Chapter 14 Liam
Liam
My hands tighten on the steering wheel. Finn’s suspension is over and I’m dropping him off at school this morning. There’s a group of parents openly staring at me through the Range Rover window. I can feel their eyes tracking my every movement. They lean in, whispering to each other.
Let them bloody talk.
“Have a good day, buddy,” I say, mussing Finn’s hair as he unbuckles his seatbelt.
He gives me a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes.
“You got everything? Your snacks? Homework? EpiPen?” I run through the checklist.
I know the school has EpiPens onsite, but I like him to carry one in his backpack regardless. Just for peace of mind.
“Yeah.” He nods, reaching for the doorhandle.
“Hey,” I say, keeping my voice soft. He pauses, looking at me with those dark, honest eyes. They’re about the only thing he didn’t inherit from me. “Are you good?”
“Yeah, Da,” he says, his voice small.
“Come here.” I pull him close, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “Have a good day, okay? I love you.”
“Love you too,” he mumbles, then slips out and darts through the school’s gates without a backward glance.
After my meeting with Anna last week, I sat Finn down for a proper heart-to-heart.
I had to explain empathy and understanding.
How we treat people as equals even when they don’t extend the same courtesy to us.
I told him that sometimes kids who bully aren’t happy kids themselves.
That things aren’t always what they appear on the surface, and to show some people grace, even if they don’t outwardly seem deserving of it.
The hardest part was confirming what he’d already heard about me: that his dad really did hit someone, and that it was wrong. The words felt like lead in my mouth—what a bloody hypocrite.
In the end, Finn understood why he was suspended last week, just as I was released from the team for lashing out. And he understood that Josh wouldn’t be getting away with his acidic words either; that both actions bear consequences.
The moment I get home tonight, I’ll be looking for a psychologist to help him. I can only do so much without feeling totally out of my depth. I feel like I’m lying to my own son: aren’t you supposed to practice what you preach?
I shift the car into gear and peel out of Petersham Road. By the time I pull into the training ground car park, Jack’s Mercedes slides into the spot next to mine. I climb out, drive-thru coffee in hand, and sling my duffel bag over a shoulder as he appears beside me.
“Morning, mate,” he says, way too cheerful for this early.
“Jack,” I grunt back.
“You have a good night?” He falls into step with me.
Did I have a good night? Half of it was spent worrying about Finn, the other half trying not to imagine what it would be like to stick my dick in his teacher again.
I lift my brows and huff an amused laugh.
“Uh-oh.” His grin tells me he’s looking forward to hearing this. “What happened?”
“Finn’s back at school today.”
“Right, you mentioned that whole situation last week. How is he?”
I push through the back entrance doors, our trainers squeaking against the polished concrete as we head toward the change rooms. “He’s doing a little better.
He hates getting in trouble. He’s a good kid,” I say, dropping my bag on the bench.
“When I took him to school this morning I just… fuck, I hated seeing him get out of the car with fear in his eyes.”
“That’s shit, mate. I’m really sorry,” Jack says, tugging his training top over his head.
I kick off my shoes and start peeling out of my jeans. “Oh, wait till I tell you the real kicker.” I yank my training vest on.
He raises a brow, waiting, as we lace up.
“His teacher’s Anna.”
Confusion flickers across his face.
“Anna,” I repeat. “The woman from the bar that night.”
His eyes widen and he brings a fist to his mouth. “No way!”
“Aye,” I say.
The rest of the team filters in around us as Coach walks inside.
“Right, boys!” he booms. “You know the drill. Recovery group, you’re off to physio, massage, and the pool. Everyone else, weights first then pitch drills at eleven.”
By the time I’m halfway through my third set of squats, my phone shakes in my pocket against my leg. I finish the rep, rack the bar and check the screen. It’s a number I don’t recognize. I hit “reject” and get back under the bar.
Two minutes later, it starts vibrating again.
“Popular today, aren’t you?” Jack wheezes from the rack beside me, finishing his weighted lunge.
I wave him off and focus on my form as I drop into another squat. But when it buzzes a third time, Jack stops.
“Mate, I think you should answer that. That annoying vibrating sound is driving me mental.”
“Aye, I hear you.” I wipe sweat from my forehead and swipe to answer. “This is Murphy,” I say, my voice rough.
The voice on the other end is rushed and panicked, but I can’t hear what they’re saying over the clatter and thump of the gym.
“Sorry? You’ll have to repeat that,” I say, stalking out into the corridor.
“Liam?” A woman’s voice cracks. “Can you hear me?”
