Chapter 35

"I have to prove myself their queen. Capricorn is not here and I have to prove I can handle things without him" thought Meggie as time passed she had begun to see a look of boredom in the guards eyes and as she thought it, she knew handling Dustfinger would be the way to prove herself. He had escaped twice now and luckily; she had enough guards on him that he hadn't gotten far before she locked him away again.

"Books always have all the answers" whispered Meggie, when her answer came to her as she was reading one day, a sudden inspiration coming as she could picture it then, the many things she would do to show everyone exactly who she was.

"I'll show him who I am…I'll show all of them" whispered Meggie, thinking of Capricorn in that moment as she pictured it, wanting him to be there to see her, but knowing that his absence was why she had to do it as her planned formed in her mind. When it did, it happened at the exact right moment.

She was picturing every moment, every speck of blood, and every cut when a guard entered the room. He watched her for a moment as she sat deep in thought. Meggie pretended not to notice him as she looked not at him, but at the space right in front of her. When her eyes did stray to him, she didn't give him the satisfaction of looking interested. She just looked at him, her eyes making it clear that whatever he had to say needed to be important or they weren't worth her time.

"Dustfinger slipped free again. He nearly got away this time. He was hotwiring a car, but we grabbed him just in time. Our dungeons don't seem to be strong enough. What should we do, he keeps escaping, and he's not stupid? He'll get away eventually unless we find a way to stop him" said the guard, his tone not the one that Meggie wanted. He was challenging her, and Meggie knew that was another reason why she had to prove herself now. Had Capricorn been here, he wouldn't have dared talk to her like that, but now was different. The guards thought her something that needed to be protected and she needed to prove otherwise. She was their queen and she would make sure they knew that as she watched him. After a moment, she set her book aside, and walking with steady footsteps towards the man, she walked right passed him.

"What do you want us to do?" said the guard again, watching her, and as he did, Meggie didn't like the look in his eyes; he looked like he expected her to have a tantrum at any moment. Meggie remained calm as she walked past him.

"We could kill him…we'd be through with him for good" laughed the guard, still receiving no response. Meggie silently decided to make an example of him later as she let him stare at her back. She would make him bow to her, but first, she had to deal with Dustfinger. She knew what she wanted to do, and she was going to do it as she twined her fingers together as she came to stand in the doorway.

"You will leave him alive…until either the king or I say so. Who is killed is not your decision to make" snapped Meggie then, her back to him still as she stood absolutely still in the doorway?

"Bring him to my husband's torture room. I intend to make sure he will never escape again" whispered Meggie, her voice deadly soft.

"What are you going to do?" exclaimed the guard, receiving no answer as she left him standing there with the question hanging in the air. He didn't look to follow her; he didn't want to make her angry as he only moved to follow his queens command. Meggie couldn't hold back her husband's emotions when she entered the room where Capricorn had taught her the art of torture early on in their relationship. She had memories of them, as he taught her to use the blades that lined the walls, and then she remembered the last time they had been here. When they had tortured that maid. It felt strange being there without him as she stood in the doorway. She told herself as the thought crossed her mind that she would see him again, but that didn't lesson her fear that she was wrong as she proceeded into the room.

"I miss you, Capricorn" whispered Meggie in that moment, feeling a chill as she went through her preparations the way he had taught her without him there.

"He would want me to do everything as if he was here" thought Meggie then, finding everything as he had left it the last time they were there. Capricorn had always done the cleanup work in this room himself. He had said it was important because the blades were the tools to the craft of torture and doing it himself was his way of respecting his craft. He sharpened each tool to a silver sharpness. He cleaned them all of the blood that usually covered them with a tender beauty that Meggie had once been jealous of. It made Meggie smile as she remembered it. She took one of the blades in hand then and she knew exactly what she was going to do with it as she watched her reflection in the steel. They were ready for what she needed them for. Ready to serve her as they had served Capricorn. As the thought passed, Meggie heard the guards and Dustfinger as they moved closer down the corridor. The sound made her grip on the blade tighten until she found herself turning to greet them. The guards had the prisoner tightly bound. His feet weren't even on the ground. They stopped in the doorway and Meggie knew they were waiting for her as they found her standing there. She didn't say anything as she watched them finally letting a smile of sinister intent cross her lips.

"Welcome Dustfinger…you're to be the guest of honor tonight" whispered Meggie then, her hands folded behind her back until she moved them in front of her revealing the blade in her hand.

