Author's note: Happy Halloween! Yeah, I know, it's been too long...

Dissembled

I sleep so that I don't cry.

He wished sleep could be an escape but even his dreams were painful.

…

When Maddie woke, she was surprised she didn't feel tired. She felt rested. Why?

She rolled over in bed and looked at Jack, who was sleeping on his front with half of his face smashed into his pillow.

Right. That was why. She didn't spend half her night with Phantom but instead spent all night in bed with her husband.

She kissed Jack's temple. He did not stir.

In the shower, she wondered how Phantom was doing. She knew daytime was Danny's time, not Phantom's, but she felt everything was off limits in the shower. No rules here. She could think about whatever she wanted. Whoever she wanted.

Not that Phantom was actually a "who."

She wondered how he would be after nearly forty-eight hours with his head locked up. She had seen him after nearly twenty-four hours with his head locked up, so this would be a new reaction to observe.

She convinced herself that leaving him on his own for a whole night was just another experiment. Then she wouldn't have to feel like she missed out on a whole night of research.

She turned the water to its highest setting and enjoyed the scalding heat for a few moments before switching it off and stepping out of the shower.

Now it was officially time for Danny. No more Phantom until that night.

Late that afternoon, Maddie sat with Jack in the kitchen, both of them eating lunch they had ordered from a fast food restaurant. Jack shoveled everything in his mouth. Maddie could only eat half of her meal before offering the rest to Jack.

Maddie's phone rang. She checked the caller ID before setting it on speaker. "Hi, Detective Calhoun."

"Hey, Maddie. Is this a good time to talk? Are you busy?"

"If it's about Danny, I'm never too busy to talk about him," said Maddie. "Jack's here, too."

"Heyo," said Jack.

"Please tell me you have some good news for us," said Maddie.

"It's a step in a new direction," said the detective. "I am hopeful it will give us more clues."

"What is it?"

"The Foleys have agreed to let me interview Tucker. So I'll be setting that up soon. They want to be present while I talk to him, but at least it's something."

Maddie sighed. "Finally. I was beginning to think they'd never let us talk to him. And what about Sam? Will you be talking to her too?"

"The Mansons still refuse to let us interview her. I'll keep trying, but Sam's mother just won't budge on the issue."

"Can't you get a warrant or something?" asked Maddie. "We can't just not interview her. We need all the leads we can get."

"Sam isn't a suspect in Danny's disappearance, and there's no evidence of foul play," said the detective. "I don't think a warrant would go through at this time."

"Right." Maddie crossed her legs. "Because according to all of you, Danny just ran away and isn't worth your time or resources."

"Mads," said Jack gently, stroking her back. Maddie shrugged him off.

"I assure you that we are taking this very seriously," said the detective. "We are doing all we can to find him."

Maddie shook her head. She could see Jack's uncertain expression out of the corner of her eye.

"The other option would be to approach Sam when she's alone without her parents around. There's no law that says we can't do that. I have yet to see her alone anywhere, but if I ever do, I'll see if she'll be willing to talk to me. But until then, hopefully Tucker will be able to tell us about that calculator texting app on Danny's phone. Maybe we'll even get lucky and Tucker will be one of the people he's been texting with it."

"Do you think he could've been texting anyone else with it?" asked Maddie.

"I think Sam would be more likely since you say that she was giving him opioids. But he might've also been using the app to secure drugs from other people."

Maddie gaped. "No, okay, I know my son had—has—a problem with painkillers, but that doesn't mean he's contacting drug dealers."

"Perhaps not. But if I were to seek a warrant to interview Sam, that's the angle I would use, that she may know other people he's been getting drugs from, people that he may have gone to see when he ran away, people he may be with now."

"No, don't—" Maddie huffed. "Don't depict him that way, please. That's really not how I want anyone to see him."

"I understand. We can talk about it more later if Sam's parents continue refusing to let me talk to her."

Maddie grumbled reluctant agreement.

"We still haven't found anything of interest in Danny's computer, but we'll let you know if we do find anything," said the detective. "We are also working on contacting the creators of that calculator texting app to see if we can get transcripts of Danny's conversations."

"Okay. That sounds like a good plan."

"I will also be speaking to the therapist you had Danny see. Brandan Cross. He may have some valuable insight about where Danny might've gone."

Maddie's heart skipped. "Oh? When will you be talking to him?"

"We haven't set a date yet, but soon. We've only spoken over the phone."

Maddie kept her breathing even despite her shaky heart. Brandan had already made the implication that he felt she was too engrossed with her ghost research, that she wasn't the attentive mother she should be to Danny. And worse, that she was forcing Danny into submission using scare tactics, making him feel like he had no other choice.

