Page 62 of Turret

I ignored his steady string of colorful expletives and faced Melina. “The tower has returned to the palace. I need you to find Briar and tell him that Mother has escaped her mirror and is going to retrieve the plants growing in her secret garden. Hurry.”

Pale faced, she nodded once and hurried away, taking a back staircase that would take her to the tower’s exit much more quickly. I ached to follow with Quinn, but with his leg I knew that together we’d be too slow.

I glanced uncertainly at him, but even without seeing my expression he sensed my decision. “I’ll only slow you down. Go. I’ll meet you outside the tower.”

I sensed his reluctance to let me go on my own, but the fact that he could only proved his confidence in me…confidence I needed to have in myself for what lay ahead. But it was difficult when I still faced a seemingly insurmountable obstacle. If Mother succeeded in accessing the powers growing in her garden…it was imperative I reach her before she could.

I hurried down the twisting staircase as quickly as I was able with the lingering effects of Mother’s draining magic…only to find the way blocked, undoubtedly an obstacle Mother had created with the last of her powers. My detour to another staircase cost me several precious minutes before I finally stepped into the palace garden lit with the light of sunrise, a place unfamiliar considering how little time I’d spent within it.

I barely registered the plants’ surprise and eagerness at seeing me or their desperation to assist in leading me to where I needed to go, for I was entirely unfamiliar with their whispered communication, leaving me nothing to navigate the labyrinth of gardens.

Panic filled my steps as I ran and only escalated with each wrong turn through the foreign grounds. With each wrong path, my hope of finding Mother’s garden dwindled. My hope and remaining energy had all but slipped away when the sound of hurried footsteps behind me caused me to turn. It was my brother, Briar.

He slowed at catching sight of me, surprise and relief filling his eyes. “Gemma…” He seemed about to embrace me, but before he could, I spoke.

“Mother is returning to her garden,” I managed midst my panting breaths. “She wants to use its magic—”

Briar’s mouth thinned and he strode purposefully ahead while I struggled to keep up. “Mother broke out of the mirror?” he asked, all business.

I clutched at a sharp stitch in my side and nodded. “I—it was my fault—” I wanted to explain what had happened, but my sharp breaths and growing exhaustion from our frantic pace made speaking difficult. I expected Briar to look panicked, but instead he looked uncannily calm, almost…amused. “Aren’t you worried?”

His lips twitched. “No.”

For a moment I feared I’d been wrong to trust Briar if he was as deep in Mother’s control as she’d alluded to…before his next words eased my fears.

“Mother is about to be very disappointed. This I must see for myself.”

Before I could inquire further, we rounded a bend in the path and stopped before a towering hedge wall, where Mother already stood behind a tree that guarded a section, pushing open a hidden door. Briar stopped short, gaping at Mother’s altered appearance. She turned at the sound of his startled gasp and smirked.

“You’re too late.” And she entered the garden.

I lurched forward with a cry, but Briar held me back with a grin. “Wait for it…”

It came a moment later—a piercing and furious shriek of defeat. It echoed throughout the garden, and at its sound the surrounding plants quivered in relief, excitement, and an air that was almost smug.

I tentatively ventured forward to peer around the tree blocking the entrance and peek inside. I’d been told Mother’s evil garden was filled with black, noxious weeds…but what greeted me instead was a lovely garden of beautiful blossoms growing without any sign of dark magic

Mother had fallen to her knees. For a moment, she could only stare in disbelief before she released another anguished cry and swiveled around to glare at us. “Where are they?” she demanded. “Where are my magical plants?”

Briar smirked. “Oh, they may have disappeared when my own curse was broken.”

She let out another agonized groan, and with it I knew that the last of her magic was finally, after all these years, defeated.

My brother stepped forward with several guards that had followed us. “Escort the former queen to her quarters in the East Wing. She is no longer a threat, but I want guards posted at her door at all times. We’ll deal with the matter of her punishment later.”

He gave further orders, but I was distracted by Quinn, who’d accompanied the guards using a makeshift crutch made from a broom handle, his deathly pale face twisted in pain from having followed on a broken leg.

Sharp worry eclipsed my previous relief. I hurried forward. “Quinn! Why—”

“I had to be with you,” he panted. “To help you if I could.” He spoke as if he could do nothing else.

I released a strangled sob and wrapped my arms around him. “You dear man.”

He enfolded me, holding me close. In his embrace the last of my anxieties from the trying events of the day slipped away and I finally felt peace, for not only was I home at the palace…but home with the man I loved.

Chapter 24

Ihovered at the edge of the garden and watched as Briar calmly directed the guards on how to handle Mother. I studied him closely. Last time I’d seen him, he’d been more serious and not quite as grown up, but now he was the embodiment of a king. It was amazing how much he’d changed in the span of our separation. Was he still the kind brother I remembered, or would his duties cause him not to give his sickly sister a second thought?

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