Page 54 of Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore
Violet frowned. Shadowfade had not been known to chase ghosts.
“But the Eye of the Serpent has a reputation that expands beyond the legend.”
“Of course it does. The Eye was always a big tourist draw for the town,” said Pru. “Back when, you know, we had tourists.”
The nameShadowfadehung in the air between them, because of course no one would want to visit a windy little mountain town that also happened to be within spitting distance of a dark sorcerer with homicidal tendencies. Violet was working on that, of course, but even once she managed to get rid of Sedgwick, that wouldn’t change the fact that Dragon’s Rest was tainted with fear.Just another story, she thought, but the seed of an idea began to take root.
“What if it could be again?” she asked. “What if we could bring the tourists back? More business for both our shops, as well as everyone in town—and you’d have a larger audience to play for. You wouldn’t have to travel so much to find work if you didn’t want to.”
An image struck her then, of Pru up on that stage, telling thatstory—accompanied by music and costumes and a few actors to play the different roles—to a rapt audience each week on Market Day.
Pru cocked her head, thoughtful. “I suppose there’s an entirely new generation of people out there who have never heard of the hoard of Dragon’s Rest.”
“Exactly.” The idea had sprouted now, unfurling leaves and opening to the sun. Violet could feel it budding as it took on life. “We could build a town-wide treasure hunt that takes tourists through all the major business districts. Talk to Quinn and Fallon and the other business owners in town, and we could castourselves”—she stumbled over the word—“the businesses and all the people who live here, I mean, as the ‘treasures of Dragon’s Rest.’ ”
Pru looked intrigued by the idea. “If we could boost tourism, we could offset some of the hardship folks are facing and even head off some of what’s coming now that Feldspars is…” She trailed off, frowning.
“Right,” said Violet. “What about the blight?” For a moment, she had forgotten all about the blight and Sedgwick and the reason she was trying to learn about the legend to begin with.
But just as quickly, Pru waved a hand to dismiss the thought. “Do you honestly think my brother will rest until he’s found a solution?” she asked. “Nathaniel’s even more pigheaded than the warrior in the story, and he won’t hesitate to fight this particular dragon alone if he needs to. I’m not saying this isn’t a serious problem. It is. But it’s not a bad thing to look toward the future even as we’re still figuring out the present. The point is, with Shadowfade gone, Dragon’s Resthasa future now, and we can help be the ones who make sure it’s a good one. It’s a great idea.” She grinned. “We’ll call a meeting of local business owners and start planning. They’ll want to help, and they’ll have even more ideas than what the two of us can devise alone.”
As they chattered about festivals and themed market days, Violet reflected that Pru was right—Dragon’s Rest did have a future now, and Violet was flattered and a little sheepish to be a part of it. Maybe this was how she could redeem herself and put the Thornwitch to rest. Planning community events was about as far from villainous as she could imagine. Was this what it meant to be good?
But despite Pru’s optimism, Violet knew that in order for Dragon’s Rest to truly have a future, she had to keep it from sliding back into the past. She committed details of the legend to her memory.
She was certain now that Sedgwick believed the Eye of the Serpent could be found in Dragon’s Rest, and she had to stop him from taking over, not just for her own sake, but for the sake of the community she was growing to care about. Guy had been a lot of things, but he wasn’t stupid: whether or not all the details of the legend were true, Violet believed the Eye existed, and even if Sedgwick had a head start, no one had known Shadowfade like Violet did. She would follow his logic and pick up the trail where he had left off.
She would find the Eye first, and she would destroy it.
Risk
A sliver of light streamed from the crack beneath the door that separated his half of the upstairs hallway from Violet’s, and Nathaniel knocked before he could convince himself not to, turning the thick, brass key in the lock for the first time since she’d moved in.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he muttered to Daisy, who sat at his feet with her tongue lolling from her mouth. “It’s late, I’m just checking to make sure she’s well.”
When there was no answer, he convinced himself she simply hadn’t heard him, but he didn’t want to knock louder and risk waking Pru, who would certainly have questions he didn’t feel equipped to answer right now.
He turned away and was steps from his own bedroom door when he heard the clink of the lock on her side. Daisy whined and rushed for the door, her tail thumping on the carpet.
“Hi,” he said, feeling inexplicably breathless as he turned back.
“Hi.” Violet was wearing nothing but a dressing gown, which left her lower legs bare. Instantly, Nathaniel wondered if he’dmade a mistake in knocking on her door. After all, he was supposed to be avoiding distraction and giving her space. She bent down to scratch behind Daisy’s ears, and Nathaniel averted his eyes when he saw the way the garment gaped at the collar.
He cleared his throat. “I saw the light, and it’s so late, I—I wondered if perhaps the elixir wasn’t doing its job.”
Her face melted into a soft smile that made him recall exactly what it had been like to feel those lips under his. “It’s not the elixir,” she said, standing, and he stepped closer so they could continue to speak in low voices, unheard by Pru down the hall. “I can’t remember the last time I slept so well.”
His relief must have been evident on his face, because she looked at him oddly.
“Why? Should I expect it to stop working?”
“No, no, nothing like that.” Nathaniel leaned against the door frame and stared at the ceiling as he admitted, “It’s only, I’ve spent the past few days wondering if I can do anything right at all.”
Behind Violet, Peri appeared, which was apparently the best news Daisy had received all day. With a soft yip, she leapt toward the rock goblin and the two of them tore down the hallway, wrestling and pouncing on each other. Violet and Nathaniel both followed their movements for a moment until Violet said, “Why don’t you come in?” and stood back to allow him past the doorway.
As Daisy and Peri continued zooming and wrestling, Violet led him to her small kitchen. Nathaniel felt his shoulders loosen as he took a seat and looked around the room that had once been his mother’s study. It was undoubtedly Violet’s space now, with flowers and plants everywhere and an open book on the small table next to a bowl of vegetables from the garden and a plate of pastries. Nathaniel could smell them from here—they were thesame delicious brown butter, pear, and cardamom tarts Guy had brought him today. It didn’t surprise him one bit that Violet had managed to charm the old man into giving her baked goods.
Nathaniel plucked a cherry tomato from the bowl and rolled it between his fingers. “The vegetable gardens were my father’s,” he said, staring pointedly at the tomato instead of meeting her eyes. “He would be happy to know they are being used.”
