I nodded, sinking into the chair he pulled out for me. He waited until I was settled before heading back to the shelves and pulling a few books of his own.
My hand brushed down the faded green cover, my fingers digging into the grooves of the indentations.
Malheim, 699-799
CHAPTER 25
After several days of being trapped in my room, I couldn’t deny that I was going stir crazy. The bed and books Leif had let me borrow from the library were nice, but I was tired of being cooped up. Unfortunately, though the two books both mentioned the Seid, it was all surface information—all things I already knew.
The Seid had existed peacefully for centuries, willing to teach anyone who wanted to learn the language of magic.
But still, they were hated from the beginning. Hated for the perception that they had something that the rest of society didn’t.
Even though anyone could become a reader.
I’d secretly been hoping to learn more about Seekers, but the books had barely mentioned them, meaning I would have to swallow my embarrassment and ask Leif.
He’d come by every day since I’d arrived in Malheim, often eating dinner with me. Sometimes, he even brought gifts, like flowers, which made me feel so warm and happy and?—
Loved.
The door was twisting open. I closed the book and set it on my bedside table.
“Good morning, beautiful,” Leif whispered as he stepped into my room. I wanted to tell him that it was likely almost afternoon, based on how high the sun was in the sky, but all of my thoughts flew from my mind when he leaned down to press his lips to mine.
I wouldn’t say things had escalated between us, per se, but we had been kissing more and more. Still, I was hesitant to take things further, both because of my inexperience, and because I was so confused on how the weighted relationship worked. I planned to inquire more about that today.
As he released my lips from his, he glanced about the room. “I thought perhaps we would go on an outing today?”
I couldn’t stop the way my mood immediately changed. “How did you know that I wanted to leave this room?”
He shrugged, tucking my hand in his, “I think anyone would feel cooped up after spending seven days in a single room. Other than our brief trip to the library, of course.”
My eyebrows drew together. “And you have permission to take me out of here?”
He grinned. “I know the guard at the door, but we still have to be a bit sneaky about it. We aren’t leaving the grounds of the palace though.”
A portion of the hope that had blossomed at his previous words died. While I was still excited to leave this room, I had secretly been wanting to explore town. I wasn’t going to complain, though; I needed to be free of this room no matter what.
“Come on, we should go now so we have as much time as possible out there.” His smooth voice helped me release my worries and I eagerly followed him out the door and around the side of the courtyard, even waving to the guard as we stepped out.
It still struck me as odd, how this palace was laid out so similarly to Adis’s palace.Almost as if they have been built by the same person.
I pushed that thought away. It didn’t matter. It was just a palace.
We didn’t talk as Leif guided me around corners and down dim halls, pushing open an exterior door that led to the most beautiful garden I had ever seen. I was momentarily awestruck, unable to move as I took in the gorgeous array of flowers, trees, and butterflies. My brain launched into overdrive, imagining all the potions I could make with a garden like this.
“It’s beautiful,” I whispered when I could finally form a coherent thought.
“That it is. But this isn’t what I wanted to show you.” He tugged on my hand, leading me forward on a path through a grove of trees that arched over the area where we walked, making a tunnel. I didn’t think they were fruit trees initially, but they did appear as though they were about to blossom.
Maybe I could finally find the peaches I needed to make my hand cream.
The thought took me back to another place, another time, when I had first experimented with potions as a kid. A mental image of my mother arose in my mind’s eye, like a dagger to the heart. I grimaced.
“Are you okay?” Leif’s eyes were fixed on me over his shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I lied. I didn’t want to bring down the mood. “Just enjoying the flowers.”
