Spike growled against the pain. His gums gushed blood from where his fangs had been pried out. Gaping holes in his mouth flooded over with the coppery fluid. He hadn't been able to get back into his human face since the de-fanging.

He'd been crammed into a tiny room, chained to the wall, and stripped of his clothes. He knew the joint. Everybody knew about Lyle's demon brothel. He'd never expected to find himself in it, though.

Lyle, the bastard, paced in front of him with a contemplative look. Spike hoped to startle him by jerking at the chains. Lyle didn't even bat an eye. Spike's mouth throbbed.

"I have a lot of offers coming in for you already. You've made a lot of enemies. It's...well, it's wonderful for my business."

Spike tried to ignore the twinge of pain from the wound on his neck, but it wasn't so easy.

"I'm thinking a bidding party is in order - an auction." Lyle clapped his hands. "A lot of my clientele would want you just on principle. A vampire who deliberately sought out a soul? Pretty offensive to the old-timers. Then there'll be the VIPs who have a grudge. They'll probably be willing to dish out a good amount to obtain you."

Spike swallowed his own blood.

"I should get started on planning."

* * * * *

Buffy stood in the front lobby of Wolfram & Hart.

The twelve hour flight to England had almost wiped her out. Then Angel's call produced one of those miraculous adrenaline rushes that allowed her to take the twelve hour return flight back to the US. Somehow, in the foggy haze of jetlag and complete timelessness, she had navigated the connection at O'Hare and made it to LA.

If she hadn't already had a lot of experience with sudden deaths, she almost wouldn't have believed it. After all, Spike hadn't even called her like he had promised. Instead, she'd received a call from Angel about Spike's death. She almost wished she could be surprised. Instead, she felt resigned.

"Wow. This place is...wow," Dawn said. She stared up at the multi-leveled balcony that overlooked the lobby. Employees glanced at the obvious tourists.

Buffy hadn't wanted to come alone.

"So...why is Angel working for an evil company again?"

A question that Buffy didn't know the answer to. "Let's just find him." She deflected.

Dawn trailed behind her as Buffy found the company directory by the elevators. Angel was the chief executive officer, and his office was marked with a star. She pushed the up button and waited for the first available elevator. Once it arrived, she and Dawn stepped inside.

Music played. Or muzak. Whatever it was, Buffy wished it would stop. Her head throbbed. The exhaustion was getting to her. Perhaps she should have rested upon arrival? It's not like Spike was gonna get any deader.

The thought almost made her retch, and she wished her brain hadn't come up with it. She was just too tired to filter out the bad.

With a far too cheerful ding, the elevator presented them to the executive floor. Another huge lobby with shiny floors and glass sculptures and a receptionist area at the far end. Harmony and Angel were waiting.

Angel strode across the floor as soon as Buffy and Dawn stepped off the elevator.

"Buffy, I told you you didn't have to come." He barely spared a glance at Dawn.

"Didn't have to - ? Of course I had to come."

Angel stopped a couple feet from her. He looked like he wanted to come closer, but he held back.

"There's not much to do. I mean, vampires...there's no body when a vampire dusts, you know."

Buffy fought back the urge to snap at him. To tell him that of course she knows that. Instead, she remained focused on her goal. "I want to hear what happened."

Did Angel look reluctant? Finally, he nodded. "Okay."

* * * * *

Angel's office was as spacious and pretentious as the rest of the building. The sofas were cushy, though, and Buffy felt her body settling comfortably into the plush seat. With her current state of exhaustion, she'd have to be careful not to fall asleep.

The prospect of hearing what had happened to Spike managed to stir her on, though.

Harmony set the coffee on the table in front of them. She looked at Buffy. "It's so horrible, what happened to Spikey. I would wear black to, like, mourn, but it totally makes me look even more pale."

Then she walked out.

Dawn glanced at Buffy with raised eyebrows. Buffy knew the feeling.

"I don't know what to tell you," Angel said while grabbing the coffee cup. He leaned back on the sofa across from the two women, looking completely composed and cavalier.

"What happened would be good," Buffy prompted.

