The Lost Princes of Ambria 06 - Taming the Lost Prince by Raye Morgan Read Free Book Online

see,” she added, and then her smile faded and she took a deep, deep breath.
    “But there’s something else,” she said, sliding the portfolio out from under her arm. “Take a look at this.”
    Sweeping aside the things on the coffee table, she pulled a poster out and spread it out on the flat surface.
    “All right,” she said dramatically, looking at Max. “Now explain this, mister!”
    Max and Kayla stepped closer and looked down at the poster. Bright red with startling black writing, it displayed a large picture of Max and the announcement Max Arragen, Wanted, Dead or Alive!!!
    CHAPTER FOUR
     
    THE silence in the room was electric. All three seemed frozen in place. Finally, Kayla looked up at Max and asked simply, “What does it mean?”
    He didn’t meet her gaze. “I have no idea,” he said softly, still staring at the poster. His mind was working like a buzz saw, cutting through all options and leaving shards of rejected possibilities behind. What could he possibly have done …?
    Pellea crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. “Okay, if nothing comes quickly to mind, let’s go over the facts. As you can see, this was issued by the small nation of Mercuria. Have you ever been there?”
    He raised his head and looked at the queen. This was a can of worms he would rather not have to deal with, but it seemed he would have no choice.
    “Yes. I’ve been there.”
    “When? What were you doing there?”
    Kayla was glaring at him now, as well. Interesting that they both seemed to assume he must be guilty of something. But then, he probably deserved that. If he didn’t want people to suspect shenanigans, he should have lived a different sort of life. Was it too late to change? Probably. He frowned.
    “I spent a few months there last year. I did some work for the government. Actually, I helped them set up their air force.”
    Pellea’s eyebrows rose at that. “And then what happened?”
    He thought about it for a moment. Funny how things that seemed so mundane at the time became so impossible to explain to anyone. This looked a little more serious than he’d expected. But try as he might, he couldn’t remember having done anything illegal while he was there. He hadn’t robbed anyone. He hadn’t run off with the royal jewels. He hadn’t stolen any plans. The only thing he could think of that might apply had been a broken relationship with a rather beautiful … Well, he wasn’t going to tell these ladies about that. They wouldn’t be happy to hear it. And anyway that had been over a year ago.
    He faced them squarely and tried to look candid. “I have to think it over and see if I can figure out what they are actually talking about.”
    “You can’t tell us now?” Kayla asked.
    He looked at her and shook his head. “No. I’m sorry. You’re going to have to wait until I get a bit clearer on just exactly what they’re objecting to.”
    Kayla and Pellea were both staring at him with wide-eyed wonder. Both sets of eyes contained the same horrified expression. It was pretty clear that they both thought that anything that couldn’t be explained right here, right now, in simple language, had to be pretty darn bad. He looked at them both and shrugged, hating to feel defensive this way. Why should he have to explain himself?
    But he was trapped. Sooner or later, they would probably know everything about his life—even things he didn’t know. Still, why make it easy for them?
    “I haven’t led a perfect life. I’ve done things I’m not proud of. Things I wouldn’t want to tell you about.”
    Pellea nodded as though she’d thought as much, but Kayla appeared surprised and troubled. He regretted that. But he still wasn’t going to tell her everything he’d ever done wrong in his life. He wasn’t going to tell anyone.
    “I’m sorry,” he said simply. “But I’m going to find out what they are accusing me of before I start spilling my guts and go admitting to every crime known to