THREE YEARS BEFORE THE OUTBREAK...

Aaron sat outside the Hecoxes' bedroom, curled up into a ball against the wall next to their door. The sun was finishing its descent, and the sky was a dim orange, like a dying ember. The world beyond the window was the one thing Aaron tried to focus on to distract himself from the loud arguments occurring on the other side of the bedroom door. He had never seen Mr. and Mrs. Hecox this angry at each other before.

But one thing he noticed about this argument was the fact that they weren't mad because the stuff he and Nika found was a secret kept from everyone. Mrs. Hecox was mad her husband didn't tell the kids sooner.

"How the hell am I supposed to tell our children I have enough weapons to destroy the British Parliament?!" Mr. Hecox shouted. "I look like a terrorist, not a caretaker!"

"And that's the problem, Roderick," Mrs. Hecox replied. "You're making yourself look too suspicious! Show them that you would use these for the greater good! That this is for stopping enemies, not making them."

"They're kids, Agatha. They've never witnessed acts of violence before, and I pray they never do. But they still don't understand the purpose of weapons aside from destroying. And that it's not the gun that kills, but the person holding it."

"Then we can teach them that those kinds of manmade creations only belong in the right hands. Those who know the difference between their allies and their enemies."

"And whose hands would those be? I've already proven who shouldn't be wielding them."

"Aaron?" Jonah whispered from the corner of the hall. "What are you doing, bruv?"

"In trouble," Aaron replied, slouching his head.

Jonah trudged his way toward Aaron. "I don't think so. Did they even mention anything about you and Nika during their little kerfuffle?"

"Not directly. But they have been referencing us as 'the children' a couple of times."

Jonah slid down to the floor beside Aaron. "But does it sound like they're mad at you?"

Aaron shrugged. "I don't know. At this rate, they're just mad at everything in general. In fact, I bet Mr. Hecox is angrier at himself than at us."

Jonah leaned his head against the wall. "What about you, bruv? You don't think you're responsible for any of this, do you?"

"Of course I do. I just wish Nika would realize that. She was crying earlier because she thinks it's all her fault. I hate it when she feels guilty for actions she didn't commit."

"I think Natalya hates you now because of that," Jonah chuckled. "Sorry. The thought just popped into my head all of a sudden."

Aaron's focus returned to the Hecoxes. "Maybe we should tell them now," he heard Mrs. Hecox say.

"Should we gather them up in the foyer?" Mr. Hecox asked. "I mean we legally own those weapons, but it would be pretty uncomfortable to talk about guns out in the open while surrounded by children."

"Definitely the foyer. As long as we settle things down."

Aaron could hear the sound of their footsteps approaching the door. He and Jonah jumped to their feet, too scared to move.

"They're gonna kill us!" Jonah whispered. "And this time, for real now that we know about their guns!"

"No, Jonah," Aaron replied. "They're gonna kill me."

The door opened up. Aaron and Jonah dropped to their knees and started bowing up and down like if they were praising gods. Mr. Hecox was understandably confused, but Mrs. Hecox tried to hold back laughter.

"Sorry, sir, sorry, miss, sorry, sir, sorry, miss!" the two boys repeated over and over again with every bow.

Mrs. Hecox let out a chuckle. "Did you boys hear the whole thing?"

"Sorry, sir, sorry, miss, sorry..."

"Neither of you are in trouble," Mr. Hecox said.

"Sorry, sir—wait, what?" Aaron said, pausing in the middle of his bow. "Why not?"

Jonah slapped him in the ribs. "Don't ask for a punishment, bruv!"

"We'll explain everything in the foyer with the rest of the kids," Mr. Hecox continued. "There's something we should've told you a long time ago."

"Come along, boys," Mrs Hecox said, and the four of them proceeded down the hall.

Three minutes later, all of the children were gathered in the foyer, blocking the front door. The Cod Squad stood at the front of the group. Aaron thought this was appropriate given the fact this was kind of his fault. But his heart was broken by the fact Nika was taking this out on herself. She had her arms wrapped around Natalya as she continued to bawl her eyes out, a tissue clutched in one hand. Her cries weren't as sorrowful as earlier, but it was still evident the discovery had broken her.

"Nika, I—"

"Bugger off, Aaron," Natalya growled, still embracing her sister. "She's too busy feeling guilty for your mistake."

Aaron paused before he could say anything else. He knew (or at least hoped) Nika would eventually accept his apology, but Natalya kept interfering, to the point he made fourteen unsuccessful apology attempts that day. So he stopped for now and awkwardly stood by Jonah.

"Don't worry, bruv," Jonah whispered. "If Natalya quit being bitchy, Nika would finally be able to speak for herself. I have no doubt she'd accept your apology in a heartbeat."

"No, she won't!" Natalya exclaimed.

