The Husband Poisoning Society, Chapter 24

Sven was beating Laila and Ada as they covered for us. Meanwhile, we cowered in boxes. Fiona could deal with Sven in seconds. So could Vincent for that matter. But that would be one more body we’d have to explain. I didn’t like it. Each smack caused me to clench up. Finally I heard a loud crack and then a thump. Somebody had fallen to the ground. It was too much. I moved to climb out of the box and do what little I could to intervene. 

“Out with it. Whose footprints are those?”

“Husband, if you want to know whose footprints they are, then go track them back the way they came. I do not know. Hit me again and I will go fishing for luckfish.”

That stopped me. I waited.

Silence. 

The silence stretched, and I waited. 

Finally.

“Learn your place, woman. I am the man here.”

“And I am the woman of this longhouse. That is my place and you are standing in it. You will respect that, or you will learn the cost of refusing to do so.”

“There is a general alarm. The duke’s murderers have escaped. You will watch for them. I must go out and look. Do not let your clan down. Else, I will beat you until you cannot eat solid food.”

Silence. And then the door closed.

“I should fish for luckfish anyway.” Ada said. 

“Mother. No.” Laila said.

“I am tired of this. But that is for later. You can come out now.”

We climbed from the chests. I ached and it had only been a few minutes. 

“Now what?” Vincent asked.

“May we take a moment?” Amy asked. “Ren has been through a lot. They tortured her until she broke. She nearly died. And then when we fled, she had a vision in the middle of battle. Can we spare a minute or two?”

“I’m fine.”

Fiona stepped forward and looked into my eyes. She paused and then, with a gentle hand, she feathered my eyelid open. 

“The healing potions have prevented you from going into shock. But you are showing signs of emotional stress.”

“We don’t have time to wait.” I objected. “They are searching.”

“Sven just checked the longhouse.” Vincent said. 

“I don’t think anyone would consider that a proper search. They’ll check again.”

“You don’t know that.” Vincent placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Beloved. You are under stress. If we push you, I fear you may break. You have already broken once.”

“I’m fine.” My voice sounded too harsh in my ears. “I’m sorry. That came out wrong.”

“What did you see after the torturer stabbed you?” Fiona. “That is likely the point of trauma. We must address it.”

“I thought she didn’t remember?” Amy asked.

“Beloved, try. Please.” Fiona said.

I didn’t want to push my mind back there. But now that Fiona had pointed me there, my mind drew me there like an unwelcome current. I could see my mother in my mind, judging me unworthy. I felt tears begin to stream down my face. I shook my head. I couldn’t handle thinking about this. And I couldn’t tell them about it. My trauma from another world. I didn’t know what to do.

Mother’s face loomed. I buried my face in my hands. But, of course, that didn’t help. She was in my mind. Which was worse. 

“You killed him.” She said.

I shook my head. 

“You killed him.”

“No.” I whispered.

“You killed him.”

“I didn’t kill him.” Louder that time.

“You didn’t kill who?” Amy asked.

I hadn’t meant to say anything.

“You did not kill who, Beloved?” Fiona asked.

“We can help, Ren. Who didn’t you kill?”

I almost wailed my answer, “I didn’t kill my father!”

The three went silent.

Laila’s voice filled the silence. “I thought she did kill her father?”

I gasped, as though coming up for air. I gulped lungfuls of air as they watched me. I hadn’t been thinking about my father here in Ys. But now I was. He loomed over me, a nine foot tall werewolf with jaws opened wide. I remembered myself sprawled on the floor beneath him. I felt helpless before the memory, swallowed up by it.

“Dearest.” Amy said. “Your father would literally have killed and eaten you. You defended yourself.”

“Have you been carrying this all this time?” Fiona asked.

Apparently I had. I could see him dying. I could see him bleeding out in front of me. My mother still stood behind him, staring. I wasn’t ready to talk. I focused on controlling my breathing. 

“I’m too sober for this conversation.” I managed, and shook my head again.

“You should not be drinking to forget.”

“Can we talk about that later?” I asked.

Silence. Fiona watched me. I didn’t say anything. 

Fiona nodded. “Do you have any wine?”

Laila went away and came back with a bottle of mead, and several healing potions. 

I pulled out my bodice dagger and used the dagger to pop the cork. Taking a swig from the bottle, I offered it to the others. As one they shook their heads. Laila drank half a healing potion and then poured the rest across her wounded arm. Fiona downed a healing potion and stood massaging her hand. 

“You killed him.” Again.

I looked at Amy, her features creased with worry lines. I looked at Fiona, she looked composed. But I could read her. She was worried as well. 

I tried to get a story straight in my head. And the image of my mother returned. I took a second swig. 

“You killed him.” She wouldn’t shut up. 

“Mother, I don’t care.” I said. 

“You have not spoken to your mother since the engagement party.” Fiona said. 

“Oh dear. Do we need to heal that rift?” Amy asked.  

I took a third swig and leaned back to let the blood rush to my head. I waited as the alcohol did its work. The others waited. When I felt a slight buzz, I sat up.

