| Have a Little Faith, Part 11 |
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"Wow, this is a really-really crappy apartment."
Faith didn't say anything.
"But it's just like mine," Cordelia admitted. "So Lindsey, he's single right?"
"Cordelia," Faith said, seriously. "Lindsey does like you, but I'd give up on him-"
"He likes me?" she said, not really listening to all that Faith was saying. "Oh you're kidding?"
"Cordelia," she said a little more sternly.
"Listen to me. The likeliness of Lindsey making it out
of Wolfram and Hart alive is slim to none."
"Oh," she said, looking down.
"I'm sorry," Faith said, touching her shoulder.
"No, I understand. I remembered when Ms. Calendar died. I know about Angelus. Why can't he leave though? He showed you were Angelus was. Can't he just go?"
"He did some bad things," Faith explained. "He wants to make up for it. And we can't get Angelus, we have to restore his soul."
Cordelia did not reply.
"I'm sorry," she repeated. "He won't get
involved with you because he likes you to much. He's
afraid you'll be in danger."
"That's nice of him," she said with a hint
of sarcasm in her voice. "I'm not someone who needs to
be protected. I lived in Sunnydale."
Cordelia looked down again. Faith could tell she was having trouble
accepting that Lindsey may possibly die. Faith at least understood
that, she was having trouble herself. "I hope you can restore Angelus'
soul soon," Cordelia said.
Faith sighed. She was glad when Doyle entered the room.
"Oh hi Doyle," Cordelia said.
"Hi," he said to her, a little shyly. "What's up darling?"
"We were just talking about Lindsey," she said. "How we need to restore Angel's soul, so Lindsey can leave."
"That's the plan."
Cordelia smiled. Doyle had given her hope.
"And we help people on the side, like you darling."
"I know," she said. "So these people
you help. How much do you usually charge them?"
"Our slayer has guts," Angelus said and smiled.
He was amused. Although Faith had been able
to break into Russell Winter's house and
showed that any vampire working for Wolfram and Hart were not as safe as
they thought they were, Angelus was still impressed with the new Slayer.
"Do you know how much money Russell Winters brought to the firm?" Lindsey asked. "He was one of our top clients. That fucking bitch."
Lilah smiled. Lindsey lost a very important
client. This might allow her to get ahead of him.
Lee was also mad. Despite that he was in
the same position as Lilah, he was thinking of what damage
Faith could do to his vampire clients.
"I liked Russell," Angelus said. "Though
this living among humans is sloppy. I did liked how he
toyed with his victims. It was something
I liked to teach my own children, speaking of which?" he said,
looking at Lindsey. Lee had found
Penn who would be joining them in Los Angeles as soon as he took care of
some business overseas.
"Sorry, Angelus, I'm still looking for her."
"Lee found Penn, why are you having so much trouble finding Dru?"
"Because Dru does not want William to find
her, therefore no one can find her. I have
investigators looking all over. We'll
find her. You just need some patience. At least you have Penn."
Angelus did not say anything only because
Holland had entered the room.
"She trashed the surveillance system too,"
he said. "But we did identify the dust on the floor as
Richard Winters. The guard says another
brunette came earlier. So far we haven't found a trace of her."
"Her name is Tara Hays," Lindsey explained,
quickly. "She was Russell's latest conquest. Faith
probably sent her packing because my sources
say that she boarded a bus to Oakland last night. Would you like
me to find her?"
Holland shook his head. "It's best
that we end all ties to Russell Winters. I'm sorry Lindsey, I
know Russell was one of your most important
clients."
"That bitch," he repeated. "Angelus, I hope you fucking kill her."
Angelus smiled. He still had his need
for revenge on Buffy, but this new slayer was beginning to
show signs that she might cause a problem
in his plans. Perhaps he did need to teach the girl a
lesson. Perhaps going after her and
taking a long time would better cover up what he really planned to
do.
"You are not doing this!" Wesley screamed at the top of his lungs.
"Wes, you're embarrassing yourself."
