Page 78 of Going Home

"I gotta help with this," Ky says. "I'm glad you came."

The two men push Zane back before he can do too much to react, and Felicity feels like she can't breathe. She doesn’t know what she expected today, but this wasn't it. Everything is different, and it's not for the better. Not all of it. Some of it is really, really bad.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Griffin's Beach

Venom

HavingCinderonhisarm while Marnie stands in the same room doesn't ease the anxiety bubbling within Venom. He'd made the mistake of telling Cinder about the wedding after the bomb was dropped, and she decided she was coming as his date. He wasn't sure if Marnie would be attending today or not, but he can't ignore the pleasure he gets from showing her there is a woman who finds him worth her time and attention. In public.

The conversation with Shep replays in his head every moment he has quiet, and he's not sure how he feels about it. Part of him doesn't really care because he can handle crazy, but the other part of him knows what people have told him. Prior to Heidi, Shep didn't have much of a standard when it came to the women he dated, if that's what he called it. If that's truly the case, for him to find Cinder batshit crazy means something. A really big something.

Cinder kisses him, shoving her tongue in his mouth, before heading to the restroom. He wipes the lipstick off his mouth as Marnie walks up to him. "Hey."

"Hey," Venom says.

"You have a date."

"I have a girlfriend."

Why does that make me want to puke all over this floor?

Her cheeks twitch as she forces a smile. "Oh, it’s—"

Venom catches sight of Zane lifting a fist in the air as he shouts at Lex in the parking lot. He's been vigilant all day to keep an eye on Lex, especially when her asshole brother comes around, and he cuts Marnie off as he runs outside. Pushing past Ky, he shouts, "Touch her, and you will be dead on your wedding day, motherfucker!"

Ky quickly joins him as he tackles Zane to the ground, and Ky steps in front of Lex as a secondary shield should Zane get away from Venom.

Fat chance I'm letting you get anywhere near her again, asshole.

"She's killing my wife!" Zane shouts as Venom yanks him to his feet several yards from Lex and out of swinging distance.

"No, she's not," Ky says, blocking Zane's view of his sister. "She's following Lane's wishes."

There have been stories about how much Zane hates Lex, but Venom never quite thought it was true. More an exaggeration. Who could hate Lex? She's a great sister, and he doesn't share DNA with her. He feels the hatred vibrating off of Zane, and it's overwhelmingly clear that the stories were lacking rather than overexaggerating considering what he witnesses now.

"Lane isn't thinking straight. If she was, she'd want to live!" he shouts.

Venom catches sight of Lex as he keeps a firm hold on Zane's leather. "She is, Zane. She doesn't want Margaret to go through what you did. Not if the treatment wasn't going to save her, and it wouldn't. The extra time wouldn't be worth it to her because she wouldn't be herself. All she wants is to give you and your daughter as many good memories as possible."

Based on the way Lex says it, her tone so matter-of-fact and almost completely devoid of emotion, this isn't the first time they've had this conversation. Venom knows the man's head is probably all over the place with the woman he loves dying, but Lex scares him. She didn't even flinch when Dax got in her face. She went toe-to-toe with Chance. Hell, she threatened to slit Snake's throat, but when her brother screams at her, she shuts down. This isn't the version of her he knows.

"You're not a doctor!" Zane shouts.

"I talked to the doctor. Three of them," she says. "So did you."

He just laughs. "Then we didn't talk to the same fucking guys because he said the treatment could give her more time."

"To be bedridden and crippled with pain. High on pain meds, and it still wouldn't save her. That isn't what she wants, Zane."

"You just couldn't wait to have a reason to get back at me for all of the bullshit you think you went through as a kid."

Snapping, she pushes Ky aside and walks up to Zane, finally looking like the Lex Venom met in Summerville. "Are you fucking kidding me? You put me through hell my entire life, and I still decided to do this for your wife. For you. I refused to sign the paperwork until I talked to the doctors myself and knew for a fact nothing more could be done to save her. You're selfish, and that's exactly why she had to rely on me to do this. To make sure her wishes were respected."

"I'mselfish?" he shouts, and Venom moves behind him to hold both of his biceps to keep him from having any opportunity to swing and hit his sister. "You think I'm selfish for wanting my wife to live? That makes me selfish? You can't tell me Colt wouldn't want the same fucking thing, even though I can't fathom why he'd want to keep you around."

Ky's jaw clenches, but Lex just shakes her head. "You're selfish because you'd put her through pain and go against her wishes for whatyouwanted. Wanting her to live isn't selfish, but going against what she wants because you think your desire is worth more than hers is selfish. She wants to live, not exist, and that's what you don't understand. That treatment option wouldn't save her, Zane. The extra time, which would be months at best, would only prolong the inevitable."

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