Chapter 12
June 14, 2021
"But you're dead," Dawn told him.
What? That didn't make any sense. "What are you talkin' about? You knew I was alive when you left."
Man, did he remember being alive then. The heartache at her betrayal was a pain greater than any he'd ever felt, before that night and since. Even after all these years, memories of that night still came unbidden.
Being awoken by a sudden hard sound, the glance he caught of Dawn as she walked away, and the bewilderment as he asked her what she was doing. And upon realizing the truth he'd scrambled to get out of his bed so that he could confront her, only to be too late as she'd already left the apartment. Not that that stopped him, but when he opened the door to his apartment he couldn't see her in the hallway and upon realizing he was naked he'd gone back inside.
Returning to his bedroom he'd discovered the hole in the pillow next to him. A hole created by the very bullet that was now hanging on a chain around his neck. The only comfort in it all was how she hadn't actually killed him. She had missed deliberately, no doubt about it, but even that knowledge hadn't stopped him from crying his heart out until long after the sun had come up.
But the woman he'd once thought the love of his life still hadn't answered his question. "Why did you think I was dead?"
"The quake," she said in a wondering tone, while her hand reached for his face, causing him to flinch back. No matter how innocent she'd once looked, this was the most dangerous woman currently walking the Earth. Unless there were even more secrets he didn't know about.
"What do you mean the quake? There was no quake that night." He was finally free to vent the frustration he'd kept inside for so long, and didn't feel like listening to some lame-ass excuses.
"Not then," Dawn said disappointedly as she pulled her hand back, "in 2012."
"What did that have to do with me? I wasn't anywhere near California back then."
"But Fred told me you were gone," she whispered.
Fred told her he was gone? What did he know? "That doesn't make any sense, I'd told him I was leaving."
"Maybe I misunderstood," Dawn said, still with that wondering look on her face as she stared at him. A look that almost, but not completely, made him forget about his anger.
"Yeah well, that wouldn't be the first time you misunderstood something," he barked at her, anger overriding caution. "Why the hell did you do that?"
She looked at him incomprehensively, obviously not immediately understanding what he was talking about. Until realization dawned, together with that distant look he'd become so familiar with over the years. "You said it."
"What?" He'd said something that made her shoot him, well not him directly but at least use bullets to warn him off. What could he possibly have said that would make her take such an action?
"What the hell could I've possibly said that made you-" he was cut off by the sudden furious look in her eyes. Oh yeah, they weren't alone and miss superassassin wanted to keep her secret identity secret.
"Aiight, Original Cindy is really starting to wonder what the two o' you are talkin' 'bout. Anyone care to explain this?" the black woman suddenly spoke up. Great one of those people who liked talking about themselves in the third person. Unless of course it was a case of multiple personalities, like Dawn and her so-called boss.
"You never had a boss did you?" Dave said, not bothering to answer this Original Cindy.
Dawn simply shook her head, but it was obvious to him that the surprise that had so clearly marked her earlier behavior was wearing off. He was starting to lose his advantage, and needed to press it so that he might actually get some answers. "No."
"I figured that one shortly after you'd left. I'm still surprised I never did when you were still around, as it made a lot of sense. You're a good actor."
"Actor? Are you tellin' me that she ain't who she said she is?"
This time he did answer the woman, although he wished she'd leave so he'd have a chance to talk to Dawn without having to watch his words. "I don't know, but I doubt she lied. She's Dawn Summers. Entrepreneur, multi-millionaire, and overall interfering woman extraordinary."
"Ah, aiight. Now I don't know who you are, but we were gonna visit my boo and I'd like to get there as soon as possible."
"Don't worry, I'll come with you."
"No you won't," Dawn ordered him.
Once he would have listened to a command like that. Once he would have done anything the woman told him. There had even been a time when he would've begged on his knees for the blessing of being able to hear such a command. But those times were gone; he had grown up, grown over the hurt and rejection. Now he simply ignored it. Dave too had followed the news concerning the transgenics, and was firmly on their side in the conflict.
Which meant that he'd do anything he could to save them, Even if it meant that he'd have to face Dawn Summers, the Soldier Hunter, Noir. "Why did you do it?"
Once again his question caught her off-guard, but not for long. "I told you, you shouldn't have said it."
"Said what? I loved you, I would've done anything for you!" What was her problem?
Her answer was short, to the point, and nothing like what he'd expected. "That."
"That? What that?" Only then did realization set in. "You mean that I loved you? I shouldn't have said that I loved you? What kind of nonsense is that? And why would that bother you in the first place?"
"Love kills people."
Love kills people? Dimly he remembered words like that from that show she'd named herself after, but she couldn't actually believe that could she? "That's nonsense, and you know it."
"Mom loved me, and I loved her. She died. Buffy loved me, and I returned that love. She died."
"You know I'm sorry about what happened to your family, but while it's hard to accept, people die. And you of all people should know that."
But she obviously wasn't done yet. "Faith was a very good friend, in a way I loved her as well. The same goes for Cordelia. Guess what? They died during their graduation."
How could anyone live like that? It was ridiculous to be that focused on dead people while your own life went on. Even he had learned that you should continue with your life, despite everything that happened to mess it up.
"I loved Jane and Sara, Willow might not have been my favorite person, but she too died. Giles died, and he was in some ways closer than my real father, or at least he could have been if Buffy had lived. And Xander..."
