Chapter 17
They arrived in the dungeon where Angel and Wesley had been tortured. Spike stepped forward to look at the wire mattresses that had been used to electrocute them. He gave a low whistle.
"It's a wonder that Wesley survived this." Spike said. "If he had been made to endure what I had he wouldn't have survived. Fortunately for him they had a special hatred for me. Lets go and find the judges so we can get back. Stay with Buffy at all times Mom." Angel said as he was carefully leading them into the hallway from the torture room. Dr. Martin held onto Buffy's hand as they walked through the hallway.
Angel walked ahead of the rest, he used all of his senses to gather any and all bits of information that would tell him about his environment. At the same time his mind was searching his memory for the exact path back to the courtroom. He led them up two flights of stairs then to the doorway that led to the hallway that contained the courtrooms.
They all walked over to courtroom three and walked in. All the guards that had tortured Angel and Wesley were in the courtroom and the three judges were on the bench.
Dr. Martin went to the clerk that was at the entrance to the court room. She acted as though this was a normal day and they were carrying on with business as usual.
"We would like to have some time to address the court. It should only take 10 to 15 minutes." Dr. Martin told the court clerk.
The clerk took the request down and went to the judge when there was a lull in the proceedings. He handed the piece of paper to the main judge. He read the message and then looked up at Angels group.
The judge spoke briefly to the clerk and the clerk returned to Dr. Martin. "Dr. Martin the judge will see you after the current case and he will give you approximately 10 minutes."
"Thank you." Dr. Martin replied.
Angel, Buffy, and Spike all followed Dr. Martin's example and sat quietly and respectfully.
Twenty minutes later the current prisoner was escorted out of the court. Only two guards took him out while the rest all stayed. They were all curious to see what Angel was doing back here. They thought he was either stupid or very brave.
The court clerk called Dr. Martin to come forward. "Dr. Mary Martin is here to speak to the court about the rules that Mr. Angels employer has set for this court."
"Just who is Mr. Angels employer Dr. Martin?"
"God."
"What are the rules that he has set down for us?" The judge had a grin of some sort on his face because he thought that this woman was here to play a monumental joke on him.
Without showing any emotion Dr. Martin stood before the judges and guards and gave the one simple rule that they were to follow. Basically they were to leave everyone in Angel Investigations and the Sunnydale group alone. What they did was none of the judges or courts business.
"What Angel Investigations or the Sunnydale group did is not in this court's jurisdiction. If any further action against these groups is taken, a special emissary will be sent by God to take care of the problem. If you think that you will be able to take care of anyone sent by my Lord I suggest that you check the records as to who kicked your boss out of heaven. Does anyone have any questions?"
The judges just looked at her as though they were thinking 'Who do they think they are coming into our courtroom and laying down the law to us?' "We have no questions. We will give you an answer by tomorrow at this time."
Dr. Martin turned to leave. Angel, Spike and Buffy followed her. As soon as their backs were turned, the lead Judge signaled to the head guard to take them.
The guards jumped them all at once. Angel had five guards on him that he was fighting. Spike had five also. The one that they made a mistake on was Buffy. Apparently they didn't know about her so they pretty much ignored her. They saw a short, petite woman that couldn't possibly be any kind of a threat to so many demons.
Buffy continued to stand by Dr. Martin. When she saw so many of the guards ganging up on Spike she jumped in and started pulling them off of him. Angel was killing demons left and right by breaking their necks. Spike had a sharp wooden spike that he had taken from the legs of a chair. He used this to kill one demon after another. Since Buffy didn't have much weight behind her to put very much force behind her kicks or punches, she used her strength to her advantage by using the demons own bodies to drive their heads into a wall or into another demon. The times that that didn't work she resorted to Angels favorite move and broke their necks.
Dr. Martin was watching on the side. When one of the guards dropped his machine gun, she picked it up and aimed it at the ceiling and fired a few rounds. The force of the kickback from the firing of the machine gun knocked Dr. Martin on her behind. She got up right away because everyone stopped and looked at her. Angel pushed the demons aside and came and took the gun away from Dr. Martin.
"Everyone go over to the front by the Judges stand." All of the demons that could stand walked to the front then turned around. Angel told Dr. Martin to go out to the hallway with Buffy and Spike and told her to start reciting the words to return them to their own dimension and the Hotel. When they were out Angel told the Judges "We will be looking forward to your reply by 4:00 p.m. our time tomorrow."
Angel backed out and used the gun to prevent the doors from opening. He moved over to stand by Dr. Martin, Buffy and Spike. Dr. Martin said the rest of the words to send them back to their dimension.
They re-entered their own dimension with a loud bang. It was so loud when they re-entered their own dimension that Angel heard Kathleen crying. He didn't see Cordelia around so he ran up the stairs to let her know that they were back and they were all okay.
Giles went over to Dr. Martin. "Are you okay?" "Yes, except for my behind when the gun that I shot off knocked me on my posterior." She was rubbing her left cheek as she was telling him about what happened. "My poor baby would you like to go upstairs and I'll fix an ice pack to put on it?" He said it with a grin.
"No I think it will be okay until later, thank you for the offer though." She laughed at his attempted maneuvering to get her upstairs.
Angel came downstairs with Cordelia and Kathleen. He was holding his daughter as they came downstairs. She had quieted down as soon as her Daddy picked her up.
"Lets go and sit down at the dinning room table so we can talk about what went on at court."
Angel said as he came into the Lobby.
They all sat down while Cordelia and Fred brought drinks and snacks over to the table for everyone. Angel told the rest what had happened from the time they left to the time they returned.
"I have to tell you that I have new found respect for Dr. Martin. To use the phrase that they use in the Mafia, Dr. Mary Tares Martin made her bones today. She showed herself to be a person that has what it takes to face down demons when she has to." They all clapped for her as she put down her head because she was blushing and laughing at the same time.
At the same time Angel noticed that Cordelia also had her head down and Kathleen started crying. After a minute Cordelia went to the kitchen and grabbed a pen and paper and started writing down something.
"Here we are guys. I just had a vision. We have a demon attacking several people near the La Brea Tar Pits. I think this means that vacation time is over and it's business as usual." She handed the paper over to Angel and took Kathleen from him.
It was dark now so both Angel and Spike got up to leave along with Buffy, and Connor. Wesley and Gunn started to follow but Angel told them to stay because they had enough.
Dr. Martin came over to Cordelia. "I noticed she was crying while you were having the vision. Let me check her for a minute. Did you notice if she stopped crying as soon as the vision stopped?" "Yes, she stopped as soon as the vision stopped. But I don't think she can see what I see I think she is just reacting to my reaction to the vision." "Are you experiencing any pain when you get them now?" "Just slightly and just enough to get my attention, but I don't have the brutal headaches that I used to get."
