It was just after noon when Detective Hartzman and his daughter Ava arrived at the residence of Vincent Veldassare and his wife, Evangeline Veldassare. Ava was fascinated by the size of the homes in the neighborhood of Lexus. Though she was not yet aware that it was a vampire community, she couldn’t help but notice all of the thick, dark curtains that covered every window of every single home in the area.
Her father pulled up in front of a mansion sized brick house covered in light grey paint and accented with a jet-black roof. They exited the vehicle and made their way up the walkway to the large, fancy rectangular front door.
William pressed the doorbell button and waited patiently for the front door to open. Ava was blown away when they were led into a tiny, windowless area and then the door was immediately closed behind them as soon as they stepped inside. There was yet another closed door in front of them and as soon as the windowless door behind them closed, the second door opened.
“Welcome, Detective,” said a pleasant, inviting female voice. “Please, come in. Ms. Veldessare will be right with you.”
A tall, elegant-looking woman came into view from behind the open door. She was thin and graceful, though, to Ava, she looked to be closer to her father’s age than she was to her own. Her long, jet black long hair was held back away from her face by a dark-colored headband, and it hung loosely down her back, almost reaching her waist. She was wearing a long, dark gown that looked like as if it belonged at a ball of some type and her skin was quite pale, as if she’d never been in the sunlight in her entire life. The woman’s dark, enchanting eyes moved from William to Ava and then back to William as she motioned for them to enter the home.
After William and Ava entered the giant home, the olive-skinned woman who had opened the door closed it behind them.
“Hello, Evangeline,” Detective Hartzman said. “I do apologize for showing up at this inconvenient time, but it’s very urgent that I speak with you immediately.”
A puzzling look appeared on Ava’s face, as she didn’t understand why her father was apologizing for showing up at 11:00 a.m. and referring to the time as “inconvenient.”
Ava followed her father into the house and greeted the woman with a smile. A thin, equally tall male met them just inside the home and approached them with a warm, welcoming grin.
“Ahh, Detective!” he said, extending a long, large hand out to William. “To what do I owe this unexpected visit?” His dark, inviting eyes met William’s.
“Vincent, again, I apologize for showing up so unconventionally, but it’s urgent that I speak with you, immediately,” William explained as he vigorously shook the man’s hand.
Just then, a third party entered the room and Ava’s eyes lit up in surprise. He was almost as tall as the Vincent character, but he looked much younger and was more muscular. His hair was as black as the woman’s and styled in a neat crew cut. His eyes were a bright blue color and they glistened brilliantly in the dim light of the room. He was wearing a tight blue expensive looking shirt that accented his buff, brawny upper body and showed off the definition in his arms. When he lifted his head, his eyes met Ava’s and they locked, both trapped unexpectedly, resulting in a long, intense stare.
Ava felt her heart skip a beat. Who was this enticing, dark-haired stranger who held her gaze with an intensity that made her temperature rise and her heart rate increase? She couldn’t seem to break their contact.
He appeared to be right around her age, and yet she was certain she had never seen him before, although she had grown up in Mountain Crest. He came over to her and extended his hand, as if drawn towards her. Ava instinctively held out her hand and allowed him to take hold of it and shake it slowly, his eyes never leaving hers in the process.
“H-hi,” Ava stammered. “I-I’m Ava.”
“I’m Chase,” he replied in a deep, sultry voice.
Ava was instantly smitten by him, and try as she might, she could not avert her eyes from his piercing gaze.
“Come! Join us in the study, please,” Vincent requested as he led William and Ava into the next room. Ava kept her eyes on Chase’s muscular back and wide shoulders as they entered the study and sat down at the long table.
William cleared his throat before speaking.
“Vincent, this morning, the body of an eighteen-year-old girl was found just outside of the Hendricks Recycling Plant,” he announced solemnly. “Her body had been completely exsanguinated and there were two puncture wounds in her neck.”
Vincent’s face became slack at the news.
“I see. I supposed that you’re wondering if anyone from our community had anything to do with this tragedy,” he stated quietly.
William nodded. His body language gave away how blatantly uncomfortable he felt relaying the information to Vincent.
“I assure you, detective, that none of us would dare violate our sacred truce. However, I will make it my top priority to question every resident about this calamity and to report any information that arises back to you, immediately,” Vincent promised.
“Thank you, Vincent,” William replied, completely unaware that his daughter and Vincent’s son were still locked in intimate eye contact throughout the entire conversation.
**
“Dad, how long has the community of Lexus been a part of Mountain Crest?” Ava asked on the ride back down into town.
“It’s pretty much always been there,” he replied pensively.
“Why do the city council leaders think they had something to do with that girl’s death?” she asked inquisitively.
William shrugged, not wanting to have to explain to his daughter that the residents of the community were actually hundreds-year-old vampires.
“I never knew anything about it,” Ava stated softly, allowing a dreamy smile to play at the corner of her lips. “And who was that Chase guy? I grew up here and I’ve never seen him before in my life.”
Noticing her tone, her father suddenly looked over at her with a stern expression on his face.
“You should stay away from him, Ava. Those Lexus folks are trouble,” he stated firmly.
Ava wasn’t exactly sure what her father had meant by that, but at 25, she was no longer a child and had no intention of heeding his warning. When she’d laid eyes on Chase Veldassare, she had felt an instant attraction. She was drawn to him in a way that she had never been drawn to any other man before, and somehow, she just knew that he’d felt it , too. She already knew that there was no way she was going to be able to stay away from him—period.