Page 11 of Ghost

Doc spent the next half hour checking us both over, and he seemed a bit distraught as he tended to all our bumps and bruises. I couldn’t blame him. I knew it was terrible. While it wasone thing to see that a man had hurt a woman he was supposed to love and take care of, it was even worse that a man would hurt a child the way Dylan had Toby.

It was hard to believe that someone could be so vile, but that was Dylan. He was a vile, disgusting man who’d made my life a living hell for the past two years, and I was hopeful that neither of us would ever have to see him again.

As soon as Doc was done checking us over, he took us to a small room where Viper and two other men were waiting for us. We walked over and sat down at the table across from them. They all just sat there staring at us, and I wasn’t sure what to do or say. So, I just sat there and waited until Viper finally said, “You’re a brave girl, Casey. It took a lot of guts for you to come in here and ask for our help, and as much as I want to be the one who sees this through, we can’t give you the kind of help you need.”

“But you... you said you’d help me,” I stammered. “I have no one else to turn to. I...”

“Easy now. We’re not just going to throw you to the wolves. We’ve got a plan.” He kept his voice calm and steady as he explained, “We’ve been talking things over and trying to come up with the best course of action, and we believe that it would be best to put some distance between you and your cop friend.”

“I’ve tried that. I’ve moved more than once, but he always found me.”

“This time is going to be different. This time, you’ll be in a different state, and you’ll have a new name, a new social, and a new phone.”

“A new name?”

“You’ll go by Whitney Sanders.”

“And Toby?”

“Figured it’d be easier for him to keep his first name, but he’ll become a Sanders, too.”

“Okay. And you mentioned a new state?” My chest tightened. “Where are we going?”

“To Little Rock.” His tone was deep and almost menacing as he explained, “You’ll be staying with the brothers of Satan’s Fury.”

He took a minute to explain the connection their club had with Satan’s Fury and how they’d agreed to help us out. We would be meeting them later in the night, and they would take us in and watch over us as we got back on our feet. I was skeptical, but then he said, “I wouldn’t send you there if I didn’t think they’d do right by you and your boy. They’ll make sure this ex of yours steers clear, and if he doesn’t, there will be hell to pay—from them and from us.”

“How long will we be there?”

“Indefinitely,” he answered without any reservation. “This isn’t a quick fix, Casey. If you want to truly be rid of this guy, it’s going to mean making some big sacrifices. The question is... are you ready to make them?”

“I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure he doesn’t hurt Toby again.”

“That’s what I wanted to hear.” He extended his hand as he said, “I’m gonna need your phone and keys.”

I reached into my back pocket and pulled out my phone and keys. As soon as I handed them to Viper, he took the battery out of the phone and tossed everything into the trash. And just like that, our old lives were erased. I would have a new home. A new life. We would be cut off from everyone and everything I’d ever known, and not only that, but we would have new names.

We were no longer Casey and Toby Michaels.

We would now be Whitney and Toby Sanders. Just hearing those names made me feel like I was trying on someone else’s shoes. They didn’t fit, but it didn’t matter. We had to wear them anyway.

I barely had a chance to tell Frankie goodbye before they had us loaded into a truck and were heading to an unknown destination.

Toby held onto my hand like I was his lifeline, and maybe I was.

He was certainly mine.

Half an hour later, we were sitting in a room in the back of some strange building, waiting for the men who would be taking us to Little Rock. Even though Viper had assured us that we had nothing to worry about, we were both very apprehensive. I held him close and kissed him on the top of his head as I whispered, “I’m so sorry, sweetie.”

“You don’t gotta keep saying that.”

“I know, but I am.” Tears streamed down my face as I said, “It was my job to keep you safe, and I failed. I messed up everything.”

He didn’t respond.

He knew I was right. He knew I’d failed him.

And that hurt more than all my wounds combined.

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