The Mammoth Book of Classical Whodunnits

by Mike Ashley

  ‘Perhaps it is some passing ague that you feel,’ I said, but Alexander shook his head.

  ‘Nay, Jolas, because I know this poison well. When Calisthenes languished in his prison at my command, I had him given it myself and watched the progress thereof. It waits from six to eight hours to make itself felt, and then one is taken with fever, which grows day by day for six days, until the life has been burned away. See, it is a poison I myself carry ever with me should I be taken captive!’

  He seized his sword and pressed a spot upon the silver hilt close to the haft, and I beheld a lid suddenly spring open, revealing tiny white crystals within.

  ‘It is gathered as liquid, and is formed into crystals which are cold to the touch. Do you know of this poison, Jolas?’

  ‘No, Alexander,’ said I.

  ‘It is that which was put into my cup last night,’ said he. ‘And if Medius had not drained the remainder I would have had him quartered at the first flush in my cheek!’

  ‘But perhaps you drank with him earlier in the day, Alexander,’ I said. ‘It would not be unusual.’

  ‘True. But for two days I have fasted to the gods for a successful expedition to Arabia. Neither food nor drink has passed my lips in all that time until I went to drink with Medius last night. No, Jolas, as certain am I of the time of my poisoning as that I am Alexander.’

  He closed the little receptacle, and held his sword over his knee, his hand gripping the hilt. Then with an access of violent energy he rose and swept down from his dais, swinging his sword as if at an imaginary enemy, and I withdrew for safety to an alcove while he raved.

  ‘Would that I could kill them, all three!’ he shouted. ‘Then I would be sure of punishing my assassin! There was a time I would have done it! But not now. I must at the last use stealth, and pusillanimous investigation to discover the culprit, for the power of Macedonia must not be weakened, and each one of those men is part of the keystone in the arch of that power!’

  ‘But Medius,’ I insisted, ‘has he shown signs of poisoning also?’

  Alexander straightened and breathed deeply, and when he spake his voice was calm, and I knew his mind had gained control. ‘He was here just now. I had a servant feel of his forehead and his body. He has no fever. The poison has not touched him.’

  He turned to me and smiled, and the sight of his implacability chilled me.

  ‘That is my problem, you see. The poison was in that cup. Until I find how I could be poisoned and Medius not, I cannot act. For not only had Medius reason to kill me, if your report from Antipater be accurate, but Nearchus, the admiral of my fleet also, as you shall see. And it was Nearchus, remember, who admittedly poured my drink.’

  ‘And Susa the Persian?’

  ‘He too, and for the best reason of all: that I have conquered his homeland.’

  Somewhere a gong sounded. Alexander pulled a cord, and presently the doors to the reception chamber opened. Two Persian slaves entered and prostrated themselves upon their knees, and a Macedonian servant in exquisite tunic bowed low and announced Nearchus and Susa the Persian.

  The admiral of the fleet entered with regal stride and stood at attention before the dais as Alexander returned to his couch. The Persian stood behind Nearchus and a little to his right.

  ‘We have come, Susa and I, at thy command,’ said Nearchus, his face showing the strain of the occasion; at the same time he gave me a sidelong glance that told me he cared not much for my presence. He was a stern-faced man with hollow cheeks and the pale-blue eyes of an anchorite, and was perhaps the most powerful man among the Macedonians, for Alexander trusted and honored him highly.

  ‘Yes, Nearchus, be seated,’ Alexander said, and Nearchus sat upon a stool below the king and watched with wary eyes as Alexander, showing now no signs of his illness, picked up several scrolls from a cushion beside him.

  ‘These have been found among your possessions, Nearchus,’ said Alexander. ‘Letters from my stepbrother Arideus in Lydia, arguing the futility of further conquest in Arabia. He urges you to return to Macedonia, where Olympias, my mother, will heap honors undreamed of upon you.’

  ‘I have told Alexander of these letters,’ Nearchus said quietly.

  ‘Yes, but you did not tell me your decision. Should you have decided to go, I would first have to be dead. Because alive I would not permit it!’

