Soul Unbound (Key to the Cursed Book 3) (26 page)

The stench of death roused him from his sleep.
Different. More pungent than usual. “You should have never come…” Set rose, the
boat rocking beneath his feet. “Cousin.” He rapped the long oar against the
petrified wood.

“Set.” Nebt floated down onto the black planks,
the fetid odor preceding her.

Whispers of her treachery floated in the currents
of the river by the messengers of death. “Go back to where you came from. I am
not interested in whatever you’re peddling.” He shoved the oar into the water.
The staff hit the irregular bottom made by the bones of the unworthy. The water
rippled around the boat, the serpents anticipating their next feeding. If Nebt
failed to leave him be, he might just throw her in for shear amusement.

“Oh, come now.”

Her cold hand slipped against his forearm. The
scars along his skin tingled. He sneered, knowing her powers were useless
against him. His soul had been taken long ago as had his freedom. Not without
cause, of course. “Like I said, neither you nor Menthu have anything to offer
me,” Set said, knowing Apep had sent her to entice him. She stank of his evil.
Set had battled the Dark Lord long enough to know the demon’s methods of
seduction. Offer something irresistible to lure him.

Nebt retracted her hand and smiled. “Menthu has
outlived his usefulness.”

“At your doing, I am sure.”

“At his own.”

“Well, thank him for the imposed vacation.” Set returned
to his seat and leaned back against the stern, intent on returning to sleep. No
souls would be arriving tonight, nor tomorrow or the next day. “Get off my
boat.”

“Asar owns this boat, just as he owns you.” She
stared at the shackle penetrating his wrist and tethering his hand to the oar.

He refused to let his anger ignite over her
insult. Apep was losing his edge if he thought offering Asar’s heart would
tempt him. Set had already been there and done that. The memory of his
brother’s death at his hands brought a smile to his face, so worth Set’s
punishment. “Find someone else to bother.” The link in his wrist jerked with
the river serpents gnashing their fangs against the oar. Restless and hungry.

“You have grown weak, Set.”

He chuckled. She could not be farther from the
truth. Battling Apep night after night for five thousand years had made him
stronger than ever. The Dark Lord was cruel and unrelenting. Set welcomed the
challenge, bled for it. He cared not that he delivered righteous souls to the
afterlife. He would not give Asar the satisfaction of victory even in his
exile.

“May the gods be with you, dear cousin.”

“I am offering your freedom.” Nebt held out her
hand and chanted.

Pain screamed through Set’s arm. Red blood dripped
from the link entering his skin and bones of his wrists. The droplets flowed
down the wooden groves into the water. A caldron of water boiled and heaved
around the oar. The handle jerked from Set’s grip and tore the linkage from his
flesh. Set bellowed and lurched forward to recover the oar. He snatched the
wood but was unable grip tight enough before it perished into the black depths.

He leaned on the edge of the boat. “Why, woman, have
you done this?” He covered his torn flesh with his palm. Red blood flowed
between his fingers.

“Freedom can and will be yours.” Nebt smiled.

“
Odjit.
”

“Call me what you may, I can help you regain your
immortality.”

“And Apep wants me to serve him in exchange,” Set
snarled. He hated Asar, but he despised Apep with a fury that drove him night
after night to fight the serpent. The Lord of Darkness had whispered dark
secrets to Set before that fateful day he killed his brother. It irritated Set
he had been so easily manipulated. If he had done it his way, he would be on
the other side of those gates.

“Apep does not need to know about any of this.”

“Right.”

“I do not answer to him.”

“Nor did every other soul before you. And where are
they now?”

“Do you want this opportunity or not?”

“If Apep is looking for a way out, I cannot help
him.”

“I know someone who can, although she may not know
it yet. A pretty little thing, just your taste. A demi-god.”

It sounded far too easy, even to Set’s ears.
Nothing came without a cost. “What is the catch?”

“Kamen is the female’s protector.”

“He is dead.” The serpents of the water had devoured
Kamen’s soul. Set had witnessed it with overwhelming satisfaction, especially
after Kamen betrayed him.

“You dismembered Asar, yet he still lives. What
makes you think Kamen is any different? He is your twin after all.”

“Asar is not known for his mercy. My brother included.”

“On the contrary, Kamen is free to go where he
pleases, unlike you. Even fancies the demi-god I mentioned.”

“How do I find her?”

“I will take care of the details, just be ready
for her.”

“What do I do with her?”

“Make sure she does not make it to Aaru. She is to
remain here in Duat.”

Set narrowed his eyes on Nebt. The demi-god would
not last a minute in here. It was the Dark Lord’s realm, only meant for the
cursed souls to wander. Siravants patrolled the banks looking for any that had
lost their way. Nebt wanted this female dead or perhaps alive for some nefarious
purpose—either way Apep would surely capture her.

