"Is this everything?"

Unfortunately, yes. While it looked impressive, it really wasn’t all that much. Willow removed her jacket and thew it onto the nearby chair. In front of them were supplies that, she hoped, would get them through the night. There was only so much she could buy without drawing attention to herself.

Things were bad enough as it was; the last thing they needed was the Air Force being alerted because she brought a dozen semi-automatics from a gun shop.

Hell, the authorities would have been alerted even if she weren’t in the Air Force. You couldn’t just walk into a shop and stock up on weapons. Nope, that’s what the black market was for. Her shopping adventure hadn’t been to buy guns, but to buy supplies that would help them survive the night.

With everything they had here; they now had enough materials to make five, maybe six, detonators, set up a perimeter and a communication network, and conduct adequate surveillance. It wouldn’t give them much of an edge over the demon cult but they would be more organized. Coordinating their next strike would improve their chances of getting out alive.

At least for tonight. Tomorrow, however, Willow had high hopes they would have the weapons they needed.

Providing that Gunn or one of his friends had contacts she didn’t.

She needed to buy some serious weaponry and the only channels she could use were illegal ones. Willow had entertained the thought that maybe Angel or Faith would have the contacts but, seeing their reaction to the supplies, she seriously doubted that. They had no idea what they were looking at.

Angel would not be this calm if he knew he was staring at the ingredients to build bombs.

At least they seemed a little more at ease with her. Though, it was probably due to Willow NOT buying guns. Which meant the second she put in her order for the weapons, she was going to be in shit.

Willow was actually impressed none of them had asked any questions yet.

She would bet her year’s salary that they’d be asking them before the hour was over.

Before the next ten minutes were over.

"Red!" Faith called to her again. "You in there?"

Willow smiled at her friend and shook the thoughts from her head. She had made a vow, while she had been shopping, and Willow had every intention of keeping it. This was a mission, at least in her eyes, and Willow had to treat it like one. That meant she wasn’t going to let herself get caught up with her friends’ reactions or her fear.

They didn’t have enough time for personal shit.

It didn’t belong in a situation like this, and if they were going to have any chance of saving the world, then she was going to have to get over how isolated she was feeling, and how awkward this was, and do her job.

Basically she had to suck it up and deal.

"Sorry, Faith," she apologised, forcing herself to focus on the task at hand. "This is it for now. I’m pretty sure this should get us through the night."

Cordelia seemed taken aback. "Great, so if the demon cult attack us here we’ll throw alarm clocks at them?"

A burst of laughter escaped her. Cordy never changed. Oh, she had mellowed out a lot, but she really didn’t mess around with words. She told you how she saw it and Willow respected that. She also respected what Cordy had said to her last night. When this was over, Willow was going to apologise to her for her behaviour.

Willow owed them all an apology, but she didn’t want to say anything just yet. She wasn’t ready to open that can of worms. When the apocalypse was safely averted, she’d talk to her friends. Clear the air and buy them some new glasses.

And buy Giles a new bottle of scotch.

"Ah, no Cor," the African American man standing to the left of her replied. "We’ll throw the bombs at them. That’s what the clocks are, they’ll be used to make timers."

"Bombs? BOMBS!"

Willow turned to face the man who she guessed, from both her vague memory and the bruises on his face, was Charles Gunn. They met only once before, a few months after she first started coming back here. Willow couldn’t even call it a meeting. She turned up at the hotel, when she had some downtime, and he had been there. They nodded from across the room and that had been it.

Gunn had high tailed it out of there the second she arrived.

Willow wasn’t naïve. She knew Angel and Giles kept the hotel clear whenever she was in town. They did everything in their power to create a safe environment for her. They made sure no one, other than the AI team, was there and they didn’t mention cases unless it was something important.

In other words, they babied her.

And she let them.

But not anymore.

Willow straightened her stance and held her hand out to the African American. "We haven’t been formally introduced, Lieutenant Willow Rosenberg."

"Charles Gunn," he grasped her hand firmly and shook it. "People call me Gunn."

"Rosenberg," she replied in kind.

"Now that you two have introduced yourselves, can we get back to the bombs?" Cordelia demanded.

Five minutes and twenty eight seconds.

Willow risked a quick glance at Angel and… yep, he didn’t look too happy. More confused than anything, which she understood. Faith was impossible to read, Willow couldn’t tell if Gunn’s comment had bothered her either way. Cordy, however, well, she looked a little scared.

As she should be.

Bombs weren’t anything to be relaxed around.

"I couldn’t go out and buy the weapons we need to mount our attack so this is the next best thing," she reached down and picked up a clock. "What we’ve got here are the basics and I’m talking basic. This is as crude as its going to get. I have a dozen two-way radio’s with a two-mile radius, materials to make some sensors, surveillance gear, and supplies to make half a dozen charges. This isn’t going to do shit against the cult but it’s a start."

Angel’s gaze was unreadable.

He was studying her thoughtfully which bothered Willow. Shouldn’t he be yelling at her now? Protesting about the use of bombs? The fact that he was silent got to her more than she cared to admit. He had the same expression General O’Neill had when they were on 697.

The expression all of SG-1 had, right before Daniel exposed her as a psychic.

Angel was suspicious about her.

Not that she was surprised. Building bombs was a far cry from the analysis of deep space telemetry and it was only going to get worse from here on in.

"We have enough to set up a perimeter just outside the hotel. Since this is a civilian area, we can’t set any charges up so instead we’ll use sensors. I bought a few alarms systems from the local hardware store. I’m going to modify them so we can use them to give us a little warning," Willow turned to Angel. "I’m going to need some plans of the hotel and the sewer tunnel you use. I also need to know the demographics of the area; how many people are populated within a one mile radius, how busy the roads are, where the local PD is located. Anything and everything you can think of."

Angel nodded once.

"What about the bombs?" Faith asked, her voice slightly wary.

"They’ll be used in tonight’s ritual," she went on. "I’m making them as small as possible to limit the damage they will do. If I make them more powerful I’m putting too many people at risk. If you plant the charges around the ritual area and set the timer, you’ll have a distraction when you need to get out of there. Hopefully it will give the impression that there are more of us, keep the demons off kilter."

"It’s got potential," Gunn said.

"You want us to use home made bombs?" Cordelia looked at her like she were nuts. "Where did you learn to do that? Deep Space Telemetry School?"

"They’re a temporary measure until I get some more supplies," she said, deliberately ignoring Cordy’s questions. It was expected but what could she do? She couldn’t tell them anything more than her usual ‘specialist training’ line. "Believe me, this isn’t the way I usually do things but our hands are tied here. We don’t have access to the hardware the Air Force does, so we’re going to have to make do with what we have, which is why I’m designing the bombs for distraction more than harm."

"Until you get some more supplies?" Angel repeated, his face still blank.

"Weapons," she told him, then turned to Gunn. "I’m going to need some guns but I can’t go through legal channels. Do you know anyone who has contacts? We’re going to need a lot of hardware and fast."

Gunn nodded. "I know a guy. What do you need?"

"Firstly, do any of your guys have experience with semi-automatics?" she asked him. It made a difference when she chose the weapons to buy.

"Most of us come from the street," Gunn replied. "We can hold our own."

"I’ll take your word for it but I want to see your guys before I give out any weapons, I don’t want any accidental shootings."

"No problem."

"Ok, this is what I need," Willow took a deep breath as she went through the mental list. "Two M60s, two dozen stun grenades and five smoke grenades. Give me two M16A2s; I want one fitted with the M203 40mm grenade launcher and one without. If that’s a problem, make them both fitted. I’ll take two, no make that four, P90’s. I’ll also need lots of ammo for the weapons, including some flares and grenades for the grenade launcher."

Cordelia blanched. "Grenade launcher? Ok, this is getting scary."

Getting scary? "More than anything, I need C4, as much as you can get."

"What’s C4?" Faith wanted to know.

"Plastique," Gunn told her. "This is going to cost you."

Didn’t she know it. "Price is not a problem but time is. Tell the guy I want everything here by morning. I don’t care how much it costs me, he has to do it. The closer we get to the ritual the harder this is going to be. Does your guy know about demons?"

"Yeah," one of Gunn’s men, who had been watching from just outside Angel’s office, answered. "He’s fitted us with a few weapons to fight demons."

"Good, then tell him the situation and that we can’t wait. How long till the next ritual?" Willow asked Faith. "Did you guys find anything new?"

For a minute Willow didn’t think she was going to answer. "Nothing new. The ritual takes place in the eleventh hour."

"2300?" Shit. That was five hours away. "Gunn, make the call now. Tell the guy there is an extra five thousand in it for him if he can get it to us in fifteen hours. The C4 and P90’s are my main priority." They were what she was used to using the most. "We can extend the deadline until tomorrow night on the condition that we have one shipment before then."

Gunn whistled. "You good for the money? You’re looking at…"

Tens of thousands of dollars, she knew that. "I’m good."

"You have enough money for this?" Angel asked her, his expression no longer blank. "Willow, I don’t even have the money for all of this. I doubt the military pays well enough for you to buy all of this."

Willow closed her eyes. "My parents had life insurance. I haven’t touched it since the insurance company gave me the cheque," she shrugged. "The Air Force paid for my education and they help with my rent, I’ve never needed to use it before now."

She had three hundred thousand dollars tucked safely in a bank account. It was her emergency money. If she ever got in real trouble, and she had to disappear, she had planned on using that money to start a new life.

It was money she hoped she would never need.

"So I’m good," Willow broke the silence her announcement had caused. "Gunn, place the call. Let me know if there is any – "

"No," Angel cut her off. "Gunn, you’re not making the call. This isn’t the way to stop the cult. We’re not turning this into a gun fight."

"It’s not going to be a gun fight," Willow argued. "I know the guns aren’t going to kill anything but we can still use them. You said it in your notes, Angel, the cult is too strong for us. You and Faith are the only superheroes here. The rest of us are human, some of us are even untrained, we’re going to need all the help we can get. I don’t plan on using the weapons to shoot down the enemy, this is mainly a diversionary tactic. The M60 have a range of three clicks, you won’t hit anything at that range but it might slow them down. The stun and smoke grenades will be used to get us out of a bind, same with the C4. C4 will work like the bombs I’m making, but it’s a LOT safer. Fighting with these weapons will be a hell of a lot easier than fighting with swords, and it will give you and Faith more of a chance to hurt them."

Angel shook his head. "It’s not going to happen, Willow. It’s too dangerous, I don’t like it."

"Tough," Willow snapped. Why didn’t he understand? She was NOT going in there without being armed. Willow didn’t give a shit what he said. She couldn’t fight them hand to hand, there was too much risk she would freeze up. "You asked for my help and this is what you get. Gunn, make the call but ask for some flame throwers as well."

"So this is what you learned when you trained for Deep Space Telemetry?"

Willow didn’t miss the challenge in Angel’s voice or what it meant.

He knew.

Willow wasn’t sure what he knew, whether it was still suspicion or not, but she was fairly certain Angel no longer bought her cover story.

"I’ve undergone specialized training," she told him, praying that answer would be enough. "I’m trained in combat as well as scientific research."

"I find it hard to believe that someone with this level of knowledge and training sits and reads telemetry all day," Angel said. "Isn’t that what scientists are for?"

Willow didn’t like where this was going. She didn’t want him to ask her about her job, she couldn’t tell them. They knew that. "I am a scientist. I got my degree with a major in Astrophysics and a minor in Quantum physics."

