“Johnny.”
Seth slapped his back and smiled. “I have high hopes for this kid. Do you know he managed to drive some twenty miles before they bumped into us? Tell everyone how old you are, Johnny.”
“Fourteen,” he replied.
“God damn, fourteen,” Seth repeated. “You hear that, people? Fourteen years old, driving twenty miles to save his friends. That is resourcefulness. That is showing and understanding and belief in one’s self, and one’s skills. I like Johnny a lot in tonight’s game, so I’m only offering a three to one on him. Good luck, Johnny, I’m rooting for you in this game, pal.” Seth walked across to Aaron. “Then there’s this guy. What’s your name?”
“Aaron.”
“And how old are you, Aaron?”
“Thirteen.”
“My, we have a group of babies taking part in our little shindig tonight for your viewing pleasure. Now, this fella has been pretty quiet since he arrived. I don’t know much about him, so I’ll offer you a generous five to one. And that’s it. This is our team for this evening’s game. Get those bets in now, you have…” Seth turned to his watch. “Twenty minutes. We will start the games at nine fifteen.”
“Boss,” called one of the suited heavies monitoring an iPad, “Mr Yeung would like to know what odds you will offer on the girl winning and the three boys being stopped by the same individual? He said he liked her attitude.”
Seth turned to the kids. “She can talk a good game, but I’m not confident on the girl winning at all. I’ll say fifty to one for that special.”
“Boss,” came another voice, “how about Snitchers to take all four within fifteen minutes?”
“Ooh, that’s good. I will go… let me think… about… thirty-five to one on that. Actually, okay, let me give you some specials of my own. Their leader, the one whose jacket I took, is making up the numbers. I’m certain Snitchers will find him so I’ll offer another fifty to one that someone else takes him out before Snitchers gets there. If these guys reach the key they’re going home, it doesn’t matter which one finds it. For my Seth special, I’ll offer one hundred to one that Lacey finds the key first whilst the rest of her gang is still alive. That’s it. All other odds and specials can be obtained through Petey, the official accountant and bet maker for tonight’s game.”
Bucky’s heart fluttered. While they were still alive?
“Now, I bid you all brief farewell whilst I explain the rules to our contestants.”
The group of heavies shuffled and bumped each other as they wandered away, disappearing through a red door. Adrian was the only one to remain. He fumbled in his suit pocket for a phone.
“Okay, we’re going to explain the rules to you,” Seth said, taking Adrian’s phone. He messed about with it whilst addressing them. “You four have to reach the key on the far wall, as you know, but what you don’t know is that you’re going to be pursued by three zombies, or whatever you want to call them. Here’s our promo video.”
Seth turned the screen to the kids who huddled around it. The word Snitchers appeared on screen. Someone waved a shirt before dropping it to reveal an infected man with tacks nailed into his eyes. His pale skin exuded black veins at its surface. His top and bottom lips had been removed, revealing black gums and muscle. A man appeared on screen tiptoeing around a machine. Snitchers appeared behind him, sniffing the air before launching on top of the man and chomping on his face. Smiler appeared next. Again, an infected man appeared on screen, only this time the flesh on his face had been removed in its entirety from the nose down. Black muscle and sinew contracted with his movements, stretching from ear to ear causing a horrendous grin, an image that Bucky believed nightmares could be made of. Smiler’s eyelids had been sewn shut with black material. The film cut to a woman running through the factory. Smiler appeared from behind a block of stacked pallets and bit down into her throat. The White Witch appeared on the screen. A woman whose eyes had been bound and gauged with barbed wire appeared to them. She bore a white dress against a skinny, pale body. Black liquid oozed from her mouth and fell against the once satin material. She carried with her a scythe that dragged across the ground behind her. It cut once more, this time to a man that stood against a wall as she passed. She stopped, lifted her head and swung the scythe, embedding it within his skull.
“And that’s enough of that,” Seth said, throwing the phone back to Adrian. “Kids, the reality of the situation is this: we’re betting on how long you stay alive. The three zombies you saw on the video are all blind, but their sense of hearing is incredible. Your advantage is that you can see but there will be a few booby traps out there. If any one of you reaches the key, we come in and put the three freaks back onto their leashes. All you have to do is get to it before you are killed.”
“What kind of sicko are you?” Bucky asked, no longer afraid of the consequences. Some of Lacey’s courage had rubbed off on him.
“One that’s going to watch you die over and over again. You and your girlfriend, too.”
The lights in the factory went dark. Safety lights popped on.
“Did I tell you about this?” Seth asked before smirking. “No, I forgot. That advantage of sight you have is only minimal. You’re going to be navigating your way through the factory in the dark. Maybe you can thank that little ho of yours for decreasing your odds. Good luck, assholes, the game begins soon. If you leave this area before we sound the hooter, you’re dead.” He pointed to a suited man who stood on a metal ledge above, carrying a rifle.
