Preface
Ashes to Ashes
Afterword
Ashes to Ashes
Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at /works/49067326.
Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warning:
No Archive Warnings Apply
Category:
F/M, Gen
Fandom:
World Wrestling Entertainment, Professional Wrestling
Relationship:
Kane/Lita (Professional Wrestling)
Character:
Lita (Professional Wrestling), Kane (Professional Wrestling), Edge (Professional Wrestling), The Undertaker (Professional Wrestling)
Additional Tags:
Kayfabe Compliant, Forced Marriage, Mentions of miscarriage, Emotional Manipulation, Dysfunctional Relationships, Biker Taker, May 2005, emotional cheating, One Shot, 2004, 2005, One-Sided Edge/Lita
Language:
English
Stats:
Published: 2023-08-03 Words: 5,546 Chapters: 1/1
Ashes to Ashesby TheSawisFamily
Summary
Lita must make her choice. An exploration of Kane and Lita's relationship between September 2004 and May 2005, with a rewrite of her Gold Rush actions.
"You need to keep an eye on your ol' lady," Mark warned, having called Kane after his own match on SmackDown.
"I didn't realize you were so great at relationships yourself," Kane bit back, alluding to Mark's recent divorce from Sara.
"I'm not sayin' I am, but you gotta watch your back. Some women love stabbing you in the back when you're not lookin'."
"I have Lita on a tight leash." Kane rubbed the back of his neck. "And, uh, I think she's gotten more used to me."
The Undertaker remained silent for a moment, considering his brother's situation. He'd tried to stay mostly out of the debacle that had been Kane's marriage to Lita. Hell, he hadn't even seen them as a 'couple' until he visited them in the Seattle hospital after Snitsky's attack. Although he had put distance between himself and his Dead Man persona, Mark still understood the twisted need to procreate despite their bloodline. Or maybe it was because of their bloodline that they desired to sire offspring. He had two kids of his own, but he couldn't really picture Kane as an actual father. A sire, maybe, but not an actual father. Kane couldn't even handle himself most of the time.
But then again, just a few years ago, his idea of his brother was that of a charred child-sized skeleton in the derelict family cemetery. He never would've imagined Kane survived the blaze that had killed their parents.
"Little brother, listen, I know we have a…complicated past, but I don't want to see you get hurt here. Save that for the ring."
"When are you gonna leave 'im, Li? This sneaking around shit is getting too hard," Edge complained, smacking his gum.
Lita sighed. "I don't know. Kane follows me around everywhere."
While he stalked her every movement between the conception of their late child and her miscarriage, he now lingered in her shadow with a different approach. Instead of trying to intimidate her into obedience, Kane now insisted on fretting over her. Lita imagined that some women would find it sweet or endearing to be pampered by their husbands, but she found herself stuck with Kane.
She pushed away a sudden memory of his massive frame draped over her hospital bed, forcing her into a suffocating embrace as he grieved for their lost son. If it hadn't been such a painful experience, both physically and mentally, Lita would've found the contrast interesting in a depersonalized context. She had played the role of the blank state, battling her inner turmoil while the 'Big Red Machine' openly wept beside her, muttering a litany of apologies towards her and their baby boy with promises of avenging them against Gene Snitsky. But Lita thought Kane truly blamed himself for the miscarriage, having seen his face once he realized he fell directly on her midsection in the ring. She hadn't missed the sick horror in his mismatched eyes when the doctors lifted her gown to display the massive purple and black bruise surrounding her empty baby bump. She also hadn't missed how he turned white as the doctors explained how the trauma to her midsection resulted in a placental abruption, essentially suffocating their baby in utero as the placenta tore away from her uterus. The doctors had tried to save him. She even once snuck in a quick prayer for her son, asking a high power to save her baby. Lita even resisted asking her brother-in-law for some black magic level attempt at saving the child.