She could only hope that maybe she had somehow misread Brandan's words that day and that he wouldn't say anything incriminating to the detective.

"Thank you, detective," said Maddie. "Is there anything else?"

"That's all that's going on for now. Just wanted to give you an update."

"Thank you so much."

"You're welcome."

Maddie ended the call and rubbed her arms, suddenly feeling cold. Jack moved his chair closer to hers and began massaging her shoulders, his thumbs working into her neck and upper back muscles.

It felt so good.

But it wasn't enough to ease her mind, relax her body.

She needed an escape from all this. She needed Phantom.

As long as Phantom was in more pain than she was, she could get through this.

Late that night, she broke away. She broke away from Jazz, who was once again speaking over the phone in her room in hushed tones. She broke away from Jack, who hinted that he wanted her to stay with him again but was sound asleep by the time Maddie crept out of the room and the house after one in the morning.

More importantly, she broke away from Danny. Just for now, she didn't have to think about him.

The drive out of Amity Park was always so calming. Nothing but the dark sky above and a stretch of asphalt ahead reflecting the light from her car. Asphalt turned to dirt once she neared Vlad's private lab. She parked near the entrance and admired the way the trees rustled in the breezy night air before keying in the combination for the lab and entering its sterile environment.

She switched on the light and entered the main area of the lab. She sighed in relief at the sight of Phantom still fastened to the table with his head locked up. She moved closer to make sure he was still alive, watched his chest rise and fall a couple times. Except for a twitch in his right arm, he was not moving at all.

Maddie moved to the back counters to set her keys down, organize her notes, and make a plan for the day. Phantom had already been confined like this for nearly forty-eight hours; he could wait another few minutes before she released him.

She put together an IV drip and dragged it to the examination table. She held the IV pole as she watched Phantom's chest shudder with sporadic breaths. Was he wondering why she was taking so long to uncover his head?

She was just a scientist who simply had to admire her specimen every now and then.

She unlocked the box and opened it, lifting his head out of it. Phantom gasped loudly and squinted, turning away from the ceiling lights. Dried tears crusted in trails on his face and neck.

"Sorry I wasn't able to come and see you last night." Maddie put the lock box away. "Something came up and I had to stay home. But I'll try not to let that happen again."

She cut off the right sleeve of Phantom's suit and applied a tourniquet to his upper arm so she could start an IV line to rehydrate him. Phantom turned his head side to side a couple times before blearily blinking his eyes open.

"You didn't come last night?" he asked, his voice sounding hoarser than usual.

"Nope."

Maddie pricked his vein. Phantom flinched but otherwise stayed still. His eyebrows pinched together over his tired eyes rimmed with a dark green color.

"You look confused," said Maddie, amused.

"No, I just…" Phantom cleared his throat. His voice sounded clearer when he spoke again. "I thought that you seemed gone longer than usual, but I thought I had to be imagining it."

"Nope. You didn't imagine it." Maddie checked that the IV was flowing properly. "But it's interesting to me that you have such a good perception of time. Many ghosts don't. Not that it's a rare quality I see in ghosts, but it just means you're one of the more intelligent ones."

"Intelligent. Right," Phantom muttered. "That's how I ended up here."

Maddie patted his shoulder. "Well, you're obviously not more intelligent than me."

Phantom's gaze hardened.

"Come on, Phantom." Maddie leaned against the table. "Surely you knew I'd eventually capture you, right? None of this is a surprise to you, is it?"

Phantom did not reply, but his eyes saddened. A sadness that looked so remarkably real.

But no, it wasn't real and all his plays on her emotions would always be wasted efforts.

Maddie decided to start with Phantom's previously broken right leg. She cut the boot away from the rest of his suit and inspected the closed incision site from when she surgically reset the bones in his shin. She could barely make it out now, just a faint shimmery scar running between glowing white leg hairs. All of the bruising from before was completely gone.

Maddie prodded at his leg. "How is your leg feeling, Phantom? Does this hurt at all?"

Phantom did not answer. His glistening gaze was once again hard as he stared at the ceiling.

"Phantom?" Maddie shook his leg. "Does this hurt?"

Phantom continued his silence.

Maddie rolled her eyes and set up one of the overhead X-ray machines. As she put on a lead apron, she considered covering Phantom as well. But then again, what would she be protecting him from? He wouldn't be here for long anyway, not before she killed him.

But she would certainly try to keep him as long as she could.

The X-ray images looked good. Fantastic, even. The break healed so magnificently, she had to look closely to see evidence that the break had ever occurred at all. Phantom possessed many similarities to humans, but he certainly had the healing abilities of a ghost.

