Page 38 of The Study of Poisons
Her group was easy to spot when they came into view an hour later. Sammy, Rand’s fetch boy, raced ahead. Porter walked with the pantler, Liza, while Rand limped next to Yelena. She had braided colorful ribbons in her hair. They suited her, just like the wide smile she flashed at Rand. The cook gestured wildly, and she laughed. Valek curled his fingers into fists.
As they neared, Yelena’s gaze was captured by the fire festival. By this point in the evening, it was no longer an inanimate collection of tents. The people moved through it like blood through veins. Voices, music, singing, and merchants hawking their wares mixed together and transformed into a physical excitement that drummed through the air like a heartbeat.
It lived.
Yelena’s expression turned to wonder as she followed Rand, who hurried through the crowds to the baking competition tent. Not surprised that the cook needed to check the results and get his ego stroked, Valek followed. He didn’t search for Hildred, Inrick or the others in the mass of people surrounding them. He trusted his corps to be in position and to appear if there was any trouble. Yelena also seemed to be following his instructions on how to spot a tail. They’d only had time for a brief lesson, but it appeared she had listened to him. Good. Would she notice him? Like so many others, he carried his mug of ale. Unlike them, he scanned faces over the lip, and assessed body language for threats.
When Rand exited the tent, he wore a jubilant expression.Must have won again. That should make him less sullen for a few weeks.Rand bought everyone a glass of wine and they celebrated as they continued to explore. The flow of people moved like a river and swept them along toward a massive tent with red and white stripes.
Inside the pavilion, the qualifying round of the acrobatic competition had started. A bunch of brightly costumed acrobats jumped on trampolines, walked on tight ropes high above the spectators, and performed tumbling routines on the floor mats. Feet thudded, chalk billowed, and the crowd murmured in awe. The earthy odor of sweat mixed with the dry musk of the piles of straw used to break the entrants’ falls.
Yelena, Rand, and the others sat on the bleachers to view the competition. Valek remained close enough to reach her if something happened. Instead of viewing the displays of physical prowess in the main arena, he kept his attention focused on Yelena and those around her.
She watched the acrobats with a rapt expression, but then Rand leaned toward her and broke the spell. Rand gloated about something before facing forward again. After that, Yelena’s gaze grew distant and then troubled.
Had she recognized someone in the crowd? Valek examined the rows of people, seeking soldiers wearing green and black uniforms. No one. But they could also be in disguise.
Yelena hunched over and bit her knuckle. Alarmed, Valek reached for his switchblade, but she appeared to be in no danger. Rand finally noticed and put his arm around her shoulders. Valek fingered the hilt, but Rand only roused her from… What? Why did she suddenly become so…frightened?
Rand handed her a meat pie. Pride swelled in Valek’s chest when she performed the five S-steps. But she didn’t eat much as she talked to the cook. When they stood to leave, Valek hurried out. Perhaps she was afraid he wasn’t guarding her like he promised. She might need confirmation that he was nearby.
Valek took a couple big gulps of his ale and spilled the rest down his tunic. Ugh. When he spotted Yelena and Rand arm in arm, he had to crush the desire to yank Rand into some dark corner.
Acting and smelling drunk, Valek bumped into Yelena, causing her to stumble.
When she glanced at him, he mumbled, “Pardon me,” and saluted her with his mug. No recognition touched her face, so he bowed, pretended to lose his balance, and landed at her feet, hoping she would help him stand and he could tell her that he had her back.
Except a loud pulsing rhythm surged through the crowd and shook the ground. Drawn by the commotion, Yelena stepped over him.
At least his disguise worked. Valek stood and brushed the dust off his uniform. He looked at the crowd in front of him but didn’t see Yelena. Not panicking, he scanned the press of people entering the entertainment tent.
Hildred appeared beside him. “Where did she go?” Her voice was tight with tension.
Then Inrick and the two other shadows were next to him.
“She must be at the entrance of the tent with Rand,” Inrick said. “I can see his head. Not hers, she’s too short.”
No. She’d disappeared too quickly. “Fan out with your teammate,” Valek ordered. “She couldn’t have gone far.”
He took the right side, searching. It was the unnatural lurching stride of the four big men that caught his attention at first. That and how close they stood to each other as if—
Ribbons flashed between shoulders. Yelena.
Valek whistled to his corps and hurried after the goons. They dragged her away from the crowd and disappeared between two medium-sized tents. He remembered there was an empty area behind the pavilions with three ways to get in.
His team caught up. Valek sent each pair to the other sides of the tents. “Don’t let them pass you.”
“What about you?” Hildred asked.
“I’m taking this one.”
“But—”
“Noooo—” the scream cut off.
Yelena. Every particle of his being cried out with one primal directive:She. Can’t. Die.
“Go! Now!” Valek ran through the narrow gap and broke through a sticky substance as if he’d just run through a spider web.
