The Paragon Of Animals
Parts 13-15
Maybe the fact that Bob admitted he had heard of Caritas,and yet had no reluctance to go,should have been a giveaway.But that was one of those wonderful lessons you learned best in retrospect.
As soon as they entered the dark,moodily lit club,the air thick with scents of demon,alcohol,and fear,the Host's crimson eyes widened upon seeing them,and he happily exclaimed,"Bob!"
The Anagogic demon embraced the Belial in a big bear hug,and Bob slapped him on the back like an old pal."Long time no see!Where have you been you goddamn liar?"The Host asked,with obvious humor,a beaming grin splitting his green scaled face.The Host looked over his shoulder,and said,"Hanging out with these guys?"
"No,this is new,and temporary,"Bob told him,as the bartender working the opposite side of the bar reached over and left a glass of water within Bob's reach.
Angel knew this was all a really bad sign.
The club seemed almost full,unusual for this time of day,but by the scent of fear and heavy drinking,he guessed the events outside were even getting to the demon population,at least as far as freaking them out.But Bellara could control them just as well as the Humans,and even if they didn't know who was doing it,they had to suspect the danger.
"Full house,"Angel noted,glancing at the Host,who had finally released Bob and retrieved his own drink,which was certainly not water-not with that little paper umbrella in it.And he assumed he'd dressed in a hurry,or to match his eyes,because his bright purple suit sort of clashed with his skin.
The Host nodded,giving his club an additional once over."Normally most of these guys couldn't give a crap about Humans-well,except when it came to food-but now they're scared.What's happening is wicked bad,and they know they could be feeling the pain of it soon enough.Most of them want me to read them before they leave town."
Angel noticed that the noise he kept hearing in the background-a sort of arhythmic burping and aborted,wounded howling-could actually be traced to the small,spotlit stage,where a local Slime demon known as 'Smelly Ken' (and for damn good reason-he smelled like a cabbage boiled in fermented urine-and yet,he seemed oblivious to it) was belching out a song Angel couldn't even begin to recognize.All he knew was he wanted him to stop now before he guaranteed he had no future:from the number evil glares and plugged ears in the unwilling audience,there were a lot of people obviously willing to back him up."Is that why you and the Justice League are here,Angel cakes?"The Host continued,taking a sip of his drinks.
"Can you make him stop?"Cordy asked first,pointing towards Smelly Ken.
The Host's thin red lips curved down in a mock frown,the horns on his forehead moving slightly as his brow furrowed."Honey,I wish.If I could have,I would have already.He never knows when to stop or when to leave.And I always have to air the place out afterwards."
"Anything new on the song list?"Bob asked. That seemed to perk the Host back up."Just a couple for you,sweetie.Most demons prefer to live in the past,you know."
The bartender-a young man who looked Human but didn't smell like it-passed by long enough to put the updated song list on the bar before Bob,giving him a look of barely contained awe as he did so.
"Fuck the past,"Bob said dismissively,scanning the list."It sucked.No electricity,no indoor plumbing,disco.Maybe they'd feel differently if they spent roughly a year on a British prison ship."
"Are you kidding?I think that's the latest attraction at Disneyland,"the Host replied,giving Bob a sly smile.
Bob looked up at him and smiled back."Really?Cool.I need to go on the scurvy simulator.Maybe we could go together."
"It's a date,"the Host agreed."Oh,and you remember our deal,don't you?"
Bob nodded."Of course.Would I cheat you?"
After a moment,the pair of them laughed as if on cue,the line apparently an old joke between them,and the Host slapped Bob on the shoulder."Come on,my little shisk-a-Bob,you can help me evict Smelly Ken."
"With pleasure,"he agreed,following the Host as he wended his way past full tables towards the stage.
"Anyone get the feeling we've been set up?"Gunn wondered.
"We never asked how well he knew Caritas,"Wesley said,but even he sounded defeated.
"At least it seems safe in here,"Cordelia added,taking a seat on a bar stool."If a bit stinky."
"For now,but there's no telling how long that will last,"Wesley replied,taking the empty stool beside her.
