Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing about this story...the writing is all L.L. Raand's and the Characters are all from various television shows (South of Nowhere, The O.C., Orange is the New Black, Lost Girl, The Fosters, and The L Word) Credit goes completely to all listed above.

"Do not stray." Shane opened a steel vault door and led Spencer and Ashley down a narrow flight of stairs into a long dim hallway.

Spencer checked out the empty passageway. Where were the guards? The attendants? The Viceregal either was very secure in her power or she had an army sequestered somewhere in this underground labyrinth. Spencer suspected both things were true. Their footsteps made no sound on the marble floor, and no sign of life emanated from behind the line of closed doors they passed. The air was thick with the scent of blood and lust. Perhaps those rooms were bedrooms where hosts could recover. Spencer's wolf, unhappy descending into the lair of another predator, growled and clawed at her in warning. Ashley was too exposed here, surrounded by potential enemies.

We should have brought the centuri.

Ashley rubbed Spencer's back. Don't worry, mate. I would not risk you.

Spencer wasn't worried about herself but had no time to argue. Shane knocked on a heavy, carved wooden door, opened it, and led them into a sumptuous parlor occupied by only one individual. Spencer still didn't see any guards, but the Vampire standing by the fireplace was exactly as she had imagined—only she had underestimated the Viceregal's exquisiteness. The Viceregal had all the timeless beauty Spencer associated with Vampires: the ethereal countenance, the elegant carriage, the brilliant, piercing eyes, perfect skin, lush features, and shimmering aura of sensuality. The Viceregal was a creature of dreams—glorious scarlet tresses falling in sinuous curves over tan shoulders, a long, slender neck without a single blemish, mahogany eyes, ruby lips. Beneath the sheer, silvery gown, full breasts, a narrow waist, and flaring hips invited fantasy. Spencer's skin tingled, and languorous warmth spread through her blood. An erotic invitation teased along her nerves, and her clitoris pulsed. A faint pressure built behind her eyes. She rumbled low in her chest. Mind probe. Subtle and disturbingly enticing.

Beside her, Ashley snarled. "Viceregal. You insult the King High Pack."

"Alpha," the Viceregal said with a smile lifting the corner of her mouth. Her gaze lingered on Spencer, glittering with amusement. "Forgive me. She's quite commanding. I'm afraid I was carried away."

Spencer remembered what Ashley had said. Madison was a chess player. All Vampires loved games, most especially games of the mind. Their mind control was the true seat of their power, even more than the lust and pleasure they were able to induce in their prey. It would not do for the Viceregal to think she was easily influenced or nonplussed. "I've looked forward to meeting you, Viceregal. Ashley speaks highly of you."

Madison's brows flickered and she chuckled. "Does she?"

Spencer intentionally took her time clasping the back of Ashley's neck. The Viceregal would know protocol dictated no one touched the Alpha in public. No one except her mate. She stroked Ashley's throat, letting her fingertips play over the wild pulse. "Yes, she does."

"Madison," Ashley said, "allow me to introduce my mate, Spencer."

"Yes, Shane informed me of the happy news." Madison's gaze followed Spencer's fingers moving on Ashley's throat, her midnight irises shimmering with tongues of fire. "I should chide you, Alpha, for not telling me instantly. We would have honored the occasion in the appropriate fashion. We mustn't forget the old ways."

"No, we mustn't." Ashley leaned her hip against Spencer's. "I appreciate you seeing us on such short notice. I understood you had a message for me. I also was hoping you might be able to help me with some information."

Madison swept across the room to the divan and settled into one corner, extending her arm toward Shane. "Come join me, darling." She indicated the matching divan opposite her. "Make yourself comfortable, Ashley. Spencer. Would you care for tea?"

"No, I'm afraid we're short for time." Ashley sat, and Spencer joined her. "Forgive my rudeness."

"Darling, I can forgive you almost anything." Madison laughed and played her fingers through Shane's hair. "I can't imagine how I could help you, but you know we are always friends of the King High Pack, even when others doubt you."

