"Zen, you haven't touched any of your food," said Mitsuhide pointedly. "It's going to get cold."
The prince never looked up. Instead, he kept scribbling on the stack of documents that lay before him. "I'm not hungry."
Here we go again, thought Kiki to herself. Zen's going to be stubborn again and try to prove a point by pulling an all-nighter without a break.
Obi reached over Zen's shoulder and took a piece of chicken from the plate.
"Obi!" shouted Zen, halting his scribbling to reprimand his young servant. "I said that wasn't hungry. I didn't say you could eat it!"
"Oh," said Obi through a mouthful of food, "I didn't think you'd want such a delicious meal to go to waste master. Although, you aren't really missing out on a good meal. It tastes bitter. Too much seasoning if you ask me."
"I didn't," said Zen dryly.
Obi grinned and headed for the open balcony. That's my que to get out of here before the master gets even angrier. "Well, I'm off!"
"Obi, wait," commanded Zen.
The young servant spun around expertly on the railing and awaited Zen's wrath.
The young prince folded a piece of paper and stamped it with a wax seal. "Take this to Shirayuki."
"Oh? A love letter, perhaps?" said Obi as he blinked and scratched his throat.
Zen blushed. "It's…an invitation."
"So," said Obi clearing his throat. "It's a date?"
"Just deliver the message, will you? And be quick about it."
Obi closed his eyes and teetered back and forth. "You can…count…on—"
"Obi!" cried Zen as the young servant lost his balance and fell backwards from the open balcony. Both he and Mitsuhide grabbed his jacket and pulled him back inside as Obi's hat fell on the lawn below.
"What's wrong with him?" shouted Zen as Obi lay on the floor, struggling to breathe.
Kiki look at Obi then the plate of food on the prince's desk. Poison? Her hand instinctively grabbed the hilt of her sword. "Zen! The food—It's poisoned!"
The prince froze and stared at the food then at Obi. "Mitsuhide, get him to the infirmary! If we wait any longer, he'll die."
"On it!" said Mitsuhide throwing Obi across his shoulders.
"Kiki, no one goes in or out of this castle until we find out who did this."
"As you wish!" said Kiki, running out the door. She stopped to look back at him.
"I'll be fine," replied Zen pulling out his sword. "Find the person who did this."
She nodded and continued running down the hall.
Zen turned and looked back at the plate as the alarm bells rang.
Who could have done this? thought Zen as images of Obi gnawing on the mouthful of chicken flashed through his head. Obi's body is strong, but I doubt he has the immunity to poisons that I've built up in my own body through the years. Another image of Obi laying on the floor gasping for breath. In anger, he swung his sword across the desk, raking the plate and documents to the floor. Poison from the rice and chicken soaked the documents that had Zen's name and seal.
"Hang in there, Obi. We'll find out who did this."
Dear Readers,
This is my first mystery story. I hope you like it. Please, feel free to leave feedback in the reviews. I love to know what you are thinking!
I'm sorry this chapter is short, but short is what I do best when I have limited writing time. Make sure to "Follow Story" so you can get the new chapters.
Sincerely,
DragonWing85