Angel shook his head. "Willow, I know you’re lying."

"I’m not lying," Willow replied, being deliberately obtuse. "I did major in Astrophysics."

"Ok, Willow, if you want to play it that way, we will," Angel moved so he was standing directly in front of her. "What do you do at the base you’re stationed at?"

SHIT!

"It’s classified."

"Do you analyze Deep Space Telemetry?"

"I can’t answer that, Angel. What I do at the mountain is classified."

His expression darkened. "Willow, you have nightmares when you come here. We hear you scream, you sleep for hours, DAYS, and you get called away on a moments notice. Now we find out you can build bombs and you’re planning an attack. You don’t work in Deep Space Telemetry."

FUCK!

She couldn’t right out deny his accusation, he would know it was a lie. All she could say was that it was classified. "I’m sorry. My work is classified."

Angel snorted. "Willow, I’m a vampire, Faith is a slayer… WE’RE classified. You can trust us, no one here is going to reveal anything."

She wasn’t going to reveal anything either. "This has nothing to do with trust, Angel. I can’t, and won’t, tell you. It’s nothing personal, it’s just the way it is," Willow could see by Angel’s expression that what she was saying wasn’t reason enough. So she went on. "You’re asking me to betray the Air Force, Angel, and I won’t do that. I’ve told you all from the beginning that what I do is classified. Everything I’ve done since the Academy has been classified which means I can’t reveal to you the nature of my work, except for what I have already told you. I love my job. It’s my life, no, it’s more than that. It’s who I am. To betray the Air Force, my country, would be like betraying myself. I won’t do that, I would rather die first."

Angel was stunned by her words.

"I’m sorry, Angel, but I’ve been in the Air Force longer than I was a Scooby and my loyalties lie with them. I know you guys don’t like the military, I respect and understand that. You made it clear when I joined the Academy that you thought what I did was a mistake, that I was running away," she let out an exhausted sigh. A lot of this was her fault, so she had to set them straight. "You’re only half right. I know I told everyone that I had decided to stay in Sunnydale, instead of going away to college, and I admit that it changed because of Graduation. But what I didn’t tell you was that I applied for the Academy in my junior year of high school. I applied and was accepted before Graduation. I also sent back my acceptance well before I got into UC Sunnydale. I wanted to join the Air Force before my life went to hell, the only reason I was staying was because of Buffy."

"You never said anything," Faith looked hurt.

Willow shrugged. "I thought you guys would laugh at me. I never said anything when General Kerrigan gave me an out either. I know all about Giles approaching the General, trying to get me out of the Academy. The General gave me the opportunity to walk if I wanted to, I said no and General Kerrigan never asked me again. I won’t lie, part of the reason I did stay was because I needed to feel safe but it’s not the reason I am where I am. I love what I do, it’s everything to me. The Air Force is my meaning for living."

Her friends didn’t like what they were hearing, but it was the truth.

Angel would know that more than anyone.

"I don’t want to fight over this," Willow told them. "This is the way it is and nothing is going to change that. My loyalties lie with the Air Force and my command and I won’t betray either of them. I love you guys but…"

"You love the Air Force more," Angel finished for her.

"It’s a different love, I can’t explain it," she felt a stab of guilt at the implication of Angel’s words and her lack of denial. Did she love the Air Force more than her friends? "I do love you guys and I do have loyalties towards you. I’ll never reveal your existence to the Air Force, you have my word on that."

"If you got a call from the base right now, if they needed you, would you go to them?"

She looked away. "I’d be out the door before they hung up the phone."

"I see."

Yeah, he probably did.

"Daniel is right, this is who I am and I’m sorry. All that I ask is that you accept it and let me do my job. I will do things in the next couple of days that I can’t explain and it’ll be better for everyone if no one asks questions. I won’t answer your questions. It’s not because I don’t trust or love you guys, I do, very much. I won’t answer because I believe very strongly in what I do for the Air Force. I will never betray my command," she glanced down at her watch. "We have less than five hours until the ritual and we have too much to do to focus on personal problems. I can’t tell you what I do and there is no use arguing over this. You won’t win, not against the Air Force."

Willow hated herself for saying the words, but they were asking the impossible from her. This was her fault. They didn’t know how she felt about the USAF, how much she loved what she did, her comrades, the SGC. They thought she analyzed telemetry for god’s sake, they had no way of knowing what she did with the SGC was equally as important as what they did here.

Angel studied her for the longest time then nodded. "Gunn, make the call. Willow, do what you need to do."

And with that, he walked into his office and slammed the door shut behind him.

"Fried rice?"

Daniel reached over and took the carton from Hayes and muttered his thanks, as politely as he could, with a mouth full of food. The atmosphere in Hayes’ dining room was remarkably casual, considering how tense all of them were. The afternoon seemed to drag, especially for Daniel.

Now that the time had come for Hayes to reveal his secret, they were all taking their time.

No one wanted to rush Hayes.

Well Daniel wanted to, but didn’t. It was clear that whatever Hayes wanted to tell them was a big deal. This was the first time Daniel had ever seen him nervous. Usually the Captain was cool, his emotions skillfully hidden but tonight he was anything but.

When he opened the door and invited them in without a word, the same way Willow invited everyone into her home, Daniel could read his expression easily.

He was worried, haunted.

"So, Hayes, why don’t you start filling us in on Rosenberg?" Kawalsky suggested as he fumbled with his chopsticks. "You said it would take us all night, may as well get started."

Daniel looked over to where the Captain sat. While Daniel, Kawalsky, and Grogan were eating, Hayes wasn’t. In fact, he was playing with his food.

Oh god, this was going to be really bad wasn’t it?

Hayes nodded and pushed his plate away. "Did you guys want a drink before I begin?"

That was another thing bothering Daniel. There was a LOT of alcohol on the dining room table and even more in the fridge. Was this why Hayes told them they were all staying at his place tonight? Was what he had to tell them so bad that they would want to drown their sorrows?

"We can help ourselves," Kawalsky told him.

"Before I tell you anything," Hayes began. "I have to ask you again, Sir. Will you and Grogan consider not going to LA? I wasn’t lying back at the base, if you and Grogan go to LA, it could harm Willow’s career."

Hayes seriously didn’t think Kawalsky was going to walk away did he? Daniel knew he wouldn’t. Kawalsky was a good and loyal man who loved his team. He was too much like Jack to simply turn his back, no matter what the cost.

"I’m sorry, Captain, but our decision is the same. We’re a team and if one of us is in trouble, we’re all in trouble. You know how it works."

Daniel knew how it worked too. He didn’t know how many times SG-1 had come to his aide. With the kind of work they did, it was impossible not to have that ‘all for one’ mentality.

Even now, with Jack gone, it was still the same.

SG-1 would be forever known as the four of them.

By the expression on Hayes’ face, he didn’t seem surprised by Kawalsky’s response either. "I figured you would feel that way, Sir, but it doesn’t change the fact that whatever I tell you will get Rosenberg into trouble."

"What kind of trouble?" Daniel wanted to know.

"The NID kind of trouble," Hayes confessed. "Sirs, I can’t stress enough how serious this situation is. No matter what kind of trouble you think Rosenberg is in, you’re wrong. I know you want to protect her but you’ll be protecting her a lot more if you and Grogan just leave now. You too, Dr Jackson. For Willow’s sake, it would be better if the three of you just turn around and forget this ever happened. I’ll go to LA and help her out, that way, neither one of us will be compromised."

But the team dynamic would be destroyed.

Now that Kawalsky knew something was wrong, there wasn’t a chance in hell he was going to turn a blind eye nor would Grogan.

Daniel wasn’t even going to bother responding to Hayes’ request.

The Captain already knew what his answer would be.

Kawalsky was quiet for a moment. "Ok, Captain, I’m only going to say this once. Either you tell us what the fuck is going on, or I’m going to call General O’Neill. Jack has a soft spot for Willow; he’ll send SG-1 AND us to LA. It’s your choice. We’re in, so cut the shit, and just tell us."

"It’s not that easy, Sir," he snapped back. "The shit, as you call it, is warranted and I’m not going to endanger Rosenberg. If you call O’Neill, I’ll call Rosenberg and she’ll run."

Shit.

Grogan choked on his food.

"CAPTAIN, what did you just say?"

Daniel lost all interest in his food. Hayes was a lot like Willow in his mindset for the military. He followed the orders to the letter and speaking to Kawalsky like that was REALLY out of character.

Things were worse than they thought.

He sighed. "I’m sorry, Sir, but I don’t think you understand the severity of the situation, none of you do. If I tell you this, everything will change and I can’t just… I can’t just blurt it out and tell you without trying to talk you out of it. The less people who know about this the better."

Kawalsky relaxed slightly.

"If I tell you what I know you can’t repeat it to a single soul. General O’Neill, Colonel Carter, no one other than the four of us can know. If you don’t think you can keep it secret then I can’t tell you. I need to know that no matter how bad this gets, it stays between the four of us. Do you agree?"

Daniel nodded immediately, as did Grogan and Kawalsky.

"There is something else, I’m going to need you to trust me. What I’m going to say might – " He laughed loudly. "Sorry, what I’m going to say WILL sound completely insane, but trust me when I tell you that every word of it is true."

Insane?

"I’m in," Kawalsky agreed. "Since this is off the record, lets forget about rank while we’re here."

A feeling of dread washed over Daniel.

"Ok, well, here goes." He took a sip of beer before continuing. "I grew up in Sunnydale like Rosenberg did. I graduated twelve years earlier."

"Does she know?" Grogan asked.

Hayes shook his head. "I started to tell her once, not long after she saved my life that time, but she shut me down pretty fast. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Rosenberg so scared," he shrugged. "After that I decided not to tell her, not unless I had to. Sunnydale isn’t the kind of place you sit down and reminisce about. I don’t think Rosenberg would appreciate thinking about the place where she lost her family and friends."

Daniel was confused. Why was the town itself such a big deal? That’s what he couldn’t understand. The way Hayes said the name; it was like it was supposed to mean something.

"I lost my two best friends there, I was seventeen."

Oh god.

"I’m sorry, man," Grogan reached over and touched his arm.

"Thanks," Hayes smiled grimly. "Do any of you know about Sunnydale? Have you looked it up on the net or read anything in the papers?"

Daniel raised his hand slightly. "I did a little research when I first met Willow and yesterday."

He wasn’t surprised. "What did you find out?"

"Not much," Daniel replied. "They have the highest death rate for a town of its size. Crime is extremely high. There was a lot of mention of gangs on PCP and – "

"Neck ruptures?" he finished for him. "Have you ever seen the kind of scar a neck rupture in Sunnydale leaves?"

No.

Hayes tilted his head to the side and pulled his shirt down slightly. On his neck were two small scars, they were two symmetrical marks spaced a couple of inches apart, it was hard to tell how far apart they were, the skin had healed over them.

"Jesus," Grogan exclaimed. "What the hell did they do, attack you with a barbecue fork?"

Kawalsky inspected the marks silently.

The Captain hesitated. "Just its teeth."

Its?

"A dog did that?" Kawalsky asked.

He shook his head. "No, Si… Kawalsky, it wasn’t a dog. It was a vampire."

Everyone was silent for a moment, then Grogan burst out laughing. "No, man, what was it? Really? And what does this have to do with Rosenberg?"

