Happily Ever After......NOT!

Chapter Twenty-Two

         My mouth fell open like a trapped door and I clutched the necklace tightly in my fingers. My knees shaking slightly.
         The Queen moved closer to me. She was in her thirties and very pretty. Blond hair pulled back in a fancy bun and a velvet royal purple dress with flowed out around her with elbow length sleeves. "What are you doing?" She asked again.
          I tried to slid my right hand that held the necklace behind my back, but it was too late.
         The Queen's eyes traveled to the open jewelry box and then to my hand that held the necklace, then up to my face that was frozen in fear. "You're a thief!" She started to move towards a golden braided cord by the wall to summon some guards.
         "No please!" I gasped, "I just need the necklace I'll take nothing else I promise!"
         Queen Cambria stopped she turned back to me, "Why would I believe a common thief?"
         I lowered my head, "I'm not a thief, I'm a princess." I raised my eyes to look into hers, "Princess Amaya of Rollick."
        Eyes wide Queen Cambria said, "Traitor! You killed the queen and now you'll here for me too." She moved closer to the braided cord.
       "No it's not like that! Bad things keep happening to me. My mother was poison yes, but not by me! My father is trying to frame me, he had me thrown in jail, then I was kidnapped and forced to go with the this complete stranger who turned out to be a great guy, but that's not the point! I'm cursed and...."
        "I don't believe you." The Queen said her fingers brushing the golden cord as she wrapped her fingers around it.
         "You should because The Great Wizard made me come!" I blurted out.
         She froze her hand still on the cord. She turned around to face me her face scared and a little sad like she was remembering something.
         Seeing that got her attention I said, "You know him?"
       The Queen removed her hand from the cord and crossed her arms, "Who hasn't." She looked me over, "Why is a girl like you getting yourself mixed up with that man?"
        I held up the necklace letting the pink diamond swirl on the silver chain, "He offer me a deal if I would get this for him."
        She chuckled softly, "Why on earth would he want that? It's not even valuable." She paused then softly added, "Except to me. Besides this was a gift from The Great Wizard himself why would he want it back?"
          My eyes widened in surprise, "Oh, he never mentioned that. All he said was that it was his and he wanted it back." I paused, "Who was it for?" I asked.
          The Queen shook her head, "It was for my daughter, but she's gone." She looked around, she wasn't sure why she even said that this. No one even knows about her daughter that her father had taken away from her. She then looked back at me with the delicate necklace a look of compassion on her face, "You take it, I don't need a gift from him anyways. I'll go and forget you were here." She said turning to go.
         I was shocked, the queen of Agog was willing to just let me walk away with something that had belong to her dead daughter.
       Peace came over me as I held the necklace realizing what this meant. I could find my birth mother and she could give me a clue to breaking this curse. Suddenly the necklace came alive. The pink diamond made a tiny popping sound then started to glow a bright pink light that lit up the whole chamber. I squinted my eyes as the bright glare stung.
       Distracted by the light Queen Cambria turned back around and stared at the necklace that was glowing in my hand, "What did you do?!" She proclaimed.
        "Nothing!" I said as the necklace glowed brighter and brighter. I held it up to my face to get a better look then nearly dropped it as I saw The Great Wizard in the pink diamond! Bloody hell how did he get inside the diamond?!
        From inside the diamond he gave a high pitch laugh which seemed to echo off the walls around us like he was actually there with us. "Great job dearie! You did it better than I could have done myself." He grinned showing his rotting teeth.
          "Whattt, how did you get in the necklace?" I asked.
          "Silly girl, I'm not in the necklace, I'm safely in my cottage."
          I frowned, "How did you know I got the necklace already then?"
           He laughed sending chills down my body, "You really think I haven't been watching you and lover boy this whole time?"
          This wizard sure was sick, I thought disgusted and somewhat embarrassed. What all of Hayden and me had he seen? "Okay well I got your necklace, now are you going to hold up your end of the deal? Show me who my birth mother is." I demanded holding the necklace up.
           His dark eyes held a look of amusement as he smiled at me from the diamond charm, "With pleasure." With that the image of him disappeared from the charm and it stopped glowing.
       Expecting for it to show me a image of my birth mother I held the necklace up and gazed into the pink diamond. This time a small light slowly shone from the necklace and it seemed to travel and move around the room, the light stopped when it got to Queen Cambria and shone brightly on her before slowly dimming  out till it was once again just a charm on silver chain.
      I grabbed the diamond shaking it, "What, why didn't it work! You promised me!" I screamed to the diamond charm.  I stopped thinking it over in my head. I looked up at the queen and her appearance. Blond hair like my own, even her light blue eyes were exactly like mine. My mind wondered back to my father's words he spoke to me in the dungeon "It was a sealed trade between your mother and me and the King that gave you to us." A king gave me up, so I was still Royal by blood. Then I thought to how after I asked The Great Wizard to show me my mother the necklace had glowed softly traveling around the room and stopped on Queen Cambria. Was it possible, could it be I was a princess of Agog? I looked again at the Queen, she sure must have been young if she did had me. "You... You had a daughter?"
