Rise Like The Sun

CHAPTER NINE

MADISON

"This is your last year here," Mrs Miller announces loudly.

Her voice is drowned out by the vast array of cheers that erupts and ripples across the crowd. Madison smooths down her skirt in a business-like fashion, her back straight, and her gaze flickers distractedly across to her friends. As usual, Elliot is sleeping the daily assembly away, while Maria and Lula are taking selfies, snapping pictures of themselves. Beside her, Audrey is texting Kyle, fiddling absently with the sleeves of her blouse.

All of them happily ignore the teachers, those who dare to give them scalding looks.

Madison lets out a cool breath, something strange and curling within her heart.

Ever since Mrs Hawthorne had hurried her embarrassment of a son away, the carnage of the brunch left behind them, she's been stuck within herself. He had told her that her name was the only thing she owned of value. Madison has been realising the truth of it, through the crawl of the days. The teachers say nothing to her because of her name, Becky cowers because of her name, her friends flock to her –

No.

She can't let such a common ape distract her like this.

Her friends are her friends, Madison thinks.

She only wants the best for them. It's why, as soon as she returned home to an empty five-storey mansion, Madison had sent the anonymous donation to Lula's family and called to accept Maria's mother's invitation to dinner. She's doing the right thing, she knows.

She always does the right thing.

Madison's iPhone blares brightly again and she risks a glance before pressing her lips together into a thin, unimpressed line. When will he get the message? She's ignored hundreds of his texts and yet, he continues. Even the most stubborn horses would stop, Madison thinks. She swipes the message and deletes it swiftly, tapping at her phone idly before her finger drifts against a picture of a train.

She pauses.

The train is long and sleek, elegant in its white colours as it lazily stretches out across the picture. It is caught against a flushing red backdrop of black mountains and a sunset-soaked sky. Madison thinks of a lavish train ride, of seating herself amongst rippling velvet and dreamily watching the world fly by in those glazed windows.

She's never been anywhere, not outside of sleepy Redwood.

Mother has.

Mother has seen everything in the world, everywhere there is to see. She tells Madison the rest of the world is an ugly, broken thing and not worth seeking out. What matters is their company, is their money, is themselves.

Madison knows this.

And yet, unbidden, Madison thinks of taking the train to anywhere – and someone beside her.

She inhales sharply, just as soon as the thought hits her, and straightens herself, feeling the flush crawl to her cheeks. Madison switches off her phone, her heart thumping in her ribbed cage, and drops it into her Prada bag. It's silly to think that she could even want to leave Redwood, let alone with some random stranger.

Just as soon as her phone drops into her bag, the lights go out.

Darkness plunges down all around them and Madison stills automatically, her breaths taut. The air is ringing with the screams and shouts of students and the teachers trying to restore calm and order, in vain. Madison can feel air rippling across her cheeks and the sound of running footsteps is loud; students are clearly taking advantage and hurrying out.