Page 37 of Inked in Bloom
“Actually, yes,” Kendrick corrects me, and I wish he wouldn’t. I don’t want to know anymore. I don’t want this. Any of it. “It’s a blessing—a bond.”
Well, fuck Fate and her blessings.
Who died and made her the boss? Who does this to someone?
The room tilts, my legs becoming a pair of wobbly sticks beneath me. Kendrick stands and reaches out to steady me before I fall.
Taking a deep inhale, I grip my hands around my hips, rooting myself to the spot. I’m so dizzy, I may throw up. “Where do I go to talk to Fate? I’m sure if I explain that whoever she’s decided on for me is better off with a full-fledged Bloom, she’ll understand.”
“Harbingers aren’t allowed into her Den.” Cherri comes up and places a hand on my shoulder. “You’ll have to talk to a Radix and have one of them go to her on your behalf.”
“Seriously?” Guess bureaucracy even exists in the afterlife. “Where do I go to do that?”
“Their headquarters in The Nest,” Kendrick says, nodding in the direction of the burrow to our left. I start for the door, but he catches my wrist gently. Tipping my chin over my shoulder, I spare a glance his way, though I really need to get moving. Dosomething. “But Monroe… I’ve never heard of Fate changing a match.”
I give him a solitary nod and step out of his grasp. She’s never changed her mind before, but I’m more persistent than most.
Perhaps Fate’s finally met her match in me.
16
MONROE
Fortunately, I didn’t get lost on my way to the Radix Headquarters. It’s smack dab in the center of The Nest, twice as tall as any of the cottage-style mansions in the burrow. Bunny topiaries hop in a zig-zag between beds of vibrant flowers leading up the stone path toward its entrance. A large basket sits to the left, piled with shoes. I frown at it and then continue on, my heels clacking against the raised wooden floor. Squares of dirt are carved into the floor, a few budding with greenery. Not sure what they are for, but from the small wrought iron fences set around them, it looks as though they are not meant to be touched.
Equally spread along the walls are rose-gold frames, green vines wrapped around them. They hang from oversized dowels piercing the creamy floral wallpaper, and in each one is a photo of Florezca’s Radixes. I recognize my instructors immediately, refusing to linger over Briar’s picture despite wanting to. There’s an obnoxious curiosity to search for any semblance of him being the soft and sweet Sir Thumps-A-Lot I looked forward to coming home to before my death.
Flicking my gaze away, I land on another face I recognize, squinting because…
Surely there must be somemistake…
Feet shuffle across the wood, and I spin, finding the same face staring back at me. “Dani?”
“Welcome, Monroe,” my classmate says, lips pursed. “Though around here, it’s better to refer to me as Radix Daneel.”
“Well, isn’t this perfect,” I groan.
Of course they’d be the one I need to go to when shit hits the fan. This day couldn’t get any worse.
Dani cocks their head. “What do you need help with?”
Despite their words, there’s no genuine concern. If anything, they’re amused by my plight.
Asshole.
“I’d like to speak with a Radix.”Anyone but you.I resist scratching the fresh ink between my breasts, and take a deep breath. “Unless you’re able to help me get in touch with Fate.”
“No can do.” Dani shakes their head and tugs the lapels of their leather jacket, their green-gray gaze flitting toward the wall. “Unfortunately, I’m on a bit of a sabbatical.”
Interesting. My curiosity is piqued but not more than the pressing need to fix this whole mate situation. “In that case, are any others here?”
“Yes.” They nod down the hall where a pair of large double doors are shut. “But they’re in a meeting right now.”
“How long will they be?”
Dani shrugs. “No clue. Got somewhere better to be?”
“Not really.” Iclick-clackover to a bench in the corner, and Dani winces with each strike of my heel against the wood. The corner of my lip lifts. At least something’s satisfying right now. Plopping down, I cross my arms and wait.
