"Angel!" Willow smiled as the vampire approached in the moonlight.
"It's been an eternity since I've seen you! Where have you been?"

"Helping Giles and Ceara, mostly," he answered as he took her into his
arms and gave her a tight squeeze. "How are you?"

"I'm great! I was just gathering a few of these roses. Aren't they
wonderful?" she said. "Come inside."

He followed her through the terrace doors and into the brightly lit
living room.

"Is Spike around?" he asked.

"He's out. He'll be back soon."

Angel was mildly amused at the little redhead's euphemism for Spike's
hunting forays, after all this time.

"You look well, Willow. I hate to admit it, but Spike seems to agree
with you."

"Bloody hell, a compliment from soulboy," the blonde vampire's voice
spoke from the doorway. "Get me a paper and pencil, luv. I want to
write that down and make him sign it."

Willow rolled her eyes and gasped as the thorny stem of one of the
roses pricked her finger.

"Ouch!" she yelped and brought her hand to her lips.

"Let me," Spike offered, taking her hand and lapping at the tiny drops
of blood from her finger.

"Ever the gallant gentleman," Willow quipped as his mouth caressed her
palm.

"So, what compelled you to make the trek to the top of our hill?" Spike
asked Angel.

The dark vampire looked from Spike to Willow, "It's Giles. He may be in
trouble."

Willow moved to the sofa and sat down.

"What kind of trouble?" she asked.

"We were out patrolling three nights ago," Angel began as Spike sat
down beside Willow and drew an arm around her. "We came across a demon
just outside one of the cemeteries. Ceara slayed him without too much
trouble, and we thought everything was okay."

Willow was listening in rapt attention.

"But Giles hasn't been the same since that night. He was just a bit
tired at first, and I chalked it up to long nights of training and
recent history catching up with him. But it's grown steadily worse.
He's listless and complacent about things that would normally be
important to him. We've both tried talking to him, but he becomes
agitated and short-tempered."

"That doesn't sound like Giles," Willow spoke.

"I know, and I'm concerned. Maybe the demon had some sort of affect on
him. I drew a sketch of him, and Ceara and I have been trying to find
anything at all about him, but we haven't had any luck. I wondered if
you might--"

"Of course I will," she answered without hesitation.

"I thought Spike might have heard something," Angel added.

The vampire shook his head, "Not a word, but I'll tell the boys to keep
an ear out."

"Could you come with me to Giles'? I really don't think we should waste
any more time," Angel said.

Willow looked at Spike.

"Okay, ducks," he smiled. "Let's go demon hunting."
***
"I'm glad you're here," Ceara said as she led the way into Giles'
library. "I told Giles we were going to do some research, but he wasn't
interested. He's gone out somewhere."

"Goddess, I don't like the sound of that," Willow admitted.

"I don't either," Ceara nodded and gestured to the computer on the
desk. "Do you think you could--"

"Of course," Willow answered and sat down as the slayer began to search
through the pile of books on the table.

After forty-five minutes of silence, punctuated by occasional sighs of
frustration, Willow sat back in her chair, her eyes moving from the
drawing beside the keyboard to the monitor.

"I found him," she spoke.

Ceara and Angel leaned over the redhead to peer at the screen.

"Oh, hell," Angel whispered.

"What is it?" Spike asked.

"If the demon knows he's in danger, he can transfer his energy into
someone nearby," Ceara read as her eyes scanned the words on the
monitor.

"That would be Giles," Willow said sadly.

"Can we reverse it?" Angel asked.

"It doesn't say," the redhead answered. "Looks like we're back to the
books."

"I could contact the council," the slayer suggested.

"I don't think you should. Can you imagine their reaction to a
demon-possessed watcher?" Willow asked.

"I'd rather not," Ceara agreed. "I guess that means it's up to us."

Angel moved away from the desk as the doorbell sounded.

"I'll go," he said.

A moment later, Angel called up to Spike. The blonde vampire made his
way down the stairs to find Darnell at the front door.

"I just left a couple of the boys," Darnell spoke through the invisible
barrier that barred his entrance. "A small group of residents was
attacked outside the park. No one was killed, but a couple of them were
seriously injured."

"You're sure it wasn't vampires?" Angel asked.

Joseph looked at his master, and Spike nodded.

"Whatever attacked them wasn't going for their throats. It was going
after their hearts."

"All right," Spike said. "Get back to the house, and let me know if you
hear anything else."
***
Willow listened in horror as Angel repeated Darnell's information.

"You can't think that Giles is responsible!" she said. "He wouldn't
hurt anyone!"

"He didn't," the watcher confirmed from the doorway.

Ceara rose from her chair at the table and stepped over to him.

"Giles--" she said.

"I'm all right," he assured her. "I tried to stop her, but--"

"Her who?" Willow asked.

"Elizabeth," he answered.

"She's a friend of Giles," Ceara explained. "She was with us on patrol
the other night."

Willow stared at Giles, "She knows you're a watcher?"

"Her father is a member of the council. She stayed on after the town
was rebuilt and the others returned to their homes," he answered.

"And you just happened to be with her when she attacked those people?"
Willow asked.

"No, I was following her. She'd changed dramatically after Ceara slayed
that demon at the cemetary. I've spent the last two nights researching
him. When I discovered his ability to transfer his energy, I became
concerned."

"No wonder you've been in such a strange mood," the slayer said.

"I'm sorry. I suppose I should have told you, but I'd hoped I was
wrong. I needed to be sure before I said anything," he explained.

"Do you know where she went?" Angel asked.

The watcher shook his head, "I had to help those people. I ran to a
phone and called for an ambulance. By the time I returned, she was
gone. Willow, we have to find a way to help her. There must be a way to
rid her of the demon's presence without hurting her. I need your help."

"You have it," she smiled softly. "But only if you promise to go get
some rest. You look completely done in. We'll stay up and research."

"All right," he agreed. "But if you find anything--"

"We'll wake you. I promise," she said.

"Thank you," he replied softly, then turned and quickly left the room.

"How close are they?" Spike asked Angel.

"Very," he answered. "They've been seeing each other for a couple of
months. He hasn't said so, but I think he's in love with her."

"Bloody hell," Willow whispered.
 

"Willow," Spike said as he leaned against the doorpost.

"Mmmm?" she mumbled as her eyes stared at the monitor in front of her.

"Are you coming to bed anytime this morning?" he asked.

"In a minute," she answered.

"We spent all last night trying to find Giles' answer. The sun's been
up for three hours. Come to bed," he insisted.

"I am. In a minute."

He walked over to her desk and pulled the mouse out of her hand.

"Hey!" she protested.

"Shut it down, or I'll unplug it," he warned her.

Willow grumbled softly and shut down the computer.

"If I had a monitor and a keyboard, you'd have your hands all over me
all night," Spike lamented.

Willow laughed and stood up, "Come on, you pointy-toothed baby. Let's
go to bed."
***
"Spike," Willow said as he moved over her and kissed her.

"Yes, luv," he replied as his hand cupped her breast and his mouth
traveled along her throat.

"I'm really worried about Giles. I didn't find one reference about how
to get rid of that demon."

He looked down at her, "I'm doing something wrong."

"What?" she asked in confusion.

Spike's fingers nestled in the soft curls below her belly and captured
her clit.

"No more watcher," he ordered as he rubbed the tiny nub between his
thumb and forefinger.

A soft moan escaped from Willow's lips as her hips thrust into his
hand.

"Much better," he grinned and returned his mouth to hers.

Willow's arms went around him, and she bent her knees as he thrust into
her. She trailed kisses along his chest and drew her tongue along his
nipples as he drove into her. Spike's fingers continued their insistent
pressure against her clit, He sucked and nibbled at her lips. Her eyes
closed, and her walls clutched frantically at his shaft. She cried out
as her body succumbed to his. Spike growled as he emptied his seed into
her, and she pulled him down against her gently heaving breasts,
panting softly against his cold flesh.

Keeping himself firmly planted within her, he rolled her next to him
and rested his hand her rounded ass. She nuzzled against him and grazed
his throat with her teeth. Spike drew his other arm around her head and
buried his fingers in her hair, holding her close as sleep overtook
them.
***
Angel watched as Spike sat down close to Willow and curled his hand
around her inner thigh just above her knee. The dark vampire marveled
at the way Spike always seemed to be attached to the little redhead in
in physical displays that were at once unconsciously public and totally
intimate.

"I'm not sure it's possible," Willow was saying to Giles as she rested
against her lover's shoulder. "I can't find any references to
extracting the demon."

The watcher nodded grimly, "I know. We haven't, either. Short of
killing his host, the transfer seems to be irreversible."

"Can you do that, if it comes to it?" Ceara asked.

"I don't know," Giles admitted. "The demon must be stopped, but I don't
know if I can--"

"We haven't gotten to that point yet, have we?" Willow spoke. "There
has to be another way."

"The demon needs a souled host," Spike stated.

"Yes," Giles confirmed.

"What if she didn't have a soul?" he suggested.

Giles looked over at the vampire, "She does have one."

"She wouldn't, if she were turned," Spike replied.

"Vamp her?" Angel said. "You must be kidding!"

"I'm not," Spike said.

"Do you know how the council would react to having one of its member's
daughters turned?" Giles asked.

"Joseph was a member," Willow pointed out.

"They think Darnell is dead," the watcher told her. "Elizabeth is
strong-willed and very outspoken. She'd made sure the council knew what
she'd become. There'd be hell to pay."

"Not if the vampire who made her was souled," Spike glanced over at
Angel. "Her obedience would be to her sire. Angel could keep her
reigned in."

"I can't do that," Angel stated. "You can't ask me to."

"What's the alternative? Kill her?" Spike replied. "How badly does the
watcher want his lady? It may be the only way to keep her."

"Willow may have no compunctions about making her bed with a vampire,
but I couldn't live that way," the watcher snapped.

"Giles--" Willow whispered.

He looked at her contritely, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I
realize you love him. I just couldn't be with Liza that way."

Willow looked at Spike in discomfort at the watcher's telling use of
the woman's pet name.

"Anyway, she'd want Angel, wouldn't she?" Ceara asked innocently.

"That depends on how close she and the watcher are," Spike answered.
"If she wants to be with him now, she'd want to be with him after, and
she'd have a sire who would allow her that choice."

Becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the turn the conversation had
taken, Giles walked to the window across the room and looked out at the
moonlit yard.

"There'd be all kinds of complications," Angel argued. "What if
Elizabeth decided to turn Giles?"

"Bloody hell," Spike groaned. "I'm not saying it would be easy, but all
those things could be dealt with. You know that."

Giles turned back to them, "This is all academic. It isn't going to
happen."

"Then you'd better be prepared to lose her," Spike warned him. "Unless
you're planning on letting her roam Sunnyhell ripping out hearts at
will."

"Spike," Angel hissed ominously.

"Look, you can stand around and wish for the impossible until eternity
bleeds away," Spike snapped. "The way I see it, you have two
choices--kill her, and the demon along with her, or turn her. You can
put off the decision while she goes on attacking people, or you can
deal with it and make a choice."

"What would you do if it were Willow?" Ceara threw back. "What if you
had to make a choice like that?"

"I'd turn her," Spike answered easily. "Because I sure as hell wouldn't
exist without her."

The slayer looked from Spike to Willow in a mixture of horror that the
young woman was not the least bit upset by the vampire's statement, and
wonder at a love so all-consuming.

"We're not going to discuss this anymore," Giles told them. "We'll find
another answer."

"We can try," Willow nodded.

Giles headed for the stairway and ascended to the library. Ceara put
her hand on Willow's arm as they moved to follow the watcher.

"Would you really let him turn you?" she asked curiously.

"Yes," Willow smiled softly.

The slayer shook her head in amazement as Spike slipped his hand in
Willow's and led her to the stairs.
 

"The whole idea is insane," Spike grumbled as Willow slipped under the
sheets and slid close to him.

"If there were a way to reverse the transference, we'd have found it,"
she said. "Maybe capturing Elizabeth will buy us a little time."

"To do what?" he asked. "Sounds more like putting off the inevitable to
me."

"Giles can't accept that yet," she told him. "And it's possible we
missed something."

"Not bloody likely," he mumbled. "It's too damned dangerous."

Willow looked at him in surprise, "I can't believe you said that! Since
when have you been--"

"I'm not thinking about me," he said. "Listen, ducks, I know you.
You're going to be right in the middle of this hunting expedition."

"Of course I am!" she agreed. "I can take care of myself."

"Sometimes your lack of fear borders on stupidity."

"Spike!" she gasped. "That's a hell of a thing to say!"

"I'm serious, pet. One of these nights, you're going to get yourself
killed, and I'm going to be left alone in my cold, soulless universe.
Call me selfish, but that thought does not make me happy."

Willow dropped a kiss on his lips and slid down to rest her head
against his shoulder.

"You're selfish, and I love you," she smiled.

"And you're going after her, anyway," he added.

"I have to, for Giles. You know?"

"I know," he said as he brought his arm around her to cup her breast.

Willow moaned softly and moved closer still. She knew Spike couldn't
fully understand her affection for Giles, even after all they'd been
through together. Spike had watched her endure weeks of insecurity
after they had first fled Sunnydale all those months ago.

The loss of her friends and family, when it had finally sunk it, had
hit her hard. Giles and Angel had moved on. Her days, which had been so
recently filled with fire and blood and the struggle to just remain
alive, had been replaced by a deafening silence and a paralyzing sense
of being alone. Spike had been her anchor, pulling her back when she
began to drift with the tides of despair and anger and loneliness.

He had been all she had, and he had patiently stood by her and let her
scream or cry or sit silently, until he had become all she needed.
Although he was, to everyone else, the dark personification of evil and
death, he had become, to her, a blinding light leading to safety and
security and a reason to go on. And gradually, the need to talk had
grown into never needing to talk. It was at that moment he had become
her home.

"Pet?" Spike asked as he brushed away a tear she had not known she had
shed.

"Yes," she whispered.

"What is it? Is it the watcher? Luv, you know we'll help him, if that's
what you want."

She turned a little and looked up at him.

"It isn't Giles," she smiled. "It's you. I love you, Spike. I wish I
could tell you."

He pulled her down and kissed her softly.

"You do tell me, baby, everyday," he answered.

"Do I?" she asked. "You're everything, Spike. Everything there is. The
only thing there is."

"I know, sweetheart. Your heart beats for the both of us," he said. "I
never take it for granted."

