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I rev the engine again. Picture him flat as a pancake on the concrete. The sound echoes off the brick buildings.

“We both know you don’t have the balls,” Theo shouts.

He’s right, but I wish I did.

I slam the car into reverse instead of into drive. As much as I hate him, I’m not a murderer. The tires scream across the asphalt as I hop the curb and tear down the road, leaving Theo very much alive. I watch him straighten his tie in my rearview mirror before lifting his hand to blow me a kiss. The gesture makes me want to vomit and I curse myself for being so predictable that he could retain the same lawyer I was going to use.

Gripping the steering wheel until my knuckles are white as snow, I race toward the men I know will keep me safe.

By the time I park outside the Williams house, my hands have stopped shaking. The familiar sight of the blue siding and wraparound porch usually calms me, but today it has panic spiking through my chest. Theo’s words echo in my head.

Tax liens.

What the hell does that even mean?

The groceries I had ordered for delivery are sitting on the porch. The plan to make dinner for the guys suddenly seems trivial compared to everything else. My feet crunch on the gravel driveway as I make my way up the porch steps and pick up the paper bag.

Do they even know about the liens?

I let myself inside, the screen door banging shut behind me. The house is empty. Knox had to run by the shop before he went to meet up with Brax and Jax to help Linc move into his new apartment. I’ll be alone for a bit. Snooping is bad. I really shouldn’t. But I have to know what Theo was talking about. Setting the groceries on the kitchen counter, I follow the pull toward the small office.

The door stands ajar, and I push it open wider. Their dad used to spend hours here, bent over paperwork with his readers perched on his nose. The worn wooden desk still holds his presence somehow, even though it’s been years since he passed. A lump lodges in my throat. I should have been here when he died.

There’s a lot I missed out on because I ran, but unlike Theo said, I’m not running anymore.

Papers cover every inch of the desk. I step closer, my pulse quickening as red text catches my eye.

OVERDUE BALANCE.

PAST DUE.

FINAL NOTICE.

The words blur together as I shift through the pile, my stomach dropping with each envelope I examine.

Most are marked paid with Knox’s careful handwriting, but several remain untouched. Property taxes. Mortgage payments. Late payment notices for Brax’s student loan. The numbers swimming on the page make me dizzy. There’s so much debt. How does one man accumulate this much?

That’s a dumb question. The whole world likes to take advantage of people from small towns. Telling us we can live the same way as those trust fund babies from the city until we’re mortgaged and leveraged beyond our means. Mom and Dad almost fell into the same trap.

“What are you doing?”

Knox’s voice from the doorway makes me jump, guilt skittering up my spine like spiders. I spin around, heat flooding my cheeks.

“I was just.” I gesture helplessly at the papers. “Nothing. It’s nothing.”

But Knox’s gaze has already moved to the notices in my hands. He sighs, a sound so heavy it seems to come from his bones. “Dad left us with a lot of bills.” The admission sounds like it physically pains him. “The mortgage on the auto shop, the unpaid property taxes, the loans he took out to help Brax get through school. Credit card debt he racked up right after mom left.”

The front door bangs shut, footsteps and voices carrying from the kitchen. Jax’s laugh echoes down the hallway, followed by Brax saying something. They’re too far away to fully understand.

“Do the guys know how bad it is?”

Knox looks away. “They know we have bills, but not how many.” His jaw muscles ripple. “Neither of them come in here. It’s too painful, and I—” He cuts off, head hanging in shame.

My frown deepens. Of course he’d try to take care of things on his own. He’s their big brother but this is worse than I thought. Theo really could take their house from them and that would just be the start. There’s no telling what Theo won’t do to try to win me back. He’s already gone to extreme measures to keep me under his control. What’s one more?

Exhaling, I head over to Knox. “I need to tell you all something, but it means telling them about these notices.”

His forehead pinches. The questions on the tip of his tongue are obvious, but much to my surprise, Knox doesn’t demand to know right away. Instead, he nods. “They deserve to know. I should’ve told them sooner.” He scrunches his face, visibly in pain by the weight of their world. “I failed them, Callie.”