Page 22 of Royal Mate

22

A ddan

The ceremonial chamber was too bright, too crowded. The air was thick with tension, or it sure as hell felt that way to me, the low murmur of conversation bouncing off the polished stone walls and gold-veined columns. I stood near the back, blending in with the other nobles, my jaw clenched so tightly it ached.

Then the music started, and the grand doors at the end of the aisle opened.

She appeared.

Paige.

The breath left my lungs.

The sunlight streaming in behind her turned her gown into something otherworldly. Ivory silk and gold shimmered with every step she took, the dark blue accents catching the light. The train of her dress flowed like liquid starlight behind her, making her look like something out of a dream.

My dream.

Her hair was a crown of fiery curls and intricate braids, glinting with sapphire pins. A few loose curls framed her face, her green eyes so vibrant they almost glowed in the light. She was stunning. More than stunning—ethereal. Like she belonged to the stars themselves.

My chest tightened. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think.

Trust me.

Fuck. The taste of her kiss lingered on my lips, and the memory of it burned. She loved me. She’d said it. I’d felt it in the way she clung to me, her lips soft and fierce all at once. And now she was walking down the aisle toward another man.

Every instinct I had screamed at me to stop her. To charge down that aisle, throw her over my shoulder, and carry her out of this cursed chamber.

But I couldn’t.

She’d asked me to trust her. And damn it, I would. Even if it killed me.

My fists clenched at my sides as she moved down the aisle. The music swelled. A haunting melody filled the room. I barely heard it. All I could see was Paige.

She didn’t look afraid. Not nervous. Not defeated. She looked calm. Steady. In control. Her gaze was set straight before her. She should be smiling brilliantly at Prince Martainn, lost in his gaze. The room and everyone in it slipping away to their love and bond.

But they had none. She didn’t like him. She loved me. She was my Resonant.

It made no sense. What kind of female walked into the arms of her enemy looking like that?

A queen. A fucking queen. That’s who.

I tore my gaze away, scanning the room. My guards were in position, just as I’d ordered. Two stationed near the main doors, two more up on the balcony. The rest scattered among the crowd, blending in with the other noble families’ attendants. Each one armed. Each one ready to step in for… something.

I didn’t know what Paige had planned, but if anything went wrong, they’d act. Fast.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that I should have brought an entire squadron armed and ready for battle, regardless of whether it would have been blatant and a threat to the throne.

Paige reached the dais and stopped beside Martainn. The bastard smirked, his posture smug. Just seeing him so close to her made my blood boil. He reached for her hand. I had to dig my nails into my palms to keep from lunging.

If he touched her, I’d kill him.

My gaze flicked back to my team. I counted them again, noted their positions. Balcony. Doors. Side exits. Everything was covered.

I should’ve felt reassured, but I didn’t.

And then Paige moved.

She turned away from Martainn, her back to the dais, her gaze sweeping over the room. She rolled her shoulders back and lifted her chin. The shift was so subtle, so natural, that it almost didn’t register at first.

Until she spoke.

“My esteemed guests.” Her voice hovered in the room, clear and commanding. It rang out over the crowd, silencing the whispers in an instant. Prince Martainn stared at her wide eyed, his mouth open to interrupt her. To wonder why the hell his wedding ceremony was stalled.

The male might be smart after all because he shut his lips and pressed them together into a thin line.

“Before we begin the ceremony, I have a special announcement to make.”

The room stilled at Paige’s words. The returning princess wanted to speak?

Everyone listened.

Murmurs rippled through the nobles as heads turned and curious glances were exchanged. Martainn and his mother also exchanged confused looks.

Interesting. So, this wasn’t part of the royal wedding plans.

I straightened, my muscles tense as I waited for Paige to reveal all.

Paige didn’t falter. She didn’t hesitate. She met the eyes of the assembled nobles in a wide pass, her expression calm and unyielding.

“This is not a wedding,” she said, her voice steady. “It is a reckoning.”

The room exploded into verbal chaos.

Paige’s voice carried to the very back of the room and I realized the castle’s intelligence system was assisting, amplifying her voice, making sure every single person heard every single word. That no one could interrupt her.

“Our friends from the Coalition Fleet will be joining us now.” She squeezed her wrist before raising her arm to reveal a gold bracelet. It was flashing with bright green light–the color of transport system lights. I saw them every day at Alpha Station. The same color that flashed on our control panels. Coalition Fleet communication lights.

What the fuck was going on?

