Phantoms In Philadelphia Read Online Free PDF Page A

foot in her stirrup and the other hanging free as she
lowered herself, her horse seeming to know that she wanted it to
move toward the bag. When she was close, she held on with one hand
to her saddle while the other hand scooped up the bag. I was
impressed, and a smile turned up my lips when she reseated herself.
It faded when she started to move back the way we had come.
    Impressed, amazed, intrigued, and not ready to let
her go yet caused me to make a rash decision. I pulled my pistol
from its holster and fired one shot above her head. She ducked
against her horse’s mane, and I opened my mouth, releasing a shrill
laugh high above my own voice; the laugh of a Phantom and one which
I had cultivated after my sister assured me that it would set
anyone’s teeth to chattering and nerves to fraying.
    The woman in white looked in my direction. I waved.
Even from the distance that separated us I could feel her anger. It
made me chuckle. She turned her horse, and they shot across the
field toward me.
    My surprise had held me still for a moment before I
moved Brutus into action. I turned him to move through the trees. I
knew the area well, so I knew exactly where I wanted to lead her.
We rode through the trees until I saw another clearing ahead. The
only sounds were made by our horses as they snapped twigs, rustled
leaves, and pounded across the earth. I pushed Brutus faster,
allowing him to gallop through the tree line and out to where a
pond took up much of the open meadow.
    A gun fired from behind me, and pain seared across
my arm as Brutus veered to the right. Thank the Heavens my horse
was accustomed to hearing guns fire, and knew how to react. I
glanced at my sleeve. Annoyance bounced through me like taking a
ride across an uneven road. It was only a graze, but it infuriated
me. I rode to the far tree line and turned Brutus when I did not
hear her pursuing me. She had halted and was watching me from
across the field.
    For a moment, we stared at each other, much as two
enemy forces stared at each other across the battlefield. She
kicked her horse into moving and started toward me. Her white hood
flew off, black hair bouncing on the wind. Brutus charged toward
her. She wanted to play; then we would play.
    Our horses headed straight for each other and
exhilaration filled me. Bess would have called it recklessness to
be playing with the woman, but she would not fault me for refusing
to veer away. She would say: If you must insist upon challenging
every foe you meet, always be the first upon the battlefield and
the last to walk away.
    We were within a yard of each other when the hair on
the back of my neck stood up, but the warning came too late. A
flash of silver met my eyes a moment before she raised her hand and
threw a knife at me. I leaned, misjudged my own jerky movements, my
boot slipped from the stirrup and my gloves lost their hold on the
reins.
    My back hit the water first then I was submerged in
the murky darkness of the pond. I came up gasping for air before
running a hand over my mask and face. My hat was floating on the
water beside me. I looked around until I saw her at the tree line,
smiling; then she let out a shrill laugh mocking me. I had never
wanted to capture someone more that I did at that moment.
    She pressed a hand to her lips, released it in my
direction, and disappeared through the trees. I grabbed my hat in
one giant splash of annoyance and trudged through the water, my
boots sticking to the muddy bottom. When I was finally free from
the pond, I whistled for Brutus. He came toward me as I picked up
the knife she had thrown at me. It was sturdy with an ivory handle.
There was a star painted on the handle, but nothing else.
    After mounting Brutus, I decided to return to the
city to find Bess; for there was no reason to pursue the woman in
white. She did not have the black box, and I doubted she would be
getting it from the giant. He struck me as someone who worked
alone.
    I decided to leave my mask on,