Davis had opened the door to his sleeping compartment to find his companion, Charlotte, kneeling on the floor by the window. Her head was bowed and her hands were clasped as if in prayer. But the only time Davis had known her to bow her head was when she was smoothing out her dress, and he had known her to clasp her hands only during social outings, because that was only proper.
Charlotte, her eyes still closed but still looking out the dark window, said, “No, there wasn’t any conversation for you to interrupt.”
As Davis closed the door behind him, he couldn’t help but be curious. “I’ve never known you to be evangelical.” He jumped onto the mattress, too tired to unsheathe his feet, his shoes dirtying the sheets. “Are you praying for us to get rescued? Can you put in a few good words for me? I would kneel with you, but the floor even looks cold.”
“I’m not praying for us to survive,” Charlotte said. “I’m praying for us to live.”
“Well, it’d be hard for us to live if we don’t survive,” Davis said, staring listlessly up at the ceiling.
Finally, Charlotte opened her eyes to glare at him. “I’m being serious. I could only hope that we die in this blizzard. At least then, our names would show in the newspapers back home. If we survive this, we’ll just die by obscurity. We’ve lost enough already.”
“Why did you think I just met with Mr. Rowe? We were discussing the future of our little association.”
“It’s little and shrinking,” Charlotte spat. “It’ll go extinct soon enough if something drastic isn’t done.”
“If I could perform miracles, I’d rather be getting drunk off water.”
“Separate yourself from the worms and show a little backbone for once so…”
“Can we talk about this later?” Davis whined. “I’m tired.”
“No!” Charlotte said, so sharply that she startled even herself. She continued, in a softer voice, “No. The next time Mr. Rowe sees you, you’re going to show some teeth and make him think you’re smiling. You’re going to make him afraid of you without ever knowing why. You’re going to make them all afraid of you. Of all people, you should know that power is never given in life but it’s taken. Your father may have taken you out of his will, but his will to conquer the world is still in you. Are you still the same man I fell in love with, the one who was destined for greater things? Or was I wrong to lose everything when I gained you?”
Davis said, his eye twitching, “I’m still that same man, Charlotte.”
“Stop talking and do something. The only thing you have to lose is your courage.”