A/N : This story is, in some ways, the most difficult to write, since the darkness does not come naturally to me. I'm glad you people that are reading think I'm doing well though, especially pleased that Drusilla is apparently so in-character, heaven only knows how I get into that weird girl's head but somehow it just happens! Hopefully Buffy and Spike, and everyone else, remain in-character too and that you're not disappointed by the way the story goes. Thanx to the latest reviewers; spikeswife1, greatwite2, Rhonda, Xtremely-Canadian, Amandamanda3, sheilamarie. Here's the new chapter...
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 15

Buffy poured another two coffees for herself and Spike. She'd been running on pure adrenaline for a while there, but now she felt so exhausted and emotionally drained the caffeine was all that was keeping her functioning. She could tell Spike felt equally bad if not worse than she did. Recounting the worst events of his life was the most painful thing in the world for him, she knew it, and it was only set to get worse.

She estimated the time he spoke of now was just a few weeks before Drusilla died. There was little of the story left to tell and a couple of hours, maybe just a few minutes before she must hear the tale of that woman's murder, if in fact that was what happened.

She took a deep breath as she walked back over to the table and put one mug of steaming black coffee down in front of Spike, keeping the other in her hands as she took a seat opposite him again.

"Thanks, luv" he said absently, though Buffy wasn't certain he was even aware of her anymore. He was knee deep in painful memories, reliving such trauma that she felt she could've been anybody, but on the other hand would he really tell this tale to anyone but the woman he'd come to love like he never thought possible?

"Spike?" she tried to get his attention as he seemed to be staring at something that wasn't there. He glanced up at her then and nodded as if to confirm he was still awake and there with her.

"We didn't get far" he said, voice hoarse from so much prior talking and crying, "That night we planned our escape to be in less than twenty four hours" he explained, "I just had to wait to get the last of my cash from one of my jobs and we were gonna try to sneak back to Dru's and grab some of her clothes and stuff if we could...but it all went wrong" he trailed off, staring down at the mug of coffee he now held between his hands.

Buffy felt awful for asking him to carry on but they'd come this far, she had to know the rest. She reached across the table and pulled his hand into hers, squeezing it in a reassuring gesture.

"What happened?" she asked him, gently as she could, and somehow in that moment she'd given him the strength to tell her.

- - - - - - -

"I don't want to leave you here alone, Dru" Spike complained, "but I can't risk taking you back to your place either" he said frustratedly, hands balling into fists at the thought of Angel and all the trouble he'd caused for them so far, and how much more he could cause given half the chance.

"It's alright, my darling" Drusilla told him, as she came to stand in front of him, wrapping her arms around his neck, "Miss Edith will take care of me until my knight returns" she smiled, gesturing with her head towards the china doll that sat on the bed looking at them both with unseeing eyes.

Spike couldn't help but smile at the childish innocence his girl possessed. He pushed from his mind the vague thoughts that the crazy things she said were getting even more strange, and more frequent of late...

"I'll be as fast as I can, baby" he swore, putting his hand to her face.

"And I shall be waiting" Drusilla grinned, leaning in to kiss him passionately, "You are my sweet, my little Spike" she said as he forced himself to step away and head for the door.

Drusilla waved as he finally left before turning back to the bedroom. She was going to finish packing for Spike but something made her stop and turn back towards the door as if she sensed some kind of presence. A moment later someone knocked and she stood completely still, hardly daring to breathe for fear it might be Angel that waited beyond the door.

"Open the door, baby" the familiar voice called to her, "Come on Dru, you know if you do as you're told I won't hurt you, not my precious girl"

"Go away" she called, voice cracking as tears ran down her cheeks and she backed up against the wall. There was nowhere to run and no-one to protect her now.

"Drusilla" his tone grew icy cold and his fist hit the door with a force, "Open. This. Door" he said with growing frustration at her inability to obey orders.

"No, no, no, no" Dru covered her ears with her hands and sobbed uncontrollably as she herd him yell threats to knock the door in. It wouldn't take much effort, she knew, he was so big and strong, and Spike was not here to protect her.

Just a few moments later, the door swung open with such violence it almost snapped clean off it's hinges and Drusilla tried to hide herself in the corner of the room, an impossible task. Angel breathed heavily from the exertion of knocking the door in, but he was grinning manically as he stalked across the room towards her.

"Where's your darling Spike now, eh Dru?" he asked her as he dragged her up from the floor by her arm and pinned her against the wall.

"Right here, you git" said an angry voice behind him and Drusilla was so relieved to see Spike in the open doorway, "You take your hands off her" he yelled, "or I'll make sure they'll be finding your body for weeks" he threatened. Angel only laughed.

"You know how long you'd go to jail for assaulting a police officer, boy?" he asked him and for a moment Spike looked stunned. He'd had no idea Dru's evil step-father was a cop, she'd never mentioned it, not that it would stop Spike from tearing this guy limb from limb if he didn't soon let go of Dru. She meant more to him than life itself.

"I'm going to say this once more and if I were you I'd pay bloody good attention" Spike told his enemy, the tears he saw on Dru's face only making him feel more violent against the bastard that held her, "Let go of her, now!"

"Okay, William" Angel smirked, pushing Dru away into a chair. She landed with a thud, wrapping her arms around herself and crying still, as her step-father stalked towards her lover.

