. >> their downstairs neighbors were carmen smith and her son nick. nick had a million smoil. n haran is carmen's sister. >> she was a gorgeous strawberry blond, feisty. very outgoing young woman who loved her son more than anything in the whole world. they were just like two peas in a pod. >> it was a monday afternoon, the week before halloween. nick and christina got off the school bus and walked home together. cobb county prosecutor jesse evans. >> first thing they did is go downstairs to see if they could find nick's mom. her car was there. she should be there. >> while christina stayed by the door, nick went inside. someone was there but not his mom. >> nick turned the corner and he saw something move across the bedroom down the long hallway. >> it was a dark figure wearing gloves and a mask. the stranger suddenly stabbed nick and left him for dead. >> as he's laying there on the floor he actually sees his perpetrator run from the house. christina began really freaking out. she was terrified. >> christina ran upstairs to her apartment to get help. her baby-sitter katheryn