Friday, Lex skipped to her car, and then drove quickly to the Cullen home. Her heart raced with her thoughts in excitement at who would be there at the dinner that night-he promised he'd be there with Claire and Owen and Gray.
She couldn't help but smile as she pulled into the driveway to the main house and parked. She bounced into the glass house of light, hugging Rosalie first.
"Hey, Lexie, how are you?" Rosalie asked her as she let go to continue helping Esme cook. "How was your day at school?"
"It was great," Lex said excitedly. "When's the dinner?"
"It's at eight," Esme called over her shoulder. "You should take a shower young lady, make sure you look nice-that is, if you don't have any homework."
"Oh, I did it during study hall," Lex said casually. "I guess I'll go down to the cottage, then."
"Yes, then you'll look good for that boy," Rosalie said with a smirk. "I mean, he is your boyfriend, right?"
"I guess that's the right word for it," Lex mumbled. She slid open the back door, vaulting over the balcony to the radioactive-green lawn and sprinted to the cottage, only slowing down at the small path right before the porch. She fumbled with the doorknob and jogged into her room, only to stop and stare in horror.
"What the hell?" she demanded as she looked wildly from the posters of Rosalind Franklin, MGS, Kingdom Hearts, dinosaurs, and various summer camps she'd been to thrown around and torn from the walls. Her precious Beauty and the Beast bedspread and colorful rainbow frog sheets had been stripped from the mattress, her pillow from halfway across the room. Her computer had been yanked from the wall near the desk and lay shattered on top of her pillow. Her clothes had been strewn across the room, and her bookshelf toppled over.
What made Lex want to vomit, however, was her mattress.
In what looked like blood, a message was scrawled on the stark white.
You will pay for what you did to my sister. Tonight.
Bella cradled her in her arms in the safety of the glass house as Emmett, Jasper, and Edward went in to repair things and clean. Wrapped up even in the safety of her bedspread, the one thing that had kept her calm through PTSD-induced nightmares, she still felt panic at the message.
"Nothing will happen tonight, I promise," Bella said. "The Volturi wouldn't dare attack at such a big party."
"But I have a really bad feeling about this," Lex whined, leaning away from her mother's ice-cold touch. "I-I-"
"Lex, we need to go ahead with the dinner," Carlisle said. "Why don't you go upstairs and let Rosalie or Alice help you get ready?"
"Um, okay," Lex reluctantly agreed as she got to her feet and began up the steps, just focusing on breathing. She paused at the top of the stairs when she realized neither Rosalie nor Alice were in the upper level.
"Just watch out for her, okay?" Carlisle asked in a low voice. "I need to go through with this, Esme. Alright?"
Before Lex could hear the answer, she felt a tap on the shoulder.
She whipped around, only to realize that she had punched Rosalie.
"Ow! Sorry!" She cried, shaking out her hand.
"It's alright," Rosalie said with an encouraging smile. "Come on, let's go get you ready. I didn't mean to startle you."
Lex remained as passive as a porcelain doll through the ordeal, especially when Alice skipped in. She only rose to wrestle herself into the expensive green silk dress and to pee once. Otherwise, she remained dangerously still as Rosalie expertly painted makeup on her face and Alice cheerfully twisted her reddish brown hair into an updo.
The whole time, Lex's raptor eyes stared into the vanity as she struggled with her hold on reality.