Author: Karen
Rating: Erm. . . not sure of the net version but definitely at least a
twelve/fifteen in the cinema.
Feedback: God yes! A little help here people.
Disclaimer: Not mine and sadly never will be.
Synopsis: Lindsey and Cordelia are trapped in the tunnels beneath Wolfram
and Hart fighting, and slaying, all manner of creatures. Gunn and Wesley
are hot on their trail and not the least bit happy about it.
Dedication: Jen, the hardest working and most detailed beta in the world
ever! (and yes I know the grammars not right!) Ina, Mel and Angel S. for
the feedback.
Part 7.
"Again with the stench!"
Cordelia placed her hand over her nose and mouth and glared accusingly into the darkness before her, resolutely ignoring the sudden racing of her heart at the thought of what might lay in it. Lindsey copied her actions and closed his eyes, desperately afraid to follow her and find out what was causing the hideous smell.
Cordy renewed her grip on her blood stained axe and with a quick glance back at Lindsey, moved quickly forward to encounter their next foe. When they entered the next chamber they were both momentarily frozen and then Cordelia said
"A spa? They have a spa down here?"
She looked at Lindsey in confusion and quipped
"It really is a whole different world for you people, isn't it?"
Lindsey looking just as confused as the girl beside him glanced around the small, steamy chamber.
Rugged, rocky walls, check. Eldritch glow, check. Terrible and offensive smell, check. Vicious, bloodthirsty demon just dying to rip our throats out? Nah, not so much.
They moved forward slowly and peered over the lip of the small bubbling pool. Sure enough, under the surface there ran a ledge of stone worn smooth by countless generations of Wolfram and Hart asses. They both pulled back and stared at each other again and then Cordelia sniffed and pulled a face as she instantly regretted it
"Just so we're clear, I am not getting in there with you. Yes, we need to wash the blood off. No, we do not need to bathe in the blood of rotten eggs to do it."
Lindsey grinned
"It's a hot spa. Sulphur water. You've never heard of hot springs?"
Cordelia eyed him condescendingly
"Well, Mr Ivy League, we sure don't have nothin' like this back home. We just go on down and play in the stream with Billy Bob an' the pigs when Ma tells us."
She rolled her expressive eyes and snapped
"Lindsey, I'm from Sunnydale, not Hazzard County. And until quite recently my parents were very rich. Of course I know what a hot spring is! I've visited several, but the fact of the matter is that I am not getting in a bath that will make me smell worse when I get out than when I got in."
Lindsey nodded and allowed his eyes to roam over her lush figure pointedly
"Pity." Cordelia scowled at him
"You know when I threatened to start cutting bits off you earlier? I could still do that."
Lindsey grinned widely and held up his hands, backing away in mock fear
"Hey, take it easy. Just joking."
Cordelia turned away but not before he caught a glimpse of the involuntary smile on her face. She walked slowly around the chamber running her hands over the wall and finally placed her hands on her hips, frowning
"I don't get it. We're in the middle of an LA law firm, there's no way there's room for a network of creepy ass tunnels and stuff, and yet I'm still standing in one that looks older than all the vampires I know combined. How?"
Lindsey looked around him and shrugged with disinterest
"Probably someone just found a spell to connect some unused closet space with another dimension and decided to utilise the area."
Cordelia's mouth fell open
"Can you do that?"
Lindsey nodded as he eyed the chamber disparagingly
"Sure. Of course most people tend to pick the sunnier dimensions with willing supplies of chicks and booze but, yeah, of course you can do it."
Cordelia also looked around her but her gaze was assessing and calculating
Ok, so it's a little ragged, but, hey, fixer upper! And the space! Just think of all the shoes and jackets I could fit in here!
Lindsey caught the speculative look and grinned. He could almost see the wheels turning in her mind and the floor to ceiling shelves and rails. She was so adorably transparent at times.
Whoa! Where'd that come from? Not adorable, she cut off your ear and butchered several other beings. Not in any sense of the world is this girl adorable.
