Page 114 of The Umbra King

“Royalscannot see souls asFeydo, except for the Scales of Justice. Even then, Adila can’t see the souls of otherRoyals; only the accused.” He shifted under her. “I couldn’t see all souls, only black ones, and in their presence, I felt weighed down. No one knew, and I was too afraid to tell anyone because I thought something was wrong with me.” He glanced down at her. “It makes sense now.”

She chewed her lip, trying to make sense of the way he was staring at her. “What do you mean?”

“As I learned when I was older,Royalsdisplay a bit of theirAeternum’sabilities.”

“It’s my fault,” she whispered. “I wish you’d been able to see the beautiful souls instead. They’re a sight to behold. I was obsessed when my abilities manifested and could see colors for the first time.”

Her breath stalled.Her grey-scale sight.She shot up and twisted to look at Caius. “Cora had grey-scale sight.”

His head moved slightly before he sat up, too, coming to the same conclusion she had. “She was Gedeon’sAeternum.” He scrubbed a hand across his jaw and cursed as he threw the blankets back and paced the length of the room.

“Why would he kill her? Isn’t he supposed to protect her?” Rory asked incredulously.

Silence stretched between them before Caius stopped, his face lighting up with understanding. “He wants to stay in power.”

“He wants to stay in power?” Rory parroted. “What does that have to do with Cora?”

Caius cursed. “If she is hisAeternum,and he trapped her soul, he would never have children, thus he would never give up the throne. Neither would Adila and I, for that matter. That son of a bitch.”

“No,” Rory gasped. “He can’t mean to keep her soul in a jar for all eternity. That’scruel.”

Caius’ face was grim. “He murdered his own sister andAeternum. Cruel does not begin to describe him.” He sat on the edge of the bed, looking tired.

Rory reached for him, needing something to anchor her, and his hand landed on top of hers. “We’ll free her soul,” he swore. “Even if he kills me before I kill him, I’ll find her first and set her free.”

She crawled into his lap and laid her head against his shoulder, glad when he wrapped his arms around her. There they sat, much like she and Cora had so long ago, and comforted each other until they fell asleep.

36

Caius stoodin the kitchens and shoved as much sugary food in his mouth as he could. After Rory fell asleep, he snuck off to clear his mind. When Gedeon killed Atarah, Caius wasn’t surprised her power passed to his brother because there was no one else for it to pass to.

The Lux rulers could only have three children, and when his mother got pregnant with her fourth, everyone was shocked. Caius and Gedeon were technically one when conceived, and identical twins were a rarity in the realms.

When the twins were born, everyone assumed Gedeon would be the Umbra King since he was born first, making him the second born, and Caius would be the Scales of Justice.

But when the twins turned six, Gedeon had no abilities other than that of aFey, minus the soul seer ability, and Caius could control shadows. When Adila turned six, her abilities to see souls manifested, and as she aged, the seed of justice grew.

Gedeon always felt jilted, and by killing Atarah, he took the highest-ranking position among the three. His selfishness was unmatched, but to kill his ownAeternumwas more than Caius could comprehend.

“You haven’t been down here in a while,” Sam said from the dark.

Caius shoved a spoonful of cake in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed. “When did you get back?”

Sam tucked his wings to weave around the kitchen island. “About an hour ago. I came to grab a fresh pitcher of water,”

“A night maid could have gotten that for you,” Caius pointed out.

Sam walked to the sink to fill the pitcher in his hand. “No need to bother them when I can do it myself.” Once the pitcher was full, he shut off the water and turned. “What’s on your mind?”

Caius set down his dish and leaned against the counter with his arms folded across his bare chest. “I think Gedeon killed Rory’s sister.”

Sam mirrored his movements, leaning back. “I figured as much. There is no other reason she would have seen you in Erdikoa only a decade ago.”

“Cora also had grey-scale sight.” He met Sam’s stare, and understanding passed between them.

“And you think she was Gedeon’sAeternum,” Sam concluded.

Caius sighed and ran a hand through his unruly hair. “I do, and I think he did it to prevent himself from losing the throne. He intends to rule forever.”

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