Chapter 4: Aran Linvail

Buffy walked through the door in the back wall of the barroom she'd seen several patrons walk through. It led into a space off the alley where two barrels of water stood open to the warm night. Buffy went to one of the barrels, splashed a handful of water over her face. She, Aquarra and Willow had no plan of action on how to rescue Dawn and Jaheira. She did know she wanted to get another sword than the one she had acquired during the skirmish where Jaheira had been kidnapped. The one she had just didn't feel right in her hand. Maybe she, Aquarra or Willow could trade the blade for a decent one, but she knew she'd have to wait at least until morning to do that.

"Slayer, you should sleep," Bodhi said from behind her.

Buffy turned slowly toward the vampire. She was willing to give the vampire the benefit of doubt. After all in her world; Angel had a soul and Spike, even though he had been chipped by the government, had helped her to protect Dawn. Besides in this world for all she knew vampires were good. Till she knew more she couldn't burn any bridges if it meant getting Jaheira and Dawn back. "Willow, Aquarra and I have to go back there," she said.

"To find your wife?" Bodhi asked as she walked Buffy.

"We're not married," Buffy said, "not yet anyways."

Bodhi smiled. "In the morning I can take you to see someone from the militia or someone from the council, maybe." She stepped beside Buffy and dunked her head into the water and came back up quickly, letting it cascade over her shoulders and onto the light fabric of her dress. "That does feel good." She ran her fingers through her hair, her eyes closed.

The wet dress began to stick to Bodhi's body, outlining small details of her body caused Buffy to look away. Buffy remembered the alure of what vampire's had to offer. After all she had slept with Angel and until she had broken Dracula's spell had been seduced by him.

"I am not the first am I?" Bodhi asked.

"No," Buffy said.

"She could be dead," Bodhi said too bluntly.

"You think I am saving myself for Jaheira?" Buffy asked. "Or is it you think because I have been with another vampire…"

"I can help you," Bodhi said as Buffy looked at her with a wrinkled brow, and she continued, "You need gold, don't you? Gaelan knows where she is. He knows things like that, but he's serious about the gold. You can kill him if you want to, but he won't tell you anything unless you pay him first. It's what he does."

"What are you asking me to do?" Buffy asked Bodhi.

"Aran Linvail," Bodhi said, "have you heard of him?"

"No, should I have?"

"He deserves to die," Bodhi said, "and there is a price on his head."

"Am I an assassin now?"

Bodhi smiled. "Technically isn't what a Slayer is? But if that word leaves a bad taste in your mouth, you can be a bounty hunter. Linvail is the assassin—a very prolific one. I know someone who will pay thirty thousand gold pieces for his head. They've got the coin, Slayer, and they will pay it."

Buffy looked at Bodhi sternly. "You want me to kill for gold?"

Bodhi smiled again. "Can you afford not to? You're wearing one of my dresses and have a stolen sword, Abdel, and that's all. By your own account, you're not even from here. I like you, but not everyone will."

Buffy sighed. "I will have to talk with Willow and Aquarra."

"Go on," Bodhi said.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Jaheira had a vague memory of the sound of water, and there was the motion that made her think she'd been on a boat. She was outside—or had been—and it had been night, but she couldn't see any stars. It took her three tries before she actually regained consciousness.

"She's alive," a voice said. It was a young woman's voice, tired and unenthusiastic.

Jaheira turned toward the voice, and something hurt her neck. She winced, and that made her face hurt. She closed her eyes, which filled with tears, but tried to keep her breathing steady.

"Where am I?" Jaheira asked, her voice scratchy and uneven.

"A cave," the voice replied.

This time Jaheira opened her eyes and saw the girl who had been dragged with her through the storm drain by the vampire woman. The girl was chained to the wall by a wide leather collar fastened tightly around her neck. The pain in Jaheira's own neck came from an identical strap. She tugged at her bonds, but they held fast, anchored firmly into the wall.

"My sister probably could have done something about those," the girl said. "But us …"

"My name is Jaheira," Jaheira said to her fellow prisoner, looking up to catch the young woman's surprisingly steady gaze.

"Dawn," the girl answered.

"Summers?" Jaheira asked.

"Yes," Dawn answered.

Jaheira smiled at Dawn. "I know your sister, Buffy and your friend, Willow."

"They're here?" Dawn asked.

"I assume you mean in Amn, yes," Jaheira said. "We have been looking for you, actually. Then Buffy and I were to marry."

"Buffy's not gay," Dawn protested.

"She and Willow said she was what you would call bisexual," Jaheira said. "How long have we been here?"

"I have no idea," Dawn answered. "Hard to tell in a cave, actually. I fell asleep for a while, I think. Maybe a couple of days."

"Since the storm drain?" Jaheira asked.

"Storm drain?"

