Read Online Year of the Zombie (Book 8): Scratch by David Moody - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: David Moody
Tags: Zombies
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the noise
down so the sick people don’t hear us, okay? We can’t let anything happen now,
because if we do then all of Mummy’s effort will have been for nothing.’
Noises downstairs. Awful
screaming noises. Bangs, crashes, breaking glass. Death throes. Gary pulled the
kids closer still and covered their ears as the ground floor cacophony
continued in the rooms beneath them. They could feel the fighting. The whole
house seemed to shake.
‘It’s gonna be all
right,’ he told them when the noises eventually began to subside. ‘Mummy was
really brave, and now it’s your turn to be brave. All of us. Daddy too. I’m
gonna look after you all the time now.’
Nothing but shock and
sobbing. He relaxed his grip but the kids didn’t move. Too scared. Paralysed
with fear.
Gary filled the silence
with nervous chatter. ‘We’ll wait here until it’s safe, then I’ll go down and
sort everything out. The police will come and help us, maybe even the army. I
know it’s been horrible this last couple of days, but things are gonna be okay.
It’s just the four of us now, like you always wanted. We’ll go to Disneyland
like I promised. Everything will be okay.’
Still nothing.
‘We can go and see
Gramps and Nanny. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? I bet they’re keen to see you.
It’s been ages since I’ve seen them.’
‘Mum takes us,’ Ben
said.
‘What?’
‘Mummy takes us to see
Gramps and Nanny, and Granny and Pa,’ Jenny explained.
‘What? Wait, your mum’s
been taking you to see my parents? You never told me.’
‘We thought you’d get
cross.’
‘Of course I wouldn’t.’
‘You said you didn’t
care what Mummy did and you didn’t want to hear about it,’ Jenny said,
repeating parrot-fashion.
‘They’re still all
friends, even though you and Mum hate each other,’ Ben said. ‘Nanny said just
because you’ve fallen out, doesn’t mean we can’t all still get on.’
Gary was shocked. ‘My
mum said that?’
‘Yep,’ said Holly.
Jenny continued. ‘Gramps
said he thought Mummy was doing really well considering.’
‘Considering what?’
‘Don’t know. They
usually stop talking when they know we’re listening.’
Gary got up from the
floor, incensed. ‘That bloody woman. Out to get the bloody sympathy vote from my parents. How low will she go?’
‘That’s not fair, Dad,’
Ben said, and immediately wished he hadn’t. Gary turned on him.
‘Adult business, son.
Keep your bloody nose out.’
‘I’m only trying
to—’
‘Well don’t. When I want
your advice I’ll...’
Ben looked up to see why
his dad had stopped talking, and then he saw her.
Mum.
At the window.
Clothes torn and
blood-soaked.
Infected.
Gary staggered back in
fright as she hauled herself up onto the veranda, using the roof of his car to
get up. She beat against the glass with leaden hands, fists smearing grease and
germs.
Gary grabbed the kids,
but Jenny slipped his grip. As he dragged them away from the window, she ran
towards it. ‘Mummy!’ she shouted, thrilled to see her again. Gary tried to stop
her, but Ben and Holly were in the way and he could only watch helpless as
Jenny slipped the latch and let Jody inside.
The Jody-thing watched
him from the other end of the room. The gusting breeze from the window caught
her shirt, and when it flapped open Gary saw the scratch. Long, deep, dirty,
uneven. It ran from her left shoulder down her bicep, a vicious zigzag line,
dripping with blood.
‘It’s not Mummy,’ he
told the kids. ‘She’s got the disease. Don’t go near her.’
His dead ex-wife stood
her ground. Unmoving. Glowering.
And then she attacked.
She launched herself at
Gary and he panicked, remembering the things he’d seen on TV and the things
they’d fought in the back garden of the house. Abhorrent, cursed, infected
creatures. He remembered what Charlie had become.
