Chapter Five
Star sat on the cold bench and stared at the happy faces around her. Veronica had turned out to be a bust, after finally wrangling her address from the clerk in the mail office, Star had found out Jay Leno’s big secret: He was a fake.
Veronica Givens was a local prostitute who let Jay tell people she was his girl, for fifty dollars a week. Star had hit a dead end. Sitting here at the play park watching little kids run around grinning like clowns, she couldn’t help but feel lost.
When graduating from High School she had wanted to be a nurse, that circled the drain after the crash, everything had, for the past two and half years she and Sam had devoted their lives to the dead, helping them move on. Now she was starting to have doubts.
This life had cost her friends, jobs and a shot at normality, not to mention the perils they faced on a daily basis. They had lost their home and were now wanted for mass murder, was it worth it anymore?
“Bastard!”
The furious voice penetrated her gloom and Star’s head snapped up. It had been a boy’s voice but hardened with hate. Glancing around, her heart went into overdrive. A gangly boy with a mass of ginger hair that dripped water all down his body, stared straight at her from across the park.
“He’ll pay for what he did.” It said glaring at her with awful dark pits. Star forced herself to breathe, the ghost looked down, at its feet was Lock’s son, he too was staring at her.
“Help me.” The boy mouthed to her silently.
***
Sam snorted with impatience as Gareth Lock went to answer the door; he had just been getting into his flow.
“What’s the meaning of this…?” Lock’s strained voice said from the hallway. A minute later Star marched into the room with another woman and a boy that couldn’t have been older than ten.
“Star?” Sam got to his feet throwing her a bewildered look.
“Time to do it your way,” She told him before rounding on Gareth Lock. “Your family’s in danger and unless you tell us everything you know about Jay’s death, we can’t help you.” Sam looked at Gareth who looked as confused as Sam felt.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, or who you think you are…”
“He’s hurting you’re son.” Star snapped she motioned to the boy who clung to his mother like a tea bag to a sink. “No more hiding.” She told him softly, and he pulled up his jumper sleeve.
Sam stared at the dark bruises that covered the little boy’s arm. The woman hugged her son tighter, Gareth Lock’s mouth dropped open.
“Why didn’t you…?” He mumbled.
“You never want to hear.” His wife retorted harshly.
“Who is he? And what does he have to do with Jay’s murder?” Star asked, relentless in her pursuit for the truth.
Gareth Lock got a tormented look in his eye, and he raked his hands through his hair. “His name is Ryan Small.” He finally choked.
“And he wants revenge.”