Chapter 4
The City of Dreams
She stood shivering and holding Angel's leather coat around her, the bottom of it grazed the top of her scuffed black shoes. Angel stood awkwardly, not knowing what to say.
"You'll need something to sleep in." He said before leaving the room before quickly returning with a black long-sleeved t-shirt. He held it out to her. "It'll be a bit big but I haven't got anything else." She took the t-shirt and hugged it to herself, she watched Angel intently.
"Thank you." She still felt like she was in a dream and was trying to figure out whether this man had brought her here to really protect her or if she was expected to do what she always did whenever she was alone in a bedroom with a man. She glanced at the door before looking down and placing the soft, clean-smelling t-shirt on the bed and letting the heavy leather coat slide down her body. She caught it with her hands and placed that gently on the bed. Angel averted his eyes from her, muttered a goodnight and left the room.
Amy shakily blew out the breath she'd been holding before sobbing and crumbling to the ground as tears blurred her vision.
Angel walked down stairs feeling a little embarrassed that he had stayed in the room until she started getting changed.
"How is she?" Wesley asked off-handedly as he skimmed through passages in the multiple ancient volumes he had opened on his desk.
"Uhh she's fine. Resting, I think." Cordelia rolled her eyes. Gunn walked through the hotel doors holding his axe.
"Been to all my contacts and they haven't heard anything about a girl who's blood makes them immortal… yet." He added the last word on gloomily.
"What do you mean yet? How are you so sure that they'll hear about it?" Cordelia asked, clearly confused.
"Vampire makes himself immortal, he'll want to tell all his buddies the tale and how he got that way. I'm guessing that by the end of the week, everyone will have heard." Gunn shrugged.
As if on cue to contradict Gunn's theory, a trio of vampires walked casually into the lobby. Their eyes fixed on Cordelia and they all ran for her.
Angel caught and staked one as he jumped over the desk, Gunn swiftly decapitated another but the third vampire already had Cordelia held by the neck. Cordelia tried to remain calm but couldn't as she saw the unfamiliar panic on Angel and Gunn's faces. Realising that there wasn't really anything they could do she stamped her heel down onto the vampires foot causing him to scream in pain and let go of her.
Gunn seized this opportunity and quickly ran forward to kill the vampire leaving Cordelia coughing in the mist of dust.
"Or maybe they'll all have heard by the end of the night." Gunn said lightly.
Amy stood watching over the banister. She probably should have been scared that she just witnessed three guys explode into a cloud of dust but she'd seen worse things and she felt safer here in the house of exploding dust people than in the house of sleaze and crime.
She placed her hand on the banister to steady herself as dizziness hit her like a gunshot to the head. There was a dull ache in her head as she waited for the dizziness to stop. She tried to remember the last time she'd eaten but couldn't. She had no money or food so she went back to the room Angel had put her in and pulled a packet of cigarettes and a lighter out of her jacket pocket. She smoked one cigarette and hoped that Angel wouldn't mind.
As her appetite subsided she laid down in the bed, the covers covering up to her waist. For the first time in years she slept peacefully in a place she didn't know, with people she had never met before but where she felt safe.
Angel felt groggy as he walked down the stairs to the welcoming and familiar smell of freshly made coffee. He poured himself a cup and drank deeply before making his way over to Cordelia. He stood in front of her desk and smiled sweetly.
"What?" She asked, when Angel didn't respond she glanced up at him and looked worried at his unnerving smile.
"Can I borrow some clothes?" He asked cautiously, Cordelia frowned.
"I don't think they're going to fit you but okay…" She started to get up.
"No," Angel laughed. "for Amy." Cordelia hesitated but went and got the only spare outfit she had there - a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. She handed them over reluctantly. Angel beamed.
"Thanks." He took the clothes in one hand and walked upstairs. He knocked gently before entering, taking care to be quiet in case she was asleep. The bed was empty and made and Angel started to worry that she had left but saw her clothes folded with his long black coat at the side of the bed. He was confused, where could she possibly go without any clothes. The ensuite bathroom door opened and Amy walked out wearing a small towel. She stopped suddenly when she saw Angel. When he heard her he looked round but when he saw her lack of clothes he wished he hadn't. He turned his back on her and placed the clothes on the bed.
"Sorry. I brought you some clean clothes." Angel said keeping his back turned.
"Thank you, I had a shower, I hope you don't mind." She said quietly, feeling awkward.
"That's fine, no problem. I'll see you downstairs." He left the room quickly.
Amy stood still feeling awkward in her towel before quickly dressing and going downstairs.
"How are the clothes?" Cordelia asked brightly when she saw Amy walking down the stairs.
"They're fine, thank you, just a bit big." She tugged at the waistband of the jeans. Cordelia scowled before walking away.
Gunn met Amy's eyes and smiled, she looked a lot better than last night. Her long hair was damp and loose about her shoulders, she wore jeans and a white t-shirt that were slightly too big for her which made Gunn realize just how skinny she was.
