“You made me do it!” Xander shouted. “Do you think I wanted this? Any of this? I don’t! I said, ‘Hey, Dad, you need a medical power of attorney, just in case you need someone to sign for a surgery or something.’ Do you know when that was?” He shook with anger. “It was five years ago, after Sully died! I never saw this coming! I never wanted this!” He motioned to the courtroom. “Never wanted to be responsible for his care, for making decisions that would mean his life or death over and over and over. But that’s what happened, because you were too busy being a hero to bring your ass home! But they don’t give you medals when you stay home, do they?”

His voice echoed in the empty room, and I began to understand. I’d been so focused on the house of cards crumbling at the top that I hadn’t stopped to look at the foundation. Xander was never going to let me win, because that’s how he saw this.

“You honestly don’t think he deserves to choose what happens to him,” I stated softly.

“He’s not capable of choosing. I have to choose for him. I have to step up, just like always, because you want to take the easy way out. So fine, I have, and I will, and every choice I make for him will be with his life and health in mind. I’m keeping our dad alive as long as I can, Cam. That’s what a son does for his father.”

“Yeah? And what would a brother do for a brother?”

“What do you mean?” Xander asked. “I would fight for you, too.”

God, I hoped not.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I told him, then left the courtroom without another backward glance. Simon led me to a quiet room, where I sat with Willow, her hand steady in mine, her head on my shoulder.

“I told your father on opening day that you were lonely,” she told me.

I turned my head, and she lifted hers.

“He replied that all great and precious things are lonely.”

My brows knit together, and she nodded. That line… Holy shit. The same man who’d mocked me for always having my nose in a book as a kid took the time to read the one I’d declared my favorite, and not just once, but enough to recall that line.

I kissed her forehead with gratitude and held her against my side as we waited for the judge to decide Dad’s fate.

…

“This case is definitely not an easy one,” Judge Wilson told us four hours later. The room held its breath.