The Dust: Book Three - Sanctum Read Free Page A

new world, but she liked this new way of life, it suited her.
    Anyhow Willoughby liked her. He had seen something in her. The Doyen’s second in command had even given her some men, and a few vans, to lead her own scouting party. She stroked her machine gun as it sat on her lap. She really did like this raw new world. Driving around England, killing anything that was naked, and picking up survivors. If they didn’t want to conform, well kill them too.
    ‘I’ll flash them to stop?’ The driver asked Davis
    ‘Yes, park in the middle of the road so they can’t pass.’ She checked her door mirror to make sure the other two transit vans were getting into position.
    The van slowed down to a halt and Emma Davis opened the door, jumping out onto the road. She released the safety catch of her rifle. She had been caught unawares before, when two female infected humans appeared from nowhere to attack her at a road block in Yeovil. Now she was always ready.
    As the two vehicles approached she could make out a battered old Range Rover and Volvo estate. Davis waved her hands to slow them down and they both stopped about twenty yards from her.
    Behind her, three more men in white overalls started to walk in past her, towards the vehicles.
    ‘Stop or I’ll shoot!’ A voice yelled from the Range Rover.
    ‘Up north.’ One of the men said to Davis on hearing the accent.
    ‘Yeah, bloody northerners.’
    ‘Get out of the car please.’ Davis’s driver barked, as he walked closer to the dirty Range Rover.
    ‘He’s got a gun!’ Another shaven headed male shouted as he noticed a shotgun appear from the driver’s window.
    All the Purebloods dropped to one knee and pointed their automatic weapons at the driver.
    ‘Drop your weapon or we will shoot.’ Davis ordered. ‘We mean you no harm, just a check point to make sure you are not carrying any infected cargo over our borders.’
    ‘Borders?’ The older driver called back. He then lowered his gun.
    Emma Davis stood up and told her men to lower their guns. She walked over to the range Rover, her finger never leaving the trigger as the machine gun was lowered at her side.
    ‘What border?’
    Davis could now see the man. He was in his sixties, a ruddy complexion. His accent put him somewhere in Northumberland.
    ‘We have this section of the country cleaned up, sir. You won’t find any Infected humans south of Bath.’ She stood close to the vehicle, watching his hands at all times.
    ‘Who are you?’ The old man scratched his head.
    ‘We are an organisation called the Purebloods, sir. All survivors have the same blood type.’ Before she could finish, a woman in the passenger seat leant across.
    ‘I know that, I have been working on that theory myself.’
    Davis was a little taken aback. ‘Okay. Where are you from?’
    The old man was getting agitated. ‘From all over the place, mainly the North. Look we need medical attention. The man that was leading our small group got attacked.’
    ‘By one of the Infected?’ Davis asked.
    ‘Yes, it’s mayhem back there. Thousands of them.’ He tapped his hands on the steering wheel. ‘Can we get past? We were heading for Wales.’
    ‘That’s a negative.’ Davis could see they were in a rush. ‘A lot of the Infected have been pushed into South Wales, across the bridge. The area is now cut off.’
    ‘Look, we need to find an army base, a hospital.’ The old man started playing with the gear stick.
    ‘I’m a trainee nurse, but I need more equipment.’ The woman in the passenger seat once again leant across.
    ‘You’re a nurse?’ Davis asked.
    ‘She’s more than that. She has been quite brilliant in holding us all together.’ The old man smiled, but it was soon cut short. ‘Look, we really need to push on.’
    ‘Medical workers are priority. You can all get an escort back to Bristol.’ Davis called one of the men over.
    ‘Oh, okay, we won’t say no to that.’ The old man had the wind taken out of his