Ace of Spades Chronicles : Book One Read Free Page A

was a bright stairwell leading down to the second floor. He could see that the door closest to the bottom of the stairwell was open, and a shaft of sunlight cast a long shadow on the plush, clean carpet of what looked like an angle poise lamp; or a crooked, diseased arm. He moved to the top of the stairs, towards the room with the dormer window; its door was closed. His hand hovered over the door knob, but he decided very quickly not to open it. He remained there as the young rifleman moved passed him and gingerly descended the stairs. Two steps from the bottom, Walker quickly ducked his head around the open door way of the first room and pulled it back. It was a medium sized room that had been converted into a home office. It was vacant; no contacts. He sighed and gave a single, swift nod to the Corporal, before stepping into the room, his shadow
    swallowing the lamp’s silhouette on the floor in two speedy moves.              
    The Corporal followed Walker as Zola moved to fill his position by the top step. There was another door on this level, probably a bathroom; again, it was closed. No need to open this one either. He gave the Sergeant a thumbs up and Zola quick stepped back to the velux room and motioned for Xander to move out. The Lance Corporal turned from his sniper position and, trusting his squad to watch his front and rear, left the room and silently went down the stairs to join Yates on the second floor landing, followed by the Sergeant.
    They waited, and listened. They could hear soft moaning from outside, but could not pick out any discernable noises from within the house, nothing they should be concerned with, anyway. They let a full minute lapse, absorbing the stillness contained within, compared to the madness outside. Zola nodded for Yates to proceed, and the stairwell manoeuvre was repeated until, once again, all four members were crouched at the top of the first floor landing, where they waited; and listened.
    The ground floor was of typical Victorian layout, with two big reception rooms front and rear, each with high ceilings decorated with elaborate floral roses and perfectly curved coving. The flooring throughout had been sanded back and varnished to a rich blonde hue, and the internal decor most definitely had a woman’s touch, likely influenced by the current plethora of day time television home improvement shows and glossy subscription magazines like Homes & Garden, judging by the overflowing magazine stand sat next to a well worn Liberty armchair. A single wide bay window looked out onto the street and it was here where Xander unfolded the bi-pod and rested his rifle on the window ledge, allowing the stock to rest on the floor. He clicked the scopes end caps off and pulled out a couple of fresh clips. It would be easy enough to take out the infected from here; not much of a challenge. He would prefer a shot of more than five hundred yards, even seven hundred and fifty. His rifle wasn't really designed for close quarters. But they needed silent kills before the inevitable mayhem that was about to begin. He wouldn't break or open the window until it was absolutely vital, though he did loosen the sash windows catch in readiness.
    He stood and took in the room’s cosy family feel. Furnished with a brace of Julian Bowen two seater faux leather sofas with a matching three seater and one single seater, he surmised that the vacant residents were pretty well to do; with their 56 inch wide screen LGTV suspended to the wall and the 7.1 surround sound cinema system. Blu-ray, PS4, Sonos, Dell PC. Framed Medici postcards garnished the lavish wallpaper and a huge, dusty aspidistra filled the broad fireplace. The living room area had been knocked through into the kitchen, a vast galley feature with a floor to ceiling French window which overlooked an area of decking and what had once been an immaculate enclosed lawn; its grass now neglected and getting very close to overgrown. The kitchen’s chef