32. Chapter 32

Chapter thirty-two

T he last hour had been a whirlwind. After the crown regents declaration, Haven had been whisked away to the castle and up to her room where she was promised someone would come and explain things a little more thoroughly. Haven thought she understood most of what happened but the idea of someone coming to her and explaining it, hopefully in plain terms, helped calm her nerves.

Her head was spinning from everything she already knew. Apparently her parents, the people she'd known in the human realm, either weren't her biological parents or they were secretly long lost fae royalty that had been missing for over a century. Also, she apparently held influence over shadows and fire as shown by the shadows that wrapped around her and the fire that burned at her feet. Honestly, while she still didn't quite get that part, it felt like the least of her concerns.

Sighing, Haven tossed herself down on her bed. She was still wearing the tattered dress but she'd taken off her boots and untangled the crown from her hair. What she really needed was a nice hot bath and a good scrub but she didn't want to be indisposed when someone showed up to explain the craziness of tonight. Especially if it was someone she didn't know. Haven might be okay if Rea caught her in the bath but if some stranger walked in while she was scrubbing dirt out of places she didn't want to admit it had gotten into then she wouldn't have to worry about the crown regent because she'd surely die of embarrassment.

Another few minutes passed before there was a soft but persistent knock at the door.

"Come in," Haven called.

Rea poked her head through the door, a large smile plain to see across her face.

"I heard someone is in need of an explanation!" The cheeriness in Astreas voice set Haven on edge. It had been a long day and while she usually loved Rea's ability to brighten things up, she'd rather have a straight and to the point explanation so she could go panic in the bath in peace.

Haven immediately sat up, "You can tell me what the hell's going on?"

"Yup" Rea sat down on the bed next to Haven, still wearing that overly cheery smile. Obviously she hadn't sensed Havens rapidly dampening mood.

"There isn't much to explain really" Rea started, "You already know that the rules of the spell used to create our realm prevented the rulers at that time from staying here longer than two weeks. After that, they'd have to return to the human realm, leaving their offspring to take over. Obviously they did not all have children at the time so it was decreed that in their place a crown regent would rule until they had children. At some point in that child's life, they would find their way here, usually by accident, where they would be tested to see what bloodline they hailed from and what powers, if any, they held."

Haven nodded, she did know all of this already. Getting impatient waiting for Rea to finish her explanation, she began to pick at her fingernails.

Astrea stretched her hand over to Havens, lacing their fingers together and preventing Haven from continuing her nervous habit.

"As time went on, heirs for all the bloodlines except the Montali and Rionach bloodlines were found. Fae were sent into the human world to look for them but no one ever found anything to prove their whereabouts. For almost the last century, many assumed that Robert Rionach and Morana Montali were dead. Fae are practically immortal and based on the amount of time that had passed, most assumed that if a child of either was going to be born it would have happened already." Rea paused, taking a moment to check in with Haven before continuing,

"Eventually our crown regent forcefully convinced the Rionach crown regent to give over her power, thus joining the two kingdoms under one rule. This obviously angered the people of Shaston, the Rionach kingdom, but at the time, there wasn't much they could do to stop it. There has been a lot of resentment growing over the years but I suppose that's not what's important right now."

Haven didn't know anything about the crown regent taking over rule in Shaston.

Although, she supposed if she really was the daughter of both the Montali and Rionach bloodlines than that made whatever was supposed to happen next easier since the people of Shaston were already used to being ruled from beyond their border. Haven immediately felt bad about her thoughts when she considered that people had probably been hurt and even killed when Niks father took over the rule of Shaston, he certainly did not seem like the type to make things peaceful.

Haven squeezed Rea's hand, encouraging her to keep talking and to take Haven's mind off of something that was surely way ahead of herself. After all, she wasn't entirely sure all this meant she'd actually become queen. She also needed to consider whether she even wanted that for herself or if she could handle something as important as ruling a kingdom. Thankfully, Rea saved Haven from diving too deep into her self doubting thoughts by continuing with her explanation,

"It is no surprise that you belong to both Morana Montali and Robert Rionach. It had long been rumored that they were mates. No one could ever prove it and at the time, it was illegal for fae royalty to cross bloodlines. Something about the child being too powerful"

Rea smiled at Haven. A question burned out of Havens mouth before she could stop it,

"So does this mean the people I knew as my parents weren't my biological parents or did they lie to me my whole life?"

"The only person who can answer that is you Haven."

"How?" She aske d

"I brought something that will help. It's a copy of a painting made of the royals at the time the original spell was created. It has your biological parents in it. Either you will recognize them as the people you've known your entire life or you won't. It's as simple as that. Are you ready to see it?"

Haven took a breath and nodded. This was the moment of truth, the answer to a question that had been plaguing her since this whole adventure started. Rea leaned down to where a small bag Haven hadn't seen her bring in sat. Reaching into it, she pulled out a small canvas. It fit perfectly in the palm of her hand. Haven took it from her, finding the canvas rough in her hand.

The picture was slightly blurry, in it was a group of fae gathered around a large table.

Havens breathing stalled as she recognized the two people in the middle of the group even through the blurriness.

"That's them," Haven touched the picture, "Those are my parents"