Chapter 9 – Liam
I stared down at my phone. Molly was calling—again.
Somehow, I’d managed to steer clear of her for two weeks. When she’d sent the text of the ultrasound pictures, I almost passed out.
I hadn’t been talking to Jace as much as usual either. He didn’t suspect anything yet, but I could only play at being busy with work for so long before he’d catch on.
I didn’t want to think about how he’d react when he figured out what was happening. He’d probably kill me and bury me six feet in the ground. I deserved it. I knew I was being a big-ass coward, but I was downright terrified at the thought of becoming a dad.
Fatherhood wasn’t in the cards for me. I always used protection. I was careful—methodical, even. I had systems in place to make sure this never happened, and yet somehow it still did.
Just like the three calls before this one, I didn’t answer.
You’re a piece of shit, I thought. Maybe even worse than your own dad.
Even my own conscience was turning on me.
A loud bang on my front door pulled me from my sulking session.
I peeked out the window. Depending on who was knocking, my life could be on the line within the next few minutes.
It was Cassie. I wasn’t sure if I was safe or not. Probably not, but I answered the door anyway.
“Come i—”
She stormed through the doorway before I could finish, slamming it back into the wall.
“What the fuck is your problem, Carson?”
“What do you mean?”
“What do I mean? Are you seriously asking me that right now?”
Cassie was a hungry lion, and I was seconds from being devoured if she didn’t get the answers she wanted out of me.
“I actually vouched for you, Liam. I told Molly you’d do the right thing and that everything would be okay. Boy, was I wrong. I get the initial shock of it all, but it’s almost been a month. You need to get a grip on reality, and stop acting like a piece of shit.”
Her words stung, but none of them were untrue.
“Jace is starting to wonder why you’ve been so busy lately. The other day, when you told him you were working a double shift, he went down to the station to see you. Imagine his surprise when you weren’t there. He’s going to catch on, and I won’t lie to him forever to save your sorry ass.”
“I can’t do this, Cassie. I can’t be a father.”
“Why not?”
“I just… can’t,” I said, refusing to unload all the crap about my dad and the trauma he left behind.
“Do you know how hard it was growing up with a dad who walked out on me? How many times I wondered if I wasn’t good enough…
if I’d done something to make him leave?
That’s a lot for a kid to carry their whole life, Liam.
And that’s exactly what your son is going to feel, since you’ve decided to be a piece of shit before he’s even taken his first breath. ”
“Son?”
“That’s why Molly keeps calling you… to tell you she knows the gender. Congrats, jackass. You’re having a boy.”
I sank down into the couch, my knees suddenly weak. The more I learned about the baby, the more reality circled in on me.
Cassie stood over me, arms crossed. “Two days. That’s how long you’ve got to get your shit together before I tell Jace everything.
Sure, he’s gonna be pissed that you knocked up his sister, but that’s nothing compared to the rage he’s gonna feel once he finds out you abandoned her after knocking her up.
He’ll murder you, and I’ll help him bury your body. ” I fully believed her threats.
Cassie marched to the door and left without another word.
“Fuck!” I yelled, slamming my fists on the coffee table in front of me.
A son? History was literally repeating itself. It was like the universe knew my worst fear and instantly made it come true.
Before too long, I’d be another version of my dad. Hell, I already was. The kid wasn’t even born yet, and I was sitting here, already running from responsibility. I had turned into my father in the blink of an eye.
——————————–
“You got some girl pregnant?” my dad shouted, taking two more steps toward me.
I’d come to my parents’ house to talk with my mom, hoping she could help me make sense of everything. I assumed my dad would be at work. Of course—the one time I actually needed him to be away—he was in his study, eavesdropping on the entire conversation.
“This doesn’t concern you, Dad,” I said, brushing him off.
“Like hell it doesn’t.”
“Please, stop yelling,” my mom begged, but it didn’t make a difference.
“She’s going to take you for everything you have.”
“What are you talking about? I don’t have anything for her to take.”
