#author: JadeThorne

[redditnosleep]

Flower Girl

by JadeThorne

I’d heard the rumors.

Kind of hard to live in such a small town and avoid them, really.

“Don’t meet her eyes.”

“Best not to speak to that one – she’s a mite touched in the head, you know.”

“I hear tale she dances naked under the new moon with a host of demons.”

Yeah. Right.

My parents had died when I was in my twenties; my mother from cancer when I was twenty-one, and my dad from drugs when I was twenty-four. They hadn’t left me much, not that I’d really expected anything. Still, it was enough to buy myself around twenty acres of land on the outskirts of town, and build a small cabin.

I had a greenhouse attached to the south wall, and inside the greenhouse I grew angel’s trumpets and orchids. My plants were cultivated with care, and occasionally I’d get the odd call from the florist asking if I could spare one or two. I didn’t like to sell them, but the florist had always been nice to me.

You see, I grew very rare orchids and angel’s trumpets. They bloomed in deep crimson, dark purple, and pure black. Colors not found in nature, not even grown by the top horticulturists.

It was my plants that started those rumors, but I didn’t let them bother me. People had a funny way of deciding what sort of person you were without even getting to know you, much less talking to you. Besides that, I preferred the solitude of the woods around me. I had deer that I fed, along with various birds.

My cell rang late Thursday evening, right as I was finishing up in the greenhouse.

“Got a huge favor to ask you, Raven,” Delia said, sounding nervous. “An order just came in for a black and red arrangement – it’s for Miss Alexis.”

I sighed, the name making me want to say no immediately. Alexis and I did not get along, not at all, and I wondered why she had placed that order knowing the flowers would likely have to come from me. “How many?” I asked.

“I need at least four of each,” she replied.

“Alright, I’ll have them to you in half an hour,” I agreed, and disconnected the call. I looked over my stock, and decided to take flowers from the older plants. Alexis didn’t deserve my best, after all. Neatly snipping the flowers, I placed the paste I’d made over the cut stems on both the flowers and the plants, and then gently placed the flowers into a large basket. Not bothering to pull my hair back or change out of the black dress I wore, I grabbed my keys and headed into town.

Alexis was in Delia’s store when I got there.

Ignoring her, I carried the basket to Delia and set it on the counter. “Four of each, as you asked,” I murmured.

Alexis walked up and began pawing through the flowers. “These will never do,” she stated, giving me a nasty little look.

I raised one eyebrow. “They will have to, Alexis,” I told her. “This is all the stock I have available at the moment. If you don’t like the flowers I’ve brought, you are welcome to drive to the next town and see if they have something more suitable.”

She dumped the basket onto the floor and began stomping the flowers. “Looks like you’ll just have to find more, hm?” she asked, sneering at me.

I regarded my crushed stock for a moment. “I’d say you’re shit out of luck,” I replied, picking up my basket to turn and leave.

“You’d better have flowers down here in an hour for my arrangement, or I’ll tell my daddy to have you and Delia both locked up!” she spat.

I turned around slowly, eyebrow still raised. “I really wouldn’t advise that,” I warned.

She fished out her cell phone, tapping out numbers. “Daddy? Delia doesn’t have my arrangement because that bitch in the woods refuses to bring any decent flowers,” she said.

I’m not sure what he said to that, but her face fell.

“But Daddy,” she whined, “I have to have this arrangement!”

I just looked at Delia, shaking my head. “I’m out of here,” I said, and headed out the door. Sounded to me like she’d finally pushed her father too far, and he was laying down the law to her. He should have done it years ago, if you asked me.

I was probably a mile from my driveway when my cell rang again.

It wasn’t Delia though.

“Raven,” Dan greeted pleasantly. “I, ah, wanted to apologize for my daughter’s tantrum. Delia tells me she threw your flowers on the floor and stomped on them.”

“That would be correct,” I said.

“That was poor of her,” he commented. “Listen, I wondered if you would consider joining us tonight at the gala. Delia will be there, and I’d like to compensate you both for my daughter’s behavior.”

“An invitation to a gala that will surely bore us both to tears?” I mused, and laughed. “Dan, really. That’s not the sort of compensation you offer someone when your offspring trashes flowers that took me years to produce.”

“No, no, you mistake me,” he countered quickly. “I will compensate you for the flowers in full. I just thought you might like to come to the gala is all.”

“I’ll consider it,” I told him, and disconnected the call. When I pulled up to the cabin, I saw my horned owl sitting on the railing of the porch. Getting out of the car, I sighed as I walked up to him. “Well, my old friend,” I murmured, regarding huge, golden eyes. “Should I attend this gala?”

