This wasn’t like my usual problems where I could analyze data, create a strategy, and bring about a solution. This mystery kept slipping through my mental fingers, refusing to fit into neat categories I could solve.
“Maybe I’m not as good at this as I thought,” I whispered.
Dominic stopped walking, turning to face me. He stroked my cheek, tilting my face until our eyes met. “We’ll figure this out.”
“Will we?” The doubt in my voice surprised me. I’d spent years being the one with answers, the strategist who anticipated every problem. Admitting uncertainty felt like failure.
He gazed into my eyes. “Yes, we will.”
The certainty in his voice, the unwavering confidence he had in us, loosened the frustration in my chest.
Savory shifted on my shoulder, her talons pricking through the fabric of my gown.Sometimes the answer isn’t found in what we see, but in what lies beneath.
I started to respond, but her words snagged on something I’d forgotten, bringing it back to the surface. “Looking beneath what’s visible. Shadow beneath beauty’s roots. What if Lady Edwina meant it literally? Shadow beneath beauty’s roots could mean something underground.”
Dominic’s brow furrowed. “Edwina’s predictions are usually nonsense. Beautiful, poetic nonsense, but nonsense nonetheless.”
“But what if this time they’re not?” Excitement shot through me, pushing aside my earlier doubt. “We’ve exhausted every logical approach. Maybe it’s time to try the illogical one.”
He studied my face, and I watched understanding dawnin his eyes. “Magical tracing. Following the dampening effect back to its source.”
“Exactly.” My pulse picked up. “Let’s combine your fae magic with my plant affinity. If there’s something underground affecting the root systems, we may be able to sense it.”
“It’s worth trying.” His hand slid from my face to capture mine, lacing our fingers together. “Where do we start?”
I looked around the garden. “The center of the most affected area. Where the wilting is the worst and the emotional dampening feels strongest.”
We made our way to that section. Flowers that should be blooming for the festival hung limp and colorless. Vines had pulled away from their supports, the leaves curled and brown.
“Here.” I positioned myself in the middle of the path, Dominic standing close beside me. “Both hands. I bet we’ll need maximum connection.”
He took my hands in his, and the familiar tingle of our magical resonance sparked between us. His warmth seeped into my skin, steadying me.
“Close your eyes,” I said. “Let your magic rise naturally, don’t force it. Just feel.”
I closed my own eyes, sinking into that internal space where my plant magic lived. Usually it whispered quietly, easily ignored unless I reached for it. But with Dominic’s energy flowing into me through our joined hands, it roared to life.
I can help,Savory said, launching into the air. I felt her magic join ours, a third thread weaving through the connection, amplifying and focusing our combined power.
An intense sensation rushed through me. Magic tingledacross my body, heightening every sense. I became aware of the root systems beneath our feet, the vast underground network of plant life that connected the entire garden.
And beneath that, something odd, a faint taint that pulled at my mind like a discordant note in a song.
“Do you feel that?” I whispered.
“Yes.” Dominic’s voice had gone rough. “It’s like a void. A place where emotion should flow but doesn’t.”
Follow it,Savory said, her wings fluttering as she circled above us.Let the wrongness guide you to its source.
We started walking, our eyes still closed, led by the magical pull. Dominic’s hands tightened on mine when we needed to navigate around obstacles. His magic guided me when the path grew rough, his awareness compensating for my lack of sight.
The taint grew stronger the farther we walked. It grated against my plant sense, drawing us deeper into a section of garden I’d never explored.
“We’re getting close,” Dominic said. “I can feel it intensifying.”
I opened my eyes to find we’d reached an overgrown area. Thick vines covered what looked like a hillside, their leaves dense enough to create a living wall. But my magic sang with certainty. We were in the right place.
“There.” I gestured to where the vines grew thickest. “Something’s behind all that growth.”
