Grimm: The Chopping Block (34 page)

* * *

Later, at Monroe’s house, Nick and the Blutbad prepared for a double date with Juliette and Rosalee. Nick checked the time and saw they had a few minutes before they needed to head to Juliette’s place. Monroe came down the stairs, looking less than comfortable in a brown suit, white shirt and jade-green necktie.

“So Juliette managed to snag a reservation for four at Escapade?” he asked as he tugged and adjusted the knot in his tie.

“Yes,” Nick said. “So I’d better recover my appetite in a hurry.”

“Completely understand,” Monroe said, flashing a sympathetic grimace. “I hear they offer an extensive vegetarian menu.”

“That’s what I’m told,” Nick said. “Are you okay with that?”

“Me? Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You weren’t tempted?” Nick asked. “To really fall off the wagon?”

Nick retained some residual guilt over pushing Monroe into a close encounter with the cannibal Wesen. He’d really had no choice—it had been their only chance to save Hank and the other captives. But he knew Monroe sometimes struggled to stay reformed, and Nick had chosen to disregard that for the greater good.

“Tempted, sometimes,” Monroe said seriously. “But not by that naked barbarism. If anything, I’m more dedicated to the reformed lifestyle than ever.”

“Glad to hear it,” Nick said.

“And, believe it or not,” Monroe added, “I actually enjoy Pilates.”

Thanks to Cath Trechman, my editor at Titan Books, for opening the door for me again, this time to participate in another show’s universe, and for coordinating everything with NBCUniversal. Also at Titan, thanks to Valerie Gardner, Katy Wild, Natalie Laverick, Helen Bertrand, and Antonio Nilletti. Thank you to Chris Lucero, Alex Solverson, Jessica Nubel, Kim Niemi, Ed Prince, and Lynn Kouf at NBCUniversal.

I’m indebted to Donna Spector, BS, DVM, DACVIM—Veterinary Internal Medicine Specialist at
SpectorDVM.com
, for helping me with the details of a true diagnosis masquerading as another condition. Any errors that may have occurred in dramatizing the disorder are solely mine.

Additional thanks to Matthew Passarella for helping me build an ad hoc show bible and for sorting pages and pages of character dialogue. This behind-the-scenes organizational effort helped me make my deadline. Thanks to Jeffrey Richards for answering some geocaching questions and offering name suggestions. Thanks to Andrea, the cook in our family, for helping me present the cannibal feasts. And finally, thanks to my son, Luke, for escorting my daughter, Emma, to/from summer drama class so I could write into the pre-dawn hours every night (day?) and not have to worry about setting my alarm clock.

John Passarella won the Horror Writers Association’s prestigious Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel for the coauthored
Wither
. Columbia Pictures purchased the feature film rights to
Wither
in a prepublication, preemptive bid.

John’s other novels include
Wither’s Rain, Wither’s Legacy, Kindred Spirit
,
Shimmer
and the original media tie-in novels
Supernatural: Night Terror
,
Supernatural: Rite of Passage, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Ghoul Trouble, Angel: Avatar
, and
Angel: Monolith
. In January 2012, he released his first fiction collection,
Exit Strategy & Others. Grimm: The Chopping Block
is his eleventh novel.

A member of the Authors Guild, Horror Writers Association, International Thriller Writers, International Association of Media Tie-In Writers and the Garden State Speculative Writers, John resides in southern New Jersey with his wife, three children, a dog and a cat. As the owner of
AuthorPromo.com
, he is a web designer for many clients, primarily other authors.

John maintains his official author website at
www.passarella.com
, where he encourages readers to send him email at
[email protected]
, and to subscribe to his free author newsletter for the latest information on his books and stories. To follow him on Twitter, see
@JohnPassarella
.

When a torched body is found in an underground tunnel, Portland Police Captain Sean Renard takes one look at the victim’s burned claws and assigns the case to homicide detectives Nick Burkhardt and Hank Griffin. They soon discover that a criminal organization known as The Icy Touch is threatening Wesen into joining their illegal drug-smuggling operation, and brutally murdering those who refuse. But as Nick closes in on the gang’s charismatic and ruthless leader, the Grimm uncovers an ancient—and deadly—rivalry…

A brand-new original novel set in the
Grimm
universe.

TITAN
BOOKS.COM

As his Aunt Marie is dying, homicide Detective Nick Burkhardt discovers he is descended from an elite line of criminal profilers known as “Grimms”, who keep the balance between humanity and mythological creatures. As well as inheriting the “gift” from his aunt of being able to see the creatures’ true forms, he also inherits useful artefacts, including the Book of Lore.

An in-universe book exploring the weapons, potions and creatures of
Grimm
.

TITAN
BOOKS.COM