The highly anticipated next installment is now available!
Corruption
(Blood Trails #4)
by Jennifer Blackstream
Blurb:
An exorcism went horribly, horribly wrong.
Did the ritual fail?
Or was it sabotaged...
Shade is a witch, not an exorcist. But when two priests are killed during an exorcism, the surviving witness begs Shade to find out who-or what-is responsible.
And what good is a private investigator who's afraid of the tough cases?
Danger mounts as Shade plunges into a world of hedonism to wade through the muddy waters of good vs evil. If she's going to survive against the army of enemies piling up, she's going to need help. But who can she trust when the demon who survived the exorcism creates chaos among allies and suspects alike?
After all, with the proper temptation, anyone can be corrupted...
Available for purchase at
Excerpts
“Have we determined that the
black cat that was following you around last month is a potential… What did you
call it? An animal companion?”
“That’s the consensus. Flint
thinks I might have caught its attention the same way I caught—”
I
stopped.
As if
our conversation had summoned it, the hulking black cat in question sat on the
other side of the room. The beast was bigger than any mundane cat, even the
great cats. On all fours, its head came to my shoulder, and it easily weighed
over seven hundred pounds. Though it resembled an enormous panther, the ears
were wrong for the breed, too pointed. And there was a shadowy quality to its
form, as if it weren’t
really there. As though it were a lingering nightmare come to life.
“Maybe I should install a cat
door,” Andy murmured. His hand lingered near his gun.
“Don’t shoot it,” I warned.
“I’m not going to shoot it.”
He paused, considered that. “Would it do me any good to shoot it?”
“Bullets have iron, and I’m
pretty sure it’s fey. If you could hit it, you could hurt it.” A shiver ran
down my spine. “But somehow…I don’t think you would.”
Instinct
told me the beast would be fast, impossibly fast. Andy was an incredible shot,
but he was human, with human limitations. The black cat crept forward, silent
as a dark fog. My heart skipped a beat as it approached the sleeping kitten,
sniffing the air above Majesty. The kitten cracked open one eye.
“Oh please, don’t scare him,”
I begged, trying not to sound as panicked as I felt. “Please, I can’t face
another rhinoceros.”
The
cat blinked as if it had understood me, then studied the kitten with renewed
interest, tilting its massive head to one side.
“Yes,” I said. “Yes, a
rhinoceros. It’s one of the fun, terrifying things that can happen if you
startle that…kitten.”
“You weren’t going to say
kitten,” Peasblossom accused. “You were going to say a bad word, weren’t you?
Which one?”
My
phone rang, and I jumped a foot in the air. Majesty shot to his feet, claws
piercing the couch. The black cat’s
ears rose.
“Please don’t summon another
rhinoceros.” I fumbled for my phone. “Hello?”
“Shade! Shade Renard?”
It
was a woman’s voice,
thick with an Italian accent. She sounded hoarse, and her last word ended in a
way that suggested she was clenching her teeth. Nearby her a door opened, then
slammed shut.
I
straightened my spine, magic kitten forgotten. “Yes, this is Shade. Who is this? Are you all right?”
“They’re dead, both dead.
Murdered. You have to help…” She groaned.
I
gripped the phone tighter, staring at Andy. He didn’t take his attention off the cats, or his hand from his
gun.
“Who was murdered? What
happened? Where are you?”
Andy
met my gaze. Tension seized his shoulders, and he put the gun away.
“I’m at St. Michael’s on
Lexington Avenue. I need your help, you must come now. Please hurry, I don’t
know how much longer I can hold it.”
“Hold what?”
“The demon.”
The line went dead.
“They were my only hope,”
Lorelei said, her voice empty. “The only ones who believed they could
disentangle me from this wretched…” She pursed her lips. “I will kill whoever
did this.”
“That’s why I’m here,” I told
her. “But I need more information.”
“No.” Lorelei stood. “I want
to see the crime scene, and I want to destroy the killer. I’m not leaving until
I do.” She took a sudden step closer, crowding my personal space. “Do you think
you can stop me?” Another step. “You’re no holy warrior.”
“No,” I agreed. “I’m no holy warrior.
I can’t focus my faith into a weapon, I can’t exorcise you from that body.”
Lorelei
barked out a laugh at that. “Even
a paladin could not exorcise me. I am
this body now.”
There was something in her voice when she said the last sentence, a bitterness
that said she regretted her choice, however she might brag about it.
“You’re not alone, though.
And I’d like to talk to the other occupant.”
The
demon’s eyes glittered
with specks of cherry red. “Show me the crime scene.”
I
sighed. I’d hoped it
wouldn’t come to this. “Do you know many children?”
Lorelei
blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“Children. Do you know many
children? Have you seen them on the playground?”
“Having children is the one
thing my dear host was wretchedly successful at preventing,” Lorelei muttered.
“And I do not find hanging around playgrounds a worthy way to spend my time.”
“Good.”
I
tucked my foot behind Lorelei’s
and shoved her in the chest—hard. Surprise widened her eyes a second before she
pitched backward. Andy shouted, and Father Salvatore ceased his steady prayer.
Time slowed, and I watched Lorelei’s skull slam into the stone bench with a
stomach-turning crunch. Her body went limp as she slumped to the grass, leaving
behind a shining red patch of blood on the seat, with more crimson flowing to
stain the grass around her.
Her
eyes closed and she lay still.
The Blood Trails Series
Available to purchase here!
About The Author
USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Blackstream is...odd. Putting aside the fact that she writes her own author bio in third person, she also sleeps with a stuffed My Little Pony that her grandmother bought her as a joke for her 23rd birthday, and she enjoys listening to Fraggle Rock soundtracks whether or not her children are in the car.
Jennifer doesn't have spare time, but she makes it a point to spend at least one night a week with her sibling binge-watching whatever show they're currently plowing through (currently Numbers on Netflix), and she ferociously guards quality time with her son and daughter. She cooks when she has the sanity for it--adding garlic to the recipe whether it calls for it or not--and tries very hard not to let her arachnophobia keep her out of her basement on laundry day.
Jennifer's influences include Terry Pratchett (for wit), Laurell K. Hamilton (for sexual tension), Jim Butcher (for roguish flair), and Kim Harrison (for mythos). She is currently writing the series of her heart and her dreams, the series that has been percolating in her brain for the last decade...Blood Trails. An Urban Fantasy Mystery series that will combine the classic whodunit spirit with a contemporary fantasy setting. Expect mystery, magic, and mayhem, with characters that will make you laugh, cry, and probably stare at the screen with your jaw hanging down to the floor. Well, that's how they affect Jennifer anyway...
Jennifer doesn't have spare time, but she makes it a point to spend at least one night a week with her sibling binge-watching whatever show they're currently plowing through (currently Numbers on Netflix), and she ferociously guards quality time with her son and daughter. She cooks when she has the sanity for it--adding garlic to the recipe whether it calls for it or not--and tries very hard not to let her arachnophobia keep her out of her basement on laundry day.
Jennifer's influences include Terry Pratchett (for wit), Laurell K. Hamilton (for sexual tension), Jim Butcher (for roguish flair), and Kim Harrison (for mythos). She is currently writing the series of her heart and her dreams, the series that has been percolating in her brain for the last decade...Blood Trails. An Urban Fantasy Mystery series that will combine the classic whodunit spirit with a contemporary fantasy setting. Expect mystery, magic, and mayhem, with characters that will make you laugh, cry, and probably stare at the screen with your jaw hanging down to the floor. Well, that's how they affect Jennifer anyway...
You can find Jennifer at
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