Leo's Point of View

The second the truck rolled into the base, I was opening the door. In the front, there were two men: one driving and one clutching what looked like just a bundle of blankets. The bundle of blankets stirred and I was met with a pair of innocent, watery eyes.

"Papa," it sobbed.

Its lips quivered and its eyebrows furrowed before tears began to stream down its soft little cheeks.

I instantly pulled it into my arms and held it tight.

"Cato," I whispered, kissing his head time and time again. "It's okay. You're safe now."

He wrapped his little arms around my neck and clung as he cried into my chest.

"Thank you," I said to the soldiers that had brought him back to me. "Your bravery will be rewarded."

They nodded.

"We're just sorry that it came to what it came to and that your son had to experience," one said.

"You did what was necessary and with time, he will recover."

The course of Cato's return hadn't run smoothly. Ella handed herself to Andrea and he released Cato. Cato was driven as far as California but then being the lying cheat Andrea is, withdrew from his part of the deal claiming that Cato would remain in his custody until he no longer needed the threat of his demise to control Ella. The time frame for that was unclarified and I saw the rescuing of my seven-year-old son from the trauma of being kidnapped by a gang of thugs as far too urgent to wait so had my men intercept the vehicle just before they got back to the border. It resulted in Cato witnessing the deaths of his abductors which is something no parent would ever want their kid to see even if they were bad people.

I held myself fully responsible for this. I'd failed as a parent and to make it even worse, now I was a single parent.copy right hot novel pub