“What did the man do next?” Henry asked.
The boy shifted his weight. “There was a carriage waiting further down. Plain one. Dark. He… forced her in.”
Wilhelm surged to his feet so abruptly the chair behind him scraped hard against the floor.
“Captain Hale,” he said flatly.
Henry did not ask how he knew. “If it’s him,” Henry said, voice low, “then this is no longer simply about finding her.”
“It never was,” Wilhelm replied, already moving. “It’s about saving her.”
Outside, the air felt colder than it had moments before, the sky pressing low and grey above them. Wilhelm mounted his horse with sharp efficiency, his movements controlled only by long discipline. Beneath it, panic roared.
Madeline was in a carriage with Captain Hale. Madeline was likely frightened, trapped, believing herself already a burden, already unworthy of rescue. The thought clawed at him with merciless precision.
“Go to the constables,” Wilhelm said, turning to Henry. “Quietly. Tell them exactly what you know, no more and no less. If Hale has moved her, he will not risk public attention.”
“And you?” Henry asked.
Wilhelm’s eyes were dark, fixed on the road ahead. “I will find her.”
Henry caught his arm before he could ride off. “Wilhelm, listen to me. If this Captain Hale has taken her, he will be prepared. You cannot simply?—”
“I can,” Wilhelm cut in. “And I will. But I will not be foolish. I will trace the carriage, and I will speak to men who know how Hale moves when he believes himself untouchable.”
“Untie me.”
The scraped Madeline’s throat the instant consciousness returned, sharp with fury and fear braided so tightly together she could not tell where one ended and the other began. Her body jerked forward instinctively, only for pain to flare hot and immediate through her shoulders as the ropes bit deeper into her wrists which had been pulled cruelly behind the back of the chair.
The room swam, then slowly readjusted. Unfamiliar walls. A low ceiling. Heavy curtains drawn tight against daylight. The air smelled faintly of dust and old polish, the kind of careful, unused cleanliness that spoke of a house kept more for appearance than comfort.
Her heart pounded so violently she felt it in her throat.
This is real.
The chair was solid; its legs braced firmly against the floor. The knots at her wrists were not careless; they had been tied by someone who knew what they were doing. Panic surged, hot and dizzying, but beneath it lay something colder.
“You will not speak to me like that.” The voice came from behind her, smooth and cool and so achingly familiar that Madeline’s breath caught painfully in her chest.
Her mother, Rachel, stepped into her line of sight with deliberate composure, her dark gown immaculate, her posture flawless, as though she were entering a drawing room rather than standing before her bound daughter. Her expression held the faintest curve of reproach, practiced and precise.
“I’ve missed you,” her mother said, tilting her head. “And this is the greeting I receive.”
Madeline laughed, a disbelieving sound that scraped her throat raw. “Do not,” she said, her voice shaking despite herself. “Do not pretend this is some tender reunion. It doesn’t suit you.”
Something flickered behind her mother’s eyes, quick and ugly, before the mask slid back into place.
“You disappeared,” Rachel said, her tone sharpening. “Without a word, or a letter. No explanation. You humiliated me.”
“You tried to kill me,” Madeline shot back, the words tearing free with a force that surprised even her. “So, forgive me if I didn’t think a farewell was necessary.”
The room went very still.
Rachel’s mouth tightened. “There you go again,” she said coldly. “Always the victim. Always twisting the narrative to suit yourself. You sound exactly like your father.”
Madeline’s hands curled into fists behind her back, nails biting into her palms. “Do not speak of him.”
“He made me the villain,” Rachel continued, her voice rising, the careful control beginning to fracture. “He painted me as cruel, as unfeeling, simply because I expected discipline. Because I refused to indulge your every weakness.”
