The Grimmers were a family that prayed together. They also spent a lot of quality time with their father, who loved them all more than anything in the world. Dinner was a special time, but the rule was that no stories until everyone finished eating, because they liked to tell shocking stories, the kind their police officer father could tell. They had to search far and wide to tell stories like his, and they did, he was impressed when they did.

Magdalene, the oldest - eighteen, told hers first, after they had eaten.

Her father and two brothers sat and listened as she told a tale of an adult female gymnast, that she knew, that had landed on the bar on her crotch; and after a visit to the doctor, it was determined she had broken her hymen. Her two younger brothers didn't know what that was, and she was told not to explain, by her father, who had made the rule not to tell stories until they had all finished eating, for this very reason. His kids told tales too terrible to tell while having dinner.

Johnny told his story next; about two boys that had both gotten knocked out after punching each other in the face during a fight. They couldn't remember why they were fighting and both of them had black eyes during school.

Matthew was last and his story was about a boy his age that had lost a tooth but had swallowed it. This of course led to the speculative part of the story where it must end up in the boy's poop, since he ate the tooth. Table talk.

Then dad told a story about three little pigs that got eaten by a wolf they couldn't keep out. His kids loved this story and its scary details.

Then it was time for them to all get to bed, a school night and time for their dad to do a night shift, which he rarely did, anymore. He didn't like leaving his kids alone, but Mrs. Partridge was next door in their duplex and his daughter was well old enough to be an actual babysitter already. And they had Ruby, their golden shepherd, although old, still packed a mean row of incisors and a pension for sneaking up on people. And an alarm system.

He tucked them in and left them, expecting them all to be fine. He still hated leaving them though. Officer Grimmer was a man of Family, of God and of Justice. But at the end of the day, he only trusted in his own abilities, that he had taught his children well, that he had obeyed his faith and that good prevailed as long as evil wasn't allowed out into broad daylight unchallenged.

Two years earlier he had arrested a woman that had overdosed. He had tried to get her some help, when he realized she wasn't just tweaked out, but the ambulance couldn't save her. Ironically, he had also arrested her boyfriend not too long before that. Now that guy was out and seeking revenge against the man he called 'Officer Smiley'. The cops knew this career criminal as Wolfie. Wolfie knew where Officer Smiley lived, had figured out how to find where a cop lives.

He even got into some volunteer work to bring groceries to the neighbor, Mrs. Partridge. It was to get close enough to strike. Officer Smiley had taken two years and his girlfriend away from Wolfie. Wolfie had a brain made of maggots and wanted to hurt Officer Smiley by attacking his family, the man's three children, at home, alone.

Mrs. Partridge had a key to get in and could turn off the alarm. It was the weakspot in the fortress. Wolfie sat and waited until the old woman went inside to check on the kids. Then he got out of his van and walked up and opened the unlocked door and walked past the turned off alarm system. She would have reset it and locked the door after she left. Wolfie had planned on letting her go, see what the alarm code was as she rearmed it. He stood in the dark to wait and watch.

But the dog came up behind him like some kind of ninja, she didn't bark or growl. Wasn't how Ruby did her job. She could bark and growl afterwards. She knew her first task was to get her teeth into the intruder, then she could bark or growl. Don't mess with golden shepherds, smart home defenders. Wolfie didn't even know the large animal lived here. She kept a low profile, like a hidden weapon, which Officer Grimmer didn't keep. The dog had replaced a loaded gun.

Her bite started as a pinch, and she slowly clamped into the flesh of his buttocks until she broke skin. Then he felt it and realized he was getting bit by something in the dark. Her growl came then, low and primal. She could taste his blood, realized his fear and pain. She twisted her fangs and pulled, doing some damage. He managed to get free of her and lost some skin and flesh to her mouth. Then she barked.

It was at that moment that Mrs. Partridge came around the corner.

Wolfie had a huge hunting knife and the whimper of the stabbed dog followed her bark. Ruby had lunged at the man, going this time for his balls. But he had caught her on the razor sharp blade. He withdrew it and dropped the dog for dead.

With his free hand he shoved the old woman into the wall, knocking the wind out of her. Then Wolfie stabbed her repeatedly until she fell to the floor, dead. She had died of shock as the knife entered vital organs and her blood had poured out freely.

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Standing over the whining dog on the floor and the dead body of Mrs. Partrige he was breathing heavily when the first child emerged from his room in the hallway.

The youngest, Matthew. He rushed at the kid and caught him and held him at knifepoint as the other two opened their doors.

"Don't do anything or I cut his throat." Wolfie told them. Then he said: "Go out to the living room and sit on the couch."

They had to and they did. Then he told Magdalene to restrain Johnny with the zip ties. When the oldest son was secure to the rocker he told her to tie up Matthew as well. She obeyed and got Matthew tied to the base of the rocker around its wooded spokes.