"I want you to," she told him as her lips found his. "I want you to
take me for granted. I want you to take me. I want you."

He groaned and deepened the kiss, moving her under him and spreading
her legs. He entered her quickly and began a slow rhythm, and she
arched into him as her body enveloped his, buried deep within her. He
stroked her clit with soft caresses, bringing her to a slow, sweet
orgasm that shook her to her soul, and she whispered his name as he
moaned and came with her.

Spike kissed her and wrapped his arms snugly around her, placing soft
kisses along her throat as she drifted into a contented sleep.
***
"Have you arranged for a place to hold her?" Giles asked Spike.

The vampire nodded, "It's taken care of."

"Right. Let's--"

"You can't help us with this," Angel interrupted the watcher. "You're
too close to it."

Giles sighed and turned toward the front door, "All right. But I want
to know the minute you've captured her."

Ceara lifted a dart gun over her shoulder and handed a second to
Willow. Her watcher stopped her as she headed out the door.

"Be careful," he said softly.
***
"We'll find her faster if we split up," Spike suggested as they walked
along Main Street.

"It would be safer to stay together," Angel told him. "Besides, someone
should keep an eye on you."

"You don't trust me," Spike smirked. "I'm hurt."

"I'll keep an eye on him," Willow said.

"Why does that not make me feel any better?" Angel asked.

"Come on, pet," Spike took Willow's hand and tugged her down the
sidewalk. "We'll keep an eye on each other."

Ceara shook her head and looked up at Angel, "I think it's going to be
up to us to find Elizabeth. It doesn't look like they're going to be
much help."

"Don't put money on it," Angel told her. "I've seen those two pull off
the impossible. They read each other incredibly well."

"In Braille, no doubt," she grinned.

Angel chuckled and led her off in the opposite direction.
***
"What are they doing here?" Willow asked as four vampires materialized
out of the shadows and followed them silently.

"Back-up," Spike answered.

"Giles doesn't want Elizabeth hurt," she reminded him.

"I don't want you hurt," he replied.

They rounded the corner, and Spike pulled Willow back as his eyes
caught sight of a still form on the pavement ahead of them. Willow
stepped up behind him as he knelt over the mutilated body of a young
man.

"She's close," he said. "The body's still warm."

Willow's hand clamped onto Spike's shoulder as the sound of heavy
footsteps echoed on the sidewalk behind them. The other vampires
whirled around, and Willow shrugged the dart gun from her shoulder.

Spike's hand came down over the barrel of the gun and pushed it down.

"Angel," he spoke as the vampire and the slayer emerged into the weak
light of a street lamp.

"I smelled blood," Angel explained.

Spike gestured toward the body behind him. One of his minions turned to
him suddenly as the sound of a strangled scream broke the night's
silence. Willow turned to follow the blood-curdling sound, and Spike's
hand shot out and stopped her. She looked back at him.

"I don't suppose it would do any good to tell you to stay behind me,"
he said.

"I don't suppose so," she answered. "Come on."

The group crossed the street and made their way to the end of the
block. Down the street to their right, they saw a man desperately
struggling under the grip of a tall woman. She turned and snarled at
them, her human countenance twisted by the presence of the demon inside
her. Spike looked over at his minions.

"Willow is your first priority," he said. "If anything happens to her,
you won't have the chance to answer to me."

The minions nodded and stepped out onto the street to surround the
demon as Angel, Spike, Willow, and Ceara approached her cautiously.
Elizabeth growled at them, still clutching the victim by the throat.
Willow and Ceara readied the dart guns as the woman released the man
and whirled on them.

"Get out of here," Ceara hissed, and the stunned man scrambled to his
feet and fled.

One of the minions flung himself at the demon and howled as a deadly
claw raked across his chest, leaving deep gashes in his flesh.
Elizabeth turned back and lunged at Willow, and the gun flew out of the
redhead's hands.

Willow rolled into the woman, knocking her legs out from under her. She
groaned as Elizabeth's body landed on top of her, and Spike grabbed the
demon's neck and tore her off of Willow.

"Shoot, damn it," Angel hissed at Ceara.

"I can't get a clear shot," the slayer said.

The demon twisted out of Spike's grasp and dragged her claws against
the vampire's face. Spike growled as he morphed into game face. Angel
barreled into Elizabeth, and Willow grabbed the dart gun from Ceara as
Spike scooped up the other from where it had fallen.

"You'll hit Angel!" Ceara shouted as Spike leveled the gun against his
shoulder.

Spike flipped the gun around and swung at the tangled forms of Angel
and Elizabeth. The demon shrieked, and Angel pushed her away as Willow
took aim and released the dart into the woman's chest. Elizabeth cried
out and sunk to the pavement.

"Are you okay?" Ceara asked as she bent to help Angel to his feet.

He wiped away the blood that was trickling from a cut above his eye and
nodded. She turned to see Willow eyeing the scratches along Spike's
human face.

"How about you two?" the slayer asked.

"We're okay," Willow answered and slung the gun over her shoulder as
Spike wrapped an arm around her waist.

The vampire motioned to his minions, and they grabbed up the demon and
carried her down the street.

"And of course, I'm just fine, seeing as how I just stood by and
watched," Ceara mumbled.

"Next time, we'll trade places, and Spike can take a swing at you,"
Angel grinned.

"That's a deal," Spike called over his shoulder as they started back
across the street.
 

"What is this place?" Ceara asked as Spike unlocked the door and led
them down the stairs to the cellar.

"It's a security vault under a jewelry store," Willow answered. "The
man who owns it works for Spike."

"He's a vampire? What does a vampire want with a jewelry store?" she
asked.

"Money has all kinds of uses, even for us," Spike told her.

"Where does he get the jewelry? Oh, wait, I don't want to know, do I?"
the slayer said.

"No," Willow smiled. "You don't."

Spike worked the combination on a heavy door and swung it open to
reveal a barred door behind it. Angel stepped in front of Giles as the
watcher moved forward to look inside.

"Giles, she isn't the Elizabeth you knew," the vampire cautioned him.

A flicker of pain darted across Giles' face as he nodded his
understanding, and Angel stepped aside.

"Elizabeth," the watcher spoke softly to the woman who was pacing along
the far wall of the small cell.

She moved out of the shadows, and Giles flinched under her murderous
stare. He took a deep breath and drew himself up.

"Liza, you know me," he said. "We don't want to hurt you."

The demon's glare vanished to be replaced by a warm smile.

"Let me out of here, Rupert. I don't understand why they've locked me
away," the woman said.

"You know I can't do that," he told her. "We want to help you."

"I don't need help," she answered as a flash of anger reappeared behind
her dark eyes. "Let me out."

"Liza--"

"Is weak," the demon snarled. "She's mine now. Would you like to watch
me destroy her? I can, you know. I will, if you don't release me."

"Elizabeth, listen to me," the watcher implored. "Don't let him--"

The woman flung herself at the thick bars, and Giles moved back.

"Damn you!" the demon shouted. "Let me go! I swear I'll destroy her!"

"Is that possible?" Ceara asked Giles.

"The demon needs a host," Giles answered softly. "He won't destroy Liza
as long as he isn't free to find another."

He turned back to the captive and stared into the woman's eyes, "Liza,
look at me. Listen to me. I know you can hear me. I love you."

Willow moaned imperceptibly, and Spike put his arm around her.

"Rupert--" the weak, frightened voice of Elizabeth whispered.

"Yes, Liza. We're going to help you. We'll find a way, but you must
hang on."

"I'll see you in hell, watcher," the demon hissed angrily and pulled on
the unyielding bars.

"Close it," Giles whispered.

Spike nodded and swung the door shut on the demon's roar of fury. The
watcher turned and walked back to the stairs. The others followed him
out to the street.

"There must be some way to reverse this," Giles finally spoke.

"We've looked through every---"

"Then look again!" he shouted at Willow.

"Giles," she pleaded. "You have to face this--"

He stepped so close, she could feel his warm breath on her forehead.

"Don't presume to tell me what I have to do," he said, his voice low
and angry. "You'll do as I say, or--"

Spike snarled and shoved the watcher away from Willow.

"Tread lightly," the vampire hissed through clenched teeth.

"Take it easy," Angel's calm voice cut through the tension. "We're on
the same side, here."

"Are we?" Giles asked stonily. "She warms the bed of a demon."

Spike's hand clamped onto Willow's, and he pulled her forcefully away.

"Spike, don't. He's hurting," Willow said.

"Home, Willow. Now," he ordered.

"No, please! We can't--"

"If we stay here, I'm going to force feed him his teeth, one by one,"
the vampire snarled.

She looked back hopelessly at Angel and Ceara.

"It's all right," Angel said. "I'll talk to you later."

"As if I give a damn," Spike growled as he dragged Willow away.
***
"We're out of it, Willow," Spike said.

"No, we can't be! Spike, listen to me. That demon is going after
vampires, too. You know you can't let her do that."

"I'll kill her," Spike said easily.

"Giles will never forgive you if you do."

"Do you think I care?" he snarled.

"All right," she conceded. "Than I'll go to him and help--"

"Like hell," he hissed. "Your place is beside me--"

"My place?" she said coldly.

"That's right," he nodded. "Just like mine is beside you. After all
this time, he'd drag you away from me if he could."

"Spike, he's a watcher. It's in his blood."

"How the hell can you stand there and defend him after what he said?"
Spike asked.

"Because it wasn't directed at us, not really. He's hurt and frustrated
and scared. I'd react the same way if I were losing you," she
explained.

"And he wouldn't be busting his ass to try and help you," the vampire
argued.

"He knows I'm with you, for as long as you want me."

"I want you forever. You know that. But you cannot ask me to turn my
back when he treats you like a whore. You're mine, and only mine."

"Do I not warm your bed? Are you not a demon?" she asked.

"And he hates every second of it."

"I don't think he hates it. He just can't understand it. Or maybe he
does, and it scares him," Willow suggested.

"I'm not following you," Spike admitted.

"He loves Elizabeth, and now she's got this demon inside her, and he
loves her anyway. He'd do anything to save her, to be with her. Sound
like anyone you know?"

Spike had stopped fuming and was listening with interest.

"He loves the thing he was meant to destroy. That's got to be scary as
hell, especially for a watcher. You and I make it work, but he never
will. Spike, part of him is dying inside. He wants her back, and that
isn't going to happen. He can't have with her what you and I have. It
would go against everything he is. He's going to lose her." She looked
away as her eyes filled with tears, "I don't know how he can bear it.
It would destroy me."

Spike took her face in his hands and lowered his mouth to catch the
tears on her cheeks.

"He needed someone to lash out at," she said softly as Spike's arms
went around her. "I was an obvious target. He's never going to look at
us the same way again. Every time he sees us, he's going to be reminded
of her and what he couldn't have."

"He can't ask you to carry that, luv. It's too heavy," Spike said.

"It isn't my burden. It's Giles'. For all our help, he's still going to
have to face this alone. Spike, I can't walk away from him. Not now."

"All right, baby. I suppose I can understand that. But wait a couple of
days before you talk to him again. I don't want him dealing with his
pain by taking it out on you," Spike said.

She nodded against his chest.

"Pet, if he doesn't make a decision soon, I will destroy her."

She pulled away and looked up at him.

"I have to," he told her as he caressed her cheek. "I can't control the
others if they think I won't protect them. Can you understand that?"

"Yes," she said softly.

"Willow," Angel's voice spoke from the terrace doors.

They turned to look at him.

"Giles wants to to see you--both of you. Will you come?" he asked.

"No," Spike said. "Not after tonight."

"Spike, he feels badly about what he said," Angel told him. "He's made
a decision, and he'd like both of you to be there before he explains
what it is."

Willow looked up at Spike, "Can we?"

The vampire brushed her hair from her cheek and kissed her softly, "All
right, pet. Let's go."
 

"I owe you both an apology," Giles said. "I'm in no position to judge
your relationship, especially now."

"It's all right. This hasn't been easy for you," Willow smiled softly.

"No, it hasn't. I'd like to ignore it, pretend it isn't real, but I
can't do that."

"And you've come to a decision?" Angel prompted.

The watcher sat down and carefully avoided eye contact with the others.

"Yes," he nodded. "Spike, you said something about Angel and Elizabeth,
that he would be able to--help her--if she were his childe."

Spike stared at the watcher in surprise, "That's right. She'd listen to
him, even without her soul."

"No," Angel said firmly. "Giles, you can't be considering--"

"I am," the watcher responded. "If you turned her, Willow could restore
her soul."

"She'd still be a vampire," Ceara stated. "How could you be with her?
How could you live with it?"

"I don't know," he answered. "But I don't want to live without her, if
there's an alternative."

"It isn't an alternative. I can't do this," Angel told him. "I won't.
Giles, you're asking me to destroy a human being."

"The demon is well on his way to doing that, anyway," the watcher said.

"She still has her soul. Please, don't ask me to do this," Angel
begged.

"Angel, I know what you're thinking, but it wouldn't be like that this
time. You wouldn't be taking Elizabeth away from me. You'd be giving
her back," Giles explained.

Angel groaned and looked over at Willow.

"I'm not even sure I could perform the restoration," the redhead spoke.
"I haven't practiced since before Sunnydale was burned to the ground."

"I think you could," Giles replied. "Willow, you of all people should
understand. Could you let Spike go?"

"No, but it's different for us."

"How?" he asked sharply.

"You know what we've been through together. You know part of it,
anyway. Giles, Spike was all I had after Sunnydale was gone. I needed
him like I needed oxygen. He stood on the horizon and dared me to come
to him when I didn't even believe any horizons were left. He's part of
me, part of what I am."

"I know Liza and I don't have the history you have with Spike," Giles
admitted. "But she's the only person who's made me feel anything
since--well, in a long, long time. You're not the only one who was left
to struggle on after this town and all the people we cared about were
lost. I can't lose her, too, but I will if we don't act quickly. This
demon will only wait for so long. He'll destroy her, eventually.
There's little enough left of her now."

Willow's eyes followed Angel as he paced uncomfortably to the other
side of the room.

"When did you want to do this?" she asked the watcher.

"Tomorrow night," he answered.

"I can't," Angel said quietly. "I can't do it. I can't take that
woman's life."

"Her life is already lost," Giles insisted.

"I can't do it!" the vampire said more forcefully.

The watcher sighed and sat back in the chair. His gaze shifted to
Willow and Spike.

"Could you?" he asked the blonde vampire.