"I know more about you than you could ever imagine" he said with a self-satisfied look on his face, "You've got some dangerous friends, Blood"

"Yeah" he nodded once, "Got some bleedin' dangerous fists too. Want me to introduce 'em to your face?" he asked, readying himself for some kind of attack, but Angel stood scarily still. The only sound in the room was Drusilla who began to whisper Hail Mary over and over as she rocked back and forth in the chair, eyes closed and hands clasped together.

"What's the matter?" Spike asked at length, more worried than he was letting on by Angel's silence, "Afraid you might break a nail, you ponce?" he spat.

The brunette started to smile once again as in a flash he pulled his gun from it's hiding place and levelled it at Spike's head.

"Who's afraid now?" he asked in a low voice as the bleached blond swallowed hard.

"You wouldn't dare" he managed to say like he meant it and Dru's eyes sprang open when she head the click of the gun being prepared for firing.

"No!" she wailed, flinging herself at Angel, knocking him off balance but not quite off his feet.

"Stay back Dru, or I swear to God..." he yelled as he pushed her away but it gave Spike vital seconds he needed to wrestle the other man to the ground and kick the gun away from him.

Angel threw a punch at Spike but he moved away and struck out himself, catching the brunette in the face and making his head swing violently to the side.

"Get out!" Spike all but screamed as he used the other man's moment of confusion to throw him out the open door, "And don't ever come near me and Dru again!" he added with some force as he closed the broken door as best he could. He turned to lean his weight against it as Angel thumped on the other side.

"This isn't over!" he swore before he ambled away. Spike heard him clatter down the stairs and let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

Drusilla was still sprawled on the floor and Spike went straight to her side, helping her to sit up.

"Oh pet, I'm so sorry" he told her as he pulled her to him, "He was never supposed to find you, I didn't know..."

"Sssh" she silenced him, her fingers to his lips, "You saved me as you always do, as you always will" she said, managing a slight smile, "You suffer for me like no-one else would" she winced at the sight of blood on his cheek and moved her hand to wipe it away, "I am grateful, Spike" she assured him, "I would die without my precious boy"

"Don't say things like that, Dru" he begged of her, holding her tight in his arms, "You and me, we're gonna be okay now. We're getting out of here tonight, lack of cash be damned, we'll find a way to live somehow" he promised her.

"You will protect me, Spike" she said nodded against his shoulder, believing the vow he made, "Look after princess, til death do us part"

"Forever, luv" he swore, "Forever and always"

- - - - - - -

"We took the first bus out" Spike choked on his words as he turned his mug of now cold coffee around on the table. His fingers were itching for a nice calming cigarette but he had no inclination to move and find one. There were much more important things to consider right now than his nicotine withdrawal.

"We could only afford as far as here if we were going to have enough cash to survive very long" he said sadly, "Should've been further, then we might've..." his expression was one of pure frustration as he recalled that time. He slammed a fist on the table, making the mugs upon it jump up and down, as well as Buffy who bounced in her seat, startled by the sudden noise.

"I promised to protect her, Buffy" he said with tears in his eyes once again, "but I ended up killing her..."

- - - - - - -

It was a little less than a month since Spike and Drusilla had arrived in Sunnydale. The first few nights they'd spent at the cheapest and possibly most disgusting motel known to man. Spike managed to get a job waiting tables and serving drinks in a trendy cafe/bar, and miraculously was granted a small advance on his wages, he figured because the couple that owned the place felt bad for him.

They seemed desperate to help in any way they could when he'd begged for extra cash. Whilst he didn't tell them why he and Dru had run from home, he was quite happy to tell the kindly lesbian couple, Willow and Tara, about his darling girl and how all he wanted to do was look after her.

They were barely ten years older than him, Spike guessed, but the two women seemed to want to be his mothers within days of meeting him. Their help meant he and Dru soon had enough cash for the deposit on an apartment that was by no means a palace, but still a good couple of steps up from the motel.

What Spike never told his bosses was what else he used the money he earnt for. With a sizeable portion he got himself a gun. He didn't like it but it was a necessary evil after the run in with Angel back in LA. If he did happen to find them again, Spike was determined to be able to defend himself and more importantly Drusilla. He left the gun in her not-quite-so-capable hands whenever he had to leave her home alone. She hated violence and loathed being given such a weapon to use, but Spike had told her it was the only way to ensure her safety.

As the days went by life seemed to be improving and the pair saw nothing of Angel O'Connor. They hoped against hope he'd given up on chasing Drusilla, but in the back of their minds both she and Spike knew they were not so lucky.

"I've got to go to work now, sweetheart" he told her one fateful Friday night. She hadn't been feeling so good the past couple of days and despite the fact it was barely six in the evening she was already half-asleep in their bed.

"Here now" he tried to get her attention and make her aware of him sitting beside her as he placed the gun in the top drawer by her head, "You'll remember where it is?" he checked she was listening and watching, glad when she nodded in response to his question.

"I shall be sleeping when you come home again" she said too seriously as she put a hand to his face, "I feel like I could sleep forever"

He took hold of her hand in his and brought her knuckles to his lips to kiss them.

"You rest up, luv" he told her, tucking her in like a child, "and I'll be back in a few hours"

Spike leant over Drusilla to place another gentle kiss on her forehead, before leaving the room as silently as he could. He had no idea that was the last time he'd see her alive.

To Be Continued...

A/N2 : If you're reading but not reviewing can I please encourage you just to write a few words to let me know if you still like this fic. Always good to know if I'm doing well or not :-) I'll update again as soon as I can.