Ah, there it was. Seventeen years after he'd died the shadow of the wonderful Xander Harris still hung between them. "He died too Dawn. Why can't you simply accept that and move on? He was never interested in you anyway, he used to love your friends, but that's the closest you ever got to him. Wake up, and smell the coffee."
Dave didn't even see the movement, but he definitely felt it when she hit him, knocking him to the ground. Christ, picking himself up and rubbing the burning spot on his face, he couldn't help but wonder at the strength that was contained in such a small package. He'd always known that she was strong, but this was the first time he'd been on the receiving end of one of her punches.
And boy, did that hurt. At least she'd been nice enough to actually not kill him with that blow, because there was no doubt in his mind that she would've been able to do just that. But he also realized that while she might have chosen to let him live, the possibility that she might decide otherwise was still there. And that scared him. Every time he'd imagined this conversation, he had been the one in control, never once even considering the possibility that his life might be in danger. "Don't you dare say that again," Dawn hissed at him.
She could see, or maybe smell, his fear. Of that Dave had no doubt, but there was something bothering him. He might not have been at the receiving end of her anger before, but that didn't mean he hadn't seen her fight. Yet never had he seen her move like that. No, something had happened that made her faster and he doubted it was due to training alone.
Getting back to his feet, Dave considered the possibilities. He wasn't an expert on the human body, but even he understood there were limitations. Limitations that no longer seemed to count for Dawn, and there were only two ways he could think of that might have granted her that speed. Magic was out of the question, she would never subject herself to something like that, so that left only one other possibility. "You're like them."
"What?" Dawn seemed surprised by his answer, but no less incensed.
"You did it, didn't you?"
"I don't know what you're talking about but unless you start making sense any time soon, you'll wish you had."
At those words his self-preservation skills finally kicked in, and he quickly answered. "You've been genetically enhanced, haven't you?"
"Say what?" came from what'shername, something Cindy, but Dave was only interested in Dawn's reaction. She was the one who mattered, she was the person who controlled his fate.
"And what if I did?" she shrugged, apparently not caring that he knew. Not that he believed the front, but then he had just told her what a good actor she was.
"If you're like them, why-" Once again it was self-preservation that made him shut up, as he noticed Dawn's hand move behind her back. Where she had always kept a gun. "Never mind."
Suddenly he noticed Dawn looking behind him and as a smile that suddenly appeared on her face she waved to someone standing there. Turning around he noticed that several of the messengers had come out to watch their debate. Were they drawing that much attention? "Jack? Who are they?"
"The cops I mentioned boss," his protégé answered nervously.
"That's right," Dawn told him, still wearing that smile on her face, "and they're starting to bug me. First staring at me inside and now here as well, who do they think they are?"
"And how do you plan to get rid of them?"
Instead of answering him, she called out to the men. "Hey guys, Original Cindy here invited me to Crash tonight, are you coming as well?"
Even he, without having seen them before, could recognize that the agents lowered their guard again. Whatever they'd been expecting wasn't an invitation to Crash, whatever place that was.
The agents gave some lame excuse about having something to do that evening, and decided that one of their number keeping an eye on the four of them was enough. The others went back inside, causing Dawn to turn back to him with a satisfied expression on her face.
"Fools. Anyway, now that we've settled that it's time to go before they realize how stupid they really are. It was great speaking to you again Dave, but Original Cindy and I have a meeting to get to." She then turned to the mentioned woman, and asked her. "Ready?"
"Don't you have to catch up with him or something?" Original Cindy asked, apparently not in a hurry to go anywhere yet.
"There's nothing we need to discuss. He's a bridge I burned a long time ago." No! He wouldn't believe it. Not when he remembered the happy look in her eyes when she first saw him.
"We're not done yet, Dawnie."
"Miss Summers to you, and we are." Hah, he could see right through her pitiful attempt of feigning no interest. Right? Yes, it was all an act, he was sure of it.
In a show of defiance, Dave looked straight in her eyes. An action that he was rather proud of and was only slightly ruined by the way he kept his hand on the quickly forming bruise. "Right then miss Summers, but you still haven't answered my question."
"I have, now go away and live your life. Try my approach, live in the now, not in the past."
What? That was ridiculous, he had never met anyone who was so focused on the past as Dawn Summers. "Sure, but I'm coming with you two."
That shut her up for a moment, before she switched gears again. "Of course you are, now scram."
No, not even treating him like a little child would help her, especially as that showed how desperate she was. This meant it was time to show her what he knew. "I don't think so. As far as I know there's no law that says I can't follow you until you've reached Terminal City. And after that I don't think it's up to you."
She ignored that revelation though, instead focusing on the rest of his words. "And your little friend? Is he going to be annoying me as well?" Dawn asked while glaring at Jack, who could only shake his head in denial. Poor kid, Dave was rather sorry about how he'd put him in this position but it couldn't be helped.
"Nah, Jack has other things he needs to do. Probably deliver a package or two."
"Jack huh? I'll remember that name," Dawn said while giving the boy a good warning glare.
X.X.X
He was alive. Dawn still wasn't sure how it could be possible, but as Dave was walking next to her, she couldn't exactly deny the evidence. How could this have happened? Why hadn't she known?
Had Fred lied to her? The bartender had been the first survivor she'd found. Well, the first survivor that she actually knew. And when she'd asked him about Dave, he'd answered with the words that haunted her ever since. 'He's gone.'
Not bothering to listen to anything else the man had to say, she'd walked away to suffer in silence. And up until the very moment she'd been faced with a living Dave she'd believed Fred meant that her only living friend in the United States had fallen to the curse as well. The curse that ensured everybody she cared about died.
