The Hour Before Dawn
The long-awaited sequel to Deadly Obsession

Tevan Zaber wants to be a detective. But how far is he willing to go to get it? Thrust into the dark underworld of real vampires, reality begins to blur into the society of role-playing. Can Krystal Braxton, who wrestles with her own demons, save Tevan from becoming one of them? Together they must infiltrate the occult covens to save the city from a blood-thirsty killer resurrected from a year’s old case as they enlist the help of Fairview Park’s lieutenant, Cole Kincaid. The Hour Before Dawn picks up where Deadly Obsession leaves off.

Awards: RIO Award of Excellence 2003 2nd place (Paranormal Romance), The Road to Romance Reviewer's Choice Award, 2001 EPPIE Finalist, Romantic Times Magazine, Best Electronic Book of 2001 Nominee

Large green flies swarmed the bloated body, lying on its side behind a blue Dumpster in a trash-littered alleyway on the north side. White maggots crawled about the neck and eyes, feasting on the rotting flesh. Dead. White female. Approximate late teens. This was not something new to Chicago; dead bodies were unfortunately the norm. But it certainly wasn't something Tevan Zaber wanted to get used to. Not by a long shot.

He had always loved solving puzzles, hence his entire reasoning behind wanting to become a detective. Not in a small town. He didn't want a desk with coffee and donuts; he craved action. And in Chicago, there certainly wasn't a shortage. He had been with the force going on six years, four of those as a uniform, two as an evidence technician. With any luck, another four would see him his dream.

Tev knelt by the body and, with a gloved finger, touched the purplish coloring on her right buttock. The color didn't blanch. The victim had been dead for not more than forty-eight hours, he assumed. The body could have been dumped following business hours Saturday and not discovered until late Monday.

Fixed lividity had set in, rigor mortis had long gone, leaving rapidly due to the August heat wave. In the last couple of days, temperatures had reached almost one hundred. The smell had him pinching the bridge of his nose and standing up. Damn, this was the fourth victim in two months, matching his unknown subject’s MO. All women in their late teens or early twenties, white, sporting neck wounds deep enough to nearly decapitate them. But it was the teeth marks near the wounds that had Tev swallowing the bile rising up the back of his throat. What the hell kind of sick individual were they dealing with?

"Looks like we got us a real walking, talking vampire, for crissake," Whitey said as he approached Tev and slapped him soundly on the back. Andrew White had been the police chief of the 62nd precinct going on fifteen years. Highly respected. "Probably them god-damn kids that hang out in them Goth clubs all night, dressing in black. Real fucking weirdoes, I tell you. I've even seen some of them go as far as having their teeth filed into fangs. Blood-suckers."

Tev pulled off his gloves and stuck them in his pocket. Two uniforms stretched the yellow crime-scene tape across the entrance to the alley off Belmont, while forensic teams began measuring the area and gathering evidence. Pictures were snapped of the body and surrounding region. No stone would be left unturned. But if this scene mimicked the other three, the son of a bitch will have left them little to go on.

Tev finally acknowledged the chief's statement. "You said that at the last scene, Chief. We don't have anymore evidence now than we had before that this might point to a bunch of role-playing kids."

Whitey let out a humph. "What we have here is a sick piece of crap who no doubt gets his yanks off of drinking these corpses' blood. We know that much by the neck wounds. Blitz-style attacks from the back. Not only is he a freak, but a chicken-shit. Can't even face these women when he kills them."

"So what's this all have to do with the Goth scene?"

Whitey clasped his shoulder, his grip powerful. "Glad you asked that, Tev, my boy."

Tev didn't like the sound of that. He had heard the term "my boy" used one too many times, followed by a job that was sure to turn his life into a living hell.

"I want you to go underground, so to speak."

"Excuse me?"

"You're young; your personal life is in the shitter."

He groaned, not needing to be reminded of his wife and kid. He wasn't going to like this one bit.

"Who better to disappear for awhile."

Furrowing his brow, he asked, "Disappear how?"

