GHOST OF YOU | BWS

twenty-seven.

I was out cold after Isaac's guys knocked me out. I tried to fight, and so did Brad, but what were the odds of two against seven? Brad did manage to badly hurt four of them, leaving Elly screaming in agony after Brad broke his knee. We all heard the loud crack his bone made when it fractured. Everything went black after that.

"Joy", someone calls my name. "Wake up"

Before I can even open my eyes, the pounding in my head reminds me of what happened. My eyes fly open as I literally jump out of my sleep. It takes me a quarter of a second to see that I am sitting on the back seat of a moving car, Brad next to me. His hand is on my shoulder that he was shaking not even a minute ago. Relief waves through him when he sees me awake, but is quickly brushed off by the anticipation of what is going to happen to us.

"Brad", I cry out, my hand reaching for his bloody face.

They got him good. He doesn't look as bad as me after what Leon did to me, but it still looks painful.

"I'm fine", he answers, grabbing my now bloody hand in his, and holding it tight. "Are you hurt?"

I shake my head, tears running down my cheeks like waterfalls.

"I'm so-sorry", I say in between two sobs. "If we left when we were supposed to, we wouldn't be-", I continue in one stream of words before Brad shushes me.

He glances at the mirror where we can see the two guys in front looking back at us.

"Everything's gonna be okay", he says, brushing his thumb on my hand. "Reg just wants to have a chat with you. You're gonna tell him what you told me", he continues and I freeze.

I can't tell him I came to kill him. Has he lost his mind?

Brad glances up front again before looking back at me.

"That you were desperate for some money, but that you changed your mind after what you've gone through with Joaquin, okay?", he adds, looking straight into my eyes.

He doesn't want me to tell the truth.

"Okay?", he repeats, making sure I understand him.

I nod, my stomach curling at the thought.

***

The car stops in front of a suburban house, with a white fence and the greenest grass I've ever seen in winter. We're in a fancy residential neighbourhood, each house looking pretty much the same, huge and very well kept. I notice the kids toys and bikes on the driveways nearby, and wonder why we stopped here. Is this where Reggie lives? Do his neighbours know who he is?

My heart starts to race in my chest when the guys in front of us leave their seat and my door opens. I turn to Brad, desperate to find some comfort in his eyes, desperate for him to tell me it's gonna be okay, desperate for him to make me feel safe the way only him can.

But all I see is terror and fury as the guy clenches his hand tightly around my bicep to get me out of the car. I know better than to fight this time, and so does Brad. Another car stops behind and Isaac and a few other guys get out of it before walking with us to the house. We take a turn right before reaching the door and are led to the back garden that is probably the size of half a football field. There, they drag us inside what looks like a garage on the side of the house, and down to an underground basement. I barely have time to look around before we are thrown into an empty room, and I fall to my knees with the force of the push. The door locks behind us before I even have time to stand up. Brad rushes to me to make sure I'm okay and helps me up before trying to open the door, in vain. And no wonder why. We're in a bunker. A war-like bunker, with cement walls as thick as a tree. Judging by this fact, I'd say the place is soundproof, and I can only guess the reason why. My blood turns to ice at the thought and my body stiffens.