Everybody. The only exception so far had been Mireille, but now Dave too was alive. Did this mean the curse had been broken? Had she been hiding from everything without the need to do so?
No, she had done the right thing. But for now she should focus on the survivor of her friendship walking next to her.
He hadn't been in Los Angeles at the time of the earthquake. Even thinking about it made her a happy woman, but there was more to it. While she was grateful that he had survived despite her belief otherwise, she was a bit miffed as well.
When she first got the news about the earthquake her thoughts had been about Dave. Despite the fact that her family still lived there as well, her first fears had been for a boy whose biggest crime had been to fall in love with her. A boy she'd tried to save, in the only way she knew.
'Love does sometimes kill people, but hatred has never saved anyone.' Those had been the parting words of Odette Bouquet. Yet those words had now finally been proven wrong. Dave's love had turned to hate, and because of that he'd stayed away from her. Keeping him safe from the curse.
It had worked. Had she done anything else, Dave would have followed her. And he would have died. Maybe not at her hands—although that always was a possibility—but there had been too many missions where she'd only barely survived. And during one of those missions he would've been killed. Because he would never have let her go alone, always coming with her. Always trying to be the hero.
"So, what's the dealio between you two?" Original Cindy's voice broke into her thinking.
"There is no deal with us," Dawn distractedly told the woman.
Despite the many years since she'd last seen him however, Dave still hadn't come to understand when he should keep his mouth shut. "Ah, that's not entirely true Dawn."
"Miss Summers."
"Dawn." He had been scared of her; she'd seen it in his eyes after she'd punched him. Why didn't he stay that way? It would have made her life so much easier now. "I've known her for years actually."
"You haven't seen me for years."
"One of the things you need to understand about Dawn is that she doesn't like to let people think they're better than she is," Dave continued, not letting her reply deter him in any way. "If you make a mistake she'll tell you about it, unless of course she's planning something in which it would be useful for you to look like a fool."
And what was wrong with that? Oh well, as long as he kept to telling innocent little things she couldn't care less. That didn't mean she wouldn't keep at least half an ear on the ongoing conversation, but looking down at the cracked pavement she was walking on Dawn remembered that night in 2012 all too clearly.
'California, it's been completely destroyed.' Words that were more dramatic than the actual situation warranted, but they were close to the truth. At the time she hadn't yet owned her own jet, that was still a couple of years into the future, but within minutes she'd been in contact with someone who did. Two hours after that, she'd been on her way to the city where she'd spent such a big part of her early years.
But she hadn't been alone on that flight. Remembering that Jacob Master was from California as well had been a stroke of luck, and offering to take him and Samantha along ensured that they'd always think of her as a friend. Not that that had been the only reason she'd taken them along.
Sharing grief lessened it, and during that flight Dawn had once again come close to crying. Somehow the idea that at least someone she cared about was out of the line of fire had always been enough to sustain her. And then it was proven that he wasn't safe anyway.
"But why did the two of you separate if you were such great friends?" the overly curious woman asked. Alright, Dawn could understand the woman wanted to ensure she wasn't bringing anyone dangerous to her friend, but this was going too far.
"I don't see how that's any of your business."
"Why not? Right now Original Cindy ain't sure if she should take either of you to her boo. Whatever you said in Jam Pony coulda been one big ol' lie."
"She has a point Dawn." A point he had undoubtedly counted on. But what made him think he had suddenly gotten good at manipulation?
"No she doesn't. But she is doing exactly what you planned for her to do."
Hearing that, Original Cindy stopped walking. "Aiight. What's the dealio here? You either tell me what's going on, or you ain't ever gonna get to see my boo."
"We separated over a difference in opinion."
"You had a fight?"
Dave snorted, but this time it was Dawn doing the ignoring. "Something like that."
"What about? An' don't you dare tell Original Cindy that it doesn't concern her."
Aggravating woman, but it didn't leave her with much of a choice. "I wanted to leave the city because I had some things to do. He wanted to come, I decided he shouldn't come. I left without him, end of story."
"An' you never went back? What kind o' friendship is that?"
There had been only one reason to return, and several hundred not too, but her explanation once again circumvented those issues. "Whoever said I'm good at friendships? They never seem to last long, so I've given up on them." Mostly at least, it was worrying how some people had managed to worm their way into her heart nonetheless.
"Ri-i-ight. Somehow I ain't really happy with that answer." Turning to Dave she then asked him the same question.
"Dawn isn't lying. It might not be the whole truth, but there are some aspects of the whole thing that I don't think should be discussed."
"Like how you loved her?" The woman obviously didn't miss much, and was smarter than Dawn had anticipated.
"Among others."
"That didn't matter." The two of them had spoken together, and Dawn glared at Dave in a silent command that he should shut up.
Not that he actually respected her wishes in that regard. "There were other issues as well, among those the way she left. And most importantly the timing."
Oh come on. He couldn't possibly still be angry about that, could he? Just because he'd managed to lure her into his bed didn't mean he had the right to whine about her leaving. Disgusted with the entire conversation she started to walk on, sooner or later the other two would follow. At least she hoped so.
There was something else that still needed to be done, and the whole thing with Dave had almost made her forget about it.
Dawn had already gone several blocks when the others finally caught up with her, but they were still surprised about her direction. "This ain't where Original Cindy was gonna lead you. You can't get there like this."
