Disclaimer: All the Detective School Q characters belong to their creator.
48. Wolf Island
"I'm Jezebella-Donna Ravenhall, Lady of Ravenheath, England," the raven-haired girl introduced herself and her companions. "My butler, Carlos and my friend, Erik Thorsen, a diplomat's nephew."
"Elizabeth Holmes, mystery novel authoress," a bespectacled woman with grey-streaked hair looked up from her book. Her belly protruded prominently against her flora-print maternity dress. "Yanagisawa Ichiro, artist," the man seated next to her said. He wore the traditional Japanese robes which seemed oddly out of place in the Western-style surroundings. "Count Franz Montague," a middle-aged man smoking a pipe introduced himself. "My wife, Ingrid." The blond next to him ignored the others. She was young and looked profoundly sad.
"Ekaterina Solvakov," a stern-looking woman with a prominent scar on her cheek said. "Owner of Ukrainian Steel industries." She cast a glance at Carlos the butler and smiled.
"Saito Genrou, doctor," an old Japanese man in a white coat by the bookcase. "Yamazaki Naito, lawyer," a young man by the samovar said.
"Doug McKenzie, retired soldier," a man with salt-pepper hair and a red face drawled. "Cleopatra," the exotic-looking young woman next to him said in a bored tone.
"Frank Xavier, adventurer," the one-armed man with the eye-patch said. "My daughter, Evangeline." The little girl on the tiger skin looked up at her father's words.
"Karl Wolff, my great-grandfather Maximilian Wolff. I am secretary to the Argentine embassy to Japan," the younger man of the grandfather-grandson pair introduced themselves.
"Effette de Calais, widow of Count Michel de Calais, and my little one, Natalie," the young mother looked up from nursing her infant. "Father Mikhail Pushkin, priest," the priest said. "I would greatly appreciate it if you refrain from intruding on Madame de Calais in her hour of need."
"How odd it is that Madame de Calais had her infant two years after her husband's suicide…" Cleopatra drawled. "So who's the child's father?"
"Michel, my husband," Effette glared defiantly at the dark-haired, olive-skinned female. "Michel made a deposit at the sperm bank before undergoing treatment for his cancer and I made a withdrawal after you drove him to his death. My child will inherit what should be Michel's!" The priest placed a restraining hand on Effette's elbow.
"Amakusa Ryu," Ryu introduced himself. "And my friends, Minami Megumi and Renjou Kyu," he was cut off by the host. "Our special guest," Vladimir shouted. "The sole direct great-grandson of Kuzuryu. Amakusa, we welcome you warmly into our circle." He patted Ryu on the back. The audience clapped politely, but not enthusiastically. "For a week, enjoy the hospitality of my island as we celebrate a genius' greatest works," Vladimir announced. "Tell me, Amakusa, do you play the violin?" Ryu nodded.
Vladimir snapped open a violin case which was lying on the table and passed the violin to Ryu. Ryu noted that instrument had been crafted from a single block of wood. The craftsmanship was exquisite.
"The Golden Circle is a gathering of great minds in science, politics, music and the arts," Vladimir continued. "Most of our members are musicians of some kind. Kuzuryu himself was no exception. It was said that the genius himself sat at this very piano and composed his work," Vladimir patted a large grand piano in the huge room. The class Q students noticed a battered tin harmonica placed on the piano-top. Megumi recognized it as the same one belonging to the late Ryunosuke.
"Shall we, Amakusa? The Ninth Symphony shouldn't be too difficult for you…" the host's grey eyes flashed a challenge. He selected a violin for himself. "Anyone else?" he called out. "There are instruments available."
"Carlos! My violin!" Lady Jezebella demanded. Her servant immediately presented her with the violin which he had kept with them. Evangeline stepped forward with a violin. Ekaterina selected a cello. Ingrid sat down hesitantly at the piano.
The strains of music soon filled the cavernous room. Megumi and Kyu could only listen spellbound by the music. Not a single note was out of place despite not having a c
onductor, but Ryu sensed the tension in their playing. What should be a joyful melody seemed to be stifled, almost melancholy. The wolfhound at Vladimir's feet let out a mournful howl.
The old woman known as the Duchess glanced up from the dog-eared Psalter in her hands when her visitor entered. Her wolfhound licked his hand in welcome. "They are here, aren't they?" she enquired. "Yes, little mother," the man replied. "The master's chessboard is set."
"Well, let us hope he is not another pawn in someone else's game," she replied. "There will be death on this island. I have seen so much death that I am nigh sick of it. Tell me, do you have any dreams recently about Mariko?" she asked with a twinkle in her eye. The man immediately blushed red. "Well, I, er…"
"She is a good girl. Twenty-five, she could have stayed on the mainland but she returned. Tatsumi, don't let this chance go, understand?" the old woman chortled.
"Little mother, there was a child who greeted me today at the beach…"
"Forget him. It is not time for you to remember…"
"Yes," Hougou's eyes went blank and he shuffled out. The old woman turned her attention to the shrine in her cottage. "Most sainted Father in Heaven, most holy Mother. Please protect us from evil," she murmured in Russian as she knelt. The painted saints appeared to waver in the unsteady candlelight.