"Here's your chance to make detective, Tev. You get time off from the force--with pay," he quickly added.

"I'm not following you, Chief. What exactly are you asking me to do?"

"A little research, is all. Find out about this underground culture. What they do, where they hang out. I want to know what they have for breakfast and who they have it with. In short--I want you to know more about them than you know about that wife of yours."

Tev shrugged. Sounded easy enough. "But why do I need time off to do it?"

"Because you are going to become one of them, Tev. Congrats--you've just been promoted to vampire status."

Tevan stood on the sidewalk, hands deep in the pockets of his 501s, looking at the house he had occupied for the last ten years. Taking the Cubs ball cap from his head, he raked a shaky hand through his disheveled hair. He had no idea how she would take the news. The coward in him wanted to walk away, just disappear into the city and never look back. The rogue part wanted her to mourn the loss in her life, hoping he had actually meant something, anything.

The house's white siding sported a fresh coat of paint, the shutters a deep burgundy. The newly cut grass and neatly trimmed bushes lent to the carefully tended exterior. Too bad the family inside hadn't been as well taken care of. The home had been nothing but an illusion. Tev knew that now; unfortunately it had taken him so many years to figure it out.

His worn hiking books thudded softly along the sidewalk as he approached the door. Taking a deep breath, he willed his jangled nerves to calm. Two weeks of not seeing his wife and daughter made him wonder if he had made the right decision. He had left behind every stability he had ever known.

Before he could knock, the door swung inward, startling him. Susanna stood looking at him through a hooded gaze. Damn he wished he could read her mind, know what went on behind the depths of her liquid-brown eyes.

"Tev," she acknowledged.

He nervously smacked the ball cap against his thigh. "Suz."

"Did you come to see your daughter?"

"No."

Her eyes widened.

"I mean yes, but that's not the only reason I'm here. I think we need to talk."

She opened the door wider and allowed him into the home. Funny, fourteen days ago, he hadn't needed the invitation. Tev continued to the living room. The door closed behind him with a soft click and he heard her footfalls as she approached. Susanna sat on the love seat and crossed her long, lean legs Indian style. She hadn't changed much since the day he married her, stunning as ever. Tucking a few strands of her silky brown hair behind her left ear, she glanced at him. Tev nearly lost his courage and suddenly wished he had been the coward and disappeared. The wounds still cut clear to the marrow.

"Becca's upstairs playing. You want me to call her?"

"No," Tev said, sitting on the arm of the sofa. "We better talk first."

"This isn't about..."

Tev smiled, though the humor of the situation was somehow lost. "No, Suz, this isn't about the reasons I left."

"Then what is it? Quite honestly, Tev, I'm not sure I can take much more. This is still all pretty new to me. And Becca having to deal without you--"

"It's not about to get any easier. I filed the papers this morning."

His heart hit the pit of his stomach; he had the sudden urge to wretch. Why the hell did this have to be so damned hard? Because I still love her, he thought, fighting the urge to forget it all and take her into his arms. Instead, he braced his hands on his knees, allowing the ball cap to dangle from his fingers.

Susanna said nothing, just wrapped her arms tightly around her midsection, the soft flesh of her breasts rising above her shirt line. He still had the desire to bury his face in the cleavage, to suckle her...

He blinked a few times. He needed air, space--and a lot of it.

"Divorce papers?" she finally voiced. He would swear unshed tears laced the sound, telling him she hurt as much as he. The thought should have been a comfort. Fat chance.

"Separation," he corrected.

"Same thing." A large tear rolled down her cheek as her biceps tightened in a reaction to comfort herself. She obviously knew no solace would come from his direction, not that she would ever ask. Susanna had always been too proud.

"Sort of. It means that we live apart, that you can see other people."

She flinched as if he had hit her.

"Nothing will be separated as far as the property goes. But I'll gladly pay the child support and alimony, make sure you are well taken care of. I thought it's what you wanted."

"What I want, Tevan, is to reverse time--to go back and change the past."

