Ethan ~ POV

I never thought that my day would have gone like it had. Hiding in the shower as someone broke into the same house as Noah and me. Honestly, looking back, this whole thing is a little messed up. I hid in the shower with the curtains drawn as I heard footsteps walking through the house. They went silent for a moment; I thought they might have left until I heard creaking from somewhere in the house. Did they sit down on the couch? Damn… looks like I'm going to be here for a while. A few silent minutes pass as I wait for the burglar to leave.

I hope Noah wasn't worried that I locked him in that hidden room without warning. There was barely enough room for both of us in there. As I stayed crouched in the shower, I peeked through the edges of the curtain, looking to see if anything was visible in the bathroom mirror. I could see into the hallway through the mirror but only just to the door. But that was it; I kept quiet as my eyes were fixed on the reflection. Suddenly I heard a thump from somewhere in the house. I watched as a shadow raced across the door again. A woman pops her head into the bedroom's doorway? Her hair is a little messy as she looks through the room. Did she think that thumping came from the master bedroom? I thought it came from the hallway. The woman slowly stepped into the room as she looked around.

"Theo, baby… where are you?" She asked in a sweet voice.

She stepped out of sight as she walked around the master bedroom.

Ezekiel… are you there? Come out and give mom a hug." She said as her steps became slow and steady.

My eyes widen as I watch her move around the bed to the side where the wardrobe stood. I swallowed a lump and watched her look at it for a moment. Then, quickly thinking, I rushed out of the bathroom towards the hallway. I figured if I could distract her, that would give Noah enough time to call the police. I ran through the bedroom into the hallway. The lady was hot on my tail as I felt her grab at me. She sent us both into the hallway wall. I looked back and kicked her as she seemed to look at me with pure rage.

"Where's my baby!" She yelled as she tackled me down to the floor.

I rolled around, trying to get her off me as we fought for control. I pinned her to the hallway wall with my legs as I held and twisted her arm. She bit down on my leg, forcing me to let go; she jumped on top of me, trying to wrap her hands around my throat. I looked into her eyes as I kept her from constricting around me. Her eyes were deep; there was a hidden madness to them as she repeated the same thing repeatedly.

"Give them back, Give them back, Give them back!" She said as we made our way into the living room.

I kicked her off of me as I quickly stood up. She stood up and began throwing wild punches; she almost got me with one wild strike to the head but did land one in my gut. I blocked the punch to my head and hit her with a back fist. We again soon devolved into a standing grappling match. I had to get her off me as I felt her knee me in the gut. I swept her legs out from under her and threw her into a nearby wall. I was panting as I stood there; I had been in fights before, but this one was one of the worst ones I had dealt with. Suddenly she jumped at me again; I flipped her over my shoulder onto the dining room table without much effort. She wrapped her legs around my arm and pulled against it.

I gritted my teeth as I began punching at the legs she had wrapped around me. I could feel the joints in my elbow strain as she kept pulling against it trying to make it bend the other way. I looked down at the woman as she gritted her teeth. I honestly thought she might break my arm right here, right now. Until the bright flashing blue and red lights caught my attention. That was a mistake; I felt a kick to the head that sent me to the floor. I tasted blood while watching a figure rush into the house. They raised a pistol up, pointing at the woman. It was too late as she ran out the back door and out of sight. I looked at the person as they lowered their pistol and holstered it. It was Ben; I chuckled a little seeing how pissed he was. Though that might have been the brain damage from the kick making me smile.

Ben helped me up to my feet and out to the front porch. I leaned against him as I took shaky steps outside. At the front porch, Ben helped me sit down along the stairs. He examined me as I tried to calm myself, shining a flashlight into my eyes before he began asking me some questions. How did I feel; was there any pain I couldn't handle. I gave him easy, quick, clear answers as another police car soon arrived on the scene. It was Sheriff Olivia who was worried, as she ran up to us she looked between Ben and me.

"What happened?" She looked to the door and then at me.

I looked up at her, a little bruised and beaten. I took a deep breath, ready to tell her everything, excluding Noah. That was until something unexpected happened.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

"I got a call from a neighbor… I arrived on the scene and found Ethan in the middle of a fight with a burglar. Guess Ethan got ahead of himself with becoming a sheriff." Ben said as he looked down at me.

