“How did you do that?” Darren asked, his eyes wide with surprise.
“I don’t know.” Eris smiled. “I remembered something I read about them, and my magic did the rest.”
“That was awesome. I had no idea you could do something like that.”
Eris laughed, “Neither did I. I’m sure Master Garren won’t believe either of us when we tell him.”
“Maybe your magic is growing again?” Darren said.
Eris shrugged. It was something Master Garren had mentioned many times, but she hadn’t put much thought into it. All her life, she had been nothing more than mediocre at her magical studies. So even though she had the rarest of the three gifts of magic, she’d assumed she would still end up being a gardener somewhere rather than doing anything impressive in the magical world.
“I don’t mean to break up the happy reunion, but any ideas on how to get down from here?” Nolan asked. “It would be nice to get to that capital before all the interesting things sell out.”
Eris sighed. Odd or not, it seemed Nolan was not only a useless traveling companion, but he had attached himself to them for the time being.
Chapter 11
Knox
Knox paced back and forth across the library just before dawn. How much was he going to tell Eris about himself? About the curse? About her sister? If he showed her the prophecy, would she think he was less crazy? Even though he’d always hoped he would find the girl who could break his curse, he was at a loss as to what to do now that he had actually found her. All of the plans he’d put together over the years seemed so stupid now that she was on her way to the castle.
Anxious, he sighed and sat down at the large table in the center of the room, stacked tall with all kinds of books on curses and spells related to breaking curses. Books he had read at least seven times each, but there was nothing in them about his type of curse. He couldn’t break his curse himself. He had tried. He had consulted numerous magic masters over the years and followed all of their suggestions. He had taken more magical tonics than he could count. He had also tried dozens of different ancient healing items. None of it had affected the curse running through his veins. He had long ago concluded it was impossible to break it on his own. He needed the girl with the flower mark, even if he didn’t quite understand why.
From the color of the sky, he estimated he had another half hour until the sun began to rise. Half an hour until he became a corpse again. Enough time to run through the thoughts swimming in his head, and maybe answer a royal letter or two.
A knock sounded on the library doors. Toran entered. “I have the gardener.”
Knox nodded and Toran stepped inside, followed by the gardener. Knox didn’t usually deal with these matters himself, but he had to know why this man grew Dark Thorn.
The gardener, an old stout man, walked in and bowed his head.
“Could you explain why you were growing an illegal plant in my royal garden?” Knox asked.
“My boy is sick.” The gardener shrugged, head still lowered. “And it fetches a high price at the night market.”
“Do you understand the consequences for growing such a plant?”
The gardener nodded. “I had to do something to save my child.”
“How much of the plant were you able to sell?”
“None, your Highness. It’s still several weeks from harvesting.”
He was grateful to hear that the man’s misdeeds weren’t bigger, but Knox would still have to punish him. It wasn’t that Knox didn’t sympathize with the old man, but rules had to be maintained for the long-term success of the kingdom. “You are hereby stripped of your position at the castle. You will be sent to jail for no shorter than one month, where you will perform labor to better Erila. Do you understand?”
The gardener nodded again.
“Before you are dismissed, can you tell me where you got the plant?” Knox asked.
“A tall blue-eyed man gave it to me. He said he had once lost a loved one, and didn’t want me to watch my boy die, sire. He said he would come back to buy it once it was ready to harvest.”
Knox nodded at Toran, who rang for the guards. Two soldiers came in and escorted the gardener out of the library.
“Send someone to see how ill his son is. If there is something to be done for the child, see that it is taken care of. And make certain the gardener is sent to a group that helps crops grow rather than one of the more trying labor crews. Also, set someone on the lookout for a man looking to buy Dark Thorn. The last thing we need is a war with the Sligo.”
“Yes, sire.” Toran bowed before leaving the library.
Knox answered a few scrolls before the sky began to threaten daybreak, then he stood and stretched as he looked around the quiet library. At one point in his life, the room had been his favorite. When his father was still alive, he would bring Knox here and read to him the whole night through. He would read stories of fairies, knights, and dragons. Their stories always ended happily. A kiss here or a magical item there, and their curses faded by the wayside. Though Knox couldn’t remember exactly what his father’s voice sounded like, he missed that feeling of security.
The library door opened, pulling Knox from the memory. Toran cleared his throat. “I’m sorry to disturb you, your Majesty, but it is time to retire.”
Knox sighed and stood, following Toran from the library. They turned the corner and almost bumped into a servant. The man shrank, lowered his head, and backed into the wall, allowing Knox to pass.
“Were you able to see to the things we discussed earlier?” Knox asked once they were well past the servant.
“Yes, sire. The matter has been taken care of.” Toran smiled. “Though a stricter approach would have been well within your rights as ruler.”
“Perhaps, but there is hardly anything to be gained by punishing a man trying to save his son.”
The two men walked in silence the rest of the way to Knox’s room. As they walked, Knox wondered how much his parents had suffered as they’d sought a cure for his curse. Would they have done something as foolish as the gardener if it meant saving his life?
When they reached Knox’s chambers, Toran bowed. Knox walked inside and shut the door. He took off his overcoat and tossed it on the chaise. Then he walked over to his bed and lay down. The darkness of the night was quickly giving way to the dawn, and his mind went back to thoughts of Eris. Soon he would see the girl who could bring him back to the world of the living for good. He wanted to live, if for nothing more than to save the people who were also trapped in the curse because of him. He tried to imagine his life without the guilt associated with his curse, but he couldn’t. His life had always been about trying to break free. What kind of king would he be when other things occupied his mind?
He sucked in air as his legs and arms began to stiffen. He could feel every muscle and tendon lock into place, painfully turning to stone. The stiffness slowly stretched up his arms and legs until it reached his lungs. He felt like he was suffocating, though he knew he wouldn’t die, at least not that day. According to the prophecy, he had until his twentieth birthday to find the cure and that was still three months away. He gulped in air until his lungs refused to obey him any longer, and his heart continued to beat inside of his frozen chest.