Page 1 of Broken Lands

Chapter one

Riley

“Time’sup,”Iyelledas I clapped my hands together to grab the children’s attention. “Clean up quickly and meet Miss Hatley in the mudroom. She’ll escort you to the ceremony.” I smiled at the group I’d been working with this morning before turning to gather some gloves, pots, and shears to put away.

A small sob, barely audible above the sound of chattering, caught my attention and I spun around to find Nora still in her seat, crying quietly.

I put down the items I’d still been holding and walked to her, squatting down in front of her and lifting her chin to see her face.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” I asked softly. Her short black hair framed her pale face, the effect making her bright blue eyes seem larger than normal. Tears poured freely down her cheeks as her gaze met mine.

“I’m sorry,” she sobbed. “I didn’t mean to. It slipped from my hand.”

“What are you… Oh.”

Behind her chair, half underneath the table, was a scattering of dirt. The pot itself had rolled a few desks down while the seedling had landed underneath her chair.

“Please don’t punish me. It was an accident. I’m so sorry.”

“Shh.” I stood up from my crouch and wrapped my arms around her, holding her close. The poor child was terrified she’d be in trouble for knocking over the plant.

“You’ve done nothing wrong.” I guess there’d be some people that would, but I couldn’t imagine punishing a child for such a simple mistake myself. Just the thought of it set my nerves on edge.

Earth changed during the Last War. We damaged the land and soil with the weapons we wielded against each other. Our history books—those that survived—show lush green fields and flourishing crops. I’ve never seen anything like those photos. What little grass we have now is dry and brittle, our fields dusty and barren. Our crops struggle. We struggle. Every single plant is a precious, treasured resource.

I pull back from Nora, wiping the tears from her cheeks and offering her a gentle smile.

“Why don’t we see if we can save it? We can add some of my special compost to the pot, maybe some worm castings too. That might give the seedling a chance to grow. What do you think?”

Good crops are scarce, and they require constant attention. Even then, we barely grow enough to feed the children and staff at the orphanage. We often can’t afford to buy extra food at the local market, either. It breaks my heart when we don’t have enough. That’s why I took on this role in the garden. I’d been blessed with a green thumb and enjoyed the peace that gardening bought me. I enjoyed knowing I was doing the best I could for my community, too.

Nora sniffled and then nodded, wiping her cheeks with the sleeves of her dress. Moving toward the front of the room, I grabbed a couple of trowels and a small container of compost.

I returned to Nora and together we set about scooping the spilled dirt back into the pot, mixing in the compost and gently resettling the seedling.

“How about I keep a special eye on this one, okay? You need to meet Miss Hatley and the rest of the children before they leave without you, but you can come back and check on it later.”

She smiled at me. Her tears were long gone now that she knew I wasn’t going to punish her for knocking over her potted seedling.

“Okay. Thanks Riley. I’ll see you later.” She turned for the door before pausing and turning to face me again. “Have you heard from James yet?”

Pain spread through my chest at the mention of my older brother. We’d grown up here at Sommer’s orphanage. Miss Hatley had taken us in when she’d found us wandering the streets together, wet and starving, the day the Last War ended fifteen years ago.

No one had come forward to claim us, so here we’d stayed—or at least I’d stayed. James left two years ago. He was lucky enough to be chosen to ascend.

I blinked back the tears threatening to fall as my heart ached with the need to know what had happened to him. I stifled a sob as I answered her, “No. Not a peep. I’m sure he’ll write to me soon.” Forcing a smile, I waved her on her way and put away the last of the tools, my hands shaking as I worked.

I hadn’t heard from my brother in over a year. The fae had chosen him to ascend, and he’d moved to Danann a little under two years ago. He’d promised to write, and he had to start with. Six months later and his letters had stopped coming. No one knew what happened to him. Nor did they seem to care. His disappearance left me with a bad feeling swirling in my gut. It nagged at me and kept me up at night. Something wasn’t right. He wouldn’t just cut me out. It had always been the two of us against the world. We only had each other.

I desperately needed to find him.

Sighing to myself, I turned to lift the heavy tray of seedlings, and started out towards the greenhouse. It was time to check on the tomatoes I’d transferred yesterday. I breathed in deeply, the scent of fresh earth filling my nose as I passed Mr Cole, the caretaker, puttering around in the garden.

His contribution was small these days. The arthritis in his hands didn’t allow him the range of motion and dexterity he needed to contribute in any meaningful way. He was good company, though, often spouting stories of life before the Last War.

I could hear the children chattering in the distance as they made their way to the main house. They were excited about the ceremony today. It was the first time for some of them. Most of the town got excited. Once a year, applications for ascension were open for anyone eighteen and above. It was a chance to leave the struggle of our community behind and join the fae in their city in hopes of a better life.

The only requirements were to undergo the required testing and pay the modest application fee.

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