I am going to hate myself tomorrow, it's so late rn; I hope this is worth it, self.
[][][]
Her phone rang in the middle of the work day on her second day at the Kent's. Peyton looked at the caller ID in case it was Lex with an update, but slumped in disappointment when she saw "Annalise" displayed instead. She ignored the first few rings, but finally caved and answered.
"Hey Anna. What's up?"
"Oh, you know, just checking in since you never call. What are you doing? I mean, what even is there to do in that little town? Is it even cute? I should drive down just to check it out for fun."
Peyton tossed her head back against the couch and pressed her palm against her forehead.
"Now may not be the best time."
"Uh, is this because of the 'newly married' thing? Because, wow."
"No," Peyton snapped in distress. "No, that's not it. Gosh. It's just- there's stuff going on and we're trying to manage it."
Annalise let out an inquisitive hum and something rustled on the other end of the phone.
"Okay, you can not leave me with that. What's the dirty little secret? Trouble in paradise already? Are you preg?"
"No," Peyton cried as she rubbed her eyes. Her face grew hot. "Oh my gosh, Anna."
"Cagey. Methinks the lady doth protest-"
"Someone attacked me. We're trying to figure out who did it."
The line went quiet for a second as Annalise processed the idea. Peyton sat her laptop down on the coffee table and slumped over onto her side in preparation of the grilling she was sure to receive.
"Legit attacked?" Annalise questioned cautiously. "Like-"
She paused awkwardly and Peyton sighed.
"They tried to strangle me. Nothing violating. I mean, I guess if you don't count someone trying to take your life as violating."
"Shut up!" Annalise exclaimed. "And you didn't even bother to tell anyone? Do your parents know?" Peyton's silence was damning. "Oh my gosh, Peyton. I can't believe Lex didn't tell them."
"I asked him not to." Her tone grew slightly defensive. Her own mother already spoke as if Peyton still couldn't think half the time, she didn't need it from Annalise too. "I knew they'd freak out and want me to go back to Metropolis, and I didn't want to. I'm out of the mansion right now, and I'm safe."
"Safe out of the mansion," Annalise repeated slowly. "And where would that happen to be?"
"What is this? An interrogation?" Peyton asked in jest. Annalise scoffed.
"Excuse me for asking for some details about the situation where you almost died. Concerned parties would like to know."
Peyton rolled her eyes.
"I'm staying with a local family, the Kents. We've gotten to know them a bit and they were kind enough to offer a room. They live on a farm, you'd hate it."
"Kent," Annalise repeated to herself. "Excuse me, do you not remember how we discussed I'm a complex human being? Just because I've lived in Metropolis my whole life doesn't mean I'd hate it."
Peyton's brow rose.
"So you'd like to live out in the country?"
"No, absolutely not. I'd die immediately."
Peyton laughed and that seemed to lighten the news of her near death. She sat up and ruffled her hair as she cut her eyes to make sure Martha and Jonathan were still outside. Luckily they were.
"Well, if either of my parents calls me in a frenzied state, I'll know exactly who the mole is." Peyton said. "So don't even try."
"Oh please. If I'm going to leak information to anyone, it won't be to your parents."
Peyton laughed in surprise and settled back more comfortably against the couch.
"And who exactly would you leak it to then?"
"There are better paydays out there," Annalise said coyly. "What is this? An interrogation?"
"Oh, very funny."
"I do try."
Annalise didn't make much more small talk after that. Peyton reassured her that she'd do better about keeping her in the loop since they were friends.
It did make Peyton feel a little guilty. Not telling anyone outside of some people in Smallville what happened. If she'd kept this from the family in the other world, it would have been a huge betrayal. It might count as a betrayal that she kept the seriousness of the sleeping issues from them. Not telling them that she found herself in a different world half the time she closed her eyes.
Still. It wasn't like either family could have done something about what had happened, about nearly being strangled. What happened happened, and Lex was leading the investigation on making sure it didn't happen again.
Everything was taken care of. If she told her mother she'd almost been killed, it would only cause her distress. Then she'd really think Peyton couldn't take care of herself, and it might dent her trust in Lex too. That was the last thing any of them needed.
By the time Peyton finished up work, Clark's bus pulled up in front of the house and he hopped out of it. Peyton watched from her spot on the couch as he waved at someone and ran down the drive.
He looked more solemn and a bit uncertain as he came through the door and looked at Peyton, his eyes darted away for a moment and he rubbed his arm.
