The cars entered the compound and Keira was enthralled by the grandeur that surrounded them. It was magnificent.

Maniac or not, the woman had expensive taste.

She looked at Chayton who was driving, and she noticed that he was only quietly observing the compound. She knew what he was doing. He was checking for possible exit points in the case where they were driving into a trap. A situation which was most likely the case.

They located a parking spot and Chayton guided the car into it. It was the perfect spot in case they wanted to make a quick getaway. The two other shifters who accompanied them looked around as well. Chayton had taught them well and it evident in the skepticism with which they took in their surroundings.

"Stay sharp," Chayton said, and the men nodded.

He turned to see Keira blatantly admiring the surroundings. She always had an eye for good architecture, and this was inarguably one of the best either of them had ever seen. She laughed, nodding to herself as she vocally quoted some lines about famous artists who were the inspiration for some of the architectural patterns. She was clearly impressed.

Chayton however, was not fooled by her openly overwhelmed appearance. He was very certain that she was ready to spring into action at the drop of a hat. Her act was more to put the host at ease. And she acted the part well.

He caught sight of a vampire standing in front of the great door, watching them. He had never met the man before, but he guessed that it had to be Silas.

"Let's go, Baby," he said, taking Keira by the arm and leading her up the stairs.

"You're welcome. I am Silas; I will lead you to the venue of the parlay."

Chayton almost scoffed. This was no parlay. He had suggested that they follow the normal parlay rules and meet at a neutral location, but Keira had insisted that the witches were just fine. She was all about luring the host into a false sense of security she could exploit if the need arose. In the end, he'd had to agree with the plan.

"I am Chayton Mercer, and this is my mate, Keira Blanco, leader of our clan."

Silas shook both their hands and led them into the house. He took a right, leading them down a hallway and then up a flight of stairs and then into a tastefully furnished room.

It was big by most standards, but compared to the size of some of the other rooms they had passed, this was, by far, the smallest.

Keira did not take note of the woman who sat watching her. Edrea smiled when they entered. It was as she had suspected. She felt some unfamiliar stirrings. Stirrings she recognized to be an unhealthy bout of nostalgia, and she pushed them aside, watching Keira.

Immediately Chayton entered, her mouth fell open. She stared at him, taking him in in one full gaze. He was a prime male specimen. As tall as Silas, but not as skinny or gaunt. No, he was muscular. His long-sleeved shirt did nothing to hide how toned he was. His long hair almost reached his shoulders, and as he turned and gazed at her, she clutched her chair tighter, afraid she might fall off.

Just then a gasp brother her out of her day dream, and she turned and then she smiled.

"You?" Keira asked, looking dumbfounded, to say the least. How could it be?

"Andrea??"

"It's Edrea now please" Edrea responded, still smiling.

From the moment she had seen the crest she had had her suspicions. But when she'd read the name Keira Blanco in the letter, she'd received the confirmation she needed.

She had lived for a very long time, but the one thing she was certain of was that the world was a small place indeed.

Keira was confused. Edrea? What did she mean 'Edrea'? This was clearly Andrea Varela, her childhood friend. The same girl with whom she had played back in their hometown many years ago. How could it be that she was the same witch who...just how? Granted, things had frozen close to the end, and they had basically stopped being friends, but she had understood, and she had tried to help her. Andrea just hadn't wanted any help. And who in their right minds changed their name from 'Andrea' to 'Edrea'?

"Oh don't look so surprised," Edrea said. She was clearly enjoying herself.

Chayton, on the other hand, was beyond confused. Had Keira just called the with "Andrea"? She had told him about an Andrea, one she had grown up with but fallen out of touch with. The story had had many holes, but he just assumed she had been too young to remember it in strong detail. But now...wow.

"Well, I know her, who are you?" Edrea asked, turning to him and fixing him with a look he did not like. She looked as though she were mentally in dressing him. She looked at him like he was something, not someone.

He instantly regained his composure and fixed her with one of his borderline, stern, calm gazes, before he answered. He saw her falter and he knew the gaze had an effect. He just wasn't sure it was the effect he had been hoping for.

"I am Chayton Mercer. Keira is my mate" he said simply and saw a fire light in her eyes. He was feeling more and more unsettled by the second, but he refused to show it. Outside, his countenance was icy.

