Page 96 of Locke 2

All Locke wanted was to see Kali happy.

All Locke wanted was to start this new life with her by his side, but he couldn’t do it if he failed her on this.

Locke couldn’t fail.

“Arty,” said Locke, leaning over to stare heavily at the bleeding old man. “It’s time to raise the stakes.”

Within minutes, Ambrose’s screams turned to whimpers turned to whispers…

Forty-One

Kali

The office was the same as when I’d last been here. Including Yawn-Hater who narrowed her eyes at me when I walked through the door. I heard her immediately tap away at the keyboard, probably checking to see if I had an appointment.

The room was empty. No waiting patients, but I did hear a soft murmur in the backroom, so someone was being seen to.

I strode to the desk and smiled brightly at Yawn-Hater, whose name was actually Keely. “Hi, I was hoping to see a doctor. I’ve been here before.”

“Yes,” she said, knowingly. “You have. Do you have an appointment?”

I made a sad face. “No, I don’t, but it looks really quiet here, so I was hoping to come in as a walk-in.”

“Full name.”

“Kari Price.”

She tapped away at the keyboard. “You saw Dr Abbott last.”

“Yes.”

“He’s not present.”

“What about Dr Kensington?”

Keely made a face. “Dr Proud might be your next available doctor. He’s not currently seeing someone. Dr Kensington, however, is with a patient—”

“I can wait for her,” I cut in, before adding with a wince, “It’s lady problems, and I’d rather deal with a female.”

Keely tapped away. “I need to see your medical card, otherwise it’ll need to be paid in cash—”

“I have cash.”

She tapped away some more. “Have a seat, please.”

I strode around the room instead, feeling anxious. It wasn’t long before an elderly lady left the patient room, and I was called in. I passed Doctor Abbott’s office, with all the beautiful pictures on the wall. The room was dark, so he wasn’t in. I felt relieved by that.

I was led into another room. I took a seat and barely gathered my thoughts when the door opened.

“How are we going?” asked Dr Kensington as she breezed into the room.

I gaped at her for a moment. She was a stunning blonde woman with huge green eyes and a killer smile. This clinic employed some ridiculously good-looking doctors.

“Good,” I answered, suddenly anxious because I didn’t know how to bring up Lenny. How did those Blackwater boys do this?

“You saw Dr Abbott about your anxiety, right?” She was reading this information on a laptop opened in front of her. “Were you hoping for this to be a follow up on that medication he prescribed?”

“Um…yeah, ” I stumbled over my words. “I’m a TA at the school, so there’s been a lot of anxiety lately.”

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