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Xanpet
Cordelia sat exactly where she had been told to sit and waited. Initially she’d been cross simply at the water that ran down the walls and bubbled behind the plasterwork. Months worth of damage and them with no paying job in sight. Vampires just had to be the most irresponsible creatures on the face of the planet. But her annoyance paled into insignificance compared to Wesley’s incandescent rage, at finding the two sleeping vampires curled up in one another’s arms. And, once he had stifled her gasps of surprise and explained to her why Angel had felt it necessary to go gay on them, she was crosser than ever. Why hadn’t he ever told her about this? She wasn’t stupid, she’d have understood. “Oh yeah Cordy right?” Said a little snarky voice inside her head, “And of course you were just so understanding with Harmony. More afraid of her being a les than a vampire!”
She stared at the flame on the black candle that she held in both hands. “Oh wake up already!” She thought. As if in answer to her mental request, Angel began to stir. Cordelia gulped and waited. “This binding spell had better work Wesley ‘cos if I die, I’m going to haunt your tight British ass…”
“What are you doing Cordelia?”
“Not getting cheap thrills from your naked hiney.”
Angel wrapped a sheet around his midriff and came over to the door. To his surprise, he was unable to pass through it for, as long as Cordelia kept the candle lit, a mystical barrier kept him in. “What is this?”
“It’s called taking no chances. What was that?” She nodded at the still sleeping Spike.
“Vampire business.”
“And how are you feeling this afternoon, evil?”
“You think I took a risk?”
“Err…yes. I think you took a nasty, potty-mouthed, Cockney murderer shaped risk. Unless of course he took you.” She wasn’t in the mood to even attempt subtle or polite.
Angel felt anger well up within him but he fought it back. She had every right to feel betrayed. “I know Spike has his moments…”
“Yes, lets just compile my personal top five list of ‘his’ moments. He lead a vampire raiding party on my High School when I was sixteen, killed staff, parents and students and I ended up spending three hours hiding in a maintenance closet, praying for my life. He kidnapped you and sent assassins after your girlfriend including bug man who ended up in little buggy pieces in my hair. He sent his head case girlfriend to attack us in the library, killing a slayer resulting in me breaking my arm. He kidnapped my boyfriend, and in the rescue attempt, I fell through a wooden staircase and got skewered on a rebar. Best of all he kidnapped and tortured you and in the process let a paedophile vampire out into the community.”
“He didn’t do the one in the library, that was me.”
“Which makes me feel lots better. Except for how it doesn’t.”
Angel felt he needed to explain, at least as much as he himself understood, “Cordy, I walk a fine line. The Powers That Be sought me out to be their warrior and in order to do that I need connections to humanity, but sometimes I need connections to my own kind too.”
Cordelia frowned. She had been so certain that she would be facing Angelus that Angel was really wigging her out. She didn’t like Spike but he did seem to be trying. It was rather nice to have someone fight for her honor and this little tryst didn’t appear to have brought out evil Angelus. She simply had to be sure that Angel was still, well, Angel.
Angel sat on the floor opposite the door. How could he convince Cordelia that Spike wasn’t a danger, at least not at present? He was evil certainly, without any remorse or any means to redemption. Yet, he hadn’t actually done anything since he’d been there and he’d been provoked. He knew Spike couldn’t hurt the humans but there was something more. It was almost the nobility of the savage. Angel felt the weight of his guilt and that compelled him to seek salvation. Spike seemed to feel no such compulsion; he chose whether or not to do good. He had chosen this side it had not chosen him. That gave him an edge, almost a superiority over Angel.
Suddenly there was a scream and straight away, he was up and to the doorway. Spike was instantly at his side, “Who the fuck ordered a wake up banshee?” He exclaimed, running a hand through his tousled hair.
Cordelia was clutching her head and crying in pain. The candle had gone out as she fell. Angel threw himself against the barrier to find it gone and he tumbled out into the hall closely followed by Spike. They crouched either side of Cordelia but Angel was hesitant to touch her. “Cordy,” He whispered, “Tell us what you saw.”
Cordelia covered her eyes with her hand and said in a shaky voice, “Two little snake like things coming out of some bushes.” She sat up and coughed, “they each had one eye and were carrying what looked like walnuts.”
“Walnuts?” Said Spike.
“Yeah, two each. Put’em away boys.” She smiled and stood up. Nothing like a fake vision to find out whose side your neighbourhood vampires were on.
They looked at her retreating back and Angel said, “We’d better get dressed.”