Following her discharge, Kane took her back home to their apartment outside Death Valley following a silent plane ride. His choice of home, not hers, but now she didn't even know if she would feel comfortable in Sanford with her mother and sister. She had no desire to talk to anyone, but especially not to Kane, and her appetite was nonexistent despite his attempts at caring for her.
She'd looked away from the plate in front of her, having pushed it away after two meager bites. Lita felt her husband's eyes piercing her.
"You need to eat." He said in a tone that showed he tried to be patient with her, but his annoyance slowly crept in.
Lita stared at the wall, ignoring him. She suppressed a humorless laugh, wishing she had ignored Kane's threats a few months ago. If she had just seen through his empty threats, she would've never been forced into the charade of a marriage with a volatile recluse or carried the doomed pregnancy.
She heard the rush of air from his nose as he tried to keep his temper in check. "One more bite, at least."
Lita slowly turned to face him, willing to morph her blank expression into a 'go to hell' look. Kane ignored it, thinking at least her spirit hadn't been extinguished completely.
A moment passed in silence.
"JR wants to talk tomorrow…" Kane's voice lowered, no longer meeting her eyes, focusing on his hands.
"I'm not ready," Lita admitted. Kane's head shot up at the rare sound of her voice; Lita became taciturn following the experience of losing their baby.
It was a coping mechanism he knew too well, having forgone speaking long enough to necessitate a voice box to get his vocal cords back in working order.
He'd spent his entire life being inundated with terrible advice from worthless doctors. Kane knew he could handle Lita. They were partners, as she had put it the week after their marriage. Even though her claim of partnership had been a way to inconvenience his match, he wouldn't let her forget it.
"I'm not your valet, Kane."
"But Lita, sweetheart, we are partners. Partners support each other, right?" He mocked her, dragging her to the ring.
Lita looked away from Edge. For the last two months, he'd suddenly become very interested in her personal life, always insisting on 'checking up' on her whenever Kane was gone. It was almost ironic, Lita supposed, that Kane still focused his jealousy on Matt instead of looking around for current threats.
While she promised to always love Matt Hardy as a part of her wedding vows to Kane, Lita declined all his calls and refused to text him back. She even ignored Jeff. Matt belonged to her former self. She didn't want to go backwards or stay at the place she found herself in, feeling lost in her career due to her knee injury and alternating between projecting her grief over her son as some sort of attachment to Kane while also mentally declaring her hatred of him.
She'd seen the smirk on Kane's face when she ignored Matt's attempts to talk to her one night after a match. Let him think I've fallen in love with him, she thought, not caring at this point.
"Lita, here, talked to some of the bigwigs at corporate and got this." Edge pushed a legal document across the table.
Lita had met Edge for lunch after telling Kane she needed an extra day of rehab for her knee injury. Kane was none the wiser, patting her head in his attempt at domesticity. "You'll be fighting again soon," he reassured her. Kane's smile still made her uneasy.
Lita picked up the document with a shaking hand. Petition for Dissolution of Marriage.
"Adam…"
"I know you're scared, babe. I'll protect you from Kane." Edge rolled his eyes when he said her husband's name.
"It's just…I don't know. This is a big step. And how do I know he'll agree to this? He forced me to marry him in the first place." Lita shook her head. She agreed to sleep with Kane in the first place to protect Matt from his harassment. The last thing she needed was someone else getting hurt by her beast of a husband. She had been lucky that he didn't decimate the doctors and nurses after she lost the baby.
Edge ignored her worries. "Listen, I'll take care of it. I'll beat Kane in the Gold Rush with your help, and then I'll help you get away from that monster. Go ahead and pack some stuff."
Her stomach flipped, but she nodded, stuffing the paperwork into her purse.
Lita ignored the gut feeling telling her this was a bad idea.
Edge decided for Lita that his Gold Rush match against Kane would be the perfect opportunity for Lita to backstab Kane.
"It'll be in the ring, Lits. He can't hurt anyone with the world watching."