Ashley tensed, and Spencer curled her fingers around the inside of Ashley's leg. The banded muscles beneath her palm relaxed. Ashley's breathing quieted.

"I received a message from Lena Adams, the reporter you spoke with earlier today," Ashley said.

"Yes, the human. She's quite delightful. I do hope we see her again soon."

Spencer was certain the Viceregal knew that Lena was currently in the club. There couldn't be much in the Viceregal's territory that she didn't know.

"We're trying to keep this quiet until we have a chance to investigate," Ashley went on, "but several nights ago, someone tried to assassinate me. At least, we believe I was the target. There's a chance it was Stef Foster, the Councilor's daughter."

Madison's expression darkened. Shane's lids lowered lazily, and she kissed Madison's bare shoulder. "I can't believe anyone would try to kill you, Ashley. What a foolish thing to do. That would completely destabilize the Coalition. And we certainly would not want that."

"Certainly not," Ashley said dryly. "There are, of course, factions both Praetern and human who would like to see the Coalition's mission in Washington fail."

"Well yes, of course." Madison sighed. "But I'm afraid those radicals and zealots will always be with us. Now that your father's Exodus has exposed us to the world, violent opposition will become part of our existence."

The muscles in Ashley's leg jumped under Spencer's fingers, and Ashley's power rose. Spencer's blood quickened. Her sex pulsed, and her wolf resumed pacing. She leaned forward, still slowly stroking Ashley's thigh. "The Coalition presents a uniform Praetern power to the world. Its stability is critical to deterring organized resistance to Praetern independence. I would imagine that's what Ashley's father had in mind when he proposed the Coalition."

Madison's gaze drifted over Spencer's face. "How is it that I don't know you, Spencer? I've seen all of Ashley's wolves over the years. I would not have forgotten you."

Beside her, Ashley growled. Spencer held Madison's gaze.

"I am Ashley's mate, Prima to the King High Pack. Who I was before is no longer important."

"Well said, Prima." Madison's hand drifted over Shane's shoulder and down her chest, lingering on her breast before trailing lower and settling between her legs. Shane's face showed no response, but her breathing visibly increased.

A whisper of warm breath caressed Spencer's neck, stroking down her throat to her breasts, as if moist lips were feathering over her skin. The caress played along her spine and settled low in her belly, stirring her sex. Thrall. She breathed in Ashley's scent, pressed her fingers harder against Ashley's thigh, absorbing her heat. She centered herself, grounded herself in her mate, and the probing tendrils disappeared.

Madison laughed again. "She's worthy, Ashley. But then of course, you knew that."

"You intimated to Lena this morning," Ashley said, her voice having grown deeper and gravelly, "that my enemies might be my friends. I've always counted you as my friend, Viceregal."

Madison's eyes flashed, and Spencer caught a glimpse of fiery depths churning below the brilliant amber surface—hot lava flowing down a mountainside, immolating all in its path.

"These are uncertain times, Alpha," Madison said. "We are at war, but the battle lines have not yet been drawn. Our enemies may stand on both sides of that line when the conflict begins. I and my Dominion will always stand for the Praeterns. Where will you stand?"

"You know where I stand," Ashley growled. "The Pack will always be first. I will not turn my back on my Praetern allies, but I won't go to war against humans simply to preserve them as a potential source of prey."

"Humans provide the Weres with no critical resources," Madison said, her expression blanking. "You aren't faced with the possibility of extinction if the balance of power shifts."

"I just walked through your club," Ashley said. "If anything, you have more prey now that you are able to hunt out in the open than you ever had before."

"Yes," Shane said, breaking her silence. Her gaze swept over Ashley with disdainful fury. "But freedom always comes with the threat of chains. The first time humans learn of a host being turned involuntarily or of a newling losing control and killing a host, we Vampires will bear the brunt of the backlash. Humans outnumber us. Where will you and your wolves stand then?"

"You doubt my allegiance, Vampire?" Ashley said softly.

