Autumn The City Page 0,103

the questions attempting to be fired in his direction were nervous and instinctive. They were little more than delaying tactics.

He ignored them and nodded at Baxter. 'Do it,' he said, his voice a little louder, 'open the door, Jack.' Knowing that if he hesitated he'd begin trying to talk himself out of opening the door, Baxter slammed the handle down and threw it open. Along with those survivors standing directly behind him, for a moment he simply stood still and stared out into the night. Cold wind and a light rain blew into his face. He could clearly see the football pitch and the van blocking the entrance, but in the darkness it seemed an immeasurable distance away. And worse still, between him and the vehicles he could see bodies.

There appeared to be hundreds of them shuffling, staggering and limping across the scene in silhouette. Unmistakable with their stilted, pained movements and lethargic but ominous determination and persistence, the nearest few had already turned and were advancing quickly towards the building. 'Go, Jack!' Cooper shouted. 'Fucking move!' The older man immediately began to run. Full of thoughts and concerns for the others whilst they had all been safe indoors, he now sprinted across the grass and tarmac pathways in selfish isolation, for the moment only interested in his own survival. He knocked one body out of the way, then another and then another. Within seconds his heart was beating in his chest with a force he could hardly contain and his lungs were on fire. A few seconds later still and some of the younger, fitter survivors had passed him.

The van didn't seem to be getting any closer. The rest of the survivors pushed their way out of the university building. Loaded up with bags of belongings they forced themselves through the swarming, rotting crowds. Men and women, young and old, all moved forward together in absolute terror, praying that they would get through, terrified that they would be swallowed up by the diseased masses. Towards the back of the group some of the stronger men and women carried the smallest children. The delighted squeals coming from a two year old boy were muffled by the groans of effort and moans of pure fear coming from Erica Carter, the middle-aged woman who had taken it upon herself to carry him on her back. Paul Castle and Steve Armitage sat in the front of the van oblivious.

The hours since they had volunteered to stay behind and look after the vehicles had dragged unbearably. Still surrounded by swarming corpses attracted by the earlier noise, and with no idea when the survivors would make their move, the two men had sat together in silence, too afraid to move or even talk to each other. The van remained parked across the entrance to the football pitch. Sitting in the front passenger seat, Castle struggled to keep his tired eyes open. He glanced through the window to his left and the sudden sight of movement made him sit up with a start. 'Fucking hell,' he cursed. 'What is it?' Armitage asked, immediately concerned. 'Oh, Jesus,' he whined, 'they're coming for us.' 'What?' 'Loads of fucking bodies,' he continued to wail. 'Christ, they're coming towards the van.' Armitage leant across the width of the van to looked through the steamed-up window. 'You fucking idiot,' he snapped, sitting back in his seat and starting the engine. 'That's our lot.' Castle wiped his tired eyes and peered deeper into the darkness.

A sudden movement and the ominous thump of a body slamming heavily into the side of the van next to him made him recoil with fright and surprise. The screaming face at his window, although he didn't recognise it, belonged to a survivor. The noise of the engine again whipped the rotting figures which remained near to the football pitch into a feverish frenzy. They began to clatter against the fence, some grabbing hold of the wire-mesh with bony fingers and pulling and shaking it furiously. The night air was filled with noise as Armitage flicked on the van's headlamps and reversed back, allowing the first survivors and an equal number of random bodies to flood onto the football pitch. 'How am I supposed to know when they're all in?' the driver mumbled nervously. Castle didn't answer at first. 'There's Cooper,' he eventually replied. He watched as the soldier stopped at the gate and ushered in the remaining stragglers. Feeling suddenly useless he jumped