Scars of the Soul

Scars of the Soul Holly Oliver Copyright Scars of the Soul 2023 Scars of the Soul Copyright © Holly Oliver, 2023. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Cover Design by Holly Oliver Cover pictures were purchased from Depositphotos.com. First Edition Feb 2023 Edited by Jen Sharon Beta Read by Janet Hunt Proofread by Sue Ann Harfst All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author, Holly Oliver. [email protected] No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded, or distributed via the internet or any other means, electronic or print, without permission from Holly Oliver. Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights and livelihood is appreciated. Scars of the Soul is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, or to events or locales is entirely coincidental. All trademarks are owned by the relevant companies and are used for reference purposes in this book only. Contents Dedication 1. Chapter One 2. Chapter Two 3. Chapter Three 4. Chapter Four 5. Chapter Five 6. Chapter Six 7. Chapter Seven 8. Chapter Eight 9. Chapter Nine 10. Chapter Ten 11. Chapter Eleven 12. Chapter Twelve 13. Chapter Thirteen 14. Chapter Fourteen 15. Chapter Fifteen 16. Chapter Sixteen 17. Chapter Seventeen 18. Chapter Eighteen 19. Chapter Nineteen 20. Chapter Twenty 21. Chapter Twenty-One 22. Chapter Twenty-Two 23. Chapter Twenty-Three 24. Epilogue Please Consider Leaving A Review Other Books About the Author Dedication Find A Spark of Magic Every Day! Neo and Jackson's story was written for all the amazing readers who reached out to me asking about Jackson after I wrote Shadows of the Soul. For everyone who walks around with scars on their soul, my hope for you is that your HEA is just around the corner, so don't lose hope! I'm sending hugs and pixie dust to anyone who needs them. Holly Chapter One Neo “Hit me again.” Neo Parker had to yell to be heard over the noise as he slammed the empty shot glass onto the bar. “You sure that’s a good idea?” Kane asked, concern creasing the corner of his eyes. “I’m looking for oblivion,” Neo grumbled. “Help me out, would ya?” “You get one more, and then I’m cutting you off. You hear me, Neo Jordan Parker?” That’ll teach me to make friends with the owner of the bar. Or maybe it was because Kane had ID’d him the first time he walked through those doors almost ten years ago, and at barely twenty-one at the time, Neo hadn’t blamed the equally young man for wanting to check. Neo’s lips twisted, unsure if he wanted to laugh at the use of his full name or curl in disgust at being denied more booze; instead, he simply nodded. The Pacifier had quickly become Neo’s local hangout. From his first visit, he’d felt like he’d found his place, and it was here that he’d learned just how soothing loud noises could be. Unfortunately, his ‘breakdown’, which should have been a distant memory these days, had left a gaping hole in him. Again, it had been The Pacifier that had helped fill the aching void. Most days, he could leave the past where it belonged, but like anything significant and unresolved, it crept up until it slapped him in the face. Even after all this time, Neo loathed admitting his past still haunted him. One part, in particular, returned to him more often than others. The music was always loud, the dance floor always packed with writhing bodies, and Kane, the owner, was easy on the eyes and tolerant of what he’d dubbed Neo’s ‘escapades’. The scent of the vodka hit his nose as Kane set it in front of him, catching his hand and his eyes. “What’s going on? You’ve been slipping deeper into a hole for weeks now.” “You wouldn’t understand,” Neo mumbled. “Try me.” Neo searched Kane’s bright blue eyes and saw nothing but concern. Unfortunately Neo had learned the hard way that getting close meant getting hurt. He was better off alone. The masterful gift of time had taught him that much. Finally, Neo mustered a smile and squeezed Kane’s hand. “Honestly, I’m fine. It’s just a rough time of year for me. Something about April is just plain hard work.” Kane’s eyes searched his face for a moment before he was called away to serve another customer. Neo knocked back the shot in front of him, slapped a few notes on the bar under the empty glass, and retreated to the dance floor. Desperate to keep the past where it belonged, Neo had learned to compensate and found solace in the chaos; so far, it had been the best antidote for his overactive mind. Something about having his senses overwhelmed to the point of pain pushed everything else into the background. And something Neo desperately sought was peace in his addled mind. The music pulsed in his ears while sweaty bodies bopped and swayed around him. It didn’t take long for his body to move to the beat, and he soon dripped with sweat. While his muscles protested from lack of food and sleep and the excess energy being used from yet another night out, Neo’s mind hummed with delight as the noise, lights, and sounds drenched his senses, leaving him incapable of visions and numb to the