To Love & To Protect by Deborah R. Brandon

escorted her to her seat. Her girls hugged her legs as the pastor gave the benediction and closed out the service.
    As Jasmine stood, talking to anyone and everyone, Ethan’s sixth sense started to tingle. He started to scan the congregation slowly. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing at attention. Trujillo and Townsend were the first to notice that Ethan’s mannerisms had changed and joined him scanning the crowd. Trent started to tell his family to start leaving the church when there was a scream from the back of the church. Trent, Kimberly, and Trujillo went in the direction of the disturbance. Jasmine was reaching for her girls, but Marisol and Carina were already there using their bodies to protect and shield the girls like Ethan was doing for her.
    Ethan continued to scan the crowd, yet no one stood out of place. Trent came from the back and walked up to the podium and addressed the remaining congregation. “There is a situation that has developed. The FBI has been contacted and is in route. I would like to ask that everyone please leave the church in a calm and orderly fashion please.”  People started to leave the church and did as Trent instructed.
    Trent came over to Ethan, and advised for him to get all of his family and friends out of the church safely and back to the Estate. Someone had left a message for Jasmine in the offering plate. They had cut out words from various newspaper articles and glued them onto a piece of construction paper. It had been more of a warning than a threat. None the less everyone needed to be on their A game. 
    Everyone was able to get back to Blake-Moore Estates safely. The mood and atmosphere had changed. Ethan had recalled seeing a light skin gentleman of medium height in the church who quite frankly looked out of place. He gave it the benefit of the doubt until his sixth sense had kicked in. He had checked the gentleman’s location throughout the service and he was still in the same spot. Yet when all the commotion was going on in the front of the church, he noticed that the same gentleman left before they were given the all clear. His gut was telling him that this guy had something to do with all of this. 
    Ethan left the girls and Jasmine in care of Carina, Michelle, Stacy, Kimberly and Jamieson. He, Trujillo, Kennedy, and Townsend went back to the church, where he gave a description to an FBI sketch artist. They reviewed information that had been taken into evidence. He also shared the information on the three suspects that they thought would be people of interest. He followed up on the University providing the information for their independent contractors. He did all that he could, then they all climbed back into the car and headed back to Blake-Moore Estates.
    Ethan admitted to himself that he felt like a caged animal right now. He wanted to tear someone, anyone up right now. He hated that more than anything, the fact that Jasmine was and her family were hurting needlessly. He also was kicking his own ass as well, because if he wasn’t distracted by the woman herself, then maybe this case would be closed by now. Everyone on the team had their heads in the cloud. He felt like it was the results of his poor leadership.
    It was Trent who broke the silence.
    “I know that Michelle’s remission in regards to her leg has caught us all off guard. What she is going through affects us all directly in one way or the other. We may not have limbs that have become infected, but are fighting a war inside our minds. A war, that is making us doubt what we already know to be true about each and every one of us. Coming home and finding out that I have a son has caught me off guard and seeing family and friends who I neglected deliberately, and chose to keep at a distance due to no fault of their own, has caught me off guard. I have been focused to deal with my personal shit and so is Michelle. Ethan, you are dealing with your abandonment issues. You are leading your first