"Hey," he said.
Peyton frowned at his tone and cocked her head to the side.
"Hey, Clark. What's wrong?"
She waited patiently while Clark worked up to what he wanted to say, he sighed and turned his head back to look at the bus as it drove away.
"I saw Amy Palmer wearing Lex's watch at school today," he finally said. "The one his mom gave him? With the Napoleon coin."
That made Peyton sit up straight.
"Amy? You're sure?"
"It's a silver watch with a gold coin as the face. I don't think she'd have something like that herself."
"No, that's it." Peyton agreed.
She didn't exactly make note of what watch Lex wore every day, but he'd worn that one frequently enough throughout the years that she knew it more intimately. And, quite frankly, as uncomfortable as it was for her to think, Amy had a potential motive with her crush on Lex. She just hadn't thought the girl would resort to theft.
Peyton stood and grabbed her phone on her way to grab her purse from their coat rack. Clark stepped alongside her with a look of surprise.
"What are you doing? I thought you weren't supposed to be leaving until they found who hurt you."
"I need to tell Lex about his watch."
"You have a phone, don't you? This isn't the Middle Ages."
She gestured towards the door as she dug for her keys with her other hand.
"It's his mother's last gift to him before she died and it was stolen by a family he clearly trusted enough to bring with him from Metropolis. I'm not going to tell him over the phone. And I'm not going back to wander around by myself. I plan on being with Lex the whole time. I'll be fine."
But Clark dropped his backpack and stepped forward.
"I'll go with you," he said. "Just, you know, as back up."
Peyton glanced towards the back of the house.
"Will your parent's be okay with that?"
"Being there for a friend? Yeah. I can do my chores later."
She only hesitated a moment, but figured Clark could work anything out with his parent's later if they were upset.
"I'll throw you under the bus if they get mad," she told him.
Clark grinned.
"As long as it's not Lex's Porsche."
Peyton held up a finger and pressed her lips together in a stark lack of amusement.
"Do not joke about that. I still have a heart attack when I think about it."
He ducked his head at that and broke eye contact sheepishly, and Peyton decided to save them both some awkwardness and brought the mission back into focus.
"Come on, let's go."
[]
Peyton pulled into the garage to hopefully remain more discreet; if she had any luck the person who tried to kill her wasn't around at the moment. She and Clark entered her house through a back hall and met no one as they climbed the stairs to Lex's office. Peyton found it was usually the best place to try and find him, and this time didn't prove her wrong. He looked up from his computer and his face fell as she opened the door and Clark followed. Lex pushed himself up from his chair and quickly rushed to meet her in the middle of the room.
"What are you doing back here?" He asked. His question was accusatory and his brow furrowed as he placed his hands on Peyton's shoulders. "You're not supposed to come back until we've figured out what's going on. We agreed."
"I'm not staying," Peyton assured him. "But I thought it was better if you were told in person about what Clark saw."
Lex's gaze shifted to Clark in confusion.
"What's so important you had to come here and tell me?"
Clark sighed and rolled back his shoulders.
"I saw Amy Palmer at school today. She was… wearing your watch. The one you thought you lost."
Peyton gripped Lex's arms as he processed the information. He managed to keep his face even, but she saw the small pull at the corner of his lips as his disappointment grew.
"You're sure," he asked.
Clark nodded.
"It's a silver watch with a gold coin."
"You can see why I'd feel bad texting this," Peyton said gently.
Lex pressed his lips together in a grim, appreciative smile before he let her go.
"I appreciate you telling me, Clark." He looked back at her. "Let's get this sorted so you can get back where you're safe."
[]
The Palmers lived on the grounds in a separate cottage that sat across a small courtyard from the main home. Mr. Palmer kept the landscaping around their house maintained as well, and Peyton noted they even had some of the green roses growing in a flower bed under their front windows.
Mrs. Palmer was the only one home at the moment, apparently her kids had dropped off their school supplies and fled for some valuable free time before they had to complete chores and homework. She wrung her hands in clear anxiety as Lex explained the situation to her and asked to take a look in Amy's room.
She led them down a short hall to a wooden door on the left which she swung open to reveal Amy's ro,om. Her eyes were tight and wide as they stepped inside.
"I know Amy's been having some trouble in school," she rambled as she adjusted some of Amy's laundry. "But I can't imagine she'd steal from you, Mr. Luthor."
