Page 118 of Wicked Nightmare

My hackles went up. "Kyle? Who the fuck is Kyle?"

Sarah took a breath. "Kyle was... is... a Chimera operative. One of their best, actually."

Lakey stiffened beside me, her hand moving towards her knife. I placed my hand on her arm. Wait.

"Continue," I said, keeping my voice neutral despite every alarm in my head going off at once.

Sarah nodded. "He underwent intense conditioning, more than most. They twisted him into their perfect weapon. Ruthless, efficient, unquestioning. Similar to you, actually." She pointed at me. "Same training techniques, though yours was tamer compared to his. At least, according to what we have on file."

"Sounds like a real charmer," Lakey snorted.

Sarah continued. "But I got through to him. Slowly, painfully, I helped him break free of their programming. Now he's different. He wants to bring Chimera down as much as we do."

I leaned back, studying her face. She seemed sincere, but so did most people right before they stabbed you in the back.

"And we're supposed to just trust this guy?" I said. "A guy who, by your own admission, was Chimera's top lapdog?"

Lakey's laugh was bitter. "Yeah, 'cause that doesn't sound like a trap at all."

"Look," Sarah said, her patience fraying, "I know it sounds crazy, but Kyle's intel is what got me here. He knows their systems, their protocols. Without him, we don't stand a chance. Also, he's my husband. I wouldn't have married him if I didn't feel a hundred percent sure he wasn't a risk to my safety."

I looked at Lakey. She looked at me. The same doubts in both of us. This Kyle character was a wild card, and wild cards got people killed. Look what happened just hours ago with Rose and the tracker.

"Sarah," I said slowly, "I get that you believe in this guy. But you're asking us to put our lives in the hands of someone we've never met. Someone who would've happily put a bullet in our heads not long ago."

Lakey nodded. "For all we know, this could be an elaborate trap. Maybe they've reprogrammed him, sent him to lure us out."

Sarah leaned forward. "I get it, I do, but you didn't see him, Cam. You didn't see the way he broke down when the conditioning started to crack. The nightmares, the panic attacks... It was like watching someone claw their way out of hell."

Lakey shifted beside me, her hand finding mine under the table. Her touch was a silent reminder that we'd been through our own version of that. We knew what it was to fight your way back from the brink.

"Look," Sarah continued, "Kyle's not just an asset. He's a goldmine of information. He knows how Chimera tracks their targets, how they communicate, the layout of their main facilities. He's still considered on their roster, but he's been 'decommissioned.' No longer in use. That means we have resources we wouldn't otherwise have."

Now that got my attention. I raised an eyebrow. "What are we talking here?"

Sarah's lips curved into a small smile. "Down to the air duct systems, Cam. He can tell you which guards take smoke breaks and when, which security cameras have blind spots. He even knows the override codes for their containment units."

"Jesus," I muttered. With that kind of intel, we might actually have a shot at bringing Chimera down.

Lakey squeezed my hand, her voice tight. "Cam, if this is legit..."

"I know, babe," I said, already spinning out plans. "Sarah, what can you tell us about their tracking systems? That's been our biggest hurdle."

As Sarah launched into a detailed explanation of Chimera's tracking tech, I leaned in, hanging on every word. Part of me still screamed caution, but a bigger part had already made the decision that life couldn't get much worse.

Maybe this Kyle guy was our ticket out of this, and if he turned out to be playing us? Well, Lakey and I had plenty of experience dealing with traitors. One way or another, things were about to get very interesting.

But something wasn't adding up. "Hold up, Sarah," I said, leaning forward. "You didn't really answer Lakey's question. How the hell did you find us? We've been ghosts for years."

Sarah's lips quirked. "You think you're the only ones who've been keeping tabs, Cam? I've had eyes on you two since the day you escaped."

Lakey tensed beside me. If Sarah had managed to stay hidden while watching us, who else had been watching? Who else noticed us coming and going while we were out there fucking around?

"Bullshit," I said, forcing a casual tone. "We would've noticed."

Sarah's laugh was sharp. "Please. You think you got this apartment based on your stellar credit? No, Cam, I had this place up for you via a mutual friend. I've been making sure Chimera doesn't come close. I fucked up last night. I didn't realize you had Rose. I should have been paying better attention because then Kyle could have taken him out before he got up here. I apologize for that."

My mind reeled. Years of near-misses and lucky breaks, reassessed in an instant. Had we really been that blind?