“Yes, you. I don’t like the way you’re looking at her. She’s not yours.”

Ackley’s face went sly, his lips curling in a devilish grin. “She isn’t? Are you sure about that?”

Reid felt like her entire body erupted in fire as mortification set in. She wanted to crawl under the table and melt away.

Colbert chuckled. “I haven’t had this much entertainment in ages.”

Reid eyed Dexter. He’d balled his hands into fists, and he hadn’t yet touched his food.

“Ackley,” Reid said, belatedly realizing she should have used his title. “Prince Henrick is a former Knight, I’m a Knight, and you’re a Knight. We all want the same thing. Let’s work together to accomplish it. Please, just tell us what you have planned.”

He glared at her, then took another sip of his wine, stalling. “I’ve been told to stand down. The Knights are going to allow Eldon to take over Axian. After all, he’ll have it one day anyway.” Bitterness seeped through each word.

“And what’s to happen with my family?” Nara asked, setting her fork down.

Ackley shrugged. “The Knights said if Henrick won’t take the throne, then he is not their concern. Their focus is on protecting the vast majority of the people in this kingdom. You,” Ackley tipped his goblet toward Henrick, “clearly don’t give a rat’s tail what happens to the people who live and work here.”

“I do care,” Henrick insisted. “That’s why I’m standing down. Sometimes it takes more courage to not say anything than it does to pick up a sword and fight.”

“What you call courage, I call giving up.” Ackley stood. “I’m done. Lady Reid, I need a moment of your time. Now.”

Reid followed him from the room, feeling everyone’s eyes on her. She’d been set to argue that Ackley was a prince and outranked them, but then she realized they were all on equal footing. By leaving with Ackley so readily, she’d inadvertently implied that her loyalty was to him. She groaned.

Out in the hallway, Ackley turned left, entering a sitting room Reid had never been in before. He closed the door. “We need to talk.”

“I gathered that.”

He plopped on the sofa, rubbing the nape of his neck, his expression vacant.

“Ackley?” Reid asked, sitting next to him and rubbing his back. “What’s the matter?” She’d never seen him like this before. He usually kept his emotions hidden away.

Shoulders hunching forward, he shook his head. “Everything is a mess.”

“Talk to me.” Ackley always had a plan. And a backup plan. And a backup plan for the backup plan. Nothing rattled him.