1 Chapter 1: Prologue

Dianne laughed, her head thrown back, as Nick murmured against her neck. She swatted his shoulder. "Behave! My customers will hear you!"

They were in the bakery's backroom, and although it wasn't too busy out front this afternoon, she didn't want to look too unprofessional. Still, she was enjoying the warm bread and dessert scents mingling with Nick's aftershave.

"They don't ever seem to hear Priscilla and her man." Nick lifted his head to give her a devilish grin.

She raised one eyebrow. "Hmm, hmm, and I'm sure everyone thinks it's perfectly fine for the owner to be back here giggling like a school girl."

He teased his fingers up her tiny waist, trying for another laugh.

"I should probably give you a doughnut and send you on your way, Officer Ragazzo."

"That's Detective Ragazzo to you-" Before he could launch into asking if she'd been behaving lately, she brought her mouth down on his in a hungry kiss.

His cell buzzed in his pocket for the third time; they'd been ignoring it to grab a few minutes alone. Between her busy schedule running Avery's Bakery, teaching a night class, and his work at the police station; they didn't always get a normal sit down dinner. He got occasional after hours calls, and while most crimes around here were petty, it kept him busy. They took what they could get: lunch during the workday, sometimes a day off together or even a weekend when they got lucky.

"Ah, I better get it this time." Nick reluctantly glanced at the screen and muttered, "Better be important!" Then he answered, "Hey Bo, what's up?"

She leaned back as he listened to his partner, Detective Beaumont. Nick's smile fell right off his face.

"Where?....I'll be right there." He slid the phone back in his pocket and looked at her, his face whiter than she'd ever seen it. "There's been a murder."

"A murder; close by?"

Nick didn't answer. He patted his pocket and turned away, then back, like he wasn't prepared for this.

Just then Scilla walked into the back, calling, "Is it safe to come back here? Or do I need my blinders on?" She had a hand on her hip and a grin on her face until, at their silence, she glanced over. "Is something wrong?"

"Nah, nothing's wrong." Nick said. "I need to go." He planted a quick kiss on Dianne's mouth. "Sorry babe.See ya later."

"No worries honey. Go do your job." She squeezed his arm before he hurried out. Dianne and Pricilla turned to each other with worry.

***

The man watched Detective Ragazzo walk briskly from the bakery with only a brief scan of his surroundings on his way to his car. Silly little cop.If only he knew what was coming-! Soon it would be all he could think about.All anyone could think about, Dianne too.

Beautiful, sweet Dianne He turned his attention to her as she walked to the shop's window and threw a worried glance out into the street, probably saying a prayer for Ragazzo. That won't help him, darling. He played with the gold chain in his pocket, again hearing the satisfying snap as it broke from around the boy's neck. In time, Dianne would learn her cop friend couldn't keep anyone safe, let alone her. She would see who really had the power.

Well, time to return to work. He turned, whistling, and walked away.

***

Two hours later, Nick was thankful he hadn't shared any details with Dianne. Bo sounded grave as he told Nick about the naked and posed body. That didn't prepare Nick at all.

Nick pulled up and hustled into the scene, finding uniforms clustered, talking in low, quiet voices. He approached the yellow tape while keeping an eye out for his partner. A cop stepped aside to let him go under the tape, and then the scene came into view.

A teenage boy-ªhis body rather-ªwas leaned over, almost like a bow or prayer stance, his backside up in the air.

"Why this pose?" Nick mumbled to himself, trying to think the murder through, to get an idea of what the killer might be thinking.

"He wanted us to plainly see he'd assaulted the boy. I'm guessing with some kind of tool."

Nick, usually alert to every little detail and possible clue, could only notice two things: the boy's skin was death white and his eyes were open, wide and blank.

"He bled out," Bo said somewhere beside him, his voice floating from far away.

"Bled?" from another voice-ªthe tech guy. "This sick killer drank his blood. Check out the teeth marks around his wrist. He first slit his wrist open, and then sucked him dry."

Lord help us, Nick thought, as he pushed his emotions and personal response away and pulled on his Detective hat. There was no way in hell this killer was getting away with this.