Keira was still trying to make heads or tail of things, and she was doing a very bad job. She had been caught completely off guard and thrown off whack. And as it seemed, Andrea...Edrea...had has been counting on it.

She doesn't even look happy to see me. She's so much different now Keira thought to herself, studying the woman who sat in front of her. This was not the same person she grew up with. But then again, close to the end, she hadn't been the same person then either. And why was she staring at Chayton like that?

Chayton held her by hand and led her towards a chair. The other two men took their places on allotted seats as well.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Silas spoke.

"This Parlay can now begin."

Keira seemed to regain her senses then, and she cleared her throat to speak.

"Okay, Good. Andrea.."

"Edrea" The Witch interrupted, staring at her icily

"Edrea" Keira corrected herself "We..."

"No."

Keira blinked. No? What did she mean 'no'? She hadn't even heard what she had to say yet.

Chayton was the one who spoke.

"Umm...I'm sorry...no? What do you mean "no"?"

Edrea turned to her briskly, that strange, unsettling look still hovered somewhere behind the steely gaze she settled on him. He shifted in his seat, returning her gaze.

"I mean...no," she said, emphasizing each word as she spoke

"No? No what?" Keira asked, and Edrea laughed. Keira felt anger begin to well up in her. The confusion was gone, there was only stark clarity and anger.

"No, I do not agree to back down. That human settlement will be part of my territory, and there's nothing you can do about it."

Keira was taken aback by the audacity. They had made the journey here, been whammied with a blast from the past, and now she was telling them just 'no'? Without even hearing what they had to say first.

"You can't have the land. It belongs to the humans, and the humans are under our clan's protection" Chayton said. He was no longer unsettled. The feeling had passed. He was now angry.

He struggled to find control before continuing.

"If you go against them, you go against us."

"Then so be it," Edrea said, and Keira's head whipped up. For the first time, she was beginning to doubt the wisdom behind the parlay. But then she felt Chayton's hand cover hers, squeezing gently and her resolve strengthened.

"So be it?"

"Are you people just here to throw my statements back to me as questions? Is that the purpose of this meeting?" she rose to her feet, and the other two shifters got to their feet as well, but Chayton gestured for them to stand down.

"It's cute that you refer to your...gathering...as a clan. But it stops being cute when you stand in my way of expansion. That's where I draw the line."

"That's where you draw the line?" Keira was on her feet. Silas did not move and Chayton just watched.

"Why don't you draw it before the point where you steal other people's land in the name of expansion Andrea?" she continued.

Edrea's eyes narrowed, but then she smiled looking around, first as the two shifters, then at Keira, and finally, at Chayton.

"It was nice seeing you Keira," she said, not taking her eyes off Chayton.

"But this 'parlay' is over."

Chayton sensed the movement a nanosecond too late.

As he turned, seven men seemed to materialize out of nowhere. He could sense two vampires and four shifters. The last was a human.

Before anyone could react, two of the men were behind the shifters that had come with Keira and Chayton and with swift, practiced motions; they slit their throats.

Keira moved first.

Edrea was suddenly tossed back into her chair with a pulse wave. A scream followed the wave.

"INCENDIA!!!"

Edrea and her chair burst into flames.

Silas went for Keira, but Chayton was faster. With one smooth punch, he ripped a hole in the vampire's shirt, ripping his heart out. The latter collapsed into ash before his feet.

The seven men attacked them.

One of the men launched his sword at Keira, but with a wave of her hand, she sent it flying into the chest of another man.

Chayton held two by the neck and tossed them into their remaining counterparts, then, while they struggled to get up, he grabbed Keira by the arm and they raced out of the room, towards the stairs. They ran down the stairs, taking them two at a time.

When they got to the corridor, they were accosted by a throng of men and women, armed with swords.

Keira retrieved her saber from behind her as she anticipated the attack. With a combined scream, they poured the corridor towards the duo. Chayton took a step forward, unnoticed by Keira. It was an attempt to ensure that they got to him first.

It worked.

He grabbed the first arrivals by the neck, tossing them into the others. A sword slashed towards the air at him, and he moved to evade, catching the hand and planting a solid kick to the owner's chest. The other's poured towards them and picked up a small boy, he tossed him into the crowd, knocking them back into each other.

"Run!" he instructed Keira, and she was off, jumping over bodies whose owners will struggle to take a swipe at her. They burst out into the open and were shocked to see Edrea and her six men waiting for them.