Lita knew that wasn't true, but she no longer knew what to believe. She just wished that she didn't have to worry about all these men making life choices for her. Willing down the sudden burn of tears, she pushed away her longing for the days when she didn't have to worry about anything except training sessions and paying rent on time. She had to learn how to adapt. She'd done it before.
"I got an idea," Edge continued, ignoring Lita's silence. "With the cameras on us, we'll act out this big scene. Make it look like I'm ganging up on Kane's woman and manager."
"Uh huh," Lita replied, not really listening.
Edge winked. "And then tonight, after I win…"
Lita gave him a fake smile. She wasn't ready for any post-match celebration like that. "I need to get back to the locker room."
"Okay, babe, but meet me here in like an hour. I'll set up the scene."
Lita returned to Kane's dressing room, but he wasn't in there, giving her time to think over what tonight could mean. Could she really leave him? Would he even let her? Despite nine months of marriage, she still didn't really even understand what or who Kane was, considering he seemed to possess supernatural abilities and monstrous strength. She'd certainly tested his temper over their 'wedded bliss.' He never used any of that strength on her, but the walls in their apartment couldn't say the same. He'd scared off one neighbor for looking at Lita too long. She guessed that he tried to be a good husband sometimes, not that Kane had much reference for being a good spouse having lost his mother and legal father as a child. The foster families did more damage than good. And Paul only decided to be Kane's father when he benefited from it.
Her mental pity party halted as the door opened, revealing her husband, who had already changed into his black and red wrestling tights. Kane stalked over to her, taking in her facial expression.
He knelt before her, wrapping one massive hand around her knee brace. "Is your knee hurting?"
God, she hated when he actually seemed to worry about her.
"Um, no, just tired." She lied quickly. Lita stood back up, carefully balancing her weight on one leg and her crutch. "I'm gonna get some coffee. I need to see Christy, too."
Kane watched her leave without saying anything. It was time for her to meet up with Edge.
Finding Christy nearby the designated meeting place, Lita began a conversation with her protégé, waiting for her co-conspirator to arrive. She watched as a cameraman pointed his cameras at her and Christy, hoping to catch some possible diva drama.
"Hey Lita!"
Edge approached her from behind.
Lita ushered Christy away. "Let me handle this."
"What do you want?" Lita replied with mostly fake annoyance. Edge got directly in her face—too close for her. His spit kept landing on her skin as he trash talked her and her husband.
"What I did to Shawn Michaels will be nothing compared to what I do to your husband tonight!"
Lita winced, trying to avoid the spit.
"I want you to tell Kane that. In fact, you can bank on my victory, sweetheart."
Meanwhile, the executives in the TV van had switched the live feed to Lita and Edge's 'argument.' A challenger threatening his opponent's wife and manager always made a match more exciting, which had been Edge's plan. Not only did it distract Kane, it made him believe Lita needed avenging and not careful observation.
In his locker room, Kane watched the feed from the monitor, clenching and unclenching his fists as Edge dared to intimidate his woman. Fighting in the ring wasn't personal, but messing with his wife and trying to scare her didn't fly with him.
Lita re-entered the dressing room with a blank expression. Kane already knew she would try to act like nothing happened; she didn't want him to handle all her battles.
But Kane had seen it all.
He darted over to her. "Is this the first time he's bothered you?"
Lita looked away and sighed. Part of her wished Kane hadn't seen it. "Yeah, but I don't want it to be a big deal. I'm not a damsel in distress."
"Oh, Edge won't bother you when I'm done with him tonight. No one, and I mean, no one talks to my wife like that."
Feeling a sudden rush of guilt, Lita tried to control her expression, but Kane was too good.
He grabbed her shoulders. "What's wrong?"
"Ugh, nothing, just that he scared me," Lita said, coming up with a quick excuse. It wasn't completely untrue, either.
Kane lifted her chin, bringing her face-to-face with him. "Believe me, he won't be a problem much longer."
