The Heir: A YA Fantasy Romance (The Heir Series: Book 1) Read online

  “Yes.”

  “What—how?—I thought I just made it up,” I sort of laughed. “That is incredible.” I stood dazed. I wondered: how on earth is something like this, even possible?

  “There is more,” he continued, pressing his forehead to mine. Suddenly, words entered into the thoughts in my head, and then, directly into my soul. “There is so much more, darling.”

  I gasped. Did he just communicate with me in my mind?

  “Yes, I just spoke to your mind and to your soul, Emma,” he answered, touching my cheek.

  “How is this possible?” I asked, dazed. “How long have you known.”

  “For a long time. Your soul is very loud,” he smiled.

  “You know my thoughts?”

  “Only the ones you share. I cannot go into your mind and look around if that is what you are wondering. This music that you hear between us, it’s your soul’s melody. It lets us speak to each other. You talk to me a lot through it, through the melody of your soul. Like, when you wanted me to ‘kiss’ you, in the car,” he said, quoting me. “It was always hard to know when the right time was to tell you. I know you have been through a lot, especially with your parents, and things with Ryker have been confusing for you—”

  I smiled at him, and thought in my mind and soul the words: You are rambling, Shad. I have rubbed off on you. And I pushed the thought to him through the melody that I then recognized inside of me, because finally, I had a name for it. It wasn’t something I made up, it was a part of me. As this realization hit me, a warmth seemed to crawl up inside of me—a peace.

  He blinked as shock lit up his face. “You are amazing, do you know that? There is no better compliment than being more like you,” he laughed, “I will probably never get used to hearing your voice inside my soul,” he whispered.

  “I just—Shad, this is so amazing. I don’t understand how something like this is even possible.”

  “It isn’t an uncommon thing where I come from—I mean, what we share is rare. It’s usually just emotions, not actual words or language. I have never heard of melodies being so overwhelming and perfectly clear like this.” He cleared his throat.

  “Where do you come from, Shad?” I asked, confused and not even sure what to think.

  “You remember what you told me tonight about your dad, and how he believed there were other galaxies with planets that had people living on them, like on Earth?”

  “Yeah—”

  “Well, your father was right, Emma. I am from another planet—named Terra.”

  .

  Other

  “YOU MEAN, YOU ARE—A—YOU are—um—an alien?” I asked in pure shock. “Wait, you don’t have green skin and black eyes and a spaceship. Did you steal someone else’s body? I mean, like—are you wearing someone else?” I cringed. “That is so disgusting.” I paused. “Or someone’s skin—that is gross, but how could you be from another planet?” I knew I was rambling again, but I did not care.

  “Oh, yes. I have seen those depictions in some of your movies. No, we are very much human, just many hundreds of thousands of years older, and I promise, Emma, this is my own skin.”

  “You are older?” I asked, confused.

  “We age differently on Terra. It takes us longer to reach a single Earth year. I am seventeen in Earth years, but on Terra, I am ten times that.”

  I shook my head. “So, you are an old man?” I scrunched up my face.

  “Do I look like an old man to you, Emma?” He asked, walking to me.

  “It is simply that our atmosphere is a little different. Earth is full of pollution or else Earthlings would live longer lives similar to us.”

  “So—other Earthlings can talk, like we can—through their souls?”

  “No, it is strange that you actually have a melody.” He looked at me with admiration.

  “Am I from Terra, too? What is a melody? Is that what you and Ryker were talking about before?” I gasped and thought about my life and my family. There is no way that I would not have remembered living for that long on another planet—wait, am I brain-washed? Was my mind wiped? Is that why I cannot remember everything?

  “I am not sure, Emma; you are special—that is certain.”

  And no one wiped your mind or brain-washed you—that I know of, I heard his calm voice within my soul.

  “Hey, get out of there. Wait, is this why you cannot be with your family?”

  He nodded.

  “They are on Terra, and I am stranded here.” He looked sad for a moment but then looked up at me. “You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. You brought light into my dark world.”

  “You did that for me,” I responded in amazement. He kissed my nose, and his forehead rested on mine. The song, or melodies swirled around us as his touch sent electric waves through my body. I didn’t know how long we stood there, but I loved every single second. I looked at Shad’s digital watch. It was ten minutes past midnight.

  “Oh, shoot! I have to go inside,” I gasped, pulling away, blushing. “Can we talk tomorrow?”

  “Yes, of course we can, Emma. Thank you for going to the dance with me—” and for not being afraid of me because I am an alien, he spoke into my soul.

  I smiled. “You’re welcome—” I answered. He nodded his head as I placed a hand on the handle of my door. I turned it, opened the door, looked at him one last time, went inside, and then shut it. I leaned against the door, and wondered if I should pinch myself because it must have been a dream. Other planets are out there—with human life? Shad is from another planet? It is all so unreal, so why do I believe it?

