Chapter 226: The Truth (Part Three)
"Your mother was on cloud nine of happiness when she first saw you in my arms upon my return to our home. Till that point, she was only worried about my safety but as soon as she saw you..." the Grand Duke chuckled while shaking his head as he recalled the beautiful moment from his past.
Beside him, his wife also carried a fond look on her face, especially her beautiful sapphire eyes, as she too seemed to be recalling that wonderful moment when she first got to see the child that became her entire world.
But as for Annalise, she was a complete mess of emotions as she listened to her father’s story. The only thing keeping her from breaking down right then and there were her husbands who were also listening to the story as she had allowed them to. She didn’t want to keep her story a secret from them, and neither was she comfortable in telling everything to them on her own which would have needed her to experience all the painful emotions all over again.
Their presence right there with her, their support, their elemental powers surrounding her, and their bonds - kept a strong hold over her to not let her lose her composure and she was more than just thankful for their efforts.
"To make sure that the world will know you as our daughter, we made full preparations with the late King’s help. It was announced that your mother was two months pregnant and that we both wanted to spend some time as a family away from the hustle and bustle of the capital life. So, I took a break from my court duties and we left the capital to live in the countryside."
The Grand Duke continued with the story - "Of course, rumors were flying all over the capital because of our sudden departure but all of them were mostly related to politics and no one questioned the authenticity of your mother’s pregnancy. We spent two years away from the capital before finally returning. Fate also seemed to be working in our favor because despite being older than your fake age, you looked exactly like a baby around fourteen or fifteen months."
"The late King organized a huge banquet upon our arrival in celebration and it was on that very fateful night when the High Priestess got to see you and named you as ’The One’." The Grand Duke stopped there as he once again turned to look directly into Annalise’s eyes.
"She called you the biggest good luck charm our empire could ever have... but she also said that you have a completely different destiny awaiting you to follow."