He chortled, ruffling feathers, and then took to the air.

“That’s a yes, then,” I muttered, and went inside to clean up the cabin and wait. The gala wasn’t until seven, so I had a few hours to kill.

At six, I piled my hair up into a messy bun and secured it with black chopsticks, before doing my make-up. I didn’t really like wearing it, but this was a formal event. Smoky eyes and crimson lips and I was done, then it was off to the closet to select a gown. Fortunately, I happened to have just the thing.

It had been an impulse buy, really. The gown was made from black velvet, with bell sleeves and black mink trimming the hem. There was a cut-out in the shape of a tear-drop, lined with jet beading, that displayed a good amount of cleavage. It trailed slightly on the ground behind me, but I wasn’t worried about it getting dirty. Slipping into it, I studied myself in the mirror to be sure I looked presentable. Then I put on a pair of flats and picked up my heels to head back into town.

The drive there was uneventful, and I cruised along the main road into town at twenty miles over the limit. I knew the cops were all at the gala too, so I wasn’t worried about a ticket. Besides, I was pretty sure I could talk my way out of one, if need be. After all, it was a new moon tonight …

You could have heard a pin drop when I walked in those doors.

Pointedly ignoring the stares, the gasps, I focused on crossing the room to Delia. “You’d think these people had never seen me before,” I remarked.

“Not like this, they haven’t,” she told me, looking me over. “Not to sound funny, but you look absolutely stunning. That gown was a good choice.”

I smiled, hugging the older woman and looking at the purple silk sheath dress she’d worn. “Likewise,” I told her. “Purple is your color.”

“Ladies!”

We both rolled our eyes at the sound of Dan’s too cheerful voice, and then smothered the laugh at the fact that we’d done it.

“Well, aren’t the two of you a sight,” he said, his eyes roaming over Delia first and then me. “I’m so glad you decided to come tonight.”

“I’ve probably made worse decisions,” I muttered, uncomfortable with how he was staring at me. “Well, we’re here, Dan. I don’t know about Delia, but I don’t plan on staying long, so if you could pay me for my poor flowers, I’d appreciate that.”

“My wallet is in my coat,” Dan expressed, motioning to the stairs. “If you’ll come with me, I’ll pay you now.”

I ascended the staircase behind him, my hand lightly trailing along the banister. Where I touched, tiny black flowers began to appear against the white marble. By the time I reached the top, I had those same tiny flowers crawling up my right arm from my fingers.

“Ah, here we are,” Dan said, going into a darkened room. “Come, Raven, let me pay you, dear.”

“If you insist,” I murmured, my eyes gone black and empty.

Dan closed the door behind me, shoving me against the wall and groping my right breast. “I hope you find this payment acceptable, you little tease,” he hissed, reaching down to pull the gown up.

I began to laugh.

Confused, he faltered for a moment. “I guess they were right when they said you were crazy too,” he mumbled, still struggling to find the hem of my gown to pull it up. “What the fuck?”

I just smiled, as the blackened vines wound up around his arm, tiny black flowers sprouting as they went. “Do you not like flowers, Dan?” I inquired, tilting my head to one side.

He struggled to pull free, but the vines just tightened their hold on him, reaching for his throat. “What the fucking hell are you?” he demanded.

“Me?” I asked, feigning innocence. “Why, Dan, I’m just the flower girl. Didn’t you know that?”

“Let me go, you witch!” he yelled, thrashing on the floor.

I smiled down at him. “Now why should I do that, Dan?” I asked him, watching my flowers wrap around his throat and then creep up his jawline. “After all, you meant to do me harm. Non-consensual sex is not a payment, you son of a bitch.”

“Oh my, looks like Dan got himself into a mess,” Delia mused from behind me.

“He didn’t like my flowers, Delia,” I said. “I really can’t understand why, when his own daughter just had to have them.”

“Delia, please!” Dan choked out, and a black flowering vine snaked into his mouth.

“Please what?” she asked, putting one arm around my shoulders. “Please let you go so you can hurt her? No, I don’t think so, Dan.”

Another vine snaked across the floor, this one bearing tiny purple flowers. It wound its way around his foot, then shot up his trouser leg. A muffled scream was heard not too long after, when the vine reached his groin.

She and I stood over Dan, watching the vines snake in and out of his mouth, nostrils, and ears, some turning deep red with his blood. Black, purple, red … they intertwined to traverse his entire body from the inside out. Dan gave one last shudder, and went limp on the floor.

“Such a pity,” Delia murmured. “Who knew he’d be allergic to the flowers we sell?”