Lita pulled off her purse, tossing it onto the couch opposite the benches. "Look, I need to go see Christy, make sure she's okay. I'll be back before you go on."
"Alright." Kane placed a quick kiss on her forehead before releasing her fully from his grasp.
He watched her leave. While he waited for her return, he went and had a 'talk' with Edge. Well, a one-sided talk that warned Edge not to even look in Lita's direction if he valued his worthless life. How many times would Kane have to prove to the roster he would destroy anyone who even thought badly of Lita?
Returning to his locker room, he sat on the couch, accidentally knocking Lita's purse over.
Kane picked up Lita's purse, some of its contents spilling out across the concrete floor. He gingerly replaced the lipstick tube and her car keys before picking up a folded piece of paper. Thinking it was a report on her knee therapy, he unfolded it, expecting to see some listings of exercises for her to do and a write-up of the damage.
He stopped breathing at the word divorce. Suddenly, breathing hurt as an invisible weight slammed onto his chest.
Divorce.
Their names had been printed on the document along with the date of their marriage. Something about seeing what felt so sacred to him printed on a divorce petition made him feel sick. When the hell had she planned to tell him about this? The date on the paper matched the day she supposedly needed extra knee rehabilitation.
She'd planned to leave him. The paper crumpled in his hands as he saw Lita's smiling face as she left last week for her 'therapy,' lying to him as she went to some lawyer. Now breathing heavily, Kane resisted the urge to ignite the paper, turning it into a pile of ashes.
But that would be too easy.
Who the fuck gave his woman a divorce petition? That lawyer would know how hot his flames could get.
Kane felt weak in that moment, possibly the weakest he'd felt since his childhood. He thought Lita truly came to feel at least something for him, rooting for him at ringside voluntarily now, shooting him grins as he defeated her enemies. Confusion echoed through his mind as the pain he felt actually hurt now, no longer acting as a familiar agent.
Why did everything have to end like this? He wondered, his body trembling as he rocked back and forth.
Every bit of progress he thought they'd made had just been an act by her. Her kisses had been transactional—a payment for him to do her bidding. He shuddered, thinking of how he tried to make her happy by taking up her errands.
I'm just a thing to be used.
When the urge to create a family entered his brain last year, he instantly knew she was the woman he'd pick to carry his child. Lita was strong, beautiful, loyal, and just different. She embraced the weirder side of life unlike some of the finicky divas who worried more over their hairstyle than their ability to wrestle.
Her red hair had been a nice bonus.
A small part of him hoped she'd received the papers in some misguided attempt. Maybe they were old and she forgot to toss them out, but the papers were too undamaged to be from the start of their marriage. They had been at the top of her purse, after all. Maybe Stacy or Victoria gave them to her. His teeth clenched. Or Matt. Had her avoidance of Matt been an act to get Kane off their trail? Had she come to their bed after fucking someone else? Letting him hold her after she betrayed him? He'd comforted her to the best of his abilities after she injured her knee after only two months back in the ring following the miscarriage.
He thought it had been a miracle when she began sleeping in his bed following the miscarriage. While he had originally demanded she sleep beside him like 'normal couples,' he dropped the issue when she brought up that the baby kept her up. Furthermore, his body heat mixed with Death Valley temperatures didn't help her get the rest she needed to grow their child. He'd given up the master bedroom, taking up the guest bedroom, thinking she needed quick access to the master bathroom for her morning sickness, despite her attempt to hide her symptoms from him.
Two weeks after the miscarriage, he woke up to find her standing in his doorway, watching him. Ever a light sleeper, she'd woken him with the crack of the door.
He sat up and asked, "What is it?"
She'd never sought him out like this. Was something wrong, he wondered? Was she bleeding again? Complications?
Lita remained silent, but slowly crept into his room until she stood directly beside the bed, looking down at him with an unreadable expression.
Rather than pulling out a knife like he expected, he stared as she lifted up the covers and slipped in beside him, seeking comfort from him.
"Lita?"
