Poison Study - Study 1

Chapter Twenty-Five

Reclining against the wall, I clung to Mogkan’s hand as the world faded around me. I felt an unwelcome jolt, then the tight blockage in my throat released. Gasping for breath, I came to my senses and realized I was lying prone on the floor. Next to me sat Valek atop Mogkan’s chest. Valek’s hands were wrapped around Mogkan’s neck, but his eyes were on me.

Mogkan smiled when Valek stood and yanked him to his feet. “I hope you’re aware of the penalty for being a magician in Ixia,” Valek said. “If not, I’d be delighted to enlighten you.”

Mogkan smoothed out his uniform and adjusted his long dark braid of hair. “Some would say your ability to resist magic makes you a magician, Valek.”

“The Commander thinks otherwise. You’re under arrest.”

“Then you’re in for a big surprise. I suggest you discuss these false accusations with the Commander before you do anything drastic,” Mogkan said.

“How about I kill you right now?” Valek stepped closer to him.

A hot, searing pain stabbed my abdomen. I yelped and rolled into a tight ball. The agony was relentless. Valek took another step. I screamed as fire blazed up my back and circled my head.

“Any closer, and she’ll be a corpse,” Mogkan said, a cunning sleekness in his voice.

Through eyes tearing with anguish, I saw Valek shift his weight to the balls of his feet, but he remained in place.

“Well, now. That’s interesting. The old Valek really wouldn’t have cared if I killed his food taster. Yelena, my child, I just realized how incredibly useful you are.”

The intense pain was unbearable. I would have gladly died to escape from it. Before I passed out, my last glimpse was of Mogkan’s back as he walked away unharmed.

I woke to blackness. Something heavy pressed against my forehead. Alarmed, I tried to sit up.

“It’s all right,” Valek said, pushing me down.

I touched my head and pulled off a damp cloth. Blinking in the light, I looked around at the familiar furniture of my own room. Valek stood next to me, a cup in his hand.

“Drink this.”

I took a sip and cringed at the medicinal flavor. Valek insisted I finish it. When the cup was empty, he placed it on the night table.

“Rest,” he ordered, then turned to leave.

“Valek,” I said, stopping him. “Why didn’t you kill Mogkan?”

He considered for a moment, tilting his head. “A tactical maneuver. Mogkan would have killed you before I could finish him. You’re the key to too many puzzles. I need you.” He strode to the door but paused at the threshold. His grip on the doorknob was hard enough to whiten his knuckles. “I’ve reported Mogkan to the Commander, but he was…” Valek’s hand twisted on the knob, and I heard the metal crack. “Unconcerned, so I’ll be guarding the Commander until Brazell and Mogkan leave. I’ve reassigned Ari and Janco as your personal bodyguards. Don’t leave this suite without them. And stop eating Criollo. I’ll taste the Commander’s Criollo. I want to see if anything happens to you.” Valek pulled the door shut, leaving me alone with my swirling thoughts.

True to his word and much to the Commander’s annoyance, Valek didn’t leave the Commander’s side. Ari and Janco enjoyed a change in routine, but I made them work hard. Whenever I wasn’t tasting the Commander’s meals, I had Ari drill me with knife defense and Janco give me more lessons on picking locks.

The Generals’ departure was scheduled for the next day, which meant it was time to do some of my own reconnaissance. It was early evening and I knew Valek would still be with the Commander until late. I told Ari and Janco that I was going to bed early, and bade them good-night at the threshold to Valek’s suite. After waiting an hour, I slipped back into the hallway.

The corridors of the castle were not as deserted as I had hoped, but Valek’s office was located off the main throughway. I approached his door, scanning the hallway for activity. Seeing no one, I inserted my picks into the first of the three keyholes, but my nerves made popping the lock impossible. I took a couple of deep breaths and tried again.

I had two locks sprung when I heard voices approaching. Standing, I pulled the picks out of the keyhole and knocked on the door just as two men came into view.

“He’s with the Commander,” said the guard on the left.

“Thanks,” I replied and started to walk in the opposite direction with my heart beating like a hummingbird’s wings. I glanced behind me until they were gone, then raced back to Valek’s office. The third lock proved to be the most difficult. I was covered with sweat by the time I popped it. I hurried into the room, locking the door behind me.

My first task was to open the small wooden cabinet that held my antidote. Perhaps Valek had locked the recipe in there. I lit a dim lantern to peer inside. Glass bottles of various shapes and sizes gleamed in the light. Most of the bottles were marked Poison. A growing sense of urgency consumed me as I searched. All I uncovered was a large bottle containing the antidote. I poured only a few doses into the flask I had hidden in my pocket, knowing that Valek would notice if I took too much.

