“We’ve not even been here for a day, and we’re already two people down,” said Jacob, standing next to Candace.

  Lauren nodded. “We were all so relieved to make it here…”

  “All the time at sea…” said Heather. “It’s crazy how quickly you forget how bad things really are.”

  Sam noticed the overweight computer guy had his hand on Heather’s arm. Another relationship which had spawned while on the trawler.

  “So we know the lifeform is growing tissue on bodies at least a hundred years old,” said Candace.

  Aiden nodded. “I’ve seen some of the dead look like they were from the 50s, some were in uniform.”

  “When’s it going to stop?” said Sam to the tall doctor.

  “We don’t know. It may never stop. The older the DNA and tissue the longer it takes to reanimate. It’s probably slowly working on dead matter, far older than a hundred years, but the process is so slow that those… beings may never fully form enough to be able to function.”

  Aiden shook his head. “I never knew it healed the living. That’s… something for me to get my head around.”

  Candace nodded. “And the dead will completely heal, eventually as well. It will be impossible to tell them from the living at a distance.”

  Swanson nodded. “Yeah, until they try and eat you!”

  Aiden ignored the comment, looking at Candace. “And… they’re not like they were before? When they were alive? They can’t remember? They’re definitely different?”

  She nodded. “Yes. The people they were before are completely gone. That brain tissue having been replaced by the new tissue created by the lifeform.”

  Lauren nodded. “And they increasingly act as a single entity… which is… not creepy at all.”

  A few in the group nodded in agreement.

  “There are many creatures in nature that act as a single entity. Especially in the plant kingdom. So it’s not unheard of.”

  “So it’s like a giant brain?” said Sam.

  “It is.”

  “Then why is it so stupid? Why are the zombies so dumb?”

  “Who’s to say they are?” said Joe. “We run into them when they are trying to attack us. If there’s a bigger plan, we’re not going to see it.”

  “You think the governments see it?” said Aiden.

  “Maybe… but that’s not our concern. Our job is to stay alive. Being away from it for so long has made us forgot what we’re up against, and it’s cost us. It can’t cost us anymore.” He looked around the wooden ceiling beams and stone walls. “This is a good place to make a stand. Aaron and Clara are taking the first night watch, at both ground floor exits and Tyrone will take the roof. At first light I’m leading a scouting party of Lauren, Anita and Grace.”

  “I want to come too.”

  Everyone looked at the young man.

  “You should stay here with your mum,” said Lauren.

  “She would want me to help, and anyway, she’ll probably be awake by morning. The doctors said.”

  “Okay,” said Joe. “And Sam.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CLARA

  Despite it being just after midnight, Clara could clearly see the gravel path and fence which ran along the edge of the cliff, due to the bright full moon. Joe had told her to stay in the sunroom, not to venture outside, but she had been stuck on a boat with over twenty people for over a week. She needed to roam and the castle grounds were pretty secluded. Since they had arrived, they hadn’t seen any of the undead within a mile of the place… apart from the one in the basement. Still, she knew she had to be as quiet as possible and stay alert.

  She stood near the iron fence, looking out over the Connecticut river, which glistened beneath the bright disc amongst the wispy clouds. It was a beautiful sight. If they could just secure the grounds some more, then maybe they might have found a home. It was far enough to the edge of the continent that the governmental forces wouldn’t bother looking for survivors, presuming everyone had either fled westwards or died. And as long as the group kept a low profile, minimised their impact on their surroundings, then even the satellites wouldn’t know they were there.

  But when has anything gone to plan over the past few weeks? she thought.

  Something she did decide on during her time at sea was despite the obstacles, she was going to try to live a life, whatever that looked like. Argo was an asshole. She knew he was, she just thought he wouldn’t be an asshole to her. What he did was on him, not her. He went behind her back in trying to betray everyone. People that she had come to call friends. And in that moment, at the side of the motorway, it was obvious he would do the same to her at some point, which is why he had to go. She didn’t know she had it in her to do such a thing until she did it. But the guilt she felt for a while had now passed. She didn’t want to just survive, she wanted to fight for the future.

  “Ahem.”

  She swung around so fast she almost toppled over.

  “Shit, sorry. I thought you knew I was here,” whispered Aiden.

  “No!” she said, trying to keep her frustration subdued. “You’re lucky I didn’t shoot you!”

  “Yeah, that wouldn’t be good.”

  “Why are you out here?”

  “I could say the same about you…”

  She frowned, turning away. “I needed to walk.”

  “I always walk around here at night. There’s something about being stuck in that house, not knowing what’s lurking outside that makes things worse. I would rather know what’s out here, so I walk for a bit before hitting the sack.” He looked at the river. “Also to see that view.”

  “It’s nice.”

  “Yeah. Different to the daytime. More honest. Less like a postcard and more about what lies beneath.”

  She looked at him, a little taken aback by his poetic words.

  He smiled, briefly looking down. “I write in my spare time. Still do. Even now. Helps keep my brain from spiraling out of control.”

  “I used to be a librarian.”

  “Really? That’s so cool.”

