Trust

by Rob Sorenson

Chapter Twenty-four

************East Los Angeles, June 1997*************

La Casa Del Amor Homeless Shelter

Carmen’s voice was slightly muffled since her head had disappeared into the refrigerator.

“Faith, gire por favor el horno.”

Faith started slightly. “Huh?”

Carmen turned to her with a stern look.

“Try again.”

“Um…que usted dijo?”

Carmen smiled slightly, walking across the room to join the young girl at the kitchen table.

“Muy bueno, Faith. You’re getting better. I said, gire por favor el horno.”

Faith grinned slightly. “Please turn on the horny guy?”

Carmen didn’t give the impression she grasped the humor. “Horno means-“

“I know, I know.” Faith winced slightly as she pushed herself up from her chair, cursing inwardly for forgetting her injuries. “What temp you want?”

“Preheat at 350.”

“Got it.”

Carmen frowned. “Como es ese hombro?”

Faith shrugged non-commitally as she turned the dial, her back facing Carmen.

“Where did you put the sling I made?“

“I’m fine.”

Carmen stood. “No, you’re not. I said you needed to keep it immobilized until I can get you looked at.”

Faith turned back toward her. “Look, I said I’m fine, all right? You popped the shoulder back into place or whatever.”

Carmen stared back. “You can drop the tough act. You might’ve torn something inside.”

Faith looked at the floor. “Yeah, well. Stuff heals.” She lifted her eyes. “Right?”

Carmen smiled slightly, reaching out to touch the teenager’s cheek. “In time, yes.”

Faith licked her lips nervously. “You know, I’m thinkin’ maybe-”

“En espanol,” Carmen interrupted, causing Faith to roll her eyes. “Usted necesita guardar el practicar.”

“I already understand what people are sayin’.”

“Yes, and won’t it be nice when you can respond properly?”

“I can if I have to.”

“Not in proper Spanish you can’t. You will learn the language as it was meant to be spoken.”

“Never had to use a lot of words before in any language.”

Carmen’s eyes softened. “Things change, corazon. Now…en espanol, what were you thinking about?”

Faith concentrated for a moment. “Pienso…que debo irme.”

Carmen frowned. “Por que?”

“Porque…Carmen, you know why I need to go.”

“Enlighten me.”

“Jimmy…”

“Won’t find you,” Carmen finished. “It’s been five days. By now he’s found himself a new girl.”

Faith shook her head. “I don’t think so. He’s…he won’t let it go.”

Carmen’s eyes narrowed. “Listen to me. I didn’t take you in just so you could run back to him now.”

“That’s not what I said-“

“All right, then…where would you go, Faith?”

“I…look, I don’t know, but not back to him. Somewhere as far away as I can get. Maybe I can hop a freighter or something.”

“Going where, exactly?”

Faith turned away, voice shaking slightly. “Does it matter?”

“It does to me.”

Faith shook her head slightly, still not facing the older woman. “Why?”

“Does it matter?”

Faith shrugged, unsure how to respond. Carmen gently took Faith’s arm and turned her around.

“Ok, how about this? After a few more days, I can take the stitches out of your forehead and we’ll check the range of motion in that shoulder. We’ll talk more about the future after that.”

“It doesn’t hurt that bad.” Carmen opened her mouth to respond, but Faith didn’t give her a chance. “Not just making with the tough act here. I promise.”

“That doesn’t mean you’re fully recovered yet. Concussions take time to heal, and I still want you to get a full physical.”

“I don’t get why. You were a doctor in ‘Nam or something, right?”

Carmen grinned. “See, the concussion is obviously affecting your listening skills. It was Korea, and I was a nurse. Anyway, patching up I can handle, but that’s about it. The only reason I haven’t taken you to a doctor already is your fear of being seen. Yet now you’re all fired up to go out in public. Why?”

“I already said why. It’s just a matter of time ‘til he finds me, and that’s…” She trailed off.

Carmen tilted her head and smiled. “You don’t have to worry about me, child. I’ve lived in this neighborhood for 60 years.”

“You don’t understand. I’ve already stuck around way too long. Jimmy’s-“

“A common thug. Good with his fists, obviously, but that’s about all.”

Faith shook her head. “No. I’m sorry, Carmen, but you’re wrong. He’s…more than that.”

“Stop worrying about Jimmy and concentrate on yourself.”

Faith huffed in frustration.

“I am! Did you miss the ‘getting the fuck out of town’ part of the plan? Now who isn’t listening?!”

Carmen said nothing, merely staring. Faith backed up a couple of steps, leaning against the counter.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “Please…just trust me on this, ok? Jimmy’s-“

“A pimp. Nothing more.”

A slightly muffled male voice spoke from behind the kitchen door.

“Oh now…that’s not fair. You don’t even know me.”

Faith’s eyes bulged. No. Oh, Jesus…

Carmen took Faith’s arm, preparing to thrust the teenager into a nearby broom closet when the door swung open. Jimmy smiled benignly.

“Think it’s a little late for the hiding thing, Carmen. It is Carmen, right?”

“Salga de aqui!” The old woman spat, putting herself between Faith and Jimmy.

