Page 7 of A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poison

7

B isma didn’t know when she dozed off, only that one moment she was looking at the soft rise and fall of Mei’s chest, and the next, there was a gentle hand shaking her awake.

‘Bis, wake up,’ Xander said.

She startled, and a shawl fell from her shoulders. She shivered. When did that get there?

It took her a second to remember where she was and why. She looked up at Xander, who stood next to her.

‘You’ll want to see this,’ he said. All the previous hurt on his face was gone, replaced with something akin to excitement. He had bounced back to normalcy with alarming speed, which was why she had to be even more on her guard around him. But for now she was more concerned about her sister. Bisma followed his gaze and looked at Mei. Gasping, she abruptly stood.

‘Good grief,’ Bisma gasped. Mei’s skin was back to its original fawn tone, but the veins were such a dark purple they looked black. Even worse, they were bulging, as though there were slugs just beneath her skin.

It was a horrific sight, but Bisma did not look away. The image seared into her mind. This had happened on her watch. It was her fault .

‘This is good,’ Xander said, and she gave him an incredulous look. ‘No, really! It means all the poison has been raised and is just waiting to be extracted now.’

He pulled out a large leaf from a platter, showing her. She touched her finger to the light green surface; it had a texture to it like tiny teeth and was nearly translucent. She didn’t know what it was.

‘Took some trial and error, but I made it,’ Xander informed her. ‘Now watch this.’ He wrapped the leaf around Mei’s arm, until the skin was covered. ‘Wait for it …’

He was thrilled, practically vibrating with energy. She wanted to throttle him, but at the same time, his manner made hope bloom within her. She held her breath and watched.

Slowly, the leaf changed color from pale green to deep, dark green. When it seemed the leaf could grow no darker, Xander unwrapped it from Mei’s arm, revealing the skin underneath. Unblemished and clear.

Bisma looked up at Xander with wide eyes.

His cheeks were pink, though now the excitement in his eyes had doubled. ‘It sucked the poison out,’ he explained, hair flopping as he nodded at her.

‘That’s … wow.’

She didn’t know what to say, and she would usually rather die than let Xander know she was impressed by his magic, but this was too remarkable for her to scorn.

‘That expensive schooling does pay off every now and again,’ Xander joked.

He had gone away to a private school in Whitebridge for six years. Whitebridge was one of the biggest cities in Crownley and had one of the best schools in the entire kingdom of Fairendelle.

He was clearly much more learned than she was. Bisma had been taught basic things such as reading and math by her older sisters. Since none of her sisters were witches, she had taught herself garden-magic, with the Enchanted Forest supplementing her education, but Xander had had a proper education. Bisma wondered what that might be like. Being in a big city, with no responsibilities except to learn, read, practice. Growing better and better.

Bisma cut off the dream before it got out of hand. It could never be a reality; she would never abandon her sisters and the duties she had as their baji.

‘Let’s do the rest,’ Bisma said, clearing her throat. She reached for a leaf and began wrapping Mei’s upper arm. Xander got to work on her other arm, and they covered Mei’s skin until every inch was beneath a curing leaf.

It took a great deal of time because they had to ensure the tiny teeth of the leaf were sinking into her skin, then they had to wait for the poison to be sucked out. It was tedious work. After a few leaves, Bisma was already tired, and she saw that Xander was, too, his usually chipper mood dimming.

‘I can do it on my own,’ Bisma said. ‘You don’t have to.’

He arched a brow, looking across the table to her. ‘I’m positive you can,’ he said. ‘But not as good as me, surely.’

She narrowed her eyes, a fire flaring inside her. ‘Is that so?’

‘Go on, then,’ he said. ‘Prove me wrong.’

She scoffed. ‘As if that is a difficult task.’

Bisma got back to wrapping Mei’s skin, working faster than before, and she saw Xander do the same. They were racing to see who could get more done.

They had to wrap some areas multiple times because the leaves could only hold so much poison, but eventually they did it. It took a great deal of time—a few hours, at least—and by the end, they were both exhausted, but Bisma had done more. She ended up on Xander’s side, finishing Mei’s leg while Xander worked his way down.

‘Ha!’ she said, when the last of Mei’s skin cleared. ‘I win.’

Instead of being vexed, as Bisma had expected, Xander surprised her by laughing. He looked almost … pleased. She gave him an alarmed glance.

‘Since when are you so graceful in defeat?’ she asked, eyes narrowed. ‘You do realize I beat you, don’t you?’

He smiled, shaking his head. ‘Just happy to see you back to your ill-tempered self.’

She realized then that he’d done it on purpose. He had known that putting a competitive angle on their task would make the time pass faster, and indeed, it had. Tenderness for him poked her heart so powerfully, it was painful.

For a moment, Bisma considered doing something she would surely regret. But before she could act, a figure entered the greenhouse.

She and Xander both turned to see a slender woman in a long gown with intricate embroidery. It was a deep wine color that was striking against her creamy skin, and her copper hair was pulled back into a simple twist.

The famous and accomplished Eleanora Chapman.

‘Mother,’ Xander said, tone both vexed and affectionate.

‘Oh, I’m sorry, darling. I didn’t know you had company,’ she said, smiling fondly at him. ‘I was just checking in.’ Her green eyes turned to Bisma, who suddenly felt raggedy and unkempt.

