Heir of Thorns by Emma Savant & J.A. Armitage

Author:Emma Savant & J.A. Armitage [Armitage, J.A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Enchanted Quill Press
Published: 2020-04-01T05:00:00+00:00

5th April

If I’d thought the brief moment of peace between Jonquil and me was a signal of cooperation to come, I’d been sorely mistaken.

I looked out across the fire garden. It was a gloomy sight, the usual array of blazing daffodils and yellow freesia and flame-like orange irises now a mass of gray death.

“It is what it is,” I said, voice loud and blunt with exhaustion.

My body practically vibrated with the coffee I’d chugged this morning in an effort to stay awake. I’d been up most of the night wandering the palace gardens like a spirit of destruction, tearing up plants and burning them with an intensity I had regretted the moment I’d opened my eyes this morning. My body ached. My swollen ankle throbbed. My eyelids scratched against my eyes with every blink. Two of the general gardeners, Rue and Ash, stood next to me with their arms folded.

“We have nothing for the Flower Festival,” Rue said, panic edging her voice.

Ash shifted from foot to foot, a constant, restless movement that annoyed me. “We were supposed to have an entire display. The fire garden takes up an entire booth every year. It’s one of the highlights of the festival. There’s nothing left.”

“I can see that.” Immediately, I regretted my tone. I was tired, and their fear inflamed mine. I took a deep breath. “We’re going to have to cancel the fire garden this year.”

“We’ve already arranged for the Draconis Fireflame plants to be brought in,” Ash said. “What are we supposed to do about that? It’s too late to cancel; they’re already being transported.”

“I don’t know.” I ran a hand through my hair. “We can still have the Fireflames. Just… put them in a different display. There has to be some gilded goldenrod still alive around here somewhere. Change the theme from fire to treasure.”

“The goldenrod’s gone,” Rue said quietly. “I’ve already looked. It was supposed to go in our display.”

My heart raced, and I couldn’t blame it all on the coffee. I wasn’t usually given to anxiety, not like this, but it was hard not to get alarmed when the world was falling to pieces all around me. I forced myself to count to five before I spoke again.

“Give me some time to think about it,” I said at last. “We’ll figure out something to do with the dragons and the space. Maybe we could do an educational booth on the different types of compost we use in the gardens.”

Rue nodded, although it seemed more like she was trying to encourage me than like she actually thought it was a good idea. Ash narrowed his eyes at the devastated garden as if he could revive it with the power of his stare.

I had hardly left their garden when Chervil accosted me. I tensed up as soon as I heard his voice. After Jonquil, he was one of the hardest to get along with. He’d wanted my job, and his resentment of my youth and position was impossible to miss.

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