  I FOUND MYSELF IN THE attic that night. I had so much on my mind, and I didn’t even take off my dress as I made my way up the ladder. I could not even consider sleep. I pulled over a small box, much smaller than the others. Inside, I found a photo album. The album had pictures from the time when my parents were dating. There were pictures of them on a picnic and at a museum. I flipped through the pages, both laughing and crying, imagining the moments that they had shared. I turned to the last page in the album. It was a picture of my mom and dad, side by side. My dad was looking at my mom. His eyes were a fiery green, and he looked at my mom as if she was everything he had ever wanted in life. My mom just looked at the camera and was laughing. I pulled the picture out of the plastic protector and held it closer to my face. My father had always adored my mother. I knew that. But this, this was something that was rare to catch in a photograph. He looked as if he would move the moon for her. I noticed then, for the first time in my life, that my parents looked the same there, in that old photograph as they did last year. I moved the picture closer to my face. I went through the album, and sure enough, in every single picture, my parents looked as young and as youthful as the day they met. I flipped the picture around to the back and noticed a date written there in black ink. December 2, 1915. I pulled out the other pictures and flipped them over; many of them were dated long ago, yet some were more recent, and they were all sprawled out in front of me. How could this be? What does this mean?

  Shad had told me that on the planet where he came from humans take a much longer time to age. Could it be that I, too, was related to these people from another world? What if my parents had been from Terra? Could that be why I had a melody-thing? I flipped through more pages, and some pictures fell out. I picked them up and saw me as a baby, a toddler, a child, and a pre-teen, and in every single one of these pictures my parents looked the same. That had to be something. It didn’t add up any other way. Shad said that having a melody wasn’t something that earthlings had, so why did I have one? He said only people from Terra—or whatever—did, and they were hundreds of thousands of years more advanced than us. So why could I talk to Shad like that? There had to be a reason. Also, why had my dad told me so many stories about the stars? Why else would he make up stories of other people living on planets lightyears away? It all shifted into place at that moment. I stood up, and my head hit the ceiling, and I forgot for a
moment where I was.

  I took the picture and climbed down the ladder; if anyone had answers, it would be Mary. I found her in the living room. I walked over to her, stopping directly in front of the flat screen and held out the picture for her to see.

  “I took that picture,” she said with a smile. She took it? Was she also from Terra?

  “Why didn’t my parents age,” I whispered.

  She gasped. “What?”

  “Why don’t you age, Mary? There is a date on the back of this picture. They never aged. Why?” I asked, placing hands on my hips.

  “We have very good genetics,” she answered, without making eye contact.

  “Am I from Terra?” If I thought she was shocked before, it was nothing compared to how she looked at that moment.

  “Did Ryker tell you?” She asked, standing up, taking my shoulders in her hands.

  “Wait, so it’s true. How does Ryker know about this, and I do not?” I was seriously expecting her to tell me that I was being dramatic and that, of course, aliens were not real, and I was a normal human and a normal girl from California, with normal parents.

  “Emma, I was trying to find the right time to tell you this. I did not want to burden you before because I knew how hard things were on you, but you seem to be more and more like yourself, so I thought maybe it was a good time the other day, but I could never say it because I did not know how to bring it up. Your parents said that I would know when it was the right time.” She took my hand and guided me to her room. I was in a daze and could only watch and listen to my life playing out before me as if I were some character in a book. She pulled open her top dresser drawer and revealed a locked box. She pulled a key from around her neck, which I never knew existed, and unlocked it. There were two things inside that box: one piece of paper with the name Emma written on it in my dad’s writing and a small pin with some kind of metal design that looked like a star. It was foreign to me; I could not make out what it was. She handed me the letter and closed the box, locking it. Before I opened the letter, she put a hand over mine.

  “Before you read this, Emma, there is something I need to explain to you.” She motioned to the bed, and we sat.

  “Is this—all real? It is really hard to believe, Mary,” I whispered.

  “I know, sweetheart. I am sorry.” She had a tear trailing down her cheek, and she quickly brushed it away. “I might as well spit this out because I will never get this right.” She shook her head, held both my hands, and said: “Emma, you are from Terra—another planet.” She whispered, looking around as if someone was watching us.

  “How can this be? I was born here, in California. How could I be an alien?”

  “No, Emma—I mean, yes, you were born here, but your parents, they are from the planet, Terra.”

  I stood up. “Mary, Shad is from there,” I returned, looking out her window. I knew that being an alien was impossible, but at the same time right then, it seemed to be possible. Next, everyone will tell me that fairies really exist.

  “Yes, I could hear his melody; I knew right away who he was. Ryker said that he is one of the good ones. There is so much to tell you. Your parents wanted to raise you as an earthling for many reasons, mostly so that you would fit in and find a place here in this world like they did. Our DNA is pretty much the same as Earthlings, so they were planning to never tell you, letting you go to college, find a husband, get married, and have your own family.

  “I am a human,” I stated with shaky breaths.

  “Yes.”

  “You, too?” I turned and looked at her. Even though I guessed it was true, I still could not get over the shock.

  She nodded. “Yes, dearest. I am also Terraling.”

  “Terraling, like Earthling? You just add ‘ling’, and suddenly it’s a whole planet of people, huh?” I was rambling again. “How did you all, I mean, what happened to make you all come here?”

