Chapter 55
The darkness surrounding Sam disappeared, and Caius reached for Rory again, tucking her into his side. The threat against her died with Gedeon, but he needed her close after seeing her chained to a wall and tortured within an inch of her sanity.
Sam stood with the maid in his arms, and beside him was a man the same size as him, with jet-black wings covering his face, leaving only his mouth and black eyes exposed.
Two large black wings protruded from his back, and another set of wings covered his legs.
The skin on his arms and chin was white as snow, and Caius stared in awe.
“Aemas,” he concluded with certainty.
The Seraph tipped his head. “Umbra King.” He turned to Lauren and held out his arms with a fatherly smile. “Jophiel.”
“Old man,” she drawled, stepping into his embrace.
Aemas’ laugh shook the room, startling the others. “Lora misses you.”
Sadness flickered across Lauren’s features as she stepped back. “Give her a hug for me.”
Dume leaned over and whispered, “Who is Aemas, and why did he call her Jophiel?”
“I’ll tell you later.” Rory shrugged out of Caius’ hold and trotted across the room toward Sam. “Is she alive?”
The others in the room watched with bated breaths. They all saw what she did for Rory and her family. This complete stranger freed Cora’s soul, and if she died, Rory would mourn her like a loved one, and Caius ached at the thought.
The woman stirred in Sam’s arms and looked at him with groggy eyes.
His mouth curled into a tender smile. “Anastasia.”
Rory stared at the soft expression on the Angel’s face with a look of awe. They’d never seen him act this way before.
“Commander,” Anastasia replied with a wry smile of her own.
Caius saw something pass between them, and he knew something was wrong.
“I heard everything,” she told Sam. “I couldn’t wake up, but I could hear you.”
Sam’s eyes closed, and his agony hit them like a wave, almost knocking Caius to his knees again. Anastasia looked around, realizing they weren’t alone, and gestured for Sam to put her down. He reluctantly lowered her to the ground, and she smoothed her bloody dress with a nervous smile.
It was then Caius noticed blood on the sides of her face, hands, and bottom of her dress. That blood couldn’t be from her chest, and he dreaded to know whose it was.
“I’m Stassi.”
Rory crashed into her, throwing her arms around her shoulders, whispering something in her ear. Stassi hugged her back, nodding at whatever she said.
One by one, the rest of the group approached her, introducing themselves and thanking her for her selfless act as Sam stood beside her like a watchdog.
Adila approached last, and when she reached for Stassi’s hand, the Royal turned to pure light. Sam grabbed Stassi and pushed her behind him, and Caius clutched his burning chest as Rory did the same, staring wide-eyed at his sister. The new Lux Queen.
He turned to Aemas, who said nothing. “What’s happening?” Caius knew the answer, but he didn’t understand it.
Adila’s light extinguished, and she stared slack-jawed at her hands, twisting to look at Caius.
Aemas clasped his hands behind his back and walked toward them.
“Gedeon is dead, and the Lux power must be passed on.” Before anyone could ask why it passed to a Royal who already possessed a title, the Seraph said, “Caius is next in line, but the shadows live within him now, and the Umbra King is all he can ever be.”
Caius looked at his hands, remembering the black void that held him captive. “Why didn’t I die?”
Aemas scrutinized him like a bug under a magnifying glass.
“Your hatred for your brother almost consumed your soul and hand-delivered you to Orcus,” he said finally, and Rory clutched Caius’ arm.
“But love has always been the more powerful emotion of the two, and when your mate was in danger, your soul did whatever it had to in order to save her. I believe it forged your hatred into a weapon, and quite impressively, might I add.”
“Why did the Umbra power skip Gedeon to begin with?” Adila questioned their maker. “If he was good enough for the Lux power, why was he not given the Umbra power from the start?”
The Seraph’s eyes slanted to Caius and back to Adila with a sigh.
