Read Online The Restless Dead: A Zombie Novel by Jenny Thomson - Free Book Online

on her feet that Scott and I had to half carry her. Her chest jerked with sobs, each one a stab of pain to my heart.
    How long had she been in there praying that I would come for her but not knowing if I ever would, wondering if she was all alone?
    Throwing my arms around her, I squeezed her so tight I’m amazed she doesn’t suffocate. While I hugged her, I was crying and telling her, “I thought I’d lost you.”
    She felt as cold as an icebox.
    Together, Scott and I eased her onto the bed and wrapped her in a duvet. I’m about to turn on the electric blanket when I realised my oversight: no power. She was shivering, and I’m worried she’s hypothermic. I rubbed her hands to try to get some circulation going, but it wasn't easing her shivers, so I crawled into bed beside her.
    “Do you know what’s happened?” I asked her, squeezing her hand. She was yet to say a word.
    Her hand was so fragile in mine it could have been a child’s. Had she always been this thin and I hadn’t noticed?
    Scott sat next to me. “Ask her what happened to the telly?”
    He had to be kidding. “Damn the telly. She’s sick, can’t you see.”
    “Emma,” Fiona said. She’s so quiet I had to stop myself from telling her to speak up.
    “I’m here, Fiona, I’m here.”
    “It was on the TV...” she muttered between sobs, “a man’s arm being ripped off...another man eating...the arm...over and over...it wouldn’t stop.”
    “David Cameron,” Scott said. “She’s seen the footage.”
    I stroked Fiona’s hair. “So you threw the monkey at the telly to make it stop.”
    Fiona's eyes widened. “Every channel...people eating people...they were coming for me...I...I don’t want to be eaten.”
    “Don’t worry,” I hugged her. “That won’t happen to you. I’m here now.”
    “I was all alone.” She stopped talking to concentrate on her breathing. “I thought you were eaten too...you weren’t coming back for me...”
    “It’s okay now.” She’s so damn cold it feels like she’s had ice water pumped into her veins.
    Why isn’t she warming up?
    I need to soothe Fiona, because if she freaked out, we’ll never get her out of here. Somehow we have to get her to go with us to the castle. I can’t leave without her.
    I was holding her against me, trying to get some warmth into her. She was so weak, lethargic, maybe in shock.
    “What’s this?” Scott asked. He’s holding an empty vodka bottle. “I found it on the floor over there.”
    “Fiona? Have you been drinking?”
    She’d drifted off so I shook her.
    “And look at this.” Scott shook an empty pill bottle. Painkillers. I know it used to be full because I brought them for her a few days ago.
    Gone? Has she taken them all at once?
    “Fiona. Wake up.” I can't hide the panic in my voice.
    There’s no response. Her eyes were closed, so I shook her a few more times.
    “Fiona.” I couldn’t hide the rising fear in my voice. She'd taken an overdose; washed it down with booze. “What have you done, Fiona?” I turned to Scott. “We need to get her to hospital.”
    Scott sunk back down on the bed. “It’s not safe.” His eyes are focused on the carpet, as if he’s just pronounced Fiona’s death sentence.
    Panic thrashed in my chest like a caged animal. “We’ve got to try or she’ll die.”
    Scott’s silent for a moment then he said, “We need to make her sick.”
    “We can’t. She’ll choke to death. She’s not even conscious. She needs her stomach pumped. We have to take her to the hospital.”
    “Emma, think. It’s probably crawling with zombies. We’d never make it inside and even if we did there’d be nobody to help us. Everybody will be dead. ”
    “You don’t know that?” I almost yelled the words at him.
    Scott spoke quietly. “Hey, where’s the first place people go when they get sick? The hospital. The patients have probably eaten all the doctors and nurses by now.”
    That was Scott, always the analytical one. Even when I