They had all taken the sewer tunnels to get here,mainly because they were safer in a group,and things seemed to be getting even weirder outside.Nothing truly bad-beyond the mass destruction of property-had happened yet,but Bob felt she was 'cementing' her hold,and from the look in the possessed's eyes-which had been glazed,but now just seemed hollow,the eyes of department store mannequins,flat and lifeless-Angel believed he was telling the truth.
The Host had to rip the microphone out of Smelly Ken's hands,and Ken went to grab it back,but Bob stepped up and glared at him over the Host's shoulder.Angel couldn't tell if Bob was using his powers or if he was simply being intimidating-he towered a good foot over Ken (if you didn't count Ken's antlers),and certainly had better muscle tone than the scrawny,oozing Slime demon.Ken stepped back,rather than go for the microphone again,and there was a huge sigh of relief from the crowd.
"Thank you,Ken,that was really...different,"the Host said,turning on his charm and pasting on a smile.Smelly Ken seemed to give Bob a wide berth as he made his way off stage,nearly tripping on the blue velvet curtain that served as a backdrop.
As Smelly Ken made his way to the exit,he stopped and stared at Angel with small,hateful eyes,and then said something very fast and somewhat strangled,spittle flying from his lips in a fine spray before he turned and stalked away.Luckily,none of the spittle hit.
"Did he just curse at you in Welsh?"Wesley asked,astonished. "I think so."Sometimes he forgot Smelly Ken claimed to be Welsh,although he doubted that.
"Nice to know he's a fan,"Cordy said ironically,waving a hand in front of her nose.
"Now,you're in for a real treat,"the Host continued,sounding genuinely happy now that Smelly Ken had left the building."The man who put the 'arming' in 'charming',our own Maximum Bob."
There was a polite round of applause as Bob smiled at the Host and took the microphone from him,and the music,which Angel didn't recognize at first,started as the Host left the stage.
Angel pondered when Bob had told the Host what he wanted to sing,because he had missed that,but maybe it had occurred during the Smelly Ken spitting fit.
As the Host joined them again,Angel went up to him,and asked,"Can you-"
"I can't read him,"he interrupted,before Angel could even finish the sentence.
"What?"Gunn exclaimed,sounding pissed off."Then what the hell was that all about?"
Bob started singing then.It was Radiohead's 'No Surprises'-not a traditional karoake favorite,so he thought it was forgivable that he didn't recognize it at first-but the club went so quiet you could have heard a pin drop.
Bob could actually sing.He had a smooth but powerful voice that seemed to build in all the right lyrical places,coming straight from the diaphragm and soaring straight towards the rafters.It was the voice of a trained,professional singer,and Bob had no right to have it.Everybody in the club seemed utterly rapt,hardly moving,not even drinking,just staring in wide eyed astonishment.Even Wes,Cordy,and Gunn looked like they were in shock.
"Why can't you read him?"Angel asked the Host,refusing to be sucked in by his siren song.
The Host seemed to have to tear himself away from Bob,and annoyance flashed through his ruby eyes."He's too much;he's an overload that threatens to blow out my speakers.It's like I'm a cable modem and he's digital."Angel stared blankly at him,and he said,"Too new fangled for you,big guy?He's FM,I'm AM-we just have a different set of psychic wavelengths,sweetie.But,he can't work his voodoo on me either,so we're even.Now hush,I want to hear him sing.After Smelly Ken,I deserve this."
Angel leaned against the bar,frowning,and as he looked at the audience,he noticed at least three demons suddenly burst into tears,including a Butcher demon,which he was reasonably certain couldn't cry.He shook his head,and,leaning over,muttered to Cordy,"He's not that good."
But she shushed him,waving her hand at him like he was an annoying fly,never taking her eyes off Bob.In fact,if he was a thief,this would have been an optimum time to circulate through the crowd and lift wallets,as no one seemed to be paying attention to anything but Bob.
At least it wasn't a long song,and as the music came to an end,there was a single moment of pure quiet before the audience suddenly erupted in applause and cheers,many actually bouncing up to their feet enthusiastically.
"He missed his calling on Broadway,"the Host said,coming up beside Angel again.He seemed ready to talk now.
