Defender's Heartbeat

Chapter 41

Enzo

In that dream, they kidnapped me. They tied my mouth and covered my head with a black disguise, forcing me to bend down on the car seat. They bound my hands and legs as well. Then they took me to an old house that smelled terrible and felt damp. I had never been to such a place, and it made me feel uncomfortable and scared. The room had a thin mattress on the floor. They locked me in that room and gave me food once a day along with water. I wasn't hungry, but one man slapped me and demanded that I eat, so I did because I was frightened.

I kept thinking about Papa the whole time I was there. I was scared I'd never see him again. I didn't understand why those men were retaining me there, and gradually, I began to lose my grip on reality. I forgot about everything else until Papa came to rescue me. After witnessing all the horrible things that happened during the rescue, I became even more scared, and that fear haunted me for years.

Finally, I told Pedro everything so he wouldn't fire Papa.

"Now you won't fire Papa, right? I told you everything," I asked.

"No, Enzo. You can keep him forever," he replied with a sigh. I saw his eyes shining as if he had tears in them.

"Why didn't you tell any of this to Manuel?" he asked again.

"Because I'm scared," I replied.

"Scared of whom?" he asked, confused.

"Papa," I admitted.

"Manuel?"

"No, Papa," I said again.

"Our Papa?" he clarified.

"Yes," I confirmed.

"Why is that?" he inquired, and I recounted what Papa did to me after I said something in front of a stranger. He looked at me in shock.

"He did that to you?" he asked. I didn't understand why he was so surprised; he knew how Papa punished me.

"Why are you surprised? You know how Papa punished me," I replied. And Pedro did something I had never expected. Pedro knelt in front of me, catching me off guard, and took both of my hands.

"Enzo, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for taking so long to do something for you. Can you forgive me, Enzo?" he said, kissing my hands and crying. I was bewildered; I had never seen Pedro cry before.

"Mmm... okay...," I murmured, just to stop him from crying like a Man baby in front of me.

Shit, is this how I look when I cry? No way. I must stop crying in front of others.

Then he laid his head on my lap and began to sob, leaving me unsure of what to do.

God, Pedro, stop it. You're tickling me. Let me go.

It's not that I don't feel bad for him, but he's Pedro. Pedro doesn't cry, and I have no idea why he's crying or asking for forgiveness. I just wanted to leave before he asked more questions. I began to stroke his hair gently, like Papa does when I cry, hoping it would help this big man stop. Well, it worked. Yes!

"You are ready to get healed, right?" he asked after standing up and wiping his cheeks.

"Yeah," I said, but I was ready to run away before he acted weird again.

"Can I leave?" I asked, and he said yes. I ran home like a Sonic.

Manuel

Finally, Enzo was feeling better. They could go out together again, and he was thrilled about it. However, he was getting tired of Pedro's and Louis's bodyguards. They were responsible men, and there was no real reason to dislike them. I was familiar with them, and they always filled me in about Enzo whenever they returned home. Interestingly, they didn't seem to have many positive things to say about him. I knew Enzo was a brat.