"This is where I need you to trust me," Hayes informed them grimly. "I’m serious, my friends and I were attacked by a vampire. When it bit me, my friends pulled it off me, then it attacked them. Andy and Kyle didn’t stand a chance, it snapped Andy’s neck and it bit Kyle."

He… he wasn’t serious, was he?

No, he couldn’t be. What he was saying was impossible, insane. No, he was joking. This was some kind of joke Hayes was playing. Ok, he really wasn’t the type of person that would play a joke on someone but… it HAD to be a joke. Vampires weren’t real.

"You’re shitting me," Grogan refused to believe him.

"I wish I was, believe me," he said dryly. "Vampires, demons, witches, warlocks, hell, you name it, it’s all real. I don’t expect you to believe me, but I give you my word, what I’m telling you is the truth."

No, it couldn’t be. "You’re wrong," Daniel winced at the disbelief in his voice. "It’s impossible. How could vampires be real and no one know about it?"

"Daniel’s right," Kawalsky agreed. "Whatever you saw, wasn’t a vampire. You were seventeen right? Christ, if I saw some guy high on PCP bite me and my friends, I’d think they were a vampire too."

"There’s no writing in any of the histories," Daniel added. "If they did exist surely someone would have noticed something and written it down."

"It’s written down. You just have to know where to look," Hayes said. "Look, I don’t understand how it works. It’s like…" He struggled to find words. "My parents lived in Sunnydale for twenty years, they never saw anything but they knew never to go out at night. My sister and I knew. It’s like people are blind to it until they see it for themselves, even then they sometimes forget about it or pretend they don’t know."

Daniel shook his head stubbornly.

Seeing your friends killed like that would have a psychological affect. It was more than likely that Hayes’ subconscious had created the vampire in a way to help him cope with the death of his friends better. It was easier to believe a mythical creature was evil than someone in your own town.

Hayes stood up and walked out of the room. A moment later he returned holding a book. "This is the only book I kept, the rest are with my sister. She lives in LA," he handed it to Daniel. "This is the closest thing to proof that I have. Not that it’s proof, it’s just a book on vampire lore. It delves into a brief history of vampires, mainly in Europe. It was written by a witch in Europe fifty years ago."

"This doesn’t prove anything, Captain." Daniel flicked through the pages of the book. "It’s an occult book, it’s mythology."

"Call me Chris." He sat back down in the chair and ran a hand through his hair. "Listen, I know you won’t believe me until you’ve seen a vampire for yourself but until we reach LA you’ll have to trust me."

Daniel looked up from the text. Chris was serious. He said vampires were in LA – where Willow was right now. Was he implying that the trouble Willow was in had to do with the supernatural?

Kawalsky came to the same realisation. "You’re fucking serious."

A solemn nod. "I’m serious."

"Fuck me." Grogan pushed his plate away. "Hayes, you can’t really believe vampires exist. Think about it. You saw your two friends die. I couldn’t imagine how much that would screw you up but – "

"I know how it looks," Hayes informed them. "I just told my CO, subordinate, and teammate’s boyfriend that vampires are real. I know it’s insane, I warned you remember? That doesn’t mean what I’m telling you isn’t true. Sunnydale was full of them, and not just vampires. Demons, warlocks, witches – magic. Where do you think I got most of my information? There was a local magic shop in Sunnydale, the guy who owned it was a gypsy and a witch worked with him part time. It’s all real. All of it."

"And you think this has something to do with Willow?" Kawalsky clearly didn’t believe him.

He nodded. "I’m not sure how it relates to her but I know it does. The way she pales when Sunnydale is mentioned; that’s enough to convince me she knows what goes bump in the night."

"Hayes, Chris," Kawalsky leaned forward on the table, his tone gentle. "You’re seriously telling me that vampires are real and that the vampires might be going after Willow?"

Daniel cringed on behalf of Chris.

No wonder he had been so reluctant to tell them what he knew. It was insane and it WAS enough to end a career. Daniel couldn’t see Hayes going through the gate again any time soon, not if the way Kawalsky was assessing him was anything to go by. Kawalsky was looking at him with sympathy, almost fear.

Kawalsky was thinking Chris had gone over the edge, that the pressure of the last few years finally got to him.

"No, I’m not telling you that, Sir. God, I don’t know what I am telling you," his voice was full of desperation. "Sir, I know it’s insane, god, if I hadn’t seen a vampire first hand I wouldn’t believe it either. I’m asking you to trust me. I’ve never led you astray before, I’ve never let you down. Why would I start now? Especially when it has something to do with Rosenberg? I owe her. She saved my LIFE, Sir."

Chris had a point.

"I’m sorry, Chris, but – "

Chris cut Kawalsky off. "Just for one second believe me, ok? Just forget how insane it sounds and trust me."

"I’ll listen, but after that I’m going to call the Doc. You’re not going to LA."

"Then you’ll fucking ruin both Rosenberg and I. Sir, I’m not insane, I’m not psychologically scarred from my friend’s death. What I’m telling you is true, I just can’t convince you. I don’t know any vampires. All I know is that they’re real, and that Sunnydale is something called the Boca del Infierno."

"The mouth of – " Daniel’s translation of the term fell short when the last word got stuck in his throat.

Hell.

No… it was a coincidence.

Kawalsky didn’t notice his reaction. "Hayes, I said I’d listen to you and I am. The only reason I haven’t hauled your ass back to the base is because I trust you."

Chris snorted. "I’m not…" he shook his head. "Sir, just think for a second. What do we do for a living? Why is it so insane to think vampires are real when you take into consideration what our enemy is?"

Both Kawalsky and Grogan faltered.

Daniel was still stuck on the word hell.

His mind was reeling. Already he was thinking of everything Willow had said and done, looking for hints, for anything that could disprove Chris’ story. Hell was a coincidence. A term Willow loosely used to describe her home when she was drunk.

Chris relaxed a little. "Trust me, Sir. I know what you’re going through. When I found out demons were real it fucked me up. I wouldn’t go outside for weeks. It’s only after I learned more about them I started to go out again. The book I gave Daniel has the basic lore. They don’t like crosses, wood to the heart kills them, sunlight kills them too, garlic is a deterrent. They can’t enter your home without an invitation."

Willow didn’t invite… no. It was another coincidence. Just as it was a coincidence that Willow asked him not to verbally invite anyone into his home as well.

The room suddenly seemed cramped.

Daniel reached the glass of water in front of him and took a sip.

"It feels like everything you believed was a lie," Chris continued. "Which it is. What we know about this world barely scratches the surface. It’s like learning about the SGC for the first time. When I found out about the project, I spent the entire three days drunk out of my mind. It was Sunnydale all over again."

The glass slipped from his hand.

"Daniel?"

Daniel didn’t move.

He couldn’t.

Willow drank herself into oblivion too, just like Chris had. Daniel had been there, he had seen her when she sculled the scotch like it had been water, and when she told him she lived in hell.

Oh god… Daniel pushed himself away from the table as Willow’s words, from their first meeting, came flooding back. He didn’t know why he was reacting like this. He… he just needed some space to think about everything, to get some air.

Suddenly, Willow’s actions that night made sense, MORE sense.

All because she uttered six words while she was drunk, the same six words Chris said.

‘It was Sunnydale all over again.’

No. It was a coincidence.

"Daniel!" Kawalsky’s voice was a little harsher. "Daniel, are you all right? Christ, you’re shaking. Grogan, get a damp cloth. Chris, open some windows. Daniel, what’s wrong?"

"I’m… I’m ok. I… I…" The words failed him.

Chris handed him another glass of water. "Drink this, Sir."

He drank greedily.

"Here you go, Sir," Grogan placed the cool cloth on his forehead.

"I’m fine," he tried to convince them. "Really, I just… I…" He still couldn’t find words.

"Daniel, what’s wrong? Is it the food?"

That made him laugh. "No, it’s… Willow."

"What about Willow?"

"She…" he took a deep breath. "When we first met, Willow had been drunk. She… is everything still off the record? I can’t tell you everything that happened between Willow and I but – "

"Off the record," Kawalsky was quick to assure him.

He hoped Willow didn’t hate him for this. "When Willow and the recruits came for their final assessment, it was SG-1’s turn for the training and lectures. I met Willow the night she was informed of the project – "

"You met Rosenberg before she made it into the SGC?" Grogan exclaimed.

"I knew Willow before she went to her off world training," Daniel admitted. "When I met her at the bar, she had been drunk. Really drunk. She was knocking back double scotches like they were water. I sat down to talk to her and I ended up giving her a lift. She could hardly walk and…"

"And what?"

"When I asked where she lived, she said hell."

Chris flinched.

"She was upset, really upset, so I took her back to my place. I couldn’t get a straight word out of her but she did say a couple of things. She said finding out about the project was like Sunnydale all over again," Daniel looked down at his hands. "She asked me a few months ago, after we started getting to know each other, not to invite anyone into my house verbally. She said it was a superstition."

Daniel never really thought much of it at the time.

The room was eerily quiet.

"Daniel, you’re not saying that – "

He shook his head. "No, I’m… I’m not sure I believe everything Chris is telling us but I… it’s a coincidence."

It had to be.

It couldn’t be real, could it?

"Hayes, you’ve got our attention," Kawalsky told him. "For now, we’ll pretend what you’re telling us is the truth. What do you know about the trouble Rosenberg is in?"

"Not a lot," he confessed. "All I know is that no one was ever charged for what happened in 99, which makes me think it was of supernatural origins. Since graduation was during the day, I think it was a demon more than vampires. They combust in the sun. I don’t know much more than that. She’s scared and she said what’s happening in LA is like Sunnydale, which means its demons or vampires. We can probably guess her friends know about what happened at Graduation as well, Giles was injured so maybe the demons are coming back to finish the job."

"There’s just one thing I don’t get." Grogan sat back down in his chair. "If it’s true, I understand why you and Rosenberg didn’t tell anyone. People would think you’re nuts but that’s not enough to get the NID involved, or ruin Rosenberg’s career. Why would the NID care?"

Daniel hadn’t thought of that.

"Because Rosenberg isn’t exactly like the rest of us," Hayes informed them. "Her record for Search and Rescue would raise red flags, it already has. Everyone at the base thinks she’s psychic but no one actually admits it officially."

"What are you saying?" Daniel wanted to know.

Grogan already knew. "You don’t think Rosenberg is psychic." It wasn’t a question.

Hayes shrugged. "I’m not sure. She could be, I’m not saying she isn’t but… I’ve never heard of a psychic who can locate things without touching something that belonged to the person beforehand. She’s our Rosenberg, still our girl, I just think her talents MIGHT come from other sources. I could be wrong, I mean, she hasn’t done anything other than find people. If she was a witch, then she’d have other powers but all she can do is find things."

And move things with her mind.

Kawalsky must have seen the look on his face because he asked, "Daniel? What is it?"

"Nothing," he said a little too quickly.

All three men were looking at him, not at all convinced by his denial.

He sighed. God, what was wrong with him? What Chris was telling them had unnerved him, it shook him. Daniel was sure if he wasn’t so close to Willow, the revelation wouldn’t be affecting him so badly, but it was. All he could think about was Willow and the fact that maybe, MAYBE, Chris was telling the truth.

And demons, vampires, and witches did exist.

That meant everything he thought he knew, even with the inclusion of the Stargate knowledge, was wrong. But that wasn’t something that was worrying him right now.

His fear and confusion was all connected to Willow and what she could be going through.

"Spill, Daniel."

