A Mad, Wonderful World
Chapter One Confrontation and Consequence
Margaret Manchester sighed as she finished packing the small lunch pail, sure that she had remembered to pack everything. She knew how particular Lowell could be about his lunch, and she dreaded the consequences if she did not have everything packed neatly and perfectly. Once, she had forgotten that Lowell preferred apples cut in thin slices. He hadn't hit her-he never hit her. Instead, he would talk in a condescending tone, as if she was a severely mentally impaired child. She would listen, not daring to talk back, and answer every lecture in the same manner-"Yes, Lowell. I will try harder next time."
She tied a shawl around her to ward off the London chill, and then went out to flag down a cab. When one stopped, she gave the cabby directions to Lowell's office. She sat back in the seat as the cab took off through the busy London streets, and found her mind going back to that week three years ago when her sister had come for a visit, bringing her two mad friends with her. Margaret had been slightly uneasy around Tarrant, since she had never seen anyone as odd as him. But he had been a perfect gentleman to her, and it was quite plain that he and Alice were devoted to each other.
It had been the young lady that Margaret had been most intrigued by. She had never known that a woman could be so direct. Alannah seemed absolutely unconcerned with the Rules of Society and propriety. She had deflated Lowell's ego quite nicely at the party, Margaret remembered-and she had done it quite bluntly. Margaret had also overheard the conversation between Lowell, Tarrant, and Alannah. She had wanted to hug the woman for having the courage and…yes, she had thought…impudence to say what Margaret had wanted to say for years.
The cab came to a halt, and Margaret climbed out, thanked the driver, and entered the building. Lowell's office was on the fifth floor, she knew. She started up the steps, and even before she reached his office she felt a sense of dread and unease enveloping her. Lowell's office was dark. She approached the door on trembling legs, and knocked. "Lowell?" her voice trembled and she knocked again. "Lowell? It's me."
No answer and Margaret grasped the doorknob, and then entered the office. Her eyes adjusted to the gloom-and she realized why the lights had been turned down.
Lowell was on the couch-along with a woman Margaret didn't know. They were both naked, and the woman's breasts bobbed up and down as Lowell thrust in and out of her.
Margaret screamed. She screamed in rage, in guilt, and shame. The lovers froze, and Lowell turned towards the sound, and his eyes widened in terror. "Shit."
Margaret turned and ran out of the office, not bothering to turn around, and climbed into the waiting cab, tears pouring down her face. She realized she was still holding the lunch pail, and she opened the window and threw the pail out into the street.
"Driver, please take me to the Ascot Estate."
Lowell came out of his office building just in time to see a cab disappear around the corner. He cursed. Damn Margaret! He hadn't expected her until 3 30. Now everything was going to be ruined because she had to try to surprise him.
Margaret climbed out of the cab and made her way to the large garden at the Ascot Estate, then ran through the maze to the Hole Alice had written to her about. She stared down it, and gulped. Was she really about to jump down into a hole? She bit her lip, and then stood, ready to go back home and try and forget the humiliation she had suffered when the ground gave way underneath her. She wind milled her arms, trying to maintain her balance, but it did no good, and she gave a short cry as she fell backwards into the Rabbit Hole.
She plummeted down the hole, screaming in terror. In all her letters, Alice had failed to mention how horrifying the fall was. A piano came towards her, and she shrieked as it plunged past her only inches from her face. Roots scratched her, drawing blood-and then she landed hard on a bed. She screamed again as she was catapulted off, and went plunging down yet another hole to land with a bone jarring thud on a checkered floor. She was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she realized she was actually on a ceiling. With a jolt, gravity reversed itself.
Margaret hit the floor, and everything went black.