Dr. Martin uncovered Kathleen and was examining her. She looked fine though and she couldn't see any residual affects. "She might have had a reaction to your vision because Angel is picking up on some of it also so between the two of you she was caught. This is something that we will have to keep an eye on. I'm not saying that we have to worry about it but I do think that you should keep this at the back of your mind. If you notice anything unusual after the visions let me know." She covered Kathleen back up and held her for a while. Kathleen was looking at her Godmother. Her eyes were starting to show their true color of green.
"This baby is all Irish with those beautiful green eyes and dark red hair. You and Angel are a perfect pair Cordelia. The combination of your DNA has made and will make beautiful babies. Giles' I have to go to do some shopping for my Godchilds baptism do you want to go with me?"
Dr. Martin talked to Kathleen just as though she could understand her.
"I would but Wesley is going to take me to an old used book store that he gets his demon informational books from. Maybe Buffy or Connor will go with you. You shouldn't be going out on your own while Angel is having to deal with the interdimensional court. They might just try to teach him a lesson by hurting someone here."
"He's not kidding Mom these guys can get real nasty. You've seen Angel when they use him so don't take any chances." Cordelia said.
"Okay, I'll wait. Fred your going to have to go with Wesley to get a christening day present for his Goddaughter. It's customary to give a gift to the child so don't let him forget. Next week Friday we will be going to the church with other couples to learn what is done at the Baptism."
Dr. Martin was holding Kathleen and rocking her back and forth. Kathleen's eyes were closed and she was sleeping peacefully in her grandmothers arms.
"I'm going to do some washing Mom. Our little miss here piles up clothes pretty fast." "Okay Cordy I'll be here with our little green eyed lassie." Dr. Martin got up with Kathleen, pulled the new bassinet with her and went to the new rocker that was in the Lobby. She sat down and started rocking Kathleen while Cordy went upstairs to get all of the dirty clothes and then down to the basement where she started up the washing machine. The machine was so noisy that she didn't hear the basement door being closed and locked.
Wesley and Fred were upstairs on the 3rd floor checking on the rooms that had been set aside for classrooms and childrens bedrooms. Gunn was down in the Lobby playing with a new game that he had recently bought for the X-Box. He told everyone that he had to practice playing the game or else Connor would cream him when they played the game together for the first time.
Dr. Martin had placed Kathleen in the bassinet while she went to get something to drink. Gunn heard a loud noise but by the time he turned around to check out the source something hit him and he was out like a light.
Cordelia was done loading the washing machine so she started to go back up to the Lobby but she found the door had closed and had locked. She pounded on the door. "Moooommmmm, Guuunnnn open the basement door I'm locked in. Mooommmm, Guuunnnn open the basement door." When no one came to open the door she went out of the back door and walked around to the front. As she came through the front doors she yelled out "Where is everyone I got locked in the basement and was yelling at the top of my voice for someone to help me. Mom, Gunn where are you?"
Cordelia went over to the bassinet and found Kathleen sleeping as though nothing had happened. After she checked the baby she turned around when she heard a moan coming from the direction of the TV. She ran over to the couch and found Gunn on the floor.
"Gunn what happened? Where is Mom?" Cordelia helped him to get up and sit on the couch.
"I don't know, all I remember was hearing a loud noise then the lights went out." Gunn was rubbing his head. Cordelia went to the kitchen to get an ice pack to put on Gunn's head. By the time she got back to Gunn, Fred and Wesley were coming down the stairs.
"What happened?" Wesley asked as he walked over to the couch where Cordelia was holding an ice pack on Gunn's head.
"Someone locked me in the basement and when I came around the front of the Hotel I found Mom missing, Kathleen was in her bassinet sleeping, and Gunn had been knocked out cold over here." "I'll go and check to see if she is in her room." Fred said as she ran upstairs again.
"I'll check the clinic, she wouldn't leave Kathleen alone like this so she has to be here." Wesley said. He went to the clinic and didn't find her then he went over to the kitchen but Dr. Martin was no where to be found. He went back to Cordelia and Gunn and waited for Fred to come back. Within a few minutes Fred came running back. "She's not up here." Giles came downstairs with her.
"I have a bad feeling about this Wesley. I think the Judges have decided that they are going to teach Angel what happens when anyone tries telling them what to do. He is going to be royally pissed."
"We had all better stay down here together until they come back." Wesley said. They all took a seat around the Lobby to wait for Angel to come back. When Kathleen started crying Cordelia went to her to check to see if she needed changing. She was only wet this time and fortunately Cordelia had everything she needed right underneath the bassinet. Cordelia was doing her best not to get upset with worry about Dr. Martin. She knew that it would be picked up by Kathleen. After cleaning her daughter up she picked her up and sat in the rocking chair so she could feed her.
Giles was watching her. He got up and pulled a chair over beside Cordelia.
"How are you doing Cordelia?" "I am doing my best not to get upset Giles. If I don't Kathleen will sense that something is wrong and I don't want that to happen. So I am going to just sit here, feed my daughter, and think happy thoughts that everything will be alright. Thank you for asking though." She gave him her best million dollar smile and then just closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the rocker.
Giles could see the two tears falling down her cheeks. He took his handkerchief and wiped them away then stood up and gave her a kiss on her forehead. He went back to Wesley's office and joined him.
"Do you think that it's the judges that are behind this?" Giles asked Wesley. "Most definitely don't you think so also?" "Yes, yes. It has to be them."
Giles couldn't hold it back any longer, he put his hand over his eyes and he started to cry. "Why does this have to happen to the women that I fall in love with Wesley. First Angelus took Jenny from me now these demons have taken Mary."
Wesley got up from behind his desk and came and sat next to Giles. He also noticed that Cordelia had come to stand in the doorway. She had been there long enough to have heard what Giles had said. Cordelia then did something that only Cordelia would of had the nerve to do. She came over to Giles and pushed him back in the chair and sat in his lap. She crossed her legs and took Giles glasses off of him and grabbed a Kleenex from the box on Wesley's desk. She carefully cleaned his glasses then wiped his tears away then put his glasses back on him.
"I am going to tell you something Giles about the women in our family. Haven't you noticed what kind of women we are. Haven't you been able to see a quality in each of us women that we share." Giles looked at her and Cordelia could see that he had no idea what she was talking about.
"I don't understand how the men in our group could possibly do the things you do and still yet you have absolutely no idea as to what kind of women you live with. All of us women have great courage to face wherever and whatever you men lead us into. We follow and support you, we take care of you when you've been hurt, we keep your home for you. We all understand the danger of the work we do and we all accept it because we love you. Mom has fit into our family perfectly. She is a brave, and intelligent woman that you have been lucky enough to have a relationship with. Most of all Giles this woman has brought God back into our lives. I don't know if she is still alive or if they will return her to us still alive or in what condition but I do know that she knows that we will do whatever we have to, to get her back and we will take care of her just as she has taken care of us. Gods love and ours will sustain her."
"When did you become so wise Cordelia?" Giles asked her.
