Page 109 of The Curious Story of the Missing Lady
“Yes,” she said, “of course.” She moistened her lips and walked from him towards the drawing room. “Is this new?” She pointed to a bust of Homer.
“It belonged to my great grandfather. It was on loan to a museum in Edinburgh. It arrived last week. But something tells me you’re not here to discuss my decor, Madeline.”
She turned to him with a smile. “No, it’s true. I come with other motives, Oliver. We must renew our contract.”
He drew a breath, his chest puffing out quickly. “Oh?”
“I’ve been thinking. It’s not right. You are involved in the family business now. Indeed you are now in the business of preserving Aspendale and everything it stands for. It is selfish of me to allow our family to come to ruin by my own wishes.”
“Will it come to ruin?”
“Oliver, come now. You know as well as I do that news of our dissolution will fall hard on Papa. It will cause a rift. And frankly, Oliver, I do not know if I could look you in the eye. Imagine our inhabiting each other’s spaces, all the while knowing what has transpired between us. Imagine how difficult that could be. I do not wish to go through with that, and I do not think you do either. I think you and I should renew our contract. It will be as if nothing has ever happened.”
“And what of you?” he said.
“What of me?”
“Are you to live out your life in a loveless marriage?”
He didn’t say this as much as spit the words out. She knew they were a poison in his mouth.
“Not entirely loveless, Oliver. I am able to allow myself to fall in love with you all over again. Surely there is a spark left in me.”
“A spark?”
“Yes, a spark. Is that so strange?”
He turned from her. “No. But Madeline—”
“Say nothing, Oliver. Say only that you will consider what it will cost Papa if we continue in this fashion. I beg of you, Oliver, put pride aside and do what is right.”
He turned back to her. “I do not need to consider. I could not continue working for your father if I had to look you in the eye day in and day out ... if the alternative were to come to pass.”
“What then?”
He nodded. “We are engaged again.”
She drew a breath of relief and turned towards the door. When she reached it, she stopped. “Oliver, I meant what I said about ...learningto love.”
“I know, Madeline,” he returned.
And without another word, she opened the door and left him.
Chapter 77
Once again, Aspendale House was bedecked to its rafters with matrimonial decor. Garlands draped about, their buds symbolizing the hope to come. There were flowers at every turn, and the house was perfumed with nature. Servants bustled about, bumping into each other and going on their way with neither acknowledgement nor apology for the misdeed, for such was the structure of the staff at Aspendale. Foster instilled in his staff a love for efficiency and a disdain for waste. Stopping to apologise for something neither party could help in the slightest was a waste. There were tasks to be completed. Aspendale would cease to stand on its own foundation if waste contributed to that foundation’s erosion.
“Lady Madeline,” he said upon confronting her on the stairs. “Might I have a word with you?”
“Certainly, Foster,” she said, eager to get back to her room, for she had left it only to attain a moment’s peace for herself and knew that Lisbelle and the others would be sending out a party to recover her if she tarried any longer.
The butler cleared his throat, a deep, rough sound that rumbled throughout his massive chest. “M’Lady, I have been the butler for this great house for twenty years now. And in those twenty years I have seen much and done much. This is a great house, and it is an honour to rival all others to serve at the pleasure of His Lordship.”
“Well,” said Madeline, unsure of what to add to this. “Thank you, Foster. That’s very kind.”
He cleared his throat again. “Apologies, M’Lady, but I’m not quite through.”
“Oh, certainly, Foster, please continue.”
