State of Sleep

By Neve Pearce

It began with an explosion in the station.
Frank was there. He heard the shooting and saw the police giving chase. He was caught up in a gas attack that put him in hospital.

But the government deny everything.
They say it was an accident.
Frank knows they’re lying.
The question is why?

As Frank tries to uncover the truth of what happened, he discovers a mysterious and sinister conspiracy that is so huge in scale and terrifying in its implication, the government will stop at nothing to keep it hidden.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Speartip Publishing
• Release date: Mar 23, 2015
• ISBN: 9780954695361

Book preview

INDEX

Copyright

Dedications

Chapter1

Chapter2

Chapter3

Chapter4

Chapter5

Chapter6

First published in Great Britain by Speartip

Copyright © Neve Pearce 2015

The moral right of the author has been asserted.

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transferred, in any form or by any means without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

All characters in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

This book was written as part of the Young Author Mentoring Project.

http://www.youngauthormentor.com

Project Mentor: Lee McGeorge

http://www.lee-mcgeorge.co.uk

Cover Artwork: Miguel E. Santillan

http://santillanstudio.deviantart.com

ISBN 978-0-9546953-6-1

Speartip Publishing

Islington, London, N4

For Milo

Special Thanks

Lee McGeorge, Miguel Santillan, Camilla West,

Fong McGeorge, Colin Pearce

STATE OF SLEEP

By

Neve Pearce

CHAPTER 1

Frank leaned back as the heat crashed into him. There was a bang from the other side of the platform that blew people’s newspapers from their hands.

Stop! You're under arrest! Loud angry voices yelled from behind. He could hear gunshots which caused an uproar of screams and running people. A man in a large dirty trench coat pushed past, sprinting to the other end of the platform. He ran past Frank in a blur, knocking him backwards. Again, gunshots. Getting louder as they closed in.

Frank stumbled against the wall and crouched, putting his arms over his face, frightened by the shooting and yelling. He noticed his neighbour, Mr Pilcrow, wearing his bowler hat with large feathers protruding from the top. There was a group of young children further down the platform that began to scream, dropping their books and clinging to their worried mother’s legs.

Then Frank noticed the smell.

He lifted his sleeve to his face and a small drop of blood fell from his nose. He felt queasy. Something was stinging his eyes. He felt like he was going to vomit, the clammy air suddenly smelled of burnt matches and lemonade and it made his stomach heave. He tried to move his feet but they felt tingly and too light, as if they weren't there at all.

I need to get out… I need to… He couldn’t breathe. Something in the air.

He tried to run and tripped. He pushed for the exit, desperate for fresh air, to be free from the suffocation but a stumbling lady fell in front of him blocking his only escape. The confusion of oranges and chocolate wrappers tumbled around his feet. Frank's vision began to blur and morph into different shades and colours, his brain was spiked with a rushing migraine headache and his whole body began to sweat.

The station rumbled into a state of panic, the exits were becoming crammed and filled with people, all frightened and trying to scramble out. He could hear them screaming and shoving each other into different directions. He pulled himself up, using the wall as a handle to help. He watched them all through fuzzy eyes and saw them squirm and shout out at each other with desperate choking faces, too much like animals to ever seem human.

The exit loomed as a bright glow through the haze of mist. He heard a muffled croaking noise as someone cried out in slowed agony before he finally broke through and fell out into the street.

Frank stumbled into the road, the sunlight dazzling with kaleidoscopic rays. The fresh air hit him with a wave of light headedness that brought him to his knees. The air was clean and clear but it was affecting him, spinning his mind until he lost balance and fell to the road. He heard the commotion for a few more seconds… Then he heard nothing else.

----- X -----

Frank opened his eyes and saw a dark room with curtains pulled across it. He stared into the darkness for a moment with wide eyes trying to see anything that could be lurking there. What’s happening? he whispered.

This didn’t feel like his bed, the sheets were too scratchy. Frank moved his hand to his head in confusion, but too weak to hold it there, he let it fall back to the bed. He could hear faint buzzing noises, perhaps from a machine and he could smell the strong scent of hand sanitiser. This wasn’t his bed, this wasn’t his home… Where was he?

With more strength than was comfortable,