After their house was broken into a few years ago, Christopher Smith told his son Braydon, “If they come in the door, you let ’em have it.” Braydon never forgot those words.

He didn’t expect to learn his father’s lesson so quickly.

Braydon was home alone in Mebane, North Carolina, in June of 2019. A 19-year-old man reportedly broke in through a window while he was on the phone with his mom.

The intruder, who may have had two helpers, came up to Braydon and told him to lock himself in a closet while he tried to steal different things. But the brave boy was determined to protect his home and his family’s things.

In an interview with ABC11, Braydon talks about what happened next in terrifying detail: “He pointed at me with a pellet gun that was in our house. I knew it wasn’t loaded, so when he told me to sit down and go into my closet, I did just that. He went into the living room to get my phone to make sure I didn’t call 911 or anything.”

Braydon saw that the person trying to break in was trying to put that phone in his pocket. And when the man turned around, Braydon took the chance to run and get his mac-hete (which, normally, he only uses to help his dad chop down trees).