Click here to join the fan page for Into the Depths.
Later that day, after lunch, Madeleine and Helena took their horses out the beach again. It was a fairly quiet as both sisters had a lot on their minds. Helena was worried about her husband, about her baby, and Madeleine could not take Matthew off her mind. It was better, she thought, just to forget about him.
Even though it seemed like her father liked him and would probably be doing business with him in the future, her two encounters with Matthew before the one that day had been purely by chance. He wouldn't always be around for violin performances. Future business exchanges would likely be very quick, and not give Madeleine a chance to speak to him at all. That thought didn't sit too well with her; even though she didn't know Matthew very well, he seemed like nice, someone who could be a friend to her. The only person who Madeleine had ever really considered as a friend up until this point was her sister. Once her sister had left, things had changed and Madeleine had become more lonely then ever. While these times she was sharing with her now were amazing, Madeleine knew that they would very soon end. She didn't want to be alone again, so it was then that she decided she would go to him as soon as she got the chance.
Once they had gotten to the shoreline, Madeleine was still so absorbed in her thoughts that she wasn't paying attention when Alice started to gallop.
Helena was calling at her sister, telling her to slow down, that Snow was tired, but Madeleine didn't hear her. At the height of all of this, Madeleine's hands slipped from her reigns and the next thing she knew she was lying in the sand, her back and legs sore. Alice kept on for a second but then realized Madeleine had fallen and she went back to help her fallen rider, nudging her face with her nose.
Helena screamed and dismounted her horse, impatiently pulling him to Madeleine.
“Are you alright?” she asked, keeping her grip tight on Snow's reigns but also trying to comfort Alice.
Madeleine nodded and sat up, stretching her arms. She wasn't hurt, but she suspected that a few bruises on her skin would start to develop later. She was still somewhat startled, and angry with herself for being so careless. She got up, brushed the sand off her dress, and stiffly mounted Alice again.
“Can we just go home?” Madeleine asked. She hated the way the words came out; she seemed whiny, childish; as if she was seven years old.
“Yes, let's,” Helena said. “I'm getting somewhat tired, and a rest would be nice.”
Yes. A rest would be good. Madeleine could go into her room and do the same; think about her plans to go into the town to the silversmith.
When they got home, Sarah had tea and miniature frosted cakes set out for them. Neither was hungry, but they didn't want to be rude and retreated with them into the parlor.
As they were walking, Madeleine began to realize how tired she was. She knew that Helena had said she was ready for a nap, so didn't try to annoy her with too much conversation. Once they finished eating, they left the tray on the table and each retreated to their rooms.
Madeleine hadn't been intending to fall asleep right away, but almost as soon as her head hit her pillow she found herself drifting off before she could even think of what to do, how to reach Matthew in town.
Her sleep was peaceful, dreamless.
When she woke, it felt late into the afternoon, but she did not feel like getting up to check the clock. Instead she adjusted her blankets over her shoulders and sighed deeply. She just might be able to leave tonight. If she did, it would have to be after dinner. Helena would probably go to rest, and her father would retreat to his study. She could slip around to the back exit as long as she didn't pass any suspicious servants, but they barely payed her any mind anyway, unless she addressed them specifically. She wouldn't stay too long, maybe an hour or two – before her father would retreat to bed and realize that she was gone. He was usually up until the early morning hours pouring over letters and other documents, but the way things had been the past few days, she wanted to be safe.
Then Madeleine thought of something that she stupidly had not considered before – that she had no idea where his store was. She had only been out in town a few times. But then she thought it would be okay, because she wasn't going to be leaving too late and there were bound to be people still out in the streets, people that were bound to know where his shop was. She could ask around. Yes; it was starting to look like it could work out for her to leave after dinner.
About thirty minutes later, Helena came in and asked if they wanted to go down to the parlor so she could work on her blanket more. It had been coming along nicely, and Madeleine enjoyed watching how her sister intricately sewed. Helena had been urging Madeleine to begin her own project for a while, but Madeleine did not like to sew and she considered herself horrible at it.