"Who's coming with me to get some breakfast?" Gunn asked loudly, Wesley's head appeared out of his office.
"Yes please!" He beamed, he wasn't one to turn down food and he'd been working all night, if you ignore that 2 hour nap he took around 4am.
"Yeah, sure. I'm starving." Cordelia said and went to go get her jacket. Angel and Amy just stood around awkwardly.
"Amy? You coming?" Gunn asked, she smiled and shook her head lightly. "Why not?" Gunn pressed.
"Uhh, I'm not hungry." She lied not wanting to tell them that she had no money, it'd sound like she was just asking for breakfast to be bought for her and she hated that. The girl who worked here whose name she couldn't remember was looking at her, she could feel her eyes looking disapprovingly at her razor hip bones and her tooth pick arms.
Gunn frowned worriedly, he'd seen people on the street die from starvation and this girl was definitely anorexic.
"Well just come and have a coffee then, it's on me." He coaxed she smiled.
"Okay." She looked at Angel questioningly.
"I'll stay here and watch the phones." He said and sat down next to the phone. Gunn put his arm around Amy and they make their way out of the lobby.
"He's got her staying at his place?" Lilah asked disbelievingly, Lindsay nodded.
"Well, he is charming." Lindsay thought aloud.
"As charming as blood-suckers go, yeah." Lilah got up and started to pace, Lindsay adjusted his chair to watch her. "We need a plan, we need to get someone in there to lead her away from those goody two-shoes."
"Well, I have some information, from a source who chooses to remain nameless, that she just got out of a pretty heavy relationship." Lindsay said knowingly, Lilah turned to face him, not sure if she understood.
"You want us to contact the ex and send him in to make it up?" Lindsay looked disappointed in her and shook his head.
"No, Angel's had the pleasure of meeting him so he'd be on red alert, also, I think the ex would have problems handing her over to us to be bled to death because she is his best hooker." Lindsay explained. Lilah's perfectly tweazed eyebrow raised.
"She's a hooker? We're not going to be able to sell this 'immortalitising' blood if it's HIV positive." Lilah fretted but Lindsay just smiled broadly.
"No, my source assures me that she's clean, as clean as hookers get anyway. What I was hoping is that we can get someone, who's on our side obviously, to just get her away from Angel and his pals long enough for us to snatch her." Lindsay said simply.
"That's it… that's your master plan?" Lilah said, she sat down and leaned her head on her hand. "God, we're never going to get hold of this girl." She moaned.
"What? Of course we are." Lindsay laughed.
"No, you don't understand. This girl's blood creates immortality, right? Angel understands that if this blood gets out, there'll be an epidemic of immortal beasties, unkillable. Even Angel can't beat that. So, he'll keep the girl within 6 feet of him and not you, not I could tear her away from him. Stubborn bastard." Lilah said as she poured herself a scotch. Lindsay just smiled and left the room, it should have worried Lilah but instead it made her smile. Maybe Lindsay and his stubborn determination could actually pull it off.
"So what'll it be?" The waitress droned.
"I'll have some french toast, please." Cordelia said. Gunn studied the menu carefully.
"I'll have scrambled eggs on toast, please." Wesley said politely.
"Blueberry pancakes, please." Gunn said triumphantly at having decided what to eat. Everyone looked at Amy who hadn't even picked up a menu.
"Just coffee, please." She said quietly. The waitress noted it down and nodded.
"Any of you want coffee?" She asked the others, they all nodded and the waitress left leaving an awkward silence at the table.
"So, where are you from?" Wesley asked, Cordelia scowled, Wesley wasn't exactly the greatest word-smith that ever lived.
"New York, originally but I moved out here when I was…" She paused to think. "sixteen." She finished.
"Why so early?" Wesley pried. Cordelia cast him a disapproving glance but couldn't help but wonder herself.
"There was a… thing with my… parents, I freaked out, made a bad decision and left." She explained choosing her words carefully, she didn't really want these strangers knowing all about her past. She needed friends, not people who thought she was a dysfunctional mess.
"All the way from New York to L.A?" Cordelia asked in disbelief, Amy looked at her coldly.
"Yeah… so?" Amy said protectively, Cordelia raised her eyebrows.
"Why L.A?" Cordelia asked, her tone remaining normal even though there was something about this girl that really made her want to lay into her - and not just in the verbal sense – but aside from the fact that she was wearing her clothes, Cordelia also knew deep down that she hadn't done anything seriously wrong apart from appearing like a dirty skank with a short temper.
The coffee arrived and Amy took a long thoughtful sip, wondering why she had actually come to L.A. Finally she came to the conclusion and with mock-naivety and a regretful tone she told them.
"Because it's the city of dreams."
Okay so this chapter took longer than it should have but I've been on holiday and I think that it's longer than the rest...
Reviews would be nice you kind people.