Page 37 of Bound By Obsession

“It was always our intention to leave you girls and let you grow up to lead happy, comfortable lives. But after we found you in that state, Cathy thought it would be helpful to introduce you to Meg. So we hired Keren to be your therapist and encouraged Meg to stay over every weekend.”

I notice how Nixon is yet to speak to Meg directly, speaking over her as if she isn’t even here. As much as the notion is intriguing, a wave of fresh anger washes over me. How dare he ignore her now, his full attention still centered on Avery. The daughter he loves above all others, the only one he truly wanted.

“Address her,” I growl, my brows pinched. Nixon flashes me a warning glance that has no effect. “Meg is sitting right there. The least you can do is talk to her.” Nixon’s mouth twitches in frustration, but he doesn’t meet my eyes. Instead, he shifts uncomfortably in his seat, the tension thickening in the air. Meg sits motionless, her hands clasped around Avery’s arm. Her face is ashen, her eyes wide with disbelief. She’s absorbing everything, but she’s clearly drowning under the weight of it all.

“Meg,” Nixon finally mutters, his voice lower, as if forcing out her name burns his throat. “We did what we thought was best for both of you.” He speaks slowly, deliberately, as if every word might shatter the delicate balance of truth now teetering between them.

Meg doesn’t blink, her gaze locked somewhere distant. Her lips tremble, but she doesn’t speak. I can see the fear and confusion mixing with her anger, swirling in her expression likea storm brewing just beneath the surface. I can’t blame her—finding out everything you knew about yourself was a lie, all in one conversation? It’s enough to break anyone.

Avery is struggling too. Her hand tightens around Dax’s, her knuckles white. She glances at her sister, really seeing her for the first time in a new light.

“This whole time…” Avery whispers, the words barely audible. She looks back at Nixon. “How long would you have let these lies continue if your hand wasn’t being forced? Forever?”

Nixon lowers his head. “It wasn’t meant to be like this.”

Meg finally finds her voice, though it’s ragged and thin. “You use people,” she reiterates my words from earlier. I suffer with her then, my pulse beating in my ears. Someone finally understands my pain. Meg turns to Nixon, her voice shaky. “Everyone at this table aside from Avery is expendable to you.”

Nixon shifts uncomfortably again, but he doesn’t deny it. The silence is his confession. The room becomes suffocating. Nixon looks ready to speak, but I see the indecision on his face, unsure how to move forward. Meg is just another problem he can fix with a few carefully chosen words.

“I’m sorry,” he finally says, the words brittle in the heavy air. “But the damage is done. What matters now is Avery’s safety.” I don’t know why I expected anything different from the same old familiar tune. Nixon has shut himself off from anything aside from his tunnel visioned goal. His words wouldn’t have fixed anything anyway. The truth has already torn through our lives, and no amount of apologies can piece it back together. “Cathy made these choices on all of our behalf. I’m just following through with her wishes. I’m not to blame.”

“What a cop-out.” Axel scoffs, excusing himself from the table. He’s had his fair share of parents playing puppeteer. He doesn’t need to sit through it again. Garrett gives Nixon his best glare face before following his lover out onto the back porch. Ishould leave too. Make a scene of storming out and smashing a few things, but the numb sensation has taken up residence in my body once again. Ray’s shadow clings to me, my hands starting to tremble.

Pushing up from the table, Nixon rests his hands on the mahogany surface. “I will be leaving shortly. Walters seems to be on my trail wherever I go. I can’t risk him finding me here.”

“What’s the plan then?” I raise my hands into the air. “Are we supposed to wait here for you to return or shall I send a carrier pigeon when another one of my friends has been injured?”

“I don’t have a next step yet. I’m living day to day as it is.” I see it then, the weariness in Nixon’s eyes, the weight in his stance. He’s exhausted, and I can’t bring myself to give two shits. “There’s no signal at the safehouse but the closest town is forty miles away. Drive down every few days to check your emails. I’ll update you when I have any information.”

Well, that’s that then. I’m stranded with two women who hate me and a gang that doesn’t know me anymore. Huxley is sitting beside me but he might as well be miles away, watching the pair across the table. Avery and Meg are clinging to one another, and Dax is hovering on the edge, ready to swoop in and be Avery’s prince charming. There’s just one burning question I can’t leave unanswered.

