A powerful feeling of hatred washed over Buffy at the forced intimate contact with her cruel husband, contact she could not deny him, no matter how badly she wanted to – not without watching Spike be hurt even worse than he already had been as a consequence.

“Riley,” she said softly, her eyes averted. “Riley – please stop this. This is crazy. We can talk this out like two mature human beings. I’ll do what you want me to do, Riley, I will,” she assured him, though she was already quite certain that she would not. “What is it that you want?”

Riley smiled coolly at her, a patronizingly affectionate look that infuriated her, though she dared not show it. “Buffy, Buffy, honey,” he said with soft mockery, and a slow shake of his head. “This isn’t a hostage negotiation. You’re not dealing with some deranged psychopath who’s looking for a reason to hurt you. I *love* you, Buffy.”

*Lies,* she thought automatically, using all her strength to keep her anger and disgust from her face. *All lies.*

“I’m your husband, and I love you,” Riley reiterated, the soft words from his lips making her feel sick. How could he do the things he had done to her and the people dearest to her, and dare to claim to love her. Still, he went on, a deceptively gentle hand caressing her cheek. “All I want, Buffy – is you.”

His touch filled her with a sense of revulsion, but she did not pull away, remembering the brutal punishment that Spike had received the last time she had done so. She glanced to the side, trying to see past Riley to her vampire, but the massive soldier’s bulk filled her vision, not allowing her even a glimpse.

She did not want to try too hard to see past him – did not want to draw Riley’s murderously jealous attention back to Spike – so she brought her eyes back to those of her husband, hoping desperately that the vicious pain he had been inflicting on Spike had finally stopped completely.

“Okay,” she said quietly, nodding in concession. “Okay, Riley. We can make this right. I can come back home with you tonight. Whatever you want. Just – let Spike go.”

Riley’s smile held an odd, sinister triumph as he shook his head slightly, holding her gaze. “I’m afraid I can’t do that, Buffy,” he said with false regret. “That’s not going to be possible.”

“He hasn’t hurt you, Riley! He can’t!” Buffy insisted, a bit of her frustration creeping into her voice. “Look, you want me? Okay. You win. So you don’t have to punish Spike for something that has nothing to do with him.” She paused, her expression honest as she added quietly, “Because we both know, Riley – our problems started long before Spike came along.”

She could see the smile compress into a tight line of anger, wondered with frantic alarm if she had pushed him too far – but Riley made no move away from her – no move toward Spike. Instead, he just countered calmly, “Our problems have nothing to do with why I can’t let Spike go, Buffy.”

She stared at him, confused by his words. “Then – what…?”

“I have my job to do, Buffy. I can’t simply let a dangerous vampire loose to roam the streets. These creatures have to be controlled. Left to their own devices they’d cause nothing but death and destruction. And this one’s a master – killer of two Slayers before you, Buffy – not to mention hundreds or even thousands of ordinary human beings with a lot less defenses that you’ve got.” Riley’s voice held an angry tremor as he went on in disgust, “And you want me to just set him free.”

“Look,” Buffy went on, forgetting herself as her own anger and defenses – of Spike – rose up within her. “let’s not get into comparing atrocities, because in all I’ve heard and seen of Spike’s history, he’s never been one to get off on rape and torture and the *disgusting* things that seem to turn *you* on! Vampires kill humans for food. You – you kill them because you like it!”

“*Vampires*, Buffy!” Riley snapped. “I kill vampires!”

“No, you don’t,” Buffy argued, control lost, her eyes blazing with fury. “You mostly keep them alive – make them your slaves and play with them until you get bored!” she spat out at him, her repulsion evident in her expression and her tone. “They’re helpless! And you get off on…”

“They’re vicious, soulless killers, Buffy! Not helpless!” Riley interrupted angrily. “Evil and very dangerous! And you want me to set him free…”

“Dangerous? He can’t hurt anyone! The chip…”

“Oh, right – the chip,” Riley smirked, a nasty knowing expression that made Buffy’s heart lurch within her. Was it possible that he *knew*? “You mean the chip that’s no longer functioning?”

Buffy stared at him, wide-eyed in surprise and sick with fear and disappointment, but she did not say a word. Riley stepped to the side, allowing her to see Spike, who was still kneeling on the floor, trembling violently in the wake of the excruciating shocks he had just received – but not appearing to be in any more pain at the moment.

It was a small relief as Buffy looked warily back to her husband, awaiting his next words, not wanting to say anything to reveal any information that he might not already know – although it was apparent that he already knew far too much.

“Well,” Riley amended with a little half-shrug. “No longer functioning as it was.”

Buffy frowned, noting that Riley’s words seemed to indicate that maybe he was talking about something entirely separate from their own plan to deactivate the chips. She did not know whether to be relieved or terrified to think that he might be speaking of some plan of his own instead.