"Yeah. Well, he came back from his mission right in the middle of an emergency. A man of ours was under siege by some Traloxan demons. Good man. As soon as I mentioned it to Spike, he was out the door to try to save him." Angel took a sip. "He did, too. But one of the demons got him at the last second. Stake through the heart. I don't think Spike even realized what had happened before he was..."

Buffy closed her eyes to ward off the images of Spike getting staked, but they appeared anyway. His body jolted as the wood entered his chest. He'd glance down, of course, in disbelief. Then he'd try to say something cocky and noncommittal before his body disintegrated into dust. He'd blow away, then. The tiny bits of him disappearing. Then nothing.

"He didn't say anything about me?" Buffy asked, trying to keep her voice even.

Angel shook his head. "No. Why would he?"

"Then why'd you call?" Dawn interrupted.

Buffy blinked. Angel also looked surprised.

"I mean, you called Buffy. Why? Before Spike's last mission, Buffy hadn't even known that he was back from the dead the first time. So why would you call her?"

"Dawn," Buffy said. "It's not important. I just..."

She wanted to see him. Have some sort of memorial. Look over his dead body. But vampires didn't leave a body. She didn't have anything to mourn. And Spike hadn't even called her when he got here.

Why was that the one thing standing out? It was so petty and selfish. There was an emergency. Of course Spike didn't have a chance to call her. Or mention her to Angel.

Something at the back of her mind niggled at her that there was something wrong with that, but she was too tired to grab at it. She wanted to give in to the fog of sleep and wake up to discover this was all a dream.

"Why don't I get a hotel room for you guys?" Angel said. "You look tired. Stay in LA for a bit. On me."

Dawn frowned. Buffy nodded.

"Thanks, Angel."

* * * * *

Spike pulled against the chains that bound his wrists. He'd been left alone for a long time now. He knew he hadn't been forgotten. No, Lyle was just off, making plans.

But he still felt alone.

The room he'd been left in was small and plain. It had probably been a closet in a previous life, but the shelves had been stripped out so only studs in the walls remained. The only light was a bare bulb with a string dangling above him. Spike could probably kick down the door if the chains weren't binding him to the opposite wall.

The raw wound on his neck wasn't healing. It wouldn't heal unless he got some blood, and he hadn't been provided with any so far. He only assumed he would be before the auction.

The auction. Spike would be sold off to the highest bidder. To be displayed like some rare collectible, most likely.

Spike closed his eyes and thought of Buffy. She was the only remaining panacea to his gut wrenching loneliness and despair. Merely conjuring her image to his mind was enough to soothe his soul.

Too bad he'd probably never see her again.

* * * * *

The hotel pillow squished against Buffy's chest. The view from the large window revealed a startlingly beautiful view of LA. Too bad Buffy's mind was elsewhere. Her brain looped around, cycling through the "what ifs" and "what could have been" and "why".

A sharp knock on the door preceded Angel's immediate entrance. Buffy only glanced in his direction before looking back out the window.

"Am I intruding?" Angel asked.

Buffy shook her head. There didn't seem to be anything to intrude on anymore. Not with Spike gone.

Angel sat down on the chair across from hers. He followed her gaze. "The room okay?"

"Perfect," she replied in a monotone.

The room Angel had gotten them was the height of luxury. Way better than the council ever provided for her. However, she couldn't even bring herself to enjoy the fancy bathroom or the mini-fridge or big-screen TV.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know you'd be so shook up over him."

Buffy's fingers reflexively dug into the pillow. "He was gonna be coming to live with me in England. He'd just come back here to deliver the scrolls and pass the news along."

"I had no idea."

Buffy's feet began to tingle as they fell asleep underneath her. She didn't want to shift her position, though. The armchair beneath her felt fragile. If she rocked it too much, it might collapse. Instead, she reveled in the sensation of the nerves deadening in her toes.

"Did you love him?" Angel asked.

The question forced Buffy to look away as moisture came to her eyes. She didn't want Angel to see her tears for another man. Her relationship with Spike had been too private for Angel, of all people, to see her grief.

