Chapter 16 - The King Kneels
King Edmund approached Avery.
The guests instinctively stepped back.
Then, before the royal family, military officers, and wedding guests, the King lowered himself onto one knee.
Avery immediately reached toward him.
“Your Majesty, please stand.”
He placed one hand over the top of his silver cane.
“For six years, I believed the officer who saved my life had died without knowing my gratitude.”
“You owe me nothing.”
“I owe you the years in which your courage was used by someone else.”
The King rose and faced the ballroom.
“Lieutenant Avery Bennett is Harbor Seven.”
The declaration carried through the silent room.
“She saved not only my life, but the lives of four members of my household. She asked for no reward. She never used the rescue for influence. She obeyed the secrecy imposed upon her.”
Avery’s eyes filled despite her discipline.
Edmund turned toward Madison.
“You built your position from the very silence that proved her honor.”
Madison looked around desperately.
No one met her eyes.
Prince Julian removed the royal engagement ring from her trembling hand.
He gave it to the chief attendant.
“The wedding is canceled.”
Madison swayed.
A guard caught her elbow before she stepped onto broken crystal.
She jerked away.
“Don’t touch me.”
The King’s authority became cold.
May you like
“You will remain available to answer every lawful inquiry.”
👉 Yet Avery refused the King’s first offer of reward—and asked him for something that stunned everyone.