He put on a look of mock hurt. “But…I just got here. Plus, something smells good. Cual esta para la cena?” He gave Faith a glance. “Sorry, honey. I asked the old bitch what’s for dinner.”

“She knows what you said.” Carmen’s tone remained even.

“Does she?” He regarded Faith with cold eyes. “Looks like cash ain’t all you’ve been keeping from me.” Jimmy looked back to Carmen. “She DID share that with you, right? I don’t just discipline my employees without a reason. Bad for business. Who’s gonna want the busted up ones?”

“Jimmy,” Faith croaked. “I wasn’t doing it for me-“

“Well, except for the freaks,” Jimmy continued, as if Faith hadn’t spoken. “They might get off on it some.” His eyes fell on Faith again. “And I don’t give a rat’s ass why you stole it.”

“It was for someone else. I was just gonna get her some food-”

“I don’t care if it was for Mother Teresa. You broke the 6^th Commandment.”

Carmen raised an eyebrow. “She cheated on her husband?”

Jimmy hesitated a moment. “Oh yeah, stealing is the 7^th. Been a while since I thought about that stuff. But hey…she’s helped a buncha guys commit adultery, so that kinda counts. She’s an accessory or something, right?”

“I’m sure we can work this out. If it’s a lot of money, I can set up some sort of payment plan, but only if you allow Faith-“

Jimmy interrupted her with a giggle. “She really hasn’t told you anything, huh? I took the fuckin’ money back as soon as I found it in her purse. That’s not the point. It’s the principal of the thing. If I just let her walk, all the bitches are gonna get inspired. Took me too long to get things where I want ‘em.”

Carmen swallowed hard. “Beating her almost to death didn’t set enough of an example?”

Jimmy shrugged. “Hey, 20 bucks is 20 bucks.”

There was no sound in the room for a moment as Carmen’s jaw dropped.

“You did this…over 20 dollars?”

Jimmy nodded. “Si, senora.” He regarded Faith with respect. “I’ll say this much for her. She’s tough. Hardly made a sound. Hell, she even took a swing at me. Too bad she can’t hit hard enough to break toilet paper.” He shook his head. “How she managed to get all the way over here I’ll never know.”

Carmen was breathing heavily now. “You were asking me what’s for dinner earlier?”

With surprising speed for a person her age, she snatched a butcher knife off the counter and held it out.

“How about I feed you this, puerco?”

Jimmy pointed at the knife. “Ok, now I KNOW this one for sure. You’d be breaking Commandment 5 if you did that. That one was always a favorite.”

He reached behind him, pulling a .357 Magnum from the waistband of his slacks and pointing it at the old woman.

“Bet I can break it faster.”

At that moment, two men came in behind him. Jimmy spared them a glance, receiving a nod in confirmation from one of them. Carmen spoke quietly.

“You won’t use that. There’s at least 50 witnesses just outside that door.”

“You think? I’d be willing to guess they won’t say a word against me. At least not if they want to live.”

“You can’t kill them all.”

Jimmy nodded speculatively, hesitating a moment. “Gotta give it to ya, senora. You’ve got a point. On the other hand, if my associates here floated each of them 50 bucks, how fast do you think they’d hit the door?”

Carmen paled, saying nothing. Jimmy smiled.

“Wish I could’ve seen that. Bet they hit the door so fast, smoke was comin’ out of their asses. Jose Cuervo’s getting a workout tonight.”

The old woman shook her head. “You were willing to spend…” she hesitated a moment. Jimmy did the calcuating for her.

“2500 bucks so we could be alone? Yeah, that’s about it. I know what you’re thinking. He went all ballistic over 20 bucks, but would spend all that just to get her back. Remember what I said, Carmen: principal. Plus, Faith can make more than that on an average night, can’t you baby? Call it an investment.”

The smile left his face.

“Ok, I’ve done enough fuckin’ around for one day. Faith, why don’t you come on home with me?”

Faith started to move to one side around Carmen, but the old woman slid to one side, blocking her way.

“She’s not going anywhere.”

“Carmen,” Faith said with a shaky voice. “Please…”

“I don’t just let some hijo de puta come in here and tell me what to do. You think you’re all bad, Jaime? Well I have connections too. Policia come in here every night at dinnertime to check on things.”

Jimmy’s eyes turned cold. “Guess we better hurry, then.”

He pulled the trigger. Faith could hear the bullet whistling past as it shattered a Crock Pot, sending glass and food violently against the wall.

“That was a warning shot. Don’t make me fire again, ok? Next thing I spill against that wall won’t be chili.”

Faith was shivering now. “Carmen, I’ll go. It’ll be ok.”

Amazingly, Carmen held her ground, staring at the gangster. “You’re going to pay for that pot, you know.”

Jimmy looked at his two henchmen, eyes wide with disbelief. “Unbelievable.” He adjusted his aim and fired again, this time shattering Carmen’s foot. She screamed in pain, dropping face-first to the floor.

“No!!” Faith screamed. She dropped to one knee, leaning over the old woman. Jimmy nodded toward his companions.

“Get her outta the way.”

They moved forward quickly and yanked Faith away from a moaning Carmen, who was attempting to crawl toward the pantry. Faith screamed in resistance, feeling her shoulder give way again.

