Max sat at the table, making her pancakes, eggs, and bacon into a frowning face. This is probably the last time you'll get the chance to eat something decent, you should probably eat it and stop making stupid faces with it. She sighed and put her fork down, suddenly not hungry at all. She glanced across the table at Logan and noticed he hadn't touched a thing either, though he hadn't made a face out of his food. She turned to look at Lauren and saw that she had finished her breakfast entirely and was now enjoying the Business section of the newspaper.
A few more painfully silent minutes slowly ticked by, then Max heard the front door open. She looked up and realized she was the only one that heard, which disappointed her. As she watched Peter walk through the doorway removing his soaking wet coat, she became even more disappointed.
Great, not only do I have to leave, but I have to get soaked in the process. She thought in a grumble. Well, well, well. What's worse? The leaving or the rain? Could it be the leaving? Face it, Max. Just face it. Face it, face it, face it!
"Max?"
"Huh?" She asked, her attention now on Logan.
"I, uh, said that Peter's back." Logan said slowly, not sure if he had offended her for some reason.
"Oh." She said, then looked up at Peter. "Good news?"
Peter was a little taken aback. He had been expecting a clever retort of some kind, like 'You'd left?' but he had not been expecting the frown or the confusion on her face. He smiled down at her weakly, frankly feeling sorry for the poor thing. "Yeah. The video was enough to get Sonrisa put away for fifteen, and combine that with the other testimonies and he won't be leaving his jail cell unless it's in a body bag."
"Well, that's good news." Max said, though her tone suggested that she might've thought otherwise.
Lauren's smile and cheerful tone were genuine. "That's fantastic! This means I can get back to my daughter then?"
"Well, I suppose." Logan nodded. "We really don't need anything more from you."
"I'm going to go pack then." She smiled and excused herself from the table.
Peter took her seat at the table and grabbed an unused plate from the center of the table, then began piling it with food. He took a bite of bacon, then looked up to see Max and Logan. They weren't looking at each other, in fact they weren't even looking in the same direction.
When Lauren told me she suspected something I thought she was crazy, but Jesus! He shook his head and picked up his plate. "I'm going to go eat in the living room and watch the news."
The two sat quietly for a few more minutes, then Logan finally cleared his throat. He was a little thrown off when Max's head snapped up so quickly, but he continued nonetheless. "Um, well, I found something else for you."
"Really?" She asked, pushing away her plate of frowning pancakes.
He nodded, then passed her a small envelope. She opened it slowly, for the first time not feeling the same excitement she had felt when opening a mysterious file. She pulled a small invitation from the envelope and looked at it curiously for a moment, then opened it and read the inside.
Logan Cale!
Your presence is requested on the first of the next month at the Worther estate. Another fine masquerade ball is to be held and the Worthers request your, and a guest's if you so wish, presence at 8pm.
Regards, the Worthers
She stared curiously at the invitation, then looked at Logan. "What is this?"
He shrugged. "I thought that, you know, as a last hurrah we might go... together."
Max smiled widely. "I think I can clear my schedule."