      Queen Cambria nodded, "Yes." She replied slowly.
       "Twenty years ago?"
         The Queen's eyes widened in surprise, "How did you..."
         Tears filled my eyes as it hit me, "You're my... My mother. My birth mother that is." I let out a sob, "My father King Rollick told me I'm not really his child and this King he didn't say traded me to them."
          Cambria's face paled her eyes growing wide, could this young girl here before her be telling the truth? "How do I know you're telling the truth?" She questioned cautiously.
           "I was born with a curse. The Curse of Unhappiness."
            Cambria gasped. Realizing I was indeed telling the truth. Tears poured down her face, "My daughter!" We ran to each other our arms encircling each other as we held on to each other sobbing.
         Mother, I had a mother! It felt so good to wrap my arms around a motherly figure and to be hugged by a mother.
        "Amaya? You still here?" Hayden walked in he stopped when he saw me and the Queen hugging, his hand went for his sword."
        I gave a small laugh wiping tears of joy from my eyes, I walked over to Hayden, "Hayden it's okay, this is my birth mother." I beamed at her when I said birth mother.
        She returned the smile.
        "You mean you found her?! and she's the bloody Queen of Agog!" Hayden turned to my mother, "Forgive me for the language your majesty."
        "Yeah, and I have so many questions for you." I said walking back to my mother's  side.
        "Well, what are they darling?" She asked taking my hands.
          "Why did you give me away?" My voice caught in my throat, "Didn't you want me?"
        "Oh sweetie." She brushed her hand across my cheek, "Of course I wanted you, but I was young and naive I didn't know your father that well and wasn't sure what to do. When your grandfather took you from my arms my heart broke." Tears fell down her face as she went on, "My father your grandfather took you away the moment you were born. I had you for a split second in my arms then he had guards hold me down and he took you from me. When I was well enough I demanded he tell me where he took you but he refused. I searched and searched for you and I begged him to tell me, but your grandfather was stubborn. Eventually I had to realize that I wasn't going to find you, that my father had hidden you far away where I could never find you."
       "So you just gave up?"
        "No... I wanted to find you I did, but years went by and father still wouldn't  tell me." She lowered her head shamefully, "Even on his death bed he didn't tell me." She smiled at me, "But you're here now, so why dwell on the past?"
         "Why did he take me from you? What was so wrong with me that he didn't want his own granddaughter?"
           My mother wiped tears from her eyes, "My father was convinced that your curse would destroy this kingdom,  that if you could never be happy it would make everything around you miserable. And that no prince would want me if I had a child before marriage."
         I stepped back tears filling my eyes, "You mean to tell me that he got rid of me because of my curse and so that you can live happily ever after with a prince!" Anger filled my body.
        "You won't understand. Your curse would have ruined everything." My mother stated.
       I laughed sarcastically, "I do understand, because that has been my life my whole life! things have been ruin and awful!" I paused holding my breath before I said something cruel, "But you can change that. The Great Wizard said you know why I was cursed, maybe you can give me a hint to how to break it."
       My mother frown confused, "He didn't tell you? He was the one who cursed you, and I have no idea how to break your curse."
       My eyes widen I felt silently dizzy as I stumbled backwards. Hayden's arms went around my waist to steady me, "The Great Wizard cursed me with the curse of unhappiness! But why would he do that!"
       Queen Cambria, "He said he needed it for the future, and that I got to choose who was to be cursed." She stopped herself realizing she said too much.
         I stepped back, "What... What do you mean you got to choose?"
         She lowered her head, "The Great Wizard said I had to choose between you or me that one of us would be curse."
        "So you choose me to be cursed and miserable?!" I screamed.
        "That's sick." Hayden mumbled.
      She reached a hand out to me, "No darling, he was playing a sick game he knew you would be cursed no matter what because I was protected by the good fairy when I was a baby so I couldn't have been cursed. He wanted me to think I could choose when really you would be born cursed."
      "He said you could give me a hint to break the curse, how can I break it?" I asked.
       She shook her head, "I.... I don't know, he never told me any hint to breaking it. Believe me I would have done anything to break it so that we could have been together."
         "Why would he tell me that you knew a way if you don't!" I said disappointed that Hayden and I had came so far to not get the answers I so desperately needed.
           "There's only one thing you must know about that man, he likes to play games. He'll use you then...." Queen Cambria stopped as a different set of double mahogany doors opened from the other side of the room.
           "There you are my beautiful Queen!" King Anson replied strolling in with a little girl clinging to his waist as he held her.