Spencer let her wolf ascend. If a fight was coming, she would fight in pelt. A rumble of warning escaped her throat.

"Shane is passionate," Madison murmured, stroking Shane's chest casually. "Would not your second take up your cause as ardently, Alpha?"

"I sympathize," Ashley said, her tone cool. "If your sovereignty is threatened, Viceregal, or your Dominions endangered, come to me. As you did my mother."

"There are those, Ashley darling," Madison said quietly, "who fear you may lead us into greater danger by conceding to terms that will favor humans over us. That what you seek to gain will come at too high a cost. Be careful, darling."

Spencer snarled. She'd had enough of the Viceregal's familiarity where her mate was concerned. "That sounds like a threat."

"Not at all, Spencer," Madison said. "A caution from someone who cares for your Alpha." She looked pointedly at Ashley. "You might do well to reconsider your allegiances."

"What do you hear of my missing females?" Ashley asked abruptly.

Spencer thought she saw the Viceregal tense at Ashley's sudden question, and then Madison was her imperturbable self again.

"Nothing, I'm afraid," Madison said. "You're welcome to speak to Ethan, our main bartender. You know him, I believe, Ashley. Or any of my security. Perhaps they saw some of your wayward…females, did you say? That would be unusual, wouldn't it?"

"Very," Ashley said evenly. "Our females do not leave the Compound unprotected."

"I'm afraid I can't help you, but I will certainly have Shane instruct our people to be on the lookout for anyone who shouldn't be here."

Ashley stood and Spencer followed. Ashley encircled her shoulders, and Spencer caressed her abdomen. The Viceregal watched them intently, her mouth parting as if in anticipation.

"Why would someone want our females?" Ashley asked.

Madison shrugged elegantly. "Darling, how could I possibly know?"

Spencer didn't see her rise, but Madison was suddenly a heartbeat away from Ashley. Spencer's wolf reared up and snarled, and her skin prickled with the rush of pelt under her skin. She didn't realize she'd growled out loud until Madison turned to her, an indulgent smile on her face. "Don't worry, Prima. I know better than to touch. Now."

Spencer's fingertips ached with the press of her claws just beneath the surface, and her sex swelled and pulsed. Madison surveyed Ashley with open desire, and Spencer's vision hazed. She panted, holding down her wolf. Attacking the Viceregal would not help Ashley's cause.

"It's always about the power, Ashley. Consider where your power truly lies." Madison held out her hand to Shane. "It's nearly dawn, and Shane and I have others to attend to. Don't be a stranger, Alpha."

The door behind them opened, and two dark-haired Vampires in dark trousers and form-fitting silk shirts appeared, apparently to escort them out. When Spencer looked back, Madison and Shane were gone. She had things she wanted to discuss with Ashley, particularly the thinly veiled threats from the Viceregal. But discussion would wait until she had Ashley alone and could remind her exactly where, and with whom, she belonged.

I already know, Ashley telegraphed.

I'm going to enjoy reminding you.

Watching Alex feed and Stef struggle not to, Lena fought to keep her silence. Stef's eyes were opaque black, flat and deadly. Her pale skin had whitened above her hollowed cheeks, and her parted lips were a crimson slash framing her elongated incisors. Her throat rippled as she swallowed the feeding hormones flooding her mouth. She was hungry, so hungry, and Lena ached to see her suffer. She could barely imagine Stef's need, even though the anguish was written so plainly on her face.

Lena knew what it was to be lonely, to struggle with a bone-deep sense of isolation and solitary struggle. But she did not know what it was like to hunger for, starve for, life itself, hour after hour, day after day. She could not imagine the price such hunger exacted, or the cost of assuaging it with the lifeblood of others for eternity.

"Release her," Stef said, her voice harsh and tight. She gripped the back of Alex's head, her fingers entwined in Alex's tawny hair, but she didn't pull Alex away from Jodie's throat. "Release her."

