The Paladin Project 7 - Lucky Man
"Xander, can I have a minute?"
Xander looked up from his notes. "Anything that gets me away from admin Angel."
The vampire nodded, Xander noted that his friend looked unusually hesitant. "Yes it's about The First. I think I've got a possible source of information."
Xander looked up. "Really? Where?"
Angel's next words crushed his new-born hope. "Wolfram & Hart. When I was considering taking over their office they offered me a file on what was happening here and The First. Maybe if I bargained -."
"No, we don't do deals with the devil, you know that Angel," Xander interrupted with a shake of his head. "I've got an idea. Where's Faith?"
She's out with Ryback and Crow."
"That must be interesting," Xander felt his lips tug up in a smile; somehow he suspected Faith and Crow wouldn't exactly get on. "Tell me when they come in."
* * *
"So how does a chef end up working for Xman's team?"
The former Navy SEAL glanced at the beautiful young woman walking beside him as they travelled through one of Sunnydale's graveyards. Beneath her tough-talking bravado he sensed there was a very vulnerable, hurt young woman. "Two years ago my niece Sarah came home from a date crying and with her clothes torn -."
"Happens."
Casey wondered at the brunette's muttered interruption even as he continued. "I attacked the man who'd brought her home thinking he'd attacked her. And for the first time I can remember got my ass kicked," Casey smiled thinly as he recalled his shock at being beaten. "Then the young man explained who he was, and that he'd rescued Sarah from a trio of vampires." He shrugged. "I'd seen things in 'Nam and as Sarah confirmed Xander's story I believed him and apologised. Then somehow," he smiled wryly, Xander could certainly talk, "somehow I ended up leading the Project's team in Colorado."
"You?" the brown-haired beauty looked incredulous. "But you're a fucking chef, why would Xand pick you?"
Casey chuckled; he was secure enough in his own abilities not to be offended by the woman's surprise. "Cooking was always a hobby. Before that I was a Navy SEAL and a CIA operative."
"Oh, five by five," the girl nodded in understanding.
Ryback's forehead creased at the military term, he'd heard her use it before. "Where did you pick that up?"
"Five by five?" the girl shrugged casually. "I was thirteen when I first heard it off this guy I was with, this Marine," Ryback winced at the girl's matter-of-fact tone about being with a man so young. "He said I was 'five by five'. Hated the prick, liked the phrase." The Slayer's eyes narrowed. "Two vamps ahead."
Ryback started after the girl only to stop at a throaty growl from Jack Crow. "Let her handle it. I haven't seen a real Slayer in action before. I want to see how much truth there is to the legends."
The ex Navy SEAL stared in disbelief at the demon hunter. His eight man team of former military and police always worked together and with the most modern weaponry available. "Are you insane? We can't let a kid do our fighting for us!"
"If Harris thinks she's useful she must be handy." Normally people backed off when he got angry but the other man didn't blink. "We can cut in if she gets into trouble. She has to know how to fight for what's coming anyway."
Ryback turned back to the girl intending to assist only for his eyes widen at what he saw. It turned out there were three and not two vampires but it could have been six for all the difference it made.
The first vampire tried to grab the girl by her shoulder only for her to leave the floor in a flawless crescent kick to the jaw that knocked the vampire clean through a near-by tombstone. Upon landing the brunette slid smoothly under a roundhouse blow from another vampire before slamming an elbow into her assailant's groin and thrusting her stake upwards into the crumpling vampire's heart.
As the vampire exploded into dust another grabbed the slight girl from behind only for her to step backwards and slam her head into the demon's face. The monster let out a roar and released his grip allowing the Slayer to spin round and thrust a stake into its heart. The Slayer twisted round and without missing a beat launched herself into a flying drop-kick that smashed into the last vampire's face knocking him to the ground. The woman dropped into a crouch beside the vampire and thrust her stake into the vampire's chest before looking up with them, her eyes glaring. "Thanks for the help guys, no really."
