Zombie Castle Series (Book 3): ZC Three Page 4

  Chris stood up next.

  “I have no doubt either that joining you is the best thing to do. We already owe you our lives. I’m not sure what I can add to the skillset apart from my years working in a builders’ merchants, helping builders plan and design jobs and getting over the many problems that entails, and it goes without saying, a willingness to do anything to protect my wife and unborn child.”

  As he sat down, I continued, “Well, thank you, all of you.”

  The church was darkening as the sun sank lower in the sky, indicating another day survived.

  “It’s getting too late to go on a supply run to get more materials for the vehicles, but it won’t stop us planning and getting ready for the morning. If we can get started on a few jobs now, we can make the most of tomorrow.”

  The noise level increased as everyone stood and started talking.

  Simon and Dave came over and said the first thing they would do was start firearms training with all the new arrivals. With the help of Shane, they unloaded more weapons from the trailer and began splitting up the new trainees into groups to begin the basics.

  The knights and the villagers were soon listening intently as they were shown safe handling discipline.

  I couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of the vicar wearing his cassock holding an assault rifle, practising inserting and ejecting a magazine. How the world had changed!

  Becky had gathered a few people and they were clearing an area to extend the sleeping space, enabling it to accommodate us all.

  No one was idle, everyone had found a job to do and was getting on with it.

  Shawn and I went outside to start planning the alterations to the vehicles and to draw up a list of materials we would need. We had plenty of tools and the generator to power them. The van, as I had thought earlier, was easy to plan. We just needed to add the ubiquitous and proven wedge to the front and protect the driver and passenger in the cab with mesh, if we could get it, or sheeting with holes cut in it to provide vision.

  The bus, on the other hand, gave us more options to consider. We could simply add a wedge and protect all the windows, but that didn’t give the occupants the ability to fight any zombies from the safety of being on board.

  The bus would provide a more comfortable place for the large group we now had to travel in, but if for some reason it became separated from the main convoy, the occupants would need to be able to defend themselves.

  After playing around with a few ideas, the best solution we came up with was to cover all the windows with bars or mesh but to remove the glass from every other window and the seats by them to create an area where they could fight from, either with guns or spears.

  If it didn’t work, we could always change it. The one thing we both agreed was essential, was to cut an escape hatch in the roof on both vehicles. In the fading light we unloaded the tools we would need and started to cut holes in various places on the bodywork of both vehicles, so when we got the materials we could begin immediately.

  The children were already asleep when darkness and exhaustion finally drove us inside.

  Keeping the noise down as much as we could, we barricaded the church door for the night and settled down in the pews. The flickering of candles provided enough light for everyone to see each other and to get around without tripping over anything, but most importantly, not waking the sleeping children.

  Bottles of wine and beer were opened, and the group sat around enjoying each other’s company, before tiredness and the need for an early start reminded us of the need for sleep.

  Forty-three people, with regular lookout changes, and a snoring dog, slept soundly.

  Chapter six

  The early dawn light streaming through the church windows woke me and a few others up and we gathered in the kitchen area, quietly grumbling about the early hour and drinking the first coffee of the day, as one by one we were joined by more bleary-eyed adults who, too, seemed unwilling to communicate much until they had a mug of steaming tea or coffee in their hands.

  Eventually, everyone had had a drink and some breakfast, and we felt ready to start the day.

  Bob told us told us there was a farmer’s supply warehouse in a nearby village that should provide us with all we would need to work on the vehicles, so Simon and Dave quickly planned the mission.

  Dave and Jim would remain behind to continue weapons training, while Simon took Dave’s place next to me in the Volvo. Shawn would, as usual, be driving the tractor, with Louise to accompany him. Both looked pleased at the news.

  Simon then explained that he wanted to take some of the knights with us, but the problem would be mobility. Wearing a heavy suit of armour would make it difficult and slow to climb up and down the ladder to get in and out of the trailer. Not only would they enhance our fighting capabilities greatly, but also, they were the youngest and probably the fittest amongst us, and if we had to load a quantity of heavy material onto the trailer, then it made sense for them to be there.

  Shawn spoke up.

  “I was thinking about this last night, Simon. Watching Ian failing to get into the trailer when we left Bristol got me thinking. The rear of the trailer hinges from the side but the locking bar is on the outside.

  If I make one for the inside, it would be easy enough to make a ramp that we could drop in place. Then it would be a lot easier for everyone to get in and out and make loading stuff on a lot better too. If I can get it right, we could get a lot of fighting men on the ground quickly.”

  Simon thought about it for a moment.

  “How long will it take you?”

  “Half an hour to rig something up, and I can improve it later.”

  “Good, you have twenty minutes! Right, then. While Shawn’s doing that, can we all muck in and clear the trailer to make space for what we hope to get? When we get back, we’ll need to distribute all the ammunition and other goodies we got from the soldiers the other day.