"Why make him sing if this was a waste of time?"
The Host's eyes almost bulged out of his head."Are you serious?Didn't you just hear him?"
The audience was only now starting to taper off in the cheering and whistling."He's not that good,"Angel said.
The Host stared at him a moment,and then gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder."Jealousy is very unbecoming,dear heart." "Jealous?Of him?"Angel scoffed,aware that it made him sound bitter.He wasn't-Bob was okay,maybe,but he didn't deserve a standing ovation."I don't think so."
A second song started while Bob was still on stage,and Bob smiled,and said into the mike,"Why don't we lighten the mood a bit,huh?"
Much to Angel's horror,he recognized the music as the theme from 'Shaft'.Oh,he was not going to sing that,was he?!
"Why is he still singing?"He asked the Host,appealing for help.
"That's our deal-if he comes to sing,he has to do two songs,"he explained,downing the rest of his cocktail and then putting the empty glass on the bar,singling for the bartender to give him a refill."You don't trust him,do you?"
Angel knew he was talking about Bob."Of course not-he's a Belial demon."
"Just like vampires are always bad,Belials are always bad?"
"Well...yeah."
"Then why haven't you staked yourself yet?"The Host shot back,as the bartender refilled his glass,nearly spilling,as his eyes were fixed on Bob.
"That's different,and you know it-I have a soul."
"And he has a conscience,as well as common sense.He didn't have to help you kill the Executioner,you know-and yes,I know about that too."He picked up his drink and swirled it around,eyes scudding towards Bob and then back to him."Have you ever asked yourself why he did that?"
"Because he said he didn't want his customer base being killed off."
"So you can't tell when a Belial's lying to you?He doesn't need a customer base:he has more money than either of us could probably contemplate.And if he wanted power-and I mean the real deal,honey,not penny ante 'rule the Los Angeles underground' power;I mean full blown 'rule the world' sort of power-he could have it any time he wanted.I think you know that too,now."
Angel refused to answer that,although he was pretty sure the Host already knew what he'd say."Just because he could abuse his power and doesn't does not make him a 'good' guy."
"No.But to give you the quick and dirty answer you want,I wouldn't hesitate to trust him with my life.If he's offering his help,Angel,take it:if he wanted to play you,he wouldn't put up with your crap;he'd just do it and leave.You're going to have to take a leap of faith and trust him:all our lives may depend on it.Besides,isn't he trusting you to help him?Return the favor." Angel scowled at Bob on stage,still not convinced.Now,he had the audience clapping and laughing with his campy,lounge lizard-y version of 'Shaft',and many were even singing along.It was truly disturbing.
Finally,he came to the end of the thing,calling out,"Who's the private dick who's a sex machine to all the chicks?"
"Shaft!"The crowd shouted back.
"No,"Bob replied,and to Angel's horror,he pointed right towards him."Angel!"
The crowd erupted into sharp,violent laughter,including the Host,Gunn,and Wesley;Cordy was doubled over and nearly falling off her stool laughing.
Angel hid his face in his hands,and quietly vowed to killed Bob as painfully as possible once the opportunity arose.
"You've been a great audience,"Bob said,putting the Mike back in its stand."Drive safe,and enjoy the veal."That last bit of faux stage patter made the Host laugh that much harder.
As Bob came off stage,a green skinned female Stansin demon,who had a table near the front,got up and intercepted him.As she leaned in to whisper something to him,her whip thin tail wrapped around his waist,and she pulled what appeared to be a piece of paper out of her cleavage,which seemed to be mostly spilling out of her leather tank top.Angel assumed the paper had her phone number on it,until she rather deftly,and to Bob's surprise,shoved it down the front of his pants.As he walked away,back towards them,he smiled at her and made a 'call me' gesture that made Angel roll his eyes.
Only Bob would have groupies.
"So,how about a beer?"He asked the Host,ignoring the glare Angel was now shooting in his direction.
"We're going now,"Angel said,grabbing him by the arm and heading towards the exit.
Bob pulled out of his vice grip,frowning."Oh,come on,Angel-if you can't laugh at yourself,who can you laugh at?"