"I don't know it just kind of developed over the years with Angel Investigations and Angel. I had a lot of time to think when Angel would spend long periods of time meditating and Wesley here had his nose in demon books or scrolls." Cordelia stood up and started to leave.
"Angel said that they are on their way home and should be here in a few minutes. I've told him that Mom is missing and we think the Judges have taken her." She left then and went to the kitchen to make some coffee and tea. She made several different kinds of sandwiches. Some were roast beef, some were ham and cheese and some were just peanut butter and jelly which was Buffy's favorite. She always had fruit out on the table so all she needed now was bowls of potato chips and Fritoes.
Angel and the rest came in through the back doors. He had come very close to breaking the doors they had hit them so hard as they came through them.
"Okay what happened?" Angel asked Cordelia. She explained what and when everything happened to Angel and the rest.
"Has anyone tried to open the portal again?" Angel asked Wesley and Giles.
"No we thought it would be best to wait for you guys." Giles said.
"Lets get going then." Angel said.
Wesley stepped out in the open and started reciting the spell that would open the portal to the judges. As he finished the spell he stood back but nothing happened. He tried it again but once again nothing happened.
"They seemed to have done something to prevent us from opening the portal." Wesley looked at Giles. "How did you and Willow find out how to open the portal Giles?" "Willow is the one that was able to track them when they sent you back. We need her to get back here as soon as possible. I believe her and Tara went to the theater." "Can you call her on her cell phone?" "Yes I have her number, I'll call her right away."
Wesley turned to Angel. "We won't be able to go after Mary right now Angel but we will be able to get you back in once they send her back. Giles said that Willow is the one that back tracked you to the Judges dimension. I've asked Giles to call her on her cellphone. Willow has to set things up so that she can trace the signal when they send Mary back."
"Thanks Giles and Wesley I am going to go and get cleaned up now I'll be back in about 20 minutes." Angel went up stairs then to get cleaned up. The rest did the same. When they were done they all headed for the dinning room table and the sandwiches. Cordelia warmed some blood up for Angel and Spike. Angel drank the blood only.
Kathleen was doing a lot of crying even though her Mother had changed and fed her. When Angel asked Cordelia what was wrong with her she told him that Kathleen was reacting to his current mood so he went over to the couch in his office and laid down and started to pray the rosary. He often found that it helped him to calm down and control himself. When he was done he came out and picked his daughter up. She had stopped crying five minutes after he had gone into his office. "Your going to make it awfully hard for me to be angry for very long Kathleen. If I don't get my anger under control your crying will be a constant reminder to me to straighten up and fly right."
Angel started for the stairs with Kathleen in his arms and Cordelia following him. He knew that he couldn't do anything to help so he thought he would get some rest.
"Your grandma will be okay Kathleen. All of you Martin women are pretty tough cookies."
Angel told his daughter as he held her.
Six hours later Angel woke up to the sound of a loud noise in the Hotel. He quickly pulled his pants on and ran downstairs. He could see that it was Dr. Martin. She had been returned in the same state of undress as Wesley and he had been returned. Giles shouted at him not to approach her. "Don't touch her yet Angel Willow isn't done back tracking her return yet."
Angel heard Spike and Buffy coming down the stairs. Spike ran into the clinic and grabbed a sheet to cover Dr. Martin with. When he came back Angel stopped him from going to her. He explained that Willow was still backtracking her return.
"Okay Angel I've got it." Willow finally said.
Spike threw the sheet over Dr. Martin. He started to check her pulse and her eyes. Spike looked up at Angel. "We have to take her to the hospital Angel. She's lost a lot of blood and she is in shock right now."
"Let me go and get dressed and I'll bring Cordy's van around to the front." Angel said as he ran up the stairs 3 at a time. "Bring a blanket when you come back Angel." Spike said.
Angel quickly put the rest of his clothes on and grabbed his keys and a blanket. Then he ran down to Wesley's room and knocked on the door. Wesley answered the door. "Wesley they've returned Mom and Spike said that we need to take her to the hospital. I need for you to follow us with all of the information on her that the hospital will need. Buffy is going to stay here with Cordelia so Connor can come if he wants to." "Okay Angel I'll follow you in a few minutes." Wesley said as he put his glasses on.
"Fred they've returned Dr. Martin. Spike and Angel are taking her to the hospital. Buffy is going to stay here with Cordelia for now. Connor will most likely come with me." Wesley put some clothes on then gave Fred a kiss good bye. "I'll call you later and let you know how she is as soon as I find out. Call Dr. Thompson and Hunter for me and let them know what is going on. Let Morgan and Fr. Barris know also." He gave her another kiss then left.
As soon as Wesley left Fred put something on then went downstairs to Wesley's office and started calling everyone. When she was done she went up to Cordelia to see how she was. She knocked on her door. "Come in." Cordelia answered. Fred opened the door and went in.
"How are you two doing?" Fred asked. "Mother and child are doing okay so far. I just fed her and I was going to see if I could get more milk out of my breasts. I want to go to the hospital also but I can't unless I can leave some milk here. Angel has been helping me to drain my breast each morning in order to encourage my body to produce more milk then what Kathleen needs at one time." Cordelia had cleaned the breast pump and the container where the milk would be stored. She went to the kitchen table with the pump and containers and started to try pumping her breasts for milk. It took her a few attempts but she finally got it right and milk started coming out and going into the containers. She was able to get about 3 ounces more out of each breast so she put 3 ounces each into 2 bottles and put them into the refrigerator.
"I am going to go to the hospital Buffy would you go with me?" "Sure Cordelia, Willow put a protection spell on the Hotel as soon as we leave." "Okay, don't forget to tell everyone that they have to call me to let me know they're coming back. We will take really good care of our little princes here." Willow said.
Cordelia and Buffy went out of the door and went running downstairs to the back and Angels' car. As soon as Willow heard them leave the hotel she put the protection spell up.
Cordelia made it to the hospital within 15 minutes. She quickly parked and they both ran into the reception area and checked on the location of Dr. Martin. They said she was in surgery right now and were told where the waiting room was. Cordelia and Buffy took the elevator to the 3rd floor and went to the nurse's desk to ask where the waiting room was. The aid at the desk pointed to the waiting room and they went over to the room to find everyone. The place was a little crowded with everyone there.
Cordelia and Buffy went to their husbands to ask how Dr. Martin was. "How is she Angel?" "Dr. Thompson is in surgery with her. Before they took her into surgery Dr. Thompson came over and told us they tore her up badly. They did a rape examination and took samples but he said we wouldn't have to worry about anyone identifying the semen because she had so many men have their turn at her that it would be next too impossible to identify any one person. He said that she regained consciousness for a few minutes and he told her what they were going to do. She just nodded okay. He said he would let us know how she was as soon as he could."
Spike had been telling Buffy the same thing. When he was done she told him that she would be going back to the hotel. "Willow wanted me to tell everyone that they will have to call her when they want to get back into the hotel because she has a protection spell on it. I am going to go back now. Cordelia can I have the keys to Angels car?" Cordelia gave her the keys and thanked her for coming with her.