Crow let out a laugh that sounded remarkably like the caw of the bird he was named after. "Oh yeah, the babe can fight."
* * *
"Angel's told me that Wolfram & Hart holds some information on the First," Xander shuffled uncomfortably behind the podium at the front of the briefing hall. He hated public speaking, always had. "So I'm heading a team to try and steal the information."
"Who's on the team?"
Xander nodded at the question from James Bond. "Lady Croft will come with me to tell me what to steal; Wes will come for the same reason, as well as his inside knowledge of W&H. Syd will come because of her expertise in under-cover operations and Amanda because of her thieving skills. Oh, and Faith for her muscle," he didn't add the other reason. He wanted the Slayer under his supervision especially with what he had planned for Angel. "Angel will be in charge while I'm gone, with Colonel O'Neill as his second-in-charge, and G-Man supervising both research and the potentials."
Xander grinned as the Watcher's face fell. "Oh bloody marvellous, from feared dark mage and pub-fighter to childcare supervisor in three easy decades."
* * *
"Xander can I have a minute?"
The young man glanced up from his packing and smiled. "Sure Jack come in."
The Air Force Colonel smiled back and entered the room. "Xander you could call me dad if you wanted."
The young man shook his head, his face unusually serious. "I couldn't do that Jack, you're nothing like the bastard I grew up calling that, you deserve better than that."
O'Neill nodded in understanding, his bland face betraying none of the anger he felt to the man who'd served as his boy's father for the youth's first eighteen years. He still remembered the day he'd found out he had another son. He didn't know what had surprised him more, seeing a teenage boy calmly tear through the four mercenaries holding him captive or the youth's declaration that he was the product of a two week furlong liaison he'd had back in 1980, together with a letter from Xander's mother confirming it. If only he'd known. "I can see your point. Xander, why have you put me second-in-command while you're gone? Blade and Crow are both more experienced with this supernatural crap."
"That the technical term pops?" he chuckled at the younger man's raised eyebrow. "Blade's a lone wolf, unused to working in a team, and Crow's a maverick. It came down to you, Ryback, or Bond. Bond's a little bit of a wild card -."
"And I'm not?" he grinned, "you don't know me at all!"
Xander shook his head. "Just what I needed, another smart-ass." The man turned serious. "All right then," the youth sighed, "Bond's even worse than you, and you out-rank Ryback so you got the job."
"You're thinking like a commander," he nodded proudly before grinning, unable to resist the urge for a jibe. "And a player, you, Wes, and four gorgeous young ladies - lucky man."
* * *
"'Lucky man' he said," Xander muttered. The two hours travelling from Sunnydale to L.A. had been sheer hell. The duo of Lara and Sydney had spent the journey telling a very interested Faith about his previous encounters with them. Wesley nodded at him, a relieved expression on the out-numbered man's face, as he joined the group in the hotel bar. "Here are the room keys," he dropped them on the table. "Take your pick, everybody's got a room."
"We not sharing Xand? 'Cause after three years in the big house a girl's got an itch," Faith winked at him.
Xander chuckled, the offer was tempting but he was too smart to fall for any of Faith's bullshit. "Thought you didn't back-track?"
Her eyes sparkling, the Slayer opened her mouth but Lara cut in. "I'm sure you must have some interesting stories about our party's other male."
"Wes?" Faith snorted. "Me and B were always looking for the stick up his -."
The Slayer was interrupted by the sound of the ex-Watcher's chair scraping back as he rose. "I don't need to listen to this." His face tight with anger, the Englishman stormed off.
"Who stuck the stick back up his ass?"
"Faith," Xander rose from his seat, "as usual you had to put both feet in. I'll go after him."
"Wes wait up!" the Watcher had managed to walk two blocks by the time Xander caught up with him. "You know Faith, speak now, think about it next year. She didn't mean -."
"It's not Faith I'm angry with," Wesley interrupted heavily, "it's myself. Every word she said was true. If I hadn't been such an ass -."
