The Umbra King (Vincula Realm Book 1)

Caius pulled out his keys to unlock his office after his date with Nina. The thought made his skin crawl.

His office was already unlocked, and his hackles rose. Throwing open the door, he stepped inside to survey the room. No one was there, and nothing was out of place. In his haste, he might have forgotten to lock it on his way out.

He ran a hand through his hair and sat in his reading chair as he replayed the night at the pond. It had only been a week, but the image of Aurora as she lost control consumed him, and it was all he thought about.

He was adjusting his pants when his door opened, and Samyaza stomped in. The Angel was large and stomped everywhere, and sometimes Caius thought he felt the entire realm shake.

Sam eyed the king. “You look annoyed.”

Caius sat at his desk and huffed out a breath. “I am annoyed. You’re back from Erdikoa sooner than expected.”

The Angel nodded and took a seat. “I was lucky. Rory’s friends were at her place of employment. It took little effort to get information.”

“Rory?” Caius asked. “Who is Rory?”

Sam’s mouth pulled into a wide smile. “It is what Aurora goes by. It is much more fitting, is it not?”

“And what did these friends tell you about Rory?“ Caius rolled the name around on his tongue, savoring the taste.

Sam sat forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. “They were already looking into her victims.”

“Why would anyone in Erdikoa be looking into the murders?” Caius mused. The cases were solved.

When Sam raised his head, satisfaction blanketed his face. “Because, according to them, she was a good person.”

Caius gave a humorless laugh. “She murdered thirteen people and sewed their hands to their arms.”

Sam nodded. “So far, five people have come forward claiming Rory saved them from one of her victims, and her last victim was an undocumented Merrow with a room full of empty jars in his apartment. They think Rory released the trapped souls.”

Caius sat back. “Come again?”

“You heard what I said,” the Angel said smugly. “Her Aatxe friend will keep looking into the other murders, and I suspect he will find more of the same.”

“Was the Aatxe her lover?“ Caius asked tightly. “He could have been trying to free her.” The thought made him want to destroy his office again.

Sam smirked, and Caius considered strangling him. “They did not say, but you and I both know Adila’s word is final.” He rubbed a large hand down his face. “I think they need to know she was not a monster, for their own sakes.”

Caius nodded, mulling over the new information. If she was saving people, why the disturbing display? He couldn’t make sense of it.

“And her mother?” Caius asked.

“Taken care of by the Aatxe.”

Caius’ frown deepened. How close was Rory to this Aatxe friend? “The reasons she killed don’t matter,” he said after a beat.

Sam stood, unfolding his long legs. “Yes, it does.”

He left, and his cryptic comment hung over Caius like a guillotine.

This woman would be the end of him.

Later, Caius fisted his cock as the warm water of his shower trickled down his chest. Visions of Rory on her knees were at the forefront of his mind, and he imagined kneeling behind her in that silk dress while she convulsed with pleasure. The slits of her barely there dress would give him easy access, made even easier by her lack of panties.

He hated himself for wanting her, and he hated Sam for giving him hope she wasn’t as heartless as her crimes would suggest.

Up and down his hand went, imagining her riding him with slow, sensual movements. His name on her lips as her head fell back, and her long, dark hair brushed her breasts.

His fist moved faster as her lust filled eyes met his, and he groaned, slapping his hand against the cool tile as his balls tightened, and waves of pleasure spread through his body.

Hot strings of cum splattered against the wall and floor, and he stood beneath the stream of water, panting. He wished he’d never seen her face.

As he wrapped a towel around his waist, the venom she spewed at him came rushing back. She hated him, blaming him for her sister’s death, but she wanted him, too. He understood the sentiment.

A knock sounded at his door, and with a single thought, the shadows opened it. Everyone called them his shadows, but they didn’t belong to him. They were the shadows in the surrounding spaces that bent to his will. The very shadows used by the Seraphim to create the realms.

Nina waltzed in with a smile. “I enjoyed our date tonight, Your Grace.” He stared at her with a blank expression, feeling nothing for the woman in front of him.

Earlier, the thought of touching Nina disgusted him, but maybe he could force himself to forget the grey-eyed woman occupying his every thought. His feelings for Rory were hot and cold. He moved between wanting to fuck her and make her jealous and wanting to rid himself of her.

Nina sashayed toward him as she unbuttoned her dress, and he met her halfway, sliding his hand across the back of her neck to thread his fingers through her thick locks. “I’m always ready to fuck that dirty cunt of yours.” The words were a bitter lie.

She dropped her dress to the floor and removed her bra and panties as he watched and dropped his towel. The faster they started, the better. He grabbed her by the throat and walked her to his bed. “On all fours.”

She bit her bottom lip with an excited smile and turned her back to him before falling to her hands and knees. He rarely took her from the front because the faces she made annoyed him.

