Rebel's Honor(63)

       
           



       

"No, indeed it was not." His uncle glowered. "An unfortunate hitch in my  programming. The cretin should have been loyal to me." Bony fingers  flicked at the image of Morass. "But a few tweaks, and it should not  happen again."

Lukan's eyes widened. "Then why is he obeying me if you programmed him to do your will?"

"Because, nephew, I rather suspect that we share the same will."

So, they had finally reached the point of this discussion. Lukan waited while his uncle steepled his fingers, watching him.

Finally, Count Felix broke the silence. "We both want your father dead."

"We do?" Lukan asked cautiously.

"Perhaps I presume to speak for you, Highness, but I certainly have no  use for an emperor who would use my son for his dirty work."

Lukan bristled. Even here, in the most basic of familial loyalty, Axel  bested him with a father who actually cared for his well-being. It made  Lukan hate his cousin-and Mott-all the more.

"It seems my father has few friends of late. What do you propose?"

His uncle pursed his lips. "With a little programming, a tweak here, a  tweak there, I believe I can persuade our friend Morass to murder the  emperor."

Judging by Felix's expectant expression, Lukan guessed he should have  been shocked, but he wasn't. That thought had already lodged in his  mind. Although nothing much to look at now, Morass was a guardsman,  trained in warfare and weaponry. He could very easily use those skills  to kill Mott.

"And who takes the throne?"

A faintly shocked expression darted across his uncle's face. "Why, you of course, Highness."

Lukan was tempted to snort again, but he resisted the urge. Did Felix  consider him a complete idiot? "I expected you would wish that honor for  Axel. How do I know you won't tweak Morass to kill me, too?"

Felix's mouth dropped, aghast. Lukan couldn't decide if it was at the  suggestion of Axel on the throne-unlikely-or at the blatant accusation  that his uncle would kill him.

"Crown Prince, you malign me. I have spent my entire life serving the  crown. Every invention, every device has been aimed at ensuring the  safety of the emperor and his sons-you and your brother Tao."

"Please, save the bleeding heart. Why should I believe that you would put me on the throne and not Axel?"

His uncle pulled his cloak tight around his frail shoulders and dropped  his voice. "It pains me to say this, Highness, but Axel has proven  himself . . . easily swayed of late. I worry that he will not take  guidance well, should he ever ascend to the throne."

Guidance? Command and control by Felix, more like it.

As much as Lukan doubted his uncle's integrity, he decided to wait until  he had a better idea of what Felix proposed. "‘Easily swayed'? By Norin  traitors? Is that what you are implying?"

Felix's face clenched. "I have a solution for that, too. Tomorrow, at  the wedding, when Morass eliminates your father, he can kill that Norin  bitch, too."

"Lynx!" A chill flushed through Lukan. "H-how do you think Axel will react if we murder his love?"

"‘Love'?" Felix scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous, Crown Prince. My son, it  turns out, is a consummate actor. Trust me, he feels no more love for  the bitch than you do. He's merely using her to get to me."

If Felix didn't believe Axel loved Lynx, then it was possible he knew  nothing about Dmitri's appearance. The dead seer had been very clear  about the love between Axel and Lynx.

Or he was lying.

Lukan rubbed his jaw thoughtfully, filing that information away for  later study. But in the meantime, he could not be complacent-he had no  desire to be flayed. His skin and muscles trembled at the very thought.

The only solution was to add Axel's name to Morass's hit list.

Lukan huffed a breath. Felix would never agree to his son's death. But  somewhere, there was a solution. He just had to find it. "Your idea has  potential. How do you propose we proceed?"

"Simple, really. You are to command Morass to shoot two quarrels: one at  your father's heart and one at Lynx's." A gash of a smile split Felix's  face. "I have something special in mind for the Norin rebel." He pulled  a glass vial filled with an iridescent yellow substance from his pocket  and held it up to Lukan. "I've finally gotten my hands on the poison  the Norin use with such devastating effect against our troops. I was  going to use it for another project I had in mind, but this is  altogether more pressing."

