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“You don’t think I’m really Jack?” He sounds amused.
“There are other possibilities.”
“Oh, kid. You always did think you were more clever than you are. You’re such a disappointment.”
I almost hit the table again. Dammit, this is dragging so much stuff up. “Let us hear Simone.”
If this is a fake voice, Simone’s could be, too, but I doubt it. Creating a fake voice requires hours of audio from the subject. That’s why so many podcasters are prime targets. It’s easy to fake them. Jack could’ve arranged that before he died if he cared enough to, but would he? Why? To prove he’s better than me? Maybe I don’t want to believe that Jack would go this far.
“H-hello?” Simone says.
“Mom,” Lena almost yells, tears in her eyes, her voice choked. “I can’t believe it’s happening again. Mom, I’m so sorry.”
“Ask her only something she would know,” I say quietly.
“Uh, Mom, do you remember when we went to the zoo, and I fell over, crying, because I was laughing so hard?”
“Y-yes.”
“What animal was it, Mom?”
“A giraffe.”
Lena looks at me, nodding, a question in her eyes.
“Let’s get down to business,” Jack grunts.
“I could do the same with you, Jack,” I snarl.
“What? Ask me about zoos?”
“I could ask you about the fishing trip where I lost my shoe. Remember that? Remember what you said?”
“I’m an old man,” he grumbles. “I can’t remember much these days.”
“Yeah, sure you are,” I snap. “Whatever this is, it has nothing to do with Simone. You’ve made your point. Name a time and a place.”
“You don’t want to believe it’s me,” Jack says with a throaty laugh. “You want to believe the old Jack exists. The one who held you and told you it would all be okay. The one who played daddy for you because you were so damn pathetic and clingy. I did my part. I sacrificed for you, kid.”
This type of pain is new to me. It hits me square in the chest. I’ve spent so long locking this crap away, this part of him, anyway. “You pretended to be a good man for a little while.”
“I did a damn good job, too,” Jack grunts. “Look at you. I’ve seenThe Answer,Jamie. I’ve seen all of it. Iamthe fucking answer. Did you really think something like that could exist tohelppeople?”
He laughs cruelly. I hate thinking about it, but it reminds me of how he sometimes laughed when making an off-color joke. Just his sense of humor, Mom used to say. It’s just how he is—his comments about a woman’s skirt on a warm summer’s day.
“You wouldn’t understand, Jack,” I say. “You killed two women. You murdered them in their own home.”
Across from me, Lena flinches. I take her hand. She doesn’t fight me this time. She holds on tightly, looking at me desperately. I want to sayI won’t let him hurt your mom, but I said that before, and I let this happen.
“Aye, aye,” Jack says, sighing wearily. “This life isn’t an easy one by any means. We all have to make tough choices.”
“You could’ve chosen to leave them alone, goddamn it.” I finally slam my hand on the table, and Jack laughs. “Don’t fucking laugh at me.”
He laughs again. I’m supposed to be in control and thinking clearly, but I can’t. Whoever this is, they’re going to pay. If it really is Jack, I will beat the bastard to death for making my woman suffer. For making those women suffer. For not being the person he pretended to be.
“I’m at your oh-so-fancy garage, Jamie. The one disguised as a big metal tomb. Be here within the hour, or I execute the slut. Listen to her, Jamie. Listen to the slut. Tell him, slut. Tell them the truth.”
Lena is on her feet, her hands clasped to her face, her eyes red. Demon looks up at her, growling in confusion. He looks around and yawns.