Angel was about to tell him when the explosion rocked the club. It was somewhere outside,and relatively close:it shook the floor like a temblor,making glasses rattle on slightly unsteady tables,overhead lights swinging slightly,and everyone standing grabbed onto something to keep from stumbling.
The good mood Bob had infused the room with was suddenly gone,and several startled demons quickly headed for the exit,tables shoved aside with loud scrapes in their haste.
"What the hell was that?"The Host asked,shocked.
"Sounded like a truck in the street,"Bob opined."A big one."
Gunn nodded in agreement."One of the zombies probably punctured the gas tank."
"On accident or on purpose?"A suddenly sober Cordelia asked,looking between them.
But they could only shrug,as there was no way to know.
Angel actually hated to leave the Host like this,but they had no choice.Things were still escalating outside,and they still had no answers.
So they were going to have to find them elsewhere.Fast.
Bob claimed to know someone he thought could help them,a guy he called Lucas,who had the largest and most obscure collection of demon related tomes in all of known Southern California.Angel thought that was Giles's personal collection,and Wesley argued that the largest known collection in the state was actually near San Diego,but Bob insisted this was a private collection virtually no one knew about.
They all grew more dubious about this when he led them to a posh but small modern art gallery just outside of Beverly Hills.
A thoroughly modern facade of white sandblasted stone and steel grey pillars that made the wide staircase leading to the front of the building look like the restored portico of a Roman ruin,they had to come up in the parking lot behind it,and even then Angel had to drape his duster over himself and dart for the shadows,as it was far too exposed and still too sunny.He made it,only smoking a bit,but damn if it wasn't painful-it felt like his own skin was trying to crawl off his body and hide.
Only a small brass plaque by the entrance identified the place:'Black Star Gallery'.
No one else had ever heard of it,and Cordy claimed she had never even seen it before in this part of town,but with no mind to them at all Bob went inside,the door opening for him automatically,and the others followed reluctantly.
He led them down cool,snow white painted narrow halls,high ceilinged,brightly lit and laid out like a minor but still baffling labyrinth,with doorways and even alternate corridors sometimes hidden behind trompe l'oeil and exhibits on equally blindingly white pillars.
The 'exhibits' were austerely placed,with little more than ten in each corridor,and all leaning towards the surreal,from a disturbing painting of melting eyes to a marble 'bust' that was actually just part of a head and chest with the skin peeled on the left side,exposing skeleton and muscle beneath.
"Now I know why I don't go to art galleries,"Gunn noted quietly,his voice still echoing subtly,as there was no sound here at all save for their own footsteps and the hum of an unseen air conditioner.
Cordelia,wearing a vee neck red tank top and a short black skirt that had been perfect for the overly hot and sunny outdoors,shivered in this strangely sepulchral place,but Gunn,in a chivalrous gesture,gave her the black leather jacket he didn't seem to leave home without.It was too big,and she complained that it 'looked old',but she accepted it anyways,shrugging it on quickly as Bob finally stopped in front of a ceramic mask hanging at the end of this particular hall.
It could have been a Human death mask,molded from a corpse's face (and didn't he see the thin lines of stitches holding both the mouth and eyes shut?),painted bright blue and decorated with Native American looking symbols,save for the huge black star in the middle of the mask's forehead.Bob looked into the mask,and said,"Luke,it's me.It's business."
"Your friend is a mask?"Cordy asked,staring at him like he was a living bomb that could go off at any time.
But Angel felt it then;it was like a ripple that you registered inside your bones rather than outside on your skin,with a time delayed sort of tingle that stopped just as soon as it got started.
"A glamour,"Wesley breathed,obviously feeling it the magicks too,as the wall-mask included-seemed to disappear in front of Bob,revealing an old fashioned freight elevator,not unlike the one that used to be in the first building that housed Angel Investigations.
Bob simply got in,utterly unperturbed,and looked at them expectantly."Well?We ain't got all day."
Again,they followed,still dubious of this entire enterprise,but at this point,they didn't have much to lose.
The ride was smooth and fairly brief,taking them down an entire floor at the very least,and when the door slid open,it was like they had entered another world.
