His phone vibrates again.

   I had fun today. I'll see you tomorrow new kid :P

Alex smiles and texts back, Same to you cute girl :P

He immediately dives onto his bed stomach first and props his pillow under his arms as he browses social media, falling asleep with his phone in his hand.

    "Alex, Wake up. You've got your newspaper route to do, and then you've got to get back here and do your homework. So get up, and get ready. I pulled your bike out of storage for you."

    "Alright, alright, I'm up Mom." Alex yawns, sitting up on the edge of the bed.

Blake pulls the blanket from beside him and tosses it on the floor to ensure he doesn't lay back down. Standing up she demands once more, "Now Alex!"

He stands up quickly, grabbing his shoes from beside the bed putting on his jacket.

There are a few guards on duty. Three outside and two inside. Carter is posted by the front gate, Gladiator is at the front door while Vincent "Beardo" O'Hare covers the backyard. Clemmons and the new guard are inside while Blake cooks dinner. The smell of macaroni and cheese, pork chops and green beans fills the house. Alex grabs a spoon, stealing a bite of the mac'n'cheese right from the stove top. He and his mother share a laugh and Alex heads to the door to grab the small stack of newspapers.

Today is warmer than most, a brisk forty-seven degrees as Alex steps out of the house and onto the walkway to grab his bike, slipping on the thin sheet of ice on the last bit of stone before grabbing the side of the house for support.

    "LOVE YOU MOM!" He shouts, slinging the sack of newspapers over his shoulder and pedaling down the driveway.

Carter nods his head, punches in the keycode to open the gate and let's Alex through. As Alex makes his way down the street, Carter tries to close the gate.

    "What the hell?" Mumbling under his breath. "This damn gate again."

He kneels down next to the control box and pops it open to check the connections. Double checking for any frozen wires or damage to the inside, he closes the box and tries the gate again. No luck.

    "Seriously?" He radios back to the house, "Hey Clemmons, we have an issue with the gate, it doesn't seem to want to close."

    "On my way." Clemmons grabs the tool bag from the closet inside and heads down the driveway on foot.

Just as Clemmons makes it halfway to the gate, two vehicles pull up to the end of the drive. One stops abruptly, while the other speeds onto the property. Carter throws his rifle to his shoulder and aims at the stopped SUV while Clemmons opens fire on the approaching vehicle. Bullets ricochet off the windshield, realizing the car is bulletproof he dives into the bushes and calls for backup.

    "O'Hare, Gladiator, get your asses to the front NOW! Jefferson, get Blake to the Safe Room. We've been breached!"

Jefferson, the new guard, grabs Blake and his rifle, forcing her down the hall as the other two guards rush to the front yard. O'Hare crouches, rifle drawn and the sight lined up on the SUV barrelling toward the house. He opens fire. The passenger window slides open and a uniformed man leans out and returns fire, hitting O'Hare in the shoulder. He spins around and hits the ground, grasping at his shoulder in excruciating pain as Gladiator, pulls him inside through the front door to safety and slams the door shut. The car plows through the front porch and four men jump out.

Carter shoots at the SUV parked at the end of the driveway, radioing for help, four more men, including Squad Leader Parrish, step out of the car.

    "Lock down the house. I repeat, LOCK DOWN THE HOUSE!" Carter pleads as he opens fire on the armed men. Returning fire, one of the intruders is shot and killed, but Carter is hit multiple times. A bullet blows through his communications system, destroying his radio and gets shot in the stomach as he falls to his knees, then face first into the snow covered gravel and bleeds out.

    "Forward." says a british voice, pointing toward the house.

Two men stay at the gate as the british man and another march down the driveway. Clemmons is moving quickly, staying low through the trees watching the men as they approach the house.

    "We're out numbered. There's seven of them and most likely more to come. Carter is down, but managed to take one out, it's just the four of us now. Do you copy?" Clemmons whispers through the radio, waiting for a response.

    "We're inside. Beardo was hit in the shoulder. It was a through-n-through, he'll be alright, but we are gonna need some help in here." Patching O'Hare's shoulder with a med pack, Gladiator sets his walkie talkie down beside him. "Jefferson is held up inside the safe room with Mrs. McDolen, we need to get an eye on Alex and make sure he's safe."

