A/N.- This is chapter Nineteen of the ENOUGH series. Thanks to all who have read this story and reviewed..
Disclaimer.- You all should know this belongs to Joss Whedon and the parties involved in getting this show on the air.
Feedback.- As you wish.
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Kidnapped
Quentin Travers had woken up with a headache many times in his life. After a hard day's work, or after a drunken binge, but never like this. The pain was centered in the base of his skull, and a certain numbness crept by his left side. He slowly opened his eyes and saw nothing in front of him. At first he lost his nerve and thought that he had gone blind, but a slight flicker of light above him dispatched the idea. He was only sitting in the dark, and when he tried to sit up, he noticed that he was tightly tied to a chair. Given his training and experience he tried to tip over the chair in order to break it, thus being able to move his arms more freely. However, whoever had tied him knew his or her business, because the chair didn't move.
"Hello!" Travers shouted, "Is anybody out there?"
His only answer was a soft moan that came from his right side. He immediately turned his head in the direction he had heard the noise.
"Who's there?" He asked. The moan grew into a groan and he noticed that it was a female's voice.
"Who are you?" Travers once again inquired, but his answer didn't come, because the lights went on. The sudden intrusion of brightness hurt his eyes and forced him to close them. A few moments later, his eyes adjusted to the light and saw that Mrs. Straub was tied to a chair to his right, and to his left, was Mr. Michener tied as well.
"Are you all right, Mrs. Straub?" Travers asked. The blonde woman only nodded and Travers assumed that she too had a severe headache.
"Do you know who put us in here?" Travers once again asked. Mrs. Straub looked around and noticed that they were in an old, abandoned warehouse. The place was rusty and the only entrances were a door on the upper part, with a small ladder coming all the way down, as well as a larger door, right behind them. She shook her head and looked at Travers.
"I'm afraid not, Mr. Travers," the woman answered, "I only recall walking out of our offices and then nothing."
Travers nodded, for he knew as much as the woman sitting next to him. Then he remembered another detail; there were four of them when they walked out of the Council's headquarters. They were one member short.
"Where's Mr. Kipling?" Travers asked. Straub looked around and only saw Michener's limp body on the chair.
"I don't know," Straub said, "I guess he wasn't taken with us."
Travers was about to say something when the door on the upper side of the warehouse flung open. It revealed that outside was already dark and was still raining. A man with a suit appeared and began walking down the stairs. Both Travers and Straub looked up and stared incredously at the man in front of them.
"Kipling!" Travers shouted, as he recognized the man, "Get us out of here!"
'Kipling' simply smiled, and tok out a packet of cigarettes. He took one and lighted it up. He smiled when the nicotine inveded his lungs and slowly blew out the smoke. He remained silent throughout the whole process.
"What is the meaning of this?" Travers asked, "Move your arse and get us out of here!"
Spike simply smiled and walked to one of the corners of the warehouse. There lied a bag, which he lifted and took something out of it. The old black leather duster. He placed it on and dragged a small wooden box, which he placed in front of Travers and sat down on it.
"Good night." He said, and took a drag out of his cigarette. Travers' face contorted into rage and stared at the man he called 'Kipling'.
"I don't know what game you're playing, young man," Travers said, "but you don't know who you're messing with."
"I see you've figured out I was behind this game," Spike said, "congratulations on your great powers of observation."
"You set us a trap."
Travers and Straub looked at Michener, who had already woken up and had stated his idea.
"The moment we walked out of the building was our mistake." The man said. Spike only smiled.
"Kinda slow on the uptake, for a security chief." Spike said. Michener remained calm, but was trying to weaken the ropes that tied him to the chair.
"Don't even try it," Spike said, "there are also handcuffs besides the ropes." The three captives checked and confirmed the vampire's word. There was no way out.
"You don't know who you're messing with," Travers said, "you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into."
"I think you have it the other way around, Travers," Spike said, "or have you not yet recognized me?"
"We have no clue who you are or what you want," Travers said, "but you'll pay for this."
"Bugger it all," Spike said, and then morphed into his true self, "this ring a bell?"
The three watchers gasped when they saw him, and the shock was soon reflected on their faces.
"How in the bleeding hell did you manage to enter the building?" Michener asked.
"Looks like your defenses aren't as good as you thought." Spike said, and reverted to his human mask. Travers began laughing after the initial shock.
"What's so funny?" Spike asked, throwing away his almost finished cigarette.
"You must be a fledgling with a lot of luck," Travers said, "or an older, wiser vampire sent you on this mission."
"Why do you say that?" Spike asked, amused by the fact that they had not yet recognized him.
"We are watchers," Travers said, "and we live and train to get rid of your disgusting kind." Travers' face lit up with pride and a certain sense of superiority.
"When the people that work for us find you, you will find out how many ways we have to torture your kind."
"Don't be so sure that they will find you so easily." Spike said. Now it was Michener's turn to interrupt.
"There are warlocks working for us," the man said, "they will find a way to trace us."
"I don't think so." Spike said, chuckling a bit.
"What? Why?" Michener asked.
"For the same reason as of why I managed to get inside your soddin' building." Spike answered.
"You stupid vampire," Michener said, "the moment we walked outside the building we were being traced."
"I know that," Spike said, "and I do have a name."
"I don't care about your stupid name." Travers said.
"Oh, I think you should." Spike said, laughing a bit, "In fact, I'm a little disappointed that you haven't recognized me. I thought that you watchers were all bookish and knew your vampires."
"We don't waste time with fledglings." Michener spat out.
"I'm so much more than a fledgling," Spike said, and looked directly at Travers, "my face doesn't ring a bell?"
The old man looked at him for a moment, but no recognition came with the inspection.
"I don't seem to recall." Travers said. Spike sighed a bit and ruffled his coat.
"This doesn't seem familiar to you?" The vampire asked, "It's been with me for a while now."
The three captives looked at the duster and then at each other.
"Stop playing games, stupid vampire." Michener said.
Spike sighed once more and decided he had have enough.
"All right, I'll tell you my name," Spike said, "my name is William."
"Oh and that clears all the cobwebs," Michener said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "it's Willie the vampire who has kidnapped us."
"You didn't let me finish," Spike said, "that's not my full name."
"Oh please, enlighten us then." Travers said, also infected by Michener's sarcasm. Spike smiled a bit, barely containing the excitement that he was feeling upon seeing their faces when he told them his real name.
"My full name is William the Bloody," the vampire said, "also known as Spike."
The three watchers were once again silent. The news hit them as a cold bucket of water. In front of them was one of the most feared and brutal vampires in recorded history. But then their faces changed and once again a smirk of confidence appeared on them.
"Fear not, my friends," Travers said, "if he really is William the Bloody then we have in front of us a neutered pup." The man smirked and stared at Spike. "So let us go, pup, before someone fixes you even more."
Spike simply stood up, he took out another cigarette out of the package and lit it up. He inhaled deeply and after a few moments exhaled the smoke. He smirked at Travers and walked towards Michener. With a swift motion, Spike punched Michener so hard that the chair flew from its hinges in the floor. The man landed a few feet away, with the metallic chair still tied tightly to him. Travers' eyes grew wide, as well as Straub's. Spike turned around at stared at them with cold, yellow eyes. He smirked a bit and threw away his half finished cigarette.
"How not afraid are you now, you bloody bastard?" Spike asked.
"W-what do you want?" Travers whimpered. Spike smiled a bit and walked towards Travers. He stopped right in front of the frightened man and leaned so that their eyes met on the same level.
"The thing I've always wanted from my prey." Spike said, and his eyes flickered golden.
"Your blood."
End of Chapter
