Tower of Dove

Chapter 10: The Fairytale

Tower of Dove Chapter 10: The Fairytale

The low sun glowed down on Lilyana as she lied in her mother’s garden. The flowers were high enough to hide her from sight, and the soft dirt was warm from the heat of the day. It felt nice against her skin, like a gritty, filthy pillow of worms and bugs. If only she were in her right mind to care about the insects and the dirt she was caking on herself. Ms. Corine wouldn’t be thrilled with her careless actions, but she’d never exactly tried to please her maid.

She had arrived home quickly after meeting with Hiero, determined to tell Miette and Posy of their plan to run away. But that determination had withered away once she had passed the front gate, and she couldn’t bring herself to enter the house. Miette would surely be there, waiting to hear what had happened. Posy would be anxious as well, after seeing Lilyana’s reaction to the engagement. They worried about her so much, and now she was planning to leave them.

How should she tell them? Just casually mention that she was running away with a commoner she’d only known for two weeks because she loved him and didn’t want to marry Simeon? That sounded foolish and weak. Wording things in the correct way was so difficult for her, just more proof of her unsuitability to be a councilwoman.

She sat up straight and glanced around at the surrounding flowers. They really were beautiful, even if they smelled of death. There were carnations, magnolias, chrysanthemums, and roses. Blood red roses, watching her as their thorns glistened with the fading sunlight. She turned away from them.

The tulips were tall and their stalks a vibrant, strong green, and the hydrangeas a pretty, powdery pink. All the different breeds were well kept and grown to perfection, but the more she looked into the garden, the easier it was to realize that there were no simple flowers such as the ones she would pluck from the meadow. There were no daisies.

Lilyana laughed a short, tart laugh. Of course there were no daisies in her mother’s garden. They weren’t regal enough for her. A simple daisy couldn’t compare among the imposing purples, blues, and reds of the important, strong flowers. A common daisy would surely be worthless to Calanthe.

Lilyana stood. She didn’t want to be around these conceited flowers any longer. She’d lie with the weeds before lying with them again.

She followed the tiny stone path out of the garden and crossed the lawn to her front porch, squinting against the setting sun’s light. It was always so bright in the hours before dinner. She reached for her key once she stood in front of the white door, but then paused. There were no pockets in this dress. She’d left her key on her nightstand.

Damn. That meant she had to have someone else let her in. She silently wished that it would be one of the housekeepers. If Miette answered her door, as she often would, she would immediately bombard her with questions. Posy would be gentler, but insist one hearing how her day had went.

She took a deep breath in preparation and rang the doorbell. A tall brunette in a maid’s outfit answered the door, a stern look hardening her brown eyes.

Lilyana cleared her throat. “Hello, Ms. Corine.”

Ms. Corine gave a sharp huff, her chest moving up with her breath. She looked ready to breathe fire. Lilyana tried an innocent smile, fluttering her eyelashes for effect, but Ms. Corine’s glare only deepened and the smile faded from Lilyana’s face.

She was most definitely going to get another scolding.

“This is the third day in a row you’ve been absent at lunch,” Ms. Corine chided as she ushered Lilyana across the threshold and slammed the door behind her.

Lilyana gave her a nervous giggle. Ms. Corine had worked for her family since Lilyana was a small child. In her eyes, the woman would always be ancient. Truthfully, she couldn’t be a day older than thirty. She knew Lilyana much better than Calanthe did. She cared for her more as well.