The Study of Poisons, page 25
Ari and Janco had been assigned seats near the door in case anyone tried to attack during the feast. Their fighting skills had drastically improved since they’d been training with Maren and Valek, making them qualified to guard the entrance. They also had an open path to the dais in case Yelena needed them.
Valek scanned the room for trouble as he enjoyed his meal. Rand had exceeded expectations—the roasted meat melted in his mouth. The best part, neither he, nor Yelena, detected anything foreign in the food.
When the meal was finished, half the lanterns were extinguished. Valek leaned forward and grasped the hilt of his sword. He noted that his agents by the curtains also prepared for action. The next event ran the highest risk for Star’s interference.
The band increased their tempo and volume until a pulsing beat filled the room, signaling the entrance of the troupe of fire dancers the Commander had hired to perform for the Sitians despite Valek’s objections.
Carrying blazing staffs of wood, they raced into the cleared area in the middle of the room. At least they didn’t rush to ignite the curtains. Well, not yet. Valek watched closely as they performed a complex dance routine. They whirled and somersaulted and flipped while twirling their flaming staffs. An impressive display of coordination, timing, and athleticism.
He remembered Yelena’s comment about him becoming a fire dancer. Leaning back, he said, “I don’t think I would have made it past the audition, Yelena. I probably would have set my hair on fire by this point.”
“What’s a singed head for the sake of art?” she teased.
Laughing, he returned his attention to the dancers. At the end of their routine, they earned a standing ovation. The crowd chanted for more and the troupe obliged. Twice. Coated with a sheen of sweat, they blew kisses to the crowd before leaving the room.
Once the applause died down, the master magician stood. She held a bottle of Sitia’s famous cognac. Opening it, she poured an amber colored liquor into three tumblers. Touched that she’d included him, Valek handed the Commander’s glass to Yelena to taste.
Yelena performed the first three S-steps, but after swirling the liquid around her mouth, she spat it out with force. She gagged and sputtered and finally choked out, “My Love.”
Bloody hell. Valek knocked the other glasses over as Yelena toppled from her stool and sprawled on the floor. He ducked down and pushed her off the dais and behind the curtain, hoping she didn’t hit her head too hard. Then he spun, grabbed the bottle of Sitian cognac hidden under the table, that he’d bought earlier just in case, and stood.
“I’m so sorry. I tripped on the tablecloth,” he said to everyone. He mopped clumsily at the spilled cognac, making wild gestures with his right hand while swapping his new bottle for the magician’s. “Guess I’m not used to such fine dining.” A few people laughed and Valek spotted Ari and Janco edging toward the back of the dais. Good.
A servant brought three new glasses and Valek poured the cognac. He sipped from one glass, ensuring it was indeed clean and handed it to the Commander, who frowned. The third glass he gave to the magician. She stared at him in surprise tinged with fear.
“Just go with it,” he whispered to them both.
The master magician held out her drink and said, “My name is Irys Jewelrose and I’m here on behalf of the Sitian Council. The Council is honored to be invited to Ixia, and we hope this visit will include reaching an agreement with you in the sharing of our knowledge and goods. We also hope that this will be the start of a long friendship between our two countries.” She raised the glass higher. “To Ixia and Sitia!”
The Commander raised his tumbler and clinked it with hers before drinking. Valek downed his cognac in one gulp. He needed its warmth, as he’d have to endure the inevitable questions while worrying about Yelena. Did she swallow a lethal dose? At least, Ari and Janco had noticed what happened and had come to her aid.
The toast signaled the end of the feast. The band returned to playing boring songs as people milled about talking and laughing. The feast was a success. Pity the Commander didn’t have more of them. It would boost morale.
“My office, now,” the Commander ordered him and Irys.
They glanced at each other before following the Commander. Valek checked behind the curtain to make sure Yelena was gone. He grabbed both bottles of cognac—his had a small black dot on the label—and joined them. No one said a word during the trip to the office.
The Commander sat on the edge of his desk. “Explain what just happened.”
“The Sitian cognac was laced with a lethal poison called, Have a Drink, My Love,” Valek said.
Irys sucked in a breath. “Poisoned? Are you sure?”
“Yes. Did you not notice our food taster passing out?”
“I… But we drank…”
He held up his cognac. “We drank from an untainted bottle.” Then he set them down on the desk.
It didn’t take long for the magician to understand. Horror replaced her confusion. Irys turned to the Commander. “We did not poison the cognac. I swear, we would never try to ruin this meeting. It’s too important.”
“We know.” The Commander looked at Valek, inviting him to continue.
“We learned of a plot to sabotage this conference,” he said to Irys. “However, we didn’t have any details of what they planned to do, so we prepared for everything. Who gave you the cognac for the feast?”
“I bought it in Sitia. It’s from my personal collection. Do you think someone snuck into my room and poisoned it?”
And risk being caught by a master magician? “No. Has it been in your possession this entire time?”
“It was in my luggage until this evening. My bag has been with me the entire journey, except for when your porters carried our suitcases to the guest suite.”
No doubt Star had paid one of the porters to swap bottles—an easy thing to do.
