Marked by Moonlight

Chapter One

Beware the silent dog.

--Man's Best Friend: An Essential Guide to Dogs

Stepping out of her car, Claire Morgan sniffed the smog-laden air warily.

Locking her door, she faced the run-down apartment building and sighed.

Brushing the salt of French fries off of her slacks--evidence of her weak-

willed drive-through detour--she eyed the gray building made all the more ugly

by painted-on shutters framing every window. Even armed with her city map, it

had taken her over an hour to find it. Apparently in this neighborhood, when

street signs went missing, no one bothered to replace them.

Distracted, she failed to notice two adolescents on skateboards launching

themselves down the center of the street in her path. One of the skaters

clipped her hip, nearly knocking her to the pavement.

"Hey!" she cried.

One of the youths turned back and flicked her an obscene gesture.

"What am I doing here?" she muttered, shaking her head.

But she knew the answer to that question even as she asked it.

She was here for Lenny.

By all accounts, Lenny Alvarez h ... read full excerpt from Marked by Moonlight ebook