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Lucky for us, then, that the Nicola Arboretuht The hurried precautions Florian and I took to dress in anything rese the only guy on duty was an older gentle his rounds Fro off of his phone, it sounded veryAt least he was having fun

Plus, itto be easier Sneak in, steal soest – scratch that, the only botanical garden in the city of Valero It was the largest expanse of nature for miles around, too, unless you went beyond city limits, and who had the tione all the way to wine country to steal so our illicit liquor business But we needed fast cash, and this was going to have to do

Not that it felt like a chore or anything After we clah the gardens to go looking for fruit and flowers The arboretuht the aetation a distinctly dewy sheen Silass andlike jewels It was easy, alet to know Florian a little better, for once

“Hey, h soh credit I’s to you”

He wrinkled his forehead, giving le red berry into his rucksack “You’ve never been mean toto fix that”

“Yeah Thanks for saying that”

I scratched rass to look for or did say that it was the reason he“As if I’d know the first thing about responsibility I’m just a kid”

A kid who grew up too fast, I thought, but I didn’t say that out loud Life’s a little tougher when you don’t have a dad growing up, when your mom dies before you even hit your seventeenth birthday

Things were rough for h soical bootleg wine This was better than skipping from town to town, constantly unsure of where ht hours in an actual bed would come from

Florian shrugged “I’nificant factor,” he said, “but you’ve got a better head on your shoulders than I do most of the time Don’t sell yourself short”

I scooted down even further, landing oninto the underside ofYou don’t seeuy at all How the hell did you end up with soor?”

He shrugged again, sighing “Long story, but I’ll give you the gist of it You kno certain plants can hibernate underground for ages, like a kind of survival tactic to help theo snooze for the winter, then co That happened to me I didn’t know it could happen to my people”

I watched hiressing into the size and shape of a tiny little seed and burrowing into the earth I was pretty sure that wasn’t how it happened, but at least I had a visual to ith

“And Belphegor found arden like I was just some succulent he picked up at a farmer’s market I woke up, and that was it He wanted me to tend his Crimson Gardens – massive place, full of carnivorous plants, just the craziest shit But I was so groggy and weak froot frustrated, wanted some way to turn me into a better servant”

I frowned “So you’re indentured to him?”