It was a cavernous expanse,a maze of seven foot tall cherry wood bookshelves filling the background,while the foreground was set up like a luxurious living room,with a long,overstuffed cerulean sofa and a pile of huge,multicolored floor pillows placed atop an authentic Persian rug,while the wall it faced was full of...screens?
No-the largest one in the center,about six feet tall and eight feet wide,was a tropical fish tank with genuine white sand and orange coral formations on the bottom,and jewel tone hued fish swimming idly by,graceful in their mindless motion.
The much small glass squares above it were indeed screens:the two in the center appeared to be t.v. screens,with the two other screens bracketing them security camera monitors.On either end of the fish tank were two more built in screens,but these were obviously computer monitors,running through web pages at such a rapid rate they were little more than photonic blurs.
The lights from the LCD displays flickered on the floor and across the sofa like flames,while the bookcase maze was lit with halogens so bright they seemed to mimic the sun,and Angel unconsciously shied away from it before he got ahold of himself.
As Bob walked across the delicately patterned rug,a voice suddenly emerged from the bookcases."I haven't found shite on killing Belials so old they can exist as psychic energy,and I told you I'd call you if I did,you right bastard."A woman said,sounding annoyed,her voice containing a trace of an English accent-Northumbrian,if he wasn't mistaken.
"Luke,it's about something else.And I've brought ... well, people.People and a vamp."
Did he really need to add that?Were not vampires people too?Okay,dead people,but still...
"What?!"The woman sounded extremely pissed off,and they could hear rapid footfall between the stacks."What the hell are you doing bringing some god damned blood sucking leech here,Bob?" "This leech has a soul,"Gunn called out,and then looked back at him with a grimace."No offense intended,man."
Angel scowled at him,but didn't say a word.
"And that's supposed to impress me how?"The woman carped,finally emerging from the stacks.Angel didn't know what he had been expecting,but not her:she was lovely enough that Angel knew his breath would have been knocked out of his body if he did,in fact,breathe.
Although clad in a humble pair of blue jeans and a grey and purple baseball style t-shirt,it showed off a wonderfully lithe,athletic body,and made her face-as pale and delicately featured as a china doll's-look that much more youthful.Her chestnut colored hair was cut short in a boyish style,but that only served to show off an Audrey Hepburn-ish type neck,slender and graceful.In spite of the obvious annoyance in her fire blue eyes-she was a Belial too-she was so beautiful even Wesley seemed to pause.
She glanced at them all,and snorted derisively,putting a hand on her hip."What a motley crew.Who the fuck are these people?"
Bob didn't even look,he simply pointed over his shoulder at them."Cordelia Chase,Charles Gunn,Angel,and Wesley Wyndham-Price.And try to stay below NC-17 with the language,okay Luke?"
"I don't censor myself for anyone,"she shot back,scowling at him.
"You're Luke?"Angel asked,stunned.He had been expecting a man with that kind of name.
"And you're Angel,the soul sucking leech,"She replied coldly. "Blood sucking leech,"he automatically responded,only realizing what he had said after it had fallen out of his mouth."No,I didn't mean that-"
"Where do you think you're going?"She snapped,turning her attention to Wesley,who had started wandering down one of the aisles,a nearly blissful look on his face as he gazed in awe at the shelves upon shelves of neat stacked ancient-and not so ancient-tomes.
"This is...magnificent,"he finally decided,intently scanning the spines of the books."Why on Earth have you hidden it all away?" "Because these are mine,"Luke said,following close behind him and watching him like a hawk."And no one gave you permission to touch anything,four eyes."
He looked at her sharply."Four eyes?"
"He's a former watcher,love-I'm sure he'll be careful,"Bob advised,walking over to her,taking her arm,and gently pulling her aside."Now,do me a favor,and listen to the shit that's hit the fan since this morning."
But then Bob fell silent,saying nothing yet still holding her arm in his,and Luke herself seemed to stare off at a nowhere point somewhere across the room,frowning at nothing.
"Did I just go deaf?"Cordy wondered.
