Soul Unleashed (Key to the Cursed Book 4) (18 page)

“I don’t know about this. It is much too soon.”
Kamen pursued Kit down the beach. It had been only four hours since emerging
from the chamber. Kit had adjusted to her transformation far too quickly. It
took him centuries to step outside the chamber. She did so in less than an
hour. Her recovery was extraordinarily fast. The paleness of her skin darkened
to a healthy glow, and the shadows beneath her eyes receded.

“We will take things slow,” she said and walked to
the edge of water, enough that the waves kissed her bare feet. “If I start
sprouting fangs, you can transport me back to the chamber.”

If truth be told, he had recovered far quicker
than usual, which made him extremely uneasy. The bonding with Kit had an
unexpected effect—the beast was more settled, less agitated, allowing him to
make love to her several times without incident. Perhaps the spell above the
bed held his control, but they would not be protected outside of his room.

The light touch of her fingers on his chest drew
his gaze down. She traced the hieroglyphics of a feather and the sun imbedded
over his heart. Her symbols. A feather for justice and judgment. The sun glyph
was a very powerful symbol, one of life but also destruction. All the more
reason to keep her safe.

He stared at the falcon and moon on her chest.
Never in his life did he expect to share his symbols with another. Share his
soul.

“It doesn’t feel real,” she voiced the very
thought running through his head.

He frowned, realizing not all of his thoughts
should be heard. “Yes.”

“Does this mean you’ll finally make sense to me?”
She cocked her eyebrow.

Releasing her, he stepped back. “Perhaps.”

Kit clamped her hands on her hips and glared at
him. “You are back to one word answers. I thought once we were bonded you would
open up to me, but I sense none of your emotions. You’re just as closed off to
me. Not to mention your heart doesn’t beat when you are close to me. Not one
beat.”

He hated to admit she had a point. Asar’s heart
beat when Lilly was close, as did Bakari’s with Kendra. Not once did his heart
stir with Kit. “I told you, I was different than the others.”

“Stop using the beast as an excuse.”

Excuse? Kamen’s temper flared. “You have no idea
what I have been through. What it means for me to be out here.” He gestured
towards his surroundings. His life had everything to do with control. No
control. No freedom.

“No, I don’t because you don’t say a god damn word
about it. Of all people, Kamen. You can share it with me. Especially now that I
carry the beast.”

He jammed his fingers through his hair and took
several steps away. He had no words for the pain he experienced every day,
fighting for control over the beast. Keeping it caged, when all it wanted to do
was tear out of his chest and destroy. Guilt rode through him, knowing he had
condemned her along with him.

“See, that is what I am talking about. Any time we
talk about you, there is nothing but silence. I need to understand you,
understand what I will become. That’s what relationships are about.”

He turned his glare her way. “Relationships? Are
you the expert now?”

Kit frowned and shrugged her shoulder. “I know a
hell of a lot more than you, obviously.”

Kamen snorted.

“Okay, so I don’t know everything, but I know it’s
a two way street. You know everything about me. I know nothing about you, other
than you have been alone and hurting for a long time.”

He opened his mouth to argue, but it was
pointless. She had seen him at his worst. Stayed with him, soothing his agony.
The flames eased as he looked at her. The light breeze had loosened the pins in
her hair and spilled her long black mane over her shoulders. “I do not want to
hurt you.”

Kit walked towards him and lay a palm on his
chest. “You keep saying that, but you have done nothing but protect me.”

“You are not the only one Apep has tainted. A
piece of my soul belongs to him.” And, always would. “Asar has suffered because
of it. Died at my brother’s hands because I was too weak to fight it.” Kamen
exhaled a long breath as if he had been holding it for centuries.

“Are you still that same person?”

“I will always be that male.” His guilt would
always be there, regardless if Asar forgave him long ago. He was a criminal. A
traitor. Disgusted with himself, he pulled away and walked further down the
beach. When he’d suggested they take a walk, it was to test her control, not
talk about him.

Kit followed and placed her hand on his shoulder.

