27. Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Griffin's Beach Venom
H aving Cinder on his arm 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'm selfish?" 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 what you wanted. 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."
"And you just get to make this decision? You get to play God?"
Throwing her hands up in the air, she lets out a deep breath and shakes. "You think this is what I wanted? To be in charge of something that gives my brother true validity to hate me even more than he already does for simply existing on this planet? Yeah, that's been my fucking dream. If you really think I want to kill your wife and force my niece to bury her mother, you really have no idea who I am."
"You can change your mind right now, and we can have a few more months with her. But you won't. That's playing God, bitch."
"This isn't about you!" Lex screams. "This is what Lane wants. She made the decision when she was of sound mind, and how the hell was I supposed to say no? I don't want this. I don't want any of this, but I have to do what she wants. This isn't about you, and it isn't about me. It's about her. So, no matter how pissed you are at me, I made a promise to her. I gave her my word, and that may not mean shit to you, but it does to me."
"You're a fucking bitch!" Zane shouts. "I hate you. I wish you'd never been born! Your mother should have swallowed you before walking in front of a fucking bus! That cheating whore got to live happily ever after when my mother didn't, and you're just a product of my father's poor judgement."
Ky's fist connects with Zane's jaw, and Venom wishes he'd been the one in front of the man rather than the one holding him back. "Don't you ever talk to Lex like that."
"Fuck you, Ky. Just because you want a shot to fuck her now that your wife got smart and left your ass doesn't give you the right to get involved in family business."
Another fist hits him, and Venom releases him, letting him fall to the ground as Ky hovers over him. "That girl is like my sister. I've been more of a brother to her than you've ever been, and she's done more for me and the rest of us than you ever will. She's doing you a favor, and I swear, I'll knock out every one of your fucking teeth if I hear you talking to her like that again. I don't give a shit if it's your wedding day or not. Go find your wife or your daughter and stay the hell away from Lex."
"Considering you were shit brother to your own sister, I can see how Lex would seem like a good option. She's good at taking a beating."
"I guess it takes a shitty brother to know one, huh?"
"Just because you're wearing my father's patch doesn't mean you can tell me shit, you second-rate wannabe."
Venom's finally had enough, and he grabs Zane by his leather, lifts him up, and slams him onto the hood of Cinder's car. "We haven't officially met, so let me introduce myself. I'm the new resident crazy."
"I'm supposed to be scared of the pseudo-Psycho?"
"Imagine what he'd do to you if he heard what I just did. Got that image in your head? Good. Now, I want you to imagine that scenario, only three times worse. That's what I'll do you if I ever hear you talk about her that way again. Got it?"
He snorts, and Venom slams him back on the car, making sure his head bounces. "What the fuck, dude?"
"One last thing. You ever raise a fist to her again, I'll cut your fucking hand off. I don't give a fuck if you touch her or not. Your hand's gone, motherfucker. Hope you can drive your bike with a hook."
Zane's eyes widen with actual fear, and Venom just smiles at him. Yeah, you better be scared, asshole.
"You're gonna regret this," he says, pushing Venom back and off the car.
"No, we won't," Ky says. "Go to your wife."
He stumbles inside, and Venom turns to Lex who wraps her arms around her waist and crouches down. "Lex, I know we promised—"
"Don't, Venom. It's okay. Thank you," she says with a shake in her voice.
"What he said isn't true," Ky says, bending down to cup her face. "You know that, right?"
Tears fall as she looks at him, and it breaks Venom's heart. "No matter how much I think I've healed from my childhood, Zane knows just the words to say that rip the scabs off before they have a chance to scar. I wish I'd told Lane no when she asked me. I think she overestimated just how strong I am."
"No, she didn't," Venom says. He reaches out for her hand, and she takes it, letting him guide her to stand. "You're the strongest person in this place. And I for one am fucking glad you're here. I think a lot of us are. Don't let that motherfucker break you. He's not worth it."
"I just want my brother to love me," she admits, more tears appearing as she looks into Venom's eyes. "It's just really hard to accept that it'll never happen. I love Lane, and I'll do anything for my family, but I really wish I'd never taken that call. This might be the one thing that finally shatters me."