“See – I took some liberties while the two of you were locked up and unconscious,” Riley explained with a smug smile that Buffy wanted nothing more than to slap right off of his face. “Did a little reworking on Spike’s chip – and it doesn’t work quite the way it did before.”

Buffy felt a chill of apprehension go down her spine, noticing Spike’s head snap upward at Riley’s words, wide blue eyes focusing on him with a look of dread. Anything that Riley might do to Spike’s chip could certainly not be good.

“What have you done to him?” Buffy asked in a threatening whisper, though reason dictated to them all that any threat she made would be idle at the moment.

Riley laughed. “So suspicious, Honey,” he reproved her with mock gentleness. “I haven’t done anything to hurt her. You might even say I’ve added a bit of length to his leash, so to speak.”

Buffy frowned, confused. “What do you mean?”

“Well, for starters,” Riley replied, glancing between his wife and the vampire to gauge their reactions. “it doesn’t automatically go off when he tries to hurt people anymore.”

Spike’s eyes widened with shock, and Buffy watched as he slowly struggled to his feet. She tried to catch his eye, aware that there was something important that Riley was not telling them, wanting to warn the vampire away from attacking just yet, not until they knew what it was.

But Spike’s eye were trained on Riley, and narrowed in seething hatred.

“You’re lying,” Buffy said, looking at Spike, the words spoken more for his benefit than for Riley’s. “Why would you do that? Why would you set him free when you know the first thing he’s gonna want to do is to kill you?”

Riley shrugged, unconcerned. “Test it out if you want,” he said, looking at Spike. “Come on. Hit me. See if I’m telling the truth or not.”

“Don’t do it,” Buffy said sharply. “It’s a trick. I don’t know how but it’s a trick, Spike.”

“Not stupid, love,” he reminded her softly, no anger in his voice, his eyes never leaving Riley’s.

Riley’s smile widened appreciatively. “Okay,” he shrugged again. “You’ll just have to take my word for it then. Hitting, kicking, biting – not gonna automatically cause pain anymore. You can do what you want – within reason.”

“Reason?” Buffy echoed. “Define ‘reason’,” she muttered darkly.

“ ‘Reason’ being whatever I *allow* him to do,” Riley explained with a cruel smile of satisfaction. “The chip won’t fire – not until I make it fire.”

And with that, he pressed the button on the device in his hand again, just for a moment, sending a brief but powerful jolt through Spike’s body that rocked him, doubling him over in pain – but did not knock him off his feet.

Buffy realized exactly what Riley had done with a sense of horror. “Just like your assassins,” she said softly. “Like the vamp you sent to kill Giles!” She felt oddly satisfied by Riley’s surprised look. “Yeah. I know about that,” she conceded flatly. “What I don’t know is why in the world you would do that to *Spike*.”

Riley smiled wickedly, and she felt a dark sense of foreboding, having no idea what her husband had in mind, only knowing that it was certain to be terrible for her and Spike. “What, you still don’t get it, Buffy?” Riley taunted softly, moving closer to her again, his voice lowering to a near whisper as he shook his head slowly and added, “It’s all about you.”

“What are you talking about?” Buffy demanded, her voice trembling with fear and frustration, her eyes blazing with anger.

“I told you already, Buffy. I want you,” Riley reminded her, turning slightly away, not looking directly at her as he spoke.

With exaggerated patience, Buffy took a deep breath and said in a measured tone, “And I told you…I’ll go home with you, Riley. You got me. Okay? You win.”

Riley turned to look at her, his ice blue gaze piercing and intense. “No,” he said quietly. “No, I haven’t. Not yet.” He paused, before going on with calm matter-of-factness, “Because whatever you say to get me to let your beloved little vampire here go – whatever lies you make up to get your way – I know the truth, Buffy. And that truth is that you will never love me again.”

Buffy could not deny it – did not want to. She was silent, waiting for him to go on.

A cruel smile turned up the corners of Riley’s mouth as he went on, “So I’ll just have to settle for second best.”

Riley’s cryptic half-answers were driving her mad. “Riley,” she snapped. “make sense! What are you talking about?”

“Having you, Buffy. Making you mine. *Really* mine,” Riley replied, a dangerous intensity in his voice and a chilling light in his eye as he took a few menacing steps toward her, as he added in a whisper, “Forever.”

The pieces were starting to come together in her mind – and her mind frantically tore them apart again, not wanting to understand where Riley was going with this – terrified that she already did. She shook her head slowly in horrified denial, but did not say a word as he went on.

“You had everything, Buffy. A loving husband – everything you could ever want in the way of material possessions – power – and you gave it up. For a monster.” Riley’s quiet tone was accusing.

