Disclaimer: I don't own Angel, nor am I affiliated
I know this chapter is really short, but I'm trying to make it perfect
Chapter 1: Haunted Memories
It was about midnight and the full moon illuminated the railroad track where three figures could be seen. The smallest of the figures was only about eight years old. Her blond hair was plastered against her tiny head with sweat. The figure standing above her was a tall, skinny, and blond as well. His face was contorted in an evil smirk. With his right hand, he was holding down the young girl, and in his left was a metal railroad spike. On the sidelines, a tall, dark young woman watched, her demented mind enjoying the carnage.
"William! No, Please," the voice of a young girl screamed as the Vampire loomed over her. Her eyes were full of fear, and blood stained her lacy pink dress. She had scratches all the way down her tiny arms, and her left leg was broken. It was apparent that she had been tortured slowly and effectively for a long period of time.
The thoughts in her head had changed drastically since earlier that very day. That morning she had been so happy. Her grandmother had been throwing a party, and she was finally allowed to attend. She was sad as well, though. It had been less than a year since the death of her brother and mother, and she still wasn't fully over it. This party was supposed to celebrate her coming to live with her grandmother, as well as marking the end of the mourning period. Now however, she laid cold and bleeding on the railroad tracks, wishing for death. All thoughts of parties and fun wiped from her mind.
"Hold still," the Vampire growled, his thick British accent shining through. He had the young girl helpless beneath him. The spike in his hand was covered in blood. It oozed and dripped on the sand at his feet. His feelings were mixed. He knew he had to do this, but he wasn't sure if he could.
"Why are you doing this?" the girl pleaded. "Just leave me alone. This isn't you." For one split second, the Vampire paused. His eyes softened, as he looked down at the helpless child, laying on the railroad tracks by his feet. Remorse consumed him, but without a soul, remorse was not enough. One look at his female companion, standing to his left, and his eyes flashed cold again. He drove the railroad spike through the girl's stomach, pinning her to the ground. A thin stream of blood spilled from the edges of her mouth and she went limp.
"It's finished," the vampire announced, turning to his companion in the shadow. "Tell Angelus I did what he asked."
"NO!" Spike yelled, waking up with a start. Sweat trickled off his nose and down his bare chest. He climbed out of his bed. The sheets were soaked through with sweat and tangled in a mass at the foot of the bed. Angel had set it up for Spike to have this apartment. Neither of them really knew why Angel had offered, or why Spike had accepted, but they did. For some reason, Spike knew he needed to be here, in Los Angeles.
Feeling pent-up in the tiny apartment, Spike began to pace the room, staring at the empty walls. He'd always preferred a crypt to a house. Houses held memories of the living, but crypts held the false hopes of the dead. That's where he belonged, with the dead.
Needing some form of physical exertion, Spike grabbed the ledge above the door and began to do pull-ups. He felt the urge to push himself, to hurt. It was all because of the dream; the dream that had been coming to him more and more in the past few days. No, it wasn't a dream, he thought, a memory. Ever since he'd gotten his soul back, he'd been racked with guilt. It hurt so bad to think of what he had done. Pictures of death, blood, pain all flashed through his mind. He couldn't stop them. It was like a morbid slideshow. But even taking into count the thousands he'd hurt, this memory was the worst.