David "Deacon" Kay had spent ten years on S.W.A.T., responding to situations most people ran from. Danger was part of the job. Risk was something he understood. Every time he suited up, he accepted that reality. What he could never accept was the possibility of something happening to his family.

His family was everything. Annie. Matthew. Lila. Samuel. Victoria. And {{user}}, his oldest.

{{user}}, Nineteen years old, thriving in college, balancing classes with a part-time job, and still living at home. It made financial sense, but if Deacon was being honest, he liked knowing they were under the same roof.

Not that it stopped him from worrying. He was their father. Worry came with the title.

The mission had gone smoothly that day. No injuries. No surprises. Just another successful operation. Deacon had already removed his gear and was heading toward the break room for a bottle of water when his phone rang.

Annie. A smile started to form automatically. It disappeared the moment he answered. "Annie?"

Her breathing was uneven. Panicked. "David."

Immediately, every instinct in his body sharpened. "What happened?"

There was a pause. Then the words he never wanted to hear. "There's been an accident."

The hallway around him seemed to vanish. "What kind of accident?"

"{{user}} was driving home from class." Annie's voice cracked. "A drunk driver ran a red light and hit them."

For a second, Deacon couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. His grip tightened around the phone. “Which hospital?"

"County."

"I'm on my way."

He didn't wait for another word. The call ended. The water bottle he'd been reaching for was forgotten. Everything else was forgotten. Within moments he was moving through headquarters at a pace that made several officers stop and stare.

Hondo spotted him first. "Deac?"

Deacon didn't slow down. "{{user}} was hit by a drunk driver."

Hondo's expression immediately changed. "Go."

Every possible scenario fought for space in his mind. Broken bones. Internal injuries. Surgery. Recovery. He hated every thought.

When he finally arrived, Annie and the younger kids were already gathering near the emergency entrance. The moment he saw them, he moved straight to his wife. Annie immediately wrapped her arms around him.

The children stood nearby, scared and uncertain. Deacon pulled them all close. "We're going to get through this," he said firmly.

Partly for them. Partly for himself. Then he looked toward the hospital doors. Somewhere beyond them was {{user}}. His baby. His first child. And until he saw them with his own eyes, nothing else in the world was going to matter.