Set would be a fool not to notice the change in
the last several months. Aaru’s sky had brightened and the temperature warmed
while Duat became darker and more desolate. Power resonated from the other side
of those golden gates. Lighter and airier, almost Creation like. Asar always
had a soft heart when it came to females.

Nebt turned and stepped onto the empty dock.
“Enjoy your respite while it lasts. Soon the gates of Duat will be open. You
are either with us or against us. Decide before the eclipse. Apep will only
show mercy to his followers. The rest will be destroyed.”

Set squeezed his fist, renewing the flow of blood.
Hatred welled up until his chest bubbled over with venom. “If Kamen is not
dead, he will be.”

Please turn the page for
an exciting

sneak peek

of the next novel in

Jean Murray’s

Key to the Cursed Series

Soul Unleashed

Winter 2015

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 loose,
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 blood coated Kamen’s face and chest. Dried,
it tightened 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.

Uncontrollable rigors racked his body and an
overwhelming nausea clenched his gut. 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, Kamen staggered into the wall. Digging
his fingertips into the claw marks scored into 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 leaver. 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
warm his frigid skin. The smell 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. His brother just needed to utter
the word. 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. “Hey!”

Kamen grimaced as she battered the door. 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 door and yanked it open. He
met the sapphire depths of Kit’s radiant gaze. Black brows arched over her
brilliant blue eyes. Her gaze 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 was the fact he found it unbearable
when other males took notice.

He 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 Kamen had gone on with
nothing
for a very,
very
long
time. Gods help Kit if he ever set it free. Controlling the beast was all or
nothing.

“Hey, where are you going? I need to go back to
the human realm to receive the weapon’s shipment,” Kit called, breaking her
stunned silence.

“It can wait.” Kamen shoved his legs into his
pants. Thankfully, his arousal waned in favor of the tremors threatening to
buckle his legs. The fact she could stimulate him even in his miserable state
confounded him. Movement in the mirror drew his attention upward.

She had pursued him into the bathroom. Feet spread
and hands on her hips, she looked like a dam against a Tsunami.

This Tsunami unfortunately came with teeth and
claws.

A warm breeze followed her from the hall, bringing
her scent to his raw senses. He hissed out his clenched teeth, her obstinacy whittling
his patience.

“Another time, Kit,” he growled and pulled a fresh
shirt over his head. The confrontation only awakened the beast further.

Her full red lips puckered into a pout, and she
cocked her head to the side. Her long black mane slid over her shoulder. He
tracked the black blue river of hair clinging to her soft white skin.

“Lilly wants me to receive the shipment and
oversee the initiation. Give the new girls reassurance or some shit like that.
Honest, I’d rather sleep the afternoon away, but orders are orders.” She blew
out a bubble from the gum she was chewing and popped it in his face.

“Asar has called for me. When I am done, I will
take you.” The growing ache in his chest announced Asar's summons and
impatience at Kamen's delayed arrival. He shifted around her, continued out the
door and down the hall.

"Do you have to do everything he says?"
Kit snapped, rounding the door.

Kamen stopped and glared at her over his shoulder.
"Yes and I suggest you do the same."

“I'm stuck here like some god’s damn prisoner,”
she muttered under her breath.

Anger rushed up his spine. Infuriated, he pivoted
and in one stride loomed over her. “Asar has provided you and your sisters
protection. Broken the law to do so. Your presence has put Aaru at risk, yet
Asar has welcomed you as one of his own and you dare question his
generosity." Unable to temper his response, his voice boomed in the space
between them.

Kit flinched, a frown creasing her lips. Being
this close to her, the shadow of her eyes seemed darker than usual, the
blueness dimmer. Her skin paler.

“Fine.” She jerked back and stormed off down the
hallway.

He cursed. For the first time in centuries he lost
his temper. Whether still raw from his feeding, he hated himself. Even if it
was slight, it did not take much to raise the beast inside. He could not afford
to lose his focus after all this time, especially on a human female who hated
him.

A wave of dizziness slammed into him. He wavered
on his feet and grabbed for the veranda wall. Closing his eyes, he struggled to
hold his strength. The door at the end of the hall opened and Asar stepped out.
His brother’s curse carried down the stone corridor. Kamen shoved himself off
the wall and walked stiff legged to the door Asar held open.

“Sorry, brother. I would not have called you if it
was not important.”

Kamen nodded. Asar owed him no explanation but
always insisted on it. Kamen slowed when an ache settled between his shoulder
blades. Sensing the demon blood in the room, his blood stirred in his veins. He
locked eyes with the Goddess of War, a half breed. Creation and demon, no less.
Siya was a recent addition to their growing Underworld family. Not to mention,
she was the same goddess who had him bound, beaten and thrown into jail for
treason.