"We all made mistakes. G-Man favoured Summers over Faith, abandoning her in that crappy motel. Summers and Rosenberg looked down on her for not having their chances. Me," Xander shrugged, "if I hadn't slept with her maybe she'd have believed that I was a friend and not just another guy on the make."
"Fuck, you two guys think a lot of yourselves don't ya?" the two men turned to see Faith stood behind them, leaning on a lamppost its light illuminating her beautiful but sad face. "Yeah, you were a real prick Wes, but you went into bat for me, got the Council to give me a chance. And how did I repay your trust? I betrayed you all to the Mayor and then as a kicker I tortured you. As for you," a thin smile worked its way across the raven-haired beauty's full lips. "You were a teenage guy, you telling me," Xander's cheeks began to burn as the brunette's hands started to lovingly caress her body. "That you could have turned this down?" The brunette chuckled before turning serious. "Xand, I was the super-hero with all these powers who'd just killed someone but you," Faith's voice caught," you trusted me not to hurt you. And what did I do? I nearly fucking killed you!"
Seeing the girl's eyes begin to glisten Xander broke in. "Let's leave the past where it belongs in the past. Fresh starts all around." The others nodded in approval. "Great, so let's head back to the bar."
"Wicked cool," Faith moved in between them, wrapping her arms around their necks, her denim jacket falling open. Realising he had a direct view down the girl's low-cut red training top Xander turned away, his cheeks flaming. The Slayer continued talking either oblivious to, or uncaring of, his embarrassment. "Tequila slammers all the way tonight guys, it's a long time since this girl got smashed."
"Dear god," Xander heard Wes mutter, "a drunk Slayer. Maybe I should have accepted W & H's offer."
"Hey Wes, I was wrong you didn't have a stick up your ass," the Slayer chuckled, "it was an iron bar and it's still fucking there!"
Wes sighed long-sufferingly. "As eleqouant and charming as ever Faith."
"Damn straight, charm class was the only one I ever passed."
"Only one you're bloody likely to too!"
* * *
"So where's this place you taking us Xman?" Faith asked. Last night had been wicked cool, she'd had a couple of offers off businessmen looking for some fun, and she'd been real tempted but she wanted Xand now, but the office building he'd brought them was kinda of imposing, everything about it reeked cool efficiency.
Xander glanced towards her. "I set Champion Investigations up two years as the intel arm of the Project. We have an extensive network of contacts of the police and intelligence organisation throughout the country that send news of any suspected cases of supernatural occurrences. Champion Investigations collates their reports and sends the information onto me and the other field operatives in a weekly digest. Any emergencies and we're all contacted. They also patrol, hitting local vampire dens."
"I say," Wes looked pissed, "they're competition."
Xander chuckled. "Two demon-hunting agencies in a city the size of L.A.," Xander stepped through the opening lift doors, "I think you can stand the competition Wes."
With that her friend led them to the outside of a small office. After knocking Xander opened and walked in. "Xander!" an Oriental babe rose from behind one of the desks and hurried to hug him, a beaming smile on her beautiful face, "it's good to see you!"
"Damn guy gets more women than a rock star," Faith muttered as she pushed away the wave of jealousy that hit her. What the hell had happened to the dopey geek who's cherry she'd popped? Faith's mouth dried as she recognised the other woman in the office. "oh crap!"
"You!" Kate Lockley rose, her hand dipping into an open desk drawer. Faith paled as the blonde came up holding an automatic. The Slayer swallowed, she might be able to get out of the way of a bullet but if she did one of the others might be hurt. This was her fault, she'd have to take it.
Suddenly Xander stepped between them. Faith's pounding heart began to race even faster, nobody was ever going to get hurt 'cause of her especially him. "Get out of the way Xander," she ordered, her voice trembling.
"Can't do that Faith," the man didn't turn from the blonde. "Kate, put the gun down."
"She's an escaped fugitive!" the woman's gaze and gun didn't falter. "I know how dangerous she is, I arrested her."
