’re sure you aren’t going to become a zombie, they are keeping away from you.”

  “So who is in charge?” I asked.

  “Matthew.” She said and smiled once more at my expression. “Oh yes and don’t think he will forgive and forget the broken nose you gave him.”

  “I wouldn’t expect him to.”

  “Seriously, I think he suspects something about you.” She said, “He was a policeman and some of the questions he’s been asking...”

  “I’ll deal with him when I need to.” I said darkly and her frown returned.

  “We’ll deal with it together and without resorting to that.” She said firmly and stared at me until I shrugged my acquiescence.

  “Why are we even here?” I asked her, “The island is a much safer place, that building had electricity as well.”

  “When I’ve not been in here looking after you, I’ve been arguing the same thing.” She said, “The people here are refusing to go though. Matthew is being backed by Rachel, Candice and Jason who all claim that this place can be made secure. People here are familiar with this place and after what they learnt went on over there from Leon and Jenny... well no one wants to go near it.”

  “Foolishness.” I spat, “Surrounded by water and a place we could easily secure. It would make a much better place to stay than here.”

  “I know that, but I won’t abandon everyone here.”

  “Why not? They clearly care little for us.”

  “No.” She said, her voice firm and steady. “If we want to survive with any kind of society that is worth having, we will need to stick together. I’ll stay and do as Matthew says since he is who everyone wants in charge.”

  “That’s ridiculous.”I said quietly.

  “Maybe it is to you, but it’s how I feel.” Lily said.

  “Fine, I’ll follow your lead in this.”

  “That’s good to hear.” She said, the smile returning as her expression softened. “If you think you can hold out for a couple more hours, I’ll see what food we can find for you.”

  “Sure.” I said agreeably as I lay my head back down and closed my eyes.

  I had no intention of sleeping and every intention of figuring out some way to return Lily to position of leader of our little band of survivors but my body was weaker than I expected and I was soon asleep.

  Chapter 3

  The next few days were spent in that room, in that bed recuperating. Lily would bring me food and talk to me about what had been happening around the apartment building.

  She told me of the fence that was being built across the road that linked our little piece of the world to the main land. Using the wood and tools we had taken from the boat yard, Jason had set about the construction.

  Several small trees had been sacrificed to the project. The smaller branches would be cut away from the trunks and set to one side for firewood, with the main body of the tree being set into the ground to form the fence posts.

  Thick planks would then be fixed to the posts to form a sturdy barrier. Since we had no ready access to cement, the posts were braced with another smaller section of trunk set at an angle between the fence post and the ground.

  The undead seemed to have an aversion to water so the fence was extended to just a few feet past the waters’ edge. A gate was set into the centre of the fence to allow us to move past it in search of supplies.

  As fences go I was sure that it would be fine against the occasional zombie or even a small group. If we had guards posted to raise the alarm and deal with any threat before it became too big then we should be able to deal with them. If we had one of the larger groups of undead try to get past it, they would and of course the fence would do nothing at all to deter the living.

  Still, it made the people in the apartments feel safe and that is something that Lily said they needed after the attack by the deserters.

  While I was unconscious the survivors had a small ceremony for those who had been killed by those former soldiers. Lily did tell me the names of each of those who died but in all honesty I didn’t pay attention. Only two of the names had any meaning for me.

  With limited space and time, it was decided to burn the bodies. Claire, that bright and bubbly woman who I had first met at the refugee centre back in my home town and Emma the young girl I had rescued and promised to protect were burnt with the others.

  Jim, our resident man of religion had led his small group of believers in a solemn ceremony that ended with a prayer that would have no effect whatsoever on the dead. It seemed to help ease the aching spirits of the survivors though, which I supposed was the intended purpose. I was glad I missed it.

  Friendship and the caring for others was whole new ground to me and I was in no way comfortable with it. The simple fact that I was put out by the death of Claire and Emma was a marked difference to how I would have been six months ago before the end of the world began.

  After the ceremonies and at least one night to recover, Matthew put everyone to work. The fence was the priority but he insisted that despite our supplies that had been recovered and the extra we had taken from the deserters’ island, the group would need more.

  To this end, he decided to send out scavenging parties. Since the groups numbers were low and Lily insisted on staying close to look after me, and the two we had rescued from the island, Matthew insisted that the best people to go would be Cass, Gregg and Pat, effectively removing most of Lily’s support.

  Each day they would go out and search the surrounding area for anything of use they could find. They would set off at dawn and return before it became too dark, weary and with perhaps the occasional few items that we could use. They would go to their room, sleep and start again the next day which, according to Lily was why they hadn’t come to check on me.

  I smiled and nodded as though I understood but in reality I knew that they didn’t want to be around the killer, the murderer. It was a surprise to me that I actually felt regret at their choosing to remain away. I had barely been aware of that fact that they were becoming friends, something I had never before had and that loss was noticeable.

