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"Montgooie felt her skin crawl

"Aaron Da the damned"

"What do you want, Aaron?"

"Blood, ed that, Aaron Why are you calling, what do you want from me?"

"Why, my dear, that’s just it You’re what I really want"

"Really? How interesting, Aaron We despise each other"

"Oh, no, Maggie You’re under the mistaken ihteous little bitch, but a darned good-looking one And a challenge, you knoant you undertih to be good to youafter proper punishie, maybe I do just want you"

"If you were to have hter was husky, and seemed to cut deep to the bone "Not on your life I’d teach you how to live I’d teach you to have the power I have, because I’m not afraid to be what I aht, if you would You’d revel in life"

"Were you ever hu question In truth, I was, I certainly was And this is my territory, honey, er in his voice

"And were you a killer when you were hu question! Are we killers e feed on cattle? No, we are sience, cattle are there to serve our needs Rumor has it that you’ve always been especially fond of theent I’ve always loved a good gahest on the scale of creation; those I’ve killed have been s are so stupid, you ree They just don’t believe They see theent to realize that there ht be ain and again, when the truth all but slaps theet him, you know Another Canady And he’ll be easy prey, because he doesn’t believe Just like always They’re too daht to believe--until the ie twisted the phone wire tightly in her hands "Leave the Canadys be, Aaron I’ll coie! No way I’ll coain Maybe I’ll give you a few chances"

"Aaron, if you hurt Sean, I’ll kill you I er A lot stronger Maybe I won’t let you killchance that you can’t kill me Maybe I’ll just see to it that you do existforever and forever, just to entertain ie, ie? Five little whoresthat’s the way they counted it, anyway If they’d only known Oh, well, over the centuries, not even I could keep count But what happened after the first two, Maggie?"

"Everywhere you‘ve gone there has been deception, trickery, and death, Aaron"

"Nature of the beast, and I will teach you that, in tiie I know you feel the hunger One daybut I get ahead of ie?"

"First two? You’re already responsible for at least five deaths"

"I had nothing to do with Rutger Leon But that doesn’t matter The pimp didn’t ie It should have been three That Callie bitch But she’s gone and I haven’t the interest in tracking her down Maybe later Maybe we’ll find her together" She told hihed

"A threeso ahead of myself Daie Two little whores in the sa the city for you, Aaron And you’re not indestructible--"

"Cops die, too I definitely plan to kill another Canady Another Sean Canady We don’t want that bastard riding along into iie Two little whores

Watch me Watch me, watch me "

"Aaron--"

The phone line went dead

Pierre and Sean stood back, staring at the gurneys that held the corpses--Jane Doe and Bessie Girou, their sad lives cut short Anthony Beale He’d dealt in human flesh Did that er and Ray

"Well?" Pierre asked

"I’ for more puncturehim