A lone figure moved along the pasture’s fence and toward the northwest corner of the compound. My memory tugged. Cellina had mentioned a garden…of Death Lilys! I sprinted after the person, cutting through the pasture. Was she or he a complete idiot?

In the weak light, the northwest corner appeared to be a copse of trees and bushes. The person had disappeared into the greenery, and I hoped a Lily hadn’t attacked. As I approached the garden, the individual stalks and Lilys came into focus. The petals were bent in strange angles. At first I thought the Death Lilys had all caught someone, but then I realized the petals had been pulled wide open, exposing the inside of the flower.

I walked up to the closest one. It didn’t move. The plant had been wired to a metal frame to prevent it from closing the petals. Whoever had come here didn’t need to fear being eaten. Even the Lily’s infamous vines had been wrapped and knotted tight around a metal lattice. My emotions tugged between fascinated and repulsed. Who could tie up a Death Lily like this?

Tohon. Why? No idea.

I turned to leave, but a rustle sounded behind me.

“Good morning, my dear,” Tohon said, stepping between two Lilys. He carried a bag. “Are you finished with your snooping already or is this part of the compound on your agenda today?”

I shouldn’t be surprised Tohon knew about my searches. “You don’t seem upset.”

He shrugged. “Look all you want. The only person who can wake Ryne is dead. Besides, you’re stuck here and can’t run off to Estrid or Kerrick and tell them all my secrets. And don’t think you can send a message, either. My people are loyal and will report you. You don’t want to anger me, my dear.”

A chill rolled though me, pricking the hairs along my skin. Changing the subject, I gestured to the Death Lilys. “Why are they…spread apart? What are you doing with them?”

“Keeping the flowers open makes it easier for me to extract their toxin.”

Horrified, I gaped at him. “Why?”

He smiled at my reaction. “Did you know the Healer’s Guild tried a number of ways to obtain the Lily’s toxin? The substance breaks down as soon as the Lily dies. But if it is taken from the living plant, the toxin retains its properties.” Tohon reached into his bag and pulled out an orange-colored ball. “Working with the Guild, I discovered that I alone can remove these sacks of toxin. I’m immune to the poison. But if anyone else reaches inside, the Lily will sting him.”

The sack in Tohon’s hand matched the two I had hidden in my rooms. Why would the Death Lily give me them? “I know why the Guild wanted the toxin, but what do you need it for?”

“My dear, I can’t believe you’d be that innocent. Think devious thoughts.”

There were easier ways to kill, but the toxin caused a slow and painful death. A crazy connection occurred to me. The toxin’s symptoms matched the first two stages of plague. Both ended in death except for those few who survived the Lily’s poison. Since I doubted Tohon cared about the similarities or wished to find a cure for either, I concentrated on what he would find useful. He had called his people loyal, but from what I’d seen, they acted more terrified than devoted.

“You use the toxin to threaten people.”

“I knew you had a dark side.” Tohon beamed with pride. “It’s amazing how effective the threat of injecting the toxin into a person is. They’ll do anything I say or tell me what I need to know. Remember that, my dear.”

He’d just confirmed I would find no allies here.

“Since you seem to have enough time to wander around each morning, I don’t think you need another three full days in the infirmary. You can start helping me now.” Tohon gestured for me to accompany him.

As we walked to the castle, he asked, “Have you discovered my lab yet?”

“No.” I had hoped not to find it during my explorations. I could only imagine the horrors that awaited.

Tohon led me through the castle and into the base of one of the towers. Another corkscrew stairway had been built inside. Instead of descending as I had expected, Tohon climbed the stairs. We looped around and around until he stopped a few floors up. He unlocked a door.

“Why did you think I could find your lab when you locked the door?” I asked.

“I figured Nasty Kerrick taught you how to pick locks.”

I huffed in amusement.

“What’s so funny?”

“He wouldn’t teach me. I think he was afraid I’d break my word, and he’d need to cuff me to the trees again.”

Tohon tsked. “No surprise. He has such ill manners.”

He pushed the door open. Sunlight spilled out, and it reminded me of his forever garden. But tables and equipment filled the long narrow space. Windows high up on the walls let the light in. The lab smelled of vanilla and anise.

Happy that my low expectations hadn’t been met, I walked around. I recognized a few devices like the distiller, which extracted oils and other medicinal liquids from plants. The Guild had a whole building dedicated to research. It appeared as if Tohon had duplicated it on a much smaller scale.

He grabbed a bowl from a stack and set it on a table. Dumping the toxin sacks, he spread them out. I counted ten.

“Is there a limited supply?” I asked.

“Each Death Lily has two sacks. If they’re removed, they will grow another set, but it takes a few months.” He pointed to a ledger. “I keep track of when I harvest the sacks.” Tohon opened a drawer full of syringes. Taking one, he pushed the needle into the sack, then filled the reservoir with the toxin.

Sickened by his macabre task, I asked, “What do you need me to do? I have patients to check.”

Tohon gestured to a chair. “Have a seat, my dear. This won’t take long.”

Unease roiled as I sat. He tapped on the syringe to ensure no air bubbles were stuck.

Turning to me with the syringe in hand, he said, “Tonight I have one of those dreaded royal parties. You will accompany me. Wear the green gown.”

My mind registered party and gown, but I couldn’t tear my gaze from that syringe. When he set it on the counter, I relaxed.

He smiled. “Your emotions are such a delight, my dear. You can go from hating me, to fascinated, to repulsed, then to desiring me and back again. How am I to tell which is genuine, when you don’t know yourself?”

“At least I’m not predictable.”

“True.” He crouched down before my chair so we were eye level. “The one thing I do know is you’re getting satisfaction from your work in the infirmary, healing patients. You are finally doing what you’re supposed to be doing. It’s gratifying, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“And you have me to thank. If Nasty Kerrick had his way, you would have healed Prince Ryne and died.” He rested his hands on my chair arms as he studied my expression. “Yes, I know the truth. I was helping at the Guild headquarters when the first plague victims arrived.” With a slight smirk, he asked, “Did Nasty Kerrick convince you to heal the prince?”

“No. You did.”

“Oh? Do tell, my dear.”

“Do you want a list or should I just sum it up?”

“Not nice. Well, consider this. Ryne has been defeated. Even if you somehow managed to wake and cure him, he doesn’t have the manpower or the resources to stop my army. Your sacrifice would have been for nothing. You’re infinitely more valuable than Ryne.” He paused and scrunched up his nose. “Which makes this harder to do, but it must be done.”

“Makes what harder?”

He grabbed my right wrist and strapped it to the chair’s arm. I squawked in protest, pushing at him with my left hand. Quicker than expected, he had trapped my left wrist, as well. I struggled against the bonds and kicked, but he stepped out of reach. How could I not notice the leather ties hanging from the arms?

“What…?” The question died in my throat as Tohon picked up the syringe and approached. I opened my mouth to protest, but he thrust the needle into my upper arm and depressed the plunger, sending the toxin into my body.