The Unknown Royal Heir

by Kimber Swan

  “I think Daphne can tell you her side. Michael, you have an amazing daughter. She and Dante have had to endure quite a life so far. He has protected her with his own life at times.”

  Dante straightens further at Daniel’s accolades towards his character. My father nods in Dante’s direction. His gaze falls upon me. It is no longer full of accusation and malice, but still not the loving one I was hoping for.

  “I’ll start back as far as I can remember. I think I was five when…..” I explain in detail, my whole life.

  There are times during the explanation that Dante steps in to add some tidbit or to correct me. I enlighten my father as to how important Dante is to me. I tell him what type of mother she was. I tell how she was addicted to drugs. I let the flood gates open as I replay my life in vivid detail.

  “I hope you accept me, but you need to know that if you do accept me, then you accept Dante. We are a package deal. I do not go anywhere without him as Daniel can vouch. Even though we don’t share blood, he is my brother.” I say staring at my father.

  My father looks back and forth between the both of us, then glances at Daniel.

  “You know what this means?” My father says then points at Dante and me. “And you’re okay with this?”

  “Without a doubt. I encouraged Daphne to have Dante as her personal assistant.” Daniel adds.

  “Why would she need a personal assistant?” My father asks.

  “As my wife, she will need someone to help her navigate the aristocracy as a duchess should.” Daniel supplies evenly, never mentioning me becoming queen.

  My father looks taken aback as much as I am by Daniel’s words. We said I needed a personal assistant as princess and subsequent queen, not because I was marrying him. We never actually discussed this proposed marriage.

  “What about Lady Elizabeth?” My father asks coldly. “Have you forgotten about her in your quest for my throne?”

  The tension in the room rises. Daniel looks taken aback. He pushes himself away from the desk to his full height then walks to my side. His fists clench then release as he starts to speak barely controlling anger.

  “No, I haven’t forgotten about her. But we all know, ours is not a love match. It would have been a marriage of necessity. I don’t want your throne, only what is mine by rights. Rights that you, as King, know all too well. I want her whether you decide to claim her or not as your daughter.”

  Daniel’s declaration brings tears to my eyes. No one, besides Dante, has ever fought for me the way Daniel is right now. He professed to never having loved Elizabeth, but he hasn’t said he loves me either. What’s the saying, “don’t count your chicks until their hatched?”

  “So, what you’re saying is that if I deny her you will still marry her?” My father asks.

  “You are a fool if you don’t, but yes I will. There is no other woman out there for me. She is it.”

  Michael, as I am now starting to think of the man who should be my father, looks at me with soft eyes. I seek Daniel’s hand. He rests it on my shoulder instead. My father notices this and something in the way he looks at me changes.

  He asks me gently, “May I speak with you alone.”

  “Abs-” Dante starts, but I cut him off

  “Sure.” I say to him then look at Dante. “I’ll be fine. You and Daniel aren’t going to be too far away.”

  “Dante, she’ll be fine.” Daniel says reassuringly.

  Michael looks a little taken back by Dante’s fierce protectiveness, but pleased at the same time. Dante searches my face and whatever he sees must reinforce what Daniel said because he nods curtly. Daniel kisses me on the crown of my head before leaving. Dante kisses our joined hands before rising. When he walks past my father, he stops directly in front of him.

  “You hurt or upset her, I will hurt you. I don’t care who you are.” He says then storms off.

  Daniel closes the door behind them.

  Michael walks over to the chair next to the settee and settles down. He looks at his clasped hands for what seems like an eternity. When he looks up, I see in the depths of his eyes the years of sorrow since my mother left. He is nothing like Daniel explained. I don’t see the gay, emotional man that Daniel knows. I see a man, a heterosexual man like Daniel. A man who has been hurt by life.

  “I never knew.” He says quietly. “If only I knew…”

  “I know you didn’t, but you do now.” I say equally as quiet. “Can you tell me about her? The mother I knew is quite different then the woman, I think, you knew.”

  “I don’t know what happened. She never told me she was pregnant. If I had known, I don’t know if I would have made the same decisions I made back then.”

  “What was she like?”

  He grabs my hands in his.

  “You look like her, the same coloring and stature, but Daniel is right, your eyes are like looking in a mirror.”

  “My mother used to say I looked like you. I thought she was just saying that.” I remark.

  “It’s only your eyes.” He replies sadly. “Otherwise you are all her.”

  “When she used to talk about the mark on my shoulder, she mentioned it with such hatred and I didn’t understand why.”

  “I don’t know why Edward never said anything to me either.” He says thoughtfully. “He would have been the only person to mark you.”

  “I don’t think he meant for me or my mother disappear. She must have had help escaping because Daniel couldn’t find anything in his father’s papers until right before he died.” I supply.

  “What happened?” He asks.

  “From what we have been able to piece together, my mother ran away shortly after I was born. She told Edward she was going back to Scotland. She never made it there. We found proof that she went to France and took a ship from there. The boat she left here in was reported missing. There were extensive notes in Edwards’s file regarding the search for the boat. He never seemed to give up looking for it. She changed her name to Delaney Michels and mine to Daphne.”