"Could I? Turn her?" Spike asked.

Willow tensed beside him, and he dropped his hand to her knee.

"If Angel won't," Giles nodded.

"She needs a souled sire," Spike reminded him. "I couldn't mould her
the way Angel could."

"I understand that, but if it has to be that way, would you do it?"

Willow looked at Spike, her eyes filled with a mixture of dread and
panic. Spike moved his hand along her thigh, squeezing it gently.

"There's only one woman I'd consider turning. I know you're trying to
save Elizabeth--if turning her can be called that--but I won't have any
other woman beside me for eternity. I can't help you," Spike refused
firmly.

"Then Elizabeth is truly lost," Giles' anguished voice breathed.
"Angel, you took the only other woman who ever meant this much to me.
Give this one back to me, please."

Angel forced a sigh from his lungs and ran a hand through his hair.

"Damn it, you don't know what you're asking," he muttered.

"I think I do," Giles replied. "Do you think I'd be asking this if
there were any other way?"

Angel stared at him for a long moment.

"All right," he finally agreed. "I just hope we don't all regret it."
***
Willow looked down at Elizabeth's sedated body.

"The demon won't try to take you, will he?" Willow asked Angel. "I
mean, if he needs a souled host--"

"I'm a demon, too, in spite of my soul. He doesn't want me," Angel
assured her. "Spike, you'll have to take Willow away from here."

The vampire nodded and took Willow's hand.

"I'll leave the boys, in case you need them," he offered.

"I'll bring her to the mansion as soon as this is done," Angel said.
***
"Should it be taking this long?" Willow asked as she looked at the
mantle clock yet again.

Spike grinned, "Everything's fine, luv. Angel is nothing if not
careful. They'll be here."

"I still think it would be best if she came home with me," Giles spoke.
"She shouldn't be here with all these--"

"Vampires?" Spike asked. "We've been through all this. She'll need to
get her feet under her. This is the best place for her to do that.
She'll be with her own kind."

The watcher rose as Darnell appeared in the doorway and stepped aside
to allow Angel to carry Elizabeth into the room. He moved to the sofa
and laid the woman down gently. Giles knelt beside her and took her
cold hand. His eyes settled on the small punctures on her neck. Willow
moved to Angel's side and placed her hand on his arm.

"Are you all right?" she asked softly.

"Not really," he answered. "I hope we don't end up hating each other
for this. Where's Ceara?"

"We thought it might be better if she waited at Giles'. The slayer
isn't one of the first people Elizabeth should see when she wakes up.
Besides, Ceara makes the others around here restless."

"I imagine she would," Angel agreed with no trace of humor.

"Angel," the woman's voice whispered as her eyes fluttered open.

Giles looked up at him as the vampire moved to stand beside his childe.
She sat up slowly and looked at the others, one by one. A soft snarl
broke from her lips at the sight of the watcher.

"Elizabeth," Angel spoke. "You know him. He's no threat."

She reached out her hand to touch Giles' cheek, and he gasped softly as
her fingers curled and raked along his skin. Angel's hand clamped
around her wrist and pulled her hand away.

"Send him away," she hissed.

"Liza," Giles whispered.

Her eyes moved to his, and he held her gaze.

"Rupert," she murmured.

"Yes, Liza," he said softly.

She flung her arms around his neck, and Giles gathered her close to
him. Willow's eyes widened and her body stiffened.

"Spike!" she called out.

The blonde vampire reached out and grabbed hold of the woman. Giles
felt her being torn away from him. He stood quickly as his eyes found
themselves looking at Elizabeth's game face.

"Let me go," she shrieked. "He's mine! I want him!"

"Elizabeth," Angel barked.

The vampire fell silent at her sire's harsh voice. She looked longingly
at Giles. The watcher took a step forward and felt Willow's hand on his
arm.

"Giles," she said softly. "I think you should leave. Give Angel time to
be with her."

The watcher looked from the redhead to Angel.

"I'll be careful with her," the vampire promised. "It's too new for her
right now. Give me time to talk to her."

Giles nodded and stepped away.

"No," Elizabeth wailed. "He belongs to me! We should be together!
Rupert--"

"I'll come back, Liza," he told her.

"Tomorrow night?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes," he nodded.

Angel took Elizabeth's arm to lead her out of the room, and she looked
back at the watcher as she followed obediently behind her sire.

"She's different," Giles spoke as he watched them leave the room.

"You knew she would be. She's soulless," Spike snapped. "This isn't a
fairy tale. She may live ever after, but no one said anything about
happily."

"She'll come around," Giles states stubbornly. "She just needs time.
You will take care of her?"

"Of course we will," Willow answered. "Go home and try to get some
sleep."

"I'll be back tomorrow at sunset," Giles said before turning and
leaving the room.
 

"She does know her place, doesn't she?" Willow asked as she stared
uncomfortably at Elizabeth.

"She knows," Spike grinned.

"She makes me nervous."

He chuckled and put his arms around her, "I promise she won't snack on
you."

He drew her mouth to his and pulled her close against him. Elizabeth
watched with interest from across the room.

"He loves her?" she asked Angel.

"Yes," he nodded.

"But, she's mortal!" the female vampire sneered.

"So were you a few hours ago," Angel reminded her. "I wouldn't cross
her if I were you. Not if you like having your heart in your chest."

"You're trying to tell me that tiny thing is a threat?" she asked
incredulously.

"I've seen her stake far worse than you, and it'd be a race to see who
got to you first. Spike is murderously protective of her," Angel
advised. "I'm your sire, but he's your master. Remember it."

Elizabeth turned away from the couple.

"When is Giles coming?" she asked.

"Soon."

"I miss him," she admitted.

"But he's mortal," Angel grinned.

Elizabeth chuckled, "Point taken. Angel?"

"Yes."

"Can I turn him?" she asked sweetly.

"No. I thought you understood."

"I do," she answered. "But I don't like it. Why can't I have him with
me?"

"You can, but not like that," her sire spoke firmly.

Angel's eyes were drawn to the doorway as Darnell entered, followed by
Giles. Elizabeth's pale face lit up with a broad smile, and she went to
the watcher and put her arms around him. Willow stepped out of Spike's
embrace, and he wrapped his arms around her from behind and pulled her
back against him before she could move away.

"How is she?" Giles asked Angel from over her shoulder.

"It's still very early. She has a way to go."

The woman turned, her arm still tucked around the watcher, and looked
at her sire.

"A way to go?" she repeated.

"Before you can be together," Angel explained.

"Willow," Giles said. "Could I speak with you for a moment?"

The redhead nodded and followed him out onto the terrace.

"I've got everything prepared for the restoration," Giles spoke softly.
"I'd like you to perform it as soon as possible."

"I only hope that I can," she said. "I meant it when I said I haven't
been practicing. What about the demon? Will he return once her soul is
restored?"

"No," he answered. "When Elizabeth was turned and her soul was replaced
by her own demon, he had to leave her. With no other souled host
nearby, the only place for him to go was back to hell."

"That's why Angel insisted I leave," Willow realized. "When do you want
to try the restoration?"

"Could you meet me at my place in an hour? I'll tell Angel to keep Liza
here and watch over her."

She nodded, "I'll be there in an hour."
***
Giles retrieved the orb from the table and placed it back in the case
across the room as Spike dropped to his knees and took Willow's face in
his hands.

"Are you all right, ducks?" he asked.

She smiled down at him, "I'd forgotten how exhausting that is. I'm
fine. Giles, do you think it worked?"

The watcher walked to his desk as the phone rang.

"We're about to find out," he answered as he lifted the receiver and
spoke quietly with Angel.

"Promise me you'll never use that damned bit of sorcery on me," Spike
grinned.

"I love you just the way you are, black evil heart and all," she
smiled. "You're the man who dragged me out of hell. I wouldn't change
you for anything."

Spike leaned forward and kissed her fiercely, and her lips parted as
his tongue sought hers. Giles replaced the receiver and cleared his
throat loudly. Spike's hand moved around Willow's head, preventing her
from pulling away.

Giles rolled his eyes and spoke anyway, "It worked."

Willow tore her lips away from Spike's with a squeal.

"It worked! You have her back!" she cried joyfully.

"Not exactly, pet. She's still a vampire," Spike reminded her.

"But with a soul--like Angel! And it's permanent, so she and Giles can
be together," she said.

"Eventually, I hope," Giles nodded. "If she still wants me after the
way we've manipulated her life."

"Of course she'll still want you! You saved her from being destroyed,"
Willow told him. "Let's go back to the mansion."

"Perhaps it would be best if I waited a day or two," the watcher said.

"Oh, come on! Don't get cold feet now. Elizabeth will already have
those. Trust me, I know," she shot a sly glance at Spike.

He pulled her up out of the chair and swatted her ass, "Are you
complaining about my cold feet?"

"Who me? Never," she grinned.

"Yes, well, perhaps going to the mansion would be the best idea, after
all," Giles said with more than a trace of embarrassment.
***
"I'm so sorry," Elizabeth apologized again as her fingers gently traced
the fading scratches along the watcher's cheek.

"I told you; it doesn't matter," he smiled. "You're here with me, and
that's all I care about."

She leaned back against him, and he rested his chin on her head.

"It's so strange. Everything's happened so fast. That awful demon
inside me, and then being turned and losing my soul, and now having it
back again."

"You've been through hell," he whispered.

"I'd do it again, to be with you," she stated and turned her head to
kiss him. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything," he answered.

"You know Spike well, don't you?" she inquired.

"Better than I ever expected to," he grinned.

"How can Willow be with him? She's so sweet and good."

"She loves him," Giles shrugged.

"I know, but he has no soul. How good can that be for her? I know how I
felt without my soul. As badly as I wanted you, I wanted to turn you
more. I've watched Spike the past few days. He's absolutely ruthless
with the other vampires. They cower in front of him."

"He's their master. They're supposed to," Giles said.

"As much as he may love Willow, he could turn on her. You know that.
And if he ever did, he'd tear her apart," she warned.

"He won't."

"How can you be so sure? She's here with him, where no one can protect
her. The other vampires wouldn't help her if Spike went after her."

"Liza, they've been together for a long time now. He won't hurt her,"
the watcher assured her.

"You don't know that, not really. She shouldn't be with him."

"Why are we discussing this? The decision isn't ours to make," he
stated.

"I like her. She helped me for no other reason than because she wanted
to. She's been wonderful to me. I'm scared to go with you and leave her
here," Elizabeth explained.

"She's lived here for months. She considers this her home."

"It'll never be her home! She lives with vampires! She sleeps with
their master!" Elizabeth argued.

"Where are you going with this?" Giles wanted to know.

"I want to help her, like she helped me."

"She wouldn't want the kind of help you're offering. She wouldn't thank
you for it," he told her.

"She would, eventually, after he was gone and she had time to gain some
perspective. She'd see it was for the best," the woman insisted.

Giles turned her to look at him, "Liza, I want you to stay out of their
relationship. It won't work. Leave them alone."

"I can't," she refused. "I'm going to get him out of her life. If I
can't make her understand how wrong this is, I'll find another way."

"No," he ordered firmly. "If you go after Spike, he'll kill you."

"Giles, I may not be a watcher, but I do know a lot about this. My
father taught me well. I won't ask you to help me. That wouldn't be
fair to you. But I'm in the perfect position to put a stop to this. I'm
going to rid Willow of Spike, permanently. I consider her my friend,
and I'm going to help her."

"I can't stop you, if you're determined, but I can't help you. I won't
do anything to harm Spike while Willow loves him," he said.

"All right," she agreed. "We won't talk about it anymore. I'll find a
way, and you'll be out of it. Better?"

"Not really," he admitted.

She grinned and captured his mouth with hers. Her tongue met his as she
kissed him slowly.

"How about that?" she whispered. "Is that better?"

"Much," he grinned and resume the kiss.
***
"I was beginning to think we'd never be rid of them," Spike said as his
hand moved along Willow's soft thigh and parted her folds.

She moaned and ground her hips against him.

"They're gone now," she whispered.

"I say we celebrate," he suggested as he began a gentle assault on her
clit.

"I agree," she whispered as she parted her legs to him and drew his
mouth into a passionate kiss.

He rolled over her, placing her under him, and smiled at her soft sigh
as his shaft slid into her tight channel. She trailed kisses along his
neck and shoulders and down to the pebbled nipples on his chest. He
began a slow rhythm inside her, and she thrust back, initiating a more
urgent pace.

Her hand cupped one of his sacs, and her fingers danced along the
sensitive flesh. He groaned low in his throat as the pressure of her
hand and the tightening of her walls around his aching hardness drove
him relentlessly closer to release. He placed wet kisses on her breasts
and laved at the darkened flesh around her nipples.

Willow keened as her muscles clamped around him, drawing the cold seed
from his body. He kissed her deeply as his softening cock slid from her
sopping channel. Moving off her, he turned her and moved close behind
her, pressing her back against his cool chest. One hand cupped the soft
flesh of one rounded breast as the other hand drifted to the still wet
entrance between her legs. She covered his hand with hers as his finger
slipped inside the warmth of her folds and nestled there as they
drifted to sleep.
***
Across town, Elizabeth moved closer to Giles, reveling in the new
sensation of his body warming her cold flesh. She placed a soft kiss on
the sleeping man's chest and lay quietly enfolded in his arms as her
mind began to form a plan to get her little redheaded friend away from
the soulless demon who claimed her as his own.
 

"Who is he?" Angel asked as he eyed the tall blonde man across the
dimly lit club.

"A friend of mine. I've known him since I was a child. Our fathers
served on the council together, until his died several years ago. He
helped supervise the rebuilding here."

"Does he know about you?" Angel asked in alarm.

"No," she smiled. "He thinks Rupert is taking up my days, which happens
to be the truth."

The blonde had spotted them and made his way to their table.

"Reid," Elizabeth smiled. "Sit down. This is Angel, a friend of mine."

Reid nodded at the vampire and sat down.

"I was surprised to hear from you. I thought you'd dropped off the face
of the earth," he said to Elizabeth.

"I've been around. You look well," she said.

A flash of red hair caught Angel's attention, and he looked at
Elizabeth curiously as Willow approached from the entrance. The woman
pulled out the chair next to Reid and motioned for Willow to sit down.

"I can't stay long," Willow told her.

"You don't get out enough," Elizabeth replied. "Willow, this is Reid
Grayson, a dear friend."

