The Dust: Book Two - Pursuit Read online

  ‘What does that mean?’

  Jake shrugged. ‘I don’t know but I always think black smoke looks worse, house fire that sort of thing.’

  ‘Thank you David Attenborough.’ Angel replied sarcastically. ‘And when will your new book Where there is smoke there is fire be out?’

  Jake laughed, Angel had a wicked sense of humour. The more he got to know her the more he became attracted. He stopped smiling and became more pensive.

  ‘Don’t.’ Angel said.

  ‘Don’t what?’

  ‘Don’t think about us, the kiss, it’s not good for us, it will eat away at everything we have.’

  Jake was shocked, she had just come straight out with it. He had been worrying about broaching the subject for days and then Angel had just flung it out there.

  ‘How do you know I was thinking about that?’

  ‘Because I have.’ Angel flicked the switch and opened the window. ‘I know you have, you bumble about and nervously laugh when we start to talk, you are too easy to read.’ She placed a cigarette between her lips. ‘It will ruin what we have.’

  ‘What do we have?’ Jake asked uncertain he wanted to know the answer.

  ‘This.’ Angel exhaled smoke from her nostrils and opened the palms of her hands. ‘We are survivors, friends, we can’t over complicate things.’ She drew her legs up and squeezed her feet up onto the dashboard. ‘Things are complicated enough without a relationship evolving and messing with our heads. It’s the last thing we all need.’

  ‘Okay.’ Jake said slowly.

  ‘We need to be on guard twenty four seven, we are surviving from hand to mouth one day at a time. What happens if it doesn’t work out? I have Lou to think of.’

  ‘What happens if it goes well?’ Jake challenged Angel with a smile.

  ‘It’s too risky, we need to keep things simple.’

  ‘Oh Christ.’ Jake came to the brow of the hill and in the distance he could see Wisteria Hall ablaze. Their little heart to heart had been temporarily extinguished.

  ‘Oh my God.’ Angel threw the half smoked cigarette out of the truck window. ‘Alice.’

  Jake put his foot down and for the next seven or so minutes they both sat silently in the Nissan Navara. As they got closer they could see the extent of the fire. It wasn’t just the main manor house but all the out buildings were raging with flames.

  ‘Why?’ Angel couldn’t take her eyes off the large estate, it looked like a living hell.

  ‘The infected?’ Jake looked around suddenly realising they might not be alone. Angel got his drift and quickly closed the passenger window.

  ‘Let’s take this dirt track, I think it sweeps around the bottom field and winds its way up to the back of the house.’ Jake took a sharp right and the truck bounced up the single lane dust flying into the air.

  ***

  ‘Can’t we go outside?’ Lou Pepper complained.

  ‘We stay here, we don’t move until Angel and Jake return with your toy.’ Roger still couldn’t believe the other two had gone back for a stuffed animal.

  ‘It’s not a toy!’ Lou remonstrated. ‘His name is Rufus.’

  Roger ignored the young girl grabbed his brown leather jacket and moved away from where they were sat and walked to the window. Oxton looked like a small village in the middle of nowhere, he could see a very old small church on the bend in the road. Why was he giving Lou such a hard time? He had two little ones of his own, he knew what kids were like. Were they still alive? The odds didn’t look good but he had to get to Bath and find out. If everyone was dead, he couldn’t even think about it. Suicide, a subject he thought he would never have to tackle suddenly leaped into his head.

  ‘Roger I need the toilet.’ Lou’s voice made him smile, perhaps he should treat Lou like a daughter, there may not be many daughters left in the country. The next generation were precious cargo, he walked back towards her with a smile. ‘I think there is one in the back of this hall. Let’s go and take a look.’ He took her hand, it was small and soft and as he walked with her he imagined it was his youngest, his Emily.

  God he missed them. He knew Suzanne would have made sure the girls were safe and sound whatever had occurred down in Bath. Jessica could look after herself and was just turning into a stroppy teenager, Suzanne would say she was following in her father's footsteps. Emily on the other hand was a few years younger and still stayed close to her Daddy wherever they went. He remembered them all waving from the window the morning he had left the family home. A tear trickled down his cheek and he squeezed Lou’s hand a little tighter.

