Page 72 of Wicked Nightmare

But as he pulled me toward the bedroom, one thought kept circling. The one I couldn't shake. The one that had been planted in a basement by a dying man and was now growing roots in the dark soil of my brain.

You were designed.

What if everything I thought I was, everything I thought I chose, was just programming? What if the violence, the love, the obsession with a little girl named Lillianna, none of it was mine?

What if I was exactly what they made me to be?

And what if I couldn't tell the difference?

Chapter Twenty-Three: Cam

I paced the apartment, back and forth, back and forth. The urge to keep Lakey safe warred with letting her blow off steam. She'd been fucking nuts since we'd dealt with that prick, Steve, if that's even his real name, liable to snap at any moment. She wanted to go dancing at the club, but we were both strung up, riding the wave between adrenaline and the inevitable crash.

"Fuck," I said, running a hand through my hair. The idea of her out there, volatile and unfocused, made my skin crawl. Then again… caging her in might just make her more dangerous.

Lakey sauntered in, all dolled up and ready to paint the town red.

"Looking good, sweetheart," I said, forcing a grin. "But I think we should stay in tonight."

She whirled on me. "Excuse me? Since when do you decide my plans?"

I held up my hands. "Woah, easy there. I'm just worried about you after... you know."

"I'm fine," she snapped, but I caught the slight tremor in her voice.

"Lakey," I said softly, closing the distance between us. "Let me take care of you tonight. Please."

She glared at me, but the fight drained out of her. "Fine," she muttered. "But you owe me a night of dancing, Axley."

"Deal," I said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "How about a bath? I'll even break out the fancy lavender shit you like."

Her mouth twitched. "Throw in a back rub and you've got yourself a deal."

I headed for the bathroom. "Your wish is my command, princess."

As I ran the bath and poured in the lavender oil, I allowed myself to relax. I dodged a bullet. Lakey was a ticking time bomb, and I was the only one who could diffuse her. Most times she didn't listen to me, so the fact I was able to have her relent was a goddamn miracle just on its own.

"Bath's ready!" I called out. "Get in there and relax, babe. Doctor's orders."

Lakey appeared in the doorway. "Only if the doctor joins me."

I grinned, almost unable to resist her pull. "Well, I never could say no to you. Buuuuut, I gotta do some work, okay? You just relax, read that weird monster book you like, or listen to music. I dunno, just do you for a while. When you're out, come find me, this is just part one."

As she soaked in the tub, I settled at our cluttered dining table, surrounded by shit I'd printed off Skeeter's laptop. I got into my tech headspace as I dove into the chaotic web of information. This was my element. Piecing together the puzzle, unraveling the secrets that would bring Chimera to its knees. Hopefully.

People often thought I was stupid, but I wasn't. In juvie, they tested me, and I tested well above 150. Not that it mattered. Courses in the clink were all kid-level shit. Learning how to use a wood saw, learning to weld. Nah, I spent my time reading. And not those fun, fluffy books either. Learning human psychology. The good shit. Even went down the rabbit hole of learning about the justice system and all the loopholes. Read a few conspiracy novels while I was at it.

Never know, might come in handy one day.

But one thing that always gave me pleasure, aside from Lakes of course, were puzzles. When we were kids, we had this shitty ass box TV and we spent hours watching grainy murder documentaries, interviews, news stories. Whatever thrilled us enough. I'd been drawn to the cold cases, trying to figure them out. This was a lot like that, only it was our fucking lives.

I'll be damned if I let our own history go cold. So, with a cold beer and a keen eye, I'm gonna work this puzzle through, one piece at a time.

"Alright, you bastards," I said, spreading out the documents. "Let's see what you're hiding."

I scanned the pages, connecting dots. Years of living on the edge had honed my instincts, and I could smell the bullshit a mile away. Chimera thought they were clever, but they'd never faced someone like me.

As I sifted through the papers, a pattern began to emerge. "Janine, you sneaky bitch."