The man's gaze was captured by the glimmering green eyes that sparkled
from the pale redhead's face. He offered his hand, and Willow shook it,
pulling away when he held on for a moment too long. Elizabeth turned to
Angel as the band on the stage began to play a ballad.

"Dance with me?" she asked the vampire.

He nodded and followed reluctantly, leaving an uncomfortable Willow
alone at the table with the strange man.

"What are you doing?" her sire asked as Elizabeth stepped into his
loose embrace.

"Showing Willow her options," she answered.

"Options? I didn't know she was looking for any," he stated.

"She should be. She won't have Spike forever. She'll need someone when
he's gone," she told him.

"I hate to disillusion you, but I don't think Spike's going anywhere,"
he replied.

"You never know," she answered brightly and moved closer to him.

"Willow," Reid said. "I know that name, don't I? Weren't you here
before Sunnydale burned?"

"Yes," she nodded. "Not many of us got out in time."

"Only those with the watcher."

His breath caught as Willow's eyes flew to his.

"You know about--"

"My father was a member of the council. I know all about what happened
here. I must say, I admire your tenacity. That must have been a hell of
an ordeal."

She shrugged, "You do what you have to in a situation like that."

"Would you like to dance?" he offered.

"No, thank you. I really can't stay."

"A beautiful woman like you should be shown off on a beautiful night
like this," he said softly.

Willow silently cursed the blush she felt creeping along her cheeks.

"I'm taken," she said and looked away.

He lifted her left hand and rubbed her unadorned finger with his thumb.

"Not that taken. No ring," he smiled.

She pulled her hand away, "Believe me; I am very taken."

"I hope he's up for a little competition. Do you know what candlelight
does to your eyes?" he leaned slightly forward.

Willow jumped up and backed away.

"I have to leave," she said and quickly made her way to the door.

She stepped out onto the sidewalk and found Reid at her side.

"I didn't mean to frighten you," he apologized. "Let me walk you--"

"No!" she refused a little too loudly.

She glanced around at the passersby who had turned around at her
outburst. She moved quickly across the street, and Reid followed right
behind her.

"Willow," he put his hand on her arm. "Please, don't be frightened of
me. I've heard a lot about you. I'd like to get to know you better. I'm
intrigued."

"I'm flattered, really, but I'm in love with someone, and I--"

"People fall in love--and out of love--all the time. At least let me
get to know you," he asked.

"Look, I don't know who you are, and I'm not sure I'm interested in
finding out. I have to leave," she insisted, stepping away.

"You don't play fair," he complained and blocked her path.

Willow gasped as his hands curled around her arms and pulled her into
him. His lips caught hers, and he slipped one arm around her waist to
pull her closer. She tore her mouth away from his.

"Let--" her demand was interrupted by a loud snarl, and the man holding
her went flying onto the pavement as Spike barreled into him.

"Don't!" Willow shouted as Spike's fangs gleamed above the man's
throat.

The vampire pulled back and swung a clenched fist into the man's face.
He dropped Reid's limp body back down onto the sidewalk. Spike stood
and grabbed Willow's wrist, dragging her off down the street.
***
"Spike, you're hurting me!" Willow pleaded as he shoved her into the
bedroom and slammed the door shut.

"What the hell was going on back there?" he growled, his game face
still in place.

She rubbed her sore wrist and backed away from him.

"I don't know! I went to the club to meet Elizabeth and Angel. He was
just there. He followed me outside, and--"

Spike was on top of her again, gripping her arms hard enough to bruise
them.

"No one else will ever have you. I'll hold you down and turn you before
I allow that to happen," he snarled.

"Spike, please," she cried out through tears of pain. "I don't want
him! I don't even know him! Please!"

She whimpered as he bent his head and grazed her throat with his fangs.
He felt her entire body trembling against his as the scent of her
terror filled his senses. He forced back his anger and resumed his
human visage. Spike pulled Willow closer and nuzzled her throat,
sucking gently at the warm flesh over her wildly pounding pulse point.
He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her to him. Willow sobbed
against him, and he groaned as her arms moved around him and clung
fast.

"I love you, baby," he whispered.

"I didn't want him. Please believe me," her words came in soft breaths
as her body was wrenched by her sobs.

"I do, pet. I believe you," he told her.

He felt her arms tightening further around him as she tried desperately
to push away the terror his fury had instilled. He rocked her gently in
his arms and ran his hand along her back as he whispered soft
endearments. He felt her relax slightly, although her body remained
rigid against his. He pulled her away and stripped her dress from her
body, then backed her up against the bed and lowered her onto it.

Quickly shedding his clothes, he laid down beside her and kissed away
the hot tears still flowing quietly from her reddened eyes. She moulded
herself around him, and he brought one leg over hers, wrapping her up
in his strong body. He kissed her temple as his hands caressed her soft
skin until, exhausted by the sobs that had shaken her body, she sought
refuge in sleep.
***
Willow awoke to his soft kiss and reached out for him. Spike brought
her wrist to his lips and kissed the bruises that encircled it.

"I'm sorry I hurt you, baby," he said softly.

She pulled him down onto her and wove her fingers through his hair.

"I love you, only you," she whispered. "I was so frightened."

"I know you were," he answered. "I should have let you explain. I was
so angry."

He propped himself up on one elbow and brushed his fingers along her
breast.

"Who was he, pet?" he asked.

"Reid somebody-or-other. I never saw him before. He's a friend of
Elizabeth's," she answered.

"What the hell do you suppose she was playing at?"

"What makes you think she was playing at anything?" Willow asked.

"The whole thing reeks of a set-up. What did Angel have to do with it?"

"Nothing, I think. He seemed as surprised as I was. I don't think he
knew anything about him," she answered.

"Whatever she's up to, she's chosen a very dangerous game. I don't
intend to lose you, and I won't let her rip you away from me."

"She couldn't," Willow vowed.

He smiled down at her and brushed his thumb over her hardened nipple.

"She'll regret trying, if that's what she's thinking of," he told her.
"And if that prick bothers you again, I'll feed him to the boys."

"Maybe we should talk to Giles," she suggested. "He might know what's
going on."

"I imagine he does," Spike nodded. "And if he values his life, he'll
put a stop to it. I mean it, Willow. I'll take her out if I have to,
and I don't give a damn what it does to your friendship with the
watcher. He may think he can't live without her, but he may have to,
because I refuse to live without you."

Her eyes searched his, "You're still angry."

"Not with you," he said. "With her. If she brought this on purposely,
I'll make her sorrier than she ever dreamed she could be."

Willow breathed a sigh of heavy dread and pulled him back down beside
her, wrapping herself around him.

"Willow," he spoke against her ear.

"Yes," her soft breath tickled his chest as she shifted to look up at
him.

"I don't want you to worry," he told her. "I'll take care of this. I'll
keep you well out of it, if that's what you need."

She snuggled back against him, "I only need to be with you. I'm beside
you, whatever happens. Wherever you stand, I stand. The harder she
pries against us, the tighter I'll hang on."

"That's my girl," he smiled and brushed his lips against her hair.
***
Ceara eyed Willow's tense body as Giles rose from the chair.

"I didn't know what she was planning," he confessed.

"But you knew she was planning something," Spike added.

"I tried to talk to her, but--"

"I thought you said Angel could control her," the slayer spoke.

"I don't think Angel knew anything about it. He seemed as uncomfortable
around that man as I did," Willow told her.

"You'd better tell her to back off. She doesn't want to toy with me. I
bite," Spike warned Giles.

"She thought she was helping Willow," Giles said.

"Willow doesn't need her help," the vampire snapped. "You know damned
well what's going to happen if she opposes me. She may think she's
clever, but she's easy prey where I'm concerned."

"I won't let you destroy her," Giles warned him.

"You won't be able to stop me," Spike snarled and moved closer to him.
"If you get in my way, I'll remove you, too."

Giles bristled under the vampire's icy stare, "I'm not one of your
cowering lackeys. You won't touch Elizabeth, or I'll--"

"You'll what?" Spike growled and grabbed hold of the watcher. "I wonder
how your Liza would like to find the body of her dead lover curled up
in her bed."

Ceara moved behind Spike. Without so much as turning his head, he
reached around and landed a backhand that sent her flying against the
bookcase across the room. She drew herself up on unsteady legs and
reached for the stake in her back pocket. She moved behind the vampire,
and Willow picked up a statuette from the table and brought it down
over the slayer's wrist. Ceara howled and dropped the stake, and Willow
scooped it up and shoved it in her pocket.

"We should talk with Elizabeth first," Willow stated calmly, as if
nothing had happened.

Spike looked around at her.

"He should have told us what she was doing, but if he didn't know her
exact plans, he couldn't have helped much, anyway. And we've never
needed him to fight our battles," she continued.

Spike nodded and released the watcher.

"Get her," he ordered.

The watcher looked over at Willow, "Ceara needs--"

"Get her!" Spike barked.
***
Angel's cold stare shifted from Spike to Elizabeth as he tried to
decide who to be angrier with.

"You could have gotten Willow killed," he snapped at his childe.

"How was I to know he'd be outside, lurking around," she sulked.

"How could you be stupid enough not to know?" he shot back. "He's never
far from her! And who put you in charge of deciding who she's with? You
had no right--"

"She's my friend! I care about her."

"Liza, look at them," Giles spoke as he gestured to Willow and Spike.
"Does she look unhappy? I told you, this is none of your business."

"And you approve of them?" she asked.

"Willow doesn't need my approval, and Spike's partly to thank for your
being here," he reminded her.

"Even so--"

"Elizabeth," her sire's voice spoke sternly. "Your little scheme was
thoughtless and dangerous. You didn't come between them, and you only
succeeded in hurting everyone involved."

"I ought to tear out her throat," Spike grumbled.

"She's a fledgling, Spike," Angel said. "And she has a soul to contend
with. Neither is easy to deal with."

"Then you'd better teach her how," the blonde vampire warned him. "If
you can't keep her under control, I'll bury her--literally."

"How is Ceara?" Angel asked Giles.

"I think her wrist is broken. It should heal quickly, but I need to get
her to the hospital," he answered.

"I had to stop her," Willow spoke.

"I know," Giles nodded. "I'd have done the same for Liza. Angel, will
you stay here with her while I take Ceara?"

The vampire nodded and took his childe's arm.

"And keep her away from us," Spike ordered. "This won't be forgotten.
If I catch her near Willow again, I'll kill her."

Giles waited until Spike had led Willow from the house before turning
to Elizabeth.

"You really must listen to him," he told her. "You're very lucky he
didn't destroy you tonight. He could easily have done so."

"I thought you were friends," she said.

"Willow and I are friends, and Spike tolerates that for her sake. He's
a useful ally, and a rare one. Your actions could have caused far more
damage than you realize," he told her. "Our truce has always been
tenuous, and if you attempt such a thing again, he won't hesitate to
break it. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Yes," she whispered. "I'm sorry, Rupert."

He nodded and caressed her cold cheek with his hand, "Stay here with
Angel. Ceara and I will be back soon."

Angel turned and looked down at Elizabeth as Giles left them. A wave of
unease swept over him as his childe tried, unsuccessfully, to conceal
the brief look of defiance that flashed behind her eyes.
 

Elizabeth smiled as Reid left her on the street corner. Fortunately for
her, the young man had always possessed more looks than wisdom, and an
ego that abhorred being rejected. He'd always enjoyed the chase,
especially when it was a beautiful woman who was running from him.
Willow was the perfect bait. Elizabeth's well chosen words would ensure
his unflagging pursuit of the young redhead.

She ignored the stab of conscience that rebelled against the knowledge
that she had just sent her old friend to his death. It was only out of
necessity, and hopefully Spike's attack would be quick and relatively
painless. When the council learned one of their own had been murdered
at the hands of the Hellmouth's Master, they would order the watcher
and his slayer to kill Spike. No one would be left to point the finger
at her, considering Reid's reputation, and Willow would be free.

Her eyes danced in happy anticipation as she turned to make her way
back to her lover's arms.
***
Willow started at the sound beyond the French doors. She dropped her
book onto the sofa and walked over to peer out into the darkness.

"Willow," Darnell's familiar voice spoke from across the room. "What's
wrong?"

She looked back at him, "I thought I heard something--out there. Has
Spike returned yet?"

"No," he answered as he moved behind her.

She opened the door and stepped out onto the slate floor of the
terrace. Joseph's keen vision caught a movement from the shadow of the
fountain. Willow heard a soft snarl and looked up at the vampire.

"There," he spoke softly, motioning toward the place where the
trespasser was concealed.

Taking a breath, Willow strode across the terrace. Darnell moved around
her and grabbed hold of the startled man, yanking him up by his collar.

"Reid," Willow hissed. "What are you doing here?"

The man struggled to escape the vampire's steely grip.

"I didn't mean to scare you," he said. "I just wanted to see you
again."

"Why? And what are you doing lurking around out here?" she demanded.

"Willow, would you tell this ghoul to let go of me?" he requested.

"I'm waiting for an answer," she told him. "How did you find me?"

"Elizabeth told me."

"Elizabeth?" she repeated. "Bring him inside, Joseph."

Darnell dragged the man into the living room and threw him into a
chair.

"Look," Reid snapped, straightening himself and trying to look
indignant. "I'm not going to be treated like a--"

"You're lucky you're still in one piece," Darnell growled. "If the
Master finds you here--"

"Master? Who's he?"

"Don't play stupid," Willow sneered. "If you're cozy with the council,
you know about the Master."

"Spike. You're with him?" Reid asked.

"He knows all about our little confrontation the other night. He was
the one who flattened you into the sidewalk. He'll do a lot worse than
that if he comes back and finds you here," she informed him.

"I'm sorry!" he said as he stood up. "I"ll just leave, and--"

"I don't think so," she contradicted. "Why did Elizabeth send you
here?"

"I'm not going to stand here and be interrogated!" he snarled and
reached out to push her aside.

His hand froze in mid-air as three vampires entered through the open
terrace doors. Reid stared at their demonic faces and looked back at
Willow.

"I'll go. I won't bother you again," he promised.

"Sit down, Reid," she ordered.

He latched onto her arm, and the vampires immediately moved to flank
Willow. Reid swallowed hard and released his hold on her.

"The lady asked you to sit down," one of the minions snarled and shoved
the man back into the chair.

"Just let me leave," Reid asked. "I won't cause any more trouble for
you."

"As if you could," Willow said coldly. "You were about to tell me about
Elizabeth, I believe."

