Page 7 of Tongue Tied

“Jeremiah can dig this one up. He needs to demonstrate more practical skills.”

There’s a long-suffering sniff from my other side, then Jeremiah crashes forward onto his knees. He’s a lot less graceful than his classmate. “Right, yeah. This will be a lot quicker if I do it. Move over, Eden.”

She sits back on her heels, dabs at her forehead with her wrist, and offers me a shy smile. My other student grunts and mutters as he works, but I don’t even glance over. I’m too locked-on to Eden, too busy staring and wondering and wishing I understood; wishing I knew if she’s scared of me and why.

But Eden reaches over and brushes a piece of twig off my shoulder.

My heart lurches. Not scared.

“Little plant jackass,” Jeremiah mutters, jamming the trowel into the soil.

Four

Eden

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Sickly trees conundrum

Hey Kai,

I was thinking about that orchid we dug up this morning, and what you said about the risk of fungus spreading. What do you do when the sick plants are the big trees? The ones holding up the whole canopy? You obviously can’t move them, so… what then?

Best,

Eden

PS. Thanks for making Jeremiah dig this one up. I tried teasing him about breaking a nail the other day, but he wouldn’t take the hint. He had to get his hands dirty eventually, right?

* * *

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Re: Sickly trees conundrum

Hey Eden,

Great question. There are things we can do to counter disease in the bigger trees—treatments and medicines; fungicides and selective pruning, etc. I’ll show you my top tips next time you’re in. But honestly, when it comes to the big boys… I do a lot of crossing my fingers and hoping they stay happy in the first place.

Kind Regards,

Kai Akana

Head Gardener

PS. You’re welcome. Now we just need to get you chatting my ear off like Jeremiah…

* * *

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Re: Re: Sickly trees conundrum

Source: www.allfreenovel.com