Page 69 of The Study of Poisons
As he worked, his thoughts churned through his various problems. Valek wondered what news Yelena would sell to Star. Would she mention the Commander’s addiction to Criollo? Or about the change in his successor? She’d been right outside the door and had to have overheard their argument. Valek hadn’t raised his voice to Ambrose in a very long time. And since then, the Commander had been distant and cold to Valek. No surprise, as Valek had completely misjudged Yelena and put the Commander at risk. At least he’d learned about her before he included her in his team and she could sell damaging information. Should he set out some false data in various places to test if she snooped through his desk, or office, or the Commander’s office? Perhaps he’d include a few true tidbits, just to give her some credibility with Star. Might as well determine the holes in his security before arresting her. And he should—was that a knock?
He stopped grinding as Yelena opened the door. “What is it?” he asked.
She stood in the entrance. “I’ve had an offer. Someone wants to pay me for information about the Commander.”
He faced her. Was she confessing? With her tense posture and the crease of uncertainty on her face, she appeared ready to bolt. “Why tell me?”
“I thought you might want to follow along. This might be the one who has been leaking information about me.” It took him a moment to switch gears and for all her words to make sense. Before he could comment, she continued, “Espionage is illegal. You might want to make an arrest, or maybe even feed this leak some misinformation. You know, spy stuff. Remember? Or have you become bored with that, too?” Her question was sharp with anger.
It finally sunk in. She’d agreed to sell information to Star in order to help him and the Commander. Notbetraythem. The ice inside him melted in one gushing torrent, leaving him lightheaded. Yelena peered at him, waiting for his answer.
Valek pulled it together. “Who?” he asked. “And when?”
“Margg approached me, and she mentioned a contact. We’re meeting tomorrow night.”
“All right, proceed as planned. I’ll tail you to the rendezvous and see who we’re dealing with. We’ll start by feeding this contact some accurate information to make you look reliable. Perhaps the Commander’s change of successor would work. It’s harmless information that will be made public anyway. Then we’ll go from there.”
As they discussed the details of the mission, Valek kept his emotions in check, despite the relief and chagrin over jumping to conclusions and the horror of contemplating ending her life that twirled inside him like his grinding wheel. After they finished planning, she headed out the door.
He’d been wrong about her and he wanted to fix that mistake, to show he trusted her, believed in her. “Yelena.”
She halted in the threshold, looking back over her shoulder.
“You once said I wasn’t ready to believe your reason for killing Reyad. I’ll believe you now.”
“But I’m not ready to tell you,” she said and left.
It wasn’t a complete rejection. Not ready meant she might be able to confide in him in the future. And no wonder she didn’t trust him. He’d just spent the last week either in a rage or freezing her out.
Valek fidgeted with the rock he’d been working on as another thought occurred to him. What if she never let down her guard around him? Could she still be a member of his team? No. Until she trusted him, she’d just be a well-trained food taster.
He glanced at the almost finished carving in his hand. It was a Cheketo leaf. Smiling, Valek remembered Yelena had glued the big round leaves to camouflage her red uniform when she’d acted as a fugitive. Considering the southern magician’s interest in her and a few other puzzles, Yelena was still camouflaged.
Tonight, he had learned he couldn’t rush her. That she’d either eventually trust him or not. But he was determined to work at earning that trust. Even if it meant peeling off one Cheketo leaf at a time.
* * *
“Trusther or don’t trust her, which one is it, Valek?” the Commander asked in exasperation.
“Trust her. Yelena proved her loyalty last night.I’mthe one who overreacted.”
“You? Overreact? Is this the same man who pushed me down a flight of stairs when General Rasmussen sneezed?”
At the Commander’s teasing tone, Valek relaxed back into the chair. They were in his office, and all was apparently forgiven. “In my defense, that sneeze sounded like the twang of a bow string. I thought an assassin had targeted you. Better a sprained knee than an arrow in the heart.”
“A sprainedankle.”
“You’re not going to let me live that one down, are you?”
“No.”
“Good to know. And I also wanted to let you know those factory beans of Brazell’s are grown in Sitia. My agents arrived early this morning. They followed the wagons all the way to the Illiais Jungle. Seems the pods grow on the trunks of short jungle trees. I still don’t know what the beans are used for. It’s not coffee. I found out those beans are shaped differently.”
“Valek, that’s enough. Leave Brazell’s feed mill alone. He obtained the proper permits, there’s no need to investigate further.”
Where did this come from?“But he’s buying illegal goods.”
“No. He’s not. He’sstealingthem so he can grow those pods in Ixia.”
