Jax pictured the handsome herbalist in her mind. When she had been introduced to him, he had been wearing a clean, tailored robe.
Ziri pointed out, “Not to mention, we haven’t even begun to review Mistress Nightingale’s whereabouts during the attack.”
Jax thought back to seeing Vyanti’s seal on one of the letters Ezarath had received. “Nor Master Yokudran’s. According to his report, he was the one person who freely admitted to being alone the entire time.” If Ezarath had written to her court physician, who had given Yokudran a reference, it was possible the headmaster didn’t fully trust the Academy’s newest healer, either. I need to get my hands on those papers and review their references for myself. Jax’s resolve grew firm.
“Didn’t Daghir say he saw Vera going toward the astronomy tower as he was heading out of the library?” Carriena recalled. “She denied it at the time, but what if she was lying?”
Ziri’s upper lip curled. “I think it was me the deputy headmaster saw, not Mistress Nightingale. Once I finished collecting our luncheon dishes and leaving them in the service pantry for Chef Peregane to wash, I took the time to explore my surroundings a bit. I had just come down from the astronomy tower when a member of the Praesidio found me and told me to return to my room.”
“So, Lotus was the last person to see Vera out and about before she showed up at the staff meeting.” Carriena tilted her head slightly, her lips inverted.
“If she was even dirtier than Chef Peregane described Master Lotus being,” Ziri said, “I can imagine it took her a good deal of time to clean up.”
Jax nodded agreement. “Although, she could have also been busy washing Master Gautherd’s blood off her hands.”
With Ziri having nothing else to report regarding Chef Peregane, Jax and Carriena filled her in on the discussion they’d had in her absence. They had just finished telling Ziri about their suspicions regarding the letters Ezarath had received at dinner when George returned with Lord Ashcroft in tow.
“I thought I’d bring the bad news in person.” Ashcroft clasped his hands behind his back. “I did not recognize the seal on either letter, but if you believe Ezarath has reached out to verify the references given for our new professors, then I will have to insist to him that I view them myself, for security purposes.”
“Now?” Carriena glanced at the clock, which showed eight-thirty. “Wasn’t Ezarath planning to retire early tonight after he went to check on Gautherd?”
“I’ll ask him in the morning. Until then, my men are keeping vigilant watch over everyone. If anyone so much as tries to leave their bed tonight, the Praesidio will know.”
Jax and Carriena shared a covert glance. Reaching the entrance to the secret stairwell in the dormitory had just became that much more difficult.
George interjected. “Since our delegation is not under suspicion, Lord Ashcroft will be allocating our posted sentries to the professors’ wing. Given the security surrounding the fortress, I can allow that, although Ziri and I will trade off guarding our private wing.”
Jax slumped with relief. While it would still prove tricky, she suspected she and Carriena might have an easier time sneaking past one sentry instead of several Praesidio. “I’m glad to hear such preparations have been made,” she said aloud. “If our culprit decides to venture out this evening to either fetch the stolen documents or escape into the night themselves, then they are sure to be thwarted.”
Lord Ashcroft stroked his beard. “I hope you are right, Duchess, and that the thief is getting restless.”
“I hope so, or we will have to force their hand sooner rather than later.” George frowned. “The Duchess’s presence is required back in Hestes in four days’ time.”
Ashcroft sighed. “Let us pray Ezarath will be a bit more willing to comply with our investigation by allowing us access to his personnel files in the morning.”
Jax and Carriena exchanged a private smile.
Why, Ashie, Jax thought, there’s no time like the present.
Chapter Fourteen
It was nearly nine o’clock by the time Carriena arrived at Jax’s suite with a small bag in hand, looking the part of a friend spending the night and ready for some much-needed fun.
“Ziri and I will stand watch together for the first few hours.” George obviously aimed to reassure them, although he couldn’t know his words had the exact opposite effect.
Once Jax and Carriena were alone, Jax slumped against the poster of her bed and sighed. “Let’s wait until one of them goes to bed, so we only have to contend with one pair of watchful eyes.”
