Once again, I know nothing about medical conditions or procedures. I looked up what I could and made up what I couldn't.

Warnings and Disclaimer in Chapter 1. Enjoy.

"Easy," Dr. Mendoza said as Giles finally opened his eyes. She pulled the smelling salts away when he sat up. "Take it easy there for a minute," she told him, before looking at the other women. "I don't understand. I thought you were here for a parental match to the girl?"

"From me," Joyce screeched. "She's my daughter."

"Apparently his as well," she remarked bluntly, flipping through the papers. Veronica held her hand out and Dr. Mendoza handed her the test results. "The two female samples are still being ran." She looked up as the door opened. The two detectives and the DA entered the room.

"Is there a match?" Mr. Typher asked, noticing the paperwork she held in her hands.

"Yes, but not the one you're thinking," she said, taking back the paper from Veronica and handing it to the new arrivals. "Mr. Giles is her biological father. To everyone's surprise."

"And Ms. Summers?" Detective Kestrel asked, looking at the result in his partner's hands. If they were surprised with this development, they didn't show it.

"Her sample and the sample of Mrs. Adell are still being analyzed," she told them.

"Mrs. Adell?" Mr. Typher asked, looking at the only person he didn't know.

"Rupert's sister," she said, obviously still in shock.

"I see," he said, turning back to the doctor. "How long for the other results?" She stepped out to make a call, returning moments later.

"Approximately an hour," she told them. He nodded, turning back to the group.

"We can wait for your results, Ms. Summers," he told them, "or with Mr. Giles permission, since he has been identified as her biological father, we can proceed." Giles shared a look with Joyce before he nodded numbly. The detectives and the DA took seats on one side of the table. Joyce, Giles, and Veronica took seats opposite them. The doctor left but came back minutes later, a large folder in her hands. She took a seat at the head of the table, between the two groups.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this," Detective Kestrel started, "but your daughter has been a victim of The Ring. For the last three and a half years she has been a sexual slave." He paused a moment to let that sink in. They had been preparing themselves to hear those words, but no matter how you prepare they still came as a shock.

"While prostitution rings and high class escort services are fairly common," Detective Johnston took up the story, "The Ring is the most horrifying example I have ever had the displeasure of coming across. The boys and girls they pimp out are not there by choice, they are slaves at the very worst definition of that word, and are treated worse than animals by their Masters. When they are not actively being used, they are kept chained in small pen like cells. Beatings and starvation were common place, as was sexual abuse at the hands of their Masters. And this was still better than being used."

"The pimps were not concerned with how damaged their slaves came back, just as long as they came back," Detective Kestrel continued. He pulled out several pictures of various victim's backs. They could see several brandings on each, most similar but some varied from person to person. "The marks were what you were allowed to do to your purchase. We've managed to identify several of them," he pointed to the various marks as he spoke," anal, double penetration, mechanical, gangbang, bondage, torture, rape, voyeurs..."

"Stop!" Joyce shouted, pushing the pictures away from her. They pulled them back, but left them out on the table. Detective Johnston pulled out one more picture and laid it in front of them.

"All of those things were done to your daughter," he said softly as he showed them the picture of Buffy's back, the marks from the horsemen clear to see between the other brands, "as well as some other things we haven't been able to identify yet."

"Why are you telling us this?" Joyce asked, tears pouring from her eyes.

"To prepare you," My. Typher said. "Your daughter was a favorite. There was hardly a night when she wasn't bought, and not just here. She has a Russian passport under the name Illyiana Romanov. She has used it to travel throughout the world; China, Japan, India, the Middle East, London, Paris, Athens, Venice, and several trips to her home country of Russia. That, of course, doesn't count the many travels she has had here in the United States."

"These places have all been identified as operational arms of The Ring," Detective Johnston took over. "The arms are very territorial with their victims. We don't know why she traveled so much or what it could possibly mean in the future."

"What do you mean?" Giles asked, coming out of his stupor somewhat. Detective Kestrel sighed.

"The Ring is one of the most sophisticated and secretive operations I have ever seen. If the informant hadn't stepped up it's possible it could have gone on for years before anyone realized. We were able to arrest most of the pimps and the Johns, but only one or two of the big bosses on The Ring side. Our international partners had even worse luck than we did with the big bosses."