"She's reformed."
"Says who?" the blonde looked incredulous.
"I say," Faith couldn't believe how calm Xand sounded, as if he was discussing the weather rather than facing a gunwoman. "And she's got a presidential pardon to prove it. Please Kate, if you can't trust her, trust me okay?"
After a second the cop nodded. "Fine," Faith felt the tension leave her body as the woman dropped the gun back into the drawer. "Just keep her away from me," the cop ordered.
"Is Ethan in, Grace?" Xander had turned back to the Oriental woman. The babe nodded. "I'll just go through then."
Wesley broke the silence that followed with a masterpiece of understatement. "Well that was bracing," the Watcher turned to Kate. "Who is the boss Miss Lockley?"
"A former intelligence operative called Ethan Hunt."
"Ethan Hunt?" Faith turned to a stunned looking Syd. "He's a legend, our answer to James Bond and he works for Xander?"
* * *
"Hi Ethan," Xander managed to keep his face expressionless but his heart was still thundering from the confrontation outside. Stepping in front of a gun-woman was definitely on the list of the ten stupidest things he'd ever done but he couldn't let Faith die not when she'd just got her life back together, gotten the second chance she deserved.
The diminutive but well-built man nodded at him. "What was the commotion outside?"
"Just Kate catching up with an old friend," Xander replied dryly. "How have things been?"
The former intelligence operative shook his head. "McClane in N.Y, Bridges in Frisco, Shatter in Chicago, Regis in Washington, Foley in Detroit - every one of the hundred plus contacts we've built up are reporting a 3 - 4 times increase in possible supernatural cases over the past six months. But you'll know that because you've had the updates. Is that why you're here?"
"Sort of, I need your help breaking into Wolfram & Hart's office. They've got some information on what's causing all this."
"Wolfram & Hart?" the man smiled, "I like a challenge."
* * *
Lara Croft looked up from her book at the knock of the door. She reached under her pillow and placed her hand on the Glock 30 there. "Yes?"
"It's Faith, can I come in?"
"Be my guest," the tomb raider's brow furrowed in puzzlement at the hesitant look on the usually brash Slayer's face. "Can I help you Faith?"
"Yeah," the brunette Slayer paced back and forth on the carpet. "Something's been bugging me for ages. I was wondering, you gotta thing for Xand?"
"Ah," the Englishwoman hid a smile. It would appear that the young woman had a crush. "Xander and I have had relations before," the girl looked crushed, Lara hurried on. "Xander is a fine, young man - kind, brave, warm- hearted, and witty, however we have little in common aside from our shared interest in the occult. I have no designs on Xander." The brunette beamed. "I assume from your question you are interested in him?"
The girl shrugged, a look of embarrassment on her face. "He's done so much for me, got me my pardon, a new home, and a job. He's forgiven me all the bad shit I did to him back in the day."
"I trust your feelings aren't merely borne out of gratitude?" when the girl looked confused she sighed. "You're not just feeling grateful?"
"I don't know," the brunette looked to the floor. "I just know when I was in town last, he was always a real gentleman, opening doors for me, getting a chair so I could sit at the table, making sure I was included in shit. I liked that but I also kinda thought it was just his angle to get me in the sack." She shrugged. "But that's just Xander, I like the way he treats people, the way he went to all that trouble to get my pardon but it's more than that. I kinda get a queasy feeling in my stomach when he smiles at me, I love talking to him -," Faith shook her head, "fuck I sound like a lovesick puppy." The brunette Slayer looked at her, a gleam in her eyes. "What about our group then, we've got some hunks in our group - Bond, Wood, Gunn, there must be one who presses your buttons?"
The aristocrat hesitated. "Wesley."
"Wes?" the girl's coal-black eyes widened, "Wes gets your panties wet? No way!"
Lara arched an eyebrow. "Well I wouldn't quite put it like that, but yes." Of all the languages she knew, American was definitely the most difficult.