That was easier said than done and by the time Spike arrived in the hotel lobby he was wearing ‘spray on’ leather trousers with laces up each side and a black sleeveless tee. Over it he had a regal blue silk shirt that was loose fitting with the sleeves rolled.
“What?” He snapped at the assembled stares. “Everything else I own is wet.”
“You don’t own that shirt. It’s mine.” Muttered Angel with a faint growl.
Wesley was perched on the edge of his desk with his head in a book, “In case anyone was wondering about the state of the plasterwork someone allowed a large leek to go unchecked last night.” He said without looking up. It was what he’d feared most ever since Spike had first arrived. Vampires had two over-riding drives, the blood lust and sexual lust. Between humans and vampires one often lead to the other. Between themselves the same and they were pretty unfussy when it came to bed partners. The demon was neither male nor female, that wasn’t the way it reproduced, so gender was never an issue for vampires. What was more in family groups it wasn’t only blood that held the nest together, sexual dominance played a huge part in Sire, Childe and blood sibling relationships. He was relieved that the encounter hadn’t brought back Angelus but Angel really had to be more careful. The quicker this case was solved the quicker Spike would be gone.
The trouble was it didn’t look like being solved any time soon.
The weekend had been slow and Lindsey was glad to get back to work. He busied himself with his caseload, went to lunch with a judge and then spent the rest of the afternoon in his courtroom winning the case on a technicality called lobster and a fine vintage. It was early evening by the time Reed sent a memo to say that he wanted a word.
“Ah Lindsey, so good to see you and thank-you for making it at this hour. Do come in.” Lindsey entered Reed’s office and stood expectantly. “How would you say your probation was going?” Reed sounded as cool and reserved as ever, even at five thirty in the evening.
What was going on? Lindsey had grown intolerant of the Firm’s games after the hand incident. He had agreed to return, hell they needed him, but he wasn’t going to be played with. “Well, I have several major clients, who asked for me personally and tried to eat any other counsel,” He said as nonchalantly as his boss, “I’ve had some good wins and added to the Firm’s reputation and bank balance.” What more did they want?
“But you’re disappointed not to be in Special Projects.”
“No. There are other areas. Halley’s work is interesting. I mean who would have thought there was a chemical formula for a soul. We may find yet that God is a man hiding behind a curtain, yelling into a microphone.”
Reed sat down behind his desk. He didn’t offer Lindsey a seat but he took one anyway.
“So what’s the next step here for these souled demons?” He kept his voice light.
“Be careful Lindsey. You have a fatal flaw and she is a brilliant flame. Don’t fly too close. I know you young people. With you, life is for living. You feel it in your very soul. You need to drench your senses in it. See it, hear it, smell, touch and taste it.” He leant forward and placing his folded hands on the desk. The late evening sun streamed in at the window and Lindsey had to squint to see.
“We all desire to be young, Lindsey. That’s why this office gets so much business. In LA, youth is everything. People try every means to keep it. They preserve it on film and recreate it with surgery. They fight growing old with every weapon and they will always lose. Do you know why that is?”
Lindsey shook his head, “Because in order to live forever they must die. Losing your soul is the only way to live forever. Only the undead stay young, unchanged by life and it’s excesses.”
“What are you trying to tell me, Nathan?”
“The difference between immortality and mortality is the difference between youth and age. The difference between immorality and morality is the same. You want to stay young, work hard and feel no ill effects, not even those of remorse? Not one twinge of guilt to line your face and give you ulcers. Lose your soul. Give it to another and let them carry the burden. You will be clean and free.”
Lindsey had never thought theology Nathan’s strong point but if this had something to do with the Dex then he owed it to Hal to find out more. “How?” He asked out loud.
“The Dex. It seems to have the uncanny ability to absorb our sins, Lindsey. Your woman truly is an artist. As an artist captures beauty forever, so we are offering youth at a price. It works well on our own operatives and soon we will begin market trials. How would you like to be on the legal team for this?”
Lindsey couldn’t believe it. He had come to pump Reed for information and not only was the information freely given but he was being offered a job.
“I’ll think about it.”
“Well don’t think too long. Martinez in finance is after promotion and is a little more…stable than you.”
Lindsey went back to his own office. As he prepared to go home he turned the calendar and looked at the quote for tomorrow, ‘For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?’ Mark 8:36. He had to talk with Hal.