"Also whenever an illegal organization like this is compromised," Detective Johnston took over again, "there is always a few minutes between when they hear us coming and when we get there. Usually the perps take this time to destroy evidence; computers, files, names, dates, whatever they can get their hands on that they think is a threat to them. In this case the thing they tried to destroy most was your daughter."

"What?" Joyce cried. Dr. Mendoza finally spoke up.

"I was in charge of the ER when the call came in, and I was the first to examine your daughter. She was stabbed twenty-four times in her upper and lower chest as well as her back, while she was chained to a wall."

"They were trying to kill her," Johnston chipped in. "There's no doubt about that." He was about to say more when a knock sounded at the door. Dr. Mendoza rose, walked to the door and had a brief discussion with the person on the other side before rejoining them at the table. She had a new set of papers in her hand.

"We have a positive maternal match for Joyce Summers," she said, handing the papers to Mr. Typher.

"Please," Joyce begged, "I need to see my daughter."

"One moment," Kestrel spoke up. "There's one more thing you should know about your daughter. Whoever the big bosses of The Ring are, they are still trying to kill her. She's been here seven months. We've stopped six assassination attempts."

"Please?" Joyce begged once again. "Can't this wait until after I see her?" Typher nodded and Dr. Mendoza led them from the room.

"There are several things about your daughter's condition you should know before you see her," she said as she led them through the hospital corridors. "She was admitted with extensive trauma and extensive blood loss. She has slipped into a coma and has not yet awakened." Joyce grabbed Rupert's hand unconsciously, seeking some of his strength. "Also some of the stab wounds were dangerously close to her spinal cord. One in particular nearly severed the cord between the T5 and T6 vertebrae."

"What does that mean?" Giles asked, giving Joyce's hand a reassuring squeeze. They approached a secured door, a policeman nodding politely from his post. Dr. Mendoza swiped her card at the scanner. The door opened and she ushered them inside. They found themselves in one of the private wards. Two uniformed officers were standing guard over the middle door. Dr. Mendoza led them towards it.

"It means there is a good possibility she will be paralyzed if she ever wakes up from her coma." As they approached the door they could see the beginnings of a figure start to form. Blanket wrapped legs soon joined by a body and finally a head surrounded by blonde hair. She was laying on her side, her back to the window, the brands peeking out from her hospital gown where the blanket had shifted. "There's one other thing you should know," she started, but Joyce tuned her out. She ran into the room, completely oblivious to the police officers as they started to draw their guns only for Dr. Mendoza to stop them. She rounded the bed, finally laying eyes on her brave, beautiful, big daughter. She barely realized the others had joined her as she stared at her. "She's pregnant," Dr. Mendoza finished carefully, and this time it was Joyce who fainted.

"How did this happen!?" Veronica demanded of her brother. Dr. Mendoza briefly explained the various machines Buffy was hooked up to and showed them where the call button was before she left them alone to process the situation. The detectives and DA had also left, ordering the guards to the outside of the hallway, leaving the family some time alone. As soon as she came to, Joyce had grabbed hold of Buffy's hand and wasn't letting go anytime soon. Rupert found a chair and pushed her into it. He was feeling very light headed and knew she had to be feeling the same. He grabbed Buffy's other hand, letting its warmth wash over his trembling fingers. After a minute he left the room, giving mother and daughter some much needed time alone. Unfortunately, his sister didn't give him any time alone, stepping into the hallway with him, pacing back and forth in front of the window after he quietly shut the door.

"You and Reginald were trying to have a child for five years and you don't know how this happened?" he snapped. She looked ashamed. He reached out and laid his arms on the glass, hanging his head down dejectedly.

"I don't mean 'How'," she corrected. "I mean 'how?'" She laughed maniacally. "When father finds out about this."

"Don't tell him," Giles begged, a hint of panic creeping into his eyes. She softened, reaching out to put a comforting hand on this arm.

"I won't say anything," she promised, "but we have to tell them Buffy has been found. We'll need their help getting her home. And when they learn where she was…"

"They'll pull her file," Giles filled in the blanks, already too aware of how the Council worked. "And in her file will be my paternity test." He sighed, watching as Joyce gently spoke to her daughter. He felt Veronica come stand next to him, watching the scene in the room.