Before Buffy left she went to Giles. "How are you doing?" "Okay considering the circumstances." "Somewhere deep inside me a voice is telling me that she will be okay." Buffy said then she gave Giles a kiss and left. Angel had sat back down and Cordelia sat next to him. After awhile she fell asleep while leaning on his shoulder.
About 30 minutes later David and Marissa Morgan came in along with Bobby. Angel greeted them and explained what had happened. They all sat down again and waited. Angel took his Rosary out and was praying. David and Bobby were shocked when he did this. David came over to him when he was done and had put it back into his pocket.
"Angel may I ask how you are able to do that without getting burned?" Bobby had followed David over to Angel. He explained to them what Dr. Martin had taught him. He told them how Dr. Martin had gone about proving to him that Angelus was the one that was afraid of everything that belonged to God. He also explained how he had chosen to go to confession and part of his penance was that he was to pray the Rosary every day for as long as he existed in this world.
By the time that Angel had finished Dr. Thompson came over to the group. He looked pretty tired. Angel stood up as Thompson approached him.
"Everything went very well Angel. We had to take out both of her ovaries and uterus. Since she was way beyond her child bearing years it won't have much of an impact on her. Angel they did some really nasty things to her. When we took out her uterus we found evidence that they had put a wire up inside of her and electrocuted her. The damage that the electricity did was part of the reason that we had to take everything out. They also used her body like a punching bag. Fortunately Mary was physically fit so her muscles took most of the punches okay. But they did manage to damage one kidney. We are hoping that it will repair itself as she gets the rest that she will need. Her spleen also ruptured and we had to take it out. People survive without a spleen just fine. She had 3 broken ribs and one of them had splintered and punctured a lung. The lung had collapsed but we were able to repair that without any problem. Her face was badly beaten and her eyes are swollen. We won't know if she can see alright until the swelling goes down. Right now she has to get over the problem of blood getting into her lung. We are doing all that we can to prevent it from developing into pneumonia." A nurse came up to Dr. Thompson while he was telling them about her condition.
"Dr. Thompson, Dr. Martin is awake and is calling for her son." "Okay thank you. Come on Angel I'll take you over to her."
Dr. Thompson quickly took Angel over to the recovery room. He helped him into a gown and mask then took him over to Dr. Martin's bed.
Angel almost couldn't control himself when he saw all of the tubes going into his mother. He bent down over the bed and called to her. "Mom, it's me Angel." Dr. Martin turned to him. He could barely tell that she opened her eyes. "Could I have some ice, I'm so thirsty?" Angel looked around and saw a cup of ice with a plastic spoon on the stand next to her bed. He spooned a small amount of it into her mouth. She played with it a little and let it melt slowly. When it was gone she looked at Angel.
"Angel?" "Yes Mom I'm right here." "Angel I know you are going to go after those demons, but promise me that you will discuss it with the others as to the best way to go about it. I don't want anyone to be hurt over what happened to me. Promise that you will listen to everyone's advice and not do just what you want to do. Promise me Angel." "I promise." "Do me a favor now and give me your Rosary. You can use mine that is beside my bed on the night stand until you come back tomorrow." Angel reached into his pocket and put the beads in her left hand. She grabbed onto it then went back to sleep.
"Lets go Angel, she needs to rest now and the nurses need to be able to get to her when they check on her." Dr. Thompson pulled on his arm and led him to the doors and helped him to take off the gown and dispose of it.
"When do you think she will be able to come home?" Angel asked as he played with the mask.
"Not for at least two days. If she isn't having any problems with her lungs then we should be able to take her home."
"I want to thank you for all that you have done Mike. Tomorrow we will be taking care of the demons that did this to her. I would appreciate it if you would send Hunter over to help us. I need someone to stay with Cordelia and Kathleen while I am gone." "I'll let her know Angel." "Thank you." Angel said then he went back to the waiting room.
As he approached the waiting room everyone stood up. "She is resting now. I think we had all better go back home now. David tomorrow we will be discussing the best way to go about getting rid of the demons that did this to her. If you and Bobby want to join us your welcome. He looked at everyone then said "I will be discussing the best way to go about taking care of these demons with my family." He smiled when he said it and everyone smiled back. They knew how big of a change this was for Angel.
They all started walking out of the hospital then since tomorrow was going to be a big day and they needed to be well rested and alert. They were going to be going against formidable odds.
The next day Angel was up at 8 o'clock. He was down in the basement working out and pushing himself to the limit. By 10 o'clock he could hear everyone coming downstairs and starting breakfast. He went up through the back stairs to the 2nd floor and to his own room. By the time he had showered and dressed he heard Mike and Hunter come in followed by David, Marissa, his wife and some of his men. He headed downstairs to join everyone.
When he reached the top of the stairs he looked down at the Lobby and found it to be crowded. Everyone was being offered drinks of coffee or tea by Cordelia and Fred. Angel came down the stairs and greeted everyone. He saw that Richards had come with David. Angel found himself staring at him. He saw Wesley coming towards him with a mug of blood for him.
"Cordelia asked me to give this to you Angel." "Thanks, Wesley look at Richards, does anything about him seem familiar to you?" Wesley took a good look at Richards. Richards was talking to Spike about what exactly had happened at the Judges dimension. He watched the way he stood, the way he drank his coffee, his mannerisms as he talked and he could also hear a slight accent. All of a sudden Wesley's eyes grew wide. He choked on his tea that he had just taken a sip of. It took him a moment to get his coughing under control.
"I'll be back in a second Angel, I have to ask David something." Wesley went over to David Morgan and asked him "David can you tell me Richards last name?" "Sorry I can't because he never gave a last name. He said that all he goes by is Richards and that he was born and raised in New York City. That's all I know. I could call the Supervisor of the guards if you want I am sure that he has more information." "No that's okay, by any chance would you know his age?" "I believe the guys just gave him a birthday party. Marissa made the cake for them and I think she put 'HAPPY 35TH BIRTHDAY'." "Thank you very much David."
Wesley went over to Spike who was with Buffy now. "Spike I noticed you were talking to Richards a moment ago." "Yeah." "Does anything about him seem familiar to you?" "Now that you mention it he sure reminds me of Angel." "Thanks I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't the only one."
Wesley walked over to Richards and asked him to follow him. He then called Angel and Giles over to Angels office. They all filed into the office and Wesley took Angels seat behind his desk while Richards sat on the couch and Angel and Giles sat in the two chairs that were in front of his desk.
"Richards I have been asking some questions about you on Angels behalf. It seems that he thinks he knows you from some place, but he can't remember from where. I think that I know from where or in your case from whom. Angel where were you in 1970 or 1969?" Wesley got mixed reactions from Angel and Giles, but Richards didn't give any reaction at all except to look at Angel.
"I believe I was in New York City up until the summer of 1970. I had been staying with a woman that I had met at the restaurant that I had been working at. She was a waitress on my shift. I think her name was Martha O'Connell. I had to tell her about myself because of my main food being blood."
