Audio Assault

by Jeff Adams

  “How does this involve me? This isn’t my specialty. Couldn’t I just stay here and, you know, hang out with John?”

  “We think it would be good,” Mom said, taking over, “if you came along. The cover would be a family vacation to see an old friend. Plus it’d be easier for you to keep an eye on Sofia since you’re the same age.”

  I’d never heard of Glenwood Music, and I didn’t know a singer named Sofia. I should probably ask Eddie or Iris to tell me about her.

  But I had TOS work, and I had a research project in progress for my MIT advisor. Not to mention I’d carved out a good bit of time to spend with Eddie.

  “Plus, you’ve never been to New York.” Mom tried to sound enthusiastic.

  “Why not just tell me what’s up?”

  “You made such a big deal out of the summer plans you had and your junior year wasn’t exactly normal. If we played the parental card and didn’t leave you a choice, we thought it’d be easier to accept.”

  It sucked that they felt like they simply couldn’t ask for my help. Maybe I wasn’t a great son after all. We ate in silence for a while as I thought. After I’d finished off the burgers I spoke again.

  “When do we leave?”

  Dad smiled. “I’d like to go in the morning if we can. They’ve got an event tomorrow night, and Sofia has a concert on Monday evening. It’d be ideal if we could attend both.”

  I tried to make sure my face didn’t betray my thoughts. Eddie wasn’t going to take this well. “I’ll get packed once I’m back from Eddie’s. Anything in particular I need to bring?”

  “Bring the usual stuff you like to travel with. We may want to be on comms to make things simpler.”

  Did Dad clear this with TOS? The use of comms outside an official mission was a no-no.

  “And no. TOS doesn’t know about this. They don’t need to. As a senior agent, I’ll authorize the use of whatever equipment we need and take responsibility for it.”

  “Mind reader.”

  We smirked at each other, and he shrugged.

  “Thanks, Theo, I appreciate this.” Dad looked pleased—but not in a jerk sort of way. “Now we better eat up so this food doesn’t go to waste.”

  Chapter Four

  “IS IT over?” My face was buried against Eddie’s side. The screaming had stopped, but the scary music continued.

  When Eddie flinched instead of answering, I knew it was a good thing that I’d stayed down. The end credit music started a few seconds later, and that’s when it felt safe to peek.

  “Why did I let you talk me into this show?”

  “Because everyone’s watched it except us.” Eddie looked down to where I was still pressed into his side. The top of my head was nestled in his armpit and the side of my face was against his chest. The longer we’d watched, the more I had sunk down to make it easier to hide from the screen. “I’ve never seen you freak out like this. We’ve watched some pretty crazy-town horror flicks, and we usually laugh at them—together.”

  I didn’t know why Stranger Things pushed all my buttons, but three episodes into our binge, I wasn’t sure I could go on.

  “You jumped.” I looked up and tried to convince him that my fear wasn’t silly.

  “I did.” The mischievous sparkle in his eyes gave me goose bumps. He could be so damned sexy sometimes. “You, on the other hand, buried yourself.”

  I grabbed the remote and clicked stop before the next episode could begin. I pushed myself up and swung my leg over, so I straddled him. We wore only shorts—me in cargoes and him in basketball shorts. He had the air-conditioning vent closed, and it was warm enough to justify being shirtless in case his parents came in. Since they were home, the door was ajar, and we were being good.

  “Don’t mock your boyfriend.” I pinned his arms to the bed as I grinned at him, resisting the urge to bite one of his small, dark nipples.

  “Just spreading truth. If there’d been space, I think you would’ve burrowed down so you could get between me and the mattress. Did you think you were gonna get sucked into the TV like in Poltergeist?”

  “See. There’s the mocking again.” I released his arms and tickled his sides. He bucked like a rodeo bull released from the chute. Laughter filled the room as he tried to grab my hands, but I was too fast.

