Madison Cleary

Chapter 14

Extra lengthy,,,,sorry didn't update on the weekend I had a lot to do but here we are....I most definitely made up for it....

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xoxox....

THE night stretched on. James and Charles had stayed in the study, each a glass in hand, drinking.

'Mother was terribly upset,' Charles said holding back laughter.

James merely looked at his younger brother. In that moment he did not care for his mother, he remembered Madison's face as he spoke to her. She would surely never forgive him. The fire they shared, he had burned it out. Now he was a lonely man once more. Maybe he would go to London and chase skirts like Charles.

'How many women have you conquered Charles?'

His brother laughed, 'Far too many James, far too many.'

'And what satisfaction do you get from it?'

Charles straightened himself, 'it sinks you further down to emptiness.'

'So why do you do it?' he placed his glass on his desk and picked the bottle. The small amounts a whiskey glass offered was not enough to drown his sorrow, he would drink straight from the source.

'It helped me manage father's death. I would not think of him every so often.'

'This woman you have brought, she is here to feed your hunger then,' he took a swig of the drink, it ran down his throat burning him to the very core of his being.

'No, she is different.'

'So you have not touched her?'

'I have, but she offers me more than just physical nutrition,' he stopped and laughed at the term. 'James,' he said silently.

'Yes brother.'

'I think I may be in love.'

'As do I,' his glassy eyes staring at the door, then they both laughed.

Madison was cold the night air biting at her. She stood in the garden in nothing but her night gown, the wind blowing the thin material against her skin. She looked back at the house she had lived in. this was her one chance to be over and done with her life.

She began walking, how far had it been? She did not remember, she just knew if she walked on ahead, she would see it and then she would find peace.

Her heart ached, her body ached, her soul ached.

But tonight she would finally be free. Free of him and free of his father. He would no longer be able to hurt her or insult her or abuse her or touch her. She would take away the one thing that gave him joy as he took away hers.

She approached the water's edge, she didn't know how long she had been walking, the blisters on her feet barely registering any pain. She watched the water rage against itself, appearing almost black in the darkness of the night.

She stood there and watched a log be thrown against each the rocks, that would be here. She would flung from one rock to another until silence would find her and peace would consume her.

There was no longer a point in living. She had drowned long ago, her heart was turned to ash. How she wished she had a reason to live. She wanted to fight but there was nothing left to fight for.