"What was your mothers maiden name Richards?" Richards looked at Wesley and then at Angel. They all saw that he had tears threatening to spill over.
"My mothers maiden name was O'Connell, Martha O'Connell. Angel according to my mother you are my father."
Everyone was quiet for a few moments. Wesley, Giles and Richards where watching for a reaction from Angel.
"I knew that there was something familiar about you but I couldn't put my finger on it. Now I know, you are like an older version of Connor." Angel said. "And Connor is a carbon copy of you Angel." Wesley said.
Angel continued to stair are Richards for awhile. Then he got up and went to Richards and hugged him. When they separated both Angel and Richards were sniffling.
"When we get back we'll take some time to talk. I will have to introduce you to everyone and especially your brother Connor. There is something that I need to know right now before we go. Connor inherited many of his mothers and my Vampire abilities. Did you inherit any special abilities from me?"
"I am stronger then most men and I am slightly faster. Since I took after my mothers family in my physical physique I tend to have normal speed in my movements. I am unable to use the oriental arts in fighting because of the way I am built but I can obtain the same results by using brute strength. There is one more thing Angel that I have recently learned that I can do that I didn't know about until I saw the special film of you and your wife. I don't do it in the same way that you do but I get the same response from the women."
"Uh lets keep that part out of your description okay. We'll talk to Dr. Martin about that when we get back." Angel started to walk out of the office when Wesley called him.
"Angel, we also have a slight problem in that Richards looks older than you. I advise you to keep that in mind when you introduce him."
They all stopped and thought about that problem. Giles came up with the only possible solution to the problem.
"Angel I believe it would be best if you didn't tell anyone outside of the family that Richards is your son. There would be to many questions and to much to explain. It's no reflection on you Richards it's just that we have to protect Angels true nature." "I agree with Giles Angel. It would cause too many problems to let anyone outside of the family know who Richards is. I do suggest though that we make a connection with Dr. Martins fathers side of the family. Perhaps a cousin of some sort. We have to come up with some story though that would explain why you, Richards and Connor all have the same mannerisms. If I can make the connection then someone else will also."
Angel was quiet while Giles and Wesley were stating their reasoning for not declaring who Richards was.
"What would you like me to do Richard?" Angel asked.
"Everything they said is true Angel. I think it would be safer for all of you and me if our true relationship was kept within the family. All I ever wanted was a family after my mother died Angel and now you have welcomed me into yours. Those people that count will know who I am. Ever since my mother told me who my father was I've researched and watched you. I believe that you are a man of honor and I would be proud to be known of as your son but we must look at this logically. I believe that we must go with Giles and Wesley's suggestion. I have a job and life with Mr. Morgan's group now and I want to remain with him, but if you don't mind I'll come over for visits whenever I can. If you should need any help, I will gladly come and help you if at all possible."
"I agree with you. And I'll do as you think is best, but understand that if you should ever want me to announce myself as your father I will, with pride, announce it." Angel gave Richards a hug then they all left the office and joined the others.
"Take a seat everyone. We need to let you know what the set up is in the Judges' dimension. Then we need to discuss how we are going to take care of them. I have to tell you though that my intention is to take care of them once and for all. That means that they will all die today. The judges have made it known that they don't follow anyone else's rules but their own." Angel and Wesley then let them know how it all began and how Dr. Martin went with them to lay down some rules that had been given to her by St. Michael. Basically the rules were that they were to leave us alone. Their jurisdiction included Demon activities only which excluded Vampires of course since they were not truly 100 Demon.
For the next 30 minutes they all discussed the best way to go about taking care of the Judges and their guards. When they were ready Willow started the spell that would open the portal to the Judges' dimension. The return spell had been given to everyone in case anyone was separated.
The plan went smoothly and there were no injuries on their side. All of the Judges that were responsible for the attacks on Angel, Wesley, and then Dr. Martin had been killed along with most of the guards.
After only 1 hour they all returned to their own dimension. It was 6 in the evening as they returned and dark enough for Angel to go and see Dr. Martin. After thanking everyone for their help he told Wesley that he was going to the hospital to see Dr. Martin. Spike and Cordelia said that they would go with him.
"We'll leave in 30 minutes Spike." Angel said. "Okay, I'll be ready." Spike answered and they both went running up the stairs to clean up after the fight. Cordelia went up stairs also and fed Kathleen and then checked to see if she had any bottles of her milk left in the refrigerator. When she was sure there was enough she took Kathleen downstairs and placed her in the bassinet.
"Okay girls I am handing control of our precious little princes over to you all. Guard her with your lives. I placed a couple of bottles of my milk in the refrigerator down here and there are 2 more up stairs. I should be back before she needs to be fed again though."
When she was done Angel and Spike were coming down the stairs. "Lets go my dear." Angel said as he headed towards the back door. Cordelia grabbed her purse and joined Angel and Spike.
Rush hour was still going strong so it took them over an hour to get to the hospital. Angel dropped Cordelia and Spike off at the entrance to the hospital then went to park the van. They made their way up to Dr. Martins room in the ICU. To their surprise it had someone else in it. They went over to the nurses station to find out what happened to her. Spike told Angel to let him handle things. He went over to the nurses station and waited for someone to come over to him.
When the receptionist finally came back to the desk Spike introduced himself. "Hi I'm Dr. William Summers can you tell me what has happened to Dr. Mary Martin, she was in here last night and we came to see her." "Oh, yes Dr. Summers Dr. Thompson said that you might be by today. He asked me to page him when you came by. He's in the hospital so I'll just page him for you. They heard over the loudspeaker "Dr. Mike Thompson please come to the ICU, Dr. Mike Thompson please come to the ICU."
Spike went back to Angel and Cordelia. "They've paged Mike to let him know that we are here. The nurse can't give me any information."
They went to the waiting room and sat down while they waited for Mike. Thirty minutes later Mike came to the waiting room. Angel, Spike and Cordelia stood up as he approached. Mike shook hands with Angel and Spike and gave Cordelia a kiss on her cheek.
No one else was in the waiting room at the time so Mike felt that it was okay to say what he had to say. "Angel Mary has had a set back in her recovery. Because of the nature of the rapists I believe that it would be best that we take her home as soon as possible."
"What has happened to her that we need to take her out of here so fast?" Angel asked.
"Mary started to scream this morning when a male nurse went into her room to wake her up and check her vitals. She started screaming about the Judges and the guards. The nurse knew about Mary being raped so he got a female nurse to go in and take care of her. When the woman came in Mary started to calm down. I was suspicious about such a quick turn around in her attitude towards men and the hysterics that she was going through. The way she acted just isn't Mary. When I came in I ordered a complete blood test for any foreign substance. They found traces of a hallucinogen in her blood stream. Now this particular hallucinogen stays in the fat cells of your body. Without warning it can leak into the blood supply and cause another psychotic episode. It also can stay in the bodies fat cells for several years. With the majority of people though this usually only lasts for a few months."
