Chapter 3

Victor was allowed to get up from the chair as soon as the memories were downloaded. But the moment he did, he bolted for the nearest exit, and leaped into the air repeatedly, yelling, "What the hell did you do to me? Where are my wings?"

Fang, alias X-Ray, turned to an attractive Asian-looking woman. "What's up with that dude?" he asked.

The woman sighed. "I have no idea. I feel awful just watching him act like that. It's completely not normal."

X-Ray nodded sagely. "Poor guy needs a treatment, desperately."

"I've never met you before, I don't think," the woman said. "What's your name?"

"X-Ray."

The woman nodded. "Nice to meet you," she said, holding out her hand so he could shake it. "I'm Sierra. Are you new here?" When X-Ray nodded yes, Sierra went on, "Anything you need, I'll be glad to help." She left the room, leaving X-Ray to marvel at the sight of the dark-wood-paneled, two-story room he found himself in. He looked at the glass walls, and was instantly hit with tiny flashes of memory. Memories of a man in a rumpled blue suit, a fat man in a big office, and a beautiful girl with wings like an angel.

Naturally, he dismissed them instantly. These odd images meant nothing to him. He contented himself by rubbing his back, right between his spine. It shocked him how soft his skin was there. They must have excellent moisturizers in this place, he thought.

Back in Sacramento, Van Pelt looked up from her computer and announced that the tiny transmitter they'd planted on Fang had pinged again. For the sixth time that day, the transmitter hadn't moved from within a building in downtown Los Angeles. Unfortunately, the signal was extremely weak, suggesting that either Fang was underground, or the battery was dying.

"Let's take Echo down there as soon as possible," said Jane. "Perhaps she'll be able to let us in somehow."

Lisbon frowned. "You sure about that, Jane?" she asked. "Chances are we could be walking into some kind of ambush."

"Somehow, I highly doubt they'd see us coming," Jane said, smiling.

"But what about that Prophecy of Blood?"

"Meh," Jane said dismissively. "No point believing some weird corporate mumbo jumbo. It's not real, I'm sure of it. Just some idiocy Roland ter Borcht made up to throw us off his trail."

Lisbon blinked. "His trail?"

"Come on, don't tell me you didn't pick up on his deception," Jane said. "A child could have seen through those lies of his. He acted like he had nothing to do with Max's murder, but I get the feeling he may have more involvement than he wants us to believe. Hell, maybe he ordered it himself. But that's not important now. The important thing is to go down to Los Angeles and get Fang back."

At this point, Lisbon's phone rang. "Teresa Lisbon, CBI," she said as she flipped it open.

"Agent Lisbon." It was merely a statement of fact. "My name is Paul Ballard. I'm an FBI agent, and I understand you've found yourself a person of interest relating to one of my cases."

"What, you mean Caroline Farrell?" Lisbon asked. "Sorry, Agent Ballard, but I don't think she'll be much help to you. The poor girl is completely off the deep end, she'll never be able to testify for anyone. Especially not the feds."

Lisbon could almost sense Ballard shaking his head as he laughed in exasperation. "Testifying is not what I have in mind. I already know Farrell can't speak against the Dollhouse, because they wiped her mind."

"Wiped her...what? And what is this Dollhouse business?"

"My case," said Ballard. "Come find me in LA and I'll fill you in on all the gory details. Bring your pet shit-disturber with you too, he could come in handy."

Lisbon laughed. "My pet shit-disturber? You're talking about Mr. Jane, right?"

"Of course," said Ballard. "We've heard so many stories about him. In fact, I'm pretty sure he's dealt with the people behind the Dollhouse before, he just didn't realize it yet."

"Tell me what this Dollhouse is first," said Lisbon.

Ballard laughed again. "You don't mince words, do you, Agent Lisbon?"

"Seriously, what is it?" grumbled Lisbon. "Government project? Religious institution? Just tell me! I want to know what I'm up against."

"Suffice it to say that the Dollhouse has the government's tacit approval and we'll leave it at that for now," said Ballard. "If you want more, you'll have to come see me in LA." He gave the address to his apartment, and said, "Meet me there at 5pm tomorrow. That should give you enough time to get down here from Sacramento."

"How did you know-"

"FBI, remember?" Ballard pointed out. "Even disgraced agents have access to lots of science-fiction crap."

Despite feeling increasing misgivings about the whole affair, Lisbon gave in to her curiosity. "Fine, we're coming down there," she said, hanging up abruptly before returning to the squad room. "Jane? Echo? We're taking a ride."