Spike slowly rose and looked at the crablike demons that had entered the tunnel. “Oh, bloody hell,” he groaned. “This isn’t fair, mate. All I got’s a wooden stake.”
“Where is the father?!” one of the demons yelled again.
“He’s mine,” Drusilla said angrily.
Quickly, one of the demons whipped what seemed to be a tail, slapping Dru across the tunnel and into the wall. The other turned and scampered down the tunnel toward the sealed room where Dana was beating Connor to a pulp.
Spike jumped to his feet and ran to Dru. “Where’s Connor being kept?”
Drusilla pulled away from his harshly.
“Dru, if you want little brother to live, I’m going to need to know where he is.”
“Um, I’m guessing he’s down that way,” Faith said, pointing toward the demons scrambling away from them.
“We need another way in,” Buffy said. “Dru! We need another way to get to Connor. Show us. Now!”
Dru jumped to her feet angrily. She hissed at Buffy, then turned to Spike. Suddenly, she turned with a flourish and stormed away. “This way.”
**
Connor’s hands struggled to loosen the chains Dana had wrapped around his neck. He knew she’d probably let up right when he was on the verge of passing out, as she had the four times before. Still, being choked to near unconsciousness was not too much fun.
Suddenly, Dana dropped him. The sound of pounding on a metal door rocked the room. “Buffy,” Connor called weakly. “Help.”
Finally, the door was ripped off the hinges and flew toward them. The demons scampered into the room.
“You stole her!” one hissed at Connor as he struggled to his feet.
Dana looked at Connor, then to the demons. She was torn. She wanted to hurt Connor. But she also knew these were demons and evil. If they were going to attack Connor, then shouldn’t she protect him?
“Mine!” Dana said harshly.
“Dana,” Connor said, looking up at the ceiling high above them. One of the large stones was being pulled out. Buffy’s face appeared in the hole.
“We gotta hurry!” she said, looking at Connor’s battered appearance. “The rope’s not going to make it down.”
Dana was looking up too. Connor heard the sounds of scuttling legs, and looked over. “Dana, look out!” he shouted, shoving her out of the way. The demon snapped Connor’s side, gripping him in its pincers and lifting him.
Buffy dropped down, holding a metal bar. Swinging hard, she whaled the demon, forcing it to drop Connor. Connor searched the room frantically, finding only the metal door. Quickly, he grabbed it and held it in front of him. Faith and Spike dropped into the room behind him. Using the door as both shield and battering ram, Connor ran forward, charging the demon behind the one fighting Buffy.
Connor slammed into the demon, knocking it back. Its last two legs dug in and gave it traction. It pushed back, sliding Connor toward the demon fighting Buffy. “Little help!” Connor yelled.
Spike was dodging kicks and snaps from Buffy’s demon. Faith, holding her own metal pipe, moved in and started pounding on Buffy’s demon, too. Spike jumped a swing of the tail and ran to Connor. Throwing his weight onto the door. Connor stopped sliding backward as Spike helped. The force was even, as neither the demon nor Connor and Spike could force the unhinged door in their direction.
Connor glanced back. “Buffy! Faith! Hit the floor on three.”
Spike grinned at Connor. “Nice, mate.”
“One. Two. Three.”
Buffy and Faith hit the floor. Connor and Spike quickly ducked out of the way, releasing their pressure on the door. The door shot like a bullet toward the back of the room, slamming into the first demon and ripping it in half.
Connor, now completely drained, fell to the floor. Spike scrambled to the door. “All of us,” he yelled, picking the large metal door up. Buffy and Faith got behind it with him. The three of them gripped the door, holding it in front of them, and charged forward with it as the remaining demon charged toward them.
Spike, Buffy, and Faith slammed the door hard into the demon, driving him back toward the doorway. The demon couldn’t get all its limbs clear of the frame in time and, with a horrific shriek, three legs and an arm snapped off. The demon staggered back into the tunnel.
Faith took the door and turned it so that the bottom faced the demon. Thrusting it forward, she drove the demon’s neck into the wall and snapped its head off.
“Where’s Dru?” Spike huffed.
“Dana!” Faith yelled. “Let him go!”
Buffy and Spike turned quickly to see Dana using Buffy’s metal bar to choke Connor from behind. Connor slipped his hands onto the bar and pushed it up, slipping his head free.
Buffy, Faith, and Spike charged into the room, but Connor threw his arms out. “Stop! Stop. No more violence. It’s the last thing she needs.”
