Already, Dead Beat has us glued to the edge of our seats.  New threats lurk in the dark hours before Halloween’s approach, and it doesn’t seem to be letting up any time soon.

Harry is once again on a case that’s a lot more than he bargained for.  Will he be able to put a few more pieces together or will there be more questions?

Let’s see what the next five chapters have in store.

Last time, Harry had gotten a map from Mortimer.  It had the locations where necromancy traces could be found in Chicago.  Thanks to the dearly departed, Harry now had a heading.

Harry eventually made his way home, and was greeted by Thomas.  Thomas was still a bit grumpy, but did help out Butters like Harry asked.  They’d have to talk later about what was going on, but not right now.

Eventually, Harry fell asleep and dropped into a dream.  Instead of the usual monsters and screams, he found himself in front of a campfire.

With his father.

It was honestly a beautiful moment.  His father was finally aloud to speak to his son, and it actually was him.  Malcolm Dresden was able to tell his son “I love you.”

I was moved to tears, really.

After Harry woke from an actually restful sleep, he went on a run with Thomas.  They drove to the beach and jogged up and down the shoreline.  After enough exercise, they talked about what was going on with Mavra and the necromancers.  Then Thomas promised to tell Harry about what it’s like to be a Hungry White Court.  That is if he beats Thomas in a footrace.

They took of at high speeds, racing and tripping each other as they ran.  Harry emerged from the epic struggle victorious, and attempted to quench his thirst.

No sooner was the harshest edge of his thirst eased when Thomas knocked the water bottle out of his hand.  Thus leaving the thirst unsatisfied.  That is what being a Hungry White Court is like.

With that, Harry went to find out what he could about the sites mentioned on the map.  The first was a bust, but the second proved to be more promising.  The museum near Soldier’s Field housed a new “exhibit.”  Dr. Bartlesby was brutally murdered, and the same cold aura of necromancy surrounded the crime scene.

While there, Harry talked to one of the cops working the case.  His name was Rawlins, and surprisingly he didn’t arrest Harry on sight. As it turns out, Rawlins was saved from a monster by Murphy’s dad.

After that, Harry picked up Butters and brought him back to the morgue. They needed to know why the baddies wanted him so badly, and it also gave them the opportunity to see what happened to Dr. Bartlesby.

Butters got to work while Harry waited in the front room.  While there, Dr. Bartlesby’s assistants arrived.  Alicia Nelson started barking orders at Casey, the other security guard, while her stoic companion lurked in the corner.  She was very concerned about the good doctor’s personal belongings.  Since Dr. Bioche was still working with the body, she needed to wait for the items to be released to her.

Harry Listened to what the assistants whispered to each other.  As it turns out, Li Xian was a Ghoul and Alicia was his “lord.”

That bodes well.

Harry took the smart option and grabbed Butters.  It was time to evacuate.

Oh by the way, Eduardo Mendoza was actually one of Marcone’s boys.  He was a ballooner, which means he would smuggle things in swallowed balloons.  Sure enough, there was a usb drive in his stomach.

This day just keeps getting better and better.

They reluctantly went to Billy’s apartment to see what was on the drive.  While Butters worked on that, Harry checked his messages.  The first was from Murphy, letting him know she was in Hawaii.  She sounded like she was having a good time.  The second was from Mike.  The Beetle was ready.  The third was from Sheila, and she sounded like she was scared.  Of course, that tickled Harry’s chivalrous bone.

Yeah that bone. All of them.

So off he went to hunt down more leads. Hopefully no one wants him dead this time.

Will our favorite wizard manage to uncover more clues without getting ganked? Find out next time.