Page 10 of Emerald Queen
“Shit.” She stopped, hopping on one foot. Blood seeped onto the floor, mixing with the spilled soil.
“Fuck…” Drake scooped her up, “Officer Sterling, get a broom please.”
Drake set her on the edge of the bed, “Sit here while I get a towel.”
Emersyn watched as he disappeared into her bathroom. He reemerged holding a towel and wet washcloth. Easing her foot into his lap as he kneeled in front of her, he carefully wiped the blood off.
“It’s not deep at all.” He dried off her foot with the towel, “Now… you want to tell me how you knocked over a plant that wasn’t near the ledge?”
Emersyn sighed, “I was holding it… it slipped out of my fingers.”
Drake eyed the flower, “Well, let me salvage the flower. I can take it to the kitchen and put it in a bowl for now. Cassie can see it is repotted in the morning.”
“Ok.”
“Now… where do you keep your Band-Aids?”
“I can do it myself, Drake.”
“Emersyn… please stay in your bed. There is still glass on the floor.”
“Fine.”
She sighed and laid back in her bed. She heard the door open and smiled when she saw officer Sterling enter carrying a broom.
“Let me sweep this up for you,” Sterling quickly swept the mess up, nodding at Drake as he carried the shards out of the room.
Drake sat down on the bed beside Emersyn, “Here, let me see your foot.”
Emersyn shifted her body, stretching her foot across his lap. Drake wiped at the dried blood and dusted the dirt off, “Humm, it appears you’ve stopped bleeding.”
Not only had she stopped bleeding, the skin had knitted back together already. Drake palmed her foot, running his finger over the smooth skin.
“The cut is gone.” He glanced at Emersyn.
“What?” She jerked her foot back, “How is that possible?”
“Emersyn,” Drake stood, “What do you know of your heritage?”
“My heritage?” she pressed her fingers to the bridge of her nose, “what does that have to do with anything?”
“Everything.” He walked to the window, peering out into the night sky. “Emersyn, your family has been the kingdom’s ruler for generations. Do you know why that is?”
“I mean… no. My family has been in rule for generations.”
“Have you ever wondered why your mother seemed so in tune with the earth?” Drake turned to face her, “Emersyn, your mother was an elemental.”
“An elemental?” Emersyn thought back to the conversation with her mother. “That’s what she was trying to tell me.”
“What do you mean?” Drake crossed his arms across his chest.
“The night before she died… she told me something that I blew off. She said that when I turn twenty-one, I would become tuned into the earth. I didn’t understand what she was saying. She was trying to tell me, wasn’t she?”
“Yes, I think so.”
“What does this mean?”
“It means you are becoming the true queen.”