Alex shuddered, and Lena's stomach clenched. Would Alex be able to stop feeding? Another thing Lena could only imagine—the control it must take for a Vampire to stop short of destroying the host, when their every instinct clamored for more. But Stef could stop, and Alex must learn to do it. Lena held her breath, silently praying that Alex could obey. If Stef was forced to destroy Alex after saving her, the tragedy would be doubled. Alex's sacrifice would hurt the King High Pack, and Stef would blame herself for failing. How much more must Stef endure?

"Now," Stef snarled, and Alex's head jerked away from Jodie's neck. Alex groaned, shuddering as if an internal war were being waged. Shoulders heaving, she braced an arm on either side of Jodie and Stef, caging them in against the door.

"It still hurts," Alex gasped.

Stef supported Jodie between them, cradling Jodie's head on her shoulder and stroking Alex's cheek with her free hand. Jodie made faint whimpering noises, her face slack, her hands fluttering over Alex's chest and arms. Stef said, "It will always hurt. You'll learn to live with it."

Alex slumped to her knees, burying her face against Jodie's abdomen. "Tired. Tired."

Lena rose, but Stef shook her head. "Wait."

Stef lifted Jodie into her arms, carried her to the bed, and gently placed her down. After covering her with the sheet, she rapidly gathered Alex into her arms and opened the hall door. Bo immediately appeared, her eyes sharp and wary. Stef held Alex out to her.

"Take her to the car," Stef said. "We'll be there in a few minutes."

Bo sheltered Alex against her chest, surveying her blood-tinged face with an angry expression. "When will she wake?"

"Not until tonight. She is vulnerable to more than the sun now. All Clans have enemies. Guard her carefully."

Bo snarled. "I don't need to be told how to protect one of the Pack."

Stef smiled thinly. "She is also Clan Chasseur de Nuit. Now you guard a Night Hunter."

Bo's eyes flashed again, and she turned her back, disappearing down the hall.

Stef closed the door behind her and returned to the bed. Bending down, she stroked Jodie's face. "I will send someone to watch over you. You did well tonight."

Jodie reached for her, her face soft and sensuous. "Stay with me. Let me—"

"No, no more tonight."

Lena wasn't sure how Stef managed it, but the door opened again to admit a sleek female Vampire with short, thick blond hair scooped back from her angular face. She looked from the bed to Stef. "You have need of me, Liege?"

"Guard her until she's recovered. See that she is escorted home. She is not to host again tonight."

The female inclined her head. "Yes, Liege. Do you require me to bring a host for you?"

"No," Stef said tightly. "Your service is noted, Amanda."

Amanda nodded once more and took up a post by the door, arms folded beneath her high breasts, ignoring Lena as if she were a mere ripple in the air.

Stef leaned over Lena's chair and lowered her voice. "We don't have much time before dawn. Are you ready?"

"For what?"

"To see the Viceregal." Stef held the door open, and Lena followed her out into the hallway. The dim corridor was packed with Vampires feeding from Weres and humans, sometimes two or three at a time. A wall of muted groans, sharp cries of satisfaction, and moans of impending orgasm assaulted her. A wave of erotic heat surged through her, and her legs trembled. She grasped Stef's arm. "Oh my God."

"Don't," Stef said, jerking her arm away. "You can't touch me right now."

"You need to feed," Lena said.

"Since when did you become an expert on Vampires?" Stef strode into the melee, and Lena hurried to keep up with her.

"I don't need to be an expert to know how difficult it was for you to resist feeding in there. You think I can't see the hunger in your face?"

"You have no way of knowing what is in my face."

"That's not true. I know you hunger. I know you need. I know you're hurting right now." Heedless of Stef's earlier warning, Lena grasped her hand. Stef's fingers were cold. Trembling. "You said yourself dawn is coming. You need to feed before then, don't you?"

"I'll manage." Stef snarled.

"How? I know I asked you not to, but—"

"I'll manage."