Despite the historical build of the home, Amy's room still resembled what one would expect from a typical teenager. Her bed was made, but there were enough articles of clothing thrown over the top of the comforter that it didn't look like it. A boombox sat on a shelf and there were notebooks and paper spread out over a wooden desk along one wall. There were other things, books and knick knacks and containers of makeup. It would be awkward if they were forced to search it all if Amy stashed the watch away in some tiny nook.
Clark moved over to look around the bed, though he didn't touch anything, and Lex shifted in front of a large sort of jewelry box. It had two doors on it instead of drawers, though, and Lex bent over to open them.
All the air was sucked from the room.
There were pictures of Lex inside. So many pictures. Pictures from newspaper clippings and tabloids and even what looked like a picture of him as a child that possibly came from a personal photo. Peyton felt a rush of shock to see the tabloid picture from when they were teenagers, but Amy had taped a cut out picture of her own face over Peyton's. Between the photos and newspaper articles were paper hearts and scraps of paper with his name written in a young girl's attempt at calligraphy.
Lex stared at it all for a moment, then reached behind a small frame and pulled out his watch. Mrs. Palmer's face went alarmingly pale.
"Mr. Luthor, I swear I didn't know- Amy-" Mrs. Palmer stared with wild eyes and dry swallowed. "Please don't call the police."
Lex slipped the watch into his pocket and stood fully.
"I'm not interested in retribution, Mrs. Palmer. But I do think that Amy needs help. A doctor, a psychiatrist. Whatever she needs, I'll pay for it. Even still, I think it may be best if your family leaves the mansion tonight."
Mrs. Palmer nodded stiffly, relief and humiliation still warring on her face.
"Of course, Mr. Luthor. Thank you."
Peyton's heart softened with sympathy for Mrs. Palmer and her family. It was an all around humiliating experience, to be let go from your current duties by your employer because your teenage daughter was a few steps away from starting a cult around him. She could understand Lex suggesting they leave, Amy clearly needed the separation, but it was unfortunate regardless. From what she could gather, Amy seemed sensitive even if she was obsessive, and Peyton didn't think an added heap of shame from people not even involved would be helpful.
She hung back near Clark and kept her voice low.
"This doesn't need to spread around the school."
Clark looked down at her in mild confusion.
"What?"
"The kids at school don't need to know why Amy and Jeff aren't attending anymore."
"I won't say anything," he reassured. When Peyton continued to stare he rolled his eyes. "And I definitely won't mention anything about it to Chloe."
"Thank you."
They followed Mrs. Palmer out of the house and split away as she rushed off to find her husband; they headed back to the mansion. Lex rubbed at his face and reached for her hand; Peyton met him halfway and didn't protest when he drew her nearer.
"You really shouldn't have risked coming back for this," he said as they entered through a side door.
"I'm not sorry," she said stubbornly. "This was an uncomfortable enough situation, there was no need to do it alone."
"One uncomfortable confrontation would hardly kill me," Lex countered. "For you, on the other hand, it could."
"I told her that," Clark piped up. Peyton glared and he ignored her. "That's why I came. Just in case."
"Which I appreciate, Clark." Lex flashed a tight grin. "Someone had to use their head."
Peyton rolled her eyes and huffed at the chiding.
"Fine. I'll leave if you want me out of here so badly."
She loosened her hold on his hand and began to pull away with a dramatic flair. But Lex didn't let go and pulled her back to himself with a droll stare.
"I want you to be able to come home safely," he said. "Which is why I'm working with the security team to figure out how to catch whoever this is as quickly as possible."
Peyton deflated, even if she'd been joking, and ran her thumb over his knuckles.
"I know. And I'm not brushing it off. But I didn't think that a quick trip over would be deadly, especially if I wasn't alone. See, I thought about it."
They had a bit of a staring contest; both challenging the other to protest. Clark coughed.
"I can leave for a second," Clark said, "if you two want to kiss that bad."
Peyton scowled fiercely, and the comment actually loosed a wolfish smile from Lex, despite his previous seriousness. And Clark, Clark didn't look even remotely sorry for saying it.
By then they were in the hall that led to the garage and she seized the opportunity to flee.
"I should get Clark home so he can actually do his chores or homework, or something," she said.
"Hey, you're the one that wanted to come over so badly. Now you want to leave? And without a goodbye kiss?"