His palm met her skin with a resounding slap, and she giggled. Her arousal was visible from this angle, but he couldn’t bring himself to run his fingers through it.

Rory’s face flashed in front of him, and his body tightened. Once again, she robbed him of the pleasure he needed to clear his mind. “Fuck,” he muttered as he stepped back. “Get dressed and leave.”

Nina’s head turned slowly, and anger filled her voice. “What did you say?”

“Watch the way you speak to me,” he warned as he grabbed a pair of sleep pants from his dresser. “Leave.”

Her expression was unhinged as she stood. “It’s Aurora, isn’t it? You want to sleep with that vile woman? I saw you watching her tonight.”

The words she spat at him made his insides boil, and he fought to stay calm.

“I do not answer to you.” He took a menacing step forward and lowered himself, so they were eye to eye. “Speak to me that way again, and I will reassign you. You’re lucky I allowed you to live in the palace. Your transgressions were hardly serious enough to warrant extra supervision, yet you requested to stay here, anyway. I will not bat an eye at moving you. Are we clear?”

Her lower lip trembled. “Yes, Your Grace.”

She donned her dress and was out the door before she finished buttoning it. He hung his head, and realized he needed to fuck Rory out of his system, but he knew if he had a taste, she would be his until death.

Rory looked around before bolting up the small staircase leading to her secret room. She was eager to see the sunshine, even though it was night. Her alarm clock and a clean uniform were tucked under her arm as she turned the lock and snuck inside.

Tonight, she would sleep in a soft bed under the sun. When the door was closed, the light left the room, and Rory looked for a light switch to turn on the screens. After finding none, she looked up and covered her mouth in awe.

A beautiful starry sky with a crescent moon replaced the sunshine, and she walked to the bed for a better look. “It must be on a timer,” she surmised, remembering the setting sun from the night before.

Her eyes slid to the bookcase nestled on the opposite wall. Toeing off her shoes, she slipped into bed and relished in the feel of the soft sheets against her freshly shaved legs. Her eyes drifted closed with a contented sigh.

Rory’s eyes opened and stared at the sunshine above her as she burrowed deeper under the covers. “Aether, this is comfortable.”

“It is,” Caius’ smooth voice said from beside her. 

Somehow, she wasn’t surprised he was there, but she didn’t know why. She also knew she was dreaming because a quick glance around showed the floor was covered with a field of wildflowers.

“What is this place?” she asked, looking at him.

He turned his head toward her. “This was my sister’s room when she visited.”

“Adila?”

His head shook slightly. “Atarah. She loved Vincula, but she missed the Erdikoa skies. I made her this room and powered it with my essence.”

“Atarah has been dead for almost five-hundred years,” Rory replied. “The room is always clean.”

“I have a trusted maid clean it. You remember Gracie from the ball,” he said. “I don’t allow any other staff in here. I can’t bear to let it rot.”

“The stairs,” Rory said. “They have not seen feet in quite some time.” She was prodding to see if he would admit to the entrance from his office.

“She cleans my room as well,” he began. “And there is a back entrance from my quarters.”

Rory suppressed her surprise and made a mental note to look for the other entrance.

She flipped over to stare at the sky. “I miss the Erdikoa skies, too.” 

She hated that her brain conjured a nice Caius, one who didn’t kill her sister. At least that was how she felt despite her findings in his office. His face no longer elicited anger. She frowned. Her mind was a scary place.

“What are you thinking?” he murmured. 

“I’m wondering why I don’t hate you here. In my dream, I mean.” She turned to him again. 

His eyes bounced between hers. “Why do you assume this is your dream and not mine?”

The look on his face and the sound of his voice made her body sing. “Why would it be yours?”

The air was charged with sexual tension, and when he spoke again, she fought for air. “Because here, you are mine.”

His words surprised her, but at the same time, they didn’t. Since arriving in Vincula, conflict had warred within her where the king was concerned.

“You cannot claim me,” she argued half-heartedly. “It’s barbaric.”

He reached over and caressed her face. “Let me show you.” She would let him show her anything.

Her breath hitched when he leaned over and kissed her, running his tongue over her bottom lip until she granted him entry, and from there, their want for each other ran wild. He rolled on top of her and hovered over her naked body, and Rory’s eyes widened as his pants disappeared, showcasing the biggest dick she’d ever seen. 

“Seraphim,“ she whispered.

“They cannot save you now,” he said in a rough voice. “Here, you are mine, and no one can keep me from you, other than yourself.” His voice was pleading, and it filled her stomach with butterflies. “Let me have you, Aurora.”

His eyes bore into hers, amplifying her need for him. “I am yours,” she murmured. “Take me.”

“Thank fuck.” A warm hand ran from her neck to the swell of her breast, but his eyes never left hers.

