“You knew?” She peered at her husband, hurt furrowing her eyebrows. “And you didn’t tell me?”
“You didn’t need to know. He was supposed to get it out of his system, come to his senses.”
“I can’t believe this…she’s engaged.” She stared down at the floor, lost in her head.
“And he’s married.” Arthur snapped to us, anger lowering his lids. “Don’t either of you have any self-respect? Any regard for the relationship you promised yourself to? Do you care about anyone but yourselves?” Arthur puffed. “I’ve never met two people more selfish, cruel, and dishonest.”
“Enough.”
“You have a wife! But here you are, destroying those vows you spoke to my angel, for a woman who is engaged to be married to another man!”
“Stop.”
“Why? Does the truth hurt, my boy? Was it a lie when you looked Gracie in the eyes and said till death do us part? How quickly you tossed her away for another.”
“I. Said. Enough!” Lennox bellowed, startling the entire room into silence. Even the air held its breath. “Quickly? She’s been in a coma for two years.” He seethed. “And truth, Arthur? You want the truth?”
“Lennox, no.” Mary shook her head, reaching for him, but Lennox was already locked on his father-in-law.
“You’re the one who can’t face the truth!”
“Me?” Arthur pointed at himself. “I see just fine.” He glowered at me, returning to Lennox.
“You live in a world built of lies, a bubble you’ve convinced yourself is real. But you know, deep down, that it isn’t. It’s all a mirage. That’s what terrifies you so much.”
“Lennox…” Mary tried again, a desperation on her face I didn’t understand.
“I shouldn’t have married Gracie. I know that now. And I hate I was weak, searching for anything to hold on to. She was my best friend, and I let myself believe it was enough. It kills me I didn’t love her like I should have…like she deserved. I wanted to. So badly. So I stayed. And I would have forever if that was our story. I wanted nothing but her happiness, but her happiness wasn’t mine to control. She was unwell, but neither of you ever wanted to face the fact she wasn’t perfect, pretending her depression wasn’t real. I held on to the guilt for not being there when she lost the baby…” A crack broke his sentence, the grief hunching him. “I will carry that with me forever. I know you blame me, that my absence was the cause, tossing it in my face whenever you can. But nothing you could say or do could match the punishment I’ve put myself through. I’ve lived years stuck in hell. I probably would still be there.” His hazel gaze flicked to me, then away, swallowing. “I can’t do this anymore, living like I’m just biding time until I join Gracie.”
“You bastard!” Arthur’s shoved at Lennox’s chest. “Don’t talk about her like that!”
“Like what, Arthur?” Lennox shouted back, letting Arthur push at him. “Like she’s dead?”
“Oh, no.” Mary whimpered, her hand going into her head.
“What. Did. You. Say?” Arthur stiffened to the point I thought he’d snap in half.
“She’s gone.” Lennox spit out each word in heavy chunks, landing heavily at Arthur’s feet. “You need to accept that. Every doctor and specialist out there has told you the same! She’s dead, Arthur. Let. Gracie. Go.”
“Fuck you!” Arthur swung at Lennox. He didn’t move, letting Arthur land the hit, not trying to fight the older man.
“Arthur! Stop!” Mary leapt for him, grappling for her husband as Arthur punched at Lennox again. Oh, hell no. Pure instinct lurched me at Arthur, shoving him off Lennox, the need to protect him controlling my thoughts and actions.
“Fuck! Spencer.” Lennox picked me up as I still pushed and snarled at Arthur, looking like a hissing cat, moving me out of harm’s way. “Stop. What are you doing?” His arms wrapped around me, moving me away from any danger.
“Arthur!” Mary’s voice sliced through the room, a butcher’s knife severing his attention on Lennox back to her. “Stop this nonsense now!”
“But…”
“No,” she snapped, taking over control in a blink. “Apologize to Lennox.”
“What?” Arthur screeched, his eyes wide. “Apologize? For what? For striking him?”
“Not for hitting him, for everything else. As I need to…”
“Wha-what? I don’t understand.” Arthur watched her in confusion as she dug a tissue out of her handbag, tapping at her eyes.
“We have been the selfish, cruel ones, Arthur.” Her head dipped as she tried to retain her emotions. “She would be so upset with us.” A sob broke from her throat, and she turned slightly away, not wanting us to see her totally lose it.
“Mary…” Arthur took a step to her.
“No.” She batted him away. “This needs to finally be said. You and I need to face the truth. Just like she would want us to.”
Arthur swallowed, his jaw straining.
Mary dabbed at her eyes again. “I am sorry, Lennox.” She kept her head bowed. “For what we have put you through, forced upon you, so we could continue on, not thinking for a moment how this all might affect you. How we forced this role on you because it fit the world we wanted to keep alive, that Gracie would wake up, and all would be perfect again.”
“There’s still that chance.” Arthur touched her arm.
“No, Arthur.” She tugged away from him. “There’s not. There never has been. Not one person, not the dozens of doctors and specialists we have had examine her, believes that, not even me anymore. It’s only you who keeps this lie we have built our lives around going.”
“Me?” He jabbed at himself. “I’m sorry I have hope our baby girl will come back to us.”
“Stop.” Mary pinched her quivering lips together. “Stop with the passive-aggressive guilt, like you are the only one who loves her, who wants the best for her. You know I’d give anything to have Gracie back. Any-thing.” Half the word was a whisper as she tapped at her chest like it was breaking in half. “But we don’t have that choice. And I’m tired. I’m tired of living like this. And I know in my gut Gracie is too. She wants us to let her go, Art. She wants peace.”
A choking sob buckled up Arthur’s chest. “No. I-I can’t. She’s our baby.”
My throat squeezed at hearing the devastating grief in his tone. It was like he was finally letting the façade fall, and he might go with it.
“I know, but we have to.” Mary moved to him, tears sliding down her face. “Not just for Gracie, but for us. And especially for Lennox. Being here really woke me up, made me see…it’s not right to force him to live in purgatory. He’s so young and has so much life ahead of him. How dare we take it away from him? He deserves to fall in love and have a family of his own. It’s not fair for us not to let him have that chance because we are too selfish and greedy, holding on to him because he’s the last tie to Gracie. Gracie wouldn’t want that, and you know it. She’d be furious at us. She was the one who didn’t have a selfish bone in her body. We should do as she would want, not what we do. We need to let her go, Art.”