"He's showing it to her,"Angel guessed,fascinated."Telepathically-or as close to Belials get to it,at any rate."It was a strange notion,although fascinating:it must have saved a lot of time.
Bob let go of her arm,and her frown deepened."Wow,when you fuck things up,you do it up big,don't you?"
He shrugged with his hands."Well,what can you do?Why do you think they call me Maximum Bob?"
"I thought it was due to the size of the monster in your pants,"Luke said,walking after Wesley again.
"Now what would you know about that?"Bob replied,smiling.
"Oh yeah,like I haven't met any of your girlfriends."
"Say what?"Cordelia asked,looking equally dubious and intrigued.
Bob turned towards her,and gave her a charming if slightly embarrassed smile.""You'll have to forgive her-her mind's as dirty as her mouth is."
But as he turned away,back towards Luke and Wesley,Angel noticed both Cordy and a curious Gunn glancing towards Bob's crotch. Oh god-could things get any worse?
"You might want to go down there,next bookshelf over and on the left,"Luke told Wesley grudgingly,pointing the way."The Volumes of Ahkmen are down there,and they catalog every blood ritual known to man and beast.But be careful handlin' it,'cause it's fragile,and if you break it,you bought it."
"The Volumes of Ahkmen?"Wes repeated,eyeing her warily."Those were all destroyed in a fire centuries ago."
Luke snorted derisively."Do you believe everything you read?"
"Now,behave yourself,Luke-I have to go,"Bob told her,with a sort of paternal sternness,pulling what looked like a business card out of his pants pocket.He put it up against a bookshelf,and started writing something on it.
Where had he gotten the pen?
"Where do you think you're going?"Angel wondered.
"Hey,I ain't babysitting no humans for you,"Luke complained,nearly stepping on Angel's question.
"They will be helping you search,Luke,"he replied casually,answering her first."And I have to go track down some mercs I know to disrupt the channel seven transmitter.We're gettin' down to time here."
"I'll go with you,"Angel said.As intriguing a place as this was,a combination of control center,library,and really swinging bachelor pad-and as alluring as Luke was (in spite of her attitude and her mouth)-he wasn't about to let Bob go off by himself.Maybe the Host had a point about trusting him,but how could he?
"Nope,you'd scotch the deal,Batman,"Bob said,turning to him and holding out the card.Angel glanced at it before taking it:Bob had scribbled his cell phone number and home address on it.On the back of an Angel Investigations card,in fact-when had he gotten this?
Once a thief,always a thief.
"Maybe you're unaware of this,"Bob continued."But a lot of demons hate your stinking rotting guts,mate."
"They are not rotting,"he snapped,not willing to admit he had a point.But Bob did,and he knew he did:Angel would never be voted 'Most Beloved' of the demon community.Bob might be,though,judging from all the reactions he seemed to get.And that made him instantly suspicious,Belial demon or not."Who are these 'mercs',anyways?"
"A pair of Phoson demons,the kind that can channel electrical impulses.I can get them to disrupt broadcasts from six to seven at least-just their proximity to the transmitter will probably short it out but good."
"And they'd help you why?"Gunn asked,still suspicious.That made Angel feel better.
Bob gave him a knowing,and slightly patronizing smile."Cold hard cash."
Gunn nodded,sold."That'll work."
"I'll try and be back,but I may have to run home and get my contact book.I'm gonna see if I can't find someone with Woolham and Shark connections who may have the skinny on what's going on.I don't care how secretive they are-they're too big not to have leaks somewhere.Call me if you get something;I'll have my cell."Bob then walked over to Luke,and gave her a peck on the cheek."Don't kill them,darlin'."
"I will if you don't get back here soon,"she warned him,giving them all a suspicious look.But she gave Bob a firm hug around the waist,and a peck on the cheek in return."Don't get killed."
"Who,me?I'm Maximum Bob-larger than life,and twice as nasty."
"You wish,"she said,giving him a final pat on the back,and then went in pursuit of Wesley."Hey,gobshite,fifth shelf!Jesus,can't you can't you read Sumerian?!"
as Bob walked past him,Angel grabbed his arm,and whispered,"If you try and double cross us..."