“You’re hurting yourself, Faith. Chill out.” Jimmy advised with a grin.

Faith was beyond reason now, unmindful of the blood seeping through the stitches on her forehead as she thrashed wildly. Jimmy rolled his eyes.

“Ok, enough of this shit already.”

He moved toward Carmen and stomped hard on her back, flattening her against the linoleum.

“You gotta gun in the pantry, huh? Little late, senora.” He glanced toward Faith as he cocked the gun. “Want me to make it a matched set?”

Faith quieted instantly, eyes wide. “Ok…ok. I’ll go with you.”

“Are you sorry?”

“Yes…yes. Please…”

Jimmy spread his hands. “Well ok, then. That wasn’t all that complicated, was it? You ready to go?”

Faith nodded quickly, blinking as the blood from her re-opened wound trickled into her eye.

“Fine.” Jimmy took a step toward the kitchen door…then stopped. He turned back to Carmen, who was resuming her effort to reach the pantry door. Jimmy tapped his forefinger against his lower lip as he thought out loud.

“You know, I can’t help thinking that you might’ve done shit like this for other girls in the past. Before my time, of course.”

Faith spoke plaintively. “Jimmy, she’d never done it before. It’s my fault…I begged her to take me in.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt that. You can convince anyone of anything, Faith. That’s why you’re so damn valuable. Still…gotta nip things like this in the bud.”

He looked down at Carmen. “When you called me a pig…well, that I can deal with. Hell, calling me a son of a whore was something forgivable. My mama and me aren’t exactly on good terms anyway. Even the fact that you didn’t show me an ounce of respect is something I could overlook, with you bein’ a senile old lady. I have some standards.”

Jimmy’s eyes became slits. “Then you had to go and call me Jaime. I confided that little secret to Faith one night, you see. That’s the only way you could possibly know my former name.”

He licked his lips, then turned to stare toward Faith.

“I trusted you with that secret…and you betrayed me. Can’t let that slide. So…here’s a reminder.”

He leveled the gun toward Carmen’s spine, keeping his eyes on Faith.

“My name is Jimmy.”

He pulled the trigger.

“NOOOO!!!”

Carmen lay unmoving on the floor. Faith tried to lunge away again, but her legs gave way beneath her as the pain in her shoulder became too much. Jimmy walked toward Faith quickly.

“She might still live through this, babe. Leave with me right now, and maybe…just maybe I’ll call 911.”

Faith’s face had gone slack. Jimmy leaned toward her.

“The longer you take, the faster she dies.”

“Ok,” she managed hoarsely.

“You’ll never even think of leaving me again?”

A dull shake of the head.

“Good. One more thing.”

Jimmy went back to Carmen, kneeling close to the critically wounded woman’s ear.

“I know you can still hear me, senora.” he whispered. “If you breathe a word about this to anyone, Faith dies very slowly…and this rat-trap gets burned to the ground. Think about that…if you make it.”

He got up, carefully brushed a bit of dust off his pants and strode quickly out of the kitchen.

Faith followed him quietly, requiring no escort.

******************************************

Buffy yawned exaggeratedly, keeping her crossbow trained on Xander’s captors.

“Look, I don’t mean to rush you…” She broke off, frowning. “What was your name again? Sneezy, Slappy...”

“Jaime Rosenbloom,” Faith said slowly, drawing out every syllable with a slight smile. Jimmy’s eye twitched, but aside from that showed no visible reaction to the affront.

“Right,” Buffy said. “Thanks. Anyway, Jaime, I didn’t get a lot of sleep, and I might wind up accidentally killing one of your goons if I nod off. Could we get to the part where you start posturing and playing coy or whatever? Then Riley can press his gun against the back of your head and threaten to blow your brains out if you don’t sing like a canary, thereby causing you to grudgingly give up info while inwardly swearing vengeance toward us all?”

There was a silence. Buffy shrugged.

“What? The pattern gets tired after a while.”

Jimmy’s eyes darted between Faith and Buffy. “Looks like we’re at a stalemate.”

He swallowed as he felt the cold metal of Riley’s pistol against the back of his skull. Buffy smirked.

“And there it is.”

Riley cleared his throat. “Actually, I was going to shoot him in the shoulder. But your plan sounded less messy.”

“Really?”

“I’ve learned to be more flexible over the years.”

Buffy smiled. “I’m proud of you.”

“All part of being married.”

Xander cleared his throat. “Sorry to interrupt, but Goon #1 just reached into his coat pocket.”

Buffy’s eyebrows knitted together. “Take your hand out…slowly.”

The man withdrew his empty hand.

“Good boy. Ok, Jaime, where were we?”

Jimmy managed a slight smile at Faith. “Your boy’s got some instincts.”

Faith didn’t return his expression. “Might wanna use yours and start talking. What’d you sell all your employees for?”

“Million bucks a head.”

Buffy blinked. “Are you serious?”

“Got no reason to lie.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Faith said. “What’s their purpose?”

“I have no clue.”

Riley pressed the muzzle of his gun even harder into the gangster’s head.

“Might want to hurry up and get one.”

After a moment of silence, Jimmy sighed. “I honestly don’t know much.”

Faith sighed. “Who’d you sell ‘em to?”

“I can’t answer that. Attorney-client privilege.”

