I hear sirens, but I barely register them until I hear my name: “Ruby!”
I look up. An ambulance has come to a stop at the edge of the corner. The back doors are open, Phantom hanging out. He motions me over. “Get in.”
My heart lifts. It’s better than Cinderella’s pumpkin.
I clamber up the back. Phantom grabs my wrist, hoisting me the rest of the way. He closes the back doors, knocks twice on the divider, and the ambulance speeds into action again. I jerk forward with the movement, my body brushing up against his. We’re both wet—his dark uniform even darker—and he moves his hand to my arm to steady me.
“Sit,” he commands.
He guides me into a fold-down seat, and straps me in. In a daze, I let him. I’m still clutching the bat like my life depends on it. He’s noticed the weapon in my hand, but says nothing. Once he finishes locking me in, he grips a handle and flattens his fingertips on the ceiling to lock himself in place.
“Do you know what Cisco’s doing there?” Phantom asks.
I shake my head. “You know as much as I do.”
“Has he done this before?”
“Once. Twice. He gets drunk and takes it out on her. She got a restraining order, but?—”
“Takes it out on her?” he asks, prompting me to clarify.
I can’t. I swallow. My fists tightens around the bat, and I realize my hands are shaking. All of me is shaking. In that moment, I realize…
This isn’t just anger. It’s fear.
I’m afraid. I’m so fucking afraid of what I’m going to find when I get there, and I’m so glad that Phantom’s here.
He drops a hand to my shoulder. “Ophelia.”
I lift my gaze to his. I lose myself in the comforting, steely control in his eyes.
“You’re not alone,” he tells me. “I’m right here with you. It’s going to be okay.”
He says it, and I can breathe again. My breath comes in tight, choking gasps, but at least it’s coming now. His hand squeezes my shoulder and his touch is like an anchor, grounding me when I need it most.
The sirens cut, and I realize we’ve come to a stop. Phantom unlocks the back door and I yank off my seat belt, quickly climbing out.
We’re in Astoria. In front of Aleena’s place. The rain has turned into a manageable drizzle here, creating little fog clouds up under the beams of street lamps, and I can hear him.
“Open the fucking door, you bitch!”
Cisco is hollering. Banging his fists on the door. One of the neighbors shouts at him to shut up, but he just shouts back.
I see him, and my blood runs cold.
This is the only man in my life who managed to make me feel small and trapped and ashamed all at once. Well. He’s not getting away with that tonight.
Phantom moves like a shadow behind me. A secure, supportive presence. I push through the fence, grip the bat, and motion it to Cisco. “Hey, asshole!”
Cisco whips around. Under the lamplight hanging from Aleena’s door, I can see his eyes are bloodshot. He’s uneven on his feet. He looks at me, squints, and mutters a few swears to himself.
“The fuck is this?” he lifts his hand towards me.
“Get away from my sister or I swear, you’ll regret it.”
He barks a laugh. “And you brought your boyfriend to beat me up, huh?”
Phantom quietly steps beside me. “Oh, no,” he says. He laces his hands behind his back. “I’m just here to clean up the pieces after Ruby’s done with you.”