  He changed tactics and used his hips and legs to force me off him. I ended up on my side while he scrambled to hold me down. I looked sideways at him as he eyed me with a suspicious grin. I allowed him to roll me onto my back, and he did as expected—straddled me like I’d done to him.

  It was hot.

  The hardness in his shorts made my dick bounce. I wished for his parents to leave the house. But, sadly, there was no tech—or mental abilities—available to make that happen.

  The shift in eyes from lust to tenderness sent shockwaves through me. This wasn’t “I need to be naked and sweaty” energy. This vibe had been grown the past few weeks—going back to the end of the school year. We’d been saying I love you for a while, but there was more now. The flutters I got from him happened more frequently and with more intensity. The looks, like the one he’d just leveled at me, went straight to my heart. It was perfect, even as it sometimes overwhelmed me.

  He leaned in, locked lips on mine and kissed urgently. We were experts at keeping moans in check, but the way his breathing flared meant he was on the edge of getting louder. Slowly, we moved into our favorite make-out position—side by side.

  “We’ve gotta stop,” Eddie said between kisses, even though he made no other move to end the moment. “Or there’s gonna be a mess.”

  We tried not to grind on each other, but it was difficult. Sometimes the maneuvering for kisses, knocked our boners together. It didn’t matter that I had shorts and underwear on, the sensations were powerful. I found out long ago he was more sensitive than me, and I knew how to play that to my advantage.

  “Now who can’t handle something?” I raised a questioning eyebrow at him when he shuddered.

  Before I could react, he sat up, grabbed one of the pillows, and knocked me in the face.

  I got the pillow next to me and hit him in the side of the head. “Two can play this.”

  “But I’ve got the advantage from up here.” He hit me again and made a grab for my weapon.

  We laughed even as he hit me again.

  “You think?” I scrambled to my knees. Despite the onslaught, and while I still didn’t match his height I went after his torso. Eventually I knocked him down, flat against the mattress.

  “No fair. Two minutes for cross-checking.”

  Just like that the fight was over because we laughed too hard. I crashed down next to him. Between us, I found his hand and locked our fingers together.

  Once we calmed down, it was time to say what I didn’t want to. “So, I’ve got to go out of town again.”

  “You just got back.”

  At least he didn’t sound pissed, which might’ve been better than the disappointment.

  “I know. Not work this time, though. Family thing. We’re going to see some college friend of Dad’s.”

  “How’d you get roped into that? You’re here all the time when they travel.”

  “I know.” I released his hand, rolled over to my side and propped my head up on my fist. “They pulled the parent card on me.”

  “Damn.” He sounded as surprised as I’d felt earlier. “I didn’t think they ever did that to you.”

  “They usually don’t. This means a lot to them, though.”

  “Do you at least get to go someplace cool?”

  “New York. I’ve never been, so that’s something. You might know who we’re seeing. Some music guy—Glenwood.”

  “Are you for real?” Eddie bounded from the bed and went to his desk where he opened his laptop. “That dude’s only done some of the best music, like, ever—going back to when he was our age, like, twenty-five years ago.”

  I hadn’t expected he’d shift to excited, or that we’d be back on my
lack of music knowledge.

  “Didn’t I get grief just a few hours ago for listening to old music?”

  He looked at me with a mix of shock and disbelief. “There’s old and then there’s classic. Just listen.”

  He played a few different songs—some of which I recognized from Dad’s collection. Instrumentally they were great, and his voice was pretty good too. I stood behind him to see the song list, so I could grab them from Dad.

  It wasn’t that I was antimusic. I was just picky. It needed to have some complexity in the rhythm or the vocalist needed to be outstanding. Of course, a perfect blend of instruments and vocals was a ticket to my heart.

  “Okay, those were really good,” I admitted.

  “He’s an amazing songwriter and producer. And even though he’s got the huge company, he’s still creative, working with a lot of his artists. It would be nice if his daughter got all of his talent, but she’s mostly just a cookie-cutter teen pop singer. I mean she’s great to listen to, but you wouldn’t like it.”

