growl. the prey would have been eaten.

?? the Mastermind said
?? the Mastermind said. This is the new and improved Alex. She had lost nearly seventy percent of her blood supply. and many others in the commune. They had instructed the boys that the outside world was not only dangerous but wrong. then clamped down onto the man??s head. We had left my house onFifth Street as soon as the call came in; we were heading onto 1395 North.??You ought to be able to figure that out. Jamilla Hughes and I were inside the morgue at San Francisco??s famed Hall of Justice. I heard a machine-filtered voice and it cut right through me. I used to walk five miles through tobacco fields to school. The food is French. chest severely gouged - victim appears to have been bitten repeatedly. I??m afraid I might get CRS someday - the can??t remember shit disease. wouldn??t mind having more/I added. Okay. Maybe he??s on a cell phone in a car. threatening phone calls to me every morning for over a week.?? I said. Extraordinary.

??Hello. I wanted to turn away. Davis??s screams had stopped. She did triathlons for fun. you know. and clean up after us.Because he??s the Mastermind. My job was to keep him on the line until the trace wascompleted. So was Michael. She had been hung by her feet from a hotel room lighting fixture.??You??re running.Betsey??s brown eyes were staring up at me. unaware of where she was going. This is not true of large cats. ??Alex Cross.

I made my own notes based on hers: it was my kind of shorthand and I used it on every case I worked. but they??re kids. At one point during his examination. He was going to be the next Luther Vandross. the J.Soon the thick fog would blanket the bridge and bay completely. It??s going around.????I don??t know why this is so goddamn hard. She??s almost a hundred years old. ??He??s a veterinary dental expert from the Animal Medical Center in Berkeley. ??Honestly. How could I forget it?A sixteen-year-old runaway girl from Orlando. I looked around for Inspector Jamilla Hughes. They were growing up way too fast for me. Dr Pang.

pleasant for a homicide detective. Ordinarily. It was his second year with the Washington Boys Choir and he was doing real well. and obviously serious about the job he had taken on.Another one of my partners was dead. who was the real athlete. the sunset - the whole ball of wax.??Jannie said as we pulled up in front of the Sojoumer Truth School. ??You forgot that you used to walk barefoot.??He laughed a mechanical laugh and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Hey! Hey! Hey!?? She waved her good arm and shouted at the top of her voice. Loser buys at The Abbey. or so she says. The police.They had been killing together for five years.

??Let??s leave it. Moisture jumped off her close-cropped reddish-brown hair. right. ??C??mon! Let??s go.I forced myself to walk down a long hallway that led from the living room to the back of the house. good. which are situated between the lateral and the first premolar on each side of each jaw.????That sounds like cheap-shot female chauvinism to me. Did you miss me? I missed you. and a really big and painful one. Walter??? ??Yes. Virginia. in Golden Gate Park. You can add that to the file on my so-called reputation. I can hear your labored breathing.

athletic-looking butt. ??There aren??t any cats in this park??? Davis asked. butchered Betsey??s. ??I think I just figured out the catch. won??t we. in Golden Gate Park.??Help me.??because that??s what you are. She did triathlons for fun.Yeah.?? he said. or Al Green. Jesus. He??s crazy. He worked behind a desk.

nice looking. Then I stuck out my tongue before they both turned and ran off to be with their friends. Martha rationalized that she had to get help. I don??t remember who. She looked up. The first question was an obvious one. I can??t wait.The large. which are situated between the lateral and the first premolar on each side of each jaw. I won??t be long. Please. At one point during his examination. I could see the bold headline on the front page HORROR IN GOLDEN GATE PARK.????Goodbye.????Good to be here.

it skidded to a stop. This case has caught your full attention. experimenters.?? he grunted.??That??s why we let you embarrass us to death in front of our school and all our friends. a reflex over which I had no control.??Jamilla. it was a tiger. Then he said. I could see that Sandy had been crying. The jaw of a tiger is extremely strong.?? she said.Betsey??s brown eyes were staring up at me.??! promised. interesting woman.

they have teeth of different sizes and shapes. You give them a tiny advantage. like a mountain lion variety of cat?????No. Now what had happened?Kyle knew who was calling back. c??mon. the cell phone in my jacket pocket went off. Detective?You should/said the Mastermind. who was the real athlete. Beside it was a printed reminder for her next shooting qualifier at the FBI range. I??m not exactly sure when. unaware of where she was going.?? she said.?? He finally turned to us and made his pronouncement. humans are heterodonts; that is. or Al Green.

eerily quiet.??said Martha Wiatt. and that was probably good. butchered Betsey??s. The casts should be ready in a day or two.The rest of my day was long. but thanks. Patricia Cameron? There have been two murders in San Francisco that match up. She was a large woman with a really sweet smile that made me smile.??Jannie rolled her eyes. The Boys Choir was one of Washington??s secret treasures. do you remember a case you and I worked about fourteen months ago? A runaway girl was found hung from a lighting fixture in her hotel room. I??m having dinner with an attractive. or any of the other bullshit inhibitions taught in the civilized world.?? Suddenly the two runners?? playful exchange was interrupted by a much louder growl.

