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LIAM

T he only sound in the garage was the rhythmic thudding of my fists against the worn leather punching bag.

Each strike was a futile attempt to shake off the weight pressing on my chest. I didn’t hold back—strikes landed with a ferocity that sent the bag swinging, the chain above it groaning in protest.

My knuckles stung where the tape had shifted, but I didn’t care.

Pain was easier to deal with than the simmering rage I felt toward my father.

He would never change. No matter how much time passed, he would always have that way of cutting me down and making me doubt everything I thought I knew about myself.

The door to the garage creaked open, and I knew it was Fiona before she said anything. She could always find me when I was like this.

“You’re going to break your hand,” she said, her voice cutting through the sound of my fists colliding with the bag. “Don’t risk that. Not with football.”

“I’ll live,” I muttered, hitting the bag again.

She didn’t respond immediately, but I could feel her watching me. Finally, she stepped closer, crossing her arms as she leaned against the wall.

“Liam, you have to stop letting him get to you.”

I froze, my fist poised midair before I let it drop to my side. My breathing was heavy, and sweat trickled down the back of my neck. “I’m not letting him get to me,” I denied.

Fiona raised an eyebrow. “Really? Because from where I stand, it looks like you’re imagining his face on that punching bag.”

She wasn’t wrong.

I sighed and grabbed a towel off the nearby workbench, wiping my face. “He just… he knows exactly how to push every damn button. It’s like he enjoys it.”

“Of course he does.” Fiona’s tone softened as she moved to sit on the bench near me. “That’s who he’s always been. But, Liam, you don’t have to let him define you.”

I sat next to her, the towel draped over my shoulders.

“Sometimes, I feel like, no matter what I do, I’m going to turn into him,” I admitted.

Fiona’s eyes widened slightly, then she shook her head.

“You’re not him. I’ve told you that many times before—you’ve got to believe it.

You never were. Liam, I know our parents messed us up—Mom leaving, Dad drinking himself into oblivion, the insults—but that’s not you. Look at how you are with Lily.”

I glanced at her, surprised.

“She adores you,” Fiona continued. “And you don’t even realize how much you’ve stepped up.

Seeing you with her gives me hope that we can both break the cycle.

Their curse doesn’t have to be ours. We are not them.

Look at us. We’ve already become better people than they ever were.

Seeing you with Lily makes me believe in us and that maybe someday I’ll be able to find what you have for myself. ”

Her words hit me hard, the knot in my chest loosening just a little.

“Thanks.”

One word—but she acknowledged the depth behind it with a small smile. “Don’t thank me. Just believe it.” Fiona squeezed my shoulder before standing.

The garage fell quiet as I wiped my face, the rhythmic squeak of the still-swaying punching bag chain fading into silence. My phone buzzed on the workbench, breaking the silence like a warning.

“Hello?” I answered.

“Liam,” Eileen’s voice was quiet. “Is Skye there? She texted she was on her way home over an hour ago, but she’s still not home. I’ve been trying to reach her, but her phone must be dead.”

“No, she left almost two hours ago now.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, she left right after dinner. Maybe she went to the lab? No, she wouldn’t take Lily.”

“Her phone’s going straight to voicemail. Where could she be?” Eileen’s voice stretched with fear and worry. “I can’t reach Tommy. He’s stuck in a meeting, and my car is in the shop.”

“Wait, you’re saying she didn’t make it home at all?”

“No, she didn’t. Let me check my app, see if I can find where she is.” She paused to work with her phone. When she spoke again, I could tell I was on speaker. “She’s on Elm Street, that’s a back road. Why would she have taken that?”

My gut twisted. That road was secluded—too secluded. “Can you send me her location? I’ll find them.” My heart pounded. “I promise, Eileen. I’ll find them both.”

I hung up and turned to Fiona, who was watching me, her expression mirroring my dread.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

“Skye and Lily never made it home.” I grabbed my keys off the counter, phone in hand.

Fiona’s face paled, but she didn’t hesitate. “I’m coming with you.”

She grabbed her coat as I relayed what little information I had.

“Liam,” Fiona said as she buckled into my truck, her mind clearly racing. “Skye’s been digging into the investigation. What if someone noticed? Maybe something she photographed…” She trailed off, frowning. “Do you know where she’d go if she were in trouble?”

The thought made my blood run cold. “I don’t know,” I admitted, closing my door.

“If this is about the investigation and someone took her, they don’t know what they’ve started.

” My grip on the wheel tightened, my knuckles white.

“Whoever’s responsible will regret ever putting them in danger.

” I would stop at nothing to bring Skye and Lily home safely.

I finally had them in my life, and I would not lose them again.