He sighed and looked down at his trembling hands.

"She said you weren't interested. You'd told her you found me
attractive, but you weren't ready to leave your--lover," he said
softly.

"So, you thought you'd persuade me?" she asked. "Or force me? Is that
it?"

His eyes snapped to hers, "I don't have to force myself on women. They
crawl to me--eventually."

Willow snorted and crossed her arms over her chest, "Do they? I wonder
why? You've got an ego bigger than Spike's."

"What was that, pet?" the blonde vampire asked from behind her.

Willow grinned softly and kept her eyes on the man in front of her,
"But he's got the balls to carry it off, and he's so hot when he's
being all possessive."

"That's better," Spike chuckled as he stood behind her and wrapped his
arms around her. "Don't I know him? Isn't he the man I pounded the
other night?"

"He is," she nodded. "Elizabeth sent him back for more."

"No!" Reid shouted.

"The thing I can't understand is why," Willow continued.

"Because she's a bitch," Spike suggested.

"I don't think she'd hurt me," Willow said. "She thinks she's doing the
right thing by trying to break us up. She had to know what would happen
when you found out he was coming after me. She had to know you'd drain
him."

Spike grinned at the soft whimper from the man in the chair. Willow
eyed Reid disdainfully.

"Why would she set him up to be killed?" she wondered.

"Because he's with the council," Darnell spoke from behind the man's
chair. "And they'd come after us with a vengeance for killing one of
them."

"Makes sense," Spike nodded.

"So, we can't kill him?" Willow asked with a tone of regret.

Reid looked at her in shocked disbelief as Spike placed a cold kiss on
Willow's neck.

"We could use him, though," he said.

She turned to look up at him, "How?"

"Turn him," the vampire answered.

"Please--" Reid whispered hoarsely.

"Send him after Elizabeth," Spike added.

Willow laughed and looked back at the man behind her.

"See," she smiled. "He's got brains to go with his balls."

"Willow, you can't let him do this!" Reid begged. "I'll go away! I'll
never tell anyone--"

"I can't stop him," she shrugged. "He is the Master, after all."

She kissed Spike and stepped away from him.

"Don't leave a stain, sweetheart," she said as she walked to the
entryway. "That's my favorite chair."

Spike laughed as he shifted into game face, and Willow walked out of
the room as Reid's shrill screams filled the air.
***
"How's the wrist?" Willow asked as Spike dragged his chair closer to
hers and tucked his arm behind her to rest his hand on the small of her
back.

"Much better," Ceara answered. "The cast will be off in a day or two."

"I really am sorry. I didn't want to--"

"I know," the slayer smiled softly. "Everything got a little crazy,
didn't it?"

"You could say that," Willow nodded.

Angel waited until the waitress had set their drinks in front of the
slayer and the redhead and left the table before he spoke.

"We're concerned about Elizabeth. I can only control her to a point,"
he said. "She's strong-willed, and the fact that we both have souls
makes it even more difficult."

"It might have been better if I hadn't restored hers," Willow
suggested.

"We had to, for Giles' sake," he replied and looked from Willow to
Spike, "You know I've always had my doubts about the two of you being
together, but even I have to admit that it seems to work, in its own
twisted way. And we've managed to keep a sort of peace between us up to
this point."

"Elizabeth's doing everything she can to destroy it," Spike stated.

"I know," he nodded. "And she's being very careful to keep what she's
doing from Giles. I don't want Sunnydale at war with your boys."

"So, what do we do?" Willow asked.

"Take her out," Spike answered.

"That isn't an option," Ceara told him. "You've already turned two of
the council's associates and one of their daughters."

"You know about Reid?" Willow asked in surprise.

"Elizabeth told us. She was furious that Spike had turned him," Angel
answered.

"So far, we've kept the council in the dark," Ceara continued. "They
think Darnell was killed during the rebuilding, and they have no idea
that Reid and Elizabeth have been turned. But she's making noises about
telling them."

"Then we have to stop her," Willow said. "We have to destroy her."

"We can't," Ceara insisted. "Listen, whether the council knows you've
turned her or killed her makes no difference. They're going to want
vindication either way. This balance we've managed to achieve between
us and Spike's boys is going to topple. I wasn't here the last time
that happened, but Angel's told me enough to make me realize it can't
happen again. None of us wants that."

"Agreed," Spike nodded. "So, what's the plan?"

"Shut her up," Angel answered. "Take her away from Sunnydale, someplace
where she can't do any damage."

"Giles won't agree to that," Willow told him.

"Giles can't know. We can't put him in the middle of this," he said.
"As far as he's concerned, she's gone off of her own free will. We need
a place to send her. Spike?"

The vampire sat back and ran through the options in his mind.

"There's a place in Brazil. I know the Master there; we've worked
together before. He has a place in the mountains and the ability to
keep her there."

"Can you arrange to have her taken there?" Ceara asked.

Spike nodded, "Not a problem."

"Good. We'll have to move quickly," Angel advised. "Elizabeth already
knows Ceara and I are against her. If she goes to Giles, it will be
difficult to get her away without involving him. She's staying very
close to him these days, but I think we can get her out of the house
for a couple of hours tomorrow night. Can you be ready by then?"

"Yes," Spike answered. "Where will you be?"

"In the park. Meet us there at midnight," Angel answered.
 
 
 

"A hearse," Ceara stated as the long black car pulled up and two
vampires got out. "You're transporting her in a hearse."

"It's perfect," Willow smiled.

"And you're going to tell me there's a coffin in the back," the slayer
said.

The redhead nodded, "Yup. I made a call to one of Spike's friends this
morning and arranged to have it ready to be picked up."

The two minions swung open the large door at the back of the hearse and
climbed inside to unlatch the lid of the coffin. They slid it out far
enough to lift up the heavy wooden cover and hissed violently and
dropped the lid back down with a thud.

"What the hell?" Angel spoke.

"Willow?" Spike asked.

"Oh, I forgot. There's a cross affixed to the inside of the lid. I
thought it might keep her in her place," Willow explained. "Sorry."

"I haven't seen the boys move that fast in a long time," Spike grinned.

Angel rolled his eyes and looked over at a dumbfounded Ceara.

"She really has been living with him too long," he muttered.

"We're not going to be able to help you get Elizabeth in that thing,
ducks," Spike pointed out.

"Ceara and I will manage," Willow told him.

"Come on. Let's find her before she comes looking for us," Angel
suggested.

"How many vampires do you have lurking about in here?" Ceara whispered
as they walked through the park. "Every nerve in my body is tingling."

"That's probably the affect of a particular vampire," Willow said as
she looked at the slayer's hand, which was firmly gripping Angel's.

Spike chuckled as Ceara blushed and jerked her hand free.

"There she is," Angel spoke as Elizabeth's form appeared under the lamp
ahead.

She approached them and stopped as her eyes settled on Willow and
Spike.

"You're--"

"Together," Spike nodded. "No thanks to you."

"I don't know what you mean," Elizabeth stated.

"That's not what he says," the blonde vampire told her and looked over
her shoulder.

She turned to find Reid standing right behind her.

"You set me up," the man said coldly.

"I never figured he'd turn you," she admitted.

"No, you thought he'd kill me," the vampire replied.

She turned back to Angel, "Is this why you asked me here? I already
know about Reid."

"I know you do," her sire nodded. "You're directly responsible. This
can't continue, Elizabeth. I won't allow it."

"You know why I did it!" she protested.

"You think you're protecting Willow, but you're not. What you are doing
is placing this town, and everyone in it, in serious danger. I forbade
you to interfere with their relationship, and you defied me," he said.

"Angel," she murmured, dropping her eyes from her sire's cold stare.

"Come here," he ordered.

The slayer watched with interest as the vampire battled the pull to
obey her sire's command.

"Elizabeth," Angel spoke.

Her shoulders slumped as she took a step toward him. She looked up at
him with pleading eyes. Angel placed his hand around his childe's neck
and pulled her closer to him. Ceara took a step backward as Angel
grabbed the vampire's hair and pulled her head back, exposing the pale
skin of her throat.

His game face emerged as he stepped into her, and Elizabeth whimpered
as he bent to sink his fangs into her flesh. He drank until he felt her
collapse against him. Withdrawing his fangs, Angel swept her up into
his arms and headed back to where the hearse waited on the other side
of the park.

"I still don't see why we can't just kill her," Willow groaned as she
and Ceara hoisted the vampire into the coffin. "It isn't like there'd
be a body for the council to stumble over."

"She writes letters to her father regularly," Angel explained as the
lid came down over his childe. "If he stops hearing from her, he'll get
suspicious. And she'll need to keep in touch with Giles if we're to
keep him off her trail."

"You don't actually believe she's going to send her boyfriend 'wish you
were here' postcards just because you tell her to," Willow said as the
minions secured the coffin with chains and a padlock and slid it back
into the hearse.

"She can be persuaded, once she's in Brazil," Spike told her. "The
Master there will enjoy that."

Spike nodded at his boys, and the two vampires got into the hearse and
pulled away.

"Who's going to break the news to Giles?" Willow asked unhappily.

"We will," Ceara answered. "Angel will tell him we tried to convince
her to stay. If he could receive a letter from Elizabeth in a few days
saying she's sorry and explaining why she left, that would be helpful."

Spike nodded silently.

"This is going to be hard on him," Willow said.

"I know," the slayer agreed sadly.

"We'll help him get through it," Angel promised as his hand found
Ceara's. "It has to be done."

"I'll stop by to see how he is," the redhead offered.

"Wait a few days," he suggested. "He's going to have a lot of
questions, and it would probably be better to let us handle them. We'll
let you know when he's ready."
***
"I've never seen him so depressed," Willow murmured. "It's been almost
a month since we carted Elizabeth off, and Giles is still locking
himself away in that damned library and burying himself in research."

"I know. I thought the letters would help, but they haven't," Ceara
confessed. "If anything, they make him withdraw even more. I'm
beginning to think we did the wrong thing."

"I hate to wring Cupid's neck, but the Hellmouth couldn't have stood
much more of her," Spike said. "At least things are back on balance
again."

"That's true," Angel agreed. "And Giles will get over her, in time."

"Why do I get the feeling you're the kind of guys who forget birthdays,
Valentine's Day, and anniversaries?" Ceara's voice was laden with
sarcasm.

"Hey, I didn't forget Willow's birthday, did I, pet?" Spike objected.
"I got you that nice strong set of--"

Willow dove onto his lap and clamped her mouth against his. Spike
chuckled and pulled away, tracing her lips with his tongue.

Ceara blushed and rose from her chair, "I think that's our cue to
leave."

"Spike," Darnell said as he entered the room and looked warily at the
slayer.

Spike lifted Willow from his lap and moved her onto the sofa. She rose
to follow him.

"Stay," he ordered softly.

Ceara looked at the redhead in disbelief, "Do you sit and roll over,
too?"

"Depends on the reward," Willow grinned.

Angel laughed softly as Ceara's eyebrows arched over her widened eyes.

Spike reappeared a moment later, with Darnell following behind him.

"What's wrong?" Willow asked at Spike's look of annoyance.

"Elizabeth's gone," he answered. "She took off two nights ago, and no
one's seen her since."

"I thought you said they'd be able to keep her there," Angel said.

"They should have, bloody sods," he snarled.

"Well, what happened?" Willow asked.

"She seduced one of them, staked him, and took off with his car," Spike
answered.

"That's great," Ceara sighed. "Do you guys ever try thinking with any
organs above the waist?"

Spike arched an eyebrow at Angel, "You really do have to have a talk
with her."

"After we've tracked down my prodigal childe," Angel replied.

"We bloody well know where she's headed," Spike said.

"How long would it take her to drive back here?" Ceara asked.

"She wouldn't have to drive," Willow told her. "The council doesn't
know she's been turned. They've got people all over the globe, and
she'd know just how to hook up with them. They could fly her back. She
could be here now, for all we know."

"Send the boys out," Spike said to Darnell.

"Send a couple of them to Giles' place," Willow added. "She may head
there first."

Joseph nodded and left quickly.
 
 
 

"Anything?" Willow asked as Spike left the trio of vampires and
returned to her.

"They haven't seen her," he answered. "If she's here, she's well
hidden."

"Maybe she hasn't come back. Maybe she won't," she suggested.

"You don't believe that," he told her.

"I know. It sounds nice, though," she sighed.

"Come here," he whispered and pulled her close to him.

Willow wrapped her arms around his waist and lay her head against his
chest.

"Tired, baby?" he asked.

"Of this," she answered. "Of her."

"When it's over, I'll put you to bed and keep you there for a week," he
promised.

"Mmmm...I'd like that," she whispered.

She looked up at him as Spike's mouth found hers and sucked gently on
her lips. His hand moved against her back, pressing her closer to him
as her tongue moved between his lips and caressed his.

"We found her," Angel spoke softly from behind Spike.

Reluctantly, Spike pulled away from Willow and turned to meet the
darker vampire's apologetic eyes.

"It isn't good," Angel said. "She's with Giles."

Willow moaned, and Spike turned back to her and brushed his lips along
hers.

"We'd better get over there," she whispered, giving him one more kiss.
***
"She's been in Brazil," Giles told them with more animation than any of
them had seen in weeks.

"I'm sorry I left so suddenly," Elizabeth said as she took the
watcher's hand and laced her fingers through his. "I needed time to
think, away from everyone. I'm sorry about everything I put you
through. Being away from Rupert has helped me realize how much you'd
miss each other if you were apart."

Willow and Spike exchanged confused looks with Angel and Ceara.

"Anyway, I hope we can get past that and find a way to be friends
again," Elizabeth continued. "I'm very sorry for all the trouble I
caused."

"Giles, could we talk to Elizabeth alone for a few minutes?" Ceara
requested.

The watcher looked at his slayer uncertainly, "Ceara, she's apologized,
and--"

"It's all right," Elizabeth assured him. "They don't understand my
disappearance any more than you did. I'd like the chance to explain."

"Very well," he nodded. "I'll give you a few moments, then."

Angel waited until Giles was gone before turning to his childe.

"What the hell are you playing at?" he hissed.

"I'm not!" she denied in wide-eyed innocence. "There's no need for
Rupert to know what really happened. I was wrong to do what I did. I
never intended to put Sunnydale in danger, but I can see that's what I
was doing. You had to get me away."

"So you dusted a vampire and decided to come back," Ceara said.

