The Flames That Bind Us (Daughter of Fire #1)

✔Chapter Twenty: The Boy in The Garden

"Thank you, miss, and please come back again," the small elf woman said and grinned at me. I thanked her back, grabbing my purchase and stuffing it hurriedly in my bag.

The people around me didn't seem to pay attention, but the woman behind the wooden counter glanced at me in confusion before returning to her work. I didn't wait for another pair of eyes to notice me, walking out of the pharmaceutical shop as fast as my legs could go. Buying the damned draught was embarrassing enough, especially for someone who had no experience on such matters. Though, I don't think people particularly cared around here.

It was the first thing I decided to do when I woke up this morning. My night with the king left me wandering in dreamless sleep that when I finally opened my eyes, I realized I had slept through all morning. But one thought registered in my mind, making me dress quickly and set out to town.

I wasn't sure when the next 'session' with the king would be-and honestly, I didn't want to know-but I needed to be prepared.

I know the king didn't spill his seed inside me-thankfully-and the thought left me momentarily disgusted and partly flushed when remembering. Nevertheless, I was going to be extra careful with that. The last thing I needed was a haste moment of heat that would leave me carrying his child. The idea was both revolting and terrifying.

Though, finding the appropriate fertility control draught was a massive pain in the ass. I had spent almost an hour searching for the right kind-or at least the one I was acknowledged of. There were so many types, either domestically produced or brought in from the mortal realm.

They were in the forms of pills, rubber, and some kind of a thick gooey paste. Not to mention, they were outrageously expensive. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, I had stumbled upon an old-looking medical shop that sold its product at affordable prices. The owner of the shop was an elf woman, and she told me that her shop was one of the oldest and first established shops in Imarnia.

Then, she went on asking me about my age, weight, menstrual cycle, whether or not I'm sexually active, and other health-related questions, which I answered while looking like a ripe tomato.

She did all that while scribbling notes in her giant old ledger and mixing the draught for me. At that moment, I was so glad that I didn't bring Luxus with me.

Noticing ogling eyes scanning my braided hair, I tucked my worn-out brown jacket closer to my body and stalked forward, lowering my eyes and praying I remembered which way I came from. I glanced at the clock tower hovering over the town's square, its slender-shaped clock hands announcing that it was one in the afternoon. It was almost time for lunch-no wonder why people around me headed inside restaurants and coffee shops.

And just like that, my stomach grumbled. Damn...I hadn't eaten breakfast since I rushed out of the palace without so much as a second thought. My stomach was piercingly empty, demanding to be filled. Maybe I should eat in one of the restaurants here?

I looked around and almost immediately gave up on that idea. There was no way in hell I would be able to afford to eat in any place here, and I don't think restaurants as fancy as these would take in a girl who looked halfway homeless. I really needed to buy a whole new wardrobe, but first I needed to find a job to be able to pay for that. I don't think finishing school would do me any good. Being a scholar wasn't really my goal, anyway.

I decided to go back to the palace and have my lunch there, in my room with Luxus, as usual.

***

When I came into the palace, he was there -not the king, but that boy Redmond. And he was in the garden underneath the balcony of my room.

I was just on my way back up the stone stairs when I caught the whiff of familiar, ancient magic in the air. Being me, I couldn't help but go looking. And I found him there, sitting crossed-legged among unusually tall weeds of grass that spiraled all the way to his arms and intertwined around his torso and shoulders.