Page 71 of No Man's Land

Alex looked grim. “The war has made a charnel house of Europe and a feast for the ghoul. As their numbers grow, so they become bolder.”

“Like the trench rats,” Josef said. They’d grown fat and bold too. Nature’s opportunists.

Another memory stirred: Sykes’s dying words at the dressing station.

They come for the dead.

Creeping out of the sapper tunnels that wormed beneath no man’s land, skulking through abandoned trenches, andcollapsed foxholes, to gorge themselves on slaughtered soldiers, heedless of rank or nation.Menhad dug those tunnels and trenches,menhad slaughtered men in the hundreds of thousands, and the ghoul were feasting on the carnage. Like rats, they were opportunists, clever, resourceful, and remorseless.

You’d find them anywhere you’d find rats.

“I saw one in a Tube tunnel,” Josef said abruptly. “At least, I think I did. I saw its eyes in the dark.”

“Tube tunnels would be too dangerous.” Alex frowned. “Although easier to navigate, cleaner and dryer than sewers.”

“And closer to potential prey.”

Alex shrugged, conceding the point. “But they couldn’t live there, could they? Not with all the trains.”

“I suppose not. But are there parts of the Underground that aren’t used? Like sidings or some such?” Truth was, Josef had no idea. His only real interest in trains was getting from A to B.

Alex looked thoughtful, though. “Yes,” he said, “that’s possible. But scouring the Underground for disused sidings is hardly practical.”

“Obviously, we’d need a map.”

“I don’t suppose you happen to have one?”

Josef huffed. “No, but I do have a library card.”

“As you’ve previously mentioned.” An amused smile tugged at one corner of Alex’s mouth. “Is that the sort of thing they’d have in a public library?”

“Oh, you can findanythingat the library.”

Alex’s smile broadened for a moment, then failed. “Maybe so, but I think it would be more sensible to return to the sewer, somewhere we know they’ve been.”

“You mean loiter about, wait for one to show up?” That sounded like a terrible plan.

“Tactically,” Alex said, sounding slightly affronted, “It’s the soundest option.” Then he conceded, “But, truth be told, I’d rather not spend my last hours loitering in a sewer.”

“Alex…” Josef trailed off. “Look, the point is, they won’t be your last hours if we find a bloody ghoul.”

“And get some of its blood, without killing it.”

They both knew the odds of success were low, though neither spoke the thought aloud.

Alex rubbed a hand over his jaw, then reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a packet of gaspers. He offered one to Josef, and they both lit up. As the smoke curled into the still morning air, Alex said, “I don’t like it, but I think it might be a good idea to divide our resources.”

“I don’t like it, either.” Josef took a deep drag on his cigarette and blew out a stream of smoke. “What do you mean?”

“You try to find a useful map of the Underground, while I take the photograph and go back to the sewer.”

“Alone? Come off it.”

Alex’s jaw set. “We’ve no choice. We need to cover as much ground as possible before I…” Perhaps unconsciously, he touched the place on his shoulder where he’d been bitten. And although it was hidden beneath his clothes, Josef felt as though he could see the festering wound clear as day. His skin prickled at the thought.

And it told him how much time they were looking at—don’t buy any green bananas, as his dad might have said. Alex had hours, perhaps a day before things got sticky. Josef swallowed, his stomach griping painfully, and his thoughts shying away from what that end would mean. “Even so,” he said, “splitting up is a crap idea.”

Alex raised his eyebrows. “Tactically—”

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