Z - Arrival / Z - London / Z - Payback: Books 1, 2 & 3 of the Zombie Apocalypse

by Hatchett

  Day 7 – 8:30

  Tower of London, Outer Ward

  Daniel drove the truck past the Routemaster bus parked outside the Middle Tower and turned left to drive along Tower Wharf towards the East Gate. He had Rhys, Isaac, Zak, and Nelson with him. Grace and Shauna had decided to stay behind, clean the cottage, find some more supplies, and update the rest of Daniel and Rhys’s fellow Warders on what was happening. After all, the other Warders had been expecting an attack the previous night and no doubt wondered what had gone wrong. Mamba was flying back to the Green Park Estate, so at least he would be out of their hair.

  Daniel passed through East Gate, but instead of turning left and going up St Katharine’s Way, he veered right and followed the driveway taken by Issy and her teams the previous evening.

  “Where are we going?” Rhys asked.

  “Wait and see,” Daniel replied. He drove the truck past both entrances to the Tower Bridge Hotel until he reached the car parking area overlooking St Katharine’s Dock. He then turned the truck around and started to head back in the direction he had come. As he neared the hotel entrance, he swung onto the pavement and parked just outside the doors.

  “Issy, are you there?” Daniel asked.

  A few seconds later, Issy came online. “Hi Daniel, yes I’m here. Was just brushing my teeth. What can I do for you.”

  “It’s more what I can do for you. We’re sitting outside the car park entrance to the hotel. Can you help get us inside or do I need to drive through the door?”

  “That won’t be necessary, hold on.”

  Daniel sat looking towards the hotel entrance. “When did you figure all this out?” Rhys asked.

  “Earlier. I was going to try and drop the keys on the floor outside the gates, but then I thought they might get lost. Then I thought, why not just deliver them?”

  “Good idea. We can’t be seen from here either.”

  “Exactly.”

  Daniel saw some movement inside the hotel before the automatic doors swished open and several filthy looking soldiers emerged. If they hadn’t been carrying guns and knives, you would’ve sworn they were zombies. They made a guard of honour to the passenger’s side of the truck and one of the soldiers motioned for them to get out. Isaac opened the door and darted into the hotel, quickly followed by the others. Once they were in, the soldiers filtered back inside and re-blocked the entrance. Daniel and the others waited until one of the soldiers said, ‘this way’ and they followed the man across the reception area to the stairs. At the top, the soldier pointed towards the bar and moved off in a different direction.

  They entered the bar with Daniel in the lead and were met by a tall, broad man with dark greying hair and a smaller woman with pink spiky hair.

  “You must be Daniel,” Issy said as she stepped forward to shake his hand. “I’m Issy and this is Don.”

  “Very pleased to meet you Issy,” Daniel replied, before introducing the rest of his group.

  “Would you like a drink? Issy asked, heading towards the bar.

  Daniel looked at his watch. It was 8.45 but he said, “it’s midday somewhere in the World, so why not?”

  Issy poured the drinks and handed them around. “So, what’s brought you here and how did you manage it?”

  “Well, once we leave in the truck to scavenge we’re on our own and no one is interested where we go or how long we’re out for – providing, of course, that the truck is full of provisions when we return. I decided to come because Mamba and the guards are so focused on the gates that we can’t get anywhere near them. I thought it would be easier to bring you the keys and then you can let yourselves in whenever you want.”

  Daniel reached into his pocket and brought out two keys, each with a piece of string attached. “This one,” he shook the key in his right hand with blackened string, “is for the East Drawbridge, and this one,” he shook the key in his left hand with the plain white string, “is for the Henry III Watergate.”

  Issy accepted the key with the blackened string and passed it straight to Don. She then took the other key and placed it in her pocket. “Thanks, that should make things a bit easier.”

  “Don’t forget, there’s added scrutiny of those two gates at the moment,” Daniel cautioned.

  “Don’t worry, it won’t be a problem,” Issy replied.

  They all chatted as they finished their drinks then Daniel said, “I guess we better get going. Hopefully see you later.”