"What are you going to do?" Magdalene was trying not to cry. She had to seem brave for her brothers. They were both watching her.

"Maybe have some fun. What do you think?" Wolfie told her.

"Is that what you want?" She felt one tear escape, despite her best effort. "To have fun?"

"I want to kill all of you little piglets. But I wasn't expecting you to be so hot. We should have some fun first, what do you think?" Wolfie had blood all over his clothes and looked psychotic to her. But Magdalene needed to buy time, she was terrified but thought quickly of what to say and replied as calmly as she could:

"I'll have some fun. That sounds good. What do you want me to do?"

"Let's see you get naked." Wolfie licked his lips.

"Could we go to my bedroom? I will get naked in there." She negotiated and added: "Please."

Wolfie looked at the two boys tied up and nodded. "Okay."

He followed her and Magdalene hoped that leaving them alone would create an opportunity for escape. She wasn't sure what they might come up with but decided to distract the intruder. She asked him:

"What do I call you?"

"What?" Wolfie asked.

"If I get naked, I can only guess what you will do to me. I've never done anything like that. I just want to know what to call you, you know?" Magdalene tried to stall.

"Call me Wolfie. I am gonna enjoy this, I can tell." Wolfie had a sick look in his eyes and waved the knife around menacingly.

"Please don't hurt me." Magdalene looked at the knife.

"No, it is gonna hurt alot, I promise." Wolfie told her.

"But not with that though, right?" Magdalene pointed at the weapon.

"Not with this." Wolfie thunked the weapon into the headboard of her bed.

Since she wasn't undressing, he walked over to her and gripped her t-shirt and tore it open. Magdalene tried not to flinch at his touch. He was rough and put his hands all over her. Then he pushed her onto the bed, clearly he intended to molest her further.

Before he did anything else there was a sudden noise from the living room.

"What the fuck?" Wolfie freed the knife and was about to investigate.

Magdalene sat up and got backhanded across her cheek.

"Lay back down bitch and stay there. I am gonna be right back." he snarled.

Out in the living room he saw that the youngest boy had gotten free. They had helped their father put the chair together and had taken off the bottom part, somehow. The chair had tipped backwards as the bottom detached and the youngest was freed. He had his feet unzipped, because Magdalene had never zipped them, and was running around towards the kitchen.

The killer came after him mad-dashing in the dark and Matthew tipped a chair in the dining room in his path that he tripped over. He sprang to his feet and recovered the knife, but the kid had vanished around the corner. Stalking he went back down the hallway, noting the girl was still on the bed obeying and then he started searching the little boy's room for him. After a moment he realized he had hidden somewhere else. The bathroom, Officer Smiley's room, he searched everywhere except the girl's room. She was just laying there as he passed her open doorway.

"Fucking four-bedroom apartment." Wolfie complained. He flung open the last door and then heard the front door opening.

"Oh no you don't" he swore and ran out to try and catch them. As he exited the apartment he realized nobody was outside. He turned but the door slammed shut in his face.

He was outside pounding on the front door shouting with furious frustration:

"Let me in you little bastards!"

Inside he heard the alarm company responding to the pressing of the panic button. The kids were calling the police! He decided it was time to make his getaway. Wolfie went back to his parked van still soaked in Mrs. Partridge's blood and got in. He tossed the knife into the passenger seat up front and drove away.

Officer Grimmer was the first to arrive at the scene. He rushed to his home and found his children were all okay. An ambulance was called for Mrs. Partridge, although when he checked for a pulse she seemed dead.

Most of the night was spent at the veterinarian for emergency surgery for Ruby. She would be kept there for a few days but she would live. This was nearly promised to them.

They all went to a nearby motel that night, their house a murder crime scene.

They were sitting there in the motel room around a tiny little table staring at their dad. They had just eaten a pile of snacks from the vending machine.

Johnny spoke first, telling the story of three little pigs that kept the wolf out of their house. He said that he was very sorry about Mrs. Partridge, but glad about Ruby.

Then Matthew told how he had unscrewed the hand-tightened butterfly bolts on the chair and broke free.

Then Magdalene told how she was nearly raped while distracting the killer so Matthew could escape.

Officer Grimmer then led his family in prayer and thanked God they all were okay. Except Magdalene's bruised face and the trauma of the intrusion to his sons, they were all fine. He was very proud of them.

When they were all asleep on the motel bed he finally took off his uniform and laid down on the couch staring at his kids. He loved them more than anything in the world and his worst fears were realized. He again thanked God for everything and also he thanked himself too, for teaching them to be survivors.

Outside a van sat silently watching the motel from a parking lot across the street. The lurking enemy that remained at large. The danger would always be there.

Then, watching his family sleeping peacefully and safe, he too began to rest.