Chapter 1

Friday morning, September 4, 2009: few hours before dawn

I’m just not a tentacle kind of guy.

However, when a friend calls and asks for help, what else can you do?

Paul screeched to a halt in front of my house, just long enough for me to jump into his red Prius. Not exactly the Batmobile, but it was better than the alternative: me hoofing it to the fight. I don’t own a car. With the excellent Washington D.C. Metro system, it hasn’t been a problem. I might have to rethink it someday, but for now I’m happy to let Paul drive.

“What do we know?” I asked him as we raced through the quiet, early morning streets. The moon, heavy and almost full, hung low on the horizon in a sky that was still dark, with not even a hint of the dawn...

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