Poison Study

by Maria V. Snyder

  “You think she’s dead?” the second guard asked.

  With my face to the wall, I closed my eyes and held my breath as the yellow light swept my body.

  The guard touched my hand. “Cold as snow-cat piss. Let’s drag her out before she starts to rot. You think it smells bad now…” The snap of the lock was followed by a squeak of metal as the cell door opened.

  I concentrated on being a dead weight while the guard dragged me out by my feet. When the light moved away from me, I risked a peek. The guard with the lantern walked ahead to light the way, leaving my upper body in darkness. As we passed Valek’s cell, I seized the bars with both hands.

  “Ugh. Hold up, she’s stuck.”

  “On what?” the lantern guard asked.

  “I don’t know. Come back here with that bloody light.”

  I released my grip, hooking my arm inside the cell.

  “Back off,” the lantern guard warned Valek.

  His meaty hand tugged at my elbow. Then he grunted softly. I opened my eyes in time to see the lantern’s light extinguish as it toppled to the ground.

  “What the hell?” the other man exclaimed. He was still holding my feet. He backed away from Valek’s bars.

  I bent my legs, pulling my body close to his boots. He yelped with surprise when I grabbed his ankles. He tripped and fell back.

  The sickening crunch of bone striking stone wasn’t what I expected. His body went limp. I stood on shaky legs.

  Hearing a thud and the jingle of keys, I turned back in time to see Valek lighting the lantern. The other guard was propped against the bars, his head cocked at an unnatural angle.

  In the weak glow, I gazed at the prone form at my feet. The soldier’s head had struck the edge of the bottom step. A black liquid began to pool around my boots. I had just killed another man. I began to tremble. A fourth man had died because of me. Had the robbing of my soul reduced me to a heartless killer? Did Valek feel any remorse or guilt when he took a life? I watched him through a veil of blood.

  Efficient as always, Valek stripped the dead guards of their weapons.

  “Wait here,” he instructed. Unlocking the main door of the prison, he sprang through the entrance to the guardroom.

  Shouts, grunts and the sound of flesh striking flesh reached my ears as I waited on the stairway. No remorse, no guilt, Valek did what he had to for his side to win.

  When Valek motioned me to join him, I saw that blood had splattered on his face, chest and arms. Three guards, either unconscious or dead, were strewn about the room.

  My backpack sat on a table, its contents scattered about. I stuffed everything back in while Valek tried to open the remaining locked door between freedom and us. Although meager, I wanted my possessions, including my butterfly and amulet, back. Once I wrapped the chain around my neck, I felt strangely optimistic.

  “Damn,” Valek said.

  “What?”

  “The Captain has the only key to this door. He will open it when it’s time to change the guards.”

  “Try these.” I handed Valek my picks.

  He grinned.

  While he worked on the lock, I found a pitcher of water and a wash barrel. The fear of being caught couldn’t override the desire to rinse off my face and hands. But that was not enough. The need to rid myself of the stench of vomit and blood overpowered me. Soon, I was dumping buckets of water over my head until I was soaked through. I drained half the water pitcher before I thought to offer some to Valek. He stopped to drink, then continued to pick the lock.

  Finally, it popped open. Valek peered out into the hallway. “Perfect. No guards.” He pulled the door wide. “Let’s go.”

  Taking my hand and a lantern, Valek turned away from our only escape, and led me back down into the prison, pausing to leave the door to the cells wide open as well.

  “Are you insane?” I whispered as he dragged me toward the last cell. “Freedom’s that way.” I pointed.

  He ignored me as he unlocked the door. “Trust me. This is the perfect hiding spot. The mess we left will soon be discovered, the open doors proof we’ve fled.” Valek pushed me ahead of him into the cell. “Search parties will be sent out. When all the soldiers have left the manor, we’ll make our move. Until then, we lay low.”

  Valek made a makeshift bed of straw in the far corner of the cell. After extinguishing and hiding the lantern, he yanked me down. I curled on my side with my back to him, shivering in my wet clothes. Valek pulled some straw on top of us and wrapped an arm around me. He drew me close. I stiffened at the contact, but his body heat warmed me, and I soon relaxed into his grip.

