Speak & Listen

TREASON

TREASON

Because Jeremiah's parents returned that weekend, I had to leave. Guess who I was living with?

"Son, welcome to your new home." David smiled at me as I was more than flabbergasted by the exquisiteness of the entire house. From the diamond chandeliers to the melodramatically lengthy and curled stairs, the marble carpeting, the aluminium windows that displayed a Utopian view of a fading sunset, green from the trees and distant buildings that showed the town's CBD.

He was obsessed as I was with music, but also had a passion for painting, so on the walls were portraits of baroque art, some of the French antiques, vinyls from his band Black Alaska, the Cranberries, Elvis Presley, Tracy Chapman, Michael Learns, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Marilyn Monroe, Louis Armstrong and many more.

"Is that why you didn't tell me you moved in? You wanted to settle?" I laughed with a wide smile as I touched a Lana Del Rey artwork on the walls. He was a huge fan of her music too.

"Yep. Oh, and honestly, I never liked that Benjamin boy anyway." He left me there as the valet, Alejandro, took my bags as he, David, disappeared into the lounge.

"Thank you," I said to Alejandro. He nodded.

I walked into the lounge. He knew before I told him about Niall's death and who was actually responsible. It was impossible to be opaque with him, he saw right through the dark shadows of what is hidden. I didn't even bother to ask how and how much he knew. I suspected that dad wasn't just a multimillionaire who just chose not to be flamboyant and explore his riches but...something made me think of him otherwise...the day he taught me how to use a gun in order to, and I quote, 'defend myself one day'.

Flashback:

"Dad?" I froze at the door. It was a few days before he took me in. The weekend. I was still at Jeremiah's apartment.

"Son." He opened his arms. I snuggled myself into his huge arms.

He kissed my head as he caressed my hair. "Heard that asshole kicked you out."

"That's right, Mr Spector." Jeremiah descended from upstairs.

"My! My! You have grown!" David exclaimed with his arms widened.

Jeremiah, because he loved the intimacy, particularly hugs, went ahead to hug David. "Nice to see you again, David." Jeremiah flashed a grin.

David played with his hair. "Where's the lounge, your old man needs to sit down."

"This way." I guided him and in silence, we got into the lounge and he, just like he said he 'needed' to sit down, literally threw himself on the futon. He just didn't know the time and place to play a clown.

"Thank you, sons." He sighed. "I came to take you back home, son."

"Last time you said that you disappeared for weeks and I was homeless."

"I was busy, son. Plus you never called. I was helping your mother. She was in Alex in a rehabilitation centre again when she had a relapse, which caused her a stroke."

"What?!" I screamed.

"Doctors say physiotherapy and minerals may help recover her from the stroke and of course, abstinence from any drug. But enough about Cynthia, the body y'all disposed at Lake Mouth was found by the cops. And why the fuck did you run to Nahoo, Jeremiah? To attract attention?"

My eyes had widened. As much as I suspected that he knew how Niall Johnson died, well it was all over the news, but little did I know he knew who was actually responsible. Furthermore, I didn't know he knew about Jeremiah's hibernation and why.