With a pout, Carriena glided over to the pitcher of water on Jax’s bedside table and poured a glass. “That could take ages. What do we do in the meantime?”
Jax smiled and beckoned her friend to come sit on her bed, as they had done when they were girls. “Well, you could finally tell me how things are getting on between you and Bernard Hoftstead. You two had grown quite chummy by the time I departed Galensmore.”
Carriena’s cheeks flushed pink. “Let me be a good hostess and offer our two saviors standing watch out in the hall some water. Then I’ll tell you all the juicy details.”
Two hours later, Jax wished Carriena had not spirited away with their drinking water, for her throat was parched from their enjoyable banter. While they had covered a wide range of topics, they had come full circle and were back to chatting about Carriena’s upcoming nuptials. “Well, once I return to Saphire, I plan to throw you two the most marvelous engagement party.” She was thrilled to learn Carriena’s beau had proposed during yuletide.
Carriena batted the thought aside. “I’m sure you’ll have plenty of more urgent matters on your plate when you return home.”
“I’m sure I will have plenty to deal with, but never enough to persuade me not to celebrate the happiness of a dear friend.”
The two of them lay sprawled out on a pile of pillows in front of the roaring fireplace, as they had frequently done in their younger days. Jax reached to squeeze Carriena’s forearm. “If I successfully navigate these upcoming hurdles, believe me, I’ll need a reason to celebrate.”
“Well, I can’t say no to that.” Carriena giggled before rolling over on her side to face the clock. “All right, time to go.”
“Did you hear one of them go to bed?” Jax asked in surprise, as she had heard nothing from the hallway to suggest that either George or Ziri had left their posts for the night.
Carriena’s features contorted with both devilish glee and chastened shame. “Um…not quite.”
Jax narrowed her gaze. “What have you done?”
Carriena glanced around the room sheepishly. “Let’s just say we don’t have to worry too much about being spotted.”
Jumping up from the floor, Jax hobbled over the sea of pillows to her suite door. She whipped it open and poked her head out into the hallway, her stomach plummeting with foreboding.
Both George and Ziri sat slumped in their chairs near the third-floor landing, their breathing heavy and relaxed. Jax noted the fallen copper water goblets on the stone floor, the contents seeping into the cracks.
Jax whirled around to Carriena. “You drugged them?”
With a shrug of her shoulders, Carriena chuckled. “Come, now. It was only a light sedative. We need to get moving. The effect doesn’t last long.”
Jax’s jaw dangled in stunned mortification. “I cannot believe you drugged them! George is going to murder you when he wakes up.”
“What he doesn’t know can’t hurt him.” Carriena tugged Jax out into the hallway. “He and Ziri will probably be so embarrassed to have fallen asleep on the job that they won’t mention it to anyone.”
Jax wrenched herself from Carriena’s grasp and rushed toward her friends to make sure they were all right. “What did you use?”
“A bit of nightswallow.” Carriena’s hands went to her hips. “Don’t worry, it’s perfectly harmless. I stopped by Master Yokudran’s room for some when I went to collect my
overnight things before coming down here. He said it’s just a simple sleeping aid.”
Jax’s gentle fingers pushed back a lock of hair that had fallen into George’s face. She remembered the last time his hair had been this long. Moonlight had shimmered on the dark, wavy strands when they’d walked through the Academy gardens together, toward their special place beneath the willow tree.
She shook the memory from her thoughts, and after checking on Ziri, returned to Carriena’s side with a sigh. “You’d best hope neither of them figures out what you did, because I won’t be able to stop them from taking revenge on you.”
Carriena giggled, although Jax detected a nervous edge to her friend’s mirth. “Come on. Nightswallow helps one fall asleep, not stay asleep. We have only thirty minutes or so before it wears off.”
Gathering their skirts, the two women took off toward the opposite end of the corridor, deeper into the belly of the dormitory.
“Second-to-last room.” Carriena stopped and assessed their surroundings.