He glanced at the floor and swallowed the lump in his throat. "It's too late."

"So that's it?" She hiccuped, causing his gaze to snap up. She covered her mouth with a shaky hand. "Just goodbye?"

"I'm afraid it has to be this way. Too much has happened, Suz. Be honest with yourself. You don't want to go back to what we had anymore than I do."

"It was good, Tevan."

"Was being the operative word."

"You'll come back to see Becca?"

"Eventually, but for now that's impossible. I won't be coming back anytime soon."

Tiny lines creased her brow. "I don't understand."

"I have to go away. There is something I need to do, but you won't have to worry. As I said, I'll make sure you receive support."

"Are you leaving the force?"

"I can't say. Casey Black will take care of you while I'm gone."

"Casey? The bartender from Mack's?"

"I'll keep in touch through him. He promised he would take care of you as a favor to me."

She stood, began pacing the carpet, and chuckled, the sound ringing hollow. "Let me get this straight. A man you've known, what...? A few months?"

"A year."

She raised her palms skyward. "I stand corrected. But this man will know you're whereabouts, whereas I," her voice rose in pitch, "who's known you for nearly half your life, won't be able to get in touch with you."

"Something like that."

"What if Becca gets sick? You think about that?"

"Contact Casey. He'll know how to get hold of me."

She clenched her jaw; a muscle in her cheek ticked. "So this is it?"

"As soon as I say goodbye to Becca, yes."

"Maybe it's better you didn't."

"How can you say that?" he nearly roared as his ire inched upward.

"What the hell are you going to tell her? She sees you, she's not going to want you to leave."

"I want to see my daughter. You can't keep her from me."

She perched her fists on her hips. "Think about it. She's cried herself to sleep for two weeks because her daddy left. The tears are finally starting to dry up and you want to start it all over again? I won't allow it."

Tev knew the truth to her statement. It would be like ripping Becca from his arms all over again. He didn't know if he could stand the pain of walking out and not seeing her, but it would be best for his daughter.

"Daddy!" The tiny ten-year-old blonde bounded down the steps and into his arms. The decision had been made for both Susanna and himself. He would be given one final glance at his daughter before he went underground.

He knelt on one knee and placed his palms on her cheeks. "Let me look at you. You're as pretty as the day I left."

"Mommy said you weren't coming back except to pick me up on the weekends."

"That's why I'm here, sweetie, to tell you I have to go away for awhile."

"Why?"

"I can't say, but it won't be forever."

Tears welled up in her eyes. "I don't want you to go."

"I don't either, Becca--but sometimes we have to do things we don't want."

Becca glanced at her mother. Aside from the difference in hair coloring, she was Susanna's spitting image. "Tell Daddy he has to stay. He'll listen to you."

Susanna swiped a tear from her cheek. "I can't. Daddy needs to leave. We have to trust him."

When Becca turned back to him, his heart broke. Gone was the saddened tear-filled gaze. Her brown eyes radiated in fury. "You don't love us." She smacked away his hands. "Just go. I hate you anyway!" Becca ran up the stairs without so much as a glance backward.

At that moment, Tev would have given anything to do as Suz had suggested, to turn back time. He stood and glanced at his lovely wife; his finger traced her taut jaw.

"I'm sorry," was all he could think to say before he turned and left.

Thanks to Chief Whitey, his life had gone from being in the shitter to existing in hell. His only way to freedom would come from cavorting with the devil himself.

Tev tipped the amber-colored liquid to his lips, downing the contents, feeling the whiskey burn clear to the toes of his hiking boots. He welcomed the heat; it made him feel something, anything other than the pain of his daughter's parting words. He slammed the glass on the white square napkin. The ice tinkled. Condensation gathered on the side of the empty, chilled glass, reminding him of his insides: cold and void. He purposefully sat at the end of the long counter, since he couldn't bear to see his reflection in the mirror hanging directly behind the bar. He wouldn't much like the image that stared back. Uninhabited, vacant.