He abruptly left his train of thought as a loud bang echoed down the corridor behind them. They both covered their faces as a billowing cloud of dust flew in and swirled around them, blinding their eyes and making them choke. Cordelia was the first to recover; her reflex time honed over the years thanks to close proximity to Buffy and then Angel. She waved a hand in front of her face and groaned as the faint echoes of enraged howls and shouts forced their way past the white noise in her ears
"Let's go. Your buddies have moved past stealth hunting and into the realms of we worship at the King of 'Stupid and Pointless attacks' feet."
Lindsey frowned in confusion at her remark as she grabbed his hand and dragged him past the low pool to the opening in the rock opposite. Cordelia rolled her eyes picking up speed
"Otherwise known as Angel."
She risked a glance back over her shoulder and flashed him a mocking grin
"Although, look who I'm talking to! You probably got a few worshippers yourself, dontcha?"
Lindsey scowled and picked up his pace to match hers
"Hey! Some of my plans were masterpieces." "Sure they were, hon. Which one are we thinking of? The plan to kill me? Got your hand cut off. The plan to use Darla and Druscilla to turn Angel? Got you snacked on. The plan to capture me tonight and no doubt torture me till I cracked? Ended up saving your ass. Yeah, you're a regular Bonaparte all right."
Lindsey scowled again and to his deep and eternal shame could think of nothing else to come back with other than a muttered
"Shut up!"
Cordelia sniggered and kept running trying to ignore the shouts that drew closer behind them and the possibility she was leading them into a dead end.
Wesley and Gunn poked their heads into the jagged hole in the wall and looked solemnly at the floor where a lot of footprints were smeared into the dust.
"Damn, a lot of things went through here in a hurry!"
Wesley shrugged and gingerly stepped through the gap motioning Gunn to follow him
"Yes, well, we'd better hope that Cordelia is hurrying that little bit quicker. I can't believe they blew up a wall to get to her."
Gunn ducked his head, cursing under his breath at the low ceilings, and took a cursory look over his shoulder making sure they weren't being followed before following his friend into the gloom
"She'll be ok. If they're desperate enough to blow up a damn wall then she must be really pissin' all over them."
Wesley coughed as a bit if stray dust found it's way into his throat
"Quite. However, if they really have thrown caution so comprehensively to the winds then she is in considerably more danger than before and may find herself in great difficulty before much longer."
Gunn rolled his eyes
"You know there's only so many words to go around, English. Try an' save some for the rest of us."
Wesley blushed in the gloom and hung his head slightly before he recognised the tone of affectionate teasing in the other man's words. He glanced back at his friend and Gunn flashed a bright smile and Wesley felt his own mouth curve in response
"Sorry. When I get worried I forget myself and tend to babble a little."
Gunn squeezed his shoulder in strong grip
"Chill, English, I'm just kidding. What the hell is that smell?"
Wesley frowned and placed his hand over his nose and attempted to swallow his heart as it jumped into his throat
"Oh dear."
Cordelia ran as fast as she dared in the dimly lit tunnel and concentrated on regulating her breathing as much as she could. All she could hear was the pounding of their feet and of her own heart as she searched desperately for a bolthole to hide and re-group. The howls behind them were louder now and she knew that they had possibly only a few moments before they were overrun. She gasped as the ground abruptly fell away beneath her feet and then she rolled end over end down a steep stone ramp coming to a painful and breathless halt on the rough, wet stone floor. She yelped as Lindsey landed on top of her and then yelped again as he grabbed her shoulder and dragged her up and along the floor towards a dark, wooden door in the corner.
They threw themselves against it and it burst open sending them once more to their knees with their own momentum and then Lindsey spun to slam the door shut and gratefully throw the thick steel bolt on the back of the door. Cordelia pushed to her feet and, seeing the broad wooden beam against the side of the door, snatched it up and dropped it into place just as the first body slammed into the door on the other side. The door shuddered but held under the assault and both humans sagged in momentary relief only to give simultaneous screams as a voice said behind them
"Can I help you?"
They spun round crashing together in their haste and stared with wide eyes at the small, wizened woman holding a candle in one hand and the front of her nightdress together in the other. Cordelia rolled her eyes as her heart started to beat again and turned to Lindsey
"Could you people be any weirder? What's next? A dragon sleeping on the big pile of gold and a virgin sacrifice?"
Lindsey smirked as his own heart began to slow
"Well, it's not like you need to worry is it?"
