CHAPTER TWELVE
Liam
I
don’t know how much more of this I can take.
Every day feels heavier than the last, the weight of Avery’s absence pressing down on me like a boulder, slowly crushing what little sanity I have left. I’m trying—fuck, I’m trying—to hold everything together, to be strong for my brothers, for Dan, for Avery’s friends, for myself.
But it’s not working as well as I think.
They see through me. Every single one of them. I see it in Kam’s wary glances, in Jax’s frustration, in Lennox’s damn near constant hovering. Even Dan, in the midst of his own grief, called me out on my bullshit.
"You need to take care of yourself, son," he had told me a few weeks ago, his voice rough with exhaustion and something dangerously close to fatherly concern. "Avery wouldn’t want you running yourself into the ground like this."
He was right. And it pissed me off that he was right.
I couldn’t argue with him, though. I could barely argue with myself. So, instead of falling deeper into my own self-destruction, Lennox and I threw ourselves into Avery’s unfinished landscaping project.
And now, after weeks of relentless hard work, we’re almost there. With just a few final touches left, her vision has finally come to life.
Standing in the middle of the yard, I swipe a hand over my sweat-slicked forehead, surveying the progress. The last of the flower beds are planted, the custom stone pathway she designed is finally complete, and the outdoor seating area—something she had picked out but never got the chance to order—is set up and waiting. We got it for her. The second she comes home, she’ll see that every piece of her dream has been brought to life.
The thought makes my chest tighten.
"Shit’s looking good, huh?" Lennox says beside me, hands on his hips as he surveys the space.
"Yeah," I nod, swallowing past the lump in my throat. "It’s damn near perfect."
"She’s gonna love it." His voice is certain. Hopeful. Like he refuses to acknowledge any reality where she doesn’t come back to see it.
"Yeah," I say again, though this time, my voice cracks just slightly. "She will."
Lennox glances at me, picking up on the unspoken storm swirling inside me. He’s always been better than the rest of us at reading between the lines, and right now, I know he sees me unraveling.
"Come on," he says, clapping a hand on my shoulder. "Let’s go get Jax and Kam. They need to see this."
We make our way inside, the familiar creak of the screen door barely registering as we step into the house. Kamden and Jaxton are at the kitchen table, deep in discussion, but the second they see us, they know something’s up.
Jax leans back in his chair, raising a brow. "What’s with the dramatic entrance?"
"Come outside," I say simply, my voice leaving no room for argument.
Kam glances at Jax before pushing up from his seat. "What’s going on?"
"You’ll see." Lennox grins, a rare flicker of excitement cutting through the usual tension that’s been strangling us for months.
They follow us out, the warm evening air wrapping around us as we step into the backyard. Kam stops short first, eyes scanning the space. Jax steps forward, jaw tightening as he takes it all in.
"You finished it," Kam murmurs, barely above a whisper.
"We finished it," I correct, crossing my arms as I take in their reactions.
Jax walks further in, eyes roaming over every detail. His fingers graze the top of one of the chairs, his gaze lingering on the stone pathway. "She designed this," he mutters, more to himself than to us.
"Yeah," Lennox says, stepping beside him. "We wanted her to come home to it, exactly how she envisioned it."
Kam exhales slowly, running a hand down his face. "This… this is fucking perfect." He looks at me then, really looks at me, his expression softer than it’s been in weeks. "You’ve been working on this nonstop, haven’t you?"
"Had to do something," I shrug, acting like it’s no big deal when it’s actually the only thing that’s kept me from completely losing my shit.
Jax turns toward me then, and for the first time in a long time, I see something different in his eyes. Not just the exhaustion or the heartbreak, but something close to gratitude.
"You two did good," he says, voice thick with emotion. "Really fucking good."
I swallow hard, nodding. "She deserves it."
They both nod in agreement, silence stretching between us as the reality of it all settles in.