"I know. But there's something I still have to do. Something I almost forgot with him turning up." And didn't remember until Dave told her he knew their destination. Everybody, and their pet dog, seemed to know her destination and now the time had come to deal with some of them.
"What are you talking about Dawn?" Dave demanded, but she didn't even need to answer before someone else did.
"Halt. You're not allowed to go any further," the police officer she'd been aiming for spoke up.
"Hello officer."
"You again? Are you going to try to sneak past all of us again? You must have learned yesterday that it didn't work. In fact, I've been ordered to call my captain the moment you'd try again. So, don't move."
"As you wish officer," Dawn lazily answered. At least this was still going according to plan, unfortunately it was creating other problems. Should she have done this before going to Jam Pony? No, that wouldn't have worked with the timing.
"Dawn what's going on here? How come he knows you?"
Because she liked to complicate her own life? Because this was going to be useful? "Trust me."
"I did, a long time ago. But then I discovered that practically everything you ever told me was a lie," Dave whispered in her ear. Thankfully she was able to hide the shiver the hot air caused as it caressed her face. Oh no! No. No. No. She was not going to go that way again with him. One night with him was more than enough. Friends were friends, everybody else was fair game, but not friends. Never again.
Wait a minute, had she thought of him as a friend again? Not good, she shook her head in order to dispel that thought, he was no longer a friend. The friend had died, she'd mourned him, and went on with her life. The guy teasing her with his breath was a complication, not a friend.
"So, what do we have here? The mysterious woman from yesterday?" A new voice suddenly spoke up, breaking her out of her reverie. "Why don't you tell me why you've been trying to get through our perimeter?"
"I needed to speak to you."
"Of course you did, that's why officer McCarthy told you to stay here."
"Don't be obtuse. I came here to speak to you."
By the way the captain's face turned red, it was obvious he wasn't happy about her wording. But thinking of the damage Dave might do while she was away put her in a bad mood ensuring she didn't care about hurting the man's feelings. "I don't think you're offering me the respect I deserve little lady."
Little lady? That went too far, even for someone she needed. "How dare you," she said while slapping him with the flat of her hand causing the other cop to draw his gun.
"Put that away, McCarthy," the captain told the cop, while sudden understanding showed in his eyes. "And you little lady, will pass through this perimeter. I've got some questions for you. Your friends will stay here for a while as well."
Finally he got the hint. Turning to Dave and Original Cindy, she smiled comfortingly. "Don't worry, I'll be back soon and then we'll do what I came here to do." By the different expressions on their faces, it was obvious they both had different ideas about what she'd come here to do. This was the thing that she'd dreaded. By leaving them here alone, she provided the possibility for Dave to spill the beans. But this was necessary!
She was nervous while the officer led her to the small building that had been set up for this kind of event. Not that she showed it, but the queasy feeling in her stomach was there, and she hoped they'd soon be done. So it was with relief that she allowed the captain to lead her into a small room and dismiss the people inside. "You're free to speak in this room.."
"Good, I've got a message from your former employers," Dawn said while taking a seat. No need to waste any time here.
"Yeah, I figured that one out myself. As if the situation here wasn't complex enough."
"The Council wants you to do something."
"And how do they plan on having me ruin my career?" The captain sounded bitter, but she had to admit that according to his profile he had good reasons for it.
Not that the fact that he'd been booted out of the Watcher's Council for doing his job deterred her from putting him in his place.. "You might want to be a bit more polite you know," Dawn admonished with a raised eyebrow, while making herself more comfortable in her seat.
"For a messenger from that bunch of fools in England? I don't think so."
"For me, Dawn Summers. Sister of Buffy Summers, friend of Faith Lehane, and all around pest."
This at least got the former Watcher's attention. "I've heard of you, aren't you-"
"Yes," Dawn waved off, she had no intention of hearing the man talk about her, or how she'd gotten involved with that bunch of British degenerates. "Like I said, there's something the Council wants you to do. And for once it isn't even something that goes against your job as a police officer."
"Really? Do they want me to arrest a criminal or something?"
"Actually, yes."
That caught the captain by surprise, and with a mental sigh she placed her briefcase on the table and clicked it open. The man had already stepped back when she did so, obviously afraid she was carrying weapons inside it. But when he only noticed the papers his curiosity brought him closer again. Foolish of course, because with one click she could have opened the hidden compartment and taken out a gun and several knives.
"What's that?"
"This is a description of a number of people I spotted yesterday. All of them are close to your perimeter, and all of them need to be removed."
"Why? Who are they?"
"John, you don't mind if I call you John, do you?" As he indicated that he didn't, Dawn continued. "I don't have a lot of time here, there are other things I need to do, so I'd appreciate it if you kept the questions to a minimum. However, this is something you should know.
"The people on this list are bounty hunters, of the human variety. All of them want to catch Noir, and her mission is too important to be stopped."
"She wants to kill someone! It's my duty to save people, whether they're transgenics or otherwise."
Why had she expected that reply? Because people like him were predictable perhaps? Yes, that was probably it. "There's more going on here than you know, John. In times of war, it is sometimes necessary to sacrifice something that might seem important." Returning to what she wanted to say she continued in a more upbeat voice. "Now, back to business. It is important that these people are removed as soon as possible. Arresting them shouldn't be much of a problem, as you could at the very least take them for carrying concealed weapons."
"But-"
"Other than that, I have need for information about two beings. The first is one of my companions, David "Dave" Boyd. A small time crook, who has been roaming across the country for the past eighteen years. I want to know as much as you can tell me about him, I'll be back for the information later. That way you'll have time to gather what information you want. How long do you think it will take you?"