"How did this happen?" she asked again, calmly this time.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I never suspected."

"Where were you?" she asked. "Twenty-five years ago?"

"I was rebelling," he told her, "with Ethan. We weren't exactly careful with anything we did."

"So it would seem," she said, looking up when the door opened. Dr. Mendoza returned, pushing a machine on a cart. "Ultrasound?" she asked. Giles gently rapped on the glass, giving Joyce enough time to wipe her tears away before they entered the room.

"This is a very high risk pregnancy," she told them, setting up the machine with ease. "She had an ultrasound every week until we reached the sixth month mark. Then it increased to every other day. Now that we've passed the seventh month mark it is done daily."

"Seven months?" Joyce asked. "She's so big." The doctor smiled knowingly. She gently uncovered Buffy's abdomen, squirting the gel on her bare skin. It didn't take long for the doctor to find the fetus. "It's a boy?" Joyce asked in wonder, squeezing her daughter's hand tightly. She flipped a switch and the sound of a heartbeat could be heard in the still room. Dr. Mendoza let them listen for a minute before switching off the audio.

"That one is," she said, running the wand over her abdomen again.

"That one?" Joyce repeated. "You mean?"

"She's having twins," the doctor grinned, finding the second form. "She's a little shy, likes to hide behind her brother."

"A girl?" Joyce asked in awe, clutching Buffy's hand even tighter. Dr. Mendoza flipped the audio switch again and they heard her heartbeat, strong and steady just like her brother. She flipped the switch and hung the wand on the hook before cleaning Buffy up and turning her onto her other side. She reapplied the gel and picked up the wand, searching for something.

"Is there another one in there?" Veronica asked. She had been trying to have a child for years and found the procedure amazing.

"Not anymore," Dr. Mendoza said sadly. She finally found what she was looking for, the small form that barely started to look human. "The little one here was also hit by one of the knives during the initial stabbing. She managed to carry it for another three months before it passed." She again hit the audio button, but the silence it played was heavy.

"What was it?" Giles asked as he wiped tears away from his eyes.

"We don't know," she told them honestly, flipping the audio button once again. "Our main concern with this one is that the fetus will get tangled up in the umbilical cords of the other two. If that happens we'll need to remove them as quickly as possible. We'll need your consent to perform an emergency C-Section if necessary."

"You have it," Joyce told them, running her fingers through Buffy's long locks. She looked up when the DA entered the room.

"We have just a few more things to discuss then I'll leave you alone. Would you prefer to go back to the Conference Room?"

"I'm staying here," Joyce told him firmly. He looked to the others, but they simply glared back as if daring him to separate mother and child.

"Very well. As Dr. Mendoza told you, when your daughter was brought in she fell into a coma. We had a Russian passport for her so naturally we contacted the Russian government. Once they realized the passport was fake they refused to let her back into their country. She, like so many others, became a ward of the state. We tried to find out who she really was, but her fingerprints weren't in the system. After two months of fruitless searching, and no improvement from a medical standpoint, we thought the best thing was to let her go. We filed a motion for life support to be terminated. A District Judge granted the motion. Three days before we were to pull the plug we discovered she was pregnant. The motion was suspended, pending review at the completion of her pregnancy, whether live birth or miscarry."

"What are you saying Mr. Typher?" Giles asked coldly.

"As her parents, the decision whether or not to terminate life support is now yours to make. Unless you want to continue with the Court's decision."

"No," Joyce stated. Giles merely glared at him.

"The last item for tonight is regarding the children. The Court decided to place the children into foster care if they survived."

"No," Joyce stood up, facing the lawyer for the first time. "This is my daughter and those are my grandchildren. And as soon as I can I am taking them all home." He smiled at her.

"That was what I was hoping to hear." He turned to the rest of them. "I'll start the necessary paperwork first thing in the morning."

"Will you need anything else from us?" Giles asked.

"Just some signatures when I get the forms filled out." He handed him a business card. "If you need anything, please don't hesitate to call." Giles nodded, tucking the card in his breast pocket before shaking the lawyer's hand. He quickly left the room.

