“Who the fuck are you?” I demand, growling.
“I’m the gardener.” He grins. “I make things grow. Even poisonous things.”
My narrowed eyes relax for an instant as I study his black gaze. His smile is gone, and the black of his pupils extends over his irises and into the white of his eyes. I steel myself against the fear that coils in my gut.
I snarl and choke him. He coughs, blinking back tears. “I want you out of my sight,” I growl. “I want you out of the palace and to never return. Do you understand?”
“I understand,” he chokes out, the wicked grin returning. “But Verity will be sad to see me go.”
“She’ll never think of you again,” I say furiously.
He laughs, the sound powerful and chilling. “You may as well forget marrying her. She doesn’t love you, and you could never satisfy her.”
“And you think you could?” I ask, my voice harsh.
“She’ll have another groom soon, of that I’m certain,” he purrs.
A frozen wind blows against me as his eyes darken once more. I lurch away from him as fear clenches my heart. Something isn’t right about this man. He’s no gardener. He pushes away from the wall and straightens his tunic with a bright smile. He pushes past me, disappearing into the darkness and leaving me reeling. I don’t consider myself an easily intimidated person. But something about his eyes had my breath locked in my throat from fear.
I stare into the shadows he melted into for what feels like hours, waiting for him to return with the wings of a demon or some other monstrous creature. But he’s gone. I find my breath again and head back to the copse of trees. The candlelight is low, and somehow, dawn is on the horizon. I spent all night in the gardens, but it felt like mere hours.
Verity is draped on the mossy ground beside the bench, sleeping. Her cloak is tucked around her, her silk gown no doubt ruined from the dirt and damp of the ground. She sleeps soundly, her lips softly parted. She looks angelic almost. But I can’t forget the way she moved against the stranger. I can’t forget the way she responded to his body.
My eyes drift over the book beside her, propped open. I crouch and pick it up. The leather binding is warm, as if it was just barely in Verity’s hands. I flip it open, eyes roving over the page. The writing is harsh and jagged, difficult to read. But the sketching in the margins are clear enough. It’s a book on Bloodbane rituals and magic. The text is filled with spells and cruel rituals they use to practice their magic.
My gut coils and I feel nauseous as I read about the rituals they perform in the ether. No Fae has ever found a portal into the ether, the realm of the old gods, and it’s strictly forbidden. But the Bloodbane draw most of their magic from the other realm. Sadal Melik waits for them in the ether. They give him blood and life force to sustain him through dark rituals. It’s sickening.
I swallow the bile rising in my throat as I study the pictures and text. I flip through more pages, panic rising in my chest. This is what Verity has been reading? This is why she’s so secretive? I bite the inside of my cheek. My father destroyed all the books in the kingdom about Bloodbane magic in an attempt to stop them from gaining anymore power. I don’t know how Verity got her hands on this book, but I have no doubt it’s related to the mysterious gardener.
Poisonous flowers indeed, I muse.
Chapter 14
Verity
The green glow of the sun through leaves teases me from my sleep. I take a long breath, sighing. I can feel dew on my skin and along my cloak; cold little buttons of water. I stretch, breathing in the earthy scent of soil and moss. Dain is long gone by now with the sun already rising. My stomach turns as I remember what happened the night before. I don’t know what came over me that I would let him handle me like that. I betrayed Altair.
Suddenly, as I roll over, I see glistening leather boots covered in dew. I gasp and lurch away, coiling into a crouch. It’s Altair. He stands stiffly, as if he’s been in the same place all night. His brows are pinched, his lips twisted into a deep frown. He doesn’t look at me, his eyes are locked onto the book in his hands. My book.
My voice hitches in my throat as I see him with my precious, dangerous secret. I release a strangled noise and lift a hand towards him. His eyes dart away from the text to meet mine and I’m struck by the intensity of his hazel gaze. He snaps the book shut with a thud and narrows his eyes at me.
“So, this is what you’ve been hiding,” he murmurs, turning it over in his hands. “This must be one of the last Bloodbane texts in existence. How did you get it?”
“I found it,” I stammer even though the lie sends bile rising in my throat.
“You found it,” he echoes, his voice soft. “Tell me, did the gardener have anything to do with it?”
My heart stops in my chest. “What gardener?”
Altair laughs mirthlessly, tossing his head back. “Verity, do you take me for a fool?” His laughter ends abruptly, and he glowers at me. “I saw you last night.”
This is my worst nightmare. I swallow the nausea threatening to overwhelm me and struggle to my feet. Altair is staring at me coldly, as if I’m an insect on the bottom of his shoe. I wrap my cloak tighter around myself defensively. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I came here to read. I knew the book was forbidden so I brought it here to read in secret.”
“Little truths to cover a lie,” he murmurs. “But I know