A small rush raced through her at his challenge. Peyton crossed her arms and shifted back on one foot as she maintained an air of irritation. Her thoughts flashed to that night in front of the fireplace, to the kiss; to the press of his lips against her temple.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
And he was prodding at her again, poking at her boundaries to check where the line was. To see, perhaps, if she was looking for an excuse to act on the desires she'd normally refrain from acting on. And curse him for it.
She'd make him rue it.
"Fine," she said.
Peyton grabbed either side of Lex's face and pulled his head down to her level then pressed her lips aggressively against his. It wasn't romantic or sweet or whatever their previous kisses were. It was a reply to his challenge and her petulant attitude. It was over as soon as it began.
She let go of his face and stepped back with a flick of her hair. Surprise colored Lex's face then melted into amusement. Peyton squinted and pulled out her keys and spun them around her finger.
"Bye, husband."
"Oh geez," groaned Clark. "Forget I said anything."
"I'll call later," she told Lex.
He still smiled. Clearly the "rueing" wasn't working out. At least not yet.
"I'll be by the phone," he promised.
Lex stood in the garage and watched as they got into the car and drove up the drive. Peyton's thoughts sobered as they passed the Palmer family talking near the entrance, they'd found Amy and Jeff and it didn't look like the conversation was going well. Peyton looked away as both teens turned to stare at her car.
At least she got to skip those awkward goodbyes.
[]
The Kents were surprisingly okay with their son running off without notice to go tell Lex about his watch, even if it did relate to Lex.
Martha passed over a bowl full of mashed potatoes and Peyton dropped a spoonful onto her plate.
"Would you really describe it as a shrine?" Martha asked as their conversation continued. "I know emotions are heightened at that age, but a shrine seems a bit much."
"I don't even know where she got some of the pictures," Peyton said. "Poor Mrs. Palmer, she looked so horrified."
"With good reason," Jonathan huffed as he cut into his meatloaf. He paused and looked at Peyton. "No offense."
She made a face and ate a spoonful of potatoes.
"I'll let it pass."
"Lex didn't even press charges, dad," Clark piped up helpfully. "He was actually really nice about it."
Jonathan stared at his son flatly as he considered his words, but didn't react to them openly one way or another. He chewed his food and grunted a reply that, in the very least, displayed a sort of forced apathy. Peyton wiped her mouth with her napkin and set it back in her lap.
"There wasn't any need," she added. "Lex got his watch back and Amy needs help, not extensive shame. I'm sure she's getting enough from her parents."
"It certainly sounds like a difficult situation," Martha said. "I think he handled it well."
Dinner finished up and Peyton remained in the kitchen to help Martha with the dishes. The house settled into a quiet calm as the evening continued. Martha and Jonathan sat down in the living room for some much deserved down time and Clark went upstairs to work on his homework. Peyton chatted a bit more for a few minutes, but left the couple to decompress on their own the minute her phone rang. She took Lex's call outside in the barn.
He got around to calling her before she could call him, but she answered as if she'd been waiting on him. Perhaps there was an update on the Palmers.
She greeted him with a barrage of questions.
"Hey, how are you doing? How are things going over there? Did the Palmers already leave?"
"Hello to you too," Lex said. "Nothing has happened and the Palmers are still finishing packing up. I just called to see how you were doing. No one followed you back?"
Peyton let out a small laugh and shook her head even if he couldn't see it.
"No. I was only back at the mansion for a short time. For all we know the perp could have tried to chase me to Metropolis."
"You really know how to say the worst things," Lex remarked.
"It's a natural born gift."
"Actually, unfortunately," he hedged, "there is one thing I called to say. I think my father may be planning to stop by soon to argue again about layoffs at the plant. I just wanted to give you a heads up so you can avoid him, assuming we settle things here beforehand."
Peyton frowned and dropped her shoulders.
"No one can say he isn't persistent." She huffed. "I can't just avoid him the rest of our lives anyway," she said. She corrected herself in a rush. "I mean, for however long I'm here. Which could, admittedly, be a little bit."
The thought remained daunting when she dared to consider it.
A long time.
She didn't really have any concept of what that might look like. It had already been a long time even now.
The silence on the phone lingered for a stretch too long to not notice.
"As true as that may be," Lex said carefully, "I expect that our conversation may not be pleasant. I think he may be scheming to undermine me."