“Why did you even bring me here?” I ask, hating that the way the words sound leaving my mouth. They taste bitter like ash. Nixon raises his gaze, a harshness there which reminds me of the piece of paper burning a hole in my pocket.

“Wyatt, more than anyone, you know you’re the only one who can truly protect Avery. No matter what’s happened before now, you’re still her best chance.”

“Gee, thanks a bunch,” Huxley mutters. Watching Nixon leave, I scowl at his back with all of the anger I’ve been suppressing. The weight of his words lingers, but it feels hollow,just another burden dumped on us without a plan. I can feel Huxley’s frustration radiating off him, his arms crossed tightly against his chest like a shield. The tremors in my hands increases, finally pushing me to rise from my seat and leave the kitchen.

Grabbing my bag, I hunt for the first bathroom I find, slamming the door closed with my back. The shadow follows me everywhere I go, a comforting presence in my blind spot. Tipping my bag upside down, the contents spill out but it’s only the small plastic tub Rachel gave to me before I left that I’m interested in. Thirty pink circular pills rattle inside. She calls them vitamins but I’ve come to realize they’re much more potent.

Removing two, I swallow them dry and sink into the floor, my back pressed against the wood. Instantly, I feel the world slip away and only the pieces of myself I choose to cling onto remain. My anger at Nixon, my sympathy for Meg, my grief for Ray, all float away on a cloud of relief. I inhale as if my lungs have never expanded so much, the lightness of my limbs bringing an easy smile to my lips.Finally, I can let go and remember what’s important. I’m Wyatt Perelli, and I’m such a good boy.

Leaning my head on Avery’s shoulder, I watch Nixon retreat upstairs. The entire time he was speaking, the weight of his secrets were visible in the stress lines etched into his face. He’s retiring for a shower and nap before he leaves once again. Leaves us here to fend for ourselves.

How have I been so blind? So willing to accept inconsistencies over the years. My first instinct is man, I sure caught a lucky break. Watching Wyatt glare at Avery across the table, listening to Nixon try to justify his actions. Then came the dawning that Avery’s birth father,my birth father, is stalking her, intent on bringing her more pain and suffering.

Whereas, I had a mom who raised me with more love than I could have ever asked for. She gave me all of her time, her full attention and that’s something the Hughes’ money could neverbuy. This is why she left so quickly without saying goodbye. Like ripping off the band aid, she thought after I heard Nixon’s truth, I would disown her. The opposite couldn’t be more true. All I want to do is wrap my arms around my mom and thank her.

Once the weight of the day settles, Avery and I retreat to our room. The guys wanted to comfort her, offering me small understanding smiles. I just wanted my head to stop spinning. Dropping onto the bed, I shudder as Avery digs her backpack out from beneath the bed. She pulls out Cathy’s old diary and nestles in close.

“I’ve read this cover to cover a hundred times,” she tells me. “But maybe now we know, you should reread it with me?” I nod tentatively. Creaking the spine, Avery opens the first page, settling into my side. We fit together like missing halves of a whole. It’s so obvious, so natural. Something we’ve done a thousand times before, but has never held so much meaning. Swallowing hard, I gaze upon the words of a woman I only knew as Mrs. Hughes up until now.

I’m pregnant. With twins. And they aren’t Nixon’s.

It feels harsh to admit, but it’s my reality. From the outside, my life seemed perfect—successful career, beautiful home, a husband who once adored me. But our marriage has been crumbling for years. Nixon withdrew long before this, spending more time at the office than with me. We’ve become strangers, barely touching on anything beyond appearances.

Then Freddie came into my life. It wasn’t supposed to happen, but he made me feel alive again—seen, desired, like the woman I used to be. I know it was wrong, but I can’t regret it completely, especially not with the babies growing inside me. I already love them more than I can explain.

Nixon knows the twins aren’t his, though he hasn’t said it. There’s a coldness in his eyes, a distance between us that feelspermanent. We’re both avoiding the inevitable conversation, neither willing to start it.

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