Chapter 6-It's a Dirty Job
The maternity ward at Sunnydale Memorial wasn't exactly a place where Spike could go unnoticed. He stood by the doors to 'The Birthing Center' contemplating his next move. He could wait a few more hours until the witches arrived, or just go in.
I could be someone's father he concluded as he removed his duster and then pushed through the double-doors.
Spike slowly walked down a short, dimly lit corridor, noting an empty waiting room off to his right. The 'visitor' threw in his coat and kept going. Up ahead was the nurses station, and beyond that a long hallway. Taking a deep breath, he casually approached the desk.
"Can I help you, sir?" asked a short, brunette woman dressed in pink hospital scrubs.
It suddenly occurred to him that although he might pass for someone's daddy, he'd actually need a mommy to be convincing.
"Yes, love. I heard my cousin was having 'er baby, thought I'd get down here to greet the little nippa'," he fibbed with a wide grin.
"Oh? What's her name?" the desk nurse questioned with a touch of suspicion.
Just then, an agonizing scream came from behind a door near the desk.
Spike wrinkled his brow and nodded, "That sounds like her, now."
"Mrs. Trent?"
He nodded again.
"Well, she's going to be a while. She's been laboring for a few hours, but she's not even halfway dilated. It could take from four to eighteen hours at this rate, maybe longer.
Perhaps you should just go back home, get some sleep and come back in a few hours," she suggested as if she'd said the same sentence a thousand times.
"If you don't mind, I'd rather wait here," Spike countered politely.
"That's fine. I understand; the arrival of a new member to the family can be so exciting. There's a waiting room by the entrance. Another one is all the way down the hall past the nursery, turn left and you'll see it. That one is more comfortable," she directed him with a knowing grin.
"Thanks, pet, " he nodded and walked away.
Spike walked past several doors to where the hall broke to his left, revealing the partial glass wall of the nursery. The main desk was directly across from the nursery. Not wanting to draw any more attention to himself he continued down the hall and turned left into another short walkway. He peered briefly into the waiting area, saw a few people sleeping inside, and moved on. He traversed the short distance of the hall, which lead to yet another long corridor, parallel to the one he just came through. In this passageway he could hear the muffled sounds of groans and grunts coming through the one of the doors to his left, but otherwise the place was eerily quiet. After a few more steps, he saw a door to his right with a clear glass pane marked, 'NICU-2'. Inside, he could see two square plexi-glass incubators, each of which had a series of tubes and wires leading to the small forms on the mattresses. Otherwise the room was empty. The next door, 'NICU-1', was obviously the main unit. There, two nurses were seated at a long desk on the left side of the room. A row of black screen monitors lined the shelf behind them, flashing bits of medical data in luminous green. Several infants lay sleeping in clear plastic bassinets around the room. To the right of the desk, was a closed door that led back to the other intensive care unit.
"Bloody hell!" muttered the frustrated vamp as he turned back towards the way he came.
Right then the door to his right burst open, and out flew a gurney carrying a moaning pregnant woman. A doctor was pushing her, as several other people scurried behind. The once silent hall was now full of excitement as they raced the stretcher down the corridor towards the OR. The door to the neo-natal intensive care unit flung out and one of the nurses joined the crowd of running people. Spike was nothing, if not an opportunist. Quickly, he reached for the doorknob of 'NICU-2' and slipped inside undetected.
Now, standing in the dim room, Spike could only stare at the two incubators before him. He didn't think he would get this far and wondered again if he should wait for Willow and Tara to arrive. They were suppose to bring some sort of sleeping dust and temporarily knock-out any nearby staff with it. Now he wasn't sure if that plan would be wise, given what he'd just witnessed on the hall. What if an emergency came up, and some key personnel were put out of commission?
Better to take my chances, he reasoned.
Spike moved closer to the incubators, so he could read the little cards that were taped on them.
Best be knowin' I'm about to bite the right ones
Satisfied that these were indeed the correct pair, Spike finally took a hard look at the tiny creatures before him.