Lena wanted to argue, but every step was becoming more difficult as bodies crowded in on her from every side. Fingers trailed over her shoulders and back. Warm breath played against her neck. Her nipples contracted and her stomach tightened. She wanted sex in a way she never had before. Mindlessly, relentlessly. She moaned softly, and cool, strong fingers closed around her wrist.

Come with me, a voice whispered in her mind. Male, female? She couldn't tell. She didn't care. The words were a soothing caress calming the blaze eating away at her insides, a soft mouth moving over her sex. She whimpered softly and turned to the shadowy figure drawing her deeper into the darkness. She took a step and pulled up short. What was she doing? She did not want what waited in the dark. She wanted the bright, burning power of Stef's kiss, not mindless lust. "No," she whispered, and the magnetic pull evaporated, leaving her weak and panting.

Stef blurred past her, and in the fraction of a second before Stef grabbed the Vampire who had just held her arm, Lena saw animal rage in Stef's face. Stef pinned the male Vampire to the wall with his feet off the floor, her forearm crushed across his throat. She pushed her face close to his as she strangled him.

"She is mine." Stef's voice was barely above a whisper, but it shot through the hallway like a whip cracking, and silence fell like a shroud. "She carries my blood. You dare trespass?"

Lena's skin prickled with apprehension, but she held back her protests. This was not her world. These were not her rules. She might not get the subtle power games, but she didn't need a roadmap to know Stef was enforcing some kind of hierarchy. If she interfered, she'd probably put both of them in danger, and they were way outnumbered and surrounded by starving Vampires. When the Vampire Stef had against the wall stopped thrashing and went limp, Stef released him as if he were no more than a discarded toy. He fell to the floor in a boneless heap. He might be dead. Lena couldn't tell. She didn't know how Vampires died.

The Vampires who had crowded around her before drew back amidst a swell of murmurs and hisses, leaving her and Stef alone in the center of the hall. She brushed Stef's hand. She might have been touching a marble statue.

"Stef? Let's go."

Stef spun around, her eyes empty of recognition, her lips drawn back in a soundless snarl.

"It's okay," Lena whispered, trembling inside. She cupped Stef's jaw, letting her fingers trail down her throat. "It's okay."

"He dared to enthrall you," Stef growled, her voice as foreign as her face. "He would have fed from you."

"No. No, he wouldn't have. He tried, but I felt you. You." Lena took a shuddering breath. Her connection to Stef might be borne in blood, but it lived in her heart. "He couldn't pull me away from you. Stef, I—"

"Come." Stef took Lena's hand and led her rapidly down the hallway, the path suddenly clear as figures pressed against the wall as they passed. No one reached for Lena, not a single hand brushed against her. No minds touched hers. More than one voice murmured Liege as they passed.

"What just happened back there?" Lena asked.

"A reminder of the rules. Hosts have not always been as plentiful as they are now." Stef stared straight ahead as they walked. "Clan territories were once clearly delineated and hunting across borders forbidden. Now that the Exodus has exposed us and hosts seek us out, our natural order has been thrown into chaos. The Clan heads must reestablish order, or we will destroy ourselves."

"They called you Liege."

"I am the Clan heir and carry my father's mantle of power."

"Did you kill that Vampire?"

Stef glanced at her coolly. "Does it matter?"

"I'm not sure how I feel about you killing someone to protect me." Lena followed Stef through one narrow hallway after another, completely disoriented. This wasn't the way she had gone to Madison's quarters the last time.

"To protect you?" Stef laughed. "You think me so selfless? I am a Vampire. I kill to protect my territory, my Clan, my Dominion. You are part of my Dominion now."

Lena snorted. "Since the day I met you, you've tried to shock me and alienate me. It didn't work then, and it's not working now." She shrugged. "I can't pretend to understand what you don't explain to me. You're not human, so there's no reason to expect human rules to apply. I trust you'll do what you have to do to protect yourself and those who depend on you."

"Just like that?"

"For now," Lena said.

Stef's head whipped around. "Why? What reason do you have to trust me?"