Xander frowned. “You’re a lawyer?”

Buffy shook her head. “No, he isn’t. He’s trying to be really clever while he shares information. You sold them to lawyers, right?”

Silence.

“Let me guess: the name of this firm sounds like a wildlife exhibit.”

Jimmy’s eyes slid from Buffy to Faith. “Yeah.”

“Give us a number,” Xander interjected. “How many…” He trailed off, glancing uncomfortably at Faith. “How many of your employees did you sell to them?”

“I’d have to check the records. Gimme a minute to-“

“You can stop tripping the alarm, man.” Riley smirked. “It went offline for unscheduled maintenance fifteen minutes ago.”

The gangster removed his foot from the pedal underneath his desk with a wry chuckle. “You guys don’t fuck around, huh?”

The soldier glanced at his watch. “Guys, we have roughly ten minutes until a response team arrives.”

Faith stood, placing her hands flat on his desk. She leaned over and spoke softly, her face merely inches from his.

“Guess we better hurry, then.”

The tone of her voice caused the room to go silent for a long moment. Faith swallowed hard as she carefully took the gun from Jimmy’s hand. After re-engaging the safety, she placed it on the table.

“Answer Xander’s question. How many?”

Jimmy’s keen survival instincts had always served him well, and they did so again here. The time for verbal jousting was over.

“If you include LA, San Fran and San Diego, 140.”

Again the room went silent. Xander held up a finger. “Did you just say-“

“He did,” Faith interrupted. “Where can we find them?”

“I don’t know.” He repeated himself as Faith’s eyes widened. “I don’t know, ok? Until about an hour ago, they were holed up in a warehouse of mine on the docks. Now there’s no tellin’ where that crazy chick’ll take ‘em.”

Buffy’s voice was a whisper. “Drusilla?”

Jimmy raised an eyebrow. “What do y’all need me for?”

“To fill in the blanks, Jimmy.” Faith tilted her head. “You got one more to go. Better get it right the first time, kay? What’s Dru’s plan?”

The gangster swallowed. “Ok…I really, truly do not know. I wasn’t involved in any of that.”

“Wrong answer.”

Jimmy’s eyes widened; he swore he could hear Riley’s finger gently squeezing the trigger.

“Wait! That’s the truth! I swear!”

“You’re holding something back, Jimmy.”

Jimmy began to sweat visibly. “Ok, ok! I know when, but not the where and the how.”

Faith’s face betrayed no expression. “And?”

“Whatever they’re planning, it’s happening tomorrow afternoon…about 6 o’clock.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Faith stood up straight. “I think that’s all he’s got.”

Riley sighed with relief. “That’s good, because we’re out of time.” He reached into his pocket for a length of rope. “Put your hands behind your back.”

Jimmy complied, clearly seething. As Riley bound his wrists together, he eyed Buffy for a moment, then glanced at the two men who had been flanking Xander for the entire exchange..

“I only brought enough rope for one.”

Buffy nodded, seeming to contemplate for a moment.

“Huh. Well, that’s a shame.”

Before the guards could see her move, she delivered two quick right jabs, careful to use only a tiny fraction of her capabilities. They crumpled to the ground without so much as a grunt. She grinned down at them, then turned to face Faith.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I could’ve split that with you.”

Faith shrugged slightly. “You got ’saving the day’ points workin’ for you. No worries.”

Riley moved quickly from behind Jimmy’s desk. “Ok, that’ll hold him for a while.”

Buffy nodded, all business now. “Right. Let’s move.”

Faith was the first one out the door.

*******************************

She’d never understand why her mind wandered so…but Dawn Summers couldn’t help herself.

When Dawn was 12, Joyce Summers had decided that some family-bonding was needed. Buffy had been acting quite mysteriously over the last several months; Joyce was terrified that her eldest’s behavioral pattern from LA was beginning to resurface. For her part, little Dawnie was going through major changes of her own.

Therefore, Joyce had borrowed from her 401k and rented a secluded cabin on the shore of Lake Almanor in Northern California. Despite the predictably vehement protests of her beloved children, Joyce stood her ground. They were going to do this…and grow as a family. All the books had said so.

Typically, it had been a disaster. Electricity in their cabin had been disconnected at some point, leaving the three females with grocery bags full of food that had been rendered useless. Joyce had soldiered on, managing to get the fireplace blazing. It made for 2 or 3 wieners a night, for six nights straight…but it was hot food.

The worst part, however, was the lack of running water. The ramifications of THAT were of far greater import to a Summers woman than sustenance. After a host of unanswered phone calls to the travel agent who had set this up, Joyce finally gave up. The Summers women were an hour’s drive away from the nearest running faucet, and that wasn’t about to change.

Still, nobody was going home early. No sir. She’d paid good money for this place, and by God they would rough it if necessary. “We have a huge source of clean, fresh water. We’ll eat hot dogs over the fire every night, then pick some berries for dessert. I say we go camping old style. Who’s with me?”

Joyce had lived to regret asking that question, but her mind was made up.

Two days later, after much prodding and theatrical nostril-pinching from her stupid sister, the littlest Summers stood alone at the edge of the dock. Their location was totally isolated; to that point none of them had seen a single boat pass by. Even so, she looked from left to right for a long time before taking her clothes off.