Spike suppressed a chuckle. There was something too ironic about a boy covered with his own blood calling for an end to violence when he had the upper hand.
Dana glared at Connor with the three warriors at his back.
“We’re not going to hurt you, Dana,” Connor said. “Come on.”
Dana moved to run around Connor, but he quickly moved to the side, staying in front of her. Dana took a fighting stance, but Connor remained standing non-confrontationally.
“Please, Dana. Let us try to help. We won’t hurt you. We won’t hurt you!”
Faith eased her own fighting stance and walked casually forward. “He’s not lying Dana. That guy from before, the one that hurt you, didn’t Buffy let you deal with that? Didn’t she?”
Dana eased up a bit.
“But we’re not going to let you hurt Connor," Faith continued. "Because he didn’t do anything to you.”
“You saw me fight that thing,” Connor said, nodding toward the demon. “You know I can fight. But I didn’t fight you, did I?”
“I’m strong,” Dana barked.
“We’re all strong. But we don’t want to hurt you.” Connor took a slow step forward.
Dana jumped back into a fighting stance. “Don’t touch me,” she said angrily. Dana’s eyes turned to Faith. It was if Dana could see it in her. Faith’s own suffering. Her own time as a rogue slayer.
“Her,” Dana said, nodding toward Faith.
Connor backed away and collapsed against a wall. Faith stepped forward and gently touched Dana’s shoulders. Getting a nod of approval, Faith pulled Dana in closely and walked from the room with her.
“Carry Connor,” Buffy said quietly to Spike as she turned to leave.
“What?!” Spike laughed. “Contrary to your opinion, I’m not Rhett Butler, this isn’t a plantation, and boy wonder here is definitely not Vivian Leigh."
Buffy’s head whipped toward the vampire. “Spike, I’m not in the mood!”
Spike nodded. “Right. Lives in danger.” Spike scooped Connor up. “S’alright. You’re going to be fine, kid.”
***
“No hospital,” Connor groaned. “Just get me back to the hotel.”
“Maybe you haven’t noticed, mate, but you’re covered in blood. I don’t know how it is you’re still talking.”
“There’re too many people there. We can’t protect them all.”
“Protect them from what?” Buffy said.
“We gotta move,” Faith said. “He’s delirious.”
“Those things down there,” Connor moaned. “They were after me. We can’t lead them to people.”
“We need a car,” Faith went on.
“Sun’s coming up,” Spike said. “A car works for me.”
Buffy looked east. “Can we get back to the Hyperion before the sun’s up?”
“Buffy, the kid’s damn near in a coma,” Faith protested.
“He’s also right. We can’t lead those things down there toward populated areas. We go to the hotel.”
Spike began walking faster. “I can make the hotel by sunrise. Hopefully mighty mouse can hang on that long.”
****
Buffy was on a cell phone at the bar in the Hyperion. “And we’ll need to get the power turned on in this place. Yeah, I realize Faith is wanted-girl here, but that’s all the more reason not to move her around too much. Don’t want her getting seen. Talk to Riley about getting her cleared. Once Dawn’s back, these guys can regroup.” Buffy glanced at Connor lying on a bed in the ballroom. “Then I’m coming home.”
Buffy hung up and walked over to Spike. “Where’d Faith take Dana?”
“A room,” Spike said.
“What kind of room?”
“Just a room. No special locks. No hand cuffs to shackle her to a bed. Just a room.”
Buffy shook her head.
“I’m right there with you, luv.”
Connor looked up through his two black eyes. “She’s been caged up long enough. Lock her up again, and we’ll get nowhere with her. Maybe if she knows she’s free to leave, Faith can get through to her.”
“As her latest punching bag,” Spike frowned. “I’m surprised your so blasé about psycho-slayer roaming freely through the same halls as you. For my part, I’ll be heading for the high hills as soon as possible. Maybe see if I can track down Dru.”
Connor snorted angrily. “I need to call . . . someone. I thought it was Wolfram & Hart that killed my family. But it was her. I want to know why.”
“She the one that turned your parents into vampires?” Spike asked.
“They’re just dead. She didn’t turn them.”
“Not what I heard when you and Eve had your little chat not quite outside earshot, mate. She said you were the child of two vampires. Meaning Dru turned your parents.”
Connor’s face turned pale then red then pale again. “Eve doesn’t know what she was talking about.”
“Then why was Dru calling you baby brother?” Spike asked.