  ‘You can let go now Roger.’ Lou looked up at the man who had his eyes closed tight. ‘You can let go now.’ She called out again but Roger stood still breathing deep and steady.

  ‘Roger!’ Lou shouted.

  He jumped and let go of the little girl’s hand. He quickly wiped away the tear that had rested in the crease on the side of his mouth.

  ‘Are you crying Roger?’ Lou asked now concerned.

  ‘No, no.’ Roger ushered her towards the ladies toilet. ‘Just had a little bit of dust in my eye.’

  ‘Silly dust.’ Lou harrumphed as she opened the door. ‘It gets everywhere.’

  ***

  Jake pushed the driver’s door open and ran from the truck. He raised his hand to protect his face from the searing heat.

  ‘Be careful.’ Angel shouted following closely only three steps behind him.

  ‘What the hell has happened?’ He shouted. Jake then moved closer to the back of the house, the hedges were on fire and crackling like fireworks.

  ‘Watch out!’ Angel screamed and then tugged his collar to bring him back. A huge chunk of burning wisteria fell from the wall of the manor house and crashed to the ground, embers shot into the air.

  ‘Jesus, that was too close.’

  ‘This way.’ Angel pushed her way through a part of the hedge yet to succumb to the flames, she then found her way around the side of the manor house and to the side of the orangery.

  Jake followed closely and then took the lead.

  ‘The barn.’ He pointed to the mass of orange flames licking the evening sky. He ran over to the entrance but the heat was just too much for him to get close. ‘Charles!’ He shouted. ‘Janet!’

  ‘Alice!’ Angel stood next to Jake but the barn was engulfed. ‘Look!’ Angel pointed through the thick smoke.

  ‘Where?’ All Jake could see was smoke and flames.

  ‘I can see feet.’

  ‘Feet!’ Jake still couldn’t see anything.

  A warm blast then shot through the air taking them both by surprise and both Angel and Jake fell to the ground. A huge balloon of yellow and red rode through the barn roof like a tidal wave, the building creaked and groaned and timbers started to smash to the ground.

  Jake pulled Angel to her feet. ‘The petrol.’ He motioned to the now rapidly disappearing building. ‘It must have exploded.’

  ‘I saw feet.’ Angel was shouting over the roar of the flames.

  Jake nodded. ‘I believe you.’ They both moved back, the roof finally gave way and the walls started to tumble brick by brick. ‘Whoever or whatever was in there, well they are gone now.’

  Angel pulled away from Jake to get back to the barn.

  Jake pulled her back. ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘They could still be alive.’

  ‘No.’ He pulled Angel to his side. ‘They are gone.’

  Angel looked at the funeral pyre, Jake was right, no one could survive.

  ‘Look, over there.’ Jake moved away from the house and looked down the field. ‘The animals are burning!’ He couldn’t believe his eyes.

  ‘Oh my God, who would do that?’ Angel was sickened at the sight of the cows lying on the ground their legs stuck upright through the smoke.

  ‘This is no accident.’ Jake turned to Angel. ‘I don’t think the infected would do this either, it’s too organised, too pin pointed.’

  ‘Time to leave?’ Ange
l had seen and heard enough.

  ‘I think so.’

  They both fought their way back around to the where the truck was parked but what met them when they got there was even worse than what they had just both witnessed.

  ***

  ‘Can you hear something?’ Lou Pepper raced to the window of the village hall.

  ‘Get away from there.’ Roger chased her and pulled her from view. ‘Lou you have to be more careful.’

  ‘But Angel is back.’ She tried to lead Roger back to the window,

  ‘We don’t know that though, do we?’

  ‘I can hear a car.’ Again she tugged Roger’s hand.

  ‘It might be someone else, we can’t be too sure it’s them.’

  ‘Who else would it be?’ Lou could only think about Angel and Jake.

  ‘Well.’ Roger had to be careful what he said, he didn’t want to scare the young girl. ‘There could be some nasty people around, people we don’t want to meet.’