  At first, every tiny noise made my heart race. But I shouldn’t have worried; the commotion that ensued when our escape was discovered was deafening.

  Angry and accusing voices shouted. Search parties were organized and dispatched. It was agreed that we had an hour head start, but Brazell and Mogkan argued on which direction we had taken.

  “Valek’s probably retreating west to well-known territory,” Brazell stated with authority.

  “South is the logical choice,” Mogkan insisted. “We have the Commander; there’s nothing they can do. They’re running for their lives, not toward some strategic position. I’ll take a horse and scan the forest with my magic.”

  Valek harrumphed in my ear, and whispered, “They actually think I would abandon the Commander. They have no concept of loyalty.”

  When the prison had been quiet and empty for a few hours, I grew bored and anxious to be gone. The door to the cells had remained wide open, allowing a faint light to illuminate our surroundings.

  “Can we go now?” I asked.

  “Not yet. I believe it’s still daylight. We’ll wait until dark.”

  To help pass the time, I asked Valek how he had become involved with the Commander. I thought it an unintrusive question, but he grew so quiet that I regretted asking it.

  After a long pause, he spoke. “My family lived in Icefaren Province before it was renamed MD–1. A particularly harsh winter collapsed the building that housed my father’s leather business, ruining all of his equipment. He needed to replace his equipment to stay in business, but the soldiers who came to our house to collect the tax money wouldn’t listen to reason.” Valek’s arm tightened around me.

  A minute stretched longer before he continued. “I was just a skinny little kid at the time, but I had three older brothers. They were about Ari’s size and had his strength. When my father told the soldiers that if he paid the full tax amount he wouldn’t have enough money left to feed his family—” Valek paused for several heartbeats “—they killed my brothers. They laughed and said, ‘Problem solved. Now you have three less mouths to feed.’” The muscles on Valek’s arm trembled with tension.

  “Naturally, I wanted revenge, but not on the soldiers. They were only messengers. I wanted the King. The man who had allowed his soldiers to murder my brothers in his name. So I learned how to fight, and I studied the assassin’s art until I was unbeatable. I traveled around, using my new skills to earn money. The royal upper class was so corrupt they paid me to kill each other.

  “Then I was commissioned to kill a young man named Ambrose, whose speeches called for rebellion and made the royals nervous. He’d become popular, gathering large crowds. People started to resist the King’s doctrines. Then Ambrose disappeared, hiding his growing army and employing covert operations against the monarchy.

  “My payment to find and kill Ambrose was significant. I ambushed him, expecting to have my knife in his heart before he could draw breath to cry out. But he blocked the blow, and I found myself fighting for my life, and losing.

  “Instead of killing me, though, Ambrose carved a C on my chest with my own knife. The same weapon, by the way, that I later used to kill the King. Then Ambrose declared himself my Commander, and announced that I now worked for him and no one else. I agreed, and I promised him that if he got me close enough to kill the King, I would be loyal to him forever.

/>   “My first assignment was to kill the person who had paid me to assassinate Ambrose. Throughout these years, I’ve watched him achieve his goals with a single-minded determination and without excess violence and pain. He hasn’t been corrupted by power or greed. He’s consistent and loyal to his people. And there’s been no one in this world that I care for more. Until now.”

  I held my breath. It had been a simple, innocent question. I hadn’t expected such an intimate response.

  “Yelena, you’ve driven me crazy. You’ve caused me considerable trouble and I’ve contemplated ending your life twice since I’ve known you.” Valek’s warm breath in my ear sent a shiver down my spine.

  “But you’ve slipped under my skin, invaded my blood and seized my heart.”

  “That sounds more like a poison than a person,” was all I could say. His confession had both shocked and thrilled me.

  “Exactly,” Valek replied. “You have poisoned me.” He rolled me over to face him. Before I could make another sound, he kissed me.