As a matter of fact, Tev's life had been meaningless for years. If it hadn't been for the love of his daughter, he might have walked out years ago. Instead, he poured himself into one job or the other, and spent very little time at home. It had always been easier to run away from his problems than face them. The past year he had spent more and more time at the cops' regular hangout, Mack's, where he had come to know Casey Black quite well. Probably better than he knew his own wife.

For a Friday, Mack's seemed rather slow, the normal crowd having yet to descend. Of course, being ten in the evening, it was still early for Chicago night life. A large share of the 62nd precinct hung here, and come eleven, the place would likely fill to capacity; standing-room-only as cops came in to drink away their problems and forget their life on the streets if only for a few blessed hours. At times, being a big-city cop required a backbone of steel. Those that didn't have one rarely made it past their first few years on the force.

Tev stirred the ice with the small orange cocktail straw. His eyes fixated on the square, melting cubes. Soon, all that had been familiar would be no more: not this bar, not his apartment, nothing. Whitey would see to it that he disappeared. He'd have a new place, new wheels, and along with it, new sets of places to hang. In short, he'd start his life over. He'd no longer be known as Officer Tevan Zaber, but just Tev. No past, no future. His bills, including child support and alimony, would be paid by an anonymous source and the remainder of his paychecks set up in an account that he could access from any ATM. Chicago was a big city--big enough for him to disappear.

"Need another?" Casey asked, startling Tevan. He hadn't seen his approach.

"Nope. I think the best thing for me is to head on home--wherever the hell that is."

"When you leaving?"

"Soon." Tev scribbled the new cell phone number he had been given by the department on a clean napkin and slid it in Casey's direction. "You need to get hold of me, call me here."

Casey flipped the white towel he carried over his shoulder, then tucked the napkin in his shirt pocket. "I still don't know why the secrecy. What's so all damned important that you have to disappear from the scene?"

"I told you before, Casey--it's something I have to do. You promised me you'd take care of Susanna and Rebecca."

"A promise is a promise."

Casey's light-brown hair was cut short around his ears and combed back from his forehead. His face bore a full, neatly-trimmed beard and a slightly crooked nose from an old break. At first glance most might not consider him classically handsome. But his smile displayed a devilish dimple on his right cheek that Tev would bet many women would find attractive...including Susanna. Although Suz had a right to see anyone she chose, jealousy still reared its ugly head. He needed to adjust to the idea that she could date whomever she damn well pleased. And with filing the papers that morning, he had just as much given her his blessing.

Tev clenched his jaw, feeling the ache clear to his temples. He hoped he hadn't made the mistake of a lifetime, walking away from everything he had worked the last ten years for.

As if sensing his sudden resentfulness, Casey said, "Look man--you don't have to worry about me. I won't make a play for your wife."

"Suz is a beautiful woman, but I no longer have a right to claim her."

"You filed the papers." It was a statement, not a question. He had talked to Casey about the possibility.

"Hardest thing I ever had to do."

Casey picked up Tev's empty glass and napkin, polishing the bar surface with his towel. "You go do what you have to. I'll make sure nothing happens to your family."

"You don't know how much I appreciate that."

"Sure I do. Now, go on--get out of here. I'll see you whenever you decide to surface."

Tev stood and threw a few singles on the bar. "If anything happens--"

"I'll call."

"I'll keep in touch from time to time."

"They'll be fine. After all, they have me looking out for them." He flashed Tev a large grin, causing Tev to laugh. "Now go do what you've got to do."

He shook Casey's hand. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You might just regret saying that if your wife's half as pretty as you say."

Tev chuckled. "She's too damned pretty for your ugly mug."

"Then how come I got all the ladies fawning over me every night and you don't?"

"Because you're the one with all the alcohol." He knocked on the bar. "Catch you later."

"Yeah--you take care of yourself, man."

Tev walked into the night as the city came to life. Soon enough he would be the one coming out instead of going home to his solitary bed. Although, life wasn't about to be any less lonely, and he sensed it would certainly prove to be a lot more interesting.