  Lou screwed up her face. ‘Like the naked monsters?’

  Roger smiled, kids. ‘Yes like the naked people, we call them the infected.’

  ‘Here they come, with Rufus.’ Lou jumped up and down as a vehicle trundled down the main road and then appeared from around the bend partially blocking out the old church.

  ‘Get down.’ Roger hit the deck and pulled Lou down with him.

  ‘Hey, what are you doing?’ Lou protested.

  Roger said nothing but placed his finger over his lips to hush the child. He had seen the truck before, it was over a week ago but he definitely remembered it. Hexham racecourse, the two young thugs. That was the old army truck that Angela and Lou had been picked up in too.

  Roger slowly got to his knees and peered out of the window again, it was that truck. What the hell was it doing here?

  Chapter Ten

  ‘Fuck, we are dead.’ Angel held Jake’s hand out of fear. The Nissan Navara was swamped with naked savages tearing it apart. There must have been thirty of them, some eating each other but most ripping away the bumpers and windscreen and destroying anything and everything. The whole world was turning mad, she shook her head, Angel wanted to scream but just couldn’t muster up the energy.

  ‘This way.’ Jake yanked Angel’s hand and headed back towards the burning barn.

  ‘It’s no use, look.’ Angel pointed to another six naked people heading their way from side of the burning rubble.

  Jake spotted the orangery, it was filling with smoke but they could get through it. He bumped the door open and the glass shattered, Angel jumped back with fright.

  ‘It’s the heat!’ Jake shouted over the noise, ‘Don’t touch anything.’

  Angel looked behind and could see the ‘infected’ were now trying to rip a burning goat to pieces unaware they were setting fire to themselves at the same time, it was like being in the middle of hell.

  Jake went to open the kitchen door with his hand but could see it smouldering, inside was going to be a ‘no go’.

  Before he could think of what to do next Angel picked up a tomato plant by its stalk and launched it at the window pane opposite.

  The glass exploded and the rush of hot air knocked them both off their feet. Jake got up straight away and stumbled about in the smoke which was getting thicker by the second. He felt about for Angel and then touched her arm. He pulled her up and held her close to him. ‘Are you okay?’

  Angel coughed and wiped her eyes, she couldn’t reply but pointed to the broken window. Jake led them both to the fresh air and they found themselves in the garage forecourt.

  The fire had taken a hold of the garage but there were two vehicles parked outside the now buckling metal garage doors.

  ‘Cars!’ Jake shouted and ran to the first one, a dark blue Mercedes. He tried the door but it was locked, he looked inside to see if any keys had been left lying about, again he drew a blank.

  Angel was doing the same, she was trying all the doors of the black Range Rover but like the Mercedes it was locked.

  ‘Can you hot wire a car?’ Jake asked.

  Angel actually laughed, even in the dire circumstances they found themselves. ‘I know I've lived a bit of a colourful life but no, I can’t hot wire a car.’

  Jake smiled back. ‘I had to ask.’

  The two wooden doors which led to outside of the forecourt burst open with a loud thunderous boom and a large orange glow made both Angel and Jake hold up their hands to shield their eyes. The dark figures that loomed in front of the blaze were all too familiar though.

  Jake counted seven, three men and four women, all intent on one thing, death by dismemberment.

  Angel picked up a large iron rake which was obviously used to keep the gravel level and handed it to Jake. ‘Keep them at bay and I will look for something else.’

  Jake couldn’t believe he had left his air pistol in the car, it was a massive schoolboy error but he couldn’t have foreseen what was going to happen. Note to self, always carry a weapon wherever or whatever you are doing.

  The first woman broke away and ran at Jake, her eyes mad with murderous lust. He didn’t wait for her to get too close and stepped towards her taking a huge swing at her head. It met with a nauseating crack and the blood shot through the broken bone, she crumpled to the floor shaking in the last throes of death.

  Another woman slightly older and more portly stepped in line swiping her large fingernails across Jake’s face. They dug deep and stung and caused him to step backwards, he was off balance when the first man to attack rolled low and caught Jake’s legs.

