"I love this place," Mom exclaimed as Dad parked the giant van that he insisted we drive everywhere. "Jack, we should buy a house on the lake."

"Once we start getting money back from the investments, Mads, we can do whatever you want with it." Dad promised her.

Good, they could move out and I could live alone.

Vehicle parked, we all climbed out. Jazz immediately latched onto my arm, and I could tell that my minor breakdown on the phone earlier had scared her. She also didn't have any knowledge on how to deal with what was happening, Jazz always had to ask what was going on and what to do about it.

"Get a drink," I whispered in her ear.

Jazz glared at me. "You know I don't drink."

"It might calm you down."

"Are you two scheming?" Dad demanded, breaking into our conversation.

"What would we be scheming about?" I asked him.

"Maybe Danny's going to sneak away with a new girlfriend," Mom suggested to Dad.

"I don't – " I began to protest, but Dad started talking.

"Maybe Jazzy Pants has a boyfriend!" Dad suggested.

Jazz went red. "I do not!"

"Jazz doesn't spend time with a lot of boys," Mom pointed out.

"Thank you," Jazz told her, until Mom said, "She does see Tucker a lot."

"Maybe Tucker is her secret boyfriend," Dad decided, and I whacked him on the arm, Jazz and I protesting her involvement with Tucker in unison.

"He's my best friend!"

"He's so immature."

"There's no way she would date Tucker."

"There's no way I would date Tucker."

"Sure, sure," Dad agreed, but I was sure that a gross theory had already popped into his brain, one where Tucker was doing my sister.

Okay, so Dad probably wasn't picturing that exactly, but same fucking idea.

I glanced around as we headed down toward the actual house and beach, trying to pick out my friends. Tucker said that he was here already, and while I hadn't heard back from Kwan (as predicted, because I'm fucking smart), I knew that he wouldn't miss Starr's party. He was head over heels for the girl … In fact, I wouldn't have been shocked to find out that he was the first guest to arrive.

I spotted him down near the dock, and shook Jazz off, urging her to go drink a glass, or a bottle, of wine. I headed down to the water, shouting to him.

"KWANSTER!"

"FENT-MAN!" Kwan barked back. "How are you?"

"Same old," I shrugged. The only thing different in my life was that I no longer had to wake up for school, ever again. "You? Haven't seen you since … just after grad."

Which was weird, I realized. I had gone over a month without seeing Kwan, who normally I would have seen nearly every day. Now that I was standing here thinking about it, the only person I'd seen outside of family this summer was Tucker. I was becoming a fucking recluse. Great. Something else that Vlad had done – stolen my social life.

"Workin' at the auto shop, but just 'til school starts." Kwan flexed at me. "My parents never thought I'd make it into college but I got a full ride. When I die, I'm gonna hug the hell out of the man who invented football."

I held up my hand, fist bumping his.

"You know what we should do?" Kwan asked, peering up at me eagerly. He reminded me of Cujo, in that way. Except Kwan was always sweet and never turned into a raging monster puppy.

"What?" I replied, my breath turning blue.

Fuck. I already had to deal with Vlad. Who the hell was around?

"Race across the lake."

"Later, man," I said quickly. "You have to let me fuel up first so I can beat your ass."

"Fat chance!" Kwan bragged. "I'm a fucking great swimmer."

"I'll catch up with you later," I said, beginning to back away from him. "There's some people I want to catch up with."

"Lemme know if you see Starr!" Kwan ordered.

"On your left!" I called, before spinning around and darting into the woods. There's something to be admired about the way rich people need to be completely shut off from their neighbours – I could transform without anyone being the wiser.

Now Phantom, I turned invisible, creeping to where I thought the ghost was. Briefly, I wondered what Sam would do if she saw me in this form. I knew she hated Fenton; couldn't stand his face. But if she looked at me as Phantom would she, for a moment, remember the person that I really was – the person that loved her the best he could?

As tempting as it was, I had to be a ghost hunter first and foremost. I found a small clearing, so far away from the Orien's that I couldn't hear any noise from the party. Standing in the woods was the last ghost I would ever expect to see (excluding Vlad but including Skulker).

Walker.

"What do you want?" I demanded, but the line lacked any punch. I was too shocked that he was out of the Ghost Zone, that it wasn't a minion standing before me.

"A rule has been broken," Walker rumbled without any preamble.

I rolled my eyes. "I am not going back to prison. And since when has helping ghosts cross over been against the law?"

Probably since Vlad said so. Walker and Vlad were tight. Best buds.

"Not by you," Walker sneered, and I had to raise my eyebrows in surprise. It was always me.

"Then who broke a rule?" I asked after he was silent for a minute.

"Plasmius is not honourable," Walker ground out, and I could feel his annoyance.

"What did he do?" I had no doubts that Walker had been in on Vlad's current plan, but if they had broken up, there was no reason why Walker couldn't let me in on the secret.

