Adam L.G. Nevill was born in Birmingham, England, in 1969 and grew up in England and New Zealand. He is the author of the horror novels 'Banquet for the Damned', 'Apartment 16', 'The Ritual', 'Last Days', 'House of Small Shadows', 'No One Gets Out Alive', 'Lost Girl', and 'Under a Watchful Eye'. He has two collections of short stories: 'Some Will Not Sleep' (winner of the British Fantasy Award for Best Collection, 2017) and 'Hasty for the Dark'.
His novels, 'The Ritual', 'Last Days' and 'No One Gets Out Alive' were the winners of The August Derleth Award for Best Horror Novel. 'The Ritual' and 'Last Days' were also awarded Best in Category: Horror, by R.U.S.A. Several of his novels are currently in development for film and television, and in 2016 Imaginarium adapted 'The Ritual' into a feature film.
Adam also offers three free books to readers of horror: 'Cries from the Crypt', downloadable from his website, and 'Before You Sleep' and 'Before You Wake', available from major online retailers. Adam lives in Devon, England. More information about the author and his books is available at: www.adamlgnevill.com
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And on the second day things did not get better. The rain fell hard and cold, the white sun never broke through the low grey cloud, and they were lost. But it was the dead thing they found hanging from a tree that changed the trip beyond recognition. All four of them saw it at the same time.
Right after they clambered over another fallen tree to stumble into more of the scratching bracken, they came across it. Breathing hard, damp with sweat and rain, speechless with fatigue, they came to a halt. Bent from the weight of the rucksacks, bedding and wet tents, they stood under it. Looked up.
Above them, beyond the reach of a man standing upright, the dead thing sagged. Between the limbs of a spruce tree it was displayed, but in such a tattered state they could not tell what it had once been.
From the large rib cage drooped the gut, wet and blue in the light seeping through the canopy of leaves. The pelt was spread out across surrounding branches, holed but stretched taut in places. A ragged hem about a crumpled centre suggested the skin had been torn from the back in one quick ripping motion. And at first no head could be seen in the mess of blood and flesh. Until, in the violent red and yellow suddenness of hung meat, the bony grin of a jaw bone was picked out by them all. Just above it was an eye, big as a snooker ball but glazed and dull. Around it a long skull in profile.
Hutch turned to face the others. He always led the group as it staggered through the forest looking for the new trail. It was his idea to come through here. His face was pale and he did not speak. Somehow the shock of this sight made him look younger. Vulnerable, because this mutilated statement up above their heads was the only thing on the camping holiday he did not have an answer for. Didn’t have a clue about.
Phil couldn’t keep the tremor from his voice. ‘What is it?’
No one answered him.
‘Why?’ Dom said. ‘Why would you put it up there?’
The sound of these voices reassured three of them enough to start talking over each other. Sometimes answering questions. Sometimes just voicing new ideas. Only Luke said nothing. But as the others talked they moved away from the thing in the tree more quickly than they had approached it. And soon they were all silent again, but their feet made more noise than at any other time during the hike of the last three days. Because there was no smell coming from the corpse.
It was a fresh kill.
(C) Adam Nevill 2011