Clemmons sits up, one knee on the ground and grabs a grenade clipped to his waist. Tossing it into the yard he takes cover behind a large tree. The blast takes out two men trying to sneak up to the front porch. One intruder is hiding behind the crashed SUV while two more men are crouched, making their way around to the backyard. Clemmons moves across the treeline and follows them around the house. Gladiator has O'Hare around his shoulder as he hits the panic button. He tosses him into Alex's room before metal gates slam shut in front of every door inside the house. Gladiator has his rifle drawn, easing his way down the hallway back toward the front door.

---

He raises his gun to his shoulder again. Taking precise shots from the woods Clemmons fires at the men in the backyard, missing the first shot, he fires again and takes out the man on the left. The other swings around, opening fire into the trees. Clemmons rolls and makes a run for the front yard.

    "There's four left. Two by the gate, one up front, and one in the back." Harold Clemmons radios to his crew.

Gladiator opens the front door and one man steps inside with his weapon ready.

    "All clear?" Parrish asks while easing inside.

    "I've still got one outside. One is injured in a bedroom down the hall and the other has the asset in the Safe Room. I can lift the lockdown on the house and take care of O'Hare, but it's going to take some time to get into the Safe Room." Gladiator shuts the front door and stands with Squad Leader Parrish as he radios for one of his men from the gate to come around back and join the last guy outside.

    "You need to find Harold Clemmons. He's out there somewhere." Parrish says with a firm tone.

Gladiator lifts the lockdown on the house and heads outside as Parrish opens the door to Alex's room. O'Hare is huddled in the corner, holding a blanket to his bleeding shoulder and raises his pistol to Parrish. Parrish smiles, and shoots the injured guard between the eyes with his silenced handgun. He starts searching the house for the stopwatch with the coordinates engraved on it, checking every closet, cabinet, and vent.

Clemmons has made his way to the front yard and behind the SUV while he reloads his rifle.

    "Clemmons, where are you?" Gladiator calls over the radio.

Harold is quiet for a moment, trying to catch his breath.

    "Clemmons, do you copy?" The voice of the british man can be heard in the background while Gladiator tries to radio again.

Harold Clemmons sits in disbelief on the bumper of the black SUV. "It can't be." he whispers to himself.

He can hear the men walking around the right side of the house. He turns down the volume on his walkie talkie and crawls around the car and inside the driver's side. Shutting the door, he realized the keys are still in the ignition and slouches down in the front seat trying not to be seen.

"Romeo, grab the demo kit from the car at the gate, then meet me inside. We've gotta get the door open." Parrish says over the radio.

The last man at the gate grabs a green bag from the back of the SUV and jogs down the driveway and into the house.

The three men outside are slowly walking through the front yard looking for Clemmons. Using nothing but hand motions, Gladiator is telling the two men to keep an eye out and listen for any movement. One of the approaches the SUV where Clemmons is still crouched in the driver's seat. He cups his hands to the tinted glass to look inside and Clemmons lifts his pistol and fires point blank between the man's eyes. He slides down the shattered glass to the ground beside the car. Clemmons rolls out of the passenger side door as Gladiator and his partner open fire on the SUV.

Clemmons lands on his stomach in the gravel and looks to his right underneath the car. He can see the feet of Gladiator and the other man. Raising his pistol again, he shoots one of the men in the leg. He falls in agony. Harold shoots him again in the back of the head, and the once pain riddled body now lies motionless in the cold, snow covered grass.

Gladiator runs around the SUV and Clemmons jumps up, opening fire as he backs down and makes a run for the backyard.

---

Romeo and Squad Leader Parrish are inside trying to open the secure door to the Safe Room.

    "Place that C4 clay on the hinges and step back," Parrish commands. "That bitch has to know where that watch is."

The two of them take cover. Blake is inside, shaking, scared to death as Jefferson covers her with his body before the blast. The door is blown off it's hinges, but the heavy deadbolt keeps the thick metal door in place.

    "Help me lift it out of the way." Parrish says as he pulls on the handle.

Romeo is pushing with his feet. Using his back as leverage, he has it pressed against the frame of the door behind him. He pushes as hard as he can, Parrish is pulling with him, grunting and trying to force the door open. Jefferson, covered in debris from the blast, draws his rifle and points it at the breached door, guarding Blake behind him.

