Chương 5
“That is what we need to find out.”
Madison hated the uncertainty.
She hated how every answer created another question.
She hated that Preston still had the ability to disturb her without even being present.
The attorneys advised her not to respond.
The police advised her not to respond.
Richard advised her to wait.
Madison typed a message anyway.
I want to know why you left me there.
Richard saw what she was doing.
“Madison.”
She stopped.
Not because he ordered her.
Because she heard the concern in his voice.
“I need to hear him lie.”
Richard looked at the phone.
“That could hurt you.”
“It already hurts.”
The message sent.
The reply came almost immediately.
I didn’t leave you.
Madison stared.
Then another message appeared.
I thought you were gone.
She laughed once.
It was a quiet, empty sound.
Richard looked uncomfortable.
“He’s trying to establish his version first.”
“I know.”
Another message appeared.
I loved you.
Madison closed her eyes.
The sentence felt worse than an insult.
Because it was not impossible for Preston to believe it.
That was the part she struggled with.
Maybe he had loved her in the limited way he understood love.
Maybe he had loved what she provided.
Her loyalty.
Her forgiveness.
Her willingness to see the best version of him.
But love that required someone else to disappear was not love Madison could recognize anymore.
She typed one final message.
Then why did you file the insurance claim before the rescue team arrived?
The reply did not come.
For three minutes, nothing happened.
Then the phone rang.
Preston.
Madison looked at Richard.
He nodded once.
She answered.
Neither of them spoke at first.
Then Preston’s voice came through.
“Madison.”
Hearing him was worse than she expected.
The voice was familiar.
The voice that used to say good morning.
The voice that used to complain about traffic.
The voice that had whispered promises beside her in bed.
“You’re alive.”
Madison looked at the window.
“Yes.”
A long silence followed.
“I don’t know what you think happened.”
She almost smiled.
Even now.
Even after everything.
He began with confusion.
Not apology.
Not fear.
Confusion.
“Preston.”
“Yes?”
“Why did you push me?”
The silence on the line changed.
It was no longer hesitation.
It was calculation.
“I didn’t.”
Madison closed her eyes.
The answer came too quickly.
“I was there.”
“You were injured.”
“I remember.”
“You remember what your brain thinks happened.”
Richard watched her carefully.
Madison felt something cold settle inside her.
Preston was not shocked.
He was not begging.
He was rebuilding.
“I want to see you,” Preston said.
“Why?”
“Because we need to talk.”
Madison looked at the transcript sitting on the table.
The words were still there.
After Friday, Madison won’t be a problem anymore.
“No,” she said.
A pause.
“Madison.”
“No.”
Her voice surprised her.
It sounded stronger than she felt.
“I think you should talk to the police instead.”
The line went silent.
Then Preston said something that changed everything.
“You really should ask Richard why he never told you the truth about your mother.”
Madison froze.
Richard’s expression changed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
Preston noticed.
“You didn’t know.”
The satisfaction in his voice made her stomach turn.
“What truth?”
Another silence.
This one belonged to Richard.
And Madison realized the cliff had not been the first time someone had hidden something from her.
“Richard,” she whispered.
He looked at her.
And for the first time since she met him, he looked afraid.
The truth Richard feared was older than the cliff, older than Preston, and older than the insurance policy that had almost become Madison’s death certificate.
Madison ended the call without saying goodbye.
She placed the phone on the table and looked at Richard.
For several seconds, neither of them moved.
The room felt different.
Not because anything had changed physically.
The same chair sat beside the window.
The same folder remained open.
The same winter light stretched across the floor.
But something invisible had shifted.
Madison had spent days searching for the person who betrayed her.
She had assumed the answer was simple.
Preston.
Now another question stood between them.
What had Richard hidden?
“You knew what he was talking about,” Madison said.
Richard did not answer immediately.
That was enough.
She looked away.
“Richard.”
“I knew there were things you did not know.”
Her fingers tightened around the edge of the table.
“That is not an answer.”
“No.”
His voice was quiet.
“It isn’t.”
Madison stood too quickly.
Pain moved through her side, reminding her body that it had not recovered just because her mind wanted to fight.
Richard reached forward.
She stepped back.
The movement hurt him more than if she had shouted.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
She stared at him.
“I’m starting to hate that word.”
Richard lowered his hand.
“Because people use it when they want something from you?”
The question caught her off guard.
She did not respond.
He nodded slightly.
“I understand.”
“No, you don’t.”
Her voice cracked.
“You found me after I almost died, and I was grateful.”
She swallowed.
“I was grateful because I thought you were the one person who knew the truth.”
Richard looked down.
“And now?”
“Now I don’t know if you saved me because you cared about me or because you were protecting your own secrets.”
The accusation stayed between them.
Richard did not fight it.
That made the anger harder.
Madison wanted him to become defensive.
She wanted him to prove he was like everyone else.
Instead, he walked to the cabinet near the wall and removed a small wooden box.
He placed it on the table.
“I kept this for twenty-eight years.”
Madison did not touch it.
“What is it?”
“Everything your mother left me.”
The words made her pause.
“She left you something?”
Richard opened the box.
Inside were letters.
Photographs.
A hospital bracelet.
A small silver necklace.
Madison recognized the necklace immediately.
May you like
Her mother had worn it every day.
She had told Madison it was nothing special.