"I had to. I missed him so much, and I wanted you to see how sorry I
am," she explained. "Please give me another chance. I won't try to come
between Willow and Spike. I'll behave. I promise."

"Are you buying this?" Willow asked Spike.

"Not for a minute," he answered.

Elizabeth stood and reached out to Willow. Spike snarled and stepped in
front of her.

"I can't blame you," Elizabeth admitted sadly. "I was horrid to both of
you."

"You just stay away from Willow," Spike demanded. "Or I'll rip you
apart, the council be damned."

"I'll do whatever you want," she agreed. "I'll show you I'm on your
side this time. However long it takes."

"Elizabeth, you'd better be sincere about this," Angel warned her. "If
you're up to something, I'll stand aside and let Spike rip you apart."

"I just want to be with Rupert. I won't bother them. You'll see," she
insisted.

Spike looked coldly from Angel to his childe.

"We're leaving," he stated. "Keep her away from Willow."
***
Elizabeth extracted herself from Giles' arms and placed a kiss on the
sleeping man's lips before moving quietly out of the bed. She threw on
her clothes and left the house. Reid stepped out of the shadows as she
appeared at the end of the driveway.

"I'm here," he snarled. "What the hell do you want?"

"To apologize," she answered. "And to offer a peace treaty, of sorts."

"It's a bit late for apologies. Anyway, being a vampire has its
advantages," he admitted grudgingly.

"We've been friends for years, Reid," she said. "I'd like that to
continue."

"I'm listening."

"I've promised to stay away from Willow and her lover from hell," she
told him. "I still want her away from him, but I can't do it. One of
these nights, he'll turn her, and she'll let him, and it'll be to late
to help her."

"Get to the point," he demanded.

"I got the strong impression you wanted her. You still do, don't you?"
she asked.

"You must take me for a fool if you think I'm going to attempt taking
the Master out to get to his redhead," he scowled.

"You're not a fool," she shook her head. "And I don't expect you to
destroy Spike. Taking Willow away will accomplish that, anyway."

"I don't get you," he confessed. "What difference does it make which
vampire she's with? I could turn her, too."

Elizabeth smiled, "You won't. Reid, in all the years I've known you,
you've never had a serious relationship with any woman. You play with
them until the newest catch walks by. If you turned Willow, you'd have
her at your side for eternity."

The vampire shuddered, "Not my style."

"I know that," she grinned and took his arm. "That's why you're perfect
for Willow. I've seen you in action. No woman has ever walked away from
you once you've really gone after her. Willow won't be able to resist,
either."

"Spike will have my heart in a silver chalice," he argued.

"Remember that baron's wife you met at Ascot a few years ago? Her
husband never knew you were after her until you'd bedded her and she'd
divorced him. He was heartbroken over losing her. He even left London
to get away from the memories. If you can dupe nobility, you can
certainly outwit that common bastard."

Elizabeth bit back a smile as Reid swelled under her flattery.

"Unless you've lost your touch," she continued. "Maybe the Master would
be too strong a rival."

"Like hell," he hissed.

"Do you want her, badly enough to find a way around him?" she
questioned.

"The thought of tearing his heart out, emotion by emotion, is enough
incentive for me, but yes, I want her," he nodded.

"I can't run interference for you. I'll have to stay completely out of
it, except for being there to comfort Willow after Spike's gone and
you've broken her heart," she told him.

"I don't need your help," he snapped. "I want her. I'll have her. I'll
seduce her so completely, she'll forget he ever existed."

"I believe you could," she answered.

"Consider her mine," he said. "I'll have her out of that bastard's
arms, and him out of Sunnydale within a month."

"You won't hurt Willow," she said.

"I won't have to. I'll make her want me. I've always preferred the
subtler points of romance," he reminded her.

"Perfect," she smiled. "Come back a week from tonight and let me know
how you're progressing. I want to be ready when Willow needs a shoulder
to cry on."

"I'll give her her fill of paradise before I shatter her heart," he
offered magnanimously. "She'll never want him again."

Elizabeth placed a cold kiss on his cheek, "Thank you, Reid. I owe
you."

He smiled and shook his head, "When Willow's in my bed and Spike's left
Sunnydale, we'll be even. I'll see you in a week."
***
Spike looked across the terrace at Willow as she stared out at the
moonlight, lost in thought. It had been the third night in a row he'd
returned from hunting to find her gone. She had grown increasingly
quiet over the past couple of days, drifting off to some place in her
mind that was unfamiliar to him.

He'd been pushing back the suspicion that nagged at the back of his
mind. He knew she loved him, but he'd also known enough women over the
decades to know when their thoughts were with another man. Still, he
argued with himself, no other man's scent lingered on her body when she
joined him in their bed. Whoever he was, he hadn't gotten beyond her
thoughts, yet.

Spike's first instinct was to drag her upstairs, force the truth out of
her, throw her on the bed, and teach her who she belonged to. But this
was Willow, his Willow, his mind argued. The woman who could arouse
desires he'd never experienced with any other woman in all his
centuries. The woman who eclipsed his past and filled his future. The
woman who completed him, stared in the face of his evil demon, and
loved him with a passion that rocked him to his unbeating heart. He
couldn't hurt her, couldn't risk the alienation that would be sure to
follow if he forced the truth from her.

His eyes glided along Willow's body as the thought slowly voiced itself
in his mind. There was more than one kind of force. It didn't have to
involve pain, quite the opposite, in fact. As skilled a lover as his
unknown adversary might be, no one, but no one, seduced with such
overwhelming completeness as William the Bloody. She was worth fighting
for, and the thought of pursuing her, filling her every thought with
him and only him, and completely shattering whoever it was who thought
he had a chance of stealing Willow's heart, would most definitely be
pleasurable. Willow was his already, would always be his. If she needed
reminding, he'd do so in a way she would be happy to never forget.

He moved quietly behind her and slipped his arms around her tiny waist
and nuzzled her hair.

"Do you know how beautiful you are in the moonlight?" he whispered,
dropping his lips closer to her ear. "She walks in beauty, like the
night Of cloudless climes and starry skies; And all that's best of dark
and bright Meet in her aspect and her eyes."

"I suppose you knew Byron, too?" Willow smiled as she leaned back
against him.

"Did I? I don't remember," he confessed. "I don't remember anything
before you."

She turned and looked up at him, and he kissed her softly and cradled
her against him.

"I love you, Willow," he whispered.

She snuggled against him, "I love you, too."

Spike lifted her in his arms and carried her inside and up the stairs
to their bedroom. He undressed her slowly, his eyes drinking in the
beauty of her naked body. Spike pulled back the sheets and lay her
under them before undressing and moving in beside her to take her in
his arms.

He worshiped her body with soft caresses and gentle kisses. Willow's
eyes stared up into his as he entered her slowly and cherished her
warmth with long, deep strokes. She came to him, breathing his name
softly, never breaking the mutual gaze between her soul and his dead
heart.

Sensing his longing, Willow raised her chin slightly, offering her
throat to him. He moaned in adoration. He had not indulged in the pure
nectar coursing through her veins since that long ago night when the
Hellmouth was being torn apart. Her blood cried out to him, begging him
to take her essence inside him. He nuzzled the gently beating pulse
under her soft skin and bit carefully into her flesh.

Willow spiraled into another, more breathtaking, orgasm. Spike's still
hardened cock pulsing inside her and the pressure of his cold lips
suckling at her neck drove everything from her, save this man who
possessed her completely. A soft growl of passion rumbled in Spike's
chest as he drank from her neck and filled her constricted channel with
his cold seed.

Willow's hands rested against his chest as he withdrew his fangs and
licked at the sweet, red drops that spilled from her wounds. He rolled
over, pressing her tiny body against his, and kissed her throat and her
jaw and, finally, her soft lips.

"In all of eternity, there's no one but you," he vowed quietly as she
curled around him and nestled her warm hand in his.

"I do love you, Spike," she murmured softly as her body found its
perfect fit against his.

Spike lulled her to sleep with gentle kisses and brought his arms
around her, cocooning her inside his embrace.
 

Willow stared at her lover, trailing her eyes over his lean, muscular
frame. He had been lavishing her with affection since the night on the
terrace, and her body tingled at the memory of the way he'd taken her,
sweetly, lovingly, yet hungrily, only an hour ago.

Her eyes dropped to the nervous hands in her lap as her conscience
pricked her. Spike loved her with such amazing devotion it made her
mind spin. She didn't even know the man who had been surreptitiously
sending her missives of endearment, praising her beauty, expressing his
desire to be near her. She'd answered his request four times and had
gone to the park to meet him, but he never showed.

The mystery was at once infuriating and alluring. He'd known she had
gone, each time, to meet him. The single red rose left lying on the
same park bench attested to his knowledge of her presence there. Who
was he, she wondered. Why did he refuse to show himself?

"Why should I care?" the sharp thought shouted in her mind. Was it the
flattery of being secretly pursued by an unknown admirer? Why was she
so obsessed with discovering who he was? She didn't want to be with
him. She hadn't even fantasized about him. Fantasies were superfluous
when she had a lover as skilled as Spike. The whole situation was
beginning to unnerve her. The only respite she received was when
Spike's hard body consumed hers beyond any thought of this mystery man.

She wanted so much to tell Spike what was going on. She wanted him to
take her in his arms and chase it all away. But another part of her
worried that he'd misunderstand and be angry. Or worse, that he'd laugh
at her. So much of what she valued was wrapped up in him. She couldn't
bear it if he ridiculed her. They'd never kept secrets from each other,
and she realized this one was slowly tearing her apart. She needed him
to be a part of everything she did. She needed his understanding and
his strength. She needed to tell him.

Willow raised her eyes to find Spike, leaning back in his chair, legs
stretched out in front of him, ankles crossed, staring intently at her.

"Spike, can I--" she faltered and took a breath. "Can I tell you
something?"

"You can tell me anything," he spoke softly, willing her with every
ounce of his being to open up to him.

"I'm afraid you'll be angry," she said.

"I might be, but I'll love you, anyway."

"There's a man," she paused as she watched Spike's body tense, and she
lowered her eyes, unable to look at him. "I don't know who he is,
but--"

Spike moved to the edge of the chair, "You don't know him?"

"I've never even seen him. I don't even know his name. He's been
sending me letters, asking me to meet him. And I--I went, four times,"
her voice broke as tears slid down her cheeks.

Spike rose quickly and sat down next to her on the sofa.

"I don't know why I went," she confessed through her tears. "I love
you. I don't want him. It's just--"

He took her hands and clutched them in his, "Just what, baby?"

She sniffled and shook her head, "I don't know. I just wanted to know
who he is, to find out why he's so interested in me."

"I think I can explain that part," he told her softly.

"The things he writes are so flattering," she said. "Not like the
things you say. Your words reach right into my soul."

Spike steadied himself and resisted the urge to pull her into his arms,
knowing if he did, she'd never finish her explanation.

"But, he's sweet, nice, you know?" she continued timidly. "I just
wanted to know who he is. Do you think I'm being a fool? Are you angry
with me?"

"Willow, you're nobody's fool, and I'm not angry," he told her. "I'll
find out who he is."

"You'll kill him," she said, looking up at him.

"Sweetheart, if I killed every man who fancies you, there'd be very few
men left in Sunnyhell," he smiled. "You're totally oblivious to the way
men look at you, but I'm not. I can hardly blame them, can I? As long
as you're mine, it doesn't matter."

"I'll always be yours," she said as if it were a given. "I haven't even
thought of him--or anyone else--that way."

Giving into his need, he pulled her against him and drew her head
against his chest, stroking her hair softly.

"Luv, if you want to find him, we will," he said. "And as long as he
means you no harm, I won't tear his heart out."

"Thank you," she murmured against his chest.

"Would you like to find him tonight?" he asked.

"No," she answered. "I'd really rather you take me to bed. He can wait
till tomorrow. I want to be near you."

He kissed her head and lifted her up off the sofa, "There's no other
place you should be, pet."
***
"Do you think it'll work?" she asked as she stood close to Spike in the
nightclub parking lot.

"If he goes to the park, and if he finds your note, and if he wants to
meet you, it'll work," Spike nodded.

"That's a lot of if's," she said. "Anyway, I meant what I wrote. If he
doesn't show up, I'm through with it."

"And if he does show up?" Spike asked.

"I'll tell him he's wasting his time." She looked up at him, "You won't
rip his head off, right?"

Spike grinned, "Not if he doesn't try anything."

His eyes narrowed as a figure approached from across the lot, and he
snarled softly.

"What is it?" Willow asked.

"Reid," he growled.

"What!" she cried and moved around him before he could stop her.

Willow raced toward Reid and lunged at him, knocking him to the ground
and straddling his chest. The vampire growled and threw her off him.
She grabbed a stake from her pocket as Spike grabbed hold of Reid's
throat and shoved him back against a car. Willow pressed the stake into
Spike's hand, and he raised it up over the vampire's chest.

"Wait!" Reid shouted. "Willow!"

"What?" she spat out, hands on her hips.

"Don't let him do this. I never hurt you. I never intended to hurt
you," he said.

"What exactly did you intend?" she asked.

"I meant every word I wrote. I knew you'd never agree to see me if I
just came to you and asked."

"Brilliant reasoning," she sneered.

"I never would have hurt you, Willow. You're all I've been able to
think about since I first met you. Look, I know I overstepped my place,
but I only wanted to be with you," he pleaded.

"Do you smell Elizabeth all over this, or is it just me?" she asked
Spike.

"We could drag him over to the watcher's and ask her," he suggested.

"Okay, I'll admit she planted the idea, but I'd already been thinking
about you," Reid told Willow.

"She sent you after me," Willow stated.

"She didn't have to!" he argued. "I wanted you. I wanted to take you
away from Spike. I wanted to make you forget him, and I wanted to watch
him hurt until it broke him. That was me, not Elizabeth."

Willow glared at the vampire, "He's your sire, you fool! You never
would have considered crossing him without her prodding you on."

"Yes, I would have. For you," he insisted.

She rolled her eyes and looked at Spike, "He's pathetic."

Spike smiled, "He's got good taste in women, though. Stake him, pet?"

"Stake him," she nodded.

"No--" the cry echoed in the darkness as Reid vanished into dust.

"Thank you," Willow said as Spike returned the stake to her.

"Anything for you, ducks," he said as he took her hand.
***
"I don't believe this," Ceara sighed as Willow and Spike sat across
from her in Angel's apartment. "What are we going to do about her?"