He thought he must be dreaming as she shifted closer to him, surrounding herself in his warmth and strength. His shock turned to immediate sadness as her voice reached him.
She whispered, "Hold me."
Kane quickly obliged, bringing one arm around her waist, pulling her against him until their skin touched. The other hand began running through her hair as she relaxed into his hold. He continued the motion long after her breathing slowed, signaling she had fallen asleep in his arms. He didn't want her to be afraid anymore; he now wanted her to find comfort in his embrace.
And that had begun their nightly routine. She even shared his bed now that they were on the road, rather than insisting on a two-bed hotel room. And despite his desire for her, he let her decide when they'd resume their sexual relationship, with Lita initiating it sporadically.
Kane thought they could eventually work out their animosities. He could become world champion again, and, once cleared to wrestle following her injury in January, Lita would reclaim the women's championship from Trish.
Trish.
She'd used him to run off Trish. Kane thought he was being a good husband and partner by harassing Trish for all her slights towards Lita and their unborn child. Now he realized he had just been Lita's pet monster, appeasing him with her body to get him to act against her enemies.
He was so fucking stupid. Kane thought he'd learned from Tori, who had cost him so much respect and victories in order to protect her, only for her to betray him with Sean. Everyone betrayed him. The fire had corrupted something inside him, he decided. It wasn't just his face.
Stiffening, Kane stood up. Maybe Lita had been coerced into marrying him, but she willingly signed the agreement to wed him if he won against Matt at SummerSlam. She gave her consent to marry him in front of the priest. They were bonded until their lives ended. She was his. If she couldn't accept his attempts at loving her, that was on her, but she would be Mrs. Calaway until the day she died.
"I'm not changing my name, Kane," she protested.
"I want the mother of my child to share the same name as me."
Kane thought it had been a win on his behalf that she hadn't thrown her wedding ring off a bridge.
"Oh yeah. I forget it's even on."
It was a work in-progress, their relationship. But had it been a lie? No, he told himself. He'd seen the genuine, distraught look in Lita's eyes as she sought his comfort at night. The worst had happened on what was supposed to be her due date. Someone must've misled her, he decided, as that conclusion hurt far less than the notion she'd played him for months. Some things couldn't be faked.
He thought of the time they had been unpacking their stuff into the apartment. She'd found some of his old ring gear and was particularly interested in his original masks. Something about her handling them with care made him feel weird. It was as if she had handled a part of his soul in that moment. Kane resisted the urge to snatch the mask out of her hands when she brought it up to her own face. He resisted the urge, but only barely. The more he thought about the image of the full red and black mask over her face, the more uneasy he felt about it. Someone like Lita shouldn't have to hide herself like that. Every time someone had taken his mask before, it had been to humiliate him, but she acted out of curiosity rather than a desire to embarrass or mick him. That gentle curiosity hadn't been fake. No one could be that good at acting. She fretted over him after Snitsky nearly crushed his esophagus. His blood had been on her hands. He saw the hidden tears as she threw out her maternity clothes.
For better or for worse.
For richer or poorer.
In sickness or in health.
She was his and his alone.
It seemed she needed a reminder of that fact.
"Angelita!"
Lita squeezed her eyes shut at her mother's harsh tone, holding the cell phone further away from her ear.
"You are married. That's your husband! You made your vows to him before God and all those people."
"I don't need the lecture, Mom. I don't believe in that stuff anyway."
"Well, you should, and don't take that tone with me. You may not have wanted to marry him, but you did. You carried his baby."
"That he forced me to have."
"You chose to sleep with him."
"Mom! That doesn't make it right."
"Maybe. Maybe not. But it was time you settled down anyway. I never liked you prancing around with all those men, underwear out."
Lita rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the support."
"Listen to me, niña. You just miss your baby. I do. That sort of thing messes with a woman's mind. Give Kane a chance. You told me yourself, he takes care of you."
"When he's not threatening me." Lita paced around the parking garage, looking over her shoulder for any sight of her husband or Edge.
