Page 17 of The Study of Poisons
“Don’t say anything. Don’t threaten or bully or intimidate. I’ve had enough of that from Brazell. I’ll make every effort to be the best taster because I’m getting used to the idea of living. And I don’t want to give Brazell the satisfaction of seeing me dead.”
She strode down the hallway without waiting for him to reply to her outburst. Then again, she had told him not to say anything. Impressed with her determination, he followed her until it appeared she had no idea where she was going.
He touched her elbow and muttered, “medic,” steering her to the left. Valek kept alert for an ambush as they traveled through the corridors. He doubted Brazell had the time to set another one up, but he wouldn’t be caught off-guard again.
They reached the infirmary without trouble. Valek’s favorite medic was on duty. Channa was efficient and skilled and didn’t admonish him when he arrived in need of care. She understood his job was dangerous, saving her nagging foraftershe healed him, usually by insisting he not rush his recovery.
The short-haired woman led Yelena to an empty examination table. Channa wore an all-white uniform with red diamond shapes stitched onto her collar. Spots of bright red blood already stained her sleeve. White was supposed to be better for the patients, but he couldn’t help thinking black would hide the blood better.
Yelena stretched out on the table, grunting with pain. Now that the adrenaline had no doubt worn off, she appeared exhausted and vulnerable. Which reminded him that he needed to protect her.
“I’ll post some guards outside the door, in case Brazell changes his mind,” Valek said. He walked over to where Channa gathered supplies. “She’s had a rough afternoon. Can you give her some sleeping pills so she has a good night’s sleep?”
Medic Channa nodded and then glanced at Yelena, who was watching them. Valek said good-bye and hurried to find a couple of his corps. Regular castle guards wouldn’t help his peace of mind. He needed his specially trained people disguised as regular guards to keep an eye on her.
* * *
The next morning,Valek stopped by the kitchen to pick up breakfast for Yelena. The kitchen swarmed with activity. Rand stood amid the chaos, shouting orders as he cooked omelets. A hot fog of steam and grease permeated the air. It smelled delicious. He looped around, counting knives. There were a number of rather large and dangerously sharp ones and he liked to ensure they remained in the kitchen.
Satisfied they were all accounted for, Valek picked up a tray. He filled it with an omelet and a cup of honey tea. On his way out, he stopped one of the servers and requested a special blend of tea. He gave her instructions on how the tea was to be prepared before being delivered to the infirmary.
“Training a new food taster, sir?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“And she’s already in the infirmary?” Her surprise changed to calculation. “Does she have a weak constitution?”
Ah. She was pumping him for information. The servants liked to gamble on everything, and betting over whether the new food taster would survive the training must be the current obsession.
“Time will tell,” he said.
The servant all but growled over his vague reply. He suppressed a grin, thanked her, and left. Stopping by his office to pick up a few things, Valek headed to the infirmary. His corps stood guard outside the entrance. They signaled it had been a quiet night and all was well. Good.
Medic Channa gave him a quick update on Yelena. “She detected the sleeping pills in her tea and wouldn’t finish it. She thought someone poisoned it. She didn’t eat either but did sleep well. However, something upset her this morning.”
He glanced around, seeking trouble. “Do you know who or what?”
“No idea.” She left to attend to another patient.
Valek approached Yelena’s bed. She stared at the ceiling, but as he drew closer her gaze snapped to her breakfast.
“What’s in it?” she demanded. “More sleeping pills? Or another new poison?” Struggling to sit up, she winced and sank back in defeat. “How about giving me something to make me feel good for a change?” She grumped.
No doubt she was in pain from her exertions yesterday. Valek ignored her mood and made a mental note to ask Channa to give her some pain medicine. “How about something to keep you alive?” He tucked the file he carried under his arm and helped her into a sitting position. With a flourish, he offered her the pipette filled with her antidote. Then he placed the tray of food on her lap.
“No need for sleeping pills. The medic told me you picked up on that taste last night.” Valek approved. “Taste your breakfast and tell me if you would allow the Commander to eat it.”
He watched as she scanned the food, sniffed the omelet, sampled it, and then stirred the tea before sipping it. She’d picked up on the five S-steps faster than the other food tasters he’d trained.
“Unless the Commander doesn’t like honey in his tea, I wouldn’t reject this breakfast.”
Pride swelled. “Then eat it.” Valek kept his tone neutral. How certain was she? A taster needed to be confident.
She hesitated, eyeing him. A little crinkle of skin puckered between her eyebrows. He had the sudden desire to smooth it with his thumb. Yelena ate the entire omelet and then drained the tea.
“Not bad,” he said. “No poisons…today.”
One of the medics brought another tray to Valek. It held four cups of the special tea he’d ordered. He switched the trays on Yelena’s lap. “I want to go over some tasting techniques. Each of these cups contains mint tea. Taste one.”
