Secret Heir (Dynasty #1)(107)

34





I’m sitting across from Magnus in what appears to be his study. The large wood paneled room is dark, apart from the light of the fire blazing in the large fireplace at the center.

Neither of us says a word as Magnus stares into that fire, as if it might give him the right words to tell me whatever it is that he needs to tell me.

I don’t force those words, because whatever they are, I know I don’t want to hear them. Not at all.

But he turns to me, and says them anyway.

“I told you before that the rule of Eden has always fallen to one of the two sovereign Dynasties. The St. Tristan Dynasty and the Evenstar Dynasty.”

“Yeah, so there’s some kind of rota where the throne alternates between the two sovereign Dynasties.” I speak my own assumption out loud, then hoping that in doing so, it will make it true. Only when I do speak it out loud, I realize just how ridiculous it sounds.

“No,” Magnus replies simply, and my world grinds to a halt as I wait for him to shatter it.

“The crown has always fallen to the eldest sovereign heir—the first heir from the St. Tristan Dynasty and the Evenstar Dynasty to reach their eighteenth birthday, ascends to the throne.”

The churning in my stomach intensifies, until I feel like I might throw up all over the polished wood floors.

I remember that day at the amusement park. Raph telling me that we have the exact same birthday—down to the very second.

Magnus is watching my face and the look in his, tells me that he can see I already know. But he says it anyway.

“You and Raph share the same birthday, Jazmine. Down to the very second.

“Your father didn’t know about you, no one knew about you. So, from the moment Raph was born, it was always assumed that he would be next in line to the throne.

“When the Dynasties first found out about you, everything about you was a mystery. We had no idea who you were, let alone what day you were born. There was always the possibility, of course, that you’d be older than Raph. But even if you were, it was always assumed that because your blood is tainted with human blood, whilst you could take up your rightful place as heir to the Evenstar Dynasty, ascending to the throne was out of the question,” he continues.

“But when I obtained your birth certificate, I discovered that you were born on the same day as Raph, at exactly the same second. A true phenomenon, which could not be ignored.

“I told only the Evenstar Dynasty’s closest allies at first. But somehow, Jethro also found out. The Dynasties have since been examining the laws of Eden and debating in secret for months, as to what needs to be done. Nothing like this has happened in centuries, let alone in any of our lifetimes. It was resolved that no one should find out about this phenomenon, until it was decided what must be done.”

“Raph knew,” I find myself saying, almost involuntarily, my voice barely a whisper in the dimly lit room.

Magnus’s eyes turn to me.

“Yes, he must have. I don’t doubt that Jethro would have told him.”

I get that image of a thousand jigsaw pieces scattered in front of me again and I still have no idea how to put them together. The way that Keller’s little brothers ran off after Jael’s surprise at Raph and me being together; Magnus’s own warnings and Jethro’s less than pleasant words to me at the Fall Ball.

“What—what does this mean?” I ask, although I’m certain I don’t want to know the answer.

“It means, Jazmine, that something must take place, which hasn’t taken place in Eden for centuries. It means that nature itself requires that there must be a Crown Trial.”

“What the hell is a Crown Trial?” I demand, although my voice is shaky, because my whole universe feels like it’s spinning right now.

“It’s a duel—you against Raph. For the throne,” he replies simply and the universe that had just been spinning? It comes crashing down around me, shattering into a million pieces.

“For the throne?” I sputter.

I shoot up to stand on my feet, as the torrent of emotions raging inside me threatens to pull me under. Hell, I’m already drowning.

“I don’t want the damn throne and I’m sure as hell not about to fight Raph for it.”

Magnus’s eyes grow even more troubled then.

“You must do this, Jazmine. You see, the laws of nature may be cruel and they may be harsh in the same way that storms can wipe out entire cities and famines can decimate a nation, but they are necessary in order to keep the balance. Even the slightest upset in that balance can have consequences beyond anything which anyone can even comprehend. The laws cannot be broken and they require a Crown Trial to determine which sovereign heir will next ascend to the throne.”

“Fuck the laws,” I reply, I’m aware that I’m shouting. I’m aware of the manic desperation that must be shining in my eyes right now. But I don’t care.

“There is no way in hell that I’m doing this and I don’t believe for a second that the universe will come crashing down just because I don’t.”

But Magnus only shakes his head in response.

“You don’t understand, Jazmine, even the slightest crack in the foundations can cause the entire world to shatter. Both worlds.

“A phenomenon like this has the power to change the entire universe. The Crown Trial must take place, or we risk both worlds falling out of balance.”