Page 103 of Locke 2

“Is this a bad idea?” I asked, chewing my lip in worry. “Should we just turn back?”

Jem’s truck roared to life. “We got this far, didn’t we?”

Unease coiled inside me. “I know, but…”

“We’ll do this the right way. Locke knows we’re here. We left him a thousand messages, and we’ll scope the doctor’s place out without appearing obvious. Just relax, alright?”

I nodded, telling myself it was going to be fine. “Okay.”

Then we were back on the road.

???

It took another thirty minutes and then we were on Hollybrook road. There were log homes, but they were far apart, and on a lot of land. They also appeared empty. I thought they must be holiday homes for people when they needed to unplug.

Speaking of unplugging, there was no reception. Never a good sign. I felt like this was the start of my horror story. I always joked I would make the perfect victim because I always made the stupidest decisions based on the fact the killer always intrigued me, and if he said, “Come down here” I’d have hopped to him with a smile on my face. Take Locke for example. He could have killed me the second he found me in that bathroom stall. Instead, he decided to kidnap me, and then he let me loose so he could hunt me down and keep me forever.

I was done running. I nodded to myself this as we scanned every estate we happened upon. I was going to surrender fully to that dark suited man who stirred me back to life and looked at me like I was his entire world.

And I was.

I felt it.

But I never told him I felt the same yearning he did. That was going to change. I was going to change. I decided right there and then that I was going to love Max Locke with every part of me. All the broken and sad pieces, all the empty spaces that could never be filled.

I wasn’t whole, but neither was he, but together we could be.

“Hey Kali?” Jem’s voice cut through the air, shaking me out of my thoughts.

“What?”

The car slowed down but didn’t stop. “There are fresh tracks here from the rainfall. Check this place coming up as I drive past it.”

I looked out my window as the truck passed the next home.

Against the backdrop of lush greenery and towering trees, the cabin stood, its red roof vibrant in the rain. Surrounding the cabin was a well-kept plot of land, dotted with wildflowers and patches of grass. A narrow, winding path led to the front door that was also the same shade of red as the roof. Against the autumn colours, the cabin was beautifully familiar. I thought of the photos in the doctor’s office, of all the memories the doctor had made here with his father.

I swallowed, noticing the red truck parked in the driveway. “This is it.”

Jem drove a little faster. “Perfect.”

After a few minutes, he got us off Hollybrook Road and onto another road. Then he parked the car in front of another cabin that looked run down and abandoned.

“What’s the plan?” I asked, even though he’d already told me a dozen times.

“I’m going to check out the place, and you’re going to stay here.”

I couldn’t hide my anxiety. “That’s risky.”

“It ain’t,” he argued. “I’m really good in the woods. If the doc has a hole, I’ll find it. I know what to look for.”

“Why can’t I come?”

“Because you’ll be loud and clumsy.” Jem didn’t say that rudely. This time all his humour was gone. He stared at me, unwavering. “We’ll sit here for a while longer. About an hour. Then I’ll go. It’ll be darker by then, and you’ll be here, far enough away should things go wrong.” He passed me the car keys. “Ifanything happens, you get out of here. You know where to go, don’t you?”

I nodded.

“I need you in the driver’s seat. Because if something does happen, it’ll happen fast.”

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