"I-"
"Good, I'll be back tomorrow then. Now, one more question." She knew she'd steamrollered over the poor guy, but there wasn't much time left now. Despite everything she was on the clock. But there was always time for vengeance, and unconsciously changing her voice to convey the anger she felt she asked her question. "Tell me everything you know about a vampire named Carlos. Where he lives, how much of the city he controls, and how many minions he has."
X.X.X
Original Cindy was not a happy woman. Things kept getting more complicated every moment, and she was starting to doubt the wisdom of bringing the Summers woman to Max.
"You're starting to have doubts about bringing her, aren't you?"
How did he know what she was thinking? Never mind, she wasn't exactly trying to hide her thoughts. But what was it about this guy? She had a feeling that he would tell her more about Summers than she otherwise would have known. And that what he would tell her was very important. On the other hand, the guy was doing his best to annoy her. "What do you care? Original Cindy thought you're in love with her."
"Love. That's why she left me isn't it?" Well, that's what the woman had said, but judging by the way they'd sometimes stopped talking Original Cindy suspected there was a lot more to it.
"Yeah, well. Sometimes those you love hurt you." Like Diamond had, she thought with a pang as she remembered her old lover.
"And sometimes there are things that simply can't be forgiven." Also like with Diamond, she conceded.
In an attempt to dispel her own painful memories, she tried to dig deeper into his. "What did she do then?"
There was no immediate answer, instead the guy spent his time staring at the house they'd taken Summers to, while playing with his necklace. Well, not so much the necklace as the ugly lump hanging from it. And for a moment she looked at the cop who was carefully watching them. Watching, but kind enough to give them some privacy.
When he finally spoke Dave sounded like he was speaking of something painful. "She left hours after I'd told her I loved her. Leaving me alone, confused, and without purpose. There was also a message, one that clearly told me not to come after her."
Once again he smiled, but it looked a bit forced to her. "It was cruel, and the way she severed her ties was complete. After a few weeks I managed to come back to myself an' decided not to care about what she wanted.
"I was scared to death, let me tell you that. First I went through all her usual haunts, looked up all her contacts, visited the bars we always went to for information, the usual." A long suffering sigh told her the answer before he actually spoke the words. "In the end I decided to bite the bullet, do the one thing I feared most."
Well, the guy might be annoying but he was able to tell an interesting mystery. Of course, the middle was always the easiest part of a story. Let's see how the ending was. "Whadda ya do then?"
"I went to see her father."
Hold on, had she heard that right? Her father? "Wouldn't that be the first place to ask?"
"Hah!" Dave scoffed, "that's because you've never met her father. Stuck up little bastard that he was."
"If ya talked about her family like that, Original Cindy can understand why she dumped your skinny white ass."
"That?" He raised his eyebrows at her. "That was nothing. You should hear what Dawn had to say about her family. They all thought she was crazy, even sending her to a psychiatrist and all that kind of stuff. No, there was no love in that family. Since I've known her, Dawn only cared about two members of her family."
Well, screwed up families were rather familiar to her, although she hadn't expected something that extreme among the rich. Except... now that she thought about it, wasn't it the same with Logan? "An' who are they?"
"Were. Her mother and sister, Buffy."
Oh yeah, Summers had mentioned earlier that they died. "Did ya know them?"
"No, they were murdered before I met Dawn."
Murdered! "They were murdered, I'da thunk they'd died in a car crash or somethin'."
"People around Dawn don't exactly have the tendency to die natural deaths."
Okay, now that was one morbid chick. At least it kinda explained why the woman didn't want anyone to love her. Sorta. "Aiight, but obviously you didn't care."
"No, I didn't. I loved her too much for that and hoped that she would one day return to me. You know how it is, not a real hope, just a fool's hope."
A fool's hope? Somehow that sounded familiar. Nah, never mind. "Original Cindy takes it the chick didn't return?"
"Chick?" This actually earned a quiet chuckle. "Don't let her hear that. But no, she didn't return. Eventually I heard something that put me back on her trail. I gathered everything I had and stepped on a plane to some small town in Florida. That's where she was, but by the time I arrived..."
As he trailed of Original Cindy didn't need to be able to predict the future to know what came next. "She was gone again?"
"Yep, I arrived only a couple of days after she'd been there, but it was obvious that I was far too late. Not that I'd expected anything different, it was in her best interest to leave as soon as she could."
In her best interest? Why would that be? She shrugged the thought of, and decided to switch the subject first. "Do ya know why she wanted to come here?"
"Here as in Seattle, or here as in here?"
"Here, why she'd wanna talk to the cops."
Dave merely shrugged. "No idea, but that's nothing new. She likes to toy with the people around her. Don't ask me why, I figure she does it to make life more interesting, to have something other than revenge to live for."
Revenge? A niggling suspicion was starting to raise its voice in the back of her head, but she had no intention to voice it until she was sure. "So, what happened after Florida?"
"I spent a couple of days in Florida, looking for clues on where she might've gone, when I heard another story placing her in Phoenix, Arizona. So, I followed her there, only to have the same thing happen. Every time, I was a couple of days behind her until I couldn't afford it anymore."
"Ya were out o' money?"
"Yeah, I did have some. After taking my purpose in life, she had been kind enough not to take my money as well. Not that she needed it, because she had a lot more than I did. After all, she was the one who earned all the fees. Despite her nonsense about a boss." That last part was whispered in a voice that sounded filled with betrayal, and Original Cindy figured she probably hadn't been meant to hear it.