“Find out which porter was bribed,” the Commander ordered Valek.
“Yes, sir.”
“Will your food taster survive?” Irys asked Valek.
“Yelena spat most of it out. She should recover in a few days, but it will depend on the concentration of the poison.”
“I’ve some healing ability. Please let me know if I can help.”
The Commander raised an eyebrow. “Magical healing?”
She glanced at Valek then set her shoulders. “Yes, magical healing.” Irys drew in a deep breath. “I planned to fully introduce myself to you tomorrow. But considering the circumstances, I feel it prudent to do it now. I’m Fourth Magician, Irys Jewelrose, and a member of the Sitian Council.”
“Why wait?” Valek asked.
“I wanted Commander Ambrose to decide who would be privy to this information, so I was waiting for a time when we were alone.” She cocked her head. “But you’re not surprised. You recognized me from the fire festival.”
“I picked up that you have master-level powers, but I didn’t know your name or your rank. Why did you try to kill Yelena?” He demanded.
“It was a mistake. I thought she had uncontrolled magic. Magicians who are unable to control their magic will flame out and ruin the blanket of power for the rest of us. But it wasn’t her. When we met in the forest, I had more time to assess her.”
Either she was lying, or Yelena had lied about their encounter. Valek was inclined to believe Yelena, as she had been properly terrified after that incident and had not been relieved. Had Irys read Yelena’s mind and used Reyad as an excuse for targeting her for assassination? Why? And why would either of them lie? There was more going on here.
“Why did you think it was her in the first place?” the Commander asked.
“We felt someone with power last year in MD-5, but the surges stopped for almost a year. Then we were recently hit with another one from the castle. The timing matched when your new food taster started working, plus she arrived from MD-5 a year ago. But it’s not her.”
“Can you feel these…surges from Sitia?” The Commander sounded doubtful.
“I can. All the master magicians can.”
“If it’s not her, then who is it?”
“After investigating…” She glanced at Valek because she had just admitted to espionage. “I learned that a person died during both occurrences. When a magician dies, they create a pulse that ripples through the power blanket much like a surge, but without the destructive force. An uncontrolled magician doesn’t flame out right away. It builds over time. Small surges that get stronger and stronger until they take too much power and can’t control it.”
In other words, she thought Reyad and Horus had been magicians. An interesting notion. Could it have been Mogkan both times? No. The man had control of his magic.
“Those people would have shown signs of having magic, which they did not,” the Commander said.
“Not necessarily. Some people have what we call a ‘one-trick’ ability. Most of them have no idea they’re using magic.”
“For example?”
“A Cowan clan man always knew when someone was lying. He thought he just had good intuition, but it was really a magical ability. We tested him extensively, but that was all he could do.”
“Could you tell when he used magic?” the Commander asked.
“Only when he was close to me. It’s very light.”
By the line of the Commander’s questioning, Valek sensed he might be sent out to go door to door, looking for people with one-trick abilities. That would be pure hell.
“Is anyone else in your party a magician?” Valek asked.
“No.”
“Is there anyone else investigating in Ixia?”
“No.”
He wondered how many times Irys had entered Ixia to investigate.
Irys must have guessed his thoughts. “I’m the only magician who has been sanctioned by the Sitian Council to illegally cross into Ixia. Each time was due to dangerous surges that threatened the blanket of power.”
Which meant, there were other magicians not sanctioned by the Council. Interesting distinction.
“Do you kill the ones you find?” the Commander asked.
“If they’re too far gone, yes. If they have time to learn control, then I smuggle them into Sitia. And if they’re in a position where I can’t rescue them, like one of your advisers or a soldier, then I would have to…end their lives.”
“All for your precious power blanket,” the Commander said.
“Yes.” She was unapologetic.
“Thank you for answering our questions,” the Commander said.
“I wanted to be fully honest with you before going into these discussions.”
“It’s a promising start. We’ll reconvene in the morning.”
Wow. That went a hundred times better than Valek had expected. He’d hoped the Commander would only send them home and not order their arrest and Irys’s execution, but to continue the talks was just another example of the Commander’s personality change.
Valek grabbed the bottles of cognac and escorted Irys to her quarters. Before he left, he asked Irys, “How many magicians have you smuggled to Sitia?”
“Three. And now I’m afraid my honesty will stop me from saving more lives.”
“Yes, you will have to stop.”
Irys gave him a shrewd look as Valek bade her a good night. Kenda waited for him just outside the main entrance to the guest wing. Two of the Commanders’ soldiers guarded the door.
“I’ve gotten a dozen reports from our agents and none of them match. What the hell happened at the feast?” she demanded.
“I’ll explain on the way,” he said.
“To where?”
“My suite.” He increased his pace and described what happened.
“Poison, huh? You’ve got to admit, it would have worked,” Kenda said, jogging to keep up. “The Commander would have accused the Sitians and they would have accused you.”
“Me?”
“Yeah, the Commander invited them. So obviously he wanted them here. Plus, you’re the magician killer.”
“I thought I was the baby killer.”
“That, too. You’re ambitious that way.” She smirked.
