Chapter 15 - The RecordingThe recording was not a final message.

That mattered.

Andre had not known he would die.

He and his cousin Malcolm had been drinking beer on a porch during a thunderstorm in June 2019, talking casually about life insurance after Malcolm complained that his wife had forced him to update his beneficiaries.

Malcolm had been testing a new phone microphone for a podcast project.

Part of the conversation remained on an audio file.

Evelyn had never heard it.

Taylor had never known it existed.

Malcolm emailed it with a warning:

This is ordinary conversation, not Andre's last word. Don't turn it into scripture.

Marcus respected him immediately.

Taylor asked Marcus to listen with her.

They sat in the living room after putting the baby down.

Andre's voice emerged from Taylor's laptop.

Young.

Alive.

Laughing.

Taylor gripped the sofa cushion.

Marcus had never heard him speak.

It was deeply uncomfortable.

Andre joked about Taylor being obsessed with schedules.

Taylor laughed through tears.

"He always said that."

Marcus didn't respond.

The recording continued.

Malcolm asked whether Andre was scared about marriage.

Andre said yes.

Then laughed.

"Taylor scares the hell out of me because she makes everything feel permanent."

Malcolm teased him.

Andre answered:

"I love her. But we both act like love means never changing your mind about anything."

Taylor stared at the laptop.

Later in the recording, Malcolm asked what would happen if Andre died first.

Andre told him to stop being morbid.

Malcolm joked about Taylor marrying somebody boring.

Andre laughed.

Then he said:

"If she finds a good dude after me, she'd better not spend his life making him compete with a dead guy."

Taylor began sobbing.

Marcus felt his chest tighten.

Andre continued.

"I'm serious. Dead people always win because nobody remembers us being annoying."

Malcolm laughed.

"So you're annoying?"

"I'm incredible."

More laughter.

Then Andre said something quieter.

"Taylor loves hard. Sometimes too hard. If I'm gone, I hope somebody teaches her she doesn't have to suffer to prove it mattered."

The clip ended shortly afterward.

Taylor closed the laptop.

Neither spoke.

Finally Marcus stood.

"I need air."

Taylor nodded.

He walked onto the covered back porch.

Rain had stopped.

The streets gleamed under lamps.

Marcus felt anger toward Andre that made no sense.

Not because the man had done anything wrong in the recording.

Because Andre sounded likable.

Human.

Marcus wanted an enemy.

A dead rival was easier to hate if he could be reduced to an arrogant ghost.

Instead Andre had become a twenty-four-year-old man aware of his own flaws.

Taylor joined Marcus outside but stayed several feet away.

"You okay?"

"No."

"Me neither."

Marcus stared into the yard.

"He sounded like somebody I would've liked."

Taylor began crying quietly.

"That's a terrible thing to admit."

"No."

"It would've been easier if he were awful."

"For both of us."

Taylor leaned against the railing.

"I kept only the best version."

Marcus nodded.

"People do that."

"I weaponized it."

"Sometimes."

She looked at him.

Marcus corrected himself.

"A lot."

Taylor accepted that.

They stood quietly.

Then Marcus said, "I don't want to hear that recording again."

"Okay."

"And I don't want it used in therapy like Andre is giving us instructions."

Taylor nodded.

"He isn't."

"Good."

She looked toward the nursery window.

"Malcolm's warning was right."

"About scripture."

"Yes."

Marcus turned toward her.

"Andre doesn't get a vote in our marriage."

Taylor flinched but nodded.

"Neither does your mother."

"Right."

"Neither does Evelyn."

"Right."

"Neither does Nicole."

Taylor gave a small smile.

"She definitely gets no vote."

Marcus almost smiled.

"Only us."

Taylor looked at him.

"Are there still an us?"

Marcus inhaled.

"There are parents."

Her smile disappeared.

"And a marriage?"

"I don't know."

Taylor nodded.

Marcus appreciated that she no longer begged.

He walked inside.

The next morning, Taylor removed Andre's engagement ring, watch, letters and photographs from their bedroom.

Marcus saw the box by the front door.

"What are you doing?"

"Taking them to a climate-controlled storage locker."

He frowned.

"Why?"

"I don't need them in our home."

Marcus looked at her carefully.

"Don't do this because you think throwing him out gets me back."

"I'm not throwing him out."

"Then?"

Taylor touched the box.

"I want to decide when I engage with these memories instead of sleeping beside them."

Marcus nodded.

"That sounds reasonable."

"I'll keep copies of important documents digitally. And eventually I may give some items to Evelyn."

"Your choice."

Taylor studied him.

"You really don't want me to destroy it."

"No."

"Why?"

"Because erasing him would be another lie."

Her eyes filled.

Marcus continued.

"He existed. You loved him. That's part of your life."

Taylor whispered, "And you?"

"I'm part of your life too."

She looked devastated by the simplicity.

Marcus added:

"The question is whether I'm part of your future."

Taylor nodded.

That afternoon Marcus's mother Valerie arrived unexpectedly with food.

She walked into the nursery carrying a casserole and stopped at the blank wall.

"Where's my baby's plaque?"

Marcus and Taylor exchanged a glance.

They had postponed telling family.

Now the moment arrived.

Valerie looked between them.

"What's wrong?"

Marcus took a breath.

"We're changing the baby's name."

Valerie frowned.

"Why?"

Taylor started to speak.

Marcus stopped her gently.

"We'll tell her together."

Valerie's expression sharpened.

"Tell me what?"

Marcus looked at Taylor.

For once, Taylor did not look at Nicole.

Did not look toward the past.

She looked at her husband.

Then she told the truth.

And before Taylor finished, Marcus watched his mother's face move from confusion to disbelief to anger.

Valerie looked directly at Taylor.

"You named my grandson after another man?"

Taylor whispered, "Yes."

Valerie turned toward Marcus.

"Baby, pack a bag."

Marcus went still.

"What?"

"You and that child can stay with me."

Taylor's face drained.

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Marcus stared at his mother.

And a new battle began—one in which loving Marcus meant everyone suddenly believed they were entitled to choose his future for him.