CHAPTER TWO
Angel tried hard to ignore all the agony around him. He couldn't escape the feeling that he was responsible for it all, that if not for him, this hospital wouldn't be filled with causalities. He knew the truth was Wolfram and Hart would have enacted this without him and he had done his best to stop this but had he tried hard enough? Could he have possibly averted all of this? The thoughts were just too hard. If he thought about the "what if's" he might go mad. Connor groaned softly but didn't really regain consciousness but it was enough to drag Angel's attention back to reality.
He hoped his son would be fine now with units of blood pumped back into him and the holes stitched up. Angel tried not to tremble as the doctors told him that there could be nerve damage and how lucky Connor was to be alive. Angel wondered if his son would be able to walk again. He had no idea if Connor could survive being paralyzed. It was unimaginable. Connor was about movement and the fight. Angel didn't think he could live otherwise. The doctor told him a neurosurgeon would be around at some point to assess Connor but they couldn't tell Angel when.
"Who is he?"
Angel snapped around a the sound of Buffy's voice. She stood behind him with Faith. Both Slayers looked exhausted beyond words. "Connor Reilly. I'm trying to get in touch with his sister, Kathy." Angel almost lost control at the mention of the name. He hadn't realized that was the girl's name and he had to wonder if it had been done on purpose or if it was just a strange coincidence. He had never learned how the Reillys had been selected. Was there a son Connor took the place of or did the magic rewrite everything right down to childhood photos? Angel had never thought about it before. Had Wolfram and Hart murdered a boy and put Connor in his place? "She's not answering her phone."
"That doesn't really explain why you're sitting here," Buffy said. "A better questions is why were you trying to fight those things alone? Did you know this was coming Angel?" Buffy's face went utterly white, almost like a death mask. Faith leaned against the wall, looking exhausted as she let Buffy lead.
"I didn't know how bad it would be but I expected to die," he answered honestly.
"How could you risk the world like this?" Buffy snapped, angry red splotches rising on her cheeks. "Have you gone so bad that you don't care any more?"
"We barely got here in time," Faith added, looking less angry and more confused, as if her idol had toppled.
Angel got up, his body shaking with his own barely contained rage. How dare they? It wasn't his doing. "You want to blame someone, blame your Watcher!" His voice snarled out like a wild cat. "I called for help. Giles turned me down."
Buffy and Faith went pasty. Buffy tried to hold onto her strength and anger but failed. Faith didn't even bother.
"I don't even know how you found out we were going to our deaths," Angel said, wondering how the Slayers had known. There hadn't been time to ask.
"Giles couldn't have known," Buffy stammered, her eyes huge.
"Ask him. He told me Willow wasn't in this plane of existence and that I wasn't able to be trusted." Angel tried to let his anger drain away. It served no purpose. He should just take the blame and leave them their illusions. He'd been the scapegoat so many times before but something had broken inside of him. He was tired of taking the blame for things he didn't do. Angel took a step closer, looming over the Slayers. "You decided I had gone evil, not just me but Wesley, Gunn, Fred and Spike, too. Didn't even occur to any of you how ludicrous that was to have five of us go bad at once? And what's worse is, if you actually believed we were evil, why didn't you try to stop us or even investigate? You all wrote us off, had that idiot Wells run interference for you and when I asked for help so this could have been avoided, you left us on our own. So take your blame and put it where it belongs." Angel's voice never raised above a cold whisper and the frost reached his eyes.
"Da…" Connor's rough voice broke into the tirade. "Da…d."
Angel whipped around, his anger dropped like white hot metal. He sat back down, taking his son's hand. "I'm right here, Connor. I'm not going anywhere, I promise." Angel smoothed Connor's hair, trying not to see the oxygen tubing running across the boy's face.
"What did he call you?" Buffy's voice trembled.
"He's my son. It's too long a story for now." Angel wanted to fall asleep right where he was, even if it crushed Connor. He was that tired and without his anger powering him there was nothing left. He wasn't up to the barrage of questions he could see in the Slayers' stunned eyes.
"Kathy?" Connor muttered, trying to get up.