  Long suppressed desire flared to life as I wrapped my arms around his neck, returning his kiss with equal passion.

  My response was a delightful surprise. I had feared, after Reyad’s abuse, my body would clench tight in horror and revulsion. But the intertwining of our bodies linked our minds and spirits together.

  The distant sound of music vibrated in the air. Pulsing, the magical harmony soon rose to a crescendo and encompassed us like a warm blanket. The prison cell and filthy straw dropped away from our awareness. Whiteness draped in snowy silk surrounded us. On this plane we were equals, partners. Our souls bonded. His pleasure was my ecstasy. My blood pumped in his heart.

  Utter bliss came in short snatches, although, Valek and I were happy to try again. We had merged, our minds had become one. I drew in his essence, feasting on the feel of his body in mine, exhilarating in the caress of his skin against mine. He filled the hollow emptiness inside my heart with joy and light. Even though we lay in the grubby straw and faced an uncertain future, a deep hum of contentment vibrated throughout my body.

  31

  REALITY AND THE RANK ODOR of a decomposing animal intruded. Darkness had descended.

  “Let’s go,” Valek said, pulling me to my feet.

  “Where?” I asked, adjusting my uniform.

  “The Commander’s room, so we can take him back to the castle with us.” Valek brushed the straw from his hair and clothes.

  “Won’t work.”

  “Why not?” Valek demanded.

  “As soon as you touch him, Mogkan will know.” I explained about Mogkan’s link with the Commander and how he had established that connection using Criollo.

  “How do we break the bond?” Valek asked.

  It was time to tell him about my magic. I felt light-headed, as if I stood on the edge of the world. Taking a deep breath, I related the encounters and conversations I’d had with Irys, and how she might be able to help us.

  Valek stood still for a full minute, while my heart thumped madly in my chest.

  “Do you trust her?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Is there anything else you haven’t told me?”

  My head spun. So much had happened and we still needed to stop a powerful magician. Death was a real possibility. I wanted Valek to know how I felt.

  “I love you.”

  Valek wrapped me in his arms. “My love has been yours since the fire festival. If those goons had killed you, I knew then that I would never be the same. I didn’t want or expect this. But I couldn’t resist you.”

  I molded my body to him, wanting to share his skin.

  He took my hand. “Let’s go.”

  We raided the guardroom for uniforms before slipping into the hallway. Wearing Brazell’s colors of black and green, we hoped to avoid discovery as we stole through the manor.

  Valek needed his bag of tricks, so we headed toward the barracks. While I retrieved my cloak, Valek slid inside the empty wooden building. The soldiers had gone to search for us.

  I paced in the shadows of the building, chanting Irys’s name in my mind. We needed a plan of attack. We had to move tonight.

  Shouts and curses emanated from the barracks. Running inside, I found Ari and Janco with their swords drawn and pointed at Valek.

  “Stop,” I said.

  Spotting me, Ari and Janco sheathed their weapons, smiling.

  “We thought Valek had escaped without you,” Ari said, giving me a bear hug.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be with a search party?” Valek asked as he pulled his black bag from under a bunk. He had changed into an ebony coverall with numerous pockets.

  “We’re too sick,” Janco said, his best smirk in place.

  “What?” I asked.

  “The charges against you were obviously fabricated, so we refused to take part in the hunt,” Janco said.

  “That’s insubordination.” Valek extracted a long knife and some darts from his bag.

  “That was the point. What’s a fellow have to do around here in order to get arrested and thrown in the dungeon?” Janco asked.

  I stared at Janco in amazement. They had been willing to risk a court martial in order to help me. He had meant what he had inscribed on my switchblade.

  “Which direction did the search parties go?” Valek asked. He placed weapons in various pockets and strapped his sword and knife onto his belt.

  “Mainly south and east, although a few small groups were sent west and north,” Ari replied.

  “Dogs?”

  “Yes.”

  “And the manor?”

  “Minimal coverage.”

  “Good. You’re with us,” Valek ordered them both.

  They snapped to attention. “Yes, sir.”

