Page 138 of Wicked Nightmare

If it meant I could help him, too.

"Fine," I growled, glaring at Sarah. "But if you try any weird mind control shit, I'll carve out your eyeballs with a spoon. Got it?"

"I'll have the spoon ready, if that makes you feel safer, Lakey."

I almost smiled at that.

I nodded at Sarah, my teeth clenched so tight I thought they might crack. "Let's do this before I change my fucking mind."

Sarah's face lit up. "Wonderful. I promise, we'll take it slow."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Just get on with it before I decide to use you for target practice instead."

As Sarah bustled around the room, setting things up, I watched her. She moved with purpose, every gesture deliberate. She dragged over the only single chair this place had, positioning it just so, then dimmed the lights to a soft glow. The cabin's concrete walls looked less harsh in the low light, the steel edges softened into something that almost passed for warm.

"Really going for that 'womb of tranquility' vibe, huh?" I muttered, but my snarky comment fell flat. My palms were sweating and my heart was galloping in my chest. What the fuck was I getting myself into?

Sarah arranged some throw pillows, creating a nest in the chair. "There," she said, stepping back. "How does this look? Comfortable enough?"

I eyed the setup suspiciously. It looked... nice. Too nice. But then I caught Cam's eye again, saw the slight nod he gave me. Just a dip of his chin, barely perceptible, but it said everything. Do it. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere.

If he thought this was okay, then I should trust in that. I'd trusted him with my life a thousand times over. I could trust him with this.

"It's fine," I said, my voice coming out smaller than I intended. "Just don't expect me to start sharing my feelings or some shit. We do this, we find out what Chimera did, and then we burn those fuckers to the ground. That's it."

Sarah nodded, her face serious. "Of course, Lakey. This is about uncovering the truth, nothing more."

As I settled into the chair, sinking into its softness, it felt like I was walking into a trap of my own making. But for Cam, for our fucked-up little family... I'd face whatever demons were lurking in the dark corners of my mind. I'd do it for the little girl who pulled wings off ants in the yard because she had nowhere else to put her rage. I'd do it for the teenager who carved her first kill's initials into her own thigh, so she'd never forget the rush. I'd do it for every version of me that had ever existed in the spaces between the memories I couldn't reach.

I sank into the chair, my fingers immediately finding the hem of my shirt and twisting it. The fabric bunched and wrinkled under my restless hands. Fuck, I was nervous. Me, the girl who could gut a man without blinking, trembling over some hypno bullshit.

"You're safe here, Lakey," Sarah's voice drifted over. "Just focus on my voice and relax. Close your eyes, just breathe."

I snorted. "Relax? Sure, no problem."

But even as the sarcasm dripped from my tongue, a part of me desperately wanted to believe her. To let go and find out what horrors were lurking in the shadows of my memory.

I glanced at Cam one last time. He'd moved to the corner closest to me, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, his body angled towards the door. Guarding me. Not from Sarah or Rose or Kyle. From whatever was about to crawl out of my own head. He'd kill it for me if he could. He'd take every memory, every needle, every cold table and white coat and swallow them whole if it meant I didn't have to feel them. But he couldn't. This was my fight. He could only stand at the edge and wait to catch me when I fell.

I took a deep breath, steeling myself. Whatever nightmares were about to surface, I'd face them head-on. For Cam. For us. And for the sweet, sweet vengeance we'd rain down on Chimera when this was all over.

"Alright," I said, my voice steadier than I felt. "Let's dig up some demons."

Closing my eyes, I allowed myself to plunge into the darkness, hardly hearing Sarah as she asked everyone to leave us for the next hour and go find something to do. I heard the shuffle of feet, the creak of the floor, Rose's quiet footsteps heading upstairs. Kyle's heavier tread towards the front door. But one set of footsteps didn't move.

"Cam," Sarah said gently. "I need you to step out too."

A pause. The kind of silence that had weight to it, that pressed against the walls.

"I'll be right outside," he said. Not to Sarah. To me.

Then the door clicked shut, and it was just me and Sarah and the black behind my eyelids.

"Okay, Lakey... just listen to my voice. Three... two... one..."

Chapter Forty-One: Cam

I felt like shit for leaving Lakey on that couch, but Kyle wanted to hunt, and apparently he needed me to do it, so here I fucking was. The crunch of leaves under my boots was loud as Kyle and I crept through the dense forest, or at least tried to creep. The underbrush here was ridiculously out of control. Every sense was on high alert. The sharp scent of pine, the rustle of branches, even the faint call of a bird in the distance. My fingers tightened around the cool metal of my rifle.