“Maybe because she’s crazy.”
“Oh, she’s a fruitcake, alright. But Dru sees things that others can’t.” Spike eyed Connor appraisingly for a moment. “So, what is it, mate? When she looks at you, what does she see that I don’t?”
Connor stared at Spike resolutely, almost daring the vampire to dig deeper. “I don’t know.”
“And those demons,” Spike said. “They called you the father. You’re just related to everyone, aren’t you?”
“How are your stitches?” Buffy said, trying to change the subject and cut the tension. “I think I did okay, but I’d rather have had Riley here.”
Connor frowned and looked down at the mention of Buffy’s former lover. He knew it was stupid for at least a dozen reasons. He and Buffy weren’t going to be together ever again. Riley was, at least at the moment, not on the list of romantic rivals. Even if he were, a half-compliment like that shouldn’t be sufficient to arouse such jealousy. But it did.
Buffy caught Connor’s look. She took his hand and squeezed it gently, trying to show some kind of support. Maybe even admiration for his bravery.
Spike looked down at Buffy’s hand gripping Connor’s. “I have to go. If you’re playing pediatrician and Faith’s playing shrink, I suppose I ought to go rob a bank. Or find someone who can.”
Spike turned and stormed from the room, closing the door behind him. Leaning his head against the wall, he balled his fists up and squeezed them against his head, hoping to keep his brain from popping out. Spike made his way to the basement, and then the sewers. He was on a B&E job, but prayed he’d cross paths with some hapless demon who’d provide a nice outlet for his rage.
Back in the ballroom, Buffy sat next to Connor. She was till holding his hand, but her teeth were clenched. “I can’t believe she did all this to you.”
“To be fair, I kind of let her. Well, at least the early stuff. After that, I didn’t have much choice.”
“And after all this, you still think there’s something Faith can do for her? That anyone can do for her?”
“I kind of have to, don’t I? It’s like something this hot blonde slayer once told me. I’m not so much concerned with what happens to Dana. But if I give up on her, if I don’t work to help her find some kind of peace, I don’t like what that would say about me.”
Buffy couldn’t understand why, but in that moment, those words seemed the sexiest to her she’d ever heard. Although his face and physique indicated otherwise, the words told her Connor was very much a man.
She gently placed her hand on his battered chest, running it over him soothingly. “Dawn gets back tomorrow. Then I leave.”
“Yeah,” Connor whispered.
Her other hand moved to his head, gently scratching it. He closed his eyes for a moment, smiling. Then he opened them again and stared into Buffy’s eyes.
“We might never see each other after that.”
“Yeah,” Connor whispered again, staring into Buffy’s eyes.
Connor’s soul went to war with itself. His hormones demanded him to take Buffy and expel every carnal desire building up inside him. His heart cried out for intimacy. It desired not sex, but a connection to Buffy. If not her, than to someone else. Anyone to whom he could bare his soul and relinquish the burden of his hidden life. His brain knew both of these paths lead to disaster and pushed for Connor to simply back away. Smile at Buffy. Thank her for her help. Then take a cold shower and jerk off.
Buffy moved on top of Connor, straddling him and looking down at his bruised face.
Connor stared into Buffy’s eyes. His mouth moved closer to hers. He felt her warm breath on his face. His tongue tingled in anticipation of kissing her, of exploring her mouth and her body.
Buffy leaned forward and kissed him. His tongue moved into her mouth and caressed her tongue. Both let out a soft moan as they kissed deeply and passionately. Despite his loss of blood, he still had enough left to flow downward and give him an erection. Buffy, feeling Connor harden beneath her, slid her hand to his pants and unbuttoned them.
What am I doing she thought. Here, where Faith or Spike could walk in at any moment. But she didn't care. It was almost like Spike. The danger of being caught and the wrongness of it, they made it sexier. More erotic. Buffy shuddered, feeling herself grow more aroused. "Think you can manage?" she asked, sliding her hand into his pants and gripping his warm manhood.
Connor stared into Buffy's eyes. His own eyes began to tear. Even as he nodded that he could indeed, managed, he softly whispered to her. "Buffy, ’m Angel’s son.”
Connor’s tone was at once both sexy and desperate. It took a moment for Buffy to realize that Connor had said her once-lover’s name. She felt her desire for Connor begin to drain at the sound of Angel’s name. “You’re his what?” she whispered, still staring lustfully into his eyes.
Suddenly, Buffy jumped up. The meaning of the words had finally registered. “You’re his what?! Angel has a . . . a . . . a what?!”
