The Study of Poisons

MARIA V. SNYDER THE STUDY OF POISONS CONTENTS Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 CHAPTER 1 The body hit the floor with a loud thud. After a few more convulsions, the man died with a final breathy exhale. Good riddance, Valek thought. Glancing up, the Commander of the Territory of Ixia put the file he'd been reading down with a sigh. "What was wrong with this one, Valek?" "He’s grown sloppy and lazy. Did you see the way he shoved the food into his mouth? He didn’t even bother to sniff it. If he had, he would have smelled the poison and wouldn’t have died." Valek stood from his seat in front of the Commander’s desk and grabbed the tray. "I'll get you some fresh eggs." "And you’ll need to train a new food taster. In the meantime, you'll have to take over the job until the next taster is ready. It's risky." "Only if you don't know what you're doing." Valek stepped over the body. "And have someone dispose of Oscar's body." "It's Oscove...or it was." Thank fate. Valek had grown tired of the man’s schemes. "Just get it done." "Yes, sir." "And don't play around with the next guy. Train him quick," the Commander ordered. Valek paused at the threshold to the Commander’s office. "Her. The next person scheduled for execution is female." "The one who murdered General Brazell's son?" The Commander's voice held a weary indulgence. "You just can't leave that one alone, can you?" "There's more going on with her and I need to find out what it is." "Brazell won't be happy." "I don’t care." "Just make sure it doesn’t affect my meetings with him. We’ve quite a bit of business to discuss." "Yes, sir." Valek wove through the maze of desks and clusters of officers in the throne room. The actual throne had been dismantled and the gemstones and gold sold long ago. But Valek’s thoughts were on the prisoner who was going to be offered the choice between execution and becoming the Commander's new food taster. Only two people had chosen the noose since the Commander had taken over the Territory of Ixia fifteen years ago. Both had been loyal to the assassinated King of Ixia and chose death over working for the Commander. The rest had hoped to escape and, when they learned it was impossible, turned corrupt or lazy or both. Oscove had been selling secrets to their enemies, which Valek, as the Commander’s Chief of Security tolerated until the risks outweighed the benefits. Valek brought the Commander a clean plate of eggs then he arranged for the removal of Oscove's body before sending an agent to fetch the next prisoner on death row. Returning to his office, he cleared the files off the extra chair and settled at his desk. He glanced around his messy office. Piles of books littered the floor. More files, weapons, and maps covered the conference table. He’d accumulated too much stuff over the years—a far cry from when all he owned fit into one backpack. Valek sighed, missing the…simplicity of those days when he worked as an assassin for hire. A breeze blew from the open window behind him, bringing his thoughts back to the present. Mid-morning sunlight streamed through the glass, warming his back—the one perk of wearing an all-black uniform—otherwise it was bloody hot and bound to become even worse as it was two days until the official start of the hot season. Opening a dossier, he scanned the information on the prisoner. Yelena has been in the dungeon for almost a year. She was eighteen years old when she slit Reyad's throat with a knife, killing him. Valek noted that General Brazell’s son had been found on the bed in his room. The sheets soaked with his blood. The most obvious explanation for attacking him—rape didn't quite fit. For one, she admitted to the murder, but didn't say why she killed him. Not that it mattered why to the Commander. He didn't tolerate homicide from the citizens of Ixia. Self-defense, accident, or pre-meditated—they all resulted in the same sentence. Death. But it irked Valek. He wanted...no he needed an explanation. She had been one of Brazell's orphans. Raised with the others who had lost their parents, she was educated and doted on—if he believed the snide comments from the other Ixian generals. Why would she repay his kindness and generosity by murdering his only son? Something strange was going on with Reyad and perhaps Brazell as well. Valek planned to find out. Before Yelena arrived, Valek decided to downplay his interest in the circumstances surrounding her incarceration—act as if he doesn't care as long as she performs her job. A light tap on his door announced the arrival of the two dungeon guards who had escorted the prisoner. They approached his desk. As Yelena scanned his office, Valek studied the sorry sight in front of him. Coated with muck, bleeding from various scrapes, wearing a tattered prison gown, the poor thing strained to remain upright under the weight of the chains. Her long black hair hung in greasy clumps and an acrid dungeon stench wafted off her, polluting the air. He hadn’t expected her to be so…bedraggled and emaciated. She wouldn’t survive the first poison-tasting test. Valek met her green-eyed gaze. An icy calm stared back at him—almost as if challenging him. Interesting. Perhaps he’d been too hasty in his assessment. “A woman? The next prisoner to be executed is a woman?” He used his most severe tone while pretending to be surprised. The poor thing quivered and guilt panged in his chest over his harsh words. Softening his voice, he said, “I should have taken the time to reread your dossier.”