Page 38 of The Nightmare's Kiss

“I haven’t been able to observe any of the subjects closely,” he says slowly. “My work takes me all around the Facility, so I get only glimpses. Yet I have to admit I’ve seen…things…that have made me doubt the morality of what we’re doing.” He swallows hard. I want to press harder, hear more about what he’s experienced and what he might know about the nature of the Facility, but the guilt already etched in his expression stops me. “I believe… I havealwaysbelieved…that just because something is different doesn’t make it bad.” As he pauses, the light reflects off his eyes, and I swear I catch a flash of something strange and shimmering in them—but then he blinks, and the moment passes. “But some of themaredangerous. I’ve seen the evidence of that too.” He turns a scrutinizing gaze on me. “Are you sure it will be safe to set X-13 free?”

I want to blurt out a yes, but I force myself to pause. To think. I need to weigh this decision carefully. I have been fooled before, by monsters like Ethan who look like men—fooled so thoroughly that I began to doubt my own mind. I am not ashamed of being manipulated, but I am determined not to let it happen to me ever again.

I go over everything I’ve experienced with the Nightmare, everything I’ve learned from my interactions with him. But, especially when I compare him to my experience with Ethan, the answer is clear. Ethan was always a perfect golden boy in public, and horribly cruel to me when we were alone. Somnus is, in a way, the inverse—the world views him as a monster, but privately, he has shown me that he is gentle and understanding and kind.

“Yes,” I say finally. “I trust him. He has never hurt me, and never hurt anyone at all until he was trapped against his will. If he’s free, he won’t harm anyone. You have my word.”

“And you’re ready to take responsibility for him?” Ezra asks, holding my gaze. His expression is not harsh or doubting, but it is very, very serious.

I don’t look away or hesitate for a second. “Yes,” I say. “I am.”

He takes a deep breath and then gives a slow, decisive nod. “Okay,” he says. “In that case, I have an idea about how we could make this work.”

23

Chapter Twenty-Three

It turns out those “crazy” rumors were right. Itispossible to listen in on the Facility chatter via radio if you’re close enough. I lurk around the back of the building, ear pressed to a handheld device, listening to bits and pieces of crackling voices interspersed by static. Ezra snuck me through the gate this morning, and now I’m waiting for the signal for part two of our plan.

I don’t have to wait long.

“Security breach.” I’m surprised how good of an actress Belle is; she sounds shaken and breathless over the radio. “Subject X-12 has escaped from its tank.”

For a moment, there’s nothing. Then the gruff, half-familiar voice of a security guard says, “Please repeat?”

“X-12, designationthe Siren, has escaped from its tank,” Belle says again, more firmly, though her voice still trembles. “Dr. Langley is injured. I need help evacuating him.”

Anxiety spikes through me. An injury was not part of the plan, so maybe this isn’t Belle’s acting at all but genuine panic. Either way, what follows is exactly as predicted: a flurry of chaos. The radio is flooded with questions and alarmed shouts, until the security guard yells at everybody to keep the channel clear for orders.

“Initiating full lockdown, code red,” he says, a moment after everyone else goes quiet. “All personnel evacuate the facility immediately. Sending two units to assist with Dr. Langley.”

I shut the radio off, clutch it to my chest, and press myself against the side of the building beside a dumpster marked with biohazard symbols. My heart is hammering in my ears and my body trembling with adrenaline, but all I can do right now is wait. I didn’t even bring my cell phone today, just in case it’s being tracked, so I have no way of contacting the others if things go awry.

Soon, I hear the metal screech of the back door opening. I stay where I am as footsteps approach, afraid it will be a stranger fleeing the building, but Ezra peeks around the corner and gestures at me.

“Seems that things have gone a bit off the rails already,” he says. His teeth worry at his lower lip.

“How far off the rails?”

“The Siren took a chunk out of a doctor’s arm the second she was out of the tank.”

“Oh,” I say. I lose my nerve for a second, thinking of some vicious creature loose in the facility halls. But then I remember what Belle said the other night, her obvious dismay over the Siren’s treatment here. “Think he deserved it?” I blurt out before I can stop myself.

Ezra stares at me for a moment and then breaks into a shaky smile. “You know,” he says, digging his security card out of his pocket, “from what I’ve seen, yeah, he did.” He presses the card into my palm but holds on as I reach for it. “Be careful,” he says, holding my gaze meaningfully before he lets go.

I nod, clinging to the security card like a lifeline. “I will. Thank you.”

He jogs away to join the other evacuated employees, and I head for the back door. I scan his security card, and just like that, I’m inside.

The plan was to cause enough chaos to allow me to slip in unnoticed and find Somnus. While things haven’t gone exactly as intended, we do have a damn good distraction.

I’ve never used the back entrance before, and the Facility feels surreal and alien, especially with the blood-red emergency lights flashing on every corner. An alarm wails somewhere, high-pitched like a woman screaming. I hurry my steps through the empty halls and listen for footsteps indicating security or other personnel approaching, but the place is eerily empty, just an endless hallway of locked metal doors. I’m itching to see what’s behind them—and I have a feeling Ezra’s security card could open at least a few—but I stay focused on my goal. There isn’t much time until someone realizes what’s going on, and I have to be long gone with the Nightmare by then.

Two left turns and one right later, I find the control room, right where Ezra told me I would when we first formulated the plan. Part of me is nervous that the door won’t open due to the lockdown, but that fear proves unfounded, and soon I slip inside.

The control room is cramped, boxy, and thankfully empty. Pale fluorescent lighting makes the whole place look washed-out and surreal. One wall is entirely taken up with screens displaying various security feeds. There’s a desk with a few computer monitors, along with a radio emitting a stream of staticky chatter, and a still-steaming mug of coffee that must have been left behind by somebody fleeing the building.

I stare up at the cameras. My breath catches in my throat. So long I’ve imagined this moment, wished I knew more, and now, here it is: the Facility and its menagerie of monsters.

---