Undead at Heart by Calum Kerr Read Free Book Online Page A

think we should do like
the nice man says and stay and wait for the police. Maybe,’ I said to Bob.
‘Maybe they’ll even give us a lift to Aimee’s wedding – what with it being a
special day and everything – and if they need to take a statement, maybe we can
come in and make it later.’”
    Samantha smiled
politely at this barrage of information. Working in a very upmarket dress shop
she was used to women who would come in and talk at her without really
expecting any response.
    “I just hope that
being here in these woods hasn’t ruined my shoes. After all it’s pretty muddy.
I mean, I know the weather’s been nice and it’s been dry for the last two
weeks. Bob and I have been able to eat out every evening, haven’t we, Bob?” Bob
nodded again.  “It’s been lovely because we only got it redone last year,
and this year all the flowers have really taken off. I mean, they were nice
last year, but everything was so new that it needed a year to bed in.” She
paused, and for the first time as far as Sam could tell, Janet took a breath.
“Anyway… It’s been so nice, and I’ve got a lovely tan, but this ground is so
soft my heels are sliding in and I’m worried they’re going to be ruined for the
wedding. Do you think they are going to be very much longer?”
    Sam was taken
surprise, not by the nature of the question, but by the fact that there was a
question at all. She said nothing for a moment, except an indeterminate, ‘Erm…”
and then there was a huge blast of wind and an almighty thump which shook the
ground and knocked her over backwards. She slid down into the depression left
by the roots of a fallen tree, and rolled over onto her face. She heard a loud
crash and scrabbled round onto her knees, wiping her hair from her face even as
she wiped mud onto her skin. She peered up to where she had been standing and
was faced with a large, unidentifiable scramble of metal. It was streaming
smoke, and seemed composed solely of sharp and charred edges.
    Sam stumbled to her
feet, and then screamed as she saw a very muddy, but instantly recognisable
pair of shiny, blue high-heels sticking from under the wreckage. A pair of
slightly thick ankles still emerged from the shoes and disappeared, amongst a
spatter of blood, under the metal. Of Bob, there was no sign. She fell to her
knees and screamed and screamed until Tony came over and pulled her away. She
buried her head in his chest and continued to scream as he attempted to coax
her into movement. In the end he gave up, scooped her into his arms, and
staggered off into the forest.

Twelve
     
     
    Stan looked over at
Dave and raised his eyebrows. Once he had his brother’s attention, he cocked
his head in the direction of the woman who had introduced herself as Nicola.
    Once they had gone far
enough to be out of sight of the clearing where they had left that incredibly
stubborn guy and his ‘followers’ she had stopped to tell them her name and that
she had no intention of being their leader, she just thought they should get
away. Once they had, she told them, someone else who knew what they were doing
could take over.
    Even as she said it,
though, Stan could feel everyone hitching their attention and their hopes to
her. She may not know it, but she had something about her which made everyone
want to trust and follow her. She was their leader, simply because she was,
whether she wanted the job or not.
    Dave looked back and
nodded. He knew what Stan was thinking. The girl might be carrying a child in
her arms, and this might be completely the wrong time to be thinking such
things, but she was seriously hot. Stan had been the one to disagree most
defiantly with the crazy guy, and also the one who had asked Nicola what she
thought they should do. When she opened up with the comment about the EMP, he’d
known that whatever her background, wherever she came from, her brain was still
working in the midst of everyone else’s panic. If nothing else, she would