When Jimmy Lee Dykes boarded a school bus on Jan. 29, he told the driver he wasn't leaving without a child.
"I need two boys six to eight years old," Dykes said, in audio released to ABC News. "Six to eight years old. I mean it. Right now! Right now!"
The driver, Charles Poland, resisted in an attempt to save 5-year-old Ethan from abduction. The move cost Poland his life.
"It's my responsibility to keep these kids on the bus. I can't turn them over to somebody else," Poland is heard saying, moments before he was shot dead by Dykes.
That audio, as well as photos from the the bomb-rigged Alabama bunker where Dykes held Ethan captive for the next six days, were released exclusively to ABC News this week.
The photos reveal a tiny but well-stocked room, 12 feet deep and about eight feet long by six feet wide. There, Ethan was forced to learn how to detonate a bomb should Dykes be killed by police.
Dykes became more aggressive in the days leading up to Ethan's rescue. He made demands and spouted his political beliefs through a PVC pipe in the bunker, which turned out to contain a homemade bomb, the New York Daily News reported at the time.
Officials were able to insert a small, high-tech camera into the bunker and watch Dyke's movements. He was later killed during an exchange of gunfire with police, who raided the bunker using explosive devices.
Listen to the audio above and read more about how cops saved Ethan at ABC News.