Cordelia's eyes narrowed and she took a menacing step towards him but before she could do any more the little woman said
"Are those people bothering you, dears? Give me a minute."
She closed her eyes and began to chant under her breath and then suddenly the angry howls were replaced with agonised screaming and then a very tense silence. Cordelia backed up to beside Lindsey and fished inside her bag for a crucifix and some holy water. She shoved them at the lawyer and gripped her axe again muttering
"My life is just never normal."
She raised her voice and said firmly
"Ok, Ma Walton, one move towards us and I'll fry your crinkly butt like you wouldn't believe."
The woman smiled gently and pushed a buttery lock of faded hair from her eyes and placed the candle on a low wooden table
"Don't worry, my dear. You have nothing to fear from me. Please come in and sit down."
Cordelia cocked her head to the side and allowed her eyes to drift around the spacious stone chamber taking in the wide low bed, scattered easy chairs and thick colourful tapestries hanging on the wall
"No offence, but I don't think so. When a person living in the bowels of Evil Lawyer city tells me to trust them it's not really an offer of a lifetime deal. You know what I mean?"
She flashed a smile and said quickly
"Although not knocking the whole killing of our enemies thing. Can't tell you how much I appreciate that."
The woman laughed quietly and said with a twinkle
"Oh I like you. The last Seer I met was all officious piety and martyrdom, an absolute bore of a girl. You've got a bit of personality."
Cordelia narrowed her eyes in suspicion
"Did you eat her? Torture, maim or kill her in any way?" "Certainly not! Although I can't say I wasn't tempted at times."
Cordelia lowered her arm slowly
"I'm sorry, I can't trust in just your word."
She sounded genuinely regretful and the woman smiled approvingly in response
"Good girl, brains as well as courage. Not something you see that much of nowadays."
She turned slightly so her body obscured her hands from Lindsey's view
"Will this convince you?"
Lindsey saw Cordelia glance down and her eyes widen and then she reached out and laid her hand on the woman's arm. He could have sworn he saw a brief glow before she pulled her hand away and dipped her head in an apologetic and respectful bow
"Sorry. You never know who's who in this biz."
The woman stood on her tip toes and brushed her lips over Cordelia's bowed forehead and bowed in response and then grinned
"Ain't that the truth. You hungry?"
Cordelia's head came up quicker than a quick thing and she breathed
"God, yes!" The woman tucked her hand through Cordelia's arm and led her over to the nearest chair completely disregarding the young lawyer saying comfortably
"Have a seat and I'll fix you something. I'm Wanda, by the way."
Cordelia sank into the deep blue cushions with a grateful sigh
"Cordelia Chase."
She tipped her head back and nearly groaned with pleasure as the soft material caressed her skin and hair. One languid hand rose and waved vaguely in Lindsey's direction
"Lindsey McDonald. Part-time lawyer, full-time pain in my ass."
The woman, Wanda, turned to face the bewildered young man and said doubtfully
"Lindsey? Isn't that a girl's name?"
Gunn and Wesley stamped down the tunnel in horrified silence, each trying to suppress the images of the dead bodies they had left behind them. Gunn swallowed again as he saw the little baby and its mother and increased his grip on his axe until his muscles sang with strain. He stopped as Wesley held up his hand and then sniffed as yet another unpleasant odour assaulted his nostrils
"Aww, man. Now what?"
Wesley shushed him and walked slowly forward until he passed through the narrow entranceway. He turned a confused face back to Gunn as the other man waited in the tunnel
"We appear to have found the villain's evil spa."
Cordelia sighed in satisfaction as she drained the last of the sweet fresh water from her wooden cup and placed it on the table beside her. She rubbed the head of the large dog that watched her adoringly from her knee and looked up at Wanda as the woman stirred a large pot over the fire
"So what's your deal? How come you ended up here?"
The woman tasted something from her ladle and smacked her lips together in satisfaction
"About another fifteen minutes. Do you want some more bread?"
Both Cordelia and Lindsey waved away another portion of the delicious homemade bread and watched as the older woman lowered herself into a chair next to the fire. She rubbed her hands in the glow for a moment and then smiled at them
"I live here. Have done for about fifty years. I used to work the down end of the market for the Powers, you know, watching over lost children, guiding restless spirits to their otherworldly reward and then one day I got a message from a Seer. Told me a major new power was due to arise and I was the only one in all the world.yadda, yadda, yadda."
