Page 155 of The Prodigal Son

The blood drains from my face. “Is he…”

“He’s in critical condition in the hospital. She wanted to know…if you wanted to see him.”

“Seriously?” Why the hell would I want to see him?

“I didn’t answer for you, but I figured that if you wanted to say anything to him…maybe this was the time. There’s no wrong answer here, babe. Whatever you want, I’ll support you.”

I chew on my bottom lip as the question weighs on my chest. It’s not a choice I want to make.

“Your mom said your brothers are coming to her house. They’ll make a plan from there.”

I let out a deep sigh. “Okay. I’ll head that way.”

“Want me to meet you there?” he asks with loving concern.

“No, that’s okay. I need to do this on my own.”

“I understand,” he replies. Then, after a beat, he adds, “I love you.”

“I love you too,” I mumble before hanging up. It’s at this moment that I realize my hands are shaking.

Without thinking too much about it, I let my producer know the situation. We were about to wrap it up anyway, so it’s not a total loss. Then, I drive directly over to my mother’s house. My brothers’ cars are all parked outside, and I have to take a deep breath when I get out of my car and walk through the front door.

Everyone is sitting around the table when I walk in. It’s just the four of us and Mom. No spouses or kids or boyfriends. I takea seat across from Adam and wait to see what they have to say before I speak up.

It’s Caleb who breaks the tension first.

“Good job, Isaac. Your little publicity stunt killed him.”

“Caleb!” my mother shrieks.

Luke snorts and I break out in a full-belly laugh. I look up to find Adam shaking his head at us while trying to hold back a smile. It feels good to let go of this stress I’ve been holding.

“Me? You threw your boyfriend’s underwear at him.”

“Boys, stop it!”

“To be fair,” Adam adds. “I did release a sex tape we filmed in his office.”

Luke chuckles. “I mean, who here hasn’t desecrated his office?”

“I have,” I reply, holding up my hand.

“We know,” the twins answer in unison.

My poor mother is at the head of the table with her face in her hands.

“Sorry, Mom,” I stutter uncomfortably.

“Yeah, sorry, Mom,” the others reply.

She eventually pulls her hand away and takes a deep breath. On the exhale, she glances around at all of us, and we wait for her to speak next.

Finally, she shrugs. “I may have sent him a little revenge video of my own.”

Our jaws drop collectively. “Holy shit, Mom!” Luke says in an outburst with a shocked smile on his face.

“Excuse me?” Adam asks. “With who?”

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