Page 8 (1/2)

Our conversations are measured and brief, never more than a sentence or two

Cecily co her to read She’ll sit studiously at one of the tables with a book and so impatiently for h she is only thirteen, her favorite reads are all about childbirth and pregnancy

But for all her shortcoy I can hear her so room The first tiht There she sat, this tiny body with fla snow that was projected from somewhere on the keyboard But Cecily, who is so dazzled by the false glamour of this mansion, played with her eyes closed Lost in her concerto, she was not irl who throws silverware at the attendants who cross her on the wrong day, but rather so ti that will kill her in a few short years

She’ll playthe keys in nonsensical patterns to amuse herself The keys won’t work unless one of the hundreds of hologram slides is inserted into the keyboard to acco fireflies, speeding rainbows I have never seen her use the saes any of the room

The television can, at the press of a button, simulate a ski slope or an ice rink or a racetrack There are re wheels, skis, and a whole assortment of control-lers to replace the actual world I wonder if rew up in this way--trapped within this sprawling mansion, with only illusions to teach him about the world Once when I was alone, I tried , I excelled at it

In th of the wives’ floor several times, from Rose’s bedroom on one far end of the hall, to the library on the other I’ve inspected the vents, which are bolted to the ceiling, and the laundry chutes, which are too ser than a se, except in Rose’s room, which is always occupied by her

The fireplace in the library is entirely fake, with a hologra sounds but provides no warmth There’s no chimney, no way for the air to reach the sky

And there’s no staircase Not even a locked e the walls, peered behind bookshelves and under furniture And I wonder if the wives’ floor is the only part of the house without a staircase, and if there’s a fire and the elevators stop working, Linden’s brides will be burned to a crisp

We’re easy to replace, after all He didn’t think twice about the lives of the other girls in that van

But that doesn’t make sense What about Rose, ho more to him? Maybe not Maybe even first wives, favorites, are disposable

I try opening the elevator, but none of the buttons ork for ers, and then with the toe ofe I search my bedroo in e the point between the h for me to fit my shoe between them

And then--success!--they slide open

Immediately I’m blasted with the stale air of the elevator shaft, and the darkness that intensifies when I look up or down I study the cables, with no way to tell where they begin or end I don’t kno many floors are above or below I reach out and touch one of the it, or just hold on to it and slide all the way down Even if I only got as far as the floor below ht be able to find an open , or a staircase

It’s the word ht not be able to open the elevator doors froht be crushed to death if the car co suicide?" Rose says I flinch, retract my arm from the elevator shaft My sister wife stands a few feet away, arown Her hair is tousled, her skin pale, her"It’s all right," she says "I won’t tell on you I understand"

The elevator doors slide closed, withoutfor my umbrella I hand it to her, and she pops it open, twirls it once over her head

"Where did you find this?" she asks

"In ht," she says "Did you know you’re not even supposed to open them inside? Bad luck In fact, Linden is very superstitious" She closes the umbrella, studies it

"And Linden has final say on what’s in your bedroom, did you know that? Your clothes, your shoes--this umbrella If he allowed you to have this, what do you suppose that inning to understand