Chapter 22

“They poisoned the well,” Daphne told Blade. "I made tea from the well water and he drank it."

Blade looked at the doctor and nodded, “Check him. Quickly.”

Arthur followed the other doctor and Blade came to Daphne. She explained how they figured it out, and his expression drew tight with annoyance.

“Damn rogues. Who knew they could be so crafty…”

It was worse than he imagined. The doctors had figured out that it wasn’t just any poison, but wolfsbane, a poison that was specifically cultivated to use against werewolves. Blade knew that it had been the poison of choice during the battle against vampires from all the stories of the war. Once a werewolf consumed enough, or if they consumed just a bit and were left untreated, they died. Treatment wasn't exactly difficult, but it took a lot of time.

If the rogues really poisoned the wells, the entire village was in danger. Several of the wells in the village were connected to the same water source. There was no telling how many werewolves had been poisoned after getting their morning water supply. The rogues wanted to kill them all, but why?

A rogue was motivated by baser instincts. How could they come up with such a terrible plan? How had they gotten ahold of enough poison to do so much damage?

Blade shook his head, “It makes no sense.”

All these years, they had only been dealing with wild rogues occasionally appearing or appearing in their packs.

Now, this? Had the moon goddess forsaken them? Maybe all of Rex’s musings about how great things would be if the royal family was still around had some merit.

“Excuse me? Miss?” Daphne turned towards the voice, recognizing him as the doctor who had taken Arthur aside. "Miss Daphne, was it?"

“How is he?” Daphne asked, glancing towards Arthur.

“Lucky.” He smiled lightly, “There's nothing wrong with him. He's healthy. I don't think he's been poisoned.”

Daphne frowned, “But… but he drank the water...”

Blade huffed, “Then it has to be something else!”

“No, it’s the water,” Arthur said, shrugging his shirt back on as he came over. Blade’s jaw dropped open. “The water tasted strange. That’s how I knew. You should check it.”

Blade was still not quite convinced and turned towards the door. None of it made sense, but he would let Rex decide what to do about it. If the rogues were thus organized then the other packs were definitely in danger.

If the water had been poisoned, then why wasn't Arthur affected? It had to be something else, but what it could have been escaped him. The reports were clear that none of the food stores had been touched.

“Come with me to see Alpha Rex. Anthony will go question people about how they might have gotten poisoned.”

Arthur looked at Anthony, “You should have people to block off the wells before anyone else gets hurt.”

Anthony looked at Blade then at Arthur, and Anthony left to carry out the order and start investigating.

Daphne gasped looking up at Blade, “Where is Mamie?”

Blade stilled. A pang of terror went through him. He didn't know. She hadn't been feeling well and he left her sleeping. Was she awake? She usually woke up a little after he left and he had been gone for hours.

“Has she drunk any water?”

Blade stepped, nervous as he reached out through their bond. Mamie was still pregnant and there was no telling what the poison would do to her or the baby even if he managed to get her to the infirmary in enough time to be treated. He didn’t think he’d make it if Mamie died while carrying their child.

He felt nothing for a moment and he was about to panic when warmth and sleepy comfort flooded him. His eyes burned with nearly shed tears and relief as he sighed.

Blade? What's wrong?

Everything will be alright, Mamie. Go back to sleep and don't draw any water from any well today.

She hummed her agreement before slipping back into sleep.

“She was still asleep,” Blade gasped. “She’s fine.”

Daphne sighed with relief and promised to help out at the infirmary as much as possible while Arthur and Blade went to see Rex. Arthur frowned, wanting to stay to be sure she was okay, but he followed Blade out of the door.

Arthur and Blade arrived at Rex’s home as quickly as possible and found the man already aware that something had happened. He turned on Blade.

"Report."

"It's Wolfsbane poisoning."

“Wolfsbane?” Rex asked before pacing restlessly. “How many dead?”

“Just one so far,” Blade said. “He was older and they couldn’t resuscitate him or treat him in time. Two others are in critical condition. Most everyone else is experiencing severe stomach pain, vomiting, and fever.”

“Daphne and I think they poisoned the wells,” Arthur said, stopping Rex in his tracks. He went pale.

“That’s impossible!”

Arthur met his gaze and said nothing more. Rex grit his teeth. Rogues couldn't organize themselves. Something else had to be going on.

“I’ve taken his advice and had the wells blocked off until we know for sure,” Blade said. "But I won't rule out other possibilities."

Rex growled and started pacing again. He didn’t want to believe it, but it was the only reasonable explanation for now. How could a rogue carry out such a sinister plan so well?

“There is one thing,” Blade said, casting a glance at Arthur. “Arthur also drank the water, but he was not poisoned.

Rex looked at Arthur and narrowed his eyes. His suspicions about Arthur’s identity hummed at the back of his mind, but he didn’t heed them. He had to be sure. There was only one way Arthur could be fine if the wells had been poisoned. Maybe Blade was right that there was something else going on. It was more plausible than rogues organizing themselves to poison a pack.

It was more likely that they would attack in the middle of the night with no warning.

“We’ll check the well at first chance.”

He kept looking at Arthur. He had heard from Blade that Arthur had marked Daphne, which meant that there was a stable bond between them. Arthur looked much better than the last time he had seen him: calm and strong. The madness had vanished leaving his handsome features to shine through. Clean-faced and coherent… His suspicions seemed more and more realistic, but he needed to know for sure.

Rex sent one of the guards to the infirmary to order a doctor to test the wells in town. Blade and Arthur remained in his house as he paced.

Within an hour, Anthony arrived with the doctor.

The door had barely opened when Anthony shouted, “It's true! They all drank from the well! The doctor also checked the well for poison!”

Rex fell into his seat as Blade stiffened at the report.

“Is there any way to clean the water?”

“It will take some time,” the doctor said. “At least two or three days.”

Rex huffed. The village couldn’t go without water for two or three days. It was risky, but they didn’t have a choice but to leave the territory in search of water. They would have to ration their water for the next few days. Maybe this was the goal of the plan, to weaken the pack and force them to leave their territory, but it was the only thing they could do.

“Blade,” Rex said, gravely. Their gazes met and it seemed his old friend had started to reach the same conclusion he had. “Get whoever you can among the patrol forces to fetch water from the nearby river. Take a doctor to test whether the river is also poisoned.”

“As you wish, alpha.”

“Be careful,” Rex said with a nod. Blade turned to leave and Arthur nodded and followed. “Wait a moment, Arthur. I have something to tell you.”

Arthur looked at Rex with a confused frown, but he nodded and remained. Blade, Anthony, and the doctor left and closed the door behind them.

“Sit,” Rex said, gesturing to the chair.

Arthur glanced at the chair but didn’t move, thinking of Daphne.

“What do you want to tell me?”

Arthur almost winced at how rude it sounded, but Rex didn’t say anything. His gaze seemed to gentle and his tone was calm. It was weird since he would usually try to scold him.

“I'm going to meet with the alphas of the surrounding packs to report this today, and I need you to come with me.”

Arthur frowned, even more confused. Rex often went alone to these meetings. Did he think he would be attacked on the way?

“Why do I need to attend?”

“Because we’ll be discussing the fate of the werewolf kingdom, the rogues, and… you.”

“Me?” Arthur frowned. “What about me?”

Rex met his gaze and Arthur’s stomach churned with anxiety.

“Do you want to know the truth?”