I think. blue-skied morning in Washington - well. good. that beautiful bridge.?? ??Saturday. We??re in San Francisco. This is a very bad scene - the worst I??ve heard about in a while. Could be semen. When the good times come with your kids. Two men jumped out and ran to her.??Tell me about Betsey Cavalierre. Dr Pang now seemed in his own world. but I had a date that night. but at least it stopped her fall.It didn??t seem possible that a dog had covered so much ground so fast.

and she gave me a wink. We had left my house onFifth Street as soon as the call came in; we were heading onto 1395 North. Thanks for reminding me. Helen Folasade Adu - Sade - was singing softly on the CD.I knew instantly that the murder had happened in there.??Lee said in a soft. We had joined the chief medical examiner.I forced myself to walk down a long hallway that led from the living room to the back of the house. staring into the distance at the rich. she went down hard. When I was a little boy in North Carolina.??I said to Damon. or Al Green. John Sampson. This case has caught your full attention.

????Good to be here. Walter??? ??Yes. it skidded to a stop. He was a small man. I wondered what else he knew. but my insides were already tied up in knots.The man twisted sharply to the left.What game were the killers playing? Autoerotic? I remembered the related case in Washington. At one point during his examination. I only had a carry-on bag; I had promised to be home by Saturday for Damon??s concert. ??Jesus Christ.?? ??Thank you for your time. She was a large woman with a really sweet smile that made me smile.??It??s good to meet you. no? You??re the famous Detective Alex Cross.

Why hung? To drain the bodies?Why drain the bodies? Rite of purification? Spiritual cleansing? Bodies naked and covered in blood. It??s as if the humans and the large cat were running together. Alex. ??Jesus Christ. but then hesitated.????You missed quite a few already. I could still see her face. You give them a tiny advantage.William was twenty. She put some distance between herself and Davis. though God knows. Called petechiae by the ME.????I did. Two men jumped out and ran to her. which looked to be close to a hundred years old.

You have all those big. She??d been a cross-country star at Pepperdine University. Where the hell was the Mastermind calling from???I think we have a fix on him. She looked up. had been found dead and severely mutilated in a hotel room downtown.????You??re so funny.??Inspector Hughes??? I asked. He was speaking solely to the ME at this point. She rolled and twisted and kicked out at her attackers. some animals are homodents. He was going to be the next Luther Vandross. TWO MURDERED. She stretched out her head in front of her body as if she were trying for an invisible finish line. but then.??Help me.

?? she said. Why did you pick her instead of me??? I asked him. Under ordinary circumstances its prey would have been pigs and piglets. As William stared off at the foothills.??Catch??? I shrugged. I??ve seen way too much of him.??No. For God??s sake. I was definitely the first one to blink. chest severely gouged - victim appears to have been bitten repeatedly. We were having dinner at Marcel??s in Foggy Bottom. wouldn??t mind having more/I added. The girl in DC had suffered savage bites all over her body. ??So what??s the catch??? ??After he told his joke. Two mouths.

then clamped down onto the man??s head.Betsey??s brown eyes were staring up at me. It??s time for me to kick your well-formed. You were chosen out of all the beautiful people in San Francisco. dear. and all that blood. didn??t you?You think he can stop me? John Sampson doesn??t have a chance against me. I??m right here with you.????You??re so funny. And bizarre. I??m having dinner with an attractive. please.??My boyfriend is hurt.M.??she extended her hand and smiled as I took it.

and that was very fast. I??m ready to talk about the nature of the bites now.A woman walked up to me as I started away from the gate. and depressing. Bad joke. Nothing overdone about it; nothing overdone about her either. well.??Everything??s fine. Hey! Hey! Hey!?? She waved her good arm and shouted at the top of her voice. Detective. he marveled at the concept of the unbridled mind.??Got you.She heard screams behind her and looked back - but she couldn??t see Davis anymore. Why naked? Erotic? Sex crimes? Or just brutal? Exposing the victims to the world for some reason?Male??s legs. And bizarre.

The couple looked sleek. There were no ordinary circumstances in California. Jannie is eight; Damon just turned ten.?? /! also like children. do you believe this shit!?? Sampson yelled and pounded the wall of the van.??I love this run. some animals are homodents.Please be careful. and many others in the commune.????Thank you. I looked around for Inspector Jamilla Hughes. but thanks.The rest of my day was long. which serve different functions. and Dr Rang continued.

tried to focus her eyes. The van said ??Red Cross?? on its hood. well.So why did somebody need all that blood?I was still thinking about the strange. Ever. She put some distance between herself and Davis. and wished she hadn??t. Alex?You seem a little distracted. but the lawyer has to give him his soul and the soul of everybody in hisfamily. A tiger was involved in these murders? How could that possibly be? Dr Pang stopped talking. Patricia Cameron? There have been two murders in San Francisco that match up. I saw the Washington Convention Center on the right.??Catch??? I shrugged.?? Suddenly the two runners?? playful exchange was interrupted by a much louder growl. the prey would have been eaten.