"Damn it. She heard me."

"Y'know, for a nine-year-old, you swear too much," Aaron muttered.

"I do? Shit, I'm sorry."

The Hecoxes entered from the side of the foyer. Mrs. Hecox smiled to reassure her kids everything would be okay, but Aaron could sense the lack of genuine happiness. It was a forced grin, not representing how she felt, but how she wanted her and the children to feel.

"Hello, children," she greeted. "I know many of you have heard about what happened earlier."

"Is the fuzz coming for us?" one of the older kids asked.

"Don't worry. The police aren't out to get us."

"Is Mr. Hecox a terrorist?" Jonah asked, raising his hand to seem remotely polite.

"Of course not, Mr. Franklin. Please refrain from thinking such outlandish thoughts and let Mr. Hecox explain himself."

She moved to the side to let her husband pass through, but after spotting a weeping Nika, she trudged over to her to comfort her. As Mrs. Hecox held Nika in her arms, Mr. Hecox made his way to the front of the crowd and paused in front of the stairs.

This was the first time anyone ever saw him with a look of defeat.

"Good evening, children," he greeted softly. "I'm here to talk about what went down earlier."

"Sir!" Aaron pleaded. "I'm—"

"Not responsible for it, Aaron. None of this is your—or Nika's—fault. It was mine for hiding this from all of you."

"So even Mrs. Hecox didn't know about this?" Natalya asked.

"No, she knew. We just thought it would be safer if you kids never found out about what was hidden down there. We were hoping we could derail your curiosity. But sadly, almost all secrets come to light eventually."

"Why did you have those weapons?" one of the older kids asked.

"It's a long story." Mr. Hecox glanced over at his wife and Nika. "And Nika dear," he spoke softly, "please don't cry. I've already told you none of this is your fault, so don't hold yourself responsible."

"But...if we didn't go in..." Nika said, gasping in between words.

"If you didn't go in today, one of you would've gone in eventually." Mr. Hecox sat down on the stairs. "That weapons stash belonged to my father. He used to serve in the British Army. He claimed he had become so skilled with those weapons, his life would lose purpose if anyone ever took them away."

"Are they legal?" Natalya asked.

"Of course. As least that's what Father told me."

"What kind of weapons?" asked the older boy.

"Handguns, grenades, and hunting knives. Nothing automatic or heavy. Not that any of you kids have permission to use them."

"Why do you still have them?" Aaron asked this time.

"Because...I share the same belief with my father, only it's not the weapons I can't live without. It's you. All the young men and women standing before me. And if something so tragic ever happened to you, the first thing I would turn to is those weapons to protect you. I'd make sure protecting all of you would be my last stand."

The kids remained silent, mostly out of confusion. While a few of them were touched by his devotion to their safety, some still weren't satisfied with the fact he kept an entire artillery a secret. Then came Nika's armor-piercing question.

"Are you sure you know what purpose those weapons were made for?"

Mr. Hecox raised his eyebrow. "What makes you think we don't know what these were made for, Nika?"

"We're young, Mr. Hecox," Nika explained. "But that doesn't mean we're unaware."

"Unaware of what?"

"What those weapons can do in the wrong hands," Natalya chimed in. "Are you sure your hands are the right ones?"

Mr. Hecox's heart was pounding out of his chest. Had everyone suddenly lost trust in him? Was this a mistake he couldn't recover from?

"Natalya," Mr. Hecox said carefully, "I hate to admit this, especially to children, but..."

Aaron glanced back at Mrs. Hecox. Her eyes were full of fear. She could no longer predict what words would leave her husband's tongue.

"Some people cross lines to protect the ones they love," Mr. Hecox spoke, his voice cold and almost frightening. Like if he was seconds away from snapping. "I think I might be one of those people. In fact, I know I'm one of them. And I hope no one ever has to see what I'll do if I find out my wife and kids have been hurt."

Mrs. Hecox quickly let go of Nika and jumped up, prepared to restrain Mr. Hecox if he snapped. She clenched her fists and slowly approached him. "You're scaring them, Roderick," she said. "You're scaring me."

Mr. Hecox turned around and slowly walked up the stairs, tilting his head back to address the others one last time for the night. "Stay away from that room at all costs. Only me and Mrs. Hecox are allowed in there. And even that is debatable since I'll be boarding it up first thing in the morning. Have a lovely evening, kids."

And he vanished into the second floor, not seen again for the rest of the night.

"What's gonna happen now, miss?" Nika asked, her tears finally subsiding.

"For now, I need all of you to gather up in the kitchen," Mrs. Hecox replied. "And like he said, avoid the basement at all costs. Not even the two of us will be allowed in there anymore."

"What kind of situation was he preparing for?" Jonah asked.

"Can't say, Jonah. But whatever he's preparing for, I hope that day never comes."