Chapter 37
Alexander stared at her. His voice came out harsh. “The poison came from a plant called meadow saffron?”
Saffron could see in his eyes the same violent panic that had her in a vice.
“Yes. It’s not the same flower I’m named for.
That’s Crocus sativus. But it’s also called autumn crocus.
It’s a common enough mistake. It grows here.
I found some in the field at the dig site.
” She shook her head. “Inspector Polat already thinks I’m a hysterical woman hellbent on revenge.
This will only confirm it. What better way for a mad botanist to exact her revenge than with a poison made from a flower with her own name? ”
Saying it out loud did make her feel a little hysterical. It rose up in her throat, choking her.
Alexander took her chin between his fingers, forcing her eyes to his. They were nearly black, and so fierce it took her remaining breath away. “It will be all right. We will figure this out.”
Nick cleared his throat pointedly, reminding them he was still there.
She didn’t need the reminder; Nick Hale was impossible to ignore, even when she wanted to.
Last time she’d seen him, she’d promised herself she’d never be bothered by him again.
How she was eating her words now. He was mercenary, yes, but if he bent his considerable skills and focus to her case, she would gladly have his help. She needed it.
“It looks rather black at this point, but we’re just in the middle,” he said in the sort of hearty voice people used when telling children to buck up after taking a tumble.
“We don’t know if the police know what the toxin is yet, nor if they’ll ever make the connection to your name.
They’ll likely have a different name for it, at least. Whoever killed Mr. Neill has to be among the expedition team and someone he trusted enough to eat or drink something they gave him.
From what I’ve heard about this poison”—Alexander looked at him sharply—“it seems that the toxic dosage is relatively small. It could have been one drink and he was dead.”
Saffron exhaled slowly, counting her heartbeats as they slowed.
“We need more information about how the toxin works to narrow down when he could have consumed it to become so ill. For multiple organs to fail, it took some time or a large dose, I would wager. I wrote down information about fifty-some plants I was likely to find on this trip, including meadow saffron. If the murderer knew it grew at the dig site, I suppose they could have pulled the plant and snuck it into Martin’s food, or distilled it to slip into a drink, but I don’t know the specifics, like how much of the plant would be needed or if the taste would be obvious.
I’m not the only person with a chemistry kit, but everyone else is rooming with someone.
No one could hide it if they’d been stewing flower bits in their room.
” She stood, intending to pace to help her think, but at her movement, Mr. Feldman’s eyes opened.
She hastily sat back down. “I pointed the plant out to Mrs. Henry and Mrs. Demirel, who then mentioned it to Wakefield.” She blew out a breath, recalling how he’d laughed at her and the plant’s name.
“That doesn’t narrow it down, though. With how much gossip gets passed around, anyone on the crew might know it’s poisonous and nearby. ”
“Including Clark,” Alexander said darkly. “I’ll check to see if the flower is still in the field at the agora.”
Nick leaned forward. “You might not need to. Colchicine is used as a medication for a few things, but mostly it’s used to treat gout.”
Saffron sucked in a breath.
He raised his eyebrow. “You know someone on the crew who has gout?”
“Yes,” she said quickly, “Mr. Demirel, our liaison. But why on earth would he kill Martin?” She bit her lip, thinking of Mrs. Demirel’s revelation that the crew’s rooms were being searched for the missing artifacts. “Is it possible Mr. Demirel has something to do with the missing artifacts?”
Alexander squeezed her hand. “Mrs. Henry suggested whoever took the artifacts would want to sell them off here to circumvent the policies to prevent us taking artifacts out of the country. Demirel might have the connections and the knowledge to move artifacts here in the city.”
“If Mr. Demirel used his medication—but Mrs. Demirel gave Martin medicines.” Saffron’s mind raced ahead. “He could have known that and mixed his gout medication into something his wife planned to give to Martin. How dastardly.”
Alexander nodded. “We need to find out if any of the medications from Martin’s bedside contained the toxin. That could determine if Demirel is a suspect.”
