Page 69 of Daddy Defender
I ease up, crawling to the rear window, my fingers trembling as I peel back the curtain, just a sliver.
A blacked-out SUV speeds past on the main road, no headlights, its engine a menacing growl.
My stomach drops.
It’s them—more cartel men, heading for the pier.
They must’ve been backup, waiting in the wings, and now they’re joining the fight. Henry’s already got his hands full, and this… this could tip the scales.
“No, no, no,” I whisper, clutching Poot so tight his fur squishes. My Little side wants to curl up, pretend it’s a bad dream, but I can’t. Henry needs to know. I grab the radio, my hands shaking, and press the button.
“Daddy, it’s me,” I say, my voice urgent, forcing myself to sound clear. “Can you hear me? I’m at the checkpoint, safe, but… I just saw another SUV. Black, no lights, speeding toward the pier. More cartel guys, I’m sure of it. Be careful, please.”
There’s a pause, static crackling, and I hold my breath, terrified I’ve messed up. Then Henry’s voice comes through, rough but steady.
“Good boy, Bodie,” Henry answers. “That’s my brave Little One. Stay hidden, no matter what. I’m fighting my way back to you, don’t care how many cartel bastards show up. You hear me?”
“I hear you, Daddy,” I say, tears pricking my eyes, my Little side glowing at his praise but terrified for him. “But… there’s so many of them now. You’re already outnumbered. I’m scared.”
“I know, sweet boy,” Henry says, his voice softening, all Daddy warmth. “But Cole, Connor, and me—we’re Guards. We don’t go down easy. You trust your Daddy, right?”
“Always,” I whisper, nodding even though he can’t see, my heart aching with trust and fear.
“Then wait for me,” he says. “I’m coming for you, Bodie. I promise.”
The radio clicks off, and I’m alone again, the SUV’s rumble long gone, the night pressing in.
I sink back into the blankets, clutching Poot and Billy, my Little side trembling. They were already outnumbered, and now more cartel men are piling in.
Henry’s tough, a Guard who’s faced all this and more in the past, but he’s not invincible. The thought of him hurt—or worse—because of me, it’s a wave too big, threatening to pull me under.
I close my eyes, trying to find that brave Bodie, the one who’s not just a scared Little but a surfer boy who’s faced monsters before.
My mind drifts back, to a day three years ago, when I rode the biggest, most terrifying wave of my life…
It was Mavericks, up near Half Moon Bay, a surf spot that chews up pros and spits them out.
I was twenty, cocky, chasing legends.
The swell was massive, thirty-footers rolling in like mountains, the kind that make your stomach drop just watching.
My friends said I was nuts to paddle out, but I felt it—that fire, that need to prove I could.
I had Poot tucked in my bag on the shore, my most cherished stuffy cheering me on, and I hit the water, my board slicing through the chop.
The wave came, a beast, towering over me, its face glassy and cruel.
My heart screamed to bail, but I popped up, knees bent, board steady. The drop was endless, like falling off a cliff, the wind ripping at my hair, the ocean roaring in my ears.
I carved down, my body one with the wave, every instinct razor-sharp. Halfway down, it started to close out, the lip curling to crush me, but I leaned in, adjusted, rode the pocket.
I made it, shooting out the other side, whooping like a kid, my Little side bursting with pride.
That day, I’d truly faced the monster… and won.
That Bodie—he’s still in me, somewhere.
I hug Poot and Billy tighter, their softness grounding me, and whisper, “I can be brave again. For Daddy.”
