Page 39 of Outlawed Treat
Chapter Twenty-Two
Reckless
WORKING AT THE hauntedhouse to get it ready for tonight.Every day we go to the house early to put everything back and go through to make sure all the garbage is picked up.People seem to be enjoying the haunted house so far and everyone has told me there are people going through more than once just to see things they missed the first time.The guys are loving it as well.They enjoy scaring the hell out of people and are using their judgment to ensure none of the kids and girls are scared to death.The place doesn’t look that bad from what I can see.We’re not the only ones working already today as I look around the square to see several townspeople setting up their booths, cleaning their area, and doing whatever else they have to in order to open in a few hours.I’m walking around the back to check everything when my phone vibrates in my pocket.Pulling it out, I see Tank’s name on my screen.Tank never calls me so something is going on.The feeling deep in my gut tightens and I know whatever I’m about to hear won’t be good.
“What’s up, Tank?”I answer the phone as Link and Luca walk up to me.
“On my way to you with Cali.She’s havin’ a bad panic attack.Found her at the diner this way.Not sure what the hell caused it, but I know she needs you.Be there in two,” Tank informs me before hanging up the phone.
“Fuck!Link get the guys to keep workin’.Luca, you’re with me.Need you to be ready to grab Cali anythin’ she needs when she comes out of her panic attack.Tank says it’s bad,” I state, making Kreed swear under his breath and take off to ensure everyone is working.
Looking around the area for a place to sit with Cali, I decide to bring her to the back of the house.No one’s back here and she’ll have the privacy she needs away from other people in town witnessing her in such a vulnerable state.I don’t want her this close to the haunted house, but it appears I have no choice today.It reminds me of the last time she had a panic attack near a haunted house Darren made.
The party has been going for hours.It’s our senior year and Darren chose to have another haunted house because he’s worried it will be a long time before he can do something like this again.We won’t ever know if we’ll be home when Halloween comes around, so this year is bigger and better than last year's.I have no clue how he managed to get everything ready in time and find all the special props he has inside the house.My best friend managed to make everything better than any previous year and I’ve heard so many people screaming in fear already.Kreed and I have already worked in the house and now it’s time for us to party with everyone else.
Darren is drunk as hell and he’s trying to force Cali to go through the haunted house with him.She keeps refusing and moving away from it, but he’s not taking no for an answer tonight.We all know Cali will show up to the parties with us, but she never goes in the haunted houses or anything like that.It’s hard enough to get her to go to the hayrides on the outskirts of town each year.Kreed and I have been trying to keep Darren away from Cali, but it’s not working.He’s stubborn on a good day.Tonight, Darren is refusing to listen to any of us.It’s not long before Cali finally gives in to Darren and heads into the haunted house with him.Kreed and I follow them closely because it won’t be long before she loses her shit and needs to be taken out of the house.I’ll do that while Kreed distracts Darren so we can help our best friend get through whatever happens to her.
We barely make it twenty feet in the house when the first person dressed up jumps out and scares the shit out of Cali.She immediately curls in on herself and I know she’s going into a panic attack.I wrap my arm around her shoulders and pull her from Darren’s hold while Kreed turns his attention toward something on the back wall of the current display we’re in front of.Pulling Cali out of the house the way we just came, I get her outside and to the back of the house surrounded by members of the football team.They’ve formed a protective barrier around us without a single word from me being said.Cali cheers on the whole team and brings snacks to practice a few times a week so the guys all care about her.That’s just who she is.No one can resist her sweetness for long and everyone seems to be sucked into her orbit.
Sitting down on the ground, I pull Cali in my lap and let her wrap herself around me.The guys all keep their backs to us while keeping everyone else here to party at a distance.I get Cali to breathe with me and it takes longer than normal to get her back in control of her own body.When she finally does gain her control and breaks free of the panic attack, Cali cries into my neck and asks repeatedly why Darren made her go in the haunted house.I don’t have an answer for her because Darren doesn’t usually force her to do things like that.When she realizes we’re up against the back of the haunted house, Cali almost has another panic attack until I stand with her in my arms and move away from the building.I’m gonna beat the shit out of Darren for pulling this shit with her.He won’t get away with this and I know I’m not the only one pissed off.
Knowing I can’t possibly bring Cali close to the haunted house, I spot a large tree not too far from the building so I can still yell for help if something goes wrong and she needs more than Luca and I.Tank won’t go too far from us either.My uncle will be around in case we need him.If he could, he’d be the one helping Cali with this panic attack.It kills him to see any of the women like this but things get worse when he can’t help them.This is one of the times he won’t be able to help Cali.She loves Tank and considers him family like the rest of the Phantom Bastards and Wild Kings members and ol’ ladies.
“She’s here, Reckless,” Luca says, pointing out the club’s SUV Tank’s borrowing driving up to us fast as hell.
I race toward the vehicle as Tank pulls to a stop.Through the windshield, I watch him point toward the back and know my girl is laying in the backseat of the SUV instead of sitting up front.Opening the back passenger door, I find Cali curled up in a fetal position.Her eyes are closed so tight it looks painful, and her small body is rocking back and forth.I can see her trembling and her fists clenched.This is a bad panic attack and it’s going to take a lot for me to get her out of it.What the fuck happened to make her this bad?
Lifting Cali in my arms, I back out of the doorway.Cali doesn’t waste any time wrapping her body around mine.Her legs are around my waist and her arms are wrapped tight around my neck.If I weren’t used to this with her, I’d be getting choked out right now.Tank jumps out of the driver’s seat and Luca remains at my side while I quickly move toward the tree behind the haunted house.Sitting down, I lean back against the tree and get comfortable while my uncle and Luca stay close to us but give us their backs so Cali doesn’t feel like she’s being watched in this moment.
Cali’s body is almost limp in my arms as I hold her tight to my chest.Usually, there would be a tightness coiled up in her body, but not today.Her heart is racing uncontrollably as it beats against my own heart and my body feels as if it’s shaking and trembling as horribly as hers is.The urge to go after whoever made Cali get this bad is overwhelming, but she needs me.I can’t do anything until after I get her back and find out what the hell is going on.
“Deep breaths, Reina.Ineedyou to breathe with me, Cali.Remember, we take a deep breath in and hold it,” I tell her, demonstrating what I want her to do as Cali ignores me.
Right now, I guarantee she doesn’t hear a word I’m saying.It will take her a few minutes to realize she’s in my arms and listen to the words I’m saying to her.I’m not sure how long it will actually take because I haven’t seen her this bad in a very long time.It makes the last one she had at her house look like nothing in comparison to this one.
“Come on, Darlin’.I really need you to take a deep breath with me and hold it,” I try again, rubbing my hands up and down Cali’s back as she remains unmoving in my arms.
“What do you need, Caleb?”my uncle asks as I look up to find him and Luca watching us with concerned faces.
This is the first time Luca is seeing Cali this way.It’s scary as hell when you don’t know what’s going on and I can see the fear in his eyes as he takes in every detail about the woman who has made him feel like he matters more than anyone else.
“Is she gonna be okay?”Luca asks, his voice a broken whisper as he tries to figure out how to help me with her.
“She’ll be okay.It’s just gonna take some time for me to get through to her this time.If you ever see her like this, get me immediately,” I tell him, moving my attention back to Cali.