  Shawn, can we also give some thought to how we mount the light machine guns we’ve got to the trailer, and possibly the Volvo too. If we get those right, the amount of fire we can accurately put down could be a game changer if we get into deep shit.”

  The large quantity of rifles and shotguns, military and sporting that we’d collected from both Bickley Barracks and the gun shop, along with the huge amount of ammunition we’d amassed from both places, and from the soldiers we’d met on the M5 motorway, made a truly impressive sight when it was stacked in the cool interior of the church. But would it be enough to keep us safe?

  Shawn, true to his word, had drilled some holes in the trailer and made a crude but effective locking bar that would enable the rear of the trailer to be opened from within. With the Vicar’s permission he’d also used the wood from a couple of pews to make a ramp. He’d designed a simple but clever system of ropes to get it on and off the deck of the trailer.

  If you pulled the ropes one way it extended out and dropped to the ground and if pulled in the opposite direction with a little more effort, it lifted it back onto the deck.

  Using the theory that if it could take his weight, it could take anyone’s, he got Ian, wearing full armour, to climb up it to see if it worked.

  Grumbling about, “Getting the fat boy to try it first,” Ian tentatively climbed up the ramp.

  It creaked and sagged in the middle but held his weight.

  When he reached the top, he got us all laughing as he performed a little victory dance, which in his armour looked more like he was having a fit.

  We were ready to go then, so Simon quickly got everyone else he’d chosen to come on the mission on board both the trailer and the Volvo, and we waited while the ones staying behind cleared the barricade of cars out of the way.

  Only Bob joined us from the newest additions to the group, because he knew the way. We explained to the others that because they hadn’t had enough experience fighting from the trailer, or any training using the zombie spears, that they shouldn’t come. Besides that, they need
ed more training to use the guns, and thankfully, they understood and saw the sense in it.

  We hoped this mission wouldn’t take too long, and space was at a premium because we were also hopeful we’d be loading a large quantity of supplies, so every person we took along needed to be the most competent we had.

  Shawn already had directions from Bob, but if we had to change from the pre-planned route, then Bob’s local knowledge would be vital.

  With a final wave, we left the church.

  Shawn drove over the one or two zombies that had wandered into the village green overnight on our way out of the village. You couldn’t hear their moans over the noise of the engines, but their lives ended abruptly again as they futilely tried to stop our progress by walking in front of the blood-smeared plough attached to the bucket on the tractor. What was left of them banged against the wedge at the front of my vehicle when they emerged from under the trailer’s wheels.

  The farmers’ supplies was on the edge of another village and had obviously not opened on the morning the apocalypse had hit. The gates to the yard were still locked and the place looked deserted.

  Simon quickly climbed down from my car and using a pair of bolt croppers, cut the chain locking the gate and slid them open to allow us to drive into the yard, closing it behind us.

  Before allowing us to disembark from both vehicles, he and Steve did a full check of the area before declaring it clear of the undead.

  I could see from my vantage point standing on the seat of my car that the large yard, with its neat stacks of timber, fencing and all the paraphernalia that a farmer needed to manage his land and livestock, was a treasure trove that would provide us with everything we would need and more.

  When everyone gathered together, we started work; everyone apart from Louise, whom Simon had told to stay on the tractor to stand guard for us.

  The forklift truck, sitting in an open-sided shed, would make loading a lot easier, but the key was predictably not in the ignition.

  It was almost certainly going to be locked in an office in the warehouse and sales counter located in a corner of the yard, so three of us grabbed the bolt cutters and went to break open the shutters securing it.

  The skylights provided enough light inside for us to see around, once we’d pulled the shutter open and used a sledgehammer we got from the trailer to smash the door open. Easily finding the keys that were on a hook in the manager’s office, we took them outside to help load up.

  Simon was standing next to a Land Rover Defender 110 that was in the livery of the company we were in the process of robbing. He was trying the door, but it was locked.

  I knew exactly what he was going to say, so I said it for him.

  “I’ll go and look for the keys, shall I?”

  He nodded with a big grin on his face and pointed to a large twin axle trailer next to it.

  “We just found ourselves a new scout vehicle, and if we hook that baby up, we can take a lot more stuff back with us too. If we can work our magic on that too, it’ll give that Chelsea tractor of yours a run for its money.”

  “Leave my bloody Volvo out of this will you, it’s got us this far, hasn’t it?” I said as I walked back into the warehouse to find the keys.

  The keys still had the Land Rover key ring on them, making them also easy to find. Walking back through the shop, I could see that we needed to take a lot of things that were stored in there too.

  The shelves were full of hand tools that would make great zombie killers and boxes of screws, bolts and other fittings that would probably make constructing our Mad Max style vehicles easier.

  Then I noticed a small sign above the sales counter, informing customers that shotgun licences must be shown for cartridge purchases.

  “Brilliant,” I thought as I went searching for the place where they stored them.

  The heavy-duty locked door at the back of the manager’s office proved no match for the long crowbar I took from the shelf. It revealed a large quantity of shotgun cartridges of all weights. Mainly in 12 gauge, but I spotted a few other gauges too.

