"There could be a fight," Natasha agrees. There's almost certainly going to be a fight. "There's going to be politics too. You've just made one hell of a power vacuum."

And Natasha could speculate what that could mean, but there was no way to say where things would actually go. Maybe things wouldn't be as bad as Natasha feared—but the kind of vampire who was likely to come out ahead in this wasn't likely to be merciful. They'd have to establish quickly that they didn't have anything to do with the murder, and the best way to do that would be seeking justice for the deceased.

"If we're lucky, it won't be open war." She sucks in a thoughtful breath. "If you're not leaving, you'll need to lay low until the heat blows over—whether or not it turns into a fight."