A/N : As you may have guessed this story is almost over, just one more chapter after this one, and possibly an epilogue. It's certainly taken long enough to get this far, but I'm pretty proud of my unusually dark fic. Anywho, thanx to those who reviewed the previous chapter; Moonjava, Mary, sheilamarie, Xtremely-Canadian, pixiecorn, Emily, it's always very much appreciated.
(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)
Chapter 21
Buffy felt sick, ten times more now than she had when she'd met Riley in the park two days before. She hated lying, a strange thing for an under-cover cop, but then her real hate for deception had only occurred this past month or so as she'd fallen in love with an innocent man, a man who'd tortured himself for months over crimes he never committed. All that was going to get solved tonight, if it was the last thing Buffy Summers ever did in this world, and in her heart of hearts she knew it might just be.
She couldn't tell Spike, couldn't let him feel the guilt for anything she suffered tonight. It was for his own good as well as hers that she hadn't told him what she was planning, despite the fact she was doing it all for him.
It was just getting dark out and the streetlights flashed on one by one as she looked out of the window and waited for Angel to arrive. Riley wasn't far away, she could just make out his car on the other side of the street right before the turning. Angel would be coming from the opposite direction and wouldn't see him, at least that was the plan. If he came past Riley's car though it was doubtful he'd realise who it was anyway.
Buffy noticed her palms were sweating and she was shaking all over as she waited. This wasn't supposed to be so difficult, she hadn't been half so nervous when she'd had to face Spike, believing him to be a murderer, but then that was all it was. A belief she had, something that somebody had convinced her was true. There was evidence that Angel was guilty of his crimes, not enough concrete fact to stand up in a court of law but enough for Buffy to know she was about to try and charm a confession from a definite killer.
It was bad enough when she'd had to summon up the nerve to tell Riley all, not that she really had given him every detail but still. She'd explained that Spike was not guilty and why she was more certain now than she ever had been. He'd asked how she'd suddenly managed to get information from the bleached blond that seemed so difficult for her to obtain before. Though she never said she loved him or that they'd slept together, she did admit to feeling like she knew him. Riley was in two minds whether to believe his colleauge despite the deep feelings he harboured for her, but she didn't really have a reason to lie. He had asked her if she was certain she wasn't being played. She told him it was near impossible given all the supposed evidence, and even if it were all a lie, they'd know after tonight.
So here they were, Buffy exhaled shakily as she reached a hand inside her own top and adjusted the tiny microphone, the wire of which was taped to her body beneath her uncharacteristically skimpy clothes. She didn't want to look slutty, just a little more womanly and attractive than maybe she normally would when meeting with a work friend. She needed Angel to believe her when she said she liked him, a lot more than she'd ever admitted before. Needed him to trust her enough that when she complimented him on how well he set up Spike for something he didn't do, O'Connor would come out and admit it. After that, convincing him to confess to the murder couldn't be that hard, she surmised, though she wouldn't let her brain wander too far for fear of realising she was doing something insanely stupid.
Buffy's breath caught in her throat when she saw Angel approach her front door. With a deep breath she adjusted her skirt once again, hating that it wouldn't reach her knees no matter how she tried, before going to let him in. He had a bottle of wine in his hand and what she assumed he thought was a sexy grin on his face. She felt so sick right now, but she smiled anyway.
"Hey" she said, almost coyly, calling on every acting skill she had.
"Wow" was his only response, "How come you don't dress like this for work" he asked as his eyes roamed her body, making her feel cheap, "You look amazing"
"Thankyou" she forced out, "Er, come in"
She convinced him to let up his grip on the wine and allow her to go get the corkscrew. In the kitchen she poured a full glass for him and just a little for herslef, making it look as if she'd already downed hers on the way back to the living room where he waited for her.
"So, you said you had some things you needed to say to me, Summers" Angel reminded her as she handed him the glass full of wine, "What's on your mind?"
"Please, Angel" she said with a smile, almost purring his name "We're not at work now, you can call me Buffy without the guys thinking I'm getting any special treatment" she emphasised the last two words in such a way, as if to say she wanted some.
"Okay, Buffy" he grinned, liking this game so far, especially the view he was getting from his seat as she sat oppoite on the couch. She crossed her legs and her already short skirt rode up to reveal a couple more inches of flesh, "What's up, sweetheart?" he asked again.
"Nothing in particular is..up" she shrugged, eyes travelling down his body, "Well, maybe one thing" she said more quietly batting her eyes.