  We had to take them as a priority. Walking outside, I handed Simon the keys to his prize Defender and told him I needed two others to help so we could start emptying the shop too.

  The forklift was making the job of loading up a lot quicker and easier than expected. Simon agreed and told Chet and Bob to go with me. Grabbing a trolley each, I gave them a quick idea of what to grab as I headed with my trolley to the manager’s office.

  Chet and Bob both did a male version of the hit 90s game show, Supermarket Sweep, loading their trollies with axes, hammers and pickaxes and a plethora of other tools, grabbing armfuls off the racks and dumping them in the trollies as fast as they could before running to the next item they spotted. I took mine to the cartridge store and began to clear that out too.

  When the trollies were full, we pushed them as quickly as we could and dumped their contents first in the back of the Volvo, and when that was full up, into the back of the Land Rover.

  I couldn’t help myself as I dragged the theme tune from deep in my memory and began to sing it loudly as we continued to fill the trollies. Chet and Bob joined in as they charged around the shop, banging the heavily overloaded trollies off shelves as they failed to make the corners.

  Once I’d cleared all of the cartridges from the store, I joined the other two and loaded anything else I could see that was worth taking. From dog food for Horace to work boots and coats, we threw everything we could into the trollies.

  Simon, meanwhile, had hooked up the trailer to the Defender and was driving it around the yard, loading as much as he could onto it.

  I took him some tie-down straps I’d taken off a shelf, so he could secure the load properly when he’d finished.

  We were dripping with sweat and exhausted from all the running around and heavy lifting, but we had done amazingly. Within an hour, we had gathered more materials to armour the vehicles than we needed and had gathered more supplies that would be essential to our ongoing survival.

  Another successful trip, but a shout from Louise drew our attention to the fence surrounding the yard. The noise we’d been making had attracted some unwelcome attention. Zombies were beginning to line the fence surrounding it and we could see more coming. Their simple brains couldn’t distinguish between a fence and the main gate. Most of them just pressed futilely against the steel mesh fencing, thrashing their arms against the barrier, biting it in their frustration at knowing we were there but being unable to reach us. A few were at the gate, pushing at it, making it rattle on its runners.

  None of us was too concerned. The gate and fences were strong enough to hold them back and we were almost done and would be on our way back before the numbers grew to the level that could cause the fence to be compromised.

  Still we decided to err on the side of caution and call it a day. We’d taken more than we needed, and the real work would start when we got it all back to the church. I helped Simon finish strapping down the load to his trailer and then helped the trailer occupants lift the ramp back into place and close the rear door. They had loaded so much onto it, they were almost standing level with the top of the sides and were busy jamming lengths of timber down the sides to try to hold the load steady when they were moving.

  Simon and I agreed as we finished strapping the trailer that it would be best for him to travel as the middle vehicle in the convoy, where the two armoured vehicles could help protect him if need be. Common sense, really, but planning ahead had got us to where we were now.

  Chet was the last to climb into the Volvo. I could see that by now between fifteen to twenty zombies were clawing at the gate. We had no time to waste, the priority was to get back to the church as quickly as possible, so we could start adapting the vehicles. I picked up the radio.

  “We haven’t got the time to mess about and deal with those buggers at the gate by hand. Shawn, stay where you are, we’ll deal with them from the car. Once the gate is open,
drive through and cover us as we close it.”

  Louise came back immediately. She’d become the tractor’s official radio operator, leaving Shawn to concentrate on driving the Behemoth.

  “No probs, Tom, be careful.”

  Pulling up to the gate, I stopped at an angle, facing it, and the three of us stood. Simon was now driving the Land Rover. He was adamant that he didn’t want anyone riding shotgun for him as the vehicle didn’t have any protection on it yet and it would only put someone else in possible danger.

  We picked up our rifles and took aim. The red dot sights and the range, virtually point blank, made it easy for us. With each shot another zombie fell back from the gate, its head a mess of oozing blood and brains. As soon as the last one fell, Steve jumped down and slid the gate open.

  Attracted by the noise and movement, every zombie lining the fence and heading towards it started to shamble in our direction. Steve calmly stood, shooting at the nearest ones as we all drove through one by one until Shawn stopped the tractor and everyone on board joined in to provide cover for Steve as he pushed the gates closed and climbed back aboard the Volvo. The second his feet hit the seat I pipped my horn to indicate to Shawn it was time to leave.

  We picked up speed and retraced our steps back to the church.

  “It’s pretty much one straight road back to the church from here, isn’t it?” Chet said as he sat down.

  I looked in the rear mirror and could see the remaining Zombies following us.

  “Yes, mate. There were one or two junctions, but the route is the obvious one to take. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? That in an hour or two, that lot behind will be paying us a visit.”

  He nodded.

  “Let’s get back first. There didn’t seem to be that many, but you’re right, we can’t forget about them.”

  Fifteen minutes and a couple of stray zombies kills later, we arrived back at the church.