She drew the cloth of the dark red robe she now wore more closely around herself and smiled grimly
"So, I come trotting over to Wolfram and Hart all ready to smite the unworthy and I kick some demon butt and in all the commotion I come down here and I find some people. For the most part people from Evil Inc upstairs but some were innocents and as such I couldn't leave them here. I stayed and fought to free them and then one day I found the door to this room and then the entrance to the world this space belonged to. Desperate beings who were being overrun and abused by the evil creatures of this organisation and that needed a saviour. Before I knew it over a decade had passed and this place became my home."
Cordelia whistled softly in admiration
"You've been here ever since, fightin' the fight?"
Wanda smiled and her shoulders squared as she sat in the chair
"Yup, being as big a pain in the ass as I can manage to the boys upstairs. Of course it's not without it's problems. Once they realised I had no intention of leaving no matter what they threw at me, and they had some stinkers of plans let me tell you, they attacked my family and took my son from me."
Cordelia frowned
"Your son? I thought you lived here alone."
Wanda laughed and smoothed a hand over her hair
"Hell, no! I was quite the looker in my day, lovey, there was never any way I was spending my nights in a cold bed. No, I married the head of the resistance about five years in and had me a family. Three boys, two girls and eleven grandchildren we had and I never regretted a minute of it."
Her face darkened and for a moment tears shimmered in her eyes
"A new guy took over upstairs about twelve years ago and once he found out about me he didn't rest until he found some way of stopping me. He managed to capture my eldest son seven years ago. My husband had just passed on and I was feeling a little lost, otherwise it would never have happened. He took my son and had him cursed to remain in his beast form and erected a barrier confining me to this dimension. The tunnel you came from is the limit of where I can go and he imprisoned my son on the other side."
Cordelia's hand froze in the dog's fur as the cold realisation washed over her. Wanda continued with tears streaming unnoticed down her cheeks
"He kept my son as a beast and used him as an executioner for his enemies. I saw him sometimes, hunting down some poor person and savaging them as they begged for mercy and I would try to call him to me but he was too far- gone. He never heard me."
She dipped her head and in the silence Cordelia and Lindsey exchanged horrified glances. Lindsey reached out to Cordelia and gripped her shaking hand as he cleared his throat
"I think there's something you should know."
End of part 7.
Part 7.
"Again with the stench!"
Cordelia placed her hand over her nose and mouth and glared accusingly into the darkness before her, resolutely ignoring the sudden racing of her heart at the thought of what might lay in it. Lindsey copied her actions and closed his eyes, desperately afraid to follow her and find out what was causing the hideous smell.
Cordy renewed her grip on her blood stained axe and with a quick glance back at Lindsey, moved quickly forward to encounter their next foe. When they entered the next chamber they were both momentarily frozen and then Cordelia said
"A spa? They have a spa down here?"
She looked at Lindsey in confusion and quipped
"It really is a whole different world for you people, isn't it?"
Lindsey looking just as confused as the girl beside him glanced around the small, steamy chamber.
Rugged, rocky walls, check. Eldritch glow, check. Terrible and offensive smell, check. Vicious, bloodthirsty demon just dying to rip our throats out? Nah, not so much.
They moved forward slowly and peered over the lip of the small bubbling pool. Sure enough, under the surface there ran a ledge of stone worn smooth by countless generations of Wolfram and Hart asses. They both pulled back and stared at each other again and then Cordelia sniffed and pulled a face as she instantly regretted it
"Just so we're clear, I am not getting in there with you. Yes, we need to wash the blood off. No, we do not need to bathe in the blood of rotten eggs to do it."
Lindsey grinned
"It's a hot spa. Sulphur water. You've never heard of hot springs?"
Cordelia eyed him condescendingly
"Well, Mr Ivy League, we sure don't have nothin' like this back home. We just go on down and play in the stream with Billy Bob an' the pigs when Ma tells us."
She rolled her expressive eyes and snapped
"Lindsey, I'm from Sunnydale, not Hazzard County. And until quite recently my parents were very rich. Of course I know what a hot spring is! I've visited several, but the fact of the matter is that I am not getting in a bath that will make me smell worse when I get out than when I got in."