The light lunch of dumplings and borsch which followed was a stilted affair. Sitting at the grand dining table, Megumi and Kyu looked absolutely lost, overwhelmed by the sheer grandeur of their surroundings and the variety of languages spoken. Even now, snatches of German, French, Russian and English were heard more often than Japanese. The Montagues were quarrelling in German. The quarrel ended with Ingrid leaving her seat before dessert. "She's mad at him because he's sleeping with their 15-year-old maidservant," Lady Ravenhall whispered. "Considering he married her when she was 16…" Jezebella shrugged prettily and returned to her seat. The lady of Ravenheath admitted herself to be fluent in seven languages. Vladimir and Ekaterina were chatting politely in Russian. Effette was discussing something with the priest in French.
"Which spoon do I use?" Kyu asked Megumi, confused by the spread of cutlery before him. "The small one for dessert…" Megumi suggested. She had seen the Japanese artist use that spoon for his dessert.
"Kyu, earlier, I saw Ryunosuke's harmonica on the piano. Pluto has agents here…" Megumi whispered. Her memory was working hard, trying to capture any clue or sign of danger. Kyu appeared annoyingly oblivious. "This cake is yummy!" he licked his spoon.
"I never expected Kuzuryu's great-grandson to be such a fine-looking man," the Argentinean secretary Karl Wolff placed a hand on Ryu's shoulder. Ryu was sitting next to him and his grandfather. The older Wolff appeared to have dozed off and was drooling onto his plate. "I suppose you must be a hit with the girls in school."
"Well, not really…" Ryu mumbled. Was it his imagination or was that hand moving down his back?
"How old are you, 15? 16?" the man laughed. Thankfully, he drew that hand back. "A broken nose not enough for you?" Erik called out from his seat opposite where he had been observing their conversation. "Amakusa, hve you tried the crème bleure with a pinch of pepper?" Erik wrapped a napkin around the pepper grinder and rolled it across the tabletop to Ryu. Ryu unrolled the napkin. Beware Wolff. Erik had scrawled on the napkin with chocolate sauce. If needed, use force. Ryu glanced at Erik, only to find him engrossed in conversation with young Evangeline. The girl had taken a small pistol from one of the displays and was apparently discussing the weapon with Erik.
"Up to your old tricks again, Karl?" Ekaterina laughed and said in accented English. "Do make sure it is consensual this time…" Karl shouted something in German which could have been a curse.
Mariko the housekeeper showed them to their rooms after lunch. Ryu was not too surprised to find that he and Kyu had been assigned to the same room. It was large room, graced by a chandelier and pastoral-themed paintings. He was a bit perturbed when they discovered they only had one large four-poster bed in the room. "Ryu, you don't mind sharing the bed, do you?" Kyu asked. "You wouldn't hog all the sheets…" Ryu shook his head. He unpacked his knapsack. His clothes appeared drab compared to those of the other guests. He was surprised to open their closet and find it filled with clothes from a bygone era, including several military dress uniforms.
"Look at the view!" Kyu announced as he stood on the balcony overlooking the winter sea. Icy winds whipped in through the open French windows.
A tapping sounded at the door. "Megu?" Their classmate was standing outside. "I'm alone in my room and I guess I got spooked…" she explained sheepishly. "Ryu, there is something in my room you should see…"
Megumi's room was as large as the boys'. However, instead of pastoral scenes, her walls were decorated with portraits. "It feels as though I'm being watched," Megumi said. The largest portrait was that of Kuzuryu himself and a young boy, whom Ryu recognized. "Grandfather," Ryu muttered. His eyes scanned the rest of the portraits. Most of them depicted lone Caucasians in formal wear or military wear. One caught his eye. It was the only other family portrait in the room. It showed an older couple, accompanied by four younger girls and a little boy.
"Hey, you guys wanna take a guided tour of the place? Jezebella is feeling charitable today," Erik strolled in through the open door. "Whoa, there's that family resemblance…" he saw Kuzuryu's portrait and Ryu. "Amakusa, would you and your friends like to see the greenhouse roses? Vladimir told me the Black Pearls are in bloom… you know those deep red roses…" Jezebella walked in unannounced. Her attendant hovered behind her. "I also want to extract some alkaloids…"
"Alkaloids?" Ryu blinked.
"Oh, Lady Ravenhall is also known as Lady Poison. Her hobby is collecting and studying poisons of all types. It's a family tradition of sorts for the Ravenhalls," Erik shrugged. "Her late father was an expert in Amazonian serpents and frogs…"
"He taught me how to milk snakes for their venom when I was seven and coax venom from a dart frog. My poor mother was a botanist and she always expected him to get killed by a snake before she got killed in a train wreck. My father's dead. Murdered," Jezebella shrugged. "Of course they can't prove it."
"I'm sorry…"
"It happened so long ago. I'm seventeen and I've coped well alone." She toyed with the ornate ring on her finger. The ring was a signet ring, capped with the coat of arms of her household.
"What happened?" Ryu asked. "Were the circumstances suspicious? Was it snakebite?" he stole a glance at her. Jezebella was beautiful and that beauty hinted at danger. Femme fatale… Proud brows arched over violet orbs which swirled with dark passions. Her chin was set in a way that reinforced the idea of a strong and determined personality.
"He got tossed from his horse during a polo match and trampled. Sports can be so dangerous but I'm certain it was no accident." Her voice changed suddenly to ice. For a chilling moment Ryu thought he saw his cousin Risa in the violet-eyed noblewoman.
Author's Notes:
Lady Ravenhall is a bit like Count Cain from Count Cain in her hobby. Somehow, I tend to associate poison with being a feminine weapon.
Ryu is facing some attraction issues here.
