The cops arrive, including Vicki's ex-partner from her police-force days, Mike Celluci (Neal). They discover that Ethan has some sort of bite on the neck and has been drained of his blood. Vicki spars with Mike, and he attempts to shut her out of the investigation.

The next day, Vicki gets a visit from a strange young woman named Coreen (Holden), who believes her boyfriend Ethan was killed by a vampire. She wants Vicki to take the case and investigate. Vicki reluctantly agrees. As she starts to investigate, she finds some mysterious evidence that seems to point to the vampire theory. Mike doesn't want to believe it, even as the body count of drained murdered victims begins to rise.

Vicki begins seeing a man who pops up at the same places as she during her investigation. At first Vicki believes he might be responsible for the murders. However, eventually she discovers that while the man, Henry Fitzroy (Schmid), is indeed a vampire, he's not responsible for the crimes. Henry is the 450-year-old illegitimate son of Henry VIII, and he's none too happy that something supernatural is killing people in his city.

They become uneasy partners as Henry faces an old enemy and Vicki begins to open herself to the supernatural possibilities around her. As the prospect of hell on earth gets closer and closer, Vicki and Henry struggle to stop the sacrifices before it's too late.

Bloody possibilities abound

Lifetime's latest entry into the female-lead action arena takes on the supernatural in a way that previous efforts Missing and Angela's Eyes never managed to do. Featuring solid actors and an intriguing backstory, Blood Ties explores the sexy material of the Tanya Huff books, incorporating decent special effects and snappy dialogue.

The two-hour pilot, "Blood Price," introduces us to Vicki's world and Henry's world and explores what happens when the two very different worlds collide. The Henry/Vicki/Mike love triangle works nicely, and there are plenty of sparks among the three leads. Vicki's relationship with Mike feels real as the former partners reignite the flame between them just enough. And it's also easy to believe Vicki's interest in Henry, as well as her attraction to him.

Christina Cox is convincing as a woman with a tough shell but a vulnerable heart who can handle herself. She comes across as a real person and has nice chemistry with both men. As for Kyle Schmid, who plays the vampire Henry Fitzroy, he looks like a romance-novel hero come to life. But fortunately, he also has solid acting chops. The third part of the triangle is Dylan Neal as Mike, who has his own tough-but-vulnerable thing going on. In later episodes, when Schmid and Neal bump heads, the series heats up.

As pilots go, this one works quite nicely as the story cooks along, featuring an excellent script by Peter Mohan and good direction by Allan Kroeker. The special effects go beyond what we usually see on Lifetime, which is a good thing, considering that monsters are going to be a regular presence on Blood Ties.

Overall, it's a good series with lots of possibilities and some occasional heat for good measure. However, there is a tendency to feature a monster of the week in a formulaic way. As the series continues, the investigations seem a little pat and forced. And you begin to wonder how many times Vicki can show up at a crime scene without someone arresting her. Still, if Mohan and his crew can keep the sparks flying among the three leads, Blood Ties could be a great series.