“Gary is ill, you mean he’s dying?”
As Jacob asked the question a sound coming from outside the room distracted him.
“Unfortunately, yes.” replied Harvey.
Jacob was now looking back through the wardrobe and listening intently. He had heard another noise which sounded quite close.
He stepped through the wardrobe and back into the bedroom. The old man remained into the hidden room but watched the reporter leave.
“What is it Jacob?” he asked, frowning. He knew something had spooked the young reporter but had not heard anything himself.
“Is anyone else in the house?” asked Jacob, looking back at Harvey.
“No. Why?”
A muffled sound that resembled something sliding across the carpet was coming from outside the room. With bated breath, Jacob went to investigate. He opened the bedroom door and peered out onto the landing.
Instantly, a shockwave of horror bolted through his body forcing him to scream involuntary. He could not believe his eyes.
Some of Harvey’s friends had made their way up the stairs and one of them was already right outside the door glaring at him with dead eyes.
Shocked and frantic, Jacob slammed the door shut only to have it bounce back at him as it hit the corpse outside. A skeletal arm reached through the gap as Jacob pushed hard against the door.
Mr James had made his way from the hidden room and was now watching Jacob struggle to prevent his old friends from gaining access.
“Jacob, let them in.” said the old man. “It ends today no matter what.”
Barely managing to restrain them Jacob looked back at Mr James.
“But they’ll kill us!” he said through gritted teeth.
“They want me not you.” Mr James explained, approaching the young reporter. “I knew this day would be my last.”
“What?”
“I’ve been preparing for it all week. Now that my story has been told the only thing left to do is let Gaz die and switch off the machine.”
“You’re insane!”
“No my young friend, the outcome is inevitable. Although I hadn’t planned for this to happen it is probably the best way for it to happen.”
Jacob glared into Harvey’s eyes. The old man was deadly serious. He wanted his old friends to finish him off and have the responsibility of killing Gaz taken from him. He knew that they would do the dirty work. They had waited so long for freedom, for peace, that Gaz would be butchered in seconds.
“What about me?” Jacob enquired, readying himself to release the door.
“You will not be harmed.”
“How can you say that? They’re monsters!”
“Trust me; they have no interest in you.”
Jacob was terrified. He found it difficult to summon up enough courage to move away from the door. The corpses were clawing their way in and squeezing rotting body parts through the gap. Eventually, a skeletal hand grabbed the sleeve of his shirt, digging sharp finger nails into his skin, and he finally jumped back away from the door.
Two of the gang burst into the room and struggled to keep on their feet. They stood still for a few seconds as they scanned the room for movement with their dry leathery eyes. A third corpse, dragging itself along the carpet, appeared at the door. Charred flesh hung from its face.
Jacob knew his name but did not dare speak or make a sound. He was standing behind the single bed and hoped he had gone unseen.
Harvey had already removed his shirt and vest to reveal the gaping wound on his chest. Perhaps in the hope of them realising that there would be no need for violent retribution and that their attention would turn to Gaz.
The putrid cadavers shuffled towards him, one dragging a leg and the other feeling the way ahead with skeletal fingers. Both were groaning pitifully.
The one on the floor by the door was looking up at Jacob as the young reporter filmed the scene with his digital camera.
As they approached, Harvey tried explaining to them that he was already dead and that it was Gaz they wanted. He pointed towards the secret room but his old friends were not interested. Harvey had forced them to endure such unimaginable anguish, such a vile existence that they wanted to punish him. They needed to take revenge so badly that his words had gone unnoticed.
A forth corpse entered the room just as Harvey was grabbed by the throat and thrust against the wall. The one dragging a leg made a grab for the wound on Harvey’s chest and within seconds he was being ripped apart.
The gang members took turns in tearing chunks of rotting flesh from his body. They tore off his jawbone and gouged out his eyes, tossing them across the room. Before long all that was left was a dismembered carcass at their feet. Terrifyingly, they then turned to face Jacob.
Stuart Rice was already clawing up the bed towards him and very soon Jacob found himself surrounded by zombies that were covered in Harvey’s putrid flesh and blood. They shuffled towards him, groaning angrily.
Thinking quickly he pushed the bed away from the wall and slid behind the headboard, ducking down behind it.
Being young and agile he managed to slide himself beneath the bed and scurry across the carpet. The bed was pushed several times while he made his way to the other end but he managed to remain beneath it.
“The only thing left to do now is kill Gaz.” The old man had said and Jacob knew that he had been right. These vile creatures would not stop until Gary was dead.
He clambered out from under the bed and was about to dart for the concealed room when his ankle was grabbed forcing him back to the ground.
He looked back and saw that Stuart Rice was clinging on to him from beneath the bed. He gave several frantic kicks with his free foot as he felt the ghouls sharp finger nails dig into his skin.
