Free Flesh-Eater (Book 1): Fear the Fever by Stacey Broadbent

a mouse.
    “What’s all that noise then?” she asked as she got closer.  They continued growling and pawing at the ground near the back corner of the kennel.  “What is it?” she asked again, crouching down to see if she could spot whatever was upsetting them.
    There was a rustle in the field which caught her attention.  It definitely wasn’t a mouse, they didn’t make that much noise.  She carefully unlocked the kennel and swung the door open.
    “Come on boys,” she whispered.  “Come on.”  It was probably just a rabbit, and the dogs could do with a run.  “Get it!” she called, pointing at the field.
    The dogs didn’t need to be told twice.  They darted out and scampered towards the noise, barking.  Harper stood up, smiling as she watched them.  They loved chasing bunnies through the fields, and sometimes they even managed to catch them.
    Sometimes.
    This one was giving them the run-around, however.  She could hear them galloping back and forth through the crops.
    She turned to retrieve her basket from the porch and begin folding the washing.  The piercing howl of an animal in pain stopped her dead in her tracks.
    “Mack?  Buddy?” she called, moving closer to the field.  “Mack?  Come here, boy!”  She listened for any sign that they were on their way.  “Buddy?  Come on!”
    She could hear whimpering, along with a dragging sound.  The hairs on the back of her neck raised as she realised something was wrong.  “Mack!  Buddy!” she yelled out, running to where she had last seen them.  A thundering of paws came hurtling towards her.  Mack nearly bowled her over as he sped out of the fields, his ears pinned back and tail between his legs.  Throwing her arms around his neck, Harper gave him a squeeze.
    “You had me worried there, boy.  Where’s Buddy?”  At the sound of the other dog’s name, Mack jumped up and growled, facing the direction he had just come from.
    “What is it?  Is he hurt?”  She seized his collar and tried to take him into the field with her, but he pulled out of her grasp.  “Come on, boy.  Take me to Buddy.”  She tried again to pull him with her, but he slunk back, whimpering.
    Whatever was out there had rattled him.
    She could still hear the faint whining of Buddy and that same dragging sound.  Not sure what she was up against, she quickly ran over to the porch and grabbed the broom that was leaning against it.  Holding the handle out from her body, she edged her way into the fields, her heart pounding.  Mack paced behind her, making little nervous yelping noises.
    Whatever it was, had made quite a mess of the fields.  There were bent and broken branches everywhere.
    She crept quietly through, trying not to draw attention to herself as she looked for signs of Buddy.  When she came across a puddle of blood with what looked to be his fur floating in it, she had to stop herself from crying out.  It was everywhere.
    “Buddy,” she whispered, fighting back tears.
    There was a trail of blood leading away from where she stood.  Taking a shaky breath, she followed.
    Tears clouded her vision.  There had been so much blood.  What could have done that?  And where was Buddy?
    The whimpering had subsided and now all she could hear was a strange growling sound coming from up ahead.  Harper swiped the tears away and crouched down, crawling closer.
    Through the crops she could just make out a small group of people all huddled together.  She couldn’t quite make out what they were doing, but something told her she wasn’t going to like it.
    She shuffled forward, trying to get a closer look, and instantly wished she hadn’t.  The group of people were hunched over the body of Buddy.  Their hands pawing at him, pulling out his insides.  Their faces smeared with his blood.
    A muffled cry escaped her mouth as she watched them devour her beloved pet.  One of them stood and looked right at her, his mouth gaping open.  It was then that she