“Your brothers were two halves of a whole. Their souls were once one, and when they split within your mother’s womb, the soul did not split evenly.
” His dark eyes filled with something akin to remorse.
“There was nothing we could do to change the course of Fate. Caius received the goodness of their soul, and Gedeon received the opposite.”
Caius took the words like a blow to the chest. Even if it wasn’t his fault, he still felt guilty for the unfair hand dealt to his brother at birth.
“Because of this,” Aemas went on. “Moira skipped him, but when Atarah perished, they had no choice but to grant Gedeon the power.”
“What happens to the Scales of Justice power now?” Dume asked. “Does Adila hold two positions?” The Aatxe had yet to move closer, and Caius didn’t blame him. Aemas and Sam side-by-side were intimidating at best.
Aemas glanced at Rory, who afforded him a mere nod in response. Caius was stunned into silence at the implication.
“The power belongs to me,” his mate said evenly, showing little emotion. Like the Scales of Justice during a trial.
“You’re taking the news well,” Lauren observed, crossing her arms with an amused grin.
Rory glanced at her and quirked a brow. “I have been acting as judge and jury for years. Sending black souls to hell is a job I gladly accept.”
“If the Lux power is passed down the line, even if a Royal already holds a position,” Caius asked, not fully understanding how all of this worked. “Why did the Lux power not go to me and the Umbra title to Gedeon when Atarah died?”
Aemas’ wings ruffled with annoyance, almost revealing the rest of his face. “We don’t know, and Moira doesn’t explain herself to anyone.”
“Who is Moira?” Rory asked, but everyone ignored her. She opened her mouth to say something else, but Aemas cut her off.
“It’s time,” he told Sam grimly, who refused to look at him.
“Will I be able to tell my family goodbye?” Stassi asked the Seraph.
What? Caius looked to Lauren, who shrugged back.
“I am sorry, Anastasia,” Sam responded with enough grief and agony that Caius knew they would bear witness to a tragedy.
Stassi’s breath hitched, and she clutched the bloody fabric over her chest. “Do you mean to leave me?”
The way they looked at each other, you’d think they were… “She’s your Aeternum,” Caius guessed, appalled at the prospect of his friend leaving his mate behind.
Rory, Adila, and Lauren made various noises of surprise, and Stassi’s eyes glittered with tears. “I don’t know what that means, but he said I’m Sam’s mate,” she said, pointing at Aemas. “And I know what a soulmate is.”
“In a sense, yes,” Aemas replied. “It was his mother’s doing.”
“Mother?” Rory parroted, and when Aemas nodded, she pointed accusingly at Sam. “The Coopers were right. You’re the son.” Her eyes moved to Lauren, who smirked back. “And you’re the knight.”
Aemas looked between Rory, Lauren, and Sam. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and unfortunately, we don’t have time to discuss it.”
Caius noticed Aemas did not speak as formally as his son, and he regarded his friend with intrigue.
“Wait,” Stassi interjected. “Why can’t I go?”
“Because Sam signed a contract before leaving Aravoth,” Aemas replied with a look of regret. It was apparent he didn’t like the situation any more than they did. “And it would be cruel to put you through that pain.”
She faltered and looked at her mate. “What contract?”
Caius watched the heartbreak unfold when Sam stepped forward and spoke softly. “I agreed that if I ever returned to the aether, I would marry a royal heir from one of the other nine kingdoms and take my place on the Aravoth throne.”
Stassi recoiled and staggered back.
“Then don’t return,” Rory said hotly. Her hostility surprised Caius, and he instinctively moved forward to position himself between her and Sam. “She is your mate. Do you know what leaving will do to her?”
“Do you know what it will do to me?” Sam shouted back as he took a step forward.
The power within Caius registered Sam as a threat, and he attacked, slamming him to the ground. Sam could decimate him, but the need to protect his wife was stronger than fear.
“Never yell at her again,” he warned with a dangerous edge to his voice. “Be thankful she cares for your mate enough to risk the wrath of a fucking Seraph.”
