Silver in the Bone: Book 1 by Alexandra Bracken

Author:Alexandra Bracken [Bracken, Alexandra]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781786541710
Publisher: Hachette Children's Group
Published: 2023-04-03T18:30:00+00:00

I found Emrys in the walled garden next to the infirmary. He was on his knees, working something into the dark soil there. His hair was tousled, and there was a streak of dirt across his cheek. As he leaned forward, the open neck of his tunic gaped, revealing a hint of the muscle there, but also the gnarled ropes of scarring. Absently, he shooed away a few of the sprites swarming around his head.

A small smile touched my lips as I leaned over the stone wall, trying to get a better look at what had him so wholly absorbed.

Soil sniffer, greenthumbie, leafkisser. There were so many contemptuous names among Hollowers for Emrys’s Talent. Greenworkers were believed to be largely worthless in our line of work, and most were thought to be eccentrics who tottered around greenhouses cooing at flowers. The way Emrys used his power was much more considered—meditative, almost.

Emrys set about replanting the unrecognizable shriveled greens around him. Every now and then, he’d stop, holding their thin white roots in his palm—nodding to himself, or to them, I wasn’t sure. Next he added something to the soil, or dipped the plants into a small pail of water, before returning them to the ground.

“Oh, you must be Tamsin,” came a voice from behind me. It was Seren. Her golden-blond hair had been braided, but loose strands clung to the sweat on her face. Her dark brown eyes fixed on me as she shifted the basket of linens to her hip. “I was wondering when we’d meet.”

Emrys startled, the shell of his ears going bright pink as he looked up and found me watching.

“I’m like a bad penny,” I told her, “wait long enough and I’ll eventually turn up.”

Seren paused, processing those words.

Even in the gloomy daylight while they should have been at rest, the Children never stopped with their chittering and screeching. I wrapped my arms around my middle, trying to fight off the chill.

“Can I ask you something?” I began.

“Of course,” Seren said.

“If you all have magic, and at least some weapons,” I began, “why not try to kill the Children of the Night with fire while they’re exposed like this? Or at least attempt whatever spell Neve performed that first night?”

“We haven’t yet identified the spell she used, and as for the Children . . .” Seren shifted the basket again, her mouth in a tight line. “They were once our friends and family. Somewhere inside them, they still are, and if we can destroy the darkness plaguing the isle, there is still some hope that they may return to us.”

“Do you actually believe that?” I asked her. “You’ve seen how thoroughly the magic, or whatever it is, has corrupted them. What exactly are they going to turn back into?”

Seren’s expression hardened, and I knew there’d be no answer for me. “As you missed the morning’s meal, I wanted to make sure you knew there was bread in the kitchen.”

And with that, she walked away.

“As determined as ever to make friends, I see,” Emrys said, standing.

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