“That girl is gone. Nothing I can do will bring her back. I can’t turn the hands of time,” Emma wheezed.
“No, I don’t suspect you can. But you aren’t the only one who has changed. My brother’s never been the same since you disappeared. He was crushed, frantic by your sudden departure. I want to ensure that he doesn’t feel that kind of pain again.” Lexi angled her head, trying to get her point across.
“You want to kill me. So, what’s stopping you?” Emma baited like she had a death sentence. This chick wasn’t afraid of death. It made me wonder what kinds of hell she had endured. On second thought, I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.
“My brother. Unlike you, I care about him.”
“You don’t know jack about how I feel,” Emma spat, anger fueling her words.
This was going nowhere. Lexi must have realized it too. “Get in your beastie truck and do my brother a favor. Ride out of Spring Valley and never come back.” She released her viper grip from Emma’s white neck. She’d lost all the color from her usual peachy complexion.
Emma’s eyes were twin blazing cut emeralds. Oh, she had a lot more she wanted to say to Lexi, but also knew this was one battle where she was out numbered. Flinging off the car, she got behind the wheel and spun the gravel under her tires as she revved the engine.
The two of us sat there in silence staring at the back of the SUV until it was no longer visible. Our ride home was somber. Irritation still radiated off Lexi, and I wasn’t going to be the one to push her over the cliff, figuratively speaking. We pulled into her driveway with half her bumper dragging on the ground. She had to hold her door closed while she drove. Thank God for demon strength. Her pathetic car clanked the whole way home like it was barely holding together. It would have been safer if we had walked home, and we probably should have called a tow truck, but she didn’t want what had gone down reported to the police. It was best to keep the authorities out of Divisa business. The less the authorities knew the safer they all were.
I should have known Chase would be able to feel that something was wrong. What surprised me was that he hadn’t come barreling down the road searching for us. It wasn’t like him to sit back and be idle. Standing in the driveway, he examined Lexi’s car with flames leaping in his eyes. If she noticed her cousin’s battle stance she didn’t show it. With her head held high, she grabbed her mounds of shopping bags from the back and swung her door open, leaving it ajar. There was no point in trying to latch it. The darn thing looked like it was only attached by one tiny bolt. It was hopeless.
“Lexi!” Chase rumbled.
I cringed at his firm and cold voice.
“Why is Angel bleeding? You were supposed to keep her out of trouble.” He accused, being such an insensitive boar. I wanted to throttle him.
“Ahh!” cried Lexi, frustrated to a point of no return.
Here we go, I thought.
The packages in her hands waved wildly as ranted, “I have had a day from hell and I can’t do this with you right now. Angel can explain.”
Travis’s laugh echoed from the porch. “What did you hit with your car? A dinosaur or your fist?”
“Ha. Ha. Ha,” she mocked with her blonde locks flying. “I should have hit your girlfriend with it when I had the chance and if you don’t stop laughing I’ll hit you with my fist.”
Oh boy.
“You saw Emma?” There was a desperate hope in his voice.
She leered at Travis. “Yes dear brother. We had a lovely chat, catching up on old times.”
His eyes flashed.” Lexi,” Travis warned.
“No. I’ve freaking had it,” she dropped her bags and threw her dainty arms out. “I’m done being nice. I’m done doing what I’m told. I’m done taking orders from the two of you,” she raved like a woman fed up, then picked up her stuff off the floor and stormed off.
My friend just flipped her lid. It was the first time I’ve seen her completely frazzled and about to unravel. I’d never seen them fight like this. It was…intense and scary.
Travis intercepted Lexi from walking into the house, lips curled and the muscles on his back flexed. “If you hurt her–”
“You’ll what?” Lexi baited in abandoned rage. “Eliminate me? I’d like to see you try.” Okay, I am pretty sure that was going a little overboard. Travis would never hurt Lexi. Right? Not even to save Emma. But as I thought it, I began to have doubts. As I am sure Lexi did as well. How far was Travis willing to go?
Travis was silent, only further infuriating Lexi, not that I blamed her. She spun on her three-inch heels and gracefully stomped into the house with Travis nipping at her heels.
There was however, an obscene amount of yelling, door slamming in every direction, and in general stuff crashing.
I kept waiting for Chase to intercede, but he never did.
Nada.