A/N Reminder! Every chapter of this episode does contain scenes of domestic violence. They are all canonical - so if you are OK with the show, you will be OK with this ... but if not, give this one a miss. Thanks.

Billy

Part One

Down in the basement, Angel leaned into Cordelia from behind, wrapping his arms around her. He felt her body tense. 'Don't stiffen up,' he advised.

'Yeah, you either,' she retorted.

Perched on a table in the corner, where he was watching them, Doyle rolled his eyes. 'That's disgustin', Cordelia,' he said. She snickered. 'I thought it was funny.' She raised her sword and began to go through the series of movements Angel had taught her - he stayed behind her the whole way, guiding her through the steps. He was hyper aware of her warmth, and her scent, and her closeness. It filled his head and made him feel dizzy. But he was also aware of her boyfriend, sitting in the corner, enjoying the show.

Doyle was watching her closely, his eyes admiring and appreciative, she was very graceful with a blade - and she was following the steps Angel had shown her without hesitation; never stumbling, or uncertain - it was like she was performing a dance… but whilst holding a giant sword.

'Alright,' Angel said, taking a step away from her so he could also watch her appreciatively, 'a good defence is about moving the line of attack. When the bad guy comes at you, you want to step off the line.' He used his hands to guide her into a turn, so she was facing him, 'like this,' he jumped backwards to avoid the sharp end of the blade now pointing at him. 'Creating a new one. Every time you do, your opponent will be forced to adjust. Always make the other guy work.'

'Okay,' she said, lowering her sword and looking expectant. 'Move the line - then what?' Angel picked up a sword of his own, he didn't quite meet her eye as he spoke. 'Then,' he swung the sword, and she parried it, before moving again, 'just keeping moving the line.' They repeated the same motions. 'You'll be able to keep any attacker busy until.. You know...'

Doyle raised his eyebrows at that, and Cordelia looked less than impressed, as she parried the next blow and then came to a stop. 'What?' she demanded, 'he dies of old age?' It was Doyle's turn to snicker. 'Or you swoop in and save me?' she finished, her tone was accusatory.

Angel looked discomfited.

'Ah - c'mon man, she wants to learn how to fight, not swirl a sword around her head… however erotic that might be….' the Irishman trailed off, and then shook himself - forcing his mind back on topic. 'And she's great as this stuff - she's got the potential to be a really good fighter - but you gotta show her the right moves. This isn't about you bein' the big, strapping hero for once, bud. You gotta give her the tools to be a hero herself.'

'What he said,' Cordelia said to Angel, nodding along. 'Angel, I didn't ask you to train me so I could stave. I already know how to stave. Now I need to learn how to fight.' The vampire looked down at his feet, 'you don't think I would?' he asked. His tone was injured.

'Would what?' Cordelia just sounded irritated.

'Save you?' He still wasn't making eye contact. Doyle leaned forward, his eyes narrowing. This was what he had been talking to Cordelia about, the other day. Angel's reactions were all off, when it came to Cordy… and the half demon could only come up with one explanation for it. He wasn't worried, as such, he trusted Cordelia absolutely - he knew she loved him and him alone. And he trusted Angel - so far - for all his weirdness, he hadn't actually made a move. But he was still...concerned by this turn of events. It would make everything more difficult. More strained. It changed the way things had always been between the three of them, and - creature of habit that he was - he didn't think this particular change was for the better.

Like before, however, Cordelia didn't notice anything amiss. She just thought the vampire was being his usual dopey self. 'Men-folk not always there to protect the women-folk, you know?' she said, her tone turning her words into a mocking explanation - as if she thought Angel was a little hard of understanding. 'Besides, what if it turned out you were the guy I had to fight? Could happen.'

'She's got y' there, bud.' Doyle leaned back, again - and winked at Cordelia. 'No point in making her promise to kill y' dead if y' won't show her how.'

'OK,' though Angel didn't look happy with what he was agreeing to do. He raised his sword and took a stance, Cordelia copied him. 'When you put an adversary down, you wanna make sure he doesn't get up again. So like I showed you...' They moved through the steps in exact parallel, swinging the swords, slowly, around their heads and then lunging them outward. 'Force the guy to counter and he'll open up,' Angel told her, 'now we'll go at half speed until...' he went to put his sword away as he was talking. Cordelia interrupted him, 'no need,' she said. 'I got it. Three years of varsity cheer squad, I only ever have to be shown a move once.'