Lindsey nodded and allowed his eyes to roam over her lush figure pointedly
"Pity." Cordelia scowled at him
"You know when I threatened to start cutting bits off you earlier? I could still do that."
Lindsey grinned widely and held up his hands, backing away in mock fear
"Hey, take it easy. Just joking."
Cordelia turned away but not before he caught a glimpse of the involuntary smile on her face. She walked slowly around the chamber running her hands over the wall and finally placed her hands on her hips, frowning
"I don't get it. We're in the middle of an LA law firm, there's no way there's room for a network of creepy ass tunnels and stuff, and yet I'm still standing in one that looks older than all the vampires I know combined. How?"
Lindsey looked around him and shrugged with disinterest
"Probably someone just found a spell to connect some unused closet space with another dimension and decided to utilise the area."
Cordelia's mouth fell open
"Can you do that?"
Lindsey nodded as he eyed the chamber disparagingly
"Sure. Of course most people tend to pick the sunnier dimensions with willing supplies of chicks and booze but, yeah, of course you can do it."
Cordelia also looked around her but her gaze was assessing and calculating
Ok, so it's a little ragged, but, hey, fixer upper! And the space! Just think of all the shoes and jackets I could fit in here!
Lindsey caught the speculative look and grinned. He could almost see the wheels turning in her mind and the floor to ceiling shelves and rails. She was so adorably transparent at times.
Whoa! Where'd that come from? Not adorable, she cut off your ear and butchered several other beings. Not in any sense of the world is this girl adorable.
He abruptly left his train of thought as a loud bang echoed down the corridor behind them. They both covered their faces as a billowing cloud of dust flew in and swirled around them, blinding their eyes and making them choke. Cordelia was the first to recover; her reflex time honed over the years thanks to close proximity to Buffy and then Angel. She waved a hand in front of her face and groaned as the faint echoes of enraged howls and shouts forced their way past the white noise in her ears
"Let's go. Your buddies have moved past stealth hunting and into the realms of we worship at the King of 'Stupid and Pointless attacks' feet."
Lindsey frowned in confusion at her remark as she grabbed his hand and dragged him past the low pool to the opening in the rock opposite. Cordelia rolled her eyes picking up speed
"Otherwise known as Angel."
She risked a glance back over her shoulder and flashed him a mocking grin
"Although, look who I'm talking to! You probably got a few worshippers yourself, dontcha?"
Lindsey scowled and picked up his pace to match hers
"Hey! Some of my plans were masterpieces." "Sure they were, hon. Which one are we thinking of? The plan to kill me? Got your hand cut off. The plan to use Darla and Druscilla to turn Angel? Got you snacked on. The plan to capture me tonight and no doubt torture me till I cracked? Ended up saving your ass. Yeah, you're a regular Bonaparte all right."
Lindsey scowled again and to his deep and eternal shame could think of nothing else to come back with other than a muttered
"Shut up!"
Cordelia sniggered and kept running trying to ignore the shouts that drew closer behind them and the possibility she was leading them into a dead end.
Wesley and Gunn poked their heads into the jagged hole in the wall and looked solemnly at the floor where a lot of footprints were smeared into the dust.
"Damn, a lot of things went through here in a hurry!"
Wesley shrugged and gingerly stepped through the gap motioning Gunn to follow him
"Yes, well, we'd better hope that Cordelia is hurrying that little bit quicker. I can't believe they blew up a wall to get to her."
Gunn ducked his head, cursing under his breath at the low ceilings, and took a cursory look over his shoulder making sure they weren't being followed before following his friend into the gloom
"She'll be ok. If they're desperate enough to blow up a damn wall then she must be really pissin' all over them."
Wesley coughed as a bit if stray dust found it's way into his throat
"Quite. However, if they really have thrown caution so comprehensively to the winds then she is in considerably more danger than before and may find herself in great difficulty before much longer."
Gunn rolled his eyes
"You know there's only so many words to go around, English. Try an' save some for the rest of us."
Wesley blushed in the gloom and hung his head slightly before he recognised the tone of affectionate teasing in the other man's words. He glanced back at his friend and Gunn flashed a bright smile and Wesley felt his own mouth curve in response
"Sorry. When I get worried I forget myself and tend to babble a little."
