Page 32 of Haunting Phantom
“Phantom, you gotta get out of this. You can’t go home, so where can you go to hide? Think, baby! THINK!”
I’m practically shouting in his ear, but I’ve never been this afraid before. It’s almost like the Misfits knew they would come—everything was a goddamn setup.
It makes me think back to the conversation in the clubhouse, when Hyde came rushing in, out of breath and puffing.
“The Raging Misfits are back in town,” he yelled, exhaling hard as he gripped his knees, fighting to catch his breath. “I just saw a bunch of them heading to town toward that new pool hall.”
Drac and Voorhees shared a look as both of them stood in the middle of the room with their arms crossed, unfazed and unmoving.
“Well, aren’t we gonna move on them?” Hyde questioned, his eyes flashing like a war cry.
The side of Drac’s mouth ticked. “We got our shipment coming in tonight. That’s more important.”
Hyde kept pushing. “Yeah, but if we take out the Misfits now, we won’t have to worry about future shipments.”
Voorhees held up his hands. “I checked; this one is secure. The drop will be in a few hours.”
Drac nodded, then his eyes moved to where Phantom was sitting, nursing a bottle of beer like it’s the last one on Earth.
“Phantom, I want you and Bigfoot to go check out the pool hall. Take the prospects with you for numbers.”
Hyde’s chest puffed up in protest. “Hey, what about me? I’m the one who saw them heading over there.”
The way Drac looked at him said things I didn’t realize until now. He knew. He knew something was up, and he fucking used Phantom and Bigfoot as bait. It wasn’t the Misfits setting a trap; it was Drac.
That motherfucker.
“I need you to stay here at the clubhouse, Hyde. Just in case they decide to do something here.”
Hyde rolled his eyes. “Fuck that shit! This was my recon, so I should be the one going.”
“And I’m saying you need to keep your ass here. So, go sit the fuck down before I staple your ass to one of the chairs.”
The biker grumbled the whole way, throwing himself onto a chair before grabbing a beer to chug it.
Hyde set them up.
Drac knew.
He fucking used my Phantom as bait.
Goddamn it, I’m going to kill the bastard.
Phantom takes a turn I’m not expecting, and I almost tumble to the ground. Thankfully, my tether to him keeps me snuggled up to his back, just as he pulls into a familiar apartment complex, stuffing his bike in the shadows of a grove of trees. He dismounts and starts running for cover, seconds before the other bikers come tearing down the road, rushing past as they search him out.
“Smart, baby. Very smart.”
Then I realize where we are, and my heart sinks.
Why the fuck did he come here?
He smooths down his hair, then casually strolls past a few buildings before he ends up at her door, out of breath, barely able to knock on the wood.
He knows I can’t enter here, and yet that’s where we end up. On her doorstep. In her territory.
“Who is it?” a meek voice asks from the other side of the door.
“It’s Phantom,” he grits out, falling against the building. It’s then that I see the blood spilling down his arm.
