Book One: The Marigold's Larkspur ~ A tale of mystery, magic, and obsession.

Chapter Fourteen

The rain broke the next morning. Streams of sunlight poured through the arched window, painting the Sapphire Suite in a golden haze as Cressida re-read the note Callidus had left her on the dining table. His handwriting was surprisingly messy with an extreme right slant. It was a short message, but it left her feeling troubled.

"My dear Princess Cressida,
I hope you slept well. My apologies for last night. I realized it was inappropriate of me to press you on such a delicate matter. I have some urgent matters to attend to this morning, but I shall return in time to join you in the afternoon. In the meantime, I have left you a book on the table that I thought you might find interesting.
Until then, I am sincerely yours,
Callidus."

The cover was a vibrant shade of green with an image of a blooming daffodil in the center. "The Art of Gardening: Planting Flowers for Beauty and Joy." As she idly flipped through the pages, she noticed that the book was filled with detailed instructions and colorful illustrations of various flowers and plants. Each section was devoted to a different type of flower, with information on the best soil, sunlight, and water conditions for each type.

It was a thoughtful gift, given their discussion last night, but it did nothing to quell the irritation she felt from the way their conversation had ended. She knew that she needed to address the issue of her people's imprisonment with Callidus, but she was unsure of how.

Sighing, Cressida ran her fingers over an illustration of a rhododendron flower.

'Beware'

She settled onto one of the settees and began to read while waiting for Cilla to return with breakfast. Just as Cressida flipped to the page on larkspurs, Cilla arrived, calling to her from the doorway. "Your highness, Mint is awake."

Cressida straightened, knocking the book to the ground. "She's awake? Just now?"

"Yes, I thought you'd want to know."

"I do. I did." Cressida replied, rising to her feet. Her left foot was asleep, the tingling of nerves feeling like ants crawling on her skin. "Is she alright? Does she seem-"

"You'll see her in a moment."

Cressida nodded and shook her leg to relieve the tingling sensation in a manner that was not entirely princess-like.

Cilla frowned, her eyebrows drawn in, "You look like a dog when you do that."

"My foot is asleep." Cressida scowled. "Tell her I'm coming." She paused. "Wait, she doesn't know that I'm able to leave the Sapphire Suite now."

"She'll know once she sees you. Would you like your breakfast in the Topaz bedroom then?"

"Yes, thank you."

Cilla turned around, and Cressida could faintly hear the rolling cart disappearing down the hallway. Cressida sank back down on the settee, the same place that Mint had fallen asleep three days ago. She was nervous that Mint would be upset when she learned what happened, and although Cressida didn't know the woman very well, she felt a sense of camaraderie with her.

As she made her way to the Topaz bedroom, Cressida's mind raced with thoughts of what to say to Mint. How could she apologize? Should she even explain what happened? Cressida wasn't sure of Mint's stance on Magicborne. If it were like most of Ashlar, then she prepared for Mint to be very afraid.

The door was open, but Cressida lightly knocked on the edge of the frame, unconsciously imitating something she'd seen Callidus do.

Mint was sitting up in bed, her cloudy black hair sticking up weightlessly, the exact shape of a bottlebrush flower, and her freckled face was flushed with color. She turned her head when Cressida entered, and her face lit up with a soft and cheerful smile. "Your highness, good morning!"