Chapter 7

After arriving back at the police station, Kenzie and Carson were comparing notes with Isaiah. All the notes were more or less the same, and Kenzie felt like she wasn't getting any closer to solving the case. It was now late afternoon, and Kenzie had officially been in Bridgeport for 24 hours.

Just then, Carson's phone rang. He picked it up and said, "Tobias." He grabbed his notepad and began writing vigorously. He then said, "Thank you," and hung up. He looked at Kenzie and Isaiah.

"We have IDs for all previous victims," he said. "A couple of tourists, three aspiring celebs, and two local business people."

"These are the victims that have the three types of bite marks?" Kenzie asked.

"Yes, that's them."

"Which victims have which bite marks?"

"Well, according to the lab, the first tourist, a Mr. Moore, has the first set of bite marks. So does aspiring actress Ms. Trevors and businesswoman Mrs. Spangler. The second tourist, Ms. Coombs, has the second set of bite marks, as well as the businessman Mr. Acheson. And the last two victims, aspiring musicians Mr. Dunbar and Mr. Baites, have the third set of bite marks."

Kenzie wrote all this down while Carson was talking. She also added that the fourth victim had the fourth set of bite marks. She then asked to see the autopsy photos again, which Carson produced. He first wrote down the names of each victim on the picture, then handed them over to Kenzie. Kenzie made a note of what each bite mark looked like. She wouldn't be able to remember as well as Isaiah, but at least she knew who'd been bitten by which vampire. Now all she needed were names of three suspects.

After a while, it was time for supper. Carson offered to take Kenzie out to eat at Waylon's Haunt, one of the non-exclusive dives in town. As they were leaving, his cell phone rang. He answered it and Kenzie could tell right away that it was the mayor.

"Yes ma'am, it's true that we found another victim today. No, it breaks the pattern and there is a different set of bite marks. Unfortunately yes, it's looking that way."

Carson was quiet for a moment before replying, "Just tell them 'no comment'. That's all we need, more press. No, I know it's not your fault. We're working on it, I promise. Yeah I understand. All right, goodbye."

Carson hung up his phone and sighed. "That was the mayor. Now we've got even more press involved that heard about this latest body. I guess the gardener has other dreams too; he called the press and told them all about it to get his fifteen minutes of fame."

"So now the mayor is being hounded by the press," Isaiah said.

"Yeah, that's all she needs."

Kenzie's stomach growled. She cringed, embarrassed. She hoped no one heard it, but she hadn't eaten since that morning.

Isaiah grinned, showing his pointy teeth. Kenzie's face turned even more crimson as he said, "May I suggest we continue this conversation over dinner?"

Carson nodded. "Good idea. Isaiah, will you please direct Kenzie there? After dinner I'll have to head back here but she'll probably need to get back to her hotel."

"Of course."

So with that, the three headed out the door.

The drive to Waylon's was pretty short. There were quite a few people inside there. Some were at the tables eating, others at the bar drinking, and some playing games. A rowdy bunch of men in sports jerseys were gathered in the back corner around the big TV watching a game. Carson led the way to a small table and sat down in one of the two chairs. Kenzie sat across from him, Isaiah pulling up a third chair and sitting in between them.

A thin young waitress with a very revealing shirt came over and placed three glasses of water and three menus on the table. She took one back when Isaiah politely declined. The waitress walked off and Isaiah pulled out some plasma juice. Upon seeing Kenzie look at it, he grinned and said, "Always have some with you just in case."

"I'll remember that if I ever turn into a vampire."

"You have no desire to do that, do you?"

"No way."

"Good for you."

Kenzie looked over the menu. Several things sounded good but she finally decided on a turkey club sandwich with bacon, cheese, and olives. Carson selected a hamburger with fries. The waitress returned and took their orders. While waiting for their food, Isaiah asked Kenzie, "how about this time I ask you some questions about yourself? You learned quite a bit about me last night."

Kenzie set down her water glass after taking a sip. She looked at Isaiah and said, "I guess we could do that, but my life isn't that interesting."

"On the contrary, I've never been to Riverview, and I'm interested to learn how you became such a good detective for one so young."

