Town of Fire: An EMP Survival Thriller (Blackout & Burn Book 4) by Rebecca Fernfield

Author:Rebecca Fernfield
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Redbegga
Published: 2018-10-24T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

“IT’S NOT A PRETTY SIGHT, Sam. Perhaps the ladies should wait back here.”

The heavy door leading through to the corridor of cells opens a fraction as Baz pulls at it. He waits for Sam’s reply. “How bad?”

“Bad.”

“You may want to wait here, Martha.” Sam fingers the length of iron he’d picked up from his office before venturing to the cells.

“I’m not squeamish, Sam.”

“It’s bad, Martha,” Baz reiterates above the shouts from the one cell that still holds prisoners. “Real bad.”

“I’ve seen stuff—on the telly. I watch NCIS. Nothing will shock me. Come on, get on with it.”

The door widens to allow them through.

The first thing that hits Sam is the smell. The fug of male sweat and fear that had filled the corridor on his last visit has been replaced with a stench that wraps itself over his lips and crawls up his nose. He holds down the urge to gag.

“Watch where you step. The floor’s a mess.”

“It’s covered in blood!”

The small tiles, worn over the decades, are covered with bloody boot prints and smears.

“Stay back there, Martha.”

“But-”

“No. Just stop back there.”

Stepping into the corridor, the door of the empty cell is wide open. Tell-tale black scuff marks litter the back of the door to waist level.

“Looks like they tried kicking their way out.”

“No chance with these doors—they’re four inches thick and the hinges are solid iron—none of this cheap imported Chinese crap.”

Sam grunts as he scans the space. The walls, once institution green, have been over-painted with cream, the same paint that covers each wall throughout the building. In here though, unlike the clean surfaces of the other rooms, a new pattern has sprayed across the walls—the iconic red spatter of a murder scene.

“Did they execute them here?”

“Only this one.” Baz shines torchlight into the corner, illuminating a slumped figure, leaning at a skewed angle against the wall. Sam grimaces. The top of the body is squared off presenting a horizontal plane of broad shoulders.

“Where’s the head?”

Light shifts to the torso and dead eyes stare out into the hallway from the severed head.

Martha lets out a small groan of disgust and undisguised fascination. “It’s staring at me,” she whispers. “Can’t you close its eyes?”

“Not me,” Baz replies. “I’m not touching it.

Noise rumbles behind the closed door of the other cell and Sam slides the peephole door across. The waft of body odour, faeces and urine stings his nose and the shouting rises to a cacophony as the six men still trapped there realise he’s looking in.

“You let us out.”

“Human rights! Is against human rights.”

“Guantanamo! You are Guantanamo!”

“Shut up, Khalil.”

“English pig bastards.” A man pushes off from the wall and steps towards the door, his face distorted with hate.

“Shut up, Khalil.” An arm darts out, pushing the man back and a shadow falls across the peephole. A pair of eyes meets Sam’s. “Sorry, we sorry. You let us out. This is not human. The man, he come back. He slaughter us like animals.” The man gestures to the body.

“Human rights.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.