“I’ve told you before she is under my protection.”
Hasege lowered the torch to let me pass, but an uneasy silence followed. I could tell that many of the men agreed with him and didn’t like me. They cast me narrow glares, their jaws clenched as I approached Oriyu.
Pao, at least, made space for me.
“He had fire-watch duty two nights ago,” he was murmuring. “Oriyu hadn’t slept in days, so I took his shift and told him to rest. When he didn’t appear for his next watch, I assumed he’d been asked to go searching for the wolves again.”
My fingers dug into the snow as I took in Oriyu’s blackened lips, his wrinkled robes, the pile of armor Pao and the others had removed. Nothing.
I inhaled. The incense on his clothes was strong, and oddly sweet.
I waved to Pao, made sniffing sounds, then pretended to fall asleep. Four Breaths could be inhaled, I tried to explain.
Breathe poison to sleep,I wrote into the snow.Then eat.Die.
Pao frowned. “You think the assassin fed it to Oriyu while he was asleep?”
I couldn’t be sure, so I shrugged. It was a guess.
There were hundreds of soldiers outside in barracks, but the sentinels kept track of every person who came and left the fortress. That would make it easy enough to trace the assassin. Unless—
Hasn’t left?I wrote.
As Pao relayed my deduction, the others met my idea with glowers and frowns. My ears picked out their discussion easily: What did I, “a mere slip of a girl,” know about murders and poison? Other, more creative names for me were uttered, until Takkan silenced them with a glare.
He had been quiet. His dark eyes shone, lit by torch fire, as he studied his friend’s dead body.
Under my sleeves, gooseflesh rose on my arms. I was sure he was thinking of the letter he’d found near Tianyi Village. If Lord Yuji had indeed found a way to produce Four Breaths, he could cause much trouble indeed.
Takkan bent to unwrap Oriyu’s scarf from his neck, folding it neatly at his side. He began to remove his friend’s gloves and inner robes.
“Takkan, what are you doing? We’ve already—”
Takkan ignored the sentinels. “Pao, hold a lantern.”
Carefully, Takkan searched his friend’s corpse, turning him onto his side. “There,” he said at last, tracing a web of faint golden veins under Oriyu’s arms. There were more on the back of his neck, but almost entirely faded.
“Lina was right. It appears Oriyudidinhale Four Breaths before he was given a fatal dose.”
“What good does that do us?”
Takkan rose. “We will seal the fortress,” he said firmly. “No one may enter or leave until we uncover the assassin.”
“Seal the fortress?” Hasege said incredulously. “Are you saying you actually believe the girl? Only a fool would stay.”
“A fool, or someone very clever. Someone we know and trust. We can take no chances.”
“At least send a few of us to search outside the fortress,” said Hasege. “Or do you not even trust your own men? Your own kinsman?”
Takkan’s response was chilled. “If one of my kin has a history of dishonoring the Bushian name, then he is not worthy of my trust.”
Hasege threw me a spiteful glare. He was trying hard—and failing—to contain his anger. “How do we even know the assassin wasinthe fortress to begin with?” he growled. “Oriyu could have been poisoned while he was out hunting for wolves. A fool’s errandyouordered, because you believe Lord Yuji sent them to kill you.”
Takkan’s expression darkened. “Are you suggesting that I am to blame for Oriyu’s death?”
“Now, now, Cousin. I am not casting stones. I’m merely considering all the possibilities. As you yourself are fond ofdoing.”
Takkan held his cousin’s gaze. “Let us consider the possibilities, then. Why would anyone seek to poison Oriyu twice? First by putting him into a deep sleep, then by feeding him a lethal dose?” He spoke slowly, considering each word. “I would wager that the assassin had another target in mind, and Oriyu was exposed to the poison by mistake. Once the assassin found out, he murdered him—and hoped that the cold would erase all traces of Four Breaths on his skin.”