"Back on 697, I saw…" he let the words trailed off. He was betraying Willow. He couldn’t tell them.

"Daniel, is this about the weathermen?" Chris asked. "Daniel, tell us. Rosenberg is in trouble, she needs us. Keeping secrets isn’t going to help her. Whatever you say will stay with us, we’ll protect her."

"Willow lost her weapon when she was fighting the weathermen," Daniel said. "She lost her weapon after they attacked us and I watched as she retrieved it."

Grogan was confused. "Ok, I’ve seen Rosenberg pick up a gun too."

He shook his head. "She retrieved it with her mind," he told them. "The P90 was a few feet from her, she reached out and it moved into her hand, she said she learned to do it in her Junior and Senior years in High School. I thought she was telekinetic."

But Willow said she wasn’t, just that she could do things

She said naming her abilities confused things – and that she didn’t like it.

Daniel remembered that too. Willow had commented on it on several occasions since then, she confessed to him that she hated her psychic abilities and more than once she mentioned she stopped doing it after Sunnydale.

Daniel felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Willow wasn’t psychic.

"So what does this mean? Is she a witch?" Grogan looked shaken. "No, she’s not a witch and vampires aren’t real. I know Rosenberg, I would have noticed if something was up. We hang out on the weekends, we go riding. She’s normal. I haven’t seen any magical shit. She crashes her bike just like me, she takes risks the same as everyone else. She’s psychic."

"Grogan, cool down. You’re right, we’re just guessing. We don’t know anything," Kawalsky reminded him. "All right, it’s decided, we’re going to go to LA tomorrow."

"I booked the four of us on a flight tomorrow afternoon," Chris stated. "I thought it would give us time to organize a plan, Rosenberg isn’t going to be happy to see us."

Maybe so, but that wasn’t going to stop them.

Not now.

Angel watched with despair as Willow glanced towards the door once again.

She had barely spoken since Gunn, Faith, and their team left to stop the demon cult. At first, Angel thought it was because she was still angry at him for insisting Gunn go along with Faith, then he thought it was because she was still trying to avoid him, now he realised it was because she was worried.

Not scared, not terrified, worried.

The scent of fear around Willow was very faint but the tension in the Lieutenant was palpable.

It confused Angel.

God, everything about Willow was confusing him right now. When he looked at her, he saw a stranger and not the woman he thought he knew.

He didn’t know Willow at all.

Not one single bit.

Every time his mind went back to that conversation, he tried to think up new and different explanations for Willow’s fierce loyalty to her job. He didn’t want to believe she was THAT devoted to her job. He wanted there to be a reason other than Willow’s obvious love for it. Fear? Maybe. Brainwashing? No. Cordelia had called him a moron when he suggested it and she had been right. He was a moron.

No one was forcing Willow to do anything.

Angel doubted anyone could force Willow to do something she didn’t want to do.

She could build bombs, rattle off the names of weapons and explosives like it was second nature. He would even bet she was combat trained like the other people who worked at the base. Hell, she was a hero as far as her comrades were concerned.

Angel had to face the truth, he had lost her to the Air Force. No matter what he said to her now, no matter how much he tried to make her feel safe here, there would be now way she’d stay.

Willow was no longer the person she had once been.

God it hurt.

It hurt so much that he wanted to go out and kill something. It hurt that she had lied to them, hurt that she wasn’t who they thought she was.

How could this have happened? This was Willow Rosenberg! She wasn’t someone who could make bombs or plan attacks, she was someone who hacked into computers and blushed when she let boys into her room. This wasn’t her… it couldn’t be.

She was responsible for giving him his soul… this wasn’t how things were supposed to turn out. This wasn’t what the Powers had destined for Willow, Angel was sure of that. Willow could have been one of the most powerful witches ever known, she had so much potential to fight the forces of evil, but she refused to acknowledge that side of herself.

Willow refused to acknowledge what THEY were loyal to.

Their fight, the one he, Giles, Cordelia, and Faith fought was far more important than anything the Air Force stood for. Buffy, Xander, and Oz died fighting for that cause yet Willow turned her back on it. Yes, she was scared but he was seeing now that Willow was capable of overcoming that fear.

Instead of honouring her friends and fighting what they had died for – she fought with the Air Force.

Willow felt the same way about the Air Force that she had once felt about Buffy. He had heard it in her voice. The pride, the belief in what she was doing. Willow truly held her duty above all else. Christ, she even told one of Gunn’s crew that she was married when he flirted with her. For a heart stopping minute he had thought she WAS married, until she said who she was married to.

The Air Force.

Sweet Jesus.

THAT was why he was still hell bent on finding out the truth about Willow’s job, there had to be more to it than she was saying. He couldn’t imagine Willow willingly walking away from an apocalypse without a good reason. God, he didn’t understand any of this! Not matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t seem to comprehend the changes in Willow.

He had watched the Lieutenant like a proverbial hawk for the last few hours. He had been able to keep a good distance from her, thanks to his preternatural senses, and he wasn’t all that comfortable with what he had seen.

And what he hadn’t seen.

Not once had Willow faltered. There was no fear in any of her actions and she worked with the precision of someone who knew EXACTLY what they were doing.

Her actions weren’t of someone who was ‘specially trained’.

She worked like someone who had done this type of thing dozens of times. Willow hadn’t taken over the situation, just the safety of the hotel and the weapons, with the skill and ease of a professional. The task seemed to be the most important thing to her. Even when Faith and Gunn were leaving, she had been focused on her job and, for a terrifying moment, Angel actually thought Willow wanted to go along with them.

But she never asked and he would have stopped her if she had.

So now they were sitting in the lobby of the hotel, waiting for Faith and Gunn to return with, hopefully, some good news. Angel really didn’t think they would succeed against the cult but he hoped that maybe they would harm enough of the demons to weaken them.

Actually, Angel didn’t care what happened to the demons, he just wanted his friends back alive and safe.

So did Willow.

Not that you could tell. It was hard to determine what she was thinking about actually. Her lack of fear had him almost as confused as everything else did. She was tense but not scared.

He REALLY wished Rupert was here.

The man had a sixth sense when it came to Willow, though, he doubted his colleague would know what to do with this Willow either. None of them knew what to do. Maybe he should have gone upstairs with Cordelia and avoided Willow. It would have made things eas –

"Should they be gone this long?"

Angel jumped at the sound of Willow’s voice.

He had been so deep in thought that he hadn’t realised how much time had passed.

They had been gone two hours.

They should have been back by now.

"Angel?" Willow’s voice held a hint of more worry than before. "They shouldn’t be gone this long, should they?"

No. Their last battle only lasted twenty minutes. "They’ll be here soon," he assured her. "It depends how far away the ritual site is."

It sounded like a reasonable excuse.

"What happened to Giles?"

Willow’s second question caught him completely off guard, the change in subject startled him. It made him wonder what she was thinking. Was this another tactical discussion or was she trying to find out if Faith and Gunn were in trouble? Did she want to know more about the enemy to plan the next attack or was she scared of the demon cult and seeking reassurance? "Do you mean his injuries or – "

"I know the demon cult hurt him but you never gave me any details about the fight itself. "

Details? Willow wanted details? "What would you like to know?"

"Everything."

Angel sighed. "Giles located a spell that would stop the ritual on the night he was injured. It took us a while to work out exactly what these demons were and by the time we did find out, some of the rituals had already been completed. Giles worked out that magic was the only way to stop the rituals, aside from killing the demons themselves. He didn’t really explain it all to us, once we knew what they were, we were more concerned with stopping them. These demons, Willow, they are from the pits of hell. They’re stronger than anything we have ever come across before. Faith and I barely make them bleed. When we found out magic could stop them, we pretty much went in without thinking. The information we had on the cult was sketchy and some of it wasn’t accurate. We were fighting blind. So, the night before last we went to the ritual site," he looked up to make sure she was still ok listening to this story. She was ok. More than, really. She was listening with a clinical look on her face.

Why was he even surprised?

Last night she had been hysterical at the mention of demons, now she was… the Lieutenant.

That just summed everything up.

He went on, "Faith and I went in first with a few of Gunn’s men, everyone else stayed with Giles. We figured we’d act as a distraction but they didn’t fall for it. Either they knew what we were up to or they could feel his magic. They went straight for him."

She flinched at his words.

It was only a slight gesture but it made him feel infinitely better. It meant that Willow was still in there somewhere.

"When you say they went straight for him?" Willow asked, her voice shaking slightly. "What do you mean? They started beating on him straight away?"

Angel shook his head. "They tried to take him, actually," he told her. "Giles deflected some of them with magic and that’s when the attack – "

"Take him?" Willow cut him off. "You mean they didn’t try to kill him instantly?"

"When they couldn’t take him, they attacked him."

Willow’s brow furrowed. "How many demons were there all together?"

"Ten," he replied. "We outnumbered them but that didn’t mean anything. Ten of our guys couldn’t take on one."

"So the demons tried to take Giles away but when they couldn’t, they tried to kill him?"

Angel nodded. "As soon as I saw what they were doing, I got him out of there."

The look Willow gave him was troubled. "You got him out of there? It was that easy? Why didn’t they kill you all if they’re that strong?"

"Speed. They’re not as fast as a vampire. Faith and Gunn cleared the way for me while I went in for Giles. I jumped up onto the roof once I had him," he said. "That’s how Gunn got hurt, helping me get Giles out. Once I had Giles everyone made a run for it, Faith barricaded the door and it gave us enough time to get away."

It had been luck, pure and simple.

They had people waiting in the getaway vehicles outside so all they had to do was get to them, which they had – barely.

Though, when he thought about it, the demons didn’t really give chase when they ran off.

"Do you know why they tried to take Giles and not kill him?" Willow asked. "It could mean something for future rituals. Maybe they need a sacrifice for the final ritual?"

She had a point. "We never really thought about it. Giles was so hurt, that was all we could think about." And getting Willow to LA.

Willow started to ask another question but stopped when the doors to the hotel burst open.

"They just pulled up," Rondell, Gunn’s 2IC, announced, struggling to catch his breath. "They were spotted from the roof, all three cars are accounted for. They look ok."

Thank god!

Less than a minute later both of the doors to the hotel entered an injured Gunn hobbled in, followed by the rest of his team.

All of them looked… bad.

"What happened?" Angel demanded, rushing to Gunn’s side.

Gunn shook his head then grimaced in pain.

Willow went to the other side of him and both of them lowered him on the lounge.

"Gunn, what happened?"

"We lost," he ground out after several attempts.

God damn it, Angel knew he shouldn’t have listened to Willow’s suggestion. They should never have made themselves so thin. He KNEW they wouldn’t be able to defeat the demons.

"I’m going to call Kyle," Angel told them. "I’ll get Cordelia down here to – "

Willow cut him off. "Where is Faith?"

What? Faith wasn’t here?

One of Gunn’s crew, Mark, shook his head. "She…" he coughed violently and the scent of blood filled the air followed by a scream of pain.

Pierced lung, broken ribs maybe.

Angel took a look at all of them.

They were ALL hurt.

Oh god, no.

"They got her," Gunn told them, closing his eyes at the pain talking caused.

Angel froze. "They got her?"

"Took her."

The vampire watched all of the blood drain from Willow’s face. "You left her behind?"

"No choice," the words were more of a moan than anything else.

Everything in the room went deathly quiet.

"There were too many of them, she told us to go. We couldn’t… they surrounded her."