"Is she ready to come home?" Spike asked.
"Not really but under the circumstances she will have to. I've already talked to Hunter and asked her to stay at the Hyperion and take care of her, that is if Mary excepts her. Now I think it would be best that she not see either of you for awhile. It wouldn't be wise for her to be screaming about Demons and Vampires at the hospital and I want to get her settled in. Buffy should be here shortly then Cordelia and Buffy can drive her home. Buffy of course well drive your car here and then you can drive it home. I have a baby to deliver within the next hour so I can't come with you yet. I'll come to the Hyperion as soon as I can afterwards."
Angel and Spike were quiet. The very thing that they both carried with them at all times was what Dr. Martin was most afraid of. Dr. Thompson saw the looks on their faces.
"Angel she'll be okay. You know how good Hunter is. You were very lucky with Cordelia, she excepted you right away. What is happening to Mary is what normally happens to women that are raped. Mary knows all of the pits of hell that women experience when they are raped so she knows and understands what she is dealing with. I think the drug is what pushed her towards what she is experiencing right now. Giles and Mary are having a physical relationship aren't they?"
"Yes." Angel answered.
"Okay then, I think that Hunter will agree with me that we need to see if she will except Giles first." Dr. Thompson's pager went off, he took it out of its holder and took a look at it.
"Well it looks like that baby is in a rush to be born. I have to go now, I'll see you all at the Hotel when I'm through. Angel we need you to go to the 3rd floor nurses station and fill out some papers since Mary is going to go home earlier then she normally would." Dr. Thompson went running out of the waiting room and down to delivery where Mrs. Walker waited for her doctor to help deliver her 6th baby.
The trio quietly made their way down to the 3rd floor nurses station. Angel was holding onto Cordelia's hand all of the way. He was remembering her rape. When it came time to fill out the paper work they all noticed how Angels hand was shaking.
"Let me fill it out Angel then you can sign it." Angel just moved out of the way and let Spike take care of it. He put his hand in his pocket and tried to get his feelings under control. Just as they got through with the paper work Buffy came down the corridor. She went to Spike and hugged him. "She'll be okay Angel and Spike. All we have to do is get her home where we can take care of her, Hunter is already there and preparing her room. Here are the keys to your car Angel. It's parked in the first section of the parking lot just as you walk out of the front. You better go now so that we can bring her out."
Buffy started for Dr. Martin's room. Cordelia hugged Angel then turned and followed Buffy. Angel and Spike left and took the elevator to the first floor lobby. They went to his car and sat and waited. They saw Cordelia come out first and go to get the Van. Buffy and a couple of nurses came out with her as she pushed Dr. Martin's wheelchair. Cordelia brought the van over and opened the passenger side sliding door. Buffy and one of the nurses picked Dr. Martin up and placed her in the seat. It was a difficult task since the nurse had to back up into the van.
Dr. Martin had been sedated so she didn't know what was going on. Buffy closed the sliding door and got into the other side. Cordelia started then for the Hotel. When she checked her rear view mirror she saw Angel pulling out behind her. Just knowing that he was there made her relax. She felt better knowing that he was close by. It took them well over an hour to get home because Cordelia was taking it slowly. When she finally pulled up to the front Hunter, Willow, and Fred came out with Angel's wheel chair. Buffy picked Dr. Martin up and handed her over to Hunter who then placed her in the wheel chair. The men stayed out of sight as the women wheeled the chair in and lifted it to go down the stairs. After they had Dr. Martin in her own bedroom and in her bed the men came out and waited for Hunter to come out and talk to them. Angel and Cordelia had parked the car and van in the back and came in together.
They all sat around the dinning room table as usual. Cordelia had warmed up a large glass of blood for Angel and a sandwich and a glass of milk for herself. Before sitting down she went over to check on Kathleen. Willow said that she had just changed her before they came in. At first Cordelia was going to feed Kathleen but then she thought that this would be a good time for Angel to bound with his daughter and it would help him to calm down. She put Kathleen back into the bassinet and went to the kitchen and took one of the bottles that had her milk in it, out of the refrigerator and warmed it up. When it was just right she went back and picked Kathleen up.
"Would you feed your daughter for me Angel so I can eat my sandwich?" Without waiting for Angel to say yes or no she placed their daughter in his arms and gave him the bottle. Everyone was watching him feed his daughter. Slowly, Angel came out of his depression, his arm stopped shaking and he grew a smile as he held the bottle for his daughter.
"Wesley come over here and listen to her. She purrs just like Cordelia does when she is contented." Wesley came over and listened carefully. "I called father Barris today and told him that we would have to postpone the baptism until Dr. Martin gets better." Wesley said as he let Kathleen hold onto his finger. He pulled his finger away then and went back to his seat.
Hunter came downstairs then and grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down with everyone.
"Dr. Martin is resting comfortably everyone. She is in a deep sleep right now and I don't think she will wake up until sometime tomorrow morning. I talked to Mike for awhile on the phone this morning and he explained what had happened. We believe that sometime early in the morning one of the Judges guards came and gave her a shot of an hallucinogenic drug. When Dr. Martin woke up she thought she was being attacked again and started shouting about the demon guards and Judges. Because this happened when a male nurse went in to wake her and take her vitals we thought it would be best not to have men around her for awhile. Tomorrow I will assess her mental state and start talking about Giles. If she responds well then I'll call you in to come and visit with her for awhile Giles. Angel and Spike I won't be calling you in to see her until I am positive that she is looking forward to seeing you."
"Okay Hunter whatever you think is best." Angel said. They all looked at him. They were all thinking that you could drop an atomic bomb by him and he wouldn't notice it. He was so totally wrapped up in his daughter.
Cordelia saw that the bottle was empty so she took it from Angel. "Put her on your shoulder Angel and get her to burp." Angel did as Cordelia said and soon got a satisfying burp from his daughter. "Let's go Daddy and put the princes to bed. We've had a big day." Angel got up and started walking towards the stairs. "Good night everyone." Angel said as he passed them. They all responded with a good night also then they went up to bed. Hunter told Wesley that she would be sleeping in with Dr. Martin tonight. She then said good night and went upstairs.
The next morning Hunter woke up before Dr. Martin did. She didn't want to leave her alone so she got up and made some coffee and a glass of warm blood. She didn't want Dr. Martin to see her drink the blood so she drank it quickly then made some coffee. While the coffee was brewing she turned the television on to the Home Shopping Channel. They were selling fancy dolls so Hunter was pretty sure that it would be safe.
Hunter heard Dr. Martin moving. She seemed to be having a bad dream so she turned the television a little louder. Within the next minute Dr. Martin settled down and started talking in her sleep. Hunter came over to see what she was saying and she heard her say 'You should see the beautiful doll that Mrs. Nickels son brought her today Sister Theresa.'