"Your leg looks like it's completely healed." Maddie lifted Phantom's ankle and moved his leg side to side, bent it at the knee. There was no resistance. "Does this hurt at all? Does your leg feel normal now?"

Phantom's head tilted to the side.

"Phantom, answer me," said Maddie.

No response.

"Really? You're just gonna be sulky and not answer me?" Maddie shook her head and set his leg back on the table. "You really never learn anything, do you? Do I have to make you talk to me?"

Phantom's head turned to center and lifted slightly. "You left me alone for two days. Two entire days locked up in that thing." Phantom set his head back down. His raspy voice wavered when he spoke again. "Seems to me you don't want to hear from me at all."

Maddie smiled. "You're mad at me about that, huh?"

Phantom's eyes slitted as he glared at her, the left eye emitting noticeably less light than the other. His cheeks and nose tinged green.

Maddie propped her elbow near Phantom's ankle, holding her chin in her hand. "I like how you blush green. I mean, all ghosts blush green, of course—ectoplasm—but you're the only ghost I've seen with a human skin tone, so it just looks kind of cute."

Phantom groaned and shut his eyes, muttering something under his breath Maddie couldn't catch.

"Anyway." Maddie rebelted Phantom's leg to the table. "I would've thought you'd be happy to not see me for two whole days. Did you really miss me that much?"

Phantom kept his eyes closed and shook his head. "Don't. Please don't. Don't do this to me. Don't talk to me, please. Just do what you came to do and leave again."

"Now, now, Phantom." Maddie moved to the head of the table. "This is the attitude that got you in trouble last time, remember?"

Phantom did not reply.

"You don't need to be taught another lesson in respect, do you?" asked Maddie.

A deep sigh escaped Phantom, and a small glint of tears leaked from the corners of his eyes.

She had the strangest motherly instinct to wipe the tears away, tears that followed the same dried paths from tears he must have cried earlier while she was gone.

She tenderly pressed her fingers to the side of his face and tilted his head so she could inspect the bruising along his jawline from the tooth extraction. She only wished she could have seen it the day before when it was probably at its darkest. She poked at the discolored spots. Phantom winced but did not make any noise.

She prodded at the skin around his left eye and forced it open. A thin line ran straight through his pupil, noticeably darkening its glow in comparison to the right eye. Maddie scrunched her mouth at the sight. This really was probably the best it was going to get, and she'd just have to make do with it when she tested his eyesight.

Phantom blinked, almost violently, breaking her hold. His eyes brimmed with moisture, again prompting that same desire to wipe it away.

She walked to the counters and grabbed a small towel, running it under the sink and then wringing it out. She returned to his side and began dabbing and rubbing his cheeks and jaw and neck, erasing the dried tears, dried tears that meant he had been crying during the two days she was gone. And by the looks of it, a lot of crying, even without her around to see it.

But why would he cry when she wasn't around? Why would he care to fake such emotion with her gone? Just so she could see the tears caked on his face later? Was he really this committed to tricking her?

He certainly was a clever ghost.

She finished cleaning the near side of his face and moved to the far side, rubbing hard the delicate skin beneath his damaged left eye. Phantom snarled and jerked his head away.

"Would you stop that already?" he yelled.

"No, Phantom, I'm not going to stop anything." Maddie gripped his chin and jaw. "I'm going to do whatever I want."

Phantom twisted and craned his neck but Maddie only strengthened her hold, pressing her fingers into his lower face.

"I wouldn't even have to do this if you didn't fake so much crying," said Maddie, blotting at the remaining dried tears on his face.

Maddie could feel Phantom's jaw loosen as his eyes widened.

"Not sure why you keep trying this tactic," continued Maddie. "Faking human emotion and despair. Maybe you're just hoping it will finally work."

The muscles in Phantom's face retightened as Maddie finished rubbing away the dried tears.

"But if you really don't want me cleaning your face like this…" Maddie gripped his chin and forced him to look at her. "Then stop pretending to cry."

She let go of his face. Phantom immediately turned his head away from her. Probably sulking because he just couldn't fool her no matter how hard he tried. Maddie rolled her eyes but had to admire just how well he nailed the moody teenager stereotype.

She started walking back to the counters to discard the wet towel.

"Do you really think I'm just faking everything here?"

Maddie stopped and turned back to him.

"My screaming. My cries of pain." Phantom stared at the ceiling. "Is that really all just fake to you? You really think I'm just not feeling anything and pretending that it hurts?"