  On the third day of my convalescence Lily came to the apartment with a bowl of food and a visitor.

  The young woman with Lily looked familiar and it wasn’t until she was introduced that I realised who she was.

  “Hey,” Lily said as she took a seat beside me on the bed and gestured for her companion to sit in the arm chair. “Just having a walk around with Jenny and thought we’d stop in.”

  I looked at the young woman who seemed to be looking everywhere but at me. She was perhaps mid twenties and her mousy brown hair was cut short. I hadn’t recognised her because the last time I had seen her she had been naked with a chain around her neck.

  “You’ve cut your hair.” I said and she blushed.

  “It was tangled and some had been ripped out.” Lily said in an audible whisper to me.

  “Oh, you’re walking around?” I said to fill in the silence that seemed a little more awkward than most of the silences I usually found in conversations.

  “Part of the recovery process.” Jenny said in a low almost musical voice. “I need to get over my fear.”

  “Fear?” I asked confused as ever by what someone meant.

  “She just spent a week as a captive of some really unpleasant people,” Lily hissed at me, “She is understandably nervous about being around people.”

  “Why?”

  “Forgive him.” Lily said with a rather dramatic and unwarranted eye roll, “He’s a bit dense about things sometimes.”

  “It’s fine.” Jenny said with a shy smile, �
�It’s better than everyone else. All they do is awkwardly ask how I’m feeling when they see me and then stick to small talk before leaving as quickly as they can.”

  “At least you’re allowed out of your room.” I muttered and received an annoyed look from Lily.

  “You still need to rest and you can leave tomorrow, now eat your food.” She said as she thrust the bowl of vegetable soup at me along with a spoon.

  I was more than happy to oblige. With the slow return of my strength had come the return of my appetite and the painfully small portions we were reduced to weren’t helping with that.

  “Today we walk around and tomorrow you can help out in the gardens.” Lily said to Jenny as she kept an eye on me to make sure I was eating.

  “That will be good.” Jenny said with a quick look out the window, “I hate being cooped in.”

  “Gardens?” I asked around a mouthful of soup.

  “We’re going to make some little greenhouses to grow things.” Jenny said and I nodded as I recalled the glass Jason had taken from the boat yard. “We don’t have anything to grow in it yet though.”

  “That’s something I’m going to bring up with Matthew tonight.” Lily said, “We need fuel for the boat and we could really do with some seeds and other supplies, we can get all that across the lake at Windermere.”

  “You think so?” I asked.

  “Yeah, the Marina will have refuelling points and there’s a garden centre in the town.” Lily said, “We should have enough fuel to get over there.”

  “But not back?” I said quietly.

  “Yeah, not back.”

  “So how do you plan on getting the fuel? The last time we went there, the docks were all swarming with zombies. Do you even know how to refuel a boat?”

  “That’s what we need to work out, but we need to do something. We can’t just sit here and hope we find some food.”

  “What about the fishing gear we brought back?” I asked.

  “Jim and Michael have been out on the lake every day. They’ve caught some trout so far but that’s it. We’ll need more than that to survive the winter. Anything we can do to make ourselves more self sufficient will help.” Lily explained carefully, “Besides we still need to see if we can find any supplies over there.”

  “Ok,” I agreed, “But who would be going?”

  “I’ll go.” Jenny said.

  “You still need to rest.” Lily said and Jenny frowned as she crossed her arms before her.

  “I’m ready to go.” She said.

  “No you’re not.” Lily said sternly, “And before you even think of opening your mouth, you aren’t going either.” She said to me.

  “I’m not?”

  “No. You need to rest too. Both of you.”

  “Then who will be going?” I asked.

  “That hasn’t been decided yet.” Lily said, “Now enough talk about that.”

  Jenny seemed willing to forget about it but I couldn’t or perhaps just wouldn’t. I watched through narrowed eyes as they made small talk and considered my next move.

  When I finally realised what would be the easiest way for me to go on the trip I lay back against the cushions and finished off my soup. If nothing else, it would be fun.

  Chapter 4

  I left the apartment early, before Lily was awake and able to stop me. The sun had yet to rise to chase away the darkness so I was forced to light a candle and carry it along with me.

  Despite my protestations of feeling better, by the time I reached the ground floor of the apartment building the half healed wound in my side was aching and my legs were trembling. I had to spend several minutes sat on one of the couches set around the foyer. It was while I was sat there that I encountered Matthew.

  He looked much the same as before. At over six feet in height, he would tower over me if I was standing and my sitting down just allowed him to look down on me from a greater height. I resisted the urge to stand and grinned at him instead.

  “Good morning Matthew.”

  “What do you want?” He demanded. The dark marks around his eyes were all that remained of the black eyes he had suffered after I broke his nose.

  “I want to talk with you.” I said and forced myself to lean back into the couch cushions, to appear as though I hadn’t noticed how threatening he was trying to be.

  “I have nothing to say to you.”

