Stricken
The War Scrolls Series #1
By A.K.
Morgen
Publication Date: March 8, 2016
Publisher: Limitless
Publishing
Genre: NA Urban Fantasy/PNR
It took only four months to bring
the angels to their knees…
With a virus ravaging the fallen
angels on earth, mankind’s symbol of love and hope is at risk of extinction.
Centuries ago, a group of angelic
warriors known as The Fallen risked everything to save themselves and carve a
future for their kind. Hope slips away as The Fallen and their kin are cut down
by an ancient menace, LaMorte Nera—and no one saw it coming.
Only one immortal can save them,
and only one mortal can stand in his way…
When Nephilim warrior Killian St.
James sets out on a quest to find a cure, he and his blade-brothers discover
nineteen-year-old Aubrey Carter—a human with a past as dark as it is mysterious—cowering
in an abandoned house in the heart of Memphis, Tennessee.
The corrupted races are chasing
her, and Killian is determined to find out why…
But neither he nor Aubrey are
prepared for their attraction to one another, or for the frightening truths
lurking in the shadows. The painful childhood memories Aubrey has buried hold
precious answers. Answers that threaten to tear Killian's world apart.
With her life hanging in the
balance, Killian must choose between the future of The Fallen, and the human
girl he's pledged to protect.
Demons are rising, and this time
they plan to win the war for dominion once and for all.
Killian stepped forward, forcing her to tilt her head back to look up at him. He still seemed so big to her. He still overwhelmed her. But he didn’t frighten her anymore.
“You look tired.” She fought the urge to lift her hand to touch his gorgeous face.
“I am,” he said, the corner of his lips turning up in a half smile.
“Oh.”
He stared down at her, his half smile slipping. A dizzying parade of emotions swirled through his eyes. She couldn’t read them all, but she understood enough. He felt as torn as she did.
“Will I remember you three years from now?” she whispered, her heart aching with the fear that she would forget him as she had so much else…and with fear that she would remember him. That she would survive this nightmare and he would haunt her for the rest of her days like so much else did.
“Do you want to remember me?” He took another step in her direction.
“I don’t know.” She frowned, confused. “You make me feel like maybe the world isn’t so bad. Like maybe I’m safe with you. I don’t think I want to forget that.”
Killian tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and cupped her cheek gently in one big hand. “You are safe with me. I won’t let anyone hurt you, Aubrey.”
She stared at him for a long, silent moment. He’d promised before that he wouldn’t hurt her, but even then an unspoken fear had stood between them like a wall. A little voice whispered that if she got too close, he would hurt her as badly as the things in her past hurt. That voice had stopped whispering when he’d kissed her today, and wasn’t that odd?
“You hurt me today.”
He bowed his head, letting his hand fall away from her face. “I’m sorry.”
Her heart ached a little at the agonized way he said it. As if it shamed him to know he’d hurt her. As if, maybe, he cared more than he should too.
“Why did you?” she asked, not accusing, but curious. She wanted to understand him. No, she needed to understand him on some level she couldn’t even explain to herself. “You wanted me, didn’t you?”
His gaze sought hers, honesty shining from his angel-bright eyes. “More than you know.”
Aubrey took a deep breath, letting her lungs fill with air even as her heart filled with his confession. And just as quickly, the buoyant feeling vanished. “It doesn’t change anything, though, does it?” she whispered.
“Do you want it to?”
She hesitated for a long moment, unsure. And then her shoulders slumped, the breath she’d taken expelling in a long sigh. “I’m sorry.”
Killian gave her a sad smile and reached for her again. He swept a finger beneath her eye, collecting the teardrop she hadn’t even realized had fallen. “No apologies,” he whispered, bringing his finger to his mouth. He stuck out the tip of his tongue and lapped that single bead of moisture from his fingertip. “You owe me nothing.”
If that was true, why did she feel like crying?
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