Bob gave him a hard,angry stare."If I wanted to do that,Liam,I could've already."He then yanked his arm away,and gave Cordy and Gunn a presumably charming smile."Don't do anything I wouldn't do."
"I don't think that narrows it down at all,"Cordy said,although...did she just give Bob a faint smile?Oh no,she couldn't have!
"No,guess not,"he agreed,giving her a wink,his smile growing more broad and flirtatious.
Before Angel could make a retching sound (gods knew he felt like it-did Cordy forget he'd tried to enthrall her this morning?),Bob disappeared into the elevator,and as the door slid shut,Angel could swear he heard him singing,under his breath:"It's the end of the world as we know it,and I feel fine..."
Bob would.He just knew it.
"Oi,are you guys just rubberneckers,or can you read?"Luke asked sarcastically,as Wesley delicately removed from a high shelf a book about the size and shape of a cement block (and from the way he grimaced,It probably weighed as much)."Come on,parasite,you can help me find something on old geezer Belials."
It took Angel a moment a minute to realize she was referring to him.
Oh crap-and he had thought dealing with Bob was fun.
When she realized her meeting with Leonard Mitchell-an associate of Nathan Reed's-had been cancelled,Lilah Morgan was instantly,although only momentarily,terrified.
A change like that could never be good;experience had taught her that.But when Nathan called her and told her Lindsey had been removed from the Bellara case and it was now hers,she was elated.Okay,so the only reason Lindsey was kicked to the curb was because Bellara didn't like him and preferred to deal with women anyways,but it still felt like a victory worth savoring:poor Lindsey.He'd even been born the wrong gender.
She quietly gloated all the way to the safe house situated near Laurel Canyon,a large,Victorian style three story that resembled nothing so much as a giant child's dollhouse.It was only used for really important clients,big wigs,and she couldn't remember the last time it had been occupied:it had to many windows with Eastern and Southern exposure to be friendly to vampires,and the carpets were far too nice to waste on something slimy or dripping or otherwise capable of breaking the 'no messy kills in the house' rules.
But from what little she understood,the way Bellara killed didn't leave a mess.Only a corpse.
In fact,as she pulled her Lexus up into the driveway,a white 'cleaner truck' (disguised as a 'Wilson and Hahn Carpet Cleaning Service' van-very cute),was loading what looked like rolled up carpets and mats in the back of the truck-but up close,it was clear they were loading lumpy rolls of fabric into a refrigerated van.
Bellara must have just had lunch-good.Then she wouldn't have to worry about her getting peckish during the meeting.She didn't know the exact mechanics of how she killed,but honestly she didn't want to know.
She entered the home as the last two cleaners left,the roll held between them,although they had to stop for a minute when the corpse's arm came loose and slid out from between the fabric.She left them in the foyer,tucking it back in more securely,as she headed up the stairs.
"Bellara?It's Lilah Morgan,from Wolfram and Hart,"she called out,in her most cheerful,professional voice.She had no idea what she'd do if surprised.
It was as dark as a grave on the second floor,all the heavy velvet drapes pulled against the sun,and she wondered why,getting a bad feeling in her stomach,until she heard a familiar,almost childlike voice purr,"Oh goody-they sent the wicked one."
Drusilla was here.
Lilah frowned to herself,but made sure to paste her smile firmly back on before she entered the open doorway of the room where she had heard the voice.At one time,she had found Dru creepy,and to some degree she still did,but mostly she just found her annoying,like a persistant but minor ache that never quite went away no matter what you did.She really was surprised the crazy little bitch had lasted this long without getting staked,but her 'seeing' abilities and tendancy to team up with much more perceptive (and violent) vampires-Angelus,Darla,Spike-had probably saved her a thousand times over.Too bad.
Lilah entered what looked like a drawing room,also very dark due to the drawn curtains,but there was some light coming from the big screen television that took up most of the left side wall.It was showing news footage of a large group of people in the street-maybe Mulholland,she wasn't sure-piling up stolen goods and broken off bits of cars in a large pile,then lighting it up,creating a bonfire turned funeral pyre,as an internal explosion with the scrap heap threw out a gout of flame that set four people standing around it on fire as well.They didn't seem to notice,even as their hair burnt away,and their flesh started to melt.
