Page 41 of The Study of Poisons
“No?”
“No. Instead, we lured a big, dangerous shark.” He drained his drink. The Commander did the same. Valek took both glasses, refilled them, and returned to his seat before recounting the evening’s events.
Ambrose listened without interruption. At the end, he asked, “Why does a southern magician wish my food taster dead?”
“No idea.” Although Valek was happy to note Ambrose’s use ofmy.
“I’d say this qualifies as Yelena being too troublesome, but it goes well beyond that.”
“It does. And if she dies, then any chance to solve this mystery will die with her.”
“Then I trust you to find outexactlywhat is going on and stop it.”
“Yes, sir.”
* * *
After his meetingwith the Commander, Valek headed to the infirmary. Inrick guarded the two unconscious goons. Medic Channa guessed it would be a couple more hours before they woke.
“Did you have to hit them so hard?” she asked, annoyed. “One has a cracked skull and may have brain damage.”
“Four against one, Channa. I’m lucky it wasn’t me who had to be carried in here.”
Her expression softened. “How’s the jaw?” She fingered the bruises. “Do you need any pain medicine? Or have you already self-medicated?” She sniffed. “Peach?”
“Yes, to both questions. The Commander always has the good stuff.” The brandy had dulled the throb.
Channa handed him some smelling salts. “For your…guests. Wave these under their noses every thirty minutes or so. You might be able to wake one of them up sooner.”
“Thanks.”
Valek joined Inrick. They discussed the evening’s events as they waited, comparing notes.
“Did you see these guys at the festival?” Valek asked.
“Not together. And I only noticed the blacksmith earlier in the crowd because half his beard was singed off. You’d think he would have shaved the rest.”
“Unless that’s part of his disguise.”
“Could be.” He shrugged. “Truthfully, I wasn’t looking for the obvious goons. I thought General Brazell would send an assassin, or his soldiers would be wearing civilian clothes.”
Inrick made an interesting point. Had Star or Brazell hired the southern magician to kill Yelena? Would a master-level magician be working for hire? Unlikely. No. There had to be something else going on.
After multiple attempts, they finally roused one of the goons. Unfortunately, he had been a grunt for hire and his job was to aid in the kidnapping. All he knew was that the man with the knife had hired him and the woman acted like his boss.
Discouraged, Valek left the infirmary and returned to his apartment. He blinked at the sudden brightness. All the lanterns blazed and, sitting on the couch wide awake and obviously waiting for him, was Yelena. He glanced longingly at the stairs up to his bedroom, bit back a sigh, and studied her.
“Haven’t you slept?” he asked.
“No. But neither have you,” she said, sounding like a little kid.
“I can sleep all day. You need to taste the Commander’s breakfast in an hour.”
“WhatIneed are answers.”
“To what questions?” Valek started extinguishing the lanterns.
“Why is a southern magician trying to kill me?”