  Eddie brought up YouTube and typed in Sofia Glenwood. He played the first video that came up. She was beautiful, black hair pulled back tight and a body I was sure many straight boys fantasied about. He was right. I didn’t like it. It was bland without much creativity. Sofia’s voice was good, but she just wanted you to know why she’d be the best girlfriend.

  Eddie caught my frown. “Exactly. How is she even in the same family? She’s famously turned down her father’s offer to collaborate. Her stuff sells, though, likely because her voice is good, and she had the family name to work with.”

  “How do you know all this stuff?”

  Eddie shrugged. “I watch TMZ.”

  I reached around Eddie and did a search to see more about the family. They were gorgeous, and it was surprising that only Sofia was usually in front of a camera. Oliver Glenwood reminded me of Ben Affleck with the chiseled jaw and the perpetual five o’clock shadow. Marcella might as well have been an older Selena Gomez. Sofia was the perfect blending of her parents. Apparently Marcella didn’t do too much with the company, instead using her law degree to run the family’s foundation, which worked with a number of charities that benefited children, education and equal rights.

  “You’re gonna have a week with the beautiful people. I think I’m kinda jealous.”

  “I’m sure.” Sarcasm spilled out. “I can’t imagine I’ll hang around while Mom and Dad catch up with their friends. Besides, I’ve got work and school stuff to do. I wish you’d be there to explore the city with me. That’d be much better.”

  “Totally.” Eddie spun around in his chair and grabbed my hips before he looked up at me. “Just watch out for Sofia. She’s got a rep, and you’re a hot guy.” He didn’t sound like he was kidding either.

  “And I’m gay with a boyfriend, so it’d be a waste of her time.” I buried my face down in his Afro until I could plant a kiss on his scalp.

  He looked up at me. “When will you be back so we can get our summer going again?”

  “It shouldn’t be more than a week.” I stole a look at the clock on the computer screen and saw it was nearly eleven. “I should go. We’re headed out early, and I have to pack.”

  It took several minutes for me to get out of Eddie’s room and still more to ride away from his house. This needed to be a short trip because I had a boyfriend to get back to.

  Chapter Five

  THE GLENWOODS lived in Brooklyn. We’d only been off the highway for a few minutes before I wanted to get hold of a bike and ride. Many of the streets reminded me of Boston, but the scenery was different—and changed faster. In the span of just a few blocks we passed short four- and five-story buildings; then there were tall residential towers, and in the middle of it all—Barclays Center. Even though it had a reputation as a crappy place to see a game, I wished it was hockey season.

  The major place I wanted to ride was the large park, which our driver said was Prospect Park. It stretched out in the distance as we approached the Glenwood’s house. We turned onto a street filled with brownstones and came to a stop midway down the block. I’d expected to stay in Manhattan, not Brooklyn. The idea of a media mogul living in a regular neighborhood like this, even though the building and surroundings were nice, went against everything TV had taught me.

  As we got out of the SUV, the front door opened and a good-looking older man came down the stairs, smiling. Oliver Glenwood was more handsome in person than he’d been on Eddie’s computer screen. Even at a distance, he had a certain, confident swagger.

  “Victor!” Oliver met Dad at the front of the SVU. They shook hands, laughed a moment, and pulled each other into a bro-hug. Mom and I stopped at Dad’s side.

  As Oliver kissed Mom’s cheek and hugged her, I noticed the black-suited man at the top of the steps, just outside the front door. Definitely a security guy because I didn’t imagine a butler-type looking like he could take someone out.

  The street was pretty cool with all the different brownstones packed close together. It seemed sad, though, that no one had a front yard. At least there were trees along the sidewalk that kept things nicely shaded.

  “This is Theo.” Dad saying my name snapped me back from surveying the surroundings.

  “Theo, sorry they dragged you up here.” Oliver extended his hand to me and I met it—strong grip to strong grip.

  “No worries, Mr. Glenwood. I’ve never been to New York, so it’ll be cool to check it out.”

