Of all of the conversations he never wanted to have, this very one was at the top of the list. He would have preferred to let it slide, hide it as he'd hidden so many other things from his lovers before Lex. Still, Florence deserved to know; he wasn't so callous or unfeeling to think otherwise.

But how on earth could he bring it up? What could he say? No matter how carefully he explained it, she would never believe him, never understand. And god, how she'd be hurt. That was the unbearable part. She'd suffered so much through no fault of her own, and he would only add to it.

He took a deep breath and crossed over to her, steeling all of his courage. "Florence. There's something I need to tell you. This... this will sound insane to you. It does to me, and I've lived through it. But please, I'm asking you to trust me, to believe me."