Kaveh and Logan dropped their weapons and pushed on the desk. It was heavy, but it finally tipped over, covering the bottom two thirds of the doors and knocking away the hands. It would hold them back for a while.

Logan leaned forward. One of the holes wasn't completely covered, and he used it to look outside. He held his hand out behind him. "Quick, hand me the gun."

Kaveh opened his mouth to argue about who deserved to hold the gun, but the door splintered in Logan's face, and a dozen hands yanked him over the top of the desk.

Kaveh grabbed for Logan's feet, grabbing nothing but air as they disappeared, wriggling, through the hole in the door. He heard the screaming as those things tore Logan apart. He hadn't liked the guy, but nobody deserved that.

He picked up the gun and aimed at the door, but the creatures were busy.

He ejected the empty clip, went to the body of the security guard and picked up a new one. He couldn't fight them all, but he might make a gap in the crowd. Then he and Speedy could escape.

"Give me that," someone said, and Kaveh looked up. It was the manager. He meant the gun.

"No," said Kaveh. The manager was slow and fat. He froze at the first sign of trouble. Kaveh's best chance to survive was to keep the gun for himself.

"You're in my bank," said the manager, but he only wanted it because there was an Iranian with a gun in "his" bank, and that scared him more than what was outside.

Kaveh loaded the fresh clip, returning the manager's bitter glare. He knew these people thought of him as some kind of monster. They didn't want him to open his own restaurant, and they were never gonna give him the loan he'd applied for, even before this strange attack.

The blonde teller poked her head over the counter and screamed again. She must have figured out what had happened to her boyfriend. At the noise, the creatures turned their attention away from Logan and back to the doors of the bank.

The manager was too close to those doors. They grabbed him and pulled him over the desk, but he stayed pinned to the doors. He wouldn't fit through the hole. He was too fat.

He tried to struggle his way loose as more arms punched their way inside. The hole was getting bigger. The blonde screamed again. Kaveh aimed the gun at those arms, but the manager kept getting in the way.

He saw Kaveh pointing the gun at him and looked over at the loan officer behind the counter. "Do something," he shouted. "I'll promote you." He was about to be pulled outside and ripped apart, but he was still afraid of Kaveh.

#

Lisa stepped around the counter, sizing up the situation. She should listen to her boss. This was his branch. He was in charge. The hole in the door was now almost big enough for him to fit through, but as long as they didn't bite him, he could be saved. She just didn't know how. She took another step forward. The zombies outnumbered them ten to one, and they had the bank surrounded. Mister Ballard screamed, and she saw blood coming down his back. That was it for him.

Lisa decided, "Get his keys. We'll hide in the vault." She wasn't getting that promotion.

Mister Ballard screamed again. "No! Help me."

Lisa shook her head. "It's too late for you."

She watched Kaveh edge closer and reach for the keys on the manager's belt. He grabbed at them just as the door gave way and dozens of rotting hands pulled her boss into the street. Sunlight streamed in through through the hole, illuminating the three zombies climbing in over the desk.

"Speedy," Kaveh called.

Kaveh's friend came from behind the counter, picking up the baseball bat on the way. The two customers exchanged no more words as Speedy lined up between his business partner and the three monsters.

He swung the bat. Two zombies fell to the ground. Kaveh shot the third in the chest, but it kept coming. He didn't understand zombies.

"Aim for the head," said Lisa.

Kaveh fired again, splattering the zombie's brains on the carpet as it fell to the ground.

"Thanks," said Kaveh. He tossed her the keys.

Lisa caught them. "Come on, Helen," she said, knees braced to run.

Helen stared blankly ahead. She hadn't made a sound since she'd stopped screaming. Near the doors, Kaveh fired two more shots, but Helen didn't blink. Lisa pulled her hand, and Helen followed blindly to the vault.

She unlocked the giant circular door. Lisa had been in the vault many times, but she'd never been able to open the heavy door by herself. There were more gunshots behind them. She looked at the dazed Helen and realized she didn't have a choice. She put her foot against the door frame, the hem of her business skirt pressing into her thigh, and pulled. Inch by inch, the door opened.

She grabbed Helen's hand, and they went inside. "Close the door," whispered Helen, her eyes unfocused.

"No," said Lisa, "I'm giving them a chance." She couldn't see the rest of the bank from where she was, so she waited to see who would come around the corner first. If it was human, she'd let them in.

What if it wasn't? A shiver went up her spine. Panic almost took over, but she wouldn't let that happen to her. She breathed like normal and braced herself to close the door as quickly as possible, to save whoever she could.

More gunshots. That was a good sign. Zombies didn't use guns.

Shadows on the wall. She bent her legs to pull the door handle, but it was the humans. Kaveh turned and fired two more shots before dashing into the vault.

Lisa pulled the metal handle with all her strength. The door swung quickly. She didn't know she had that kind of power in her. An arm reached inside at the last second and was severed by the door's weight.

She locked them in, watching the arm to see if it moved on its own. No, these zombies didn't work like that. She told herself she would get through this by understanding exactly those kinds of rules.