  ‘Have our plans for the Arabian campaign ever suffered the slightest reservation of my enthusiasm, or diminution of my efforts on their behalf?’

  Alexander’s eyes fell before the cool inquiry of the other, and he shook his head. Then Nearchus turned to me and pointed an unwavering finger.

  ‘There stands one whom you should suspect, Alexander. Jolas is the troublemaker, the one who pours false assertions into thine ear.’

  ‘I think Alexander does not doubt my love for him,’ said I.

  ‘Nor do I,’ said Alexander. ‘My welfare has ever been uppermost in Jolas’ mind.’

  ‘Unless Antipater has corrupted him,’ said Nearchus.

  ‘Is it likely,’ I said, ‘when my life has been spent at Alexander’s side, and I was in the company of Antipater only a few days?’

  ‘Antipater is subtle at corrupting,’ Nearchus persisted. ‘Perhaps you would not know it.’

  ‘I would know it,’ said I.

  ‘Enough!’ Alexander cried, dismissing Nearchus, and the latter went out stiffly. The king then pointed his finger at Susa the Persian, who approached with a low obeisance.

  ‘Last night, Susa, you told of great treasure buried beneath the ground by your emperor Darius at Opia, a day’s journey to the north. You say that your love for me bade you tell me of it so our campaign to Arabia might prosper with such wealth to sustain it.’

  ‘It is true, O King,’ the Persian said. He was an elderly man, clad in the garishly dyed Persian garments, wearing a high headgear which rose as far above his face as his white beard fell below it.

  ‘Now you will have a chance to prove your fealty. You will assemble porters and carriages and soldiers, and go to Opia to fetch the treasure here to me. At once. I will give you three days – one to go, one to load the treasure, and one to return. If you are not here three days hence, I shall send swift messengers to kill you. When I see the treasure, my doubt concerning you shall be cleared.’

  ‘I understand, O King,’ said Susa, bowing low.

  ‘And you, Jolas, will accompany him to see that all goes well.’

  I stood stiffly with surprise at the sudden appointment, and Alexander smiled gently.

  ‘You have often complained of the boredom of litigating among the Macedonians, dear Jolas,’ he said. ‘Now I give you opportunity for treasure hunting and adventure.’

  With a wave of his hand he dismissed the Persian, who backed out of the chamber, and then Alexander descended from the dais and took my hand.

  ‘I am relying upon you, Jolas, to get the treasure safely to Babylon. While you are gone I shall continue probing the matter here. And take no longer than three days, dear friend, for I shall be dead in six!’

  On the outward journey to Opia I shall not dwell, except to mention that we left Babylon with fifty foot soldiers and ten carts, and twenty mounted horsemen, including Susa and myself, and all went well. Since Opia lies, like most other Persian towns, along the river, we did not digress into the desert, and never lost sight of trees and greenery.

  There was the matter of digging for the treasure, which lay in a cemetery to the east of Opia; and among the bones of departed natives, Susa indeed did reveal great wealth, and thus establish his fealty to Alexander – amphorae of gold, masks of silver, heavy bronze chests filled with darics – gold coins with the figure of an archer impressed upon one side – as well as urns filled with tiny golden siglos, and much other wealth besides.

  By sunset of the second day, the whole of the treasure, well worth an emperor’s ransom, lay battened down securely within the carts, and I had to promulgate the warning that any soldier found with
treasure upon his person would instantly be put to death.

  Planning to return to Babylon early the following morning, we retired early – I to my tent, Susa to his. But in the middle of the night I was awakened by a sound outside, and rose to investigate. I had but stepped out into the moonlight when an arrow whirred by my cheek, penetrating the fabric of my tent, and turning, I saw the archer behind a tall dark cypress and set out after him. He fled at once among the graves and I followed as best I could; but so busy was I watching lest I tumble into the great holes we had dug and thus keep their ancient occupants company, I soon lost sight of him and stopped and stood in the quiet moonlight, smelling the odor of decay and trembling in the cool breeze that blew from the river.