           I watched him silently as he came in, he wore a navy blue suit and had dark brown hair and kind eyes. I stared dumb founded at him and the little girl in the yellow gown. My heart soften at the sight of the little girl and I felt tears come to my eyes; I had a sister! Well a half sister I presumed since my mother said she barely knew my father, so King Anson must not be my father. Which made this cute little girl my half sister. She scrambled down and ran to our mother squealing "Mummmmy!!!" She wrapped her tiny arms around our mother's legs.
         Child free King Anson wrapped an arm around my mother and kissed her cheek softly then he turned as if now noticing Hayden and me. He glance at us a smile on his lips, "Now who is this?"
        I took a deep nervous breath and turned to my mother waiting for her to introduce me as her long lost daughter. I started imagining how things would play out. We would hug and cry then make plans to have a big celebration in honor of me being reunited with them. Then they'd invite me and Hayden to live with them in this amazing castle. My dreams vanished with a poof though when my mother spoke these single words.
         "I.... I don't know." She quickly dropped her eyes to the fancy rug that hugged the floor; refusing to look me in the eyes.
           Her words pierced my heart, why did she deny knowing me? Was she ashamed of me?
          "Well this just got awkward." Hayden said speaking for the both of us.
            King Anson glanced from Hayden and me to his Queen.
            Gathering my wits I whispered softly, "I'm Amaya and this is Hayden." I looked at my mother for a response but her eyes remained glued to the floor.
             "Nice to meet you, Amaya. And where are you from?" King Anson asked shaking both Hayden and mine hands.
             My mother found her voice and spoke abruptly "They're just leaving." She turned to me and looking me in the eyes said, "I'm sorry for your lost, but we can't help you. Perhaps another Kingdom can help you with your problems." 
           My body trembled as I fought to hold back the tears and sobs that threaten to over come me. How can this be happening? My mother welcomed me with open arms when she found out I was her daughter and now in front of her husband she refused to acknowledge me as her own daughter!
           Hayden looked me his brown eyes filled with concern for me as he saw right through me. He knew by the sad look in my eyes what I was feeling.
          Queen Cambria grabbed King Anson's arm and her little girl's hand, "Now if you'll excuse us, we have to plan for our daughter's birthday ball. The guards can so you out." With that she left with her perfect family in their perfect clothes.
          I watched them leave the mahogany doors swinging shut with a loud bang behind them. Then I burst into tears and ran sobbing out the other set of mahogany doors.
          "Amaya! Wait!" Hayden yelled trying to grab my arm as I ran out the room. I ran past the bossy lady yelling at poor Henry again; I didn't care who saw me now. I just knew I had to get out of this dreadful palace with it's fancy decorative walls and plumped furniture. From behind me I could hear Hayden yell repeatedly after me his heavy footsteps not far behind. I didn't stop running till I was well past the stone marble bridge that led to the castle and safely in a back street somewhere in the city of Agog.
         I stopped in the middle of the street with it's dirt packed ground. Bending over on my knees I sobbed and heaved for air my heart ready to burst out of my chest.
         Two black boots stopped beside me and without looking I knew they were Hayden's. He gently touched my shoulder, "Amaya..." He said softly.
          I held my hand up pushing him slightly away from me, "Get away from me." I sobbed tears streaming down my face.
          He snatched my hand and brought it to his lips he kissed my hand and held on, "No I'm not going anywhere."
        I pulled away from him, stepping backwards, "Don't you see?! You can't be with me! Everything that happens; every bad thing that is my fault! I'm cursed with unhappiness I'll bring everyone I know down with it's curse. including you so just leave!"
        Hayden stood where he was not moving an inch, "You still don't believe in that you're cursed with the Curse of Unhappiness  do you?"
        I laughed through my tears, "You don't?"
         "Bloody no I don't believe it!" He placed his hands on my shoulders looking me in my watery eyes, "Amaya bad shit happens to people all the time, it's life! Life tears you down at times and makes you unhappy it doesn't mean you're curse. Just means that you've had shitty things happen to you." He gently wiped tears from my face.
       "But you saw what happened back there my own grandfather took me away from my mother and she doesn't even want me."
        "Yeah that is pretty messed up shitty stuff." He with a small grin.
         I sighed, "But Hayden you said so yourself you never second chance anything the Great Wizard says."
        He slowly nodded his head, "True."
        "Then how can you not believe I'm cursed?"
           "Amaya you may be cursed with the curse of unhappiness, but others all around you are having bad unhappy things happen too; so just because you're curse doesn't mean that it'll effect the people you love." He pulled me close giving me a long hug, "I've had bad things happen to me way before I even met you, and being with you my life has gotten better not worse." He leaned his forehead against mind. "I'm not leaving you, princess. Together we'll break both our curses."
       I smiled his words warmed my heart and made me love him even more. "You promise?"
       He nodded his head, "I promise with all my heart." Suddenly we were interrupted as two men laughed foolishly as they swayed on their own to feet and stumbled out of a near by pub. Hayden grinned down at me that adventurous sexy grin of his, "You know what you need princess? Some good old fashion rum."