Page 50 of No Rhyme or Riesling
“Shit,” John gasped. He hadn't even heard Adam come out of the bathroom. But clearly the boy had heard his dad's voice.
“John?” Adam asked again. “What in the actual fuck was that?”
John dropped his phone as though it had burned him. Then he reached out and flipped it over, hiding the screen in an attempt to hide the sound of the voice that had haunted him for nine long years.
How the hell was he going to explain this?
Chapter 18
_________
ADAM
ADAM HAD to brace himself against the bathroom doorway.
What. The. Fuck. That was his dad's voice. On John's phone.
His chest heaved, but he couldn't seem to get enough air. His vision began to darken around the edges, and his heartbeat sounded too loud in his ears.
“Adam,” John gasped.
John moved, but it was all a blur. The next thing Adam knew, he was sitting in John's chair with his head between his knees, John's hand resting lightly between his shoulder blades.
“That's it, baby,” John murmured, rubbing his back. “Just breathe.”
It took several minutes, but Adam finally caught his breath. He slowly sat up, having to stop halfway when a fresh wave of dizziness washed over him. John steadied him before he could topple right out of the chair. Once Adam regained his focus, he straightened up the rest of the way and swallowed hard as he glanced from John to the phone and back.
A tiny whimper escaped him. “J-John–”
“I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't mean to play that, I swear. Christ. I didn't even know itwouldplay.”
Adam frowned. “What do you mean?”
John scrubbed a hand over his face. “Cell providers usually dump voicemail messages after so much time, but for whatever reason, this one is still there.” He gestured at his phone, lying on his desk. Somehow, it seemed to be the only thing in the room, like a spotlight blared down on it, turning everything else dark and invisible.
“Wh-Why do you still have a message from my dad?” Adam asked.
John opened his mouth, then let out a sigh and shook his head. Instead of answering with words, he picked up his phone, unlocked the screen, and held it out.
Adam took it with shaking hands. He saw his own voicemail listed there from earlier that day, and just above it was one labeledFrank Barnes. Adam clenched his jaw, fighting tears at the sight of his dad's name, then blinked rapidly when the timestamp caught his eye.
“Shit,” Adam choked out, nearly dropping the phone. His breath felt stuck in his throat as he stared at the screen. Adam coughed, then sucked in a ragged gasp. “This is from the day before he died.”
John slowly nodded. “The day after you snuck into my room.”
Adam's lip trembled, and it took him a long moment before he could ask, “What did he say?”
“I have no idea,” John replied. “I've never listened to it.”
“What? Why?”
“The same reason I didn't answer when he called,” John said with a grimace, gesturing at the phone. “I saw his name and all I could think was that he was calling to say he was pressing charges or something.”
Adam winced. “Because he thought you seduced me rather than the other way around.”
“Yeah.” John ran a hand back through his hair. “I couldn't bear to hear him say that he didn't trust me or didn't believe my side of the story. Not that I ever gave him my side. And that's what really kills me. That's what eats me up inside. I never faced him. Never told him what really happened that night. I respected the hell out of that man, and his last thoughts of me were that I'd tried to hurt you because I didn't take the opportunity to convince him otherwise.” John sighed. “I'm not sure I could have convinced him, anyway, considering how close I came to giving in to temptation. I very nearly deserved his anger. Too nearly. I camethisclose to taking you.”
Adam choked out a sob as tears suddenly rushed down his cheeks. “And I was too stupid to explain it to him right.”