"Xander, can I have a minute?"
Xander looked up from his notes. "Anything that gets me away from admin Angel."
The vampire nodded, Xander noted that his friend looked unusually hesitant. "Yes it's about The First. I think I've got a possible source of information."
Xander looked up. "Really? Where?"
Angel's next words crushed his new-born hope. "Wolfram & Hart. When I was considering taking over their office they offered me a file on what was happening here and The First. Maybe if I bargained -."
"No, we don't do deals with the devil, you know that Angel," Xander interrupted with a shake of his head. "I've got an idea. Where's Faith?"
She's out with Ryback and Crow."
"That must be interesting," Xander felt his lips tug up in a smile; somehow he suspected Faith and Crow wouldn't exactly get on. "Tell me when they come in."
* * *
"So how does a chef end up working for Xman's team?"
The former Navy SEAL glanced at the beautiful young woman walking beside him as they travelled through one of Sunnydale's graveyards. Beneath her tough-talking bravado he sensed there was a very vulnerable, hurt young woman. "Two years ago my niece Sarah came home from a date crying and with her clothes torn -."
"Happens."
Casey wondered at the brunette's muttered interruption even as he continued. "I attacked the man who'd brought her home thinking he'd attacked her. And for the first time I can remember got my ass kicked," Casey smiled thinly as he recalled his shock at being beaten. "Then the young man explained who he was, and that he'd rescued Sarah from a trio of vampires." He shrugged. "I'd seen things in 'Nam and as Sarah confirmed Xander's story I believed him and apologised. Then somehow," he smiled wryly, Xander could certainly talk, "somehow I ended up leading the Project's team in Colorado."
"You?" the brown-haired beauty looked incredulous. "But you're a fucking chef, why would Xand pick you?"
Casey chuckled; he was secure enough in his own abilities not to be offended by the woman's surprise. "Cooking was always a hobby. Before that I was a Navy SEAL and a CIA operative."
"Oh, five by five," the girl nodded in understanding.
Ryback's forehead creased at the military term, he'd heard her use it before. "Where did you pick that up?"
"Five by five?" the girl shrugged casually. "I was thirteen when I first heard it off this guy I was with, this Marine," Ryback winced at the girl's matter-of-fact tone about being with a man so young. "He said I was 'five by five'. Hated the prick, liked the phrase." The Slayer's eyes narrowed. "Two vamps ahead."
Ryback started after the girl only to stop at a throaty growl from Jack Crow. "Let her handle it. I haven't seen a real Slayer in action before. I want to see how much truth there is to the legends."
The ex Navy SEAL stared in disbelief at the demon hunter. His eight man team of former military and police always worked together and with the most modern weaponry available. "Are you insane? We can't let a kid do our fighting for us!"
"If Harris thinks she's useful she must be handy." Normally people backed off when he got angry but the other man didn't blink. "We can cut in if she gets into trouble. She has to know how to fight for what's coming anyway."
Ryback turned back to the girl intending to assist only for his eyes widen at what he saw. It turned out there were three and not two vampires but it could have been six for all the difference it made.
The first vampire tried to grab the girl by her shoulder only for her to leave the floor in a flawless crescent kick to the jaw that knocked the vampire clean through a near-by tombstone. Upon landing the brunette slid smoothly under a roundhouse blow from another vampire before slamming an elbow into her assailant's groin and thrusting her stake upwards into the crumpling vampire's heart.
As the vampire exploded into dust another grabbed the slight girl from behind only for her to step backwards and slam her head into the demon's face. The monster let out a roar and released his grip allowing the Slayer to spin round and thrust a stake into its heart. The Slayer twisted round and without missing a beat launched herself into a flying drop-kick that smashed into the last vampire's face knocking him to the ground. The woman dropped into a crouch beside the vampire and thrust her stake into the vampire's chest before looking up with them, her eyes glaring. "Thanks for the help guys, no really."
