A Vein of Deceit by Susanna Gregory Read Free Book Online

incident. ‘You
     left the door wide open the other day, when Walter tripped over his peacock and you went to help him up. And you were gone
     for ages.’
    ‘That was different,’ flashed Risleye. ‘An emergency.I bandaged his grazed arm really carefully, but then he refused to pay me. It took me a while to argue my case.’
    Bartholomew was aghast. ‘You charged one of our own servants for medical treatment?’
    ‘Of course,’ replied Risleye, unabashed. ‘He was a patient and I cared for him. That equals a fee.’
    ‘Give it back,’ ordered Bartholomew. He cut across Risleye’s indignant objections. ‘Have any of you let anyone else in the
     storeroom?’
    The assembled students shook their heads, and Bartholomew sighed when he saw his interrogation was not going to provide him
     with answers. And he could hardly berate Risleye and Tesdale for leaving the storeroom unattended when he was guilty of doing
     the same thing himself.
    Unfortunately, their combined negligence meant that virtually anyone could have slipped in and stolen the oil. But who would
     want it? And who would know what it was capable of doing? He supposed the answer to the second question was obvious: the red
     cross on its jar warned students that it could be harmful, so anyone with a modicum of sense would know the pot held something
     to be used with caution.
    ‘Perhaps the thief did not want pennyroyal,’ suggested Valence, voicing what Bartholomew was already thinking. ‘You keep far
     more potent items than that: henbane, dog mercury, cuckoopint.’
    ‘And poppy juice,’ added Risleye. ‘People are always asking me to give them poppy juice, because it makes them feel happy.’
    ‘And do you oblige?’ asked Bartholomew, thinking of the stain on the bench.
    Risleye was outraged. ‘Of course not! The last time I touched it was days ago, when I helped you prepare thatpain remedy for Isnard. You were hurrying me, and would not answer questions, which was wrong, because my education is far
     more important than the well-being of some non-paying rogue.’
    Bartholomew
had
rushed Risleye, because Isnard’s need was urgent. Had haste resulted in a spillage that was overlooked and not cleaned up?
     Yet there was something about Risleye’s denial that made the physician uneasy – he had caught Risleye out in lies before.
     Or was he allowing personal dislike to cloud his judgement?
    ‘If the thief came for something else and ended up with pennyroyal, then it means he cannot read,’ said Tesdale, rather pompously.
     ‘Every jar is clearly labelled, after all. Perhaps we can assume it was filched by a servant. Or by one of the men who came
     to mend the roof.’
    Bartholomew was not sure what to think, and only knew he had been inexcusably careless. If it transpired that his pennyroyal
had
found its way to Joan, he was not sure Edith would ever forgive him. And she would have every right to be angry.
    By the time he had finished the interrogation, a number of people had sent word that they needed to see him. Medical training
     at universities was largely book-based, but he wanted
his
students to see real diseases and wounds, too, so he usually took the more senior pupils with him when he went to tend patients.
     In the past, this had meant two or three lads, but Langelee’s decision to accept more scholars, along with Paxtone’s inability
     to teach Tesdale, meant he currently had eight. It was an absurdly high number, and clients tended to be alarmed when they
     all trooped into the sickroom. Because of this, he had been compelled to devise a rota, which was unsatisfactory for a number
     of reasons.
    ‘I got landed with a case of toothache last time,’ whinedRisleye. ‘And Tesdale got the venery distemper. Now I get toothache
again
, while he has a strangury. It is not fair!’
    ‘I will exchange my bloody flux for your strangury, Tesdale,’ offered Valence. ‘And then Yaxley will take the bloody flux
     in return for his