Free Killing the Dead by Richard Murray

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    I was cold and wet by the time I reached the meeting place, a small park that sat in the centre of the town. It was a place for office workers to eat their lunches away from their desks, for families to take a break from shopping where the children could run around on the grass chasing pigeons. It was a place full of life and noise. Now it was empty, Lily and the rest of the little group I had risked my life to save were nowhere to be seen.
     
     

Chapter 7
    The park had always been a pleasant place to sit and watch the world go by. I had first noticed no less than three of my victims whilst sat watching the people as they sat and talked or quietly ate. The green grass had always been well tended, whilst the trees and bushes that bordered the park were kept neat and orderly.
    Slumped on a bench in the park cold, wet and very much alone as I stared into space; I couldn’t feel any of that previous pleasure. The heavy rain that fell from the dark grey sky above suited my mood. Lily had abandoned me. I felt more than a little betrayed and used.
    In the end it was the ache from the deep gash in my side that forced me to get up off the bench. I wanted some pain killers and an actual bandage. If I was forced to do this alone then so be it. I worked best alone I told myself and tried to sound convincing. My first task would be to get out of the town centre and find somewhere safe to get some rest. I just had no idea where.
    Lily had said the football stadium was going to be used to gather refugees so I could always go there, though that was likely her destination and I was in no mood to encounter her. I recalled that on the edge of the town were some blocks of flats. I could get somewhere off the ground floor and barricade myself in one of them and at least have a proper shower and some decent rest before deciding what to do. Mind made up I set off. Distracted by the ache in my side and dwelling on my feelings of betrayal, I didn’t see the zombie until I was almost on top of him.
    Startled from my reverie I stumbled back. The dead man lurched at me. He was missing an eye along with a large part of his face. Congealed blood stained his shirt and discoloured his suit. He moaned as he tried to grab me, swollen tongue protruding grotesquely from his mouth. I sidestepped his clumsy movements and swung the hammer against his head.
    My first swing didn’t manage to hit full on and just glanced off of his skull. The blow didn’t faze him and he was on me. His grip was like iron and I struggled to dislodge him as I used all of my strength just to keep him at bay. His ruined face was all I could see as he tried to sink his teeth into my exposed flesh.
    He was pulling himself closer as we struggled. With no room to swing I couldn’t get enough force to break his skull. As I became increasingly desperate I reversed the hammer and hooked the clawed side of the head into his ruined socket. I pulled on the hammers handle and was rewarded with a loud crack as bone was fractured.
    I kicked out and stopped pulling away. The combination of the zombie pulling me as his leg was kicked out beneath him caused him to lose balance and fall back. I landed on top of him and pushed my elbow against his throat, pinning his head down. I swung my hammer at his weakened skull again and again until he stopped moving.
    Another zombie had been defeated. It had not been elegant and I was once more spattered with blood and bits of brain, but I had beaten it. I smiled and wanted to laugh. My dark mood had dissipated, replaced by a sense of satisfaction and general pleasant feeling.
    With a renewed sense of optimism I set off once again for the block of flats. The journey didn’t take long, with the outskirts of the town being fairly quiet. Few undead wandered the streets and the ones I did see were easily avoided. The rain was starting to let up by the time I reached the flats and the few zombies I had encountered were becoming more active.
    I entered the