Police were close enough to hear the gunfire, but not close enough to make a difference.

A Tennessee man attempted to break into his ex-girlfriend’s home this past Sunday in an apparent attempt at a murder-suicide that would have left three children without a mother, if it had been successful.

Fortunately, Shawna Brush’s 18-year old son from a previous relationship was able to use a firearm kept inside the home to shoot Brian Davidson as he forced his way through the front door, giving them both an opportunity to escape:

A man was killed Sunday night in Hendersonville after police say he tried to harm an ex-girlfriend with whom he had a tumultuous relationship.

It began when officers heard gunshots as they arrived to a home on Wessington Place just after 8 p.m. on reports of domestic violence.

Once they made entry, they found 36-year-old Brian Davidson dead inside the home.

An investigation revealed Davidson had entered the home unlawfully with the intent of harming 46-year-old Shawna Brush.

Brush’s son, 18-year-old Connor Brush, ultimately exchanged gunfire with Davidson, allowing him and his mother to escape unharmed.

Davidson was struck by one of Connor Brush’s bullets and went down. He then shot himself as police arrived.  It is unknown at this time which bullet ended his life. Davidson had only bonded out on June 28 after a raft of charges leveled against him for attacking Brush previously, including stalking and aggravated assault.

Shawna Brush had called the police repeatedly on Brian Davidson. He kept coming back. She called Sunday night, but it took too long for officers to respond.

If it weren’t for the gun in the Brush home, it seems likely that Davidson would have attempted to murder Conner and Shawna Brush before taking his own life, which would have left Davidson and Brush’s two children aged 8 and 10 who lived with her, as orphans. It is unclear if the two younger children were home at the time, and if Davidson might have killed them as well.

The presence of a gun in the home—and Connor Brush’s ability to use it in defense of his family—saved the lives of two people, and possibly as many as four.

Don’t expect this story to be widely spread in the media, folks (unless you share it yourself). It runs against the narrative that the media would like portray, which is that firearms are only used to kill occupants in domestic violence incidents, not to protect them.