Capture the Crown (Gargoyle Queen #1) -Jennifer Estep Page 0,147

helpless.

Maeven strode into the room, followed by Emperia. The noble lady left the door open behind her, but no guards appeared in the hallway beyond. The two women must have wanted to lord their triumph over me in private. My hands tightened around the chains. It was going to be the last bloody thing they ever did. Milo might not be here for me to murder, but killing Maeven and Emperia would be an excellent start to avenging myself against the Mortans.

I rolled my head to the side as they approached me. Emperia was smiling wide, but Maeven’s earlier smugness had vanished, and her expression was surprisingly neutral. The two of them stopped and stared down at me.

“I still can’t believe this is Gemma Ripley,” Emperia sneered. “I thought she would at least be pretty, given all the songs about her. ‘The Bluest Crown’ certainly makes her sound like a great beauty, but she’s rather ordinary. And her metalstone magic feels exceptionally weak. Rather like Delmira’s magic.”

Maeven’s nostrils flared with anger. She didn’t like Emperia maligning her daughter’s seeming lack of power. “Yes, well, this is Gemma Ripley, and you’re a fool to underestimate her. Just like you’ve been a fool about a great many things.”

Emperia faced the queen. “What do you mean?”

Maeven dropped her hand to her side. Something silver glinted in her fingers, and she gave the noble lady a cold, thin smile. “Perhaps this will make my point.”

She snapped up her hand and plunged a dagger into Emperia’s chest.

I gasped and jerked back on the table, rattling the chains. Out of all the things I thought might happen, Maeven killing Emperia was not one of them.

Emperia opened her mouth to scream, but Maeven clamped her hand over the other woman’s lips, muffling her cries.

“Did you really think I didn’t know that you were fucking my son?” Maeven hissed. “Encouraging his ambitions? Using him to plot against me?”

Emperia let out another muffled cry and swayed on her feet. She lifted her hand, but only a few tiny hailstones sputtered out of her fingertips before falling harmlessly to the floor.

“I’ve known about your plot with Milo for months. I had hoped that Corvina was aligned with you and that I could eliminate both of you at once, but your daughter has her own plans. She is a teeny bit smarter than you in that regard.” Maeven spoke in a calm voice, twisting her dagger even deeper into Emperia’s chest. “For years, you have undermined me at every turn, thinking that my crown should have been yours. But I killed Maximus to earn it, and I’m killing you now to keep it. For myself and especially for Delmira.”

Maeven smiled at Emperia again, then ripped the dagger out of the other woman’s chest and shoved her away. Emperia staggered back, hitting the table where I was still lying. I rolled away from her, letting go of the chains and dropping off the opposite side of the table. Then I popped back up and onto my feet.

Emperia stared at Maeven. Her mouth kept opening and closing, but no words came out, only a few bloody coughs. Then her eyes rolled up in the back of her head, and she tumbled to the floor.

Maeven turned toward me, still clutching that dagger. “You freed yourself already. Good. It will help sell my story.”

“What story?”

She tossed the dagger down onto the table. “That you managed to get free and murder Emperia. How sad that a spoiled, pampered princess like Gemma Ripley was able to kill such a strong weather magier as Lady Dumond. But I suppose that’s what Emperia gets for coming in here alone and foolishly interfering with my prisoner.”

My eyes narrowed. “You lured Emperia in here so that you could kill her and use me as your bloody scapegoat. Just like you blamed the Seven Spire massacre on Captain Auster all those years ago. You should have thought of a new plan. You’re becoming predictable.”

Maeven shrugged. “Why come up with new plans when the old ones still work so well?”

I ground my teeth, hating her cool logic. “Let me guess—you’re going to kill me now so I can’t tell anyone what you did.” My bandaged hands clenched into fists. “Well, that’s not going to happen.”

I snapped up my hands, reached for my magic, and threw the chains on the table at her. But Maeven summoned up her own purple lightning, blasting the metal to pieces.

I ignored the flying metal, lunged forward, and grabbed