If Maxwell really died this time, Florentia would be at a great loss. The man holds many secrets and he knows that there was no successor for his knowledge. But Valerie didn't know if she could help him escape death. Because right now she was pretending to be hypnotized by Igor. Besides, she couldn't just attack. A puppet only acts according to its master's direction.
Igor said to protect him. He didn't tell the puppets to attack Maxwell. Besides Lucas Leiva who was still struggling to catch his breath. Maxwell didn't kill him right away because he was betting on something. He hoped that when he almost died the magic in Lucas' mind would disappear.
