The Phantom's Hero

The Reveal

This is nearly 4000 words long, so grab some water, and good luck

"You cannot escape me, little hero."

"I can try."

"You will fail. I am coming for you. I am going to find you. Happiness will never be yours, so long as I live."

Avery's dreams were once again tumultuous. The guilt of so many deaths resting on her shoulders had made her once again unable to sleep comfortably, despite the soft sheets and fluffed up pillows. A loving, kind face she had reached for so many times in the past shifted into one she would happily never see again, the Phantom's a regular face that haunted all of her nightmares. Only this time, his laughs mixed with the crackling of flames and the sound of her own screams.

The week at the beach house had been calming for Avery in a way she did not understand. It was only as she shot up from her nightmare to the sounds of the city in her ears that she finally figured it out. The sea, being water, was the opposite of fire. The waves suppressing her fears the same the water would suppress the burning flame.

Avery sat up in the borrowed bed, rapidly blinking away sleep, only to find the door of the guest room open. The shadow of a short figure stood in the open doorway, lit from behind by the hallway light. It took Avery a full three seconds to recognise the woman after initially fearing the Phantom had found her.

Martha entered the room slowly, her hands firmly clasped in front of her body. "You want some cocoa?" She asked from the doorway, her voice soft.

"I want him stopped," Avery responded. Her voice trembling as much as her.

Martha came nearer and reached out to press the back of her hand on the younger woman's forehead, only to pull it back after watching Avery flinch away from the contact. "You need another blanket. You'll catch a chill." Her attention turned to the room, her eyes scanning.

"I don't like warm," Avery said quickly as she leaned over to switch on the bedside light. Martha paused in her search for a blanket and nodded slowly as she moved to sit at the foot of the bed. Avery flicked the switch of the lamp, causing the room to illuminate with a soft glow and reveal the tired expression on the older woman's face. "Who did you lose?" Avery asked suddenly, catching the older woman off guard.

"Wh- "

"Sorry, don't answer that," Avery said quickly. The woman pulling her knees up to her chest in a visible display of shrinking.

A moment of silence passed before Martha finally answered, unaware her husband had stopped near the open door to listen. The older woman licked her lips and swallowed before speaking. "I have lost a lot of people, both mentally and physically," she admitted. "I discovered my first grey hair the day my mother died, and gained glasses the day my niece was admitted to the mental hospital, Radlers."

Avery blinked twice and swallowed. Refusing to admit her own stint in the same hospital, her stay a little shorter than others she had met inside. "I've heard it's nice there."

"My niece hated it. Said they were a bunch of vampires." The two women shared a short, gentle laugh before falling silent once again. "You are but one person facing a monster. Like a flickering candle against a brisk wind, you need protection."

"He knew he could escape the prison. He let himself be caught."

"Avery," Martha sighed as Avery rushed out of the bed. "It's the middle of the night. You can't leave." Her words prompted Larry to reveal his position in the doorway, his stern face doing nothing to stop her.