Page 365

“Yes.”

“For you to plant it.”

“Yes.” I look at the seed.

Three months ago, something inside me would have demanded it.

Plant. Grow. Feed.

Now?

Nothing.

I can throw this seed away or burn it.

Keep it in a jar.

Plant it.

My choice.

A laugh catches in my throat as I place it in the soil and cover it.

Nothing happens.

Perfect.

I stand. “Coffee.”

Rhett looks at the dirt. “That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

“No demonic tree?”

“No.”

“No screaming?”

“Hopefully.”

“No naked harvest cult?”

I look at him. “It’s eight in the morning.”

“That wasn’t a no.”

Ezra walks past him. “Inside.”

Rhett grins. “Oh, I know that tone.”

I grab my coffee. Maybe some traditions don’t need to die. Maybe they just need better rules.

By October, the garden covers half the property. Not unnaturally.

That’s important.

Things grow at the speed they’re supposed to.