Angel looked dubious, and began to chuckle, 'you know, Cordelia, handling a lethal weapon is bit different to waving a pom pom.'

Cordelia glanced back at Doyle - a 'can you believe this guy?' expression on her face, he looked at her encouragingly, and she grinned. 'Ready! O-kay,' she called out like she was about to begin a cheer. Then, moving much faster than before, she repeated the steps Angel had shown her, until she had the vampire pinned in the corner - the sword at his throat. He glanced down at the blade. 'Go team!' he said weakly.

Cordy withdrew her blade, and she and her boyfriend laughed. 'That was great!' Doyle enthused. 'I wanna watch you beat Angel up some more - go again!' Angel threw him a dark look. 'I think that's enough training for today, don't you, Cordy?' the vampire asked.

'Fraidy cat!' Doyle muttered. But Cordelia agreed with Angel. 'I'm beat,' she said, 'and sweaty. I need to take a shower,' she glanced back at Doyle, 'you coming with?'

He slid off the table, immediately, 'well that's an ever better offer than watching you humiliate the dark avenger, I'm in.' He wrapped his arm around her and they headed for the stairs. Angel watched them go - his face kept carefully blank.

'You know - you are really good at this,' Doyle was saying, 'like - preternaturally good.'

'I told you,' Cordelia replied, 'I'm a cheerleader. My reflexes and coordination are incredibly well honed.'

'Yeah but... Even for a cheerleader - from the hellmouth - y' real good at it.'

'There's something else I'm real good at,' her voice was teasing, suggestive… the basement door closed behind them, and Angel continued to put the weapons away, trying to keep his mind as blank as his face.

Lilah strode through the halls of Wolfram and Hart as fast as her long legs could carry her. Her secretary scurried along at her heels, answering her rapidly fired questions - security had brought him in twenty minutes ago, and his family were already on their way. But still, Lilah wasn't happy. She should have been pulled out of her meeting immediately - this took precedence over all other cases.

She entered her office - and her mood became even blacker. Gavin was in there - chatting away to the man security had brought in. He had no right to talk to this man - to be anywhere near this case - Lilah had worked damn hard to get Billy released from hell. She had had to purposefully piss off the caped crusader, himself, and then force him to work for her… though the opportunity to disfigure and maim that hated, runty little half breed sidekick of his had been a plus.

'Lilah,' Gavin smiled his insincere smile, 'I was just keeping Billy, here, company.' Lilah smiled back, equally insincerely, 'thanks, awfully Gavin. I'll take it from here. Billy, where have you been? Your family have been worried.'

'Went for a walk,' the man shrugged in reply.

'A walk?' she sounded disbelieving, 'for three days?'

'The boy was feeling cooped up,' Gavin said to her, still smiling that sickly, dangerous smile, like he had scored a triumph - got one over her - by getting to Billy before her. She had to get rid of him. 'Gavin - why don't you go - close an escrow, or something?' She tried to make sure that her disdain for his particular specialism within the law dripped from her every word. Then she spoke to Billy again - reminding him he wasn't supposed to go out alone, reminding him of what happened last time. 'You don't want to end up in that awful place again do you?' She was keeping her voice soft and entreating - sympathetic, though this man made her skin crawl. He made her want to back away, as far as possible, and then run from the room… but, if he had a similar effect on Gavin, then the real estate lawyer wasn't showing his discomfort - and neither would she.

The office door opened again, and Billy's uncle - Congressman Blim - stood there, ready to take his errant nephew home. 'I trust you managed to stay out of trouble, this time, Billy?' the Congressman said.

'No trouble.'

Congressmen Blim looked at Lilah, 'well, this is the second time you have returned our nephew safely to us,' he looked at Gavin, 'thank you.'

'Our pleasure,' Gavin said. Billy and his uncle started to leave. 'Our pleasure in the sense that...' Lilah called to their departing backs, but the door closed behind them. She turned to Gavin, 'he had nothing to do with it.' She glared at him. He smiled at her. She told him to get out.

'I wasn't finished,' he replied.

'No.' she squared up to him - she was taller than he was, in her heels. 'You really were. To make myself clear - you go sniffing around one of my clients again, I think we're gonna have a problem.'