Gunn squeezed his shoulder in strong grip
"Chill, English, I'm just kidding. What the hell is that smell?"
Wesley frowned and placed his hand over his nose and attempted to swallow his heart as it jumped into his throat
"Oh dear."
Cordelia ran as fast as she dared in the dimly lit tunnel and concentrated on regulating her breathing as much as she could. All she could hear was the pounding of their feet and of her own heart as she searched desperately for a bolthole to hide and re-group. The howls behind them were louder now and she knew that they had possibly only a few moments before they were overrun. She gasped as the ground abruptly fell away beneath her feet and then she rolled end over end down a steep stone ramp coming to a painful and breathless halt on the rough, wet stone floor. She yelped as Lindsey landed on top of her and then yelped again as he grabbed her shoulder and dragged her up and along the floor towards a dark, wooden door in the corner.
They threw themselves against it and it burst open sending them once more to their knees with their own momentum and then Lindsey spun to slam the door shut and gratefully throw the thick steel bolt on the back of the door. Cordelia pushed to her feet and, seeing the broad wooden beam against the side of the door, snatched it up and dropped it into place just as the first body slammed into the door on the other side. The door shuddered but held under the assault and both humans sagged in momentary relief only to give simultaneous screams as a voice said behind them
"Can I help you?"
They spun round crashing together in their haste and stared with wide eyes at the small, wizened woman holding a candle in one hand and the front of her nightdress together in the other. Cordelia rolled her eyes as her heart started to beat again and turned to Lindsey
"Could you people be any weirder? What's next? A dragon sleeping on the big pile of gold and a virgin sacrifice?"
Lindsey smirked as his own heart began to slow
"Well, it's not like you need to worry is it?"
Cordelia's eyes narrowed and she took a menacing step towards him but before she could do any more the little woman said
"Are those people bothering you, dears? Give me a minute."
She closed her eyes and began to chant under her breath and then suddenly the angry howls were replaced with agonised screaming and then a very tense silence. Cordelia backed up to beside Lindsey and fished inside her bag for a crucifix and some holy water. She shoved them at the lawyer and gripped her axe again muttering
"My life is just never normal."
She raised her voice and said firmly
"Ok, Ma Walton, one move towards us and I'll fry your crinkly butt like you wouldn't believe."
The woman smiled gently and pushed a buttery lock of faded hair from her eyes and placed the candle on a low wooden table
"Don't worry, my dear. You have nothing to fear from me. Please come in and sit down."
Cordelia cocked her head to the side and allowed her eyes to drift around the spacious stone chamber taking in the wide low bed, scattered easy chairs and thick colourful tapestries hanging on the wall
"No offence, but I don't think so. When a person living in the bowels of Evil Lawyer city tells me to trust them it's not really an offer of a lifetime deal. You know what I mean?"
She flashed a smile and said quickly
"Although not knocking the whole killing of our enemies thing. Can't tell you how much I appreciate that."
The woman laughed quietly and said with a twinkle
"Oh I like you. The last Seer I met was all officious piety and martyrdom, an absolute bore of a girl. You've got a bit of personality."
Cordelia narrowed her eyes in suspicion
"Did you eat her? Torture, maim or kill her in any way?" "Certainly not! Although I can't say I wasn't tempted at times."
Cordelia lowered her arm slowly
"I'm sorry, I can't trust in just your word."
She sounded genuinely regretful and the woman smiled approvingly in response
"Good girl, brains as well as courage. Not something you see that much of nowadays."
She turned slightly so her body obscured her hands from Lindsey's view
"Will this convince you?"
Lindsey saw Cordelia glance down and her eyes widen and then she reached out and laid her hand on the woman's arm. He could have sworn he saw a brief glow before she pulled her hand away and dipped her head in an apologetic and respectful bow
"Sorry. You never know who's who in this biz."
The woman stood on her tip toes and brushed her lips over Cordelia's bowed forehead and bowed in response and then grinned
"Ain't that the truth. You hungry?"
Cordelia's head came up quicker than a quick thing and she breathed
"God, yes!" The woman tucked her hand through Cordelia's arm and led her over to the nearest chair completely disregarding the young lawyer saying comfortably
"Have a seat and I'll fix you something. I'm Wanda, by the way."