"Oh, bloody hell on earth," he murmured sadly when he saw them. They're so small! Can't weigh much more than a coupla pounds. Doubt there's even half a pint o' blood in each.
Not only were they small, but they had wires attached all over, and tubes everywhere. It wasn't like he could easily reach in and pick one up; he worried that he might set off the monitors in the next room. Spike surveyed the containers again, and saw several arm holes that were used to handle the infants. The only way he felt he could get the job done safely was to bring a tiny foot through one of the openings.
Spike closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to rid himself of the sick feeling rising in his gut. It wasn't as if he had never eaten a baby. Dru was rather fond of them, 'loike litt'l dolls,' she would say. Now here he was, about to taste two more, again for the sake of the woman he loved. Bleedin' ponce that I am he thought ruefully. He'd be a monster, a man, or a three-legged toad if it made her happy.
Shaking his head as if to drive the thoughts away, Spike gingerly reached inside the first incubator and gently moved the baby as close to a hole as possible. He knelt down, and slowly pulled the little appendage through the hole. The foot was about an inch and a half at most, and had a Band-Aid on its heel from where they had taken blood. Spike carefully lifted the bandage, revealing the puncture wound.
"Well, that's convenient," he commented softly.
Get on with it, mate he urged himself. Spike slipped on his game face and placed a single fang over the wound, piercing through the skin just enough to draw blood. The infant only twitched slightly, but remained motionless as the vampire slowly sucked its life's blood.
It was barely a mouthful, maybe two tablespoons, yet without warning Spike's vision darkened.
"Gah!!!!" Spike grunted as he fell backwards; his head felt like it was splitting open. He hadn't even swallowed, and the red liquid dripped from his mouth when he had cried out in agony.
After a moment, his vision cleared and the pain subsided. Wiping his mouth, he sat up to check on the baby. The newborn looked peaceful and it was still breathing, but writhing alongside the human offspring was the demon spawn. It looked to Spike like one of those miniature Halloween skeletons you hang on your rearview mirror, except in had red glowing eyes…and it was alive.
"You're kind of cute," he said as he reached back inside, grabbed the diminutive devil and yanked it out.
"Be a neat pet for a vamp like me, but don't suppose that'd work too well," he considered before he crushed it into pieces and watched it disintegrate into nothing.
Moving briskly now, he repeated the process on the other sibling, without thought this time. He just wanted to get out of there. After he finished the dirty work, he hurriedly replaced the bandages to their heels, wiping off any excess blood with a nearby tissue. Before he left the room, he checked the hallway to see if it was clear and stealthily made his exit.
Spike made his way back to the entrance, stopping to talk to Suspicious Pink Nurse before leaving the ward.
"Listen, darlin'…decided you were right, and I should go home and wait. Be a love, and don't tell 'er I was here. I want to surprise 'em," he declared with a cheeky grin, proud of the story he'd concocted.
Pink Nurse nodded her approval. "Mum's the word," she whispered.
"Mum…funny," he stated dryly before he turned to leave. " 'Night."
The nurse only grunted, already wrapped up in checking through her duty roster.
Feeling greatly relieved, Spike snatched up his leather duster in the waiting room and headed out the door. Immediately he found a phone and called Willow and Tara.
"H-hello?" groggily came Tara's voice on the line.
"It's Spike, your resident monster. Just callin' to let you know, the deed's been done. So you two can stay home and cuddle all cozy like," he spat out bitterly. He was still angry with the blonde witch for coming up with the plan in the first place.
He heard Willow ask who was on the phone, and Tara's muffled explanation. Then Willow got on the other end.
"Spike? Are you sure you got them?" Willow asked uncertain.
"Yeah, positive. Stay there and go back to sleep. I'll see you in the mornin' so you all can plan how I'm to have an encore of tonight's performance with the other twins."
"Uh…okay. Goodnight, then," Willow replied, but she only heard the dial tone's response. Spike had already hung up on her.
End chapter 6