"You gave up?"
The reaction was immediate and strong. "No, never. I would never give up. Not then. It was only a couple of months since she'd left me, and I still loved her more than anything. But I had to give up following her in person, I was still able to read about what she'd done and I made some contacts in that time who helped me as well."
Read about it? Why did it have to look more and more as if her fears were coming true? She had to stay positive, and most of all not let the guy know he was giving away important information. "When did ya give up?"
"When I thought somebody had managed to outsmart her. When I believed she'd died in that explosion. That's when I decided to go on with my life without her."
Original Cindy knew she'd been right then, some small town in Florida, then Phoenix, and eventually an explosion. But it was just too obvious, why would he tell her all this? "When was this?"
"September 2003, at least the explosion." The Soldier Hunter. Oh god. She hadn't gotten in the army herself until more than a decade later, but that didn't mean there were no more stories left. The unstoppable Hunter who killed soldiers everywhere she could. Who tortured them on a daily basis, and who was finally stopped by the legendary hero Riley Finn.
During her stint in the army the name Finn had become synonymous with sacrificing yourself for the greater good. 'Doing a Finn' they called it, and more than a couple of people had received the Medal of Honor for doing so. Postmortem of course. But now it seemed the woman was still alive.
"So when did you figure out she was still alive?"
"A couple of years later, first I started to hear rumors about her. Rumors that nobody connected with her previous identity, but that I knew were connected to her." He'd figured out a business woman was actually the Soldier Hunter? Well, he knew her name so it made sense.
Dave went on with his story though, apparently not noticing how she reacted to it. "But by that time I'd moved on. Or so I believed. And besides, this time I too had no idea of why she was doing what she was doing. I believed she'd gotten her revenge already."
He was a lot more obvious now, except that it didn't make any sense. What did being rich have to do with revenge? 'If you're like them, why-' That's what he'd said. Was he here to stop this Soldier Hunter? But why would the Soldier Hunter...
Oh god. Nobody connected the dots. He'd known she was coming here. A new identity. Oh god. He wasn't talking about Summers the businesswoman. Gulping in air to stop herself from hyperventilating, Original Cindy realized just who the woman was. Realized just who she'd been talking to these past hours. She should tell the police officer. The woman planning to kill her friend was here.
Her behavior must have given her away, because this time when Dave spoke he didn't even bother being circumspect. "I don't know why she killed those people. Nor do I know why she stopped. Or why she suddenly started a business empire in France. I do know why she's here, but I have no idea on how to stop her."
"Stop her? You really don't love her anymore? No, how could you have ever loved anything like her?"
"Hey! Don't fool yourself. She's a lot better, in every possible way, than the media made her out to be. And while she might hide her emotions, listening to Canta per me made her cry."
Canta per me? What the hell was that? Probably some song or something. "She's a cold-blooded killer. We must stop her, no matter how you feel about her." Because if they didn't, Max would get killed. And as Max was willing to do anything for her, so was she prepared to do anything for her boo.
"And how do you figure we can do that? I don't know if you noticed it earlier, but she hit me faster than any human I've ever seen. She wasn't that fast when she left me, and back then she was already at the top of the game."
"Aiight, so she's better than us. We can tell the cops. They'll stop her."
He nodded in agreement. "Them or the bounty hunters."
"Bounty hunters?" Were there bounty hunters here?
"Yeah, the ones around us here."
"Right, so we just shout who she is an' anyone who wants to can fight her?"
"We'd be the first to go. Dawn doesn't handle betrayal very well."
"So, we tell the cop standing there, that way we'll be safe as they'll take care of her inside the building."
"That might work, if she doesn't kill them all."
Nah, there were dozens of policemen and soldiers here, she couldn't take them all out, could she? "It'll work. We must do it now though, before she gets back."
Once again Dave sighed before answering. "One of the things Dawn taught me was that sometimes you need to look at the bigger picture first. I'm not sure if she's forgotten about that, it wouldn't surprise me after Sunnydale, or if she's looking at a different picture than I am."
What was he blathering about? They should warn the cop, but she couldn't help but explain why Noir had to be stopped. "She is. Max is important. There's this cult who wants to kill off humanity."
"Vampires?"
Vampires? How did he come up with nonsense like that? "Nah, real people. A cult, y'know religious freaks."
"Oh, one of those." Oh, one of those. He acted like he'd seen a dozen of them already and Original Cindy wasn't happy to hear the enemy belittled like that. Not because she liked them, especially that prick White who was constantly trying to capture her boo, but because it sounded like Max was nothing special.
"Yeah, but-"
She was cut of as Dave spoke again. "Here she comes."
Damn! Too late. Hold on. "Are those cops she's bringing?"
"Looks like it, doesn't it?"
And judging by the way everybody was walking, Summers was in command. "Maybe it's a good thing we didn't tell the cops. If they work for her, who knows what would've happened."
"Yeah." Obviously Dave wasn't too sure what to think about all this either.
"Hey guys."
"Dawn, what's going on?" Dave asked, while Original Cindy simply did her best to act normal. No point in tipping off the psychopathic mass murderer.
"I've been released. And these fine men are going to clear up the streets a bit. It seems that there are a number of bounty hunters hanging around here. And as they're all guilty of one thing or another... "
"They can be arrested," Dave finished for her. Great, well there goes the other plan. With the police in Summers' pocket, and the bounty hunters being removed, it would be suicide to out her now. That left her with only one option she could use to save her friend. Well, one where she had a chance of surviving that was. A slim chance maybe, but a chance nonetheless.