Pulling her into his arms, Venom nods towards the clubhouse for Ky to get Colt. "No, it won't. I won't let it. Neither will any other man in that room."
"Snake might," she says, her arms holding him tightly.
"Yeah, fuck that motherfucker."
Colt runs outside with Ky, and Venom releases her to hand her to her husband. "What happened? I was talking with Jennings in the office."
"Zane," Ky says through clenched teeth. "Said some pretty fucked-up shit to her. I've heard him say a lot, but this was some of the worst."
"Did he hit you?"
Lex shakes her head, her face buried in his chest, and Venom cracks his neck. "He lifted his fist like he was going to, and I saw fucking red, man. Told him that if he ever does it again, he's gonna be Captain Hook 'cause I'll cut that fucking hand off."
"Good," he says and looks back at the clubhouse. "Baby, I'm sorry I wasn't out here."
"It's okay. I'm okay. We should go check on the kids, though. Make sure Ky doesn't become a grandpa twice in the same year."
"Fuck me," Ky growls, making Lex laugh, and the three of them walk into the clubhouse.
The way Lex looks back and nods at him gives Venom hope she'll be okay. He's glad he was here, and he's glad he stopped her brother.
"That was intense," Marnie says, walking up to him.
"Yeah, it was."
Her eyes cast towards the ground. "Lex is lucky to have you."
"I'm lucky to have her. She never makes me feel inferior around her. No matter who's in the room, I feel as though I'm the same as everyone else."
"I get it now," she says. "I understand why you're friends."
Chuckling, he leans back on Cinder's car. "I'm glad someone does, because I sure as fuck don't. She took pity on me."
"No, she saw you for who you were before the rest of us could see it."
"I've been seeing Cinder for a short time now. That's why she's here. I figure it's the kind of thing people who date would do."
And I didn't have much of a choice.
"Yeah, that's true. I won't lie and say it doesn't hurt, though."
That wasn't what he expected to hear. "I wasn't sure if you'd be here or not. I didn't do it to hurt you."
Her eyes finally look up to his, and he's surprised by the intensity in her gaze. "Do you love her?"
"It's early. We're still getting to know each other."
"Do you still love me?"
Looking away, Venom shakes his head. "Don't do this, Marnie."
"Yes or no, Venom."
"I can't turn it off no matter how hard I try," he says, his voice so low he's not positive she could hear him. If she didn't, he's not sure he can say it again.
"Then give us a chance. A real chance."
His head snaps up to look at her, and he shakes his head. "I wanted to, and you called me dirt. That woman in there doesn't think I'm only good for her in the shadows. She's willing to give me everything you weren't, and I'm not going to walk away from that because you think you've come to your senses. She doesn't make me feel like I did when I was growing up. That I don't deserve anything good in this life. I do. I know I do."
"You do," she whispers and steps forward. "You do, Venom. I don't want to just be in the shadows. I want to be out here, in the light, with you. For everyone to see."
"I found someone, and I'm trying to be happy. I'm trying to move on, and I need you to let me."
"We can have what you wanted before. I should have said yes, but I was stupid. My eyes are wide open now, and I know what I want."
He sighs, hating the way he knows how she feels. "It's not enough. It doesn't take everything back, Marnie. Now, I have to get back to my date. I'd be careful around her if I were you. Cinder's a little crazy. And possessive."
"I'm not giving up," Marnie calls as he pushes off the car and walks towards the clubhouse. "You're worth fighting for."
"You didn't think that before," he says and waves before walking inside again.
Cinder walks up and wraps her arms around his waist. "What was that all about?"
"Old history."
"I saw you threaten that guy. The groom," she says. "It was so hot."
"Wanna show me how hot you thought it was?"
Nodding, she takes his hand and heads towards his apartment, weaving through the crowd of people. "So much."
"I need to pay to have your hood fixed. Lex's brother dented it when I slammed him against it. Asshole."
She giggles, and he looks over his shoulder to catch sight of Marnie. She'd followed him inside, and she watches him walk into his room with Cinder. He hates knowing he causes her pain, but she needs to understand he's not her toy to play around with. Not anymore.