Animal Kingdom (13 page)

Joe frowned at the Scottish accent.
Victor.

“
You really don’t know anything about gay people, do you?” Bill said.

Victor laughed. “Less I know the better, pal.”

“
We’re not up to anything,” Joe stated. “We’re here to see what
you’re
up to.”

“
No problem,” said Victor. “Best you see for yourself though.”

The torchlight left Joe’s face and circled the room, illuminating the rows and rows of cages on each wall. The animals inside were no longer making a fuss, and in fact a lot of the cages were now open.

Joe’s eyes went wide. “Shit, you let them all out!”

Victor laughed, the sound echoing through the unlit room. He stepped forward into the light of the Bunson Burners and Joe saw that he was drenched head to toe in blood. His tattoos were covered in gore and a dead bird hung limp in his left hand. Martha glinted in his right.

Victor’s laughing continued as he held the gutted animal up like a trophy. “Aye, I let them out. But only long enough to slit their throats.”

Joe stared at the blood-soaked knife in Victor’s hand and had to swallow back a mouthful of vomit. “You’re insane.”

“
No, pal. Just practical. Now do me a favour and leave a man to his work. We can all use this meat if things get bad enough.”

“
Things are already that bad,” said Bill, grabbing Joe’s arm and pulling him backwards. “Come on, Joe.”

Together, they backed away from Victor, not taking their eyes off of him – or his beloved Martha – until they reached the door. Joe’s back hit the wood and he jumped, spun around. He snatched at the door handle, missing several times, but finally getting a grip and flinging it open. He and Bill barrelled through into the corridor outside like Hell itself was behind them.

“
That guy is batshit crazy,” said Bill, huffing and puffing as the two of them hurried down the unlit hallway. “He even killed the birds, and they weren’t even dangerous. I think he enjoys it,”

“
I know,” Joe agreed. “We need to warn the others.”

They reached the seminar room and Joe shoved open the door. Everyone inside woke with a start, shouting out garbled utterances as they were yanked away from their dreams. Joe closed the door and leant his back against it. “Everyone wake up.”

“
We’re already awake! What’s going on? Are we under attack?” Joe recognised the startled voice as Grace’s.

“
Yes, would you care to explain?” said another voice that could only have been Randall’s.

The room lit up. Joe saw that Bill had managed to rustle up some torches from the stockpile and was placing them around the room to light up as big an area as possible. Joe could now make out the concerned faces of the others in the room. Fortunately, Danny was still asleep.

My son could sleep through the end of the world. Lucky for him, because that may just be what’s happening.

“
Victor’s gone mad!” Joe blurted it out, unsure of any other way to approach the subject.

Randall stood up and moved to the centre of the room. “What on Earth are you talking about?”

“
He’s in the lab, right now” said Bill. “Hacking away at all the animals in the cages. They’re all dead.”

“
That’s good isn’t it?” Shirley asked. “They were a danger.”

Mason was shaking his head, a hand against his brow. “No, no, no. We agreed that they were to be left alone.”

“
That’s beside the point,” said Joe. “What matters is that Victor is going around killing things like a twisted maniac.”

“
Of course he is,” said Randall. “That’s exactly what I advised him to do.”

Both of Joe’s eyelids opened wide. “I’m sorry, what?”

“
I said, I told him to do it. The animals in those cages were dangerous. How could we rest with an enemy within our breach? Plus, the meat they provide may prove invaluable.”

Mason sighed. “They were invaluable animals until Victor killed them all.”

“
I stand by what I say. We are in too much trouble to risk those things getting out. I voiced my concerns to Shirley and Victor, and Victor was happy to oblige. The man is doing us all a service.”

“
I agree,” said Shirley. “Those beasts would happily have done the same to us.”

Joe shook his head. What could he say? There was a certain amount of logic to their argument and, if he was honest, it did feel safer knowing that the caged animals were no longer a concern. It didn’t make him feel any better about Victor though. The image of the Scotsman dripping with blood and shrouded in shadow was permanently etched into his brain. Regardless of what anybody said, Victor was dangerous.

He just didn’t know
how
dangerous yet.

Chapter Seventeen

The morning arrived in silence. No birds sang their morning tunes and no cars hummed along the distant motorways.

The world was still.

Randall had been awake for five minutes now, but had done nothing except observe the others sleeping. The incident during the night had riled everyone up, but they had eventually gotten back to sleep. Victor had not returned, most likely still gutting the animals in the lab, collecting the meat. Randall found out that Victor was a Scot’s guard as a younger man and more than capable of doing the tasks that others weren’t. Whether they agreed or not, Victor should be commended, not derided.

It had been enjoyable to watch Joe and Mason step down, and accept that what was needed right now was pragmatism, not fluffy thinking. They would have to understand that the normal rules no longer applied. Randall was going to teach them all that lesson one way or the other.

The room began to glow as cold, grey shafts of dawn-light crept through the gaps in the window’s barricade. The others in the room began to stir, but for now remained asleep. Randall noticed that there was one more person, other than Victor, who was not present. Grace was missing too.

Where have you gotten to, my pretty? This is no time for a woman to be walking around unescorted.

Randall pushed himself up off the floor. His joints cracked, his fifty-year-old body unhappy at spending the night on a thin pile of cushions. It wasn’t something he was sure he could ever get used to, but for now there were no other choices. He stretched out his arms, listened to his elbows click one last time, then ambled over to the seminar room’s exit. Thankfully no one woke and he was free to go about his business undisturbed. He intended to find Grace, to see what the woman was doing, but first he had other things to attend to. Randall was satisfied that the corridor outside was empty of both people and, more importantly, animals, so he stepped outside. The last thing he was prepared for was another attack, not until things were further under his control.