"Summers?" the sergeant asked once the officers started their approach.
"Yes sergeant?"
"The captain told me to wish you luck on your mission, and he added that he'd prefer it if you didn't show up in his town again."
"We all have our wishes, sergeant."
"He figured you'd say something like that. And once you did I was ordered to tell you that no matter how clean you might look, if you came back he'd do his best to dig up enough dirt that not even the Council could get you off."
Summers only smiled at that. "Tell me sergeant, do you know what Council your captain was speaking of?"
"No ma'am. And to be frank, I don't care either. You're a member of the so-called elite, and in my book that means you're a profiteer. Making money from other people's suffering."
"That's quite a career-killing statement, sergeant."
"The truth is a harsh mistress."
"Now that," Summers told the stoic looking man, "is something I agree with. Very well, I won't be here much longer and once my business here has been completed I'll make sure to avoid your captain."
"He wants you to avoid the city."
"Like I said, we all have our wishes." Turning to Dave and her, Summers then continued. "Let's go."
They remained silent while walking past the cops doing their best to arrest bounty-hunters, and by the time they had exited the street that silence could only be described as oppressive. Original Cindy realized that it might just be her imagination, but she was desperately hoping that either of the other two would speak up. If they didn't start talking soon she didn't know what she'd do.
Thankfully, her wish was soon answered before she became truly unable to hide her opinion of the woman walking next to her. "Dawn?"
"Yes?" Summers answered Dave.
"What council?"
A smile appeared on the woman's face as she heard that question. What was so funny about this? "The one Buffy worked for."
"Right." They walked on for maybe another hundred meters, before Dave spoke up again.
"You never told me your sister worked for anyone."
"I know."
"Look, I may like Star Wars, but you can take it a bit too far."
"Really? You mean you're not going to tell me that overconfidence is my weakness?" Summers sounded bitter, almost as if she felt betrayed. No, she couldn't know. If she did she would have said something, right?
"I don't know if you even have a weakness," the sullen sounding answer came.
"Everybody has a weakness. You know that, I just hide mine better." Summers was starting to sound dejected, did she feel betrayed by Dave?
"Are you alright Dawn? I don't know, you sound kinda funny."
"Do you believe everybody has a purpose in life? Something for which we were put on this earth?"
Original Cindy chanced a look at Dave, catching him rolling his eyes. And he'd said Summers was a good actor. "I thought we've discussed this already. Like twenty years ago? Neither of us believes in that kind of nonsense, remember?"
"There was a prophecy that said Buffy was going to die you know."
"Really? You've never mentioned this before, did it come true?" Talk about tactless. Could the man have possibly thought of an even harsher way to rub the wound in?
"It did, but she was revived. Less then a year later she was killed again. Was that because she'd already fulfilled her purpose?"
"How should I know? I don't believe there are any superior beings, remember? It was hard enough to believe in things like that blonde chick."
"Harmony, yes I know you had trouble with that."
This conversation was really starting to weird her out, but luckily they had reached their destination. The old building was part of the barricade around Terminal City, but as nobody seemed to be aware that it had came with a back door, Logan had been able to buy it. And since he'd told Max about it, it had been turned into the unofficial entrance.
"We're here."
"Great," Summers in that same dead voice. "I believe this is where we part then?"
What? And leave her alone with the woman? She didn't think so. Sure there were a large number of people on the other side of the door that would help her, but until she'd reached them, she wanted at least some backup. "Nah, he can come too."
A deep sigh came from Summers then. "Alright. Faith in your friends it is then."
"Sorry?" Original Cindy asked. But when she looked at Dave for clarification she saw how all the color had left his face. Oh oh. Something wasn't right here. And it was that moment that she was sure. Summers knew.
With trembling hands she used her key to open the front door, before leading the two others through the building. It really needed to be cleaned though, Original Cindy thought while looking at the footprints that were clearly visible on the dust-covered floor. Immediately following that thought she shook her head in an attempt to clear it while replacing it with almost pure panic.
What was she doing? Why was she leading her friend's would-be murderer to that same friend? Because she might not survive not doing so? That might be a good reason, but she was also pretty sure that Summers, no Soldier Hunter, no Noir, already knew. No matter how good she tried to hide her opinion and fear of the woman, something would be getting through.
She had never thought of this building as dark before, in her mind it had always been the way she could reach her friend, but walking through it alongside an assassin she noticed the spooky parts. A creaking board here, uncleaned cobwebs there, even the damp smell caused by the leaking water pipe. It all added up in her mind, until she was sure she looked as jumpy as a cat at a dog show.
In order to increase the creepyness even more, nobody said a word during their walk, until they finally reached the door and it was time for her to announce herself. Knocking on the entrance she waited for a response while listening to the final conversation between Summers and Dave.
"Thank you Dave."
"For what?"
Turning around, Original Cindy could see that a wan smile was the only answer that followed, before her attention was redirected to the door. "Who is it?"
"Original Cindy," she tried to say in as calm a voice as possible while stepping closer to the peephole. Having gone through this before, she wasn't surprised when the lights suddenly flickered on to help them identify her.
"Are you alone?"
Please, please, they had to help her. She was begging for all she was worth without actually speaking the words. "No, I'm bringing two guests." From the flicker of the guy's eyes she could see he had noticed the other two by now, and obviously he didn't like what he saw. But he didn't seem to have noticed her expression.