  “Please, call me Oliver.” I nodded.

  Another man dodged around the security guy to get out of the house. This one was in a polo shirt and jeans.

  “This is my assistant, Christian. These are my friends Victor, Katherine, and their son, Theo.”

  Christian exuded efficiency as he looked us over and smiled. “Welcome. I’ll get the bags.”

  “So I thought we’d give you the guest suite.” Oliver pointed to the building next to the one he’d come out of. “The first floor is a full one-bedroom apartment, so you’ll have some privacy. Theo, figuring you don’t want to stay on a couch, you can take the studio below it.”

  Score! My own place for however long we were here. A definite perk.

  “Cool. Thanks.”

  “Hopefully it makes the visit more comfortable.”

  Christian took things out of the back of the SUV, but I went to grab my backpack before he could take it. “I’ll get that, thanks.” I wasn’t keen on my stuff in someone else’s hands. Thankfully no one questioned it.

  “Come on in and I’ll show you around… and we can talk.”

  We followed Oliver. As we approached the front door, the security guy stepped inside and waited, out of the way, so we could pass. Once I was in, he resumed his place, leaving the door open. Maybe he kept watch on Christian and the luggage? I didn’t stay behind to find out.

  “Marcella sends her regrets she couldn’t be here for your arrival. She’ll be home later.” We paused in the entryway and he gestured to his left. “This is the more formal living room. It’s really a throwback to the way my parents had it when I was growing up.”

  The room was well kept but clearly stuck in time. The furniture was functional and stylish in a sixties or seventies sort of way. Upstairs the space was impressive as it opened up to the entire floor.

  “This is incredible,” Dad said. “I didn’t realize you’d joined the buildings together.”

  “You knew I bought this building when my parents were ready to sell and move to Palm Beach a few years ago.” Dad nodded. “When the other building went on the market last year I snapped it up, and we expanded. Third floor has offices for me and Marcella, along with the master suite and the top floor is Sofia’s, including a small recording studio. The ground floor of this side is the base for my onsite security team.”

  Dad’s “incredible” was an understatement. I always thought our house, Eddie’s house, Mitch’s house were nice, comfortable. This amped all that up, but it didn’t seem like too much either. I
t reflected good taste. The colors were soft, and there was a lot of wood and brick. I wouldn’t call it modern, but it wasn’t old either.

  “Have a seat.” Oliver gestured to the dining room, where there was a large wood table surrounded with ten chairs. Like the rest of the furnishings, it was beautiful—probably reclaimed wood from the looks of it. “Let me get lunch.”

  He gets the lunch? For someone whose daughter lived her life on TMZ, or so Eddie made me think, he was very down to earth. He could be one of our neighbors. If I didn’t already know what he did, I’d have no clue he owned a hugely successful company. The entire space invited you to get comfortable.

  “I can get that, Oliver.” Christian hit the top of the stairs and headed for the kitchen, which was defined by a large breakfast bar. I loved that you could see from the windows along the back wall of the kitchen on through to the huge windows that looked out from the living room. There were no visible blinds so perhaps no privacy on this level.

  Oliver returned to the table and sat next to me. I wondered if he had the need to balance the table with my parents on the other side.

  “So tell us what’s happened.” Dad straightened in his chair and shifted into his authoritative all-business voice.

  Oliver nodded. “Two days ago Sofia and I were in Central Park for a photo shoot for her next album. It attracted a fair amount of attention because word spread on social media that we were there. Three guys rushed us from nowhere. Thankfully we were able to manage it, but they almost had Sofia in an SUV before my guys got their act together.” Panic flashed in his eyes. “We were in the northern part of the park and regular vehicles aren’t allowed up there, so how did they even get in? And why can no one figure out who they are? It’s like they disappeared.”

  Christian brought a platter of sandwiches and set it down. After another trip to the kitchen, he returned with a bowl of green salad. Oliver followed Christian back to retrieve dishes and a pitcher of water.

  “Is that the first time anything like this has happened?” Dad asked.