Viro

By Barnaby Taylor

As a viral pandemic turns the world into bloodthirsty creatures, a boy with special needs looks for his missing mum.

Imagine a country broken by a virus. Society falls apart. Nothing works now. Nobody knows what has happened. There are no answers. No knowledge. No rules. No science. No God. The only truth now is the desperate fight for survival. Imagine all of this seen through the eyes of a boy with special needs.

Jake wakes one morning to find his life is broken. His mum has gone missing. The world has fallen apart. Determined to find her, Jake is forced to comes to terms with what has happened to the world. Confronted by the horror, he initially struggles to make sense of everything.

Helped by the new friends he makes, Ellis, kind and resourceful, and the twins, Amber and Abe, Jake starts to develop his independence. Forced to confront the apparent difference defined by his special needs, Jake realises that this difference doesn't matter any more. This gives him the strength to keep going.

As they fight for survival, the four kids meet a wide range of other people also battling to stay alive and with each encounter Jake and his new friends learn a little bit more about themselves and each other. Ultimately, Jake's story is one of hope and determination in the face of complete and utter devastation.

'This review is for the series. Capturing the voice of a young character with special needs (I spent 25 years as a special education teacher/administrator), Taylor's story of a group of young people coping with a world disintegrating in front of them; with the loss of structure and trust, and with betrayal by the adults who should be protecting them is both uplifting and horrifying. Do not be fooled by the simple language of the narrator: there are hard questions asked and realistic, unsentimental consequences to the apocalypse confronting the children, and an ending that you are unlikely to forget easily.'

'Barnaby Taylor has a daring and rich imagination that transports you to new adventures in a re-imagined world, that are vividly written with a fresh and vibrant use of language. […] Barnaby can really write an action packed scene with fear inspiring characters such as the Tall Man. Baxter the dog who accompanies the children gives the story the delightful twist of feeling like an apocalyptic Famous Five. Genius.'

'The writing style is beautifully compelling, and after the first couple of pages I couldn't put it down. The author very skilfully creates a world and characters through deceptively simple prose that draws the reader right in. It is a fascinating blend of one-after-the-other edge-of-the seat scares, alongside a haunting narrative about what it is to be human.'

'Barnaby is an exciting and passionate writer. There's real depth of meaning behind his books. You emotionally engage with and care about the book's characters. Barnaby's books also have a strong visual sensibility. His stories particularly Viros I and II would translate superbly to television and cinema. I am a huge fan of all things zombie orientated and to see the zombie genre reinterpreted from the perspective of children is thrilling. I look forward to more books from Barnaby. He's one to watch out for. Children, adults and I suspect the film and TV industry people will love this book. I highly recommend it.'

'I absolutely loved this book. Powerful and poignant, 'Viro' packs a punch. Sad and haunting, 'Viro' is a new take on the zombie genre. The characters are dynamic and interesting, finding strength despite their horrifying circumstances. Jake is a character that will stick with you long after the final page. The action sequences are thrilling. I was on the edge of my seat!'

• Language: English
• Publisher: Barnaby Taylor
• Release date: Mar 6, 2018
• ISBN: 9781999633219

Barnaby Taylor

Inspired by his passion for films and video games, Barnaby Taylor loves writing dystopian science fiction and horror. He has recently written the VIRO series about a gang of teenagers struggling to survive in a world overrun by the infected. There are currently four books in the series. VIRO is rapidly infecting the Amazon charts and gaining rave reviews along the way. Here's one of the latest reviews: 'The writing style is beautifully compelling, and after the first couple of pages I couldn't put it down. The author very skilfully creates a world and characters through deceptively simple prose that draws the reader right in. It is a fascinating blend of one-after-the-other edge-of-the seat scares, alongside a haunting narrative about what it is to be human.'

Book preview

VIRO

Barnaby Taylor

For Iris, as per usual and always ...

Copyright © Barnaby Taylor 2018

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

ISBN 978-1-9996332-1-9 (EBook)

First Edition

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Barnaby Taylor

www.barnabyftaylor.com

Virus

I am hiding on a roof. There is a girl with me. I don’t know her. Everything was nice before. Not now. The radio said about a virus. People are being zombies. Some scientist said it was a disaster all over the world. No one is safe. They said apocalypse.

Mum works at the hospital. It is her new job. She is always gone when I get up. She feels bad about this. It is not her fault. I don’t mind. I am independent. I like to look after myself. I always hear Mum go out the door. Then I go back to sleep. Mum always says don’t worry if she is late. She will be back.

It was different today. She did not come back. What if the zombies are chasing her? The hospital is quite near to home. I thought I would look for her. That was my idea. I did not think anything else.

We live in a row of houses. The shop is at the other end. Mr. Bishop owns it. I like to go in before school. He lets me read the newspaper headlines. Mr. Bishop is very friendly. I like him. Mum says his wife was dead. He really misses her. It makes him feel sad.

‘Hi Jake, come to read my newspapers again?’

‘Yes, Mr. Bishop. I like to know what’s going on.’

‘Be careful, I might have to start charging you.’

Mr. Bishop likes to play this game with me.

‘How much?’

‘It’s only doom and darkness, you can have that for nothing.’

He always makes me laugh. Mr. Bishop is a joker.

This morning I was thinking about Mum. I didn’t look where I was going and bumped into someone. It was Mr. Bishop. He growled and grabbed my hood. He wanted to bite me. I had to fight hard. I hooked his leg with my leg. I pushed really hard. Mr. Bishop fell over. He let go.

‘Quick! Up here!’

Someone was shouting. It was a girl. I couldn’t see her. She wasn’t near me. I was confused. Mr. Bishop was getting up. He was angry. He didn’t like falling over. He wasn’t joking now.

‘Up here. Look up here.’

