The Kreizler Institute | The Alienist + Mphfpc [Complete]

Chapter Eleven | The Friends of Alfius Bernard

Jade's POV:

A few days went by of spending time with my parents without Caleb, which made me feel a little vulnerable. I just felt safer with him being around after everything that happened. But I knew my parents and I needed to grieve together and not just separately. "So, were you having a nice vacation before... you know... before Alfius passed away?" My dad asked me curiously as the three of us ate lunch together. We were at one of the cafes that my uncle had taken me during my first week in New York. "Yeah, I was. Him and Caleb showed me around the city; it's actually really beautiful." I replied with a small smile.

The three of us made small talk as we ate our food. They talked about how their lives were going back home, which was normal until Caleb called them about my uncle's death. It felt odd knowing that in a few hours we'd be going to Alfius's second viewing time. That meant we'd be staying all evening at a funeral home. This morning we met a lot of my uncle's friends, most of which none of us knew. In all honesty I didn't even want to go to the funeral home. The stress and anxiety from all of this was really starting to get to me; I think Caleb knew but I wasn't sure if my parents noticed or not. It wasn't surprising though since they were caught up in their own sorrow.

Once we finished eating my dad paid for the meal before we left the cafe. We got into their car and I asked if I could be dropped off at Caleb's house instead of going to the hotel with them. My dad said yes even though I could tell he probably wondered why I didn't wanna be with them instead. "After I change and relax a little I'll meet you guys at the funeral home." I said, which seemed to ease my dad's mind. I just wanted to be alone. I wanted to wrap myself up in the blanket that Cyrus had given me. Being in that large soft piece of fabric made me feel like I wasn't alone. It made me think of Dr. Kreizler and my loop bound friends; I've been missing them more and more each day.

I pressed my thoughts to the back of my mind as I got out of the car and walked up the porch steps of Caleb's house. When I walked inside I realized that no one was home. 'He's probably out doing something important.' I thought inside of my head. I took my shoes off and walked into the living room to lay on the couch. Then I pulled that special blanket over me. Once the warmth enveloped me, I started falling into a deep sleep. When I woke up I felt someone gently shaking me. I opened my eyes to see a very blurry image of Caleb Carr. "Hey, you should start getting ready for the viewing." He said softly. I rubbed my eyes so I could see properly before setting up on the couch and uncovering.

"I hope you didn't mind me coming here. I just wanted to be alone, and I ended up falling asleep." I said as I slowly stood up. "It's alright. I know all of this has been hard on you." He said. He opened his arms to me. I wrapped my arms around him and laid my head on his chest. "Listen, I have a surprise for you later that might make you feel better." We broke the hug, and I couldn't help but wonder what the surprise was. But I didn't ask him what it was, because I doubted that he would tell me. I folded my blanket before I headed upstairs to get changed. I put on a black t-shirt, a pair of black jeans, black converse, and I slipped on a black zip up jacket.

Then I headed downstairs where I met up with Caleb, who was waiting on me by the door. "Are you ready?" He asked me curiously. "Physically, yes... mentally... no." I replied with a deep sigh. He gave me a sympathetic smile before I followed him outside and into his own vehicle. I stared out of the window as he drove towards the funeral home. "When we get there do you want me to stand next to you?" He asked me curiously, bringing me back to reality. "Yeah, that would make me feel a lot better." I replied with a small smile. Once we arrived at our destination, Caleb parked the car and we headed inside. My parents were already there; both of them gave me a hug when they saw me. A few moments passed before a wave of people started flooding in.

I recognized a great deal of them as the peculiars who had been keeping an eye on all of us. "Are they all peculiar?" I whispered to Caleb, who kept to his promise of standing next to me. "Most of them, yes. Only a couple are normals." He replied in a whisper as well. A couple of them stopped to shake my hand with an admiring glent in their eyes, which made me feel like they knew of my peculiar abilities. Either that, or they were just pleased to meet Alfius's niece. It kinda made me uncomfortable. I got a closer look at them and noticed that they were all wearing silver pins shaped like birds. 'I wonder if that's why they're all called silver birds. Is that just because they wear the pins or for some deeper reason?' I thought.