reporter: you fainted? i completely blacked out, hit the floor. so i called the sheriff s department and asked them if they knew what was going on. and they said just stay right where you re at. reporter: james daughter katelynn got a message at school. i walk outside, and i call a family friend, and he goes, are you sitting down? i think you need to sit down, katelynn. i was like, what s going on? and all i remember is just dropping to the ground. reporter: rachel s friend shannon couldn t believe what she read online. i found out through facebook. i was scrolling and saw someone post something, r.i.p. rachel. reporter: all right. and i was like, what the hell is going on? so then i called her younger brother, and he said somebody came into her house and murdered her. and i said, what do you mean
up. i was like, wow, that sounds like rachel. and i see these two men walking up the driveway. and i was like, oh my god. what are they doing here? and i ran out. i m like, dad, todd s here. and so is don. he goes, all right. let s get this over with. and i grabbed the nine or i didn t grab the nine, i grabbed the m4. reporter: katelynn is talking about the guns she had at the ready, a nine millimeter pistol and an m-4 rifle. and james? he had a pistol holstered in the small of his back as he walked out to greet todd and don. i had a nine millimeter on me, and i know how to use it extremely well. reporter: here is james memory of a confrontation so tense it sounds almost surreal. as the two men approached the house, he said, they hid behind todd and rachel s children. he had ariel in his arms, using her as a human shield. and don had alex in his arms, hiding on the other side of the car. reporter: they were afraid
he was gonna stop the bullets, reporter: that s a little scary. yeah, it is scary. todd was holding ariel, and don was holding alex. and todd came up, he looks just a wreck. todd confronted me, he said, rachel and i aren t divorced yet, and i would appreciate it if you would stay away from her. reporter: and? no. reporter: you said, no ? i said, no. reporter: there was a pause. if something was going to happen, this would be the moment. and then he turns to me and he goes, hi katelynn. i was like, get off this property. reporter: and suddenly, it was over. todd and don and the kids got back into the land cruiser and drove off. what was the feeling like as this was going on? the feeling for me was, god, i hope that this clears the air.
and they said just stay right where you re at. reporter: james daughter katelynn got a message at school. i walk outside, and i call a family friend, and he goes, are you sitting down? i think you need to sit down, katelynn. i was like, what s going on? and all i remember is just dropping to the ground. reporter: rachel s friend shannon couldn t believe what she read online. i found out through facebook. i was scrolling and saw someone post something, r.i.p. rachel. reporter: all right. and i was like, what the hell is going on? so then i called her younger brother, and he said somebody came into her house and murdered her. and i said, what do you mean somebody came into her house and murdered her? reporter: coming up
i m like, dad, todd s here. and so is don. he goes, all right. let s get this over with. and i grabbed the nine or i didn t grab the nine, i grabbed the m4. reporter: katelynn is talking about the guns she had at the ready, a nine millimeter pistol and an m-4 rifle. and james? he had a pistol holstered in the small of his back as he walked out to greet todd and don. i had a nine millimeter on me, and i know how to use it reporter: here is james memory of a confrontation so tense it sounds almost surreal. as the two men approached the house, he said, they hid behind todd and rachel s children. he had ariel in his arms, using her as a human shield. and don had alex in his arms, hiding on the other side of the car. reporter: they were afraid that you were gonna shoot them. perhaps. and i can t remember whether or not todd actually went to the door with the kid or i went to the door or whatever. but he was a human shield.