Holding a finger aloft, Jax counted the stone bricks to the right of the door. “…six, seven. Here, this one.” She stepped forward and pressed the brick she had indicated.
At first, it didn’t move, but with one final shove, some mechanism grumbled behind the wall and the brick pushed inward with a resounding click.
Jax and Carriena both glanced down the hallway, toward the landing, where Ziri and George were. Their bodies unmoving, it appeared they were still fast asleep.
With a grin, Carriena laid her palms against the wall and gave it a gentle push. A seemingly invisible door, made of brick, swung inward, revealing a dark set of winding stairs.
Jax grabbed one of the flickering torches from a sconce on the wall. “After you,” she beckoned to her friend.
Carriena warily eyed the darkness. “Please, you’re the guest.”
Jax rolled her eyes and stepped into the cramped passage, the light of her torch flooding the stairwell. This particular route ran the length of several floors, so deep that Jax could not make out the bottom, consumed by inky shadows.
“Three flights takes us to the first-floor corridor outside Ezarath’s office.” Despite her whispering, Carriena’s words filled the narrow space.
Eager to escape the creepy confines of the secret stairwell, Jax hurried down the steps, Carriena at her heels. Their footfalls echoed all around them, giving the illusion they were being pursued, which only spurred them to move faster.
Winded and out of breath, they arrived at the landing of their intended destination. Jax guided the torchlight as Carriena’s frantic hands searched the stone for the small latch that would free them.
“Here it is,” she grunted as she yanked a small, bronze knob tucked into a slab of stone.
A click resonated all around them.
“We need to smother the torch,” Carriena said with a sudden hiss. “If the Praesidio are doing nightly patrols, they’ll be sure to spot the light.”
Jax glanced about. Of course, there was no bucket of water in which she could dose the torch. She frowned. They couldn’t risk opening the hidden door now, or the torchlight would bleed out into the hallway. Even if there were other torches lighting the corridor, the sudden movement might still catch unwanted attention. Seeing no other option, Jax gathered the petticoats under her skirt and tore off a large chunk of fabric. “Stand back.”
In quick succession, she placed the burning torch on the stone floor before tossing the linen fabric on top of it. Before the flames could catch hold of the material, Jax stomped out the fire with her boot, Carriena joining in the fun. After a few anxious seconds, Jax was relieved when darkness enveloped them.
Carriena coughed as smoke rose from the seared fabric. “All right! Well done, you. Now, help me with the door before we suffocate.”
The latch was harder to find in the endless night, but Jax’s fingers finally curled around the handle. With a tug, the hidden door popped open and revealed the first-floor corridor.
Carriena stuck her head out and glanced around. The flickering lanterns that lined the long hallway illuminated her hopeful expression. “Looks like we’re alone for now.”
Jax didn’t require any prodding to hurry after her friend. Closing the hidden door with a light snap, she was careful to step on the tips of her toes as she scurried along the corridor. Years ago, Headmaster Ezarath had made the mistake of laying carpet down along the hall, making it easier for students to sneak around outside his office without being heard. It had been somewhat of a game when Jax attended the Academy, with her friends daring each other to stomp around outside the headmaster’s office and make as much racket as possible without drawing Ezarath’s ire.
Carriena was surveying the door handle by the time Jax arrived at her side. “Virtues,” she seethed, “he’s changed the lock since we were students.” Both Carriena and Jax had grown quite adept at picking the easy tumbler lock on Ezarath’s door when they were young.
Jax grinned. “Thank goodness one of us sought to advance our skills, then.” Pulling a hairpin from her curls, she inserted it into the metal lock, listening carefully as she rooted it around inside. Every click seemed to thunder through the air, but Carriena kept watch and encouraged Jax with frequent whispers that they were still alone.
After a few moments of tense concentration, Jax felt the resistance inside the lock give way. With a triumphant pump of her fist, she tucked her hairpin back into her tresses and pushed the handle gently. The door swung noiselessly inward, revealing dancing orange light coming from the recesses of the chamber.
