Rosegarden Novels & Stories

'' She replies, lightly running her hand at Elis's back. A couple of hours later, I am left staring at the glass window near the back—only watching flowers blossoming beautifully. My lips curve up into a small smile, realising that there's a lot of roses here other than different flowers. To my surprise, I find Fiore standing a few feet from me as she watches the roses, ''They are Elia's favourite.'' She says, breaking the silence. ''Especially orange coloured roses,'' She adds. Roses. Is it a coincident?

As we approached the garden doors, I let Raphael know I’ll take it from there and ask him to leave. When I opened the doors, I’m greeted with one of my favorite gardens, a rose garden. The Count had some professionals decorate and arrange it into a small indoor garden, with two giant fountains in the middle, white benches on the sides, and lamps to illuminate during the night, and the roof was see-through. You could also open it for air or rain to pour in. Walls and pillars were white, with small vines covering them. Rose bushes were everywhere, as he knew I loved roses, especially white ones.

If it wasn’t for Avery dragging her along. Kira wouldn’t have had a clue about this gigantic rose garden hidden in the Southern Suburb of Hemsworth. That was Avery’s little secret, not part of the Chambers Group. He had fields, as big as hundreds of acres, all filled with Damask roses. Under the sunset, the garden was a sight for sore eyes. The bright pink roses against the green leaves were stunning to look at and would definitely lift anyone’s mood. Kira was hooked, she couldn’t take her eyes off them.

My voice was low, flat, and respectful. "Good," he said, stepping closer. "The dock reports are clear. Maldok’s port managers are processing our cargo without trouble. The estate is secure." I looked at him, picking up on the cold focus in his eyes. "Does that mean I can walk down to the conservatory? Or the rear garden?" Martinez stopped two feet away from me. He looked down at my face, his expression unreadable. "Why do you want to go to the garden, Rodah?"

He always would have. Evening. The garden in its late light. Four plants now. Rosemary. Thyme. Sage. And a small lavender cutting Roan had brought back from the borderland market where he had gone to clear his head one Saturday and come back with it in his jacket pocket and no particular explanation. She had planted it in the northwest corner of the plot. It was still finding its roots. Still becoming. She sat on the low stone wall at the garden's edge. The territory in its evening breath.

There was a trace of puzzlement in her eyes as she looked at Fabian, who hadn't been back for very long. Fabian's smile grew even brighter, yet it appeared all the more hideous and grotesque. "Yup." Yvonne walked closer to the sea of roses. I could tell she liked it very much, but there was something strange about her expression. "How did the roses here grow so well?" Yvonne murmured, gently stroking the rose blossoms. "Of course they're blooming beautifully. Yvonne, I know who you hate the most, so I turned him into fertilizer to nourish these roses."

Like I had the power of life and death. The third one, however, I did not allow to burn entirely but only the edge of the petals. Half red and half black. Roses on fire. Suddenly, I let out a hysterical laugh until my cousin walked into the office, perhaps brought on by the smell or even my outbursts. “What the hell are you doing, Rick?” “Killing them!” I replied, keeping my fanatical grin on my face. “Killing roses…” he repeated as he approached. “You okay, bro?”

Our cab had already arrived, so we got in and headed straight for Reno’s Boutique — one of the biggest in New York. I’d only heard about the place from Marielle, but stepping inside was something else entirely. The glass walls gleamed, the scent of expensive perfume filled the air, and designer dresses shimmered under the warm lights. I ran my fingers across one of them, smiling a little for the first time in days. Tessa and I started browsing through the racks. When we reached the trousers section, I picked a few to try on — and that was when I saw her. Marielle. She was clinging to Adrian’s arm like her life depended on it, laughing too loudly, too sweetly. The moment her eyes met mine, he

The winter roses were in full bloom, their petals glowing silver under the moon, frost edging their thorns like delicate lace. Liera gasped as they stepped into the clearing. “Wow… I had only heard of them. Never seen them.” The frozen roses stretched before them, their blooms perfect and ethereal, silver frost sparkling on every petal. The garden was a hidden jewel of Ravencrest, a place few were allowed to enter. Ryke had come here often when the weight of his duties grew too heavy. Now, he watched Liera as she stepped closer, her green eyes wide with wonder, fingers reaching out to touch a bloom without disturbing the frost.

Kate trembled, hugging her pillow. What had happened the day before still made her shake with fear and disgust. She stood up and looked out the window. She was on the second floor. Below, she saw a large garden full of red roses—her favorites—and a small patch of lavender, her second favorite flower. There was a massive pool with crystal-clear water. The place was so big, she couldn’t see all of it at once. What she could see was that it was surrounded by walls at least eight feet tall. She sighed against the glass, fogging it up.