Buffy began pacing. “Wait, you can’t be! You’d either be 250 years old or . . . or impossible. Unless there was time travel. When did time travel happen? Oh, no, wait. You’re his son from some alternate universe. Like, like Angel was human and we got married and- oh, gross! I had sex with my alternate universe son! Maybe that’s normal for your dimension, but in this world, it’s just . . . . not!”
Connor buttoned his pants, swiveled his legs, and carefully stood up. “Buffy,” he said approaching her. “I’m not your son. I’m . . . I’m impossible. Like you said. And like you meant it.”
“Vampires, they can’t, they can’t have . . .” Buffy shook her head.
“It’s complicated.”
“It’s impossible,” Buffy answered.
“Start counting up the impossible things that you know have happened and, pretty soon, I won’t seem so extraordinary."
“That’s why Drusilla called you baby brother,” she said.
“Yeah.”
“I can’t believe Angel didn’t tell me about this! All that time we were together in Sunnydale-”
“I wasn’t born until after he left Sunnydale for L.A.”
“That was six years ago!” Buffy shouted.
“It’s a long story, but I was born three years ago.”
“What? Who was . . . your mother. Who was she?”
Connor gulped. “Darla.”
“Darla!” Buffy yelled. “He slept with . . . Angel slept with Darla! Not Angelus. Angel!”
Connor nodded nervously.
“That . . . that mother fucker!” Buffy yelled angrily.
“Actually, I guess he kind of is,” Connor said with a slight laugh. “I mean, in the same sense I’m Dru’s brother, I guess he’s Darla’s son. And he did-”
“Connor,” Buffy said sharply. “Shut up.”
“Buffy, no one knows this. And . . . and they can’t.”
Buffy glared at Connor for what seemed like an hour, then nodded harshly.
“Thank you,” he said. “Now . . . now you might want to sit down while explain how this happened.”
"I can't believe I . . . Angel's son." Buffy glared at him. "And you! How could you . . . with your father's . . ."
Connor blushed beneath his bruises. "Yeah, um . . . you're definitely going to want to sit down."
*****
For Spike, that one handhold was as naked and definitive as if Buffy had said, “I shagged the whelp.” Her scent on Connor, the scent of her sex on Connor, it was something he could fantasize away. He could suspend disbelief and pretend it was a mistake or accident that Connor had managed to plaster that scent all over his puny body. But this was too much. The boy’s jealousy of Riley. Buffy’s none-to-subtle gripping of his hand, almost screaming “That’s right Spike, I screwed him! And you mean so little to me, I don’t mind you knowing.”
Spike punched a wall, furious that even that wasn’t true. Buffy had no clue she’d let him know that much with a simple touch of the hand. The girl was truly daft when it came to matters of the human heart.
Spike arrived at ladder a climbed up. He came up in a small broom closet. “Wonderful,” he sighed. “This is just what I need.”
The closet opened and Spike had to push into the corner of the tiny closet to avoid being hit by light.
“You talk to Angel about me?” Eve asked.
“Haven’t talked to Angel at all.”
“Spike, I can’t stay exposed like this.”
Spike looked at Eve’s modest attire and smiled. “You look pretty well covered up to me,” he joked. “But when I do talk to Angel, I’ll be sure you’re definitely out of the loop concerning the Senior Partners. You were way off about Connor’s parents.”
Eve went pale and all moisture disappeared form her mouth. “I never told you about Connor’s parents,” she said, feeling chilled to the bone.
“Overheard you talking to Connor.”
“Oh god.”
“Cool your jets, sweets. Turns out the Senior Partners didn’t do the Reilly family in. It was Drusilla.”
Eve stared at Spike confused for a moment, then color slowly returned to her face. She did her best to keep her expression even. “I see.”
Spike looked at Eve curiously. She was hiding something too. He wondered if it was the same thing Connor was hiding. The thing Drusilla seemed to know. “Bugger,” Spike said absently. “Nephew.”
“What?” Eve said.
“When Connor shipped me out here to Sunny Southern Cali, he said he was my uncle. If he really was Dru’s little brother, than that would make him an uncle of sorts, wouldn’t it?”
“Here’s the information you asked for,” Eve said, holding out a folder for Spike.
Spike just looked at Eve appraisingly. “Every time I get a question about that little punk answered. Two more questions pop up.” Spike stared at Eve, probing her eyes with his. “What do you know?”