“Thanks,” he said dryly. “I need you to interrogate all the people who carried the Sitians’ bags to the guest suite. Find the person responsible and bring them to my office.”
“Tonight?”
“Yes.”
“Yes, sir.” She saluted and headed back.
When Valek reached the entrance to his suite, he paused for a moment to banish his worry and fear into a deep dark well. Assuming a neutral expression, he strode into the living room. Janco sprang from the couch as if he’d been caught stealing. Valek set the heavy bottles on the table. The lanterns had all been lit and Yelena’s door was open.
“Stop! No!” Yelena yelled.
He bolted into her room, ready to fight. But she lay on the bed with the blanket and sheets crumpled underneath her. Her uniform was twisted around her, and her boots were on the floor. Ari sat in a chair next to her bed.
“Somersault…feather…prize…,” Yelena mumbled. Sweat beaded on her brow. “Barn! Barn!”
“She’s been raving like this since I carried her here. Why did you order us to bring her here and not to the infirmary? Did you know she was going to be poisoned?” Ari demanded. His eyebrows were smashed together, and he clenched his fists as if he wished to punch Valek.
“She’s always in danger of being poisoned. It’s safer here, and I’ve a supply of poison antidotes just in case.”
“There’s an antidote? Why didn’t you tell us?” He jumped to his feet.
“There’s no antidote to My Love. Or I would have followed you right away.”
“Oh.” Ari’s anger deflated. He gazed at Yelena. “Will she…is she…”
“…straw…fire…feathers…,” Yelena muttered.
“She’ll live,” Valek said, moving closer. He smoothed her hair, pulling a few sweaty strands away from her face. “It’ll take her a couple of days to recover from the poison. In fact, it’s a good sign that she’s delirious.”
“What can we do for her?” Ari asked.
“Stay with her. I need to be with the Commander. You can wipe the sweat from her forehead, so it doesn’t sting her eyes, and apply a cool damp cloth. You’ll need a bucket because she’ll empty her stomach, and clean sheets in case you’re not fast enough.”
“I’ll send Janco for supplies. What about when she wakes?”
“Let me know right away. She’ll be thirsty. Have some water nearby.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Somersault, somersault, cartwheel…and…fly… Fly! Fly away!”
“I’ll ask the medic to come check on her just in case. She can help Yelena change into her night clothes, they’ll be more comfortable.”
Her eyes flew open. “Valek! My love! My love!”
Taking her hand in his, he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. “Shhh. It’s okay. You were perfect. You saved us.”
Lost in another delusion, she yanked her hand away. “Fire…fly…crash…sneeze…”
“Let me know if her symptoms get worse,” Valek said to Ari.
“Yes, sir.”
Janco remained standing by the couch. “Did you arrest the southerners?”
“No.” He grabbed the cognac bottles and headed out.
“But, they—”
Valek didn’t have time to explain it to him. Obviously Janco hadn’t connected the incident to Star, even though he’d been at the brainstorming session. Was it an inherent dislike for the Sitians, or were Janco’s thoughts just that scattered? Valek slowed as another notion struck him. One of the other southerners could have added the poison while they were traveling. Perhaps not all the Sitians were happy about the possibility of a trade treaty. Which meant, Star could still be a threat. Janco might be on to something. Who knew?
CHAPTER 19
After checking that the Commander was well protected and confirming the schedule for tomorrow, Valek returned to his office. He set the bottles on the sideboard next to his desk. Resigned to the fact he wouldn’t get much sleep over the next few days, he sat down and considered the attack.
Just because they ruined one plot to upset the conference, didn’t mean there weren’t others in place. If Star had poisoned the cognac, then her plan hadn’t worked, and she might try again.
A knock interrupted his thoughts. “Come in.”
Kenda escorted a disheveled man into his office. The man wore pajama pants, socks, and a stained shirt. He smelled like sour beer. His wide face was creased in a belligerent expression. Interesting.
Kenda pointed to the chair in front of the desk. “Sit.”
The man glared at her but did as ordered.
“This here is Emmet,” she said. “According to his colleagues, he’s come into some money recently.”
“So? I got lucky playing cards,” Emmet said.
“They also said you suck at playing cards.”
“Hence the luck,” he almost growled.
“And he was one of the people who carried up the Sitians’ bags.”
“So? There were twelve of us. Damn southerners didn’t pack light.”
“But only one of you fell far behind the others on the way to the guest wing,” Kenda said.
He shrugged. “The bag was heavier than it looked. I about broke my back lugging that thing up three flights of stairs.”
“Your evidence is all circumstantial, Kenda,” Valek said. “I think you bothered this poor man for no reason.”
Kenda threw her hands up. “It’s all I had. Fine. I’ll go back and question the other porters again.” She stormed out.
“I am very sorry for the inconvenience,” Valek said to Emmet.
“It’s all right.”
“You’ll never get back to sleep now.”
Emmet stood. “It’s okay.”
“No. No. I have just the thing.” Valek poured some Sitian cognac into a tumbler. “This is the expensive stuff. A few sips of this and you’ll sleep like a baby.” He handed the glass to Emmet.