Oh no. Please, no.

He watched helplessly as Willow took a step away from all of them. Her face was paler than it had been when she saw Giles. Oh god, this was it. She was going to run and never come back.

Angel reached out to her. "Willow – "

"Stop!" she held a hand up to ward him off. "Don’t… don’t touch me."

Oh god, not again.

Slowly, Willow walked away from them all, to the top of the stairs, just before the door of the hotel. Angel waited for it to happen. She was going to run, there was no… um…

What was she doing?

Confused, Angel watched along with everyone else as Willow let her hands fall to her sides, and faced her palms towards the doors. He couldn’t see what her face from the angle he was at, but he could see her chest rise and fall in a regular motion.

Like she was meditating.

Um… not the reaction he was expecting. He really thought she was –

What the hell was that? Angel shook his head as once again a strange sensation filled him, like someone using…

Magic.

Willow was using magic.

No, it couldn’t be Willow. Could it?

She stood like that for a minute, maybe longer, then she turned around to face them. "Faith is alive."

What? "Willow?"

She ignored him, instead, she surveyed the room.

"Willow!" What the hell was going on? "How do you know Faith is alive?"

The witch shook her head. "We don’t have time for me to explain, Angel. Please, just trust – "

"You used magic to locate Faith." It wasn’t a question.

And Willow’s silence was an answer.

Betrayal ripped through him.

Willow said she didn’t use magic, she said she wasn’t a witch. Yet he had just witnessed Willow call upon her magic with more ease than she had done in High School. There had been no words, no spell, she just closed her god damn eyes and bang.

She knew Faith was a live.

"Do you know where she is?" he couldn’t keep the anger from his voice.

Willow sighed. "Yes but – "

"Rondell, get ten guys, we’re going to get Faith," Angel marched over towards the weapons cabinet.

"Rondell, stay, you’re not getting Faith."

Angel spun around with a growl. "Willow, where is she?"

Willow shook her head. "No, Angel, you don’t know what kind of situation you’re up against. If you walk in there, we could lose everything."

Holy shit. He could NOT believe what he was hearing. "Tell me where she is," he growled.

"You go in there and either you’ll all get captured or they’ll storm here while the rest of us are unprotected. It’s a standard military – "

"MILITARY!" Angel shouted, unable to stop his fear, anger, and concern controlling him. "You and your fucking military. We don’t work like that. Faith is in trouble and we save her, it’s as simple as that."

"You go there, and you’ll be walking straight into their trap. Face it, we know fuck all about the cult. You just told me how strong they are. We can’t walk in there unarmed, god, a frontal assault is suicide."

Angel wanted to strangle Willow. God! "So you want to leave her behind because we’ll die?"

Willow went rigid. "We don’t leave our people behind, Angel, you taught me that. No matter what the sacrifice, we NEVER leave ANYONE behind."

What? What was she talking about?

"Fine, go off and leave us, Angel. Take everyone of our healthy men and get your fucking asses handed to you," her eyes were full of rage. "And when you come back the rest of us will be dead. Fucking hell, Angel, I know you’re scared but going off into a rescue unprepared will only get you and your men killed."

At that moment, Angel hated her.

Something in his eyes must have betrayed what he was thinking because she took a step back in surprise, then, he watched as her face rid itself of all emotion.

"I know where she is and we’ll find her, but we’re going to do it my way or you’re on your own," Willow held his gaze. "A rescue takes time to plan and if you go in too soon, you’ll fuck it up. Believe me I know." Her eyes widened at her words.

How did Willow know about rescues?

"If they wanted her dead, they would have killed her immediately," she pointed out.

"I’m not waiting. We have to save Faith." Willow didn’t understand, she didn’t know how close all of them were, how much he loved them.

If anything happened to Faith…

"Angel, we’re down a third of our men and we don’t even have enough to fight six of those things. How do you expect to get her out? With sheer force? WHAT force, Angel? If you want to save her, you’ll have to slip in and out without detection and you can’t do that without being prepared."

She was right.

He REALLY hated her. "I’m not waiting."

She sighed. "I don’t want to wait, either. Do you think I want to sit here and plan instead of going in and saving her? Christ, Angel, I want her back but we’re only going to get one chance at this. You’re the only person with any strength and if you go in there while you’re emotional, then you’ll lose. We can’t get you AND Faith back."

"You could use your magic," he pointed out, the feeling of betrayal flared up again.

"It’s… I can’t. My magic doesn’t work like that."

Oh really?

He couldn’t believe her.

He didn’t believe anything she said. She lied about who she was, what she did, and about her magic. God, how had he missed it? She said she wasn’t a witch last night and he never picked up the lie.

Willow was a witch.

She had just proven that to him.

"We get our men fixed up, we do recon, see what we’re up against BEFORE we go after her."

The Lieutenant was right. Angel knew that… he had known that since she pointed out the flaw in his plan, he just didn’t want to admit it. He wanted to save Faith NOW, but he couldn’t.

Angel shook his head. "I get my men fixed up. I do the recon and see what I’m up against, then I’ll go find her. You just tell me where she is, that’s as far as your involvement in this goes. I don’t work with the military."

He regretted the spiteful words as soon as he said them; but he meant every word.

He couldn’t work with someone he didn’t trust…

And didn’t know.

They stared at each other for a long time.

Willow could literally see the wall forming between them. The lines had been drawn and they were on separate sides. She could see the fury in his eyes, the betrayal, and the fear.

It broke her heart.

She understood what he was doing. He felt betrayed, he was scared for Faith, and Willow was in the line of fire. Not the smartest place for her to be but she refused to move, to back down. The words he uttered only minutes ago slashed through her as though they were knives, but Willow refused to acknowledge the hurt they caused.

When Faith was back and after they cooled down, if Angel still said he didn’t work with the military, THEN she would take it seriously.

But until that moment, she would think of him as she thought of anyone who had a missing team member. Nothing they said in the heat of the moment could be taken seriously. Hey, she stood up to General O’Neill when Colonel Carter went missing and she didn’t bat an eye.

She could do the same with Angel.

Willow couldn’t afford to let her control slip one single notch.

If she did, she would lose it.

On the outside she knew she looked like a heartless bitch. Her features were schooled to show no emotions, but on the inside she was holding on by a thin threat. Deep down, she was shit scared. Terrified. This was a living nightmare to her, but like Angel’s harsh words, she forbade herself to acknowledge it.

When this was over, she would get roaring drunk and puke her guts out. WHEN this was over. Right now, she had to hold onto whatever control she could.

Faith was missing.

Those three words reverberated through her mind. It was all she could hear at times.

Strange, but the second she thought those words, her training kicked in and her first instinct had been to call SR-1. Her first, second, and third, instinct actually.

Willow wanted her team here more than anything; she didn’t want to have to deal with this on her own.

She didn’t want to deal with this at all.

Willow knew she should just lead Angel to where Faith was and let him handle this, but she couldn’t. God, she would LOVE to be able to hand over the reigns of this rescue; saving Faith from demons wasn’t something Willow was sure she could do.

But she had to.

No choice.

It wasn’t about duty or her training, it was about a debt to Faith that she had to pay. Faith going missing brought the debt she owed all of her surviving friends, from Sunnydale, to the surface.

Everything happening here reminded her of Sunnydale and Graduation.

The last time she had been involved in an apocalyptic battle, the exact same thing happen.

Except it was Willow who had gone missing, not Faith.

Willow pushed down the fear as she forced herself to relive the memory. Willow rarely let herself think about this part of her life. It was always in the back of her mind, but most days she found that she could forget it. Sometimes by just sheer willpower, other times by frightening and dangerous rescues that were able to take its place for a short time.

But in the end, it was always there.

She had never even told Daniel about it. Every time she explained to someone why Search and Rescue was her life, she always left out the thing she believed started all of this. Not just because she didn’t want to talk about what happened in High School, but because she rarely admitted it herself.

To Willow, using her magic to save people was sticking it to the Powers for taking her friends away. That’s what she let herself think most of the time. Every rescue, every person SR-1 saved, was her way of defying the Powers’ will for people to die in battle.

But it went so much deeper that that.

It went back what she had said to Angel before.

The Air Force drilled it into them, the importance of not leaving your people behind. It was a big deal, especially at the SGC. Didn’t matter if they were dead or alive, if there was a way to bring someone home, they would.

But it was Xander, Buffy, Oz, Angel, Giles, Wesley, and Faith who had taught her that.

Because they were the ones who risked everything for her.

Willow had been captured just outside the Mayor’s office while Buffy, Angel, and Faith had been trying to steal the box of Gavrock. The mission had been successful and they had possessed the very thing that could have prevent the Mayor’s ascension.

But they traded it for her life.

They didn’t leave her behind.

They rescued her regardless of the cost – and the cost had been high.

Too high.

They saved her at the risk of Sunnydale, but they never should have had to. Not only did Willow feel responsible for that trade, but she felt responsible because the trade never should have been necessary.

She should have escaped when she had the chance, instead, she stayed behind and reading through the books of Ascension.

It was there the Mayor caught her.

And the consequences for her rescue was something Willow had to live with everyday.

Sunnydale was gone because of her, her friends and parents dead, and now one of the people who had sacrificed so much for her to live was missing.

And if Angel thought she was going to let him rescue Faith without her...

He had another thing coming.

THIS was why she was who she was, and it was time Willow admitted the truth to herself. Her love for Search and Rescue, her obsession to save people regardless of the cost, was because SHE had been saved in Sunnydale.

Every person she rescued wasn’t just sticking it to the Powers, it was her way of making up for what had been lost at Graduation.

And she wasn’t going to let go of this rescue without a fucking fight.

Willow wouldn’t roll over and let Angel die – or anyone else die.

She didn’t give a fuck how scared she was, she would do whatever it took to get Faith back and if she died in the process… well, Willow couldn’t say she would be all that broken up over it. Part of her always wanted to die; then the pain, the lies, the guilt, and the fear would end.

But while she was still breathing, she wouldn’t give up.

She took a deep breath and looked right into Angel’s eyes. "Do you mean, that Angel? You won’t work with me?"

He hesitated for a moment which gave Willow hope. "I mean it," he told her, his voice still full of anger. "You lied to us, Willow. You said you weren’t a witch but you just used magic to find Faith. You lied about your job… you lied about everything. I’m sorry but I can’t trust you and I can’t work with you."

Willow had to concede that he had a point. "I’m not a witch, Angel. I’m not lying about that."

"BULLSHIT!" he yelled back, startling most of the people in the room.

Keeping her cool against a mightily pissed of vampire was harder than it looked. "I can explain the magic, Angel. It’s not the kind of magic – "

"You know what, Willow, I don’t want to hear it," Angel snapped. "I have wounded men to help and then I’m going to find out where Faith is and hopefully bring her home. I don’t have time to get into this with you."

True, they didn’t have time, but they HAD to deal with this.

Either Angel let her help or she was going to do this on her own way. "So that’s it, I’m out? You don’t want me to help?" A slight movement on top of the stairs caught her attention. She knew who it was before she even looked up.

Cordelia.

The ex-cheerleader looked torn between coming down and breaking them up and letting them have it out. Willow was betting she’d be down in less than a minute.

"Just tell me where Faith is, and we’ll talk about this once she’s safe."

Well, that was more than she could hope for. It meant that Angel didn’t hate her, even though it looked like he did. Still, it wasn’t enough and Willow was going to stay true to her word.