"Maybe we can distract him," Peyton suggested with a touch of humor. "I can confuse him by having a coherent argument with him while you work. It may stall him for a bit while he continues to try to figure out what's going on."
"Precisely what we're trying to avoid. I appreciate the offer, as tempting as it is; I've been dealing with my father my entire life. While I know not to underestimate him, I also know his tricks. It's part of the game."
Peyton sighed and dropped the joke as quickly as she'd offered it.
"That's still not a normal, healthy relationship, you know? A caring father would want you to succeed."
"In a twisted way, he does. Just not too much, and not in directions he doesn't approve of. It's really alright. I've got it well in hand."
"Well, if you ever need to tag me in, I'm here."
"I'll keep that in mind. I better go, the Palmers are just about to leave now."
Their conversion ended just as Clark entered the barn and hefted up a hay bale on one shoulder like it was nothing. Peyton put her phone in her pocket and eyed how he carried it; she tried to nudge a bale next to her with her foot. It felt like an anvil when she pressed on it.
"You must pick those up a lot," she noted dryly.
Clark tossed the bale onto a growing stack in one corner of the barn and gave her a grin as he wiped his hands on each other.
"Well, it is part of my chores. Were you just talking to Lex? Any updates?"
"No, no updates. Which is really frustrating. You'd think the authorities would be able to come up with some sort of profile for who we're looking for."
"Well I can tell you who it's not," a new voice chimed in.
Peyton and Clark turned to look as Chloe entered the barn with a wave and sheet of paper in hand.
"How could you know who it's not?"
Clark took the paper to read over and Chloe grinned at Peyton.
"Clark brought me a pottery shard from your attack that had some of the attacker's blood on it, along with some weird, green cream."
"I didn't know that," Peyton said. She shot Clark a look, and he shrugged.
"Chloe is good with research; I thought she might be able to help."
"I'm great at research," Chloe agreed. "Turns out, that cream is some sort of homemade cosmetic. I don't have the equipment to break down all its components, but the main ingredient seems to be roses. But there are some strange properties to them."
"And the blood?" Prompted Peyton.
"All I can tell you is that it isn't Amy Palmer's. The blood type doesn't match what she gave at the drive."
Peyton's brow rose as she looked at Chloe and the girl raised her hands in defense.
"I didn't even have to hack into the database with this one. It's not my fault if the school didn't encrypt it."
Peyton's interest sharpened.
"But you can?"
Clark interrupted as he moved closer and held the page out in front of him.
"It doesn't match Amy's, but look who it does match."
Peyton's phone rang; it was Lex again. They'd just gotten off the phone and she decided to wait to answer as Chloe grabbed the page and read over whatever Clark pointed out.
Chloe's eyes widened.
"Jeff."
Peyton's heart sank. Her phone rang again and she quickly walked away from the teens to hurry and catch it before it went to voicemail.
"Lex, are you okay? Are the Palmers gone?"
"Lex is still alive," a voice said. "If you want him to stay that way, you'll come back to the mansion alone."
Her limbs went cold as she gripped her phone tightly and her heart raced in her chest.
"Jeff," she said. "Jeff, please. We can talk-"
"Alone."
The line went dead. For a moment Peyton could only hear her own panicked breathing. Movement shifted behind her and Chloe stepped up to her side.
"Whoa, no way. Was that actually him?"
Peyton gripped her phone again and then shoved it in her pocket.
"I have to go," she said.
She made a beeline for the barn doors and Clark tried to position himself in front of her with his arms out to block her.
"Wait a second, you can't go over there if Jeff is making threats."
"I haven't told you what he said."
"It's, uh, not that hard to figure out," Clark argued. "Why else would your attacker be calling?"
Peyton attempted to push his arm away and for a second it didn't move, like a steel beam, but he dropped his arm at her insistence.
"He could try to kill you again," he reminded her.
Peyton looked back at them as they followed her to the house; her purse was inside. She had to hurry.
"Call the police," she told them as she ran through the kitchen.
Martha and Jonathan jumped up at the commotion and Peyton didn't stop to explain. Explaining would take time Lex might not have.
"What's going on?"
"What happened?"
She didn't have time. Peyton snatched up her purse and threw herself out the front door to her car in the driveway. No one made it outside by the time she slammed the car into drive and raced down the road towards home.
[]
"I don't do this, I don't do this, I don't do this."
