‘This is new,’ he said. Bisma didn’t know enough about the mixing recipes to see anything particularly of interest in it, until Xander pointed to a line. ‘I’ve never thought of using star anise this way.’
She looked at him and could see his mind was whirring, possibilities clicking in and out of place.
‘I have an idea,’ he said, stashing the sheet back. With a grin, he grabbed her hand, pulling her along, and they made a quick exit from the Apothecary. Xander was in such a hurry he did not notice the man entering just as they were leaving, and he collided straight into him.
‘Xander, my boy!’
‘Uncle Fred!’ Xander exclaimed, stopping in his tracks.
Frederick smiled at him. He really was even more handsome up close, which only bothered Bisma.
‘Where are you running off to?’ Frederick asked, grabbing his nephew’s shoulders. His gaze turned to Bisma. ‘And who’s your lovely friend?’
‘This is Bisma,’ Xander said, pulling her forward to introduce her. He was still holding her hand, and she knew she should have let go, but she did not want to. ‘Bisma, this is my uncle.’
‘Pleased to meet you,’ Frederick said, bowing a little.
‘Charmed,’ Bisma replied, attempting a pleasant smile.
Frederick grinned, turning to his nephew. ‘Well done, Xander,’ he said.
Xander’s cheeks turned pink.
Bisma arched a brow. ‘I wouldn’t congratulate him just yet.’
Frederick laughed out loud. ‘I like this one, Xander—be sure not to muck it up, now.’
‘And that’s enough embarrassment for today.’ Xander pulled Bisma away, and she bit back a laugh. He was still flustered when they arrived back at the greenhouse, but he quickly went into his focused research mode, asking her to grow certain ingredients as he prepared a new trial.
He ground ginger into a paste, and she added fresh nutmeg shavings in, which he then mixed together. Bisma grew bok choy, and Xander plucked the long leaves off, spread the paste over the inside, then rolled it. As he held the roll in place, Bisma pierced each roll with a toothpick to keep it from unraveling.
Then he grabbed star anise and added it to boiling water, brewing it as he did something with his magic, making the water level stay the same, rather than decrease with steam. When the water had changed color, he added the bok choy rolls in. They cooked them until the rolls had wilted entirely and the water had thickened.
Xander strained the liquid out; it was amber, threaded with gold flecks.
‘It’s ready,’ he said, holding up the bottle of liquid.
Bisma grew another test tree, injecting it with the poison as Xander brought over the potion. He poured it over the soil, then they waited and watched.
Slowly, the tree began to drink the potion up, and they saw it travel through the trunk and into the branches, dispersing to the darkened leaves. They were getting close; Bisma could feel it. She and Xander complemented each other in skills, and now, as they watched, she wondered if they had finally done it.
Then, just like magic, the leaves changed, morphing from their poisoned state back to their original health.
‘Oh my god,’ Bisma said, covering her mouth with her hand.
‘It’s working,’ Xander said in awe.
They looked at each other with wide eyes.
They waited to see if it would hold—and it did.
‘Bis, it worked!’ Xander whooped, and before she knew what was happening, he scooped her into his arms, spinning her around. She laughed out loud, holding onto him, until he set her down on her feet again.
‘It worked,’ she said, elation making her heart soar. They both looked to their test tree to make sure they had not deceived themselves, but, yes, it really was perfectly healthy once more.
‘Should we try it on Deeba?’ Bisma asked. Hope made her feel as if she was floating.
‘I think—’ he began, but he was interrupted by the greenhouse doors opening.