Angel was going to let her help and he was going to listen – no matter what it took.

It was either that or the alternative.

Call in the SGC.

Which she REALLY didn’t want to do, but her hands were tied. She was desperate. She HAD to get Faith back, and if that meant exposing herself, then that was what she had to do. Willow always swore she would never let her fear of exposure get in the way of saving someone MIA.

"Angel, you just need to let me explain –"

"There is nothing you could say that I would believe, Willow. We don’t have time for this, just mark on the map where Faith is and then stay the hell out of my way."

Fuck! He meant it. Willow felt her control start to give way at the realization. Angel wasn’t going to listen. He was too angry. "Please, Angel, just listen to me for a minute. It’s not what you think – "

"Willow – "

Willow felt something snap inside of her. "God damn it Angel! Ok, you’re right! I don’t work in Deep Space Telemetry, I’ve been lying to you about everything. I’m a part of a Special Forces unit, based at the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, called SR-1. I’m Search and Rescue, Angel. That’s why I get called away at a moment’s notice and why I sleep for days on end when I get here. My job with the Air Force is to infiltrate enemy lines and rescue missing teams."

Willow wasn’t sure who was more surprised by her outburst, Angel or herself.

Definitely herself.

Though, Angel was a close second. He was staring at her, mouth agape. The anger that had been there moments before was gone, replaced by shock and an emotion she couldn’t decipher. Cordelia was walking down the stairs towards them, looking as stunned as well… actually, everyone in the room was looking at her.

Willow took a deep breath in a bid to calm herself down but it wasn’t working. The control she had been trying to hold onto was shattered the second she blew her cover. No, she hadn’t really blown her cover. She just revealed something about her job, the actual Stargate Project hadn’t been disclosed – and it wouldn’t.

But, she had gotten what she wanted with her revelation.

Angel’s undivided attention.

Her voice was almost calm when she began her explanation. "The magic you saw me do is how I find people," she ignored Cordelia’s startled gasp. "It’s not the kind of magic you think it is. Ask me to summon a sprite or a demon and I wouldn’t know how. My magic leaks out, I’m not sure how much, and over the years I’ve learned to manipulate it. It’s not a spell. It just happens."

No one said a word.

She sighed and walked across the room to where the wounded were seated. She knelt down in front of the first man she came across and began inspecting his wounds. "We should get everyone patched up," she felt her desperation ebb slightly. "We don’t know if this is a trap or not, we should prepare for anything."

Willow honestly didn’t think Angel would let her change the subject so abruptly but she was finding it hard to be the focus of everyone’s attention, she needed a second to get herself together.

Not that it was turning out very well.

"We need some first aide kits, Angel, do we have any?" she asked without turning around.

"In the kitchen. Rondell, can you get them for us and call Kyle?"

"Sure, Fang, I’ll get on it," Rondell replied.

Willow smiled at the nickname, it was Faith’s pet name for Angel.

"Can you tell if Faith’s hurt?" Cordelia wanted to know.

Willow shook her head. "I can only tell if they’re alive or dead. I’m really not sure how it works. I think it’s related to my emotions. The more upset or frightened I become, the more power leaks out. The first time I used my power to locate a person was back in the Academy. I had gotten a semi-low mark in one of my classes," she smiled grimly at the memory. "Back then I was convinced that if I didn’t top my class, I would be kicked out and sent back to you guys. I freaked. The day after I got the results we were sent on maneuvers. We were split up into teams of four and given an exercise. We had to find someone, retrieve them, and get back to our transport."

Cordy rolled her eyes. "Sounds fun."

"It wasn’t. Things are extremely competitive at the Academy. Everyone wants to be the best of the best, failure is pretty much a fate worse than death. When we started the exercise I had worked myself into hysterics. I thought that if I failed it, then I would be out for sure. I don’t remember exactly how I did it, but I closed my eyes and the next thing I knew, I could FEEL the person we had to find. It felt kind of like a pull and I went with it. Since I was so desperate, I commanded the unit to follow me and we finished the exercise in record time. I hadn’t realised at the time but we were under surveillance. I got noticed."

"Who noticed you?" Angel demanded.

"Representatives of different branches of the USAF. I was so caught up in my fear that I wasn’t aware that the cadets in the maneuver had been hand chosen. If I had, well," she made a face. "I probably would have done the same thing but maybe not so blatantly. By the time I finished the Academy my reputation, both academic and in the field, was well known. I was chosen for special training which led to my job at the mountain."

"Willow, do you have any idea how dangerous that is? If someone works out the truth you could get into trouble."

"I was careful. No one noticed anything until I started with SR-1."

Cordy blanched. "They know?"

"You’d be surprised how many people will turn a blind eye when you’re saving their asses," she replied cryptically. "They think I’m psychic. My team covers for me. They back me up and take the heat off."

It didn’t always work, but Willow didn’t think it was wise to tell them that. Her success in S&R was known throughout the base, regardless of what went into the reports. Everyone knew it was her.

Angel wasn’t happy. "It’s still too dangerous, Willow. One day someone is going to see something and you’ll be exposed."

She shrugged. "It doesn’t matter, Angel. I’ll deal with that when it happens, until then I’ll do my job. Including now. I’m not standing by and letting you go save Faith without me."

"Willow, I know what I said before but… that wasn’t the only reason I refused to let you help. You can’t come with us. You can help us plan but as for confront the demons, I’m sorry Willow. "

"I’m sorry my ass," she turned to the vampire. "Ok, I’ll admit I don’t usually deal with demons but I’ve faced and done some pretty horrific things in my line of work. I’m trained for every eventuality. I know how to handle this. Yes, I’m scared of demons but I am NOT staying here. I can’t and won’t."

She could feel herself getting worked up again.

Calm, she had to keep calm. "There isn’t ANYTHING I won’t do for a rescue. I’m not asking for permission, Angel. I know I fucked up not telling you the truth and I know I haven’t exactly handled my fear of demons very well but that doesn’t mean shit. I’m not staying behind and if you try to stop me from doing my job, so help me god you’ll regret it."

So much for her calm.

"Willow, think about what you’re saying," Cordelia pleaded with her. "Your terrified of demons, hell, last night you were drinking yourself into an early grave. Do you really think you can go get Faith without freezing up?"

"I’ll handle it."

Angel stood up. "It doesn’t work like that. You haven’t seen a demon since graduation, you don’t know if you can handle it."

"We’ll just have to see, won’t we? I’m going, Angel, and that’s it. "

"Willow – "

"Fucking hell, Angel! Would you just listen to me! I’m going to rescue Faith and if you don’t like it, you can go to hell. I will NOT be responsible for another Scooby death!"

Angel and Cordy both froze.

"Another Scooby death? Willow, what are you talking about?"

Yeah, like he didn’t know. "Let it go, Angel."

He shook his head. "Willow, what did you mean?" He looked so confused, they both did.

"You know exactly what I mean, Angel," she said. "Come on, don’t tell me you’ve never wondered what life would be like if you, Buffy, and Faith never made that trade with the Mayor?"

It took them both less than a minute to get what she was saying.

Tears filled Cordy’s eyes. "Oh god…"

Willow had never seen Angel look so shocked.

"You can’t tell me you haven’t ever wished…" her voice cracked and her eyes overflowed with tears. "You can’t tell me you never wished you let me die."

She had wished it – so many times.

Not so much in the last year but for so long before that.

Angel shook his head furiously. "Willow, oh god, I… I have NEVER wished we had done it differently. I have never regretted saving you from the Mayor."

Willow jumped back a foot when Angel reached out for her.

She could feel the anger, pain, and guilt welling up inside of her, ready to explode. She tried to push it back down, she really did, but the look of complete horror on Cordy’s face and the look of agony on Angel’s was too much.

She couldn’t keep it back any longer. "Bullshit, Angel. You can’t sit here and tell me that you never wished you didn’t rescue me. How could you NOT wish that? How many people died so I could live, Angel? Why? Why the fuck did you do it?" the last question came out as a scream.

A sob escaped Cordy.

"Why didn’t you let me die?" she demanded. "I don’t understand, Angel. Explain it to me, please. Why did you think I was more important than everyone else? I wasn’t anyone! I wasn’t the Slayer! I’m not some person the Powers That Be needed alive. I’m nothing. Why the fuck did you give the box back? Why didn’t you let him kill me? I would have understood. I swear. I wouldn’t have been angry. I wouldn’t have – "

Angel moved so fast that Willow didn’t even realise what he was doing.

He held her close to him, even when she fought, he refused to let her go.

"Why did you do it? Why? Why did they have to die? Why couldn’t it have been me?"

Angel didn’t reply, instead he tightened his hold on her.

"You should have let me die."

"There you are," Cordelia walked down the steps of the basement. "I was getting a little worried when I couldn’t find you."

Why she didn’t check the dark but not so dank basement first up was beyond her.

It was the perfect brooding place for Angel.

And he had a lot to brood about.

"Sorry," he didn’t look at her. "I needed to be alone."

Yeah, Cordy kind of figured that. "You ok?" she sat down next to him on the bench.

He ignored the question, going straight to the object of his thoughts. "Where’s Willow? You were supposed to stay with her."

Cordy didn’t miss the slight panic in his voice. "She’s ok. She’s with Gunn and a couple of his guys doing a brief thing or something. She sent me down here to look for you, she was a little concerned when you were gone for so long."

He finally looked at her and, for the umpteenth time since Willow dropped her bomb, Cordy’s eyes filled with tears. Angel was devastated. "That’s just like her, isn’t it? The old Willow I mean. She used to be so worried about other people, her friends were her life. Buffy and Xander… they meant everything to her. They were her family. Her parents weren’t around a lot back then were they?"

Uh-oh. Maybe she should have come looking for Angel earlier, too much thinking time was a bad thing and, by the look of it, Angel had done a lot of thinking in the hour since Willow manage to wriggle out of his arms.

"None of our parents were," Cordy told him, not really sure if it was wise to answer the question.

Usually she would be giving him a hard time, tell him to stop being ‘Angel, Lord of the brooding’ and do something.

But Cordy couldn’t find the words.

She hadn’t been there when Willow had been held by the Mayor, but Willow’s admission had a profound impact on her as well. Cordy had hardly been around at all in their senior year. After her break up with Xander, she spent the last few months of Xander’s life being a complete bitch to him AND Buffy.

Cordy had her own guilt, it was no where near as deep as Willow but she had things she regretted.

She regretted being so mean to Buffy, refusing to forgive Xander and helping so little. Oh god, she prayed Xander died knowing she didn’t hate him. When he died, she knew he still loved her.

Deep down she had known.

She had seen it in his eyes at the prom.

If Cordy had known what would happen at Graduation, then she would have done things differently. God, they all would have done things differently but Cordy had been so sure Buffy would win. Oh, she had been scared witless and really thought she would die, but ‘Little Miss Likes To Fight’ always had a way of beating the bad guys.

There had been a place in the back of her mind that really thought they would win.

"When we realised she was missing," Angel’s voice cracked with emotion. "We didn’t even have to think about making the trade. The decision was instant. There was no other way for us, we couldn’t sacrifice Willow. Xander wouldn’t even entertain the thought of losing Willow, neither would Oz. Buffy and I, for us, losing Willow would mean we failed at what we had sworn to do. She did so much for both of us. Willow and Xander gave Buffy strength to fight, and for me – Willow gave me back my soul."

