The Undead: Day 22 by Haywood R.R

Author:Haywood, R.R. [Haywood, R.R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Zombie Apocalypse
Published: 2017-12-19T05:00:00+00:00

*

Maddox stands on the windowsill staring down at the raging waters below. The wind howling past his body. The rain pelting his skin and face. His hands above his head looped through a cut off section of rope greased up and hooked over another thicker rope stretching taut and rigid from a rafter in the ceiling of the top floor of the house over the river to the Saxon on the other side. He eyes the landing pad. A pile of mattresses dragged out from houses and dumped on the ground.

‘Ready?’ Nick asks, holding the back of Maddox’s belt.

‘No,’ Maddox says honestly.

‘Ah be fine,’ Tappy says, also holding his belt. ‘Big push…one…two…’

‘Wait! Why am I going first again?’ Maddox asks, trying to peer back at them.

‘Cos you’re a fatty,’ Tappy says with a grin.

‘I’m not fat,’ he says.

‘Joking! You’re a big boy and it’s all muscle,’ she says, patting his leg with a wink.

‘We need someone heavy to test it…’ Nick says.

‘Right.’ Maddox says. ‘You’re heavier than me,’ he adds, twisting to look down at Nick.

‘Ah but you’re strong,’ Tappy calls up. ‘And we need Nick to fix it if it breaks…ready? GO!’

‘ARGH YOU’S FUCKERS…’ he flies out from the push, sliding along the rope with a gathering speed down towards the mattresses on the other side. The river below now wider and more violent. The storm increasing and those mattresses coming towards him far too fast. Then he hits and lands in a world of soft wet springy foam, absorbing in with a gasp then rolls over to look up at the grinning face of Marcy.

Nick and Roy spent five minutes discussing pulleys, winches, sliding tackles and counter-weights to try and find a solution to get the survivors, and Clarence, back across the river.

‘Just zipwire it,’ Tappy said, invoking a surprised look from Nick. ‘Get another rope over, cut the old one to use as hand-hold grippy things and zipwire back across. Easy peasy lemon squeezy…’

Nick told Roy on the radio who did what Nick did and went silent for a few seconds.

‘Yeah we should just do that,’ Roy said.

Another rope fired over through a top floor window as Tappy beat the ceiling down so the rope could be tied to the corner joist of a roof-rafter.

‘Needs a strong knot,’ Nick said from below, looking up.

‘Yep,’ she said, securing it to the rafter.

‘Seriously, it’s got to hold Clarence…’

‘Yeah cos women can’t do knots, can they? How about a taut line clove hitch half hitch with a double timber hitch?’ she asked then grinned down at the silence coming back. ‘That shut you up didn’t it, Nicholas.’

‘Your knot held,’ Nick says, watching Maddox stand up on the far side.

‘Yeah, I only did a granny knot in the end…’ she replies then frowns when he doesn’t reply. ‘Did you bloody check it?’

‘Nah…well, I might have had a quick look while I was up there…’

‘That’s out of order,’ she says. ‘Nope, not talking to you now…’ she adds when he goes to speak.

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