Al is determined to try. Barely able to control his most basic urges—to kill, to feed, to mate—he's a lethal nightmare. With the soul of an ancient predator, Al stalks the dark forces crouched in the city's night shadows. But the real battle rages in his heart. The woman he desires looks at him with both heat and fear in her eyes. Jenna seems to see through the layers of deception to the primitive heart of him. Love is a formidable opponent. How can he ask her to stay with him after she's seen the savagery of his beast? Why would she want to? Time is running out, and love won't matter if Al and others like him can't stop the powers intent on annihilation. To save Jenna and every other person on Earth, he'll unleash a primal fury unlike anything humans have ever seen. Al is the ultimate killer, but can he save the woman he loves along with the rest of humanity from an enemy that paints in blood and death?