Free Zom-B Angels by Darren Shan Page B

Mentally?’ He looks unsure. ‘Most living
people fear death more than anything else, but our kind need not, since we have already died. So tell me, Becky Smith, what do you fear more than anything else now?’
    I think about telling him that I don’t fear anything, but that wouldn’t be the truth. And I think about saying that I fear Mr Dowling, Owl Man and the mutants, but while I’m
certainly scared of the killer clown and his strange associates, they’re not the ones who gnaw away at my nerves deep down. I’m sure that if I’m not totally honest with Master
Zhang, he’ll pick up on the deception and it will go against me. So, even though I hate having to admit it, I tell him.
    ‘I’m afraid of myself,’ I croak, lowering my gaze to hide my shame. ‘I’ve done some bad things in the past, and I’m afraid, if I don’t keep a close
watch on myself every single day, that I might do even worse.’
    There’s a long silence. Then Master Zhang makes a small clucking sound. ‘I think you will fit in here,’ he says.
    And that marks the end of the first round of tests.

FIFTEEN
    ‘I told you it wouldn’t be exciting,’ Carl says as we head back to our room.
    I grunt.
    ‘You’ll have to get used to the boredom,’ he continues. ‘We spend most of our time training. It sounds like it will be great, learning how to fight, and there
are
times when I learn a new move and it feels amazing. But for the most part it’s pretty dull.’
    There’s no one in our room when we get there. Carl changes his shirt – there wasn’t anything wrong with the old one, he just wants to try something new – and we head to
the front of the building, out on to a large terrace overlooking the river. Carl doesn’t stop to admire the view, but hurries down the stairs and along the path.
    ‘Are we going to the London Dungeon?’ I ask, spotting a sign for it.
    Carl gives me an odd look. ‘Isn’t the world grisly enough for you as it is?’
    ‘But the Dungeon’s fun,’ I laugh.
    ‘It used to be,’ he agrees. ‘Not so much now that there aren’t any actors to bring the place to life. We sometimes train down there, but we don’t really make use of
it otherwise. It’s not a fun place to hang out.’
    ‘Do the rides still work?’ I ask.
    ‘Yes,’ he says.
    ‘Come on. Let’s try them.’
    ‘Maybe later,’ he says, then heads for the old arcade centre. I could go and explore the Dungeon by myself, but I don’t want to be alone so, with a scowl, I follow him.
    Most of the video games in the arcade still seem to be operational, but although a handful of Angels are hanging around, nobody’s playing. That seems strange to me until I recall my
advanced sense of hearing and the way bright lights hurt my eyes. I guess half an hour on a video game in my current state would be about as much fun as sticking my hand into a food blender.
    Our lot are bowling. They have the lanes to themselves. Jakob is taking his turn as we approach. He knocks down the four standing pins and gets a spare.
    ‘Nice one,’ Shane says.
    Jakob only shrugs. I’ve never seen anyone who looks as miserable as this guy. I wonder what it would take to make him smile.
    ‘How did the test go?’ Ashtat asks as we slip in beside her.
    ‘I aced it. Master Zhang said I was the best student he’d ever seen.’
    ‘Sure,’ she drawls. ‘I bet he got down on his knees and worshipped you.’
    We grin at each other. We got off on the wrong foot, but I’m starting to warm to the Muslim girl, which is something I never thought I’d hear myself admit.
    Shane hits the gutter and swears.
    ‘You’re lucky Master Zhang wasn’t here to see that,’ Carl tuts.
    ‘Why?’ I ask. ‘Don’t tell me he’s a master bowler too.’
    ‘It’s part of our training,’ Shane sighs, waiting for his ball to return. ‘He says bowling is good for concentration. Our eyes aren’t as sharp as they were, and no
amount of drops will ever change that. We have to keep