"Angel – "

He didn’t stop. "You know what I remember thinking back then? That if Willow died, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. Buffy felt the same, we talked about it after the trade. We believed we made the right decision, I STILL believe that. Yet after what… what Willow said to us… god Cordy, I sentenced her to that fate! You saw her in there, she really believes she’s responsible for the death of her friends, family, and most of her classmates."

Cordy reached out and took his hand.

"She’s not responsible," he stated firmly. "She was helping US. WE made that decision. Not Willow, we did. It was out of her hands, how could she even think that it was her fault?"

She shrugged. "She needed someone to blame so she picked herself."

Angel jumped up from the bench. "That’s the thing, Cordy, I thought she blamed us! Not for making the trade, but for not saving Buffy, Xander, and Oz. I thought that was the reason she didn’t keep in contact with us. I understood her fear, I knew that was why she joined the Air Force but she didn’t talk to us for almost four years, she didn’t reply to our letters, our calls. She shut us out completely and I thought it was because she blamed US!"

Cordy was going to spend the entire night crying, she just knew it.

"I keep thinking back to right after Graduation, before Willow left for the Academy. I keep trying to see if there was something I missed. One of us should have seen something. Was she waiting for us to tell her that we didn’t hate her? That we didn’t blame her?" Angel raged. "She was eighteen for Christ sake. Just a kid, I should have known Willow would blame herself. She was so innocent, had so much promise and we destroyed her life by saving her!"

WHAT? "Angel, you didn’t destroy her."

He was outraged by her argument. "I didn’t? You were there Cordy, the way she… did you hear her? She… she…"

"I heard her Angel but she’s not destroyed," Cordelia reiterated. "You’re talking about her like she’s dead. Ok, Willow isn’t the Willow we knew but she’s a long way from destroyed. She’s in the Air Force. Destroyed people don’t work for the Air Force, they spend their lives wallowing in misery or trying to kill themselves. I think Willow’s done the wallowing part but she isn’t – "

"Willow spends her time tracking people in enemy territory using a mystical link that could get her locked up by the military," he stated matter-of-factly. "She risks her life every time she goes on a mission. You don’t think that’s not trying to kill yourself? She’s obsessed with saving people, saving Faith. THAT will get her killed and I don’t think she really cares."

Oh.

Cordy hadn’t thought of it like that.

Angel sat back down on the bench. "How do I convince her she isn’t responsible? I tried to when I was holding her but I don’t think I got through to her. In the end I think that’s why she forced me to let her go."

Actually, Cordy thought it was because of Faith Willow pulled herself together.

She kind of understood Willow better now, especially after spending the last hour plastered to her side. It was why Cordy didn’t think she was destroyed. One second Willow had been sobbing, heartbroken, in Angel’s arms, the next she was working on getting Faith back.

It was disturbing and inspiring at the same time.

Cordy had wondered how Willow dealt with the guilt and, by watching her, Cordelia realised it was her work that got her through it.

Not exactly healthy but it was sort of the same medicine Cordy had used to get over Graduation.

Her work here at Angel Investigations was her life.

Once she had aspired to be an Hollywood actress, but now she couldn’t contemplate doing anything except helping people. If someone had told her she’d be having these thoughts ten years ago, she would have laughed in their face.

"How long will it be before we get a visit from the Air Force telling us Willow has been killed in the line of duty?" Angel asked. "Even if we survive this and get Faith back without Willow dying, how long will she live for?"

WHAT? "Willow isn’t suicidal."

Angel raised a disbelieving brow. "She isn’t? Think about it. The last time she was here she slept for days on end, she was screaming in her sleep about a mission. She said to me she would do anything for a rescue and I think that includes dying."

No, Cordy didn’t believe that.

They would have noticed something… or maybe not.

Ok, probably not.

Cordy was torn between blaming herself like Angel and wanting to kick Willow in the butt for being so good at hiding things. How could she have missed Willow’s mental state when they went on their shopping sprees or when they went to a club whenever Will was in town?

Cordy always put everything down to fear.

How much of Willow’s behaviour was fear and how much was guilt?

Oh god.

WAS Willow suicidal?

"Maybe we should sit down and talk to her, tell her she isn’t to blame?" Oh yes, that would work. Willow would really dismiss seven years of guilt, fear and torment all because they told her she wasn’t to blame.

Though, sitting down and talking to Willow would be easier now than it would have been before.

Her confession opened a door between all of them.

Since she broke down, Cordy found herself feeling closer to the witch. Willow wasn’t as guarded around them as she had been before. She was still all GI Jane, but she wasn’t so ready to shut them down whenever they asked her a question.

Maybe that would make a difference.

"She won’t listen, she’s held onto the guilt for too long. If we had noticed straight away, then maybe we’d have convinced her she wasn’t responsible, but now I don’t think she’ll let go of it. It would be like you trying to convince me I don’t have to redeem myself for Angelus’ sins. It’s just not possible."

Cordy winced at the comparison. She HAD tried to convince Angel he wasn’t to blame for what Angelus had done, but he never listened.

"I still don’t think she’s suicidal," Cordelia told him. "She’s… I don’t think she is."

Really she didn’t.

"We’re not going to find out either way," the vampire declared. "We’re going to have to find a way to get Faith back without Willow, or at the very least, convince Willow not to come with us. Which won’t be easy. Doing it without Willow would be our best bet, but I don’t think she’d agree."

There was more chance of Willow leaving the Air Force than her staying behind.

Angel sighed. "The only way I can think of is knocking her unconscious."

"We could tie her to a chair."

"We could use an immobilization spell."

"Or you could sing Mandy to her, that’s enough to send anyone into a state of catatonia."

"Well?"

Daniel shook his head. "I checked the messages on my machine at home, the base, and my cell. She didn’t call."

Shit.

Suddenly Kawalsky was really glad he ordered everyone to stop drinking after what Hayes’ announcement.

Though, he had to admit, having serious conversations about vampires and demons while sober was NOT an easy task.

But it seemed that his prudence had paid off.

Rosenberg hadn’t called Daniel.

She hadn’t called Daniel like she promised, nor had she called at the base like she had been ordered to by Jack. Kawalsky closed his eyes and silently wondered if all of this was really real.

"Are you sure she just didn’t leave a message?" Kawalsky knew he was grasping at straws but he didn’t want to start panicking about Rosenberg for nothing.

He had to admit though, Rosenberg not calling was a bad sign.

If he were in Rosenberg’s shoes, and hiding the kind of secrets she was, he would have made sure he called in. By not calling in, she was drawing attention to herself.

Especially after the conversation she had with Daniel last night.

"No, the only message I got was from Janet. She wanted to know if I had heard from Willow," the archaeologist looked worried. "She’s concerned about Willow’s state of mind after their conversation yesterday."

Kawalsky was beginning to worry about his own state of mind.

"It doesn’t mean anything," Grogan announced. "She has her friend to think about, maybe it slipped her mind."

Hayes wasn’t convinced. "I can understand her not remembering to call Janet but Willow not calling Daniel doesn’t make sense. She promised to check in every day. He’s the biggest threat, she’ll know that Daniel will go to LA if she doesn’t call."

Daniel nodded in agreement.

Grogan shrugged. "Didn’t you say she called you late last night? It’s only two now, she could still be awake."

Rosenberg was a pain in the ass early riser, she only pulled all nighters on missions or if something big was going down – like a party.

"So what does this mean?" Kawalsky wanted to know.

Daniel sighed. "I’m not sure. I left a couple of messages on her cell after dinner but… maybe Grogan is right, she does have a lot on her mind, she could have forgotten to call me."

Rosenberg didn’t forget shit and it was annoying as hell. Kawalsky was pretty much convinced Rosenberg did it just to bug him. She had the habit of memorizing past mission reports that went back YEARS before she joined the SGC – nothing like having one of his Lieutenants correcting him on a mission HE went on.

Jack was right, she really did need to get a life.

Though, if demons were real and that was part of her life outside the SGC, he understood why she didn’t.

Nope, it wasn’t like Rosenberg to forget an order. It wasn’t her style. She was too… uptight for it. His Lieutenant was kind of like the way Colonel Carter had been when she first joined SG-1. Everything followed to the letter.

Rosenberg would bend the rules sometimes, but only on a rescue when she had to. If they were just at the base or off duty, she was as formal as you could get – with her superiors.

With Grogan, she was trouble.

The two of them together still gave him nightmares.

"And risk you going to LA?" Hayes dismissed Daniel’s suggestion. "She wouldn’t. Think about it. This is the one thing she would not want the SGC finding out. It would destroy her career and possibly have her locked up by the NID for the rest of her life. She’d do whatever she could to make sure we didn’t find out, especially if her friends are still connected to it somehow. She wouldn’t want the NID getting their hands on them either. Calling you would be the sure way to keep you out of LA, by not calling you would set off alarms."

Hayes had a point.

Damn. "So, what do we do? Call her?"

"And say what? This is Rosenberg we’re talking about," Grogan reminded them. "She’s not some fragile woman who will break at the slightest pressure. I know she was upset last night, Dr J, but Rosenberg isn’t the type of woman who would appreciate this. If we ring there at two in the fucking morning, she’ll rip us a new one. She doesn’t mind us looking out for her, but if we treat her like a girl, she’ll kick all of our asses."

Grogan had a better point.

Christ he hated this.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that they were getting worked up about nothing. Come on, vampires? Kawalsky just couldn’t accept it. He tried but there was only so much he could believe without seeing it for himself.

But Hayes wasn’t the type to bullshit about something like this, not when a trip to the shrink and being relieved of his duties were the result.

SHIT!

"Hayes, I’m going to ask you this one last time. Just a yes or no is fine. Is it real? Is what you’re telling us really real?"

"Yes, Sir, it’s real."

He couldn’t believe he was about to do this.

"Daniel, call her."

"Lieutenant, are you ok?" Dr Whitwood asked gently.

No she wasn’t ok but there wasn’t much she could do about it. The information she had spent the last hour gathering was grim, the more she heard, the less optimistic she felt. Not to mention her eyes felt like sandpaper, her head was throbbing, and she was trying to pretend everyone wasn’t staring at her with sympathy in their eyes.

If Faith wasn’t missing, she would have given up by now.

That was the only thing keeping her going.

Her emotions were shot to hell and right now she really didn’t know if she could cope with much more. God, she was tired. In a few hours she would have been going for twenty four hours straight and it didn’t look like things were going to slow down.

Her breakdown had drained so much of her energy and she was beginning to run on empty.

"I’m fine, Sir," she replied to the doctor’s concerned, her expression carefully neutral so he couldn’t tell she was lying.

If Angel were up here, she was pretty sure he’d be carrying her kicking and screaming to bed but he was downstairs with Cordelia.

No doubt talking about her.

Not that she would blame them if they were, hell, she’d be talking about her if she were in their positions. Willow honestly didn’t want to know what they were saying, she wasn’t ready to talk to them about what she had confessed.

She didn’t want to hear them tell her it wasn’t her fault.

"Are you sure? You’ve been through quite an ordeal with Rupert being injured and now Faith missing," the doctor spoke in the same soothing tones he had used at the hospital.

Willow put down her pencil and looked at the doctor. "I am fine, Sir. A little tired but I’ll grab a few hours when things settle down." When Faith was back. "Sir, how is Giles going? Any change in his condition?"

The doctor nodded. "He’s steadily improving. He’s still unconscious but I’m hoping he’ll wake up in the next day or so."