Siya met his stare without blinking. Not many
dared to look him in the eye. Despite her fortitude in meeting his gaze, she
slid a protective hand across her protruding belly. Bomani, her mate, moved
closer and placed his palm on the small of her back.

Bonded males, all of them were overly protective
of their females. Family or not, Kamen was a threat. Forcing his eyes away from
the couple, Kamen looked down at the map at the center of Asar’s desk.

Bomani left Siya's side and held out his hand.
“Uncle.”

Kamen grabbed Bomani’s forearm in a warrior’s
handshake. His gaze gravitated to the balcony. His other nephew, Bakari, stood
with arms crossed over his chest, just below the Mevt daggers sheathed in his
holsters. Bakari nodded and stepped into the cavernous office.

“Thank you all for coming,” Asar said and walked
to the large gold chair behind the grand desk. “Siya has identified weaknesses
in our defenses, significant enough I want them addressed now. It goes without
saying, we have too much at stake.” Asar’s eyes gravitated to the growing baby
in Siya’s belly. Asar’s first grandchild. The first offspring of the Underworld
in over four thousand years, but his brother’s statement had far more meaning.

The daughters of the Mother Goddess. Kit being one
of the three. Lilly, the eldest, had married Asar. Kendra, the petite redhead,
had conquered Bakari’s soul. A rough path for each, but better and stronger for
it in the end.

“No one has ever breached our walls,” Bakari said,
drawing closer to the desk.

“So we thought until Nebt,” Bomani countered.

“Still, she created the breach from the inside,
not out.”

Bakari’s words sent an ache of guilt through
Kamen’s chest. How could he have missed Nebt’s betrayal? Kamen’s powers were
fed by evil, and yet he failed to sense it on Nebt. The Goddess of the
Underworld, a cousin to both Kamen and Asar, had schemed to overthrow Asar’s
rein. Almost succeeded, if not for Kendra and Bakari. Sadly, Nebt had escaped
before justice could be served. Kamen would not hesitate consuming her soul
when the time came. Especially after all Nebt had done to her own family and
Inpu, her husband.

Kamen looked around the room, wondering who else
was tainted by the Dark Lord. Would he sense it if they were?

“Let Siya speak, then reserve your judgments,”
Asar stated.

Siya nodded and leaned over the map. “We all know
Apep wants to breach the human realm. The Dark Lord knows the Creation Pantheon
cannot win the war without the Underworld legions leading the charge. As each
of you are aware, Apep has targeted the attacks on you, while leaving the
Creations essentially untouched."

"Creations think this is all some joke. They
sat idle while the revens overran the human cities. Even after the siravants
slaughtered the Creation Protectors, they still do not see the threat. What are
they waiting for?" Bomani's warrior voice echoed in the room.

"Apep to march across their rainbow
bridge," Asar said with a shake of his head.

“Kendra believes Apep will wait for the lunar
eclipse, when the forces that separate the realms are at their weakest,” Bakari
said.

“That is only a month away, the same day the baby
is due.” Siya turned to her mate.

No one commented, but Siya’s absence from the
battle would be a huge loss to their side. A force to be reckoned with, she had
led the charge in the first war. A bloody battle to the end, the Underworld had
lost thousands before victory was declared.

“Unfortunately, we cannot wait on our cousins to
act. We have an obligation to protect the humans at all cost." Asar sealed
his statement by meeting every gaze in the room.

"And, Aaru?" Bomani asked. "What of
our home?"

“No way. The gates are unbreachable. Nothing
passes.” Bakari palmed the gods' death dagger at his chest.

“Nothing is impenetrable, Bakari. Everything has
its breaking point. We just need to figure out what that is before Apep does,”
Siya countered.

“If he has not already. Apep has become far too
bold, using one of our own blood to attack us. I would have never thought Nebt
could be turned against us." Asar rubbed his temple.

Siya tapped the map. “We make a stand in the
motherland of Egypt. The window to the realms will open there. The lunar forces
will change the flow of the Nile for only an hour, plenty of time for Apep to
escape. He will need to control all three realms, Creation, Human and
Underworld, to succeed. The Dark Lord will not risk defeat again.”

“Why are you so certain?” Kamen asked, suddenly
compelled to speak. He leveled his stare at the Goddess of War, still
suspicious of the daughter of the enemy, Menthu. If anyone was a risk, it was
her.

“The Underworld River connects all three realms.”
She traced the snake like river with her fingertip. “Human, Duat and Aaru. It
is what I would do. My father would advise Apep to do the same. Attacking from
two points is much harder to defend. Extends our resources, weakens the main
battle.”