  “Will do,” Issy replied. “Let me get you some help.” She nodded to one of the soldiers by the door who nodded in return and led Daniel and the group back downstairs to their truck.

  “Not at all what I expected,” Rhys commented once they were safely in the vehicle.

  “I know what you mean, but don’t judge a book by its cover,” Daniel replied.

  He put the truck in gear and set off for another day’s scavenging.

  49

  Day 7 – 18:00

  Tower Bridge Hotel

  Issy and Don had spent most of the day in various hotel rooms which overlooked the Tower, watching the movement of the guards and the civilians as they went about their business.

  They had gone over the original plan of attack and debated whether anything should be changed now that Mamba and the guards were aware that something was going on with the gates. They kept in touch with the snipers who were also watching the Tower carefully.

  Both Alpha and Bravo teams had spent the day clearing the hotel of any stray zombies before venturing to nearby buildings to search for survivors. They had managed to find twenty-eight people so far, all holed up in offices, shops, and flats in the St Katharine’s dock area. They had even found a couple hiding out on one of the larger boats in the dock. These people had been escorted back to the hotel where Geoff and the surviving hotel staff and guests helped the new arrivals to clean up, get some food and rest without fear of being attacked.

  Although the hotel was well stocked, the soldiers also brought back anything useful they found which could be carried easily. The pile of goods they managed to scavenge had grown steadily throughout the day and there was now a large pile of stuff which the civilians were steadily sorting through.

  The soldiers had something to eat and drink then found rooms to rest before the night’s operation.

  50

  Day 7 – 18:00

  Tower of London, Outer Ward

  Daniel and the others had managed three scavenging runs during the day, all of them back to the two supermarkets they had found on Mansell Street. It was relatively quick and easy to keep using the same route to go back to the same shops once they were zombie-free. It was finding new routes and clearing new shops which took up most of the time, especially when you needed to tread extremely carefully. There were enough goods in those two stores to keep them busy for at least another week or two.

  However, Daniel realised that they would need fuel soon. The truck was a thirsty beast and the reserves in the garage back at the Tower were running out quickly, despite the handful of jerry cans brought in by the guys from Heathrow. He might be able to get some fuel out of the other vehicles on the site, but this would be time consuming and just a short-term fix. They regularly passed a small garage on their route, so it was more a question of how to get their hands on the fuel without getting themselves killed. He had some ideas how they could get the fuel, but this would depend on convincing Mamba, who didn’t worry too much about the long term and struggled to think further than the next hour.

  Mamba and the gang members weren’t at all interested in the fuel situation. All they really cared about was their drugs and alcohol. As their drugs began to run out, they craved the alcohol even more, and it was disappearing much faster than any other provision. Gang members were getting increasingly irritable and arguments were beginning to break out. The Tower was beginning to resemble a ticking time-bomb and it was only a matter of time before the arguments became fights and fights became deaths. And in the middle of all this wou
ld be the innocent civilians who found themselves in this situation purely by chance and bad luck. Mind, that applied to pretty much everyone who was still left alive; everyone would have a ‘hard luck’ story to tell.

  To try and keep the gang members relatively passive, and in view of what was expected to happen that night, one of that day’s runs had been specifically for booze. Daniel had made sure that they packed the truck with as much of the hard stuff as possible, spirits rather than beer. He also made sure that they didn’t bring back too many soft drinks or mixers; the more the gang drank, the less fight they were likely to put up when the time came.

  Daniel and Rhys had just parked the truck for the night and were walking back down the Outer Ward corridor towards the Bloody Tower. It was getting dark as they walked along, but the sky was clear, and the stars were beginning to break through. It was relatively mild for that time of year and both Daniel and Rhys were perspiring from their exertions. They could see Mamba waiting for them by Byward Tower, where they had unloaded a little earlier. Each time they had returned to the Tower that day, either Mamba, Ahmed or Skelly had been waiting for them and watched every move they made. If Daniel hadn’t been aware that they were under suspicion, he was left with no further doubt.