Lilah then noticed Bellara had the 'picture in picture' going,showing more footage,this time of people playing demolition derby on the freeway,shattered glass glittering like jewels on the macadam as cars burned in the background and bodies were smeared like so much pate over the roadway.
"I'm getting bored,"Bellara said,blowing out a cloud of smoke.Bellara-whom she still couldn't help but think of as Marla (Marllara?The thought almost made her genuinely smile)-was lounging on the end of the red velvet daybed,smoking a filterless cigarette,her electric blue eyes almost lambent in the gloom.Dru was sitting on the floor,back against the daybed,clutching a porcelain doll that was so dark haired,pale,and glassy eyed it resembled Dru in great detail.
"Things are going to plan,"Lilah said,not sure how to address that.The carnage didn't bother her-most of those dumb assholes deserved whatever they got-but the idea that this could spill onto Rodeo Drive bothered her-she had some custom jewelry on order,and a Cartier watch in for repairs."The Senior Partners are very pleased-"
"Like I give a shit,"Bellara growled,stubbing her cigarette out violently on her own forearm.The smell of singed flesh wafted through the room,a nauseating scent that made Lilah wince and swallow hard,but Bellara didn't feel or smell anything she obviously couldn't live with."I don't have enough toys.I want more."
"Toys?"Lilah didn't even want to guess what she meant.
Bellara impatiently waved a hand towards the t.v. screen."Pets.I need more.They're dying off too quickly."
"I assure you you'll get more than you can stand.We intend to live up to our end of the bargain."
Lilah noticed Dru staring at her,wide eyed,but had tried to ignore it.But Dru stood up in a flare of velvet skirts,her blue eyes as shiny as silver dollars,and said."Oooh,you smell like Bob."
"What?"Was that an insult?What the hell was that supposed to mean?Crazy bitch.
Dru gave her that empty headed smile she knew all too well (could Dru smile any other way?),and held her hands in front of her eyes."Peek a boo,"Dru said in a sing song voice,like you might for a child,before lifting her hands away,as if shading them from the non-existent sun."He saw you."
"What the hell are you on about now?"Lilah snapped at her.If she had a stake right now,instead of just the cross in her purse,she'd get rid of the loon once and for all.
But Bellara sat forward,staring at her so intently she could feel the pull of her eyes,like a palpable force trying to tug her towards her.Lilah then felt something in her mind,a sudden sharp pain as if someone was trying to split her mind open with a chisel,and as she cried out and held her head in her hands,the pain-and the feeling of a violent trespass-stopped."A bloodchild,"Bellara gasped,sounding equally shocked and enraged."A bloodchild is trying to subvert me."
Lilah felt something let go in her mind-it was like a dam breaking-and suddenly she remembered a man suddenly appearing beside at the elevator,as she was leaving Wolfram and Hart."Turn to me,"he said,and she had been unable to resist.
A really good looking man with nicely defined delts and pecs,the kind she might date if he had any money,except his eyes were just like Bellara's:too bright and blue to be real,and consumptive,as if they were a psychic cancer coming from the outside in.
And he made her tell him who was in charge of the Bellara case.Shit-was that the real reason Lindsey was kicked off the case?
What if they found out she told him?!
Belatedly,she recognized him from a file photograph:Robert 'Maximum Bob' Oberon,the purported head of the L.A. demon black market-and the man bringing Bellara here in the first place.Shit!Did they actually think he'd never figure out who stole her?And that he wouldn't want some sort of revenge,as well as to get her back?
"I want him,"Bellara exclaimed,jumping to her feet,anger making her face flush an anoxic blue."I want this traitorous bloodchild brought to me now."
Bloodchild had to be code for a fellow Belial:considering how old she was,everyone had to be a child to her.Rubbing her aching forehead,and trying hard to look at the general direction of her face without actually looking at her eyes,Lilah said,"You'll have him,I promise."
Lilah didn't bother to say she had no idea how they'd capture a Belial demon almost as powerful as she was;that was for the higher ups to worry about.
