“I love you all so much.” I look at them each in turn. “I hope you know that.”
“That’s why we’re here,” Kellen says.
Elliot smirks. “Like there was any chance the world could keep us apart.”
Nolan crosses his arms. “It never stood a chance.”
Raindrops slam against my skin like tiny bullets, cold and sudden. The sky has stopped growling, but it’s still crying. I yelp as water slides down my collar, and we scramble toward Elliot’s SUV, our shoes splashing through puddles already forming on the asphalt. The tinted windows swallow us whole, doors slamming in quick succession.
Elliot guns the engine before I’ve even buckled my seatbelt, tires hissing against wet pavement as Raelynn’s silhouette appears in my side mirror, phone already pressed to her ear.
Not this time, Raelynn.
CHAPTER 26
Kellen
Three days of silence,and I’ve spent every hour of it bracing for the emotional concussion of today. The palace always smells like old wood polish and judgment, and today, there’s the underlying note of something scorched. I think it might be my relationship with my parents.
The butler who meets us at the top of the main stair is so pale, I suspect he’s been briefed on exactly everything’s that’s happened. He lets us inside and guides us toward my parents.
Elliot is glued to my left, silent and alert. Piper’s perfume is a gentle wave of vanilla and cherries, at war with Nolan’s campfire musk. The two of them are close but not touching.
We get the full audience chamber today, not the smaller sitting room, so this isn’t just a family talk. It’s theater.
My mother sits, ramrod straight, next to my father at the north end of the room. My father stares right at me, unblinking.
Elliot tugs at my elbow, a physical “Ready?”
I nod.
We cross the floor, which is polished so intensely that I can see the reflection of Nolan’s frown all the way down the inlaid wood.
I clear my throat. “Your Majesties.” I feel my own voice reverberate off the coffered ceiling. Everything about being methererather than elsewhere in the palace screams formality. I’m not Prince Kellen today. I’m some random commoner who happens to get to enjoy their presence.
My mother gestures to the chairs across from her. “All of you, please. Sit.”
We sit. A beat of silence passes.
My father lifts his chin. “Let’s get right to it, shall we?” He snaps his fingers and an aid produces a folder which he hands to me. I open it while he continues. “We’re aware of the situation. We’re also aware that you believe—” he gestures at Piper, at Elliot, at Nolan, as if to indicate their collective existence, “—that we engineered the reveal.”
His voice is not judgmental, but the words are precise. I have to remind myself he’s not angry, he’s just never let a scandal blindside him before. The fact he’s handling this rather than my mother speaks volumes, too.
I open the folder. Inside is a printout of Piper’s genetic designation file, highlighted in fluorescent pink and annotated in the queen’s handwriting. I also note the next page is a map of social media shares, overlaid with data points and arrows. I want to laugh. Of course they made an entire war room out of it.
Piper breaks the silence with a restrained tone. “I understand why you’d think it best to control the narrative. I just wish it hadn’t happened without warning.”
My mother’s hands tighten. “We did not authorize the release. Your safety and your dignity are not just your concerns—they’re ours, too.” She turns to me, the flint in her gaze sparking. “Kellen. You know us better than that.”
In which she means my safety matters most, so keeping the person I’m “supposed to be dating” safe matters, too.
My collar tightens like a vise, sweat prickling beneath the starched fabric as blood rushes to my face. Yes, I do know her better, but paranoia is what keeps royal lineages alive. And honestly, Icansee her revealing Piper’s secret designation if it bettered the royal line.
Still, if they have evidence of who else might have done it, then I’m happy to hear it out. “I had to be sure,” I say. “And we needed to hear you say it.”
Elliot leans forward. “With your permission, Your Majesties, I’d like to provide our findings.”
I glance at him with raised eyebrows. Nolan, who’s seated on Elliot’s other side, gives me a nod.
