Chapter 49: The Sacred Pool
"Good," Ethaniel Graves said, his raspy voice echoing over the stone plaza. "The inner gate will be sealed at two in the afternoon."
The blind Inquisitor turned, his templars marching behind him in a tight formation.
The morning assembly dispersed.
Cadets broke off into small groups, whispering and looking back at Leo as they walked toward their classrooms.
Noel walked away with a broad, self-satisfied grin, humming softly to himself.
Valerie lingered for a moment, glaring at Leo with sharp suspicion before turning on her heel.
Seraphina did not look back.
She walked quickly toward the Cathedral dorms, her head lowered and her hands clutching her robes.
Leo stood in the courtyard until the plaza emptied.
He returned to his quarters, waited out the midday hours, and prepared for the second bell.
At two o’clock sharp, the bronze bell tolled twice.
Leo walked down the long, spiraling stone stairs deep beneath the central Cathedral nave.
The air grew warm and damp.
At the bottom of the stairs, two Church templars stood before a massive iron gate.
Seraphina was already waiting inside the archway.
She held a folded white ritual gown in her arms, her head down, avoiding Leo’s eyes completely.
The templars pulled the heavy iron gate shut behind them.
Clank.
The iron lock turned from the outside.
Heavy footsteps faded up the stone staircase.
They were completely alone.
Leo turned and looked at the underground chamber.
Thick white steam drifted across the room, rising from a wide circular pool cut directly into the white marble floor.
Hot mineral water bubbled up from an ancient spring in the center.
Warm moisture clung to the rough stone walls, catching the orange glow of iron torches mounted on the pillars.
The room smelled of mineral salt, hot steam, and clean spring water.
Seraphina stood near the edge of the pool, her body completely rigid.
"Take off the robes, Seraphina," Leo commanded.
His voice was calm and flat, cutting through the quiet hiss of steam.
Seraphina flinched.
Her fingers tightened on the folded white linen in her hands.
"Lord Leo," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the bubbling water. "The Inquisitor said you would stand by the gate."
"The gate is locked," Leo said. "Take off the robes."
Seraphina swallowed hard.
She knew she had no choice.
With trembling fingers, she unclasped the silver brooch at her throat.
She slid the heavy white outer robe off her shoulders, folding it neatly and placing it on a dry stone bench against the wall.
She set her silver prayer beads on top of the cloth.
She was left wearing only the thin white ritual gown.
It was made of single-layer linen, loose and sleeveless, falling down to her bare ankles.
Her bare shoulders and collarbones were exposed to the warm, humid air.
She took two slow steps toward the marble edge.
She dipped her right foot into the hot water.
A soft, trembling sigh slipped past her lips as the heat enveloped her skin.
She stepped down onto the submerged marble stairs.
First step.
Second step.
The clear water rose up to her knees, then to her thighs, and finally to her waist.
The moment the hot water touched the white linen gown, the fabric vanished.
The white cloth turned completely translucent.
It plastered itself tightly against her skin, clinging to the soft curves of her full hips and the dip of her narrow waist.
The pale pink tips of her chest showed clearly through the wet, clinging fabric.
Seraphina looked down at herself and gasped.
She crossed her arms over her chest, her cheeks burning bright scarlet.
She waded deeper into the pool until the steaming water reached her collarbones, hiding her exposed body beneath the rippling surface.
She closed her eyes tightly.
She pressed her palms together under the water, whispering rapid, desperate prayers.
"Goddess Lumina, cleanse this vessel," she prayed in a soft, broken whisper. "Purge the darkness from my blood. Wash away the heat in my core."
She repeated the words over and over, trying to drown out the memory of Leo’s heavy hands on the stone altar.
Splash.
The sound of displaced water echoed through the chamber.
Seraphina’s eyes snapped open.
Leo had removed his heavy dark coat, leather boots, and dark shirt, leaving them on the dry stone ledge.
He stood on the edge of the pool in only his dark trousers, his broad, muscular chest and strong shoulders glistening with beads of condensation.
His dark eyes were fixed on her.
He stepped down onto the submerged marble stairs.
One step.
Two steps.
The water parted around his waist as he entered the hot spring.
Ripples traveled across the steaming surface, pushing against Seraphina’s chest.
Seraphina’s breath caught in her throat.
"Lord Leo... stop," she whispered, backing away through the water. "You cannot be in the pool. This is a sacred cleansing."
Leo did not answer.
He walked forward through the chest-deep water with slow, heavy strides.
The distance between them vanished in three seconds.
Seraphina backed up until her shoulder blades hit the smooth, wet marble wall of the pool.
She had nowhere left to run.
Leo stopped right in front of her.
His bare chest was less than two inches from hers.
The sweet, heavy warmth of his Half-Incubus mana radiated through the hot water, wrapping around her skin like a second current.
Her heart hammered wildly against her ribs.
Her knees felt weak under the water.
Leo raised both hands, resting his palms against the marble wall on either side of her head.
He looked down into her wide, panicked sapphire eyes.
"You came here to wash away my touch," Leo said.
His voice was quiet, deep, and steady.
"I... I came to cleanse the void miasma," Seraphina stammered, her chest rising and falling rapidly against the water. "The Inquisitor ordered it."
"There is no void miasma in your blood, Seraphina," Leo said.
He leaned down slightly, his lips stopping an inch from her ear.
"You know what is burning inside you," Leo whispered.
Seraphina squeezed her eyes shut, a helpless whimper catching in her throat.
She knew.
The fire in her lower belly was not darkness.
It was the lingering memory of his fingers, his mouth, and the overwhelming climax he had forced out of her body on the altar.
Under the steaming water, Leo’s right hand moved away from the wall.
His large, calloused palm reached down through the current and took hold of her slender waist.
His fingers pressed firmly into her soft hip, pulling her forward against his rock-hard frame.
The heat of his skin burned straight through the soaked, transparent linen.
"Ah!"
Seraphina gasped out loud, her hands flying up to press against his broad, wet chest.
Her fingers trembled against his bare skin.
"Leo... please..." she pleaded, her voice shaking with desperate guilt. "Someone will hear us..."
Leo’s dark eyes looked straight into hers.
"No one is coming, Seraphina," Leo said.