Page 58 of Ride the Lightning

“Shut up and drive, dickhead,” Sawyer returned.

Jonah laughed at their antics. “Strangers observing you two would think I’m deranged for envying your relationship.” But only because they’d be focusing on the wrong things. Yeah, Royce and Sawyer called each other names, but if you paid attention to the tone of voice and sappy look in their eyes, you’d see how much they loved each other. Asshole and dickhead were their pet names for each other.

“Do you hear that?” Royce asked. “He admires us.”

Sawyer laughed. “Jonah, you need new friends.”

He thought about the new people who’d entered his life over the past year, Royce and Sawyer were among them. Jonah’s mind snagged on the image of Avery sleeping in his arms that morning. “I think I’m doing pretty good.”

Since Royce was coming over, Jonah didn’t bring up the real reason he called. They said their goodbyes and Jonah called Sal’s. Just as Royce said, the owner helped him place the order after telling Jonah how to find the size of the tank he currently had. Jonah paid for the purchase and told Sal that Royce would be by to pick it up in about an hour.

“That one is pure trouble,” Sal warned.

“Yes, sir,” Jonah agreed. “Thank you for your help tonight.”

Feeling relieved, Jonah called Avery. His call went straight to voicemail, so Jonah left a message.

Avery immediately sent back a text.Can’t talk right now. Sorry. I’ll call you later.

Jonah stared at the cryptic message. Should he respond to let Avery know he’d read it? Or would it be another interruption? Not replying felt rude but interrupting something important was too. This was Jonah’s first attempt at a relationship in years, and he was already fumbling. He sent a quick thumbs-up and set his phone down.

Luckily, Royce arrived and saved Jonah from himself.

“This is a nice big utility room,” Royce remarked once they carried the new water heater inside. The room was shaped like a large L and housed his washer, dryer, water heater, furnace, and a chest freezer. “The last time I changed a water heater, the tank was tucked into a closet, which made it difficult to work around.”

“Is the homeowner still talking to you?” Jonah teased.

“I’m the homeowner, although I signed the house over to Jace and Holly when I officially moved in with Sawyer.” Jonah had met the oldest Locke brother and his girlfriend, who happened to be Royce’s childhood friend and a fellow detective on the force. “They haven’t said anything about a busted water heater, and as you know, neither of them is shy.”

“True,” Jonah said.

“We need to drain the old water tank, but we want to shut off the water and electricity first. No one wants to get electrocuted.” Royce surveyed the room. He crossed to the electrical panel, opened it, and read the labels above each breaker. “Aha,” he said, flipping one of them to off. “There should be a drain built into the floor somewhere to catch runoff from your furnace.”

“It’s around the corner,” Jonah said, showing Royce where it was located.

“Do you have a garden hose you can spare?” Royce asked.

“Yeah,” Jonah said, heading out to the shed where he’d stored it for the winter.

When he returned, Royce connected one end to the water heater tank and unfurled the hose until it reached the drain. Then he reached into his back pocket and removed a utility knife and sawed through it, cutting off the excess length. “Now, we need to shut off the water and drain this bad boy.” Jonah watched Royce move deftly around the room. “Let’s hope your drain isn’t clogged,” he said, turning a valve.

Jonah held up crossed fingers as the water gurgled through the hose and down the drain. “So far, so good,” he said.

“We’ll hang out and keep an eye on it just in case,” Royce said, leaning his hip against the chest freezer. “I bet you’re glad you called me.”

“I am, even though the water heater wasn’t the reason I called you,” Jonah quipped. “I wanted to know if you’re related to Jerry Locke?”

Royce’s right eyebrow curved upward. “Yeah, he’s my uncle. Seems like a good enough guy.”

“Seems like?” Jonah asked. Wouldn’t he know?

“He’s my dad’s younger brother. My dad resented the hell out of the fact Jerry took over the business when their father retired. So, I only heard hateful things about the man while growing up. The first time I met him was at my mother’s funeral when I was ten. Jerry was really nice to us kids.”

“I’d heard he moved out of state,” Jonah said.

“Yeah. My dad said the economy went to shit in the early eighties, and the housing market went to hell in a handbasket. My dad said Jerry lost his ass, got out of the business, and moved to Florida. Good ole Eddie took great pleasure in Jerry’s failures. Why are you asking about my uncle?”

Jonah told him about the investigation and the connections to Locke-Tight. “What do you know about him?”