The smile finally dropped from Gavin's face. In fact his expression seemed to screw up with rage. 'Think?' he asked. 'Who told you you could think? You know, why don't you try listening for a while - instead of flapping that fat mouth of yours?'

Lilah laughed in his face. 'You weren't exactly captain of the debate team, were you, Gavin?' she said, turning her back on him. She didn't see the way his body tensed, or his eyes clouded over - all his usual smarm and polish, his cultivated civilised demeanour, evaporating in the face of her laughter. 'You know? It's times like this I still miss Lindsey,' she continued, 'at least he knew how to …'

Gavin lunged forward and grabbed her by her hair. He smashed her into the glass shelves on the wall, and, once she had fallen to the ground amidst the tumbling, sharp fragments, he dove on top of her. He wrapped his hands around her neck - and squeezed...

...

Walking down the corridors, Billy heard the sound of the smashing glass, and smiled to himself.

The team were all round at Wesley's place. Gunn and Angel were sat on the couch - playing a video game - and Doyle and Fred were perched on either arm, watching. Wesley and Cordelia were in the kitchen. The British man poured the woman a cup of tea, and she took it with a smile.

'Ah c'mon man, y' gotta kick him - kick him!' Doyle's frustrated voice came floating through into the kitchen, he was trying to coach Angel to victory - but was not having much luck. Cordelia shook her head, ruefully. 'You know? Wes, I'm not sure this was really the way you envisioned tonight panning out,' she told her boss.

'I don't know what you mean,' he said, quickly, pouring himself his own cup of tea.

'Dead! So dead!' Gunn's triumph was audible even in the next room. 'So very very dead, Just how dead are you, huh?'

'I'm tired of being the dead one,' Angel sulked.

'Y' didn' kick him,' Doyle was exasperated, 'I told y' to kick him. You needed to press x and y together and finish him off!'

'You know? How about you leave fighting strategy to me and I leave vision having to you, huh?' Angel snapped at his friend. Gunn was laughing. Fred had begun to smile, as well.

Wesley turned to look through the doorway, at his noisy coworkers; and when he turned back, it was to find Cordelia fixing him with a knowing, but pitying, look. 'If you want to get to know Fred better, maybe next time don't invite the entire gang over to your intimate dinner for two,' she said, 'I feel a bit silly…' she counted on her fingers, 'sixth wheeling.'

He began to sputter, and protest - but then quailed under her continued knowing gaze. 'Was I that obvious?' he asked. She leaned forward, and lowered her voice to a whisper. 'I don't think anybody else noticed.'

'Not even Doyle?' the watcher asked. The Irishman was usually pretty observant. But Cordelia looked through into the next room, where her boyfriend was just as glued to the t.v screen as everyone else, and shook her head. 'He's having Angel issues at the moment,' she confided, 'he keeps banging on about … something…' she frowned, 'I'm not sure what, exactly… but it isn't leaving him much time to pay attention to anyone else.'

'Not even you?' he took a sip of his tea and arched an eyebrow at her. But she laughed, 'oh - he always makes time for me - I make sure of that.' Then she pulled her attention away from the others and looked back at Wesley, her expression stern. 'And if you want what Doyle and I have - with Fred - then you have to speak up. No more hiding behind the rest of us - no more group gatherings. Just go right up to her and tell her how you feel.'

The watcher began to protest again, horrified at the prospect of having to declare his intentions to the object of his affection, but he was interrupted by Doyle yelling out and falling off the arm of the couch...

...

The half demon lay on the floor, the heels of his hands digging into his eyes, as his body twitched and fitted under the onslaught of the vision pain. Cordelia immediately abandoned her tea, scraped her chair back, and ran into the next room. Wesley followed on, more slowly. As he came into the living room, Doyle came round from his vision, and pulled himself upright. Angel immediately vacated his place on the sofa, and ushered his friend into the space. Cordelia perched on the arm, beside him. 'What did you see?' she asked, her voice gentle - he looked freaked out, and she guessed that this had been a bad one.