She had no plan, no idea of what she was going to do when she found Lex and Jeff. It was stupid and foolish and everything she tried not to be. But if Jeff had Lex's phone, then he must have gotten the jump on him and she already knew the boy was capable of murder.
She was at almost every disadvantage here and she knew it. But she still couldn't stop herself from opening the front door, even as her hands shook.
The door swung open, unlocked, and Peyton hesitated at the threshold. There were no security guards, like there was supposed to be. Instead there was a trail of rose petals leading down the first floor hall. Her heart lurched painfully.
Jeff clearly meant for her to follow them. He had to be at the other end, didn't' he? Probably using Lex as bait so he could try to kill her again. This time without any security or Clark there to stop him.
She didn't want to die. And she very well couldn't do much for Lex if she was dead.
Peyton's eyes flickered upwards towards Lex's office. He had a gun up there. The one in the bookshelf. For all she knew Jeff could be watching her right now, invisible, like he was before; but she had to try something. She couldn't just follow the trail he left her like a lamb to the slaughter.
Peyton eased the front door shut again and stepped around the petals, careful not to disturb them, then silently rushed up the stairs to Lex's office. The manor was silent. Eerily so. Every breath felt like it echoed and her heartbeat felt like it could be heard down the hall. Her hands still shook as she cracked open the bookshelf ledge and reached in for the pistol. It felt heavy in her hand. The weight of it, what it meant, made her feel nauseous. She'd never shot a gun before, not even at the range.
Could she really shoot someone? A teenager? Even one that wanted her dead?
He had a mother and a father and a sister who loved him. Who likely didn't know.
"He's making these decisions," Peyton whispered to herself. "He's the one hurting his own family."
She carefully placed the pistol under the waistband of her jeans, and the cold metal pressed against her hip like a warning. She pulled her shirt over it and went back downstairs.
Peyton followed the rose petals to a doorway where they abruptly stopped. It was a room she never bothered with. Some sort of display room for ancient weapons that she didn't find particularly "homey", and it was currently under some construction. A scaffolding loaded with paint cans hid part of the room from her view. She edged closer to the doorway and peered the other way.
A body lay in the middle of the floor, bound hands behind its back and Peyton surged forward.
"Lex!"
He stirred, like her voice roused him, then struggled to shift onto his knees and stared at her in horror. Peyton dropped down to one knee next to him.
"No," he said. "You shouldn't be here. You have to leave."
"I'm getting you out of here. Come on."
She grabbed his arm and attempted to pull him up, but he was nearly dead weight. His pupils were too wide and his skin clammy; Peyton suspected he had a nasty concussion.
"He's here somewhere," Lex said. "He's in here."
Her blood went cold, despite anticipating that probability. She glanced around the dim room and the weight of the gun against her hip only provided minimal comfort. It wouldn't do her any good if she couldn't see where to aim.
"We have to hurry then; let's go."
"You were stupid enough to actually come."
Peyton whipped around only to see empty space. Lex struggled even more to right himself and she tried to help him onto his feet. His head snapped back suddenly, as if struck, and he fell backwards dragging Peyton with him.
"Lex!"
She only barely stayed upright as his weight knocked her off center, and she angled her hip away from where she assumed the strike came from.
"Jeff," she pleaded, "you don't have to hurt anyone! Whatever you're upset about, we can talk about it."
"Whatever I'm upset about?"
A hammer launched across the room and Peyton ducked over Lex in an attempt to shield him. He grunted in distress.
"Get out of here," he ordered.
"I'm not leaving you here," she replied desperately.
She looked in the direction the hammer came from and tried to decipher any sort of movement, a shadow, anything.
"You shouldn't have sent her away," Jeff sneered. "It was bad enough that you rubbed your weird relationship in Amy's face all this time, then got married. But to send her away like she's nothing? She lovedyou, Lex."
Lex's eyes darted around the room as he searched for Jeff as well.
"She's a little young for me, Jeff," he said, voice ragged. "I wouldn't be a decent person if I indulged her."
"You're not decent anyway."
His voice was coming from in front of them, moving around them in a sort of arc, like a large cat pacing in front of prey, but Peyton couldn't track him well enough to feel confident attempting any sort of defensive attack. Her eyes darted to the scaffolding behind them. To the buckets of paint sitting on the shelves.
If she could move quickly enough. If she could prevent him from masking his movements, maybe they stood a chance.
Peyton shifted backwards as subtly as she could and Lex leaned forward in an attempt to get to his feet again. Perhaps he actually thought she was trying to leave.