“You asked for information on the bank.” Eve shook the file. “Here it is. As far as the kid goes, I told you all I know.”
Spike took the file. “If you really want me to pass on a plea for protection to Angel, you might want to rethink not telling me about Connor.”
Eve frowned. “If you really want to know about Connor, ask Angel yourself!”
Eve threw open the door and exited, not bothering to warn Spike. Spike quickly reached for the door handle, burning his hand and pulling the door shut. Spike threw open the trap door to the sewer and jumped down. His desire to pummel something was still not abating.
******
“I’m not good at this,” Faith said. “Kicking the crap out of stuff, being pissy. That I get. And I managed to get through the kill-everything-that-pisses-you-off phase. But how to get you through it. I don’t know. And Dana . . . I’m scared. I’m really scared. Because if I fuck this up . . . well, let’s just say I’ve learned to live with a lot. But I don’t think I could live with that.”
“She’s asleep, isn’t she?”
Faith jump, startled form Buffy’s voice behind her. She turned to face the senior slayer. “Of course. You think I’d say that shit when I knew someone was listening?”
“Then I’ll pretend I wasn’t standing outside the door for about five minutes.”
“Gee,” Faith said dully. “Thanks.”
Buffy smiled. She walked in and sat down on a chair. Faith was on another at Dana’s bedside. “I think you were Angel’s first salvage project. You turned out alright.”
“Gee,” Faith repeated dully. “Thanks.”
Buffy laughed quietly. “I’m saying I believe in you Faith. If Dana were in my hands . . . I don’t know. I think . . . it’s hard, you know? Admitting someone else does something better than me. Well, admitting you do something better than me anyway. But when it comes to not giving up on someone . . . you’re the one.”
Faith smiled. “You okay?”
Buffy smirked. “Few bomb shells went off today. Nothing I can’t handle. Or at least nothing I can’t claim that I can handle.”
“Too many words, B. You’re confusing me. Bottom line: can you deal or no?”
“I can deal.” Buffy looked at her watch. “Dawn gets in tonight. But you guys’ll be okay without me. I bumped my flight up.”
Faith nodded. “All in all, I’d say this was our bestest visit ever.”
“I’d say so, too.” Buffy stood and walked into the hallway. “Take care of the boys, okay?”
“I got their back, sis.”
“Then they have nothing to worry about,” Buffy said with a content smile.
******
Connor’s eyes drifted open. He had no idea how long he’d been asleep. Looking up, he saw Faith looking over him.
“If only my dreams were as good as this,” he smiled.
Faith grinned. “Maybe I can steal some morphine from the hospital.”.
“Nah. I can deal. I don’t want you going out where cops might see you. And hospitals, they tend to have cops around.”
“For a scrawny bag of bones, you sure can take a beating with the best of them.”
“You ought to see what else I can do with this scrawny little body,” he said with a flirtatious smile. “Speaking of my injured state, shouldn’t you be slayer-sitting?”
“She’s asleep. I just wanted to ask you something as our tech boy. Think maybe we could stick her with some kind of tracking device?”
“Didn’t the council do that before?”
“Yeah. And she ripped it off when she ran. I was thinking of some kind of sci-fi super-geek made under-the-skin tracker.”
“Bad idea. You have to change the battery every so often.”
Spike walked into the room and frowned, seeing the wrong slayer standing watch over Connor. “Buffy upstairs with loony toons?”
“Buffy’s gone,” Connor said sadly. “She had to get back to England. Or wherever.”
Spike felt his temper rise even further. He’d managed to find the contact who’d get them into the Risen One’s bank and Buffy shows her appreciation by leaving without a good bye.
“She left a note,” Connor said, as if reading Spike’s thoughts.
Spike walked to the letter and picked it up, then looked at Connor coldly. He’d like the whelp well enough at first. But since he laid Buffy, Spike began noticing more and more things about him that just didn’t add up. For one thing, his relationship with Eve was a major point of suspicion.
“So what do we do about Dana?” Connor asked Faith. “I don’t think you and Dawn alone are going to be able to handle this.”
“Maybe we can reach out to Willow. Get some kind of magic help. Like white light and healing and all that ‘be the earth’ crap.”
“That sounds smart. We should call. See if she can help.”
“Meanwhile,” Spike said, tossing Eve’s file on the bank to Connor. “You can put your big plan making brain to work and figure out how we can find out where one of their clients is.”
Connor nodded. “Sounds fun.”
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