Locke 2 (Blackwater Boys #4)

Thirty-Seven

Kali

T he house was quiet.

Jem had sensed the mood was off. When Conor came home with no new information, nothing more was said.

“You seriously got nothing?” Jem asked quietly.

“The same story,” Conor returned. “Boy was sick, and she had to take him to the clinic because his mother wouldn’t.”

Jem sighed. “This mother better be dead or I swear to fuck I’ll kill her myself.”

Conor frowned. “What news did you find out?”

Jem filled him in, and as he listened, Conor’s face tensed. “He’s in a cunt of a mood, I take it.”

That was an understatement.

Locke was in a feral mood.

He didn’t speak a word the whole ride back, and I didn’t push. When we got into the house, he disappeared upstairs, slamming the door to my room shut. I was sure he wanted to talk to me. I was nervous about what he was going to say.

I truly did my best not to let Keenan lay a finger on me, and we got more information out of him than I expected, but it mattered very little to Locke. He was twitchy, his mouth clenched tight, his face dark and ruthless.

“How bad?” Jem asked me quietly.

“Bad,” I answered.

He frowned, looking upset. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pressed the whole thing. It was a stupid idea.”

I rested a hand on his arm, reassuring him. “Actually, Jem, we learned a lot. Ambrose…” My words trailed off.

Jem’s face tightened. “It’s him?”

“But he doesn’t look like the man on the wall—”

“That could easily be one of his men, Kali.”

I stiffened a nod. “I know.”

I turned my gaze to the stairs. “What do I do?”

“I don’t know,” Jem replied. “Locke holds grudges. The grudge with me lasted over twenty fucking years…” He laughed but it sounded empty. “I’m the reason, you know.”

“The reason?” I asked.

He nodded. “I put him in the hole, Kali.”

My face went hot. “What?”

“He was a kid,” Conor cut in, overhearing us. I turned to look at him. He was sitting on the armchair, arms crossed, watching Jem. “You gotta stop punishing yourself.”

“Easy for you to say,” Jem returned. “You went out looking for him, and I just stood there—”

“I didn’t have sick fucks watching my every move, making sure I did that to him.” Conor’s voice dropped lower. “I didn’t have a sister they fucked around with, either, to torment me with. Fucking stop, Jem.”

I stared at Jem, knocked speechless. Jem locked his jaw, shaking his head as he looked at me with steely eyes. “Coat it how you want. I’m still the reason. And I fucked things up again by pushing that shit on you and making him rage.”

“I’ll fix it,” I told him quickly. “I’ll fix it, Jem.”

But he wasn’t listening. Jem disappeared from the room, looking haunted.

“It’s why this boy matters to him so much, isn’t it?” I asked Conor.

Conor stiffened a nod. “Yeah.”

I wanted to go after Jem, but I had to go after Locke first. I sensed he needed me. With a deep breath, I left the room and climbed up the stairs.