Page 87 of The Shuddering City

Eventually Madeleine said, “I suppose you heard all of that.”

It seemed pointless to pretend not to know what she meant. “The first part of it, anyway.”

“It doesn’t seem like I have to ask you not to repeat it to my father, but—”

“Of course I won’t.”

There was another long wordless stretch. Jayla would have offered to leave, but she suspected that Madeleine had invited her in because she wanted to talk. Finally, Madeleine stirred on her chair and turned in Jayla’s direction. “I don’t know what to do,” she said simply.

I can’t possibly advise you,Jayla wanted to reply.I’m not your cousin or one of your friends. I’m not your confidante.But, again, only a stone could be so heartless. “Is it that you don’t really know what you want?” she asked. “Or is it that you’re afraid you can’thavewhat you want?”

Madeleine caught her breath, as if she had not considered her dilemma that way. “It’s that—I’m not sure what I want is the right thing to do,” she said at last. “It is not just my own life that matters here. So many things are connected.”

Jayla nodded. “I see that. But I suppose I wonder—”

“Wonder what?”

“How terrible would it be if you didnotdo as your father wished? Would it destroy Tivol’s life?”

“He loves me.”

“He might find someone else he loves just as much.”

“And there are business interests to consider. If the Alayne and Wellenden fortunes are not merged, I believe a lot of money could be lost.”

“Couldn’t your father find another business partner? Couldn’t Tivol’s mother?”

“I don’t know. I suppose so.”

“If you weren’t alive to marry Tivol, all of them would survive in some fashion,” Jayla said. “You can’t be the only thing that keeps the world going.”

That made Madeleine laugh—a faint but genuine sound. “No, indeed! You’re right. How very vain I must be to think I am that important.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“No, but it’s a very freeing thought! I could vanish today and the world would keep spinning.”

“Vanishing is harder than you might expect,” Jayla said with a trace of amusement. “But I do think you could make some of your own choices and find that the outcome is not as terrible as you fear.”

Madeleine sighed. “It would seem terrible to my father,” she said. “And it is very hard for me to go against his wishes.”

Jayla weighed her words carefully. “Are you afraid of him? Do you think he would harm you?”

“No. Of course not. He wouldn’t hurt me, I’m sure of it,” Madeleine said. She did not sound sure. “He might lock me in my room. Or something. I don’t know. He’s a very hard man to withstand.”

Jayla waited a moment and then said, “If you need assistance leaving the house, you realize I will help you.”

Madeleine stared at her a long moment, her eyes pools of darkness in the shadowed room. “My father pays your salary,” she said at last. It was a question, although it wasn’t phrased as one.

“He pays me to keep you safe,” Jayla said. “If he’s the threat, I’ll keep you safe from him.”

Madeleine exhaled on a long tense gust of air. “He’s not a threat. Really. But it’s good to know that you—I will keep that in mind if I decide that—I have to think about things very carefully.”

“You don’t have a lot of time.”

“I know. But I still need to think.”

“Of course.” Jayla waited a beat, then said, “I came by to see if you knew what your plans were for tomorrow.”

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