Walker looked at me, his eyes narrowing into slits. "To tell would also be to break a rule."

What the fuck? "Walker, not everything is about rules!"

"I have honour," Walker roared at me, "Unlike some! I am here to tell you this, and nothing else, if you find him, and if you bring him to me, I promise you that he will never get out."

"Sweet, but … two questions. Why should I trust you to keep him in? How do I know that this isn't some ploy to get me captured?"

"If I needed you captured," Walker sneered, "I wouldn't have to come here myself to do it. I know trust does not flow freely between the two of us but you must realize that this is bigger than me wanting to put you away. You are no longer a child and you will no longer be treated like one."

I started at the comment, looking at Walker suspiciously. "What do you mean by that?"

Walker straightened. "I have said all that I came to say to you. I have said all that I can say to you."

"No parting words of advice?" I demanded. "We've been so close over the years, Walker."

He rolled his eyes at my taunt, shaking his head. Finally, he pointed a white finger at me. "Get rid of Plasmius. Or suffer."

"That's what Plasmius always says – that I'm going to suffer. It'd be really nice to get some fucking hints, Walker. Or maybe you could just tell me what the hell is going on because I know that you know." I took a step toward him, trying to intimidate the prison warden. "Spill the beans."

"Language," Walker snarled. "I am still your superior. You will still respect me. But Plasmius doesn't deserve any more respect."

"Then tell me his secrets!" I shouted, getting sick of the circular nature the conversation was starting to take. "Talk to me!"

"It would be breaking a rule," Walker repeated. "But if you can take him down, I have a place for him."

I took another step toward him, but Walker just shook his head at me before disappearing. My frustration from my encounter with Vlad earlier came back full force and I just wanted to hit something. I wished that the Box Ghost was still around; he was my go-to punching bag because he had never posed a threat to me and he never would pose a threat to me. But he was gone, like so many other ghosts that I had gotten familiar with over the years, some that I had even called my friends.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. Someone had likely noticed that I was missing from the party by now - even it was just my parents. I didn't want to explain myself to them because they already thought that I had a girlfriend and I couldn't let them think that. What if they said something to the wrong people and, somehow, Sam heard? She had to know that I was still here, still waiting for her to realize that I was sorry, and that, even though I didn't have the words to explain myself, I still loved her.

I slipped back to the party, my stomach growling. I knew Tucker would be up around the buffet, so I headed up there. People were milling around; I grabbed what food I could (all good food because Starr's parents knew how to throw a party) and I headed into the dining room. I glanced around for Tucker, knowing that it wouldn't be hard to find him. There weren't that many black people in Amity, and of them, Tucker was the tallest. I saw him sitting with Mikey, and then I saw a blur of black hair. My heart leapt, and without even seeing her face, I knew that it was Sam.

She was here. She was in this building. I could take a few extra steps and follow her down that hallway. I could make her talk to me; make her understand that I had never done it to hurt her and that I had learnt from the error of my ways.

I took a shaky step, staring at the place where I had last seen her. Suddenly, there was a hand on my bicep and I jumped, looking up at Tucker.

"Don't even fucking think about it," he warned me. "Come sit."

I sank down at the table Tucker tugged me over to.

"What?" I hissed at him.

"You know what," he hissed back, his green eyes intense. "Let it go for today."

I nodded, but grumbled, "For now," under my breath. I didn't know if Tucker fully understood what was going on, not the way that he thought he did.

"How are you, Danny?" Mikey asked.

"Doing good," I said confidently, reaching for my fork. "And you?"

Mikey shrugged. "Waiting for university to start. It'll be nice to meet new people."

"Agreed!" Tucker nodded forcefully. "Not that I don't love some of these people, but it's been the same group since grade school."

Mikey nodded. "And maybe I'll find people more like me."

"Haven't you ever listened to a university sales pitch?" Tucker asked, lightly punching Mikey on the shoulder. "That's what their whole game is based on – finding people who are basically you."

I kept my eyes on my food as they talked, trying not to think too hard about what they were saying. I was not going to university. I wasn't doing anything with my life, as far as my parents were concerned. I didn't have the grades to move on with my education, even if I had wanted to. There were better things that I could be doing with my time (none of them pay that great, but they're still superior).

Luckily, we were interrupted by Kwan, who dropped heavily into the other chair between Mikey and Tuck.

"Ready to race?" He demanded of me.

"Sure," I agreed, "but we have to make sure it's fair."

Kwan frowned at me. "Do you think I'm a cheater?"

I shook my head. "No. But there's always a ref at sports games, right?"

Kwan thought about this. "Right. Mikey, Tucker, any volunteers?"

"I will!" Mikey announced immediately.

"I'm going to kick up here for a while," Tucker decided, eyes shifting around the room. "I'm not full yet."

I rolled my eyes. "You're never full, you useless bottomless pit. C'mon Kwan, Mike, let's go. I'm ready to whoop some ass in this race."