  The rake was thrown from his hands and he could feel the weight of the portly woman crash down onto his ribs, he thrust out his hands as her snapping teeth came within millimetres of his face.

  Jake fought with every last drop of energy in his body but the woman was so strong. She was pushing and pushing and her large bloodied breasts were now pressing hard against his throat. Blood dripped from her mouth and bounced off Jake’s cheeks, he was losing the battle.

  Angel ran back onto the gravel wielding an axe. She could hardly believe her luck when she found it propped up against the side of the garage in the gap next to the orangery.

  The first man stood no chance as she came down hard on his shoulder and the metal blade smashed through his collar bone and into his chest. Without pausing Angel swung an uppercut into the second naked man who was clambering to his feet hollering like a banshee after knocking down Jake. It caught him under the chin and the jagged edge sliced through his throat and took the head clean off. Angel stumbled back, she had killed quite a few of the infected back at York castle but she hadn’t seen anything quite like that.

  She looked around, she couldn’t see Jake. Another woman leapt at Angel, her hair on fire sizzling and fizzing down to her scalp. Angel stooped down to avoid her grappling arms and held the axe out, the woman stumbled and fell face first into the small stones.

  Jumping to her feet Angel went on the attack but the third man came from behind ramming her in the back and knocking her on the gravel next to the naked woman. Before she could react the naked man thin but athletic was on top of her trapping her arms and the axe beneath her body. All Angel could do was wait for the teeth to sink into her skin and that would be it, an end to this living nightmare and a chance to escape forever.

  Jake just about managed to tilt his head across the forecourt and he could see Angel face down on the floor, again he tried to get free but failed, the portly woman was now licking her cracked and bloodied lips. He could see many naked feet running around on the loose stone, it was all too much and he could feel his last breath slipping out of his throat.

  He didn’t quite know what happened but all of a sudden the weight was released and he could see the smoke filling the starry evening sky once more. Sapped of energy Jake managed to roll over, crunching the gravel as he turned on his side, from there he watched what was going on from the forecourt floor.

  He could see a horse and a giant of a man s
itting on it slicing down the infected with two gleaming swords, he was laughing out aloud and killing them for fun. Jake wanted to point over to Angel but was too weak to do so, he tried to drag himself across the ground but it was useless, he was incapacitated.

  Angel rocked back and forth trying to shift the naked man from her back but her hands were pressed tight against the stony ground. Then with a blood curdling cry the body was gone, she was free.

  The first thing Angel did was to bury her axe in the back of the woman she had felled earlier then she searched for the man that had trapped her. She could see a dead body on the ground with a huge gash in the back and instantly thought Jake had saved her.

  ‘Behind you!’ A deep Welsh accent cried out to Angel who turned bloodied axe in hand.

  Running at her was the last naked woman, a blonde. Hissing like a demonic snake she ran at Angel full pelt. Not standing on any sort of ceremony Angel let her have the face of the axe full force. The naked blonde was lifted off her feet and crashed to the ground gravel flying into the air. Before she could run over and finish the job a white horse dashed past and a man with shoulder length black and grey hair thrust a broad sword down into the infected woman’s neck.

  Angel looked around, there were no more naked savages standing. ‘Who are you?’ She called over to the mystery rider.

  The white stallion trotted over and the big man gazed down at Angel with dark brown eyes. The rugged face covered in thick black stubble then he spoke in a deep South Walian accent.

  ‘My name is Ianto Theodore Whitehead. My friends call me Yanto.’

  ‘Well Yanto I owe you one.’ Angel reached out to shake his hand.

  Yanto shook the much smaller softer hand and looked over at Jake who was trying to get to his knees. ‘Is he yours?’

  Angel surveyed Jake who looked as though he had gone ten rounds with the heavy weight champ. ‘Yes.’ She smiled. ‘He’s mine.’

  Chapter Eleven

  Amber ran through the streets of Caldicot and made her way to the cenotaph in the middle of the small welsh town. She had heard some screams and the clattering of tin cans but she had been a very brave girl and kept on running, not once did she turn to look to see what the noises were.