We’ve done what we can. We’ve honored her vision, poured our love into every inch of this space. And now, all we can do is wait.
Wait for Avery to come home.
Wait for this nightmare to end.
Wait for the moment we can finally exhale again.
And when that day comes, I’ll bring her out here, sit her cute ass down, and tell her that no matter how much time has passed, she still belongs here—with us.
Kam crosses his arms, surveying the yard with quiet pride. “Only thing missing is Dan being here to see it,” he says, his voice edged with something unspoken.
“He’ll come back when she does,” Lennox replies, wiping sweat from his forehead with his forearm. “For now, it’s enough that we go to him.”
We all nod in agreement. Dan hasn’t set foot in Avery’s house since the police gave it back to us. It’s too much for him. Too much empty space. Too many reminders of what’s missing. And honestly? We get it. We feel it, too. Every time we walk inside, there’s a heaviness that settles in our chests. But being here, keeping her space alive—keeping her alive—is all we can do until we bring her home.
Jax runs a hand through his hair, glancing toward the house. “We should be heading out soon,” he reminds Kam.
Kam sighs. “Yeah, another damn press conference.”
“Another chance to keep her face out there,” I say, trying to remind them why we keep doing this, even when it feels like screaming into the void.
Lennox claps me on the back. “And another chance for you to bite some poor reporter’s head off.”
I smirk, but it doesn’t quite reach my eyes. “Maybe if they stop asking bullshit questions, I wouldn’t have to.”
A vibration cuts through the air—Jax’s phone buzzing in his pocket. He pulls it out, and his expression twists. “Sarah,” he mutters.
Silence blankets us for a beat before Kam sighs. “You gonna answer?”
Jax’s jaw tightens. “If it’s about the baby, I probably should.”
“She’s been using that as an excuse to pull you back in,” Lennox points out, crossing his arms. “It’s never just about the baby.”
“Yeah, well, I need to make sure she’s not pulling any new shit,” Jax says, though his entire body is screaming that he doesn’t want to deal with this.
We exchange looks before Liam sighs. “Put it on speaker.”
Jax presses the button, and Sarah’s sugary voice fills the air. “Jaxy,” she practically purrs. “I was hoping you’d answer.”
Jax’s face remains unreadable. “What do you want, Sarah?”
“Relax, I just wanted to check in. I had a doctor’s appointment today. Our little one is growing so perfectly. I thought you might actually want to be involved in this.”
Lennox rolls his eyes so hard it looks painful. I’m barely holding back an irritated sigh. Twisting the knife —that’s what she’s doing.
“I already told you I’d do what I need to do for the baby,” Jax says evenly. “That doesn’t mean I want to deal with you more than necessary.”
Sarah hums like she expected that. “Well, you might need to deal with me a little more, because I was thinking… Maybe I should move in for a while.”
Kam nearly chokes on his own laughter, and Lennox just groans outright. I don’t bother hiding my disgust.
“We’ve already talked about this. Not happening,” I state firmly. “We live in Avery’s house. There is no way in hell you’re moving in here.”
“Oh, come on,” she croons, as if she isn’t a manipulative psycho. “I just think it would be easier for you to be involved if we were under the same roof.”
Jax’s grip on the phone tightens. “Sarah, I already told you— you are not getting back into our lives. I will be there for the baby. Only the baby. My brothers are not a package deal. We are in love with Avery. We will never come back to you. Move. On.”
Silence.
Then a sharp exhale. “You’ll change your mind,” she says, voice dripping with smug certainty.
And then she hangs up.
“Jesus Christ,” Kam mutters.
“Every day she gets more desperate,” Lennox says, pacing. “She’s using this baby to try and worm her way back into our lives.”
Jax exhales sharply, dragging a hand down his face. “I fucking hope this kid isn’t mine.”
The words hang heavy in the air, because the truth is—if that baby is his, we’re tied to Sarah forever. And it’s not the baby’s fault, but damn, it’s hard to think about anything other than the mess Sarah is making of this entire situation.
