Police in North Carolina are searching for two people who they said were responsible for Friday’s shooting death of a mother who protected her five children during a home invasion.

Union County police told WBTV that Lucero Sosa Capote died while defending her children, all younger than 13, from the two intruders. Her 12-year-old son recalled how his mother placed herself in front of the intruders, shielding him and his siblings from harm.

“The last words she said to me were ‘I love you’,” he told the news station.

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WJZY reported that two children were injured in Friday’s incident, including a 4-year-old who was hit in the head.

The slain woman’s husband, Rafael Vargas, told the news station that he was at work when the home invasion occurred. Vargas said he works everyday but the family is financially strapped and doesn’t have money in the home.

Vargas tearfully recalled the call he received about the break-in, saying, “Somebody shoots 3 times and I think she was fighting for his kids and she gave her life for his kids.”

He went on to reveal that the family is moving out of the home in light of his wife’s murder. WJZY reported that the children are staying with grandparents while their father and other relatives pack up the home.

Vargas’ sister said of the children, “They just miss their mother and they’re just crying for her and they want to come home.”

Anyone with information regarding Friday’s deadly home invasion should call the Monroe Police Department at 704-282-4700 or Union County Crime Stoppers at 704-283-5600.

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[Featured image: Lucero Sosa Capote/GoFundMe]