Devouring The Dead (Book 1) by Russ Watts

Kathleen’s sister, Sally, you remember we met her last week? Well she’s a nurse at St Thomas’. Kathleen told me Sally got out in the nick of time before they got cut off. They took someone in who was sick, injured, and covered in mould and fungus and all sorts of shit apparently. Kathleen reckons it’s some sort of government science project gone wrong.
    “ Anyway, Sally said the man died, right. They were clearing up and two minutes later, the man was on his feet! This bloke had boils all over his body, his skin was falling off him and...fuck.”
    “What?” said Edward trembling. He remembered Sally. She was a nice girl. Then he thought of his own wife. Would she be at home, too, waiting for him? She hadn’t answered his calls. Nigel carried on.
    “Sally said this dead man just started attacking the doctors and nurses. Like a wild beast. One minute he’s laid on a slab, next he’s up running around biting people. Sally said she saw the doctor go down in front of her with his throat ripped out. She watched him die and next minute he was up and about, too, running around like a madman. She said he ran into the corridor and killed the first person he saw, just beat them to death, and then moved onto the next poor sod. It spread; every dead person getting up and killing. And so on. You see?”
    “Nigel, this is crazy. You can’t be serious? You’re having me on, right?” Edward had turned pale and Nigel was itching to get going. Footsteps were echoing up the stairwell from the hundreds of people leaving below them.
    “I’m deadly serious , mate. Kathleen said Sally made it out of the hospital but the infection, whatever it is, was spreading and fast. She was running down to the tube and could see people pouring out of the hospital behind her. But they weren’t running away - they were running toward her. They were dead, but they were coming for her. Sally was trying to get to the station entrance and told Kathleen the gates were being shut. There was a big crowd and she didn’t know what to do. Was going to run for it I think. Then she got cut off. Kath called her back, but got no answer. We’re just hoping she made it. Kath’s worried sick.”
    “Fuck ing hell.” Edward put his hands in his pockets. He looked at Nigel, a friend he had known for years, in wonder. “And that’s what this is about? The infection is heading this way?” he asked.
    “It’s not the infection you’ve got to watch out for, mate,” said Nigel, “it’s the dead. If they don’t infect you, they’ll kill you. Either way, I’m getting out of here. Now you coming with me or staying?” Nigel took a step back into the stairwell.
    “No, no, I’m going to tell the others upstairs. Then I’ll get off home. I’ll see you later, mate. Take care, eh?” Nigel nodded and ran off into the stairwell, his feet clattering loudly on the bare steps. Edward did not see Nigel again.
    When Edward had relayed the story to his co-workers, there was nothing Christina could do to hold them back. It was chaos: everyone grabbed their coats and bags and could not get out of there fast enough.
    “Wait. Security told me we should stay put. It’s not safe out there you know.” Christina had tried in vain to make them stay, but they were too panicked now. 
    “Come on , hurry up,” Edward had shouted, encouraging his workmates to follow him. One by one they had fled, leaving Christina alone, wringing her hands. She had tried to stop them. Maybe they would be all right? They were probably all at home now, laughing and toasting their success in escaping, whilst she was stuck in the office. Maybe she was wrong and Edward had been right?
    Edward had not been right. When they had got downstairs, many of them already flushed and out of breath by charging down so many flights of steps, they had run onto the wet streets to be greeted by hell. Through the rain, people were running everywhere. They heard screams, sirens, metal scraping on metal as