Inside she just wanted to throw up, worse she wanted to die for what she was having to do but it was all for a good cause. She just kept telling herslef how great life could be with Spike if she could just get through this. She would tell him everything afterwards, it wouldn't matter then. Right now she just had to make Angel comfortable and loose-tongued, although that was definitely not a phrase she'd be saying to the man himself any time soon. There were already far too many dirty little thoughts in his head that she'd rather not imagine, but at least he was at arms length so far, she would do her best to get the information she needed without things progressing too far. She had her doubts that it'd be that easy.
Spike was worried about Buffy. He knew she needed to spend a lot of time at the office and such, not just for appearances sake but also to do further research into his case. He didn't want to complain about that, of course not, but he missed her a great deal. The last couple of days he'd barely seen her and she pulled away too fast when he tried to touch her this morning. The way she'd said goodbye as she left his apartment had sounded wrong, like it was final or something. He hadn't noticed til afterwards as he added up all the little instances of strange behaviour. In the end Spike had decided he needed to talk to her and right now. Maybe she was having second thoughts about them getting involved together, maybe her police mates and that wanker, O'Connor, had told her more lies, convincing her that the guilty man in this case had not changed.
Spike was just across the street from the front door to Buffy's building when a voice call 'hey' behind him. He didn't recognise the bloke that frantically gestured from the car parked beside him.
"You got a problem, mate?" Spike asked warily as he walked over. There was a lot of weird blokes about at this time of night, and not all of them prayed on young girls as some assumed.
"William Blood" the mystery man said a little coldly and Spike frowned.
"Who's askin'?" he checked, backing up a step, a million panicked thoughts running through his brain.
"I'm not asking" Riley told him, "I know who you are. I'm a colleague of Buffy's" he explained "a friend too" he added of Spike's less than happy expression.
"Then what're you doin' sittin' out here in your car, mate?" the bleached blond asked, still not at all comfortable with this situation. Things only got more confusing when he heard familiar female laughter pour from the car. He glanced in the windows but no-one but Riley was there, Buffy's voice was coming from a speaker on the dash.
"What the bloody hell...?" he frowned.
"Get in the car, I'll explain" Riley said shortly, and Spike kept a careful eye on this man as he did as he was told for once.
"So, I'm in the car" he said pointedly, "Explain"
"My name's Detective Finn" the police officer began, "I work with Buffy, I was part of the team involved with solving the Walker murder case"
Spike winced at how cold and clinical Dru's death was to these official types, just another case, another bunch of paperwork.
"She explained to me how she'd got to know you, how she had evidence that whilst the victim was murd..."
"Drusilla" Spike interrupted quietly, "Your victim had a name, Drusilla" he said giving the other man a look. Riley sighed before continuing.
"Your Drusilla was killed, but not by you. Buffy told me that and I believe her" he confirmed, "She explained about the evidence she'd got not being enough, but being almost one hundred percent certain O'Connor is guilty"
Spike opened his mouth to speak when he heard words through the speakers once again.
"I can't believe you had me fooled all this time" said Angel's voice, "You really had me thinking you didn't like me at all"
"It wouldn't be very professional for me to be all over you at work" Buffy replied shyly, "Doesn't mean I didn't want to be"
Spike screwed his eyes tight shut and looked away, feeling physically sick.
"She's acting" Riley told the bleached blond as he looked both terribly hurt and angry at the same time, "She's wearing a wire and...she knows he likes her. She can probably get a confession this way"
"You idiot" Spike sneered, "You let her go it alone with that...that murderous git!" he raved, reaching for the handle to open the car door just as the Riley hit a button that locked it.
"Can't let you out of here, Blood" he said with a shake of his head, "I can't risk you screwing this up"
"Doesn't bother you then?" Spike asked with his best evil sneer, "Bein' locked in here with a supposed murderer, that alright with you is it?"
"You're not a murderer" Riley told him, as if he didn't know, "I have enough faith in Buffy to believe what she says. I trust her judgement of people too"
"So, what?" Spike said frustratedly, "I gotta sit here and listen to her and pissin' O'Connor get half way to shagging? Not bloody likely" he snapped.
"You don't get a choice" Riley snapped, "Not if you want to keep out of jail"
Spike turned to look at him then, steely gaze meeting another just the same. He knew Finn was right, but that didn't mean he hated the situation any the less. He, more than anyone, knew what O'Connor was capable of. If Buffy got caught, maybe even if she didn't, she could find herself in a whole heap of trouble, or worse. She might not come out of this alive.