  “Prep for covert ops, but keep the swords. You’re going to need them.” Valek finished dressing as Ari and Janco got ready.

  “Wait,” I said. “I don’t want them getting into trouble.” My heart started to skitter around in my chest and a nauseous wave threatened to send bile up my throat as fear of what we were planning to do overcame me.

  Valek squeezed my shoulder. “We need their help.”

  “You’re going to need more than that.” Irys’s voice came out of the darkness. Three men simultaneously drew their swords. When she stepped into the weak lantern light, Valek relaxed, but Ari and Janco brandished their weapons.

  “At ease,” Valek ordered.

  Seeing their reluctance, I said, “She’s a friend. She’s here to help.” I looked at her. “We discovered Mogkan’s extra power source.”

  “What is it?”

  I told her about the mindless captives and how they had been chained in circles, and then explained my theory that Mogkan had wiped their minds to seize their power. Horror and revulsion touched her face. Despite her rough exterior, her concern went deep. She managed to regain her no-nonsense frown, but Ari and Janco looked a little green, as if they were going to be sick.

  “What’s this all about?” Ari asked.

  “I’ll explain it later. Right now—” I stopped short. A complete plan of attack snapped into my mind, but it included Ari and Janco. I had been hoping to keep them safe, but Valek was right. We needed their help.

  “I want you to protect Irys with everything you have. It’s very important,” I told my friends.

  “Yes, sir,” Ari and Janco said together.

  Stunned, I stared at them. They had addressed me as sir, meaning they would follow my orders, even if it led to their death.

  Valek’s eyes drilled into mine. “You have a strategy?”

  “Yes.”

  “Tell us.”

  Why, I thought as Valek and I crept through the silent empty halls of the manor, had I opened my mouth? My plan. What did I know? Valek, Ari and Janco had years of experience doing this nerve-racking, stomach-turning work, but everyone risked their necks following my plan.

  In the dark corridor, I swallowed my fear and reviewed the s
trategy. At the Commander’s door, we waited to give the others time to move into position. My short breaths seemed to echo off the walls, and I felt as if I was either going to scream or pass out.

  After a few moments, Valek picked the lock and we slipped inside. He secured the door. Lighting a lantern, he moved toward the oversize four-poster bed. The Commander was stretched out on top of the bedding, fully clothed. His vacant eyes were open, staring at the ceiling. He made no acknowledgment of our presence.

  I sat beside him and took his hand in mine. Following Irys’s brief instructions, I imagined my brick wall, then expanded it until I had built a dome of brick that encompassed us both. Valek pressed against the wall next to the door, waiting for Mogkan. His expression had hardened into his battle face. He was stone cold on the exterior, but I knew that a lethal, molten fury resided within.

  It wasn’t long before a key turned in the lock. Silence. Then the door burst open. Four armed guards rushed in. Valek had one down before the man could react. The ringing of swords filled the room.

  Mogkan slinked into the chamber after his men had Valek fully engaged. Avoiding the fighting, he moved toward me. A condescending smile touched his lips.

  “A brick igloo. How nice. Come on, Yelena, give me some credit. A stone fortress or a steel wall would have been more of a challenge.”

  I felt a solid blow strike my mental defenses. Brick crumbled. Patching holes as he hammered on my shield, I prayed with desperation that Ari, Janco and Irys had made it to the room where Mogkan kept the prisoners chained. Irys had explained that she needed to be there with them in order to block Mogkan’s extra power. Even if she succeeded, I would still have to deal with Mogkan’s own magic.

  Halting his attack for a second, Mogkan jerked his head to the side, staring off into the distance. “Nice trick,” he said. “Friends of yours? They’re in Reyad’s hallway, but unless they can fight their way through ten men, they won’t make it to my children.”

  My heart sank. Mogkan resumed his onslaught with renewed determination. One guard out of four remained in battle with Valek. Hurry, I thought. My defenses weakened with each blow. I threw every ounce of strength into my wall, but it collapsed into a cloud of dust.