Dr. Martin slept for another 5 minutes then started to wake up. "Is that coffee that I smell? Has some sweet person made some coffee for me with 1 teaspoon of sugar and cream?"
Hunter went over and made a cup of coffee for Dr. Martin and brought it over to the bed stand.
"Your nice sweet person has brought you a cup of coffee just as you like it. If you open your eyes you will see it." Dr. Martin opened her eyes and she saw it on the bed stand next to her. She pulled herself up so that she could lean against the headboard. Hunter put an extra pillow behind her and then gave her the coffee. Dr. Martin took a sip and let her tongue bath itself in the taste.
"How are you feeling this morning?" Hunter asked as she brought her own cup of coffee over to the bed and sat down on the edge.
"I am feeling pretty good, in comparison to yesterday morning anyway." "Do you remember what happened yesterday?" "Yes, but it's like I was observing what went on from a corner of the room or something. Has Mike investigated why that happened to me?" "Yes, he had your blood tested for any foreign substance and he found that someone put in some type of hallucinogenic drug into you. He is going to try to get a hold of the video tape of who went in and out of your room since you were put in there. We are pretty sure that it was one of the guards that worked for the Judges. Do you by any chance remember anyone coming into your room and giving you a shot?"
"No I think I was still sleeping from the surgery."
"Do you remember what you were saying when you were hallucinating?" "Yes, I remember saying something about the Judges and demons. I remember that it all started when the male nurse touched me to take my vitals. I hope I didn't scare him, I must have sounded like a crazy woman."
"How do you feel about the rape Mary? Would you like to talk about it?" "Yes I do but I think I need to go through it again. I think that I am blocking most of it. I've been trying to remember exactly what happened and I can't remember all of it and I need to or it will make things difficult in the future. Do you know how to hypnotize someone?" "Yes but I've never actually done it by myself. In a class I took our Professor made us practice hypnotizing each other and he was always there to guide us in what we said, but I've never done it since then."
"I think then that Giles can do it. He told me that he has done it several times with Buffy. I believe though that Mike had better be there to monitor my physical condition and you can ask the questions. I don't want anyone else in there with us Hunter, especially Angel or Spike. It would be to hard on them to hear what happened to me."
"Okay Mary you're the expert. Let me check your vitals then I'll give you something to eat. Do you have a problem with Giles helping you to walk a little or perhaps he can help you take a shower or I can give you a sponge bath and Giles can help you walk around a little?"
"I think it would be good for everyone if Giles helped me take a shower." "Why would it be good for everyone?" "Because he'll go back downstairs and report to everyone that I am doing a lot better and I'm not having a problem anymore as far as seeing the men." Hunter just smiled at her. She started to check her vitals and listen to her lungs. Mary needed to relieve herself so Hunter helped her to the bathroom and left her alone for awhile. When she was done and Hunter had helped her to clean herself she helped her back to the bed. That little activity had tired Dr. Martin out. Hunter prepared a light breakfast for her and sat with her while she ate.
"Do you think your up to seeing a visitor?" "No not yet. Let me rest for awhile and take a nap then I want to see Giles okay?" "Okay that sounds good. I am going to go and sit on the couch. Call me if you want to get out of bed. Are we CRYSTAL CLEAR on that Dr. Mary Terese Martin?"
"Yes Dr. Hunter, crystal clear."
Hunter helped her to lay down and raised the blankets up and under her arms then she went to the couch and watched television for awhile but since she hadn't been able to sleep last night she quickly fell asleep herself.
Two hours later she woke up to the sound of Dr. Martins voice calling her. Hunter wiped the sleep from her eyes and went to check on her patient. "Did you need something?" "Yes I am ready to see Giles now. Could you help me to the bathroom again and then call him to come up to my room?" "I don't think that will be a problem."
Twenty minutes later, after she had made herself more presentable, Dr. Martin gave Hunter the okay to call Giles. A few minutes later they heard a light knock at the door. "Come in Giles." Dr. Martin said.
Giles opened the door carefully and looked towards the bed. When he laid his eyes on Dr. Martin his face broke into a big grin. Hunter came over to him while he was still at the door.
"Giles, I am going to leave her in your care this afternoon. She tires easily so let her sleep when she wants to. I want you to help her take a shower when I leave. I've left out a clean nightgown for her. When you get her back into bed give me a call and I'll put some clean bandages on her. Make sure that you're very careful when cleaning the area okay?" "Okay I promise to be careful." Giles was still looking at Mary while listening to Hunter. As soon as she left Giles went to Mary and hugged her gently. After holding her for awhile and kissing her he wiped his tears away and helped her to the bathroom where he helped her to take a shower. When they were done Giles called Hunter up to the room. When Hunter was done Mary was ready for another nap. Giles removed his robe that he had been wearing since they got out of the bath and slipped in under the sheets and held her in his arms protectively. Mary was starting to feel more normal now with Giles beside her so she slept peacefully.
Later that evening Mary woke up again. Giles had been awake for awhile already and was reading a book that he had left up here. "I think it's time for me to take a walk. Lets go up to the 4th floor where we won't hopefully run into anyone. You can help me walk up and down the hallway okay?" "Your very wish is my command my lady." Giles said as he got up and put his clothes on. He helped Mary to put on a robe and get into the wheelchair. He stuck his head out of the door to see if anyone was in the hallway. It was empty so he wheeled Mary out the door and to the elevator.
When they arrived at the 4th floor Mary asked Giles to help her get up and walk down the hallway to 412. By the time they made it to room 412 Mary was perspiring. They went into the room where she could sit for awhile. Giles opened the drapes so they could watch the big jets coming in for a landing. For once the skies were clear. There was a light breeze that made the drapes dance to their song. They sat for awhile until Mary felt she could make it down the hallway and her wheelchair and elevator. Thirty minutes later they were back in her room and Mary was asleep again.
When Mary went to sleep Giles called downstairs for Hunter. "Hunter is Dr. Thompson here yet?" "No Giles and he doesn't think that he'll be able to make it, he has a couple of babies due sometime tonight. The mothers are in the last stages of labor so he will be busy." "Can you come up here for a few minutes while I take care of a few things?" "Yes, I'll be there in a few minutes." Hunter grabbed a cup of coffee and headed upstairs.
Giles left the door open so Hunter wouldn't have to knock. When she came to the door Giles came over and asked her to go out to the hallway.
"Hunter Mary seems to be having a problem. She hasn't said anything to me about the rape and she hasn't cried at all in front of me. I am very worried about her mental state."
"We talked about the rape this morning. She gave me specific instructions as to what her treatment would be. Tomorrow she wants to see Angel then Spike but one at a time. She knows that Angel must be anxious to see her but she said she needed another day to recover. The day after that if Mike is able to come over she wants you to hypnotize her." Giles started to say something but Hunter held her hands up and stopped him. "Wait a minute now let me finish. I have never hypnotized anyone except in a class room with my professor right by me. So she said that you had told her that you've done it several times at least. Now Mary doesn't know this but Angel can do it also. So if you can't then we can have him do it. While she is hypnotized I will take her through what happened and more or less force her to face what happened to her so that she can deal with it better." "Shouldn't she be seeing a regular psychiatrist?"