“Not right now,” he shot back, “but when I die, everything I own goes to you, then to that kid you just created with some whore. What happens then? She’ll want child support and—”
“Do not speak about Molly like that.” I cut him off, seething.
“So the tramp has a name,” he sneered.
“Say one more word about her,” I said quietly, every muscle in my body tightening, “and I will put you on the floor, old man.”
“Tell her to get an abortion,” he demanded.
“Have you lost your fucking mind?”
“It’d solve all our problems, wouldn’t it?”
The way he kept talking like his own grandchild would ruin his reputation pissed me off. He’d ruined his reputation all on his own, long before this situation ever happened.
“She’s already made it clear, that’s not an option.”
“Suit yourself. Go ahead—ruin your life. There goes your chance of ever going to law school.”
“Don’t you get it, Dad? I never wanted to follow in your footsteps.
Become a lying, conniving lawyer who ignores his family every chance he gets?
No thanks. Law school was never in my plans.
You would’ve realized that a long time ago if you’d pulled your head out of your ass long enough to see what was actually going on around you. ”
He lunged for me, but I was quicker, stepping out of reach just in time.
“What, Dad?” I taunted. “Gonna hit me like you did when I was a kid?”
My blood boiled hotter than it ever had before. This was it—my breaking point.
I lunged back at him, catching him off guard. I’d never dared to challenge my father before today.
“Nothing would be handed down to me if it weren’t for what you did. Remember Noah? Your other son? The one you bullied so relentlessly that he killed himself when he was twelve? Remember him?” I said, shoving him back.
“All your precious assets would’ve been passed down to him.
He was older than me. But he’s not here to take them, is he?
No. Because, he hung himself in his bedroom in this very house.
He couldn’t take the abandonment he felt from you.
He couldn’t hide the bruises another day.
He couldn’t stand the pain—not one more day. Pain you caused.”
Tears spilled down my mother’s cheeks.
My father’s face turned a deep, furious red. My words hit their mark like an arrow straight through the center of a target.
“Growing up, I never wanted to be a father,” I said. “You know why? Because I was terrified I’d turn out just like you. That I’d be the kind of dad you were to me and Noah—a piece of shit who didn’t care whether we lived or died.”
My voice shook, but I didn’t back down.
“But now, I see things differently. You were actually a blessing in disguise, because you showed me exactly the kind of father not to be. I want to show up to my kid’s baseball games—not stay late at the office every night.
I want to be in the crowd when they win an award at school—not sitting in some consultation, drooling over how much money a client is willing to pay me. ”
I stepped closer, every word burning on my tongue.
“I want the mother of my children to feel loved—not like she’s just another person I can control. And that’s exactly what I’m going to do. I’ll be everything you were never man enough to be. So take a good look, Dad. Because this is the last time you’ll ever see me.”
“Your brother hung himself because he was a coward. That boy was always troubled,” he sneered.
In an instant, the world went black—everything except my dad’s face.
I swung at him, pure rage coursing through me.
My fist connected with his cheek with a sickening force.
He swung back, landing his punch. My mom’s screams were swallowed by the ringing in my ears.
I couldn’t see, hear, or feel anything—only rage.
I grabbed him by the throat, driving him into the wall. “If I ever hear you talk about Noah like that again, I will kill you. That’s a threat and a promise,” I yelled into his face.
My mom stood behind me, trying to peel me off him. “Liam, let go,” she begged. I gave his throat one more strong squeeze before shoving him to the ground and backing away.
Blood started to flow from where my dad had landed his punch. I wiped it away with the back of my hand, staring down at my dad as he lay on the floor, looking up at me terrified. I hoped he’d never forget the way it felt to be scared like this. It was the same fear Noah and I had endured every day.
I wanted to get the fuck out of here.
Without saying goodbye to my mom, I turned on my heel and left, slamming the door behind me with a force I didn’t know I had.
Fuck that man—and fuck everything he stood for.
The legacy of the Carson name was about to change. Starting today.