Ashley had his head down on the kitchen table. He needed a drink because this tea of Jinxx's was just not doing it for him. Andy and CC had gone out to find an abandoned building that CC could destroy for the kid. Ashley had begged off and deeply regretted it now. Not that he didn't trust CC to take care of Andy, of course, but he could feel Andy's excitement and joy in some piece of his being and he hated not being part of that. He groaned.

The chair across the table moved across the floor. Ashley slowly lifted his head to find Jake watching him. He only groaned again and put his head back down.

"You're bonded to him." A simple assessment as Jake reached over and stole the mug of tea from Ashley.

He didn't dare lift his head yet. "Where's Jinxx?"

Jake lifted the mug to his lips. "His study." He sipped the tea and made a face. "I won't see him before dawn."

Ashley lifted his head with a sigh, fingers dragging through his hair. "How did you know? I haven't even been sure."

"You're moping. You're short-tempered, more so than usual. You've been anti-social. I don't know where you've been sleeping but it hasn't been your bed. Andy told me that." Ashley winced. "You're somehow joined at the hip with him and yet you're pushing him away. And you look like shit."

"Hey! I do not." Ashley mumbled, eyes still on the table. "Deviants don't fall in love. We don't have bondmates."

"You have one."

Ashley's hand slapped on the table. "I can't! Jake, I can't be bonded and definitely not to him. He's so new and so young and so beautiful and he's been through so much in his life already and he needs to be protected and taught and guarded and..." Jake merely lifted his brows. "Fuck. Maybe I am a little short-tempered."

"Only a little," Jake teased. "He knows about bondmates, you know."

Ashley's eyes widened. "I didn't tell him."

"He asked about Jinxx and me. Andy's a sweet kid. He found the whole idea romantic."

Ashley groaned and set his head back down on the table. They were both silent for a few minutes, Jake's voice gentle when he spoke again. "Can you sense him?"

"Yeah," Ashley said into the wood of the table. "He's happy. Safe." There was something else that he was trying to catch, if he could just focus. "He's hungry. Fuck, Jake. I don't want CC teaching him how to feed. He plays with his food."

A few bandanas slid across the table to him. "Then maybe you should go find him."

---

Ashley pulled his motorcycle into an abandoned lot, parking next to CC's black truck. The sounds of cheering and excited laughter reached his ears before he even had his helmet off. What had once been a bank, long closed after being subsumed by a larger bank, consisted of nothing more than wasted bricks and broken concrete now. CC had clearly been to work.

"And then they say it's an earthquake or something. Right? An earthquake that hit just one building." CC's voice carried over to Ashley who could only barely see the tips of his gloved hands waving above the rubble.

Andy's deeper voice answered and Ashley had to bite back a groan. "Yeah, I saw that shit on the news. That was all you?!"

Ashley started picking his way over the ruined building, missing CC's reply, scowling at the dust coating his boots. "Fuckin' C..."

"I heard that!" Ashley climbed to the top of what had once been a wall to find the two vampires in the clearing of the former bank lobby. "Shouldn't come out if you don't want to get dirty." CC beamed up at his best friend, clearly giving no fucks about the dirt covering him and Andy, only kicking up more as he stomped around. Andy was perched on another small pile, taking a long drag on a cigarette, arm wrapped around his waist. Bright blue eyes lifted to Ashley and a smile ticked the corner of his mouth.

The older vampire looked away first. "I needed to get outta the house. Jinxx is holed up in his study again and Jake was talkative." CC rolled his eyes, sitting next to Andy as Ashley climbed down to them. "You did good, CC. Messy but good. Put on a nice show for Andy?" They both nodded, Andy puffing away on his cigarette. Ashley stepped to the side so he wouldn't be in the smoke. "Hey kid. You hungry?"

Those blue eyes looked up at him in surprise, masking it by taking another pull on the cig and holding it up. "This usually kills any hunger pains but it's not working now. And my teeth hurt."