"No answer. It's daylight. I can't…" Angel spread his hands helplessly.
"Find her," Connor begged, struggling to sit up but Angel forced him down onto the thin mattress. "Don't know if she can…might be in attic…or basement."
Tucking Connor's hand back under the covers, Angel turned in his chair to face the Slayers. "Can you help me?"
Faith didn't hesitate. "What do you need?"
"Connor's sister…another long story. She was in the house when demons came for Connor. He doesn't know if she escaped or if she's been killed. I can't go and check on her. I know you're exhausted but…"
"Give us the address," Buffy said, obvious shelving all her hostility and all her questions for later. There was a job to do and Angel was grateful that she was willing to help him in spite of her anger. Connor rasped out the address.
"Thank you." Angel sighed in relief.
"We'll try to bring her home," Buffy said, turning on her heel. Faith glanced back at Angel as she followed Buffy, curiosity and hurt gleaming in her dark eyes.
Angel sat and took his son's hand out from where he had buried it under the thin covers. He was grateful to be alone with his son again. For once, Connor wasn't blaming him for anything and he was going to treasure that. "They'll find her," he promised, even though he had his doubts. Chances were Kathy was long dead.
"Who…" Connor swallowed hard, his eyes closing in pain. "Lived?"
Wesley was killed by Vail," Angel replied honestly. He would take the blame for that. If he hadn't involved Vail in his son's life, they would never have had to deal with the bastard. "Illyria killed Vail in return. She's still out there helping to hunt down the demons that escaped from the rift. Lorne left before the battle. He asked for an out."
"Coward," Connor hissed, his hand squeezing Angel's.
"Lorne wasn't meant for this, Connor. He's not a warrior," Angel chided gently.
Connor's lip curled. "Still."
"Gunn's badly hurt. He's here in the hospital, too. I don't…he might not make it."
Connor's face creased with concern. "Like Gunn," he managed to get out, before seeming to deflate even further into the bedding.
"Gunn likes you as well," Angel said, desperate to keep his son talking. If Connor was talking, Angel could convince himself that it all would eventually work out. He couldn't let in the despair or he'd never make it through the pain.
"Is the world…" Another hard, pain-filled swallow shook Connor's thin body. "Dying?"
"The Slayers came, dozens of them. Many of them died," Angel answered regretfully. "But the demons were mostly contained. We'll deal with what did escape." Angel's eyes misted. "You were supposed to be out of this, Connor." He stroked his son's cheek. "You weren't supposed to get hurt."
"I tried. I got them killed. My parents died and it's my fault." Once the long sentence was out, Connor's strength failed completely. Tears started falling as his body quaked.
"Shh, Connor. Don't cry. You didn't do this. You're not to blame," Angel said, caressing his son's face. "Shhh, son, you'll hurt your insides shaking and crying like this. I need you to calm down."
"What do I do if Kathy's dead?"
Angel's heart broke at the expression on his son's face. "We'll find a way to go on," he promised. "And it doesn't help thinking the worse. Try to get some rest, Connor. Leave your sister in the Slayers' hands. I'll stay with you and when you sleep, I'll go check on Gunn."
Connor's eyes fixed on Angel. "You need sleep."
Angel nodded. "I'll nap in the chair but I'll be right here, if you need me." Angel gently squeezed Connor's hand. His son's fingers closed over his and held on until his hand relaxed in sleep.
"Do you think that there's a prayer this girl is alive?" Faith turned to Buffy as they entered the Reilly home.
"Take a look around," Buffy said sarcastically, gesturing at the living room.
Faith paused, seeing the slaughtered people in the living room. She wrinkled her nose against the stench of blood and bowel. "Connor's parents…or whatever the hell they were."
"I refuse to think about it," Buffy replied, her voice flat.
"The way you're refusing to think about the possibility Angel is telling the truth about Giles?" Faith's dark eyebrows arched and the younger Slayer expected Buffy to take a swing on her for suggesting it.
"If Angel is…I don't know what to do," Buffy admitted, in a defeated tone that frightened Faith.
