Eve, Liaison and Child of the Senior Partners, called a meeting with Wesley Wyndham-Price, Charles Gunn, Lorne and Winnifred Burkle, they needed to be informed of a few things and their change in status
"What's this about, Eve?" Wesley asked. "And where's Angel? Shouldn't he be here, he is the CEO."
"Not anymore." Eve replied grimly. "An attack by unknown means happened just before the start of business this morning. Angel was shot by a long range sniper and dusted. There was a trace of Magic in the air, but no evidence has been found. We can't find the path of the bullet that dusted him, the Magic's too strong. It's possible that the Terakan Assassins might have been hired to go after him, but we have no influence or leverage over them, so we have no way of knowing."
"Angel's gone?" Fred asked, stunned.
"Yes and so is Cordelia Chase. She disappeared from the medical ward at the same time Angel was being attacked and again the Magic is too strong for us to get a trace on it. And considering we have some of the most powerful human and demon Magic users on the planet working for us, it's something I would have thought was impossible."
"How do you know it was a sniper?" Wesley asked, he did know something about guns after all.
"A bullet hole in the window of his suite, but no bullet found in the suite. Just a pile of dust and we're no longer registering his presence in the building, there's no evidence he left of his own volition and no locator spells can find him. And the locator spell for Ms. Chase found nothing either, but if she's died, it wouldn't work anyway."
"So Cordelia's dead and Angel has been destroyed?" Gunn summed up.
"Yes and since your contracts were contingent upon Angel's acceptance of a contract, that means your contracts with Wolfram and Hart are now void. None of you signed the in perpetuity clause, so your souls are not forfeit. You have until the end of business today to clean out your offices and leave the building or your employment will be permanently terminated."
"We're fired, just like that?" Lorne asked. "I thought we all had something we could contribute. Haven't I been doing a good job running the entertainment division?"
"Considering how heavily your conscience has been weighing on you since you accepted the position, I'd think you'd be happy with being fired, Lorne."
Lorne was silent as the others turned to look at him and then he nodded. "You're right, this hasn't been setting right with me. While I enjoy the work with the entertainment division, I don't like working for your bosses. I'll leave quietly, no need for the whips and chains to get me out."
"What happens to my law upgrade?" Gunn asked, concerned about the magical imprint of knowledge that had been dumped into his head when he'd signed on to Wolfram and Hart.
"It will fade, you could always go to school and learn it for yourself."
"You've made your point." Wesley glared at the woman literally created by evil. "We'll go. We'll have to figure out where we go from here."
"I'm going home." Fred announced. "To Texas. Goodbye, everybody." She resolutely marched to her office and began packing it up, leaving behind the two men who's hearts she unknowingly owned.
"I think maybe I'll try Vegas again." Lorne decided and headed out to reclaim his ability to sleep.
"My old crew won't welcome me back." Gunn said. "Not after I worked for Angel, I guess I'll have to figure something else out."
"The Watchers Council no longer exists even if they were willing to welcome me back." Wesley stated. "I guess I'll have to figure something out myself."
"You do that." Eve agreed. "I have work to do." She quickly left and returned to her office, keenly aware that her connection to the Senior Partners, those that had created her, had been severed. Severed because at the same time Angel was being destroyed and Cordelia Chase's comatose body was being stolen, the vortex to their dimension had been destroyed as well. She had no idea if they were still alive on the other side. And her beloved Lindsey's plans were in ruins as well. The amulet couldn't be retrieved from behind the Seal of Zanzalthar, because the Seal itself no longer existed. Eve's whole world was crashing down around her. She had no idea what the future of Wolfram and Hart would be. The influence the Senior Partners could bring to bear was gone and without them, the Circle of the Black Thorn, the self proclaimed Source of the World's Woe, had almost no power left either. Beyond what the individual members could bring to bear, that is and that was nothing compared to the Senior Partners.
Eve wondered where she, herself went from here. Unlike the others, she was still tied to the job.