The Serpent's Shadow Audiobook Novels & Stories

By the time my car turned onto the tree-lined road leading to the Serpent estate, it was fully dark. I rounded the last bend and a fallen tree blocked the road. "Great. Perfect timing." I frowned, slowing down to turn around. The headlights swept through the trees. Something moved in the shadows. My heart lurched. I yanked the steering wheel. At the same instant, dark shapes burst out of the woods and surrounded the car. I stared at them in horror. Wolves, their eyes vicious and cold.

The shadow’s voice dropped into a whisper that echoed across the entire realm. “Two beings whose bond was never meant to happen.” Seraphine’s pulse pounded. “Who are you?” The shadow leaned back slowly. “I am the one who watched the first world burn.” The void around them trembled. “And soon…” Its glowing eyes locked onto hers. “I will watch this one burn too.” The ground beneath Seraphine cracked violently. Darkness swallowed the dream. Seraphine woke up with a gasp. Her entire body jolted upright. The room was dark.

“Just reviewing tomorrow’s agenda.” Bridget’s legs felt like water. She smiled at her father and pretended the aftershocks weren’t still rippling through her. Later, alone in her room, she lay on the bed in the dark and opened the podcast app. *Shadow Marketing* Episode 1 had exploded. 1,200 downloads in a single evening. Comments scrolled: *This is the rawest take on corporate power I’ve ever heard.* *Whoever you are, you get it.* *The shadow claims you… damn.*

"Selene, you're something else." She set down her straw, then her face suddenly lit up. She waved at someone behind me. "Over here!" I turned. A young man was walking toward us. White T-shirt, silver-gray hair, pointed ears traced with the faint pattern of snake scales. His eyes were a pale amber, and when he smiled, they curved into soft crescents — like a big, sweet puppy. "And this is?" "My new little friend. Serpentfolk. Pure-hearted puppy-boy type." Mona pushed him into the seat next to me. "You like serpentfolk, right? This one's way better than that iceberg husband of yours — at least he smiles!"

“Because ya never know when the tickle monster may take him over.” The three pup’s eyes went wide and looked up at Shadow who was pretending to fight being taken over by the tickle monster. “Run, pups, run.” He feigned falling on the floor. “We protect you sissy!” Rebel and Ryder yelled and pounced on Shadow shifting into their wolf form and started nipping at him.

When the man began talking, it felt like he was covering her body in warm honey. "I must apologize to you. I'm Alpha Gunnar of The Shadow Howlers. My head warrior showed me evidence that you had been kidnapping humans. When I looked closer at the evidence, I couldn't determine if what he said was true, so I wanted to do more investigating. Omar?" Alpha Gunnar looked at the warriors, and the large one in front stepped forward, his neck bare in submission. "Yes, alpha." He answered in more of a growl. "Why have you set out to destroy this pack?" Gunnar asked. However, it wasn't Omar who answered.

I swiped it on and put it on speaker since I was finishing some dishes. “Hello, this is Rae.” “Rae, this is Tyler Perry,” a voice said. “Ha-ha-ha, that’s funny, did Cynthia put you up to this? She’s quite the jokester,” I said ready to hang up. “No, it really is Tyler, I can put you on video chat if you don’t believe me. Look Cynthia gave me a copy of your book, and I have to tell you, I’m obsessed. I couldn’t put it down and I think your story is incredible.

I state, taking a seat on the trunk behind me. “Fine, little witch… ” he mumbles, before leading into his story. “Many years ago when there were many gods and they roamed the earth there was one made completely of darkness and shadows. He chose to stay hidden in a small cave not far from where we are now, on the outskirts of a small town. From his hiding place he was able to control all the darkness in the world. He was the shadows of creatures and the night sky… He was beautiful… But where there is darkness comes evil… And with evil comes people who wish to destroy it. After a long time of searching for the thing bringing the darkness into the world an arch druid stumbled upon the god deep

The boy’s voice didn't echo; it absorbed the sound of the world around it. Standing in the crumbling tunnel, the "Shadow Heir" looked less like a monster and more like a terrifyingly perfect sculpture of a child. The glowing sphere in his hand pulsed in time with my own fading heartbeat, a physical manifestation of the "Final Liquidation."

The hooded figures began to chant, their voices rising in a dissonant, haunting harmony: “Born of the shadow, the flowers shall rise. Through the vessel’s pain, the old world dies.” The Vhalir watched the carnage with a look of serene boredom. He watched as the blood reached the center of the sigil, where a single, black flower made of obsidian and shadow began to sprout from the stone. He stood up, his golden hair catching the dim light of the torches. He looked toward the ceiling, as if his gaze could pierce through the miles of earth and stone to find a small apartment where a boy was waking up from a nightmare.