Page 42 of Venom Within Her

“You must be Sharlene’s grandbaby.”

Hearing my Nana’s name from a stranger’s mouth almost knocked the wind out of me. The world stopped spinning. I felt Larz’s arm tighten around my waist, holding me up.

“How did you know? How do you know her?”

“Sharlene was such a darling girl. She and one of my children, Marnez, were deeply in love. They came to me for help, to see if there was any way they could be together. I offered them my protection, but…” she choked back a sob, “Sharlene’s father caught them together and took her away. Poor Marnez’s heart just couldn’t handle being without her.”

A choked sob burst from my throat as I clutched onto Larz. All of the pieces started to fit together. Nana found not only herself here, but the love of her life. Our fates were intertwined. I was meant to come here and meet Larz and love like she wasn’t allowed to.

“But she was…they were happy?”

She smiled, “the happiest couple I had ever seen.”

Although I felt a deep shade a grief shadowing over my heart, I also felt a warmth blooming deep within. It was the closure I didn’t know I needed, like an entire wall of barriers had crumbled beneath my feet and I was free.

“Ilona is my mate.”

Esta’s eyes lit up, “Oh, how wonderful!” She stepped forward, placing her hands on each of our foreheads. “My blessings. Now, what can I do for you?”

Larz sighed, swallowing thickly before she spoke. “We were attacked by hunters back in the treehouse. We were able to take care of them, but there’s no telling if more will be on their way.”

“I see.” Esta tapped a finger on her smooth, curved chin. “Did they see you in your shifted form?”

“The only ones who saw us shifted are now dead.”

“I’m guessing this has to do with the girl with the smashed skull I found the other night?” She cocked a brow at us. Not angry, but curious.

“That was me,” I stepped forward. “Larz was hurt, I didn’t even think about it, I-”

“It’s alright, child, I’m just glad you’re both safe. The girl is now a wind spirit,” she twisted her hand in the air, “living in the blow of the trees. She is quite happy.”

I felt my shoulders loosen and drop. I hadn’t realized the guilt I had been feeling for killing Stellan. Although I didn’t regret it, it had weighed heavily on me since the day it happened. Knowing that she is free and happy somehow washed all of that away.

The Goddess pulled a robe of moss around her delicate shoulders, “I will go take care of the hunters at your treehouse. You two should get going before any more come.”

“I thought we might stay a while in case they do, to help in case there is any fight.”

Esta stepped forward, cupping Larz’s cheek in her hand, “Larazeth, you two are the last of your kind. It broke my heart when we lost the rest of you. Seeing them mangled past the point of self-healing,” her voice caught, choking back a sob, “I could not bear to see either of you lost and your entire kind gone forever. We can handle things here. You go, I’ll send for you when it is safe to return.”

She pulled us both into a hug, her petite frame squeezing us with surprising strength. I found myself melting into her. Her sweet, earthy scent drew me in like a hummingbird, desperate to soak in the sweet nectar of her aura. I drowned in the motherly feeling. We said our final goodbyes and I carried that special warmth with me wherever we went.

Esta transformed again, this time into a large bird and flew overhead back towards the treehouse. Larz grabbed my hand, rubbing her thumbs over my skin.

“Are you ready to start our life together, my little stinger?”

I looked up at her hopeful face. The sky was illuminated with dazzling pinks and oranges, casting a warm hue over her skin. My chest squeezed with the love I felt for her. Nothing had ever felt more right than it did in this moment.

“I’m ready.”

Feeling a blanket of security around me, we shifted into our human-scorpion forms and disappeared between the trees with no plan, but everything as long as we had each other.

Epilogue

Larz

“Is this for me?” Ilona’s eyes lit up, warming me from the inside out just as they always had for the past ten years.

She turned the brand new skateboard I’d gotten her around in her hands, admiring the freshly painted scorpions on the bottom of the deck.