He jerked away, not wanting her sympathy or comfort,
but wanting to slip back to the chamber and accept his punishment. He did not
deserve Kit’s love and affection. Accepting it meant he had forgiven himself.
Inpu was right, he was afraid to have Kit love him. Only with her would he find
peace. Peace, he was not ready to let himself accept.

Warmth filled the space next to him. “You have
helped me so much. Saved me when I needed it the most. Let me save you.” She
wrapped her fingers through his.

The scent of roses penetrated his senses, making
him dizzy. He resisted the urge to fill his lungs completely or else succumb to
her spell. Fighting it, he shook his head. “You cannot save me.”

“Then let me set you free.” She slipped her hand
against his thigh.

He closed his eyes and hissed out a breath through
clenched teeth. One touch and his control was crumbling. He grasped her wrist
to stop her ascent. “You do not know what that means, Kit. I cannot do this
here.”

“Why not?” With her free hand she grazed the back
of his leg. “I know you want to.”

“We already had this discussion. I cannot be too
far from the chamber. Nor can you.” Despite his resolve, he could not stop her
from tracking seductive circles against his flesh.

“Yes, because the beast will take control over
me.” Her eyes flashed bright, challenging him. She twisted her wrist free and
tugged at the tie on his waist.

“Stop.” He staggered back, breaking her hold on
him. “Why are you pushing me when you know I can’t? Know
we
can’t, not
out here. It is not safe.”

She grasped her hips, accentuating the mounds of
cleavage. He forced his eyes away in a failed attempt to stifle his desire.

“I won’t spend my life trapped in some chamber or
locked in a room. I know you don’t want to either. As you said, this is a test
of my control. You need to trust me. Let me be in control for once.”

“You cannot control it, Kit.”

“Ammut had its chance to hurt me, but it didn’t. The
beast had every reason to destroy me, but spared my life, knowing you cared for
me.”

“The beast does not have empathy or mercy. It
destroys and consumes—nothing more.” Kamen raised his voice, fueled by
millenniums of pain and resentment.

“Then explain to me why I was spared. Even now
that it’s bonded to me. It hasn’t tried to hurt me or anyone.”

In truth, Kamen was surprised at how well the
beast had bonded with Kit. Not once did she appear unstable or out of control.
“Consider it a blessing.” He, on the other hand, was not so fortunate.

“Have you ever thought maybe the reason it fights
you so much is that you try to control it?”

“People will die, Kit. Do you not understand that
fact?”

“Condemned souls die, not people. Ammut rids this
world of evil. Saved my life. Maybe it is not the curse you think it is. Maybe
it is your salvation.”

After a day bonded with the Devourer, she was an
expert? Kamen squeezed the back of his neck. The pain between his shoulders was
increasing with each passing second he stood there arguing with her. Kit’s
words sickened him. Ammut was not some sentient being with the fate of the
world in mind. It was a hungry vicious monster. Pain scored down his back and
sent him to his knees with each hateful thought. His vision blurred behind the
orange flames of his anger.

“I am not afraid of you.” Kit knelt before him and
stared him in the eyes. “I’m in love with you. Stop fighting me.” She grabbed
his jaw and kissed him.

“I cannot do this.” A millennium’s old struggle
erupted in his chest. A fight for his soul. He arched his back as the beast
threatened to break free. Sweat beaded and rolled off into the sand.

Kit’s cool hand shocked his flesh. “Look at
me—please.”

He turned his head and her blue eyes captured him.
She cupped his face again. “That’s it, focus on me.” She brushed her lips along
his forehead and down his temple until she came to his lips. “I love you.”

Too consumed with his pain, he leaned his forehead
to hers. Desperate, he reached out along at the threads of their bond to steady
himself. Rich in vitality, he grasped and held onto it. “I am afraid,” he heard
himself voice for the first time.

“I love you,” she repeated and hugged him.

The cage around his heart cracked and the beast
invaded the piece he had always violently defended, the one touched by Apep so
long ago. Fire burned through his chest, erupting a cauldron of agony.

“Let it go, Kamen.”

He could not let it go or take it back. The
cataclysm had already started and would not end until it burned itself out. The
beast surged to life in his chest. Power raced through Kamen’s body and along
the bond.

