Soul Unleashed by Jean Murray

Synopsis:

FIGHTING FATE HAS CONSEQUENCES
Kit Carrigan desperately wants to wake from her nightmare of an ancient war raging among gods and demons. Her denial only brings her closer to truth—the end of the world is near. She must secretly use her gift of sight to protect her sisters and prevent a war there is no hope of winning. But, an ancient evil seeks to use her against the ones she loves. Only her protector, the most feared god of the Underworld, can change her fate. Her destiny to destroy everything she ever loved.

WHEN CONTROLLING TEMPTATION IS NOT ENOUGH
As the Devourer of Souls, Kamen has spent his life in solitude for fear he might lose control over the cursed beast inside. Now war is threatening to destroy his home, his Underworld. Victory lies in a woman whose gifts hold the key to destroying their enemy. But protecting Kit, the reckless black haired beauty, forces him to face the side of himself he fears most. For the beast hungers for her soul. One taste and her fate is sealed.

Live Now!

page-divider

Don’t forget the rest of the series!

Three sisters, Lilly, Kit and Kendra, struggle to fight a plague that has decimated humanity.

But, in their quest for a cure they awaken a dark formidable force like nothing their world has ever seen.

The Underworld gods will either help them or destroy the world as they know it.

Love and sacrifice is all that stands between them.

Only together will they survive, but that’s if they don’t kill each other first.

Soul-Reborn-Ebook-683x1024 Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000040_00022] 26844563

View the whole series!

page-divider

Read an Excerpt from Soul Unleashed!

Two sides to every soul, one you see on the outside and the one hidden deep—kept close to the heart to protect against pain and hurt. Hidden not for his own safety, but the safety of others. If he lets it lose, pain and misery will come to those whose souls cross his path. He will consume them without a care.

The curse of the Devourer—forever wanting something he can never have or risk destroying it. Forever alone.

Black dried blood coated Kamen’s face and chest, tightening his skin like a torturous vice. Shivering with the cold that had taken refuge in his tissues, he rolled onto all fours and pressed his forehead to the jagged stone.

Feeding quenched the hunger deep inside him, but the side effects left him miserable. It took his body several hours to days to process the evil he consumed. Some feedings cost him more than others.

The more evil, the more suffering. His burden. His curse as the Devourer of souls.

Last night’s took a punch. Theris, the god’s soul he consumed, had been touched by Apep, the Lord of Darkness himself. Evil in the most deprived sense. Fetid and rich with maleficence.

Acid burned through Kamen’s muscles, robbing him of his strength. His legs shook with the effort to stand. Despite how weak he was hours after waking, his power would multiply and carry for several days before he was forced to return to the chamber.

The beast inside had to be sated.

Disoriented, he staggered into the wall. Digging his fingertips into the claw marks scored in the stone, he gathered his strength. Gods, he despised this place. Despised what he had to become to pay penance for his sins. Yet, it was a just punishment for what he had done. His brother, Asar, had been far too merciful.

Kamen tracked along the stone, blind in the darkness. He traced the hieroglyphics, leading him to the narrow hole, just wide enough to fit his hand. The locking mechanism disengaged, shifting the counterweights and rolling the large boulder.

A chill brushed his bare skin and raised the hair on the back of his neck. He looked over his shoulder and scanned the dark chamber. Despite the emptiness, the chill stayed with him. For a moment he hesitated before releasing the lever. Last night had been worse than he thought.

Shaking it off, he climbed the crypt’s passageway. Each step jolted the bones in his body. Warm air filtered down but failed to heat his frigid skin. The stench of fetid blood churned his stomach. Exhaling a long breath, he released some of the tension in his shoulders.

He shifted the granite door and then pushed the slab back into place. Rubbing at his eyes, the detail of the elaborate black marble of his bathroom came into focus and then blurred again.

Kicking on the faucet, the scalding water of the shower pelted his already tender skin. He stood frozen underneath the spray, willing his body to warm. Temperature, unfortunately was not the cause of his hypothermic state. Contaminated with lust, envy, greed, gluttony and wrath, all the cold and desolate emotions left his soul absent of anything decent and warm.

After four thousand years, he forced himself not to think about the toll on what was left of his soul. He accepted his punishment and assumed the role of the Devourer, hoping to maintain some semblance of a normal life, but that had been short lived. Unstable, especially in the beginning when his control was less than adequate, the beast would zero in on the dark thoughts of other gods. More importantly, their fear.

Over the years he withdrew into the shadows, opting to exploit his role as Asar’s enforcer. It took Kamen awhile to realize instead of fighting his curse, he should embrace it. His acceptance of his fate made the isolation bearable.

Loud banging distracted him from his misery. He leaned his head against the shower wall, willing the unwelcome guest away. His head throbbed with each crack on the heavy wood.

No one dared question or cross him.

Except—his eyes gravitated towards the door. The energy on the other side stirred another craving in his chest, one that would just have to go hungry.

“Hey, wake up, lazy bones. I am not getting any younger out here,” Kit Carrigan yelled and battered the door. “Hey!”

Kamen grimaced. The female had the patience of a starved lion with a fresh kill. With no more than a towel wrapped at his waist, he stumbled to the entry and yanked the door open. He met the sapphire depths of Kit’s radiant gaze. Black brows arched over her brilliant blue eyes as they drifted down his wet torso to the floor. Water dripped onto the sandstone, forming small puddles at her feet.

Her red full lips parted slightly. A warm exhaled breath tickled the skin of his bare chest. He forced himself to ignore the press of her round breasts against the small leather top and the shadow dipping low between them. Her flat abdomen taunted him from the gap of her halter to the low rise of her leather pants. Shit, he hated the fact she flaunted her flesh in front of him so freely. Worse, he found it unbearable when other males took notice.

Kamen forced the uncomfortable need into a dark recess of his soul. Taking advantage of her distraction, he turned his back and forced his legs back to the bathroom. His craving for the woman was manifesting into something more than want. The growing ache in his groin was a stark reminder he had gone on with nothing for a very, very long time. Gods help Kit if he ever set it free.