The enigmatic performer known as the Body Artist takes the stage at Chicago's Club Gouge and allows her audience to use her naked body as a canvas. V. I. Warshawski watches as people step forward to make their mark. The evening takes a strange turn when one woman's sketch triggers a violent outburst from a man at a nearby table. Quickly subdued, the man-an Iraqi war vet leaves the club. Days later, the woman is shot outside the club. Sara Paretsky is a New York Times bestselling author.