"Am I correct in assuming you will want to spend the night?" Dr. Mendoza asked. Joyce nodded her head. "I'll arrange a cot to be brought in. Please use it. I know it is a very stressful time right now but you need to take care of yourself so you can take care of her." They nodded in understanding. "One last thing. The nurses have Jane, I mean Buffy, on a very strict routine. Please don't interrupt them as they care for her."

"Of course," Veronica answered when neither Joyce nor Rupert spoke up. Dr. Mendoza sighed, but let it go. She smiled as she left the room, leaving the family together. "Rupert," she spoke up when they were alone. "Did you happen to notice her back?"

"If you're referring to the demonic symbols yes I did," he told her, cleaning his glasses harshly.

"You mean the marks from the Horsemen?" Joyce asked, rounding the bed so she could see Buffy's back. Giles pulled the blanket down and gently undid her gown, exposing her back to them. They all paled when they saw the new burns, especially since they now knew what they represented. Veronica pulled out a notebook from her purse and began copying the symbols, focusing on the demonic ones.

"Only the five are from the Horsemen," he reminded her. "There are several from different clans of demons, and even some that even I don't recognize."

"We need to call the Council," Veronica said when she was done taking her notes. "We need to start researching what these symbols mean and how they got on her back." Giles nodded reluctantly while Joyce just looked dazed. "Perhaps I'll head back to the hotel and call them and return in the morning with some breakfast?"

"Thank you," she said as the other woman nodded and walked out the door. She turned to Giles. He opened his arms and she fell into them. "Oh God. What am I going to do? What are we going to do? What am I going to tell Dawn?"

"Sshhh," he calmed her as best he could. "Let's worry about all that in the morning. Right now we're both exhausted. Let's get some sleep. Everything will look brighter tomorrow." She nodded and they broke apart just as the cot was delivered. The nursing staff quickly made up the spare bed, before making notations in Buffy's chart and leaving. "You can take the bed," he told her chivalrously. She laughed and took the chair, moving it to where Buffy was facing. He sighed, gently did up her gown and pulled the blanket back up, before he climbed into the makeshift bed. Neither one of them slept that night.

"You two look horrible," Veronica said as she entered the room the next morning. She brought three cups of coffee and a half dozen doughnuts for them.

"You don't look much better," Giles groused. "You've got dark rings under your eyes."

"Charming as usual," she told him as she handed out the coffee. She spoke to Joyce while Giles sipped his coffee. "I wasn't sure how you take your coffee, so I have a selection of sugars and creams in the box. I also brought you a change of clothing. I hope you don't mind me going through your things Joyce, but the doctor said we could use the staff room to shower and feel almost human again."

"Not at all if it means I get out of this outfit," Joyce told her. "But where is the bag?"

"The police are having a rather thorough search of it," she explained. As if to prove her words the door opened and one of the police guards placed the large bag on one of the chairs before politely nodding his head and stepping out. Once the door was closed she turned to her brother with a serious look on her face. "I had a rather disturbing thought on the way back to the hotel last night."

"Oh? What was it?" Rupert asked her.

"About the brands. The demonic ones specifically." Joyce looked up at that. "The brands are her," she hesitated briefly, "selling points. What if the demonic brands were her target audience?" She looked disgusted at the thought, but not nearly as horrified as Giles looked.

"A demonic sex slave ring," he closed his eyes at the image.

"Your friend Kate has said demons have begun working within society instead of on the fringes for years. It would explain all the traveling she did. All those cities are demonic hotspots."

"Why would they try and kill her though?" Joyce asked. "Besides the obvious I mean." They looked uncomfortable before Giles started to speak.

"As much as we bemoan them, the Council does truly have the benefit of mankind at heart. It's much different, sitting there safe behind the Council walls versus on the front lines. In some ways it's simpler for us here on the front lines. We have all the power. When we see a demon killing someone we don't debate what we're going to do. We kill it. Plain and simple. Behind Council walls it is more complicated. They have resources, but numbers alone aren't going to kill most demons. Where and when to deploy the resources they have is a constant argument there. We keep our little corner of the world safe, but they try to keep the entire world safe."

