The walls were covered in shelves of books. Lilette took out her spare dress and hung it on an extra peg, then tucked her bag of jewels behind a book called Intraspecific Hybridization, by Jolin Lyon. Her eyes wide, Lilette tugged the book off the shelf. She walked to the back door and opened it to ask Jolin about the book. What Lilette had thought was a room was actually a garden encased by glass—a garden with hundreds of potted and plants. Jolin and Doranna were planting the seeds from Harshen into large clay pots.
“You wrote this?” Lilette held out the book.
Her hands buried in soil, Jolin glanced up. “A few years ago. We keepers have long known that by crossing two plants that each have a desirable characteristic, we could create one plant with both.”
“So you wrote it when you were what, twelve?” Lilette flipped through more pages.
“Thirteen, I think. I couldn’t find a book that documented all our findings, so I wrote one.”
“How many others have you written?”
Jolin thought for a moment. “Fifteen or so. It’s hard to keep track anymore.”
“You’re really rather brilliant, aren’t you?” Lilette said, more to herself than anyone else.
“Obviously,” Jolin said.
“Why didn’t you tell me all this?”
Jolin’s hands stilled and she looked up. And Lilette suddenly understood. All her life, people had treated her differently because of her beauty, and now her voice. They’d done the same to Jolin because of her brilliance. Quite simply, people were intimidated by them, or resented them, or were drawn to them for all the wrong reasons. Lilette realized she and Jolin had a great deal in common. “Thank you for letting me stay with you,” she said quietly.
Jolin looked relieved. “Only because I need someone to sing for my potions.”
The corners of Lilette’s mouth quirked. “Mmm.”
“It’s true. Now put that book back and make use of that ridiculously pretty voice to help us grow these.”
Lilette returned the book and stepped into the garden, the smells of moist soil and green amplified by the glass. Reminded of the jungles around Calden, she felt a pang of sadness.
Jolin and Doranna had laid out dozens of pots, which Jolin had already planted with seeds. Doranna opened a jar of black paint and dipped in a brush. She added water before bending down to paint on a label in perfect letters.
“She has her first class,” Doranna chided.
Jolin waved the woman’s concern away. “This will be far more educational than sitting through a plant identification course.”
Lilette sang, and soon dozens of seeds had sprouted and grown into mature plants. Around them, the already-existing plants stretched and broadened and rustled. Lilette marveled at the power of her voice.
“This one.”
Lilette whirled to find Bethel standing behind them, a seed the size of a small pebble in her palm. “This is the one you’ve been searching for.”
Jolin didn’t meet her mother’s gaze. “How can you tell?”
Bethel set the seed on a table. It wobbled a little before going still. “I didn’t know what I was looking for until I found it.”
Bethel turned and left without saying goodbye. Jolin didn’t bother acknowledging her mother’s departure. She was picked up the seed and held it to the light.
Chapter 25
Everything was connected, bonds forming and events occurring exactly when they were needed. Only after that was I able to see it clearly. ~Jolin
As soon as Bethel was gone, Jolin slammed her trowel down and braced her arms against the table, her eyes pinched shut.
Doranna lifted her hand as if to comfort her, then seemed to think better of it. “She was worried when you were gone. She kept coming by your tree and staring at the door. She’s just not very good at showing that she loves you.”
Jolin let out a brittle laugh. “Love? The only thing she loves is the earth.” She began rearranging the pots.
“Jolin . . .” Lilette began.
Jolin wiped her dirty hands on her dress. “Now you understand why I have such poorly developed social niceties.” She waved in the direction her mother had gone. “Look what I had for an example.”
“Jolin,” Doranna said with a hint of warning.
Lilette had seen the way people looked at Bethel. “I don’t understand.”
Jolin went still for a beat. “Mother has always been paranoid—she’s convinced Grove City is on the brink of collapsing. It’s why she built the ramparts around it. It’s why she built Haven out of an island of cliffs in the middle of the sea.”
“Your mother—she made them?” Lilette breathed. “Then . . . why isn’t she the Head of Earth? Surely no one is stronger.”