The Lotus Effect (Rise Of The Ardent) Read Online Free Page A

appetite immediately fled thinking of the injustice of such. Though, before I even had the chance to reach for my copperware, Mr. Briggins stood from across the room, eager for the chance to make the night’s first toast.
    “Tonight is indeed a momentous occasion!” he said boastfully, taking a moment to gather everyone’s attention. “Tonight our Lily Emerson, the once meek, awkward little girl, becomes a woman. Not only just a woman, but a Lady . . .” he emphasized the last word for effect, bringing about another round of polite clapping.
    Oh do get on with it, I thought, feeling my face turn hot and my insides cringe.
    “And not only,” he continued, raising his finger into the air, “will she be considered a Lady, she will also become a Mistress. ” He drawled out the word, making me frown slightly from the way he used it.
    Mr. Briggins grinned, but then his face sobered. “Alas, we are proud of the strict upbringing that only House Emerson could bestow upon their child. For everyone knows that a firm path leads to prosperity. We expect great things from you Lady Emerson.” He raised his glass towards the Council member’s table and towards my parents. “Long prosper House Emerson!”
    A third round of clapping commenced and my mother lifted her gaze to meet mine. I held her stare, not willing to shy away again.
    Something shattered within me at Mr. Briggin’s declarations. That no matter how hard I tried to squelch the inner voice that screamed at me to resist . . . some larger part was pushing me to be more than just the vapid doll everyone expected me to be—to simply accept that citizens were starving? To shrug indifferently, not caring that these poor souls were being punished for only wanting to survive?
    These people weren’t Abnormal.
    These people wouldn’t make us sick.
    This larger part, this Lily that Mrs. Fawnsworth warned me about, was urging me to fight.
    Urging me to fight back for the citizens of Prosper.
     
     

 
    Chapter 2
     
    The Blacksmith With Knowing Eyes
     
     
    Cousin Annette sat beside me as we ate, her blond ringlets bobbing as she drew the attention of everyone around her.
    Lost in my own thoughts, I tried to ignore her many envious advances on my right to rule, being that I had become well accustomed to them over the years.
    In a way, I pitied her. Annette wasn’t always so . . . so petty. Or cruel. I’ve found that envy tends to bring out the ugliest in people. Caught in this very trap, Annette lost her innocence from the moment she discovered that the position she so desired was only offered to me by right of birth.
    “The green Lily!” She nudged me with her elbow. “The green. My eyes. Do you see it? They’re just tiny specks, but if you catch the correct lighting you can see them. Lily?” She cleared her throat, forcing my attention.
    “Yes, Annette.” I made an effort to look at her eyes. “Yes, the green, the specks, they’re lovely.”
    I forced a memory of when we were young to the forefront of my mind: of us sneaking away into the Council library to climb to the topmost walkway, giggling as we’d hang our heads over the end of the wooden planks—pretending we were overlooking the Edge. The things we’d imagined that lay beyond would, of course, be dismissed as innocent fancy now. But what if what lay beyond wasn’t as abominable as everyone thought?
    What if?
    Annette narrowed her eyes from my lackluster response and pouted.
    Scottie chuckled, making us both turn to stare at him.
    He sighed, leaning back in his chair. “Oh how I tremble at the mere mention of such woes of women. I wish my only stresses revolved around the concern of the hue of my eyes,” he said with a laugh.
    I looked at him hard, unaffected. “And please, do tell . . . what are the woes of men that we women must tremble at the mere mention of?”
    His face lifted in pleasant surprise. He sat up straighter. “Have you not heard the news?”
    Annette, undaunted by his earlier