My blood turns to ice. I know that voice. “Anna?”
“Liam,” she croaks. “I got your number from Finn’s file and I—”
“What’s happened?” I’m instantly on edge.
Her next words knock the air from my lungs. “We can’t find Finn.”
I’m a professional athlete and I can honestly say I’ve never moved so fast in my life.
My vision tunnels as I grab my keys and bolt from the training grounds. I don’t even remember saying anything to Jack or the coaching staff. One second I’m in the gym, the next I’m throwing myself into the Range Rover and tearing out of the car park like my life depends on it.
Each minute feels like a fucking eternity.
I screech to a stop outside Richmond Private, jumping out of my car, covering the distance to the entrance in seconds. I burst through the doors and don’t bother stopping when the receptionist calls after me. Nothing matters but finding Finn.
By the time I reach the classroom hallway, I spot Anna outside her door, talking to some blond bloke in a crinkled linen shirt.
She looks furious but terrified, picking at her nail.
The moment she spots me, her shoulders relax and she squeezes the man’s arm.
He walks into her class as she rushes toward me.
“Liam!” She breaks into a jog.
I push aside the irrational pang of jealousy at seeing her touch another man and focus on Finn. “What happened?” My voice comes out sharper than I intended.
“Yuki came back from morning break and said Finn told her he was going to the toilet, but he never came back out. That was—” Her voice breaks as a sob escapes.
“That was what?” I push, hands gently going to her shoulders.
“Forty-five minutes ago,” she whispers.
I rub my forehead and inhale. One, two, three, four. And exhale, one, two, three, four.
“How could he just disappear? How does a seven-year-old just walk out of a bloody school?”
“I don’t know Liam. I’m so—” She heaves in a watery breath. “I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.” She shakes her head. “A group of staff are still searching the school grounds.”
“Right.” I spin on my heel and march in the other direction.
“Where are you going?” she calls after me.
“To find my son.”
“Wait! I’m coming with you!” she says, her voice breathy as she picks up her pace behind me.
I lurch to a stop when we reach reception, smashing my fist against the polished wood counter. Thwack.
A staff member hurries over, her face pale. “Sir, you need to calm down—”
“My son is missing.”
She nods. “I’m aware, sir.”
“Have you called the police?”
“We’ve searched the school grounds thoroughly, Mr. Murphy. We were about to—”
“That’s not what I asked,” I seethe. “My question was have. You. Called. The police?”
“We wanted to speak with you first,” she replies.
“Call the police. Now,” I order.
The staff member nods frantically and reaches for the phone.
Anna steps up to me, her voice firm as she places her hand on my biceps. “We are going to find him, Liam. I promise.”
My fists unfurl. “Where else could he have gone? What’s around here?” I ask Anna.
“There’s a park. About four streets over. Some of the children go there after school sometimes—”
I turn to the staff member. “Make that phone call.” Then I’m moving toward the entry doors, the clack of Anna’s heels following me.
“Let’s split up, we’ll cover more ground that way. You’ve got my number. I’ll call you if I find anything,” she says, and I nod.
We hit the streets. I check the park first, which is empty except for a few dog walkers who haven’t seen anything.
The sky opens and rain pounds down, the spring shower soaking through my jumper, my shirt, my skin.
But I don’t care. I won’t stop. I’m checking every street, every alleyway, every shop I pass.
I don’t know where the hell I’m going, but my feet keep moving.
Calling his name until my voice is hoarse.
Showing his photo to anyone who’ll stop long enough to look.
Nothing.
Forty-five minutes pass. An hour. The rain mixes with my tears as I try to think.
Where would he go? Think. Hopeless. Hopeless. Bloody well think.
But Finn doesn’t know London. What if he’s got on a bus? Or on the Tube? After searching for another thirty minutes with no sign of him, my knees buckle. I catch myself against a wall, one hand braced on the wet brick while the other grips my hair like a vice. I feel like I can’t breathe.
My phone rattles in my trouser pocket and I get to it on the second ring.
“Anna?” I ask, my voice raw. Please. Please let him be okay.
“Liam.” She’s crying. “I just heard from the school.”
My heart stops in my chest. “Is he—”
“They found him. He’s okay, Liam. He’s safe. The police are bringing him back to the school now.”
My legs give out and I drop hard onto the concrete pavement, my back pressed against the shop wall. My phone nearly slips from my trembling hands.
“Thank Christ,” I breathe, and then I’m sobbing. Great heaving gasps that I can’t control.