Kit gasped and held onto him. He could not hide or
protect her now that chains of control had been broken. He collapsed into the
sand, taking Kit with him. Darkness descended, only now the beast was in
control. Ammut was unleashed, gods help them.

* * *

Kit awoke to the soft kiss of water and sun
against her bare legs and Kamen’s arm draped across her abdomen. She had
blacked out the minute they hit the sand. Of course, she was clothed at the
time and now not a stitch remained. She lifted her head and surveyed the beach.
A heap of black leather and linen clothing sat piled near the rocks. A little
unnerving to say the least.

She turned to assess Kamen. The lines of pain
contorting his face had disappeared. She traced his mouth with her fingers. No
fangs—a good sign. Kamen’s eyes had been filled with fear, the same fear she
saw when the siravant had ripped her from his grasp that fateful day. An
emotion she thought him incapable of, yet there it was festering in his soul.

The burden he had carried all those years—alone. She
had asked him to share everything with her and received far more. Dark and
desolate, but also sweet and loving.

Covering his chest with her hand, she smiled at
the slow pulsation. A wave of contentment flowed through her soul. There wasn’t
anything she wouldn’t do for this male. She knew she was being hard on him.
Unfair as it was, they were short on time. Thankfully it appeared whatever
separated them before, was gone.

Desire stirring in her belly, she traced her
fingers down his abdomen to his groin. She caressed his testicles and his shaft
with her fingertip. Tracking back down from the head to the base, he hardened
under her touch. She chewed on her lip when a soft groan left his lips and
prayed she could wake him this way for many more days.

His grip tightened on her waist despite his eyes
remaining closed, his face relaxed. Not for long if she had her way. Already
pleasure was tingling between her legs. She gripped his cock and stroked him.
She arched and rubbed her now taut nipples against his chest. Still resistant
to wake, she kissed his lips.

Frustrated when he didn’t respond, she shook him.

A smile curled his lips and his eyes opened. In
one smooth motion he rolled on top of her and plunged between her legs. He
kissed her, ravaging her lips and invading her core with long urgent strokes.
Heat flooded her sex, settling an ache that was only relieved when he filled
her to the hilt.

“You are mine, Kitten.” He grunted when she
tightened her channel around him.

Absent during their first encounter, his pleasure
rippled across the bond, overwhelming her. Her orgasm broke fast and furious.
“Kamen.” Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes. It was the most beautiful
experience of her life.

He lifted from her lips and met her watery gaze.
“Kitten,” he said, suddenly fully awake. He jerked his head up and looked
around. Panic struck his expression. “Gods, what have I done?”

“No.” She grabbed him to prevent him from lifting
away from her. “Everything is okay. I’m here.” She forced him to look at her.
“I’m here.”

Those tortured black eyes pegged her. “Did I hurt you?”

She smiled and kissed him through her tears. “God
no. On the contrary, everything is perfect. Right where I need you.”

He pressed his forehead to hers and rolled his
hips. “Kitten?”

“Yes.” She arched into him.

He paused, panting against her throat. “How?”

“You finally let go.”

He stared at her. “That’s what I was afraid of.
Where are our clothes?”

“Over there, and don’t ask. I don’t remember a
thing, just waking up next to you naked.”

“Having sex,” he said aghast.

“No, I had a part in that.” Wrapping her legs
around his hips, she pulled him in deeper. “Notice anything else different?” She
took advantage of his distraction and rolled him onto his back, so she
straddled his hips.

“You on top.” Despite his smirk, worry colored his
eyes. She traced her glyphs on his chest. Just beneath fluttered his heart beat
in unison with hers. He had finally surrendered to her.

“You are mine, Kamen.”

He sat up and covered his palm over her hand.
“I’ve always been yours.”

“Not all of you.” His heart beat harder against her
palm.

He trailed his fingertips along her collarbone. “I
love you.”

“I love you.” She hugged him.

He lay back on the sand with her still seated
against his hips, usurping his control. His hands slid up her sandy thighs and
grasped her hips, coaxing her to continue. Obligingly, she rocked her hips
forward and back. Closing his eyes, he tipped his head back.