~CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY SEVEN~ “You will never have her,” Katherina spits, her voice trembling with fury. Her hands clench and unclench as if she could strangle fate itself. “Even if you throw me out, even if you kill me—you will never have her. I swear it.” Her laugh is harsh, brittle, and defiant—as though she holds a secret I am too blind to see. With deliberate slowness, she lifts her hand and removes her crown. The room goes deathly still. The clatter of metal hitting marble echoes through the hall like a death knell. “I have nothing else to lose,” she says, her eyes gleaming with a dark, frantic light. “Well, if I’m going down, everyone else involved goes down with me.” Her gaze shifts toward Ravenna. My guards tense, but I raise a hand. Let her speak. Let her unravel herself. Katherina walks toward where Ravenna lies on the floor. Her presence is heavy, demanding the room's attention. “She helped me frame Melissa,” Katherina spits out, venom dripping from every
続きを読む