He leaned forward, and held his head in his hands. 'It was a convenience store, on the Westside, a man was attacking a woman.' He took a deep breath - and let it out as a sigh of profound sadness. He shook his head. 'She was his wife… why would…?' He looked up at Cordelia, and, as she looked back, she could see the pain in his eyes, the toll that bearing the visions took on him - the way the evil he saw ate away at his soul. She reached her arm out, and stroked his hair, soothingly, her own eyes clouding with tears. 'We'll help her,' she promised.

'Right - Yeah,' Angel became all business, after the shocked silence that had followed Doyle's pronouncement. 'How many convenience stores on the Westside?'

Fred took it as a mathematical problem. 'Well, even if you just include Santa Monica, Beverly Hills and Malibu, the combined population is something like a hundred thirty thousand people spread over more than thirty square miles. And given that…'

'A lot,' Gunn interrupted. Fred glanced down at him. 'I was - getting there.'

Wesley nodded and began to outline the plan - they would split into two teams. He and Gunn would …

'No.' Doyle suddenly interrupted. His face had taken on a blank, closed expression - as if he were trying to conceal his true feelings, not let the emotion show. 'This murder - it happened a week ago. This poor lady has been dead for a whole week. We're too late to save her.' He glanced up at Fred, still perched on the arm - and thought of all the other times he had failed as a seer. 'I'm too late to save her. Again.'

They had returned to the Hyperion. Wesley had left them, for a while, and when he returned he was carrying a file under his arms. He dropped it on the counter, and everyone gathered round to look at it. 'It's everything about the crime I believe you saw in your vision,' the watcher told Doyle. He had police reports, the husband's confession, stills from the CCTV footage - and, he cautioned - the crime scene photos. He had bought them from a source - the kind of person who would sell such information to the tabloids if the victim or perpetrator were well known.

Everyone began to sift through the evidence. Cordelia picked up a crime scene photo of the murdered woman. Doyle took it off her. 'Don't look at that,' he said to her. 'It's bad enough I have to see … you shouldn't have to look at pictures o' my visions. It's not your atonement.'

'Charlene Baird,' Gunn read from the crime report. Wesley nodded. 'The victim. She and the perpetrator were married for thirty years. No history of domestic violence.'

'Why'd he do it?' Fred asked.

'He said she wouldn't listen to him,' Wesley replied. 'He was trying to get her to stop talking.' Everybody visibly recoiled at his words, their disgust at the man - and their sorrow for his victim - clearly playing across their faces.

'But I don't get it,' Gunn said, 'the guy confessed. Case closed. Why are The Powers running visions through poor Irish's head?'

'I don't know,' said Wesley.

'I do.' Angel had been looking at one of the stills from the CCTV footage. He put it down on the counters for the others to look at. 'Oh man,' Gunn said. Wesley stared. His face tensed up, but he said nothing.

'Oh,' Fred gasped, looking between the picture and Doyle. She bit her lip. 'I'm sorry,' she whispered. Cordelia and Doyle both glanced at each other - and then looked back at the picture. 'I don't get it,' Cordelia said, 'what's wrong?' Doyle looked at the blurry black and white image of the young man standing in the convenience store - the timestamp told him this was captured just minutes before the attack. He was pretty sure he'd never seen him before. 'Him?' he asked the others. 'Who is he?' No one answered.

Wesley, Fred and Gunn sat on the round sofa in the middle of the lobby - listening to Doyle's fury, from a distance. Angel had taken him into Wes's office - and Cordelia had followed them in. The door was closed, but the three associates could still hear every word that the half demon yelled. They looked at each other, uncomfortably, unsure what to do.

...

'What d'y' mean.. This is the guy?' Doyle yelled into Angel's face. He was pacing up and down, in the enclosed space, but he stopped whenever he wanted to shout something.

'This is the man that I let out of hell a couple of months back, when you were attacked by your visions.' The vampire kept his voice gentle and quiet. Doyle snorted an angry breath of disbelief. 'Y' let him out of hell… and then just let him wander free?'

'Doyle,' Cordelia tried to cut in, to mollify him. But he didn't want to listen, he turned on her instead. 'Don't y' get it?' he yelled. 'This is on me. That dead woman is on me. She's my fault! She's dead because I couldn't handle the visions.' He turned back to the desk and swept everything off to the floor, in his rage.

...

Out in the lobby, the others flinched, as they heard the sound of the books and files hitting the floor.

...

