Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from the Angel series except my own.

Wesley peered at the laptop screen reading through the data that was contained on the disc. He frowned every so often whenever he read something particularly disturbing, which was quite often. He couldn't believe Wolfram & Hart had done this. Scratch that. Yes he could. This is exactly something they would do. He was concerned even more now for both Kaia and her father. If Angel found out about Wolfram & Hart's plans for Kaia, if he found out what they did to her when she was in their custody, well he would be livid. Wesley wasn't too far from that emotion himself. He had just met Kaia and he was already feeling very protective of her. He looked up briefly hearing the sound of Gunn's voice, talking on his cell phone no doubt, just outside the dining room.

Gunn came back into the room, snapping his cell phone shut and sliding it into his pocket. "I got in contact with some of my old crew from the streets," he announced. "They'll be here as soon as they can. I also explained to them that this situation is of the utmost secrecy." Wesley nodded and returned his attention to the screen. "So you found anything interesting on that disc," Gunn asked curiously, as he pulled out a chair to sit.

"Yes...unfortunately Angel is not going to like it," Wesley replied as he closed the lab top cover. "Gunn the things they did to her...it was just so...inhuman. She was only a child Gunn...a little girl. The worst part of this is that they gave us this information to torture Angel...to let him know exactly how his daughter had been treated. These people are so sick. Remind me again why he agreed to take over their L.A. Branch of Operations."

Gunn sighed. "We wanted to use their resources to help people," he said, although at the moment he didn't sound too sure of his statement. "I know how you feel man. I'm getting tired of them leaving us in the dark. I know their idea of fun is torturing us, but this is too much. This is Angel's kid man. They're messing with his family."

"Exactly...they know how protective he is with Connor," Wesley said softly. "Apparently they haven't learned their lesson yet."

Just then Angel entered the room. "Who hasn't learned their lesson," he questioned, as he pulled out a chair and took a seat.

Wesley hesitated to answer. "We were just talking about Wolfram & Hart," he said carefully.

Angel's face remained calm. "Oh yeah...what about them exactly?" Angel glanced at the lab top in front of Wesley. "Did you find anything off of that disc," he questioned. Wesley nodded. "So are you going to tell me what you found out," Angel asked, his voice holding a slight note of impatience.

"Angel...you're not going to like this," Wesley replied tentatively. "The stuff that's on here...it's---." Wesley stopped, not able to explain or put into words what he found out.

"I can handle it Wesley," Angel said firmly. "Just spit it out."

Wesley clasped his hands together on the table and took a deep breath before he spoke. "From the data that was on this disc, I gather that Kaia was kept in a secret facility from conception to the age of 10. She was a trial experiment for a future assassin just as Lindsay said, but she rejected some of the brain washing because of her telepathy power. She did retain some of it though, some of her fighting ability for instance. Her quick instincts allowed her to learn a lot very quickly."

"Hold up...you're telling me that they were training a little girl how to fight...how to kill," Gunn asked incredulously. "Tell me you're kidding. I just assumed she learned how to fight like that when she was older...a lot older in fact."

"You would think that, but they had other ideas for her," said Wesley grimly, glancing at Gunn. "I don't believe she got to be such a good fighter just from her time spent at that facility. I suspect that she's had further training since then, because her documented training didn't appear to be as advanced as we have seen her fight. There were also experiments. Some of them are documented in detail here." He then turned to Angel. "Angel, those experiments, they were sometimes painful. They would inject her with viruses, some man made, to see how her accelerated immune system adapted to it." Wesley paused when he saw a brief flash of pain cross the vampire's face. "Angel are you sure you want to hear this," he asked quietly. Angel nodded, his jaw clenching slightly.

"Okay...like I was saying she refused some of their brain washing," said Wesley. "But she would be punished for it...injecting her with sedatives that would last just long enough to immobilize her so that they could torture her. She finally escaped from there when she was 10 years old. Somehow she came into the care of a family who later adopted her, which we already know. But Angel she didn't just escape. They let her."

Angel gave Wesley a blank look. "Are you sure," he asked. "Lindsay seemed to be under the impression that Kaia herself escaped...on her own without any help."

