A glimpse is enough

**WARNING: This chapter might be emotionally triggering for some, readers discretion is advised.**

Adelia was aware that it had taken the young man a great deal of courage to say those words without bursting to tears, and for her, it had taken only a moment to comprehend what they meant.

Her hand flew to her mouth in horror. Dreading to see the look on her Father's face, she dared a glance his way.

The Duke looked calm, his body language betrayed no emotions. But she knew… she knew that was her Father's way of coping with difficult news or situations.

She turned back to Lord Kaiser's son—who was now Count by right. "When… when did he…?"

She didn't have to ask the question all the way before he gave her an answer.

"He passed away this morning," Kelvin affirmed with a clenched jaw. "Only a few hours ago."

Adelia immediately fell silent and fidgeted with the edges of her scarf. When had he died? Was it an hour ago? Two?

She wanted to ask, she truly did, but it was her fault they didn't make it to the estate as early as they were supposed to.

She dreaded to find out the hour the Count died. If it somehow collided with their time, then… then she didn't think she would be able to handle it.

Adelia reached for the top of her right arm with her left and squeezed. 'Father… Father might actually blame me for this…'

Almost like the Duke could tell what she was thinking, he placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. It was his gesture for calming her.

Adelia turned her attention to her Father wide-eyed and before she knew it, he opened his mouth to speak,

"May I see him?"

If Adelia's eyes could get any wider, it did. How come… how come he was only asking for himself?! She wanted to come with him!

She parted her lips to protest but Kelvin was quick to interrupt. His eyes had widened too but he hurried to regain his composure.

"It would be an honor, your Grace," he told him, his head hung. "Truly. But my Father… the Count has already passed. I do not wish to sully your eyes with what is remaining of him."

Adelia looked offended as she turned on him. "How could you say such a thing?!" Lord Kelvin was utterly taken aback by her sudden outburst. "Lord Kaiser isn't just my Father's friend but his mentor as well, why do you think—"

She faltered, for the hand squeezing her shoulder increased its pressure, urging her to stop.

The Duke stepped forward, his earlier composure had not wavered in the least.

He broke into a small, sad smile. "You do not really think I'm that kind of person do you?" He asked him. "You heard my daughter, Lord Kaiser isn't just Friend, he is mentor and I wish to see the face of my mentor one last time, even if it is just a glimpse."

Lord Kelvin's eyes welled with tears but he hurried to bow. "Thank you, your Grace," he appreciated. "Thank you, truly."

Adelia understood his behavior; many nobles preferred to desist from the sight of dead bodies, except if it belonged to a close relative. Still, a few would prefer not to lay eyes on their dead relatives either.

Somehow she understood them, she had never seen a dead body, after all. Part of her argued if she would be able to handle the sight and the other assured her; she was not so weak.

Kelvin looked at the Duke. "If you would come with me—"

"I'm coming too." Adelia blurted, prompting the Duke's sharp gaze on her.

"...What?"

"I said I wish to come with you to see Lord Kaiser, Father." She elaborated.

The Duke turned away from her. "You can't." He said simply.

"Why?!" Adelia was disappointed. "You're going, so why can't I?"

"Because you and I are completely different, Delia." Her Father said sternly. "While I might be able to handle seeing him, you on the other hand might not."

"I… I know." Adelia stuttered uncertainly. "Still, I promised I was coming to see him with you didn't I?"

"Delia…" Her Father tried.

"I want to see it all the way through, I want to see Lord Kaiser." She stated firmly. "If I don't go to see him with you, then my presence here is pointless."

The Duke dropped his hand from her shoulder and massaged his forehead with his thumb and index finger as Adelia watched him expectantly.

He knew she wasn't going to drop the subject until she agreed.

"Fine," he said and she managed a triumphant smile. "You may come with me but the moment I catch any sign of uneasiness from you, you will leave immediately."

Adelia quickly nodded. She didn't want to give him any leeway to change his mind.

