My dad had been my beacon for all of my life.
The shining light that had gotten me through the darkest, uncertain days.
His brilliant mind was admired all over the world, but it was his genuine heart that made him the greatest father to me.
I never imagined the day would come when something like this would ever happen to him.
It made me scared, upset, and very, very angry.
I knew Webb, Leo, and everyone was working overtime to find him.
I saw and heard everything that was happening in the office.
Webb’s directives to Tony.
Webb’s adamant demands for information from Leo.
And Webb’s unfailing devotion to me.
It had been twenty four hours now, but it felt like forever.
Webb hadn’t slept a wink.
Yet he was functioning as if he had ten hours’ worth of sleep.
Liam had come in and out of the office, and a couple of times he hugged me and said, “We’ll find him, Athena.”
There was also that one time when Webb was busy on the computer and Liam and I were on the lounge, not really talking to each other, but sitting by quietly across from each other when Liam pointed at Webb who seemed so absorbed in what he was doing and said, “If you still don’t know what love is, all you have to do is look at him.”
And I did. I looked at him. At Webb.
And I saw –
Love was giving everything he had so he could save my father.
Love was constantly reassuring me that everything was going to be alright even when he maybe doubted himself.
Love was never giving up, even when Tony or Leo would give him news that he didn’t like, Webb forged on, telling them to look at it at a different angle.
Love was…shining in his beautiful blue eyes, that softened whenever he glanced my way.
I’d never thought I’d be the recipient of love from a man.
Not like this.
Not in the overpowering, ride-or-die stuff that I’d heard people say when they talked about love.
But now, I saw it. I felt it. And I cherished it.
My father was my beacon. He gave me life.
And now, Webb, my anchor was going to bring him back to me.
I had to believe it.
Even when at times, I heard the resignation in Webb’s voice when he was on a call and he didn’t like what the intel being fed to him – I had to keep faith that my father was alive.
Twenty four hours hadn’t brought us any luck into knowing where my father was.
He was taken from the hotel where he was staying at, through the window, and down from the third floor to a waiting car.
Tony had gotten that information from the security cameras. The feed was delayed so Leo’s team didn’t see anything wrong until later.
I held no vendetta against anyone.
My parents had ingrained in me to love everyone as they were.
And in my life, I’d always seen the positive, the good in every person.
But for the life of me, I could not see the good in this El Padre guy. I saw him as a vile, vindictive, non-human.
This world would be a much better place without him in it.
“Babe.” I felt the nudge on my left arm.
I slowly woke up, I didn’t even realize I was sleeping until now.
Exhaustion can do that to a person, I felt like I was on a live wire for the past day. Never knowing exactly what time it was and what I was doing.
I’d fallen asleep in Webb’s arms when he sat on the couch with me while staring at a mass of data that Tony and Leo’s team were giving him.
I knew he was itching to go and do something, but at this point, there wasn’t much that he could physically do other than look at security footages, real-time intel, and wait.
Wait for any communication from the kidnappers.
Wait for news about my dad’s whereabouts.
Wait for everything.
And while waiting, I had fallen asleep.
“Babe…” I heard the tiredness in his voice and as I opened my eyes, I met the cloudy, dark blues of his gaze.
“Yeah?”
He propped me up in his arms so that I was resting on his shoulders. I could see the day and a half’s worth of stubble growing under his chin. Webb liked to shave his face because otherwise, he got itchy. The last thing on his agenda right now was personal grooming. I ran my right hand across it and it felt rough, prickly against my skin.
“We have news.” His voice held an odd sound.
“Okay…”
“El Padre’s people have made contact.” The pools of cobalt blue held my attention. I’d never get over how beautiful he was. “They have Joseph.”
My jaw tightened, “Is he alive?” I couldn’t even entertain the thought of the alternative – that my dad wasn’t alive because I wouldn’t know what to do. How I would even cope.
“Yes.” His hard lips planted a kiss on my forehead.
“They want his formula? Is that it? Why did they take him? Are they going to let him go?” My questions came out in a rush and I demanded answers.
“They might let him go.” He was talking straight, but he was also waiting to give me something else, I just felt it. “He’s safe for now.”
“What do we have to do to get him back?” There was nothing I wouldn’t do to get my father back.
His voice was eerily calm and collected, and at this moment, I caught a glimpse of the man-in-command, the warrior who led his team into victory, the SEAL who never gave up. “They want to meet with me.”
“With you?” My eyebrows raised in disbelief. “They have my dad and now they want you?”
“Tony received a text to the phone he’d established for the kidnappers to make contact. It’s a secured line that even the NSA can’t breach. Leo’s team doesn’t know what’s happening. Only Tony, Liam, you, and me know about it. I had a feeling that El Padre wouldn’t want to go through the regular lines of communication. It has been his M.O. from the beginning. Anyways, this morning, a text came through and it said that they wanted to meet with me.”
I couldn’t say anything. I didn’t want him to go.
“What if something bad happens to you? What if they take you, too?” I finally voiced out.
“I’m getting your father back, babe.” His voice held a promise that I couldn’t breach. “I don’t care what they want to do with me. I’ll get him back for you.”
I trusted that Webb would do everything that he could to save my dad.
I had to trust that he knew what he was doing too.
It took me a few beats and then I said, “I love you.”
His eyes gentled, “I love you, too.”
“Bring him back to me, Webb.” I moved my legs so I could straddle him and put my arms around his neck, relishing the strength that this man had, embracing the power that he had over me.
“I will.” It wasn’t a promise, it was a fact.
“And come back to me.” My voice fractured because I didn’t want to imagine my life without him.
It was said that the mightiest of men wielded power not with the sword, but with the words that they used. Webb had the skills of a powerful warrior, but he also had the mind of an accomplished strategist. And I had to believe, keep my faith, and never lose hope in all of that.
“I will, sonnenschein.” His voice held no hints of vulnerability, producing a steady beat to my galloping heart, “I will always come back to you.”