Maddie sighed. "No, Phantom. As I said before, your physical responses are real. Your pain is real. But this." Maddie gestured to his face. "This, all this emotion, this display of anguish, it's all a show." She looked down at him and quirked a brow. "And you know it is, too. You know exactly what you're trying to do here, and you're probably getting really frustrated that I'm not buying it."

Phantom's face became very green as his eyes glowed brighter and the veins in his temples and neck rippled. He opened his mouth looking ready to yell, but Maddie cut him off.

"Yes, yes, you're so very good at imitating anger, too," said Maddie. "But you're not going to win here. You're not going to convince me that anything you're expressing is real or human. You might as well stop trying and give up."

Maddie removed the IV line from Phantom's arm. Judging by the color in his face, he appeared to be hydrated enough.

"You're the specimen here, Phantom." Maddie restrained his arm above his head and pulled the belt tighter than usual. "You have no control."

Maddie again picked up the towel to discard it. She started walking away.

"Only because you're a coward," said Phantom in a low, raspy voice.

Maddie stopped.

"You only have control here because you disabled my powers," said Phantom. "Because you keep me strapped to this table at all times."

Maddie scoffed through a smirk. "What, you think I should free you to prove I'm not a coward? Is that your latest trick?"

"No, of course you can't free me," said Phantom with a bite. "Because you wouldn't stand a chance against me if you did."

"Phantom, what are you trying to—"

"It's why you have to keep me shackled like this. It's why you have to drug me if you want to move me around. You're weaker than me."

Maddie pressed her lips and breathed out her nose hard.

"You only have control here because you have to invent ways to keep me powerless, to keep me from fighting you. Because you're afraid of what I could do to you."

"What you could do to me, huh?" Maddie leaned over the table and stared him down through her goggles, daring him to say more.

"Sure," said Phantom, a strange smile stretching his lips. "We've seen what you can do to me, but it could never compare to what I could do. I only can't because, well—" Phantom's wrists pulled against his restraints.

"You really think you could do anything to me?" asked Maddie, her amusement waning.

"Uh, yeah," said Phantom. "I could kill you with one wail."

Maddie tapped the device attached to his neck. "You wish."

"Yeah, that's what I've been saying," said Phantom, his smile getting cheekier. "You paralyzed my vocal cords because you're afraid of me."

"I've never been afraid of you, Phantom."

"Then why—"

"Because I have work to do here and I don't want to waste time fighting you," snapped Maddie.

"Fighting me." Phantom laughed. "It wouldn't be much of a fight, you know. You and me. I wouldn't even need my powers to take back control here."

"You really think that, don't you?" asked Maddie. "You really think you could beat me that easily?"

"I know I could," said Phantom. "You said yourself that I'm bigger and stronger than you."

"And you think that's all it takes?" Maddie crossed her arms. "I'm well trained in martial arts. I've beaten men twice my size dozens of times. You would be easy." Maddie paused. "But I need to keep you in good condition for my research. Can't have you sustaining injuries that might interfere with my work."

"Nice excuse. Easy way to justify being a coward, blaming it on your research."

"This isn't going to work, Phantom. Knock it off."

"You have to use weapons to take me down, inventions and devices to keep me powerless. You have to cheat to keep me here like this. Because you're weaker and afraid of me."

Maddie's muscles tensed, her limbs shook. "I didn't cheat. I captured you fair and square. I won you."

"You took away all of my powers and then cornered me while holding a gun to my head." Phantom chortled. "Not exactly what I'd call fair. You didn't give me any chance to defend myself."

"I gave you a head start."

"Oh, how kind of you."

Maddie crinkled her nose.

"In a truly fair fight, you wouldn't stand a chance against me." Phantom smiled with a mock playfulness. "Me without my powers, you without your weapons, it would be over quick."

Maddie's head and neck felt hot under her hood.

"You didn't win me," said Phantom. "You had to cheat to capture me. Because you could never beat me by playing fair."

Maddie's knuckles cracked as her hands tightened into fists. "You think I didn't earn this? You think I didn't work my ass off to get you here? You think I—God damn you—"

"God already did just that," muttered Phantom.

Maddie stomped off to one of the counters and grabbed her Thermos. She was going to prove to him that she deserved to have him here and he deserved to be here and if he wanted to lose to her again then FINE at least this time it would be completely fair and he could never say she didn't earn this ever again.

She walked back to the table and aimed the Thermos right at Phantom. His face drained and his eyes widened but he was gone before he could protest. Maddie capped the Thermos and held it to her quivering chest.

She didn't have to do this. She owed nothing to this ghost.

But she had to make him finally accept his fate once and for all. He wanted a fair fight? She could give him that.

Because she definitely wasn't afraid of him. And now he would see that.