Dawn dipped her big toe in the water, hissing in surprise. It was ice cold. There’s no way I can do this, she’d thought. No way. Way too freaking cold. She smiled to herself; Mom would pop a vein if she heard her little girl even thinking such words. After another moment, she managed to get one whole foot under the surface.

“Oooh. Aaah.” She shivered slightly. “Ok, left foot’s clean. That’ll do.”

Dawn starting reaching for her clothes, then stopped.

Buffy had done it earlier. Dawn had heard the splash from the cabin window. There was no way on this earth Dawn was going to let big Sis call her a wuss. Nope. Not this time.

Freak that, she thought, closing her eyes to steel herself. Just do what she did…just jump right in. It’s the best way. Taking two deep breaths, she slid off the dock and into the water.

For ten seconds, Dawn Summers thought she was going to die. The cold was all-encompassing, stabbing at her porcelain skin. Gooseflesh popped out instantly in reaction to the shock. Gasps escaped from her throat involuntarily when she surfaced; she hoped Buffy or Mom hadn’t heard that. Little girls screamed and cried; she was becoming a woman now.

At least, that’s what Mom (not to mention Dawn’s art teacher…ewww) had said two weeks ago…

After what seemed like forever, her body adjusted to the sudden chill. She went under again, transfixed at how clean it was. The bottom, fifteen feet down, could be clearly seen. Resurfacing, she ran her hands through her hair before leaning back to float.

Dawn’s jaw dropped; the sky was absolutely cloudless, and bigger than she’d ever seen it before. A giant azure portal into something…new. Something that was causing sensations that prickled throughout her body, again causing her to gasp. This time, though, she didn’t mind. Heck, she didn’t even notice. There was no one else to hear; the world as she knew it melted away, leaving almost unbearable beauty in its wake. Her bare skin was humming, every nerve ending seemingly coming to glorious life at once. The chilly water undulated beneath her, causing tinglings she’d never dreamed of feeling before. Far, far back in her conscious mind, Dawn knew the world was the same place it always was…and too often it was pretty sucky Right now, though, the painful facts of life had somehow faded, revealing a bliss she didn’t have words to describe.

For a few glorious minutes, the world had been a safe and beautiful place.

“Wesley…”

Was that her voice? Breathy, desperate? Who the heck are you? She forced her eyes open and looked down.

Wesley made a purring sound as the flat of his tongue continued its journey up and down her body, lingering between her breasts for a long moment before moving slowly up to a nipple.

On the other hand, who cares who the heck I am. “Oh…oh God. Wesley…”

Back to that pesky conscious mind. Dawn knew damned well she had a better command of the English language than this. Still, at the moment it seemed her vocabulary had been reduced to incomprehensible sound patterns…and….and…

“Wes….Wesley…oh yes…”

Somehow, it was enough. His own beautiful voice echoed in her ears.

“Beautiful,” he was saying. “So beautiful.”

It seemed the vocabulary thief was an equal opportunity criminal. Still, there seemed to be just enough words left over…

He switched to the other nipple, causing Dawn to whimper loudly. Her head fell back again; hands reached blindly, somehow knowing exactly how to reach his solid shoulders. Acting on pure instinct, she dug her nails in perfect rhythm with the actions of his tongue, causing him to moan. That vibration sent yet another wave of sensation through her, drawing a wordless cry.

“Are you all right?”

Was he speaking? She shook her head, uncomprehending.

“Do you want to stop?”

She shook her head again; the sensations were fading. This was most unwelcome.

“What?”

He smiled at her. “Talk to me, Dawn. Tell me what you want.”

Somehow she managed to form the word. “You.”

He raised up to kiss her; they spent a long minute plundering each other’s mouths, literally stealing each other’s breath. Dawn thoroughly suckled on his tongue while running both hands down to the small of his back. Her long arms afforded her the ability to reach far beyond that, exploring the wondrous paradox of soft skin over hard muscle.

Wesley pulled away with an effort, licking his lips. Dawn frowned, leaning up to capture his mouth again, but he held her shoulders firmly against the mattress. When he smiled, her entire body relaxed.

“I’ll be back.”

With that he resumed exploring her, inching his way from her throat, to her sternum, then her navel…as his body moved down, her skin was left exposed. The cool, steady breeze of the ceiling fan chilled and heated her at the same time. Whether it was his tongue or her perspiration causing the sensations she didn’t know…or care, for that matter.

When he dropped below her abdomen, she suddenly forgot to breathe.

*********************************

Buffy kept an eye on Xander as they made their way down the marble steps. Once they reached the vehicles, she faced him.

“How bad is it?”

“Huh?”

She went on tiptoes and craned her neck to look behind his ear.

“Oh,” Xander said in understanding. “It’s nothing major. Guy didn’t even hit me that hard.”

“Good. Ok, then. So…what the Hell were you thinking?!”

He blinked in surprise at her sudden change in tone. “I…I was..”

She poked a finger into his chest. “You took off without saying a word to anyone. Do you know how stupid that was?”