"Tie him down" said Meggie, her voice stern as she watched her guards act immediately. It was almost comical. Dustfinger was like a rag doll as they carried him into the room. He was being carried by ten guards into the room and tied in a standing position. Even his head was restrained, so he could only look straight ahead, and as they finished with him, Meggie faced him. He didn't look afraid of her, but by the end of the night, she promised herself that he would be.

"Stand against the wall, all of you" said Meggie then part of her eager to show them what she could do as she stepped closer to her victim.

"You haven't been a very good guest, have you? You keep trying to leave. Why, is there something wrong with our hospitality here?" exclaimed Meggie, toying with him as she turned the blade over and over again in her hands.

"I'm not afraid of you, Meggie, you're just an innocent girl who's been brainwashed by a mad man" said Dustfinger, seeing a sinister twinkle in her eyes. As Meggie stepped closer, she smiled, surprising Dustfinger when she thrust the blade into his thigh.

"You're a very stupid man. I told you, I'm not that little girl Mo raised anymore. Capricorn had freed me from his bonds" whispered Meggie, twisting the knife in the wound, smiling when he groaned in pain.

"Yes, and bound you with his own, Meggie. You'll realize that someday" gasped Dustfinger in that moment, his teeth gritted as he looked straight at her.

"You should be afraid" said Meggie, yanking the knife free only to toss it aside.

"The only bonds Capricorn and I share is the bond that comes with love" said Meggie, spinning in a brilliant circle in that moment before turning to face him again her lithe figure dancing in the low light. Her eyes seemed to look at each object as if deciding what to use. She stopped at an array of throwing stars, picking them up one at a time, Meggie didn't look where she threw them.

"Still not afraid, Dustfinger?" called Meggie with each throw, hearing only a chorus of groans as she hit her mark.

"Beautiful…chest, shoulder, leg, arm, and face. I wasn't even aiming" exclaimed Meggie, clapping her hands as she walked closer once more feeling the guard's eyes on her as they watched her.

When Meggie was close enough to touch him, she did. She pulled each start from his flesh, throwing it to join the blade she had used before, and when she was done, only the one on his face remained. Ideas were forming in her head as she grazed the edge with the tip of her finger. The scent of blood filled the air now and Meggie reveled in it as his blood stained her fingers. Blood was on the floor now, the table, even on her dress. It speckled across her and Meggie took a moment to appreciate it as she looked at herself. For a moment, she forgot anyone else was even there as she looked at the redness that surrounded her now. Capricorn would have enjoyed it, but she didn't revel in that thought as she came back to herself giving Dustfinger all her attention once more.

"I hope Basta doesn't mind if I leave my own mark on you" exclaimed Meggie on a breath as she left her mark in the form of what would be scars on the other side of his face. There were already scars on the other side of his face. Scars Basta had left from before they'd left the Inkworld. She wanted him to remember this, to think of her every time he looked in the mirror.

"You've never looked so handsome" whispered Meggie as she finished her work on his face, giving her back to him, but smiling as she felt the glare, he sent her way.

Meggie wanted him to show her fear, but he didn't. Dustfinger only continued to glare and play the part he had been taught. The part of the man who didn't show fear. Meggie didn't dwell on that as she proceeded with the plan she had formed back in the library when the guard had stumbled upon her. It brought a brilliant smile to her face just at the thought of it.

"Now, for the reason I brought you here" exclaimed Meggie, dancing out of the room. Dustfinger didn't hide his surprise when she returned with a sledgehammer. Partly because she could carry it, but also because he didn't know what she was going to do. He knew it would be used as a weapon, but he wasn't sure how. Meggie knew that as she looked at him with it in her hands. She could see in his eyes that he was underestimating the hatred that had formed in her heart for him. She saw it in the eyes of her guards as well and tonight, she promised herself that would change as she watched him. She wielded it with glee.

"As I was reading, I found the perfect solution to my problem with you" whispered Meggie.

Dustfinger didn't realize what she was going to do until he felt the first blow. He heard the crack of his own bones as Meggie hobbled him with the hammer. The screams that left his throat couldn't be contained and when she stopped, he found her face looming over his.

"You still think I'm an innocent little girl? You still believe I've been brainwashed?" whispered Meggie, seeing only a blankness in his eyes.

"I think you're just like Capricorn" said Dustfinger, his voice out of breath. Meggie only smiled as she dropped the hammer to continue.