Of Thorn and Thread (Daughters of Eville #4) - Chanda Hahn Page 0,99
problems started with the king and queen, and the hatred and evilness had gone on for generations before them. I understood why Lorelai had chosen the path she did. Because sometimes the only way to save a kingdom from a villain was to become a villain yourself.
“This is all your fault,” a manic voice called out to me.
I looked up as Queen Maris stood over me. Her hair pulled from her pins, her dress ripped, and soot covered her face.
“All I had to do was to bear a child and all would be well, but no. Even that was denied to me. Your mother cursed my womb.”
“A barren womb means you or someone close to you has taken another life. And in return, one has been taken from you.”
Her eyes glittered with unshed tears. “You lie.”
“I do not.” I stood my ground. “A curse isn’t always meant as punishment but can right a wrong. It’s a means of justice, and sometimes to avenge evil, you need a greater Eville. Sometimes that evil is my mother, and sometimes it’s me.”
The queen paled at my warning, but I had to play my cards and keep her at bay, for there was a madness behind her eyes, and one hand still buried deep within her skirts.
“I know your sins,” I said. “I know what you did.”
Queen Maris’ hand shook, and she took a tentative step toward me. I felt that the queen was close to breaking. She crumpled, folding in on herself, her hand clutching her stomach.
“You don’t know the truth. The pain that I suffered when that woman came here,” she said, seething. “I was his favorite. Until he met her. She did not belong here, just as you do not belong here.”
“You killed Ophelia.”
“She was a pregnant whore,” Queen Maris spat.
“She was a prisoner of your husband’s desire, bound by drugs. You could have helped her, freed her. Instead, you poisoned her.”
“He was obsessed with that woman,” she whined, running her free hand down her face. “I couldn’t stand it. Being number two to her. A nobody fae without an inch of noble blood. She had to go, by any means possible. But then I didn’t know about the brat.”
“The king made you keep the child, pretend it was your own.”
Maris cried out, her fingernails raking down her own arms in distress. “I couldn’t allow that child to live, let alone pretend it was mine. So I made a deal with a sorcerer to steal the child the night of its christening, but then Lorelai showed up. Since then, I’ve been barren, and it’s her fault.”
She raised from the folds of her skirt a silver dagger. Queen Maris drew the dagger closer to her chest, the tip pointed toward me.
The queen’s lips pulled into an ungainly smile. “I knew what was best for our kingdom then, as I do now. Allemar told me that once I’ve killed you, I will no longer be barren. Your death will lift the curse from my womb.”
She lunged, swinging the dagger toward my throat. I easily knocked it from her hand, but a mad woman was strong. She flung herself at me and I fell backward, her weight pushing me over the ledge of the outer wall. My back bent over the wall as she clawed at my face and ripped at my hair.
I grabbed hold of both wrists, but I could feel my hip sliding further over the ledge.
“Get off!” I screamed, as I felt myself falling.
She leaned back, and I grasped at the stonework and pulled myself back up. But she hadn’t retreated, only regained her footing to charge at me. She jumped, pushing me over the ledge. We both fell, and I screamed.
My hands clawed at the air and latched onto a hanging banner, bringing it with me as I fell. I grasped at the fabric, and I caught it inches before it ran out. Queen Maris grabbed my dress, holding onto me as I hung onto the banner.
“No! You were supposed to fall.” She clawed at my back. Our combined weight was too much, and the banner ripped further from the ring.
“Crawl up,” I demanded, still trying to save us both.
“Never. My blood will atone for that I spilled, and yours will break the curse over the kingdom.”
The cloth ripped further, and we plummeted another few inches. I looked up. It was a few feet before I could reach the ledge while we hung suspended in the air.