“I’m sor-“

“How do you think this would’ve turned out if Riley hadn’t seen you leaving? Huh? If we hadn’t figured out where you were going…or if we didn’t see those goons holding a gun on you while you drove in here…” She trailed off. “I cannot believe you still pull shit like this!”

His eyes flashed in anger. “Hey, I was just backing her up since no one else cared-“

Buffy took a step back. “How dare you say that to me? She didn’t want it. I trusted her to know what she was doing. Apparently you don’t.”

He took a quick glance at Faith, who had walked to her car without a word.

“Buffy, you know how she can get. I was worried, ok?”

The blonde Slayer’s eyes softened. “I know that. I also know that if you’d come to me with this, I would’ve tagged along and kept you safe. God, Xander, are you ever going to learn?”

He looked down. “Look, I said I was-“

Riley interrupted nervously. “Could we maybe do this after we leave the Godfather’s property? Time issues, remember?”

Buffy nodded toward him quickly. “One sec.” She turned back to her best friend, opening her mouth to speak…then starting to chuckle. Xander grinned uncertainly.

“What?”

“Just…I never thought I would say these words to you.”

“I don’t under-“

“My baby needs a father.”

There was another momentary silence, this time broken by Xander’s chuckle.

“Yup, definitely to be filed under surreal.”

“It’s true, though.”

He nodded. Buffy held out her hand. “Keys.”

“Say again?”

“Give me your keys. You just got a bump on the head. You shouldn’t be driving right now.”

His eyes widened. “Do we really need to do something that drastic?”

Buffy glared at him. “Lest you forget, Alexander Harris: you’re on thin ice right now. SO not the time to make a smartass comment about my driving. Give…me…the keys.”

He dug them out of his pocket and held them out. She snatched them quickly.

“God, I can’t tell you how long I’ve wanted to see what this thing can do.”

“Dammit, Buffy…”

She backed away, pointing a finger. “Thin ice,” she reminded. Buffy turned to face the others. “Riley, I’m taking Xander’s car.”

“Ummm…are you sure that’s a good-“

“Ok, you guys are desperately in need of a memory upgrade. I’m a good driver now.”

Silence. Buffy stomped her foot, creating a small crack in the concrete driveway.

“All right…you’ll at least admit I’m better than I used to be?”

“Umm…sure, Buff.”

“Whatever, B.”

“You’re the boss.”

She sighed loudly, then made her way to the driver’s side of Xander’s car, muttering to herself. Xander headed toward Riley’s car.

“Xander?” Buffy called.

“Yeah?”

“Riley has to make some stops on the way home. Ride with Faith so we can get a look at that cut back at the hotel.”

Xander hesitated. Buffy stared hard at him. Talk to her, her eyes communicated.

“Ok.”

Faith had already started the car. Xander jogged over the passenger side, knocking on the window. She spared him a cursory glance before granting him access.

The car was peeling out before Xander had the chance to close the door.

************************************

Dawn’s entire body was quivering.

Oh…my…God.

Wesley was wiping tears from her eyes with his thumb.

“Are you all right?”

She nodded vigorously. “Yes! Yes, yes, yes…” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I love you so much,” she whispered into his ear. “I just…that was incredible.”

“I love you,” Wes whispered in return, brushing his fingertips alone the small of her back. “Are you certain-“

She pulled away, staring into his eyes. “Yes. It was just…” she touched his stubbled cheek. “It was everything. You know?”

He merely nodded. Dawn’s hair was mussed up badly, and her entire body was flushed.

He’d never seen anything so beautiful.

*************************************

Faith and Xander rode in silence for fifteen minutes. Occasionally they would exchange glances and quickly turn away. Abruptly she made a turn, heading in the wrong direction.

“Ummm…I think it’s the other way.”

Faith’s response was to pick up speed. Getting the message, Xander remained silent. Slowly the surrounding area began to appear more and more desolate; chaparral and palm trees gave way to tumbleweeds and cacti. After 30 minutes, Faith spoke for the first time.

“Fuck it.”

She slammed on the brakes and exited the car before Xander could catch his breath from the sudden stop.

“Faith?”

There was no answer.

“Faith!”

She was walking down the highway, pointedly ignoring him. Xander unfastened his seat belt and hustled after her.

“What are you doing?”

Still she said nothing. It was too much.

“Goddammit, Faith!” He grabbed her shoulder and spun her to face him. “The car’s in the middle of the highway!”

She stared hard into his eyes…then quickly brushed past him, making her way back to the car. As she opened the door, Xander briefly wondered whether she was going to leave him out here. Instead, she yanked the car into neutral. After getting back out and walking to the front, she turned to face him.

Keeping her gaze upon him the entire time, she reached down with one hand and lifted the front of the car, easily pulling it behind her. Once the vehicle reached the shoulder, the Slayer flung it to one side, causing the car to land hard on its axles and skid several more feet. The car was now almost perpendicular to the road, as if someone made a sudden right turn toward the desert and stopped. Once the dust settled, Faith folded her arms.

“Happy?”

Xander shook his head. “What is up with you?”

“Me?” She pointed to herself, walking slowly toward him. “Why don’t you tell me? You’ve pretty much got a handle on everything, right?”

“Faith-“

“I mean you just said something to B about ‘how I get.’ So tell me, Xand…how do I get, exactly?”