"They don't have enough resources to go after everything that goes bump in the night," Veronica picked up the explanation. "They generally let small demonic activity go to save their resources for the big stuff in a place that has no Slayer. Demonic slave rings are not unheard of, neither is adding the sexual practices, but to have the Slayer as the main attraction would necessitate a response from the Council."

"But kill the Slayer before she's identified and you have just another unfortunate girl," Giles concluded. They stopped talking when an older nurse walked into the room. She greeted them politely before starting her ministrations, talking to Buffy and the others and explaining everything she was doing. She left when she was complete thirty minutes later only for another intern to follow close behind. He looked around nervously and Giles felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He wasn't the only one as Joyce quickly blocked his path.

"I just need to check her IV," he stammered, pulling a syringe from an inside pocket. "Dr. Mendoza ordered the medicine."

"Then Dr. Mendoza can explain it to us in person," Joyce insisted. The intern made his move, but Giles pulled him back as Joyce hit him repeatedly with her purse. The syringe slipped from his hand and Joyce quickly picked it up, keeping it safely from his grasp. The commotion alerted the guards and they burst in, guns drawn, and quickly took the young intern down.

"Attempt number seven," Detective Johnston said as he and his partner made their way into the room hours later. The intern was already at the precinct, but they wanted to check and see that the young woman was unhurt. Veronica had left to update the Council, leaving just Joyce and Giles in the room. "I heard you beat back the bad guy."

"Just dumb luck," Giles said modestly.

"Not the way I hear it," the detective told him. "From what I hear you two had the guy on the floor before the cops could even make it into the room. Good job." He smiled at them before he left the room.

"We need to get her home, Rupert," Joyce said from her seemingly permanent position at her side. "We can protect her better than they can here, especially if demons get involved."

"I've already talked to Dr. Mendoza about transferring her, but she is reluctant to do so until the children are born. She said the stress of moving could cause Buffy to go into premature labor and it's in the children's best interest to stay inside the womb as long as possible."

"Besides the Council is sending a physician to oversee the transfer," Veronica told them, coming back into the room.

"No offense, but I don't really trust Council physicians," Joyce said sulkily. "Or Council people in general."

"Is there anyone you do trust?" Veronica asked curiously, choosing to ignore the thinly veiled threat. The conflict between this Slayer and the Council were well known. And as much as she hated to admit it, both sides were to blame.

"I trust Ben," she replied. Giles smiled.

"Then it's a good thing he decided to stay in Sunnydale once his residency was complete," he said. "I just hope he's up to the task of a Slayer. I hear they can be quite a handful." Joyce smiled

"Just like their mother's," she added before turning all her attention to her daughter. She began talking to her, telling her all the excitement that just happened. Rupert and Veronica decided that was a good time to step into the hallway.

"Are they really on their way?" Giles asked his sister.

"Apparently Quentin himself is coming." Giles groaned. Quentin was not a favorite among any of the Scoobies, himself included.

"He won't like the fact that you're here and not with Faith." She scoffed, barely keeping the eye roll at bay.

"I'm sure abandoning Buffy at this uncertain time is the way to win Faith's favor." He smiled approvingly.

"You'll do fine with her," Giles said reassuringly, giving his sister a quick hug. They pulled apart when they heard the door open. Dr. Mendoza was wheeling her portable ultrasound toward them, a strangely blank look in her eyes. "Doctor?" Giles asked, feeling his skin tingle the second time that day. She ignored him and continued into the room, both of them following closely.

"It's time to check out the babies," Joyce told her sleeping daughter, moving back automatically. The doctor donned her gloves and bared Buffy's midsection before reaching for the gel. She applied a generous amount to Buffy's skin and reached for the wand, but when she pulled her hand back she held a dagger instead of the wand. She plunged it down toward the helpless girl. Giles barely had enough time to throw himself between the doctor and the comatose Slayer. He grabbed her hand with both of his, but she was still able to knock him on top of Buffy. He countered with a shove, causing him and the doctor to fall to the floor.

"Possession?" Veronica asked helplessly. Dr. Mendoza still had control of the dagger, despite Giles attempts to wrestle it away from the woman. Joyce jumped in as well, brandishing a chair and repeatedly hitting the doctor from behind.