"I'm your watcher, I order you not to do this."
"The powers that be overcome your orders,"
she explained. She had told Doyle she was thinking of
charging money for some of the people Doyle
saw in his vision. Maybe they could make enough to get out of this crappy
apartment. For now, Faith would have to do everything by cell phone,
but she was thinking maybe an office in the future.
"The powers that be said you should hire out your slayer abilities?"
"I'm not using it for evil. I thought we could use to help people-and get a better TV."
Faith was relieved when there was a knock
at the door. She was expecting Doyle. However when she
opened the door, Cordelia was standing outside
it.
"Hi!" she said. "I'm off today, I'd thought I'd help."
"Help?"
"Yep, you know me, actress, I meet a lot of desperate people. And I made you cards." Cordelia hands Faith a stack of cards.
"Sorry they are so plain. Plain ones are cheap."
"Cards, sure, that's cool," she said looking over them. The card read.
Have a
Little Faith
We help
people in trouble
(917)
555-3234
"You're not helping," Wesley said to Cordelia.
"I am, I want to help."
"You mean you want to help Lindsey?" Faith said, with a hint of sarcasm in her voice.
"Yes, and I want to help you-as long as I get part of the cut."
"Faith, the slayers are not for hire," Wesley said as angry as he was capable of getting.
Faith sighed. "Tell you what.
I'll patrol every night at 8 sharp. I'll train at 9, no ten in the
morning until 1, but 2-8 I'm helping Doyle.
How about that?"
"That sounds reasonable," Cordelia said and smiled. Wesley just frowned.
"Alright for now, but if the vampire situation gets out of hand and you need extra hours for training or patrolling you are to cut back on your hours with Doyle."
Faith nodded.
"Excellent," he said, looking at his watch.
"As it is now 7:20, Patrolling will commence in forty
minutes."
Faith rolled her eyes, then nodded. At least now Wesley was off her back. Wesley still looked annoyed, but he headed into the kitchen.
Cordelia turned back to Faith. "So you talk to Lindsey today?"
"We don't really have a social relationship,"
Faith said, sarcastically. "He's working undercover for
evil."
There was another knock on the door. This time it was Doyle.
"Hello, Darling," smiles at Cordelia. "Hey, Cordy."
"Oh hi Doyle. Faith and I were just talking about Lindsey."
"Oh, yes, how is he doing?" Doyle said. Faith could tell he had a crush on Cordelia. She had no clue what Doyle or Lindsey saw in her. She did know that maybe she could work Cordelia's crush from Lindsey to Doyle.
"As best as he could be considering the circumstances."
Wesley came back out with a cup of tea.
"Oh I thought I heard the brutalizing of the English
language. Doyle, did Faith tell you
of our new arrangements?"
"Yeah," Faith responded, instead of Wesley. "At night, I'm the slayer, that's it. During the day, I'm helping you."
"And I figured we could charge some people money," Cordelia commented.
"Charge people money?" Doyle questioned.
"Yeah, you get your vision thing and Faith helps them and we charge them."
"Sounds a little too much like vigilantism."
"Much as I hate to say it, I agree with Doyle."
"You don't agree?" Doyle asked Wesley.
"Of course not. Hiring her slaying abilities out. This is her sacred purpose."
"I don't know then, maybe we can see if it works out."
"Thanks Doyle," All Wesley did was frown.
"You're welcom-" Doyle said. Suddenly he held on to his head, turned to a demon, then back again.
"Oh my god!" Cordelia cried out. "You're like a slimy demon-"
"Shut up," Faith said. "This is what happens when he gets visions. Doyle, what did you see?"
"It's a bar. Uh, I think I recognize it. It's one of those terminally-stuck- in-the-eighties places."
"Yeah, and?"
"That's it. No faces popped out at me, man. Just, just a feelin'"
"What kind of feelings?"
"Something's gonna happen."
"All right-"
"Faith, might I remind you of our arrangement?" Wesley said.
"But-"
"If you want to help Doyle without a problem, then you have to keep the promise you made to me."