  “Terra has for decades been—” She held a hand to her forehead, then continued, “having some troubles, and we believed in the law of the Ancients, or I guess what you may relate to as God figures, who foretold of dark and troubled times. Anyway, your father’s brother, Tarick, wanted the throne for himself; your father was next in line to be king. Tarick, killed his father, your grandfather, and then he put your father into the dungeons to spend the rest of eternity, to rot there. Your father believed in the Ancients, too, you see. But somehow, your father made it here, to earth.”

  “Did you and my mother come with him?” I asked, realizing that above all the reason and doubt I had felt earlier, I believed that story, and I needed to know more.

  “No, sweetheart. Your mother and I were sentenced here many years before your father arrived. We are from a different kingdom on Terra from your father. We also believed in the Ancients and were also thrown into the dungeon after a horrible, gruesome battle. Battles only happened on our planet thousands of years ago, creating a darkness. But, it started happening again, creating a second darkness, but the Ancients saved our ancestors from that. I believe they can save us again.” She looked at me and a tear dripped down her face.

  “I—this is real, Mary? Really?”

  She nodded and walked to me, holding the letter with my name on it.

  “Your parents told me that if they ever died that you would be in great danger. Your melody is one of the strongest melodies I have ever heard, Emma. It is like a beacon to everyone around you. There is a prince from our world who has been searching for strong melodies and taking them. Your father and mother were able to keep you from him, but with them passing, Ryker and I don’t know exactly who he is, but if he was to find you, we know it would not be good. Your father and mother did a wonderful job of shielding your melody, but without them it is almost impossible. They told me that I should show you this and tell you of your birthright.”

  “Birthright—” I asked with a squeak.

  “Yes, Emma. You are the heir to the first kingdom of Terra. You are the only child of Prince Lamont, the prince who was the son of the last rightful king.”

  “What are you saying, Mary?” I gasped, clutching my chest.

  “You are a princess, my dear—a real and true princess of Terra,” she smiled and left the room, saying softly, “I will let you read that letter now.”

  My head was spinning. I was completely and utterly confused, and yet, there was a part of me that believed every word. Me, a princess? That was just insane. I unfolded the paper in my hands and smoothed it out. It was a short letter, which was a disappointment, as I browsed over the page; then I read:

  Dearest Emma,

  I am sorry that we are not here to tell you this; we thought we were doing what was best for you in giving you a normal Earthling life. You know nothing of Terra, and that is because we did not want you to long for it the way we do. Mary has told you everything, I hope, as we have asked her. Ryker, also, I suppose, has told you, too.”

  I paused, Ryker? I re-read that line, and paused again. Suddenly, all his worry over my safety over the years clicked. He knew about me the entire time? He—is he even really my friend? Or has he just been working for my father, the prince, to keep an eye on me. I felt sick as I continued to read:

  “If we have left you, it is most likely because our greatest fears were realized, and we were discovered and killed. I am so sorry that we are not able to be there with you, Emma. You are no longer safe on Earth. No one can shield your soul’s melody more thoroughly than your mother and I, which puts you in danger. Ryker and I for years have searched and searched for the portal inside some cave that we traveled through long ago to get to Earth. We simply cannot remember where it is. Ryker thinks he is close to finding it, so I hope that is true, and I hope that as soon as you read this, you can be back to where it is safe—on Terra. Terra is a beautiful place. As I told you about the stars, Terra’s sun is Earth’s North Star. You see, dear, I was always aware that you watched the stars; I knew you longed for them in a way, and I knew you didn’t know wh
y. Now, you know. You long for home. If you think about it, I know it will shift into place for you and not be so hard to understand and accept. Things are not easy on Terra. The people are at war, and they may not even know it. Corruption tried for so long to creep into our people, and eventually it has. Terra currently may not be the same place I remember, but there is a chance for you to defeat the evil that is slowly corrupting our people on Terra. I know your melody could not be so strong for nothing, dearest. You are stronger and have more ability than you think. I have faith in you, Emma, and if you return home, I know that you will be an amazing queen one day. I truly believe that your soul is the brightest soul ever to be born, and it calls for home. I know the Ancients blessed you with it for a purpose—to heal our world. Let your soul sing Emma. Ryker will show you the way.

  I will always love you,

  Father

  I PUT THE LETTER DOWN on Mary’s bed and sat there, staring at the ink. I was an alien princess. I was going to die if I stayed on Earth. Ryker, my parents, and Mary all knew this, and they had not told me. It sounded crazy and insane—but even as I tried to convince myself that it could not be true, something resonated from within me, and I knew from the bottom of my soul that it was true, and that scared me the most. I suddenly realized why Ryker thought my parent’s accident was probably not an accident at all. It was true; they were murdered by one of the Terralings who did not believe in these Ancients, or these Gods of theirs, as Mary called them. I heard a knock on the door and realized that I had been sitting and staring at the paper for a long while. I wiped away my tears.

  “Come in.”

  Mary poked her head in and then walked to me. “I am sorry it all worked out this way.”

  “Ryker—?”

  She nodded, as if she knew exactly what I meant. “So I was the only one who didn’t know.”

  “It wasn’t like you knew what Terra was, honey, and missed it; you are in every other way an earthling. You are just an earthling whose parents are from another planet.”