“It’s very powerful stuff. The wrong amount will put undue stress on the heart. It could even lead to death,” he said. I was used to him always smiling enigmatically, but this time he was openly angry. “You might have killed the woman you love.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that without consulting you,” I said sincerely. I would be up shit creek without Nicholas’s help on this. The real goal was the antidote, not just some temporary fix. I wanted her to be able to appear at whatever banquet or ball she wanted, without limitations.
“Just never do anything like this again.”
“And when will the finished product be ready?”
“…It’ll take another three days.”
Which meant the decompositioner would last until the end product was good to go.
“You can have this first. When you give her pills, make sure to follow these instructions,” he said, giving me a scrap of paper. It was a little manual on the decompositioner.
“Got it.”
Nicholas hadn’t gotten all his anger off his chest, but a handful of money sent him home in silence.
“Such a worrywart.”
I went back inside, ate dinner, took a bath, returned to my room, and got drunk. From the window, I could see a great many lights in the distance. One of them probably belonged to the lord’s mansion.
They would be in the middle of the banquet. I hoped Arwin was managing.
“Hmm?”
A covered wagon passed by on the street. It belonged to the Gravedigger, who went around retrieving dead bodies. Bradley worked into the night like this? He was a dedicated man.
Of course, I didn’t have any right to tease him; I was the one always giving him work to do. I’d just created an extra body for him the other day.
I sat down on the bed and opened the scrap of paper. There were very specific instructions for use.
I snorted.
“As if I’d let Arwin take such a dangerous pill without testing it first. Pah!”
I’d tested them all out. I knew how much was too much, and I knew drinking alcohol with the pills made them less effective. That was why I’d gone to the trouble of stealing more. I had nothing but gratitude for my “partner” in this matter.
I hadn’t expected him to die, though. It was nasty work, seeing him sputter and choke like that. I felt bad about it.
But if I hadn’t dirtied my hands with it, some of his fellows on the street would have eventually, and his body would be found and dumped in the dungeon anyway. The gentlemen of the street were sticklers for the rules.
I prayed his soul found its way to heaven, though. I looked up at the stars, said a silent prayer, and closed the window.