“I think you know what I meant.”

“No, I really don’t. Apparently you got this deep insight I never knew about. So I just gotta know. What’s the diagnosis, Sigmund?”

“Stop this.”

She held out her hands. “Look where we are, babe. Middle of fuckin’ nowhere, right? Nothing but dirt and sky. Wide open and totally empty. Nobody else can hear a DAMN THING WE’RE SAYING!”

The last sentence reverberated for a while. Xander remained silent. Faith took another step toward him.

“No more bullshit, Xander. Just you, me…and the way things are. We have this out now.”

Xander folded his arms. “Fine.”

“So answer my question. How do I get?”

Xander cleared his throat, trying to choose his words carefully. “I think…this whole deal has freaked you out a lot.”

“No argument there.”

“When you do that, you tend to push people away. Including me.”

“Yes, and thank God I’m the only one who does THAT.”

“Hey, I’m answering your question. We’re talking about you right now.”

“Fair enough. My turn.”

Xander took a deep breath. “Ok.”

“Why’d you follow me today?”

“I just told you-“

“Bullshit.”

“You needed backup.”

Faith snorted out a laugh. “Spare me, ok? You might be able to fool Buffy, but this is me you’re talkin’ to. If you really thought I needed serious backup you’d have told her.”

“That’s not true-“

“Yeah it is. Come on…the first time you offered to back me up, I shot you down pretty hard.”

Xander’s eyes went cold.

“I’d forgotten to thank you for that.”

“Why do you think I went off so much? I knew what was goin’ on in that head of yours. You wanted to see my life back in the day. Check out the places where I turned tricks, meet my old boss-“

Xander shook his head. “You’re way off here.”

“Just couldn’t leave it alone, could you? You couldn’t let it go.”

“Is this reality talking, Faith…or are you just paranoid?”

She tilted her head back and forth. “Excuse me?”

“Honey, I knew a lot about this part of your past already.”

Faith pointed her finger at him. “Yeah, but this was your chance to really know. Full color visuals and everything. Don’t try to tell me you didn’t wanna see it for yourself.”

Xander hesitated. “Ok, maybe there could have been some kind of morbid curiosity. I wasn’t obsessed or anything. I wanted to help you get through it.”

She shrugged. “You can’t. You never will. Trust me on that one.”

“Faith, that doesn’t mean I have issues-“

“You don’t? Ok, cool. Let’s go back to Jimmy’s and get some more details. Wanna learn more about the clothes he made me wear? Or how much to ask for, depending on the kink factor? How he instituted a policy of no rubbers, so the customers could have that extra special-“

“Stop it!”

“Thought you didn’t have issues.”

Xander paced toward the car. “I don’t need details.”

Faith followed him closely. “Aw come on, man! Of course you do! How else can you decide?”

He turned on her, clearly exasperated. “Decide what? I don’t-“

Faith shook her head. “Why the hell do you think I came all the way out here, for my health? One way or the other, neither of us is leaving until you make the call. Right here, right now.”

“What…what kind of-“

The Slayer shrugged. “Pretty simple, really.”

Her voice softened.

“Do you want me any more or not?”

***************************************

Wesley closed his eyes in surprise when Dawn took hold of him. She stuggled to keep her voice even.

“Baby…what about…you?”

“Actually…what you’re doing currently is quite…ah…lovely.”

She squeezed gently. “Really?”

“Dawn,” he exhaled in a rush. She smiled uncertainly, licking her lips.

“Um…don’t you want…more?”

His eyes snapped open. “We don’t have to.”

Dawn’s eyes were shining. “I want to.”

Wes leaned in, pressing his entire body against hers.

“Are you certain?”

She nodded, reveling in the solid feel of him warming her.

“All right. Promise me you’ll let me know…if…”

She gasped as he molded his fingers into the flesh of her bottom.

“If…if what?”

Wesley hesitated. “I don’t wish to…we’ll take it slow, yes?”

Dawn licked her lips, feeling herself blush furiously. “You won’t.”

“Take it slow?”

“No, I mean…” She found herself blushing furiously.

Wesley stopped his ministrations. “You do understand what I’m-“

The mood was broken momentarily as she scowled at him good naturedly, forgetting her embarrassment.

“Hello? Card carrying female over here. I know what you’re saying.”

“Sorry.“

Now he was blushing. Dawn reached out, brushing her fingertips along his cheek. “I do a lot of…um…kicking and stretching, you know?”

“Yes, I’m quite aware-“ He broke off, finally comprehending her meaningful expression. “Oh. OH. I see.”

Dawn started to giggle.

“What’s funny?”

She looked away.

“We’re lying here together totally naked and touching and stuff, but we can’t…you know.”

“Talk about specifics?”

“Yeah.”

Wes began to chuckle with her. “That is rather silly, isn’t it?”

Dawn leaned in and placed a gentle kiss over his heart, then scooted away, flattening herself against the mattress.

“I love you. Now c’mere.”

*****************************************

Xander felt all the breath leave his body in a rush.

“What…what are you asking me?”

Faith just stared at him. Xander shook his head.

“Where is this coming from?”

“It was just a matter of time.”

Now Xander stared, uncomprehending. Faith shook her head.