Ellis

I looked up. There was a smiling girl on the roof of the shop. She had curly hair. She pointed.

‘Climb on top of that van and jump across.’

I got on the van. Mr. Bishop was behind me. I started to climb. He caught me.

‘Help me. He’s grabbed my ankle.’

‘Don’t panic. I’ll knock him down.’

I didn’t know what she meant. Something rushed past my head. Mr. Bishop roared. He let go of my ankle. The girl had a catapult.

‘Good shot!’

‘I know.’

I scrambled on the top of the van. I stopped. I looked over. There was a gap. The girl nodded.

‘Jump. You can do it.’

I didn’t know if I could. I didn’t want to say. I didn’t know this girl. She might laugh. I didn’t want that to happen.

I had to do something. I looked at Mr. Bishop. I looked at the girl. I jumped.

I grabbed the wall. I didn’t fall. She helped me up.

‘Hi, I’m Ellis. Welcome to my roof.’

I sat down. My head felt funny. I was winded.

‘Jake. My name is Jake.’

Ellis looked over the wall.

‘That’s when I knew that I had to get away.’

Ellis had sad words to tell me.

‘It all happened so quickly. One minute they were Mum and Dad, the next they were something else.’

Ellis tried to smile. It didn’t work. Her story was too horrible.

I couldn’t speak. I had no words for her. I didn’t understand. This was so weird. I looked down at my trainers. They were brand new. The laces were very dirty. I needed new laces.

Ellis cried. All was bad for her.

‘Viros. My mum and dad are Viros.’

Ellis’s voice was choky. She sniffed as well. I didn’t know what to do. I had no words for her story. But I wanted to speak. I said about anything.

‘Viro is a funny word. What does it mean? Is it like zombie?’

Ellis shrugged.

‘Virus. Viro. I made it up while I was sitting here.’

The word sounded clever. I didn’t really know.

‘Is it a joke?’

Ellis looked away. My words didn’t help.

‘They’re not coming back. They’re gone forever.’

She cried again.

I spoke quickly.

‘My mum is at work. She cleans in a hospital. I get myself up in the mornings.’

My voice stopped working. Everything felt massive on my head. My face felt red and hot. I felt panic inside. Don’t cry. Don’t be a baby boy.

‘What if my mum’s a viro?’

Ellis didn’t say. She didn’t know. She opened her rucksack. It was a ham sandwich. She gave me some.

‘We should eat, Jake. It might make us feel better.’

Vinnie

I looked around as I chewed. The morning was getting brighter. It was quiet. We were safe. No one could get us. But there was no roof. I saw angry black clouds. I didn’t want it to rain. We would get really wet. That would be bad. I didn’t feel better. My head felt fast. My brain was full. I wanted to know things.

‘What are we going to do? How am I going to find my mum?’

‘We need to find my brother Vinnie first. He’ll be able to help us find your mum.’

I liked this idea. It was good. We needed help. I asked another question.

‘Where is Vinnie?’

‘He didn’t come home last night. There was a big archery tournament coming up and his team was called in for extra training. He said he would see me when he got back.’

Ellis smiled. It was better than tears.

‘He never came home but I know he’s still alive. He’s very good at looking after himself.’

This was good. Vinnie sounded older. He was in a team. He could do things. I wanted him to help us. I felt better. We had a plan.

‘What school does he go to?’

‘St. Dunstan’s.’

I didn’t know that school. I didn’t care. I only wanted to find Vinnie.

‘Let’s go there now.’

Ellis shook her head.

‘We won’t get far during the day. We’d better wait until tonight. It’ll be much safer to travel then.’

Ellis was sensible. I knew she was right. But I was disappointed.

We waited for night to come. We spoke to each other. I said about my life. Ellis talked about hers. Nothing was normal now. We cried a real lot.

‘Mum and Dad have been married for ages. They were childhood sweethearts. Now, they are just two of those things.’

She sniffed.

‘We were at home. I was tired and went to bed early. Someone screaming woke me up. I looked out my window. Mum and Dad were fighting with our next-door neighbours in the street. They both got bitten. There was blood everywhere.’

Ellis shivered. She was crying loud again.

‘More neighbours came out of their houses and Mum and Dad went off with them. I waited until they had gone and then ran away. I thought I would get to the school but I only got as far as this roof. I was waiting to leave when I saw you fighting with that viro.’

She meant Mr. Bishop.

‘He was my friend. He isn’t now.’

It felt funny to say that.

Later on Ellis stopped crying. I did too. I said all my story. I liked talking to her. I said about my dad going away when I was born. He knew I was different to other babies. He wasn’t happy. It was a genetical thing.

‘That must have been awful.’

‘I was too young. Mum was too strong.’

I shrugged. I was happy to say about me.

‘I’m different to other people. It’s okay. They’re different to me.’

I smiled.

‘I know who I am. I am me.’

Ellis nodded. I think she understood me. I liked that.

‘Have you always lived here?’

‘Two months and three days. Mum got a new job. She’s going to college. She wants to be a teacher.’

‘Your mum sounds amazing. I’d really love to meet her.’

‘She is. You will.’

Catapult

We watched Mr. Bishop trying to climb the van. He couldn't do it. He was nothing like the old Mr. Bishop.

‘He looks so angry.’

‘Wouldn’t you be? Once he was a normal old man, now he's a bloodthirsty zombie.'

‘I suppose.’

I didn’t really get it.

‘How come we’re not?’

‘I don’t know, Jake. We still might. Perhaps it is something to do with our DNA.’

‘Maybe.’

DNA sounded funny. I knew what it meant. Mum said it before. So did the doctors.

Ellis looked at me. She could see all my DNAs. I didn’t mind. They were hard to hide. It was how I looked.

‘Sorry, Jake, I wasn’t thinking.’