Lenora shook her head. “How would he find out? You could have kept it between the two of you, and no one would have been the wiser.”
Caius pinched the bridge of his nose, not wanting to dive into a history lesson when they had more pressing issues to address, but he owed her an explanation.
Had he married Rory, Gedeon and Adila would have known instantly. “When aRoyalmarries, there is something called the nova creatura, orawareness, for lack of a better word, that runs through the others.” Lenora looked at Sam for confirmation, and he nodded.
“It happens when the Lux heirs take their thrones, but only the reigningRoyalsexperience it,” Caius explained. His parents encouraged him and his siblings to read history books on theRoyals,and he could recite them by heart. His siblings never cared much for it, but he’d always enjoyed reading and devoured them all. “I didn’t feel the nova creatura when Atarah took the throne because I was not yet the Umbra King, but I felt it when Adila became the Scales of Justice. When Atarah died, Adila and I both felt her power transfer to Gedeon.”
He searched Lenora’s eyes and implored her to understand. “It wasn’t something I could risk. Had we married, Gedeon would have known anotherRoyalwas blessed, and nothing would have stopped him from tracking her down.” Caius massaged his forehead, attempting to erase this nightmare of his own creation. “And if he knew she was important to me, he would try to take her from me.”
“She could have stayed here,” Lenora objected. “If she could pass between realms as aRoyal, she could have stayed here with you until your new contract was fulfilled.”
“And when she went to visit you?” he challenged. Nothing would have kept Rory from seeing her mother. “Or how about the fact that Gedeon can pass between realms, too? Vincula is the first place he would look. My power is not at its full potential while I’m locked away. I am powerful, but the magic keeping me here blocksmy ability to tap into the shadow power of Erdikoa. Without it, Gedeon is stronger than I am.”
Lenora huffed. “There is no light in Vincula, meaning your brother only has access to one realm. How is he more powerful than you?”
“There is light,” Sam corrected her. Caius was thankful for his friend. He understood Lenora needed answers, but he wasn’t in the right head space to give them. “You cannot have dusk without sunlight. Though you can barely see the Vincula sun’s light through the shadows, it is still here.” Sam nodded at Caius. “Gedeon has access to both realms, and Caius does not. He is weak.”
Caius shot daggers at his friend. He wasn’tweak, just weakerthan usual.
“You really thought this through,” Lenora remarked, and when Caius nodded, she ran a hand through her grey hair. “Why does your brother hate you so much?”
“He has since my power manifested.” Caius thought back to the pure hatred he saw on Gedeon’s face every day of their lives growing up. “He felt jilted that the shadow power skipped him. He thinks I stole it from him.” Gedeon was the older twin, and theRoyalpowers always went to the same child.
The light power went to the oldest Lux heir, making them the Lux ruler; the shadow power went to the second oldest, making them the Umbra ruler, and the power of justice went to the youngest, making them the Scales of Justice.
There had only ever been three Lux children until he and his siblings. Identical twins were technically one child split into two in the womb. It was assumed there would be no more children after the twins were born, and when their mother became pregnant with Adila, it shocked everyone.
Their parents assumed Atarah would be the Lux Queen, Gedeon the Umbra King, and Caius the Scales of Justice since they were the three oldest. EveryRoyalchild inherited their power at six years old, and when the twins turned six and Caius inherited the shadow power while Gedeon inherited nothing, it stunned everyone.
Lenora spoke, pulling Caius from his memories. “I know you only want to protect my daughter, but make no mistake, Gedeonwillfind out about her, and when he does, it’s up to you to save her.” The weight of her words crushed him. “I don’t know why he killed my little girl all those years ago, but I know he has already scarred Rory once. Please, don’t let him do it again.”
Sam adjusted his stance awkwardly. Neither of them wanted to tell her their suspicions. “We think we know why he killed Cora,” Caius said grimly.
She clasped her hands tightly in her lap. “Why?”
Caius couldn’t get the words out because he knew they would wreck her.
“Cora was Gedeon’sAeternum,” Sam answered for him. “We believe he killed her and kept her soul so that he couldn’t have children with her. If he doesn’t have children to pass the three Royal positions on to, he will rule forever.”
Lenora’s wrinkled hand shook as she covered her mouth. The men stayed quiet while she collected herself, and when she lowered her hand, her features hardened. “Why couldn’t he just stay away from her? She was a child!”
“We don’t know,” Caius admitted. “These are just theories, but my guess is that Gedeon already felt the pull toward her and didn’t want to chance giving in to the bond.”
Lenora stood abruptly, almost knocking over her chair. “I would like to be taken to my room, please.” Caius wished he could snatch his words back and tell her he didn’t know why his brother killed her daughter.
Sam walked into the hall and returned with a maid. “Gracie, please take Lenora to her chambers.”
Caius put Rory’s mother in the finest guest room they had instead of the apartments. It was the least he could do.
“Yes, Your Grace,” the older maid said and waited for Lenora to follow her.
Once they left, Sam’s large wings flared slightly. “We must tell Rory at some point,” he said.
Caius ignored him, tired of this discussion. “How is she?”
TheAngel’sface fell. “She is not our Rory, at least not yet. What little light she had in her left when she learned of Lenora’s incarceration.”
The words made Caius clench his fists as he fought for control again.
