The Dark Trinity (Book 1): Shuffle by Steven Till

minutes to figure out how to break
a glass door.
    Giving the bags a hard yank, he was finally in the train.
Nathan removed the shotgun from his shoulder. He fingered off the safety and
blasted a dead teenager in the face as it approached the door. The familiar
plume of blood sprayed the zombies behind her with brain matter. Immediately,
they fell onto their downed comrade and began to feast on her. Loading another
shell into the chamber, he fired at another dead-head as it jumped over its
feeding brethren.
    Nathan ran through the train car. Behind him, the horde was
forcing open the door. Other zombies were walking along the length of the train,
seeking another way inside. He opened the door to the next car and went
through, closing it behind him as two more creatures bounded down the car he
was just in. They made it to the door in two leaps and were now furiously
pounding on the window glass.
    He continued through the second car and reached the door to
the driver compartment. Giving the latch a twist, he found it locked. The
window in the door behind him gave way to the barrage and shattered. The zombie
began climbing through, a horrifying shriek escaping its lips. Nathan ran at
the monster and blasted a kneecap, severing the right leg. It didn’t even
flinch at the pain, but instead, continued to reach out with its claws,
dragging itself towards him.
    He didn’t have time for this. Running back towards the front
of the train, he cocked the shotgun and shot the latch, blowing out a hole in
the door. It swung open. He slid into the compartment and tried to open the
side door out into the tunnel. The door opened a foot, then stopped.
    “Fuck, are you kidding me with this?” he cursed as he faced
certain doom.
    The zombie crawled on the floor towards him and was about
halfway to him when two more zombies entered through the broken window. Just as
before, they began to eat the fallen creature. Another five zombies entered
next. Nathan fired off a few rounds at them, spraying blood all over the
interior of the train car.  Two of the five dropped, which caused the
remaining three to stop their advance and feed. More ghouls were climbing
through the window.
    Nathan turned back to the side door and wedged his body into
the gap to force open the door the rest of the way. He doubted that the
driver’s door was on a different hydraulic system than the other car doors, so
it seemed as though his current predicament was shitty luck. He jammed his foot
against one side of the door and tried to push with his arms. Since he couldn't
squeeze into the space all the way, he wasn't able to get the leverage needed.
    The zombies were finishing their meals as more of them poured
through the rear door window. The car was filling up and now they remembered
that there was other food on the train. Shaking back and forth, he was able to
get halfway through the door. Expelling all the air in his lungs, his upper
body popped through. Thinking that his legs would follow, he leaned forward to
jump down to the tracks, but his machete caught the edge of the door, preventing
his legs from following.
    Nathan fell in the narrow gap of the doorway, his upper body
flopping outside of the train as his legs remained inside. He hung there for a
moment and squirmed, trying to get his legs out. It was a valiant effort, but
it was too late. The dead were upon him. Claws dug into his legs, causing him
to scream. He flailed and kicked, trying to get free from the carnage. He felt
teeth sink into his calf. A moment later, the owner of the teeth ripped a
mouthful of flesh from the bone, soaking his pants with blood. The smell of
fresh human blood evoked more harrowing cries from the creatures.
    The pain was excruciating, but he was able to raise himself
up and grab the edge of the door with his left hand. In his right hand, he
raised the shotgun and fired. The creature that was noshing on his calf muscle
evaporated, freeing his injured leg. Before another zombie could