Part 18
“Why didn’t you bring this to my attention sooner.” The little girl glared at the printout in her hands than back up to Linwood and Lilah.
“She’s telling the truth.” Linwood started.
Lilah couldn’t help but shoot ‘I told you so’ looks at her fidgeting boss. She had seen them and took them immediately to Linwood, but he hadn’t seen the importance. It had taken Lilah an hour to convince him to go to the upper floor.
Pollyanna got up. “How does anything get accomplished in Special Projects? The truth is Cordelia Chase is supposed be working for us now. That’s not the truth that she’s supposed to be telling Angel. She’s fooled the soothsayers. She’s stronger than we thought.”
Lilah glanced down at her hands, deciding that “I told you so’ wasn’t something she wanted to say to the little whatever scary thing she was.
Pollyanna turned to female lawyer. “She fooled Wesley too or did she?” The warning clear in the little girl’s stark tone.
Lilah raised her eyes. “Like you said, Cordelia fooled the soothsayers. He said that her change in persona wasn’t really a change but a reversion back to who she was before Angel and the mission. The soothsayers confirmed it. He did pass and he doesn’t have the motivation that Cordelia has to lie.”
“Explain.” “What are you talking about?”
Lilah shook her head at her boss and the little girl. “Whatever you did to her wasn’t the first time that she’s been tortured or close to death because of Angel and those times never stopped her from being loyal to the vampire, in fact, I say it just made their bond stronger,” repeating Wesley’s words from the night before. “It’s obvious, she loves him. It would take a major miracle to break their bond. Possibly the only thing would be.”
“You’ve a suggestion.”
“Not really, I was going to say Angelus, but Wesley says, and the research supports it, Angelus would not help us. He’s evil but uncontrollable.”
“Wesley is correct. A return of Angelus would not be beneficial. What we need is for Angel to come to us or at least ignore the mission. And it is as you say, obvious, Cordelia won’t help us.”
“What do you want us to do?”
“Get rid of her use the device. She’s obstacle.” The little girl faced the female lawyer. “Lilah, I haven’t forgotten that you had your doubts and that they were discounted. You were right in this, let’s just hope that you are also correct in your assessment of Wyndiem-Price.”
Lilah silently hoped that she was too, but so far, he had done nothing to make her worry.
***
Lilah walked into Wesley’s apartment. The man looked up from his books. “I didn’t hear you knock.”
“Not now.” Lilah said going straight for the bottle of whiskey pouring two glasses.
“What’s happened.”?
“Here have a drink, we can toast the demise of Cordelia Chase.”
Wesley paused in his ascent from the table, bracing himself and then pushed himself up to feet. “That’s a change of circumstances since yesterday. I find it difficult to believe that Angel killed her, even if he found out the truth.” Wesley said slowly taking a glass from Lilah.
“He found out the truth, but he didn’t kill her, we did. She lied, Wesley, she was never working for us. The bio-emphatic graph confirmed it. She’s was implanted with one before she was released.” Lilah saw Wesley’s questioning look and answered it. “She knew it and somehow was able to beat, but I guess, she didn’t care to keep up the pretense once she was with Angel. What she didn’t know was the device was also a weapon. If activated it blows a gasket or something in the brain. The neutron paths break down creating cold area’s in the brain, pretty soon no activity then death.”
“And this device has been activated?” Wesley asked softly.
“Saw the button pushed myself.” Taking a large swallow of liquor. “Where are you going.”?
“Too throw up.” Wesley slammed the glass to the table.
“Wesley, she’d lied, she wasn’t working for us.”
“And she was a young woman full of life and courage and she was once my friend, now she’s dead or will be soon. I haven’t completely lost my soul, Lilah.” Wesley shut the door of the bathroom.
Lilah took another swallow wondering if the nausea in her stomach was a warning signal that Wesley wasn’t quite resigned to working with Wolfram & Hart as he seemed or a forgotten inner regret of a soul corrupted long ago. She took another drink and settled on the thought that it was just the result of alcohol on an empty stomach.
Wesley braced himself over the sink staring into the mirror burying his anger and grief. He had to think and quickly. He took a deep breath and exited the bathroom.
“Don’t you have any food in this place.” Lilah asked from the insides of his refrigerator.
“You could leave.”
Lilah ignored his curt suggestion and grabbed a carton of leftover Chinese.
Wesley went to back to the whiskey bottle after first stopping at his desk.