"I think so," Giles called out, rolling them away from the bed and straight into the cart. The force caused the cart to fall over and crash, but even that wasn't enough to deter the doctor. She quickly got to her feet and headed once again for the bed. Giles tripped her hard, grabbing her from behind, causing both of them to fall heavily into the bed. This unfortunately caused the bed to flip, flinging the comatose girl to the floor. Tubes, lines, and monitors were all violently disconnected, leaving all the machines screaming in anger. Joyce quickly made her way to her daughter while Giles tried to restrain the good doctor. He managed to get the knife out of her hands and fling it into the corner before the doctor got the upper hand again.

"Hang on," Veronica called out. "There's some sort of clay symbol attached to the bottom of the cart."

"Break it," Giles choked as she got her hands around his neck and was squeezing as hard as she could. Veronica pulled the symbol off and flung it to the ground, shattering it into hundreds of pieces. Immediately a yellow light flared from the broken amulet.

"What happened?" Dr. Mendoza asked dazedly, letting go of Giles's neck like it was on fire.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Giles wheezed. Dr. Mendoza quickly climbed off the downed man. Giles moved his hands to his neck, rubbing at the soreness he could feel.

"Eating dinner in the staff lounge." She looked at her watch in confusion. "That was five hours ago."

"Doctor!" Joyce yelled from her daughter's side. "Something's wrong." They needed no more encouragement then that. Giles leapt to his feet and they all raced over to Buffy's bedside. Her staff was already entering the room, brought in by the machine alarms. They glanced around quickly before beginning to right the equipment.

"Buffy? Can you hear me?" Dr. Mendoza spoke calmly. The blonde seemed to be struggling weakly, her eyes fluttering under the tape that kept them closed. "Oh God," she gasped, looking at the pool of wetness between her legs. She quickly had Buffy back on the bed as her staff worked to reattach the various items.

"Her water broke," Joyce realized as the doctor grabbed the hopefully still working piece of equipment. There was a crack in the screen, but thankfully everything worked enough to tell the doctor they were in trouble.

"Crap," she said as she reached for one of the buttons on Buffy's bed. A second later a different siren was going off at the nurse's station. "They're not in position," she explained as she began gathering up equipment. "We need to do the emergency C-Section. You need to leave."

"I'm not leaving," Joyce demanded as she grabbed her daughter's hand. The room was quickly filling with people.

"Fine," she relented as she scrubbed up as quickly as possible. "But you need to stay out of our way." Joyce nodded, quickly donning the gown and mask they gave her. "You two out!" They quickly cleared the room, content to watch the action from the other side of the glass. "Starting the incision," she said as her team worked to save the lives of all three of them.

"Blood pressure is dropping Doctor," one of the nurses who rushed in to help told her, "and I think she's waking up?"

"What?" gasped Joyce, but the rest were too busy to notice. Joyce leaned closer to her daughter. She could see her eyes trying to open, knew it was only a matter of time before the tape snapped. "Buffy? I'm here baby. Mommy's here." A few seconds later her eyes opened. She didn't turn her head or look around, only stared straight ahead. Joyce moved so she was in her line of vision. Buffy struggled to focus on her.

"Mommy?" she said weakly, forcing the words out over the tube down her throat. The nurse looked back briefly at her weak voice, but the sudden crying of an infant drew her attention away again.

"It's a boy," the doctor cried out, giving the wailing newborn to a waiting nurse.

"A boy," Joyce repeated, looking down at her daughter.

"William Giles," Buffy said softly, her eyes blinking slowly in a daze. Joyce nodded, holding her hand and squeezing tightly. A few minutes later her daughter came into the world. "Alexandra Joyce," Buffy said before her eyes rolled up and she passed out.

"She's crashing," one of the nurses yelled. "Blood pressure is dropping fast."

"There's a hemorrhage and I can't…" she paused, smiling in triumph. "There it is." She quickly stitched up the tear, but not before Buffy flat lined. "Charge the paddles. Clear." Joyce automatically let go of her hand, knowing what was coming but unable to stop it. Buffy's dead body jumped as the electricity ran through her, but there was no change. "Again," Dr. Mendoza demanded. Joyce tuned out their attempts to help her daughter. Her whole world focused on that steady green line on the monitor.