Edrea was fine.

"My house. I know the shortcuts" then she turned to Keira.

"I taught you that spell Keira. Come on, baby stuff" she teased.

Chayton growled and changed, ripping through his clothes. Edrea's eyes widened at the size of the dire wolf in front of her.

"Impressive." She said then turned and walked away.

Noise coming from behind them caused them to whirl. The crowd was back and angrier than before.

Chayton moved in front of Keira and charged at the crowd. They stood their ground, clearly under a strong obedience spell. Nothing could scare them. Which was all the same, Chayton wasn't out to scare.

He was merciless and tore through them.

The six men attacked her at once, but Keira was prepared. She tossed one of them aside with a pulse and ducked as another swung his blade at her. She took a step back, evading another attack and swung her sabre, catching her assailant on the chest, ripping it open.

One man came from behind, but she was aware, with a flick of her wrist, the man's head exploded, and his headless body collapsed in front of her. She turned in time to see a blade flying towards her. She stretched her hand, and it paused in mid air, she caught sight of a girl moving to stab Chayton in the back and sent the blade after her, nailing her through the chest.

Chayton turned, and she could tell he was grateful. He turned back and continued his massacre.

The blow came from nowhere. Keira went down, feeling a trickle of blood down her neck.

Chayton, all too aware of her, turned again and saw her fall. He growled as he galloped towards her.

"STABIT!"

His entire body froze around him. He struggled to move, but he was completely immobile.

He watched helplessly as they stood beside the unconscious body of Kiera. He growled, and despite the fact that the sound came out, he was unable to move his mouth.

As he watched, Edrea strolled towards him, smiling enigmatically.

"Well aren't you a feisty one? I actually believe given enough time you could break this immobilization spell. My my, where have you been all my life?" she joked as she admired him.

"Don't worry; no harm will come to Keira. This time. Sleep tight" she said as she walked away.

He could not see, but he could hear the approaching footfalls. When the blow hit him, the cracking sound of his own skull shocked him to blackness.

* * *

The bright light permeated the haze, and she struggled to open her eyes but they felt like lead, and she closed them again, glad to have blocked out the light.

She felt the area on which she lay; it was hard. It seemed she had been dumped by the way side.

Keira struggled to open her eyes once more as her head seemed ready to split to split in two.

Where was Chayton? She desperately hoped nothing had happened to him.

With a sudden burn of resolve, she opened her eyes, and instantly, her hand flew to block them. The sunlight aggravated her headache, and she found herself wanting to collapse back into her headache. She could have healed herself on a normal day, but she highly doubted she had the strength to do that.

She struggled to sit up, removing her hand slowly. The pain came once more, but she fought through it.

As she gradually regained her sight, she started to remember.

Sounds of a moving vehicle came to her. She looked around, hoping to spot one probably abandoned somewhere, but there was none in sight.

She sighed.

The memory was back. A moving vehicle. She was flanked by two men, while another drove.

Edrea's face.

A sharp feeling of anger streaked through her body as the face of her former friend came to her.

Gradually, she was beginning to recognize where she was. It was familiar territory. Her territory.

Again Edrea's face came to her. This time, the witch was talking.

"I let you live as a courtesy. Because of what we had, but next time, best believe you won't be as lucky."

The witch's face disappeared leaving that sick feeling in Keira's gut. She couldn't believe the amount of hate she was feeling.

Another headache, another memory fragment.

"...and don't worry about Chayton, he will be a nice addition to my harem. More than a replacement, seeing as he killed quite a number of him. I don't know where you found him, but I feel the need to thank you. What are friends for right?"

Keira's heart beat rapidly in her chest, and she looked around helplessly. Edrea had Chayton. What did she plan to do with him?

The obvious answer to the question came to her, and she shivered at the thought of a hollow eyed Chayton under the command of Edrea. She couldn't let that happen.

She tried to get to her feet, but then she collapsed back on her backside. She felt a wetness running down her neck and instinctively touched the spot. Her hand came back covered with blood.

Her vision blurred and she felt lightheaded. No, she couldn't black out. She had to help Chayton. She had no doubt that he would try to resist, but for how long would he be able to do that if at all?

Even as she thought of this, she was slowly losing consciousness. Her last coherent thought before she blacked out completely was a clear image a hollow eyed Chayton. Her heart constricted in her chest as she collapsed fully into the darkness.