'Doyle - that isn't true,' Cordelia said to him. 'This isn't your fault.' But he just laughed, bitterly, 'yeah - well, you tell The Powers that, Princess. 'Cause they seem pretty clear about where they lay the blame. Why else d'y think they chose to rerun Charlene Baird's brutal murder in my head a whole week later? If it was just to warn me - they could've sent a vision of his next victim, before it happened.' He shook his head - still furious, 'this is another punishment. And I deserve it. I let this happen.'

'No, Doyle! We all made the decision for Angel to rescue that guy. We all made the decision that you were too important to leave to suffer. As I recall, you were largely unconscious when these decisions were being made. If it's on any of us - it's on all of us.'

'Then why am I the only one that's being punished by The Powers?' He shook his head again, hanging it low. He began to mutter. 'I should never've…'

'No.' Angel cut through his words. 'You did nothing wrong. I saved him to save you - and I'd do it again. I'm the one that let him out - and I'm the one that will stop him. But this isn't your fault and it isn't my fault and it isn't the rest of the team's fault. We're not responsible. But I know who is…'

BAM. The door to Lilah's apartment was kicked in. She was pouring herself a brandy, and she jumped at the noise. She smirked when she saw who it was. 'You know that's a very dramatic entrance - except for the part where you can't enter.'

'You seem a little jumpy there, Lilah,' Angel said to her.

'It's been a long day at the office.'

'Then you know that your boy is on the loose. You know what he's doing.'

'It's been brought to my attention.' Her voice sounded bitter - and, as she walked towards the door, Angel finally caught sight of her face. Her eye was blackened, a dark purple bruise spreading around her socket - and the lid was swollen shut. The same bruising covered her jaw, there was a cut across her nose - and clearly discernible hand prints around her neck. The vampire's mouth fell open. 'God, are you…?'

'I'm fine - you should see the other guy.'

'I plan to,' he assured her.

'Billy never touched me,' she told him. But he knew that - he had some kind of power that made… 'Billy never touched me,' she interrupted, 'and you can't touch him. Nobody can. Billy as in Blim. as in Congressman Blim's nephew. That family is the closest thing this country has to royalty. They'd own half the eastern seaboard even if they weren't clients of ours. The law won't go near him.'

'I'm not the law,' Angel said. But that made Lilah laugh. Billy wasn't some three horned Gurnarbeast that Angel could chop into meatloaf. This was more complicated. More delicate.

'Why are you still protecting him after what he did?'

That made her laugh again. 'I'm sorry, but this deep chivalric concern coming from the only man who definitely wants to kill me is just a little too much to take on a day like this.'

'Your hands are shaking.'

'Stay the hell away from my client.' She slammed the door in his face, and Angel rang Wesley.

Doyle came out of the bathroom, the lobby was empty except for Cordelia. 'Where'd everybody go?' he asked.

'Um - I think Fred went back up to her room.'

'And Wes and Gunn?'

Cordelia twisted her mouth up in anguish, and glanced around the room looking for a comforting lie. 'Cordelia?' His voice had a warning edge to it.

'They - they went out when Angel called. He has a lead on this guy,' she admitted.

'And they didn't think to tell me?'

She looked anguished again. 'Wes said… and Angel agreed… that you shouldn't be in on this. It's too raw for you. You're…'

'They're benching me?' He sounded furiously disbelieving.

'No. No. not at all… but…'

'Damnit Cordelia!' he turned and knocked everything off the counter - the same as he had back in Wes's office. The crime scene photos fluttered to the floor. 'This. Is. All. My. Fault. Do you get that? Do you understand that? This is all happenin' because of me. And the guys decide - behind my back - to not even give me a chance to put it right.' He slammed his fist down on the counter. Cordelia flinched. 'You're scaring me,' she said - her voice small.

She had only ever seen him like this once before - back in Pylea, when he had first found out he couldn't have children - and he decided he would give his visions away to spite the universe. Doyle just didn't get angry - not seriously so - and both times his uncharacteristic explosion of rage had been linked to his visions - to his life as a demon and his path as a seer. She didn't want it to, but it frightened her that, deep down, he was still so angry about his demon half - still so unwilling to accept the course of his life - and his gift from The Powers - even though it was that that had brought them together in the first place. It made her worry that she was fooling herself into believing they were happy - for how could they be truly happy if he was still crippled with self loathing and anger?