Sam’s blue eyes dimmed, and Caius watched the light drain out of him. He stood and grabbed Sam’s hand to haul him up.
“Your mate isn’t the only one who will miss you,” Caius said quietly. “We all will, and Vincula won’t be the same without you.”
Sam nodded. “I will miss you, too, brother.”
Rory pushed Caius aside and threw her arms around Sam’s middle. “I’m sorry I yelled at you.”
When she let go, he smirked. “No, you are not.”
Smiling with tears in her eyes, she lifted her middle finger, laughing when he grabbed it. His smile faded. “Take care of Caius.”
“Take care of yourself,” she returned and lowered her voice, briefly glancing at Stassi. “I’ll make sure she is taken care of.”
“Thank you,” he replied and hugged her again. Rory saw Lauren approach out of her peripheral, and her heart sank. They came to the realms together. “Are you leaving, too?”
Lauren waved her off. “Nice try. You can’t get rid of me that easily.”
Rory’s shoulders sagged with relief, and she stepped back to give the two Angels privacy. Well, the Angel and the Seraph, though technically, Seraphim were a type of Angel.
They spoke low, their words for only them to hear, and when Lauren backed away, Rory swore she saw a tear trail down her cheek.
Adila stepped forward next. “You stayed by my brother’s side when I could not and believed me when you had no reason to. For that, you have my undying gratitude.”
Caius shifted next to Rory, and she grabbed his hand, giving it a squeeze.
“You do not need to thank me,” Sam replied. “Do not abandon him again.”
Rory bit her tongue to keep from laughing.
Sam was right to hold her accountable for the way she treated Caius.
Adila’s reasons were sound, but they were also weak.
She could have found a way to communicate with Caius without Gedeon finding out, but she was a coward.
At the very least, she shouldn’t have stopped trying.
Dume was next, shaking Sam’s hand as he thanked him for helping Rory. They didn’t know each other well, but Dume held Sam in high regard and respected the Seraph tremendously.
With one last goodbye to their friend, they stepped into the hallway, allowing Sam and Stassi to say goodbye without prying eyes.
Everyone’s heart should be granted the solace of breaking in private.
Aemas walked into the hallway and asked the group to rejoin them in the office.
He was still speaking, but Rory ignored him, unable to take her eyes off Sam and Stassi. They stared at each other like two star-crossed lovers, and Rory’s heart stuttered in her chest.
“My son has revealed his true form, as have I. By decree of the Fates, the memories of all lesser mystics in both realms will be wiped of having ever seen us,” Aemas announced, snagging Rory’s attention.
Her mouth fell open, and Anastasia looked around. “I already lose my memory when I leave,” she protested.
Sam closed his eyes at her words, and Rory lost the battle with her emotions. Tears streaked through the crusted blood on her face.
“Dear girl, I am truly sorry,” Aemas apologized, looking genuinely upset. “You will not remember us, even within The Capital walls.”
The look on Stassi’s face would break the heart of the blackest soul. Her panicked eyes pleaded with the two Seraphim. “No. Please, don’t do this. Don’t make me forget him. I won’t say anything; I swear it!”
Rory stepped forward and gently curled her arm around Stassi, pulling her to her chest.
Aemas brought his fist to his mouth, giving himself a minute before speaking again. “It is not my decision. But fear not because when your memories are gone, so will be your hurt.”
Rory watched Sam flinch and look away when Stassi’s legs gave out while she begged Aemas to change his mind.
She leaned into Rory, and they cried together, but where Stassi’s pain would soon be gone, Rory’s would stay, remembering this day for the rest of her immortal life.
Caius moved to stand beside them, drawing Sam’s attention. “We’ll meet you in the aether one day,” he promised him, and Rory’s heart broke more as she watched her mate lose his best friend.
With a final nod, Sam and his father disappeared, leaving the others to pick up the pieces.