"We need to get out of here," Jaheira said simply, not entirely surprised that Dawn hadn't been conscious of that part of their journey.

"Agreed," Dawn said.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

"According to Bodhi, he's a Shadow Thief," Buffy said. "Aran Linvail. She said he's an assassin for the Shadow Thieves. He kills for gold every day. "

"As much as I don't want to kill for money" Willow said. "I have to say that we need the money."

"I am in agreement with Willow," Aquarra said. "We need the gold. So we can get armor, better swords and stuff."

Buffy nodded as she stood and walked over to Bodhi. "We'll do it."

Bodhi smiled. "You're doing the right thing, Slayer," she said reassuringly.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Bodhi had known everything. She was right about everything. Every door. The sliding panel behind the bed in the third room at the left at the top of the stairs. She knew where the key was hidden behind the loose mortar. She knew exactly how to get them in there. As Buffy, Willow and Aquarra made their way through Aran Linvail's townhouse they were increasingly sure that Bodhi had set them up. Now they stood in a closet. In the bedroom beyond where they stood ready, Aran Linvail was making frivolous love with a girl who was obviously no stranger to frivolous lovemaking. Buffy, Aquarra and Willow had agreed it would be better for Aran Linvail to be alone.

They settled down in a squat and waited. Some time later they finally stopped, and Buffy, Aquarra and Willow heard Linvail say, "Just move." The girl said something they couldn't hear, but her tone was gruff and insulting. Her response was answered by a loud slap. She squealed, and there was the sound of something heavy falling and the dull squeak of furniture being shoved across a wood floor. That was they had to hear.

The closet door came off its hinges, and Buffy, Willow and Aquarra stepped out. Buffy and Aquarra brought their swords out in front of them. Aran Linvail looked up at them, and so did the girl. The girl was holding the left side of her face, but she wasn't bleeding. She looked surprised.

Aquarra and Buffy charged at him, the girl squealed, and Aran Linvail turned and flat out ran away, and he ran fast. "You okay?" Willow asked the girl who shrugged. She looked to Buffy and Aquarra. "Go, I'll make sure she is okay and then rejoin the two of you."

Buffy and Aquarra nodded as they followed Aran Linvail out an ornately carved mahogany door and into the townhouse's upstairs hallway.

"Who are you?" the retreating assassin called over his shoulder.

Buffy and Aquarra didn't answer. Linvail got to the top of the stairs still three or four steps ahead of the tip of either Buffy or Aquarra's swords. The assassin let himself fall down the stairs as much as he ran. They followed at a slightly more controlled pace.

"Who sent you?" Linvail called back again.

They ignored him again and kept on coming. Linvail hit the floor at the bottom of the long, narrow staircase and spun around with one hand on the knob at the end of the banister. The front door was only steps away. If Linvail made it outside, they would have to withdraw back into the house and sneak out the way they came as Aran Linvail raised whatever hue and cry he might be inclined to raise in the surely busy morning street outside.

Oddly, though, the assassin made no move toward the door.

"Are you just going to kill me, then?" Linvail called over his shoulder as he ran down a short hall parallel to the stairway.

Buffy and Aquarra followed, finally gaining a step on the fleeing man. Linvail passed through a swinging door at the end of the hall, and they burst through behind him. The knife slipped between two of Aquarra's ribs and tore through flesh, muscle, and some soft tissue.

Linvail had made it to his kitchen. As fast as Linvail was, Buffy was as fast as a vampire, which mean she was faster than him. She grabbed the knife and pulled the handle out of Aran Linvail's hand.

"Who are you?" the assassin asked again. Buffy brought her sword up. Linvail slid under the attack, and she could see the assassin's good eye register the reverse and anticipate her following attack. Linvail ducked and grabbed the knife from where Buffy had tossed it. He tried to stab Buffy, but shemanaged to get her sword in and down fast enough to swat the blade away. It was a good knife and didn't break, but Linvail grunted as the force of the parry obviously sent a painful vibration up his arm.

Linvail brought the knife down hard, and Buffy stepped to one side, avoiding it even as she stabbed hard and low at the assassin. Linvail avoided her sword as he hacked down again with the big knife, missing her as she sidestepped the attack.

"You can't kill me, woman," the assassin mocked. "I've killed more—"

Whatever he was going to say ended up as a bloody gurgle. Buffy sliced in so fast and so hard she surprised even herself. She nearly cut the assassin in half at the midsection. She put one foot on the assassin's chest and pushed him down. Blood was everywhere instantly.

"That's . . ." the assassin managed to say around a mouthful of blood, "that's too bad."

Aran Linvail died on the floor of his own kitchen.

Buffy spun to Aquarra with a look of concern for her half-sister. "Aquarra?" she asked as she knelt down next to the woman.

"I'm alright, Buffy," Aquarra said as Willow joined them.