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Buffy stared back at the vampire, her utter horror finally overwhelming her senses. She closed her eyes, suppressing a shudder when she felt his chill hand upon her exposed shoulder. Her mind, finally numb from the cruel blows it had been given, refused to act out the commands that her subconscious was throwing out. Instead, she sank to the floor in defeat, and allowed Spike to caress her bare shoulders.
“What a night,” the blond vampire lamented. He started to massage the slayer’s shoulders gently, reveling at the touch of her skin against his. “You must be exhausted, you poor thing. There must be something daddy can do for you.”
“You can get your hands off me,” Buffy responded, her voice void of emotion.
Spike only smiled, and leaned in further to the collapsed girl. Another shiver ran down Buffy’s spine at the absence of breath on her neck. “You don’t really mean that,” Spike whispered. He grabbed hold of the sleeve of her tank top, and held it up for examination. “Such a thin material,” he remarked pleasantly. “Easy to rip,” he added, and tore the thin strip with a quick strip.
That brought Buffy’s emotions boiling to the front again. She jumped to her feet, whirling around to face the vampire. “You’re going to pay for that,” she threatened, taking a menacing step toward Spike.
Spike returned her rage with a laugh. “Please, slayer,” he said with a sly grin. “This is not a time for games. Daddy will show you a good time yet.” That said, Spike swept the unsuspecting slayer into his arms, ignoring her startled shouts and screams. He did not even glance behind him as he carried Buffy toward the club entrance, kicked the door out and exited, the slayer kicking and protesting loudly the entire way.
*****
Nick looked back a last time, and nodded briefly at his three companions in turn. “Remember what I told you?” he asked Emily under his breath.
“Stay low,” Emily replied. “And don’t make a move unless I think you or Rachel is in danger.”
“That’s right,” Nick said, a tinge of pride in his tone. “And don’t forget—“
“Keep Giles quiet,” Emily concluded. “Right. I got it. Now get going!”
Nick nodded, a small smile playing at the corner of his lips. After a moment, he and Rachel turned and made their exit from their two companions. A few paces from Giles and Emily’s hiding place, Rachel stopped in her tracks, and placed a hand on Nick’s arm. “Nick,” she murmured.
“Yeah Rach?”
“We could die,” Rachel said, her voice betraying her sudden fear. “We’re going up against vampires. If we learned anything from what happened with Alex it’s that vampires are not to be toyed with…what if we die?”
“That’s a terrible way to think, Rach,” Nick said, horrified. “Neither of us going to die. Derek, Alex and Philip are on the plane over as we speak. In the morning—“
“In the morning!” Rachel cried, alarmed. “We’re going after them tonight! What about Derek and Alex—and Philip? What if they come to help us, and find nothing but corpses, or—worse, that we’ve become on of them.” Nick did not have to ask who she meant. “What about Kat?” Rachel asked, her voice rising in panic. “What will she do? She’s too young, Nick. She can’t be without her mother. She needs me. I can’t abandon her. I just can’t!”
Nick caught the trembling woman at the wrist, and looked deep into her eyes. “Rachel,” he said calmly. “We’re going to get out of this fine. You’re going to be fine. I won’t let anything happen to you. You know that!”
Rachel shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. “I know this isn’t a good time to panic, but I can’t stop thinking about my little girl—“
Nick leaned forward and, without a second thought, kissed Rachel fully on the lips. He pulled away several moments, out of breath. “What—was that—for?” Rachel gasped finally.
“Shh,” Nick whispered, and kissed her again. With noticeable reluctance, they finally pulled apart, breathing heavily. “Well,” Nick said when he was able. “We’d probably better get going.” Rachel nodded, and started slowly after the ex-SEAL.
They searched the area thoroughly, making several sweeps of the docks before realizing they were alone and returning to gather Emily and Giles. The two seemed a little uncomfortable when they were pulled out from behind the craftily placed barrels.
“What’s the problem?” Nick asked briskly.
“Nothing,” Emily responded hastily, and shot a warning glance at Giles to keep quiet. “We were just wondering what took you two so long to get back,” she said carefully.
“Oh,” Rachel said softly, stealing a glance at Nick. The former SEAL only looked away, his face turned slightly away. She thought she could see the faintest blush cast on his cheeks. “Well, we had to make several checks of the docks.”
“I see,” Giles interceded. “Well, that’s wonderful. Cheery-ho.” He stepped away from the small group, and picked his careful way across the shadowy docks. Emily shrugged, then followed after. Rachel and Nick eyed each other for a moment, then started slowly after the pair, Nick’s arm wrapped securely around the woman’s shoulders.
*****
Lucy groaned, then climbed carefully to her feet, grabbing the edge of a counter for support. Finally, after what seemed an eternity, she felt the strength to take a few more steps, and started forward again. She made it to the end of the counter, then looked down uncertainly, distrustful of her trembling legs. Taking a deep breath, she released the counter and started forward without any support.
After a few tentative steps, Lucy felt somewhat normal again. “Good,” a male voice said, startling her out of her concentration. “I thought maybe we’d killed you. And without even biting you. That would’ve been a shame.”
Lucy stared at the newcomer, unsure what to make of his arrival. “Who are you?” she asked.
“A friend,” the man replied, and walked to Lucy’s side. “Would you like some assistance?” he asked smoothly. “I’m afraid the injection we gave you was a bit strong. Your natural slumber was wearing off a bit too quick for the Master’s taste. We thought we should slow you down a bit.”
“Well, you certainly did that!” Lucy cried indignantly. Her outrage quickly faded as she stared into the stranger’s face. “You have very nice eyes,” she remarked in an awed voice. “What did you say your name was again?”
“Oh! Didn’t I introduce myself?!” the man cried. “How terribly rude
of me.” He extended a slim brown hand to Lucy, who stroked it in awed fascination.
“I’m Mr. Trick.”
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