I stamped memories of my birth mother back into my subconscious. I stuffed memories of both fathers down as well. The alcohol helped. It always had. I didn’t like the fact that I used alcohol to cope, but I was my father’s daughter after all. There was no escaping him. He was a part of me. I stuffed that into the hole in my heart as well. I could deal with this later. 

“We don’t have time for any of this.” I said. “We can talk about my trauma after this crisis is over. Monique is threatening to fall on her dagger. I’m wanted for murder. You four will be wanted for murder as well now. And a war is looming on the horizon. I can break down and cry another night. Tonight we don’t have time.”

Amy and Fiona turned to look at each other. Vincent kept a hand on my shoulder. Laila watched me. 

Ada grinned, “That’s how a warrior handles things. A little mead. And then to work.”

Fiona nodded to me. “I have indeed met many warriors who kept trauma hidden that way. We can discuss it later. It is difficult to sustain. But later. To work. How do we solve this crisis?”

“We need to find the killer and expose them, don’t we?” Amy asked. 

I nodded. “We need to expose the killer in a way that Hyperborea can’t sweep under the rug. And we need to do it in a way that makes it politically impossible for them to justify starting a war with Ys.”

I paused. 

“And we need to do it in a way that doesn’t leave Monique with no options but her dagger.”

“And we need to find a way to prevent Hyperborea from prosecuting myself and Fiona for murder. We did kill several guards and the torture guy.” Vincent said.

I shook my head. “We’re nobles. The guards weren’t. As much as I hate that it works this way, it does. If we solve the other problems, I trust Hyperborea to ignore the deaths of a few commoners.”

Laila nodded. “Hyperborean nobles are not noted for their concern for the common folk.”

“Yssians aren’t either.” I admitted, looking at Amy. 

Vincent shook his head. “I forgot about how class influences the actions of the law outside Agartha.”

“This sounds very tricky and complicated.” Ada said. “I suggest something simple. Kill your enemies.”

“If my vision is right, then our enemies are the whole of the Hyperborean Council.”

“Then we kill them all.” Ada said.

Laila gasped, “That’s high treason, mother. You can’t do that. How would you even think of doing it?”

“There are many ladies in many longhouses who are tired of the ways in which we are mistreated. I will find them and organize them.”

“How do you think you will manage that?” Laila asked. 

Ada shook her head. “I will find them. I will make them if I have to do so.”

Laila put her hands on her hips, “And then what?”

“I will fish for luckfish.”

“You will need shoals of luckfish.” Laila said. “You’d have to poison all the major lords. It’s impossible.”

“All the ladies of the longhouse have a stash of luckfish poison. There is enough.”

“And then you’d have to convince all the ladies to join you. All of them. I said it before, it’s impossible.”

“It’s not a bad idea.” I said. “Can you do it Ada?”

“I can try.”

“And get yourself arrested for treason.” Laila said. “No, you can’t do it.”

“A small price to pay.” Ada said. 

“Indeed. But it sounds elaborate. Will you have enough time to enact such a plan?” Fiona said.

“I can try.”

“Then, while I applaud your spirit, I think we should seek out other assistance as well. Perhaps the Baroness Octavian.” Fiona said.

“Lynn?” I said. “Why Lynn?”

“Because we cannot go to Leon. He is Duke Delmar. He is the official representative for Ys. And he may feel compelled to turn us in. But Lynn is your best friend, and she is not here in an official capacity, but simply as a wedding guest.”

“But what can Lynn do? In Octavo City, sure. There she would have her people, her soldiers and spies and bureaucrats. What has she got here?” Vincent asked.

“She has more than you know.” Ada said.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“She will tell you, if she chooses to.”

“What does that mean?”

“I have said enough.” Ada said. “You must go. Seek out the baroness. See what she can do.”

“I don’t trust you mother. Don’t try anything while we’re gone.”

“I promise nothing. And why are you going?”

Laila didn’t say anything. Instead she began to blush.

I looked at her. “You like your new duchess.” 

Laila turned to look at me. “Of course, I do. She seems very friendly.”

“I didn’t mean it like that. You like her as more than a friend.”

Laila shook her head. “Ridiculous. She is a widow, and will be remarried to some man.”

“None of that was a no.” I said.

Laila turned away. “Fine. She is beautiful. She is polite, and sweet, and gentle. And she is so unlike every man who has ever courted me. I didn’t know I could feel this way about a woman.”

“This explains your behavior.” Ada said.

“This doesn’t surprise you?” Laila asked. 

Ada chuckled. “Most Hyperborean women find that they prefer the touch of a woman to that of a man. Even if they find men attractive, the behavior of men leaves much to be desired.”

“Don’t men punish you?” Laila asked.

“Two women produce no children as evidence. And much can happen while men are out being men. Women know how to keep secrets from men.”

“We do that.” Laila agreed. She paused, then her eyes widened. “You and Ilsa?”

“Yes. Me and Ilsa.” Ada nodded. “But that is for later. You must go. Save your friends and your lover.”

“She’s not my lover, mother. She isn’t my anything.”

“Call me optimistic. But Go.”