After relocking the cabinet, I began a systematic search of Valek’s files, starting with the desk drawers. Even though his office was strewn with books and maps, his personal dossiers were well organized. I found files on Margg and the Commander and was tempted to read them, but I stayed focused on finding any folder bearing my name or a reference to Butterfly’s Dust. Valek had written many interesting comments about my tasting abilities in my personnel file, but there was no mention of the poison or the antidote.

When I finished with the desk, I moved to the conference table. Books on poisons were interspersed with files and other espionage documents. I sorted through the piles. My time was running out. I had to be back in Valek’s suite before he escorted the Commander to his apartment.

I suppressed my disappointment as I finished with the table. There was still half of his office left to search.

I was halfway across the quiet room when I heard the distinct sound of a key being inserted into the lock. One click, then the key was withdrawn. I snuffed out the lantern as the second lock clicked open. Diving behind the conference table, I hoped the boxes piled underneath would hide me from view. Please, I prayed to the forces of fate, let it be Margg and not Valek. A third click made my heart squeeze.

The door opened and closed. A light tread of footsteps crossed the room. Someone sat at the desk. I didn’t risk peeking, but I knew it was Valek. Had the Commander retired early? I reviewed my meager options: be discovered or wait Valek out. I eased into a more comfortable position.

A few minutes later, someone knocked on the door.

“Come,” said Valek.

“Your, ah…package has arrived, sir,” said a male voice.

“Bring him in.” Valek scraped his chair on the stone floor.

I heard the rustle of chains and a shuffling step. “You’re dismissed,” Valek said. The door clicked shut. A familiar rancid smell of the dungeon reached my nose.

“Well, Tentil. Are you aware that you’re next in line for the noose?” Valek asked.

My heart went out to the doomed prisoner. I knew exactly how he felt.

“Yes, sir,” a voice whispered.

Pages crackled. “You’re here because you killed your three-year-old son with a plow, claiming it was an accident. Is that correct?” Valek asked.

“Yes, sir. My wife had just died. I was unable to afford a nanny. I didn’t know he had climbed under.” The man’s voice was pinched with pain.

“Tentil, there are no excuses in Ixia.”

“Yes, sir. I know, sir. I want to die, sir. The guilt is too hard to bear.”

“Then dying wouldn’t be adequate punishment, would it?” Valek didn’t wait for a response. “Living would be a harsher sentence. In fact, I know of a profitable farmstead in MD–4 that has tragically lost both the farmer and his wife, leaving behind three sons under the age of six. Tentil will hang tomorrow, or so everyone shall believe, but you will be escorted to MD–4 to take over the operation of a corn plantation and the job of raising those three boys. I suggest your first order of business should be to hire a nanny. Understand?”

“But…”

“The Code of Behavior has been excellent at ridding Ixia of undesirables, but it is somewhat lacking in basic human compassion. Despite my arguments, the Commander fails to grasp this point, so I occasionally take matters into my own hands. Keep your mouth shut, and you will live. One of my associates will check on you from time to time.”

I huddled behind the boxes, frozen in disbelief. Hearing Valek use the word compassion was as incomprehensible to me as the thought of Margg apologizing for her rude behavior.

There was another knock on the door.

“Come,” Valek said. “Perfect timing as always, Wing. Did you bring the documents?”

I heard a rustle of papers. “Your new identity,” Valek said. “I believe our business is concluded. Wing will escort you to MD–4.” Chains clanked to the floor. “You’re dismissed.”

“Yes, sir,” Tentil said. His voice cracked. He was probably overwhelmed. I knew how I would feel if Valek offered me a free life.

After the men left, a painful quiet descended. I feared the sound of my breath would give me away. Valek’s chair scraped. Two faint thumps were followed by a loud yawn.

“So, Yelena, did you find our conversation interesting?”

I held still, hoping he was guessing. But his next statement confirmed my dismay.

“I know you’re behind the table.”

I stood. There was no anger in his voice. He lounged in his chair with his feet resting on the desktop.

“How did you…” I began.

“You favor lavender-scented soap, and I wouldn’t be alive today if I couldn’t determine when someone had picked my locks. Assassins love to ambush, leaving dead bodies behind mysteriously locked doors. Fun stuff.” Valek yawned again.

“You’re not angry?”

“No, relieved actually. I wondered when you would search my office for the recipe to the antidote.”

Sudden fury welled in my throat. “Relieved? That I might try to escape? That I rifled through your papers? You’re that confident that I won’t succeed?”

