Page 22 of The Elementalist
Way faster than Ron, too.
I took in some air, and reluctantly leveled my stare at her. “Do you believe in vampires, Miss Bradbury?”
Chapter Twelve
Matters Seldom Discussed
She blinked.
Since I’d never posed the vampire question to anyone, I wasn’t sure what reaction I expected. The one she gave me would have been far, far down on the list.
Instead of laughing it off, or demanding I return her money for wasting her time—or being insane—she simply sat back, crossed her legs and folded her hands over her exposed knees. “Why do you ask, Mr. Long?”
To say her question and demeanor caught me off guard would be an understatement. I opened my mouth to speak, only to discover that I hadn’t a clue what to say.
Crystal tilted her head. “Mr. Long?”
“You don’t seem surprised by the question.”
She shrugged, although the rest of her remained perfectly still. “The rumors of vampires around here are nothing new.”
“Maybe,” I said, knowing she was right, of course. “But your reaction is a first for me.”
“Whatever do you mean?”
“You took my question in stride,” I said. “Almost as if you had, well, expected it.”
“Or perhaps I’m still too stunned to give you a proper response.”
I shrugged. “Are you?”
She leaned forward. “Let’s cut the crap, Mr. Detective. What do you know?”
“The town has a vampire problem, or so I’m told.”
“Told by whom?”
By a blogger named Michael, I could have said, but didn’t. “My sources… one of which happens to be my camera. You don’t seem surprised.”
“Maybe because I’m not, detective.”
“If you knew it was a vampire who killed Dana and her husband, then why did you hire me?”
“Because I most certainly didn’tknow. Honestly, I don’t understand much about vampires.”
“But you know enough not to laugh off my original question.”
She took in a lot of air. Some of my puppy love had faded, but as she inhaled again and her lungs expanded and her chest lifted, I might have swallowed. Hard. And I might have wet my lips a little, too.
After a long pause, she nodded. “I’m aware of the town’s vampire problem. And the recent ‘animal attacks’ seem to confirm that the vampires are back, but I wouldn’t know for sure. I’m not exactly in the loop anymore.”
“Anymore?”
“I’ve said far too much, Mr. Long.”
“On the contrary, you haven’t said nearly enough. Dana and Luke, unless I’m wrong, were killed by a vampire. At least, that’s what the evidence suggests.”
“What kind of evidence?”
