Page 76 of Unrequited Sloth

“What?”

He folded his newspaper up and eyed his daughter. She shifted nervously in her seat, looking anxious. She clearly knew her dad was up to something. Dillon was sipping his beer, seemingly oblivious to the dramatic drop of temperature in the room.

“I asked if you’d like to hear it?”

“What’s it about?”

“I wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise.”

“Okay . . . just send me the link, then.”

“We can listen to it now. Gabriel, would you kindly do the honours?”

Gabriel nodded and took out his phone. His hands were shaking, so Bobby took the phone from him once it was unlocked and located the audio clip.

“What’s going on, Dad?” asked Alex. “Why wasn’t I told they were going to be here?”

“We’ll talk after we’ve listened to this. It’s not very long.”

“No, they are clearly up to something. I’m not going to stay and listen to more of their lies.”

“Alex, sit down and shut up,” said Mr M in a tone you didn’t mess with.

Her eyes widened, and she complied. Dillon didn’t say a word or offer her comfort. Mr M nodded at Bobby, so he hit play. In seconds, Gabriel’s and Dillon’s voices could be heard. Bobby had only listened to this twice before because it made him so angry. He took hold of Gabriel’s hand as the conversation played.

Bobby looked at Dillon, who was red in the face, but it wasn’t embarrassment; it was anger.

“This is fake bullshit,” Dillon shouted.

“Do not use that language or raise your voice in this house,” said Mr M. “Play it again, Bobby. This time I don’t want any interruptions.”

He did as he was told, but Bobby could see it was distressing Gabriel. This would be the last time he had to listen to it. Bobby wouldn’t let them play it again, even if that meant pushing back against Mr M.

Dillon was standing with his fists balled, seething with rage. They knew he would say it had been faked, but they were prepared for that. The recording ended, and it was Mr M who spoke first.

“Did you find that as illuminating as I did, Alex?”

“Don’t listen to them, babes. It’s clearly bullshit. Your brother just wants to get back in with your parents, so they’ll accept the fact he was jealous of you being happy and stole your fiancé from you. Remember that your own brother stole him from you. What kind of person does that to their own sister?”

Bobby stood up. “Do you want to sit down and shut up before I make you?”

“Touch me and I’ll call the police. You’ll get disbarred and fuck up your career.”

“Mr M asked you not to swear in his house. Show some respect.”

Bobby felt Gabriel’s hand on his shoulder, and it calmed him instantly. He stepped back from Dillon. Mr M was running this show, so he needed to let him lead.

“I would like to hear Alex’s view,” said Mr M.

“It’s like Dillon said. It’s fake. He would never say things like that. If he felt that way, why would he be with me?”

“I see. Well, let’s look at Exhibit B, shall we?”

He pulled an envelope out from under the coffee table. Bobby knew what was in it as he’d given him the envelope. He pulled the photographs out, stood up, and passed them to Alex.

“What’s this?”

“Those were all taken in the last month.”