Library
Maghanap
Home / History / The crown was never hers / The Empty Chair

Share

The Empty Chair

Author: Peri Hayford
last update Petsa ng paglalathala: 2026-11-02 00:20:45

The chair had remained empty for eleven days.

It stood at the far end of the royal council chamber, directly opposite the throne, beneath a portrait of the late King Kwadwo Agyeman.

It was an ordinary chair, made from dark mahogany, with carved arms and a faded leather seat. Yet nobody sat in it.

Not since the king died.

During his reign, it had belonged to the royal adviser, the one person permitted to challenge the king's decisions without first requesting an audience. The position was older
Patuloy na basahin ang aklat na ito nang libre
I-scan ang code upang i-download ang App
Nakaraang Kabanata Susunod na kabanata
Locked Chapter

Pinakabagong kabanata

  • The crown was never hers   The Fourth Name

    PART II — A HOUSE DIVIDEDCHAPTER FIFTEENThe call came at 11:47 on a Thursday morning.Ama Serwah had been reviewing the Queen's correspondence when her telephone vibrated against the polished surface of her desk. She glanced at the screen, expecting another reminder from the finance office or a message from one of the royal household assistants.Instead, an unfamiliar London number appeared.She almost ignored it.Almost.Something about the timing made her answer."Her Majesty's Secretariat. Ama Serwah speaking."There was a brief silence.Then a woman's voice."My name is Akosua Agyeman. I believe I am the daughter your late King gave away."Ama stopped writing.Outside her office, the palace continued its ordinary rhythm. Footsteps passed along the corridor. Somewhere in the distance, a telephone rang. A member of staff laughed before remembering where they were and lowering their voice.But inside Ama's office, everything seemed to become still."I'm sorry," she said carefully.

  • The crown was never hers   A Promise Made in Blood

    A Promise Made in BloodThe Queen returned to the palace carrying a letter.It was only one sheet of paper, folded twice and kept inside a plain envelope. Yet it weighed more heavily on her than any royal decree she had ever signed.She had read it throughout the journey home.You were not born from shame. You were born from love.Those words had followed her through the night.For twenty-five years, she had believed that her father was the only person who could explain her existence. Now she had a letter from a woman she had never known, a woman who had died before she could remember her face.Adesewa had imagined meeting her mother countless times since discovering the truth. She had imagined asking why she had been left behind, whether she had been loved, whether her mother had wanted her.She had never imagined receiving the answers from a dying woman's final words.When she entered her bedroom, Kofi was waiting.He stood immediately.“You're back.”She nodded.He approached her,

  • The crown was never hers   The Woman Without a Past

    The palace had never felt so small.Adesewa stood before the photograph Ama had placed on her desk. Three babies. Three separate bassinets. Three lives that had begun on the same night, yet somehow only two had been allowed to become part of the royal story.She had spent the previous evening reading the hospital records until her eyes burned.The more she discovered, the less she understood.Her father had taken one child.Her mother had kept one.And the third?The third had disappeared into a life built on somebody else's decision.“Your Majesty?”Ama stood at the doorway.“Have you reached Akua?”“She has agreed to come to the palace.”“When?”“She is already on her way.”Adesewa nodded.“Good.”Ama hesitated.“There is another development.”Adesewa looked up.“Go on.”“We have identified the man who signed the discharge note.”“Who?”“Dr Samuel Badu.”Adesewa rose.“He was the one who contacted you?”“Yes.”“Then why did he say he was waiting for twenty-five years? He could have

  • The crown was never hers   The Daughter of the Enemy

    For a long moment, nobody moved.Adesewa stared at the name on the document.Akosua Tandoh.She read it again, hoping that somehow the letters would rearrange themselves into something less disturbing.They did not.“Read it aloud,” she said.Ama hesitated.“Your Majesty?”“Read the entry.”Ama looked down.“Female infant. Born at the Royal Maternity Hospital. Date of birth: the same date as Her Majesty and Princess Nhyira. Initial registration: unidentified. Subsequent registration, three days later: Akosua Tandoh. Father: Chief Osei Tandoh.”Adesewa slowly raised her eyes.“Mother?”Ama turned another page.“Not recorded.”“Not recorded?”“Yes, Your Majesty.”“Who authorised the registration?”Ama examined the document.“The entry bears the signature of the former royal medical superintendent. However, the authorisation stamp belongs to the Office of the Royal Household.”Adesewa looked towards her mother.“Did you know?”Abena was standing beside the chair, her hands clasped tightl

  • The crown was never hers   The Name Beneath the Name

    The first thing Adesewa did was order the palace gates closed.Not permanently. Not officially. But until she understood what had happened twenty-five years earlier, nobody was to enter or leave the royal compound without her approval.The order unsettled the household.The palace had survived wars, political disputes, royal funerals and two changes of government. Yet never before had a reigning queen restricted movement within her own residence.By breakfast, the servants were whispering.By midmorning, the chiefs had heard.And by noon, Chief Osei Tandoh was demanding an explanation.Adesewa did not give him one.She had more pressing matters.“Have you managed to trace Dr Badu's call?” she asked Ama.Ama placed a folder on the desk.“The number was registered overseas. We have requested further information, but it may take time.”“Where overseas?”“Britain, according to the preliminary information.”Adesewa looked up.“Britain?”“Yes, Your Majesty.”“Did he say he was there?”“No.

  • The crown was never hers   The Child Who Was Never Named

    The cemetery had become too quiet.Adesewa stood before her mother's grave—or rather, the grave of the woman she had only just begun to understand. The evening wind moved gently through the trees, disturbing the dry leaves scattered across the narrow path. Somewhere beyond the cemetery walls, the city continued with its ordinary business. Cars passed. People laughed. Vendors called out their prices.The world had not stopped.But hers had.She looked at the woman standing beside her.Akua Mensima.Her mother's younger sister.A woman who had apparently known the truth for twenty-five years and had chosen to wait until now to reveal it.“Your sister's?” Adesewa repeated.Akua nodded slowly.“Your sister had a child that night.”Adesewa stared at her.“Which sister?”Akua's expression changed.For a moment, she looked almost offended by the question, as though the answer should have been obvious.“Abena.”The name struck Adesewa with unexpected force.Her mother.The woman who had raise

Higit pang Kabanata

Maaari mong magustuhan

Galugarin at basahin ang magagandang nobela
Libreng basahin ang magagandang nobela sa GoodNovel app. I-download ang mga librong gusto mo at basahin kahit saan at anumang oras.
Libreng basahin ang mga aklat sa app
I-scan ang code para mabasa sa App
DMCA.com Protection Status