"I'm sorry, but only people on the list can come in. You'll have to go back." No! Why couldn't he read her face? That wasn't what she wanted. They had to let her in and kill Summers.
"I can't, the woman with me needs to see Max. It's important."
"Woman?" was suddenly whispered through the door. "Her?"
"Yes," she almost sobbed, all too aware of the piercing gaze from that woman.
"Don't worry, we'll take care of it. Step back." Yes! Yes!
She stepped away from the door, when suddenly everything happened at once. An extra set of lights suddenly turned on, blinding her, she could hear someone falling to the ground, the door was being thrown open and she could hear people coming trough, and most importantly she could feel an arm snaking around her neck. Holding her in an iron grip.
X.X.X
Max had to admit that her friends had been right. The two transgenics that were now walking towards her were indeed very ugly. So ugly in fact that she couldn't even tell what animal they'd been crossed with. Nomilies? Probably, she figured. They looked pretty old too. But that was probably due to their non-human DNA, after all they couldn't be older than Joshua.
"Ma'am! Reporting as ordered maam!" the first of the two shouted as they reached her, immediately jumping into a salute.
Oh great, more people that went around saluting her. That was one of those things she hated about being in command. But she had to play along.
Returning the salute she told them to stand at ease. "Alright. The two of you are among the only people here I haven't met yet. So why don't we go to my office and talk some there."
The eager glint in their eyes made her every instinct scream that this wasn't a good idea, but she quickly shook it off. The chances of any transgenic betraying her to White after what that man had done were simply nonexistent.
"Ma'am! By your command ma'am." Great, couldn't they lighten up a bit? The two of them had probably been alone since Manticore burned down, but that didn't mean they had to act as if Lydecker was here.
"Right, follow me then." She turned around, clearly showing her back to them so they'd know she trusted them, and led them to the small room across the command-center.
From the corner of her eye she noticed Mole coming with her, obviously he didn't trust these two enough to let her talk to them alone. This time she would allow it, but she did need to speak to him about that behavior. It couldn't be good for morale if it looked as if she was too afraid to talk to a couple of nomilies alone.
Inside the office she motioned for her two newest soldiers to take a seat, while taking a moment to study them. The first thing she'd noticed about them was that they were green. And not just any kind of green, no they were nearly fluorescent green. The kind of green that couldn't possibly be the color of a healthy animal. Besides their color though, there was something else that made them stand out. They stunk.
Sure, a number of the transgenics were hard on her sensitive nose, but this seemed to reach a new level. Which of course explained why they had traveled alone. Poor guys. Aside from their color and odor though, there wasn't really anything about them that she could name that set them apart from the other transgenics. And yet, she felt the same way Alec probably had. There was something about them, something that put the hairs on the back of her neck on end.
"What are your names?"
"You can call me Jack, and he's Daniels."
"Funny, come up with it yourself?"
"It was either that or Johnny and Walker."
She chuckled a bit at their attempt at humor, but still wasn't able to completely relax. Why did she feel like she had to either run, or attack? Fight or flight, she thought dimly. No matter, these transgenics deserved the same treatment all the others had. "So, how did you get here?"
"We were on an undercover mission when Manticore became public," Jack started. "We decided to remain where we were for the time being, and only traveled to Seattle when we heard about this place."
They were undercover? Ugh, no matter how open she tried to be, she did not want to know where these two might not be noticed. A colony of blind people living in the sewers perhaps? No, too much information there. "Was it easy to get here? Or were you bothered by the police and military?"
"No problems, we have ways we can travel without being noticed." Right, maybe they had some kind of chameleon-like cloaking or something. Which would also make their earlier explanation more plausible. The colony living in the sewers didn't necessarily have to be blind.
"That's good to hear, now-" A knock on the door interrupted her next question, and she told the person at the door to enter. "What is it?"
"We have a situation at the back entrance, ma'am," the X-6 told her.
"Is it important?" Duh Max, otherwise he wouldn't have come, now would he?
"Yes ma'am."
Before she had a chance to tell him she was coming, Mole spoke up. "I'll go and look what's it about Max, why don't you continue this."
Her eyes narrowing in suspicion, Max asked her next question. "Why?"
"If this is what I think it is, it might be best if you weren't present."
Right, so he did think it was Noir. Which was something she really needed to be there for. "I-"
"Trust me Max. Whatever it is, I won't let anything happen without informing you."
Well, that was a compromise she could live with. It didn't make her happy, but she could deal with it. "Aiight. You go check this out, I'll be there in twenty minutes or so."
"Right," Mole acknowledged while getting up from his chair and walking to the door. "You have fun here too."
Turning back to the two transgenics she'd planned to speak to, she tried to get back into the conversation, but couldn't get her mind set on it. Momentarily she looked at the golden rings the two wore, in an attempt to center herself, but it was useless. "I'm sorry guys, this just isn't working. Can we do this tomorrow? I really need to check what's going on."
"I'm afraid we can't do that," Daniels told her, suddenly sounding threatening. The fight or flight feeling had definitely returned in full.
"What do you mean?" she asked, but by then she already knew. The gun might have been silenced, but it was a sound so familiar to her that she could recognize it anywhere. Not that she needed to, she dimly thought as she crashed to the ground, the impact on her chest would have been enough to do that.
Post-fic comments: Well, at least I didn't leave you with a cliffhanger. :-) Don't forget to bug me about the continuation of this story. There's a nice little button below this sentence for that very purpose.