Page 190 of Sweet Venom

The body beneath him is barely recognizable, a ruin of torn flesh and shattered bone, her chest a hollowed-out mess of rage and violence.

“Get the fuck out of here, Osborn.” Kane steps in front of me.

“Bring cleaners? Of course you did.” Marcus chuckles as he stumbles off the bed and loses his footing. “I’ll leave it to you, rich kids.”

I grab him by the collar. “You think you can ruin my fucking revenge and then leave?”

“That’s the plan, Callahan.” He’s speaking, but his gaze is lost somewhere I can’t see.

I breathe harshly. “I should maim you instead.”

Kane pulls me away. “Let him go.”

“But this motherfucker?—”

Kane shakes his head. “Pres wouldn’t like it.”

I think I imagine it, but Marcus flinches when Kane says Preston’s name.

I didn’t know the bastardcouldflinch.

As I release him, he reaches into his pocket, pulls out a candy, and throws it into his mouth as he walks out, swaying as if he’s drunk, leaving bloody footprints in his wake.

“Why the fuck did you stop me, Kane?” I snap when he’s gone. “And what’s with Pres not liking it? He hated that motherfucker more than I did.”

“Maybe, but it was complicated.” Kane grabs one of the bloody candy wrappers that Marguerite’s body is surrounded with. “He killed her and the gunman because they took Preston from him. He made it personal. Too personal, actually. We all know, aside from dealing with his family, Marcus never makesanythingpersonal. And you know what?”

“What?”

Kane smiles sadly, knowingly. “If the roles were reversed, I believe Pres would’ve done the same.”

When I walkinto Violet’s place, it’s still.

Toostill.

And I know part of it is because of the fucking emptiness gnawing at my insides.

I can’t get past the fact that Marguerite is gone, and so is my revenge.

And now, I have to crash back into the reality of grief.

Of accepting that my best fucking friend is gone, and no amount of killing can resurrect him.

Kane suggested we go for a late-night skate after we left Lucia and her men to deal with the mess Marcus created. Icould tell he wanted to go back to Dahlia, but he offered that just to rein me in.

To ground me.

He’s worried about losing me to bloodlust.

However, I don’t even know how the fuck I’ll be able to play hockey without Preston around. I missed the last two games because I just couldn’t do it without him there. He’s the one who encouraged me when we were young and said he’d join because I loved it so much.

“Do you even like hockey?” I asked.

He grins, looking comical with his missing tooth. “Nah, but I can learn to! I’ll keep you company, that’s what bros are for.”

But he bailed out too soon, and now, I don’t even want to touch a stick. The whole game seems revolting without him.

And, really, I don’t want to practice—I just want Violet in my arms.