“What can I do?” She didn’t like the plaintive note in her voice, but now she knew what had killed Martin, she felt she’d crawl out of her skin unless she could piece together why.
“I’ll see if I can find any texts about the toxin,” Alexander offered.
“Or how to make it,” she added. “My materials were confiscated, unfortunately.”
Her eyes lingered on his. She had so many questions, and as glad as she was Nick was helping, he didn’t need to hear the rest. She glanced at him.
His lips twitched upward, and his hazel eyes took her in with that arch humor that made her ache for Elizabeth. Nick was her brother, after all; as much as Saffron resented the way he’d treated them, he reminded her so much of her dearest friend.
Nick stood, gave her a ridiculous little bow, and murmured, “I’ll be outside, Ashton.” He winked at her. “Mrs. Ashton.”
“Have you heard from anyone?” Saffron asked when Nick left the room.
Alexander shook his head. “I don’t expect the letters will arrive for a few days yet. I considered sending John a telegram, but I worried it would alarm him more than help.”
“That is likely true. Not much he can do from France.” She glanced at the door and saw Mr. Feldman was gazing into the hall, perhaps where Nick waited. “While I appreciate the additional help, I know what him being here might mean. Is it … related?”
“I have some suspicions, but nothing concrete. I sent him a message when you were arrested asking if he had any contacts nearby who might be able to help, since he served in this part of the world. The next day he sent me a message, and here he is.” She suppressed a smile at his bland recitation.
She imagined he’d been far more surprised than he let on.
“He has an interest in a certain Turk I visited on our first night here.”
He paused to give her time to remember his adventure with Banks to the han in the market to find the assistants.
Alexander had said that he felt the fellow who ran the place was involved in shady business, she recalled.
It must be quite disreputable to have attracted the attention of the British government.
She wondered what it was, but knew better than to ask with Mr. Feldman present.
She didn’t think he could hear them, they were practically whispering, but there was a reason Nick had come here under a false name. She didn’t want to ruin his subterfuge.
“Now we know what the toxin was, I want to have that broken vial tested for it.”
“How did you hide it so it wasn’t found when they searched the rest of the crew’s rooms?”
He tapped his jacket pocket. “I’ve been carrying it with me.
They haven’t decided to search us yet, though if they don’t start turning up the artifacts soon, they might.
I’ll find somewhere out of the way to have it tested for colchicine.
Then I’ll find out about Mr. Demirel’s gout medication and who might have known about it. ”
“If Mrs. Demirel speaks to others in the crew about her family’s ailments half so much as she does to me, then most of them probably know he suffers gout. But why do you want to have the vial tested? It’s almost certainly the vial that was used, or at least one contaminated in order to frame me.”
“It is possible,” Alexander said, and he said it almost reluctantly, “that the vial does not have colchicine. If that is the case, I have a nasty suspicion Clark was responsible. He knew you had the chemical set; you discussed it with him at least once when planning your paper. He knew you were under suspicion for poisoning Neill. He easily could have done it to provide Polat more evidence.”
Saffron sucked in a breath. “Do you think he would really do that? He hates me, but … but do you believe he would go that far?”
“He targeted you for weeks and could have seriously harmed you in the process. He all but started the rumor that led to you being arrested,” he said heavily. “I do believe he would do it.”
“This is assuming you don’t believe Clark is involved in Martin’s death.
He is among my suspects.” She let out a breath.
“What a mess. I hate that all I can do is talk about this. I should be poking around in Clark’s room and questioning Mr. Demirel.
Interviewing the crew.” She waved off the reassurances she was sure were forthcoming.
“You are doing more than any woman could hope. I appreciate it.” She squeezed his hand, savoring the warmth of his returning pressure.
“Please, Alexander, do take care of yourself. Get some rest. And … If you’re with Nick, please take care.
Even if he’s just watching the han, you’ve got to be careful. ”
“I have a feeling I’ll be doing far more than just watching the tea house with him,” he said darkly, and before she could ask what he meant, he got to his feet.
He pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek and, with a murmured endearment, departed.