[ WP ] I checked my weapon . One bullet left . Just enough to do what needed to be done .

I took the Colt 1911 from Lucy's hands. She was five. Only five. And the look on her face told me her innocence was gone. So young. Her whole life she had known only slow zombies. Zombies were not fast. There were not supposed to be fast zombies. 
 
 Ralph appeared beside me, a pack of light bulbs in his hands. `` What's going on?'' 
 
 His eyes trailed at the blue remains along the street. An arm- 30 yards, lower torso- 15 yards, upper torso, at our feet. His brain was crunching the numbers. 
 
 `` Where's your gun Ralph?'' I asked, picking Lucy up. `` I got to get back to Jess. You need to go warn June.'' 
 
 `` It's just one, right?'' he blustered in disbelief. `` It ca n't be ALL of them. Right?'' 
 
 As he said it, two blue figures rounded the corner a block and a half down the street. Shambling slowly. Until they saw us. Then they started to RUN. Hellfire, they were RUNNING. 
 
 I scooped up Lucy. `` C'mon Ralph!'' 
 
 I'd never run from a zombie before. Never had to. Ralph was out of breath after half a block and the blue ones were catching up. He might have a heart attack before he got to his apartment. I took quick stock, Lucy had fired three shots. We had eight left. I could hear those undead feet slapping the pavement behind us. I was slowing down to keep from leaving Ralph behind, but this plan was not working. 
 
 `` Keep going!'' I panted at him, and stopped and turned. I nearly crapped myself, they were closer than they sounded. Barely aiming, I put a round through the first one, right above the sternum. His shoulder split away in that plastic yellow gore that rehardened as it hit the air. Round two went to the second one and gave us all a few more yards as the zombies stumbled about, their injuries slowly congealing and turning blue again. Precious seconds. 
 
 It took two more rounds to take the leg off of the first one. Not a fast zombie now. Precious rounds. 
 
 I realigned my sites on the second one, as it recovered its balance and began picking up speed again. Save the five rounds or knock off our pursuit? It was eight more blocks to home. 
 
 Ralph screamed from the corner ahead of me. A zombie from a side street had its hands on him. It was a 30 yard shot. No hesitation other than the fleeting thought that the spray would go away from him and not touch him. The zombie hit the ground, its head like a peacock with all the feathers spread. It groaned and writhed slowly. 
 
 Ralph was shaking as I caught up to him. 
 
 `` Come on man, we really need to move!'' 
 
 He nodded breathlessly. 
 
 After the apocalypse had settled in, the city became so quiet. There was the wind, the rustling leaves, and occasionally the sound of slow shambling. Now we heard the sound of an unseen but not far off mob. The hair on the back of my neck prickled. 
 
 Lucy held on tight to me and was quite but alert. Daddy's trooper. We had to get to Jess and I hoped to God she had n't decided to go out on her own. She nearly always took the long gun and surely we would have heard at least one shot if she were in trouble. And of course, we needed to tell June, our neighbor and Ralph's wife. 
 
 We were at a jog and Ralph was wheezing hard, brow sweating profusely. The zombie reconstituting behind us was just about matching our pace. Three blocks from home. Just three precious blocks. That's where we saw the mob. 
 
 Through the alley on the next street over, a couple broke away sprinting towards us. 
 
 `` Go Ralph!'' 
 
 He nodded, true fear behind the exhaustion, and not breaking his now stumbling stride. 
 I stood at the intersection with my five rounds. I looked from the two coming towards me fast to Ralph struggling to make some distance. If he yelled right now, June might hear. Lucy was no weight in my arms and I saw her looking gritty daggers at the two runners. She was going to take some revenge on them for being fast, I could see. A life's mission born in that moment. 
 
 I took one last look at Ralph, gauging his distance, trying to buy him time. The runners were almost to me and I raised the gun and aimed carefully. A good shot would keep them down for a minute. Four rounds, three rounds. More were coming behind them and yet more had heard the shots. I ran after Ralph, and as we passed the next alley, more met us there. They tackled Ralph and three bodies tumbled to the street. I kicked one off the top of him and shoved the other with my foot just enough to get a clean shot into it. The other had him by the leg again and as it twisted I heard a sickening tear of cartiledge. Ralph yelled in agony. The second to last bullet rolled its blue body twice over. 
 
 Ralph looked up at me in pain, tears in his eyes mixing with the sweat. I had to blink my own eyes a couple times hard. We had seconds, but the decision was already made. 
 
 `` Take care of June for me. Tell her I love her. Go take care of Jess.'' 
 
 There was one bullet left in the gun. Not enough for the mob running at us. But enough for Ralph. 
 I handed him the gun. Lucy in my arms, I ran the last two-and-a-half blocks. 
 
 I heard the shot ring out at one block. 
 