Carriena frowned as the shadows leaped across her face. “Why would Ezarath have a fire going in his study at this time of night? I thought he went to bed hours ago.”
A lump formed in Jax’s throat. “We never considered he might actually still be inside.”
Carriena held a finger to her lips, and they listened. It was so quiet in the room, they could hear crickets chirping from outside the office windows.
Holding her breath as if that would somehow make her invisible, Jax inched through the small gap in the open door into the stark waiting area of Ezarath’s office. She remembered sitting on those hard, wooden benches, her head dangling with shame as she waited to be reprimanded by the headmaster. Not with shame over committing the offense with which she’d been charged, she mused with a tiny smile, but with shame over being caught.
Once she and Carriena were both clear of the hallway, they closed the outer door and collapsed onto the benches to catch their breath.
“Getting older has certainly taken its toll,” Carriena said with a chuckle.
“And upped the stakes,” Jax agreed. Recovered, she rose from the bench and headed for the door that usually barred the interior of Ezarath’s office from prying young eyes.
Yet, tonight the door stood ajar, the firelight from Ezarath’s office fireplace flooding the waiting room with a golden haze. She knew from experience that Ezarath didn’t lock the inner door at night, but she found it odd he’d left it open.
Her steps slowed as she neared the doorway, her eyes adjusting to the quivering light that continuously metamorphized the shadows all around. She stepped into the main chamber of the large office, its size mirroring her own royal study back in Saphire. She felt as if she were stepping back in time. The plush armchairs and sturdy worktables, covered with books, were positioned just as they’d been the last time she’d visited, during her own commencement. Her gaze traveled to the far corner of the room where Ezarath’s desk sat, a large window in the background. Ezarath could easily turn in his chair to keep watch over his empire. He told Jax the view helped him to mediate on issues, as it gave him the perspective he needed. She’d modeled her own office setup after this, in fact. Being able to look out the window at her vast holdings helped her focus on what was really important: her people.
Yet tonight, the window view was dark, thick clouds covering the moon outside. The light from the fireplace did not reach t
he desk, the corner a fathomless pit of shadow.
Carriena came to Jax’s side, her lilac gaze assessing the situation. “Why is the fire still going?” she muttered, more to herself than to Jax.
“Perhaps we just missed the headmaster.” Jax noted a few books laying open on a nearby worktable. Maybe Ezarath had lost track of time and had been researching something in private. “Do you know where he keeps staff files? Where should we start?”
Carriena opened her mouth to answer when the clouds outside suddenly vanished and blinding silver moonlight filtered into the room, banishing the remaining shadows in the chamber, revealing the headmaster sitting at his formidable desk.
Jax swallowed back a gasp. “Headmaster! Virtues, you gave us a fright, but I assure you, we have a good explanation for being here…” Her defense died in her throat as she noticed Ezarath’s glassy gaze.
The headmaster did not move a muscle as he stared their way, nor utter one word of protest.
Jax inched forward, her footsteps growing heavy with dread with every step. As she neared the headmaster’s chair, the moonlight’s caress revealed that his mouth hung ajar, and not in shock of their trespassing.
Dark stains soiled the neck of his robe. The smell of iron was unmistakable. Blood.
A passing cloud blocked Jax’s vision for a moment before the night sky cleared once more to reveal the horrible truth behind Ezarath’s glassy-eyed stare.
An ivory hilt protruded from the man’s bloody neck, glowing ominously in the moonlight.
Chapter Fifteen
George searched the courtyard, starlight shining overhead. Had he misunderstood her request? No, she’d asked him to meet her here once everyone had gone to bed. Where was she?
He reached to massage the tension building at the base of his neck. He shouldn’t have encouraged her to break the headmaster’s curfew, but her spirit was so infectious. He lost himself around her. Her beautiful amethyst eyes often left him in a befuddled trance. Was this how the next Captain of the Ducal Guard should act around his future sovereign? No…certainly not.
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