Suzette sighed again, it had been a couple of days since she last saw Theodore, she had hoped he was doing well. She was trying not to admit it, but she was anticipating his letter with each waking moment. She walked into the garden with the novel's sequel in hand, she was about halfway done reading it at this point.

            She was, for the most part, trying to stay out of the way. They recently hired a therapist to counsel Cynthia through her trauma, as much as she wanted to see her, she wasn't sure if Cynthia would end up associating her with her trauma. She sighed again, she watched as her mother was taking her younger brother out for a walk, knights behind them. All classes have been halted until further notice. With the traitorous tutor that helped with Cynthia's captors recently being detained, her parents were worried that more of them might be snakes in disguise.

            A separate unit of Duke Theodore's investigation team was handling it--and they were the ones that discovered the tutor was in fact part of the kidnapping scheme, the rest of the tutors were told that the classes were halted due to shock, and were not given any more information other than that. She looked back down at her book, sipping at her tea one last time.

            It was fragrant enough to fight against the fragrances in the garden, she was drinking a green tea with lemon. She went to grab another pastry from her tray and noticed they were all gone already. Beatrice, who wasn't far away noticed, "Would you like some more, milady?"

            "No, that was plenty." Suzette declined, thinking about it now, she was worried all the sweets she was eating lately would make her fat. She wondered if her dresses were still going to fit her just right. She finished her tea and then decided to head back inside, sighing the entire time.

            She was about to walk up the staircase when she was stopped by a maid, "My lady, you've received a letter."

            She stopped dead in her tracks and turned, the maid was holding a letter tray with that sole letter on it, and there was a bouquet of red roses as well, she took the bouquet in her hands and smelled them, their scent helped calm her. After grabbing the letter she asked the maid, "Can you put these in a vase and bring them to my room?"

            "Yes, my lady!" The maid bowed to her, taking back the flowers and Suzette turned back, she felt her heart thumping louder again. The envelope, the handwriting and the scent that were on it--were all Theodore's, she knew before she even picked up the letter.

            As soon as she was back in her room, she immediately grabbed her letter knife and eagerly opened it. It read:

To my dearest,

I apologize for not contacting you sooner, I've been quite delayed with the numerous tasks of the investigation, though I can say with most certainty that it's almost over. I'm still rather busy but it hurt not being able to contact you. I hope you and your family are doing rather well. I would write about the investigation itself, but it appears that I may run out of ink and paper if I do so, so it may be best to tell you in person.

Also, I saw those roses and thought of you, even though their blooms have nothing on you. I hope their fragrance reminds you that I'm eagerly anticipating seeing you once more. Continue to have pleasant dreams for I hope one day I'll be sleeping by your side again.

I love you,

            Theodore Chelvion.  

She held the letter against her chest, her face burning, it seemed to be a fruitless endeavor now to try and ignore her feelings. No matter what, she would do her best to prevent his death this time around. She still wanted to see and do many things with him. At this point, Beatrice had taken the vase from the other maid and brought it up to Suzette's room, seeing her lady hugging a letter so tenderly really warmed her old heart.

            Hearing the clank of the vase, she turned and saw Beatrice there, "Beatrice, can you bring me a pen and paper?" Beatrice nodded and walked out the door, as soon as she arrived back, she went to her desk--she had so many things she wanted to say that it didn't take her multiple tries to write the letter. She folded it and even though she felt embarrassed about doing so, she kissed the pages leaving a lipstick imprint. After enclosing it inside the envelope she sealed it with her stamp and sprayed some of her perfume on it. Beatrice who had been waiting not far from the room, heard the bell being rung and came in to deliver it for her. She couldn't help but smile at her lady.

            Duke Theodore's face at this point was getting pale, between consulting the doctors about their autopsy investigation and the doctor to remove the contract stone, he felt even more exhausted--he wasn't sure how that was possible. He moved onto the report from his separate investigation team that was at the McGrowen estate. So far, none of the tutors or staff showed any abnormalities, their records were completely clean. His team said they would continue digging.  

            He wiped his hair out of his face and groaned, he wanted this to get over with, due to the investigation his other plans have been halted--the road reconstruction and commerce buildings, that is. It was at times like these he wished his secretary had come with him, however they're managing all the affairs at the territory right now, so perhaps him showing up would be worse. He set his head down on his desk, when he heard a knock at the door and groaned again.

            "Come in," His voice had no energy that one might think he was a zombie, as soon as the door opened, he smelled it. Suzette's perfume! He stood up, slamming his hands on the desk as the butler stifled his laughter and handed him the letter. The butler watched as just seeing the letter seemed to invigorate his lord, his eyes widening like that of a child's who just tasted their first bit of cake.

            He sat back down at his desk, removing the letter from the envelope and immediately seeing the kiss mark. He snorted and brushed his lips against the mark, once he read its contents he wished it was longer.

            She asked things like, Are you getting enough sleep? Are you properly eating? Please tell me you're not about to become one with your desk! Her entire letter was full of concern for him and he smiled, he was tempted to write a letter asking her to come visit him--but if he did that, he knew he wouldn't be able to let her go.

            He didn't even have strength to go anywhere, he rubbed his eyes and decided to try resting at least a little bit. If he ended up dying from overworking, he knew she'd never forgive him--and he knew he'd never see her again, it's not like they had infinite tries to go back into the past. This was the only shot he had and he was going to make use of the most of it!

            He curled up into his bed, closed his eyes and perhaps the sleep deprivation finally knocked him out, but he was able to sleep peacefully. A few hours had passed when he was woken up by his butler, asking him if he wanted dinner. As soon as he got up however--that's when he felt a bit feverish, he let gravity take its course, falling backwards on the bed and decided to pass.

            He could already imagine her reaction, chiding him for letting him get to this condition. In the morning, he thought it had gotten worse because when he opened his eyes he started to hallucinate her.

            "Ah, you're awake...?" She asked him, brushing her fingers against his forehead. It felt so real, was she really here? He reached out for her hand and kept it against his face. Their eyes were locked on each other, and with the minimal strength he had, he pulled her closer to him.

            She was fuming, but he didn't care, he was just happy she was here, he ended up slurring due to his feverish state, "Why are you here...?"

            "Oh, your butler let me know that our correspondence would be halted as you came down with a fever." Her voice was as calm as an angel's, until..., "This is what you get for overworking yourself! If you die early I'm never going to forgive you!"

            She began pinching his cheek to show she was serious and he went, "Ow! Ow! Wait, I'm a patient!"

            "A patient of your own design," She muttered, as he pulled their bodies closer to one another. She was still sitting up when he tightened his arms around her waist, his head resting against the side of her lap. She stroked through his hair and calmly said, "Go back to sleep, I'll be here until you feel better."

            A part of him wished he was continuously sick just so she would stay...but he also didn't want to get her sick, and decided not to say it. As soon as he closed his eyes, he drifted off again, slightly aware that her delicate fingers were brushing through his hair.