"Hey good looking," she said warmly.

“How are you feeling?"

I'm BORED," came the instant complaint. Madison had been transferred to the Hannity estate a week after being hospitalized, and Mr. Hannity was sparing no expense in Madison's treatment. But due to the ongoing potential threat of Daryl Mosely being on the loose, as well as her nagging injuries, she was kept consigned to the house, though that was admittedly less of a problem because the house was huge and had at least one of everything. Normally, shifting helped the healing process but burns, especially those caused by silver, actually prevented healing, so Madison was spending time with a healer every day so that she could regain some freedom.

"Bored is good for you right now," Heda said.

“Bored means not being captured, tortured, or otherwise put in a situation of distress."

"Boredom is distressing," Madison replied.

"I mean, Dad keeps working from home, but he DOES have to work. Carla left to visit her family, Timothy and Morgan are in school all day, so the only person I have to hang it with is the healer, the nurse, the cook, and the gardener and, to be frank, none of them are great conversationalists. And none of them know the first thing about good music."

“Neither did I, if you'll recall."

True. You're lucky you're hot."

Heda laughed.

"I'm sure that having an expert cook is a horrible injustice."

“Well, this peanut butter fudge isn't exactly prison food. And Dad hired a personal trainer, which was really just a sneaky way of getting me a masseuse without me making an objection. I've never had a massage before."

"And?"

"Those don't suck. We totally need to keep with the massage thing when I get back."

"You know, you're getting pretty good at calling Mr. Hannity ‘Dad.'

So he's met the Madison seal of approval?"

"He's stuck beside me through a lot, and . . . and he wouldn't have done it. He wouldn't have done what his wife did, and it took me a long time to accept that. And he's trying so hard --"

“It's okay babe," Heda said, hearing her girlfriend tear up a little.

Having actual family was such an overwhelming experience for her.

“I'm damn proud of you. And I'm sure that once Morgan gets home, your boredom will be a thing of the past.”

Madison and Morgan had basically been thick as thieves since Madison arrived to recuperate. Morgan was attempting to give Madison a crash -course in what being the teenage daughter of an affluent banker was supposed to be like. It apparently involved a lot of eye rolling and asking for more than you really want on your father's expense account.

It also involved shoes, clothes, and talking endlessly about boys. Or in Madison's case, girls. Specifically, one girl.

"So," Heda asked, “have you heard from . . . you know?"

"Alvin?" Madison asked.