"Never mind," Angel said. "Listen, Buffy." He leaned forward. His hand went to her knee. "If there's anything I can do. Anything. Just let me know. I'm here for you, okay?"

Buffy nodded.

"Let me take you to lunch. And - where's Dawn, anyway?"

* * * * *

"See that guy over there? Totally hit on me the other day. And I was like, 'Ew!' I may be a vampire but I have standards!" Harmony gestured with her fork in between bites.

Dawn had her best listening face on, even though she so didn't care about most of what Harmony was saying. She'd brought the vampire out to lunch for information, not petty gossip.

"So," Dawn interjected as casually as she could manage. She stabbed her straw into her drink full of ice. The cubes rattled. "Where is everybody?"

"Everybody?"

"Yeah. I thought Angel had more people working for him. Wesley and some girl, Fred?"

Harmony paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. "Oh. Well, I don't think I should talk about that..."

Dawn pounced...metaphorically. "Why not? Come on, Harmony? We're old friends, right?"

"I don't know..."

"Please? I'll buy dessert."

"Well, they do have this chocolate cake that is to die for!" Harmony smiled. "Fine. Yeah, there used to be some others. Gunn, Wesley, Lorne, Fred. Then Spike, of course. Everybody just kinda...drifted away, though."

"Why?"

Harmony shrugged. "They had issues with Angel. Just because he's the head of this kinda-evil organization, suddenly they start getting cold feet. Hello! They have no problem working for a vampire but throw some lawyers into it and they start having 'issues'. Angel didn't need them anyway."

"And Spike?" Dawn asked.

"What about Spike?"

"Did Angel need him?"

Harmony rolled her eyes. "Angel was always one step away from dusting my blondy bear, himself. I'm surprised somebody else got to him first."

* * * * *

Once again, Buffy sat alone in the hotel room. Angel had taken her out for lunch in an attempt to cheer her up. She hadn't been very attentive during the lunch, though. The fancy bistro with its fancy food and fancy clientele failed to impress her. It failed to even hold her notice. Every thought led back to Spike.

This was grief. She recognized it. She thought it had been bad the first time Spike had died. This was almost unbearable by comparison. She could hardly move, crushed as she was by the knowledge of what she'd lost. What they hadn't had. What they'd both wanted.

She should have gone with him. Or he should have just skipped LA and gone with her. She could have prevented this. A million scenarios ran through her mind of how she could have prevented this.

Every night I save you...

The swipe of a key card interrupted Buffy's tears, and Dawn entered. She tossed her purse onto the closest bed and hopped onto the chair across from Buffy. It was the same chair Angel had occupied early. Dawn seemed to buzz with excitement, and she had one of her ultra-serious looks on.

"Buffy! We need to talk."

"Uh huh. I can see that." How could Dawn manage to work up so much energy?

Dawn leaned forward. "I took Harmony out to lunch, and I don't think we can trust Angel on this one."

"Angel?"

"Listen, things have been weird since he started working here. Like, he had all these people working with him, but Harmony says they're gone now. And then Spike. Harmony says that Angel had it out for him - "

Buffy rubbed her forehead. "Dawn..."

"I mean, it's not making any sense. Angel's acting super-creepy and that whole thing about him calling you?"

"Dawn."

"I'm thinking he killed Spike, himself. I just need to check on his story about the demons. There should be some - "

"Dawn!" Buffy snapped. Dawn fell quiet with a sour look on her face. "Dawn, right now, I can't...not Angel."

"Buffy, don't tell me you trust him. He is working at Hell Inc., you know."

Buffy chewed on her lip. She tasted the tang of salt on her tongue as tears made their way down her cheeks. Why was this so hard? Normally, she'd be taking any excuse for action. Anything to avoid the grief. Now, though, she just wanted to wallow.

But Dawn stared at her with such conviction, Buffy couldn't turn her down.

"Okay," she said. "I'll see what I can find out."

* * * * *

The door was open. Buffy knocked on the door frame while peering inside. The occupant, Max, looked up from his paper-covered desk. The darkened office tucked far back in a forgotten corner of the building likely didn't see many visitors. Max seemed surprised at her appearance.

"Mind if I come in?" Buffy asked.