"Oh yeah, that's a sign you need to eat." CC leaned into the younger vampire. "Why didn't you say something? C'mon, I'll show ya the ropes." He was already halfway to standing before Ashley put his hand out.

"Hold up. I'll teach him." The taller vampire opened his mouth to protest. "No. I got this."

Andy's gaze bounced between the two. As much as he'd enjoyed spending time with CC, he found himself really hoping Ashley would be the one to show him how to feed. "But you came on your bike! You need me to drive," CC countered.

"I have an extra helmet. I keep it for your thick hea-" Ashley cut off, giving him a strange look. "If you heard me roll up on the bike, why weren't you hiding? I could have been anyone. It could have been FEAR. Fuck, C, how reckless can you be?"

CC simply shrugged and gestured at Andy. "He said it was you."

Ashley's head swiveled slowly to Andy, who finished his cigarette and crushed it under his boot. "Yeah, I could sense that you were nearby. When we heard the bike, the feeling got stronger. I knew it was you." Ashley turned away and cursed under his breath. "What's FEAR?"

"A story for another day," Ashley said, interrupting CC. "Come on, let's get you fed." He held out his gloved hand for Andy who took it, unfolding from his perch with an easy grace. Not that Ashley noticed.

CC pouted. "Fine, I'm going to the club. Don't wait up!" With that, the Destroyer scrambled up his handiwork, disappearing.

---

He didn't want to think about how nice it felt to be pressed up against Ashley's back. His arms clung to his waist, thighs tensing as they leaned into a turn, the bike moving smoothly through traffic as they made their way further into the city. Andy hadn't been lying when he said he knew it was Ashley earlier. Once CC had pulled out of the driveway, Andy realized he could still sense Ashley. The feeling grew weaker the farther away they'd gone, but it was still there, steady as his own heartbeat.

His stomach clenched and he groaned under the helmet. Andy was used to an irregular eating pattern, but he'd always relied on the nicotine to take the edge off. With that not working, his body was all too happy to remind him that he needed food. The ache in his teeth was new though. Ashley's hand rubbed over Andy's hands over his stomach and Andy wondered if he could sense him too.

They pulled into an alley next to one of the many bars downtown, parking the bike in the shadows. The street noises came rushing back to Andy's hearing as he pulled the helmet off, Ashley's coming off as well. The older vampire took the helmet without a word, tucking them away in the cases on the back of the bike. Andy slung himself off the motorcycle and reached immediately for another cigarette.

"Wait. You'll probably want one afterwards." Ashley shrugged. "Jinxx always used to smoke after he fed." He motioned for him to follow him to the edge of the alley, remaining mostly in the shadows as he watched the sidewalk. "Do you have a preference?"

Andy leaned against the opposite wall, cigarettes tucked away. To anyone passing by, they would look like two guys just chatting. "A preference for what?" He frowned and rubbed at his mouth, trying to ease the discomfort.

Ashley watched the gesture. "That's your teeth. If you can keep your lips shut, you can let them down. It'll stop it from hurting." He sighed at Andy's confused look and took off his gloves. "Here." The vampire let his own canines lengthen to bite down into pad of his thumb. Dark red blood welled into the wound. Andy's teeth grew in response and his sigh of relief was bitten off by a hungry growl. "Easy, kid. We'll get you fed." Ashley sucked his thumb into his mouth to stop the blood, attention refocusing on the crowd hanging around the bar, missing the needy look Andy gave him as he watched his thumb disappear between his lips. "A preference for a male or female to eat."

Andy sank back against the wall, staring at Ashley's profile. He needed a moment to register that he was being asked for a reply, words sounding weird to his ears as he tried to speak around the sharp teeth. "A chick," he replied. A girl would, theoretically, be easier to subdue and wouldn't remind him of working... or of Ashley. The other vampire nodded, eyes narrowing as he selected a couple.

"Now remember. You're feeding. You're not killing anyone. It's just like donating blood for them. You might get a little buzz if they've been drinking. It doesn't hurt them, unless you make it hurt. Keep your bite quick and suck hard." He smiled as he caught the woman's eye, beckoning her and her date over. "Move into the shadows with her, like you were gonna get a bj or something." The Deviant's voice went to pure silk as the woman and man approached. "Hey, honey. You and your man got a minute?"