Gary reached for Jenny
and Holly’s outstretched hands, but infected Jody stood between them. And
down so the sick people don’t hear us, okay? We can’t let anything happen now,
because if we do then all of Mummy’s effort will have been for nothing.’
Noises downstairs. Awful
screaming noises. Bangs, crashes, breaking glass. Death throes. Gary pulled the
kids closer still and covered their ears as the ground floor cacophony
continued in the rooms beneath them. They could feel the fighting. The whole
house seemed to shake.
‘It’s gonna be all
right,’ he told them when the noises eventually began to subside. ‘Mummy was
really brave, and now it’s your turn to be brave. All of us. Daddy too. I’m
gonna look after you all the time now.’
Nothing but shock and
sobbing. He relaxed his grip but the kids didn’t move. Too scared. Paralysed
with fear.
Gary filled the silence
with nervous chatter. ‘We’ll wait here until it’s safe, then I’ll go down and
sort everything out. The police will come and help us, maybe even the army. I
know it’s been horrible this last couple of days, but things are gonna be okay.
It’s just the four of us now, like you always wanted. We’ll go to Disneyland
like I promised. Everything will be okay.’
Still nothing.
‘We can go and see
Gramps and Nanny. You’d like that, wouldn’t you? I bet they’re keen to see you.
It’s been ages since I’ve seen them.’
‘Mum takes us,’ Ben
said.
‘What?’
‘Mummy takes us to see
Gramps and Nanny, and Granny and Pa,’ Jenny explained.
‘What? Wait, your mum’s
been taking you to see my parents? You never told me.’
‘We thought you’d get
cross.’
‘Of course I wouldn’t.’
‘You said you didn’t
care what Mummy did and you didn’t want to hear about it,’ Jenny said,
repeating parrot-fashion.
‘They’re still all
friends, even though you and Mum hate each other,’ Ben said. ‘Nanny said just
because you’ve fallen out, doesn’t mean we can’t all still get on.’
Gary was shocked. ‘My
mum said that?’
‘Yep,’ said Holly.
Jenny continued. ‘Gramps
said he thought Mummy was doing really well considering.’
‘Considering what?’
‘Don’t know. They
usually stop talking when they know we’re listening.’
Gary got up from the
floor, incensed. ‘That bloody woman. Out to get the bloody sympathy vote from my parents. How low will she go?’
‘That’s not fair, Dad,’
Ben said, and immediately wished he hadn’t. Gary turned on him.
‘Adult business, son.
Keep your bloody nose out.’
‘I’m only trying
to—’
‘Well don’t. When I want
your advice I’ll...’
Ben looked up to see why
his dad had stopped talking, and then he saw her.
Mum.
At the window.
Clothes torn and
blood-soaked.
Infected.
Gary staggered back in
fright as she hauled herself up onto the veranda, using the roof of his car to
get up. She beat against the glass with leaden hands, fists smearing grease and
germs.
Gary grabbed the kids,
but Jenny slipped his grip. As he dragged them away from the window, she ran
towards it. ‘Mummy!’ she shouted, thrilled to see her again. Gary tried to stop
her, but Ben and Holly were in the way and he could only watch helpless as
Jenny slipped the latch and let Jody inside.
The Jody-thing watched
him from the other end of the room. The gusting breeze from the window caught
her shirt, and when it flapped open Gary saw the scratch. Long, deep, dirty,
uneven. It ran from her left shoulder down her bicep, a vicious zigzag line,
dripping with blood.
‘It’s not Mummy,’ he
told the kids. ‘She’s got the disease. Don’t go near her.’
His dead ex-wife stood
her ground. Unmoving. Glowering.
And then she attacked.
She launched herself at
Gary and he panicked, remembering the things he’d seen on TV and the things
they’d fought in the back garden of the house. Abhorrent, cursed, infected
creatures. He remembered what Charlie had become.
Gary reached for Jenny
and Holly’s outstretched hands, but infected Jody stood between them. And
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