"It's okay, love," Doyle said, winking at
her. "Cordelia and I can take care of it. Probably some
drug overdose that needs an ambulance."
"Ew, me? Go after some demon like you-"
Faith smiled. "You wanted to be part
of the team."
Wesley was at least right about one thing.
She needed to patrol. She liked to go out and hunt for
vamps.
She had lived in Los Angeles for almost four months. She had saved many people from vampires and gave Lindsey some extra months of survival.
What bothered her the most was that she had
not done a damn thing about Angelus. They had never even met. They
were supposed to have all this inside information, but so far it had done
nothing to stop
Angelus.
She suddenly sensed a vampire, but her thoughts
were interrupted by her phone ringing and the vampire
moving away.
"Hello?"
"Umm-Faith," Faith immediately recognized Cordelia's voice.
"Yeah, Cordelia, what is it?"
"It's Doyle." Faith's heart started pounding. She knew she shouldn't have listened to Wesley.
"Oh god, what's wrong, what happened?"
"He's been arrested for soliciting."
"I'm sorry about this," Faith said while
she was on her way to the police station. "I would have never
called you like this, but I got no legal
expert."
"Relax," Lindsey said. "We'll make
it brief. This is entrapment pure and simple. There's a special
western union near the station. I'm
sending you a thousand dollars. That should be enough for bail and
to help you out. We at Wolfram and
Hart take care out our clients."
Faith now understood. He was still at work.
"But what if they trace it?"
"Relax, Wolfram and Hart are a full service
law firm, we take care of our employees. Has he find out
anything about Drusilla?"
"She's disappeared," she said. "No one can find a trace of her anywhere."
"Keep looking," he said and hung up.
Faith hung up the phone. Then suddenly
she sensed a vampire nearby. But now helping Doyle was more
important.
Faith had an instant dislike for the arresting officer. Her idea badge read Detective Kate Lockeley.
"You're his lawyers?" the blond woman said and laughed.
Kate looked over Cordelia and Faith.
She did not even think that Faith was 18. Kate was starting to
developed a headache. Another cop
was booking a guy who kept screaming that demons were after him.
"No, but I know entrapment when I hear it. He was trying to pick you up, that's all."
"He was propositioning me." Kate said.
"He wouldn't." Faith said. "He's studying to be a priest."
Kate laughed. "He told me he wanted cash."
"He wouldn't," Faith repeated.
"And you were there?"
"I was," Cordelia said. "We were there to help someone, not try to pick someone up."
Kate laughed. "Help who?"
"I don't know," Cordelia admitted and looked down.
"Look," Faith said. "This is just a misunderstandin' Doyle. He wouldn't do anything like that."
"Oh he wouldn't?" Kate said. "He's been arrested before."
"For solicitation?" Cordelia asked.
"No," Kate admitted. The demon guy
kept screaming louder. "Will you get him out of here!" Kate
screamed at the top of her lungs.
The cops handling him looked at her, then the put the cuffs on him and
escorting him downstairs.
"See, I told you that he wouldn't do something like that?"
"Sorry," Kate said and smiled. "I can't
help you. He's already been booked. Bail hearing's in about an
hour. It should be about $500 give
or take unless he wants to confess."
"Can I see him?" Faith said. She knew
she had to see him quickly, because she could sense that a vampire was
close.
"I was not trying to solicit her," Was the
first thing Doyle said when Faith and Cordelia entered the
room. "Come on, Cordelia, you were
there."
Faith could barely hear him because as soon
as they walked through the door the guy started screaming
again. "Demon magnet!" he screamed
at Faith. "Beware of the dark side within you."
Faith sighed then moved closer to the cell so she could hear Doyle better.
"But not with you all the time," Cordelia said.
"She was pretty, I was trying to pick her up."
Faith sighed in frustration. Sometime she felt that she was the grownup and Doyle was the child.
"She said you asked for money."
"Money for a drink that's all, not sex."
"Doyle, you were not there to pick up women, you were there to stop whatever was supposed to happen in that club."