"Giles she is a psychiatrist and she realizes that we can't afford to have her talking about such things to a regular psychiatrist. She'll be okay Giles. We've talked about it and believe it or not she is telling me what has to be done and the problems she is experiencing. All you have to do right now Giles is be there for her. Now if you don't have anymore questions why don't you go and do whatever you have to do and I'll stay with her. Did she walk today?" "Yes she asked me to take her to the 4th floor where we wouldn't run into anyone. She tires very easily. I should be back shortly. Have you all eaten? I'm starving and I'm sure Mary will be hungry also." "Yes we ate already. There are a lot of leftovers in the refrigerator though. I am sure that Fred will be happy to help you."
Giles went downstairs and talked to Fred about putting together a tray of food for Mary and himself. He went back to his room then and put together some clothes to change into tomorrow morning along with his shaving kit and took them to Mary's room. He then went downstairs to see if Fred was done fixing a tray of food for him.
"All done Fred?" "Yes we had chili beans and rice today. The chili isn't very hot though so you won't have to worry about Dr. Martin getting sick from it." Fred gave him the tray and he thanked her then took it upstairs.
When he entered the room he saw that Mary was awake. "Good, you're awake. Are you hungry?" Giles asked as he put the tray on the kitchen table.
"Yes I am famished, it smells good what is it?" "It's chili beans and rice although Fred said it isn't very hot. She gave us a bowl of chopped onions to go along with it. And also this very important bottle." He held up a small bottle of 'Beano' pills for gas. They all laughed.
"I was so happy when they came out with those. I love kidney beans but I rarely ate them because of the gas they cause." Mary said. She started to get out of the bed and put her bathrobe on. Hunter stood next to her in case she needed assistance.
Hunter said goodnight as Giles and Mary sat down to eat after taking their 'Beano' pills. Giles gave Mary her usual glass of Cherry flavored coke. He took out a can of Root Beer for himself. They ate in silence for a while. Giles noticed that Mary had stopped eating. She appeared to be just staring at her bowl of food.
"What's wrong Mary?" Giles asked her. She didn't answer right away though, she just stared into the bowl of food.
"Mary, what's wrong?" "Giles...one of the guards was sitting at a table eating chili and rice while others were forcing themselves on me. He just sat there calmly eating the food like nothing unusual was happening. When it was his turn the one that was on me said 'Hey Charlie it's your turn next.' Mary got up and ran to the bathroom and vomited all of what little she ate. When she was done she laid on the bathroom floor and cried, and cried. Giles came in after awhile and picked her up off of the floor and took her to the bed. He laid beside her and held her as she let it all finally come out. Mary cried for the next hour then finally fell asleep.
The next day when Giles opened his eyes he looked at Mary. She had her eyes open and she was just staring into space. "Mary are you okay?" "Yes, I'm better now. Would you help me take a shower then I want to go downstairs for breakfast." "Yes, I think that would be a good idea. They all are worried about you. Especially Angel. They have a new case they're working on so he has something to keep him busy but don't postpone letting him spend some time with you okay."
Mary sat up and pulled herself up into a sitting position. She lifted her nightgown up and checked the stitches from her surgery. She carefully removed the bandage then removed her nightgown entirely. Giles helped her up then they went to the bathroom. He left her alone for a while so she could relieve herself. When she was done Giles did the same then they took a shower.
"Giles would you wash my hair for me today?" "Yes I would love to wash it for you. You have such beautiful hair. Let me wash you first then I'll wash your hair and put some conditioner in it." "That sounds like a good plan. Why don't you wash yourself first and I'll wash myself from the waist up then you can do the rest for me, okay?" "Yes Madam."
It took Giles awhile to wash her hair since it was so long. He finally decided to divide it up in sections and wash a section at a time, starting with the top. Mary just leaned against the wall of the shower and let Giles clean her hair. It felt so good to have her hair clean again. She felt as though he was washing away all of the filth that the guards had left on her.
She didn't care about the removal of her uterus and ovaries, she didn't need them anymore and they were more or less extra baggage. She couldn't remember how many of them had their turn at her because they had beat her badly enough that she lost consciousness.
What Mary hated more then anything that happened to her was what they did to her mind. They made her afraid of her son and Spike. They took away the complete trust that she had in them. They took all of that away and replaced it with fear. She knew that she had a logical mind. She used it every day to guide others, she used it to make medical decisions, but she was unable to call on that logical mind of hers to guide her in dealing with this illogical fear that she felt. Her mind was tired from constantly trying to deal with this. She slept a lot because of it. She knew that she wasn't afraid of Angel and Spike but of the demons that coexisted with them in their bodies.
"Mary I'm done we can get out now." Giles words brought her out of her deep thoughts. She was already starting to feel sleepy, but she shook her head and brush the thoughts away for now. She stepped out of the shower and let Giles help her to dry off. She turned around and looked at herself in the large mirror. Most of the bruises were starting to fade but her eyes still showed the deep black and blue coloring. All of her teeth had survived the beatings. Hunter would be able to take the stitches, from her surgery, out in a few days. Each day she was able to move more easily. Her muscles were not as stiff as they were the day before. The short walks she took with Giles were helping a lot. When she was able to she would have to start a regular schedule of exercises.
Giles noticed how Mary was examining her body. He put his arms around her from the back.
"Mary you are still just as beautiful as ever. In fact if you were able to engage in some exercise I would jump your bones right now. Lets get you dressed before I lose complete control of myself."
"I need a little longer Giles then we will be able to catch up on lost time." She turned around and gave him a light kiss then walked into the bedroom. She went to her dresser and pulled out under clothes that were light and made of cotton. She put on a loose fitting blouse and then a skirt that was long enough to touch the floor. She didn't want to put any nylons on so she gave Giles a pair of knee high black socks to put on her. He then gave her some light slippers to put on.
Giles helped her up and she waited while he got dressed.
"Giles would you call Angel up here and ask Hunter to come up also. Tell her to come in here first and tell Angel to wait in the hallway. I'll call him in after I've spoken to Hunter."
"You're afraid of him now aren't you?" The tears started to fill her eyes. She almost lost control when he asked her the question. "Yes, that is why I want Hunter here." "Do you want me to stay when he comes in?" "No, as he walks in I want you to leave." "Okay, you're the Doctor."
Giles called downstairs and talked to Hunter. She said they would be there in a few minutes.
Within a few minutes Hunter knocked at the door. "Come in Hunter." Mary called out to her.
Hunter came in and Mary talked to her for a few minutes. She then sat down at the kitchen table and called out to Angel.
"Angel would you come in please?" Mary's hand started to shake, she was so nervous.
Angel opened the door and walked in while Giles walked out.
"Mom."...
TBC...