I glance at Jax. “Then we need to be ready. If the test proves it’s yours… We go for full custody.”
Jax’s head snaps up.
“You really think we can do that?” Kam asks, brows furrowed.
“She’s unstable,” I state simply. “She’s obsessed with us, with Jax. We all know it. You really think she’s gonna be a fit mother?”
“She won’t let that happen without a fight,” Lennox says, cracking his knuckles.
“Then we fight,” I say, voice steady. “Because if that kid is Jax’s, there’s no way in hell we’re letting Sarah use them as a pawn in whatever sick game she’s playing.”
Jax doesn’t say anything right away. He just looks at me— really looks at me. And I know what he’s thinking.
We’ve got his back.
That no matter what happens, we’re all in this together.
And that we’re not losing another person we love—not if we can help it.
Jaxton exhales, running a hand down his face. “I don’t know what I’d do without you guys.” His voice is rough, raw with exhaustion. “I mean it. This whole situation with Sarah… I fucked up, and now it’s not just my problem—it’s yours too. I hate that I dragged you all into this mess.”
I shake my head, stepping closer and clapping him on the shoulder. “You didn’t drag us into anything. We’re here because we want to be.”
Lennox nods. “Yeah, dumbass. You think we’re gonna let you deal with this shit alone? That’s not how this works.”
Jax lets out a humorless chuckle, shaking his head. “Doesn’t make me feel any less guilty.”
Kam crosses his arms, tilting his head as he studies Jax. “Look, you slept with Sarah before Avery. You didn’t do anything wrong. She’s the one trying to manipulate this whole situation. You’ve got nothing to be guilty for.”
Jax scoffs. “Yeah? Tell that to Avery when we finally get her back, and I have to explain why our psycho ex is carrying my kid.”
Silence hangs between us.
Because none of us have an answer for that.
Because none of us know how Avery’s going to react.
She’s been missing almost longer than we were together. That thought alone is enough to make me sick. And now, when we do find her—because we will find her—she’s going to come home to this .
Kam breaks the silence first. “We’ll deal with it when the time comes.”
Jax lets out a heavy sigh. “Yeah. When the time comes.”
A beat passes before Lennox claps his hands together, shaking off the tension. “Alright, enough heavy shit for now. Liam, let’s get cleaned up before the conference. We need to at least look like we have our shit together.”
I nod, giving Jax one last reassuring pat before heading inside with Lennox.
The moment we step into Avery’s house, the weight of it settles over me.
It’s not a home without her.
The guys and I have done everything we can to take care of it, but it doesn’t matter. The place still feels empty , like it’s waiting for her.
And so are we.
Lennox and I move through the house silently, heading toward the bathroom. The mirror above the sink catches my reflection, and I barely recognize the man staring back. My beard’s thicker than usual, the dark circles under my eyes are more pronounced, and the exhaustion is carved into every line of my face.
Dan was right—I need to take better care of myself.
But how the hell am I supposed to do that when Avery’s still out there, somewhere , waiting for us to find her?
Lennox catches my reflection in the mirror and sighs. “You need sleep, man.”
I snort. “Yeah? No shit.”
He turns on the faucet, splashing cold water over his face before looking at me again. “I mean it, Liam. You’re carrying all of us right now, and we appreciate it. But you can’t keep running on fumes forever.”
I exhale sharply, gripping the counter. “What choice do I have, Lenn? If I don’t hold it together, who will?”
“We all will,” he says without hesitation. “We’re in this together, remember?”
I meet his gaze in the mirror. He’s serious. And he’s right.
I nod. “Yeah. Together.”
Lennox smirks. “Now hurry the hell up. We’ve got a press conference to get to.”
I splash water on my face, mentally preparing myself for another round of pleading with the public. Another round of holding my breath, hoping— praying —that someone will come forward with the lead we need to bring Avery home.
Because this time… this time , it has to be different.