  “Mamba, just the person,” Daniel said as he approached him.

  “What do you want?” Mamba asked with a frown and an aggressive tone. He knew something was up, but didn’t know what it was, and he wasn’t clever enough to work it out. Cunning, yes. Clever, no.

  “We’re running out of fuel, so we need to sort out how to get some more. I’ve got some ideas.”

  “I’m sure you have Danny Boy, I’m sure you have. Speak to the Judge, not my problem,” he replied.

  “Ok.” Daniel and Rhys were about to walk past Mamba when suddenly his machete was out in front of them, blocking their way. They both stopped and looked at Mamba.

  “I know you two are up to somethin’, all that shit with the gates and the keys,” he advised, looking them over carefully. “Where’s your guns?”

  “Here,” Daniel replied, handing a pistol over. Rhys did the same.

  “Don’t want you boys hurtin’ yourselves,” Mamba said as he lowered the machete and pocketed the guns. “Run along.”

  Daniel and Rhys walked off, neither of them could wait until they got back to their cottage. Boy, were they looking forward to later that night?

  As they entered the Inner Ward and walked along the path towards their cottage, they could see groups of gang members putting out tables and chairs on the lawn in between drags on their spliffs. They had also found some metal bins from somewhere and were distributing these around the area.

  “What the hell are they up to?” Rhys wondered.

  “No idea, but we better find out,” Daniel suggested as he veered towards the nearest group.

  As they approached, the gang members stopped what they were doing and turned to face them, all of them with hands on or near their weapons as if they were about to be attacked.

  Daniel held up his hands to show he was unarmed and the gang members visibly relaxed. “Hey guys, just wanted to see what was going on?” Daniel enquired.

  “You not heard?” one of the gang members responded. “The Judge and Jury are throwin’ a welcome party for everyone.”

  “Oh, when does it start?”

  “Nine.”

  “Thanks.” With that, Daniel and Rhys started walking back towards their cottage, Daniel clicking his comms as he went.

  “Issy, you there?” Daniel asked.

  “Here Daniel,” came Issy’s response.

  “It appears that we’re having a big party tonight, in more ways than one!”

  “Yes, Grace told us. Hopefully the noise will help provide us some cover. We’re going to delay the start to give everyone the chance to get into the party spirit. See you later.”

  51

  Day 7 – 20:00

  Tower Bridge Hotel

  Issy, Don and the two teams had met up in the reception area of the hotel and were preparing to move out. The teams had used some of the dead bodies heaped by the bins outside the rear entrance of the hotel to ‘freshen up’ their dirty uniforms. All weapons had been cleaned and checked, and there was some nervous but excited banter flying around the room.

  Several of the civilians, including Geoff, were with the soldiers, offering to help and waiting to wish them well. The rest were either in the bar or in one of the many bedrooms overlooking the Tower, as if waiting for a firework display to start. These people had been spotted by the guards on the ramparts during the past couple of days, but the guards just assumed that they were trapped and looking to be rescued. Little did they know that these people were spectators waiting for the show to begin, all except for two women who had still not gotten over the violent and abrupt end to their husbands’ lives.

  There was plenty of time before the attack was due to start, but Issy was restless and couldn’t wait to get moving. She had pumped herself up the evening before, only for the attack to be postponed, and she didn’t want the same thing to happen again. She wanted to be in position as soon as possible, check that the keys Daniel had given them worked, and she also wanted to get a feel for her surroundings and focus on what was about to happen. She simply couldn’t prepare properly in the brightly lit and opulent surroundings of the hotel.

  “Snipers, come in,” Issy ordered through her comms.

  “Alpha snipers in position,” she heard, quickly followed by “Bravo snipers in position.”

  “Hope you boys are well rested, we’ve got work to do and we’ll be moving out in a few minutes.”

  “Roger Issy, we’ll be ready,” came the response from the Alpha snipers followed by a couple of clicks from the Bravo snipers.

  “Good luck guys,” she heard Gina comment as she turned to face the teams.