The evil corpse was adamant not to let go and managed to get a grip with his other hand.
Grasping at the carpet Jacob began crawling towards the secret room, dragging the cadaver with him and could see that the others were gaining on him.
Suddenly there was a loud thud behind as one of the gang had fell forward to make a grab for him and almost instantly Jacob felt another set of sharp talons sink into his back. The pain was shocking and Jacob let out a gut wrenching scream.
Now fuelled on by pure panic he picked up his pace. He was now dragging two clawing monsters that were tearing at his flesh but knew that his only chance of survival was to get to Gary.
He managed to reach the wardrobe door and heave himself up into the opening, viciously kicking back at the ghouls as he scrambled towards the room.
Their insane groaning was now louder than ever as they clawed at their victim. Jacob heard another thud within the passage and clenched his teeth in anticipation of another grasp of claws. Again, he let out a blood curdling scream as they sank into is upper back.
He was now in the room and could see the coffin but with three savages ripping at his skin the going was excruciating.
He grabbed the table leg and hauled himself onto his knees. The vile wretches had torn clumps of flesh from his legs and back and Jacob could feel the warm blood soaking into his shirt and trousers. Fatigue was beginning to set in. The going had been exhausting and his heart was pumping savagely against his ribs.
Stretching up his arm as far as he could he managed to curl his finger tips over the lip of the coffin and pulled at it with the last of his strength, using his weight as he pushed away from the table. The coffin was heavy but to Jacob’s relief it began to slide off the desktop.
The wooden casket was soon teetering on the tipping point and Jacob knew that he had to move out of the way, or be squashed beneath it. Clinging onto the table leg he began kicking at his undead attackers, trying desperately to squirm free from their grip but their hold on him was too strong and inevitably, Jacob had to brace himself for the weight of the coffin.
It plunged off the table and crashed across his legs, decapitating one of the gang members and severing the skeletal hand of another. A
lthough the impact had been painful, Jacob knew that his legs were not broken. The clawing zombies had bore the brunt of the force, and were now trapped beneath the up turned casket with Gary still inside. The sudden impact had stopped their frenzied attack allowing Jacob to wriggle free. He quickly slid himself beneath the table.
The terrible groaning had stopped and, for a moment, Jacob had hoped that their silence was because Gary had died, taking them with him but, unfortunately, a few seconds later, the coffin began to move and Jacob heard foot steps coming from the wardrobe.
Another rotting corpse entered the room, scanning it with his leathery eyes as the coffin flipped over releasing the others.
The decapitated head of Stuart Rice was knocked across the floor as his decrepit friends slowly got to their feet.
Bleeding heavily, Jacob began shuffling himself to the other side of the table so that he would be out of sight. He was terrified and exhausted.
Gary Small was now out of the coffin and lying face down on the tiles.
He was still breathing and in plain sight but, for some strange reason, the wretched dead ignored him as they continued towards Jacob.
Why were they not ripping their old friend to pieces? This is what they have been hoping for for so long, a chance to end their suffering, but, instead of killing Gaz, they were coming for Jacob.
He had now pushed himself against the wall and could go no further.
He was trapped.
“I’m not Gaz!” he shouted frantically, as the evil gang reached the table. “He’s on the floor behind you!”
The table began to tilt as it was lifted up and Jacob had to think fast or be slaughtered.
His mind flashed back to when they had made a grab for Mr Jones down in the basement. He knew that their eyes were useless but could probably distinguish between light and dark and could possibly detect movement.
Jacob’s shuffling had distracted them from going for Gaz.
The tabletop hit the wall and then the legs began to slide across the floor the higher the table was tilted. Eventually, it toppled over completely and crashed down the wall, forcing Jacob to act.
Knowing that movement attracted them, a plan had crossed his mind. It was going to be dangerous but he no choice.
On all fours he scrambled towards Gary. Darting through the legs of one of the gang and narrowly avoiding a clawed swipe from another.
Reaching Gaz Jacob lay beside him, grabbed the unconscious man by the shoulders hauling him over onto his side and then slid him up onto his own chest. The gang soon surrounded him and Jacob began moving Gary’s arms to encourage them to attack. His plan worked.
Bending over or crouching each of the vile wretches began clawing at Gaz. At first it was his clothes that they tore from his body but within seconds it was his flesh. Jacob continued to writhe about beneath the old man, simulating life, and waving his arms but then, to his horror, the man jolted awake and almost instantly began screaming hysterically. Jacob was forced to hold him down as the monsters continued their bloody assault. He felt terrible. The man was pleading for his life, horrified and bewildered but Jacob knew that it was him or Gary and he held on for dear life.
He closed his eyes as he heard the snap of bone and the squelch of intestines. He sensed that his ordeal would soon be over. Gary would soon be dead, ending his friends misery, and Jacob would live to tell of their reunion.
The End
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