Buffy tried not to squirm away too much as Angel sat close to her on the couch, his hand on her bare knee. She tried not to think about the physical contact, tried to imagine it was Spike here with her now just to make it easier to take but it was no use, besides she couldn't risk that she might say his name by mistake. This was too big a deal for errors.
"I always knew you were sexy as hell, and totally brave" she smiled sexily, finger playing with his shirt where the top few buttons were undone "but imagine my surprise when I realised there was even more to you than that" she said, trying to keep her breathing and her heart rate under control. He was her superioir officer, trained even more intensly than her to spot liars and scenarios in which he was getting set up.
"Man of many layers, that's me" he said, edging closer to her, his hand ceeping to just above her knee. She swallowed back the bile that rose in her throat, forcing herslef to keep this up just a little longer.
"Brains and brawn in one package, quite a good deal" she said softly, fingers tracing patterns on his skin "and a guy like you, what you did, you must have some brain in there" she said with fake wonderment as her fingers moved up and ran through his hair.
"What I did?" he frowned slightly at her words "What're you talking about, baby?" he asked, a little distracted by her soft touch.
"The guy you set up" she whispered, getting incredibly close, almost hypnotising him with her lips and eyes "that Blood guy you've got me tailing, it's pure artistry the way you made him feel so bad, he might even admit to a crime he never committed" she smiled as if she might laugh, though inside she was screaming and crying a river.
Angel backed off a little, and she panicked, pushing her body up closer to his til they were a mere inch or two away from touching.
"It's okay" she promised "I won't tell. I mean, it's not like you killed the girl or anything, it's just someone's gotta take the blame" she shrugged "and who better than the girls whack-job ex who's already on our records"
Buffy hated saying these things, hated herself for saying them even though she knew she was just acting. She tried not to wince as Angel's sweaty hand returned to her leg and the other came up to her face, his fingers running softly over her cheek and pushing her hair behind her ear.
"If you're so sure Blood didn't kill her" he said after a moment "why are you still...?"
"Messing with his head?" Buffy interrupted, "Trying to get the confession? Because you want me to" she said leaning forward so she could whisper in his ear and not have to look at his face at the same time "I've been hiding what I feel for so long but...you know I'd do anything you asked, Angel" she said as she pulled back to look him in the eye, trying to look as convincing as possible "Anything at all" she said breathlessly before he finally moved in and put his lips to hers with some force.
It was just about as disgusting as Buffy knew it would be. It would've been bad enough anyway but after the wonder she knew Spike could evoke in her, he'd spoilt her for anyone else. He was so tender and gentle and yet passionate at the same time, he never failed in making her feel like a goddess when he loved her the way only he could. In comparison, Angel was heavy and awkward and not at all gentle as he pressed her into the csuhions and his hand found it's way right up her skirt. Buffy couldn't take anymore.
"Angel?" she gasped, short of breath and not in a good way as she twisted her head away.
"Hmm" he mumbled against her neck where he was currently kissing and sucking like a leech.
"Who do you think really did kill Drusilla Walker?" she said, "I mean, if it's not Blood it had to be someone right?" she was both relieved and a little worried when his hand stilled it's movement beneath her skirt and his lips left her neck. He moved off her slightly and looked at her strangely.
"If I knew that why would we be setting him up?" he asked uncertainly and Buffy worried that she'd said too much too soon.
"I don't know" she said hurriedly, "I was just thinking he must be some guy too, y'know big with the brains and brawn package just like you" she attempted a smile, uncertain if it came out right as he leaned over her, not looking exactly happy. She was in no poistion to get away if he turned nasty and her heart thumped wildly in her chest.
"What're you saying?" he asked in a low voice and she breathed deeply before finding a sweet smile for him.
"Come on, Angel" she purred, putting a hand to his face "you can tell me if you know" she urged him, "Whisper it in my ear...with all the other dirty little secrets you've been dying to share with me" she encouraged as he brought his lips down on hers once again. His hands chose different directions, one tangling in her hair as the other went for a route inside her top. Buffy was too busy trying to squirm away from the worst of his advances she didn't realise what was happening til it was too late.
"I'll tell you what you want to know" he breathed in her ear "but first, you answer me one question"
"Anything" she whispered back, glad this was almost over, waiting fro the words that would set Spike free...they never came. Buffy yelped as the tape that held the wire secure was ripped from her skin, and Angel leaned over her, holding the tiny microphone in his hand.
"What the hell is this!" he yelled angrily.
To Be Continued...
A/N2 : One chapter to go, in the meantime any reviews would be most gratefully received.
