Poison Marked by TJ Nichols

Author:TJ Nichols [Nichols, TJ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gay romance
ISBN: 978-1-64080-297-1
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2017-12-12T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

WHEN NIKKO returned to the hall, he had with him a bottle of purgative he placed on the table for those who wanted to eat more than their stomach should hold.

When the king beckoned him close, he leaned down to whisper, “It is done.”

The poison was in the blue bottle of brandy, as requested. His heartbeat was erratic, and he alternately sweated and shivered, but it was nerves and fear, not poison in his meal.

Rodas didn’t look at him.

The talk of treason had left a sour note between them. Rodas would never do anything to harm his country or his uncle. He would be loyal to the end—which wouldn’t be far away if he chose to ignore Nikko’s advice. Nikko wanted to shake him and call him a fool. His death would help no one. Or was Nikko being selfish, blinded by desire?

“There is one more thing, sire.”

The king immediately bristled and glared at him as though Nikko were ruining the whole evening.

“A bottle of wolfsbane was taken.”

“Why should I care?” the king snapped, and he flicked his hand to dismiss Nikko.

Nikko risked ignoring the gesture. “It’s used to ensure a strike with a blade is deadly. Or a meal. Someone here plans murder.”

Red blossomed on the king’s cheeks, and his lips took on a petulant pout. He had ordered murder, but that was different. “So get a cure ready.”

“I do have a cure. But it must be delivered swiftly, or death will come first.” If the person had wanted it never to be known, he could’ve dipped his dagger in the bottle. Instead he took the whole lot. Perhaps there would be more than one blade dipped, or perhaps it was in the meal already.

More likely the man had no idea what he’d taken or how much to give. Who among the people there would take such a risk? Nikko scanned the nobles. There were always petty squabbles, and some became more serious over time. But no one had ever stolen from him before. Stealing from a poison master was a crime. He’d been lucky his master had taken pity on a starving child and only gave him a stomachache and then a job running errands.

The king drew in several breaths. “I find my appetite is gone.”

“A wise decision.”

“When I find the man responsible, he’ll be hanged.”

Nikko inclined his head. The more traditional punishment was to make the thief consume what they stole, but he kept his mouth closed. He stepped back to watch the feast. The hall shimmered in the candlelight, and the mirrors reflected the colors of the nobles’ clothes in a dizzying array. Another time he’d have appreciated the beauty.

He’d stood behind the king for many celebrations and five winter solstice nights. While there was plenty of talk and laughter in the hall, there was a different charge to the room—that taste before a thunderstorm.

Rodas talked to the man next to him as though he didn’t have a care in the world. The anger in his eyes at the mention of dying kings was something Nikko wouldn’t forget.

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