  “Everyone ready? Any questions?” The soldiers stared back, their game faces on. There were no questions and she didn’t really expected any. “Don’t forget, there should be a party in full swing, so that should give us some cover, but it will also make it harder to pick off targets. Team Alpha with me.”

  Issy led Team Alpha through the entrance facing the Thames and turned West towards the Tower, aiming to retrace their steps from the night before. The sub-team shuffled along and mingled with the zombies in the area.

  Five minutes after Issy had left, Don took Team Bravo through the same set of doors and followed in Team Alpha’s footsteps. The civilians in reception barricaded the doors behind them.

  52

  Day 7 – 20:30

  Heathrow Airport, Terminal 3

  Bear and Irish had also been preparing to move out. They had been planning for their part in the evening’s attack for the past half hour or so.

  They were standing on the apron outside Gate 1 at Terminal 3, next to one of the two Chinooks, which was warming up. They had watched as fifty-four soldiers had boarded the aircraft, ready to fly to Battersea, where they would join up with Dave, board a boat and move downriver towards London Bridge, where they would wait in case reinforcements were needed.

  Bear and Irish had four soldiers and two pilots with them, ready to board the second of the Lynx heli’s fifteen feet away, while two other pilots headed towards one of the Apache Attack Heli’s sitting nearby. The Apache had been tasked with covering the airspace around the Tower when the attack began; it’s purpose was really to divert attention rather than getting directly involved. With its tremendous firepower, it would only be used as a last resort.

  Bear waved in the direction of the Chinook and the engine growled louder as it took off and veered away. Bear then gestured to the others and they made their way to the Lynx. climbed aboard and settled in to wait.

  53

  Day 7 – 20:30

  Tower of London, Tower Wharf

  Like the previous evening, Issy made her way to the Henry III Watergate and stood next to the gate, the rest of Team Alpha forming a shie
ld around her to prevent any zombies getting too close.

  As her eyes became adjusted to the dark at the gate’s entrance, she listened carefully for the sounds of guards walking above them on the ramparts and any other noises coming from inside the Tower. At one point she heard some talking from above, just before a burning cigarette butt floated down and landed a couple of feet away from them. She’d also heard feet on cobbles as what sounded like a small group passed by the gate on the other side.

  She waited until Don confirmed that Team Bravo was in position before she gave the order to try the keys. She had been holding her key in her left hand since she left the hotel half an hour earlier and her hand was sweaty. She was convinced that she’d have a permanent imprint of the key left on her palm for the rest of her life. She moved the key to her right hand, and flexing the fingers of her left, inserted it slowly and quietly into the lock. She put her ear to the gate and listened carefully, and once she was satisfied that there was no one on the other side, held her breath as she gently tried the key in the old Ward lock. The key turned and after half a rotation, she felt the bolt beginning to draw back. She continued to turn the key until the lock clicked open. Issy gently pushed the gate and felt it move inwards before quickly pulling it back shut and re-locking it. She breathed out and listened to make sure she hadn’t disturbed anyone, and once she was satisfied that Team Bravo had had sufficient time to carry out their test, she clicked her comms.

  “Team Alpha, gate fine,” Issy advised.

  A few seconds later Don confirmed, “Team Bravo, gate fine.”

  It was now just a case of waiting for the real party to begin.

  54

  Day 7 – 21:00

  Tower of London, Inner Ward

  Daniel heard ‘music’ start up on the lawn and moved across to the cottage’s window to see what was going on. He and Rhys had managed to shower and change into some clean clothes when they got back. Isaac, Zak, and Nelson had beaten them to it, so the water was only lukewarm by the time they got in there. Grace and Shauna had been aware of the party earlier than them all so had a head-start and had changed before any of them got back. Grace was wearing white jeans and a light-coloured sweater and Shauna was similarly attired in a white skirt and cream top. Daniel had noticed that even the boys had grey coloured hoodies and tracksuit bottoms rather than their usual jeans and was surprised when Grace insisted that he and Rhys do the same.