The Bard's Tales: A Fell Purpose

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Kahlan, Zedd and Richard aren't mine. And I'm sure I could make money off this if I could come up with a better fantasy-world name for cyanide. But I can't, so don't bother squeezing me--you can't get blood from a stonebane.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victor had taken them up to their rooms soon after that, promising to arrange for interviews with the household starting first thing in the morning. Richard and Zedd joined Kahlan in her room soon after Victor left. "Tell me more about this poison, Zedd," Kahlan said. "You seemed very confident about what it was, and that it was definitely poison that killed Hugh, and not something natural."

"It's stonebane," he said. "The symptoms Victor described are unmistakable, especially the blue lips. There aren't any natural causes I know of that would cause that."

"And there isn't any other kind of poison, or something magical, that could cause it?" Richard asked.

Zedd thought for a while, then shook his head. "Not that I know of. But this is a good thing--it will help us narrow down the possible suspects considerably. The most important thing about stonebane, at least for our situation, is that it works fast--usually within minutes of the victim ingesting it. And it's also not easy to disguise, even in something like wine." He wrinkled his nose. "It has a fairly distinctive bitter smell and taste. Neither are overwhelming, but they'd be hard to miss. But if it was given to Hugh after the meal, and he'd been drinking wine already, it is possible he might not have noticed."

Kahlan sighed. "Well, any way you look at it, if you're right about the poison, that means that we can pretty well rule out Will Haviland and Bryce Marsters. And the two women who arrived that evening. I'll start with the men who were in the room with Hugh that night. And the cook and the butler."

"In the meantime, I'll help Victor with his preparations for the attack," Richard said. "We can't afford to miss this opportunity."

"I'll see if I can track down the glass so I can confirm my theory about the poison," Zedd said. "And then I'll be off to Middleton."

"Middleton?" Richard said, confused.

"There's an alchemist there. I'm betting if someone in this area needed to acquire a poison, Lars Felwyn would be a likely person to see," Zedd said. "And stonebane is a specialty of his. It's only a day's ride at most. I can leave tomorrow morning, and be back by the following morning at the latest."

"Is that really necessary?" Kahlan said. "Victor and the rest of the Resistance will be leaving for the muster of the army by then, and Richard will need to go with them. If I'm not able to figure this out by then--"

"If you haven't figured it out by then, I'm certainly not leaving you here alone," Richard said resolutely.

"It's not just about the investigation now, Richard. This is about the battle," Kahlan said. "Victor needs to show everyone who arrives for the muster that he has reason to expect victory. With Hugh's death, the presence of the Seeker is crucial."

"Actually, Will Haviland already asked me to go along for that very reason," Zedd said. "He seems to think a wizard of the first order would be helpful." His look of modesty was hardly convincing.

"I'd rather have you with Richard, too," Kahlan said. "Which is why I don't like this trip to Middleton much."

"I don't need a babysitter," Richard said, though with a teasing note to his voice.

"I do think I should go to Middleton," Zedd said, ignoring Richard. "If this isn't someone in the household, you could spend a lot of time trying to find a killer who's already long gone. I'll be back before he leaves," Zedd added, trying to reassure her. "I promise."

Kahlan sighed. "Fine. But I want you both to be careful," Kahlan said. "We don't know what we're dealing with. If this is some sort of preemptive strike by the D'Harans, they'd love to have a shot at the Seeker."

Richard grinned. "I hope they try--that would make the investigation go a lot faster, wouldn't it?"

Kahlan frowned at him. "This isn't funny, Richard. Hugh Marsters was an intelligent, capable man. He wouldn't be easily fooled by a potential spy. So whoever did this is clearly a force to be reckoned with."

Zedd nodded. "That means you need to be doubly careful, Kahlan. You're the only person who can definitively prove who the guilty party is. I'd expect an intelligent person like you're describing to go after you first."

Kahlan smiled tightly. "I know. I'll keep my eyes open."

"It's not your eyes that need to stay open," Zedd said, and he took up a glass of water from a nearby table. "Here," he said, and waved his hand over the glass for a second. He handed it to her. "Smell it."

Kahlan took it tentatively and raised it to her nose. There was a smell of nuts—almonds? she thought, though there was another undercurrent to the smell she couldn't identify.

"That's the smell of stonebane," Zedd said. "I want you to be sure that you smell everything you eat or drink before you try it." Kahlan handed it to Richard, who smelled it, too. "And if you notice any unusual taste, especially bitterness, stop eating or drinking it, and find me immediately. The same holds true if you feel any shortness of breath, or strange numbness or tingling, especially in the lips. Given enough time, I can probably neutralize a fairly large amount of the poison, but time is the factor. As I said before, it works fast. I want you to be very careful while I'm gone."

Kahlan nodded, looking pensive.

Richard looked at her, regretting his earlier words. I hadn't thought about her being a target, Richard thought. I'd better do what I can to help in the investigation. The sooner we find the killer, the sooner we're all out of danger.

**********

"Excuse me, Wizard Zorander, could I have a word with you?" Victor asked Zedd as everyone was leaving the table after breakfast the next morning

"Of course," Zedd said, nodding to Kahlan and Richard who proceeded arm in arm up the long staircase. Zedd followed Victor over to the fireplace, sat down and waited while Victor paced in front of the fire.

"I was wondering if…" Victor began, then stopped and turned to look at Zedd. "I'm considering asking the Seeker if he would take command in my place."

Zedd raised his eyebrows. "Really? May I ask why?"

Victor looked surprised by the question. "Well, he's the Seeker."

"And…?"

"And…" Victor paused. "Given the circumstances, with Hugh's death, and some question over whether we'll be able to find the killer before we go to battle, it seems to me that it would be better to have someone untainted by these events in charge."