Soon, his fingers were trailing across the sensitive skin of her stomach, making it quiver under his touch. Her hands ran up his chest until they reached his neck, and when she tried to pull him in for a kiss, he resisted.

“I want to see your face as I destroy you,” he rasped, and his words both excited and frightened her. 

A warm touch passed over her clit and moved to her entrance, swiping through her arousal before returning to circle with the slightest pressure.

She hummed at the sensation, and the corner of his mouth lifted a fraction. He alternated between pressured circles and lightly running his fingers south to tease her entrance before returning to her clit, and the back and forth was making her lose her mind. 

She whimpered as she lifted her hips, seeking his constant touch. Still, he continued his languid movements, and she moved her hand down to touch herself.

His hand moved from her core to grab her wrist. “Do not touch what is mine.”

The possessiveness in his voice almost made her come. “You’re torturing me.”

He bent forward and took her nipple into his mouth as his fingers continued to move, and she moaned, thrusting her breasts into his face as he moved to the other. 

“This is too much,” she gasped. “I need to come. Please.“ The quickness with which she was closing in on her climax proved this was a dream.

She felt him smile against her skin, and without warning, he thrust two fingers inside her and hooked them toward her belly as he slowly rubbed them against her insides. Her back arched from the bed as she cried out from the sensation, and he sat up to push on her lower stomach with his other hand.

The second his hooked fingers entered her again and brushed against the spot most men couldn’t find, she exploded. Her body convulsed as her mouth released sounds she’d never heard before. “Caius,” she whimpered as he continued to stroke her. 

He slid his fingers out of her, allowing her to come down from the best high she’d ever experienced. He bent forward and kissed her neck. “Beautiful.” 

“I need you inside of me,” she told him. “Now.”

He sat back and smirked. “I need to eat first.”

She released a whine. He flipped them over with incredible strength, and she straddled his chest. 

“Take a seat, Miss Raven,” he drawled as he licked his lips. 

She lifted herself, moved forward to hover above his face, and hesitated. “I’ll crush you.”

“I want you to break me,” he said and grabbed her hips to pull her down. 

His tongue touched every bit of her he could reach, and her already sensitive area lit up like the Erdikoa sunrise. “Fuck,” she swore as she moved her hips against his mouth. 

A sound vibrated against her pussy lips, and his movements came faster. The sensual feel of his tongue moving through every bit of her folds, pressing into her entrance, and then sucking her clit was something she’d never experienced.

The men she’d been with before seemed like boys compared to the king. His warm breaths against her pussy as he moved her hips where he wanted made her moan as she grabbed her breasts.

Caius pulled her down harder, and between her rocking hips and his frenzied mouth sucking and licking, it wasn’t long before she burst from it all. 

She felt herself clenching as an orgasm ripped through her and cum dripped between her legs. Caius continued to lick until there was nothing left. His hands released her hips, and she rose to scoot backward. 

His mouth shone from her as he looked up with a wicked grin. Sitting up, he grabbed the back of her head and pulled it to his as he claimed her mouth. Unable to help herself, she lifted slightly and reached between them to grab his cock. 

When she sank down, they groaned into each other’s mouths as his wide length stretched her. He moved them to the edge of the bed, so his legs were planted firmly on the floor, and she rocked her hips. 

Their movements were untamed, and they clawed at each other with unchecked desire. Her sensitive breasts brushed his chest with every stroke, and the feel of him moving in and out of her was addicting. He was big, but here in her dream, he fit perfectly.

Here, her body was made for his, and his for hers. She pulled back, and they both looked down at where their bodies met. He stood, and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he kissed her with slow, sensual strokes. 

“Can I keep you?” he murmured against her lips.

She pulled back to look into his eyes. “Forever.”

He pressed her against a wall and thrust with slow, deep strokes. It was dragging out their releases, and while she would miss their bodies joined as one, she needed to come. 

As if reading her mind, his hips sped up, and he ground his pelvis against her clit. Soon, she felt him pulse and grow. She moved her hips faster to match his, and they were both breathing so hard, there was no kissing, only traded breaths. 

“Rory,” he said against her lips. He grunted and buried his head in the crook of her neck as he thrust one last time, sending her tumbling over the edge with him. 

As they stood, connected, and catching their breaths, bells rang around them.

He sighed and gave her one last kiss. “Time to wake up.”

Rory shot up in bed and looked around. She was in the sky room, and her alarm was loud enough to wake the dead. Her hand swatted the stupid thing onto the floor, and she threw herself back on the pillow with a huff.

Her pussy was wet and aching, and she groaned as she rolled over. Of course, she had a wet dream she couldn’t remember. It was bad enough she wasn’t getting any, she didn’t need her own mind teasing her.

With a sigh, she threw back the comforter and stood to stretch. She needed to pee and sneak downstairs to her room undetected, and for once, she was thankful she had third shift.