It started in silence.

A low fog kissed the ground as Baron prowled barefoot through a shadowed parlor littered with gold. Moonlight dripped through the trees outside like melted silver.

The candlelights continued to bob like eager onlookers.

He could hear breathing.

Close. Unsteady. Feminine.

Then he saw her.

A beauty.

Her heart ticked fast — too fast.

Another sound spilled out. This time lower. Raw. A sound like pain and hunger all at once.

And then she pushed the door ...