He took some deep breaths, as if to calm himself down, and then looked at her. 'Help me?' he asked.

'What?'

'I need to stop this guy, Cordelia. I have to do this. And if the guys won't let me be a part of their little investigation - then I gotta run my own case. Will you help me?'

'Doyle ...I…'

'Please?' The anger seemed to have drained out of his voice. His eyes had that same pained expression they had worn just after he had received the vision - and, once more, Cordelia was acutely aware of the heavy burden he carried - having his mind exposed to so much suffering. 'OK,' she nodded, 'I'll help you.'

The guys pulled up outside of the Blim estate - imposing cast iron gates barred their entrance. 'Not very welcoming is it?' Gunn said. Wesley shook his head, 'and I don't suppose ringing the doorbell will work either.'

'We could sneak in dressed as security guards,' the street fighter suggested.

'Yes - or how about…'

Ignoring them both, Angel glanced up at the gates… and then leapt straight over them - fifteen feet into the air - in a single bound. He disappeared into the bushes. Gunn and Wesley watched him go. 'You wanna go next?' Gunn asked.

...

As Angel moved through the grounds, Billy came into view - talking on the phone just the other side of some French windows. Hidden as the vampire was, it seemed like Billy could sense him - as he lowered the phone and stared out, looking directly at where Angel was concealed.

Using all his speed, Angel abandoned the bushes, jumped over the low wall and then threw a metal garden chair right through the patio doors. The glass smashed and he stepped inside. 'Why doesn't it surprise me that I can walk straight in here?' he said.

'As far as I'm concerned you have a standing invitation.' Billy's voice was calm, polite, unruffled. He was not fazed by the destruction of the patio doors or the entrance of a vampire. If anything he seemed a little amused.

'You're not quite human, are you?'

Billy shrugged. 'Not quite. More than you.'

'And you like to hurt women do you Billy? That make you feel like a man?'

'I've never hurt a woman in my life.' He smiled, 'I just like to watch.'

'Not anymore,' the vampire promised, 'I'm sending you back.' But Billy only smiled again - he didn't think so.

'Hands where I can see them, turn around,' a male voice interrupted. Angel put his hands in the air. 'LAPD,' a female voice said. He turned - the cops had arrived - already. But there was a surprise in store for him. 'I think you're looking for me,' Billy said to the police.

'William Blim?'

He nodded - and then asked if they had found the body, had she been where he said she was? The cops confirmed that she had, and told Billy they were taking him in for questioning. Angel looked between them, not really understanding what was going on. The male cop walked towards the young man, ready to cuff him. 'Make sure you read him his rights, Sanchez,' his partner said.

As Sanchez reached out to snap on the cuffs, Billy laid a hand on the cop's wrist. 'Will those be necessary?' he said, 'I won't give you any trouble.' The male cop glanced towards the female cop, and she nodded. He put his cuffs away and led Billy to the door.

He didn't notice, but the place where Billy's fingertips had touched his skin glowed bright red, for a moment, before returning back to normal.

As they left, the female cop looked at Angel, 'who are you?'

'He's no one,' Billy told her. And the small group - the cops and their prisoner - exited the house. Angel stared after them, as they went. He wasn't sure exactly what had happened but, somehow, Billy had managed to slip from his grasp.

The police car drove down the road. The woman cop was driving - and Sanchez was criticising. 'Hey why are we going down this way? I thought I told you to take Pico.'

'Relax Sanchez we'll get there.'

In the back seat, Billy began to smile to himself.

'Did you just tell me to relax?' Sanchez demanded, 'you think you can talk to me like that?'

'I'd talk to you with my finger, but I like both hands on the wheel when I'm driving,' his partner retorted.

'Pull over.'

'What?'

'Pull over.'

'What is your problem?'

'I'll tell you my problem. I got a woman here who won't listen.'

Billy's smile grew even wider, as Sanchez dove for the wheel, the cops struggled - and the car skidded out of control...

A/N Thank you Christinedestler for leaving such a lovely review (I'd have pmed you the other day - but you've got pm's blocked, so I had to wait til now). I really appreciate you taking the time to comment, it made my day (and inspired me to pull my finger out and actually get the end of this season finished - I'm already suppose to be six weeks into season 4 ... not so much, so thank you).