"Yes...I know," Wesley answered. "It appears that the senior partners didn't tell Lindsay everything. We of all people should know that they only tell you what they want you to know."

"Okay I see your point, but why," Angel asked. "Why let her escape?"

"Because they wanted to study how she would perform in the real world," Wesley answered, his tone grim. "They've been tracking her longer than she thinks. All the while she was growing up with her adopted family, they knew where she was. That family that adopted her was on Wolfram & Hart's payroll. I'm quite certain Kaia doesn't know about that part. Unfortunately for Wolfram & Hart, the couple fell in love with Kaia and refused to return her back to them. The senior partners finally sent some people to collect Kaia when she was in her senior year of high school. That was when her parents were killed."

Angel held a hand to his temple. He was so angry he could barely see straight. Gunn looked at Angel, concerned at the anger he saw brimming beneath the surface. "Angel man...you alright," he asked. Angel shot him a look. "Okay...stupid question," Gunn commented, his eyebrows rising at the anger radiating off of his friend.

Angel pushed his chair back roughly. "I just don't understand how people can be so heartless," he cried. "I'm a demon and I'm not even like that!" He placed his hands on the back of the chair as he hunched over, his eyes focusing on the table cloth as he forced himself to calm down.

"You're not like that because you have a soul man," Gunn replied softly. "They don't. They're cold, heartless bastards. We already know this."

"Yes...don't we ever," said Wesley dryly. "They've crossed a line here Gunn. She was only an innocent child, whom they treated like a possession. Now they want her back...to finish their work."

Angel looked up. "What work exactly," he asked, his voice still hard but calmer.

"They intend to make her kill someone," said Wesley avoiding Angel's eyes.

"Who," Gunn asked. "Is it someone we know?" Wesley looked at Angel again and said, "Yes...we know him quite well."

Angel stood up straight. "It's me isn't it," he asked. "I'm who she's supposed to kill. What better way to hurt me than to have my own daughter attack me? I'm right aren't I?" Wesley nodded.

Angel pinched the bridge of his nose, his frustration apparent. He paced the room back and forth, his hands on his hips, his lips set in a thin line. He just couldn't fathom the idea that 25 years ago, a child was conceived that was a part of him. All those years, she spent without him. He didn't even get the chance to see her grow up...just like Connor. He closed his eyes, sighing deeply. Apart of him wished this nightmare had never happened, but only because he hated thinking of Kaia being in pain all alone without him there to take care of her. The bigger part of him welcomed this situation they were now in. No matter what he couldn't regret what happened, he would never regret her existence, not after he had held her close to him. He only regretted her being hurt in the process.


Kaia sat up in bed swiftly with her heart beating out of her chest; her body coated with a fine sheen of sweat. Her eyes flew around the room frantically, searching for something familiar, inwardly hoping that he would be there. He wasn't. She had to find him...see if he was okay. That dream...that nightmare...it had been so real. It couldn't be real. He had to be okay. She swiftly threw the covers off her body and jumped out of the bed. She concentrated and teleported, landing directly outside the dining room area. She padded softly into the dining room, causing the three men to start, all of them looking at her curiously. Her eyes however were focused on only one of them. As she drew closer to him, she saw him get up from his seat and walk towards her, closing the distance between them.

"Kaia...are you alright," he asked, holding her gently by the shoulders. She nodded dumbly, unable to give a response. She was just so happy to see him...to see him alive. She shuddered involuntarily at the images of him lying on the sidewalk, his body riddled with bullets, the blood pooling underneath him. He ran a hand down her cheek, trying to stroke some kind of response from her but she continued to stare at him, her expression slightly dazed. He glanced over at her father, seeing the matching alarming expression that he knew was on his own face that very moment. He then pulled her into his arms and held her, not knowing exactly what else to do to calm her. She in turn placed her arms around his waist, resting her head against his chest, sighing as she felt his hand stroking her hair. Wesley continued to smooth his hand down her hair, while the other hand rubbed her back. What could have caused her to act this way? What had happened?

Note: Here's another installment. I'm wondering if I should bring Connor into this story or wait until I write a sequel. Tell me what you guys think.