Valek cocked his head to one side, considering. “I’m relieved that you’re following the standard steps of escaping, and not inventing a unique plan. If I know what you’re doing, then I can anticipate your next move. If not, I might miss something. Learning how to pick locks naturally leads to this.” Valek gestured around the room. “But, since the formula has not been written down and only I know it, I’m confident you won’t find it.”

I balled my hands into tight fists to keep them from wrapping around Mr. I-Know-Everything’s superior neck. “Okay, so there’s no chance for escape. How about this? You gave Tentil a new life, why not me?”

“How do you know I haven’t already?” Valek put his feet on the floor and leaned forward. “Why do you think you were in the dungeon for almost a year? Was it only luck that you happened to be the next in line when Oscove died? Perhaps I was merely acting at our first meeting when I seemed so surprised that you were a woman.”

It was too much to bear. “What do you want, Valek?” I demanded. “Do you want me to give up trying? Be content with this poisoned life?”

“Do you really want to know?” Valek’s voice intensified. He stood and walked over to me.

“Yes.”

“I want you… not as an unwilling servant, but as a loyal staff member. You’re intelligent, quick-thinking and becoming a decent fighter. I want you to be as dedicated as I am at keeping the Commander safe. Yes, it’s a dangerous job, but, on the other hand, one miscalculated somersault on the tightrope could break your neck. That’s what I want. Will you be able to give it to me?” Valek’s eyes seared deep into mine, searching for an answer. “Besides, where would you go? You belong here.”

I was tempted to concede. But I knew that if I wasn’t poisoned or murdered by Brazell, the wild magic in my blood would eventually explode, taking me with it. The only physical mark I would leave on this world would be a ripple in the power source. Without the antidote, I was lost anyway.

“I don’t know,” I said. “There’s too much…

“That you haven’t told me?”

I nodded, unable to speak. Telling him about my magical abilities, I thought, would only get me killed faster.

“Trusting is hard. Knowing who to trust, even harder,” Valek said.

“And my track record has been rather horrendous. A weakness of mine.”

“No, a strength. Look at Ari and Janco. They appointed themselves your protectors long before I assigned them. All because you stood up for them to the Commander, when their own Captain wouldn’t. Think about what you have right now before you give me an answer. You have gained the Commander’s and Maren’s respect, and Ari’s and Janco’s loyalty.”

“What have I earned from you, Valek? Loyalty? Respect? Trust?”

“You have my attention. But give me what I want, and you can have everything.”

The next morning, the Generals prepared to leave. It took four hours for eight retinues to assemble. Four hours of noise and confusion. When everyone had finally passed through the outer gates, it seemed that the castle breathed a sigh of relief. In the wake of this sudden release of tension, servants and guards milled about. They grouped together in small clumps, taking a break before cleaning the eight guest suites. It was during this lull in activity that the Commander informed the rest of the castle staff that the Sitian delegation was scheduled to arrive the next day. His words struck like lightning. A flash of stunned silence was followed by a frenzy of activity as servants dashed off to make the proper preparations.

Although happy to see the backs of Mogkan and Brazell, I wandered listlessly about the castle. I hadn’t given Valek his answer. To live, I had to go south, but without the antidote, I wouldn’t survive. Dread filled my heart as the reality of my inevitable fate filled my mind.

The next day, my presence was required at the special greeting ceremony for the arriving southern delegation. Apprehension about seeing the Sitians unsettled my stomach. I felt as if someone were saying, “Yelena, take a good look at what you can’t have.”

Since the throne room had been converted into an office, the only place in the castle suitable for state affairs was the Commander’s war room. Once again, Valek stood stiffly in his dress uniform on the Commander’s right side, while I waited behind them.

My apprehension turned to awe as I felt the waves of nervous energy pulsing from the high-ranking officials and advisers selected to be a part of the ceremony. When the delegation was announced and invited to enter, I moved to get a better view.

The Sitians floated into the room. Their long, brightly colored, exotic robes draped to the floor, covering their feet. Wearing animal masks trimmed with bright plumes of feathers and fur, they stopped before the Commander and fanned out into a V-shape.

Their leader, wearing a hawk’s face, spoke in formal tones. “We bring you greetings and salutations from your southern neighbors. We hope this meeting will bring our two lands closer together. To show our commitment to this endeavor, we have come prepared to reveal ourselves to you.” The speaker and the four companions removed their masks in one rehearsed movement.

I blinked several times in astonishment, hoping that during the seconds of darkness everything would be set right. Unfortunately, my world had just mutated from bad to wretched. Valek glanced at me with a resigned look as if he, too, couldn’t believe this new turn of events.

The Sitian leader was Irys. A master-level magician stood a mere three feet before Commander Ambrose.