Heir of Fire

chapter six

Gemma's hands trembled as she uncorked the vial of clear liquid. Tears of Lys, the most potent and undetectable poison in all the known world. She had bought it from a traveler hailing from Lys itself, a man who had been selling rare wares from Essos in a shadowed corner of the city. It had cost her almost everything she had saved, but it didn't matter. The price was worth it.

This tiny vial was the key to her vengeance.

Tywin Lannister would die, and with him, the last remnant of the man who had destroyed her family, slaughtered everyone she had loved, and erased House Reyne from the annals of history.

She stood in her small room, dimly lit by the flickering candle on the table, staring at the poison in her hand. Tonight, she would serve Tywin Lannister one of his final meals. She would make sure his wine was laced with the Tears of Lys, just enough to be fatal, undetectable by even the most skilled maesters.

This is it, she thought, her heart pounding in her chest. This is the moment.

She moved toward the small mirror by the wall, her reflection staring back at her. Gone was the girl she had once been—noble-born, proud, and protected. Now, she was just Gemma, a shadow of herself, forged in survival. She took a deep breath, tying her dark hair into a neat braid, steeling herself for what she was about to do.

A soft knock on the door startled her, and she quickly concealed the vial in the folds of her dress.

The door creaked open, and Kyra, the maid who had become her closest friend at the Red Keep, stepped inside, her face pale and drawn.

"Gem," Kyra whispered, her voice trembling. "Queen Rhaella... she's fallen ill. She's asking for you."

Gemma froze, the weight of the words hitting her like a blow to the chest. Queen Rhaella. Her queen. The woman who had taken her in, who had seen something in her when no one else had.

Her stomach twisted with dread. She had known for weeks that the queen was not well. Rhaella had been through so much—so many miscarriages, so much heartache. It was no secret that her health had been deteriorating, but now, hearing that the queen was asking for her, something inside Gemma shifted.

No, she told herself. You have a plan. You cannot be distracted now.

But the thought of Rhaella alone, scared, possibly dying...

Gemma clenched her fists. She is your friend, her conscience whispered. The queen has treated you with more kindness than you have known since you fled Castamere.

But her anger burned brighter. Your family is gone because of Tywin Lannister. He deserves to die. Nothing else matters.

Kyra's voice broke through her internal storm. "She needs you. I... I think it's serious, Gemma. The queen... she's been so weak, and now this illness—"

Gemma's heart wrenched. She thought of Rhaella, alone in her chambers, as she had been so many times before after losing another child, grieving in silence while the court looked the other way. The queen had always suffered alone, bearing the weight of her losses with grace that no one acknowledged.

The vial of poison was still in her hand, hidden beneath the folds of her dress.

Gemma turned away from Kyra, her mind racing. She had waited so long for this moment, for her chance to strike against the man who had taken everything from her. But the thought of Queen Rhaella, lying ill and asking for her...

I owe her everything, Gemma thought. She gave me a place, a purpose. She saw me when no one else did. I can't abandon her now.

But revenge. The thought gnawed at her. She had come so far, and this was her moment. If she didn't take it now, she might never have another chance.