Crow let out a laugh that sounded remarkably like the caw of the bird he was named after. "Oh yeah, the babe can fight."
* * *
"Angel's told me that Wolfram & Hart holds some information on the First," Xander shuffled uncomfortably behind the podium at the front of the briefing hall. He hated public speaking, always had. "So I'm heading a team to try and steal the information."
"Who's on the team?"
Xander nodded at the question from James Bond. "Lady Croft will come with me to tell me what to steal; Wes will come for the same reason, as well as his inside knowledge of W&H. Syd will come because of her expertise in under-cover operations and Amanda because of her thieving skills. Oh, and Faith for her muscle," he didn't add the other reason. He wanted the Slayer under his supervision especially with what he had planned for Angel. "Angel will be in charge while I'm gone, with Colonel O'Neill as his second-in-charge, and G-Man supervising both research and the potentials."
Xander grinned as the Watcher's face fell. "Oh bloody marvellous, from feared dark mage and pub-fighter to childcare supervisor in three easy decades."
* * *
"Xander can I have a minute?"
The young man glanced up from his packing and smiled. "Sure Jack come in."
The Air Force Colonel smiled back and entered the room. "Xander you could call me dad if you wanted."
The young man shook his head, his face unusually serious. "I couldn't do that Jack, you're nothing like the bastard I grew up calling that, you deserve better than that."
O'Neill nodded in understanding, his bland face betraying none of the anger he felt to the man who'd served as his boy's father for the youth's first eighteen years. He still remembered the day he'd found out he had another son. He didn't know what had surprised him more, seeing a teenage boy calmly tear through the four mercenaries holding him captive or the youth's declaration that he was the product of a two week furlong liaison he'd had back in 1980, together with a letter from Xander's mother confirming it. If only he'd known. "I can see your point. Xander, why have you put me second-in-command while you're gone? Blade and Crow are both more experienced with this supernatural crap."
"That the technical term pops?" he chuckled at the younger man's raised eyebrow. "Blade's a lone wolf, unused to working in a team, and Crow's a maverick. It came down to you, Ryback, or Bond. Bond's a little bit of a wild card -."
"And I'm not?" he grinned, "you don't know me at all!"
Xander shook his head. "Just what I needed, another smart-ass." The man turned serious. "All right then," the youth sighed, "Bond's even worse than you, and you out-rank Ryback so you got the job."
"You're thinking like a commander," he nodded proudly before grinning, unable to resist the urge for a jibe. "And a player, you, Wes, and four gorgeous young ladies - lucky man."
* * *
"'Lucky man' he said," Xander muttered. The two hours travelling from Sunnydale to L.A. had been sheer hell. The duo of Lara and Sydney had spent the journey telling a very interested Faith about his previous encounters with them. Wesley nodded at him, a relieved expression on the out-numbered man's face, as he joined the group in the hotel bar. "Here are the room keys," he dropped them on the table. "Take your pick, everybody's got a room."
"We not sharing Xand? 'Cause after three years in the big house a girl's got an itch," Faith winked at him.
Xander chuckled, the offer was tempting but he was too smart to fall for any of Faith's bullshit. "Thought you didn't back-track?"
Her eyes sparkling, the Slayer opened her mouth but Lara cut in. "I'm sure you must have some interesting stories about our party's other male."
"Wes?" Faith snorted. "Me and B were always looking for the stick up his -."
The Slayer was interrupted by the sound of the ex-Watcher's chair scraping back as he rose. "I don't need to listen to this." His face tight with anger, the Englishman stormed off.
"Who stuck the stick back up his ass?"
"Faith," Xander rose from his seat, "as usual you had to put both feet in. I'll go after him."
"Wes wait up!" the Watcher had managed to walk two blocks by the time Xander caught up with him. "You know Faith, speak now, think about it next year. She didn't mean -."
"It's not Faith I'm angry with," Wesley interrupted heavily, "it's myself. Every word she said was true. If I hadn't been such an ass -."