The door starts to fall. Romeo and Parrish jump out of the way as the door hits the hardwood, and Jefferson opens fire through the dust filled air. The muzzle flash and echoing of gunshots has Blake shaking even more as she cowers into the corner, covering her ears. Romeo leans around the corner and returns fire, taking a shot to the shoulder, he falls backward and drops his gun. The bullets stop for a moment. Jefferson has no ammo left and Parrish takes a step into the once secure room. Taking the pistol from his waistline, and just as he did O'Hare, smiles before pulling the trigger.

Blake is covered in dirt and blood. Parrish leans over and grabs her by the hair, yanks her to her feet and forces her into the hallway.

    "Where is the watch you dumb bitch?" Demanding an answer as he shakes her around.

She kicks him in the leg. His knee buckles and he instinctively lets her go as he grabs his leg. Blake runs for the kitchen. The house is overcome by the smell of gun smoke and burning food. She grabs a knife and Parrish stumbles behind her, pointing his gun and grabbing at her torn sweatpants exposing her blue underwear.

    "I knew your husband so well, and you are so damn sexy. It's a shame I'm going to have to kill you after that little stunt you pulled. Now tell me, where is the watch?"

    "Eat this!" Blake says, throwing the burnt macaroni and cheese at Parrish's face.

Wiping the pasta from his face, he lunges toward Blake and slips on the food coated floor. They both fall, bumping the refrigerator on the way down. Blake is knocked unconscious and the refrigerator slides backward a few inches and then rocks back and forth for a moment. A thin golden chain is visible underneath the grill at the bottom of the fridge.

"Ahh, there she is," Parrish says, stammering to his feet. "I'll just be borrowing this."

Now on his feet, he looks at Blake who is moaning on the floor, eyes opening and closing. "Goodnight Blake. Tell your husband I said hello would you?"

He fires one shot into her chest and the moaning stops.

"Gladiator... Let's get out of here. I've got what the stopwatch. We've gotta go." Parrish wipes the macaroni and cheese off his uniform and heads out the front door.

Clemmons has been hiding behind a group of large rocks. Gladiator, following orders, stops his search and heads to the front of the house. Clemmons stands up, waiting for the all clear and then runs inside.

Alex, heading back down the street, sees two armed men jump inside the black SUV at the end of the driveway and take off. He is able to see the license plate before the car disappears down the road. He starts to panic, drops his bike and runs as fast as he can down the driveway.

The house is destroyed. Alex finds his way to the kitchen. There is food, blood, dirt and bullets all over. He sees Clemmons hunched over his mother and immediately screams,

    "MOM! Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead," he pushes Clemmons to the side and grabs his mother by the hand. "MOM!"

Blake is barely conscious. Her pulse is weak and is only able to open one eye. Clemmons calls 911 as Alex tends to his mother.

    "I'm here Mom. I'm not going anywhere. Just please don't go. Squeeze my hand Mom, just squeeze my hand."

She is weak. She squeezes her son's hands and forces a grin.

    "The ambulance is on the way Mom, you've got this!" Alex has tears streaming down his face. He presses her blood soaked hand against his face and places his other hand on her cheek.

A single tear falls from Blake's eye as she blankly stares at the wall.

    "Don't do this Mom, you're stronger than this! Don't do this! You're all I have. I love you!"

Choking back tears, Alex continues to squeeze her hand waiting for the paramedics to arrive. "Where is the FUCKING AMBULANCE?!"

The distant sound of sirens are quickly approaching and Harold runs outside to flag them down. Four police cars and two ambulance trucks pull into the yard. The paramedics lift Blake from the floor and onto a gurney.

    "Please, you're going to have to get back sir." One of the medics demands Alex.

Alex steps back, and they lift Blake into the air and wheel her out of the house.

    "I"m right here Mom. I'm not going anywhere." Alex reassures his dying mother.

Blake lifts her arm, reaching for Alex. He holds out his hand and Blake squeezes it.

    "I love you son...." She says just as her arm goes limp and her eyes roll into the back of her head.

    "Mom...." Alex falls to his knees. Tears pouring down his face, he falls backward in shock and covers his face.

Clemmons lowers himself to one knee and places a hand on Alex's back.

    "We'll get through this buddy. I'm here for you."

The ambulance carrying Blake's body strolls down the driveway, turns on its siren and speeds off.