"You don't want to throw your life away like this, Jeff. Think about your family."
Lex managed to stand, though he was hunched over, but it provided enough cover for Peyton to make her move. At least, if Jeff hadn't moved too much.
"Don't talk about my family! We've never been anything more to you than the help!"
Peyton dashed for the scaffolding and grabbed two gallons of paint. Whoever had last used them hadn't sealed the lids especially tight, which was good news for her. She turned and threw the paint cans into the middle of the room; the paint sprayed wildly across the floor and against the wall. Jeff shouted in anger.
Lex whirled around to stare at her in surprise, but Peyton watched the room. Footprints appeared in the paint. Jeff called her a foul name.
She ran back to Lex's side as the footprints blinked into existence towards a wall mounted sword and her gut dropped as it was ripped from its hook. It was strange, nearly otherworldly, to see the sword seemingly floating on its own. Swinging wildly in their direction.
"Amy will be better off with both of you out of this world."
Peyton pulled the gun from her waistband. She wanted to shout a warning. She wanted Jeff to stumble backwards and reconsider his choices and she could hold him at bay while the police arrived. But things happened too quickly. The sword raised to swing down at them and she wasn't given the luxury of hesitation.
Peyton pulled the trigger.
The crack of the gun was deafening in the room, followed almost immediately by the shattering of glass. The sword clattered to the ground and a crash rang from the left side of the room, across from the window. The shape of a body, coated in paint, revealed Jeff as he let out a groan and went still.
Her hands remained frozen around the gun even as seconds ticked by and Jeff's barely visible form didn't move. Lex approached her, his presence hot at her side.
"Hey, you can let go. It's okay, put the gun down now."
Peyton cut her eyes toward him but found it difficult to move.
"Did I…?"
"Don't think about that right now," he said. "Help me get my hands free and I can help, okay? Can you do that?"
His request chipped away at some of the ice in her brain and she forced her joints to unlock as she lowered the gun.
Her hands shook, but she managed to put the gun back into her waistband, unwilling to place it on the floor, and she helped Lex break free of the bindings around his wrists. Sirens wailed in the distance, growing closer, but Peyton didn't relax. Lex grabbed her still shaking hands and stared into her eyes, clearly trying to steal her focus.
"It's over now. It's all over."
"You're hurt," Peyton said in reply. "He hit you in the head, didn't he? Your pupils aren't right."
"I'll live," Lex said. "But you shouldn't have come here. It was a trap."
"I know that." Peyton's face wrinkled in distaste. "But he was going to kill you. I had to come."
They stared at each other in silence, only their labored breathing filling the room as the muffled sound of sirens grew more distinct.
Peyton wasn't sure who moved first, she wasn't even thinking when suddenly Lex's face was in her hands, his hands on the back of her head, and their lips pressed together.
The kiss was frantic, desperate, relieved. It was another mistake Peyton couldn't stop herself from making. Her fingers were so cold and his face felt hot and she held onto him like he was the only solid structure in a world that was constantly crumbling.
Her thumb slid over his cheekbone and Lex grunted in pain. She immediately broke away and Lex followed momentarily even as he grimaced.
"I'm sorry; sorry. I shouldn't-"
"I'm fine. It's just a bruise."
But the sound of police bursting through the front door cut off any further thought of the kiss. Lex gripped her arm and looked suddenly serious.
"Give me the gun," he said in a rush. "If they ask, I shot it."
"What? No, you were tied-"
"We don't have time-"
Peyton returned his grasp as she bent at the waist and put the gun on the floor before the cops got to the room, but she didn't break eye contact.
"They're our lawyers, right?" She asked. "There are marks on your wrists, Lex. I did it."
He looked distressed, and she got the impression that there was something underneath his worry, but this wasn't the time to try to figure out what.
The police rushed into the room and secured the space. Jeff was covered in enough paint to erase his invisibility. Paramedics were allowed in after the situation was declared safe, and they placed him on a gurney and secured his wrists in case he woke up.
Surprisingly he was still breathing. The medics talked amongst themselves and discussed a head injury. There was no talk of a bullet wound.
For the first time since things deescalated, Peyton really considered the scene. She'd pointed at Jeff, and she could fully believe that she missed him, but nothing else made sense. The broken window was to her right, and Jeff had careened off to the left.
Things were only getting stranger.