As if summoned by magic, dozens of Coalition Fleet fighters, most large Prillon warriors—and one really pissed off Atlan in beast mode—appeared out of thin air all around the perimeter of the large ceremonial chamber. They were dressed in full battle armor—black and gray camouflage space suits—and heavily armed. Commander Zeus moved to stand just off to Paige’s side with a feral look on his face. He was more than happy to be here. He was…hunting.

Somehow, Paige had summoned them all. With her bracelet? Had she conspired with Commander Zeus? How? I had not seen nor spoken to her in over two days. How had she managed to pull this off? Why had Zeus not notified me? I found him and willed him to meet my gaze. He did so with a knowing grin. He knew all right. He knew what she was to me.

I’d kick his smirking Prillon ass later.

Paige’s calm voice rang out over the agitated and confused guests like a clarion call, clear and distinct as a ringing bell. “As I call out the names of the traitors who conspired against, and murdered, my mother–Queen Madallaine Edelene Peigi–and murdered my father, Ambassador Lorient, and tried to kill me when I was an infant, please stand and be recognized. Some of you have been involved in smuggling and selling illegal Hive tech with the Silver Scions. Some of you have profited from breaking other Interstellar laws involving the drug trade, selling slaves, or stealing from the people. Whether you betrayed my family, or the Interstellar Coalition of Planets, you will now be taken into custody by the Coalition Fleet to face justice. Should you be set free from the Coalition Fleet’s prison, you will be returned to Insuri to face judgment, and punishment, for treason to the crown.”

Fuck. Me.

My little Paige had some claws. Teeth.

And fifty Prillon warriors who looked ready to haul every single traitor from the room and beat them into submission.

Trust me, she said.

Fuck. This was incredible.

Paige raised her chin as the first name rang out. “House Arrant.” Her tone was sharp as a blade. Play time was over.

Gasps filled the chamber as a Coalition warrior stepped forward, his gleaming armor catching the light. The Arrants—middle-aged nobles dressed in their finest—slowly and warily rose to their feet. The husband stammered something incoherent, his wife clinging to his arm, both of them pale as ghosts.

The warrior didn’t care. He motioned, and two more soldiers surrounded them, escorting them toward the exit. The condemned couple didn’t say anything, didn’t shout that they were innocent. That Paige was wrong, and they’d loved the former queen.

They did none of that.

The whispers grew louder. People shifted uncomfortably in their seats, their gazes darting between Paige and the soldiers, as if they were to be plucked up next.

“House Fenral,” Paige continued, her voice cutting through the noise.

This time, the reaction was louder. The Fenrals were younger, bolder. This time, the wife shouted her protests, but it didn’t matter. Coalition warriors appeared at their side, moving with precision. The murmurs in the room turned to frantic whispers.

I barely heard them.

My focus was on Paige. On the calm determination etched into her features. She intended to out every single enemy to her family and have them arrested. Not by Insuri guards, where there might be enemies within who would be complicit, but Coalition fighters.

Coalition fighters. She’d spoken to Zeus. She must have.

She called the next name, and the next, each one like a death knell to the assembled nobles. Every time a Coalition warrior stepped forward, I saw the crowd grow more restless. Shifting in their seats. Glancing toward the exits.

Young Lord Reijoni bolted from his seat and sprinted toward one of the doors.

The Atlan beast calmly picked the young man up and broke his neck with just one hand. Tossed him aside as his elderly mother screamed.

Paige followed the activity and gave a slight nod to the beast. He bowed his head, his gaze resolute. Loyal. As if he would do anything she asked, even defy Commander Zeus, if she asked it of him. Did they know one another?

“Thank you, Warlord Stohn.” Paige’s soft note was nearly a caress. I didn’t like her speaking to any male that way. That soft, grateful tone belonged to me.

“Kill. Traitor. Hurt Paige.” I’d never heard the deep rumbling tone of an Atlan in beast mode. The sound was like rocks rolling down a hill.

Fuck. They did know each other. What was he to her? Was that beast going to try to claim her? At least he was loyal. Or appeared to be. Wouldn’t stop me from killing him to keep what was mine. Paige was mine. I wrapped my hand around my weapon and hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

Paige turned away from the beast and I could breathe again as she called out the next name. “House Reijoni.” No wonder the boy had run. He knew. The dead man’s sobbing mother was escorted out of the room along with her elder son and her elderly sister. Lady Reijoni’s husband had been dead for several years. Apparently, her sons had followed in their parents’ corrupt footsteps.

Holy fuck. So many traitors. How had Paige managed to find them all?

I could do nothing but stand ready to protect her as I watched it all unfold.