The Duke faced Lord Kelvin who had apparently turned away from their argument. "Take us." He said simply.

The young man nodded and started towards the room's doors with Adelia and her Father following right behind him.

****

Moments later they were climbing up a long, winding staircase, then an incredibly large hall and in less than five minutes, they stood before a set of imposing doors carved from the finest wood.

Adelia took a silent deep breath and rubbed her nervous palms on the shawl draped over her hands.

She was going to handle this… she had to.

Kelvin turned to them and nodded before opening the doors to reveal a very spacious room. It was filled with tapestries just like the ones down at the drawing room, the chandelier was devoid of candles and the blinds were held up to let sunlight filter in.

In the middle of the room on a raised platform stood a large bed covered in rich furs and in the middle was a body that lay stiff as a board.

Adelia gulped in dreaded anticipation; was she really going to be able to handle this?

Barely.

They approached the king-sized bed steadily, stopping only inches from it and what Adelia saw almost made her legs give out.

She nearly whimpered and covered her mouth to swallow the sound.

Count Kaiser was a weathered man both from his age and the line of work he was indulged in.

Seeing him on his bed, Adelia did not think he looked any different, except for the fact that he was utterly lifeless and still and his skin was paler than anything she had ever seen before.

It was almost noon already, so she supposed that if she were to touch him, he would be as cold as Ice.

She watched her father approach the bed and kneel before it, his face still remained as composed as ever as he took the old man's hand and rested his forehead at the back of it.

He remained in that position for a while in silence and Lord Kelvin only watched him with moistened eyes, clenching and unclenching his fists.

Adelia had never seen her Father like this before, there were a lot of things she had seen today that she hadn't seen before.

Like the old Count's dead, cold body.

Ah… the dead body, was this truly how a dead person looked like? It was terrible. She had thought that no one could look worse than the way her mother was at the moment.

But who could have thought…?

She swallowed; her mother… if her mother were to leave her one day, was this truly how she was going to look…?

'No!'

Adelia stumbled and nearly fell when strong hands took a hold of her shoulders. It only took her a moment to realize it was Kelvin; the new lord of the Donvark estate.

Her Father had apparently heard the ruckus and turned to face her, only for his eyes to widen in response. He quickly stood up from his place on the floor and hurriedly approached her.

"Delia!" He called urgently, taking a hold of her shoulders in place of the count to steady her. "What happened?"

Adelia looked up at him. "I'm fine, I just feel a little dizzy."

The Duke furrowed his brows. "Dizziness does not explain your trembling, Delia." He said tightly.

"But I'm not trembling," she nearly protested before her eyes fell on the quivering hand clutching her scarf.

"You look even paler than you're supposed to be…" Her father said gently. "You should leave."

"No—"

"Yes." He stated curtly. "And now in fact."

"Please Father—" Adelia tried.

"I want no argument about this, Delia. You will do as I say." The Duke sighed. "Bringing you here was obviously a mistake."

Adelia fell silent after that. It was like he could tell what she was thinking.

The Duke turned to Lord Kelvin. "If you would be so kind as to excuse us."

The Count nodded assent and they both made their way out of the room and down the stairs, in a few minutes they were outside.

Adelia was quiet the whole way and now that they were outside the room, she felt like she could breathe easier.

"Go and meet Edward." Her Father said almost immediately. "Tell him that I have given you permission to explore the city under his watch."

Adelia pursed her lips then nodded. She was still shaking slightly. "Will you… will you be alright, Father?"

Her Father managed a small smile. "I'll be fine. I'm not the one who almost fainted."

Her lips only twitched a little, prompting a concerned gaze from the Duke. "It's not a bad thing to be unable to handle a sight like that, Delia. In fact, it just shows how human you are."

"...I understand." She said quietly.

The Duke sighed again. "Go, tell Edward." He told her. "Take as much time as you need to recover before you come back here but ensure it doesn't get dark before you do."