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. “TheRoyals’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, theRoyalsare 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 meanRoyalsaregivenpower. 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. “Royalsdon’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 LuxRoyalwas born aFey. That’s whyRoyalshave theFeyears,” 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 enhancedFeyability. 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 herFeyabilities?” 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 theSeraphimknew if it was correct.
“The librarian makes sense,” Sam said finally. “EachRoyal’spower is drawn from the essence of the realms, not their own essence.”
“DoRoyalshave 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 theirAeternum’sessence.”
“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. “EachRoyalpossesses a twisted version of their mate’s abilities. It is why Caius can sense black souls without touching them.”
