Deep Secrets, Deviants

Chapter 1

Chase

The town name, Paradise Falls, Wyoming, is awfully ironic. When some unfortunate tourists actually have the audacity to ask me what kind of town this is, all I need to say is the name. It's Paradise Falls. Anything and everything you need to know is in the name. But for a tourist's sake, I tend to elaborate.

Paradise Falls didn't have the Falls added until 1962, when the whole town crashed. It used to be a simple Paradise. That's why we still have naïve tourists. Before 1962, the town was an extremely upscale place. The kind of place where stray dogs and cats didn't exist. They had fences around the trees, everyone lawn and bush were trimmed to a T, and the only thing tighter than the residences' asses was their circle of influence over the politic affairs handled in the town. Anyone who was anybody had a rich three to four story house in Paradise; the kind with painted glass windows, where the owners never stepped foot in the kitchen, and they had so many rooms they couldn't even find their own unless their butler escorted them.

But that had all changed before I was even born. The secrets of the corrupt politicians had come back to bite them in the ass. Homes were being fled from left and right just to avoid being escorted to prison. It was a time known as the Great Fall of Paradise. That's when Paradise Falls came into play. Being nothing but a ghost town, the rich ass homes were suddenly on the market for outstanding prices that got every fool bum in a thousand square mile radius bouncy with new hope. But with the lack of rich politicians to scowl at every speck of liter they happened to cross by and because of the lack of cooperation in the town hall, things became unkempt. People got lazy. Buildings became run down. The streets became a place to avoid after curfew.

Before the town's people could get another firm hold on the quality of the place, other people started controlling things. In 1976 there was a serious lack of policemen. At that point, everyone knew the gangsters were too strong. It was their town. If you didn't tread carefully, you just didn't tread. It just wasn't the type of place for innocent eyes to see.

And that is why I'm so confused when I find myself walking on road after road in Paradise Falls, seeming to head in no particular direction, but not passing a single soul, even when I walk through the alleys that are known for muggers. Something is definitely off, and it raises the hairs on the back of my neck. There are no stray dogs, no shouting, no sound of vehicles, and no garbage. It seems like a completely different town with every single garbage can and dumpster empty and all the old, abandoned buildings no longer giving off a ghost town vibe, but an odd retro vibe instead.

But that isn't the strangest part. Not by the least.

I turn the corner from Black Street and find myself face to face with a young woman the age of 21 with bright blonde hair and vivid, glowing purple eyes. I haven't seen her for years, but I recognize her immediately, as she looks like a spitting imagine of my mother.

"Cambria..." I say, frowning. "What are you doing here?" She wears a tight, black thermal outfit, her hair falls around her shoulders, straight as an arrow. She gives me a small but wise smile. She always was the more rational of the three.

"Chase... Chelsea will be visiting you very soon, and she's changed. ," she says calmly. I open my mouth to speak but her eyes suddenly change from purple to pink. Her hair seems to send itself in curls and even her dress changes to a pink cocktail dress. Even her manner changes from mature beyond her years to completely flirtatious. It makes sense though, since it's no longer Cambria, but Cerise that stands before me.

"Chase," she says, "you need to realize that Chelsea's involved with some dangerous people. Keep a good eye on her, okay? She's in great danger and it'll only get worse."