Page 106 of Wicked Little Nightmare

The room fell silent, the weight of what we were considering settling over us. I glanced around, taking in Kyle's nonchalant stance, Cam's calculating stare, and Rose...

Rose looked like she was about to shatter into a million pieces.

Her eyes were wide, darting between all of us as if searching for an escape route. I recognized that look — it was the same one she had when she woke up in our apartment. The look of someone realizing they were in way over their head.

"I... I don't know if I can do this," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

“You just said you were ready, Rose, fucking pick a side.” But watching her, I couldn't help but remember what it felt like to be small with the whole world bearing down on you. Granted, the last time I felt that wayI’d been about seven. Not 20-something. “Do you wanna fucking kill them or not?”

Rose's eyes met mine, and I saw something shift behind them. A spark of... determination? Anger? Whatever it was, it made her sit up a little straighter.

"Yes," she said, her voice stronger now. "I need to do this. For everyone else they've hurt. For everyone they might hurt in the future."

I nodded, feeling an odd sense of pride. Maybe the little flower had some fight in her after all. It was strange, trying to reconcile the little hellcat from earlier with this meek version of herself. Maybe her programming was self-protective. Guess we’d find out.

"Well," Cam said, a dangerous smile playing at his lips. "Look at us. Just a fuckin’ merry band of misfits ready to take on the big bad cult."

I snorted. "Misfits is right. A couple of psychos, an ex-soldier of some kind, a make-shift trauma counselor, and a former lab rat. What could possibly go wrong?"

But despite my sarcasm, I felt it too — that electric current of shared purpose humming through the room. We were in this now, for better or worse.

And honestly? I couldn't fucking wait to watch Chimera burn.

Sarah cleared her throat, drawing everyone's attention. Her eyes darted between Cam and me, and I could practically see the wheels turning in her head.

"Listen," she said, her voice soft but firm. "I know we've all just started getting to know each other, and trust isn't exactlyin abundant supply here. But Kyle and I have a safe house. It's completely off the grid, untraceable."

I raised an eyebrow, feeling Cam shifting on the couch beside me.Off the grid, huh? That could mean a lot of things — not all of them good.

"We could use it," Sarah continued, "to lay low, regroup. Come up with a solid plan of attack against them. We could use it to rest and train. Considering you don’t have much time before Chimera finds you, I’d say it’s your best bet."

I glanced over, trying to read Cam’s face. His expression was carefully neutral, but I could see the calculations happening behind those dark eyes of his.

"Sounds awful cozy," I kept my tone light. "What's the catch?"

Kyle stepped forward, his massive frame moving with grace that belied his size. "No catch," he rumbled. "Just a chance to do this right."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Right? I don't think any of us here are too concerned with doing things 'right.'"

But even as I said it, I felt a nagging pull. A safe place to plan, to catch our breath... it was tempting. Dangerous, maybe, but tempting. Wewererunning out of time in this place. It was a fucking miracle we’d never been caught. There was only so much more screaming the neighbors would chalk up to fucked sex before the cops start being called. If Chimera didn’t come looking for our little mouse first.

I looked at Rose, sitting on the couch fiddling with her shirt, before watching Cam, his jaw clenched tight. We were in deep already, weren't we? How much deeper could we really go?

"What do you think, sugar?" I asked, my voice low. "Fancy a little field trip?"

"Could be useful," Cam said finally, his voice tight. But I knew him well enough to hear the curiosity beneath it.

I nodded, turning back to Sarah and Kyle. "Alright," I said, plastering on my sweetest smile. "Let's see this super-secret clubhouse of yours."

As we started gathering our things, it felt like we were stepping off a cliff into the unknown.

But hell, that's where Cam and I had always felt most at home, wasn't it? In the chaos, in the danger.

And this was nothing, if not completely fucked up. Right in line with where we shine.

Thirty-Seven: Cam

Iwatched Lakey shove clothes into her duffel bag, her movements sharp and jerky. She was so on and off this last week, it was hard to tell what she was thinking.

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