As soon as he was home he called her and ordered a meal, he was no cook. They ate, as usual, by candlelight and soft music, each needing no other company but the other. After dinner, Hal took her wine glass to the sofa and Lindsey joined her. They held hands and talked nonsense. It was nice, calm, peaceful. He took her glass from her and began to kiss the hollow of her neck, “Lindsey,” She giggled but didn’t stop him.
He put down his own glass, took off his tie and loosened the top button of his shirt. Then he returned to her, caressing her neck, trailing rapid kisses down a soft arm and taking slender fingers in his, to kiss the back of her hand. He drew his tongue across it and sucked a finger into his mouth. Their eyes met and she sighed.
Her lover had a way of making her feel the most special soul in the universe. She let him worship her. He raised her up just long enough for her to remove her shoes and panty hose and then she sat back down on the sofa with him kneeling in front of her. He lifted her blouse and licked at the milky flesh he found there, dipping his tongue into her navel so that she caught breath.
This was perfect. How it should be, sweet, gentle and passionate. “I love you Halley.” Whispered Lindsey. He ran his hands up her thighs savouring the texture of her flesh. It was so soft, finishing in coarse brown hair. He slipped a finger behind her panties and into her hot, moist depths. She let out a little moan.
“More,” She pleaded, so he wedded two fingers and inserted them both into her ever-increasing heat. He moved them gently but insistently back and forth until neither could stand it any longer. He rubbed at her nub with the ball of his thumb.
Her skirt was soon high above her hips and he pushed the flimsy fabric to one side. Immediately he was hit by a scent that was all her own, sweet, musky, pungent and erotic. He dipped his head and took a quick taste. Hal’s response was to wrap her legs around his shoulders and he engulfed her completely. Beneath his lips and tongue, she felt her orgasm begin to rise.
He continued to pleasure her past the first wave until she could stand it no more and then said, “Lets go to bed, darling. I want to make love to you properly.”
Before long, they were both naked on the wide bed. Lindsey explored every inch of her body with his hands and lips. He savoured her flesh, glorying in its texture and scent. He caressed her breasts and suckled at her nipples until she cried out with ecstasy.
She reached for his cock and returned his earlier favour. She brushed her lips over the head and he groaned. Taking him fully into her mouth, she rolled his cock with her tongue, before drawing even more of his thick shaft into her throat. He lay on his back and thrust his straining member into her hard-working mouth. Soon, oh no. Too soon. “Stop.” He said gently, “I don’t want to come yet.”
She raised her head and he rolled her beneath him, finding her entrance almost by instinct and at once penetrating her as deep as he could. They rocked together in unison, lawyer and scientist, man and woman, lovers. She begged him to go harder, faster so that she could feel his balls slap against her. He lifted one leg to gain even more penetration and at the same time bent to kiss her passion contorted face.
Halley kissed him back then slid her lips across his cheek to nibble his ear. Her soft brown hair brushed against his neck when she bent to lick and suck his nipples. At the same time, he felt her fingers at his entrance and that was it. “Oh yesssssss,” He hissed and shot his load high inside her.
“Oh Lindsey, yes.” She sobbed as her own orgasm hit.
They stayed locked together until his erection had subsided. “As close as two souls can get.” She thought.
He slid beneath the covers and pulled her back into a foetal embrace. “Hal,” He murmured, “I’ve found out what the Dexes do.”
“What do mean what they do?”
“They absorb sin. Apparently, Reed has been giving them out to those who are having trouble with their consciences and the creatures clear them. I think the effect even slows aging and allows one to work round the clock.”
She stiffened in his arms, “What about the Dex?” She asked, “How does this effect my babies?” She was aware of the emotive language she’d just used but she couldn’t help it. So close after their lovemaking she just wanted to hold the demons and make them feel as warm and safe as she did right now.
She felt her temper rise and struggled out of his grasp. Getting up she put on a robe and stormed out to the living room to put out the candles. He followed her.
“You know what, Lindsey?” She snapped, “You were right. I give up. I quit. How can I work for an organisation that is willing to absolve themselves of all sin by offloading it onto another being? The Dexes are innocent things, their souls pure, undefiled, like newborns. Nathan Reed owns both our souls? Well, not mine.”
He tried to hold her but she pulled away from him, “My work is my art but if this is what happens then I’ll never create again. I should never have messed in creation at all. We should not escape our sins, Lindsey. Guilt is there for a reason, who am I to cheat hell of its prizes.”
“If that’s the way you feel I won’t stop you but please be careful Halley. These are dangerous people and…” He enclosed her in his arms and this time he would not let go, “…I love you.” He said and he meant it.