A Magic Steeped in Poison (The Book of Tea #1) (59)

They pull on the iron ring on the wall and the door slides open. They step through, intent on their deadly purpose.

“Stop!” I yell.

The figure up ahead falters but doesn’t stop. The air ripples, the world folding in on itself, and suddenly I’ve cleared the space between us in a single breath. I run into them full tilt, and with a grunt, they fall, rolling, not expecting me to be so close.

It has to be something in the goji berries. The magic makes everything too bright, and my mind is one step behind, watching dimly as if from a distance, while my body moves. I land with my knee against their chest, but they are already trying to roll away. My attention is drawn to the patch of darkness under their left rib, the way they clutch at that side. I push my weight into that spot, just to hear a scream. A wild, ferocious sound of pain and anger.

Their other hand fumbles for the sword, but the dagger is unsheathed in my hand in an instant, pressed against their throat in another. When the metal slices the skin, they still, eyes looking up at me, breathing muffled by the mask.

“Tell me!” I demand. “Are you the one who poisoned the tea bricks?” I wish I had scalding Silver Needle to pour down their throat, to rip the truth out of them.

Another person is upon me in an instant, grabbing me from behind and pulling me away. I struggle, swinging the dagger wildly, but an iron grip grasps my wrist, striking a pressure point. The blade falls to the ground, useless.

I suck in a breath to scream, but I’m thrown to the ground easily, like a sack of rice. I want to roar at my weakness but scrabble backward in the dirt instead, turning to face whoever pulled me off the Shadow … and the scream dies in my throat.

Princess Zhen crouches beside the body of the would-be assassin.

I don’t understand.

The sound of drums thunders in the distance. Someone has sounded the alarm.

The princess gestures at me wildly. I approach.

“Help me get her into my chambers,” she demands.

“But … they came here to kill you,” I sputter.

“No, you fool.” She reaches down and rips the mask off the Shadow’s face. It’s Ruyi, eyes closed, mouth contorted into a grimace. A line of red seeps at her throat where I’ve cut her. “Grab her legs. Unless you want the guards to find you.”

I force myself to bend down and help the princess lift Ruyi, still reeling from the revelation of Ruyi’s identity. The princess is able to lift Ruyi’s body easily with my assistance. She struck the pressure point without hesitation, knowing how to weaken my grasp. I commit this knowledge to memory—she is no cowering flower.

Once we reach the princess’s quarters, we place Ruyi on the bed, then the princess directs me back to the garden to clear the rest of the evidence. I secure the dagger into my sash and then pick up the Shadow’s sword. With my other hand, I pick up the mask that landed on the stones. The wood, smooth against my fingers, is still warm from Ruyi’s face.

Returning to the inner chambers, I note the elaborate screens and beautiful watercolor portraits hanging in the residence. The princess lives in the middle of many treasures. A princess foretold to be both the light and the ruin of an empire.

She looks to be a portrait herself, cast in the golden light of the multiple braziers lit around the room. Her face is scrunched with worry as she paces. Ruyi’s body convulses, and she rolls to her side, where she vomits a torrent of dark fluid. Princess Zhen is there immediately, without hesitation, pressing a cloth to her bodyguard’s forehead.

“What did you do to her?” she snarls at me.

“No…,” Ruyi protests weakly. “Not her.”

Then comes the sound of many feet striking the wood floors, followed by shouts of “Highness! Your Highness!”

The princess looks past the doorway, eyes wild. She points to the screen at the side of the room, and I duck behind it, still holding the sword and the mask. Scented robes and luxurious fabrics surround me; this is her dressing area. I pull myself farther into the silks, hiding myself as I listen to the raised voices beyond. Through the screen, all I can see are silhouettes, but I know these are armed men.

“Do you deem it appropriate to barge into my bedchamber at this hour?” The princess speaks in a restrained tone, showing no indication of the emotion she exhibited not even a moment before.

“My apologies, Highness.” The guards nervously shuffle their feet. “We had a breach in the palace walls, and we are concerned for your safety.”

“As you can see, there is no one here but myself. You should be out there, trying to find the intruder.”

“Yes, Princess.” One of the soldiers raises his weapon in a salute. “We will find the one who dared disrupt your rest and bring you his head.”

“See to it that you do,” she says, her voice cool and composed.

The stomp of boots leaves the area, and they are gone. I shove the spill of fabrics off me and hurry to the bedside. The princess tugs off the pile of covers she had thrown over Ruyi’s body, and I gasp when her face is revealed.

Glassy, unblinking eyes. A trickle of black at the corner of her mouth.

“Ruyi!” the princess whispers through gritted teeth, shaking Ruyi’s shoulders, all composure lost. “Wake up!”

For a moment I consider leaving her to die. Permit this course of perverse justice if she is truly the one who distributed the poison throughout the empire. But I shake the thought off easily. Saving Shu’s life is more important than my desire for vengeance, and if I save Ruyi’s life, it will bring me closer to the truth.