“Play it,” Elise said quietly.
Jonah shook his head.
Not refusal. Fear.
I had seen my son afraid as a child after hurricanes, when wind bent the live oaks and transformers flashed blue outside the windows. I had seen him afraid when his daughter was born early. I had never seen him afraid of a sound.
“Play it,” I said.
He unlocked the phone.
Randall’s voice came through the tiny speaker, thinner than on the recordings.
“Jonah. It’s Dad.”
My son shut his eyes.
“I know you don’t want to hear from me. That’s fair. I won’t call again after this.”
A pause. Breathing.
“I need you to do one thing, and I know I have no right to ask.”
Jonah’s jaw clenched.
“If your mother starts looking for me, stop her.”
Elise looked at Wade.
The message continued. “Make her angry if you have to. Tell her I’m not worth finding. Tell her you heard I’m with someone else. I don’t care.”
