American Zombie Detective

Around midnight, Qin Jin and Alessa arrived at the Green Grass neighborhood near the Los Angeles West Heritage Museum.

This is a typical middle-class community, mostly inhabited by blue-collar and white-collar workers in Glendale. There's a large Chinese population, and schools are nearby, but most importantly—

It's very close to the Los Angeles Canyon Police Station, making commuting to work very convenient.

Qin Jin drove to the house he had rented online, took the key from under a flowerpot on the left side of the door, and opened the door.

This is a typical American-style building. The furnishings, furniture, and decorations are all old. The house is not large. The first floor is the living and dining room with a guest room. The second floor has two separate bedrooms. The third floor has a bedroom with a small study. In addition, there is a basement of the same size as the living and dining room.

There are two parking spaces in front of the house, and behind it is a small garden, barely big enough to host an outdoor barbecue party for twenty or thirty people.

The house was very clean, and many household items had already been prepared. Qin Jin had paid the homeowner to help arrange these things in advance.

Qin Jin began carrying the small refrigerator into the basement. He paused briefly as he passed Alessa, slightly raising it in a gesture of acknowledgment.

"Would you like some?"

Alessa shook her head and watched Qin Jin take the refrigerator downstairs. When he returned to the living room on the creaking stairs, Alessa, who was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, suddenly asked:

"Did you come to Los Angeles because of me?"

Qin Jin stopped, glanced upwards, smacked his lips twice, and sat down decisively opposite Alessa. Then, with a cocky grin, he nodded.

"Yes and no! I must admit, your inability to grow up is indeed one of the reasons why we have to start over. After all, you've been in town for two years, and quite a few people are starting to find it strange, but—"

Qin Jin shrugged, his face completely indifferent: "Even if you don't come, I'll only stay for another five or six years at most. It looks like I'll be sixty by then. After all, this is all I can do, so..."

He laughed: "You don't need to feel embarrassed, OK?"

Alessa listened attentively, tilted her head to think for a moment, and then nodded emphatically:

"That's good! I'll sleep on the third floor."

After saying that, Alessa, carrying her Luger Super Red Eagle in her left hand and the Frankenstein's monster doll in her right, trudged up the stairs to the third floor, slammed the door shut, and then threw herself onto the bed.

"So, all you wanted was to sleep in the master bedroom!"

As the first rays of sunlight climbed through the blinds in the early morning, Alessa came downstairs to the living room barefoot, still holding Luger Red Eagle in her left hand and Frankenstein's monster in her right.

Qin Jin sat at the dining table, looking at the news on his phone. Every now and then, he would pick up the glass in front of him, sip the scarlet liquid inside, and swallow it. However, his expression was somewhat ferocious as he swallowed.

Alessa walked over, picked up another cup, tilted her head back, and gulped it down in a few mouthfuls.

Qin Jin put down her phone and looked over. Her delicate, porcelain-white face remained expressionless, but the twitching of her eyebrows and the pursed lips when she put down the cup betrayed her inner discomfort.

"Tsk, just two more days!" Qin Jin clicked his tongue, his eyebrow twitching slightly.

"Once I'm more familiar with the area, I'll go get some fresh chicken blood. This frozen cow blood is just too awful to drink."

Alessa licked the inside of her upper lip with the tip of her tongue, as if savoring the stubborn, unpleasant aftertaste, her voice flat and emotionless:

"Chicken blood, too."

"I know," Qin Jin chuckled briefly, a hint of resigned mockery in his voice, but his tone was certain: "But at least it's new, right?"

Aresa was silent for a few seconds, her clear but cold eyes looking at Qin Jin as if seeking confirmation:

"Have you changed locations, or are you no longer drinking human blood?"

The teasing look on Qin Jin's face vanished instantly. He sat up straight, his gaze becoming serious and earnest. His voice, though not loud, carried an undeniable firmness:

"Never touch human blood! Never! This is my bottom line, Alessa!"

He paused, his tone softening slightly, yet still carrying an almost stubborn insistence:

"Drinking this stuff will weaken us, but animal blood can make us more human, and our stomachs can barely hold anything else, instead of turning us into pure monsters!"

Aresa's gaze shifted from Qin Jin's face to the empty cup.

She seemed to be thinking, or perhaps simply spacing out. After a few seconds, she looked at Qin Jin again and nodded very slowly, but with utmost seriousness.

"clear."

Her voice remained calm and even; as long as Qin Jin clearly stated that the rules would remain unchanged, she would absolutely not violate them.

This was the only requirement Qin Jin had made when she first approached him, and one that she had to uphold.

Qin Jin's tense shoulders relaxed almost imperceptibly, and that cynical, roguish smile reappeared on his face, as if his previous seriousness was just an illusion.

"That's good." He stood up, stretched his limbs, and said, "That's enough. I'm going out for a bit."

"You know, before I came here, I had already passed the written test for the police exam online, and the final assessment is in four days."

As he spoke, he turned and picked up his coat, which was draped over the back of the chair.

"So, I need to sort out things like food, clothes, and cell phones in the next few days. After the exam, we will live in Los Angeles for a while."

"Approximately, how long?" Aresa was very concerned about this question.

After all, life with Qin Jin in the small town of Texas made her feel relaxed and comfortable, while a big city like Los Angeles made her feel inexplicably stressed, and she didn't like too many people.

"In 5-10 years, then we'll find another small town," Qin Jin said, putting on his coat and adjusting his collar.

"Remember when I said it would take a few years to completely sever ties with your Texas sheriff identity and solidify Qin Jin's life trajectory? More importantly, we need to find a suitable way to solve your problem of not growing up, like getting a special medical certificate or something."

Alessa was silent for a moment, recalling what Qin Jin had once explained to her:

"I remember. That's why you came to Los Angeles to take the police exam; you need... an identity."

"Smart!" Qin Jin affectionately pinched Alessa's cheek, stood up, picked up his car keys, and gave a wry smile:

"Oh, right, we also need to get the car fixed—what about you? Stay home, or come with me? We need to buy clothes today."

Alessa looked down at the dress she was wearing that never changed size, and shook her head.

"No, I'm staying home. My clothes..." She paused.

"You buy it. Same as before."

Qin Jin looked at the same size of clothing she was wearing, which hadn't changed in years, and shrugged helplessly.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do." He opened the door, and the cool morning air rushed in.

He stepped one foot out the door, then stopped, turning back to look at the small figure standing in the center of the living room, his expression becoming somewhat serious:

"Alessa, as usual, two things..."

Alessa looked up and spoke before he could, her words quick and clear, as if she had repeated the safety protocol countless times:

"First, no shooting is allowed."

Second, no one is allowed to open the door.

Qin Jin was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter:

"Yes! But once you get here, there's a new one," he added, emphasizing his words:

"Remember your current identity. You are no longer my illegitimate daughter, but my sister. Our father is Qin Han, the sheriff of the small town of Allanders, Texas. We are half-siblings, Qin Jin and Qin Alessa! Don't get them mixed up."

"Okay," Aresa replied calmly. "Go ahead."

Qin Jin nodded, walked out the door, and gently closed it behind him.

The moment the door closed, it shut out all light and sound from outside, leaving only Alessa alone in the large old house.

She walked to the window, lifted a corner of the blinds, and watched Qin Jin's old Dodge slowly drive away from the street and disappear around the corner of the community.

Silence returned to the room. Alessa walked to the sofa, sat cross-legged, turned on the TV, and began to watch intently…