Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 59565 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 298(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59565 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 298(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
The constables take one step back as Quin removes the shield around me. He nods, and halts Nicostratus by the arm when he starts to come between me and Eparch Valerius, who is now eating the grass where his ‘calming concoction’ had been upturned.
I step closer to him, the murmur of the crowd fading into the background. My voice cuts through the tension like a blade. “City philanthropist, friend to the refugees, healer of the sick—you’ve played your part beautifully. Too beautifully.” My words hang in the air, the accusation as sharp as the glare in his eyes.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” he snaps.
I smile grimly. “You attempted to kill and killed three of four redcloaks; you poisoned the refugees, and you murdered Vitalian Dimos.”
“Insanity.”
“You may choose to plead that after.”
“I have alibis for all those events. The last one I was almost killed myself!”
“We’ll get to that. Let’s start with your henchmen.”
“Henchmen? I didn’t know them.”
“You’ve never had any prior interaction with those deceased redcloaks? Are you sure about that?”
“Of course I’m sure. Constables, this interrogation is unwarranted. He does not stand for the law. I will not answer to these accusations.” He tries to get up but a blast of magic from Quin has him pinned to the ground. The constables don’t move.
Quin looks at me. “Continue.”
“You say you’re sure you’ve had no interaction, but you confiscated Vitalian Dimos’s soldad after they came to you demanding punishment for a medicinal spell that almost killed them.”
Eparch Valerius flushes and grits his teeth. “Indeed I’ve had a little contact with them. Quite forgotten.”
“Quite forgotten?”
Eparch Valerius’s eyes flash angrily.
I crouch to his level and spell it out for him. “They were abusing their power, forcing you to get rid of Vitalian Dimos. You realised they couldn’t be trusted, so you withheld their next dose of antidote.” He jerks his eyes to mine and I see how deeply treacherous this man is. “You poison all those who work for you. If they leave your service or become problematic, they’ll simply keel over and die. Those who remain useful will repeat your poison-antidote cycle, quite likely completely unaware.”
“Those soldiers consumed echowisp, a flower found where the prince resided before coming into the city. Perhaps you should be confronting him.”
“You know very well the prince was in the West Wind fields before coming here. You’d sent your men to scout for him after hearing rumours he’d left the capital. They recognised him, sent word, and you sent word back to pluck some echowisp flowers before returning. It’s a pity in doing so they got stung by fern bees. They’d have thought the stings a nuisance at first, but by the time they got back to the city, the stings would have become painful welts. They ducked into a nearby apothecary—Vitalian Dimos’s—and he did his job using spells he’s used a hundred times before. Only he didn’t know your men were poisoned. Didn’t know it would clash with his spell, worsening the effects of the stings.”
Eparch Valerius flattens his lips. His silence is welcome. In fact, it speaks loudly.
“Those bees are particularly drawn to echowisp pollen. They’re almost solely found in places where echowisp grows.” Something I tripped across in my grandfather’s books. I’d been so focused on snake venom I hadn’t realised its importance until today. “An investigation of the bodies can determine they were stung by these particular bees, and prove the redcloaks had been near echowisp. Your henchmen, though, they didn’t know much about flowers and poisons. They probably assumed your request was for a rare medicinal spell, and perhaps at first you too thought it useful as such. After all, you work with many of the best vitalians and dabble in herbal concoctions yourself.” I lean in. “You don’t need to deny that part. I remember clearly you telling me as much the first time we met.”
“I dabble. That proves nothing.”
“After you confiscated Vitalian Dimos’s soldad, you gave your henchmen one last mission: to kill the prince. They tried very hard, by the way. Ultimately, they returned to you in failure. But you had another idea. You gave them the flowers and told them they’d know when to use them.”
“What idiots would take flowers with such vague instructions?”
“Idiots who might’ve been told a story. Something along the lines of: Prince Nicostratus is crafty. Wouldn’t be surprising if he used underhand methods in his fight. Poison. Carry these flowers on you in case you show symptoms. Consume immediately at the first sign.”
Eparch Valerius’s hand clenches around grass. Seems I’m right.
“It looked like poisonous petals had been stuffed in their mouths and they, left to die. The real poison went undetected. This worked well, and so you used it again. This time on the refugees.”
“I organised donations for their welfare, helped set up temporary homes. Why would I harm them?”