Ravage: An Apocalyptic Horror Novel(43)

“They should have gone up the hill not down,” Jan said. “Less likely to be infected people up high, I reckon.”

Eve shrugged. “Dave said that it would be a waste of energy climbing up the hill. He wanted to go back the way we came in. He said it was the only place we knew was safe.”

Nick shrugged. “Whatever. Up, down. I don’t care. Let’s just catch up with them before they leave us high and dry.”

Eve led the way, taking them horizontally across the hill, and then slightly downwards towards the bottom. The screeches and wails of the infected had stopped now as the restaurant’s security alarm finally died out. Now the only sounds left was the pounding of their feet and the snapping of twigs and autumn leaves.

“They’re down here,” said Eve, pointing.

At the bottom of the hill, Dave and the others were gathered in a tight bunch. Margaret waved at Nick as they approached. “Thank Heaven’s you’re okay,” she said.

Nick went and gave the old lady a quick hug.

Dave had his arms folded impatiently. “We were just about to give up on you.”

“Thanks for waiting,” Jan said. “What’s the plan?”

“We head back into the woods we started in. We know it’s clear of infected because it was clear when we came through.”

“So was the car park,” Carl remarked. “But it’s certainly had a few visitors since then.”

“That was the alarm,” Dave said. “It brought them to us overnight. They obviously heard it from in the distance.”

“But Dash managed to turn the alarm off after only a couple of minutes,” Eve said.

Dave shrugged. “They must have just headed for it when it was going off and carried on in that direction when it stopped. When they hear something they must set off in that direction until they come across something else to distract them otherwise.”

“You mean someone to chow down on,” said Dash. He looked over at Jan. “What were you doing, anyway? Risking your life for this honky?”

“Let’s just get out of here,” said Jan. “I’m not in the mood for being hunted by those things; and it’s only a matter of time before one of them stumbles upon us.”

Carl screamed.

Nick stumbled backwards in shock as Carl crashed to the muddy ground. Someone had attacked him from behind and was now clinging to his back, arms wrapped around his neck.

“Damn it!” Dave shouted. “It’s that bitch.”

Nick looked down and could not believe it. The attacker was Kathryn. She was struggling with Carl on the ground and trying to sink her teeth into him. Her face was still swollen with the bruises Dave had inflicted on her, but her eyes were now bulbous white orbs leaking blood. Blood also poured from her mouth, so thickly that it was like her insides were melting.

“Help me!” Carl cried out. “Somebody get her off m-“

His words were cut short. Kathryn’s teeth sunk deep into his throat. She ripped away his carotid artery and chewed on it like a length of sausage. Carl writhed in agony as he struggled to take a breath through a throat that was filling with fluid.

A wailing screech from the group’s right-hand side made them all spin around as one. Several metres away, coming towards them like an Olympic sprinter, was Jake.

“They must have heard the alarms, too,” Nick shouted. “It brought them in this direction.”

“Everybody run,” Dave bellowed.

No one needed convincing. They all sprinted back the other way, towards the car park. When they burst back out of the treeline, hitting the unforgiving concrete, the group skidded to a halt. Several of the infected had now poured back out of the Rainforest Café and were outside again. Jake’s screeching had alerted them and they were now staring toward the treeline with their swollen eyeballs.

“There’s nowhere to run,” Eve said as she shuffled up beside Nick. “We’re surrounded.”

Nick knew she was right. Jake and Kathryn hunted them from the woods behind, while dozens of infected had started to fill up the car park ahead. He looked around desperately for an option.

“There!” he pointed. “Head for the cable cars.”

The group did as he said and sprinted across the car park. The infected outside the café spotted them immediately and filled the air with their collective screeching. Then they stampeded as one, clattering across the pavement like a pack of bloodthirsty wolves.

With every step Nick and the others took towards the cable cars, the mob of infected got closer. Nick didn’t know if they had any chance of making it, but the air was filled with the echoes of their hurried footfalls as he and the others ran as quickly as they could. They were running for their lives.

They ran so fast that Nick worried his legs might fail at any second. None of them could quit, though. They had to keep running. “Quickly,” he shouted. “Into the cars.”


On the raised cement platform, only two cable cars were accessible. All of the others were hanging at spaced intervals up the hill. The cars were too small to accommodate everyone individually, so the group were forced to split into two. Nick leapt into the nearest car, followed by Cassie and the three prisoners. Cassie seemed immediately uncomfortable in the presence of the men, but there was no time to comfort her. The rest of the group were lagging further behind and barely managed to make their way inside the remaining cable car before the infected reached the platform.