Summer parked at a gas station before her nerves caused her to crash and quickly dialed Ashton’s number. She needed to tell someone so she could feel even the slightest bit safe. Going alone might have been the right decision, but she should have at least told someone where she was going.

“Hello?”

“Ashton, it’s me,” Summer said quickly, hearing the quiver in her own voice, “I’ve made a terrible mistake. I let Ned blackmail into meeting him again and…”

“What happened?” he asked.

“He wasn’t there at the meeting place,” Summer managed, “Instead there was this girl, no woman. She had a crazy power. As soon as I saw her I lost myself. All I could think of was how beautiful and amazing she was. I didn’t know powers like that existed but it is the only explanation I can think of.”

“I am going to need to report this,” Ashton told her, “Did you want me to meet you? I need to know as much as I can about her before I make the report.”

“No! She might target you because of me. But you have to warn Shadow Phoenix. She is obsessed with him,” Summer warned.

“She is obsessed with Shadow Phoenix?” Ashton asked, taken aback, “Why?”

“I don’t know. She wasn’t very clear on that. Just on why I was the one who ruined his life.”

“She definitely sounds dangerous. I will be sure to warn him,” he promised, “You should be careful as well. Call me immediately at the first sign of trouble.”

“What do I do now?” Summer asked.

“I don’t know,” Ashton admitted, “Do you mind if I give your contact information to my team leader? He might be able to help more than me.”

“Go ahead. I will take any help I can get right now,” Summer approved.

The call ended and Summer took a deep breath to attempt to calm herself. She was glad Ashton had her back, but bringing someone like a team leader into this was anxiety inducing in a different sense. It made everything she had been trying to deny feel too real. She was being targeted by a dangerous woman with a power that could turn everyone against her in an instant. Summer already couldn’t fight, so how was she to defend herself against that?

No good would come from staying at this gas station, though. Summer forced herself into action so she could at least return home and warn her family. She wouldn’t be the only one in danger if things continued the way they were. Had she really treated Shadow Phoenix that badly to be hated so much by his fans? Would all of this end if she just turned herself in? But to who? She had committed no crimes.

When Summer pulled into her driveway, her phone buzzed with the tone of an unknown caller. Would it be Ned again, or perhaps Ashton’s team leader? Either way she would need to answer it. Heart pounding, Summer held the phone up to her ear.

“Hello, this is Jared from Gale Research Emergency Division. Am I speaking to Summer Aster?” the male voice on the other side questioned. His voice was oddly calming, especially since it wasn’t Ned’s.

“Yes. I’m Summer,” she replied.

“I heard a tip that you are currently being endangered by an individual with a psychological power,” Jared continued, “Can you tell me more about the situation? I need to know as many details as possible if we will be able to help you.”

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

Summer gave up on thinking whether or not this was a bad idea, so she ended up explaining the entire situation to him. How Ned had blackmailed her, who Ned was, and her meeting with Queen Heart. She also gave away her identity as Golden Reign and how her connection to Shadow Phoenix played a role in all of this.

“She is completely obsessed with him,” Summer finished, “I am worried she will target Shadow Phoenix as well.”

There was a deep breath from the other end as Jared took all of this information in. “Do you have any idea of the real identity of Shadow Phoenix? I am afraid we cannot help him if we don’t know.”

“I don’t,” Summer admitted, “But Ashton does.”

“I see,” Jared replied, and there was silence for a moment, “I am getting a bad feeling about tomorrow morning. Call me back first thing when you wake up, no matter how early or late. If I consider this situation any less serious than I do now, I want you to call the number I am about to give you. Do you understand?”

A bad feeling? Did Jared think Queen Heart was going to appear at Gale Research? How could she even get… No she could get in. That was exactly how her power was used best. “I understand,” Summer promised, and quickly found a spare bit of paper to jot the phone number down as Jared told it to her. She sincerely hoped it would never come to a situation where she would need to use it as that would mean Ashton was in danger.

Once this call ended, Summer slowly got out of her car and stepped inside. The lights were off and her parents were sleeping. Should she wake them and warn them of the danger? What could they even do so late at night? Perhaps it was best to tell them in the morning, after she called Jared and found out everything was fine.

Summer went to sleep with those hopeful thoughts, but her dreams were full of nightmares. Queen Heart was at the center of all of them, tormenting her and her loved ones and holding a grand wedding with Shadow Phoenix. The Shadow Phoenix in her nightmare oddly resembled Ashton, leaving her with a thought she could not ignore come morning. Could Ashton be the one behind the phoenix mask?

He was the only one who knew who Shadow Phoenix was, and he was always so certain about things that had to do with him. There was also the odd familiarity in his voice during Shadow Phoenix’s final visit. Unfortunately, Summer had no way of knowing if she was actually onto something or if her stress was creating crazed conspiracies. If it was true, though, that meant Ashton was in even more danger.

Summer quickly called Jared back as promised, but he was slow to answer the phone. “Hello, this is Jared from Gale Research Emergency Division. Is there something I can help you with?”

“I am calling you back about Queen Heart like you told me to,” Summer told him.

“Ah, Queen Heart. Isn’t she a gorgeous young lady? I have to thank you for telling me about her or I may not have had the chance to see her,” Jared gushed, sounding completely unprofessional and not like himself. At least not like the night before. Summer had the most terrible feeling that Queen Heart’s power worked stronger on the opposite gender.

“Y-you’re welcome,” Summer stuttered and quickly hung up before scrambling for the piece of paper with the number Jared had instructed her to call. She tried to remember any instructions he had given her only to realize he hadn’t. There was nothing she could do but dial it.

Rather than ringing, on the other end she heard a robotic female voice begin to speak. “Please state the name of the person who authorized this call.”

“Jared,” Summer said quickly, hoping that was the correct answer.

“Authorizing Jared. Checking number ID. Confirmed. Gale Research Lockdown sequence engaged. Nullification gas engaged.”

Lockdown?! Nullification gas?! What in the world had Jared just had her do?! “Wait,” Summer said, terrified of what she had just started with one simple phone call.

“Checking Authorization. Jared does not have authorization to halt lockdown operations. Lockdown continues.”

The pleasant yet unfeeling robotic voice only made the situation more terrifying, but there was nothing Summer could do. When she did not say anything else, the line disconnected on its own. Jared should have said something! What if she had dialed the number earlier or made some kind of mistake?

With no other way to try to calm herself, Summer dialed Ashton’s number and waited for him to pick up. Please be all right.