Twisted Souls (Twisted Souls #2): Twisted Souls, #2

By Cege Smith

The four survivors of Soul Implantation Day 3675 went into hiding as two crazed Soulless Ones hell-bent on total domination led a zombie invasion across the territory. As their focus settles on Outpost Alanstown, the last untouched outpost of humanity, Samuel, the new Head Master of the now defunct Office of Souls, knows that something must be done. It is up to him to bring the human race back from the brink of total extinction.

Samuel's secret weapon is Cameron Lowden. Samuel’s predecessor sacrificed his life so that she could receive the last, most sacred soul, from the Fountain of Souls. In an unusual twist, Cameron grows from an infant to a young woman seemingly overnight. Samuel takes her under his wing to guide and prepare her for what is to come.

Cameron's destiny sets the survivors on a path toward Outpost Alanstown. Time is against them as they find emerge from their hiding place and quickly find that nowhere is safe from their enemy's reach. More sacrifices must be made. They must fight for what is left of the territory before it is too late.

Length: 40,000 words

The complete Twisted Souls series:

The Soul Ripper (Twisted Souls #1)
Twisted Souls (Twisted Souls #2)
Soul Cycle (Twisted Souls #3)
A Soul to Settle (Twisted Souls #4)

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shadow Creek Press
• Release date: Dec 5, 2013
• ISBN: 9781498943093

Book preview

SAMUEL

Even though it had been the right thing to do, Samuel felt dirty. The feeling wasn’t entirely unfamiliar; it seemed to be a less savory aspect that came with service to the Light. When he had felt this nagging feeling in the past while carrying out his duties in the service of the Head Master as the Lead Acolyte, his faith in his duty had always won out. But since the Head Master’s death, Samuel couldn’t shake it the same way. He often wondered if this was a byproduct of ascending to the leadership spot in his own right. He carried the future of the territory on his shoulders, and that meant that sometimes he was going to have to make decisions that others would question.

As fond as he was of her, in the end Cameron was a means to an end. He forced himself to keep that fact front of mind. The previous Head Master sacrificed himself to call her soul to the Fountain. It was her destiny to fight and win over the demon who had invaded the territory and even now was wreaking havoc on the servants of the Light and the residents of the territory.

Samuel had lied about the fall of the last outpost. The urgent plea from Outpost Alanstown had come in that afternoon over the shortwave radio. Samuel responded with a short message to give them hope. Darkness was on the outpost's doorstep, and if it fell, then Samuel was sure that all would be lost. The demon had moved fast through the territory, and Samuel had waited, agonizing over every lost day. But Cameron had to be ready; otherwise, the result would be disastrous. He couldn’t wait any longer.

What stood between him and his ability to lead the fight against the Darkness lay snoring softly in the bottom bunk of the room across from his office. Malcolm Lowden had been a thorn in Samuel’s side since the moment they entered the bunker nine months ago. What had been a seed of doubt about the integrity of the Office of Souls administration in the man's mind had grown into full-blown hatred, and Malcolm never missed any opportunity to take out his rage on Samuel. Although Bishop was mostly spared, even he had been on the short end of the man’s temper any time Bishop showed deference to Samuel. The only person who escaped Malcolm’s caustic tongue was his daughter. When Malcolm was with Cameron, there was only deep sadness and grief.

As often happened, Samuel’s thoughts had returned to Cameron. He felt a piercing pain in his heart as he contemplated what he was about to put her through. But there was no other way. He had to convince Malcolm that they had to leave; otherwise, he’d never be able to pry the man out of the bunker. And if Malcolm refused to leave, there was no way he’d let Cameron go either, and Samuel needed Cameron.

Samuel had always known that he was called to the Light. He had gladly accepted the rules and restrictions of his life within the Office of Souls. The normal trappings that belonged to the residents of the territory were never things that he missed. His family was the other acolytes and the Light. So when temptation had crept on him, he had completely missed seeing the signs.

Over the last nine months, he had watched Cameron grow from a precocious child into an insightful, caring, and beautiful young woman and suddenly Samuel felt himself wanting something new and different; something that was forbidden to those in the service to Light. Samuel’s duty was to lead the people of Malm back from the brink of darkness and Cameron would be his sword of Light. The thought made his chest tighten, but he forced himself to ignore it.

He took a deep breath and flipped the light on in the room. He knew that Malcolm was a light sleeper, and as expected, no sooner was the room flooded with light than Malcolm was on his feet. His dark brown eyes narrowed as he caught sight of Samuel standing in the doorway.

What the hell do you want? Malcolm snarled.

It had been almost a month since Samuel had been in the same room as Malcolm, and he took a moment to look the man over. Malcolm looked...bad. Ill even. Malcolm was a few inches shorter than Samuel and had once had a stocky, almost fleshy build. Now his clothes hung on him. His skin was pasty white from lack of sunlight, but its tone was ashen. Malcolm was starting to take on the look of a soulless one, and the thought terrified Samuel. Each passing day, Malcolm was more and more angry. The situation needed to be dealt with.

We need to talk, Samuel said calmly. Over the last few weeks, after studying his journals from the last several months, Samuel had reached a chilling conclusion about Malcolm Lowden's behavior. He had been trying to determine what to do about it that wouldn’t involve putting Cameron in a potentially horrific situation, but with the call from Outpost Alanstown, the appointed hour had arrived. He would need to move forward with the only plan he had which would serve the dual purpose of taking care of Malcolm and convincing Cameron that she was who he said she was. He could only hope that his theory would prove to be true.

I’ve got nothing to say to you, Malcolm said with a sneer. He sat back down on the bunk. Now shut off that light and get the hell out of here.

Samuel turned and put his hand on the switch. Fine. Have it your way. I’ll just say what I need to say to Cameron then.

Seconds later, Samuel was hit from behind and shoved across the hall into the door of his office. His cheek scraped against the wooden door, and he felt a sharp prick of pain as a sliver pierced his skin.

I told you to stay away from my daughter! The words growled into Samuel’s ear, and he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Malcolm’s condition was much worse than he thought.

Dad!

Samuel saw Cameron standing in the doorway of the dining room twenty feet away. Her mouth was hanging open. Bishop stood just behind her watching as well, and Samuel could see Bishop’s hand was on her arm trying to pull her back into the room.

Just a few minutes, Malcolm. Let’s be civil for just a few minutes, Samuel said, pushing the words out as Malcolm crushed his weight against him. Then, under his breath, he mumbled a few other words so low that no one else could hear. Immediately, the weight against his back lessened. Samuel turned and straightened his collar, brushing his cheek to remove the splinter. Malcolm was inches away from him, watching with a strange look on his face.

What did you just say to me? There was no emotion in Malcolm’s