Thank god.

"And please, Lieutenant, call me Kyle."

The redhead hesitated. She felt uneasy calling him by his first name, she was taught to respect people and calling him Kyle… it didn’t sit well with her. Plus, she didn’t know if this was his way of trying to get her to drop her guard and tell him how bad she really felt. "If it’s all right, I’d prefer to call you Doc."

He looked slightly disappointed. "That’s fine."

"But you can call me Willow."

And now they were having that awkward silence moment.

She REALLY wished Cordy was –

Thank god!

Willow had never been so grateful for a phone to ring in her life.

"Rosenberg… oh, I mean Angel Investigations, we help the helpless." No! That wasn’t it.

"Willow?"

Daniel! Oh… oh shit. "Daniel!" Quickly, she placed her hand over the receiver and whispered to the doctor, "Sir, if you don’t mind, I’d like to take this call in private."

He gave a single nod then left the room.

God! How could she be stupid enough to forget to call Daniel? Shit! She was lucky he wasn’t already on the way here.

"Are you all right?" the worry in his voice made her cringe.

"I’m… I’m fine. Things have been a little crazy around here and I forgot about calling you," her heart stopped. She forgot to check in with Doc Fraiser too.

Brilliant, Rosenberg.

Daniel let out a sigh of relief. "Is everything ok? Is Giles still all right?"

Just talking to Daniel made her feel better. Normally she would have bristled at being checked up on, but hearing Daniel’s voice squashed any annoyance. He always seemed to know the right time to call. "Things are a little tense but we’re all ok. Giles is doing well too. Dr Whitwood and I were just talking when you rang, Giles’ condition is improving," she felt herself smile when she said it.

"Dr Whitwood? He’s Giles’ physician? Janet mentioned that name."

"He’s the one."

There was a brief pause. "Why is he at the hotel?"

Shit! OH SHIT! Willow closed her eyes and struggled against the urge to cry. She blamed her exhaustion and the damn way she always relaxed whenever Daniel was around. Daniel didn’t just make her feel better, he made her feel safe in a way very few people could.

Willow tended to let her guard down when she was around him. Add her emotional numbness and you got a fucking stupid slip up.

"He, ah, came by to give us an update. He works the night shift, so he dropped in on the way home. He’s close with Angel and Cordy." That sounded believable, right?

"Oh. Well, that’s good I guess. At least you know he’s taking good care of Giles," Daniel didn’t sound like he believed her, but he wasn’t going to push.

Thank god. "He is. I mean, he’s no Dr Fraiser but – "

Her words were drowned out by the sound of an alarm.

Oh sweet Jesus.

The perimeter alarm!

"Willow? What was that?" Daniel’s voice was barely audible.

Between the shrill of the alarm and the way her heart was pounding right out of her chest she couldn’t hear a thing. She stood up from the seat and saw everyone in the lobby running around frantically.

"Willow? Are you there?"

"Daniel, I have to go. I, um, fuck!" Think! She had to think of a story! "I installed a new alarm… it’s been going off all night. I gotta go." Her voice was shaking and so was she.

Fuck, a perimeter breach.

Demons were here.

"Willow – "

"I gotta go before the neighbours complain again. I’m fine. I’ll call you in the morning, bye," she hung up the phone and bolted into the lobby. "Do we know how many?"

Angel shook his head. "Willow, you have to get out of here."

She ignored him and grabbed one of the radio’s and attached it to her ear. "Rondell, Toby, come in? I need a report, what’s going on?"

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Oh god, a perimeter breach! No! Stop! She had to calm herself down. She could handle this. She could. Just think like they were Jaffa.

She took a deep breath.

Ok, Anubis was attacking AI and his Jaffa were coming here.

Oh for fuck sake she was kidding herself!

"Rosenberg, Rondell here. Five demons have been sighted, they’re heading towards the entrance, there could be more."

Holy shit. "Find out," she ordered as she headed, along with Angel, towards the weapon cabinet. "I want to know where they’re coming from, do we have a way out of here?"

"I’m working on it, Rondell out."

"How many?" Cordy handed her an axe.

"Five, maybe more," she turned to Dr Whitwood. "Sir, I need you to clear out the wounded, get them out of here. Everyone else grab a weapon and get ready. We need to give them enough time to get away then we’re retreating."

Angel shook his head. "Willow, you’re going with them. You’re not staying here."

"Like hell I’m not. I’m not a coward, Angel. I don’t run from battle, I’d rather die."

Why did Cordy drop her sword like that?

"An alarm?"

Daniel nodded. "She was scared Kawalsky. I could here it in her voice. She was lying when said it was a new alarm system. Something is going on there."

"Are you sure?" Grogan asked.

"YES, DAMNIT! I’m sure. I know Willow! She’s in trouble. The doctor who treated Giles was there as well and she lied about that too."

Kawalsky nodded and headed towards the phone.

Hayes reached out to stop him. "Sir, what are you doing?"

"There’s a change of plan. We’re heading to LA tonight," he told them as he picked up the phone and dial a number he knew by heart.

"You’re not calling the SGC are you? Willow would be – "

Kawalsky cut him off. "No, I’m not involving the SGC. This is a civilian matter. I’m calling in some favours to get us to LA, I have a buddy with a plane who owes me. Jack won’t find out about this."

Daniel didn’t care if the entire world found out.

"Be ready to move on my order, people."

"You can’t give me an order!" Willow held the axe out in front of her.

Angel glared at the witch.

Her protest would hold a lot more weight if she wasn’t shaking so much. He was surprised the blade of the axe hadn’t fallen off yet. "Damn it, Willow. Now is not the time to see if you can face demons."

Not with her suicidal and a witch.

The spell! "Cordelia, did Lorne do the spell on Willow?"

"Spell? What spell? You asked someone to do magic on me?" Willow was furious.

The brunette nodded. "Around the time Faith left. She’s covered."

"WHAT SPELL?"

"The demons can sense magic, we thought we’d shield you just incase they come here." Willow didn’t seem all to happy about that but right now he didn’t care. "Please, Willow go. I can’t protect you and everyone else. Please."

Angel didn’t think he’d seen Willow look so offended in his life. "I don’t require protection. I can hold my – "

The sound of growling and shattering glass cut off her words. The blood drained from Willow’s face.

Angel spun around to see five demons gathered at the entrance of the hotel.

Five of them again maybe twenty men.

They didn’t stand a chance.

Angel readied himself for battle, waiting for the attack, instead the worst thing imaginable happened. The demons slowly looked around the room. Their red eyes scanned everywhere and came to rest on one thing.

Willow.

No… oh no. Please no.

He heard Willow whimper beside him.

One of the demons advanced slowly towards her but she didn’t move. She was frozen with fear, almost paralyzed. It assaulted his senses. Angel had never smelled so much fear from a human before, not even while he was torturing his victims as Angelus. Two of Gunn’s men rushed the demon but were easily knocked out of its way, they barely slowed it down.

The others started moving towards her as well.

Willow still hadn’t move.

"Willow!" Angel screamed. "Get out of here!"

They were after her, the demons were after her!

NO! Angel dropped his sword, spun around, and grabbed Willow and Cordelia around the waist. Using his vampire abilities, he leapt from the floor of the lobby, onto the first floor with the two women in his arms. "Get her out of here," he told Cordelia. "They want her."

He didn’t know why, but they did.

"GO!" he screamed.

Cordelia grabbed the redhead and practically dragged her towards the fire escape.

Angel jumped off the first floor, landed back on the ground, and picked up his sword. He had to give Willow enough time to escape and then they could escape themselves. Angel used his speed to distract the demons, moving fast so they couldn’t hit him, though, his hits weren’t doing much good either.

Gunn’s men moved in and started their attack as well.

They only had to give them a few –

Angel grunted in pain as one of the demon’s fists connected with his chest, propelling him across the room. His eyes screwed shut in pain as he collided with wall. Pain shot through him, but he ignored it and got to his feet.

He barely had time to open his eyes when he felt something tear at his throat, this time the pain was excruciating.

Angel swung his sword and hit the demon, losing his balance as he felt something wet running down his neck and chest.

Blood.

He raised his sword to strike again but he was hit from behind.

Then from the left.

And from the right.

He was being hit from every direction.

The vampire struggled to get to his feet, but every time he managed to sit upright, he was struck again, until finally he felt himself being lifted off the ground and thrown through the air. He opened his eyes in time to see the ceiling of the hotel whiz past him, before he finally went right through the wall on the first floor.

He fought to stay awake, to get up, but each time he tried to move he couldn’t get his limbs to obey.

He closed his eyes, for what he thought was only a minute and let the pain wash over him. But when he opened them, he found himself lying in a bed and not on the floor.

And he was hungry.

Extremely hungry.

"Willow!" he tried to call out to her but instead his voice came out painfully hoarse. He reached up and touched his neck and found it covered with a bandage.

What the hell had happened?

"Don’t try to remove it," Kyle advised him from the other side of the bed. "You heal at a rapid rate so I couldn’t use stitches. The bandages is the only thing I could use until you heal fully."

Heal?

"Hungry?"

Angel nodded.

"You lost a lot of blood in the fight, too much. I sent for some blood when you started waking up. Lorne should be here with a some fresh blood, I didn’t know how much you would need so Gunn ordered some extra just in case. How are you feeling?"

"What happened? What are you doing here?" Why did it feel like he had closed his eyes longer than a second?

"One of the vampires hunters called me on my cell after the demons left. We all came back here."

The demons left?

"Don’t try to talk," Kyle told him. "The demon tried to rip your throat out. He did a good job but it wasn’t enough to kill you. That’s why you’re so hungry, you lost most of your blood while you were unconscious. The hunters tried to stop the bleeding but – "

"Wait," he croaked out. "How long have I been out?"

Kyle looked almost scared. "You’ve been unconscious for thirty minutes."

WHAT!

"Angel, you can’t sit up. Lie back down. Besides your throat, you have a broken arm, several broken ribs and a head injury. You may be a vampire but even you take a while to heal from the kind of injuries you sustained during the fight. You’re lucky to be alive. All five demons were attacking you."

"The others?"

"Alive. After one of the demons threw you through the wall, they left," Kyle’s face became more frightened. "The demons left without attacking anyone else. Everyone is alive."

What? That didn’t make sense. The demon were supposed to kill them all. Why would they try to only kill him then leave without making sure they finished the job? Why wouldn’t they take out everyone else? Unless… oh god. "Willow!"

The doctor nodded. "Rondell said they went in the direction Willow and Cordelia ran."

No. No. This wasn’t happening.

"Angel, damn it. Would you please stay still! You can’t help them the way you are now. Give your body time to heal."

Angel shook his head. "But Lorne did the spell so they wouldn’t be able to sense her magic."

"We already think we know what happened. Gunn realised it after talking to Rondell and Lorne confirmed it when they called him. The spell Lorne used was to shield Willow’s magic from detection while its in a dormant state."

Yeah, Angel knew that. "She’s not using mag…" he closed his eyes. "The link. She used magic to link to Faith." It all made frightening sense. "And since they have Faith…"

Willow led them straight to her.

Shit! "We have to find her."

"We have everyone out looking for them. Including some of the wounded. Anyone who could drive or hold a weapon is out there," Kyle assured him. "They’ll find them before the demons do."

"Not just the demons, Willow’s fear is… incredible."

His own demon reacted to it.

"It’ll be a siren song to every vampire in LA."

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