“This is highly irregular, young lady,” the royal physician said, struggling to keep up with me on his old legs.
“No one here will trust me, and it’s clear you serve the prince loyally. You’ll be doing him a great service, and I’m happy to give you all the credit.”
“But a physician has already examined Chief Adviser Tannis, and one of my students, no less.”
I ignored his protests, but Ghost quickly offered some of his own.
“How do you know this isn’t a trap?” Ghost asked as we made our way toward the eastern wing of the palace.
“Everything’s a trap lately,” I said. He couldn’t argue.
I was thankful that I wouldn’t have to go to the large facility they threw together to process the bulk of citizen deaths, though I couldn’t help but wonder if the prince had seen that one. I’d have to have his ear first, and it seemed Tannis’s death had erected a barrier between us.
“Yes, but you don’t have to intentionally walk into all of them.”
“Want to just go home and build a little house in my village?”
Even as I asked the question, meant to be sarcastic, my heart ached a bit. Would that really be so wrong? Ghost sensed my hesitation.
“Is that something you’d want to do?”
“I… I’m not sure anymore, Ghost. It felt good to be a part of something bigger than myself. I liked the idea of saving the world.”
“Look on the bright side. There isn’t much of the world left to save,” he said.
“That doesn’t exactly make me feel better, Ghost.”
“Let me rephrase: Thanks to you, nearly everyone who can be saved has been.”
Ah, rare Ghost praise. I beamed, making a show of soaking it in.
“Hold the applause,” I said, before turning my attention back to the royal physician. “You don’t seem at all surprised by Ghost speaking.”
“I was the first to be summoned when Ghost warned the palace of the assassination attempt. It is because of the two of you that the prince is alive now.”
“Oh, so you don’t believe I was secretly behind it all along?” I asked.
“Why would I?”
His expression was one of growing irritation. Not at me, but at the subject we were discussing. I’d imagine treachery was commonplace in the palace, and an old man like the royal physician had long since grown weary of it.
“That was my question too.”
“Here,” he said, pointing to a door to our right.
As I opened it and entered, I was immediately stopped by two guards.
“We are preparing the body of a high official for cremation. You need to leave,” one of the men said.
The royal physician took a step forward, standing next to me.
“I’m here to conduct a second examination of the body.”
“Did his majesty order it?” the second guard asked.
“He does not need to order it,” the royal physician said, his irritation rising above the surface. He took a step forward before being physically restrained by the first guard.
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“Sorry, but we’ve been ordered to prevent anyone from entering, regardless of their rank or reason.”
He spoke confidently but couldn’t hide his nervousness. He was afraid of someone, and that someone scared him more than the royal physician.
“We’ll see what His Majesty has to say about this…”
As the royal physician began to turn, the guard pulled him back by the arm.
I simply nodded to Ghost, who flew away without the need for explanation. It was clear to both of us what was about to happen.
“And if something were to happen to His Majesty while you’re holding me here? Are you prepared to shoulder that responsibility?”
The royal physician was quick-witted. He might not be able to force his way in physically, but he knew how to turn the situation into something different.
I was certain this would work and was surprised when it didn’t. Fine. I preferred to do things my way anyway. I reached out and gently placed my hand on the guard’s wrist.
“You should let go of him,” I said, locking eyes with the much larger man.
If I’d been a giant, this might have been where it ended. I was accustomed by now to what would happen instead. A small woman threatening you physically got a reaction alright: amusement, laughter, or something along those lines. In this case, it was a smirk—first at me, then at the other guard. It quickly disappeared as I forced his hand away and drove my fist into his side. He drew in a sharp breath, collapsing to his knee. The other guard took a step back, placing his hand on his sword, but his shock made him slow. I kicked his legs from under him, and he landed hard on the floor.
“My goodness, young lady. What did they feed you at PanTech?” the royal physician asked while laughing, almost as though this was what he’d expected to happen. “Let’s not waste time then.”
As we passed through the next door, several people were gathered around Tannis’s body, already loaded onto a cart.
“Stop!” the royal physician shouted. “Step away. Now.”
We met no resistance from the attendants in the room, who seemed surprised by the intrusion into what had likely seemed like a routine procedure.
The royal physician tilted Tannis’s head back, swabbing his finger inside his mouth. We’d had the same thought, it seemed.
He smelled it, then sighed.
“If you have any technology on you, now is the time to use it.”
I’d intended to let the royal physician examine him further. Not only did I want to give the man credit, but I preferred to draw as little attention to myself and my tools as possible. If whoever was responsible for this knew about the things I carried, they might factor them into future plans.
I took out a small device from a hidden pouch I carried in my clothes, normally sewn into hidden pockets. That was always possible, such as in cases like this, where I was given different clothes.
I touched the small cylinder to Tannis’s arm and carefully studied the screen. It barely took a drop of blood, yet I could see everything: anything that had been present in his body when it was added, and more. Most importantly, I could see what was not present.
“Tannis’s virus had not activated itself yet,” I whispered.
“But he did have it. So the reports were accurate?”
“No. We all have it. Even I have it. I suspect every human alive has it by now, but until it activates, there’s no way of detecting it short of advanced testing devices, beyond what any zone would have available to them outside of their Adversity Management.”
He nodded. “And?”
I showed him the screen, listing all of the agents the device’s program had detected as noteworthy.
He nodded again. “I recognize two of these… simple herbs. Neither is poison.”
Just then, Renyi flung open the door. Rather than relief, his face was filled with anger as he pointed his finger in my face. “You had better have a good reason for behaving this way in my palace,” he said.
“I am her accomplice, Your Majesty,” the royal physician said, without looking up. “Cool your anger. You studied these herbs, did you not? Tell me what they mean.”
Renyi grabbed my hand, pulling the device closer so he could read the screen.
“Emberweed and…” He looked up at the royal physician, his face twisted from anger to rage. “Strideblossom?”
He let go of my hand and took a step back, overwhelmed by the implications. I had pieced the explanation together: two harmless herbs that reacted in a deadly way. An ideal way to poison a cautious man. Likely one stayed in the system for a while, and the other could be added to the next day’s meal for a lethal result. But… why?
“I will go and draft a decree. The palace will be locked down until I get to the bottom of this.” As he turned to storm out of the room, he paused and took my hand again. “I’m sorry, Taylor. We… if you’re willing to help me.”
“Of course I’ll help you,” I said.
He reached into his robes, pulling out a jade medallion and placing it in my palm.
“With this, you speak for the throne. Tannis held it with loyalty and dignity for many years, and you will be borrowing it for a time.”
He turned again but held out his hand to stop me from following. He turned to the royal physician.
“I can tell by what happened in the other room that she’s used that same technology that caused her harm before. Examine her before she joins me.”
“Understood, Your Majesty,” he said.
“Do not use it again,” Renyi said coldly, locking eyes with me as he spoke.
I really hoped I wouldn’t have to.