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It was still there after the thug came crashing through the window.
Angel had Tina s abductor whose name, he supposed, was Stacey by the throat, pressed up
against a wall. He had to keep reminding himself that he couldn t kill this guy. He had information Angel
needed to get the monster who d taken Tina s life.
Where does he live? How much security does he have?
Despite his predicament, Stacey was contemptuous.
Listen, hotshot, he told Angel. Whatever she was to you, you better forget it. You have no idea who
you re dealing with here.
Angel tightened his grip around Stacey s throat. Russell? Lemme guess: Not big on the daylight or the
mirrors, drinks a lot of V-8?
It was obvious that Stacey was surprised Angel knew his boss was a vampire. Still, he grunted, You
get in his way, he ll kill you, he ll kill everyone you care about.
Angel s grip grew tighter. And tighter. Stacey nearly fainted.
Angel said, There s nobody left I care about.
After Angel left, he found himself thinking about someone who had made the same claim. She had
believed she had no one, and that knowledge had hardened her, ruined her.
Her name was Faith, and she had seen some pretty awful things in her life, even before she became a
Slayer. Witnessing the death of her own Watcher had marked her soul.
She had fled to Sunnydale in search of Buffy, and the two had teamed up to kick vampire butt.
But from the start Faith had been channeling a darker side of slaying enjoying the power and the
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perks, acknowledging no authority. It all caught up with her one night in a dark alley when she
accidentally killed a human. A line was crossed. And that awful knowledge drove Faith straight into a
doomed alliance with Sunnydale s mayor.
Angel, who couldn t save himself without Buffy s help, tried to repay the favor by saving Faith.
Angel s Mansion, Sunnydale, 1999
Angel captured Faith and handcuffed her to the wall. She was a powerful Slayer; he had seen her in
action, and he knew he had to be cautious around her.
He said to her now, I know what s going on with you.
Join the club, she said sullenly. Everybody seems to have a theory.
But I know. What it s like to take a life. To feel a future, a world of possibility, snuffed out by your own
hand. I know the power in it. He looked at her closely. The exhilaration. It was like a drug for me.
She sneered at him and yanked on her chains. Yeah? Sounds like you need some help. A professional,
maybe.
He shook his head. A professional couldn t have helped me. It stopped when I got my soul back. My
human heart.
Goody for you. She huffed at him. If we re going to party, let s get on with it. Otherwise, could you
let me out of these things?
Angel was not going to be distracted. Or deterred. Faith, you have a choice. You ve tasted something
few ever do. To kill without remorse is to feel like a god
She obviously didn t want to hear it. She started to struggle. Right now all I feel is a cramp in my wrist.
Let me go!
But you re not a god, he persisted. You re not much more than a child. And this path will ruin you.
You can t imagine the price for true evil.
There was a flicker in her eyes. Something he had said hit the mark. But still, she would not yield.
Yeah? I hope evil takes Mastercard.
You and me, Faith, we re a lot alike.
She snorted. Well, you re kind of dead . . . .
Like I said. A lot alike.
Sorry, buddy. I m alive and kicking. In fact, I ve got a bodily function that needs attending to pretty
quick here.
Angel was insistent. He knew he was reaching her. He knew she was almost hearing him.
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You re not alive, he said. You re just running. Afraid to feel. Afraid to be touched.
Part of her reacted to his words. But she averted her gaze and muttered, Save it for Hallmark. I have to
pee.
Time was, he continued, I thought humans existed just to hurt each other.
Faith looked back to him now. She was silent.
Finally, he thought gratefully.I ve struck a chord.
But then I came here, he pushed. And I found out that there were other kinds of people. People who
genuinely wanted to do right. They still make mistakes. They fall down. But they keep trying. Keep
caring.
There was a long beat. She was taking it in, clearly wanting to believe. Angel saw it. He moved to her,
speaking to her from the heart.
If you can trust us, Faith, it can all change. You don t have to disappear into the darkness.
But she had. Poor Faith, she had.
So who do I think I am, he wondered,that I think I can help anyone at all?
And then he thought:It doesn t matter what I think. Just like Buffy. She didn t think she would be a
good Slayer. But she s the best.
Ironically, Buffy had been exiled from Los Angeles to Sunnydale. He had been forced to leave
Sunnydale for L.A. They had traded places, in effect.
Something clicked in him.
I really am supposed to be here, he thought.
With a pang he finally left Sunnydale behind. The memories would begin to fade. He knew that now. He
would miss them.
But he was home.
* * *
Cordelia, in sweat pants and a T, kept her lotus position as she took deep breaths of cleansing energy.
In, green. Out, red.
A new self-help book,Meditation for a Bountiful Life , sat beside her. She just knew that aligning her
chakras with the vibrational resonance of the book s positive message was going to pay off.
I am somebody. She took a deep breath.
I matter. Another.
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People will be attracted to my positive energy and help me achieve my goals.
She glanced at her phone machine. The message counter registered a big zero. The last call she d
received was that awful one from Joe. She hadn t even had a date in over two weeks.
Wouldn t they just laugh their heads off back in Sunnydale if they could see me now?
She remembered how snotty she d been to Buffy about Angel. Always trying to snag him, very insulted
when he proved unsnaggable. And then, of course, there was finding out he was a vampire:
Sunnydale High, 1997
Buffy and Willow were sitting in the girls bathroom at school, yakking or cutting class or whatever
losers did. Cordelia came in to wash her hands and check her makeup, and she noticed the lack of
conversation that occurred as soon as she showed. So she decided to give Buffy something new to talk
about.
So, Buffy, she began, in a sweetly accusing voice, you ran off last night and left poor Angel by his
lonesome. I did everything I could to comfort him.
I bet, Buffy replied.
Hah. Score one for Queen C.
What s his story, anyway? I mean, I never see him around.
Not during theday , anyway, Willow chimed in, like that was some big deal or something. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]