  “Edward told me she died in Scotland. She was supposedly distraught after I formally denounced her, but I never did it in my heart.” He explains sadly.

  “I think Edward knew this which is why he probably never told you about me. Why upset you further with news of a child you would never know.”

  “Why would she leave?”

  “Things were a bit rough for you back then. Daniel told me there were numerous attempts made on your life as well as my mother’s. You were forced to choose the country.” I say softly. “I think that’s when it must have all started. Looking back on what she said and what I remember, I think she may have been suffering from depression. She died of an overdose. I remember she used to take pills, but eventually she went to the harder stuff. I can’t help but think maybe she wasn’t an addict after all.”

  He shakes his head in disbelief.

  “During her lucid moments and some not so, she would tell me we were being chased because of you. I always thought she was crazy. I remember a time when someone did come up to me asking me my mother’s name.”

  “I am so sorry.” He whispers.

  I shake my head trying to dispel the images of the abuse and her dead body.

  “I think Edward did eventually find us and that was who came up to me. I also believe she and Edward were trying to keep me safe.”

  “But why not tell me?” He asks.

  “I don’t know and I don’t think we will ever know. But what matters now? What we do from here?”

  He looks at me questioningly.

  “Will you claim me as your daughter?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?” He asks, seeming upset that I would think differently.

  “Well, you did give Daniel a hard time about me.” I retort.

  “Let first ask you, do you want to marry him?” He asks gravely.

  “Yes. I do”

  “Your life is going to change regardless. You won’t have any of the freedoms you have now. I want you
to marry, but I want you to marry for love not because of duty. Even if that means that other fellow.”

  “Who? Dante? Eww. No!”

  He chuckles.

  “I do think Daniel and I still need to get to know one another better.”

  He laughs then says soberly, “Did he tell you how a princess is supposed to go to her marriage bed?”

  I blush crimson and nod.

  “We had that discussion and let me tell you, I plan on changing that when I’m queen.” I blush even more.

  “Then that won’t be a problem?” He asks, blushing himself. “I never thought to be having this discussion with anyone especially not my daughter.”

  “It won’t be a problem there.” I say not looking him in the face.

  Never in a million years did I think I would be having a conversation about my sexual history with my father.

  “Good!” He exclaims happily. “Then the Purists will have nothing to denounce your claim to the throne.”

  “About that.” I say hesitantly. “I don’t want to actually become Queen, but know I must. Its part of my heritage. But, I don’t become Queen automatically, do I? I mean, Daniel said the women inherit the crown. I don’t want it now if I do. I need to know you and understand this new country of mine.”

  “I see.” He says, diplomatically hiding his feelings.

  “Don’t get me wrong. I want to be here with you and all that it entails.”

  “Since you found me, I want you by my side in all things. We need to make up for lost time. I have a lot to teach you, not only about the country but about your mother and me. If nothing else, know you were conceived in love. Never doubt that child. I loved your mother dearly.” He reaches for my hands.

  “Then why did you give Daniel a hard time?”

  “In my position as King and your father, I need to know how Daniel feels about you. I need to know he is not a wolf in sheep’s clothing. When we make the announcement, there is going to be backlash and uproar. I need to know if he will stand by you no matter what. He has never given me any cause to think otherwise. I rely on him like I did his father.”

  “There are so many things I want to know, but I don’t know where to start.”

  He laughs and the tension seems to fade.

  “We definitely have that in common.” He remarks.

  I laugh along with him and that is how Daniel finds us when he steps back into the room a little while later. My father releases my hands, leaning back in his chair. Daniel sits down next to me on the settee, entwining our fingers. He kisses my knuckles while my father observes Daniel’s every move.

  “Everything fine?” He asks me, ignoring my father’s presence.

  I look at my father who blinks in acknowledgment. I nod at Daniel, leaning into him. His other arm wraps around my shoulder.

  “Are we good?” Daniel asks my father.

  “Yes. Thank you for bringing my daughter home.” My father says, and then looks at Dante. “Thank you for always keeping her safe. Words cannot express the gratitude I feel.”

  Dante nods solemnly.

  “I want everyone to know you, but understand what that means? Your life will never be the same. The Purists are not going to be happy.” My father explains, giving me the chance to back out.

  “I understand.” I reply gravely.

  My father stands up. Daniel lets go of me while I stand.

  “Then come here child of mine.” My father says with shining eyes.

  I walk into his outstretched arms with tears overflowing. He hugs me as a father hugs a child. I finally feel fully at peace. This powerful man is my father. A family is what I have always wished for and now I finally have it. Nothing, and I mean nothing, will ever take it away from me again.

  Part 3

  From Commoner to Princess

  Chapter Twenty

  Four months have passed since I vowed to keep my family together. And together we have been. However, it is not how I wanted to spend the time. The week after I met my father, he scheduled a state dinner for tonight during which he will formally claim me as his daughter. Some of the aristocracy and a few visiting dignitaries including the ambassador to the United States, have been invited. They don’t have a clue what the dinner is about.