"I don't think Giles could possibly have known, B. Not that I'm saying Angel's lying, just that Giles must not have thought it would be this bad. He wouldn't have…" Faith trailed off, glancing at Buffy. Did the blonde Slayer ever guess how jealous Faith had been of Buffy and Giles' father-daughter thing? How she had longed for it herself and how disappointed Faith had been when Giles didn't have time for her and Wesley had been a total ass? Faith hated thinking Giles could stand by and let something like this happen. "We don't know exactly what Angel told Giles. Angel's not Mr. Share. He might not have given enough details."
"I know. I mean that has to be it. Giles wouldn't have ignored something this big," Buffy said uncertainly.
"But what if he did?" Faith asked in a small voice, her face pale.
"He didn't. Giles wouldn't," Buffy snapped and Faith curled her lip at her.
"Don't take off my head, B. Angel doesn't lie much, right? That's more Angelus' gig. Do you think Angelus would have been out there sifting rubble for bodies? Angel isn't evil…just something went wrong, a miscommunication. I mean, he knew that Willow had jumped dimensions. He had to have talked to Giles to know that," Faith insisted, looking at what was left of Connor's...parents?
"You have to be right," Buffy said, relenting. She wanted Faith to be right. Buffy knelt down, examining the dead bodies. It looked like the man might have been trying to shield the woman. Something had twisted his head around so it was looking backwards and looked like it had gnawed out a kidney. The woman had a horrified expression still on her face and her intestines had been strewn about like streamers. Buffy felt her bile rising. She had seen a lot of death but usually it was cleaner than this. "Maybe Angel didn't sound the alarm hard enough. Look at this." She stood up, waving a hand at the Reillys. "It was a slaughter. Do you honestly think Connor's sister could have survived this?"
"Maybe she ran or hid real well," Faith countered. "Connor said to try the basement and the attic."
"Well, we're here," Buffy started to look for the entrance to either place. Going down the basement stairs, she paused at a pile of blue goo. "What the hell was that?"
"Something Connor killed," Faith said unhelpfully as she stepped over it and continued to the basement. "He must have held his own pretty well."
"I don't know how he survived the building falling on him," Buffy said. "Then again, if he truly is Angel's son, I guess a building might not be enough…this is insane. I'm talking about Angel having a kid." Buffy slammed a hand into a doorframe in a fit of temper.
"He seemed pretty convinced of his parenthood," Faith said, peering behind the furnace. "But it is nuts. I mean, Angel's dead."
"I know," Buffy replied melancholically. "And why all of this? Why is Connor with these people? Why does he think he have a sister?"
"I don't know. I noticed Angel didn't say he had a daughter." Faith shook her head. "I can't handle all of this. It's just…wrong."
"Angel has a lot of explaining to do," Buffy said softly.
Both Slayers quieted as they poked into every spot in the basement someone could conceivable hide. There was nothing. Faith was beginning to think maybe Buffy was right; no one had survived here. They went back upstairs and tried to find the attic.
Faith prowled into a feminine bedroom full of flowery curtains and bedspread. The walls were covered with alt bands and fantasy posters and pictures of horses. Pink walls peeked out around the posters. It was definitely a room for a young girl who was slowly outgrowing the childish pink and yellow décor that Mom probably wouldn't let her change. Posters were the girl's counterattack on childhood. Faith poked under the bed then into the closet. "Here's the attic," she said, pulling the door down out of the closet ceiling. Heat boiled down from above.
She and Buffy cautiously walked up the wooden steps. The sound of a cocking gun made them freeze. Faith's gaze snapped around the room and she saw a girl huddled in the corner, pointing a pistol at them. The smell of sweat and something terribly skunky filled the room. "Whoa! Human here!" Faith threw up her hands to show they were empty.
"Are you Kathy?" Buffy looked for a place that might be adequate cover if the girl opened fire. The dark-haired teen glistened with sweat, partly from fear the Slayers didn't doubt, and partly because the sealed off attic must be close to ninety degrees. "Connor sent us to help you."
"C-C-Connor." The girl barely got the word out. The gun shook in her hand but not so much that Faith thought the girl would miss them if she pulled the trigger. She obviously knew how to fire the weapon.