“Here.” He handed Lilah another drink.
“Just what my stomach needs.” Lilah downed the drink. “You want some,” holding out the carton.
“No, thank you.” Wesley said as he waited for the drug to take effect. He caught Lilah before she hit the floor. Once the woman was placed on the couch, Wesley left the apartment, his long legs hurrying then running to his car.
Part 19
“Angel,” Fred stopped then ran further into the room. “Oh god, Cordy, she’s back, but what’s wrong with her? Angel?”
“I.” Angel growled picking Cordy’s unconscious body and placing it on the bed.
“Jimmin’ Crickets, this looks all to familiar.” Lorne pushed his way in the room, wrapping his robe tighter around his body.
“Lorne?” Angel looked up.
“Hey, big guy, welcome back, that last frantic call from the kitten got me on the midnight train to LA.” Lorne leaned over the still body of Cordelia. “This isn’t mystical, though, no magic or power vibes. What happened?”
“Wolfram & Hart,” Angel growled.
“Not surprised but..” Lorne lifted his hands from Cordelia head. “She’s absent. Did she have a vision?”
“Cordy’s a demon, this isn’t supposed to be happening. She was cured.” Fred shook her head.
“Man, Angel, Wolfram & Hart? That’s where she was- but Lilah said.”
“Angel,” Wesley rushed in coming over to the bed. “Cordy?”
“Whoa, man, what are you doing here?” Gunn moved aggressively towards Wesley. “You’re girlfriend better not be around.”
“What’s wrong with her, what did they do?” Angel said, focusing on the new occupant of the room.
“A device, some sort of bio feedback polygraph, when they figured out that Cordy had been lying, they activated it. It is sending charges to break down her neutron connections, creating the cold areas.”
“Man, what are you doing here.” Gunn said again, trying to understand something or anything of what was going on.
“Gunn, stop” Fred pulled at her boyfriend. “Wesley, what you are describing is exactly what happened before, the visions, it caused that type of damage.”
Wesley nodded. “We would need x-rays to be sure, but I believe it would be the same.”
“NO.” Angel growled.
Wesley pulled at Angel’s arm. “Angel, it’s different this time, Cordy can handle it now because she’s part demon. It won’t kill her.”
“She ain’t waking up and floating.” Gunn said angrily.
“The device must be creating the disturbance, but once its gone, she’ll be fine. But it needs to be soon.” Wesley shot to the room at large, but his eyes were on the girl on the bed.
Lorne leaned back over Cordelia. “Angelcakes, he may be right. This isn’t mystical but man-made. Get it out and her demon part might be able to repair the damage like last time.”
“She said they implanted it in her neck,” Angel gently rubbed the spot that Cordelia had been touching earlier.
“She needs to go to the hospital.” Gunn and Fred said at the same time.
“No, it will take to long to convince them that she doesn’t need to be in the Psyche Ward.” Angel shook his head.
“I know some one,” Lorne said. “A doctor that deals with the unusual, if you know what I mean.”
“Let’s go.” Angel stood, Cordelia now cradled in his arms. “Wesley.”
“I had to come and tell you. to make sure but I have to go now. The sleeping potion I gave Lilah is only good for a couple of hours.”
Angel nodded sharply, his voice raw. “Thank you.”
Wesley glanced at the vampire then at the roomful of his former friends and then left.
“What was he doing here?” Gunn asked again.
“Gunn, he came to tell us how to save Cordy.”
“But, why? He’s working for Wolfram & Hart.”
“Not by his choice, but mine.” Angel said quickly. “Lorne, the doctor?”
“Right.” Lorne quickly led the way.
Fred blinked to Gunn. “Angel told him to work for Wolfram & Hart and he is?” a happy smile formed on Fred’s face. “Wesley’s not bad.”
“Why do I feel completely out of the loop?” Gunn said.
“Because we were?” Fred shrugged. “Come on.”
***
“What happened?” Lilah raised her body off of the couch.
“You fell asleep or rather passed out, you really shouldn’t drink so much on an empty stomach.”
Lilah glared. “And you just left me here?”
“I didn’t want to wake you, sleeping you all most look innocent.”
“You’re a bastard, you know that. I’m going to take a shower then go to bed.”
Wesley closed his book agreeing completely with the woman, but at least Cordelia would live and hopefully soon, Wolfram & Hart would pay for all the damage that it’s done then finally he could go home.
