“Exactly. I understand that there are many people you must stay on the right side of in Turai. Life would be difficult with both the Prince and the Deputy Consul against you, I imagine?”
“Very difficult, Lady Yestar. The Prince doesn’t take to me at all. Fair enough, I don’t take to him. I don’t want to get on the wrong side of Cicerius though. He’s been helpful to me in the past, if only because I’ve been helpful to him. I couldn’t say I like him all that much, but for an important politician he’s honest, and there’s no denying he’s as sharp as—”
I pause.
“Sharp as an Elf’s ear?” says Yestar, filling in the blanks. She laughs. “I have always enjoyed that Human expression.”
I reluctantly decline an offer of food and head back to the cells to interview Elith. One thing I dislike about life as an Investigator: there are times when you have to skimp on the foodstuffs.
My session with Elith-ir-Methet is short and depressing. She has accepted her fate. I tell her that this won’t get her out of jail.
“I have no wish to be released.”
“Your father wants it, and I’m working for him. So let’s get down to business. I know what’s been going on. I talked to Lithias, an Elf you are no doubt familiar with from your days of intoxication. Don’t protest, I know all about it. Is that why you’ve clammed up about everything? Because you didn’t want your proud father to know you were one of the first Avulans to enjoy the effects of dwa? Congratulations on finding a way to get it to affect Elfkind by the way. Very ingenious. Whose idea was it to mix it with the Hesuni water?”
Elith has risen from her chair and now stands gazing out of the window.
“I can see you’ve a lot to feel bad about. That’s a strong habit you’ve developed in a short space of time. I wondered why you broke your word to Lord Kalith about not leaving the Tree Palace. You just couldn’t wait to get your next hit.”
Elith turns to face me, some anger in her eyes. “That’s not true. I needed to see Gulas. I needed to know if it was true that he had accused me of damaging the Hesuni Tree.”
“And once you found out that he had, you killed him?”
“Yes.”
“Why don’t you tell me the full story? You can’t prevent disgrace from touching your family, or that of Gulas.”
“Gulas had no part in the affair.”
“Affair being the correct word. Why didn’t you tell me before that you were having a relationship with him?”
“Because it is calanith for the Tree Priest to marry anyone outside of his family. There would have been disgrace.”
“You think this doesn’t count as a disgrace?”
“I would not expect you to understand,” says Elith witheringly.
“I won’t give up on this, Elith. You see how far I’ve already got. I’m going to find out the whole truth and tell it to your father. I owe him that.”
Elith shrugs, the slightest movement of her shoulders signifying that she is beyond caring.
“I am tired of this, Investigator. You can do nothing to help me and I would far rather be left to my thoughts. If I tell you my story, will you leave me alone?”
“Yes.”
“Very well. I got involved in taking dwa through my cousin Eos. I was unhappy at the time, because Gulas had just been made Tree Priest and our relationship had to end. Gulas would have strongly disapproved had he known. At first it made me feel better, but later it sent me into madness. One day when I went for my supply I collapsed beside the Tree and when I woke it had been damaged. I could remember nothing about it, but by this time many Elves knew that I had been acting strangely. I was put in prison while the matter was investigated. And there I learned that the main witness against me was Gulas, Gulas who had been my lover of more than a year. I couldn’t believe he would do that to me. I thought he would have supported me.
“He never even came to visit. His brother did, and was kind to me. But I needed to see Gulas again. And I also admit I needed more dwa. As you can see, I am not worth defending. If they execute me it will be well deserved. I left the Palace. I took more of the drug, and then went to find my Gulas. He wasn’t pleased to see me. He called me foul names and said that my behaviour was threatening his position as Tree Priest and that if he’d known what manner of things I was involved in he would never have become entangled with me. He said that no person who had defiled the water of the Hesuni Tree with a foreign drug was worthy of living. And then he told me that he had never loved me and was pleased that I was in prison. I was still insane from the dwa, so I picked up a knife that was lying on the ground and I stabbed him. That is the whole story. Everything that is alleged against me is true. The best thing for everyone will be my death.”
A tear forms in her eye but she brushes it away and refuses to cry.
I’ve plenty of questions left, but Elith absolutely refuses to continue. “I have nothing more to say, and no matter how many times you return I shall have nothing more to say. Please leave.”
I leave. I descend to the ground beneath the palace. A choir is singing nearby. Two jugglers walk past, practising as they go. Parrots squawk merrily overhead. Three actors in white cloaks appear from the trees, declaiming with vigour. Some Elvish children race by, laughing and screaming with glee at the sight of all the preparations for the festival, due to start in just two days’ time. On Avula everything is beautiful.
I’m in the worst mood I can ever remember. I stare at the Hesuni Tree and when I think of the story I’m going to have to tell my friend Vas-ar-Methet I develop the urge to attack it myself for getting his daughter into such trouble. Trouble, it seems, from which I will not be able to extricate her.
I walk along the path till I reach the paddock where I left my horse. I offer the groom a small coin, but he declines it with distaste. Too late, I remember that Makri told me it was calanith on Avula to offer money for care of a horse. It makes my mood even worse.
I ride on for a while till I reach the end of the outward path and turn left to circle the island. Just before the junction a horseman appears in front of me with a sword in his hand. I watch dumbly as he approaches. After the experiences with the masked Elves, I’m half expecting him to vanish into thin air. He doesn’t. He keeps on coming. Though he’s hooded I have the impression that my assailant is Human rather than Elvish. I draw my sword. Fighting on horseback is not my speciality, but I had enough experience in the army not to do anything foolish. As my attacker reaches me he tries to sweep me to the ground with a great clumsy blow that I parry easily. As he slides past I turn and cut him in the back of the neck. He slumps from his saddle, dead.
I stare at the corpse, puzzled. The whole affair lasted only a few seconds. I pull back his hood, study the man’s bronzed face, look through his pockets for some identification, but I can find nothing. Just a mysterious horseman who tried to kill me, and wasn’t very good at it. He looks like any common thug from any city in the west.
I ride off, leaving the corpse where it lies. Someone else can sort out the formalities. I’m not far from where Makri is training Isuas. I dismount before the clearing and advance softly. Makri is in the centre of the clearing facing Isuas and if she hasn’t actually got round to killing her yet it sounds like it might not be far away. Her face is grim and her voice is venomous.
“You stinking little Elf cusux,” she sneers. “This is where it ends. You wanted to try out my Orc blade? Here—” Makri takes it from the scabbard at her back and tosses it to Isuas, who catches it by the hilt and stands awkwardly with the evil-looking black metal blade pointed at the ground.
“Now I’m going to kill you,” says Makri, drawing her second sword.
“What?” stammers Isuas, and starts to tremble.
“You heard, brat. I’m going to kill you. You think I’m here because I’m a friend of the Elves?”