"And has he ever hurt you? No. The man does your laundry. He makes your dinner. What do you want? You don't even want Matt."
"He has hurt me. Not all hurt is physical. I thought you would know that better than anyone."
Lita's mother exhaled loudly. "Divorce is a sin."
"It's easy to say that when you're not married to the devil himself," Lita spat, hanging up the phone and placing it back in her pocket. But was he truly a demon? Or was it just what she'd heard others say for so long? What did she feel toward Kane?
Knowing it was almost time for the match, she swallowed down the growing anxiety. Tonight would change her life, but she didn't know if it would be for the better.
Kane was oddly quiet when she returned to get ready for the competition. Lita patted his head, noticing his eyes focusing on her wedding ring.
"What's the matter?" She asked in her sweetest voice.
"Oh, nothing's the matter, just thinking."
"About…?"
"Us." He smiled, looking at his own wedding ring. "We've been married what — nine months?"
"Uh yeah." Lita didn't like this direction.
"And we've been together for a year. Almost a year ago today, Lita, we conceived our baby boy." A wistful look appeared in his eyes, clearly picturing past events.
Lita felt nauseous at the reminder of her lost son and the circumstances behind his conception. She remained silent.
"You know, I think we should try again."
Lita's breathing became shallow. Did Kane know about her divorce considerations? Didn't he realize it was still way too soon for her to even consider conceiving another child, let alone one with him. She still wanted her career and freedom.
"Um…I don't know about that."
"Why not? I know how much you wanted our baby. I think you'd be a wonderful mother, Lita." Kane's tone of voice was mockingly soft. She knew it hid a trace of anger somewhere.
"I wanted that baby. I don't know if I could…go through that again." She shook her head. The pain of losing her son made every other sorrow in her life seem like child's play. She wondered how Kane knew exactly he'd been the father of her baby after just one time when she had been back together with Matt. Hell, she considered the idea that he somehow figured out her ovulation schedule, but whether that was through supernatural means or snooping through her period tracking, she was unsure.
Kane flexed his fingers, staring at the floor. "I know you blame me for what happened."
Lita immediately protested. "Kane, no —"
"Snitsky may have hit me, but I'm the one that landed on you. I'm the one that forced you to be at ringside." He knew he should have listened to JR and Lawler when they told him ringside was too dangerous for a pregnant woman.
"Please. I don't want to talk about it." Avoiding the subject of her son had been her preference, although she secretly would curl up with the sonograph pictures and his tiny, blue urn when she felt particularly grief-stricken. She had tried to protect Snitsky's career and paid the price with her baby's life. She regretted not even looking at him when the doctor gave her a chance. She hadn't even given her son a name.
"Okay, wife, but I think we've become…" He held up his hand in a thinking gesture, looking for he right word. "A perfect couple."
Lita stared. "Perfect?"
"We both want the same things, to be victorious, to prove something to the world."
She scoffed. "We barely even know each other."
"Oh, Lita, sweetheart, we have our entire lives together. We'll have plenty of time. 'Til death do us part." Kane looked up at the ceiling. "And even then…who knows? My brother said we all go on." Kane paused. "Maybe our son has."
"I don't even know what you are, to be honest," Lita confessed, disturbed by Kane's allusions to an afterlife together. It reminded her too much of what her mother had rambled on about. Sanctity of marriage and all that crap.
He simply shrugged. "Do we ever really know who we are? I've been told all my life I'm a freak, some sort of monster. Did I become those things just because of what people said, or was it always true?"
Lita cradled her arms against her chest.
Kane's voice became soft again. "I know we've had our ups and downs, that's for sure. But, Lita, you should know I'd never hurt you. Ever. You've been under my protection, and I promise that if you get pregnant again, I'll never place you in danger again. You'll be under lock and key."
Lita watched him in silence.