"We all made mistakes. G-Man favoured Summers over Faith, abandoning her in that crappy motel. Summers and Rosenberg looked down on her for not having their chances. Me," Xander shrugged, "if I hadn't slept with her maybe she'd have believed that I was a friend and not just another guy on the make."
"Fuck, you two guys think a lot of yourselves don't ya?" the two men turned to see Faith stood behind them, leaning on a lamppost its light illuminating her beautiful but sad face. "Yeah, you were a real prick Wes, but you went into bat for me, got the Council to give me a chance. And how did I repay your trust? I betrayed you all to the Mayor and then as a kicker I tortured you. As for you," a thin smile worked its way across the raven-haired beauty's full lips. "You were a teenage guy, you telling me," Xander's cheeks began to burn as the brunette's hands started to lovingly caress her body. "That you could have turned this down?" The brunette chuckled before turning serious. "Xand, I was the super-hero with all these powers who'd just killed someone but you," Faith's voice caught," you trusted me not to hurt you. And what did I do? I nearly fucking killed you!"
Seeing the girl's eyes begin to glisten Xander broke in. "Let's leave the past where it belongs in the past. Fresh starts all around." The others nodded in approval. "Great, so let's head back to the bar."
"Wicked cool," Faith moved in between them, wrapping her arms around their necks, her denim jacket falling open. Realising he had a direct view down the girl's low-cut red training top Xander turned away, his cheeks flaming. The Slayer continued talking either oblivious to, or uncaring of, his embarrassment. "Tequila slammers all the way tonight guys, it's a long time since this girl got smashed."
"Dear god," Xander heard Wes mutter, "a drunk Slayer. Maybe I should have accepted W & H's offer."
"Hey Wes, I was wrong you didn't have a stick up your ass," the Slayer chuckled, "it was an iron bar and it's still fucking there!"
Wes sighed long-sufferingly. "As eleqouant and charming as ever Faith."
"Damn straight, charm class was the only one I ever passed."
"Only one you're bloody likely to too!"
* * *
"So where's this place you taking us Xman?" Faith asked. Last night had been wicked cool, she'd had a couple of offers off businessmen looking for some fun, and she'd been real tempted but she wanted Xand now, but the office building he'd brought them was kinda of imposing, everything about it reeked cool efficiency.
Xander glanced towards her. "I set Champion Investigations up two years as the intel arm of the Project. We have an extensive network of contacts of the police and intelligence organisation throughout the country that send news of any suspected cases of supernatural occurrences. Champion Investigations collates their reports and sends the information onto me and the other field operatives in a weekly digest. Any emergencies and we're all contacted. They also patrol, hitting local vampire dens."
"I say," Wes looked pissed, "they're competition."
Xander chuckled. "Two demon-hunting agencies in a city the size of L.A.," Xander stepped through the opening lift doors, "I think you can stand the competition Wes."
With that her friend led them to the outside of a small office. After knocking Xander opened and walked in. "Xander!" an Oriental babe rose from behind one of the desks and hurried to hug him, a beaming smile on her beautiful face, "it's good to see you!"
"Damn guy gets more women than a rock star," Faith muttered as she pushed away the wave of jealousy that hit her. What the hell had happened to the dopey geek who's cherry she'd popped? Faith's mouth dried as she recognised the other woman in the office. "oh crap!"
"You!" Kate Lockley rose, her hand dipping into an open desk drawer. Faith paled as the blonde came up holding an automatic. The Slayer swallowed, she might be able to get out of the way of a bullet but if she did one of the others might be hurt. This was her fault, she'd have to take it.
Suddenly Xander stepped between them. Faith's pounding heart began to race even faster, nobody was ever going to get hurt 'cause of her especially him. "Get out of the way Xander," she ordered, her voice trembling.
"Can't do that Faith," the man didn't turn from the blonde. "Kate, put the gun down."
"She's an escaped fugitive!" the woman's gaze and gun didn't falter. "I know how dangerous she is, I arrested her."