I was a bit surprised; was he covering for me? I shook myself from my moment of shocked silence as I began telling her 'what happened.

"I was having trouble with my bike; the chain slipped off… I walked it here; and found the door kicked in." I said as I pointed to the broken front door behind me.

Olivia looked to the door and then to me.

"And why didn't you call the station?" She asked, looking down at me with an angry expression.

"I… thought Mr. Davis and Nathaniel were in trouble," I shrugged my shoulders.

A moment of silence passed between everyone before Olivia spoke.

"Ethan… you may be an Edwards, but that doesn't give you the right to act like a hero…." She said, sounding like a parent scolding their child.

I didn't mind as I soon heard a voice calling from behind Ben and Olivia.

"Ethan, are you ok?" I looked up to see Noah.

Did he slip out through a window? Respect to him; I gave him a smile, and a wink as the sheriffs looked at him. He seemed surprised by my eye wink as Olivia turned to face me.

"Ben watch him… make sure he stays. The ambulance is almost here," she said sternly.

Olivia walked over and began questioning Noah. I prayed she wouldn't notice anything in his story.

"What happened to let it go?" Ben asked in a hushed tone as he turned to face me.

I looked up at him and smirked.

"Just couldn't… not while a friend's in trouble… and a lot of it from the looks of it," I said as I looked him in the eyes.

Ben clenched his jaw as he stared down at me. Considering he just lied, I'm willing to bet he has a stake in this too. Olivia walked back over; she looked at me sympathetically as the ambulance soon pulled up. I protested a little, though, with two sheriff officers and the pain from the fight now setting in. I figured there might be some good reasons to go to a hospital. I climbed in the back with Olivia before we rode off to the hospital. As I sat in the hospital, letting the nurses check me over, grandpa soon rushed in with grandma beside him. The nurses look at grandpa with a smile.

"Some minor cuts and bruises. Ethan should be fine to take home. Just make sure he takes it easy, ok." The nurse said before walking out of the room.

I heard the door close behind my grandparents. I didn't need to look at him to feel his anger. I waited for him to start yelling, cussing, and telling me how I was grounded for months. But my expectations suddenly changed when I felt grandma hug me; I could hear her sobbing as she held me close. I then felt grandpa's familiar rough hand rest on my shoulder; I looked over; what I saw wasn't anger or rage. It looked like he was relieved as he brought me into a hug. After I was discharged, I went home with grandpa and grandma. I tried to keep quiet as I thought about everything that had happened.

Officer Ben was the first to arrive, and I didn't really buy that neighbor's phone call. But why did he lie to Olivia for me? Either he has a stake in whatever's happening here, or there's something we're missing. I got a text from Noah a few minutes before I got home. He got home safely, which lifted a weight off my shoulders. At home, grandma opened the door for me, which I didn't mind; slowly, I began to realize she was babying me. It was a pain to deal with, especially because she wouldn't listen to me sometimes about still being able to do things. Later that night, I heard a knock at my bedroom door as I was about to go to bed.

Grandpa stepped in; I sat up and watched him walk over and sit next to me. He stared off into space as he held his hands clasped together. He was silent for a moment before he spoke.

"Ben tells me you tried being a hero?" Grandpa asked as he looked at me from the corner of his eyes.

I also stared into space as I thought about what to say.

"Grandpa… somethings going on, first this creeper running around… now one of my friends and his dad are missing?" I asked rhetorically, not expecting an answer.

"I know everyone in town's been on edge lately… but I'm curious why you were in that house?" He asked, which caught me a little off guard.

"I taught you better than that…." He said, knowing I really did know better.

Growing up with him, I learned a few things about tactics, like how to never rush into enemy territory without proper intel.

"Grandpa…" I began to say before he stopped me.

"I'm not telling you to stop whatever it is you're doing… Truth be told, I haven't seen you this alive in years. But remember what I taught you; always come back home." He said before standing up.

He left my room; after the door closed; I fell back onto my bed. I got a text from Rebecca and a few others asking what happened. Among them, I noticed one from Noah that caught my eye. 'I Found Something.'