DARK WARRIOR UNLEASHED
by Alexis Morgan
ISBN-13 978-1-4165-6342-6
Publisher: Pocket
Release Date: August, 2008

Chapter 1

The darkness flowed in, washing over him in relentless waves. Closing his eyes, Ranulf drank in the shadows with his other senses. Evil always felt the same, but the taste and smell and sound of it were different each time his solitude was disturbed. Even in his remote mountain home, the violence from the cities below tainted the air.

Who had dared to disturb his isolation? Ranulf traced the web of his wards, testing each one in turn to locate the intruder. The sticky triggers of his protections were silent, but effective for the more someone struggled against them, the stronger the bond.

It didn't take long to locate the snarl in his trap. Ranulf released the mental coils that held the man enthralled and let him approach the front door. The intruder was human with very little of the Kyth in the his blood, but then the blood of Ranulf's kind had become diluted over the centuries, lost in the wash of mankind.

He triggered the door to open, but left the man cooling his heels on the porch. Bracing himself the assault on his senses that always accompanied his return to society, Ranulf stepped into the doorway.

“You have something for me?”

The messenger jumped at Ranulf's sudden appearance, but quickly recovered. With a courtly flourish, he produced a heavy velum envelope. “The Dame sends her regards.”

“I'm sure she does, Josiah.” Ranulf reluctantly accepted delivery of the envelope.

The handwriting on the outside was the same spidery scrawl that had been issuing him orders for far too long. A millennium had passed since he'd first sworn fealty to the Grand Dame of their kind. Months ago she'd promised him a respite from killing, but he really hadn't expected it to last. They both knew that if she had need of his special talents, he would go. Duty was the one thing he understood.

As he cracked open the old-fashioned wax seal, he noticed the messenger still hovering in the doorway, neither in nor out.

“What?” Ranulf demanded, already weary of the man's presence.

“I'm to wait for you.”

Ranulf bit back a curse. A lackey didn't deserve to lose his head just because Ranulf's instinct was to attack first and answer questions later—and then only when he was forced to.

“Tell her to expect me when she sees me.”

“But she said it was an emergency,” the fool sputtered.

“It always is,” Ranulf snapped, his temper boiling close to the surface. It wasn't as if he could simply lock the door and follow the man back to civilization. For him, travel took preparation.

He forced a compromise. “I will be there as soon as I can. I can't be more specific, but after all these years, she knows that. Now get the hell out of here, Josiah. Every minute we spend arguing is a minute I could put to better use.”

The man started to say something else. When Ranulf took one step in his direction with his fists clenched, the messenger admitted defeat and backed away. As Josiah gave a reluctant nod and fled back toward his car, Ranulf slammed the door shut and threw the deadbolt.

Delays were pointless; time to start packing. It wouldn't take long because clothing had never been a priority for him. Not like some other Talions he could name. The Grand Dame had Old World sensibilities about such things, but bloodstains were a bitch to get out of silk and wool.

After squeezing in one last pair of jeans, he zipped the duffel closed and set it down by the front door.

Finally, he walked back to a glass case and pondered its contents. After a few seconds, he reluctantly lifted the lid and picked up his talisman by its leather thong. The bright shine of the gold sparked and flickered with power. The talisman felt to him far heavier than something its size should.

He settled the centuries old image of a god's hammer around his throat and tucked it inside his shirt collar. The cool touch of the metal absorbed the heat from his skin, reconnecting him with the Grand Dame. Once again, he was a warrior preparing for battle.

Romance Junkies
5 Blue Ribbons!
Alexis Morgan introduces readers to a thrilling new series with DARK WARRIOR UNLEASHED, the first installment.  Ranulf Thorsen, an enforcer, and Kerry Logan, a woman in danger, are the main players in this fast paced incredible read. . .

I love nothing better than a heroic, virile, and breathtakingly handsome warrior.  Ranulf is such a man.  His loyalty to the Grand Dame, in spite of his desire for quiet, won me over in the first ten pages of DARK WARRIOR UNLEASHED.  Ranulf needed a strong heroine and Kerry is that and more.  Seductively charming and playful, Kerry makes Ranulf yearn for her and it is exactly what that big warrior needed to balance his life.  DARK WARRIOR UNLEASHED by Alexis Morgan is a compelling and passionate novel.  I look forward to each new novel by this fine author.  - Natasha Smith, Romance Junkies