  “Well, I thought so, but people think you’re a nerd. Which you are, in a good way.” She smiled then looked away.

  He pointed along the path. “Want to walk?”

  “That would be… good.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  LIZ

  Liz made her way slowly along the first-floor landing, trying to avoid her cane from making too much noise on each impact with the wooden boards as many were asleep in the rooms to her right. She looked over the handrail, pleased to see Maggie was awake, who then spotted her and waved her downstairs.

  Sam offered to get up but Liz waved him to stay where he was. She was pretty proficient with walking with the cane now and got down the wooden steps without too much difficulty, then made her way into the area with the two beds, walking alongside Maggie’s bed, and with her free hand, held the older woman’s.

  “How you feel?” said Liz.

  “Considering I thought it was all over there, for a moment, pretty good. Mostly just sore.” She looked down the side of the bed to where Rain was sleeping. “If it weren’t for that fellow, I would be dead. He fought for me. Attacking the undead…” She sighed. “Including what Ada had become… So sad…” She shook her head.

  Liz nodded, then reversed up a little and sat in one of the free chairs. “If there’s one thing the past few weeks has taught me is that you can never truly let your guard down. Just when you think you’re safe is probably when you’re the least safe.”

  “I was stupid. I shouldn’t have gone down there. I just thought that maybe someone had gotten hurt and couldn’t call for help.”

  Sam shook his head. “The basement was checked. No one thought there would be a dead body buried behind the back wall. That’s… crazy.”

  Liz looked down, staring at the floor. “The dead are everywhere. In the walls, the very ground we walk on. And all of it is coming back to life… Maybe all over the planet…” She looked up with a hopeful smile. “But, maybe we can eek out a little space here, where we can keep them away from us. I noticed some dried tomato plants in the sunroom, and the roof is a great location to grow other things.”

  “Yes!” Maggie said enthusiastically. “That’s a great idea. Stan was never much of a gardener, but I tried to do my bit in our garden…” She looked away for a moment, lost in thoughts, then swallowed and looked back at Liz. “We should make that happen.”

  “Why hasn’t the lifeform brought plants back to life?” said Sam. “I mean, you just mentioned the plants in the sunroom. Why is anything dying if the lifeform can restore it?”

  Liz shrugged her shoulders. “It could just work on more complex life, fauna not flora. We don’t know.”

  “Maybe… because plants are of no use to it…”

  Maggie frowned. “Now there’s a horrible thought. Anyway. We might be able to bring those tomato plants—”

  The sound of scuffling came from the front entrance, which then flew open. The American standing within the glow from the dying fire. He walked forward, then spotted Liz and the other two. “She’s gone! They took her!”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  JOE

  The others were arguing. A miss-mash of anger and resentment, none of it helping.

  “If you want to go out there, that’s your business!” said Tyrone to Aiden. “But she had orders to stay within the walls!”

  “She’s a librarian, not a soldier!”

  A flash of anger came to Liz’s face. “What do you know? You’ve known her for 5 minutes!”

  Lauren held up her hands. “Please, everyone, we need to decide how we’re going to find these people.”

  The twelve in the hall restrained their thoughts then followed the colonel’s gaze towards Joe.

  He looked at Aiden. “You’ve not seen them around here before?”

  “No.”

  “And they had a vehicle. A truck?”

  “Yes.”

  “But you couldn’t see how many people were in the truck?”

  “I just saw it driving away. Maybe a driver and one other… I’m not sure.”

  “And—”

  Ember threw her hands up. “We need to start looking now! They could be miles away already!”

  The arguing began again.

  “There’s nothing we can do…”

  It took a few seconds for the din to die down.

  “What?” said Ember. “Did I hear that right? There’s nothing we can do?”

  Even his wife looked hurt by the suggestion of no action. “Joe. We can’t just leave her to these people.”

  “We have no way of knowing where they went, and even if we did, we have no vehicle and it’s 1 a.m. And what if there’s more out there? More of these people, just waiting for us to go after her?”

  “He’s right.”

  Everyone swung around to face the wall of furniture, and then the figure awkwardly walking out from it, into the light from the fire’s embers. Tyrone’s eyes grew large and he ran forward, lending his arm to Jenn and finding her a seat on a chair.

  “You’re… you’re… alive,” said Aiden.

  She tried clearing her throat. “Anyone have any water?”

  Lauren took one from a bag and gave it to her. The older woman’s appearance was ghoulish. Her eyes sunken, her skin more grey than any other colour, and she seemed two clothes sizes smaller, as if the lifeform had eaten the rest of her to keep her alive.

  “You need to rest,” said Grace, the closest to the hearth.

  “Done enough of that. Maggie told me what happened to Ada. And now we have lost someone else?” Joe began to speak, but she raised her hand, quietening him. “Not your fault.” She looked around the group. “None of this is our fault.” She looked back at Joe. “But the major is correct. Until we know more, there’s no point us going after Clara. I’m afraid she’s on her own. At first light, we keep to my plan of a scouting party to search the local area. If we see any signs of who may have taken her we will work on that. For now, I suggest everyone get some rest and… don’t go outside.” She looked at Aiden. “That includes you, Mr. Finch.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CLARA

  Clara’s face was warm. Not just from the soreness but also from the sun which hurt her eyes. She blinked, trying to make sense of the forms in front of her, which were attached to the walls. Hammers, saws, pieces of rope and other tools. She was sitting, tied to a chair in a workshop or maybe a garage. The smell of damp wood and oil confirmed it.