"Sending her away won't work. She's proven she'll find a way back,"
Angel replied. "We'll have to destroy her."

"Angel, we can't," Willow told him. "When Giles finds out Reid was
coming after me, he'll help us cover for his sudden disappearance."

"Then he can do the same for Elizabeth," he said.

"Okay, but you're going to be the one to ask him to," she snapped.

Angel fell silent and looked away from the redhead.

Willow's voice softened, "I couldn't do that, either. And if the
council found out, you know what that would mean."

"Then what do we do?" Ceara asked.

"Spike and I talked it out on the way over here," she answered. "She
can't get between us, no matter what she does. She won't hurt me, and
she can't hurt Spike. So, we'll just keep our distance. We'll stay away
from her and Giles."

"Willow, you can't do that," Angel objected. "He'll be hurt. He won't
understand."

"He'll be hurt a hell of a lot more if we kill her. Maybe she'll give
up, eventually. She has her soul; she isn't evil, just--misguided.
Maybe Giles will get wise to her. Anyway, our options are pretty
limited," she explained.

"I suppose so, but this solution isn't a very good one," Ceara spoke.

"It'll have to do, for now," she stated. "We can still work together,
though, the four of us."

"Yeah, we'd all miss that," Spike smirked.
 
 

"Willow, Spike," Giles said as he welcomed them into the living room.
"Thank you for coming. I haven't seen you in weeks. I wasn't sure you'd
respond to my request."

"We've been--busy," Willow replied.

"Avoiding Liza, I know," he nodded.

Willow sat down in an armchair, and Spike moved to stand beside her and
rested his hand on her shoulder. They looked over at Angel and Ceara.
The slayer shrugged and shook her head.

Giles' gaze traveled between the four, "I know all about what's
happened. Liza told me."

"Told you what, exactly?" Spike asked.

"How she tried to come between you. How she goaded Reid Grayson into
helping her. How you killed him. Everything."

Willow gaped at him in surprise, "We had to. He--"

"I know," he said. "She told me all about it."

"Why?" Ceara asked.

The watcher sighed and walked to the fireplace. He turned to face them.

"She's been backed into a corner," he told them. "And I'm not sure I
can get her out of it."

"Giles," Angel spoke. "Do you want to tell us what's going on? You're
beginning to sound like me."

He smiled slightly, "I'm sorry. I hardly know where to begin."

"Is she in some sort of trouble?" Willow asked.

"The council found out what happened to her."

Ceara started, "They know she was turned?"

"Yes, but they don't know by whom, or why, and there's no need to tell
them," he answered. "Someone informed them of the trouble she's been
causing here."

"Someone?" Angel asked and cast a suspicious eye at Spike.

"Yeah, that was me," the blonde vampire smirked. "I'm in contact with
the council on a regular basis. They gave me my own password and a
phone card."

"Actually," Giles said, biting back a grin, "It was Reid. Apparently,
when he made his little agreement with Liza, he also made arrangements
for a letter to be delivered if he should suddenly disappear."

"So, in other words, he wasn't a total ass," Willow concluded.

"Yes, he was," Spike disagreed. "Just an ass with a pen."

"Could we get back to the point?" Ceara requested.

Giles nodded and continued, "Needless to say, the council was very
displeased when they learned what Elizabeth had been doing, the way
she'd put Sunnydale in danger. They want her destroyed. I can't let
that happen."

"We can get her out of town," Angel offered.

"She refuses to leave," the watcher told him. "She says she brought
this on herself, and she'll face it."

"You're sure she's not screwing you over?" Spike asked bluntly.

The flash of anger in the watcher's eyes was quickly contained, "I
suppose I can't blame you for wondering, after what she's done to you
two. I've been in contact with the council myself. She's telling the
truth. She spoke with her father and told him everything. As heartless
as it seems, he's siding with the council. I know she's caused you
nothing but trouble, but I don't want to lose her."

"What do you want us to do?" Ceara asked.

"Help me fight them."

"You're going against the council?" Angel asked.

"I've resigned my position with them. I can't support them any longer,"
the watcher answered and paused for a moment to take in their startled
expressions. "They're sending a small delegate over, to deal with
Elizabeth themselves."

"I still don't understand what you're asking us to do," the slayer
admitted.

"I want you to help me defend Liza."

"I don't think our support is going to mean a hell of a lot, even if we
were inclined to give it," Spike told him.

"I know I've no right to ask your help," he nodded. "But I know what
lengths you'd go to if it were Willow who was being threatened. I'm
asking the same for Liza. She means as much to me as Willow does to
you."

"Like hell," Spike mumbled.

"Are they aware she has her soul?" Angel asked.

"They're aware of everything. They want her destroyed."

"If they won't listen to you, they won't listen to us, either," Ceara
spoke. "I don't see how we can help."

"I'm going to try to reason with them again, once they've arrived," he
explained. "But if they won't listen, I want Spike to--"

"You want Spike to what?" Willow asked as she rose from the chair.

"I want him to deal with them," he answered.

"As in kill them?"

"As in doing whatever it takes to stop them, yes," he nodded.

"Giles!" she cried. "You'd have the entire council after him!"

"He's got the resources to fight them off," the watcher responded.

Willow turned and looked up at Spike, "You are not going to do this. I
won't allow it."

He grinned at her angry command, and she latched onto his arm.

"I mean it, Spike!" she insisted. "I'll be damned if I'm going to let
the entire council come after you!"

"I never said I was going to help, pet," he pointed out.

Giles stepped closer to the redhead, "Willow, please--"

"No!" She whirled around to him, "Let her die! I don't give a damn what
happens to her. I refuse to let you put Spike in such a position. You'd
have the council out to stake him just to save that bitch! You'd let me
lose him to keep her. I'm telling you that is not going to happen."

"You wouldn't be doing this alone. We'd protect Spike."

"We don't need your help!" she snarled. "And we don't need her. The
answer is no."

The watcher turned toward Angel, silently asking his help.

"Maybe we can find another way," the vampire suggested.

"Find it without us," Willow said coldly. "Spike, we're leaving."

She grabbed his hand, and he pulled her next to him and planted a hard
kiss on her lips.

"I love it when she gets like this," he grinned.

"This isn't a joke," Giles snapped.

Spike arched an eyebrow and glared at the man, "At least we agree on
something."

"Come on," Willow ordered and dragged him toward the door.

"Angel," Giles implored. "Talk to them."

Angel stood as the front door banged shut, "We'll talk to them later.
Give them a chance to cool off, first. We'll figure out some way to
help."
***
"We sat up and talked about it all night," Angel was saying as Ceara
joined him on the sofa in the mansion.

Spike stood beside Willow, his hand wrapped comfortably around her
waist, and looked over at the vampire.

"You had her in your apartment. All night. And you sat up. Talking."
Spike shook his head, "Yeah, you would."

"Anyway," Angel scowled. "I think we have a solution to this whole
mess."

"Whatever it is, I don't want to know," Willow declared. "We're out of
it."

"I think you do want to know, because I think you want to help Giles.
And, yes, you are out of it," he told her.

"All right," she consented. "Let's hear it."

"We're going to convince the council that Elizabeth has been killed,"
he began. "By my hand."

"Convince them? As in you're not really going to kill her?" she asked.

Angel nodded, "Yes. Giles will take the ring her father gave her and
present it to the members when they arrive."

"That's pretty weak evidence," she told him. "What makes you think
they'll accept a ring and your word that she's been killed?"

"There'd be no evidence if I really did kill her," he argued. "We all
know they'll turn this town inside out looking for her. But they won't
find her."

"Why not?"

"Because we'll hide her," he answered.

"Where?" she asked.

"Here," Ceara answered.

"No bloody way," Willow hissed. "You said we'd be out of it!"

"You will be, practically," she said. "She wouldn't have to stay here.
You have half a dozen buildings on this estate. You'd never even have
to lay eyes on her."

"Forget it," Willow refused flatly.

"Willow, listen to me," Angel said.

"No! How the hell could you possibly expect us to help her after
everything she's done?"

"I'm not asking this for her sake. I'm asking for Giles'. She means as
much to him as Spike means to you," Angel asserted.

"Nobody means that much to anybody else," she stated stubbornly.

Spike grinned and dropped his hand from her waist to her ass and
squeezed gently.

Ceara grimaced and forced her eyes from Spike's roving hand, "Don't go
horizontal on us. Listen, Giles does love her, and everything's out in
the open, now. She can't do anything to hurt you. I know we're asking a
lot, but Giles is worth at least that much. Come on, guys. All we're
asking is a place to stash her for a few days. We'll be responsible for
her. You won't even have to see her. Angel will come by and keep an eye
on her."

"And what happens after the council leaves?" Willow wanted to know.
"She goes right back to her old games."

"I don't think so. Giles knows what she's done. Any more plotting
against you would only drive him away, and she doesn't want that,"
Angel told her. "She won't risk losing him."

Willow sighed and looked up at Spike.

"Your call, ducks. He's your friend," he told her. "I can tell the boys
to watch her, make sure she's not up to anything."

"All right," she agreed. "But only for Giles' sake, and if she even
looks like she's planning to cause trouble, she's out."
***
Elizabeth had behaved herself so well, it was almost disquieting, and
Willow was visibly relieved when the delegates had finally left
Sunnydale to return to London, convinced that the vampire had been
destroyed.

The redhead watched from the sanctuary of the living room as Angel
brought Elizabeth around the side of the mansion to where Giles and
Ceara were waiting. The woman flew into the watcher's arms and clutched
him tightly. Giles bent to give her a kiss before taking her hand and
leading her to his car.

"There's no accounting for taste," she muttered as she watched them
drive off. "There must be dozens of women in this town who'd like to
catch him."

Spike stared at her curiously, imagining he could see the wheels
turning inside her head.

"Do you think we can trust her?" she asked.

"I give her three months, tops, before she's back at it," he answered.

"I agree," she nodded and fell silent again.

Spike walked over to her and turned her to face him, cupping a hand
around her chin and lifting her head to look in her eyes.

"What are you thinking, pet?" he asked.

"That I'd like to watch her squirm," she answered. "And Angel would say
I've been living with you too long."

"Not by my calendar," he smiled.

"What would hurt her more than anything else?" she asked.

"Aside from a nice long soak in a tub of holy water? Losing her lover."

She nodded, "She didn't try that hard to tear us apart only to give up
now. I say we beat her to it. Let her see what it feels like to lose
the one thing in the world that means the most to her."

"You want to shove another woman into the watcher's bed?" he asked.

"Why not?"

"Because," he answered, curling his hands around the base of her neck
and pulling her in to a hard kiss, "I'm far more interested in shagging
you than I am in who's shagging the watcher."

"Good," she grinned. "Will you help me?"

"I'm not the matchmaker type, luv."

"I know. But you have to admit, it'd be fun to get our own back. Come
on, Spike. Help me make her miserable."

"You're evil when you're angry," he said softly.

Willow's hand moved down his chest and clutched at his cock through his
jeans. She grinned as she felt it stir against her hand.

"Help me," she whispered as his lips came down on hers.

He groaned as her hand squeezed his growing erection.

"Help me?" she asked, sucking gently on his lips. "Please?"

"All right," he agreed. "But you're going to make this worth my time,
baby."

"You got that right," she answered as she unfastened his pants and
dropped to her knees.
 

"Do you know who she is?" Elizabeth asked.

"I don't even know what you're talking about," Ceara replied.

"I'm talking abut the woman Rupert has been spending his time with.
He's been distant and preoccupied for days. He goes out in the
afternoon and returns with her scent all over him. Who is she?"

"I have no idea," the slayer shrugged. "Hurts, though, doesn't it?"

Elizabeth stared at her, then dropped down onto a chair, "All right, I
deserved that. I think I know who's behind this, and I'll bet you do,
too."

"If there's someone behind this, I have no idea who it is, and I don't
really care. I try not to interfere in other people's personal lives.
Why don't you just go to Giles and ask him?"

"It's Willow, isn't it?" she asked.

Ceara laughed, "You think Willow and Giles are--"

"Of course not!" the vampire snapped. "Willow set this up, didn't she?
To get back at me."

"I think you're being paranoid, but even if she did, who could blame
her?" Ceara said.

"I'll do more than blame her. I'll make her sorry," Elizabeth snarled.

"You know, I'm beginning to think that soul restoration came with an
expiration date, and you passed it long ago. Why are you so bent on
hurting her?" the slayer questioned.

"I'm not. I never was. You know how she fought to keep Spike. Why would
you expect anything different from me where Rupert is concerned? I do
love him."

Ceara sighed and stood up, "Look, I honestly have no idea who this
woman is or how Giles met her. He seems happy, and that's good enough
for me. If you have issues with Willow, deal with them yourself."

"Oh, I will," the vampire murmured to herself as the slayer left the
room. "Believe me; I will."
***
Willow left the store and glanced down at her watch.

"Bloody hell," she hissed quietly.

She had promised to be home by 8:30. There was no way she'd make it
back to the mansion in ten minutes. She sighed and resigned herself to
enduring yet another of Spike's merciless tauntings about her clothes
buying habits. Never mind that most of these sprees were due to his
predilection for tearing her clothes off her body.

She grinned to herself and cut through the alley beside the store. She
never saw the metal rod that crashed into her skull, nor did she see
the hand that wielded it, but she felt its sharp blow, briefly, before
everything went black.
***
Willow awoke and pushed herself up into a sitting position. The walls
spun nauseatingly in front of her eyes, and she lifted her hand to the
back of her head. She winced as she felt the warm, sticky blood
congealing around the open gash. Resting her forehead on her knees, she
closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. She raised her head and
looked around. The spinning sensation had lessened somewhat, and she
gazed around the cold, empty, and utterly unfamiliar room.

She started and looked at the door as a bolt was thrown back. It swung
open to reveal a tall, dark haired man. He entered the room and stared
down at her.

"You're awake," he said. "At last."

She looked up at him silently, and he walked to her and grabbed her
arm, pulling her up off the floor. He dragged her to a rickety wooden
chair near the wall and flung her onto it. Willow swallowed and fought
back another wave of nausea.

"Well, aren't you going to ask?" he sneered.

"Ask what?" she said weakly.

He raised his pitch in a sarcastic imitation of Willow's own voice,
"Who are you? What am I doing here?"

"Well, since you've already asked, I won't bother," she remarked.

"You do not want to get mouthy with me," he advised her coldly. "I
won't tolerate your games the way my sister has."

