Night pressed heavily against the high windows of the chamber, three days have gone by since the infiltration.
Inside, the air smelled of herbs, vinegar, and sickness.
Nux lay half-propped against the carved headboard of a massive bed, his skin pale and slick with sweat. The candlelight made the hollows beneath his eyes look darker than usual, almost bruised.
A servant held a damp cloth to his forehead.
Another hovered nearby with a bowl of steaming herbs.
Neither of them looked confident about what they were doing.
Nux lurched forward suddenly.
His body folded over itself with a violent cough.
A servant barely managed to shove a large marble vase into his hands before the next wave came.
He retched into it.
The sound echoed unpleasantly through the room.
One of the servants flinched.
Another looked away entirely.
When it passed, Nux sagged back against the pillows, breathing hard through clenched teeth.
His lips were dry.
His eyes burned with irritation and fever.
"What," he rasped hoarsely, "is wrong with me."
No one answered.
The servants exchanged nervous looks.
The physician who had been summoned earlier had already run out of confident explanations.
Spoiled wine.
Contaminated meat.
A seasonal fever.
None of them seemed convincing anymore.
Another tremor ran through Nux's stomach.
He gagged again, clutching the vase.
The chamber doors opened quietly.
A figure stepped inside.
Marrow.
He moved quickly across the chamber, bowing his head as he approached the bed.
"My lord."
Nux's bloodshot eyes lifted toward him.
Marrow continued speaking immediately, the way someone accustomed to reporting information would.
"I've located them."
That got Nux's attention.
His eyes sharpened slightly despite the sickness.
"The river," Marrow continued. "The vessel they use — Emberwake. It's docked several miles south along the eastern bank."
Nux swallowed hard.
His hand tightened weakly around the marble vase.
"Good," he muttered.
Another spasm hit him.
He leaned forward again, retching violently into the stone container.
One of the servants rushed forward, pale.
"My lord, please—"
But Marrow was still watching him.
Studying him.
Something in his expression shifted.
"My lord…"
Nux wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, breathing unevenly.
"What."
Marrow tilted his head slightly.
"You appear… unwell."
The servants stiffened.
One of them whispered under their breath.
Marrow's eyes moved briefly to the servants standing around the bed.
Then back to Nux.
"There may be a reason for that."
The words landed strangely in the room.
A heavy silence followed.
One servant's face drained of color.
Another slowly lowered the cloth they had been holding.
Nux narrowed his eyes.
"…Explain."
Marrow hesitated for just a moment.
Then spoke carefully.
"My lord… the kitchen staff have been behaving strangely for several days."
The servants froze.
"I believe," Marrow continued slowly, "I may know why your meals have been causing such… distress."
The servant holding the herb bowl nearly dropped it.
Another whispered under their breath.
"No…"
Marrow's voice stayed calm.
Measured.
"The cooking utensils have not been properly maintained."
The servants stared at him in horror.
Marrow continued speaking.
"Pans."
"Knives."
"Preparation surfaces."
His gaze flicked briefly toward the servants.
"Many of them were deliberately left… rusted."
The room went completely silent.
The implication settled slowly over everyone present.
One of the servants took a shaky step backward.
Another clutched the edge of the bedframe.
Marrow finished the sentence.
"As if someone wanted contamination."
Nux's breathing slowed.
The sickness still twisted in his stomach.
But something colder was now moving behind his eyes.
Suspicion.
Anger.
The servants looked at one another.
Each of them realizing the same terrifying thing at the same time.
Marrow was about to reveal everything.
The entire plan.
And there was nothing they could do to stop him.