“Ah, thanks.”She quickly ran her fingers through her loose braid and fished out a piece of blue alga.
“Did you fight those vamps in the lake?”
Deidre threw away the alga as if it were a hot potato.“Don’t be silly.I washed the blood off in the lake, that’s all I did in there.”
Right.Could she have phrased that any more suspiciously?
As her gaze followed the take-off of our last remaining guests, I informed her, “They’ll return in about a week for a trade exchange.Maybe these same gargoyles.”
Her eyes lit up.“Possible, ain’t it?”
“I hope not.”Tisvali startled both of us by appearing on Deidre’s other side.“Your partner was obviously a dick, Lake Lady.I saw it myself.Ahugedick.”
She poked him in the shoulder.“Idiot.”
He grinned contentedly.
I found myself smiling, too.Everything had ended well tonight.
Karim returned to stand beside me at that moment, our time as hostages finally over.“Come, my flower.Let us go home.”
I followed him without hesitation.A day ago, returning underground had sounded like a prison sentence to me.After tonight’s events, there was no doubt in my heart.By Karim’s side was where I wanted to be.
- 28 -
My Braid to Yours
“It’s alive!”I just had to say that out loud, even though I was by myself.I saw it the instant I entered Karim’s garden.No inspection from up close was necessary: the edelweiss was alive.With leaves and petals perked up, it looked like a happy little fellow.
“Someone has put down roots,” I told the miracle flower.I sat on the grassy ground next to it, leg extended to give my ankle some rest after the walk here.“Decided to stay in this new home, hm?Karim will be so happy to hear this.”
I hoped his meeting with the Queen about the newly formed alliance wouldn’t take long.He’d left immediately after accompanying me to his home.I couldn’t wait to see his face at the news.
“He will smile for you, gorgeous,worry not.”I chortled at theuse of Karim’s favorite expression.
When it came to favorite things, being in a garden and talking to the flowers was so me.The old me, at least.The me who enjoyed working extra hours at the Botanic Garden and conversing with the plants after everyone else had left.The only thing missing from the picture now was some Florence and the Machine playing in the background.The plants under my care enjoyed Florence.
“I’m going to tell you a secret, little one,” I went on, appreciative of the peace and quiet after tonight’s tensions.“I haven’t been this happy in a long while.I know I shouldn’t get ahead of myself, given that my future here is unclear.But I like to think that if my friend Sue has found her place among the creatures who took her, why can’t I?
“In short, things are looking up for me, gorgeous.And with this new alliance, things should look up for all humans in the Kingdom.”
I would ask Karim to take me to them so I could relate what Sue had told me of the gargoyles’ world.I was sure the information would make many agree to move to the clouds.As for those who chose not to, they had to know leaving was an option.I now understood this was the Queen’s doing, keeping us here with threats of execution to serve as her workforce no matter what.But in the long run, she would achieve so much more by offering humans sanctuary with no fear tactics and guards in exchange for earning their keep.What Karim’s idea had been from the very start, until his half-sister had amended it so she, too, could have her way.Her anti-human way.
Hopefully, the beneficial trade deal with the gargoyles would make her willing to consider human rights.A zone in the cave system where we could move freely after the end of normally long work shifts and just be.And maybe in time, as they mingled with us, elves would realize that peaceful coexistence with all humans was possible.
I sighed and shook my head.“Enough daydreaming.One step at a time, right, little one?”I gave the edelweiss a tender brushalong one fuzzy leaf.“Starting with some watering.You’re a perky fellow, but some of your neighbors need a refreshment.”
Karim would probably water them later tonight, but I couldn’t sit around when there were droopy plants in need of attention.My ankle protested when I made it work again, but the discomfort had diminished significantly from earlier tonight, so I easily ignored it and immersed myself in the familiar activity, singing as I moved with the jar from flower to flower.
I was at my very last client when I ran out of water.“Typical.”Now I’d have to go refill the jar only to water a single–
“What are you doing?”
The jar slipped from my fingers to fall in the soft soil.I hadn’t heard Karim enter the garden, let alone approach me among the plants.
“Hey.”I smiled, picking up the intact jar.“I watered some flowers, I hope you don’t mind?”
He didn’t reply, just kept looking at me.
