Authors: J. R. Ward
Lover Unleashed
Table of Contents
GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND PROPER NOUNS
ONE - PRESENT DAY AQUEDUCT RACETRACK, QUEENS , NEW YORK
TWO - CALDWELL, NEW YORK TRAINING CENTER, THE BROTHERHOOD’S COMPOUND
NINE - ST. FRANCIS HOSPITAL CALDWELL, NEW YORK
BY J. R. WARD
THE BLACK DAGGER BROTHERHOOD SERIES
Dark Lover
Lover Eternal
Lover Awakened
Lover Revealed
Lover Unbound
Lover Enshrined
The Black Dagger Brotherhood:
An Insider’s Guide
Lover Avenged
Lover Mine
NOVELS OF THE FALLEN ANGELS
Covet
Crave
NEW AMERICAN LIBRARY
Published by New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
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First published by New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, April 2011
Copyright © Love Conquers All, Inc., 2011
All rights reserved
REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Ward, J. R. (Jessica Bird)
Lover unleashed: a novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood/J. R. Ward
p. cm.—Black dagger brotherhood; 9)
eISBN : 978-1-101-51347-7
1. Vampires—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3623.A73227L695 2010
813’.6—dc22 2010052840
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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IN LOVING MEMORY OF
MARGARET BIRD
DEDICATED TO YOU:
You,
a “brother” indeed.
I think you are right where
you are supposed to be—and
I’m not the only one who feels that way.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
With immense gratitude to the readers of the Black Dagger Brotherhood and a shout-out to the Cellies!
Thank you so very much for all the support and guidance: Steven Axelrod, Kara Welsh, Claire Zion, and Leslie Gelbman.
Thank you also to everyone at NAL—these books are truly a team effort.
Thank you, Lu and Opal and all our Mods, for everything you do out of the goodness of your hearts! And to Ken, who puts up with me, and Cheryle, who is the Virtual Signing Queen.
With love to D—and eternal gratitude for oh, so much . . . especially Kezzy. Skittles have never been so sexy.
And with love to Nath, who is with me every step of the way, patiently and with kindness.
Thankies, Auntie LeE! Everyone loves you here—and that’s a bigger list now, isn’t it.
Thank you also to Doc Jess, who is, and shall remain, one of the smartest people I’ve ever known—I’m so lucky you put up with me. And to Sue Grafton and Betsey Vaughan, who round out my Executive Committee.
None of this would be possible without: my loving husband, who is my adviser and caretaker and visionary; my wonderful mother, who has given me so much love I couldn’t possibly ever repay her; my family (both those of blood and those by adoption); and my dearest friends.
Oh, and the better half of WriterDog, of course.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND PROPER NOUNS
ahstrux nohtrum
(n.) Private guard with license to kill who is granted his or her position by the king.
ahvenge
(v.) Act of mortal retribution, carried out typically by a male loved one.
Black Dagger Brotherhood
(pr. n.) Highly trained vampire warriors who protect their species against the Lessening Society. As a result of selective breeding within the race, Brothers possess immense physical and mental strength, as well as rapid healing capabilities. They are not siblings for the most part, and are inducted into the Brotherhood upon nomination by the Brothers. Aggressive, self-reliant, and secretive by nature, they exist apart from civilians, having little contact with members of the other classes except when they need to feed. They are the subjects of legend and the objects of reverence within the vampire world. They may be killed by only the most serious of wounds, e.g., a gunshot or stab to the heart, etc.