"Because I know you're not heartless. I don't know why you pretend you are. One day you'll tell me."

Stef's jaw tightened. "You are naïve."

"No, I'm not." Lena stopped in the middle of the now-deserted corridor. A vault door was visible at the far end, opening no doubt into Madison's lair. Once they entered, she wouldn't be able to speak so freely to Stef. She didn't know what they were facing, but she knew Madison would try to separate them—one way or another. Suddenly, it was very, very important for Stef to know how she felt. "I saw what you did when Alex was dying and what you're doing to save her now. You had no reason to save her, but you did. You have no reason to care why someone is killing human teenagers or to discover what's happened to the Were females. But you do. I know what you're capable of. I know what it cost you back there in that room not to feed from Jodie in front of me."

"You think too much of me," Stef said quietly.

"No, I don't. But I do think of you all the time, and it's time you knew that." Lena slid her arms around Stef's neck and kissed her. "I want this. I want all of this."

"Lena," Stef groaned, pulling her close. Too long, she'd waited too long—to slake her thirst, to feed her hunger. Jodie's blood had called to her, igniting her bloodlust, enflaming her need, but she'd held back. Like a battered ship on a storm-ravaged sea, she was slowly sinking beneath the inexorable force of her own passion. Lena filled her mind. Lena was all she could see, all she could feel. All she wanted. "Hold very still."

"Don't enthrall me," Lena whispered.

"I won't." Stef lifted Lena into her arms and carried her into the dark shadows of an adjoining alcove, sheltering her from passersby. Stef kissed her mouth, slicked her tongue over the surface of her lips, played her tongue down the bounding pulse in her neck. The jugular rippled next to the pounding carotid, a siren's call spearing into her depths and dragging her under the waves. Battling to hold on to her reason, fighting the blind ecstasy of lust, Stef gently pierced the skin of Lena's neck, slipping through muscle and connective tissue until the vein opened and hot, thick life flowed into her. The fist of pain lodged beneath her breastbone diminished, and pleasure kicked through her pelvis. She insinuated her thigh between Lena's and heard Lena whimper. She swallowed, and her hips jerked, tendrils of orgasm wrapping around her spine, teasing the surface of her mind. Her fingers brushed over Lena's breast, and she swallowed again.

"Oh my God," Lena moaned, her hands in Stef's hair, her back arched. "Your mouth is so hot, so incredible." She stroked Stef's neck and held Stef's face more tightly against her neck. "I know you. Do you hear me? I know you."

Stef's rein on her reason slipped. She needed more, more of life, more of not being alone. More of Lena. She drove deeper, flooding Lena with hormones, and Lena cried out.

"Don't stop." Lena's fingers twisted in Stef's shirt and her hips thrust into Stef's. "God, God don't stop. I'm there. Oh God, God I'm there already."

Orgasm crashed through Stef with every pull at Lena's throat. Lena shuddered in her arms, caught in the undertow of their shared bloodlust. Some small corner of Stef's reason demanded she stop. She had to stop. Stop or risk hurting Lena. Groaning, Stef braced her arm against the wall and dragged her mouth away from Lena's throat. She panted, holding Lena upright with her arm around Lena's waist, while the ravenous hunger raged for her to take more. To take and take and take. She licked the punctures in Lena's neck and sealed the wound. Lena's eyes were closed, her chest heaving. Her nipples strained against the thin fabric of her shirt. Her hands roamed over Stef's breasts and stomach.

"Lena," Stef gasped hoarsely. "Lena, did I hurt you?"

"No," Lena murmured, her voice languorous and low. She pressed trembling fingers against Stef's cheek. "The bite…hurt a little, and then God, so much pleasure. I want you naked. I want you again."

"You taste so good," Stef whispered, resting her forehead against Lena's. "I could have made it so you didn't feel any pain. If you want me to—"

Lena's eyes snapped open. "No. I don't want anything to stand between us, not even your mind. Promise."

Stef nodded. An easy promise to keep. She could never let this happen again.