‘Yes, just working on something,’ Xander said.

‘Why don’t you and your friend join me for breakfast and tell me all about it?’ Eleanora asked.

Xander turned to Bisma, and she felt like shrinking. A breakfast at the Chapman Estate was much too fancy for the likes of her; she doubted she would even know which fork to use. Rich people like Xander had multiple forks with their meals, which was just absurd.

Bisma shook her head.

Xander looked disappointed for a moment, but he turned back to his mother, saying, ‘No, thank you, Mother, we’re alright.’

‘Of course, dear,’ she replied. Her gaze turned curiously from her son to Mei on the table.

A protective edge came over Bisma; she stood in front of Mei, blocking Eleanora’s view.

Eleanora smiled, then turned and left.

Releasing a breath, Bisma turned to Mei, and Xander came to stand beside her.

‘It’ll be a bit before she wakes, I think,’ he said. He stretched, cracking his neck, then sighed. ‘I’ll be back.’

When he came back to the greenhouse, it was with a pot of strong tea, freshly baked bread, hard cheese, fried eggs, turkey bacon, and a decadent apple tart topped with vanilla custard. Xander set a blanket on the floor, then spread out the food. He sat, gesturing for Bisma to join him. She shook her head, heart beating fast. He was being too kind; it made her wary.

‘You won’t eat?’ Xander asked, leaning back on his elbow as he took a bite of bread.

It would be too easy to say yes, to give in, but she needed to be strong, to be careful.

‘No, I’m alright,’ she replied, lifting her chin.

He shrugged. ‘Suit yourself.’ He pulled the apple tart toward him.

It really did look delicious. Bisma’s convictions wavered. And besides, it wasn’t as though she was going to give him her heart just because he’d brought her some food.

‘Well, if you’re just going to eat it all like a pig,’ she said with a roll of her eyes.

He grinned as she sat down and ate with him. The tea was divine, just what she needed, and, oh, the cinnamon dusted atop the apple tart was truly heavenly.

They ate in companionable silence, until Mei roused.

Bisma jumped to her feet. ‘Mei!’ she called, rushing to her side. ‘How do you feel?’

Mei groggily rubbed her eyes, pushing her short hair back from her face.

Holding onto Mei’s thin arms, Bisma helped her sit up. ‘Slowly,’ Bisma said, as Mei swung her legs over the table. Xander came to Mei’s other side; he and Bisma helped Mei stand. She felt as light as a feather.

‘I’m …’ Mei trailed off as she registered something. Her eyes opened wider. ‘Is that custard? I’m starving .’

Bisma smiled. ‘Come, I saved you some.’

Mei sat down on the picnic blanket, and Xander pushed the food closer to her.

‘Ooh, fancy,’ Mei said, holding up the heavy silver spoon.

She began to eat, and a weight lifted off Bisma’s chest. Mei was alright. Bisma snuck a glance at Xander, who was smiling fondly, as relieved as she was. Something skittered across her chest, impossible to ignore.

Xander stood, coming to Bisma, and she stood as well, as if propelled by some force she had no control over, some sort of ancient magic she was not familiar with but which called to her all the same.

‘Bis,’ he said, giving her one of his usual smiles, though this time, she could see he was nervous. The pulse in his throat was racing.

She looked up into his eyes, which were the color of glistening evergreen trees after rain. They shone like jewels as he regarded her, the skin by his eyes crinkling softly. She inhaled the scent of cloves as he stepped closer. Her skin warmed.

‘Perhaps, sometime, we could get a meal together under less stressful circumstances?’ he asked, his voice low. She bit her lip, her heartbeat spiking as he reached for her hand, taking it in his. He ran his thumb across her knuckles.

She yearned to say yes—with every beat of her heart she did.

‘Or maybe not,’ Xander said, seeing her hesitate. ‘Perhaps we could just go for a walk in the woods?’

And those words—that question—it was like a bucket of ice had been poured over her. Bisma snatched her hand away from his. Those words were too familiar. She would not open herself to such pain and ridicule again.

Alarm and confusion filled Xander’s eyes.

‘I don’t give payment that way,’ she snapped.

He was taken aback by her tone. ‘That—that wasn’t what I was suggesting,’ he said, his brows knit together. He was upset. ‘Bisma, you know that’s not what I meant.’

‘Do I?’ She glared. ‘You’ll have your payment by the end of the week.’

‘You are impossible—always finding some way to twist my words against me.’ He let out a frustrated groan. ‘I don’t want your money.’

‘Of course you don’t!’ she cried, not caring that he was right. Being cruel was the only way to keep him away, to keep herself safe. She couldn’t trust him, no matter how much she yearned to. ‘My hard-earned coins mean nothing to someone as frivolous and spoiled as you.’

He stepped back as if slapped, genuinely hurt, but Bisma didn’t allow herself to focus on it. She couldn’t, or she would do something idiotic like apologize. She could not let tenderness for him grow in her heart; she would not. Not after all she had been through. She knew better—she had to know better.

‘Bis—’ he started again.

But she had already turned away from him. ‘Mei!’ she called. ‘We’re leaving. Now.’

She headed for the exit, Mei falling into step beside her.

‘Bisma,’ Xander said, his voice a strangled whisper, but she did not turn back.