Bastards and Scapegoats (Twisted Legacy Duet #1) - CoraLee June Page 0,87
pawing at the door and whining to get to me. I didn’t have a key, or I would have opened it up to check inside.
“Where are you, Hamilton?” I said with a curse before calling him once again. Maybe it was a bad idea to come here. Maybe I just needed to hop on the first train to DC and call the police. Fuck. I should have just taken her to the hospital last night. I was so scared that I’d push her away if I forced the issue, but she ended up leaving anyway.
But what would I do once I got there? Could I go up against Joseph alone? If the Beauregard reach was as bad as everyone claimed, could I even go to the police? Where was Hamilton? I left him in rough shape last night. He was already struggling with the anniversary of his mother’s death and seeing Jack. Then, I left him alone. What if he did something reckless?
I dialed his number again, and it went to voicemail. “Hamilton. Please call me back. Please. I’m sorry about last night, okay?” I paced in front of his house for a moment longer, and once I was certain that he wasn’t home, I called Jess, who answered on the fourth ring.
“Hello? It’s the asscrack of dawn, and I work tonight. This better be good.” She sounded groggy.
“Do you know where Hamilton is?” I asked, my voice rushed and desperate. Jess must have picked up on the worry in my tone, because when she spoke again, she sounded more alert.
“I thought he was with you?”
“We got into a fight last night,” I admitted. “My mom showed up. She needed medical attention and—”
“Wait. Slow down. What?”
Hot tears fell down my face, and I chewed on my lip. “I need to find Hamilton. I think he’s the only person who can help me. Joseph hurt her, and she went back to him. Why did she go back, Jess? I could have helped her. We could have gotten through this. I don’t know what to do.”
“Where are you?” Jess asked.
“At his house. He isn’t here. Where would he have gone?”
Jess went quiet for a long moment. “I’ll come get you. I think I know where he is.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, I replied, “Thank you, Jess. Thank you so much.”
“Don’t thank me yet,” she snapped before hanging up the phone.
I had a plan. I had somewhere to go. I had help.
I just needed Hamilton.
25
Jess pulled her Honda Accord up to the gate in front of Jack’s home where two guards stood scowling at her scuffed and dented ride. The cloth seats smelled like cigarette smoke, and she was wearing sweats, as if she’d rolled out of bed. I waited for her to pull up the drive, but she didn’t. “I can’t go any further. I was kind of banned from Jack’s home three Christmases ago when I gave Joseph a black eye,” she explained sheepishly. “But I’m willing to bet Hamilton is here.”
“Why would he come here? Jack is home and he hates him. If anything, Hamilton should be avoiding this place.”
She let out a sigh. “It’s weird how the places that bring us the most pain can also provide us with comfort when we need it most, yeah? You called your mom when Saint was tracking you down. Hamilton comes here when his world is crashing around him. Go to the backyard. Follow the trail into the woods that leads to the community park. You’ll find him at the base of a sycamore tree between Jack’s property and the house next door.”
“Isn’t that your spot?” I asked.
“It is. But I don’t think he needs me right now. I’ve never seen Hamilton give a shit about someone else besides me. He’s always been too scared to. You should go. I think it will help him.”
I nodded once. Although I felt pulled in so many different directions, I still wanted to make sure that Hamilton was okay. I ached to hop on a train and stop my mother from running back to Joseph. Part of me also craved crawling in a hole and processing everything that had happened these last two days. It was a lot. I hated it.
I pushed open her car door, and the movement made the rusted metal groan loudly. “Oh and, Vera?” Jess called just as I stepped out of the car. I straightened my shirt and looked at her.
She smiled softly. “If Hamilton has his head shoved too