They went down and stayed there for a while, but it was fairly quiet, unlike usual. Helena kept trying to initiate conversation, but Madeleine's mind was ahead, to after dinner, her eventual visit with Matthew. Helena seemed slightly worried but she did not mention anything about it. Madeleine was again quiet throughout dinner. Their father was the first to leave the table at the conclusion of the meal.
“I will be in my study, if you two need anything,” he said.
Then Helena rose. “I'm very tired, Madeleine. I'm going to go to bed.”
“Alright,”Madeleine said, biting her life to conceal her smile. This was exactly what she had been counting on; it was going to work. She quietly left the room before Sarah could come back to clean everything up. In her room, she found her violet cloak stuffed in her wardrobe. She rarely wore it since she rarely was out in the evenings, which was when the weather required it. She slipped on and pulled the hood over her head, to conceal her hair and face as much as possible in case someone recognized her. It wasn't likely, but her father had many relations throughout the city and she could have met one who recognized her from some dinner or other event.
Once outside, she skipped saddling up Alice, riding her bareback instead.,Alice had been startled to see Madeleine when she had first arrived in the stable, but she had quickly calmed down. Together they rode down the small hill which the estate resided upon; Madeleine could see the town ahead.
When they arrived in town, it was still very much busy and bustling, despite being late. Store owners were packing up their shops while merchants and citizens walked toward their houses with various baskets and bags of things in their hands. In the direction of the docks, the moon lit up the sea and made it sparkle.
Madeleine rode Alice around the town and watched as the buildings varied between home and store. There were the stores of jewelers, weavers, blacksmiths, but Madeleine did not find that of any silversmiths. She looked around for a possible passer-by to ask.
After a few minutes, she saw a small, squat man who was carrying a box of wood planks who looked vaguely familiar. Of course! He must have been the carpenter who's wood planks Madeleine had helped carry.
“Sir,” she said. “Excuse me, do you know where I might find the silversmith, Matthew Simmons?”
He smiled and started to laugh. “Do I know where you might find him?” Miss, I have known Matthew for eight years, ever since he was a young lad of twelve. Our businesses—I am a carpenter—are right across the street from each other,” he said. “Come on, follow me. I will show you where is. But before I do, may I ask what you're doing out here alone? When it's this late can be dangerous for a pretty young lady like yourself to be out here.”
Madeleine could feel herself starting to blush, but she knew that the carpenter was right. She realized she didn't have a good excuse, so she said the first lie that came to her mouth, hoping that he would take it. “Matthew is a dear friend,” she said, “I came to visit him. My cousin who lives in Boston has just had her first child, so we are we going to go see her . We'll be there for a few weeks, so I wanted to be with Matthew a little before I go. ”
“I remember you,” he said, “You were walking beside him at the beach a few days ago. I'm sure your cousin will appreciate your visit. How long have you known Matthew? I don't recall him every mentioning you.”
“Er...”
“That's okay,” he said. “I'm sure he would have told me had he wanted to. I don't have the right to intrude on his personal matters! He's not a child anymore. But, I'm sorry miss, if he's a good friend of yours, wouldn't you know where it is already? Why are you asking me?”
“I have a bad sense of direction,” Madeleine tried. “Besides, I've never been in the town at night before. Things are different when they aren't as lit up.”
The carpenter smiled. “Alright, just follow me, and I'll get you to him,” he said.
Although he had seemed to believe her rather meek lies, Madeleine was terrified that he would turn and ask her any more.
After a block or so, they came across an two of shack-type buildings that were somewhat run-down. She could see candlelight glowing from the windows and hear sounds of the merchants working from inside.
The carpenter pointed to the building on the far end of the left row. “He's in there.”
“Thank you, sir.”