  On sudden thought I returned at once to the camp and looked in upon Susa in his tent, and found the Persian sleeping soundly there.

  But that proved nothing. Susa could have hired an assassin to kill me. As well as could Nearchus – or Medius.

  I returned thoughtfully to my tent, but did not sleep the remainder of the night.

  On our return to Babylon I found that Alexander had quit the palace for a garden villa across the river, and thence Susa and I repaired upon the ferry.

  While crossing, Susa praised Alexander exceedingly for his policy of integrating the conquered peoples of Asia into the governmental fabric of the new empire, which stretched from the Aegean to the borders of India, and said how fortunate a man was he, Susa, a Persian, to have Alexander’s trust in being appointed treasurer to the royal coffers. I replied that Susa’s predecessor, Harpalus, a Macedonian, had proved himself faithless by stealing from the treasury, and Alexander had thought it fair and wise to entrust it thereafter to a native.

  ‘But there are many, especially in Macedonia,’ I added, ‘who do not favor Alexander’s policy of racial equality, and would like to reverse it.’

  Whereupon Susa fingered his beard and fell silent.

  At the villa, which lay in lush gardens close to the edge of the river where it was cooler, we were shown into Alexander’s presence by an elderly doctor, who, when I questioned him as to our king’s condition, murmured, ‘It is truly a strange disease which works in him. I cannot mark the end of it.’

  And when I saw Alexander I knew why the doctor shook his head so doubtfully. The king sat upon his bed on a terrace overlooking the river, playing at dice with Medius, and his face looked white and strained, like a mask stretched into place by the fingers of Death himself. My heart smote me with pity as I knelt by Alexander and told him of the treasure we had brought from Opia.

  ‘Good, Jolas,’ he said, laying aside the dice and smiling upon Susa. ‘You have proved my trust, Susa. Nevertheless, you will lodge here in this villa with me, as do Medius and Nearchus.’

  Thereupon Alexander dismissed the Persian and turned to Medius who sat opposite him and who was flushing redly and scowling at me the while.

  ‘Why do you glower at Jolas, Medius?’ Alexander asked. And when Medius did not answer, I spake up thus, ‘Perhaps Medius is surprised that I am here, dear Alexander. My life was set upon while at Opia, and if the archer had not aimed poorly, perhaps Medius would be smiling now.’

  With an oath Medius leaped to his feet, his hand upon his sword.

  ‘Go, Medius!’ Alexander cried, rising, and with an obeisance and a final black look at me, Medius left the terrace. Alexander sighed and walked unsteadily to the balcony, saying, ‘A furnace rages within me, Jolas, and consumes me steadily. In three days hence I will be dead.’

  ‘No, dear Alexander,’ said I, stung with anguish. ‘The gods will not permit your passing.’

  Alexander stooped to the edge of a small fish pond set into the floor of the terrace and picked up a cup of greenish glaze and held it before my eyes.

  ‘This cup poisoned me,’ said he, ‘and will help me to discover who my murderer is. I have not been idle these three days. Come, I will show you what I have done.’

  In one room of the villa the king pointed out several near-naked men lying chained upon the floor. Two looked at us with fever-clouded eyes, and one was unconscious with great beads of sweat standing upon his forehead.

  ‘I had several condemned criminals brought to me and gave them a choice: they could drink the poison I gave them, and let me watch the results, or be put at once to the sword, which was their just punishment. On the other hand, if they recovered from the poison, they would be free. Several volunteered gladly. Unfortunately, two have already died from the heavy dosage I gave them.’

  ‘But what did you seek to determine?’ I asked as we returned to the terrace.

  ‘How little of the poison is required in a third of a cup before it brings no fever. I think I quaffed the major lethal portion from the top, for the crystals are instantly soluble. Doubtless there was some mingling below, and if I can find a minimum dose that will leave the drinker unaffected . . .’

  ‘Then it would explain how Medius could drink without being poisoned?’

  ‘Yes,’ said Alexander, his lips turning cruel.