“I gave it up for *love*,” Buffy declared passionately, straining against the bonds that held her, instinctively knowing that their situation was about to become much worse. “Spike is not a monster, Riley. Monsters tear other creatures to pieces, hurt and abuse and degrade them for their own personal pleasure. That’s what monsters do, Riley.” She paused, a sarcastic smile on her face as she demanded derisively, “Ring any bells?”

“He *is* a monster, Buffy!” Riley snarled, turning back to face her fully, ignoring her accusations hurled his way. “Vampires are monsters! He has no conscious – can’t really love – he wants you, and he’s used you – just look at how far he’d come before tonight, how much he’d managed to get from you – until I stopped him. I *rescued* you, Buffy!” Riley stopped, glaring at her, a challenge in his eyes as he waited for her response.

“You’re delusional,” she declared defiantly, meeting his eyes boldly. “You’re the reason I needed rescuing in the first place. You’re the monster – he’s the man, Riley. He’s *my* man.”

The seething anger she saw building in Riley’s eyes made her suddenly consider the foolishness of her rash words, spoken in thoughtless anger. She glanced anxiously at Spike, who was watching closely, ready to defend her at a moment’s notice, a flash of gold glittering through the startling blue of his eyes.

Riley was unaware, his attention still focused on Buffy. “You’re wrong,” he said, his voice surprisingly controlled. “And I’m gonna show you who the real monster is. You’re gonna be mine, forever – and you’re always gonna remember the *monster* who made it possible!” He paused, stepping back away from her and looking appraisingly at the taut, angry vampire behind him. “Let’s test the strength of the monster’s love, shall we?”

He turned to face Spike completely, his eyes narrowing with anger and menace at the battle-ready stance of the vampire. “Spike,” he snapped commandingly. “Get over here by Buffy.”

The vampire hesitated, unsure of what Riley intended, and of his own ability to resist. Riley had said the chip was no longer working as it had – but that had yet to be proven. And the remote control could be activated at a moment’s….

A vicious little shock shot through his head, scattering his thoughts, and he gasped with pain, clutching his head.

*Right,* he thought grimly when he could think again. *The remote control.*

Hesitantly, he made his way over to stand near Buffy. He would rather be nearer to her anyway. He stood close enough to feel the heat radiating off her body, reaching a hand up to gently squeeze hers, still chained to the wall. She held it gratefully for a moment before releasing it pointedly, wordlessly reminding him that any action to draw Riley’s anger would not be wise at the moment.

“So I bet you’re wondering why I made those little changes to your chip, Spike,” Riley commented casually, that same unsettlingly cruel smile on his face. “Why I could possibly want you capable of hurting a human again. What do you think? Any ideas?”

Spike did not reply, simply stared at him, unwilling to play his little game, waiting for him to say more.

“I want you to do something for me, Spike,” Riley went on calmly. “It’s not so bad, really. It’s something I’m sure you’ve wanted to do for a long time – would have done if you could. You just haven’t had the opportunity – until now.”

“Would you bloody get on with it?” Spike muttered irritably, his nervousness showing in his voice despite his best efforts. “Tell me what it is so I can tell you there’s no bloody way.”

Riley smiled, genuinely amused. “See – that’s what I like about you, Spike,” he smirked. “You make this so much fun.”

The next instant, the vampire was on his knees, gasping for breath as vicious pain shot through his body. Riley held the button down for a few seconds that felt like an eternity, before letting it up, staring impassively down at the reeling vampire.

“Riley! Riley, stop it!” Buffy demanded frantically, straining against her bonds for once with no intent to harm her husband. Her only thought was getting to Spike.

Riley ignored her words completely. Giving the vampire precious few moments to recover, he ordered coldly, “Get up.”

Spike struggled to obey, aware that he would receive worse punishment if he failed to do so, and waited silently for their captor to go on with his revelation of his plan.

“Okay – done with the interruptions for now?” Riley asked in an almost friendly voice, his finger toying with the remote control in his hand.

Spike nodded, considerably more subdued now, though his entire body radiated his resentment and anger.

“Good,” Riley went on, with a satisfied smile. He paused to collect his thoughts again before continuing, “Buffy doesn’t want me anymore. You’ve won that little battle, Spike.” He gave the vampire a cold look and added, “But I’m gonna win the war. See – I’d rather have Buffy as she is – strong, intelligent, beautiful – alive – but if I can’t – I’m willing to cut my losses and accept second best.”

Spike was suddenly sickeningly sure that he knew what Riley wanted him to do – and equally sure that he would allow the git to torture him to death before he would do it.

His time to wonder was cut short, as Riley moved in closer to his prisoners and revealed his design with a soft, evil smile.

“Spike – I want you to turn her.”