  There have been rumors over the last four months hinting at a scandal involving my father and a younger woman. Rumors no one can verify. Only a select few know of my existence for obvious reasons. Daniel and my father have kept up their scheduled appearances and maintaining façades.

  My father was afraid to leave my side during the first few weeks, fearing something would happen before he had the chance to know me. Daniel, against his better judgement, was forced to open his home to the court when he realized my father was not going anywhere anytime soon. Security details were increased at Balwart Manor, making my life more difficult. The only part that wasn’t difficult was Elizabeth being out of the country on business most of time with her father.

  I didn’t get to see the country like Daniel had promised. I was restricted to a certain part of the castle most of the time. I was not allowed any freedom. There was a constant barrage of guards hovering in the background. My father, who I had hoped to be an ally during this forced seclusion, sided with Daniel. Daniel is doing everything he can to keep me safe.

  The Purists have made no movements against my father or Daniel for that matter. They knew Daniel and I were together in Paris. It wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to put two and two together. If Daniel is in Farquadt than that means I must be in the country as well. Despite not being outed, I was still required to stay in my suite most of the time.

  The King held court and meetings as if Balwart Manor was his. During one of the meetings, Daniel brought me to a secret chamber in which I could watch and listen to everything that went on during the meetings. My father, in all his regal state, was a site to behold. He knew what to say and how to act. I fear I may never be as good as him despite what my father and the tutors say. Daniel has never lost his faith in my ability to rule this country.

  I questioned my father on some of his decision on certain subjects. He advised me to listen to the people. He feels it is the people who need a voice despite what the nobles want. After that meeting, Daniel and my father thought it best that I continue to listen in on all meetings. A chair was strategically placed in the secret room for me. That’s how my fascination with how this country is run grew.

  In the late hours after the castle quieted for the night, Daniel and my father would scheme ways the announcement regarding me should be made. I fell asleep many times during these meetings having been put through numerous hours of Farquadt history, proper etiquette training, and innumerable dress fittings.

  Daniel and my father argued over me when my father left for his main residence. My heart swelled knowing that there were other people besides Dante that cared for me. My father could not stay any longer, but did not want to leave me. They argued for many hours, but eventually my father relented. He understood the reasons after Daniel insisted the castle was too dangerous. I was safer at Balwart Manor. Needless to say, my father returned the next weekend to visit because he simply missed his daughter.

  My father and I have become acquainted with each other. He helped me understand my mother differently. Things between Dante and my father are less tense. Their instincts are to protect me even if that means from each other. Slowly, they are starting to trust each other and I couldn’t be happier. Daniel is the only one who seems the surest of himself around me, a side of him I find exceedingly sexy.

  Daniel and I have taken romantic walks around the grounds of Balwart Manor when the snow was not thick on the ground. The weather was cold, but not mind numbingly cold. His brother Lucas came for a visit during his break in studies at university. We spent time getting to know each other. He thinks very highly of Daniel, but then again how could he not. Lucas is not as serious as Daniel, always having an easy smile on his face. His sarcasm almost matched my own.
I still haven’t met the rest of the family but we hope to remedy that soon.

  AnnaBelle, Dante and I have been getting along fantastically, learning what our new roles are with each other. AnnaBelle has proven her worth in more ways than one. Her knowledge around the aristocracy and court has been essential in my education. Dante is still learning his role. I have absolute confidence in him.

  Alone time no longer exists. Even in sleep, I know someone trusted is always lurking outside my door. During rare times, I feel claustrophobic then mention it to Daniel or Dante and the guards’ felt presence disappears. Daniel was correct in his assumption that we would not be able to spend one minute alone. Someone always accompanies us, whether we are sitting watching a movie or discussing strategies. He planned a romantic horseback riding trip. There were ten additional people with us. So much for romance.

  My father has been the strongest cock blocker around. He is extremely adamant about pulling this off. My reputation must be above reproach which explains everyone’s presence. This has made me a more sexually frustrated person, lashing out at unsuspecting people, sometimes without provocation.

  Lady Elizabeth has been trying to speak with Daniel since we arrived, but he keeps making excuses. He doesn’t want to meet with her until after the state dinner. He is using the planning and organizing of that dinner as an excuse. He’s chickening out on telling her face to face. Daniel hopes that once she realizes he was promised to me at birth, she will gracefully step aside. That’s a man’s thinking for you. Any woman in her right mind would never give a man like him up. He has grace, sex appeal, title and money.

  Hadley Castle, the royal seat, was still a mystery until early this morning. I was shown pictures and awed by its magnificence. The pictures did not do the castle justice. The castle dominated the sky-line. There is a dry ditch and drawbridge from where the moat used to be when the castle was first built. From the outside, it should have been cold and drafty, but from the moment we walked through the double wood and iron doors the warmth washed away the chill from the outside. The palace is richly decorated and a place of comfort for both kings and queens.