Prompted into remembering his manners, Max jumped up and gestured her in. He was a short man with curly hair and glasses. His shirt had a pocket protector. Buffy didn't exactly want to enter the office, which gave off an odor of stale Cheetos, but she knew it was necessary to assuage Dawn's suspicions.

Max remained standing until Buffy had sat down in the cushioned chair across from his desk. The visitor's chair showed little wear and tear, as opposed to just about everything else in the office.

"What can I do for you...?"

"Buffy Summers," Buffy supplied. "I'm actually a...friend...of Spike's."

Max's eyes went wide, and he rustled through some folders on his desk. "Spike. Yes. Very tragic. He was a good man - vampire."

Buffy nodded. She'd had to push that grieving part out of her head. She had a mission. "Angel tells me that he died while rescuing you. Some traffic demons or something?"

"Traloxan demons, yes. I - I'm still blaming myself. For it." Max looked at the corner of the room instead of Buffy. "Entirely my fault."

"You're an accountant?"

"Yes. Seventeen years."

"How'd you get caught up in a fight with some demons?"

Max released a nervous laugh. "Kinda funny. I was supposed to meet this appraiser - on business - but then I got ambushed. I kinda manage a lot of high-security accounts and the demons, they hold a grudge sometimes. You know how demons can be."

Buffy nodded. "But you're okay? You don't look injured. At all." The guy might as well be holding up a sign that said 'I'm Lying'. Buffy didn't need to be a stellar body language expert to read this one.

"I'm adept at dodging."

"Uh huh." Buffy stood. Her own suspicious were finally beginning to be roused. "Thanks. I just wanted some more information."

Max nodded. "Of course." He paused. "We all do what we can to keep Angel happy."

* * * * *

The wall paintings shook as Buffy slammed the door. Her hair bounced with her angry gait. Angel was up and halfway around his desk by the time she reached the center of the room.

"Buffy?" His hands were already out in an appeasing gesture.

"I want the truth, Angel."

"What?"

Buffy's fists were clenched. "About Spike. Your story isn't holding up. Your guy Max? There's no record of any meeting anywhere. Why's he covering for you?"

Angel turned back to his desk. He set the phone off the hook before facing Buffy again. "Buffy, calm down. Let's talk."

"Yes, let's. Tell me why you called me after Spike died." She crossed her arms.

Angel sighed. He rubbed his eyes. "I just...needed someone else to know." When he looked up, his eyes were glittering with unshed tears. "This - this isn't easy, Buffy. For all he may have annoyed me, he meant something to me. And now he's gone. And I just...wanted someone I cared about - who also cared about him - here with me. You."

A chill crept over Buffy's body. Her anger dissipated at the depth of emotion Angel was finally showing. He must have been bottling it up. It's not like she didn't know anything about bottling. She should have known rather than rushing around guns blazing to accuse him of...

"Angel," she said as she put a hand on his arm. "I'm sorry."

"I just miss him."

Before she knew it, Angel was wrapped in her embrace, softly shaking with sobs. Buffy tried to will her own tears back, trying to be strong for him. But they couldn't be stopped.

They cried together.

* * * * *

Buffy had barely released the heavy hotel door before Dawn was running up to meet her.

"Well?" Dawn asked.

Going around her sister, Buffy tossed her purse onto the nearest bed. Her eyes still ached from the cryfest she'd had with Angel. Her entire brain felt as if it were about to collapse.

"Leave him alone, Dawn. He's telling the truth." Her jacket joined her purse, and Buffy began to undo the straps on her shoes.

"What? What did he say?"

"Dawn, just leave it!" Buffy snapped.

Dawn crossed her arms, obviously prepared for a fight. Buffy wasn't in the mood for it, though. After her shoes were off, Buffy went into the bathroom and closed the door. The room had a generously sized tub, and Buffy had been wanting to give it a spin. She began the task of setting the temperature, turning the cold and hot faucets back and forth to find the appropriate warmth.

As the water tumbled into the tub, Buffy allowed her doubts about Angel to wash away. It had been the grief that had caused her to get angry in the first place.

Angel wouldn't lie to her.