Chapter 6
VINCULA
Caius sat up and scrubbed his face with both hands. There was no soulscape last night, and he was obsessing over why. She was safe, otherwise he would have had a vision, but any number of non-life-threatening things could be wrong.
After getting ready for the day, he slipped through the corridor from his and his mate’s bedroom to his office. He allowed himself to grieve in private but not in front of others. Being a king meant he could not let his problems affect his subjects, even if his life was falling apart.
He also needed to get out of this Seraphim-damned realm to kill his brother before he discovered Rory.
The only way to kill a Royal was by decapitation or stabbing them in the heart. Caius was the only person strong enough to get close enough to his brother to do it. Gedeon would fry anyone else before they reached him, but Caius’ shadows could smother Gedeon’s light.
Asking Adila to lift his sentence was out of the question, but there had to be information about the magic trapping the inmates in Vincula somewhere. He needed to find it.
When he entered his office, Sam was waiting. “What is your plan, Your Grace?”
The Angel stood in front of Caius’ desk, looking pissed. It was a look he’d permanently adopted since Caius sent Rory to Erdikoa.
Sighing, he sat down at his desk. His chair squeaked lightly as he leaned back and drummed his fingers against the arm. “Research. I’m certain there are no useful books in my office, and I need to speak with Rory’s friend who works in the library. I believe her name is Kit.”
Paper crinkled as Sam pulled a small bag from his pocket. Reaching inside, he produced a donut and bit into it.
Caius eyed the pastry as a memory of Rory biting into the sugary food with a taunting smile invaded his thoughts. The corner of his mouth lifted at the image. “Why do you always have food in your pocket? You’re like a walking vending machine.”
Sam smiled for the first time in days. “I am a growing boy.” He sat on the bench, his large wings tucked tight against his back. “What are you researching?”
“I need information on Adila’s power or the magic sealing Vincula from Erdikoa.” He rocked his head from side to side, pondering his own statement. “Or that seals Erdikoa from Vincula.”
He wasn’t sure which it was. The realms were, topographically speaking, mirror images of one another.
One of the history books his parents forced him to read as a child described them as being stacked on top of each other, sky to sky.
It’s why you practically fell into whichever realm you were entering.
He needed his full power to break through the barrier, but without access to Erdikoa, it felt impossible. There had to be a way.
Sam stared at him like he was an idiot. “If you think there is a book accessible to inmates detailing how to break out of Vincula, you need to be reassigned.”
“Just bring me the librarian,” Caius replied crossly and rubbed the slight stubble on his jaw. He needed to shave, but more important tasks consumed his time. Like finding a way to save his mate. “Did you see Rory’s mother this morning?”
Sam shook his head. “She either has not woken yet or is already in town meeting new people. My bet is on the latter.”
Caius smiled inwardly. Lenora was a force to be reckoned with.
Later that afternoon, Sam knocked on the door a millisecond before charging into Caius’ office with Kit in tow. The woman was tall with brown hair and an annoyed look on her face.
“Hello, Miss Cooper.” He’d studied her file after Sam left. She burned a school administration building to ash for banning books and was exactly who he needed.
“Hello,” she returned as she took a seat across from him. “Is there a problem, Your Grace?”
“Yes,” he replied, clasping his hands in front of him.
Her eyes flared. Maybe not. “Is she okay?”
“She’s fine.” He hesitated. “For now. I need your expertise to help make sure she stays that way.” Kit leaned forward, listening intently. “What do you know about mystic abilities?”
She fixed her gaze on him with a dubious frown. “Can you be more specific? That’s a vague subject.”
Caius glanced at Sam. He shouldn’t reveal much to an inmate, but he was on the edge of not giving a fuck. “The Royals’ magical abilities, specifically the Scales of Justice.”
Kit’s brows nearly hit her hairline. “You know more about your sister than I do, Your Grace.”
“I don’t care about my sister.” He sat forward, leaning his elbows on his desk. “I want to know how her power works.”
Kit’s face screwed up. “She has essence like everyone else.” Caius held his breath while the woman sorted out her thoughts. “Actually, the Royals are given powers.”
His face remained a mask of indifference as he tried not to bang his head on the desk. “I meant anything that is not common knowledge.”
She looked up excitedly. “No, Your Grace, I mean Royals are given power. Other mystics are born with a mark behind their ear, and it takes a few years for the essence of their soul to fully develop.”
He sat up straight. “Royals don’t possess marks.”
Kit shook her head excitedly. “And the story of you and your siblings is legendary. The shadow power skipped Gedeon and passed to you, and when you killed your sister…” She had the decency to wince before she continued. “Her power transferred to your brother. That doesn’t happen with mystics.”
Sam shifted into his wingless form and sat beside Kit. “What does this knowledge mean?”
“I’m not sure, but the power isn’t attached to them.” She thought for a moment. “It must be attached to the realm.”
“The shadows,” Caius murmured and glanced at Sam. “The shadows I control make up the realm, and the light Gedeon controls is from the suns.” He furrowed his brow. “Where does Adila’s power originate?”
Kit raised her hand slightly, and Caius signaled for her to speak. “It’s common knowledge that the original Lux Royal was born a Fey. That’s why Royals have the Fey ears,” she said, glimpsing at Caius’ slightly pointed ears.
He considered her, not understanding her point.
She blew out an exasperated breath. “The Scales of Justice ability is basically enhanced Fey ability. Rory once said that when she still had grey-scale sight her soul would whisper the colors of other people’s souls to her.
That is likely how your sister knows people’s perfect sentences,” Kit clarified. “Her soul tells her.”
“What is enhancing her Fey abilities?” Caius mused.
The librarian lifted a shoulder. “Beats me, but her other ability to lock people in Vincula or send them to hell must come from the magic separating the realms.”
Caius leaned on the arm of his chair, unable to sit still. It was the closest thing they had to an explanation, but only the Seraphim knew if it was correct.
“The librarian makes sense,” Sam said finally. “Each Royal’s power is drawn from the essence of the realms, not their own essence.”
“Do Royals have essence at all?” Kit wondered, glancing at Sam suspiciously.
“Yes and no,” he replied. “They receive a fraction of it when they turn six, but they do not inherit the full power until they inherit their positions. They also possess a small amount of their Aeternum’s essence.”
“Do you hear yourself?” Kit asked him. “You aren’t making a lick of sense.”
“I am not licking anyone to get my point across.” He motioned to Caius. “Each Royal possesses a twisted version of their mate’s abilities. It is why Caius can sense black souls without touching them.”
Kit contemplated the king. “That’s not in any book.”
Caius knew she was right, but he refused to give up hope. “You’ve been a great help, Miss Cooper,” he replied, ignoring her question. “If you remember anything else, please let us know.”
She nodded and followed Sam to the door, hesitating before turning back. “If you have someone who can cross into Erdikoa with their memories.” Her eyes slipped to Sam. “Then ask my parents. They’re two of the best historians in the realm.”
Caius smiled tightly. “Thank you, Miss Cooper.”
She gave a curt nod and stepped around Sam to see herself out, and Caius held back a laugh when Sam glared after her.
Shortly after, Caius left through the side door to his office, breathing in deep. With his eyes closed, he called on the shadows in the dark room, imploring them to give him the answers he desperately needed.
They snaked around him, their cool caress encasing him fully as he focused on the power filling his body. He would break the magic holding him here, and then he would kill Gedeon.
Failure wasn’t an option.