"I see," Zedd said, considering his words. "May I ask a question?"

"Of course," Victor said, sitting down across from the wizard.

"If Richard and Kahlan and I weren't here, would you be giving up command?"

Victor looked at him with a hint of a smile. "No," he said after a long moment. "I don't think I would."

"Why not?" Zedd asked. "Isn't there someone else who wasn't here when Hugh died who'd be capable? Bryce, perhaps?"

Victor shook his head immediately, though he looked uncomfortable about it. "Bryce is a good man, but he's not Hugh. And there isn't anyone else I'd feel comfortable having in charge of such an important task. But the Seeker is here, and he has the unqualified respect of every man in the Resistance."

Zedd waved away the second half of Victor's comment. "The fact is, Victor, that Hugh chose you as his second for a very good reason. I knew Hugh, and he was an excellent judge of men. If he thought you were up to this, and clearly he did, then you are. Given your responses to my questions, apparently you think you are, too."

Victor blinked at him. "Don't you think it's a little…arrogant?"

"Not at all," Zedd said. "Victor, a leader needs to believe he's the best man for the job. Otherwise, why not just go out and find the better man and put him in charge? But getting back to our particular situation, even if Richard were the better man, and I'm not convinced he is--"

"But--" Victor started.

"No," Zedd said, stopping Victor's automatic protest. "Don't misunderstand me. Richard's a great man, and there's no question in my mind that he's the only man capable of killing Darken Rahl. But that's his task. Yours is an entirely different one, one that requires specific talents. Talents you have in abundance. And think of this--can Richard stay in this valley, leading the Resistance here forever?"

"No," Victor said slowly. "I suppose not."

"Of course he can't. So what happens when he leaves? Putting Richard in charge, even temporarily, would undermine your command later, while keeping you in charge now, especially with Richard here, will only strengthen it." He leaned forward. "The Resistance needs all the strong leaders it can find, Victor. You're one of them. And I think you know I'm right. Otherwise, you'd have simply asked Richard first, wouldn't you?"

Victor leaned back, nodding. "I suppose I would have. Thank you, Wizard. My instincts told me I should keep command, but I needed some reassurance it was the right thing."

Zedd smiled. "I'm glad I could help. Don't worry--when the time comes, Kahlan will vouch for you as far as the situation with Hugh is concerned. And no one will question your leadership, not with Richard backing you completely, which he will. Now, as long as we're here," Zedd continued, warming his hands before the fire, "why don't you tell me who you think killed Hugh?"

Victor stared into the fire.

"Come, Victor, you knew the moment he collapsed that it was murder, otherwise you wouldn't have sent for us so quickly," Zedd persisted. "And if you knew then, you've had over a week to consider the possibilities."

Victor looked sidelong at Zedd. "I knew I was right to send for you. Between the Confessor's skills, your intelligence, and the Seeker's strength and courage, you're bound to find the truth." He sighed. "I have my thoughts, wizard, but I'd just as soon keep them to myself for now. The last thing I need is to be sowing suspicion where none should be sown. I consider everyone in this house to be a friend," he added, "and the thought of one of them having done this is…difficult to accept. I'd rather not have to deal with the fallout from that until we're certain who is truly guilty."

Zedd nodded. "I understand, and I don't blame you a bit. Kahlan will find the truth, you can count on that. She's like a bulldog when it comes to this sort of thing." He stood up, contemplating how incongruous it was to be comparing Kahlan to a bulldog, then looked down at Victor. "Don't worry about that, Victor. You've enough to worry about already."

**********

After breakfast, Kahlan set up shop in a library on the second floor of the manor, hoping she'd be able to find the killer before Zedd had to go. She interviewed the butler, Aylwin, first, but he couldn't shed any more light on the situation. He was certainly telling the truth when he said he hadn't poisoned Hugh, and he was equally truthful when he said he didn't know who did. He was also clearly unwilling to speculate, though Kahlan probably wouldn't have put much credence in any of his theories. He didn't strike her as particularly bright.

The cook, however, was at least slightly more useful. "I know for a fact that none of that food I served was poisoned," Neala said emphatically, so emphatically a strand of gray hair fell free from her braid. "I sample everything I serve before it leaves the kitchen. If there'd been poison there, I'd be dead as a doornail, too."

Well, that's a relief, Kahlan thought. It will be easier to eat around here knowing Neala wasn't a murderer. "Do you have any thoughts about who might have wanted Hugh Marsters dead?" Kahlan asked, hoping the belowstairs gossip might provide some information.

Neala sniffed. "I'm not one as spreads tales out of school," she said, but she was obviously dying to tell Kahlan something.

"Anything you could tell me would be helpful," Kahlan prompted. "I need to know everything that was going on here if I'm to find out who killed Hugh."

Neala's eyes sparkled slightly, and she leaned forward. "Well, seein' as how you're a Confessor and all, I don't suppose there's any harm. There's been a bit of hanky-panky with the master's wife, you see."

"Vera?" Kahlan said, perking up. "Really?"

Neala nodded. "Always slipping up and downstairs in the middle of the night," she said disapprovingly. "And then there's that Haviland woman."

Kahlan frowned. "Glynis Haviland, Will's wife?"

Neala snorted. "I suppose you can call her that, though given her past, I'm not sure that's the term I'd use."

Kahlan raised her eyebrows. "And what term would you prefer?" she said carefully.

Neala blushed suddenly. "Now, there I go, spreading tales, and me just a cook. I've overstepped my bounds, ma'am." She stood abruptly, dropped a curtsey, and scurried off before Kahlan could stop her.

Well, that's interesting, Kahlan thought. Vera's having an affair, and Glynis has a past. It's not much, but it's a start.