Lukan gasped. "How?"                       
       
           



       

"My operatives waylaid a Norin savage on his return trip from Tanamre  after the princesses were dropped off." Felix was positively gloating.

Lukan shook his head, still not quite understanding. As part of Norin  fealty to their king, a raider would sooner shoot himself with the  debilitating, slow killing poison than let it fall into a guardsman's  hands.

"The savage never even saw my guardsmen coming." His uncle gave a rare  chuckle. "We-and the vultures-have benefited from his lack of  foresight."

The guardsmen had killed a raider and left his corpse to bake in the sun? Lukan shivered.

Felix showed no reaction. "I propose filling Lynx's quarrel with this  poison. Fitting, is it not, that one of Thorn's raiders should die a  slow, painful death from their own poison?"

Lukan swallowed, wondering how Axel would react to Lynx dying in agony.  Not well, to be sure. He pushed the thought aside. His father had left  him no choice but to do what Felix suggested.

Unless . . .

Lukan cocked his head to the side, so deep in thought he barely saw his uncle watching him.

Unless he did what Dmitri asked and told the high-born about their  gemstones. Was Dmitri's plan a possible way out of this mess? Perhaps it  was the only way out. Lukan closed his eyes, wishing he were in his  archives, where he would have made a careful list of pros and cons.

But he wasn't in his archives. He was here in the dungeons, torturing an  innocent man with white-hot light, while Felix shuffled around, waiting  for answers.

His thoughts began to tumble through his mind. How would it change  things if he left here now and announced to the high-born that their  gemstones were frauds? Would they revolt? That seemed likely. Would that  insurrection give him time to breach the lair to disengage the ice  crystals?

And what about Felix's new program on the door-the eye thing? Without  the reader being programmed to his eye, could he get in? He glanced up  at Felix, waiting patiently for him. Would he have to remove his uncle's  head and use his eyes? Would that even work? His stomach turned at the  thought. Perhaps Axel would take care of that detail.

Lukan shook his head, knowing that would never happen. Morass, then. He  could be commanded to kill Felix. Lukan glanced at the informa. Morass  had collapsed face-first onto the floor where Lukan had instructed him  to stay.

And then another, even more horrifying thought struck.

Lukan felt the blood rush from his face. His uncle would never let him  leave here alive without securing an agreement. He licked his lips. Even  if he attempted to kill Felix now, it would probably do no good. Lukan  glanced around the room, looking for booby traps.

Even though he saw nothing obvious, he wasn't fooled. Felix was too  canny, too devious not to consider that option. Something would shoot  out to impale him if he made a threatening move.

Lukan suddenly understood what Dmitri had meant about the complications  that came with prevarication. Had Dmitri foreseen this? Sweat trickled  down his back. He had no choice but to appear to be in cahoots with  Felix's scheme-at least until he was out the door, and the sooner that  happened, the better.

Struggling to steady his nerves, Lukan nodded. "Let's break the news to  Morass. I have no doubt my father is in one of the gambling rooms. Of  Lynx's whereabouts, I'm not so sure." He stepped toward the door, but  his uncle grabbed his arm.

"Highness, timing is everything. Your father is on his guard tonight."  Felix flicked through the programs on the informa, alighting on an image  of Mott playing dice in the Green Room with some of the men from the  Fifteen. He was surrounded by guardsmen.

Lukan sighed. No one with a crossbow-or any weapon-could get close to  the emperor tonight. It made the risk of telling the high-born about  their stones that much greater.

His uncle's voice broke his train of thought. "Allay his fears by  agreeing to marry Lynx. Then, tomorrow, after the wedding ceremony,  Morass can let fly his quarrels."

Lukan frowned, and then his face cleared. Tomorrow, all the high-born  would be assembled in the great hall for the wedding. It would be an  ideal time to break the news to them, before Morass could harm Lynx. He  heaved a sigh of relief. Wrong reaction. But his uncle didn't seem to  notice.