The bank didn't explode into chaos all at once.
It cracked.
Sound splintered first — raised voices turning sharp, chairs scraping too fast across tile, someone shouting a name that went unanswered. The air carried the smell of old carpet, disinfectant, and something new now — blood, warm and metallic, bleeding into the room like a warning no one wanted to hear.
The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, flickering just enough to make movement look jerky and unreal. Shadows stretched long across the teller counters, warping faces into something harsher, more desperate. Somewhere, a plastic water bottle rolled slowly across the floor, tapping softly against a chair leg like a countdown no one wanted to hear.
Just an hour ago, this place had almost felt steady.
Children laughing with Barbie.Rebecca braiding Sofia's hair.Daniel talking quietly with Aaron about watch rotations.Caleb pacing near the windows, trying to look strong even when his hands wouldn't stop shaking.
Kenzie remembered the way Caleb had finally sat down for a second — just long enough for Lucas to hand him a juice box like it was an offering. Caleb had laughed softly, the first real laugh anyone had heard from him all day, and Barbie had nudged her nose into his knee like she approved of him staying. Lila had leaned against Kenzie's shoulder, exhausted but present, while Rebecca hummed under her breath to calm Sofia. Even Aaron's voice had softened when he talked about safe routes and generators, like planning meant there was still a future worth building toward.
They had almost been a group.
Almost a family.
That was what made the break hurt worse.
Raul staggered backward into the corner near the loan desks, breath tearing out of him as he tried to hold onto Mateo.
His son.
The boy's teeth tore into Raul's forearm again, jaw grinding with a strength that didn't belong to a child. Raul screamed — not just pain, but grief ripping through him like glass.
"Stop—stop—baby, please—!"
He tried to cradle Mateo even as he shoved him away, refusing to look at the milky glaze creeping over the boy's eyes.
People surged forward with whatever they could grab.
A metal chair.
A fire extinguisher.
A desk lamp.
"No!" Raul shouted, wild-eyed. "Don't hurt him! Just go — please, just leave us alone!"
But fear had already shifted the room.
Mateo snarled — wet, feral — snapping at Raul's throat.
Raul shoved him back, slamming into the wall, trapped between love and survival.
"Please," he begged. "He's my son."
Caleb froze a few feet away, hands half lifted, unsure whether to help or run. He'd seen death already — too much of it — but watching a father fight his own child hollowed him out in a new way. His jaw trembled, breath shallow, eyes darting between Raul and the exits like his brain couldn't decide which version of survival mattered more.
He glanced at Kenzie.
She stood rooted beside Lila, Barbie pressed against her chest, tears shining in her eyes.
"This isn't real," Caleb whispered hoarsely.
But it was.
Across the room, Marissa collapsed near the teller line, blood pooling beneath her shoulder.
June dropped beside her instantly. "Pressure. Just pressure."
Tanya ripped off her cardigan. "Use this. Harder."
"I am," June sobbed.
Rochelle knelt near Marissa's head, crying openly. "Stay with us. Please stay."
For a moment — just one fragile moment — people worked together again.
Hands pressing wounds.Voices steadying.Hope clinging by threads.
Caleb took one step forward, then stopped again, helpless rage tightening his chest. He wanted to fix something — anything — but every direction looked wrong. Every choice felt like betrayal.
Then everything tilted.
At the far end of the bank, Rebecca curled around Sofia and Lucas, shielding them with her body while Daniel stood in front of them like a shield.
"Don't look," Rebecca whispered.
Sofia cried quietly.
Lucas trembled.
Daniel's jaw clenched so tight it hurt.
This wasn't something you fixed.
This was something that swallowed people.
Aaron grabbed Alyssa's arm. "We need to move."
Caleb snapped back to himself. "Where?"
"Back exit," Aaron said. "Now."
Kenzie hesitated — just one second — looking at Raul, at Mateo, at the room that had almost become safe.
Lila squeezed her hand. "Kenzie—"
Another scream cut her off.
Raul's strength finally failed.
Mateo lunged again, teeth sinking into Raul's shoulder.
Raul screamed — a sound so broken it made even strangers flinch.
Then he collapsed.
Mateo stood over him, head tilted, blood dripping down his chin.
The room went still.
And then —
the boy turned.
His eyes locked onto movement.
June.
Marissa.
The kneeling crowd.
Mateo sprinted.
"MOVE!" someone screamed.
Too late.
He slammed into Rochelle, teeth tearing into her neck.
Her scream died into a wet gurgle.
At the same time —
Marissa's body jerked beneath June's hands.
June froze. "Marissa?"
Her eyes snapped open.
Wrong.
Clouded.
Empty.
She lunged.
June fell backward, screaming.
Tanya tried to pull her away —
Marissa bit into her arm.
The bank shattered.
Chairs overturned.
People ran.
Glass cracked somewhere behind the counters.
Caleb grabbed Kenzie's shoulder, pulling her back as bodies surged past.
"Come on!" he shouted, voice breaking.
Aaron shoved the back door open.
Cold night air rushed in.
"GO!" he yelled.
Kenzie stumbled forward, Barbie clutched tight. Lila ran beside her, breath ragged. Caleb followed close behind, turning once — just once — to look back.
Raul's body twitched on the floor.
Mateo tackled another man near the desks.
Daniel dragged Rebecca and the kids toward the hallway, Rebecca sobbing as Sofia screamed.
Inside the bank, the sounds turned inhuman.
Snarls.
Wet tearing.
Bones cracking.
The echo of flesh hitting tile carried into the night as they pushed through the exit.
Caleb shoved a metal rack against the door as Aaron slammed it shut behind them.
Something hit the glass from inside.
Hard.
A smear slid down the window, slow and dark, as hands struck again from the other side.
Kenzie flinched, pressing her forehead briefly against Barbie's fur.
Just hours ago, they had talked about staying.
About building watch rotations.
About surviving together.
Now they were running from the people whose names they had just learned.
They ran into darkness.
Behind them, the bank — the place that had felt like safety — turned into a feeding ground.
And the fragile thing they had almost built together
finally broke.