He approached the Head of Primates’ office, across the hall, and opened the door quietly. Once inside, he closed it just as carefully behind him. The key to the room’s filing cabinet was in his pocket and he plucked it out, using it on the lock a moment later. He took a packet of biscuits from the middle-shelf and popped one into his mouth.
Breakfast.

Once he’d finished several more, Randall placed the packet back inside and grabbed the next item on the shelf – his Blackberry. He pressed the ‘ON’ button and waited for the phone to boot up. It took several minutes, but when it finally did activate, something unexpected occurred.

<
ONE NEW MESSAGE >

Randall thumbed at the keypad clumsily, failing several times to get the message up, but eventually succeeding. He could not believe what it said:

RE: Emergency Communication

This is a Government message to all cellular devices. Emergency Rescue Operations are on-going at the following locations: Aberdeen, Barnsley, Durham, Exeter, Leicester, Ipswich, Nottingham, Oxford, Preston, Redditch, Salford, Telford, Taunton, Warwick, Winchester, Yeovil. If you are able, head to the town/city centre of these areas. Help will be forthcoming. Do not approach any animal.

Randall stared at his phone for several minutes, re-reading the message over and over. Despite his misgivings, the Government were indeed addressing the situation and were possibly even gaining a foothold.
Or are they?
Randall considered that the message could have been sent automatically by a dusty computer in the Home Office, and that the areas mentioned were overrun with animal attacks just the same way as the zoo. The message did not guarantee that help was available, and they were probably still safer staying put. Some of the locations were nearby – Leicester especially – and it was perhaps an option to try and reach them. He would have to think about things before making a decision.

Randall switched off the Blackberry and placed it back inside the cabinet. He locked it up and pocketed the key. Outside the room he bumped unexpectedly into Victor. The man had cleaned himself up and was now wearing a baggy, brown jump suit that looked as though it was designed for the zoo’s maintenance staff.

“
New outfit?”

“
Aye, I found it in the warehouse. My other clothes were a wee bit…sticky.”

“
Indeed. What are you up to now?”

Victor shrugged. “Just checking the building’s security, making sure none of the furry bastards can get in at us.”

Randall patted the man on his shoulder and moved past. “Keep up the good work.”

As Randall walked back down the corridor, Victor shouted after him. “And what exactly have you been up to, pal?”

Randall stopped and turned around. He thought about the message on his phone before answering. “Me? Nothing, Victor. Nothing at all.”

The less you know the better, my friend. Until I decide otherwise.

Victor scrutinised Randall for a few minutes, eventually cracking a crooked-tooth smile. “Well, let me know if you need help with whatever it is that you’re
not
doing. I’m very good with secrets.”

Victor sauntered off, leaving Randall alone to consider his comments.
Good to know, my friend. Good to know.

Chapter Eighteen

Joe awoke to screaming. He knew who it was as soon as he saw that Grace was missing from her bed.

Danny woke up too. “What’s happening, Dad?”

“
I don’t know. Stay here while I find out.”

Danny looked worried, but nodded. Joe patted him on the back, kissed his forehead. Then scrambled over to Bill who had been woken too. “Bill, watch Danny while I go find out what’s going on. I think it’s Grace.”

Bill nodded enthusiastically. “Of course, go!”

Joe entered the corridor, wanting to rush, but trying not to until he knew the situation better. But another scream sounded and Joe couldn’t help but pick up speed.

The noise continued, coming from one of the offices on the right. Joe pinpointed it to a room marked JEFFREY CARLSON, HEAD VET. He opened the door and pushed himself inside. Grace stood in the middle of the room, shrieking, and clutching at her face. Joe examined the floor in front of her and saw the reason why.

“
What the fuck!”

She flinched at the sound of Joe’s voice and looked at him. Her eyes were wide. “What do I do?”

Joe peered down at the creatures by her feet – massive, hairy spiders and armour-plated scorpions. The zoo’s entire creepy crawly menagerie was surrounding Grace in a tightening semi-circle of hissing, spitting menace. He looked up and saw them on the ceiling above her as well.

Joe stretched his arms out towards her. “Grace, very slowly…come here.”

Grace shook her head. “I can’t. They’ll get me.”

As if to agree with her, dozens of tarantulas rose up on their hind legs and hissed. A cloud of bristly, brown hairs filled the air around them. Grace let out another scream.

“
You have to move now, Grace! They’re getting closer.”

Grace stopped screaming, attempting to get herself under control, almost hyperventilating in the process. Joe held his breath, waiting for her to do something. It was a relief when she finally managed to take a step backwards.

“
That’s it. Really slowly.”

Grace took another step, but several of the tarantulas sped around and blocked her path. They stood between her and Joe, palps twitching.

How the hell did it know to do that? Spiders can’t behave like that, can they?

“
Stay still, Grace. I need to think a second.”

The creatures moved towards her. She shrieked again, but managed to get it under control before it took hold. Joe glanced around the room for something to help, but it was just an ordinary office and most the furniture had been taken out. There was nothing he could use.

So he did the only thing he could think of.

Joe lifted his size-eleven trainer and brought it down on top of the tarantula. It hissed and squirmed beneath his heel, but he kept the pressure on, feeling its spindly legs snapping with each twist of his ankle. He lifted his foot again and expected to see a sickly mush, but it was just the same spider – crumpled and broken, but the same.