"Your sister?" she asked.

"Elizabeth. I believe you know her well."

Willow's eyes flew to his, and her mouth dropped open. He grinned in
cruel satisfaction.

"Elizabeth's dead," she spoke.

The man shook his head, "Not exactly."

"If you're her brother, you must know what happened to her. You must
know she was destroyed."

"I know that's what you'd like me to think," he nodded. "I know she was
turned. I also know she wasn't staked."

"She was."

He bent and took her chin in a painful grip, "Don't lie to me. I've
talked to her. I know all about it."

He let go of her and stepped back. He leaned one shoulder against the
wall and crossed his arms over his chest as he continued to stare at
her.

"You've screwed up her life quite nicely, haven't you?" he asked.
"First she's possessed. Then she's vamped. I will admit, you did help
her evade the council. That might have redeemed you to some degree, but
you couldn't leave her alone to be happy, could you? You had to take
away the only good thing she had left, the man she's in love with.

Willow opened her mouth to protest, and he silenced her with a look.

"I've been in touch with her for months. We've always been close.
Father let her down, but I never would. I was the one person she could
turn to, and she did."

"She sent you after me?" Willow asked.

"She has no idea I'm here. She thinks I'm in London. You've screwed
with her life long enough. You stopped her heart. I won't let you break
it as well," he vowed.

The man moved closer to her, and Willow stood and backed away from him.

"Don't touch me," she warned him.

"You're in no position to make threats," he told her. "Don't worry. I
have no desire to touch you. Fucking a vampire's whore is the last
thing I desire. I will enjoy hurting you, though, and watching that
bastard who beds you hurt. It's been almost four hours since I dragged
your sorry ass here. I'll bet he's worried out of his depraved mind
about you."

"He'll find me," she stated.

"I'll make sure of it," he nodded. "He'll have no difficulty
recognizing your corpse."

She glared at him hatefully.

"You've got fire in your veins, I'll give you that," he said. "No
matter. It'll burn out soon enough. Not too soon, though. I want to
watch your lover hang for awhile. I've been considering leaving you
here to starve. I'll have days to watch him hunt for you. You'll die
miserably, and I won't have to watch."

"Coward," she sneered.

He backhanded her and grabbed her collar, shoving her back into the
wall. Willow's head smacked against the concrete blocks, and darkness
enveloped her once again.
***
Spike stopped pacing long enough to glare at the clock on the mantle.

"Where the hell is she?" he growled.

"Spike," Angel said. "I'm sure she's fine. She's probably lost track of
the time, and she'll--"

"Willow did not 'lose track' of five hours! I've had the boys out for
the past four trying to find her. Something's wrong."

"We'll find her," Ceara assured him. "Just--"

"It's that damned childe of yours," Spike snarled.

"You don't know that," Angel argued.

"This has her stench all over it," he snapped. "I'll smack the truth
out of her."

"She's been at Giles' moaning over him all evening," Ceara told him.
"She hasn't left the house."

"Master," Darnell spoke softly from the entryway.

Spike turned to him.

"Two of the boys just came back. They found blood in an alley between
the shops on Crescent. And Willow's scent."

"Oh, hell," Ceara whispered as the color drained from her cheeks.

Angel reached for her hand and clasped it firmly.

"We'll find her, Spike," Angel said as he pulled the slayer up beside
him.

Darnell followed them to the terrace doors.

"I want to help," he requested.

"You're going to. And I want the boys on this, all of them," Spike
ordered before taking off out the door.
 

Willow's captor had shattered the only light bulb in the small room
before closing the door and bolting it behind him. Willow had spent the
night in darkness, alternating between periods of unconsciousness and
nerve-tearing silence. The sun had risen three hours ago, its golden
rays mocking her from the tiny slit of a window near the ceiling on the
other side of the room.

The combined feelings of hunger and hopelessness gnawed in her belly
and wrenched tears from her eyes. She brushed them away impatiently and
lay down on the hard, cold floor. She curled her knees up against her
chest and drifted off into a restless sleep.
***
Angel and Ceara had followed Spike back to the mansion and watched
powerlessly as the master took his frustration and dread out on
whatever unfortunate minion happened to cross his path. His boys had
quickly sought refuge in the outbuildings scattered around the estate
and battened themselves inside, safe from the sun's rays and their
master's fury.

Exhaustion was fast creeping up on the blonde vampire, and he threw
himself into a chair and scowled at the sleep that sought to claim his
senses.

Ceara turned her gaze from him and looked up at Angel. He smiled sadly
and pulled her into his arms.

"You need to get some rest," he spoke softly. "Go back to Giles' and--"

"No," she refused. "I want to be here with you. I need to stay, for
Willow--and him."

"I know," he nodded. "We'll find her Ceara. We have to."
***
Elizabeth spent the afternoon wandering between the living room,
library, and bedroom. A worrying suspicion had burrowed itself into her
brain and refused to be chased out. Her anger towards Willow had
vanished at the same moment she had learned of the redhead's
disappearance. She wouldn't hurt her. Spike wouldn't hurt her.

She grabbed up the phone and dialed the overseas number once again. No
answer. She slammed down the receiver and went in search of Giles.
***
Spike bolted out of the chair as the phone rang. Ceara scooped it up
and talked quietly for several minutes. She hung up and turned to
Spike.

"That was Giles," she told him. "Did you know Elizabeth has a brother?"

"A brother?" Angel asked as he stepped beside her.

She nodded, "Evan. She's kept in touch with him, kept him informed
about everything that's been going on here. They're very close, he
says."

Spike's fists clenched at his sides, "Close enough to--"

"She thinks so. We're supposed to meet them on Crescent," she answered.
"In half an hour."
***
"Where would your brother have taken her?" Giles asked Elizabeth.
"We've looked everywhere."

"Not quite," she answered. "There are shelters under several of the
buildings in Sunnydale. The council had them built in case there were
ever another incident like the one that destroyed the town."

Giles stared at her, "They said nothing to me."

"They said nothing to anyone. They were constructed for the use of the
council members who were here during the rebuilding. My father only
told me about them after I decided to stay on here."

"Generous of them to worry about their own skins," the watcher
criticized. "To hell with everyone else."

"Who gives a damn?" Spike growled. "Where are these shelters?"

"Scattered all over town, under several office buildings and under the
courthouse annex. All the entrances are located in the furnace rooms,"
she explained.

"Let's split up," Giles suggested. "Angel, you and Ceara head west.
Liza and I will go east. Spike, start on Main Street and work toward
the town square."

Spike nodded and sprinted across the street to where Darnell was
waiting with two minions.

"Tell the boys to follow them, then catch up with me," he ordered.
***
While the others moved from building to building, picking locks or
searching for unlocked doors, Spike simply smashed whatever window was
most easily accessible and scrambled through. He emerged from the
bowels of yet another brick office building to find Darnell running
toward him.

"The courthouse," Joseph spoke. "I just saw a man go inside, through an
emergency exit."

Spike took off, with Darnell close behind him. The vampire led his
master to the door through which the man had entered. It was securly
locked. Spike's eyes traveled over the barred windows along the wall of
the annex.

"Fuck it," he snarled and grabbed hold of the brass door handle.

Darnell's hands grabbed hold just above Spike's, and together they tore
the door free of its casing. Spike stepped inside, pausing to find the
scent of the man who had entered a few moments before. He headed for
the stairwell at the end of the corridor to his left and descended to
the basement.

The furnace room door was slightly ajar. Spike entered the room and
stopped as the smell of blood and fear assaulted his nostrils.

"She's hurt," he said softly as his eyes scanned the room for the
entrance to the shelter.

Willow's scent was strongest near a row of shelves along the wall
behind the furnace. Spike grabbed at a shelf with the intention of
tearing it off the wall, and discovered instead that the entire unit
was hinged. He swung it away from the wall to reveal a narrow doorway.
He pushed it open, and Darnell followed him into a short passageway
leading to another door. Darnell watched his master shift into game
face as he moved noiselessly along the passageway.

Spike pulled the door open and saw the man kneeling over a crumpled
form in the corner of the room. He snarled, and the man stood and spun
around. Evan's eyes widened at the sight of the vampire's fangs
gleaming in the dark of the unlit room. He reached into his pocket and
drew out a cross as Spike moved in on him.

"Asshole," Spike growled as he reached out and curled his fingers
around the man's arm.

Evan groaned in pain, and the cross slipped from his fingers as Spike
twisted the man's arm. The bones popped and shattered, and Evan sank to
his knees, hissing in pain.

"Spike," Willow's faint voice spoke from the corner where she lay.

"I'm here, baby," he told her. "I'm just going to kill him, then I'll
get you out of here."

"Make it hurt," she murmured. "I'll wait."

Evan howled as Spike pulled on his broken arm and hauled him back onto
his feet.

"Did he touch you, pet?" the vampire asked her. "Did he--"

"No," she said. "Aside from clobbering me over the head. Does that
count?"

"That counts," he answered.

Spike released the man's arm and shoved him across the room. He grabbed
Evan by the throat and lifted him up off the floor, pinning his back
against the wall.

"She must be one hell of a fuck," the man gasped through clenced teeth.

"She is," Spike sneered. "Not that it means much to someone who's only
ever had it up the ass."

Willow had pulled herself up and reached for the chair near her.

"Luv, be still," Spike said.

"No," she refused as she lifted the chair and slammed it into the wall.

Darnell rushed to her side as the whirling in her brain drove her to
her knees. Her hand snaked across the floor and grasped for the leg
that had broken free of the chair. She handed it to Joseph.

"Poetic justice," she muttered.

Grinning, he took it from her and handed it across to Spike.

"Looks like you're screwed after all," he said with a cold smile.

Evan's eyes widened in terror as the vampire wielded the stake and
plunged it into the man's chest. Spike dropped him to the floor and
stared down into the dying man's eyes. He turned to Willow and resumed
his human features as he knelt down beside her. He pulled her into his
arms, and her head dropped heavily against his chest. Spike brought her
lips to his and kissed her softly before lifting her up off the floor.

He turned toward the door as Elizabeth appeared, followed by Giles,
Angel, and Ceara. The female vampire froze at the sight of her brother
and cried out as her ears heard the last, faint beatings of his heart.
She whirled on Spike as he moved toward the door.

She planted herself firmly in his path and glared at him, "You killed
him!"

Spike stared at her in silent, burning hatred and shoved her hard
enough to knock her off her feet. Angel and Ceara stood aside as he
carried Willow out of the room.
 
 

Willow waited patiently, had waited patiently for days, for Spike to
tell her what he'd been turning over in his mind. He had stubbornly
refused to discuss it with her until she was out of bed and back on her
feet.

He pulled her into a careful embrace and then drew back slightly. He
watched her closely, looking for her reaction as he began to speak.

"I'm going to kill her," he stated calmly. "This is going to go on and
on indefinitely as long as she's here. Your friendship with the watcher
is the only thing that stopped me from doing this weeks ago. But I've
had more than enough. She won't give it up on her own, so I'm going to
stop her."

"Spike, Giles will never forgive us for it," she told him.

"He doesn't have to know how it happened."

"You think he won't figure it out?" she asked doubtfully.

"He may suspect, but that isn't the same as knowing," he answered.

"It's close enough," she said.

"Would you rather this continue? I won't allow that, Willow. She drew a
very clear line when she brought her brother into this. She claims to
care about your safety, but you saw her reaction the other night. Her
brother's life was the only thing that mattered to her."

"I know, but that was a natural reaction."

He looked at her reprovingly, "You can't be defending her."

"No, I agree with everything you've said, and I don't think she'll stop
any more than you do."

"I'm taking some of the boys with me tonight to the park. It's going to
end, Willow."

"How do you know she'll be there?" she asked.

"I've made arrangements."

"Don't push me out of this, Spike," she said. "I want to know all of
it."

"It's better if you don't. The watcher can't blame you for what you
don't know."

Her hand moved to his arm and closed around it.

"Listen, if you're going to land in the middle of something, I'm going
to land right beside you. I don't like the idea of Giles being angry
with me, but you're not going to do this without me."

"You're sure about that, pet?" he asked. "This could create changes
that can't be undone."

"That may be true, but we've stood beside each other through so much
and for so long, I don't know where I stop and you start anymore. We
may be two individuals, but we're one person. I can't separate myself
from you. I wouldn't know how. Somewhere along the line, I stopped
being me and started being us. So, you can't do this without me.
Whatever you're planning, I'm in it, too."

He pulled her into him and wrapped his cold hand around the back of her
neck as he kissed her deeply. She pulled away breathlessly and turned
her shimmering green eyes on his.

"How do you know she'll be in the park?" she asked again.

"Angel's agreed to take her there," he answered.

"He's agreed to help? What about Ceara?"

"Her, too," he nodded.
***
"What was so important that you couldn't tell me about it at the
house?" Elizabeth asked.

Angel looked down at her and then over at the slayer.

"Angel?" the vampire asked.

She turned away from him as several vampires moved out of the shadows
to encircle them.

Her voice trembled as she looked back at her sire, "What's going on?"

"It's over," he told her. "The scheming, the deception, the hurting,
all of it."

The circle of vampires broke just long enough for Spike and Willow to
step through it.

"I'm not interested in any more threats or negotiations," Elizabeth
hissed as the couple joined them.

"Good, neither are we," Spike told her.

Her gaze moved beyond him as the vampires closed in around them.

"Angel," she moaned as realization hit her. "You can't! Ceara--"

The slayer shook her head silently.

"Willow," she turned to the redhead. "Think about Giles. You know what
this will do to him!"

Willow stared coldly at her and felt Spike's hand slip into hers. He
pulled her aside as his minions stepped closer.

"Please!" Elizabeth cried out, looking desperately at each of them.

"Enough," Angel spoke, looking at Spike.

He nodded and drew Willow away as the circle of vampires moved in and
grabbed Elizabeth. Ceara turned away as Angel took the stake from her
hand and thrust it into his childe's heart. The minions drew back and,
with a gesture from their master, vanished into the night as quietly as
they had appeared.

"What will you tell Giles?" Willow asked after a long silence.

"The truth, or part of it," Angel answered. "She was attacked, and we
couldn't help her."

"He'll know," she told him. "You realize that."

"Probably," he agreed. "It had to be done."

Willow nodded, and Spike put his arm around her and began to lead her
away. Angel's hand found Ceara's, and she looked up at him sadly as
they followed Spike and Willow out of the park.

End

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