Chapter 13

Angel and will leapt from the car and were in the house before anyone had heard them pull in. They had gotten back into LA in almost half the time it had taken them to get to Lepysis's complex. By the look on Buffy's face, Angel knew he didn't look too good. She came to him in an instant, touching his hair with a look of horror and disgust.

"I'll wash it out later," he assured her.

"What happened? Where were you two?"

Will was already at the coffee pot, pouring two large mugs for him and Angel. They gulped the hot beverage before either answered. Angel had to remember to breathe before he could swallow again and think of an answer.

Xander came out from the hall that led to the library, where Dawn and Wesley undoubtedly were. He nodded a greeting and leaned against the kitchen counter. Fred was sitting on the couch with Allie in the crook of her arm. She looked ready to fall asleep and yet too wired to doze off.

It took another few gulps of coffee before Angel could answer. He had grown accustomed to at least three or four hours a sleep a night. "We went to this demon's house, the demon that was planning to raise Narsesim. Well, I think he was going to raise him. We killed everybody in the complex, including the head demon guy. And I got blood in my hair. Where's Wes?"

"In the library." He was gone before Buffy could ask anything further. Will, however, looked ready to be interrogated. She only had to glare at him to get him to start speaking.

"So…Wes did a bad deal. Well, he thought it was a good deal. You should hear that part from him, though. Anyway, he got a note threatening blackmail. Chaos ensued and I spent the weekend tracking who was doing the blackmail. We got to this lepsin guy and he told us Nar-what's his face is coming. Then we panicked and drove here like a bat out of hell. That's the short of it."

She shook her head. Did there always have to be a crisis? She sat heavily next to Fred and squeezed the woman's hand. Buffy knew she was hurting.

Fred wasn't just hurting, she was planning. Her devious side had taken over, and her planning of what to do about this situation was foremost in her mind. It hadn't taken her long to figure out what Wesley had done. The fact that neither Angel nor Will would explain what 'the deal' was only confirmed her beliefs. She wasn't exactly mad.

She understood why Wes had done it. It just wasn't acceptable. It was morally wrong, and cosmically dangerous. The cosmos were out of alignment. Nothing came for free.

Something in her recognized the name Will had butchered pronouncing. Fred just couldn't place what she knew or where she knew it from. It was dangling in the back of her mind, and the more she reached for it the further away it seemed.

Leaning her head back on the couch, she wondered if Wesley was getting anywhere.

Angel was pacing and glaring. Wesley shifted uncomfortably in his seat and Dawn pretended not to notice the silent argument taking place. After a few minutes, Wesley excused himself to go to the bathroom and Angel had sat at the long table Dawn was seated at and started helping research.

Wesley did not need to use the bathroom. He had to get away from Angel's staring. He was still not sorry about what he had done. He was sorry about the trouble he had caused everyone and had been silently repenting for the danger his family was in, but he could not make himself regret the deal he had made. It had seemed so simple. He would get what he needed and the witches would be well compensated. He had paid them very well for their services. He had never expected them to sell the information to the highest bidder. His excitement had clouded his judgment.

He wandered through the back halls until he reached Angel's office. The door was open, and Wes found himself walking into the room before he consciously knew he what he was doing. Looking down at the glass case, he could not explain the draw he felt to this ragged and aged tome.

His breath caught in his throat and he wondered if Willow had ever been in this room. Thinking back, he realized that neither Willow nor Dawn had ever been in Angel's office. Now he thought he understood why. Wesley was no warlock, but he had conducted his fair share of spells. He could recognize power when he felt it. This book was emanating power. Had Willow been here, he was sure she would feel its pull as well. Lifting the glass cover, he carefully removed the text and set it on the desk. All he needed now was the password.

Angel looked up. Wesley had been gone a long time. Standing, he made his way from the library and through the halls. Will has headed towards him.

"I was going to help with the research…what's…" He didn't get to finish.

"Is Wes out there?"

"No. I thought Wes was with you."

Angel was off. Will was close on his heels, but neither got to the office before an explosion of blue light sucked the breath from their bodies. They heard people in the living room falling to the fall and few grunts of pain throughout the house. Will had turned on his heel and was heading towards the sounds of pain.

Running into the office, Angel stopped suddenly, frozen in horror. Wes was sitting at his desk, a picture of Connor in front of him. Wesley was crying.