Kenzie felt herself blushing again. She wished her face would stop heating up whenever Isaiah talked to her. The last thing she needed was to start developing feelings for a vampire. She liked him well enough as a friend, but she didn't want to like him as anything else.

Trying to draw attention away from her crimson face, she said, "Well, I've lived in Riverview my whole life. I haven't really been to too many places. I knew I wanted to be a detective since I was in middle school. I wanted to help make the world a better place by catching criminals."

"Do you have a family?"

"Yeah, I have my parents. They actually live right down the road from me. I don't have any brothers or sisters though. How about you?"

"I thought I was the one asking questions here." Isaiah grinned. "But I have two brothers. Our father died when I was very young, so we were all raised by our mother."

"Are you the oldest, youngest, or middle son?"

"I'm the middle son. I always was a  bit of an outcast."

"I don't think you're such an outcast."

Just then, the food arrived. Kenzie and Carson began eating while Isaiah consumed some plasma fruit. Kenzie wondered how he fit so much into that suitcase of his. While eating, she looked around and thought of how much fun it would be if she could play some of the games at Waylon's. But her journey to Bridgeport wasn't for a vacation. She enjoyed her job, but sometimes she liked to have a little fun outside of work.

Isaiah saw her staring at the dart boards and said, "Would you like to play a game?"

"Are you reading my mind?"

"Certainly not. I'm a man, or vampire, of my word."

"Well, I'd like to, but we really shouldn't..."

"Nonsense," Carson piped up. "Go ahead and enjoy yourself. You've earned it."

"But the killers won't wait."

"You can't do much else tonight anyway. Go on."

Kenzie smiled and thanked Carson. She finished her sandwich and she and Isaiah both stood up. Isaiah allowed Kenzie to throw the first dart. But that mattered little, for Isaiah won an easy victory. Kenzie laughed and said, "Of course you won, you can see and aim better."

"Guilty as charged. But I figured you wouldn't appreciate it if I let you win. You don't seem like that kind of person."

"Guilty as charged."

Kenzie and Isaiah smiled at each other. They then looked at the clock and realized it was getting late. They said goodbye to Carson, who was also going to call it a night, and went outside. Kenzie climbed into her car and Isaiah climbed into the passenger seat. They then drove back to the hotel.

Isaiah rode the elevator up with Kenzie again. When they got to her door, she began to unlock it when Isaiah said, "Would I be out of line if I made a request?"

Kenzie turned around and said, "What kind of request?"

"I was wondering if I might kiss you good night."

Kenzie hoped her jaw didn't hit the floor when she pondered this. A man who was actually asking permission? Isaiah was old-fashioned, it was true, but Kenzie wasn't used to such a gentleman. She'd had a few boyfriends in the past, but she was always more of the "girl next door" type. She was the kind of girl who was everyone's friend, and in some cases, the girl who couldn't say no when it came to doing homework for others, at least until high school. She was never the kind of girl that guys fell head over heels for.

And now here was a very kind young man, who could probably have any girl he wanted, asking to kiss her good night. She knew she should say no. She knew she shouldn't allow it. She knew it was a bad idea. She knew there'd be no turning back.

"All right," she said, scolding herself all the while.

Isaiah leaned forward and brushed Kenzie's cheek with his lips. Oh, so that was what he meant. That wasn't so bad then.

But then he brushed his hand against her other cheek and stared deep into her eyes. His cold skin sent tingling sensations all throughout her body. He was leaning in closer when Kenzie came to her senses and pulled her head back, hitting the door in the process.

"Ouch," she said, rubbing her head.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine. It's just, Isaiah, I do like you. But I'm here to solve a case, and I'm afraid if we get involved like this..."

"I understand. I overstepped my boundaries, and I apologize."

"It's okay, if I wasn't on a case it would be different."

"Perhaps when this case is solved things will be different."

"I'd like that," Kenzie heard herself saying, though her brain was screaming at her to stop acting like such a hopeless romantic already.

Finally, Kenzie and Isaiah both said good night and Kenzie unlocked and opened her door. She shut it and turned on the lights. Then, she turned around and headed toward the bathroom. She looked out the window to see the city lights, but what she saw instead made her scream.