The woman giggled as Ashley's power wrapped around her, drawing them both in. Andy watched, keeping his lips firmly shut, even as he smiled at the confident way Ashley pulled the woman to him. He was starting to recognize the change in Ashley's tone when he used his power. The energy was completely different from CC's display. Whereas CC's power had an electric feel, like the air before a thunderstorm, Ashley's was smooth, warm, and relaxing. The Deviant whispered into the woman's ear, her eyes flicking over to Andy with a warm smile. He kissed her cheek and let her go, reaching for the man.

"Your friend says you're hungry." Andy stepped further back into the darkness, lips twitching. Ashley was smiling charmingly at the man, fingers tugging at his jacket as he laughed, playfully pulling him back in the alley as well. Andy's smile faded a bit, but he shook it away, taking the woman's hand as he propped himself against the wall. He couldn't see Ashley anymore, but the airy laughter echoed down the bricks. The woman pressed herself against him. "Your friend is cute."

A low growl vibrated in Andy's chest, grabbing her arms. "Don't talk." Her chin tipped up to look at him, hair falling back to reveal her throat. His stomach tightened again and he bent over her neck, inhaling the scent of her perfume and the alcohol she'd been drinking. With a deep breath, he let instincts take over, mouth opening over her skin, teeth sinking in at the pulse jumping in her throat. Her hands clung to him and he braced for a moment in case she tried to fight him off. Instead he heard a soft sigh, his own coming as the first taste of blood hit his tongue. His lips closed over the open wound and he sucked, long pulls of warm blood sliding down his throat, relieving the ache in his stomach.

Ashley's hand on his shoulder made him lift his head, fangs bared. "Easy, kid. Easy." The man leaned against the wall across from them, a new black bandana tied around his wrist. "Come on, one more drink and you're done." Andy obediently dipped his head and took another swallow, licking the red sticky fluid away from his lips. Ashley took hold of the woman as she swayed. "Hey, honey. Remember me? Just gonna fix you up real quick. Lick her neck, kid." Andy did as he was told, eyes wide as the wounds closed over.

Ashley shook out one of the bandanas Jake had given him earlier. "Here, honey. Got a present for you." He gently tied the cloth around her neck, covering what remained of Andy's bite. "Now go on home and take it easy tomorrow. Okay?" He cupped her cheek with a smile and directed her back to her date. "Look after her, yeah?" The man saluted with a laugh, arm over the woman's shoulder as they weaved their way back to the sidewalk. "Well." Ashley crossed his arms over his chest, examining Andy from head to foot. "There's that cherry popped."

The younger vampire turned scarlet. "Ashley," he hissed.

The other vampire simply laughed. "Go ahead and have your cigarette. Dawn's coming."

---

They were singing to her. Their voices echoed off the stone in a cacophony. Her long nails scratched across the stone as she walked through the hall, red robe flowing behind her. Their song filled her with her own peace, a tranquil moment where she could forget about the hunt, being hunted, ruling, FEAR, all of it. It simply faded away as she ambled across the stone floor, head tipped one way and then the other, almost humming with their melody. If she had had a partner, she would have waltzed, one of the old styles from when there were balls and extravagant gowns and she was a young thing with beaus dripping off her.

One particular high note had her pausing and closing her eyes, grinning at the pure beauty of it, lengthy canines catching the candlelight. This, this is why this was the favorite spot of her home, her fortress. This music that captured her, calmed her, inspired her. Another note joined the first, drawing the high one out, changing the pitch. She opened her eyes, her grin turning sharper, darker, loving when her minions used the buzzsaw.

Lady Lily resumed her stroll, the tortured screams of her victims resonating off the walls, the scent of blood thick in the air. It was a good day.

Notes

Thanks once again to VeiledWriter and Estella for being my beta-readers!

Suggested song for Chapter 3: "Wild Boys" - Duran Duran