She dismounted Alice and grabbed her reigns. As she walked toward the building, she noticed how small it really was; probably about half the size of her bedroom. Still, from it came a sensation of warmth and coziness that Madeleine rarely felt when she was home. She was about to knock on the door when she realized she needed a place to tie Alice up. She looked around, not able to find any answers
She knocked at the door, figuring she would ask Matthew. Within a few seconds he arrived, red-faced, a band of sweat dripping down his forehead.
“Hello,” he said, slightly out of breath. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to say hi,” Madeleine said.
“How did you find out where I lived?”
“There was a carpenter who I met on the streets who told me where you were. I think that's the one who I helped you carry the boxes for. He said he's known you for a while.”
“James.” Matthew smiled. “Well, I was just working on an order, but I think I can afford to take a rest. Come right in.”
“Err, first, can I find a place to tie up my horse?”
“Oh, sure,” he said, “There's a small tree just behind the store. It's out of view, so she won't get stolen.” He came outside and showed her what he was talking about; a small patch of grass that looked blue in the moonlight. It was obscured from the rest of the surrounding by bushes and trees. Madeleine saw the tree he was talking about, almost right in the middle. It was a tiny thing, shorter then her, but it was suffice. She tied Alice up and motioned to Matthew that she was ready to go inside.
Upon entering, Madeleine was immediately enthralled; she had never seen anything like it. Madeleine had seen and been into many different stores, but never that of any kind of smith. The walls were a light tan, and the hearth, attached to the middle of the wall, glowed ever so brightly. Stacks of silver ore and bars sat in shelves all around the room. In the far corner, behind a small pillar, Madeleine saw a bed, closet, and simple desk.
“You-you live here?”
“Yes,” he said, “It's too much of an expense to have two different places to tend to. It's not much, but it's my home and it's much better then anything I could have hoped for a few years ago.”
“I see,” Madeleine said softly.
For a second, Matthew didn't talk or move. He seemed very distant and his eyes were glassy.
“Are you alright?” Madeleine asked him.
“Yes,” he said softly, “Yes, I am fine.” He motioned to a chair that was nearby and laughed. “I've been a terrible host to you. You're inside and I haven't asked you to sit down. You must be tired. I'm just not used to having people here.”
Madeleine smiled and laughed, taking down her hood and removing her cloak. “Thank you,” she said, sitting down on the chair. As she sat, she looked more carefully at the walls, noticing plates, silverware, shields, jewelery, all intricately carved and brilliant composed the same silver. “You know your craft well, Matthew.”
“Thank you,” he said softly. “I really love doing it. It helps me take my mind of things.” Madeleine noticed that his eyes were distant again. He was glancing in her direction and for a minute Madeleine thought he was expecting her to say something. “See, you have your sister and your father and a house full of servants...and as for me, I have no one. James stops by occasionally. He's been so much all of these years.”
“The carpenter?”
“Yes.”
“It's alright, Matthew,” Madeleine said. She wanted to comfort him but didn't know what to say. “Every one hits hard times at one point or another. I feel lonely too. See, my sister married six months ago – she's only back for a visit because her husband is out on a naval voyage. I'm not as close to my father as I was to my mother.”
“I see,” Matthew said. “Well, it was nice getting to talk to you, but it's getting late and I have work to complete.”
“Okay,” Madeleine said, standing up and putting on her cloak. She didn't know how long she'd been here, but it might be wise to be getting back before anyone back home suspected something.
“Do you want to come back tomorrow, around this same time?” Matthew asked.
“Sure,” Madeleine said. “I'll try.”
“Please, if you can,” he replied. “Will you remember the way to go, or would you like me to make some directions for you?”
“If you could make some directions, please, that would be wonderful.”
“Alright,” Matthew said with a smile. He went back to his desk, pulled out a piece of parchment from one of the drawers and began to write. Within a few minutes he came back to where Madeleine was standing, paper in hand, and he handed it to her. “These should make sense. See you tomorrow.”
“Okay,” Madeleine said. “Bye.” She waved toward Matthew, who came to watch her in the doorway as she rode her horse into the night.
Gender:
Points: 1630
Reviews: 1260