The silver-haired man stared back at her in disbelief.
"Is she acting again?"
Adelaide frowned at the sudden thought intruding in her head. It feels weird for her, someone who is so sensitive to sound, to hear those words in her head rather than through her ears. Did she injure her ears somehow to cause this effect?
"Are you playing around like a fool again?" The silver-haired man snapped at her in annoyance.
"Who are you?" Adelaide did not react to his provoking words, only to ask the same question again.
"Have you gone insane from being confined?" The man raised his eyebrow at the attitude that Adelaide was showing him.
"I was always confined, don't talk as if this is the first time it's happening-ouch" Adelaide rolled her eyes at the unfamiliar man only to flinch at the sudden sharp pain from her head and the faint wooziness that came with it. Lifting her hand to her head, she gingerly touched the part where it was hurting.
It felt slightly damp, making Adelaide frown. It feels like an old cut that did not fully heal. The walking must have stretched the thin skin too much, tearing the old wound.
Adelaide looked at the coppery red liquid that coated the tips of her fingers, not remembering when or where she got the wound.
Surely if it is a wound on the head, she would remember but nothing comes to mind.
"Is that the tone you should be taking with your father?" The silver-haired man snapped at her, angry at her attitude. He sat behind a sturdy black wood table where documents piled on one side and several books placed on the other. His hands were folded in front of his chest as he narrowed his eyes at his daughter, wondering what kind of stunt she is pulling this time.
He was about to chastise her regarding the recent incident that she caused, seeing that she did not reflect on her actions when he saw the dark red on Adelaide's fingers.
Standing up immediately, he eyed the red on his daughter's fingers suspiciously.
"Is this another method of hers to get my attention and pity?"
Adelaide heard the man asked in her head again and glared at him. She was slowly getting a headache and she wasn't sure if it was the voices or the wound that is causing it, but it is starting to hurt.
"Stop talking for a moment, this headache is killing me." Adelaide groaned as the pain behind her eyes escalated. She closed her eyes and held her head with one hand, the other hand supporting her fragile frame against the wooden door she was leaning against.
Seeing that Adelaide seems to be in pain, the man frowned and walked out behind the desk towards her. Ignoring her rude words, he took her hands into his and felt her forehead. Feeling her temperature, the man widened his eyes.
She is running a fever.
Also, being this close to her allowed the man to be able to smell the coppery smell of blood. He held her firmly as he gently parted her silver hair with his large warm hands. Feeling around her scalp gently, he found the wound crusted with old blood and his eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Albert, get a doctor to the residence immediately." The man called out and the doors opened at the sound of the man's urgent call. The old man saw Adelaide in the arms of the man and bowed before carrying out his tasks.
The woman frowned in confusion at the man's behavior, but she knew better than to question her employer's actions.
The man lifted Adelaide up in his arms, shocking Adelaide but she did not say anything because her headache was causing her so much pain that the sudden movement almost caused her to puke her guts out.
The man ordered the woman to follow behind them as they headed somewhere. The quick speed of the man carrying her was making her headache go worse. Adelaide was feeling extremely weak as the pain increased and she fell limp into the man's chest.
"Adelaide? Adelaide!"
She could faintly hear the man calling her name, but she no longer has the strength to open her eyes. She felt herself slipping away steadily as her body could no longer handle the pain and she lost consciousness.
It was only after a few days later where Adelaide would open her eyes. She felt like she has slept a long time and yet, she still feels extremely weak. Her limbs won't move the way she wanted them to, and she still feels dizzy from any slight movement.
Clucking her tongue, she can only shake her head at how weak this body is, but that small movement caused her to let out a small whimper of pain.
She grimaced as the pain pounded in her head. It was not as bad as before so she could handle it, but she is not someone who likes to feel pain either. Thinking about her predicament, she really wanted to bang her head against the wall.
Did her brother dye her hair and sold her to another place to play pretend? Even if she was going to escape in 2 years' time, this isn't the way she wanted to leave. She was planning to throw that stack of money she earned from her side incomes onto the faces of her family before leaving proudly. Maybe she would give her brother a slap or two before leaving but what is happening now?
Her family hated her, and this fact is known even to the employees of the house. Everyone treated her badly, even the maids. If you were seen to treat Adelaide nicely, the Madame of the house would fire you. Who wouldn't want to keep their high paying job? The family is also famous in the city, if you had a termination from that family, you probably wouldn't be able to find a new job after you leave.
Doesn't mean that Adelaide forgives them for all that they have done to her.
It wasn't the maids that Adelaide hates the most though, it isn't her parents either.
It's her brother, younger than her by 2 years. The fruit of her desperate parents who married late and needed an heir to inherit their wealth, prestige, and honor. To carry on their family line and flourish it. A male that they prayed so desperately for.
Her brother quickly adapted to his family's treatment towards her.
The family's disappointment.
A waste of space.
Her brother would bully her at any chance he has, with any method he could come up with. She has been starved, beaten, and even humiliated in public. She was lucky enough to escape the possibility of getting raped since her family needed her to retain her purity in order to use her in a political marriage.
Disgusting.
But now, it seems like things have changed. Adelaide remembers the name that man had called her by.
Adelaide Avington.
Adelaide narrowed her eyes at that family name.
Avington.
That is the name of someone she is familiar with. Since she was always confined in the attic and storeroom, she would always hide some books in a secret compartment whenever she finds an interesting book. Among those books were romance books.
What is a better way to pass time in a confined space other than to read?
Adelaide remembers one book that she read. It was a typical fairy tale, a Cinderella who found out she was a noble and met the crown prince. They fell in love with each other at first sight and were engaged soon after. A villain comes into the story, fell in love with the Cinderella and started to covet something that was not his. His greed caused him to become obsessed with her and when she did not return his affection, he kidnapped her.
And like any common fairy tale, the crown prince rescued the Cinderella and executed the villain along with his entire family. After that, they got married and lived happily ever after.
Adelaide was sure that she did not remember wrongly. The name of that villain, the one who got executed by the crown prince because of his actions towards the female lead, the one who caused his family downfall.
"Leon Avington."
Adelaide really felt like busting her head through the wall and committing suicide at the realization that dawned upon her.