Chapter 5: Chapter 5 – Assassination attempt

As silver walked towards Zac’s room, he started to second guess himself. Why did he decide to involve himself in the matter of a complete stranger? Wasn’t the plan to stay lowkey? He paused his steps for a moment, but when he recalled how the youth had helped him and the good impressions he had of him, he laughed at himself for overthinking and continued towards Zac’s room. 

Silver was glad to hear movement from inside the room as he gave the door a few knocks. Once the door was opened, what greeted Silvers' eyes, was the same Zac he had seen earlier not looking the least bit worse for wear.  

Bees Blossom fitted in the "silent killers" category of poisons as its effects would not become apparent until the very last moments when it would be too late to do anything about the matter. 

"Ah, it's you! What a nice surprise! How did you find the book?" asked Zac with a wide smile 

"It was very informative thanks. May I come in?" replied Silver looking around cautiously for any stalking gazes. 

"of course, of course. Please do. How rude of me" Zac opened the door more widely and gestured for him to enter. The room adopted a similar lavish style to the one Silver had been staying in. However, it was grander as it had a joining living area with a small bookcase and a long table with chairs surrounding it. 

"Please sit," said Zac as he pointed towards one of the chairs in the seating area. 

"Could I get you anything to eat or drink" he added 

"Yes actually, do you happen to have any cheese?" asked Silver 

"Eh?...Cheese?" inquired Zac, the curiosity evident on his face. It wasn't odd for someone to eat cheese, but from the fact that Silver hadn't even taken a seat yet and asked specifically for cheese, he was certain that something was amiss and so he instinctively raised his guard. That didn’t stop him from grabbing some cheese though. 

"Is everything okay?" he asked Silver whilst putting a block of cheese on top of the table.

 
"Actually no. Someone is trying to kill you”. Silver decided to get straight to the point. 

"What? are you kidding me?" Zac was bemused but he didn’t like the serious face Silver was showing and a hint of anxiety started building in him. 

"Nop, in fact, they've already half succeeded. You've been poisoned" Silver continued with a stoic expression. 

“Poisoned?” Zac was a little hesitant to believe his new friend. What poison? He was feeling completely normal. And even if he was poisoned, how could Silver know? Was he involved? 

"Unfortunately, you’ve contacted Bees Blossom, a relatively slow-acting poison which is spread through contact. When you came in earlier did you happen to smell honey?" he added 

[ I do recall the smell of honey when I came up earlier.... but how does he know that? ] wondered Zac could it be that he's the one that poisoned me?  

[ Wait how can I even be sure if what he's saying is true? ]  

Zac took a step back, confusion and disbelief evident in his eyes. This reaction was within Silver's expectations however, and so he didn't blame him for his suspicion. Had a stranger he had met a couple of hours ago came into his room telling him that he was poisoned whilst he was feeling perfectly fine, he would've reacted the same way.  

"So, you're saying I've been poisoned? And instead of asking me to seek a doctor or something, instead you're asking me for cheese?" asked Zac whilst wrinkling his brows. 

"Hahaha, I get why you're sceptical believe me. Which is exactly why the cheese is necessary" replied Silver whilst taking out the metal cage from under his cloak. 

He placed the cage on top of the table ignoring the curious gazes Zac was shooting him. Taking a small amount of the cheese the size of a nail, he then opened the room door and swiped the cheese along the door handle. Closing the door behind him, Silver proceeded to the table and finally sat down for the first time since entering Zac's room. He then fed half of the cheese to one of the mice and waited patiently without a word. 

After a few minutes had passed, the mouse which had been perfectly fine all along started to convulse violently and died. Silver observed the shock and horror on Zac's face as he witnessed the affair. But then he proceeded to feed the remaining cheese to the other mouse. 

"Enough, enough, I get it I'm poisoned. Why kill another poor innocent mouse? What purpose does your cruelty serve?" asked Zac, the disgust evident on his face.

Silver didn't reply to either of Zac's question. He simply smiled and took out the antidote he made earlier. Giving a drop to the mouse he observed Zac, who had now been sitting opposite him, watching the mouse patiently. 

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When the mouse didn't die tragically after a few minutes, realization dawned on Zac's face. He then watched Silver drinking half of what was obviously an antidote and offer him the rest. He took the vial and drank it without hesitation as there was no longer any suspicion in his heart. 

[ To think he thought this far ahead ] pondered Zac as he was now completely in awe of the youngster in front of him. 

"Although it's unfortunate that a mouse had to die, I'm sure you understand the significance of what I did. The first mouse was to show you that you were indeed poisoned and the tragic death that would await you, had you not acted in time. The second mouse was used to show that what was in the vial was an effective antidote and not another poison" explained Silver as he looked at the silent Zac opposite him. 

"But why not just drink the antidote yourself. Surely that would be enough to convince me it's not poison?" asked Zac 

"Just because I drank what was in the vial doesn't mean that it doesn't contain poison as I could then easily walk out, having gained your gratitude to then drink an antidote in secret, leaving you dead in a matter of time. Only by showing its effects on the second mouse would you be able to put your heart at ease and drink the antidote with no regrets". 

“I...” Zac became speechless when he fully comprehended the events that had just occurred. He was now certain that he could've died twice already. Once from the original poisoning and again from a double bluff. 

If silver had any malicious intentions, then the vial he drank from and offered to Zac, really could have been poisoned. Just because someone drank from the same cup as you didn’t mean that it was safe to drink. He had learnt a valuable lesson this day. 

"I thank you, Silver, today you are my saviour, for that, I owe you my life and my endless gratitude," said Zac standing up and offering Silver his hand 

"Please, there is no need for all that. I am simply returning the favor, let's say we are even" Silver returned the handshake with a wide smile as he too stood up. 

"Hahaha, the two favors don't seem to equal in weight, but I'll leave it at that for today" Zac stood up and brought a bottle of ale and two glasses. Silver could see that it was no ordinary ale from the glow it gave of as Zac poured some into the glasses. 

"A toast, to my life savior and good friend Silver. May I get the chance to return the favor someday" Zac lifted his glass and pressed it against Silver's who did the same. 

“Hahaha shouldn’t you just make a wish for my good health? Why does it sound like you want me to be in a life threating situation?” Silver joked. 

“Uhum.. Youre right. To your health then!” Said Zac, a little embarrassed 

"So, do you know who would want to murder you then, or is it just a random act?" Silver asked 

"Unfortunately, this is not the first time someone has tried to come after my life in the recent weeks. It would seem I have an assassin trailing me" 

"Hmm” Silver thought for a few seconds as he held his chin 

“Well, I have a method which may be helpful in finding this assassin" he revealed while observing the tapping of Zac's foot and his overall defeated figure. 

"Really? You do? That would be awesome, I would forever be indebted to you" Zac almost jumped off his seat in excitement 

"Hahaha, enough with the debts already, I intended to do this much from the start" Silver smiled as he took out the remaining vial and drank half of it. Zac stared at him in wonder as he was curious to find out what this new potion was. 

"Here, feel my pulse" Silver offered him his wrist after a few minutes. 

"Gone, it's not there. It's as though you are dead" Zac was shocked at the effects of the potion Silver had in his hands. 

"Death's Counterfeit. It's a potion which slows an individual's heartbeat to a point where a pulse cannot even be felt. The effects last for a few hours and I'm sure you can guess how we can use it in this situation" Silver smiled as he looked at the joy reflected on Zac's face. 

Silver then quickly went over the details of his plan with Zac. Once they were both on the same page, they wasted no time as they made their way to the bar below to enact the greatest performance that would ever be witnessed in the Bear and Geese. 

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