  “Really?” I asked and allowed my grin to widen, which caused his glare to deepen. “I would have thought that you would have more than a few things to say to me. The last time we were together you had some very unpleasant things to say.”

  “I’m not in the mood for this,” he snarled, and I glanced down to see his hands curling in to fists. “There’s something wrong with you. I can’t prove anything but I know you’re trouble for us.”

  “Then you should be happy to see me leave with the chance of never returning yes?”

  “What do you mean?” He asked, momentarily caught off guard.

  “Lily is leaving today, across the lake.” I said and waited patiently until he nodded an affirmative. “Well then, she seems to think that I am not well enough to go along. I disagree and I want you to tell her that I’m going.”

  “Why the hell would I do you any favours?”

  “A couple of reasons,” I said. “She has said no, which means you need to assert your authority and show that you are in charge. That is unless of course, you’re letting her make your decisions?”

  “Get on with it.” He said in annoyance.

  “The other reason is that it will be incredibly dangerous for anyone in full health. If you tell her to take me in my weakened state then it is entirely likely that I won’t return and you will be rid of me.”

  “Is that so?” He said thoughtfully and I knew I had won. The idea of being rid of me without any guilt would be entirely too tempting for the ex-policeman.

  “It certainly is. So what do you say?”

  “Fine by me. If you want to kill yourself that’s your choice. I’ll tell her you’re going.” Matthew said, “Now go away and leave me to my work.”

  “Of course. Thank you for your time.” I said and he sneered before walking away and leaving by the back door. I sat back with a self-satisfied smirk in place as I considered the potential carnage I would see over at the town of Windermere.

  “That was very clever and very stupid.” Lily said quietly and I started in surprise.

  “Good morning.” I said as I tried to regain my composure. She just smiled as she descended the stairs.

  “You aren’t ready for this,” she insisted and I shrugged.

  “I need to get out and do something. I’m becoming bored and you know how dangerous that can be.” I said and tried a disarming smile. She was having none of it.

  “Don’t you dare think you can use that every time you want to get your own way.” She snapped. “I know you well enough by now to realise that you being bored for a few days won’t be dangerous for anyone. You have too much self control.”

  “Maybe.” I muttered.

  “No maybe about it.” She said as she dropped onto the couch beside me with a thump. “You aren’t as bad as you pretend you are.”

  “I’m not?” I asked.

  “No, you’re not.” She sighed and massaged her temples as she stared at me through narrowed eyes. “You’re going to have to listen to me.” She said and I shrugged as I looked away from her.

  “If you are coming with us then you will do what I say, when I say it. No running off and getting yourself killed, is that clear?”

  “Sure.” I said and smiled once more at her, she didn’t return it.

  “I’m serious. I want you to stay alive and if that means tying you to a chair on the boat while we do what we need to, I will. Is that clear?”

  “Ok, I get it.” I said.

  “I hope so.” She said and placed one hand over my own. I looked up and into her eyes and saw th
e smile that I found so delightful appear on her face. “I don’t want to lose you.”

  “I understand.” I said and for once, I felt like I did.

  “Hey you’re still alive then.” Cass said as she came down the stairs holding hands with Pat. Gregg was following along, yawning.

  “It would appear so.” I said and was pleased to receive a smile from her and a nod of greeting from Pat.

  “Good to see you mate.” Pat said as he pulled Cass down onto the couch opposite the one I was sitting on with Lily. Gregg mumbled something without really looking at me before settling onto the arm of the couch beside his sister.

  “I take it you’re coming with us.” Cass said and glanced over to Lily before laughing. “I knew you wouldn’t be able to keep him away.”

  “Who else is going?” I asked.

  “Well looks like just the five of us.” Cass said.

  “No one else willing to risk it?” I asked, and she shook her head though it was Lily who answered.

  “Too many have died lately we just can’t spare that many people to go. Nearly a third of the people still here are kids too young to do much. Jenny and Leon are still recovering and Maggie is still almost catatonic.”

  “That’s understandable, her mum was killed right here.” Cass said, sorrow evident at the thought of Claire.

  “Did Matthew say we could take the guns?” Gregg asked tactfully changing the subject as he placed a sympathetic hand on his sisters’ shoulder.

  “Guns?”

  “Yeah, the ones we took from the deserters.” Pat said, “Six semi-automatic rifles and a handgun. Plenty of rounds for each gun too.”

  “Why would you want to take them?” I asked, “They’ll make far too much noise.”

  “That’s the idea.” Lily said. “He agreed to let us have one rifle which should be all we need.”

  “Well it sounds like we’re ready to go then.” Cass said.

  “No point putting it off, let’s all gather our gear and go.” Lily agreed.

  As the rest of the group set about getting ready I realised that my thick jacket was still up in the apartment. The combat knife was strapped to my belt as usual so I would be fine with that but if I wanted any chance of staying warm I would need to climb all the way to the third floor. My heart sank at the thought.