Category: The Faerie Thief

The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 008

TFTcoverSuspended in the air as though she were floating in a waterless ocean, Gwyn laughed with delight as all the strange and wonderful objects in Lyra’s world turned a bright shade of violet before settling into various hues of much purpleness.

A clock that was half cat grinned at her from the mantle of a fireplace that had perched itself on a coatrack. A drop of purple fell to the ground and bled lilacs and violets, orchids and posies until there was a thick blanket of them so far as the eye could see.

Purple lanterns blinked into existence as they strung themselves along the silver elms encircling them. Gwyn smiled as dolls dressed in fancy purple gowns flew up to the lanterns and held a tea party while a cloud of pixies danced about them.

“It’s lovely,” she sighed, wishing she could keep the warm, open feeling in her chest forever.

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 007

TFTcoverThe top of the door was arched, and the lines simple, but it looked as though someone had dipped a quill with gold faerie dust and sketched a door into the air. Some of the aching in her heart eased, and her breaths didn’t pinch so tight in her chest. If only she knew how to make doors in the real world.

“You’ve forgotten the doorknob,” Lyra whispered, as if the slightest sound could dissolve the magic.

Taking a deep breath, and keeping her eyes open this time, Gwyn held out her hand and brushed her longest finger against the center of the door.

Slowly, ever so slowly, the shimmerings of a knob faded into view.

“Open it.”

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 006

TFTcoverLyra had hair the color of the sun and eyes the color of the sky during the height of summer when the blue was at its deepest. Her smile was a field of butterflies and glow worms, and her laugh was the wings that let Gwyn fly away from the Garden for a time.

And yet, for all that, the most remarkable thing about Lyra was her tendency to turn invisible when she wasn’t paying attention.

But right now, as she orchestrated the tea table—the crumpets had begun doing some sort of waltz with the sandwiches—Lyra was vibrant with attention.

“You came!”

It was going to be all right. Even if only for the length of Lyra’s visit. Gwyn took special care to memorize the scene before her so she could fold it away in her memory for later.

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 005

TFTcoverConfections and cakes were piled high on glass platters. Tiny sandwiches with no crusts, scones dripping with melted butter, and five different types of bread completed the spread. A porcelain teapot with a cheerful smattering of pinks and pansies and daisies sat in the very center of the table. The sugar bowl hid behind the bulge in the teapot’s middle, shy, while a smaller version of the teapot stood stiff and tall, proudly bearing the cream.

For a moment, Gwyn’s heart soared. The queen watched her with a patient smile on her face before she rang the silver bell at her elbow to summon a servant.

“You seem to have forgotten the girl’s treat,” the Ruby Queen said, enunciating every word with relish.

The servant bobbed her head and rushed away, her eyes averted.

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 004

TFTcover“A rebel, Your Majesty?” Gwyn winced. Her voice was at least an octave too high and a shade too weak.

The queen didn’t say anything; she just looked at Gwyn, her eyes the color of night and twice as unforgiving. Auburn curls fell in soft waves against her face, the only part of her that was gentle. The queen’s poppy-red skirts unfurled about her legs like petals that had bloomed to their fullest.

And she smiled with scarlet lips that hid hungry teeth.

The yellow rose twisted in Gwyn’s hand, and she wished she’d thought to hide it away the moment her cousin had given it to her. Hope and beauty didn’t last long in the Garden, not without the Ruby Queen’s permission.

Permission she never gave to anyone but herself.

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