Page 75 of The Umbra King

“Maybe that’s why she sent me here, too.” Rory lay back down. “When I walked into the judgment chambers, I was prepared to die.”

“I’m glad she did.” The look on his face suggested the words weren’t supposed to slip out, and he lay down to stare at the sky.

She watched him closely, trying to figure him out. He was a walking contradiction. “Why?”

His mouth tipped in a half smile. “Whom would I torture if you weren’t here?”

She chuckled and lay back with him. “Why do you come here?” she murmured. “You could have screens installed in your quarters, if you wished.”

“I miss my sister. Every day, I miss her.” His voice was quiet, and her heart went out to him.

Her hand twitched, wanting to reach for his. “I miss my sister, too.”

They fell into a comfortable silence that soon turned into a comfortable slumber.

Rory’s alarmclock startled her from a serene sleep, and she swatted at the nightstand next to her, only the clock wasn’t there. She looked sideways and saw Caius sit up and glare at the clock on his own nightstand.

Hitting the bell, he picked up the clock and stared at it. “Why is this set for three?”

“So I could leave before the staff woke,” she said sheepishly.

He twisted the dial, placed the clock back on the nightstand, and lay back down. “Go to sleep, Miss Raven. The sun will wake you. If anyone says anything to you, I’ll take care of it.”

Smiling to herself, she plopped down on her pillow and drifted to sleep.

When the sun rose, Caius was gone.

Rory arrived at work early,dressed in a white blouse and black skirt that hung loosely around her hips and hit a couple of inches above her knees. In place of her heels were flats, and she looked like a cute grade school teacher.

Walking around the palace and through town in her heels killed her feet, and she couldn’t bring herself to wear them today. Instead of sitting at her desk, she walked around the room to inspect the books lining the many shelves.

She wasn’t a reader, but Cora was. Her twin’s favorite books always had adventures where young heroines saved the entire realmand defeated evil. Rory teased her endlessly for always having her nose in a book, but now she would give anything to sit quietly with her sister as she read.

“Do you like to read?” Caius asked as he walked into the room.

She glanced over her shoulder before turning back to the shelves. “I don’t, but my sister liked adventure books.”

Caius stood directly behind her, and his breath grazed the top of her head. He lightly grabbed her elbow and led her to another section, pulling down a book from a high shelf. “This was my favorite as a child.”

She read the title and turned to him. “Cora had this book, too. She must have read it a million times.”

He smiled. “She had good taste.”

“I didn’t realize it was that old,” Rory said mindlessly.

Caius glared before he crossed the room to his own desk. “I need you to secure Nina’s new living arrangements today. Most of the inmates live downtown in the inmate apartments. The manager who runs the housing is a legion officer named Linda. She will assign the apartment and give you the information you need. Nina’s inmate number needs to be updated to her new apartment number. Linda can handle that as well,” he said before looking up. “And pick up lunch for us on your way back.”

Rory hoped she was the one to deliver the news to Nina. The look on the woman’s face would keep Rory on a high for an entire week. “What do you want for lunch?”

He rattled off his order, and Rory moved to her desk to write it down. “And Miss Raven?” She stopped with her hand on the doorknob. “No personal visits.”

There was the asshole she was used to. “Wouldn’t dream of it, Your Grace.”

Caius decided makingRory wear skirts was a terrible idea. He wanted nothing more than to spread her out on his desk and ravage what she was hiding under the billowy fabric.

He adjusted his cock in his pants. A part of him thought she was coming around, slowly deciding he wasn’t a vile creature who went around murdering women, but it could still be an act.

Her hatred used to be strong, but an activated bond was stronger.

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