Page 31 of Marry a King (Five Kings 5)

Maxim

There is an expectant tension in the room that tells me to hold nothing back. These men aren’t fools. They are trusted members of this organization and deserve to know the truth.

As they watch me with interest, I remove a folder from the gold box on the table that contains my private documents for my eyes only. Many monarchs have them and they are delivered to me courtesy of my most trusted advisors. Men who work tirelessly out of duty and loyalty. Men I trust with my empire and they haven’t let me down.

Turning to Ryder, I say thoughtfully. “I’m guessing you know what I’m about to tell you but first I must apologize to every single one of you, starting with you.”

I fix him with a steady look and smile. “Your loyalty is not questioned and was never in doubt.”

Looking around the table, I say with a sigh. “It’s the same for the rest of you, which is why this meeting is so hard for me.”

I sense the tension in the air as they fear the worst and I say sadly, “When my father was alive, he ruled with integrity, a sense of tradition and a love for his country. So many times, he could have blown our cover and told the world what only a few know about. I once asked him why he hid our family away. From society, from our birth right and our rightful place in it among our people.”

I look around and note the interested faces looking back at me and smile.

“He told me it was because of trust. Trust had sent us to Andromeda because we had lost the trust of the people. Our ancestor King David had abused his power and driven a divide between the people and the monarchy. A republic was declared on the condition we remove ourselves from life as we knew it. Over time, the memory of the monarchy has faded and only a few people know of it. People we trust to be our eyes and ears in a society we have distanced ourselves from. We still hold the final word, the signature on the end of the contract, the word in the right ear and the manipulator of everything we know, but for how long?”

I exhale sharply. “Only time will tell but with my father’s death, the power falls in my hands and I will do my best to honor his memory and protect the monarchy, our way of life and our secret. So, with that in mind, I want to show you something that came into my hands earlier today.”

Removing the papers from my case, I hand a copy to each member of this organization and feel the disbelief ripple around the table as they read tomorrow’s headline.

“The King is not dead. Long live the King.”

The picture accompanying it is one of the King announcing his upcoming wedding to his chosen queen. Cassie.

“Is this a joke?” Dexter Prince shakes his head in anger and I smile wryly. “I wish it was.”

He stares in utter disbelief at a headline he is seeing for the first time and must be wondering how the hell this article slipped through his cast iron net.

“That’s not all.”

I remove the following day’s headline from my box and hand it around the table and watch Hunter and Dexter’s reactions with interest.

They turn an extremely interesting shade of white as the blood drains from their faces.

Reading the headline, I announce, “Hunter Blake found dead with gunshot wounds to his head in an apparent suicide as the markets crash and burn.”

I carry on. “The second one is a picture of Lucas with the headline. The Casino King indicted for fraud and corruption faces life in prison.”

They stare at me in horror and I shake my head. “As you can see, my father was right. Trust no one and never betray that trust.”

They look at Ryder who has been silent until now and he shrugs. “Interesting headlines that I’m guessing are part of the plan to disrupt this organization and set about a different kind of power.”

“You are right, Ryder. I’m sure you’re not as shocked as our friends because I’m guessing you already understand what’s happening here. I know of your attempts to ghost the system and feed it information that only you want known.”

He nods. “You think right.”

Lifting the picture of the first headline, I smile ruefully.

“It appears that my brother has a different future planned for all of us.”

Sighing, I lean back and look at the picture of Victor looking smugly into the camera as he is identified as the hidden king. Shaking my head, I say darkly, “The question is, what are we going to do about it?”

All eyes turn to Ryder who is the solver of most of our problems, usually in a cruel and unpleasant way. The executioner, the assassin and the man who clears away the shit and buries it so deep nobody ever finds it, now holds the answer to our problem.

He turns to me and says darkly, “I will do whatever it takes to protect this organization but I have no jurisdiction in Andromeda. You have your own guards, your own rules and your own way of dealing with problems but I’m happy to assist in any way I can.”

I nod. “I thought as much.”

Leaning back, I think about my brother and the problem he’s been for most of my life. As the silence wraps itself in destiny, I look at Ryder and sigh.

“Are your men in place?”

“Waiting for the signal.”

As I see the scene playing out on my screen, I feel my heart twist in rage and retribution.

“Then give the signal, Mr. King, it’s time.”

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