  She turned to try to face the front of the small room. A vague impression of the tops of trees was just visible through the small glass windows of the old garage door.

  She thought about shouting, but to who?

  “Stupid… so stupid,” she whispered to herself. She had walked away from Aiden for a moment, wanting to explore an abandoned house on the edge of the castle grounds, and spotted the woman lying on a nearby road. At first she thought it was one of the undead, but the woman was holding a torch, lighting her obviously human features, and she appeared injured. Clara had approached cautiously, but even that had been a grave mistake. By time she felt the needle in her neck and turned around to see a man standing close by, her vision was darkening.

  She had been abducted, but why and where she was, she had no idea. It was early morning outside, so she had been out for at least five hours. Had they got Aiden too?

  But why would they abduct her? A crazy thought crossed her mind, that perhaps they wanted to eat her. She snorted. The humour of the idea overcoming her fear. There was still more than enough food to be looted from buildings. Maybe cannibalism would be an issue in a year or two, but not after a few weeks…

  Maybe they were just insane? With the world the way it was, that was always a possibility. Either way, right now, in this garage, she was alone. But stewing in regret wasn’t going to get her out of the situation. The worktop and walls had plenty of tools. Lots of heavy, sharp objects that she could use to…

  Footsteps were approaching the entrance. She had run out of time. The thin metal door complained as it rose…

  “Rise and shine, princess,” said a blonde-haired woman. The same person that Clara had thought was injured.

  She walked closer, standing in front of the chair. She was about Clara’s height but slightly broader, and slightly older.

  She pursed her lips. “Oh, don’t be a Debbie downer. You’re not dead, are you?”

  “Why am I here?”

  “You’re being taken somewhere.”

  “Taken where? Why?”

  “A few hours’ drive from here and the why, that’s above my pay grade. Me and Josiah just do a job. We find females and we deliver them to a drop off point. That’s all I know. Now, if you behave, you won’t get hurt. You going to be nice? Or—” She held up a grimy-looking syringe. “— do I need to stick you again? Which I don’t want to do cuz another dose might kill you, and you’re worth more alive.”

  Somewhere outside, a truck’s engine fired up, settling to a low rumble.

  Clara looked down, shaking her head.

  “Good girl.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  BALDWIN

  Even though the sun was already burning strong in the cobalt blue sky, it was cool within the shade of the large trees at the side of the country road. A few miles to the west it ran down to the ferry pickup point on the river, but Baldwin and the rest in the five person group were moving in the opposite direction, exploring the homes along it.

  They had skipped the first two they had come to, Aiden telling them he had already been inside, so instead, they moved further away from the castle grounds and had arrived at a fork in the road. Baldwin and Aiden had already taken the right route, Aaron and Grace the left, with Joe hanging back to cover the rear.

  Baldwin let the American walk ahead. He was an FBI agent. He could take care of himself.

  Joe’s voice came from her radio, which she unclipped from her jacket. “Everyone, status. Over.”

  “We’re about a quarter of a mile ahead of you,” she said. “There’s a cemetery up here. No sign of the undead. Grave’s look too old. Over.”

  “Just trees,” said Aaron. “No… wait. I’m seeing a single house. About half a mile from your position. Shall we take a look? Over.”

  “Aaron, yes. Nell, any buildings further on? Over.”

  “Could be… There’s a gate with a postbox up ahead. Over.”

  “Okay, I’m coming to you. Aaron, Grace, join us when you’re done with that building. Over.”

  A white picket fence bordered a large well cut area of grass, which ran up to a group of trees. At the back of them, a white building was just visible.

  Baldwin and Aiden ran across the road, the latter stopping at the postbox, opening it and glancing at the mail, which Baldwin thought was a strange thing to do, but he was law enforcement so who knew what the point was.

  They both climbed over the gate, dropping onto the gravel path on the other side. Despite the trees, the large, white, cape-cod style house a few hundred yards away, was obvious.

  They walked up the path, checking the lush green bushes and trees for any unusual movement, but only a light wind disturbed the leaves. As they neared the house, a brown SUV came into view. Aiden inspected it while Baldwin moved towards the front door. Raising a hand towards the brass handle, a board creaked on the opposite side and without properly knowing why, she stepped to her right as the door exploded in a shower of jagged fragments of wood.

  She was face down in the gravel and dust, the sound still ringing in her ears. Someone was shouting. She didn’t care who. She spun around raising her rifle, firing at what was left of the door, which disintegrated under the new barrage.

  “Get out of here! Leave!” shouted a man from somewhere inside. “She’s too young!”

  Another blast from a shotgun destroyed the remaining timbers, making Baldwin scramble further away, making herself flat to the wall. She looked at the SUV which Aiden was crouched behind, his weapon on the hood, aimed at the door.