“I was stupid. Tried to make believe this shit never happened. I spent the last few days doing everything I could to keep you away from it…but you can’t run from stuff. It’ll find you. And when it does…it just gets worse.”

Xander moved toward her, but she stepped back from him.

“Faith, you’re not making any sense.”

“You’re not payin’ attention. The money, the beautiful home…” She looked at her hand. “This ring. None of that’s me.”

Xander was too shocked to respond. Faith took a deep breath.

“The things Jimmy said? The stuff I did? That’s the real Faith.”

“Stop this.”

“I saw the look on your face, Xander. When he said those things…takin’ me for a test drive, all that shit. You couldn’t even look at me.”

He stood up straight. “I’m looking at you now.”

Faith shook her head slowly. “You can’t see everything.”

“Then tell me what I’m missing!”

She turned away, speaking so softly Xander had to strain to hear.

“When you’re 14…and life is fucked up…and there’s nobody there to shake sense into a kid, she’ll do stupid things. Stuff she can’t get away from…stuff she can’t fight. See, that’s what I’m good at now, Xander. I fight things. I can hit stuff. Back then, though…”

Faith broke off and started to walk away, but Xander jogged past her and turned, blocking the Slayer’s path.

“Baby, please. Just tell me. What is it?” His voice was soft. Faith closed her eyes. She loved it when he spoke to her like that. Stop it! She raged.

“Do you ever think about the future?”

Xander blinked at the apparent shift in the conversation. “I guess. Sometimes.”

“What do you see?”

He hesitated. Faith raised an eyebrow.

“Ten years from now. What do you see?”

“Well, I suppose…I see us.”

“And?”

Xander shrugged. “Um…honestly, thinking about the future in the Scooby Gang is never a good idea. You sorta live for now.”

For the first time, Faith smiled slightly. “Profound. Also total bullshit. I know you, Xander Harris. You don’t go through with getting married unless you thought long term.”

Xander ran his fingers through his hair. “I wish I knew what you wanted me to say here.”

“Jimmy put all his girls on the pill.”

He leveled his gaze at her, deciding to stop worrying about catching up and just go with it.. “Ok.”

“I’d just started smoking. Cigs, I mean. Light menthols. They helped a little to take the edge off after…well, after.”

Xander closed his eyes. “I got it.”

“Eventually, I went on the more advanced shit, but for the moment, nicotine’s what I was using. So anyway, someone left a three-year old Cosmo sittin’ in this coffee shop I used to go to in the afternoons. Plain bagel and water for 99 cents. Can’t beat it. I was bored, so I picked the magazine up and started skimming through it to kill some time. There’s this article about contraception. Said that women on the pill shouldn’t smoke. Big health risks. Didn’t wanna have to worry about that…so I made a choice.”

She swallowed. Xander simply waited for her to continue.

“My smokes were the only thing that made me feel a little better.”

That opened Xander’s eyes.

“Wait a minute…you went off birth control so you could smoke?”

“Like I said…stupid things. Anyway, couple months down the road, I started missing.”

“Missing?”

“Yeah.”

“As in…”

“Yeah.”

Xander was silent for a long moment. “What did you do?”

Faith sighed heavily. “There was no way I could tell Jimmy. I was sort of on probation with him anyway…and I’m the one that went off the pill. It was my fault. So I figured I should…take care of the problem. Didn’t have a dime to my name…plus, you know, 14 and all. Didn’t give me a lot of choices-“

Her voice broke. Xander backed up, shaking his head. “I don’t think I want to-”

“Xander, you didn’t talk to me after you got sick. I was forgiving that. Having to go back and rewind my miserable life, ok. We could’ve dealt if you’d just let me handle it on my own. At least, that’s what I told myself…but now?”

Tears fell from her eyes. “Willow is having your baby,” she whispered. “I’m never going to be able to do that.”

Xander turned away from her, putting a hand against his forehead and rubbing furiously.

“Xander-“

He faced her again, his face slack. “I didn’t…”

“You didn’t just marry a whore and a murderer. You married someone who can never have a family with you. But…on the bright side, Willow can give you what you need. Which leads to the obvious question…”

Xander could almost feel his heart break when she began to sob.

“What do you need me for?”

He opened his mouth to speak, but was suddenly seized with a familiar surge of pain.

“Augh…not now, dammit!”

Faith’s eyes widened. “Xander?”

He staggered toward the car, desperately trying to fight the tremors within his body. Faith was at his side instantly.

“Baby, what is it?”

Xander spoke through gritted teeth. “It…it goes away. No…big…”

Faith felt a rising panic as his seizure intensified. Without thinking twice, she scooped him into her arms.

“Doctor,” was all she said, running toward the car.

“NO!” He hadn’t meant to shout. Controlling himself with an effort, he repeated himself more softly. “No. Just…hotel. It’ll be ok.”

Faith almost ripped the passenger door free from it’s hinges as she gingerly placed him in the seat. “Are you sure?”

He tried to nod, but his body was vibrating so much Xander didn’t think it would register. Thankfully, Faith understood. She started the car and spun the wheel, sending sand flying behind them as the vehicle screeched back on to the asphalt.

Moments later, there was just yawning emptiness and dust.

- End Chapter Twenty-four -