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Chapter One

The sticky-sweet night ehter crowded in close as people strolled up Bourbon Street with their green plastic drink holders fashioned after grenades A little girl broke away froof pink beads off the street

She looked up atwith excitement "Pink is my favorite color!"

I stared back at her, struck mute Only the naive would pluck beads off Bourbon Street There was no telling what sweaty chest those had been on I didn’t want to kill her drea the plastic string in a s so that caiant saping mouth, I stared after her

So is mine?

Pink was most certainly not ht dead in it would be a horrible way to go Black was my favorite color, if I had to choose It hid stains I could spill food or blood on it, and no one was the wiser You certainly couldn’t do that with pink leather No way Everyone would gasp and point

A very important question assaulted lanced down atin teeth Paired with my black leather pants, decorated with scuff marks and four parallel lines from when a mark had tried to rake me with his claws last ht?

I had a freaking gun strapped to h, then surely the sword strapped to rioes, but still, my outfit should’ve at least panicked the , dang it!

Intent on getting to the bottom of this, I adjusted lare toward the source, ain a bar doorway

He took a step toward er of idiocy

I’irl sane men hit on, bro

In a power stance, I faced hilare amp up until I was sure crazy sparkled within my eyes The man flinched His drink slopped out of his plastic cup and down the front of his shirt He didn’t notice Instead, he started sidestepping back into the bar, his sn That h to pick beads up off this street wasn’t worried about an armed bounty hunter

She reirl, who took a running leap and splashed into a puddle, I continued on e of the French Quarter I had a et unbearably hot in New Orleans, and Ma

I turned a corner, away from the half-flooded, busy street Clouds still spotted the sky above, blocking out stars in patches The earlier deluge of water fro storm would hopefully continue to seep into the storate Wet boots really put aloshes I had to have a little pride in oers dotted the way ahead, this month a little slower for visitors When su croould flood the street It would be my cue to avoid the area

Up ahead, jazz clattered out of a bar A ht of Red, a resident were-dog

Yeah He turned into a dog A nondescript brown one, at that His style points in the were-co, hence his position as a snitch for Roger, the alpha of a bunch of sub-packs spread out across North Aical person without a pack wanted inforet it

Red caught sight of me as I stalked down the sidewalk

"No way!" He turned to flee, straight into a large group of drunk tourists His escape route cut off, he threw a panicked look out at the street, where a police car was rolling by, before hunching down against the wall

The rin, just to see what he’d do next

He threw up his hands to block his face "I don’t know anything Nothing is going on, I swear!"