Faith nudged Buffy and nodded toward another pile of blue goo. "Did you nail that thing, Kathy?"
"Those…things killed Mom and Dad," Kathy said through chattering teeth.
"I'm sorry," Buffy replied, taking a step forward. "We need to get you out of here before something else comes looking for you."
"Looking?" Kathy squeaked out, lowering her gun.
"The things that killed your parents didn't get here by accident. They were sent," Buffy said.
"We need to grab a few of your things and get gone," Faith put in, glancing around uneasily. The attic wasn't a roomy place to fight.
"I killed it." Kathy gestured to the goo with the tip of her pistol. "But I couldn't seal off the attic…nothing else came. Where's Connor? Why didn't he come with you? He fought them…never knew he could…he was like nothing I've ever seen. My skinny brother kicking ass like…Jackie Chan or something."
"He probably bought you the time you needed to hide," Faith said.
Tears filled Kathy's eyes. She started to shake. "Did they kill him, too?"
"No, Connor's alive but he has been hurt. He's in the hospital. A lot of people were hurt by…terrorists," Buffy said, having heard that excuse on the radio. "He was in that attack. He'll be all right. We'll take you to him."
"They weren't terrorists! They weren't human." Kathy got to her feet, weak from fear and dehydration. "Ever since Connor got run over by that car…things have been strange."
"We'll try to explain on the way to the hospital but we should go. Let's get some of your things," Buffy said, gently taking the girl's arm. Kathy reminded her so much of Dawn when their mother had died, it nearly broke her heart.
Kathy stumbled down the steps, not letting go of her gun until she got to her bed. She put it on the mattress then reached back into the closet for her luggage. She started grabbing clothes and shoes out of the closet and just stuffing. "Connor's room is across the hall. We'll have to take his stuff."
"I'll get on it," Faith said, leaving the room.
Kathy looked at Buffy. "Will the police think I killed my parents if I just pack up and run?"
"I don't think so," Buffy said, not actually sure. She could see the girl was in shock, acting only on instinct.
"My aunt…was she down there, too? She was here," Kathy said, going into the drawers for underwear.
"We went through the house. I didn't see her, sorry," Buffy said, trying hard not to think about what might have happened to the woman. She found herself hoping either the woman managed to make a break for it or that she died quickly.
Kathy swallowed hard and continued to work even as she cried silently.
Faith clattered in with a big roll-along suitcase. "Connor's got the world's biggest collection of Star Trek dvd's rivaled only by Harris and Wells and the kid wears Spongebob Squarepants boxers."
"I got him those…he likes plaid too much," Kathy said, zipping up her luggage. "I want to see my parents."
Buffy touched her shoulder. "I don't think you really want to see them like that. They wouldn't want you remembering them…not all torn up. Is there a back door we can go out?"
Kathy nodded. "There's a picture on the mantle piece of the whole family. We just took it a few weeks ago. I want it."
"You get the kid out to the car and I'll go get the picture," Faith said, wheeling around with the luggage. "Kathy, you might want to hang onto that gun."
"I have extra bullets in my pockets," she said grimly.
"Good for you," Faith said then headed downstairs.
Buffy carried Kathy's bag for her out to the Ford Focus rental. They had gotten the tiny thing before the battle and at the moment Buffy was glad for it. It might be a sardine can but it needed little gas and it could skirt around the traffic easily. Faith came out and they crammed the suitcases in the back.
Faith drove. Kathy sat in the back, softly crying to herself. The Slayer glanced over at Buffy. "B, where are we going to be staying? I have to crash."
"Guess we'd better get back to the hospital and ask Angel that question," Buffy said. "I don't think hotels are an option at this point."
"What about my parents?" Kathy asked. "We can't just leave them lying there forever."
"We'll call the police and let them know once we get to the hospital," Buffy promised. "They'll take good care of your parents for you."
Kathy just went back to looking out the window. Buffy knew that probably hadn't sounded very convincing but it was the best she had. She was just so tired at this point she wanted to drop off while Faith drove but there was more to do yet, so much more. Days like today were ones she wished someone would hit the rewind button for.