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Liam

The bright Bali blue ocean bobs my surfboard up and down. I love the sea and the way it calms my soul. I got into surfing when Mom settled us in Steel Creek, California. It’s a great place to learn, and it’s why I started competing as a kid. I didn’t intend to go professional—that part just happened—but I wanted to commit myself to something else that wasn’t constantly waiting, for my father to jump out of the shadows.

Despite my father, I’m competing against the world’s best surfers, which makes me one, too. I’m on a break right now before the final championship starts, which I’m looking forward to because this year is mine .

About four months ago, my mother was shot, all I could do was shield her with my body, and even that wasn’t enough to keep her from the bullet. We found out my father called the hit on her. The mere thought makes me lose my mind again. It makes me want to make him pay in innumerable ways. But my brothers said no, and I understand that…for the moment. Plus, I have a nephew now and my brother, Kai, and his wife, Cordelia, don’t need any additional stress on them at the moment.

When Mom got home from the hospital, I got restless. I felt terrible about it, but Mom told me to go; she knew I needed to step away. I wanted to go somewhere no one knew my family and could get my mind right, so I picked Bali. There are some days I wonder about my own sanity, but I may have lost it a long time ago. It could be from almost drowning too many times, or falling off rock faces, or it’s because I was hit too much as a kid, who knows. I try not to think about it .

When I get to shore, I spot a woman laying out on her towel. I’m living at a resort I’ve stayed at many times before and I always seem to find a lady friend here. It’s part of the reason I like it. Glancing at her hands, there are no rings on her fingers, so I push my wet hair back off my face and saunter up to her. “Hey.”

She looks up at me and smiles. I can feel her eyes trailing my body and she sits up. “Hey.”

I plop down next to her with my board and flash her my award-winning smile. No, really, I haven’t met a single woman who doesn’t love it.

“So, what brings you to Bali?”