  ‘But, dear Alexander, has not another thought occurred to you? A man bitten by an asp, who lives, may be bitten again with less effect, and yet again. Could not Medius have accustomed himself to small doses of the poison by taking first a grain and then a larger quantity?’

  Alexander breathed heavily in sudden anger, and, unusually, spoke sharply to me.

  ‘Of course I did think of it,’ he said. ‘But I do not have time to determine whether this could be done!’

  He rang a bell and when the attendants arrived he ordered that Nearchus should bring him the final prisoner.

  ‘You shall watch the end of my experiment, Jolas,’ said he, equable once again. ‘This poison is most powerful. Five crystals are lethal – but so are four; three bring fever and so do two, and both are probably lethal in the long run. Now if a single crystal brings fever by tomorrow, I shall know at least that Medius is in all probability innocent, for it means one is not immune from the smallest possible dosage.’

  Thereupon Alexander filled the green-glaze cup a third full of wine, and from the receptacle in his sword picked out a single crystal of the poison with a fine tweezers, his hand shaking in sudden weakness, and dropped the crystal into the liquid.

  By then Nearchus had entered with a bearded, half-naked prisoner of tremendous proportions and the yellowish skin of a Paphlagonian. The man had a truculent expression and Nearchus watched him carefully as Alexander stepped forward, holding the cup out to him.

  ‘Drink,’ he commanded. ‘I think perhaps freedom lies ahead for you, who are the last.’

  The dull eyes of the Paphlagonian looked first at Alexander and next at the cup. Then I beheld a spark rise in his orbs, and the following moment he raised his hand and dashed the cup out of the king’s hand so that it crashed against the edge of the fish pond, the contents spilling into the water.

  Almost at the sound of the shattering of the cup, Nearchus stepped forward, swung his sword aloft, and swept it down with tremendous force at the point where the prisoner’s neck met his shoulder. The Paphlagonian fell with his head half severed and lay athwart the coping of the fish pool, covering the shards of the poison cup, while his heart, still beating, pumped blood into the clear water.

  Meanwhile I saw Alexander back unsteadily toward his couch, his face flushing scarlet, beads of sweat forming upon his upper lip.

  ‘I am aflame,’ he murmured, and I took him by the arm and helped him to his couch.

  ‘You must cover your feet for they are cold,’ I said as the sight of my weakened king made my own heart bleed, ‘and support your back for the sharp pain that is in it.’ And I put a cushion gently behind him.

  By the time Alexander lay resting easily, with his eyes closed, Nearchus had ordered the body of the Paphlagonian removed and I stood alone with the admiral in an antechamber.

  ‘You are a troublemaker,’ Nearchus said, looking at me with loathing. ‘With your talk of conspiracy, you h
ave caused many deaths, and will bring ruin upon us all! Could it not be that Alexander has caught a mere disease and will recover? Must you call us all assassins?’

  ‘It is no disease,’ I said simply.

  ‘Liar!’ Nearchus cried, and left the chamber.

  I returned at once to the terrace.

  ‘Will you have me at your side?’ I asked softly. But Alexander watched me not, so absorbed was he gazing upon the shards of the green glaze and the blood mingled with the wine that still spread, staining the limpid waters of the pool, and now making invisible the fish within it.

  For the remainder of the day, every time I sought admittance to Alexander’s chambers, the doctor turned me away, saying the king was too ill to grant an audience. At the evening meal Alexander was absent, and Susa and Nearchus and Medius and I sat together without a word, and I could feel the united force of their dislike directed against me. I could not finish my supper, and rose to walk along the river bank until sundown, returning to my quarters at the villa and retiring early, for I was greatly fatigued.

  I was awakened in the middle of the night by the doctor, who told me to come at once, that Alexander had expressed a wish to see me.

  At the sight of him I knew death was not far away. He put out a dry hand as I sat beside him, and I felt the heat of it burn my wrist.

  ‘Dear Jolas,’ he said weakly. ‘Again I have cut the Gordian knot. I know now who has poisoned me, and you must help me to see justice done. Call Nearchus and Susa and Medius here at once. We shall make the final judgment!’