"I saw how you ignored Matt after the baby..." He couldn't bring himself to say it, "And how you came to me. We wanted him, shared him." He met her eyes. "Was it just desperation? Or was there something actually…there?" Kane pointed at her chest.
"Kane, I—" Lita's eyes darted around the room. "I don't know. It's just all so confusing; I don't know what I want."
"You don't have to say you love me or anything like that. I don't even know if I have it in me, either. But we belong to each other now. Forever."
He noticed her unsteady breathing.
"Breathe. We can work this out. I know we can. I know how being out of the ring hurts you, hurts your spirit. You need something to fight for and strive for, not moping around thinking about the past."
"I, I guess."
Lita was not used to Kane using such a motivational and optimistic tone. At least he listened to her unlike Edge.
She stiffened at that thought.
"Believe me, I know. I'm not exactly what the shrinks call stable." Lita thought of the time he lit JR on fire. "But I think I can recognize when my wife isn't herself."
Lita nodded toward her knee, "I came so fucking close to winning against Trish."
"And you will. If you keep fighting."
"I don't quit," she bit back.
"Then don't. Honor your commitments, everything you've achieved."
Lita slowly nodded, thinking he must have an idea about the divorce papers with the way he phrased things. Commitments. She tried to subtly look at her purse, realizing it was in a different position than she left it in.
Kane saw her glance. He exhaled loudly.
"Lita, be honest with me."
She met his eyes, knowing her life would change in a matter of seconds depending on how she acted.
"Who gave you those papers?" His voice came out growling and demanding despite his attempt at control.
"Kane…"
"Don't lie to me. Don't ever lie to me, Lita. Why do you have those? Did you go to some lawyer while I was picking up your prescriptions?"
Lita stomped her good leg. "No, I didn't go to a lawyer!"
"Then where did they come from?"
"I, okay…there's someone who knows…our situation…"
Kane's eyes continuously widened with each word, waiting to strike. "Our situation."
Lita continued, "And they took it upon themselves to get those papers drawn up."
"So someone thinks they know what's best for us? Is that right?"
"Yeah," she replied, softly.
"Who?"
She refused to answer him.
"Who? Lita, who gave them?"
Lita wouldn't meet his eyes.
"Answer me!"
"I'm afraid of what you'll do if you find out."
"I already know about those papers. I know you've been keeping them with you instead of ripping them into shreds. You've been considering signing them, I bet."
Lita backed away from him. "I don't know."
Kane tried another approach. "Was it one of the girls? Christy? Stacy?" He held up his hands. "Trish? Stephanie? I won't attack them if that's what you're worried about."
"It wasn't any of them, Kane."
His rage increased tenfold at her confession that a male gave her the papers. It hadn't been a diva.
"JR? Vince? Oh, wait, I bet Matt. Yeah, Matt. When did he speak to you?"
"It wasn't any of them! I haven't talked to Matt in...I don't even know how long. Our wedding, I think."
"Then just tell me!" Kane barked. "I'm tired of asking."
Lita bit her lip. "It was…"
A staffer entered the room, interrupting them. "You're on."
Kane held Lita's gaze for agonizing seconds. "This isn't over."
He turned his back to her.
A sudden impulse ran through her. Her mind rushing. This was all wrong. She couldn't cost him this match or let Edge use their relationship for his own gain. Lita grabbed Kane's arm, pulling him back.
"Wait!"
Kane whirled around, waiting to hear what suddenly disturbed her.
"Fine. I'll tell you, but don't…I didn't mean for it get like this."
He watched her intensely, giving a short nod.
"A couple months ago, this person thought he was looking after me and I, I just kinda let him because I felt so alone after the baby and just feeling totally isolated. He gave me those papers, said he'd help me leave you."
Kane's nose flared, but he didn't speak.
"He wanted me to do it tonight, but I couldn't do it. He set it all up, Kane. I swear I didn't want to do it."
"Who was it?" He demanded, each word slowly bit out.
Lita swallowed, looking down at the floor. "Edge."
When she looked back up, Kane was gone.
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