The Council of the Cursed

Brother Gebicca considered. ‘Anything is possible, but Bishop Ordgar would have to be a man with fine judgement to know how much of that noxious brew to swallow in safety.’

‘But he could have done so?’ pressed Eadulf.

The physician spread his arms in a helpless gesture. ‘Yes, he could have done so. But as a physician, I would say it was most unlikely, unless he was practised in the ways of poison.’

‘When you were tending to both Abbot Cadfan and Bishop Ordgar, did you question them about what had taken place?’ Fidelma asked next.

‘In fact, both men, when returning to consciousness, asked me what had happened. They said that they had no memories of it.’

‘They claimed they recalled nothing?’

‘Bishop Ordgar said he remembered taking wine, as was his custom before retiring and falling asleep. Abbot Cadfan said he entered Bishop Ordgar’s chamber, having been summoned there in the middle of the night, and was struck from behind and knew nothing else. I would say that the suspicion is more strongly connected with Ordgar, were it not for the fact that Cadfan claimed he had received a note from Ordgar asking him to attend him. No such note was found.’

‘Let me ask you another question,’ said Eadulf. ‘Speaking as a medical man, could Cadfan’s injury have been self administered?’

‘Absolutely not.’

‘Then, what you are saying, in fact, is that suspicion rests equally on both men.’

The physician shrugged as Fidelma rose slowly from her seat.

‘I don’t suppose that you knew any of these three clerics before they arrived here at the abbey?’ she added as an afterthought.

‘Most of the learned bishops and abbots who are attending this council are strangers to this city. I have practised my arts only in Divio and here in Autun. I am under the impression that most of those attending the council are unknown to each other.’

‘Thank you for your time, Brother Gebicca,’ Fidelma said.

‘It is of little service, I’m afraid,’ the physician said, standing up and conducting them back through his apothecary to the door. ‘If I would venture an opinion, I would say that it comes down to which person you believe. Both of them cannot be telling the truth. A man is dead and there were only two others in the room. If the choice were mine, I would toss a coin.’

Chapter Seven

They left Brother Gebicca in his apothecary and walked slowly across the great courtyard to the main abbey building in silence.

‘It seems the physician agrees with me,’ Eadulf ventured after a while. ‘It does come down to a matter of choice.’

‘I am not prepared to make that judgement at the moment, Eadulf,’ Fidelma said stubbornly. ‘I do not feel that we have enough information.’

‘We have all the information that we are likely to get,’ Eadulf pointed out. ‘There are no other witnesses.’

‘Then we need to give this more thought.’

‘If only the cup and amphora had not been destroyed. A good apothecary might have been able to identify any poison and so confirm Ordgar’s story.’

‘The destruction of the cup is regrettable,’ replied Fidelma. ‘The amphora does not matter.’

‘How so?’

‘Because the poison would have been mixed in the cup, not in the amphora, which was empty after the wine was poured. It is logical that it was too late that night to throw the amphora away. It was not the next day but it would have told us nothing so we need not concern ourselves with it. However, the cup…that’s a pity.’

They had not reached the door of the building when Brother Chilperic came out and walked towards them.

‘I am off to our herb garden,’ he greeted them. ‘Are you seeking anything in particular?’

‘For the moment we are just exercising,’ replied Fidelma. ‘The late-afternoon sun is very inviting, Brother Chilperic. Where is your herb garden?’

‘It is a separate one to that which the apothecary cultivates for he has his own needs. It is this way, if you wish to see it.’

They fell in step with him. He guided them alongside the abbey wall and through a small courtyard at the back of the main building into a large open space which surprised them. It was full of aromatic herbs and spices being tended by two elderly members of the brethren.

‘It looks a beautiful garden,’ Fidelma acknowledged.

‘It is, indeed, and I’m afraid that it invites us to be lazy and sit in contemplation when we should be about God’s work in tending the garden. Would you like to see our herbs and spices? We grow a great variety for the consumption of our brethren.’

‘I would not like to encourage indolence, Brother Chilperic, and stop you working.’

‘The sun is encouragement enough. But perhaps you need to get on about your own work. How is the investigation? Do you need anything? Have you made a decision yet?’

Eadulf pursed his lips as he began to say, ‘We are faced with…’

Fidelma knew that he was about to say ‘a blank wall’ and it suddenly gave her an idea.

‘Faced with a small problem,’ she ended quickly for him ‘But you, Brother Chilperic, are the very person who can help us with it.’

‘I am?’

She inclined her head towards the high wall that separated the abbey from what was called the Domus Femini.

‘We would like to have a word with the abbatissa.’

‘Abbess Audofleda?’ queried the steward in astonishment.

‘That is her name, I believe,’ agreed Fidelma. ‘Can you arrange it?’

‘Abbess Audofleda sees no one from the abbey without the bishop’s express permission,’ muttered Brother Chilperic. ‘Anyway, I do not see why your investigation should take you to the Domus Femini.’

‘Knowledge of the relevance is surely mine and not to be shared with anyone during an investigation.’

The steward looked worried. ‘In such a matter I must first consult Bishop Leodegar.’

Fidelma was about to protest when she realised that the young man was clearly incapable of making the decision without the approval of Leodegar. She knew she must not underestimate the power of the bishop. Instead she said: ‘Consult him then. We would not wish to upset the bishop. But if you can seek his permission straight away…?’

Brother Chilperic hesitated. ‘The bishop is visiting in the city. He will not return to the abbey until the evening meal.’

Fidelma glanced at the sky. The afternoon was well progressed but there would have been plenty of time to visit the Domus Femini. Presumably it would not be until the morning that they would now receive permission to meet Abbess Audofleda. That would be a waste of many hours. Fidelma felt a compulsion to finish this task as soon as possible and set out for home again, for she had felt uncomfortable ever since their arrival at the abbey.

‘I cannot see why you need to visit the Domus Femini,’ the steward repeated. ‘The murder was done here, we have the people involved, so why do you need to speak with Abbess Audofleda?’

Eadulf noticed that Fidelma’s eyes had become bright and her jaw muscles were tightening.

‘My friend,’ he said, taking Brother Chilperic by the arm, ‘you must understand that it is our task to conduct our investigation in our own way. Bishop Leodegar gave us full permission to do so. So what we do is our own