Page 54 of The Study of Poisons
How did he know? Then Valek realized he still wore his training uniform. “No. But Maren shows promise. Unfortunately, she doesn’t want to be in my corps or even be my second. She just wants to beat me.” Valek grinned, delighted by the challenge.
“And can she?” the Commander inquired.
“With time and the proper training. She’s deadly with her bo; it’s just her tactics that need work.”
“Then what do we do with her?”
“Promote her to a general and retire some of those old windbags. We could use some fresh blood in the upper ranks,” Valek said.
“Valek, you never had a good grasp of military structure.”
“Then promote her to lieutenant today, captain tomorrow, major the next day, colonel the day after, and general the day after that.” What he never had a good grasp on was why it took so bloody long for a talented soldier to climb through the ranks.
“I’ll take it under advisement.” The Commander flashed Yelena an annoyed glance. “Anything else?” he asked Valek.
Yelena had finished tasting, Valek grabbed her arm before she could leave. “I’d like to try an experiment. I want Yelena to taste the Criollo every time you do for a week, then the next week I’ll taste it for you. I want to see if anything happens to her when she stops eating the dessert.”
“No.” The Commander raised a hand when Valek started to argue. “I recognize your concern, but I think it’s misplaced.”
“Humor me.”
“We can try your experiment once Rand duplicates the recipe from General Brazell. Acceptable?”
No, but it was progress. “Yes, sir.”
“Good. I want you to join me in a meeting with General Kitvivan. We’re just starting the cooling season, and he’s already worried about snow cats.” The Commander turned. “Yelena, you’re dismissed.”
“Yes, sir,” she said, rushing from the room.
“What the hell was that about, Valek?” The Commander demanded once she was gone.
“I’m just being cautious.”
“You practically accused me of being addicted to Criollo in front of Yelena. It couldn’t wait until tonight?”
“She’s eating it, too. And I thought having another perspective might help. And she might pick up—”
“And you call me paranoid. It’s just a dessert, Valek. I’m experiencing no ill effects. If I do, I’ll stop eating it. Let it go for now.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. The meeting with Kitvivan starts in an hour.”
Valek had just enough time to bathe and change before joining the Commander in the war room. General Kitvivan entered with his retinue. The meeting started, but Valek soon grew bored, and his thoughts turned to the puzzles he needed to solve. He created a mental to-do list.
The Commander’s sharp tone caught his attention. “You willnotset traps for the snow cats. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir,” General Kitvivan said through clenched teeth.
“Just leave them alone and they’ll leave your district alone.”
“But they don’t. They kill a dozen cattle a year.”
“And storms kill another dozen. It’s all part of living near the Northern Ice Pack. If you can’t handle it, then I will assign another to take your place.”
Valek studied the Commander. Normally, he wouldn’t be so…passionate about the snow cats in public. It was well known that the Commander was the only person in Ixia to successfully hunt and kill one of the big wily cats. What wasn’t public knowledge was the Commander’s high regard for the creatures.
“I can handle it,” Kitvivan said tightly.