They were interrupted when another person entered the room. It was a white man in his early thirties. The demon man screamed at him. "Demon!" But this time Faith knew he was right. The guy was a vampire.
"He's come for the demon magnet!" the guy in the cell screamed.
"Faith," the vampire said and then put on his face. Cordelia screamed "I'm a gift from a secret admirer.
He says, if you and your friends, Wesley and Doyle don't get out of LA soon, you will all suffer."
"Does that come on a t-shirt?" Faith taunted. The vampire lunged at her. Faith kicked him with her foot and the vampire went flying back, just as Kate entered the cell.
"What the hell?" she asked.
"Look out!" Faith screamed. She jumped towards the vampire and kicked him several times.
"You heard me Faith," the vampire said. "The three of you are as good as dead."
"I don't think so," Faith smiled. "I believe Angelus will be the one as good as dead."
The vampire looked shocked. It gave Faith that moment to pull her stake from her pocket it and stabbed him in the heart. The vampire disappeared into dust.
"I'd say Angelus just left his calling card," Doyle said.
"Thank god he didn't know about me," Cordelia said.
"What the hell was that?" Kate demanded.
"I don't know," Faith said because it was the only excuse she could think of at the moment.
"You don't know?" Kate said. "You stabbed him in the heart. He turned to dust."
"He's a vampire," Faith admitted.
"A vampire?" Kate asked, a little confused.
She would have thought these people were crazy if she did
not seem it herself. "Like Dracula?"
Faith nodded. "Only not as endearing."
"Demon!" the man in the cell screamed.
"His time is long. He was bring all destruction and release the
demon into our world!"
"And you always carry a stake in your pocket just in case?" Kate asked, ignoring the guy in the cell.
"I kill vamps," she admitted.
"Do you all?" she said to Cordelia and Doyle. They shook their heads.
"We really were in the club looking to help someone," Doyle said. "We just didn't know who. We find out these things, but they're vague."
"What was he talking about?" Kate asked. "Who's Angelus?"
"A very nasty vampire," Cordelia explained.
"That you know nothing about," Faith said.
"He's not supposed to know I know about him."
"Why?" Kate asked.
"Because he's hiding. Everyone thinks he's dead."
"It's best darling," Doyle said from his
cell. "If you just forget you saw this. With the exception that
Faith saved you from the vampire and that
any friend of Faith would never be convicted of a crime ever."
"I'm supposed to forget that a man turned to dust in front of my eyes?"
"If you want to," Faith said. She was
also thinking that maybe it would be good to know someone in the
police department.
"If I want to?" she questioned.
"The demons-- he will opened up the world
and bring them all home!" the man screamed.
"It's just the beginning," Faith said and she, Doyle and Cordelia walked towards Cordelia's apartment. Kate had let Doyle off with a warning to being more careful with what he says.
"You were expecting it though, love," Doyle
replied.
Faith turned to Cordelia. "You sure you want to stay in this racket? Angelus doesn't know about you, yet."
"He knows me-"
"Doesn't knows that you're working with me. I know you got a crush on Lindsey, but I'd forget about it right now. It ain't gonna happen, Cordelia. I don't want Lindsey to die as much as you, but the moment Angelus finds out about him, he's dead and that could be any time--"
"You guys saved me-I want to help save Lindsey. I know what you're saying and I know I may never have a chance with him, but I want to try."
Faith did not say anything. This was nothing like the Cordelia she knew in Sunnydale. Maybe poverty in her case had been a good thing.
"I'm warning you," she finally said.
"And I bet Shortcake will give you the same warning. You are
putting yourself at great risk."
"Why do you call him shortcake for?" For a moment Cordelia was a little jealous. Was Faith pushing her away because she wanted Lindsey?
"His codename," she joked.
Cordelia did not say anything.
"Oh come on," Faith said, realizing where the tension was coming from. "He's just a friend and besides he don't belong to anyone, even you."
"Yeah, I know," Cordelia said a little deadpan. "I've only kissed him twice."