Cordelia sank into the deep blue cushions with a grateful sigh
"Cordelia Chase."
She tipped her head back and nearly groaned with pleasure as the soft material caressed her skin and hair. One languid hand rose and waved vaguely in Lindsey's direction
"Lindsey McDonald. Part-time lawyer, full-time pain in my ass."
The woman, Wanda, turned to face the bewildered young man and said doubtfully
"Lindsey? Isn't that a girl's name?"
Gunn and Wesley stamped down the tunnel in horrified silence, each trying to suppress the images of the dead bodies they had left behind them. Gunn swallowed again as he saw the little baby and its mother and increased his grip on his axe until his muscles sang with strain. He stopped as Wesley held up his hand and then sniffed as yet another unpleasant odour assaulted his nostrils
"Aww, man. Now what?"
Wesley shushed him and walked slowly forward until he passed through the narrow entranceway. He turned a confused face back to Gunn as the other man waited in the tunnel
"We appear to have found the villain's evil spa."
Cordelia sighed in satisfaction as she drained the last of the sweet fresh water from her wooden cup and placed it on the table beside her. She rubbed the head of the large dog that watched her adoringly from her knee and looked up at Wanda as the woman stirred a large pot over the fire
"So what's your deal? How come you ended up here?"
The woman tasted something from her ladle and smacked her lips together in satisfaction
"About another fifteen minutes. Do you want some more bread?"
Both Cordelia and Lindsey waved away another portion of the delicious homemade bread and watched as the older woman lowered herself into a chair next to the fire. She rubbed her hands in the glow for a moment and then smiled at them
"I live here. Have done for about fifty years. I used to work the down end of the market for the Powers, you know, watching over lost children, guiding restless spirits to their otherworldly reward and then one day I got a message from a Seer. Told me a major new power was due to arise and I was the only one in all the world.yadda, yadda, yadda."
She drew the cloth of the dark red robe she now wore more closely around herself and smiled grimly
"So, I come trotting over to Wolfram and Hart all ready to smite the unworthy and I kick some demon butt and in all the commotion I come down here and I find some people. For the most part people from Evil Inc upstairs but some were innocents and as such I couldn't leave them here. I stayed and fought to free them and then one day I found the door to this room and then the entrance to the world this space belonged to. Desperate beings who were being overrun and abused by the evil creatures of this organisation and that needed a saviour. Before I knew it over a decade had passed and this place became my home."
Cordelia whistled softly in admiration
"You've been here ever since, fightin' the fight?"
Wanda smiled and her shoulders squared as she sat in the chair
"Yup, being as big a pain in the ass as I can manage to the boys upstairs. Of course it's not without it's problems. Once they realised I had no intention of leaving no matter what they threw at me, and they had some stinkers of plans let me tell you, they attacked my family and took my son from me."
Cordelia frowned
"Your son? I thought you lived here alone."
Wanda laughed and smoothed a hand over her hair
"Hell, no! I was quite the looker in my day, lovey, there was never any way I was spending my nights in a cold bed. No, I married the head of the resistance about five years in and had me a family. Three boys, two girls and eleven grandchildren we had and I never regretted a minute of it."
Her face darkened and for a moment tears shimmered in her eyes
"A new guy took over upstairs about twelve years ago and once he found out about me he didn't rest until he found some way of stopping me. He managed to capture my eldest son seven years ago. My husband had just passed on and I was feeling a little lost, otherwise it would never have happened. He took my son and had him cursed to remain in his beast form and erected a barrier confining me to this dimension. The tunnel you came from is the limit of where I can go and he imprisoned my son on the other side."
Cordelia's hand froze in the dog's fur as the cold realisation washed over her. Wanda continued with tears streaming unnoticed down her cheeks
"He kept my son as a beast and used him as an executioner for his enemies. I saw him sometimes, hunting down some poor person and savaging them as they begged for mercy and I would try to call him to me but he was too far- gone. He never heard me."
She dipped her head and in the silence Cordelia and Lindsey exchanged horrified glances. Lindsey reached out to Cordelia and gripped her shaking hand as he cleared his throat
"I think there's something you should know."
End of part 7.