CRIME S B Y MOONLIGHT
DEADLOCKED
Charlaine Harris
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
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This is an original publication of The Berkley Publishing Group.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
Copyright © 2012 by Charlaine Harris, Inc.
HBO® and True Blood® are service marks of Home Box Office, Inc.
Text design by Kristin del Rosario.
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FIRS T E DIT ION: May 2012
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Harris, Charlaine.
Deadlocked / Charlaine Harris.—First edition.
pages cm.—(A Sookie Stackhouse novel)
ISBN: 978-1-101-58071-4
1. Stackhouse, Sookie (Fictitious character)—Fiction. 2. Vampires—Fiction. 3. Werewolves—Fiction. 4. Magic— Fiction. I. Title.
PS3558.A6427D45 2012
813’.54—dc23
2011053447
P RINT E D IN T HE UNIT E D S T A T E S OF A ME RICA
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ALW AY S LE ARNING
PEARSON
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I appreciate the advice and encouragement given by my friends Dana Cameron and Toni L. P. Kelner. I couldn’t do any of this without my husband, Hal. Paula Woldan (bffpaula) has made my life a cakewalk rather than an obstacle course. And heartfelt thanks to my agent, Joshua Bilmes of JABberwocky, who guards the entrance to my cave.
My sincere gratitude to Stefan Diamante of Body Roxx for his Male Strippers 101 course.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6