"She's reformed."
"Says who?" the blonde looked incredulous.
"I say," Faith couldn't believe how calm Xand sounded, as if he was discussing the weather rather than facing a gunwoman. "And she's got a presidential pardon to prove it. Please Kate, if you can't trust her, trust me okay?"
After a second the cop nodded. "Fine," Faith felt the tension leave her body as the woman dropped the gun back into the drawer. "Just keep her away from me," the cop ordered.
"Is Ethan in, Grace?" Xander had turned back to the Oriental woman. The babe nodded. "I'll just go through then."
Wesley broke the silence that followed with a masterpiece of understatement. "Well that was bracing," the Watcher turned to Kate. "Who is the boss Miss Lockley?"
"A former intelligence operative called Ethan Hunt."
"Ethan Hunt?" Faith turned to a stunned looking Syd. "He's a legend, our answer to James Bond and he works for Xander?"
* * *
"Hi Ethan," Xander managed to keep his face expressionless but his heart was still thundering from the confrontation outside. Stepping in front of a gun-woman was definitely on the list of the ten stupidest things he'd ever done but he couldn't let Faith die not when she'd just got her life back together, gotten the second chance she deserved.
The diminutive but well-built man nodded at him. "What was the commotion outside?"
"Just Kate catching up with an old friend," Xander replied dryly. "How have things been?"
The former intelligence operative shook his head. "McClane in N.Y, Bridges in Frisco, Shatter in Chicago, Regis in Washington, Foley in Detroit - every one of the hundred plus contacts we've built up are reporting a 3 - 4 times increase in possible supernatural cases over the past six months. But you'll know that because you've had the updates. Is that why you're here?"
"Sort of, I need your help breaking into Wolfram & Hart's office. They've got some information on what's causing all this."
"Wolfram & Hart?" the man smiled, "I like a challenge."
* * *
Lara Croft looked up from her book at the knock of the door. She reached under her pillow and placed her hand on the Glock 30 there. "Yes?"
"It's Faith, can I come in?"
"Be my guest," the tomb raider's brow furrowed in puzzlement at the hesitant look on the usually brash Slayer's face. "Can I help you Faith?"
"Yeah," the brunette Slayer paced back and forth on the carpet. "Something's been bugging me for ages. I was wondering, you gotta thing for Xand?"
"Ah," the Englishwoman hid a smile. It would appear that the young woman had a crush. "Xander and I have had relations before," the girl looked crushed, Lara hurried on. "Xander is a fine, young man - kind, brave, warm- hearted, and witty, however we have little in common aside from our shared interest in the occult. I have no designs on Xander." The brunette beamed. "I assume from your question you are interested in him?"
The girl shrugged, a look of embarrassment on her face. "He's done so much for me, got me my pardon, a new home, and a job. He's forgiven me all the bad shit I did to him back in the day."
"I trust your feelings aren't merely borne out of gratitude?" when the girl looked confused she sighed. "You're not just feeling grateful?"
"I don't know," the brunette looked to the floor. "I just know when I was in town last, he was always a real gentleman, opening doors for me, getting a chair so I could sit at the table, making sure I was included in shit. I liked that but I also kinda thought it was just his angle to get me in the sack." She shrugged. "But that's just Xander, I like the way he treats people, the way he went to all that trouble to get my pardon but it's more than that. I kinda get a queasy feeling in my stomach when he smiles at me, I love talking to him -," Faith shook her head, "fuck I sound like a lovesick puppy." The brunette Slayer looked at her, a gleam in her eyes. "What about our group then, we've got some hunks in our group - Bond, Wood, Gunn, there must be one who presses your buttons?"
The aristocrat hesitated. "Wesley."
"Wes?" the girl's coal-black eyes widened, "Wes gets your panties wet? No way!"
Lara arched an eyebrow. "Well I wouldn't quite put it like that, but yes." Of all the languages she knew, American was definitely the most difficult.
