Jim-Bob stuck out a hand to keep Elizabeth from running into the creek that was running in the middle of the woods. "Hold on!" he barked, and she skidded to a stop.

"Whew," she muttered, breathing heavily. "That was…close."

Her older brother nodded in agreement. "Yeah…let's not do it again." He turned to backtrack, only to see a figure marching in the shadows.

In his hands was a rifle.

"Elizabeth, down!" he whispered as loudly as he could, pulling his sister down to the ground as he collapsed. Elizabeth strained her eyes to see what he was looking at. "What? What is it, Jim-Bob?" she asked, a little too loudly.

"Be quiet!" Jim-Bob hissed back, looking at her. "He might see us."

Elizabeth's confusion was present on her shadowed face. "Who might see us?!"

Before Jim-Bob could answer, a shot escaped the gun's barrel. The figure was running to cover behind a tree. Jim-Bob ducked down as the bullet slammed into the nearby tree's trunk. "Get back! Get back!" Jim-Bob ordered, falling down on flat on his face as he tried to scramble to cover.

Elizabeth had already followed her brother's commands, running behind the appointed tree. Jim-Bob was crawling to the same tree as another shot rang out, sending dirt and dust into the air.

Dirt and dust that had been right where Jim-Bob was lying.

Jim-Bob panted as he and Elizabeth sat side-by-side against the tree's trunk. Another shot was fired, another chip of bark splintered from the tree.

"Jim-Bob, what are we gonna do?" Elizabeth asked frantically. Her fear and worry were clear in her voice. Jim-Bob looked off into the distance. He thought he could make out three figures sprinting off towards a dim light.

"There! There's Mary Ellen, Erin, and Jason! They're running to the house!" He stood up, grabbing Elizabeth's arm. "Come on, Elizabeth! Run!"

The two ran quickly, ignoring the next gunshot. And the next. And the one after that.

The figures that Jim-Bob had seen were not, in fact, Mary Ellen, Erin, and Jason. Two of them were right, yes, but the third was the stranger.

And he was catching up to Mary Ellen very quickly.

Erin threw a glance over her shoulder as the stranger shot out a hand, grabbing Mary Ellen's wrist.

Mary Ellen let out a shriek as the man grabbed her arms, pressing her against a nearby tree. She tried to pull away, but couldn't escape his grasp. She could feel his breath beating upon her face. She tried to strike out, but couldn't.

For one of the first times in her life, she was truly scared.

He pressed his body against hers, smirking. "You know you want me, sweetheart…" But before he could continue any further, a pair of interlocked hands smashed down on his head, sending him to the ground.

Erin stood behind him, panting. Mary Ellen glanced up to her, but then motioned on. "Run! Get going!" With a swift kick she left the stranger on the ground and ran as fast as she could towards the house.

The truck pulled to a stop on the road, where shouts sounded out in the woods. John recognized his children's yells.

"I'm going in there!" he yelled, tearing from the driver's seat. John-Boy jumped out behind him as Zeb kept his rifle steady. "I'll stay out here in the truck, John. Lord knows I'd just slow you down, and this way I can drive on if I need to."

John nodded. "Okay, Pa! Hopefully we'll come back with some good news!" Zeb smiled, showing his agreement. "Me too, John." He narrowed his eyes at John-Boy. "Help your daddy, John-Boy. And bring back the rest of my grandchildren."

John-Boy smiled up to his grandfather. "I will, Grandpa."

The two quickly stole off into the woods, their weapons loaded. Both of the Walton men kept their eyes peeled for any signs of Jason, Mary Ellen, Erin, Jim-Bob, and Elizabeth.

And the stranger that was running rampant.

Soon, John-Boy caught a figure in his sight. "Daddy!" he called out, pointing to the shape that was in the shadows. John nodded. "I see him, John-Boy."

He stopped, aiming his pistol. "Hold it right there!" he yelled. John-Boy got into a settled position with his rifle. The figure's voice was familiar. "Don't shoot! It's me, Jason!"

John and John-Boy lowered their weapons. Jason ran into the clearing, his face matted with sweat. He was clearly worried and fearful.

"Where are the others, Jason?" John demanded, lowering his weapon. Jason pointed off into the woods. "They ran off…Daddy, I saw Cameron Winshaw out here."

John nodded. "I'd think as much. That stranger killed his wife."

Jason shook his head. "You don't understand, Daddy; he's gonna be shooting at him, and that means one of his bullets may hit one of the others! We have to stop him. John sighed, rubbing his temples. "Jason, you and John-Boy stick together and go off that way." He pointed towards a direction in the dark woods. "I'll go this way." He motioned towards another portion that was appointed as his hunting grounds.

The two brothers nodded. "Will do, Daddy," Jason said, turning to the shadows of the woods. "Well, are you ready, John-Boy?" he asked. The older of the two young men nodded. "Ready as I'll ever be, Jason."

Here's chapter 9! Just one more chapter to go, and then the epilogue, and…we're done! Thank you for sticking with this story, even amidst its breaks, and I hope you enjoy the end and the other Waltons stories to come!